02 Thunder Under the Ground

Chapter 2 Thunder Under the Ground Nice clothes, said Annie. Jack opened his eyes. Annie was wearing a blue and white dress with a big sailor collar and white stockings. Jack was wearing brown knee -length pants, a jacket, a cap, and a tie. His backpack had become a leather bag. He and Annie both wore short lace -up boots. A church bell started to ring.

第二章 地下的雷声 “好漂亮的衣服呀。”安妮说。 杰克睁开了眼睛。 安妮穿了一条带大海军领的蓝白连衣裙，还配着白长袜。 杰克穿了棕色及膝裤、一件外套、戴了顶帽子，还系了领带。 他的背包变成了一个皮制的包。 他和安妮都穿了系带的短靴。 教堂的钟开始响了起来。

Gong, Gong, Gong, Gong, Gong. It rang five times, said Jack. It must be five in the morning. Yeah, said Annie. She was looking out the window. Jack looked with her. The early morning air felt fresh and cool.

咚、咚、咚、咚、咚。 “钟敲了五下。”杰克说。 现在肯定是早上五点啦。 “对呀。”安妮说。 她正望着窗外。 杰克也凑过去和她一起看。 清晨的空气闻起来清新又凉爽。

The treehouse had landed in a tree at the bottom of a hill. Painted wooden houses and gas lights lined a quiet cobblestone street. A trolley car moved along tracks up the street. It rounded the top of the hill and disappeared. Tall buildings towered farther off. The sun was behind them, making pink streaks in the blue sky.

树屋落在了山脚下的一棵树上。 安静的鹅卵石街道两旁，是刷了漆的木屋和煤气灯。 一辆有轨电车沿着轨道往街道上坡的方向开。 它转过山顶就不见了踪影。 更远的地方矗立着高高的楼房。 太阳在他们身后，给蓝色的天空晕出了几道粉色的光带。

It's really pretty here," said Annie. Yeah, said Jack. He opened the research book and read, On Wednesday, April 18, 1906, San Francisco was the biggest city on the west coast of the United States. It had a population of half a million people. It was also one of the loveliest cities in the country. Jack pulled out his notebook. He wrote, San Francisco, April 18, 1906, biggest city in the west. Lovely. Let's go, Annie said impatiently. Jack looked back at the book. He wanted to learn more.

“这里真的好漂亮呀。”安妮说。 “是呀。”杰克说。 他打开资料书读了起来： 1906年4月18日星期三，旧金山是美国西海岸 最大的城市。 它的人口有五十万。 它也是全美最可爱的城市之一。 杰克掏出他的笔记本。 他写道：旧金山，1906年4月18日，西部最大城市。 很可爱。 “我们走吧。”安妮不耐烦地说。 杰克回头看向那本书。 他还想多了解一点。

Now, said Annie. She took the book and notebook away from him and put them into his leather bag. Let's not waste any more time. Annie left the treehouse. Doing research is not wasting time, Jack called after her. But he slung his bag over his shoulder and followed Annie down the rope ladder. When they had both stepped onto the grass, Jack looked around. Where to, he said? Anywhere, said Annie. Let's just explore and see the sights. We can be tourists. Okay, said Jack. But don't forget we have to find the writing for Morgan's library.

“现在就走。”安妮说。 她把书和笔记本从他手里拿走，塞进了他的皮包里。 咱们别再浪费时间啦。 安妮离开了树屋。 “做研究才不是浪费时间。”杰克在她身后喊道。 不过他还是把包挎到肩膀上，跟着安妮爬下了绳梯。 等两个人都踩到草地上，杰克四下看了看。 “我们去哪呀？”他问。 “随便去哪都行。”安妮说。 咱们就到处逛逛，看看风景呗。 我们可以当游客呀。 “好吧。”杰克说。 “不过别忘了我们还要找摩根图书馆要的文稿哦。”

They started up the cobblestone street. As they walked up the steep hill, the sun rose above the tall buildings. The early light turned everything to gold. Stones, street lamps, and the glass windows of the silent houses. It's so quiet and peaceful, said Annie. Yeah, everyone must still be sleeping, said Jack. Suddenly, out of the quiet came a deep rumbling noise. Jack stopped, he grabbed Annie's arm. What's that? He said. The noise got louder. It sounded like thunder coming from under the ground. The earth started shaking.

他们沿着鹅卵石街道往坡上走。 他们走上陡峭的山坡时，太阳升到了高楼的上方。 清晨的阳光把一切都镀成了金色。 石头、路灯，还有安安静静的屋子的玻璃窗。 “这里好安静好祥和呀。”安妮说。 “对呀，大家肯定都还在睡觉呢。”杰克说。 忽然，安静里传来一阵低沉的隆隆声。 杰克停下脚步，一把抓住安妮的胳膊。 “那是什么声音？” 他问道。 声音越来越大。 听起来就像是从地底下传来的雷声。 地面开始晃动起来。