Питер Пен / Peter Pan

”

Wendy begged him to stay. He came back, and there was a greedy look in his eyes. Peter gripped her and began to draw her toward the window.

“Let me go![33 - Let me go! – Отпусти меня!]” she ordered him.

“Come, Wendy! Come with me and tell the other boys. You can tell us all the stories there, and darn our clothes, and tuck us in at night.”

“Oh dear, I can’t. Think of Mummy! Besides, I can’t fly.”

“I’ll teach you. I’ll teach you how to jump on the wind’s back, and then away we go.”

This was too much for her.

“Wendy, Wendy, when you are sleeping in your silly bed you could fly with me and talk to the stars.”

“Oo!”

“And, Wendy, there are mermaids.”

“Mermaids! With tails?”

“Such long tails.”

“Oh,” cried Wendy, “to see a mermaid!”

“Wendy,” said Peter, “we shall all respect you.”

“Peter, will you teach John and Michael to fly as well?”

“Yes, if you like,” he said indifferently, and she ran to John and Michael and shook them. “Wake up,” she cried, “Peter Pan is here, and he will teach us to fly.

John rubbed his eyes. “Then I shall get up,” he said. Of course he was on the floor already. “Hallo,” he said. Michael woke up, too.

“Peter,” asked John. “Can you really fly?”

Peter flew around the room.

“How sweet![34 - How sweet! – Как мило!]” cried Wendy.

“Yes, I’m sweet, oh, I am sweet!” said Peter.

Children tried to fly from the floor and then from the beds, but they always went down instead of up.

“How do you do it?” asked John.

“I must blow the fairy dust on you,” and Peter blew some on each of them.

“Now just wiggle your shoulders,” he said, “and let go.”

So they tried, and found that they could fly; just a little at first, from the bed to the floor and back again; then over the bed and across the room. “Oh, lovely! We can fly! Look at me!”

“Look at me!”

“Look at me!”

“Let’s fly out!” cried John.

Michael was ready, but Wendy hesitated.

“Mermaids!” said Peter again.

“Oo!”

“And there are pirates.”

“Pirates,” cried John “let us go at once[35 - let us go at once – летим немедленно].”

“Tink, lead the way!” called Peter. None of the children had time to put on their day clothes, but John snatched his top hat as he flew out of the window, followed by Michael. Peter Pan held Wendy’s hand, and away they floated into the dark blue depths of the starry night.

A minute afterwards Mrs.