Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9 Finally the water pushed John close enough to the creek bank that he could grab hold of a thorny bush. The prickers tore up his fingers. But John held on tight, and managed to pull himself out of the churning water. He clawed his way up the bank and sat there in the mud, coughing and wheezing as he tried to catch his breath.

最后，水把约翰推到了河边，他可以抓住一棵荆棘丛生的灌木。 刺手撕破了他的手指。 但约翰紧紧抓住，设法把自己从翻腾的水中拉了出来。 他爬上河岸，坐在泥里，一边咳嗽，一边喘着粗气。

Where were the guys? What had happened to them? They must think he'd run off, like a scared little rabbit! The guys would never let him forget this. He heard footsteps, and voices calling his name. And the guys came bursting out of the bushes, rushing toward him, surrounding him. John braced himself. "Are you all right?" "We lost you!" "We thought you were a goner!" They weren't mad at John. They were worried about him! John forgot his thorn-bitten fingers, and his freezing, mud-soaked clothes. He scrambled to his feet and rushed toward them. "Did you kill King Rattler?" he asked. The boys eyed each other. Rex slumped a little. "No. He went into his hole."

那些家伙去哪儿了？他们发生了什么事？ 他们一定以为他跑了，像一只受惊的小兔子！他们不会让他忘记的。 他听到脚步声和呼唤他名字的声音。 那些家伙从灌木丛中冲出来，冲向他，围住了他。 约翰鼓起勇气。“你没事吧？”“我们失去了你！”“我们还以为你要死了呢！”他们并没有生约翰的气。 他们很担心他！约翰忘记了他那被刺破的手指，忘记了他那冻僵的、沾满泥巴的衣服。 他爬了起来，朝他们冲去。 “是你杀了拉特勒国王吗？”他问道。 男孩们面面相觑。雷克斯有点消沉。 “没有。他钻进洞里去了。”

And then Peter blurted out, "I was so scared I wet my pants!" John looked down, and sure enough, there was a big wet stain on Peter's trousers. Rex frowned at Peter, just like Miss Ruell did when Peter let out a big belch in the middle of a grammar lesson. But then Rex cracked a smile. And all at once they exploded into laughter, including John. He laughed at Peter's soaked pants. But also in amazement about what they'd done — they'd faced down King Rattler, the fiercest snake in Dakota! When they finally calmed down and wiped away their laughing tears, Rex got serious again. "It was a bad plan," he admitted. "I should have known he wouldn't be in his hole during the day." "Don't worry," Sven said, putting a comforting hand on Rex's shoulder. "Now we know where he lives. We can come back and get him next Sunday."

然后彼得脱口而出：“我吓得尿裤子了！”约翰低头一看，果然，彼得的裤子上有一大块湿渍。 雷克斯对彼得皱起了眉头，就像彼得在语法课上打了个大嗝时鲁埃尔小姐的表情一样。 但雷克斯突然笑了。 他们突然大笑起来，约翰也不例外。 他嘲笑彼得的裤子湿透了。 但同时也惊讶于他们所做的——他们打败了响尾蛇王，达科塔州最凶猛的蛇！当他们终于平静下来，擦去欢笑的泪水时，雷克斯又严肃起来。 “这是个糟糕的计划，”他承认。 “我早该知道他白天不会待在洞里的。” “别担心，”斯文说，把一只安慰的手放在雷克斯的肩膀上。 “现在我们知道他住在哪里了。 我们可以下星期天再来接他。”

"Nah," Rex said. "It's getting too cold. He's going to be hibernating soon. We'll have to wait until spring." John tried not to show how relieved he felt. Peter shouted out, "We'll be back for you, King Rattler!" He waved his empty mouse sack like a flag. Sven and Rex pumped their fists and stabbed at the sky with their weapons. They bellowed and hooted. John cheered along with them. He felt like he was at a White Stockings game. They ran together to the pond and stopped for a few minutes to catch their breath. Then it was finally time to say good-bye and go their separate ways back to their farms. John walked through the grass toward home. He was shivering in his wet clothes, but he barely noticed. He kept chuckling to himself as he thought of Peter.

“不，”雷克斯说。“天气太冷了。 他很快就要冬眠了。 我们得等到春天了。” 约翰尽量不表现出他如释重负的样子。 彼得喊道：“我们会回来救你的，响尾蛇国王！”他像挥舞旗帜一样挥舞着他的空老鼠袋。 斯文和雷克斯挥舞着拳头，用武器刺向天空。 他们又吼又叫。约翰和他们一起欢呼。 他觉得自己像是在看白袜队的比赛。 他们一起跑到池塘边，停了几分钟喘口气。 终于到了说再见的时候了，他们各自回到自己的农场去了。 约翰穿过草地朝家走去。 他穿着湿衣服瑟瑟发抖，但他几乎没有注意到。 想到彼得，他不停地暗自发笑。

John was about a mile from home when he spotted the dark cloud rushing in from the northwest. During his time in Dakota, John had learned to recognize the different kinds of clouds that appeared in the sky. This one was steel gray, and rimmed with white. John's heart pounded. It was a blizzard cloud. But how could there be a blizzard coming? It wasn't even October yet! John remembered Rex's father's prediction of a bad winter, and the fact that the birds had left early. And now John wished he was a bird so he could fly home. The wind whipped the grasses back and forth. An icy chill filled the air. John shivered in his wet clothes. He broke into a run, pushing aside the blades of grass. He had to get back to his farm before the snow started to pour down. One of the first things he'd learned in Dakota was to never be outside in a blizzard.

约翰离家大约一英里时，发现乌云从西北方向冲了过来。 在达科他的那段时间里，约翰学会了辨认天空中出现的不同种类的云。 这只是钢灰色的，镶着白色的镶边。 约翰的心怦怦直跳。那是一片暴风雪的云。 但是怎么可能会有暴风雪呢？ 还没到十月呢！约翰想起雷克斯的父亲曾预言过冬天会很糟糕，而且鸟儿早就离开了。 现在约翰希望他是一只鸟，这样他就可以飞回家了。 风把草吹来吹去。 空气中充满了寒意。 约翰穿着湿衣服瑟瑟发抖。 他猛地跑起来，把草叶推到一边。 他必须在雪开始倾盆而下之前回到他的农场。 他在达科塔学到的第一件事就是千万不要在暴风雪中外出。

Last year a farmer in Prairie Creek died in a blizzard. He'd been in his barn when it hit, and he tried to get back to his house. It was just twenty feet away. But the snow was so thick in the air that he couldn't find his way. He wandered around in circles until he finally couldn't take another step. His body wasn't found until the spring, when the snow melted. John ran faster and faster, peering over his shoulder at the looming cloud. Would he make it home in time?

去年，草原溪的一位农民死于暴风雪。 地震发生时他正在他的谷仓里，他试图回家。 只有20英尺远。 但是空中的雪太厚了，他找不到路。 他绕着圈子转来转去，最后再也走不动了。 他的尸体直到春天雪融化时才被发现。 约翰跑得越来越快，越过肩膀凝视着那片若隐若现的云。 他能及时赶回家吗？