Chapter 7

7 The First Encounter The route through the woods was eerily silent. Only a chance meeting with a startled dormouse family gave Rosa any indication that the woods were inhabited. Flowerless brambles twisted through fallen branches and bracken, and the going was so difficult that Rosa popped Stick in her backpack to protect her paws from all the thorns.

第一次相遇穿过树林的路上出奇地寂静。 罗莎偶然遇到了一群受惊的睡鼠，才知道树林里有人居住。 没有花的荆棘缠绕在倒下的树枝和蕨菜中，走起来非常困难，罗莎把棍子塞进背包里，保护自己的爪子不被荆棘刺到。

'These woods used to be open and light, and full of colour,' said Nan, 'with foxgloves and bluebells scattered throughout.' 'Once you stop farming the trees,' said Higgs, 'it's as though they stop being able to look after themselves.' Rosa didn't understand. 'You farm them?' she asked. Higgs showed her a wide, flat stump of a tree, and how it had many thin trunks growing out of it, rather than one big one. 'If you cut the trunk properly, and at the right time of year,' said Higgs, 'the tree grows back many new branches to replace it. You let it grow to the thickness you need, and then you can keep harvesting the wood, year on year!'

“这片树林以前开阔明亮，色彩斑斓，”南说，“到处都是毛地黄和风信子。“一旦你停止种树，”希格斯说，“它们就好像不能照顾自己了。”罗莎不明白。 “你养的？”她问。 希格斯给她看了一根又宽又平的树桩，上面长出了许多细细的树干，而不是一根大树干。 “如果你在一年中的适当时间把树干砍断，”希格斯说，“树就会长出许多新树枝来代替它。 你让它长到你需要的厚度，然后你就可以年复一年地继续砍伐了！”

'Amazing,' said Rosa. 'And you can tell from the width of its base how old it is,' said Nan, 'and therefore how long the tree has been worked in this way.' 'This one must have been farmed for at least a hundred years,' said Higgs. 'Wow,' said Rosa. 'I didn't think you were that old.' 'I don't think Higgs has been doing it all that time, my girl,' said Nan, laughing. 'Oh,' said Rosa, a touch embarrassed. 'My family have worked here for centuries, said Higgs.

“太神奇了，”罗莎说。“而且你可以从它底部的宽度看出它的年龄，”南说，“因此也就知道这棵树被这样加工了多久。希格斯说：“这块地肯定至少有一百年的历史了。” “哇，”罗莎说。“我没想到你这么老。“我不认为希格斯一直在做这件事，我的女孩，”南笑着说。 “哦，”罗莎有点尴尬地说。 “我的家族在这里工作了几个世纪，”希格斯说。

'Back when there were miners and many more people living on the mountain. I've never known it look so bad.' Suddenly, a howl rippled through the woods. 'OH, PRICKLES!' cried Higgs, and he collapsed into a spiky ball, his helmet spinning to the ground. Rosa and Nan inched closer until they were back to back. The one howl turned into a chorus of two, three, and then four. 'It's wolves all right,' said Nan. Rosa felt scared. 'What do we do?' she asked. 'Stay calm, and we should be all right,' said Nan. 'Wolves don't like humans.' Rosa didn't feel that she could stay calm. She could hear the creatures

“那时候还有矿工和更多的人住在山上。 我从来没见过这么糟糕的情况。”突然，一声嗥叫在树林里荡起涟漪。 “哦,刺!希格斯喊道，他瘫倒在地，变成了一个尖尖的球，他的头盔旋转着落到地上。 罗莎和南慢慢靠近，直到背靠背。 一声嚎叫变成了两声、三声，然后是四声的合唱。 “是狼，”南说。 罗莎感到害怕。“我们该怎么办？”她问。 “保持冷静，我们会没事的，”南说。 狼不喜欢人类。罗莎觉得自己无法保持冷静。 她能听到动物的声音

getting closer. A crunch of footsteps and a rustle of leaves made it clear they were nearby. Higgs poked his nose out and opened one eye. 'Nan...' he said fearfully. 'It's the Greybacks. I can smell them.' Rosa hurriedly zipped Stick fully into her backpack, leaving a little gap for air. The cub whined, but soon settled. 'Stop trying to scare us!' said Nan forcefully. She stared into the shadowy trees. 'We don't mean to hurt you!' A group of darkened faces rose up out of the undergrowth, with stubby triangular ears sitting atop their heads.

越来越近了。嘎吱嘎吱的脚步声和树叶的沙沙声表明他们就在附近。 希格斯伸出鼻子，睁开了一只眼睛。 “南…他害怕地说。 “是灰背队。我能闻到它们的味道。”罗莎赶紧把棍子完全拉进背包，留出一点空隙透气。 幼崽呜咽着，但很快就安静下来了。 “别吓唬我们了！”南强硬地说。 她凝视着阴暗的树林。 “我们不想伤害你！”一群黝黑的面孔从矮树丛中冒了出来，他们的头顶上长着又粗又短的三角形耳朵。