Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX Matilda moved closer to the chinchilla, who seemed to be trying to talk to them. He squeaked in alarm and raced back to the others. They all scattered, their squeaks becoming more high-pitched as they jumped into the Heart Tree's sagging branches, sending more leaves swirling to the ground. "Stop," called Matilda. "We're not going to hurt you. Please come back." "They're terrified. Whisper, can you help?" asked Ariana. Whisper had soothing magic. It meant he

第六章玛蒂尔达走近栗鼠，它似乎想和他们说话。 他惊恐地尖叫着，跑回其他人身边。 他们四散奔逃，跳上心树下垂的树枝，吱吱声越来越高，把更多的树叶甩到地上。 “停下，”玛蒂尔达叫道。“我们不会伤害你的。 请回来吧。”“他们吓坏了。 Whisper，你能帮忙吗？”阿利安娜问。 Whisper有抚慰人心的魔力。 这意味着他

could calm animals and people whenever they were anxious or angry. Tossing his mane, he lifted a hoof and stamped it on the ground. Crack! Blue, pink and purple sparks swirled in the air accompanied by the delicious scent of caramelised sugar. A memory tugged at Matilda's mind. She'd recently smelt that same smell. When had it been? But her thoughts were distracted by the sight of the chinchillas. As Whisper's magic reached them, they stopped squeaking and climbed back down to the base of the tree. Looking much calmer, they scampered towards the girls, who knelt down to greet them.

当动物和人焦虑或生气时，可以使他们平静下来。 他甩了甩鬃毛，抬起一只蹄子，在地上跺了几脚。 裂缝!蓝色、粉红色和紫色的火花在空气中旋转，伴随着焦糖的香味。 一段记忆在玛蒂尔达的脑海里挥之不去。 她最近也闻到了同样的味道。 那是什么时候？但她的思绪被龙猫的景象分散了。 当Whisper的魔法传到他们身上时，他们停止了吱吱叫，爬回了树底下。 他们看起来平静多了，朝女孩们跑去，女孩们跪下来迎接他们。

The chinchillas jumped into their laps. Matilda ended up with one on each shoulder and three in her arms. Their soft pink fur tickled her chin and their eyes were dark and sparkling. They had large round ears and they made a soft chittering sound. "What is it?" she whispered, knowing they were trying to tell her something. "What's been happening here?" "I bet it's something to do with the Heart Tree," said Rosa, looking up from her own armfuls of chinchillas. "I wonder why it's dying?"

龙猫跳到他们的腿上。 最后，玛蒂尔达肩上各抱了一个，怀里抱了三个。 它们柔软的粉红色皮毛使她的下巴发痒，它们的眼睛乌黑发亮。 它们长着又大又圆的耳朵，发出轻柔的叽叽喳喳的声音。 “怎么了？”她低声说，知道他们想告诉她什么。 “这里发生了什么事？”“我打赌这和心树有关，”罗莎说，从她抱着的龙猫中抬起头来。 “我想知道它为什么要死了？”

"Hey, why are you all wearing chinchillas?" called a voice. It was Miki and Himmat from Topaz dorm. Matilda smiled at them; she liked both of the boys. "Is pink fur the new fashion?" said Himmat, laughing loudly. "Shh, don't scare the chinchillas. Something's upset them," said Violet. Miki and Himmat immediately stopped fooling around and looked concerned. "What do you mean?" Himmat asked, lowering his voice. Rosa explained what they had found. Himmat investigated the tree while Miki, who was brilliant with animals, picked up a chinchilla from the ground. He stroked it gently, starting behind its ears, then along its back and tail. The chinchilla relaxed into Miki's arms. Miki frowned. "Something's definitely wrong. Look how patchy its fur is in places. I know chinchillas moult at this time of year but their

“嘿，你们为什么都穿着龙猫？”一个声音喊道。 是黄玉宿舍的美琪和希玛特。 玛蒂尔达对他们笑了笑；她喜欢这两个男孩。 “现在流行粉红色的皮草吗？”Himmat大声笑着说。 “嘘，别吓到龙猫。 有什么事让他们心烦意乱。”维奥莱特说。 美琪和希玛特立刻停止了胡闹，显得很担心。 “你是什么意思？”希玛特压低声音问道。 罗莎解释了他们的发现。 Himmat调查了那棵树，而对动物很有天赋的Miki从地上捡起了一只栗鼠。 他轻轻地抚摸着它，从耳朵后面开始，然后沿着它的背和尾巴。 栗鼠放松地躺在美琪的怀里。 杨爱瑾皱起了眉头。“肯定有什么不对劲。 看，它的皮毛有些地方是斑驳的。 我知道龙猫每年这个时候换毛，但它们的

coats should always look glossy and healthy. Himmat, can you pick me some leaves from those small white flowers? Yes, those ones," he added as Himmat pointed to a shady area dotted with tiny white star shapes. "Everyone, try feeding the chinchillas these leaves," Miki urged as Himmat handed him a

大衣应该总是看起来有光泽和健康。 Himmat，你能从那些小白花上给我摘些叶子吗？ 是的，就是那些。”他接着说，这时希玛特指着一片布满白色小星形的阴凉区域。 “每个人，试着给龙猫喂这些叶子，”Himmat递给Miki一个

leaf and he offered it to his chinchilla. "They're good for chinchillas, they've got lots of the vitamins they need and they help calm them down." The chinchillas munched on the leaves, staring at the children with huge eyes as if they were waiting for them to do something. Miki pushed his long black fringe out of his eyes. "I don't understand it. Whatever it is that's upsetting the chinchillas, it must be very serious for their coats to be affected." "I think it's got to be something to do with the tree," said Violet. "I vote we find Ms Rivers and tell her about it," said Ariana. "I agree," said Rosa, "but let's finish the scavenger hunt first and then tell her. A couple more hours won't make any difference. It would be so annoying to let Valentina win, especially since it sounds like she's cheating." Rosa put the chinchilla she was cuddling down at the

叶子，他把它给了他的栗鼠。 “它们对龙猫有好处，它们含有大量所需的维生素，有助于让它们平静下来。” 龙猫啃着树叶，用大眼睛盯着孩子们，好像在等他们做点什么。 美琪把长长的黑刘海从眼睛里拨开。 “我不明白。不管是什么让龙猫心烦意乱，它们的皮毛受到影响一定很严重。” “我想这一定和那棵树有关。”维奥莱特说。 “我建议我们找到里弗斯女士，告诉她这件事，”阿里安娜说。 “我同意，”罗莎说，“但我们还是先玩完寻宝游戏再告诉她吧。 再多几个小时也不会有什么不同。 如果让瓦伦蒂娜赢，那就太烦人了，尤其是听起来像是她在作弊。” 罗莎把她抱着的栗鼠放在