"Robin McKinley - Rose Daughter" - читать интересную книгу автора (McKinley Robin)

Jeweltongue, to her infinite disgust, found she could neither saw nor hammer straight; but Beauty
could, and Lionheart learnt from Beauty. They rehung doors, patched broken flooring, rebuilt
disintegrating shutters, filled in the gaps in the sillsтАФmostly with planking salvaged from the tumbledown
sheds. As their shabbiest dresses grew more and more ragged, they tied the skirts round their legs till it
was almost as if they wore trousers; they wrapped themselves up in the old silver-polishing tunics that
had once belonged to their major-domo; their hair they bound back severely, and Lion-heart threatened
to cut hers off. тАЬLong hair is a silly fashion for ladies who have nothing better to do with their time than
pin it up and lake it down,тАЭ she said.
тАЬI like my long hair,тАЭ said Beauty.
тАЬYou have very beautiful hair,тАЭ said Lionheart. тАЬI used to thinkтАФbefore we shared a bedroomтАФI
used to think it must shine in the dark, it has such a glow to it. Mine is just hair.тАЭ
Their father was still frail and spent most of his days and evenings near the smaller fire, in the area
which they used as their sitting-room. His was the one comfortable chair, but none of the three sisters
ever sat still long enough to enjoy a comfortable chairтАФsaid LionheartтАФso he might as well have it, or it
would be wasted. As he began to grow a little stronger, he found a pen and a little ink and some bits of
half-used paper, and began to write things down on them, and murmur to himself. But his eyes were now
more often clear than they were not, and he recognised each of his daughters as herself and no one else,
and they began to feel hopeful of his eventual recoveryтАФas they had not for the long sad weary time just
pastтАФand went about their work with lighter hearts as a result.
Jeweltongue and Beauty at first were the only ones to venture to Longchance. тАЬWe donтАЩt all three
need to go, and Father canтАЩt,тАЭ said Lionheart, тАЬand you two are much better at saying the right thing to
the right person than I amтАФyou know you are.тАЭ
тАЬWhat you mean is, we can come home and tell you who is going to vex you into shouting, so you
can refuse to have anything to do with them and leave the work of it to us,тАЭ said Jeweltongue.
Lionheart grinned, then sobered. тАЬYes, youтАЩre rightтАФyou nearly always are, itтАЩs one of your greatest
faultsтАФbut, you know, we canтАЩt afford to... to annoy anyone here. IтАЩll try to be polite, but when some
buffoon is yammering away at me, my mind goes blank of anything but wanting to knock тАШem down and
sit on тАЬem.тАЭ
So Jeweltongue and Beauty went alone to sell their horses and waggon, leaving Lionheart
experimenting with lashing together an assortment of short whippy poles cut from the saplings they had
begun clearing from round the house. There were still birdsтАЩ-nests in one of the flues of the kitchen
chimney, which they had thus far failed in reaching from either end, although Lionheart had managed to
begrime herself thoroughly with soot, nest fragments, and bird droppings once already, with her last lot of
lashed poles.
тАЬYouтАЩll come home to two fully functioning chimneys,тАЭ she promised, тАЬor IтАЩm going to drown myself
in the well. Although if I succeed. I may inadvertently have drowned myself anyway, trying to rasp the
feculence off me again.тАЭ
тАЬCouldnтАЩt we look for a greenwitch to sell us a charm for the chimney?тАЩтАЩ said Jeweltongue, dropping
her voice after a quick glance at their father, who was chewing the end of his pen and scowling furiously
at his scrap of paper.
тАЬWith what money?тАЭ said Lionheart, testing the whip-piness of one of her poles with a muttered тАЬтАШTis
enough to try the patience of a saint.тАЭ
тАЬYou wouldnтАЩt know,тАЭ said Jeweltongue. тАЬA witchтАЩs charm must be cheaper than having your body
fouling our well.тАЭ
тАЬI will take pains not to drown myself,тАЭ said Lionheart. тАЬNow go away before I bite you.тАЭ
Jewel tongue, while her sisters had been busy with repairs lo the house, had spent her time cutting
and sewing rough but sturdy shins out of the several bolts of material they had found slowed in the back
of the housekeeperтАЩs wardrobe. тАЬWhat in sky or on earth did she want with such stuff?тАЭ said Lionheart
on discovery.
тАЬPerhaps her secret lover is a poacher. It would make a splendid poacherтАЩs jacket,тАЭ said