Chapter 4

4 As the Dragon Girls flew high above the Magic Forest, Quinn hummed a song. She didn't usually sing in front of others, but she needed something to fill the silence. Even the wind made no noise as it whipped by. Quinn found herself humming her new song, just to break the unnatural quiet.

当龙女们在魔法森林上空高高地飞行时，奎因哼了一首歌。 她通常不在别人面前唱歌，但她需要一些东西来填补沉默。 风呼啸而过，连声音也没有。 奎因发现自己哼着新歌，只是为了打破这种不自然的安静。

"You've got a great voice, Quinn," Mei commented, flying alongside her. "You really do," Aisha agreed, doing loops and twirls as she flew along. "Can you sing a song for us?" Quinn was glad that it was impossible to know when a Dragon Girl was blushing. "I only like singing with others. Solos freak me out! But actually, I shouldn't be singing anyway. We are supposed to be listening for that drumbeat." "Good point," Mei agreed. "Can you hear it?" Quinn strained her ears. For a moment, she thought the beat had disappeared. She wished she hadn't been distracted by humming her song! That was the problem with music. When Quinn got a tune into her head, she forgot everything else. But hang on… there it was! A distant, slow drumming. They had been flying high above the tree line. It was faster up there, without any obstacles in the way. But the beat was too faint up that high.

“你的声音真好听，奎因，”梅评论道，飞到她身边。 “你真的喜欢。”艾莎同意了，一边飞一边做着圈圈和旋转。 “你能给我们唱首歌吗?”奎因很高兴，因为不可能知道龙女什么时候脸红。 “我只喜欢和别人一起唱歌。 独唱吓死我了!但实际上，我不应该唱歌。 我们应该倾听鼓声。” “说得好，”梅表示同意。“你能听到吗?”奎因竖起耳朵。 有那么一会儿，她以为心跳消失了。 她真希望自己没有因为哼歌而分心!这就是音乐的问题所在。 奎因一听音乐就忘了其他的事。 但是等等，它就在那儿!远处缓慢的鼓声。 他们一直在林木线上方的高空飞行。 在那里速度更快，路上没有任何障碍。 但是在那么高的地方，心跳太微弱了。

"We need to fly lower," Quinn decided. "Lead the way!" Aisha called back cheerfully. Quinn swooped lower. Soon, she and her friends were weaving through lush forest trees, which silently rustled their leaves. "That drumming sound is changing," Quinn said. "I can't hear anything," Mei said.

“我们得飞得低一点，”奎因决定。 “带路吧!”艾莎高兴地叫道。 奎因俯冲得更低。很快，她和她的朋友们就在茂密的树林里穿行，树叶无声地沙沙作响。 “那种鼓声正在改变，”奎因说。 “我什么也听不见，”梅说。

"Really?" said Quinn. To her, the drumbeat was building in volume. And now she could hear other sounds as well. It was like more musicians were joining in, adding to the original beat. "I can't hear anything, either," said Aisha. "You must have amazing ears!" "My ears are bright green and pointy," Quinn joked. "So I guess they are pretty amazing." She was a big fan of her dragon ears. She loved the way they swiveled around so she could pick up sounds coming from different directions. She wished her human ears could do that! Quinn spotted something up ahead through the trees. In a glow of colored light, some small shapes moved around. The drumming was definitely coming from there. A moment later, the trees opened up and the Dragon Girls found themselves in a small clearing. Before them was a most surprising sight! The surrounding trees were decorated with garlands of bright flowers. Dotted around the edge

“真的吗?”对她来说，鼓声越来越响了。 现在她也能听到其他的声音了。 就像有更多的音乐家加入进来，为原来的节奏增色。 “我什么也听不见。”艾莎说。 “你的耳朵一定很神奇!”“我的耳朵是亮绿色的尖尖的，”奎因开玩笑说。 “所以我想他们是非常了不起的。” 她很喜欢她的龙耳朵。 她喜欢它们旋转的方式，这样她就可以听到来自不同方向的声音。 她希望她的人耳也能做到这一点!奎因透过树林发现前方有东西。 在一束彩色的光中，一些小的形状在周围移动。 鼓声肯定是从那里传来的。 过了一会儿，树林开阔了，龙女们发现自己来到了一小块空地上。 在他们面前是一幅最令人吃惊的景象!周围的树木用鲜艳的花环装饰着。 点缀在边缘

were freshly dug holes. And in the center of the clearing, a group of small creatures danced in a circle. They had tiny eyes but very big paws, which they were stamping and clapping in complex rhythms as they hopped around. Quinn and her friends landed in a huddle. "Are those badgers?" Aisha whispered. "They look like it," said Mei. "But I thought badgers didn't really like coming aboveground." "That's true for much of the year," piped up a little voice from nearby. They looked down to see a tiny badger peering up at them. He was wearing an elegant waistcoat made of purple velvet. His claws sparkled like gold, and the white stripe that ran down his nose was threaded with silver. "But today is the annual Beat Fest," continued the badger. "All the Beat Badgers of the Magic Forest come aboveground for the day. We dance and sing together. We can't see very well, but our hearing is wonderful."

都是新挖的洞。在空地的中央，一群小动物围成一圈跳舞。 它们的眼睛很小，但爪子很大，它们在跳跃时用复杂的节奏跺着爪子。 奎因和她的朋友们聚在一起。 “那些是獾吗?”艾莎低声说。 “他们看起来很像，”梅说。 “但我认为獾并不真的喜欢到地面上来。” “一年中的大部分时间都是这样。”附近一个小声音尖声说。 他们低下头，看见一只小獾正抬头盯着他们。 他穿着一件优雅的紫色天鹅绒马甲。 它的爪子像金子一样闪闪发光，鼻子上的白色条纹镶着银线。 “但今天是一年一度的‘垮掉’音乐节，”獾继续说。 “魔法森林里所有的垮掉的獾都到地上来了。 我们一起跳舞和唱歌。 我们看不太清楚，但我们的听力很好。”

Quinn tilted her head. The drumming was coming from the circle of dancing badgers. She knew most instruments, but she could not tell what was making this rhythm. "What kind of drum are you playing?" she asked. The badger clapped his paws together excitedly. "It's not a drum at all," he said. "It's an old violin! We are drumming on its side to the rhythm of the forest beat."

奎因歪着头。鼓声来自一圈跳舞的獾。 她知道大多数乐器，但她不知道是什么在制造这种节奏。 “你打的是什么鼓?”她问。 獾兴奋地拍拍爪子。 “这根本不是鼓，”他说。 “这是一把旧小提琴!”我们正随着森林的节奏在它的一边打鼓。”