Элизабет Джордж Спир - The Witch of Blackbird Pond / Ведьма с пруда Черных Дроздов. 10-11 классы

• Название: The Witch of Blackbird Pond / Ведьма с пруда Черных Дроздов. 10-11 классы
• Автор: Элизабет Джордж Спир
• Жанр: Исторические приключения
• Год: 2014
• ISBN: 978-5-94962-263-6

Осиротевшая шестнадцатилетняя Кит Тайлет покидает родной Барбадос и отправляется в Новый Свет на поиски своих единственных родственников, которых она прежде никогда не видела. Но в колониальном Коннектикуте 1687 года своевольной и жизнерадостной девушке никак не найти себе место. Наконец, Кит посчастливилось обрести родственную душу, когда она знакомится с загадочной отшельницей Ханной, которую местные жители считают ведьмой. Однако её радость длится недолго.

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“You surprise me, Kit,” Mercy said. “You must have surprised Mr. Kimberley, too. He doesn’t normally change his mind.”

“I surprised myself,” Kit laughed. “I think I was bewitched.”

“Bewitched?”

“Yes. I met the witch who lives in the meadow. It was she who gave me the courage.”

Mercy and her mother exchanged glances. “You mean you talked with her?”

“I went into her house and ate her food. But I was joking about being bewitched. She’s the nicest person I have ever met.”

“Kit,” Aunt Rachel said seriously. “I think you should not say anything to the others about meeting this woman. That is just gossip that she’s a witch. But no one in Wethersfield has anything to do with Hannah Tupper because she is a Quaker.[2] The Quakers are strange people. They don’t believe in some of the things we believe in.”

“Why, Aunt Rachel? What difference does that make? Has she ever done anything bad?”

Rachel looked down. “No, probably not, but there’s been talk. Quakers bring trouble wherever they go. They speak against our faith. In Boston, I’ve heard, they even hanged some Quakers. This Hannah Tupper and her husband were branded and forced to leave Massachusetts. They were thankful just to be let alone here in Wethersfield. Kit, I know your uncle would be very angry about this. Promise me that you won’t go there again.”

All Kit’s fine thoughts about trying to understand and to be patient have disappeared, and already she felt rebellious again. “I can’t promise that, Aunt Rachel,” she said unhappily. “Hannah was good to me, and she’s very lonely.”

“You are very young, child,” insisted Rachel. “You don’t understand how sometimes evil can seem innocent. It is dangerous for you to see that woman. You must believe me.”

On the way home through the meadow everything had seemed so simple, and here it was all complicated again. Only one thing Kit was sure of. She had found a secret place, a place of freedom, clear sunlight and peace. Nothing and no one would stop her from going back to that place again.

Should she tell William Ashby about Hannah? No, he would probably be horrified. William was still a stranger to her, although he came every Saturday evening and even on some evenings during the week. She would like to tell John Holbrook, she thought, but there was never a moment when she could speak to him alone. John often joined the family as they sat outside in the evening. He had never asked formal permission to come. There had never been any sign that John was seeing Judith, but sometimes he agreed to her proposal to go for a walk in the twilight. That was all Judith needed to show the whole family John’s intentions. Even her father could tell that Judith was in love, although she had never said anything. Kit thought that, compared to ambitious William, the young biblical scholar was unsuitable for Judith’s high hopes. Probably, Kit decided now, it wouldn’t be good to tell John about Hannah Tupper.

Soon Kit started waiting for another opportunity to visit the Meadows. With Mr. Kimberley’s permission she was teaching the school again. There were no more stories, no games, not even small poems. After school the girls weeded the gardens and helped to harvest the first crop. Finally, one hot afternoon, Kit and Judith finished their weeding of onion rows a little early. As they started walking back along the path, Kit looked across the fields to the house by Blackbird Pond and knew what she would do now. “I am going there to see Hannah Tupper,” she informed Judith.

“The witch? Are you crazy, Kit?” her cousin protested.

“She’s not a witch! She’s just a lonely old woman, and you would like her if you knew her,” Kit said. “Come with me now and see for yourself.”

“I would never step inside that house, and I don’t think you should either. Father would be furious,” refused Judith.

“Then go home without me. I won’t be long,” said Kit and started walking through the long grass, leaving her cousin standing in the path.

* * *

“Sit down, child,” Hannah welcomed Kit in, smiling as if she was expecting her. “Are you feeling better now?”

“Yes, I think so. The schoolmaster let me teach again, but forbade any plays. Mr. Kimberley says that children are evil by nature and that they need a firm hand. But it’s not much fun to be so solemn all day.”

Hannah was sorting some flax now. Kit picked up the sleeping cat. The late afternoon sun shone through the open door. Peace flowed into Kit, and she felt warm and happy. “Did you grow the flax yourself?” she asked.

“Some of the families in town bring me their flax to spin,” Hannah explained. “I don’t charge them much – just enough to pay the land taxes and the fines for not going to Meeting.”

“Fines?” Kit was surprised. “Maybe you should go to Meeting instead?”

“They wouldn’t welcome me,” Hannah said, “even if I decided to go. In Massachusetts we, Quakers, had our own meetings.”

“Actually, I’d rather pay fines than go to Meeting. Can I become a Quaker too?”

But before the old woman could answer, a shadow fell across the sunlit floor.

A tall figure was standing in the doorway. Kit jumped up. There, at the door, unbelievably, was Nathaniel Eaton, the captain’s son, with a smile in his blue eyes. “I might have known,” he said, “that you two would find each other.”

Hannah’s face shone with pleasure. “I knew you would come today,” she said. “I saw the Dolphin pass the island this morning. Kit, my dear, this is the sailor friend I told you about.”

Nat bowed. “Mistress Tyler and I are already acquainted,” he said.

“Bless you, Nat,” Hannah said quietly. “Now sit down and tell us how your father is.”

“He is well and sends you his greetings.”

“I said to Thomas just yesterday, ’Tom, I’m going to save the last of these berries because the Dolphin will come soon.’ He’ll be pleased when I tell him you’ve been here.”

Kit’s suddenly realized that Hannah had spoken as if her husband, so long dead, were still here, in the little house. A cloud had passed across the old woman’s eyes. Kit looked at Nat, but he didn’t seem to have noticed anything unusual because he was examining Kit with interest. “Tell me,” he asked her, “how did they let you come to Hannah?”

Kit paused, and Hannah laughed, “It’s a strange thing, that the only two friends I have, I found in the same way – lying in the meadows, crying.”

The young people stared at each other. “You?” asked Kit, astonished. “Were you running away?”

Nat laughed. “I was only eight years old,” he explained. “It was when I quarreled with my father once. I’d never in my life seen anything like the meadows. I ran and ran, but then suddenly I was hungry, lost and scared. Hannah found me and brought me here. She even gave me a kitten to take back home.”

“Did Hannah give you her blueberry cake, too?”

“It’s Hannah’s magic cure for every problem,” Nat said. “A blueberry cake and a kitten.”

“And now you can both have supper with me,” said Hannah, delighted.

Kit looked at the sun. “Oh, dear!” she cried. “I didn’t realize it was time for supper.”

Hannah smiled at her. “God be with you then, child,” she said softly. She did not need to say more. They both knew that Kit would come back. Nat followed Kit to the door. “You didn’t say what you were running away from,” he asked her. “Has it been so bad here in Wethersfield?”

Kit didn’t want to complain. “Of course not,” she said. “My aunt and uncle have been very kind.”

Nat walked Kit to the road. “Whatever it was,” he suddenly said seriously, “I’m glad you ran to Hannah. She needs you. Keep her company, will you?”

Kit hurried home. What a surprise meeting it was! She had known nothing about Nat, and she would never know what to expect from him next.

Chapter Eleven

When one day Judith invited Kit to go with some girls to pick flowers and picnic along the shore of the river, Kit turned to Mercy and asked impulsively, “How can you bear it, always staying behind?”

Mercy answered her calmly, “Oh, I settled that a long time ago. I remember it very well. Father had taken me outside, and I sat watching the children playing. I thought of all the things I would never be able to do. And then I thought about the things that I could do.”

Teaching the children with love and skill was certainly something that Mercy could do. But Kit often wondered if it was worth it. Most of these children will never have any chances in this world. But there was something else on Kit’s mind: the third time that week a little bunch of flowers was left for her on the doorstep. Who could it be from? As she bent to pick them up this time, she noticed a small figure hiding behind a tree. Kit recognized Prudence Cruff.

“Prudence,” she called. “Are these your flowers?”

The child came slowly from behind the tree. She was much thinner than before. “They are for you,” the girl whispered.

“Thank you. They’re lovely. Why don’t you come to the school with the others?”

“Ma says that I’m too stupid,” said Prudence. “Of course I’d like to, but somebody will tell on me, and Ma will beat me. I’m not supposed to talk to you.”

Suddenly, Kit had an idea. “There is a place where you could meet me secretly!” she said. “Can you come to the Meadows?”

Prudence nodded. “Nobody cares where I go.”

“Then if you meet me there this afternoon, I’ll bring you a book and teach you to read it. You know the path that leads to Blackbird Pond?”

“The witch lives there!” cried Prudence.

“Don’t be silly! She’s a nice old woman. There’s a big willow tree, and I’ll wait for you there.”

* * *

This was the third time Kit and Prudence were sitting in the shade of the old tree. At first Prudence had been scared and speechless. But now she was learning the letters so fast that Kit was amazed. “It’s late, Prudence. We must go back. You can take the book, if you like,” Kit said, ending the lesson.

“Ma will never let me have it,” the little girl said.

“I know what we’ll do then,” Kit suggested. “We’ll leave the book here with Hannah. Then any time you want to use it, you can come and get it from her.”

The child was terrified. Kit tried again, “Come with me. I promise you, no one will hurt you.”

Together they walked up the path to the little hut. “I’ve brought another friend to visit you,” Kit announced, as Hannah came to the door.

Hannah’s eyes twinkled. “What a wonderful day!” she said to the girls. “Four new kittens, and now visitors! If you’re very careful, child, you can pick one up and hold it.”

With a black kitten in her hands, Prudence watched them find a place for her book.

“You are welcome any time, child. I’ll keep your book safe for you. Now, there is a piece of blueberry cake for such a smart pupil.”

Kit smiled to see the cake and the kitten working their magic on Prudence. But there was one more secret ingredient in this cure: love.

“Why do they call her a witch?” Prudence asked when she and Kit were walking back home.

“Because they don’t know her. People are afraid of things they don’t understand.”

“I see,” Prudence said finally. “I think Hannah is lonely. Of course, she can talk to the cat, but sometimes she must want somebody to answer her.”

For a moment Kit was doubtful. What was she doing, teaching Prudence behind Goodwife Cruff’s back? As always, she had acted on impulse, never thinking about the consequences. Now it was too late. Yet Prudence had looked so happy. She needed a friend. Wasn’t that worth a little risk?

* * *

Kit walked home to spend another dull evening with William. He could talk only about his house these days. Every evening he reported which trees had been cut. Sometimes Kit wanted to cover her ears. She was tired of the house already, even before it was built. Judith, however, took much interest in such details, as if she was comparing it with the house she dreamed for herself.

When the young people all sat together, John Holbrook would bring something to read to them. He loved to read aloud, and they were happy to listen. For all of them the days were filled only with hard work, and the books that John read to them had opened a window to the world. Listening to his voice, Kit thought that John had already become a part of the family. They all liked him now. Yet Uncle Matthew still thought he was weak. For John everything in his life, even the girl he marries, would always be second to his work. Does Judith understand that? Or does she think she can change him?

Suddenly, Kit made a discovery. Mercy sat, as usual, in the shadow beside the fireplace. Her beautiful eyes were fixed on the face of the young man reading from his book. For an instant Kit could look into Mercy’s heart: she was clearly in love with John Holbrook! Kit quickly looked around at the others. Judith sat dreaming with a little secret smile on her face. No one else had noticed. Kit thought that she must have imagined it and wished she hadn’t seen it. Yet she knew she would never forget it as long as she lived. The flame burning in Mercy’s eyes was so pure, so selfless, that Kit felt very sad. Mercy and John Holbrook! How right and how impossible! What must it be to care for someone like that?

Chapter Twelve

School ended in mid-August, and a hundred new jobs waited to be done. Often Kit, Judith and Rachel worked side by side with Matthew in the fields until sunset, and there was not the time to visit Prudence and Hannah.

One sunny day Kit finally had a whole free afternoon. She was walking out the door when her aunt called her, “Where are you going, Kit?”

Kit looked down, not answering.

“Wait,” her aunt said then. “I don’t approve it at all. But I can’t help it either.” She went into the kitchen and brought a small package. It was a piece of apple pie. So Aunt Rachel had known! Kit hugged her aunt and went out. She had hoped to find Prudence at the Blackbird Pond, but instead, as she came around the corner of the cottage, she saw Nat Eaton. “Oh,” she exclaimed, confused, “I didn’t know the Dolphin was here again.”

Hannah stood in the doorway. “More company!” she said happily. “Come inside, you two.”

“Not yet,” Nat said. “The next job is to fix that old thatched roof.”

“Can I help?” Kit asked.

Nat’s eyebrow lifted. “Maybe you could,” he replied. “You can gather the grass while I cut.”

Together they went into the swamp to gather long grass. Then back at the cottage Kit surprised Nat by climbing the ladder on to the rooftop after him where they managed to fix the roof very quickly. When the job was done, they just sat on the roof and rested, looking at the sunny meadows and the river. This was the way Kit used to feel in Barbados. Light as air! For a long time neither of them spoke. “The river is so blue today,” she said finally. “Just like in Barbados.”

“Homesick?” asked Nat.

“Not here,” she answered. “Not when I’m in the meadow, or with Hannah.”

He turned to look at her. “How has it been, Kit?” he asked seriously. “I mean really. Are you sorry you came?”