CHAPTER XXXIV THE MUSIC OF TWO COURTYARDS

 AND so it was that Paul and Sara did not spend their honeymoon¹ in Paris as they had at first intended, but travelled direct through without stopping to the Casa di Corleone on the banks of Lake Como.

 

It was in the purple and crimson² of a sunset that Paul first saw the courtyard, and the golden oranges among their dark green leaves, and the marble fauns and nymphs, and heard the plashing of the fountain. The crimson light from the sky was touching³ the white marble of the figures, transforming them momentarily to the warm flush of life. Sara and Paul passed between them and up the steps of the old house into the great hall where the smiling Italian servants were ready to greet them, and where from the gallery above the haughty⁴ ladies of the house of Corleone looked down upon the two, and where from among them the portrait of the now true owner of the place glowed like a great blue sapphire⁵.

 

And a couple of hours later they came into the dining-room, where shaded lamps filled the place with a soft mellow⁶ light, and shed their glow on the white damask cloth, on the shining glass and silver, on decanters of red wine, and on dishes of golden oranges. Soft-footed low-voiced servants waited on them. It was a magic scene, over which the gods of Love and Joy reigned⁷ supreme⁸.

 

And later still, the moon rose in the night sky, bathing the lake in silver, touching the marble statues to unearthly whiteness, and finding its way through a great window where two figures stood together looking at its light upon the sleeping lake. Behind them the room was full of flickering⁹ lights and shadows from a fire of fir-cones burning on the hearth¹⁰.

 

And at last Sara turned from the strange beauty of the scene, and saw Paul’s eyes upon her.

 

“Are you—content?” she asked.

 

“Beloved of my heart,” he said, and his arms closed round her.

 

And so the Music of the Heart again filled the room, playing in glorious and most perfect harmony for the two whom the Gods had blessed.

 

And far away in England, in a studio in another courtyard, Aunt Olive was putting a question to Barnabas, while Pippa was lying asleep in the inner room.

 

“Now that Paul and Sara will have reached the Casa di Corleone,” she said, “and Alan and Aurora¹¹ are cooing together, and Jasper and Bridget have found happiness, I wonder what is going to become of you and Dan and Michael.”

 

 

“You want to wind us up tidily, too,” said Barnabas, smiling.

 

“I was just wondering,” she said.

 

“Well,” said Barnabas, “Michael has his music and his drawing, and, at last, an ideal which will be his throughout his life. Dan will always be what he is now—big, silent, making harmless love to all women (he has been flirting¹² disgracefully with Bridget, and Jasper has been quite refreshingly¹³ jealous), and always he will be a staunch friend of those who need him. And I, for the next few years, will turn my whole attention to your candidates for the School of a Wonderful Chance, and later——” he stopped.

 

“And later?” asked Aunt Olive.

 

“And later,” said Barnabas, “I hope to ask you for Pippa.”

 

And through the half-open window the little faun heard the words. And under the stars he piped a tune¹⁴ of the fairy tale of life, a tune of love and laughter, whose notes reached the soul of the sculptor¹⁵ who had fashioned him, and hearing the music he was glad.

1 honeymoon   

n.蜜月（假期）；vi.度蜜月

参考例句：

• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
• The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。

2 crimson   

n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色

参考例句：

• She went crimson with embarrassment.她羞得满脸通红。
• Maple leaves have turned crimson.枫叶已经红了。

3 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

4 haughty   

adj.傲慢的，高傲的

参考例句：

• He gave me a haughty look and walked away.他向我摆出傲慢的表情后走开。
• They were displeased with her haughty airs.他们讨厌她高傲的派头。

5 sapphire   

n.青玉，蓝宝石；adj.天蓝色的

参考例句：

• Now let us consider crystals such as diamond or sapphire.现在让我们考虑象钻石和蓝宝石这样的晶体。
• He left a sapphire ring to her.他留给她一枚蓝宝石戒指。

6 mellow   

adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟

参考例句：

• These apples are mellow at this time of year.每年这时节，苹果就熟透了。
• The colours become mellow as the sun went down.当太阳落山时，色彩变得柔和了。

7 reigned   

vi.当政，统治（reign的过去式形式）

参考例句：

• Silence reigned in the hall. 全场肃静。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Night was deep and dead silence reigned everywhere. 夜深人静，一片死寂。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

9 flickering   

adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的

参考例句：

• The crisp autumn wind is flickering away. 清爽的秋风正在吹拂。
• The lights keep flickering. 灯光忽明忽暗。

10 hearth   

n.壁炉炉床，壁炉地面

参考例句：

• She came and sat in a chair before the hearth.她走过来，在炉子前面的椅子上坐下。
• She comes to the hearth,and switches on the electric light there.她走到壁炉那里，打开电灯。

11 aurora   

n.极光

参考例句：

• The aurora is one of nature's most awesome spectacles.极光是自然界最可畏的奇观之一。
• Over the polar regions we should see aurora.在极地高空,我们会看到极光。

12 flirting   

v.调情，打情骂俏( flirt的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Don't take her too seriously; she's only flirting with you. 别把她太当真，她只不过是在和你调情罢了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• 'she's always flirting with that new fellow Tseng!" “她还同新来厂里那个姓曾的吊膀子！ 来自子夜部分

13 refreshingly   

adv.清爽地，有精神地

参考例句：

• Hers is less workmanlike than the other books and refreshingly unideological. 她的书不像其它书那般精巧，并且不涉及意识形态也让人耳目一新。 来自互联网
• Skin is left refreshingly clean with no pore-clogging residue. 皮肤留下清爽干净，没有孔隙堵塞残留。 来自互联网

14 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

15 sculptor   

n.雕刻家，雕刻家

参考例句：

• A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
• The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。