9 GRUMPLETS

CHAPTER 9 GRUMPLETS I popped up just in time to see wide-eyed grumplets leaping backward and running off to the forest. As they turned to run, the airy, sparkly strings they'd been pulling on snapped and vanished. The grumplets were small, but they were FAST. There was no way Sassafras and I could catch up with them. I sighed and brushed off my pants. My hand bumped the footprint mold in my pocket. "Oh! We can at least see if their footprints are a match. Help me find some tracks, Sass!" We hunted through the grass in opposite directions. "Meow!" Sure enough, my cat had found a patch of mud with some footprints in it. I held up the mold. It was

第九章小矮人我跳了起来，正好看到大眼睛的小矮人向后跳，向森林里跑去。 当他们转身逃跑时，他们一直拉着的轻快、闪亮的绳子断了，消失了。 小卫星很小，但速度很快。 我和萨萨法斯是不可能追上他们的。 我叹了口气，刷掉了裤子。 我的手撞到了口袋里的脚印模。 “哦!我们至少可以看看他们的脚印是否匹配。 帮我找些足迹，萨斯！”我们朝相反的方向在草丛中搜寻。 “喵呜!”果然，我的猫发现了一块有脚印的泥地。 我举起了模具。这是

an exact match. I ruffled Sassafras's fur. "Great work!" We turned back toward the clearing, but all the monsters were still fighting. So Sassafras and I trudged toward home. I hoped we could get to the bottom of this whole grumplet thing. If not, the summer was going to be LONG and frustrating, filled with grumpy, fighting magical friends! That would be such a bummer since the weather was so perfect for playing outside. Back at home, I popped my Thinking Goggles on my head. "There must be some way to get the grumplets to leave." I plopped down at the kitchen table. "OK. Let's write down what we know so far."

完全匹配。我揉了揉萨萨法斯的毛。 “伟大的工作!”我们转身向空地走去，但所有的怪物仍在战斗。 于是我和萨萨弗拉斯艰难地朝家走去。 我希望我们能弄清整个小矮人事件的真相。 否则，这个夏天将是漫长而令人沮丧的，充满了脾气暴躁、打架的魔法朋友！那就太糟糕了，因为天气非常适合在外面玩。 回到家，我把思考镜戴在头上。 “一定有办法让小矮人离开。” 我扑通一声坐在厨房的桌子旁。 “好吧。让我们把目前知道的写下来。”

I focused on what I saw while they were chewing. They were taking something from my friends. And it was thin and sparkly. I tapped my fingers on the table. I thought I smelled popcorn. I

我专注于他们咀嚼时我看到的东西。 他们拿走了我朋友的东西。 它又细又亮。 我用手指轻敲桌子。 我觉得我闻到了爆米花的味道。 我

looked around—no popcorn. "OK, Thinking Goggles, what does popcorn have to do with this?" I closed my eyes and thought of the last time I'd smelled popcorn like that. "The county fair! Oh! The popcorn machine was by the cotton candy machine. Oh! Oh! The sparkly strands from my friends looked just like cotton candy!" I clapped my hands. Sassafras wove in between my legs. "What could be coming from my friends that's like cotton candy, and losing it makes them grumpy?" "Mrrowww?" "Something… sweet… and happy. Wait." I scooped up Sassafras and put his forehead against mine. I looked into his eyes and asked, "Do you think it could be joy?"

环顾四周，没有爆米花。 “好吧，思考镜，爆米花和这有什么关系？”我闭上眼睛，回想着上次闻到这种味道的情景。 “县里的集市！哦!爆米花机在棉花糖机旁边。 哦!哦!我朋友们的闪闪发光的发丝看起来就像棉花糖一样！”我拍了拍手。 黄樟在我两腿之间编织。 “我的朋友们会有什么像棉花糖一样的东西，失去棉花糖会让他们脾气暴躁？”“Mrrowww ?”“一些……甜蜜……快乐的东西。” 等待。”我捧起萨萨法斯，把他的额头贴在我的额头上。 我看着他的眼睛问道：“你觉得会是快乐吗？”