Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6 Finally the shaking stopped. It was pitch-dark. Except for Harry's soft cries, everything was completely silent. "Ben?" Harry said, his voice barely a whimper. "We're okay," Ben said. And somehow they were. As the dust settled, Ben could see wreckage all over the floor — broken roof tiles, huge chunks of wood and plaster. The bed had protected them. The panic started to creep back, cold hands climbing up Ben's spine. His mind began to swirl with questions.

最后，震动停止了。 当时一片漆黑。除了哈利微弱的哭声，四周一片寂静。 “本?”哈利说，他的声音几乎是呜咽。 “我们没事，”本说。不知怎么的，他们确实是。 随着尘埃落定，本可以看到地板上到处都是残骸——破碎的屋顶瓦片、大块的木头和灰泥。 床保护了他们。 恐慌又开始蔓延，冰冷的手爬上了本的脊柱。 他的脑子开始被问题搅得晕头转向。

Where were Mom and Ojisan? What had happened to the rest of the house? He and Harry had managed to survive the shaking. But what if Mom and Ojisan hadn't found a safe place? What if the earthquake started again? What if… He closed his eyes again and took a deep breath, than another. His thoughts slowed down enough for Ben to remember that Mom had been trained by the air force, just like Dad. She knew how to take care of herself. And Ojisan had built this house himself. He'd know where they would be safe. Harry huddled close to Ben, crying hard. "I'm scared," he sobbed. Ben patted his back and tried to comfort him. But Harry was screaming now, worse than when Dr. Sato told him he'd need stitches. Patting him on the back wasn't working. "Jedi knights have to be strong," Ben said. "Now that you have a scar, you have to be brave."

妈妈和欧吉桑去哪儿了? 房子里的其他地方发生了什么事? 他和哈利在摇晃中幸免于难。 但如果妈妈和欧吉桑没有找到安全的地方呢? 如果地震再次发生怎么办? 他又闭上眼睛，深吸了一口气。 他的思绪慢了下来，让本想起了妈妈和爸爸一样曾在空军接受过训练。 她知道如何照顾自己。 这房子是欧吉桑自己建的。 他知道哪里是安全的。 哈利紧靠着本，哭得很厉害。 “我很害怕，”他抽泣着说。本拍了拍他的背，试图安慰他。 但哈利现在在尖叫，比哈利医生在哈利面前尖叫时更厉害。 佐藤告诉他需要缝针。 拍拍他的背不管用。 “绝地武士必须很强壮，”本说。 “既然你有了伤疤，你就必须勇敢。”

That seemed to work. Harry gave a big sniff. He wiped his nose on his sleeve. He snuggled Nya close. "We have to be brave, Nya," he whispered. A moment later, there were footsteps. "Ben! Harry!" "Mom!" Harry shrieked. "Boys, are you hurt?" she called, her voice ringing clear and strong through the dust. "We're okay!" Ben shouted, trying to sound braver than he felt. "We're under the bed!" "Stay where you are!" Ojisan called. Their uncle was there, too! It seemed like forever before Mom and Ojisan were able to clear a path through the wreckage. But soon they were in the bedroom. And there was Mom, on her knees, peering under the bed at Ben

这似乎奏效了。哈利深深地吸了一口气。 他用袖子擦了擦鼻子。 他紧紧地搂着妮娅。“妮雅，我们必须勇敢。”他低声说。 过了一会儿，传来了脚步声。 “本!哈利!”“妈妈!”哈利尖叫起来。 “孩子们，你们受伤了吗?”她喊道，她的声音在尘土中清晰有力。 “我们没事!”本喊道，努力让自己听起来比实际更勇敢。 “我们在床底下!”“站在原地别动!”Ojisan调用。 他们的叔叔也在那里!似乎过了很久，妈妈和欧吉桑才从废墟中清理出一条路来。 但很快他们就进了卧室。 妈妈跪在那里，在床底下盯着本

and Harry. Her face was streaked with dirt and sweat, but her eyes were filled with relief. "You can come out now," she told them. Ben pushed Harry into Mom's arms, and Ben climbed out after him. Mom wrapped her arms around both of them. Lately, Ben had pulled away from Mom's hugs. Not now. He could hear Mom's heart pounding through her thick sweater. Nya crawled out and buried her head in Harry's leg.

和哈利。她的脸上满是污垢和汗水，但眼里却充满了宽慰。 “你们现在可以出来了，”她告诉他们。 本把哈利推到妈妈怀里，本也跟着爬了出来。 妈妈搂住了他们俩。 最近，本远离了妈妈的拥抱。 不是现在。透过厚厚的毛衣，他能听到妈妈的心跳。 妮雅爬了出来，把头埋在哈利的腿里。

"That was very smart, to hide under the bed," Mom said, letting the boys go so she could look at them. "Ben took us there," Harry said, picking up Nya again. Mom looked at Ben. She reached out and touched his cheek, and he felt a flush of unexpected pride. But there was no time to talk. Mom found Harry's shoes and helped him put them on. "Come," Ojisan said, plucking Nya from the floor and handing her to Harry. "We need to get outside. That was a very strong earthquake. It is the strongest I have ever felt. There will be more shaking. It is not safe in the house." As if the earth itself had heard Ojisan, there was a sharp rumble that brought another piece of ceiling crashing to the floor. They hurried through the house, stepping over fallen furniture, piles of books, and broken glass. The rest of the house was still standing, but it

“你真聪明，躲在床底下，”妈妈说，让孩子们走了，这样她就可以看看他们了。 “本带我们去的。”哈利说，又把妮雅抱起来。 妈妈看着本。她伸出手，摸了摸他的脸颊，他感到一阵意想不到的骄傲。 但是没有时间说话了。 妈妈找到了哈利的鞋子，帮他穿上。 “来吧。”欧吉桑说着，把妮雅从地板上拉了起来，递给哈利。 “我们需要到外面去。那是一次非常强烈的地震。 这是我感受到的最强烈的感觉。 会有更多的震动。 房子里不安全。” 大地仿佛听到了欧吉桑的声音，一声尖锐的隆隆声把另一块天花板震到了地板上。 他们匆匆穿过房子，踏过倒在地上的家具、成堆的书和碎玻璃。 房子的其他部分还在，但它

looked as if it could come down any second. Ben was relieved to get outside. They made their way across the yard and into the street. Some big trees had fallen, but Ojisan's cherry tree was still standing. "Wait here," Ojisan said. He hurried to the middle of the street, where a group of his neighbors was gathered. Three of the houses on the road were completely wrecked. But it seemed as though everyone was safe. Mom, Ben, and Harry huddled together in the cold. Harry held Nya tight. "The worst is over," Mom said. Yes, Ben told himself. Nothing could be as bad as that earthquake. But then Ben noticed that Ojisan had drifted to the edge of the street. He was standing with two other men. They were all looking intently at the ocean in the distance. Ben followed the path of their gaze until he figured out what they were looking at: a strange

看起来好像随时都会掉下来。 出门后，本松了口气。 他们穿过院子，来到街上。 一些大树倒了，但欧吉桑的樱桃树还站着。 “在这儿等着，”欧吉桑说。他急忙走到街中央，他的一群邻居正聚集在那里。 路上有三所房子完全被毁了。 但似乎每个人都很安全。 妈妈、本和哈利在寒冷中挤在一起。 哈利紧紧地抱着妮雅。“最糟糕的已经过去了，”妈妈说。 是的，本告诉自己。没有什么比那次地震更糟糕的了。 但本注意到欧吉桑已经漂到了街道的边缘。 他和另外两个人站在一起。 他们都聚精会神地望着远处的大海。 本顺着他们凝视的方向，直到他弄清楚他们在看什么:一个奇怪的东西