16 THE PLUNGE

CHAPTER 16 THE PLUNGE Mr. Beaver's angry voice was echoing across the pond. He was always grumbling about something or other, but this time he sounded unusually upset. Roz marched over to see what all the fuss was about, and as she went, she began to hear squeaking and splashing, and through the foliage she caught glimpses of otters leaping off the beaver dam and into the water. Roz stepped out from the trees and onto the dam. It was a low wall of branches and rocks and mud that stretched along one side of the pond. She had crossed it hundreds of times without any difficulty. But the pond had recently been dredged to hold more water, and now it was so deep that she couldn't see the bottom. The robot had fallen into deep water once, and it had nearly destroyed her. So she didn't hurry, but carefully made her way across the dam, toward the commotion. "Come back here so I can scold you!" hollered Mr. Beaver as he swam after the otters. The otters ignored him. They kept climbing onto the dam and splashing into the water, happily squeaking all

第十六章落水比弗先生愤怒的声音在池塘那边回响。 他总是为这样或那样的事发牢骚，但这次听起来异常沮丧。 罗兹大步走过去，想看看这是怎么回事。她走的时候，开始听到吱吱声和水花声，透过树叶，她瞥见水獭从海狸坝上跳下来，跳进了水里。 罗兹从树林里走出来，来到堤坝上。 那是一道由树枝、岩石和泥土组成的矮墙，沿着池塘的一边延伸。 她已经毫无困难地穿越了几百次了。 但池塘最近被疏浚以容纳更多的水，现在它太深了，她看不到底部。 机器人曾经掉进过一次深水，差点毁了她。 所以她并不着急，而是小心翼翼地穿过水坝，朝着骚动的地方走去。 “回来，让我骂你！”比弗先生一边追着水獭，一边喊道。 水獭不理他。他们不停地爬上水坝，溅水，快乐地吱吱叫着

the while. Mr. Beaver's son, Paddler, was floating nearby, and he couldn't help giggling. "Don't encourage them, son!" said Mr. Beaver. "These creatures are a menace!" Paddler frowned and said, "After what they've been through, it's nice to see them having fun." "The otters can have all the fun they want. Just not in my pond!" "Dad, I know you made this pond, but that doesn't mean it belongs to you." "That is precisely what it means!" When the otters took a break from playing, Shelly swam up to the beavers and said, "I'm sorry if we're disturbing you. We know we're out of place here. We're sea otters! We should be in the sea! But we have to find a new home somewhere on the island, and we like it here." Mr. Beaver grunted, "I don't understand why you have to live in my pond when there are so many new ponds to choose from." "Those new ponds are just holes filled with water," said Shelly. "This pond has plants and fish and geese and insects… and beavers! This pond is full of life! It feels more like a home." Mrs. Beaver's head poked up from the surface. She glared at her husband and said, "Remember how you asked me to point out when you're being stubborn and

虽然。比弗先生的儿子帕德勒在附近漂着，他忍不住咯咯地笑了起来。 “别怂恿他们，孩子！”比弗先生说。 “这些生物是个威胁！”帕德勒皱着眉头说：“在他们经历了这些之后，看到他们玩得开心真是太好了。” “水獭可以尽情享受他们想要的乐趣。 只是别在我的池塘里！”“爸爸，我知道这个池塘是你造的，但这并不意味着它属于你。” “正是这个意思！”当水獭们玩耍休息时，雪莉游到海狸们面前说：“如果我们打扰了你们，我很抱歉。 我们知道我们在这里不合适。 我们是海獭！我们应该在海里！但我们必须在岛上找个新家，我们喜欢这里。” 比弗先生咕哝着说：“我不明白你为什么要住在我的池塘里，有那么多新池塘可供选择。” “那些新池塘就是装满水的洞，”雪莉说。 “这个池塘里有植物、鱼、鹅、昆虫……还有海狸！”这个池塘充满了生命！这里更像是一个家。” 海狸太太的头从水面探了出来。 她怒视着丈夫说：“还记得你让我指出你什么时候固执，什么时候

rude? Well, you're being stubborn and rude!" Then she smiled at the otters and said, "You are very welcome to live here. This pond is big enough for us all." And with that, Mrs. Beaver disappeared back below the surface. Reader, the next few events happened very quickly. First, the otters resumed playing. They burst into action, squeaking and splashing and climbing onto the dam. This made Paddler giggle, but his father was not amused. In one swift motion, Mr. Beaver smacked his broad tail against the water. That was his way of warning the otters to keep their distance. However, he ended up startling Roz, who had been quietly approaching this whole time. She stumbled and wobbled and swung her arms to keep her balance. Then she toppled off the dam and into the pond.

粗鲁的?好吧，你既固执又粗鲁！”然后她微笑着对水獭说：“非常欢迎你们住在这里。 这个池塘够大，容得下我们所有人。” 说完，海狸太太就消失在水面下了。 读者，接下来的几件事发生得很快。 首先，水獭们恢复了比赛。 他们开始行动起来，吱吱叫着，溅起水花，爬上水坝。 这让帕德勒咯咯地笑了起来，但他的父亲并不觉得好笑。 比弗先生迅速地用他宽阔的尾巴拍打着水面。 这是他警告水獭保持距离的方式。 然而，他最终吓到了一直在悄悄靠近的罗兹。 她踉跄着，摇晃着，挥舞着双臂以保持平衡。 然后她从大坝上摔了下来，掉进了池塘里。

Kersploosh! The robot sank like a stone and vanished into the murky depths. Around the pond, animals turned and stared. Worried faces peered out from the trees. Glimmer and Brightbill came flying.

Kersploosh !机器人像石头一样沉了下去，消失在黑暗的深处。 池塘周围，动物们都转过头来盯着看。 忧心忡忡的面孔从树林里探出头来。 微光和布莱特比尔飞了过来。

"My mother can't survive in deep water!" squawked Brightbill. "Somebody, do something!" screeched Glimmer. The beavers and otters were about to dive down when they saw a shape rising from the bottom. A moment later, Roz hauled herself out of the water and onto the dam. She was covered in muck, which started oozing down her smooth sides. A fish wiggled out from a muddy clump on her head and plopped back into the pond. "Are you okay, Ma?" said Brightbill. "What do you need?" said Shelly. "Speak to us!" said Mr. Beaver. "Thank you for your concern," said Roz. "But I seem to be perfectly fine."

“我妈妈不能在深水中生存！”Brightbill尖声说。 “谁来做点什么！” 海狸和水獭正准备潜入水中，这时他们看到一个人影从水底上升起。 过了一会儿，罗兹从水里爬了出来，来到大坝上。 她浑身都是淤泥，淤泥开始从她光滑的两侧渗出来。 一条鱼从她头上的一团泥里游了出来，扑通一声又回到池塘里。 “你没事吧，妈妈？”布莱特比尔说。 “你需要什么？”雪莉说。 “跟我们说话吧！”比弗先生说。 “谢谢你的关心，”罗兹说。 “但我似乎很好。”