Chapter 3

3 Inside the force field, the glade was even more beautiful. The colors were brighter, the sun more golden. Tiny metallic-winged insects flitted about. Jewel-colored butterflies hovered around honey-scented flowers. A happy glow washed through Mei.

在力场内，林间空地更加美丽。 颜色更亮了，太阳更金黄了。 小小的金属翅膀昆虫飞来飞去。 宝石色的蝴蝶在芬芳的花朵周围盘旋。 梅的脸上洋溢着幸福的光彩。

"Can you believe this place?" "It's amazing, right?" Mei jumped at the sound of the voices. There, in the middle of the glade, hovered two Dragon Girls. One was jade green and the other was sapphire blue. Like Mei, they had a heady mix of silver and gold on their wings and tails. They must be Treasure Dragon Girls, too! "You two look incredible," exclaimed Mei. "And fierce. In a good way!" The dragons laughed. "Thanks!" said the one with sapphire-blue jewels embedded in her wings. "Is that you, Mei? It's me, Aisha. And this is Quinn. We just got here. Can you believe it? We're Dragon Girls!" Mei stared at them, openmouthed. Were they really her friends from jewelry class? They looked so different.

“你能相信这个地方吗?”“很神奇，对吧?”梅一听到这些声音就跳了起来。 在林间空地的中央，盘旋着两个龙女。 一只是玉绿的，一只是宝蓝色的。 像梅一样，它们的翅膀和尾巴上也有令人兴奋的金银混合色。 她们一定也是宝龙女!“你们俩看起来太棒了，”小美叫道。 ”和激烈。以一种好的方式!”龙笑了。 “谢谢!”翅膀上嵌着蓝宝石的那只说。 “是你吗，梅?”是我，艾莎。 这是奎恩。我们才刚到。 你能相信吗?我们是龙女!”梅目瞪口呆地看着他们。 他们真的是她珠宝课上的朋友吗? 他们看起来很不一样。

Quinn let out a happy little roar. A wisp of green fire curled from her mouth. "I know! It's amazing!" she said. "Have you tried flying yet? It's kind of hard." "So hard!" Aisha said, laughing. "I keep getting caught in my own tail! But I've figured out how to roar." She took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and let out a huge roar. Bright blue flames shot into the air.

奎因高兴地小吼了一声。 一缕绿色的火焰从她的嘴里袅袅升起。 “我知道!太神奇了!”她说。 “你试过飞吗?” 这有点难。”“那么辛苦!”艾莎笑着说。 “我老是被自己的尾巴夹住!”但我知道怎么吼了。” 她深吸了一口气，张开嘴，发出一声巨大的咆哮。 明亮的蓝色火焰直冲云霄。

Mei grinned. The dragons were definitely her friends Aisha and Quinn. She recognized their laughs. And their gemstones matched their friendship bracelets! Mei looked around. "I was told to meet a Tree Queen here," she said. "Have you seen her yet?" "No, there's no queen here. But there is this very impressive tree," said Aisha. "It's incredible." Quinn nodded. They gazed up at the majestic tree. Its strong branches reached toward the sky; its silvery leaves fluttered in the light. As the three Dragon Girls watched, the tree began swaying. The branches softened into strong, graceful arms. "It's changing!" gasped Mei. The tree's leaves turned into long, wavy hair, framing a beautiful, wise face. The tree's trunk became a flowing gown of mossy green. "Welcome, Treasure Dragon Girls. I am the Tree Queen. I am glad to see you. The Magic

梅笑了。龙肯定是她的朋友艾莎和奎恩。 她听出了他们的笑声。 他们的宝石和他们的友谊手镯相配!梅环顾四周。 “我被告知要在这里见一位树后，”她说。 “你见到她了吗?”“不，这里没有女王。 但是这里有一棵非常令人印象深刻的树。” “这是难以置信的。”奎因点点头。 他们抬头凝视着那棵雄伟的树。 它粗壮的枝条伸向天空;它银色的叶子在阳光下飘动。 在三个龙女的注视下，树开始摇晃。 树枝柔软地变成了有力而优美的臂膀。 “变了!”小美喘着气说。 树叶变成了长长的卷发，映衬出一张美丽而睿智的脸。 树干变成了一件飘逸的绿苔长袍。 “欢迎你们，宝龙姑娘们。 我是树后。我很高兴见到你。 神奇的

Forest needs your help." Pride surged through Mei. She was a Treasure Dragon in a magic forest! And she was needed! Nothing like this had ever happened to her before. She was going to enjoy every last minute of this adventure. "Of course we'll help!" she declared. "Yeah! We're not scared of anything!" Aisha added. Mei noticed Quinn shuffling awkwardly, a nervous look on her face. I bet she's braver than she realizes, thought Mei. The Tree Queen rustled her leaves as she spoke again. "Many years ago, the Shadow Queen was the ruler of the Magic Forest. With the help of her Shadow Sprites, she locked the Magic Forest into an endless gray twilight. Many of the forest's plants and animals struggled to survive without bright days to grow strong in the sunshine or dark nights to rest. The winters were harsh, and sometimes lasted years. When the Shadow Queen

森林需要你的帮助。”梅心中涌起一股自豪感。 她是魔法森林里的宝龙!我们需要她!她以前从来没有遇到过这样的事。 她要享受这次冒险的每一分钟。 “我们当然会帮忙!”她说。 “是啊!我们什么都不怕!”艾莎补充道。 梅注意到奎因笨拙地拖着脚，脸上带着紧张的表情。 我敢说她比自己想象的要勇敢，梅想。 树后又说话了，她的叶子沙沙作响。 “许多年前，影子女王是魔法森林的统治者。 在暗影精灵的帮助下，她将魔法森林锁进了无尽的灰色暮色中。 森林里的许多植物和动物在没有阳光的日子里挣扎着生存，在阳光下茁壮成长，在黑夜里休息。 冬天很寒冷，有时会持续好几年。 当影子女王

was finally banished, I became queen. I've worked hard ever since to restore balance. But now her Shadow Sprites have returned. I can feel deep in my tree roots that she is gaining strength again." Mei gulped. "But that's terrible!" The Tree Queen nodded gravely. "The Shadow Sprites have stolen three ancient objects from the forest's treasure vault deep underground. These objects are worth more than money. They are the source of the forest's magic! When these objects are removed from the vault, things quickly go

最终被放逐，我成为了女王。 从那以后，我一直在努力恢复平衡。 但现在她的暗影精灵回来了。 我能从我的树根深处感觉到她又在恢复力量了。” 梅一饮而尽。“那太可怕了!”树后严肃地点了点头。 “暗影精灵从地下深处的森林宝库中偷走了三件古老的物品。 这些东西比钱还值钱。 他们是森林魔法的源泉!当这些东西从保险库移走时，事情很快就会消失