Quicktail 偷错了东西

我是Rhea。

This is Rhea.

欢迎收听《小人物的小故事》。

Welcome to Little Stories for Tiny People.

哎哟！

Ow!

那是什么？

What was that?

有什么东西打到我眼睛了。

Something just hit me in the eye.

尖尖的东西。

Something pointy.

当然，偏偏在我打开麦克风的时候发生这种事。

Of course, this happens right when I turn on my microphone.

给我一秒钟。

Give me just a second.

让我看看怎么回事。

Let me see what's going on.

哎哟！

Ow!

嘿，你们在干什么——那些是纸飞机吗？

Hey, what are you-- Are those paper airplanes?

好吧，你肯定不信，但工作室里的蜘蛛和甲虫正拿纸飞机砸我呢。

Well, you're not going to believe this, but the studio spiders and beetles are pelting me with paper airplanes.

哎哟！

Ow!

它们做得还挺像样的。

They're surprisingly well constructed.

你们能不能，哎哟，先停一下，拜托？

Can you ow, just stop for a minute, please?

哦，这上面有字。

Oh, there's something written on this one.

上面写着：“打开我。”

It says, "Open me."

好吧。

Okay.

“亲爱的瑞亚，我们会继续扔纸飞机，直到你重新打开邮件通知。”

"Dear Rhea, we will continue to throw paper airplanes until you turn your email notifications back on.

不然我们怎么给你那些平庸的故事提尖锐的意见呢？

How else are we supposed to give you sharply worded feedback on your mediocre stories?

此致，工作室蜘蛛和甲虫纸飞机投掷委员会。”

Sincerely, the Studio Spider and Studio Beetle Paper Airplane Throwing Committee."

好吧，那不可能是个真的委员会。

Okay, that cannot be a real committee.

听着，我跟你做个交易。

Look, I'll make you a deal.

如果你们给我30分钟的安静，我就打开邮件通知。

I will turn on my email notifications if you give me 30 minutes of silence.

我只需要这些。

That's all I need.

三十分钟。

30 minutes.

然后我就让我的收件箱整天响个不停。

Then I will allow my inbox to chime all day.

我们达成一致了吗？

Are we good?

嘿！

Hey!

“亲爱的Rhea，这是最后一架纸飞机。

"Dear Rhea, that was the last airplane.

我们同意你的条件。

We agree to your terms.

你正好有三十分钟。

You have precisely 30 minutes.

去吧。

Go."

好吧，不用你说两遍。

Well, you don't have to tell me twice.

我们开始讲故事吧。

Let's get to our story.

故事叫《快尾巴偷错了东西》。

It's called "Quicktail Steals the Wrong Thing."

交给你了，韦斯利。

Take it away, Wesley.

记住，没有图片。

Remember, there are no pictures.

你得在脑海里想象这些画面。

You will have to imagine the pictures in your mind.

你想怎么想象都可以。

You can imagine them however you want.

好，那我们开始吧。

Okay, here we go.

在一个美丽的秋日，两个人去山林里露营。

On a beautiful day in autumn, two people go camping in a mountainous forest.

他们仔细打包所需物品，把沉甸甸的背包都背在背上。

They take care to pack what they need, carrying it all in hefty packs strapped to their backs.

他们带了一个便携式滤水壶、很多食物，还有去附近河边钓鱼的装备。

They bring a nifty water filtration bottle, plenty of food, and fishing gear for the nearby river.

他们带了宽檐帽，以防太阳突然又像夏天那样毒辣。

They have wide-brimmed hats for hours when the sun might decide to reassert its summer self.

他们对旅行的每个细节都考虑得很周到。

They think carefully about each aspect of their trip.

然后，他们选了一个特别糟糕的地方搭帐篷。

Then, they pick a terrible location for their tent.

我是说，真的特别糟糕。

I mean, a really terrible location.

看起来不错。

It looks fine.

看起来挺理想的。

It looks ideal.

他们把帐篷搭在一块平坦的地方，周围是漂亮的树，叶子金黄和橙红相间。

They set up the tent on a flat spot surrounded by lovely trees with bright gold and orange leaves.

河边不远，走一小段路就到，而且还有加水站。

The river is just a short hike away, as is a water filling station.

毕竟他们的露营地是有编号的。

Their campsite is numbered, after all.

这是正规的。

It's official.

又不是说人们从车里跳出来，随手把帐篷往地上一扔。

It's not like the people just pop out of their car and toss a tent on the ground.

不是的。这次旅行是精心计划过的。

No. This trip has been planned.

他们提前订了位，打了电话，还发了确认邮件。

There were reservations involved, phone calls, confirmation emails.

他们把卡车停在几英里外，徒步走到这个宜人的地方，周围环绕着高大的树木，阳光透过树叶洒下来。

They'd parked their truck several miles away and hiked into this pleasant spot, surrounded by gorgeous tall trees and sunshine winking down through the leafy canopy.

但这一切，所有这一切，都无法改变一个事实：这是个糟糕的地方。

But none of that, none of it, changes the fact that it is a terrible spot.

太糟糕了。

Terrible.

因为，当然，他们不可能知道这一点，所以我们也不能太责怪他们。

Because, and of course, they had no way of knowing this, so we can't fault them too harshly.

因为就在他们的营地旁边，住着一只叫快尾巴的鼹鼠，它有个坏习惯，就是偷露营者的东西。

Because right next to their campsite lives a mole named Quicktail, who has a nasty habit of stealing from campers.

快尾巴不知道他们是露营者。

Quicktail doesn't know they are campers.

他叫他们旅行者。

He calls them travelers.

这些人看起来根本不像是来露营的。

It never looks like these people are settling in to camp.

看起来他们像是在进行某种长途旅行，只是在他家附近停个一两天。

It looks like they're on some kind of long journey, and they're just stopping near his house for a couple of days.

要是让他们知道他们根本不是在路上，过几天就回家了，他肯定会大吃一惊，真的，我跟你说。

He would be shocked, shocked, I tell you, to learn that they are not on a journey at all, and in a few days' time, they will simply go home.

快尾想象他们是游牧民族，永远在旅行，搭帐篷，拆帐篷，再换个地方搭起来。

Quicktail imagines they are nomadic people, forever traveling, setting up a tent, taking it down, setting it up somewhere else.

他怎么可能知道真相呢？

How is he supposed to know the truth?

他对挖地道和各种各样的虫子食谱了如指掌。

He knows a tremendous amount about tunneling through the earth and various recipes for preparing worms.

但对人类的休闲活动，他几乎一无所知。

He knows next to nothing about human people's leisure activities.

露营者很容易偷。

Campers are easy to steal from.

快尾巴很久以前就学会了这一点。

Quicktail learned this a long time ago.

他能从自己的鼹鼠丘里爬出来，溜进露营地，抓点东西，然后神不知鬼不觉地溜走。

He can crawl out from his molehill, creep into the campsite, grab something up, and slip away without being noticed.

露营者不只是懒洋洋地躺着看杂志，或者高谈阔论古代诗歌。

Campers don't just loll around reading magazines or pontificating about ancient poetry.

他们很活跃。

They're active.

他们天一亮就起来生火。

They get up at dawn and build a fire.

他们去远足打水。

They hike to get water.

他们去钓鱼。

They go fishing.

所以，他们通常不会紧盯着自己的东西。一旦露营者跑开去假装自己回到了旧时代，快尾巴就迅速行动。

So they're not usually keeping a close eye on their stuff As soon as the campers trot off to pretend they're back in the olden days, Quicktail zips into action.

他从地下的巢穴里钻出来，在帐篷周围嗅来嗅去，直到找到什么东西。

He emerges from his lair beneath the ground and goes sniffing around the tent until he finds something.

他对食物不感兴趣。

He's not interested in food.

人类的食物太难吃了。

The people food is awful.

他试过。

He's tried it.

他试过几次，但味道从来不像虫子。

He's given it a shot, but it never tastes anything like worms.

相反，快尾巴喜欢的是物品。

Instead, Quicktail likes objects.

他的隧道装饰得很漂亮。

His tunnel is highly decorated.

他家里到处都是人类的东西。

He's got people things all over his home.

有一根火柴。

There's a matchstick.

他有一个巨大的开罐器，占了他洞穴的一半。

He has an enormous can opener that takes up half his burrow.

天花板上挂着一个手镯。

A bracelet dangles from the ceiling.

快尾有一条扭结带，偶尔当腰带用。

Quicktail has a twist tie that he occasionally uses as a belt.

他有一张绿色的大长方形纸，上面印着一个人的脸，四个角上都有大大的数字100。

He's got a big, green, rectangular paper that has a person's face on it and big numbers, 100, in each of the four corners.

一开始看起来一文不值，快尾差点把它扔进壁炉，但总觉得有点意思，就把它像挂毯一样挂了起来。

It seemed worthless at first, so Quicktail nearly tossed it into the fireplace, but something about it was intriguing, so he hung it up like a wall tapestry.

晚上，他睡在一只舒适的羊毛袜里，袜头还加固过。

At night, he sleeps in a cozy wool sock with a reinforced toe.

壁炉上方放着一枚漂亮的珍珠戒指。

There's a beautiful pearl ring that sits above his fireplace.

他拿走那个戒指的时候，营地里可闹翻了天。

When he took that, it caused quite the commotion at the campsite.

“我的戒指呢？

"Where's my ring?

刚才还在这儿呢。

It was right here.

我刚摘下来，怕把它刮花了。”

I just took it off so I wouldn't scratch it."

最奇怪的东西要数Quicktail找到的那只玻璃眼珠了。

The strangest item by far is a glass eye that Quicktail found.

他真的是捡到的，好吗？

He found it, okay?

他可不是从原来的地方偷来的。

He didn't take it from its original resting spot.

不，他是在草丛里发现的，那眼珠安安静静地朝天望着。

No, he found it in the grass, peacefully staring up at the sky.

快尾巴忍不住把它捡起来，滚着带回了家。

Quicktail couldn't resist snatching it up and rolling it home.

“我的眼睛呢？”

"Where's my eye?

“刚才还在这儿呢。”

It was right here.

“我摘下来一会儿，免得刮花了。”

I just took it off for a second so I wouldn't scratch it."

他也有几次被当场抓住。

He has been caught a few times.

“嘿，这只鼹鼠拿了我的梳子。”

"Hey, this mole has my hairbrush."

但快尾巴很可爱。

But Quicktail is adorable.

所有鼹鼠都可爱。

All moles are.

“你看他。

"Look at him.

他多可爱啊。”

He's so sweet."

人们总是只是把他从他们的东西旁边赶走。

The people always just shoo him away from their stuff.

“走吧，小家伙。”

"Go on now, little fella."

据他们所知，鼹鼠只是可爱又无辜，绝不会精心策划和密谋拿走他们的东西。

As far as they know, moles are just cute and innocent and would never carefully plot and scheme to take their things.

但他们确实会策划和密谋。

But they do plot and scheme.

至少，快尾巴会。

At least, Quicktail does.

所以，人们把帐篷搭在那个确切的位置是非常不明智的，因为一旦他们拖着脚步去灌满水壶，快尾巴就迅速行动起来。

So it was terribly unwise for the people to set up their tent in that precise location, because as soon as they plod off to fill up their canteens, Quicktail scurries into action.

他从土堆里探出头来，眨着眼睛，装出一副人畜无害的小鼹鼠模样，然后立刻开始干活，寻找宝藏。

He pokes his head out from his molehill, blinking, looking the ever-innocent little mole that he isn't, and goes to work straight away, looking for treasure.

快尾巴找到的第一样东西是一双人字拖。

The first thing Quicktail finds is a pair of flip-flops.

他慢悠悠地爬上一只人字拖，蜷缩在上面。

He ambles onto one of the flip-flops and curls up in place.

“这可以当我的羊毛袜下面的绝妙睡垫，”他嘟囔着。

"This could be a wonderful sleeping mat beneath my wool sock," he mutters.

但快尾巴试了试人字拖的弹性，像人们试床垫那样翻了个身，却发现了一个问题。

But as Quicktail tests the flip-flop's cushion, turning over in the way people do when they're testing out a mattress, he notices a problem.

“嗯，臭臭的。”

"Hmm, stinky."

他转而去看一个能用爪子拿住的塑料东西。

He moves on to a plastic item he can hold in his paws.

那是红色的，顶部有一个带齿的小金属轮子。

It is red, and there is a little ridged metal wheel at the top.

快尾按着那个轮子，转动它。

Quicktail presses against the wheel, turning it.

火焰从物体顶部窜了出来。

A flame shoots up from the top of the object.

啊！

"Ah!"

快尾把它扔掉，继续往前走。

Quicktail drops it and moves on.

他更喜欢用火柴在家里点壁炉。

He prefers to use matches to light his fireplace at home.

接着，他发现了一本小书，封面上有大字。

Next, he finds a little book with big letters on the cover.

他找到的大多数书都无聊透顶。

Most books he finds are terribly boring.

在他看来，那些书全都是废话连篇。

They're all a bunch of blah, blah, blah as far as he's concerned.

但当他打开这本书时，他发现了图画。

But when he opens this book, he finds pictures.

而且不是普通的图画，是地图。

And not just any pictures, they are maps.

快尾巴并不着急。

Quicktail isn't in a rush.

他其实从来不着急。

He never is, really.

因为如果那些人回来了，他知道他们只会客气地把他赶走。

Because if the people come back, he knows they'll just sweetly shoo him away.

他翻着书页，停下来盯着地图上那些复杂的线条。

He flips through the pages of the book, pausing to stare at the intricate lines of the maps.

有些页面上画着山的图案，快尾巴觉得这些画挺可爱的。

Some of the pages contain drawings of the mountains, and Quicktail finds the depictions rather charming.

“哦，我喜欢这一页，”他低声说。

"Oh, I love this one," he murmurs.

他没有把整本书拖回自己的隧道，而是撕下最喜欢的那一页，折好，塞进背心的口袋里。

Rather than lugging the whole book back to his tunnel, he tears out the page he likes best, folds it up, and slips it into the pocket of his vest.

他合上书，继续检查营地，心想这张地图可能是最有趣的发现了，虽然不算太失望，但也谈不上多兴奋，就在这时，有什么东西在光线中闪闪发亮，吸引了他的余光。

He closes the book and continues inspecting the campsite, thinking that the map might be the most interesting find, which isn't a huge disappointment but isn't exactly thrilling, when something catches the light and sparkles in his periphery.

快尾转过身，看到在人们的睡袋下面，半藏着一个闪亮的金属物件。

Quicktail turns to see, partially hidden beneath one of the people's sleeping bags, a shiny metal object.

他赶紧跑过去，把睡袋推开。

He scurries over to it and pushes the sleeping bag away.

“哦，这个，这个可是个宝贝。”

"Ooh Now this, this is a find.

突然，快尾确实感到着急了。

Suddenly, Quicktail does feel rushed.

他环顾四周，不想在检查这个漂亮物件时被打扰。

He glances around, not wanting to be interrupted as he examines this beautiful object.

他用爪子把它举了起来。

He lifts it in his paws.

他一拿起来，就发现这东西还连着别的东西。

As he does so, he sees it is connected to something else.

有个金属环穿过那东西上的一个孔。

There's a metal ring looped through a hole in the object.

金属环上还挂着好几个类似的扁平金属物件。

Several other similar flat metal objects dangle from the metal ring.

快尾摇了摇整串东西。

Quicktail jostles the whole thing.

“哦，我太喜欢了。”

"Oh, I love it."

这东西他一定要弄到手。

This is something he has to have.

他想象着把这串叮当作响的金属玩意儿挂在家里的钩子上。

He pictures the whole set of jangly metal items hanging from a hook inside his home.

他想象着自己轻轻一推，就能随时听到那悦耳的声音。

He imagines pushing them gently to hear that lovely sound whenever he wants.

金属环上还挂着别的东西。

There are some other things attached to the metal loop.

有一个亮蓝色的卷曲塑料玩意儿。

There's a bright blue curly plastic thing.

还有一个圆盘，材质不太一样。

There is a round disc made of some other material.

他说不上来是什么。

He isn't sure what.

“这是干嘛用的呢？”快尾嘟囔着。

"I wonder what that's for," Quicktail mutters.

这时他听到了脚步声。

Then he hears footsteps.

那些人正回到他们的露营地。

The people are returning to their campsite.

快尾一把抓起整个东西，飞快地跑开了，拼命地窜，生怕被人赶走，丢掉这个心爱的宝贝。

Quicktail grabs up the entire thing and dashes away, scurrying as fast as he possibly can so as not to be shooed away from this lovely find.

幸好他的鼹鼠丘就在附近，他拖着那一大串叮当作响的金属物件，一下子钻到了地下。

Thankfully, his molehill is close by, and he slips beneath the ground, dragging the lot of jangling metal objects with him.

快尾看到新东西在隧道里显得那么完美，心里高兴极了。

Quicktail is delighted when he sees how perfect the new items look inside his tunnel.

它们看起来就像是为他的家量身定做的一样。

They really look as though they were made for his home.

虽然地下很暗，但这些物件能捕捉到仅有的那点光线。

It is dark down there, but they catch what little light there is.

这时，快尾的肚子咕咕叫了起来。

Then Quicktail's tummy grumbles.

“哦，我饿了。”

"Oh, I'm hungry."

他意识到自己已经有一阵子没吃虫子了。

And he realizes it's been a while since he's eaten a worm.

他飞快地跑出去，到外面抓虫子吃。

He scampers out into the world to catch one.

小快尾不知道的是，他从人们的露营地偷走那些叮当作响的金属物品，是个非常糟糕的决定。

What Quicktail does not know is he's made a terrible decision by stealing those jangly metal items from the people's campsite.

它们很漂亮。

They are lovely.

它们很时尚。

They are stylish.

它们发出的声音，在小鼹鼠听来就像音乐一样。

The sound they make is music to a little mole's ears.

但这一切，所有这一切，都无法改变一个事实：这是个糟糕的决定。

But none of that, none of it, changes the fact that it is a terrible decision.

太糟糕了。

Terrible.

那些用金属环串起来的叮当作响的金属物件，是车钥匙。

Those jangly metal objects connected by a metal ring, they are car keys.

准确地说，是卡车钥匙。

Truck keys, to be exact.

光凭这一点，对快尾巴来说其实不算什么大问题。

That fact alone isn't really a problem for Quicktail.

毕竟，他干这行这么久了，从露营者那儿拿过不少值钱的东西。

After all, he's taken plenty of valuable items from campers over the course of his time doing such things.

东西丢了以后，露营者会到处找。

The campers search high and low for these items when they go missing.

但他们怎么会想到去旁边的鼹鼠丘下面看看呢？

But how would they think to look under the molehill just nearby?

他们怎么会怀疑一只可爱的鼹鼠故意拿走他们的东西，就为了装饰自己的小窝呢？

How would they suspect that a sweet mole might have intentionally taken their things to decorate his little home?

他们当然不会。

Of course they don't.

他们从来都不会。

They never do.

在经历了充满无奈叹息和困惑惊呼的漫长寻找之后。

After long searches filled with exasperated sighs and confused exclamations.

我真搞不懂。

"I don't get it.

它去哪儿了？

Where did it go?

它总不能自己长腿跑了吧。

It's not like it could've walked away."

也许是松鼠拿走了。

"Maybe a squirrel took it."

真有意思。

"Very funny."

确实挺有意思的。

Very funny indeed.

当然，不是松鼠拿走的。

Of course, a squirrel didn't take it.

松鼠可不会干这种事。

Squirrels aren't known for that type of thing.

别误会，松鼠也有自己奇怪的习惯。

Don't get me wrong, squirrels have their own strange habits.

它们喜欢从别人的烘干机里偷袜子，把图书馆的书搬到大家具底下，还在人家的游泳池里游来游去。

They enjoy stealing socks out of people's dryers, moving library books underneath large pieces of furniture, and doing laps in people's swimming pools.

但它们可没偷过营地里的东西。

But they are not known for stealing items from campsites.

只有鼹鼠才有这种习惯，尤其是快尾巴。

Only moles have a habit of doing such things, especially Quicktail.

人们从来不会怀疑他，他们一边嘟囔着丢了东西，一边离开，却没办法找回来。

The people never suspect him, and away they go, muttering about their lost items, but having no way of getting them back.

所以，在那个美丽的秋日，当快尾巴冲出去抓一条美味的虫子当午餐时，他心里一点担忧都没有。

So on that beautiful autumn day, when Quicktail dashes out to collect a delicious worm for lunch, there is not a shred of worry in his mind.

但这次不一样了。

But this time is different.

快尾巴对这些卡车钥匙有些事一无所知。

There is something Quicktail doesn't know about these truck keys.

具体来说，他不知道的是金属环上那个圆盘是什么。

Specifically, there is something he doesn't know about the round disc attached to the metal ring.

他不知道的是，那是个魔法物品。

What he doesn't know is it's magic.

人类有各种各样的魔法东西。

The people have all kinds of magical things.

他们有能让他们看见东西的眼镜。

They have glasses that allow them to see.

有些小人穿着会发光的鞋子。

Some of the small people have light-up shoes.

快尾巴见过这些东西，还有很多其他的，但他从没见过钥匙上那个小装置，那个能让他们无论钥匙藏在哪里都能找到的小装置。

Quicktail has seen these things and many more, but he's never seen the little device attached to the keys, the little device that allows them to find the keys wherever they are hiding.

有几个小时，一切都很安静。

For a few hours, everything is quiet.

露营的人不经常去他们的车那里。

Campers don't go to their cars very often.

他们带的行李很少，徒步到露营地后，不想再走回去拿东西。

They pack light, and when they hike to a campsite, they don't like having to hike back out to retrieve things.

这些人根本不需要去他们的卡车那里。

The people have no need to go to their truck.

直到下午，他们收拾东西准备离开的时候。

Until the afternoon, when they pack up to leave.

快尾巴已经回到家，正懒洋洋地躺在自己的隧道里，翻着一本关于古诗的杂志。

Quicktail has returned home and is lolling around in his tunnel, reading a magazine about ancient poetry.

开玩笑的。

I'm just kidding.

他其实在翻一本食谱，想找找怎么烹饪他带回来的那条虫子。

He's perusing a cookbook for ideas on how to prepare the worm he's brought back.

突然，挂在隧道钩子上那串漂亮的卡车钥匙开始对他尖叫起来。

When all of a sudden, the beautiful truck keys hanging from a hook in his tunnel begin screaming at him.

哎呀，糟糕。

Uh-oh.

嗯，它们在响，但感觉就像是在冲他大喊大叫。

Well, they're beeping, but it certainly feels as though he's being shouted at.

快尾巴捂住耳朵，赶紧跑过去，一边检查一边疼得直咧嘴。

Quicktail covers his ears and scurries over to them, wincing as he examines them.

响声是从那个圆盘上传来的。

The beeping is coming from the round disc.

他之前几乎没注意到它，因为它不闪亮，也不能给他的家增添什么光彩。

He barely noticed it before, since it isn't shiny and adds no glamour to his home.

现在，它可完全吸引了他的注意。

Now, it has his full attention.

他先试着说：“别响了。”

"Stop beeping" he tries first.

那显然一点用都没有。

That obviously does nothing.

接着，快尾巴拿起圆盘，使劲摇晃，想把它里面的零件摇坏。

Next, Quicktail picks up the disc and shakes it wildly, hoping to break its inner components.

那样做也没用，只是让他更累了。

That too does nothing except tire him out.

快尾决定试着把那个响个不停的圆盘闷住。

Quicktail decides to try and smother the beeping disc.

他把钥匙拖过地板，塞进床上的羊毛袜里。

He drags the keys across the floor to his bed and shoves them inside his wool sock.

袜子几乎没怎么减弱响声，快尾四处找别的东西往上盖。

The sock barely muffles the beeping at all, and Quicktail casts about for something else to throw on top.

他从墙上扯下绿色挂毯，盖在袜子上。

He grabs his green tapestry off the wall and drapes that over the sock.

还是没用。

That does nothing.

他正要把他背心柜里所有的背心都拿出来，这时他听到地面上传来雷鸣般的脚步声。

He's just about to gather every single vest out of his vest closet when he hears thunderous footsteps coming from above ground.

哦，不。快尾偷营地这么多次，这种事从来没发生过，连接近都没接近过。

Oh, no. In all the time Quicktail has been stealing from campsites, this has never happened or even come close to happening.

脚步声越来越近，快尾的脑子开始飞速运转。

The footsteps are getting closer, and Quicktail's mind begins to race.

他的目光扫过所有心爱的东西。

His eyes dart to all of his beloved things.

闪亮的手链、玻璃眼珠、还有他舒适的羊毛袜。

The sparkly bracelet, the glass eye, his cozy wool sock.

他想起钥匙发出的悦耳声音，要是它们能停止哔哔响，他就能永远享受它们了。

He thinks of the lovely sound of the keys, and how if they would just stop beeping, he could enjoy them forever.

但没时间了，这些不过是些东西，对吧？

But there's no time, and these are just things, aren't they?

就在脚步声逼近他头顶时，快尾跑了。

Just as the footsteps loom over him, Quicktail runs.

一只巨大的靴子砸穿了他的隧道，擦过他的尾巴。

An enormous boot crashes through his tunnel and grazes his tail.

他没有回头去看那一片狼藉。

He does not look back to see the destruction.

他继续跑。

He keeps running.

“看那只鼹鼠。

"Look at that mole.

嘿，这儿有一张一百美元的钞票。”

Hey, there's a hundred dollar bill here."

快尾不停地跑啊跑，最后精疲力尽，倒在一丛开花的灌木下。

Quicktail runs and runs and runs, and finally collapses, exhausted, beneath a flowering shrub.

他从藏身的小洞里探出头，看着人们像翻一堆瓦砾一样翻找他的家。

He peers out from his little hiding spot and watches the people sift through his home like it is a pile of rubble.

他看着他们捡起他的东西，挥舞着。

He watches as they pluck up his things and wave them around.

哔哔声停了。

The beeping stops.

“我们的钥匙就在这只袜子里。”

"Our keys were in this sock.

嘿，我觉得是那只鼹鼠拿走了我们的钥匙。

Hey, I think that mole took our keys."

当然，松鼠也是那些一直挪动图书馆书籍的家伙。

"Sure, and squirrels are the ones who keep moving the library books."

唉，别提图书馆的书了。

"Ugh, do not get me started on the library books."

那是个玻璃眼珠吗？

"Is that a glass eye?"

“嘿，”快尾巴想喊。

"Hey," Quicktail wants to shout.

“那些是我的。”

"Those are mine."

但他没有喊出来，原因有几个。

Except he doesn't shout that for a couple of reasons.

第一，根据经验，他知道每次想对人喊叫时，发出的声音听起来就像毫无意义的吱吱声。

One, he knows from experience that whenever he tries to shout at people, it comes out sounding like nonsense squeak sounds.

第二，他第一次意识到，看着他们翻他的东西，他们做的正是他对那么多营地做过的事。

Two, it dawns on him then for the first time, watching them pick through his things, that they are doing exactly what he has done to so many campsites.

他翻过别人的东西，毫不在意地捡起来，然后拖走，好像那些东西本来就是他的。

He's rifled through people's things, plucked them up without a care, and dragged them away as if they belonged to him.

快尾继续看着那些人。

Quicktail continues to watch the people.

“看看这个开罐器。”

"Check out this can opener."

几分钟过去了，对快尾来说却像几个小时，他看着那些人回到他们的营地。

After a few minutes, which to Quicktail feels like hours, he watches the people return to their campsite.

他们拿走了钥匙和他那幅漂亮的、上面有数字的绿色挂毯。

They take their keys and his beautiful green tapestry with the numbers on it.

真是大胆。

The nerve.

不过，他们居然没发现那颗珍珠戒指，它就藏在快尾坍塌的隧道里。

Somehow, they miss the pearl ring, which is tucked inside Quicktail's collapsed tunnel.

快尾等到确定他们不会回来了才动。

Quicktail waits until he is certain they will not return.

没有那哔哔声，一切都好安静。

Everything is so quiet without the beeping.

快尾犹犹豫豫地跑回他那被毁掉的家。

Haltingly, Quicktail scampers to his demolished home.

他地下的洞穴现在成了地上一个洞，完全暴露在外。

His underground burrow is now a hole in the ground, completely exposed.

他的东西都沾满了沙土。

His things are covered in gravelly dirt.

他之前抓的那条虫子不见了，趁机溜走了。

The worm he caught earlier is gone, having taken the opportunity to squirm away.

快尾皱着眉头打量着这片破坏。

Quicktail surveys the destruction, frowning.

他看着原来挂毯所在的那块空地方。

He looks at the blank spot where his tapestry used to reside.

“那些人根本用不着这么小的挂毯，”他苦涩地想。

"Those people have no use for such a tiny tapestry," he thinks bitterly.

快尾在废墟中翻找，找到了他最大的背包。

Quicktail searches through the rubble and finds his largest knapsack.

他把珍珠戒指、手镯、虫子食谱、从地图册上撕下的那页纸，还有衣柜里的几件背心都装了进去。

He fills it with the pearl ring, the bracelet, his worm cookbook, the page torn from the book of maps, and several vests from his vest closet.

装完后，他最后看了一眼自己的家。

When he's done, he takes one last look at his home.

出乎意料的是，他不得不重新开始生活。

Quite unexpectedly, he'll have to rebuild his life.

快尾把背包甩到背上。

Quicktail heaves the knapsack onto his back.

当他消失在森林里时，一个从未有过的念头突然涌上心头。

As he disappears into the forest, a thought drops into his mind that has never visited him before.

“也许我该金盆洗手，不再偷东西了。”

"Perhaps I'll put my stealing days behind me."

但此刻，他的肚子咕咕叫了。

But at the moment, his tummy is rumbling.

他蹦蹦跳跳地去找点好吃的。

He scampers off to find a treat.

说到做到，我刚把邮件通知重新打开了，好了，就这样。

As promised, I have just turned my email notifications back on and there we go.

你看，我说话算话。

See, I keep my commitments.

我可能会把这些都删掉，但咱们可没约定这一条。

I may delete all of these, but we didn't discuss that as part of the deal.

希望你喜欢这个故事。

I hope you enjoyed this story.

写起来特别有意思。

It was very fun to write.

《小个子的大故事》由我，瑞亚·佩克特，撰写、表演并制作。

Little Stories for Tiny People is written, performed, and produced by me, Rhea Pechter.

我的内部技术总监彼得·K.负责管理我的网站，并把我的故事上传到网上，让大家都能欣赏。

My in-house tech director, Peter K., runs my website and puts my stories on the internet for all of you to enjoy.

《小故事》的付费订阅用户们，非常感谢你们。

Little Stories Premium subscribers, thank you so much.

正是因为你们，我才能继续和世界各地的孩子们分享我的故事。

You are making it possible for me to continue sharing my stories with children around the world.

感谢韦斯利在开头发来的那条非常重要的提醒消息。

Thank you to Wesley for the super important reminder message at the beginning.

还有，一如既往地感谢你们的收听。

And thank you, as always, for listening in.