Chapter 15 15. The Story of Kashtanka
A sorrel puppy, a dachshund-guard dog cross, with a remarkably foxlike muzzle, ran up and down the sidewalk, looking around uneasily.Now and then it would stop, whine, and lift up now one frozen paw, now the other, trying to figure out what was going on, how had it gotten lost?
It remembered exactly how the day had passed and how it ended up on this unfamiliar sidewalk.
This is how the day began: its master, the joiner Luca Alexandritch, put on his hat, held a piece of joinery wrapped in a red kerchief under his arm, and cried: "Ka! Stanka, let's go!"
At the sound of his name, the dachshund and watchdog mongrel emerged from under the workbench (where it was lying on the shavings), stretched itself comfortably, and ran after its master.Luca Alexandritch's clients lived so far away that the joiner had to visit the tavern several times to refresh himself before each one.Kashtanka remembers his unseemly behavior along the way.Because the owner took it out for a walk, it jumped up and down with joy, barked and rushed over to the public carriage, ran into other people's yard several times, and chased other dogs.Often the joiner, out of sight of it, stopped and called to it angrily.Once, with an expression of relief on his face, he even grabbed its fox-like ear, twisted it for a while, and said word by word: "Call...you...dead...good! Damn it!"
After the visit to the client's house, Luca Alexandritch stopped by to see his sister, and had a drink and something to eat at her house.Coming out of his sister's house, he went to visit his friend the nailer again.From the stapler's house to the tavern.After leaving the tavern, he went to find his god-in-law, and so on.In short, when Kashtanka came to this unfamiliar sidewalk, it was getting dark and the joiner was already drunk.He waved his arms, let out his breath, and muttered in his mouth: "My mother gave birth to me, a crime! Alas, crime, crime! Now we are walking on the street, we can see the street lights, and when we die-- We are going to burn in hell."
Or he resumed his kindly tone, called the dog to him, and said to it: "You, Kashtanka, are nothing but a caterpillar. You are compared to a man as a carpenter is to a joiner. "
Just as he was talking to the dog, music suddenly sounded.Kashtanka looked back and saw a group of soldiers walking towards it in the street.The music stimulated its nerves, and it couldn't stand it, so anxious it ran back and forth, whining and wailing.To his amazement, the Joiner was not frightened, nor shouted, nor barked, but grinned, puffed out his chest, and raised his five fingers to the brim of his hat.Seeing that her master did not resist, Kashtanka yelled more fiercely, lost her head for a while, and ran across the street to the sidewalk opposite.
When it woke up, there was no music, and the soldiers were gone. It hurried across the street to the place where it had left its master, but, woe!The joiner is no more.It ran forward, turned around, ran back, and crossed the street again, but the joiner seemed to have slipped into a crack in the ground... Kashtanka began to sniff the pavement carefully, hoping to find the smell of his master's footprints , but a scoundrel passed here in a new pair of galoshes just now, and now all the subtle smells are mixed with the pungent rubber stench, and nothing can be distinguished.
Kashtanka ran back and forth, but failed to find her master, and it was completely dark by then.The street lamps on both sides of the street were turned on, and lights were shining from the windows of every house.There was heavy snow in the sky, and the road, horsebacks, and coachman's hats were all dyed white.The darker the sky, the whiter everything appears.Unknown customers kept coming and going, walking past Kashtanka, blocking her view, and sometimes kicking her. (Kashtanka divides all human beings into two very unequal parts: masters and customers. There is a big difference between these two kinds of people: the first has the right to beat it, and the second has the right to bite their calves. ) those patrons hurried on their way and ignored it at all.
It was pitch black, and Kashtanka couldn't help but despair and panic.It huddled in the doorway of a family, sobbing.Because he had been running all day with Luca Alexandritch, he was tired now, his ears and paws were frozen, and besides he was very hungry.He ate only twice that day: once at the bookbinder's for some paste, and once for a little piece of sausage rind found on the counter in a tavern--that's all.If it had been a human being, he would have thought: "No, I can't live like this! I'm going to shoot myself!"
But the puppy didn't think about anything, only whining and sobbing.Just as it was falling asleep from exhaustion with its back and head covered in soft, fluffy snow, suddenly the street door creaked and slammed on it.it jumps up.Through the open street door came a customer or something.With a scream Kashtanka threw herself at his feet, so the man could not fail to notice it.He bent down and approached it, and asked, "Puppy, where did you come from? Did I hurt you? It's so pitiful, pitiful...forget it, don't be angry, don't be angry...it's all my fault."
Kashtanka looked at the stranger through the snowflakes hanging from his eyebrows.It saw a short, fat man with a round, clean-shaven face, wearing a top hat and an unbuttoned fur coat.
"Why are you whining?" he went on, throwing a finger to shake the snow off its back. "Where is your master? You must be lost? Oh, poor little thing! Now what shall we do?" Woolen cloth?"
Kashtanka heard a gentle and kind tone in the stranger's voice, and licked his hand, sobbing even more bitterly.
"You are a fine dog, how ridiculous!" said the stranger, "like a fox! Well, there is no other way, come with me! Maybe you will be useful in the future. . . . Come, go!"
He clicked his lips and made a gesture to Kashtanka which could mean only one thing: "Follow me!" Kashtanka followed him.
After about half an hour, it had crouched in a large bright room.It tilted its head and looked at the stranger with emotion and curiosity; he was sitting at the table eating.As he ate, he tossed it something to eat... First he gave it a bit of bread, a greenish rind of cheese, then a small piece of meat, half a pie, and some chicken bones.He was so hungry that he swallowed all these things quickly, before he could discern the taste, and the more he ate, the hungrier he felt.
"It can be seen that your master didn't feed you well!" said the stranger, watching it gobble up these things without chewing. "You are so thin! Only skin and bones are left..."
Kashtanka ate a lot, but was not full, but satisfied.After eating, he stretched himself comfortably in the middle of the room, and wagging his tail, feeling a pleasurable weariness all over his body.When the new owner stretched out his arms and legs lazily in the armchair, he wagged his tail and thought about a question: Is it better to be at a stranger's place, or at a joiner's house?The stranger's room was sparse and ugly, with nothing but armchairs, a sofa, a lamp, and a rug, so that the room seemed empty.Several of the joiner's rooms are filled with items.He has a table, a workbench, a pile of shavings, a plane, a chisel, a saw, a wee bird in a black cage, and a big washtub... There is no smell in the stranger's place, but the joiner's house is always smoky, and there is Glue, paint, wood shavings, it smells so good.But the Stranger has a great advantage here—he feeds a lot, and, to be fair to him, Kashdanka has been lying at the table, looking at him flatteringly, and he hasn't hit him once. He didn't kick him, never once shouted: "Go away, damn it!"
After smoking a cigar, the new owner went out and returned after a while, holding a small cushion in his hand.
"Hey, puppy, come here!" he said, putting the little cushion in the corner by the sofa. "Lie here and sleep!"
Then he turned off the light and went out.Kashtanka lay comfortably on the cushion and closed her eyes.There was a dog barking in the street, and it wanted to respond a few times, but suddenly asked, and it unexpectedly became sad.It thought of Luka Alexandritch, of his son Fejushka, of the cozy little nest under the workbench... It thought of the long winter nights when the joiner planed wood and sometimes read the newspaper aloud Well, Fetyushka used to play with it... He grabbed it by the hind legs and dragged it out from under the workbench, and played tricks on it, often making it black in the eyes and aching in its bones.He forced it to walk on its hind legs, and played with it as a bell, that is, pulled its tail so hard that it screamed and growled in pain.Sometimes, he kept letting him sniff the snuff... What was particularly unpleasant was the trick: Fedyushka hung a piece of meat from a rope, let Kashtanka eat it, and when he swallowed it, he laughed and ate it. The piece of meat was dragged from its stomach.The more vivid these recollections became; the sadder Kashtanka became, and the louder her sobs became.
But soon the fatigue and warmth overcame the sorrow... and it gradually fell asleep.Among the many dogs running about in his imagination, an old curly-haired dog ran past him.This dog, which he saw on the street today, has a patch of white spots on his eyes and a coat of hair on both sides of his nose.Fetyushka ran after the poodle with the chisel in his hand, and then suddenly grew curly hair all over himself, barked merrily, and stopped beside Kashtanka.Kashtanka and he sniffed each other's noses in a friendly manner, and ran down the street together...
When Kashtanka awoke, it was broad daylight, and from the street there was a noise that only occurs during the day.There was no one in the room.Kashtanka stretched, yawned, walked up and down the room sullenly.It smelled every nook and cranny of the furniture, glanced into the outer room, and found nothing interesting.In addition to the door leading to the outer room, there is another door in this room.Kashtanka stretched out her front paws and scratched at the door. The door opened and she entered another room.Here on the bed lay a customer, covered with a blanket.It recognized that this was the stranger from yesterday.
"Woooo..." It started to get angry, but when it remembered yesterday's dinner, it wagged its tail and smelled everywhere.
He sniffed the stranger's clothes and boots, and noticed that they smelled of horses.There was another door in the bedroom that led to nowhere, and it was also closed.Kashtanka scratched at the door again with her claws and pressed her chest against it, the door opened again, and immediately felt a strange and suspicious smell.Anticipating something unpleasant, Kashtanka whimpered, looked carefully, entered the small room covered with dirty wallpaper, and immediately backed away in fright.It saw an unexpected and terrible scene.A gray goose put its neck and head to the ground, spread its wings, quacked, and came straight to it.Not far from it, a white cat lay on a small cushion.Seeing the puppy, the cat jumped up, arched its back, raised its tail, fluffed its fur, and barked fiercely.The dog was really frightened, but not wanting to show timidity, it barked loudly and rushed towards the cat... The cat arched its back higher, meowed, and stretched out its paw to hit the dog on the head.Kashtanka hurriedly jumped away, lay on all fours, reached for the cat with her muzzle, and screamed loudly.At that moment the goose came up behind it and pecked at its back vigorously with its beak.Kashtanka jumped up again, turned and threw herself at the goose...
"What's going on here?" There was an angry loud voice, and a stranger walked in wearing a nightgown with a cigar in his mouth. "What does this mean? Everyone go back to their original positions!"
He went up to the cat, flicked its arched back with his finger, and said: "What do you mean, Fyodor Timofeyitch? Were there a fight? Well, you old trickster! Lie down." !"
He turned to the goose again and shouted: "Ivan Ivanitch, go back to your place!"
The old cat lay obediently on its little cushion and closed its eyes.Judging from the expression on its face and tentacles, it was dissatisfied with the tantrum just now, and started a fight.Kashtanka whimpered, and the goose stretched its neck and said something quickly, loudly and clearly, but the dog could never understand.
"Okay, okay!" the master yawned and said, "You should get along in harmony and friendship." He stroked Kashtanka and continued, "And you, little red dog, don't be afraid...they are good companions, no Will bully you. Wait a minute, what shall we call you? You can't do without a name, friend."
The stranger thought for a while, and said, "How about this...you'll be called—aunt...do you understand? Auntie!"
He repeated "Auntie" several times and walked out.Kashtanka squatted and began to observe.The old cat lay motionless on the mat, pretending to be asleep.The goose stretched its neck, walked on the spot, and continued to speak rapidly and enthusiastically.Obviously, this is a very smart goose.After every passionate long speech, it always took a step back in surprise, making a look of admiration for its own speech... After listening to its speech, Kashtanka responded with a few "woofs" and then started Smell every corner.In one corner stood a small wooden tub, in which it could see soaked peas and soaked crusts.It tasted the peas, and it was not good; it tasted the crust, and it ate.When the goose saw an unknown dog eating its rations, it was not angry at all. On the contrary, it spoke more enthusiastically, and in order to show its trust, it went to the small pot and ate a few peas.
After a while, the stranger came in again, bringing with him a strange thing, which looked like a door and an alphabet. On the beam of this rough wooden frame hung a bell catch and a pistol fastened.Two strings hung from the pendulum of the bell catch and from the trigger of the pistol.The stranger put the wooden frame in the middle of the room, tied and untied something for a long time, then looked at the goose and said: "Ivan Ivanitch, please!"
The goose came up to him and made a waiting gesture.
"Well," said the stranger, "let's start at the beginning. You bow and curtsey first! Quick!"
Ivan Ivanitch stretched his neck, nodded in all directions, and touched the soles of his feet.
"Okay, good job...now you die!"
The goose lies on its back with its legs raised.A few more of these little tricks were performed, when suddenly the stranger put his head in his arms, and looked startled, and cried, "Help! There's a fire! We're going to burn!"
Ivan Ivanitch ran under the beam and took hold of the rope in his mouth, and the bell rang.
The stranger was very satisfied.He stroked the neck of the goose and said.
"Well done, Ivan Ivanitch! Now suppose you are a jeweler, selling gold, silver and diamonds. Now suppose you go back to your shop and find a thief in it. In such a case, what should you do?" what to do?"
The goose grabbed the other rope with its beak, pulled it, and immediately there was a deafening gunshot.Kashtanka liked the sound of the bell very much, and was even more excited when he heard the sound of the gun, so he ran around the wooden frame, barking.
"Auntie, go back to your original position!" The stranger shouted at it, "Don't make a sound!"
Ivan Ivanitch's tricks did not end with the gunfire.Then the stranger put a rope around the goose's neck, and for a whole hour drove it round and round, cracking his whip.At this time, the goose has to jump over the crossbar, go through the ring, and stand upright like a horse, that is, sit on the ground with one buttocks and wave two goose paws.Kashtanka looked at Ivan Ivanitch intently, barked with joy, and several times ran after him barking loudly.The stranger, who tired the goose and himself, wiped the sweat from his brow, and cried: "Maria, fetch Havronya Ivanovna!"
After a while, there was the sound of gurgling...Kashtanka let out an angry roar and acted bravely, but just to be on the safe side, it walked closer to the stranger.The door opened, an old woman put her head in, said something, and let in a very ugly black pig.It ignored Kashtanka's whining and barking, raised its snout, and gurgled happily.Evidently he was delighted to see his master, the cat, and Ivan Ivanitch.When it walked past the cat, it gently arched its stomach with its pig's snout, and then chatted with the goose.Its movements, tone of voice and trembling little tail all reveal its kindness.Kashtanka understood immediately that it was unnecessary to rage and bark at such a thing.
The master took the wooden frame away and called: "Fyodor Timofeyitch, please!"
The cat stood up, stretched slowly, and walked up to the pig reluctantly, as if to show respect to its owner.
"Okay, now let's start with the Egyptian pyramids," said the master.
He gave a long explanation, then gave the order: One...two...three!At the sound of "three," Ivan Ivanitch flapped his wings and jumped on the pig's back... and when he twisted his neck, flapped his wings, regained his balance, and settled himself on the bristly pig's back, Fyodor Timofeyitch looked contemptuously, as if he thought his skill was worthless, and listlessly and lazily climbed first on the pig's back, then on the goose's. body, raised its front paws and stood upright.This is what strangers call the "Pyramids of Egypt".Kashtanka screamed with excitement, but at that moment the old cat yawned, lost his balance, and fell off the goose.Ivan Ivanitch jerked and fell too.The stranger shouted, waved his arms, and explained again.After working on the pyramid for a full hour, the indefatigable master taught the goose to ride on the cat, the cat to smoke, and so on.
The training was finally over, and the stranger wiped the sweat off his brow and walked out.The old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch sneezed in disgust, lay down on the cushion and closed his eyes.Ivan Ivanitch went up to the basin, and the old woman led the pig away.With all these fresh impressions, Kashtanka's first day passed without knowing it.In the evening he and his little cushion had been settled in the little paper-walled room, where he had spent the night with the old cat and the goose.
A month has passed.
Kashtanka is used to eating a good meal every night, even though her master calls her aunt.It also gets along well with strangers and new companions.Life is very comfortable.
This is how each day begins.Usually Ivan Ivanitch was the first to wake up, and he immediately went up to his aunt or the old cat, bent his neck, and began to speak warmly and earnestly, but the dog still couldn't understand.Sometimes the goose held its head high and delivered a long monologue.In the first few days of their acquaintance, Kashtanka thought that he was very talkative because he was very clever, but after a while he lost all respect for him.The pup stopped wagging his tail when he babbled and came to him, seeing him as a nasty babbler who wouldn't let everyone sleep, so responded with a nonchalant "woo woo woo"... …
Fyodor Timofeyitch was another kind of gentleman.When it woke up, it didn't make a sound, didn't move, and didn't even open its eyes.It had to wake up, because it could be seen that it didn't love life.Nothing interested it, and it was listless and so-so about everything.It scorns everything, and snorts in disgust even when it eats a good meal.
After waking up, Kashtanka ran from room to room, smelling all the corners.Only he and the cat were allowed to move about in the whole house: the goose had no right to step over the threshold of the room covered with dirty wallpaper, and as for Havronya Ivanovna, she lived in a small shed in the back yard. , only brought in during class.The master always woke up very late, and started playing tricks immediately after tea.Moving the frame, the whip, and the ring into the cubby every day is pretty much the same routine.A class always dragged on for three or four hours, so that sometimes Fyodor Timofeyitch staggered from exhaustion as if drunk, and Ivan Ivanitch fell down with his mouth open. Angry, the owner's face was flushed, and the sweat on his forehead couldn't be wiped away.
During the day it was very interesting to eat and eat in class, but at night it was a bit boring.At night, the owner usually goes out and takes the geese and cat with him.The remaining aunt was lying alone on the mat, and began to worry... The melancholy came unknowingly, and gradually filled her heart, just like darkness filled this room.As a result, the puppy doesn't want to bark, eat, run around the house, and doesn't even want to open its eyes to look at things.Later, two vague dog-like and human-like figures appeared in its imagination. They looked kind and lovely, but a little weird.As soon as they appeared, Gu Zhan wagged her tail. It seemed that she had seen them somewhere and loved them... When she fell asleep, she felt the smell of glue, wood shavings and paint on these things every time. .
Kashtanka has completely gotten used to her new life and has changed from a scrawny guard dog to a stout dog with a well-maintained coat.Before a training session, the owner stroked it and said, "Now, Auntie, it's time for us to get down to business. You've had enough loitering. I want you to be an actor... Would you like to be an actor?"
So he began to teach it various skills.In the first lesson, he learned to stand and walk on his hind legs, which he did very happily.In the second lesson, it had to jump on its hind legs and grab a candy bar that the instructor placed above its head.The next few lessons he learned to dance, run in circles on a rope, bark to music, ring bells and fire guns.A month later, it can completely replace the old cat Fyodor Timofeich to build the pyramid.It is happy to learn and is very satisfied with its grades.Putting a rope around his neck, sticking out his tongue, running circles, drilling rings, and riding on the back of the old cat all made him feel great happiness.After each successful trick, it always barked loudly and happily, and the coach also expressed surprise and rubbed his hands together with joy.
"Genius! Genius!" he said. "Definitely a genius! Surely you will succeed!"
My aunt is used to hearing "genius", so whenever the owner said these two words, it always jumped up and looked around, as if this was its nickname.
My aunt had a dream about a dog, in which the janitor picked up a broom and chased it.It woke up.
The room was quiet, dark, and stuffy.And fleas are biting it.My aunt had never been afraid of the dark before, but now she felt frightened for some reason, and really wanted to bark a few times.The owner in the next room sighed loudly, and after a while, the pigs in the small shed began to grunt, and then everything fell silent.The thought of eating made her feel lighter, and my aunt began to recall that today he stole a chicken paw from the old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch and hid it in a crack in the wall behind the cupboard in the living room, where there were A lot of cobwebs and dust, might as well go and see now: is that thing still there?It is likely that the owner found the chicken feet and ate them.But you were not allowed to leave the room before dawn—it was the rule.My aunt closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep quickly, because she knew from experience that as long as she fell asleep quickly, she would wake up quickly in the morning.Suddenly, there was a strange cry not far from it, and it couldn't help but shiver, and jumped up on four legs.It was Ivan Ivanitch calling, and the cry was not so warm and earnest as usual, but strange, harsh, unnatural, like the creaking of a door.Unable to see or understand anything in the dark room, my aunt felt more and more frightened, so she roared angrily: "Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo..."
After a while, which is usually the time after eating a good bone, the screaming stopped.My aunt gradually calmed down and began to doze off.It dreamed of two big black dogs with wisps of last year's hair still growing on their thighs and waists.They gobbled up the swill around a large wooden basin, and the swill was still steaming hot, and the smell was very fragrant.Sometimes they turned their heads to look at aunt, bared their teeth, and growled, "We won't give you food!" But a man in a leather jacket ran from the house and drove them away with a whip.At this time, my aunt approached the wooden basin to eat the slop, but as soon as the man entered the gate, two black dogs roared and rushed towards him, and suddenly there was another piercing scream.
"Quack! Quack!" cried Ivan Ivanitch.
My aunt woke up, jumped up, and made a sound of mourning without leaving the mat.It already felt that it was not Ivan Ivanitch who was screaming, but something else and something else.For some reason, the pig in the small shed started grunting again.
At this moment there was a rustle of sandals, and the master came in in his dressing-gown, with a candle in his hand.The flickering candlelight danced on the dirty wallpaper and ceiling, chasing away the darkness.The aunt saw that there was nothing irrelevant in the room.Ivan Ivanitch lay on the floor without sleeping.Its wings were splayed ungainly, its mouth was gaping open, and in general it looked terribly tired and sleepy.The old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch was not asleep either.Presumably it too was woken up by the screaming.
"Ivan Ivanitch, what's the matter with you?" asked the master, "what's your name? Are you sick?"
The goose was silent.The owner touched its neck, stroked its back, and said, "You are a weird guy! You don't sleep and you don't let others sleep."
The master went out and took away the light, and it was dark again in the room.My aunt was terrified.The geese stopped barking, but the puppy still felt that there was something different standing in the darkness.The most frightening thing is that it can't bite that thing, because no one can see it, it is invisible.Somehow it had a premonition that something sinister would happen that night.The old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch was also disturbed.My aunt heard that it kept moving on the mat, yawning and shaking its head.
Someone knocked on the door somewhere on the street, and the pigs in the small shed were calling again.Auntie barked loudly, stretched out her front paws, and rested her head on them.The knocking at the door, the cooing of a pig that could not sleep for some reason, the darkness, the silence, all seemed to him as bleak and terrible as Ivan Ivanitch's cry.The surrounding atmosphere is panic and uneasy, why is that?What is this invisible invisible thing?At this time, two dim green dots suddenly flashed beside my aunt.This was the first time that the old cat, Fyodor Timofeyitch, had walked by his side since the acquaintance.What does it need?Auntie licked the cat's paw, and without asking what it was doing, she barked softly with several tones.
"Quack!" cried Ivan Ivanitch again, "quack!"
The door opened again, and the master came in with a candle.The goose is still in its original posture, with its wings spread and its mouth open.Its eyes are closed.
"Ivan Ivanitch! What's the matter? You're going to die, aren't you? Oh, I remember now, I remember!" he cried, clasping his head, "I know why! It's because you've been trodden today. My God, my God!"
Auntie couldn't understand the master's words, but she could tell from his face that he also expected something terrible to happen.It put its muzzle toward the dark window, and it seemed to feel that something was looking in through the window, and it barked mournfully.
"It's going to die, auntie!" said the master, clasping his hands lightly in grief. "Yes, yes, it's going to die! Death has come to your room. What shall we do?"
The pale and anxious master walked back to his bedroom, sighing and shaking his head.My aunt was afraid of staying in the dark room, so she followed him.The master sat down on the bed and repeated several times: "My God, what can I do?"
Aunt walked up and down at his feet, not understanding why she was so depressed, or why everyone was so disturbed, she tried her best to find out, and paid attention to every movement of her master.The old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch, who seldom left the mat, followed his master into the bedroom this time, rubbing against his master's legs.The cat kept shaking its head, as if trying to shake the heavy thoughts out of it, and looked under the bed suspiciously.
The master took a small saucer, poured a little water from the basin into it, and walked up to the goose again.
"Drink, Ivan Ivanitch!" he said softly, putting the saucer in front of it. "Drink some water, my dear."
But Ivan Ivanitch did not move or open his eyes.The master put its head on the saucer and soaked its beak in the water, but the goose didn't drink the water, and its wings became even bigger, so its head remained on the saucer.
"It can't be done, it's hopeless!" sighed the host. "It's all over. Ivan Ivanitch is dead!"
Two rows of shiny drops fell from his face, like the raindrops that often fall on the windows when it rains.Not knowing what was the matter, the aunt and the old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch leaned close to their master's feet and looked at the goose with fear.
"Poor Ivan Ivanitch!" sighed the master sadly. "I have been looking forward to the spring to take you to the dacha, and to walk with you on the green meadows. Lovely animal, my dear." Partner, but you are gone! What would I do now without you?"
Auntie seems to think that one day it will also have this kind of thing, that is, it will also close its eyes for no reason, spread its legs apart, and show its teeth like a goose, making people feel scared when looking at it.Evidently, such thoughts were also passing through the mind of old cat Fyodor Timofeyitch.At this moment, the old cat's face was gloomy and gloomy, which had never happened before.
The sky was getting brighter, and the invisible thing that frightened my aunt was no longer in the house.When it was completely dawn, the porter came in, took the goose leg, and took it somewhere.Then the old woman came and took the bowl away.
My aunt ran to the living room and looked behind the cabinet: the owner hadn't eaten the chicken feet, it was still in the old place full of dust and cobwebs.But my aunt only felt bored and sad, and wished she could cry.It didn't even smell the chicken feet, it got under the sofa, squatted there, and barked in a low, mournful voice: "Woo... woo... woo..."
One night, the owner walked into the room with the dirty wallpaper, rubbed his hands and said, "Okay..."
He wanted to say something more, but walked out without making a sound.My aunt had studied the master's face and tone of voice well in class, and guessed at this moment that he was excited, worried, and seemed a little angry.Presently he came back again and said: "To-day I will take my aunt and Fyodor Timofeyitch out. And you, aunt, will take the place of the dead Ivan Ivanitch when the pyramid is built. Who knows what will happen! No preparation, no practice, very little rehearsal! We are going to make a fool of ourselves, we are going to be unlucky!"
With that he went out again, and returned a moment later in a fur coat and a top hat.He went up to the cat, grabbed it by the front legs, lifted it up, and hid it in the fur coat on his breast.At this moment Fyodor Timofeyitch looked so cold that he did not even bother to open his eyes.It seems that to it, it doesn't matter whether it is lying down, having its legs raised, lying on a small cushion, or being stuffed into its owner's fur coat...
"Auntie, let's go," said the master.
My aunt didn't understand anything, so she followed him wagging her tail.After a while, it was already on the sled, squatting at the master's feet, watching him shrink from the cold for a while, listening to him chatting excitedly: "We are going to make a fool of ourselves! We are going to be unlucky!"
The sleigh stopped before a large, queer house, like an upside-down soup box.The wide entrance with three glass doors was brightly illuminated by a dozen or so lamps.The glass door made a knocking sound and opened continuously, like three big mouths, swallowing the people crowded at the entrance.There were a lot of people, and there were carriages parked outside the gate from time to time, but no dogs were seen.
The owner grabbed the aunt's front paw, stuffed it into his arms, and stayed with the old cat.The fur coat was dark and stuffy, but warm.Then suddenly two pale green dots flashed—the old cat's eyes had been opened by the puppy's hard, cold paws.It turned out that my aunt was licking its ears. It wanted to be more comfortable, so it twisted its body uneasily, and when it retracted its legs, it stepped on the old cat with its cold paws.Inadvertently, it poked its head out of the coat, then barked angrily, and quickly drew it back.It seemed to see a large unlit room full of strange things.Behind the partitions and fences on both sides of the room, there are many terrible faces protruding: some have horse faces, some have a pair of horns, some have very long ears, and there is a fat head with a long nose where it should be. Tail, with two long, gnawed bones protruding from its mouth.
The old cat meowed hoarsely under the aunt's paws, but at that moment the coat was opened, and the master said, "Get down!" Fyodor Timofeyitch and the aunt jumped to the ground.现在他们待在一间灰木板小屋里。这里除了一张不大的、带镜子的桌子、一张凳子和挂在墙角的几件旧衣服外，什么家具也没有。屋里没有灯和蜡烛，只有固定在墙上的小管子里发出扇面形的亮光。费奥多尔·季莫费伊奇舔着被姑姑弄乱的皮毛，走到凳子底下，躺下了。主人依旧激动不安，不断搓手，开始脱衣服……他像平常在家里准备躺进毛毯时那样脱光了衣服，也就是脱得只剩下贴身的衣裤。随后坐到凳子上，照着镜子，在自己身上变出了许多古怪的戏法。他先往头上套个假发，这假发中间有发缝，两边的头发竖起来，像两个犄角。然后他往脸上涂一层厚厚的白东西，在白脸上再画眉毛、胡子和红脸蛋。到这儿他的花样还没有完。他把脸和脖子弄脏了以后，又穿上一件古怪的极不像样的衣服——这种衣服不论在别人家里或者大街上姑姑都从来没有见过。您不妨设想一下：这是一条十分肥大、用大花布缝成的裤子（这种大花布在小市民家里通常只用来做窗帘和沙发套子），而且裤腰一直柬到胳肢窝下面，一条裤腿是褐色的，另一条裤腿是鲜黄色的，主人套进这条裤子之后，又穿上一件花布短上衣，这上衣开着锯齿形的大领口，后背有一颗金星。最后他穿上五颜六色的袜子和一双绿皮鞋……
姑姑眼花缀乱，心里也乱糟糟的。在这个肥大笨拙的白脸人身上虽说有主人的气味，他的声音虽说也是熟悉的主人的声音，但有的时候，姑姑还是满腹狐疑，这时它真想从这个花花绿绿的人身边逃跑，或者汪汪叫几声。新的地方，扇面形的灯光，气味，主人的变样——所有这些都使它生出一种莫名的恐慌，而且预感到一定会遇到可怕的事，就像遇到肥头大脸上不长鼻子却长尾巴的怪物一样。还有，墙外很远的地方正在演奏可恨的音乐，有时还能听到古怪的吼叫。只有一件事让它安下心来，那就是费奥多尔。季莫费伊奇满不在乎。它一直静静地在凳子底下打盹，连凳子让人搬走时它都没有睁开眼睛。
有个身穿黑礼眼、白坎肩的人探进头来说：“现在阿拉贝雷小姐上场了。她之后该您出场。”
主人什么话也没说。他从桌子底下拖出一只不大的箱子，又坐下，等着。从他的嘴唇和手看得出来，他很激动，姑姑能听出连他的呼吸都在颤抖。
“乔治先生，请吧！”有人在门外喊道。
主人站起来，在胸前一连画了三次十字，然后从凳子下抓出猫，把它塞进箱子里。
“过来，姑姑！”他小声说。
姑姑什么也不明白，走到主人手边，他亲一下它的头，把它也放到猫那里。随后便是黑暗……姑姑踩着了猫，用爪子抓搔箱子四壁，害怕得出不了声。箱子摇摇晃晃，像在波浪上颠簸，不住地抖动……
“瞧，我来了！”主人大声喊道，“瞧，我来了！”
姑姑感觉到，主人喊完之后，箱子撞在硬东西上，不再晃动。听得见打雷般沉闷的吼叫声：好像有许多人在拍打一样东西，而那东西大概就是肥头大脸上不长鼻子却长尾巴的怪物，于是那怪物就大声吼叫，哈哈大笑，震得箱子上的锁都晃动起来。主人发出一阵尖利刺耳的笑声来回答这片吼叫，他在家里可从来没有这样笑过。
“哈哈！”他喊道，竭力想压住这片吼叫，“最可敬的观众们！我刚从火车站来！我的祖母死了，给我留下一笔遗产！箱子里的东西真重——一定是金子喽……哈哈！我马上要成百万富翁啦！现在让我们打开箱子，瞧一瞧……”
箱子上的锁喀嚓一响。明亮的灯光直刺姑姑的眼睛，它立即从箱子里跳出来，又被吼叫声震聋了耳朵，便飞快地绕着主人拼命奔跑起来，发出一连串清脆的吠叫声。
“哈哈！”主人喊道，“亲爱的费奥多尔·季莫费伊奇！亲爱的姑姑！我可爱的亲戚们，你们怎么来了，真见鬼！”
他趴到地上，抓住猫和姑姑，要拥抱它们。姑姑趁主人紧紧搂抱它的时候，顺便扫了一眼命运把它送来的这个天地，它没有料到这地方那么宏大漂亮，一时间惊喜得愣住了。后来它挣脱主人的怀抱，由于印象强烈，它像个陀螺似的团团转起来。新的天地太大了，充满了亮晃晃的光，不论往哪儿瞧，从地面到天花板，到处都是人的脸，脸，脸，再没有别的什么。
“姑姑，请您坐下！”主人喊道。
姑姑明白这是什么意思，就跳到椅子上蹲下。它望着主人。主人的眼睛像平时一样，看上去严肃而温和，但他的脸，特别是嘴和牙齿，因为要做出呆板的大笑而变得十分难看。他还哈哈大笑，蹦蹦跳跳，扭动肩膀，做出一副面对成千上万的观众十分快活的样子。姑姑相信他真的很快活，突然间，它全身都感觉到，成千上万的脸都在看它，它便昂起自己狐狸样的嘴脸，高兴得汪汪叫起来。
“您呢，姑姑，请坐一会儿，”主人对它说，“我先跟大叔跳一曲喀马林舞。”
费奥多尔·季莫费伊奇等着主人逼它做蠢事，蹲在那里，冷淡地东张西望。它跳舞的时候无精打采，马马虎虎，阴沉着脸，看它的动作、尾巴和触须就可以知道，它深深地瞧不起这些观众，瞧不起明亮的灯光，瞧不起主人和它自己……它跳完了舞，打个哈欠，卧下了。
“好，姑姑，”主人说，“我先跟您唱支歌，然后再跳舞，好吗？”
他从衣袋里掏出一根小木笛，吹奏起来。姑姑因为受不了音乐，开始不安地在椅子上扭动起来，汪汪地叫。四面八方响起一阵欢呼声和鼓掌声。主人一鞠躬，等大家静下来，又继续吹奏……在他吹到一个高音时，楼座上的观众中有人大声惊叫：“什么姑姑！”有个孩子的声音喊道，“这不是卡什坦卡吗！”
“是卡什坦卡！”有个带着醉意、声音发颤的男高音证实说，“真是卡什坦卡！费久什卡，没错，我说假话叫上帝惩罚我！喂，卡什坦卡！快过来！”
最高楼座上有人打一声唿哨，一个童音和一个男高音同时大声呼喊：“卡什坦卡！卡什坦卡！”
姑姑猛地一惊，朝发出喊声的地方望去。那里有两张脸：一张毛发浓重，醉醺醺，得意地笑着，另一张胖乎乎，红通通，一副吃惊的样子。两张脸直扑它的眼帘，就像刚才明晃晃的灯光直刺它的眼睛一样……它想起了原先的主人，从椅子上掉下来，摔在地上，随后跳起来，带出快活的尖叫声冲向这两张脸。这时又响起了震耳的吼声，夹杂着一声声唿哨和一个孩子的尖细的呼叫声：“卡什坦卡！卡什坦卡！”
姑姑跳过横栏，然后跳过一个人的肩膀，落进一个包厢里。为了跑到另一层楼座，需要越过一堵高墙。姑姑纵身一跳，但没有跳过去，从墙上跌落下来。后来它被人传来传去，舔着一些人的手和脸，升得越来越高，终于到了最高楼座……
半小时后，卡什坦卡已经来到大街上，跟着两个有胶水和油漆味的人奔跑。卢卡·亚历山德雷奇身子摇摇晃晃，凭经验本能地尽量离水沟远一些。
“我娘生下我这个孽障……”他嘟哝道，“你呢，卡什坦卡，缺个心眼。拿你跟人比，就像拿粗木匠跟细木匠比一样。”
在他身旁，费久什卡戴着父亲的便帽大步跟着。卡什坦卡瞧着两人的后背，它觉得它随着他们已经跑了很久很久，暗自高兴它的生活一刻也没有中断过。
它又想起了那个糊着肮脏壁纸的房间，想起了鹅和费奥多尔·季莫费伊奇，可口的饭食，上课，马戏院……可是现在，这一切对它来说，就像一场漫长而杂乱的噩梦……
Notes:
Notes: