哈利·波特与凤凰社 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 英文  中文  双语对照  双语交替 首页  目录  上一章   下一章

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CHAPTER TWELVE - Professor Umbridge

第十二章　乌姆里奇教授

Seamus dressed at top speed next morning and left the dormitory before Harry had even put on his socks.

第二天早晨，西莫飞快地穿好衣服，没等哈利穿上袜子就离开了宿舍。

'Does he think he'll turn into a nutter if he stays in a room with me too long?' asked Harry loudly as the hem of Seamus's robes wnipped out of sight.

“难道他以为跟我在一个房间里待得太久，他就会变成疯子吗？”西莫的衣摆一闪消失后，哈利大声问道。

'Don't worry about it, Harry,' Dean muttered, hoisting his schoolbag on to his shoulder, 'he's just . . .'

“别把这事放在心上，哈利，”迪安低声地嘟哝了一句，把书包背上肩头，“他只是……”

But apparently he was unable to say exactly what Seamus was, and after a slightly awkward pause followed him out of the room.

可是，他似乎说不出来西莫到底是怎么回事，尴尬地顿了一下，便也跟着出了房间。

Neville and Ron both gave Harry an it's-his-problem-not-yours look, but Harry was not much consoled. How much more of this would he have to take?

纳威和罗恩都用“这是他的问题，不怪你”的目光看着哈利，可是哈利并没有感到舒服多少。这样的情形，他还要忍受多久？

'What's the matter?' asked Hermione five minutes later, catching up with Harry and Ron halfway across the common room as they all headed towards breakfast. 'You look absolutely - Oh for heavens sake.'

“出什么事了？”五分钟后，哈利和罗恩赶去吃早饭，刚走到公共休息室，赫敏追了上来，“你的脸色真是太——哦，我的天哪。”

She was staring at the common-room noticeboard, where a large new sign had been put up.

她吃惊地望着公共休息室的布告栏，上面新贴了一张大启事。

GALLONS OF GALLEONS!

大把大把的加隆！

Pocket money failing to keep pace with your outgoings?

零花钱不够应付你的开销吗？

Like to earn a little extra gold?

想多挣一点儿金子吗？

Contact Fred and George Weasley, Gryffindor common room,

请与格兰芬多公共休息室的弗雷德和乔治·韦斯莱联系，找一份简单的几乎毫无痛苦的课外临时工。

for simple, part-time, virtually painless jobs.

（很抱歉，所有的工作都由求职者自己承担风险。）

(We regret that all work is undertaken at applicant's own risk.)

“他们太过分了。”赫敏板着脸说，一把将启事揭了下来，弗雷德和乔治原来是把启事钉在一张布告上的，布告上写着第一次到霍格莫德村过周末的日期是在十月份。“我们得跟他们谈谈了，罗恩。”

'They are the limit,' said Hermione grimly, taking down the sign, which Fred and George had pinned up ewer a poster giving the date of the first Hogsmeade weekend, which was to be in October. 'We'll have to talk to them, Ron.'

罗恩显得十分惊慌。

Ron looked positively alarmed.

“为什么？”

'Why?'

“因为我们是级长！”赫敏说，这时他们三个从肖像洞口爬了出来，“得由我们来制止这样的事情！”

'Because we're prefects!' said Hermione, as they climbed out through the portrait hole. 'It's up to us to stop this kind of thing!'

罗恩什么也没有说。哈利从他闷闷不乐的表情可以看出，他觉得要阻止弗雷德和乔治做他们喜欢的事情可不是什么美差。

Ron said nothing; Harry could tell from his glum expression that the prospect of stopping Fred and George doing exactly what they liked was not one he found inviting.

“对了，出什么事了，哈利？”赫敏接着问道，这时他们走下一道楼梯，楼梯旁边挂着一排老巫师的肖像，一个个都忙着互相说话，顾不上理睬他们。“你好像为什么事情很生气。”

'Anyway, what's up, Harry?' Hermione continued, as they walked down a flight of stairs lined with portraits of old witches and wizards, all of whom ignored them, being engrossed in their own conversation. 'You look really angry about something.'

“西莫认为哈利在神秘人的事情上说了谎话。”罗恩看到哈利没有回答，便简明扼要地说道。

'Seamus reckons Harry's lying about You-Know-Who,' said Ron succinctly, when Harry did not respond.

哈利以为赫敏会站在他一边做出愤怒的反应，可她只是叹了口气。

Hermione, who Harry had expected to react angrily on his behalf, sighed.

“是啊，拉文德也是这样想的。”赫敏愁眉苦脸地说。

'Yes, Lavender thinks so too,' she said gloomily.

“你一直在跟她愉快地聊天，讨论我到底是不是个谎话连篇、爱出风头的骗子，是吗？”哈利大声说。

'Been having a nice little chat with her about whether or not I'm a lying, attention-seeking prat, have you?' Harry said loudly.

“不是，”赫敏心平气和地说，“实际上，我叫她闭上她那张大胖嘴，不许再对你说三道四。哈利，真希望你不要再对我们横加指责，因为我和罗恩是和你站在一边的，除非你没有注意到。”

'No,' said Hermione calmly. 'I told her to keep her big fat mouth shut about you, actually. And it would be quite nice if you stopped jumping down our throats, Harry, because in case you haven't noticed, Ron and I are on your side.'

短暂的静默。

There was a short pause.

“对不起。”哈利低声说。

'Sorry,' said Harry in a low voice.

“没关系，”赫敏端着架子说，接着又摇摇头，“你们不记得邓布利多在上学期结束的宴会上说的话了吗？”

That's quite all right,' said Hermione with dignity. Then she shook her head. 'Don't you remember what Dumbledore said at the last end-of-term feast?'

哈利和罗恩傻乎乎地望着她，赫敏又叹了口气。

Harry and Ron both looked at her blankly and Hermione sighed again.

“关于神秘人的。邓布利多说他‘制造冲突和敌意的手段十分高明。我们只有表现出同样牢不可破的友谊和信任——’”

'About You-Know-Who. He said his "gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust - " '

“你怎么能记住这样的话？”罗恩钦佩地望着她问道。

'How do you remember stuff like that?' asked Ron, looking at her in admiration.

“我仔细听了，罗恩。”赫敏略微有些粗暴地说。

'I listen, Ron,' said Hermione, with a touch of asperity.

“我也听了呀，可是我还是说不出到底——”

'So do I, but I still couldn't tell you exactly what - '

“问题是，”赫敏很不客气地大声说，“这些才是邓布利多真正要说的话。神秘人回来才两个月，我们就已经开始自相争斗了。分院帽的警告也是同样的意思：团结一致——”

The point,' Hermione pressed on loudly, 'is that this sort of thing is exactly what Dumbledore was talking about. You-Know-Who's only been back two months and we've already started fighting among ourselves. And the Sorting Hat's warning was the same: stand together, be united - '

“哈利昨天晚上说得对，”罗恩反驳说，“如果这意味着我们要跟斯莱特林的人交朋友——可能性很小。”

'And Harry got it right last night,' retorted Ron. 'If that means we're supposed to get matey with the Slytherins - fat chance.'

“哎，我认为我们不能为学院之间的团结做出努力是非常遗憾的。”赫敏火气很冲地说。

'Well, I think it's a pity we're not trying for a bit of inter-house unity,' said Hermione crossly.

他们来到大理石楼梯底下，拉文克劳的一群四年级学生正鱼贯穿过门厅。他们一看见哈利就赶紧凑成一堆，似乎惟恐哈利会对落在后面的人下毒手。

They had reached the foot of the marble staircase. A line of fourth-year Ravenclaws was crossing the Entrance Hall; they caught sight of Harry and hurried to form a tighter group, as though frightened he might attack stragglers.

“是啊，我们确实应该努力跟那样的人交朋友。”哈利讽刺地说。

'Yeah, we really ought to be trying to make friends with people like that,' said Harry sarcastically.

他们跟着拉文克劳的同学走进礼堂，一进门都不由自主地朝教工桌子望去。格拉普兰教授正跟天文学教师辛尼斯塔教授在聊天，海格又一次因为缺席而格外引人注意。被施了魔法的天花板正好反映了哈利的情绪：灰蒙蒙的，一片愁云惨雾。

They followed the Ravenclaws into the Great Hall, all looking instinctively at the staff table as they entered. Professor Grubbly-Plank was chatting to Professor Sinistra, the Astronomy teacher, and Hagrid was once again conspicuous only by his absence. The enchanted ceiling above them echoed Harry's mood; it was a miserable rain-cloud grey.

“邓布利多一句也没提那个姓格拉普兰的女人要在这儿待多久。”他说，这时他们正朝格兰芬多的桌子走去。

'Dumbledore didn't even mention how long that Grubbly-Plank woman's staying,' he said, as they made their way across to the Gryffindor table.

“也许……”赫敏若有所思地说。

'Maybe . . .' said Hermione thoughtfully.

“什么？”哈利和罗恩同时问道。

'What?' said both Harry and Ron together.

“噢……也许他不想让大家注意到海格不在这儿。”

'Well . . . maybe he didn't want to draw attention to Hagrid not being here.'

“你这是什么意思？不想让大家注意，”罗恩轻声笑了起来，“我们怎么可能不注意呢？”

'What d'you mean, draw attention to it?' said Ron, half-laughing. 'How could we not notice?'

赫敏还没有来得及回答，一个梳着长辫子的高个黑肤色女孩大步走到哈利跟前。

Before Hermione could answer, a tall black girl with long braided hair had marched up to Harry.

“你好，安吉利娜。”

'Hi, Angelina.'

“你好，”她轻快地说，“暑假过得怎么样？”没等回答，她接着又说道：“知道吗，我被选为格兰芬多魁地奇球队的队长了。”

'Hi,' she said briskly, 'good summer?' And without waiting for an answer, 'Listen, I've been made Gryffindor Quidditch Captain.'

“太好了。”哈利说，咧嘴朝她笑着。他怀疑安吉利娜给球员们鼓劲时可能不像奥利弗·伍德那样啰里啰嗦，这倒是一件好事。

'Nice one,' said Harry, grinning at her; he suspected Angelina's pep talks might not be as long-winded as Oliver Wood's had been, which could only be an improvement.

“啊，对了，奥利弗走了，我们需要一个新的守门员。选拔将于星期五下午五点钟进行，我希望全体队员都能到场，行吗？这样我们可以看看那个新人能不能够跟大家很好地配合。”

'Yeah, well, we need a new Keeper now Oliver's left. Tryouts are on Friday at five o'clock and I want the whole team there, all right? Then we can see how the new person'll fit in.'

“好的。”哈利说。

'OK,' said Harry.

安吉利娜朝他笑了一下走了。

Angelina smiled at him and departed.

“我忘记伍德已经走了，”赫敏在罗恩身边坐下，把一盘面包拖到面前，淡淡地说，“我想那会给球队带来很大的影响吧？”

'I'd forgotten Wood had left,' said Hermione vaguely as she sat down beside Ron and pulled a plate of toast towards her. 'I suppose that will make quite a difference to the team?'

“我想也是，”哈利在对面板凳上坐了下来，“他是个出色的守门员……”

'I s'pose,' said Harry, taking the bench opposite. 'He was a good Keeper . . .'

“不过，吸收一点新鲜血液也不坏呀，是不是？”罗恩说。

'Still, it won't hurt to have some new blood, will it?' said Ron.

突然，嗖嗖嗖，咔啦咔啦咔啦，几百只猫头鹰从高处的窗口飞了进来。它们落到礼堂各处，把信件和包裹带给它们的主人，同时也把水珠洒在了吃早饭的人头上。显然，外面正在下着大雨。海德薇不见踪影，但哈利并不感到意外。给他写信的只有小天狼星，现在刚分别了二十四个小时，估计小天狼星不会有什么新鲜事儿要告诉他。赫敏不得不手忙脚乱地把橘子汁挪到一边，给一只嘴里叼着一份湿漉漉的《预言家日报》的谷仓猫头鹰腾出地方。

With a whoosh and a clatter, hundreds of owls came soaring in through the upper windows. They descended all over the Hall, bringing letters and packages to their owners and showering the breakfasters with droplets of water; it was clearly raining hard outside. Hedwig was nowhere to be seen, but Harry was hardly surprised; his only correspondent was Sirius, and he doubted Sirius would have anything new to tell him after only twenty-four hours apart. Hermione, however, had to move her orange juice aside quickly to make way gor a large damp barn owl bearing a sodden Daily Prophet in its beak.

“你怎么还订那玩意儿？”哈利气恼地说，又想起了西莫，这时赫敏把一个纳特放在猫头鹰脚上的小皮钱袋里，猫头鹰扑扇着翅膀飞走了，“我才不费那功夫……都是一堆垃圾。”

What are you still getting that for?' said Harry irritably, thinking of Seamus as Hermione placed a Knut in the leather pouch on the owl's leg and it took off again. 'I'm not bothering . . . load of rubbish.'

“最好了解一下敌人在说什么。”赫敏一本正经地说。她展开报纸，把自己挡在后面，一直到哈利和罗恩都吃完早饭了，才重新把脸露了出来。

'It's best to know what the enemy is saying,' said Hermione darkly, and she unfurled the newspaper and disappeared behind it, not emerging until Harry and Ron had finished eating.

“没有什么，”她简单地说，把报纸卷起来放在了盘子旁边，“没有说到你和邓布利多，什么都没有说。”

'Nothing,' she said simply, rolling up the newspaper and laying it down by her plate. 'Nothing about you or Dumbledore or anything.'

这时候，麦格教授顺着桌子挨个儿分发课程表。

Professor McGonagall was now moving along the table handing out timetables.

“看看今天！”罗恩唉声叹气地说，“魔法历史、两节魔药课、占卜课、两节黑魔法防御术课……宾斯、斯内普、特里劳妮，还有那个叫乌姆里奇的女人，都在这同一天里！我希望弗雷德和乔治加快速度，赶紧把那些速效逃课糖弄出来……”

'Look at today!' groaned Ron. 'History of Magic, double Potions,

“别是我的耳朵出毛病了吧？”弗雷德说道，他和乔治刚来，挤坐在哈利旁边，“霍格沃茨的级长总不会想要逃课吧？”

Divination and double Defence Against the Dark Arts . . . Binns, Snape, Trelawney and that Umbridge woman all in one day! I wish Fred and George'd hurry up and get those Skiving Snackboxes sorted . . ."

“看看我们今天有多倒霉。”罗恩发着牢骚，把他的课程表塞到了弗雷德鼻子底下，“我还从没有碰到过这么糟糕的星期一呢。”

'Do mine ears deceive me?' said Fred, arriving with George and squeezing on to the bench beside Harry. 'Hogwarts prefects surely don't wish to skive off lessons?'

“说得对呀，老弟，”弗雷德一边浏览课程表一边说道，“如果你愿意，可以来点儿鼻血牛轧糖，很便宜的。”

'Look what we've got today,' said Ron grumpily, shoving his timetable under Fred's nose. 'That's the worst Monday I've ever seen.'

“为什么便宜？”罗恩怀疑地说。

'Fair point, little bro,' said Fred, scanning the column. 'You can have a bit of Nosebleed Nougat cheap if you like.'

“因为鼻血会一直流个不停，最后你整个人都缩成一团。我们还没有研究出解药呢。”乔治说着开始吃一块熏鱼。

'Why's it cheap?' said Ron suspiciously.

“谢谢啦，”罗恩闷闷不乐地说，一边把课程表装进了口袋，“我想我还是去上课吧。”

'Because you'll keep bleeding till you shrivel up, we haven't got an antidote yet,' said George, helping himself to a kipper.

“说到你们的速效逃课糖，”赫敏严厉地瞪着弗雷德和乔治说，“你们不能在格兰芬多的布告栏上贴广告招聘试验者。”

'Cheers,' said Ron moodily, pocketing his timetable, 'but I think I'll take the lessons.'

“谁说的？”乔治说，一副很吃惊的样子。

'And speaking of your Skiving Snackboxes,' said Hermione, eyeing Fred and George beadily, 'you can't advertise for testers on the Gryffindor noticeboard.'

“我说的，”赫敏说，“还有罗恩。”

'Says who?' said George, looking astonished.

“这事儿跟我可没关系。”罗恩赶紧说道。

'Says me,' said Hermione. 'And Ron.'

赫敏气呼呼地瞪着他。弗雷德和乔治哧哧地发笑。

'Leave me out of it,' said Ron hastily.

“过不了多久，你就会改变腔调了，赫敏，”弗雷德说，一边往一块烤面饼上涂抹厚厚的黄油，“你们开始上五年级了，很快就会求着我们要逃课糖。”

Hermione glared at him. Fred and George sniggered.

“为什么上五年级就意味着我需要逃课糖呢？”赫敏问道。

'You'll be singing a different tune soon enough, Hermione,' said Fred, thickly buttering a crumpet. 'You're starting your fifth year, you'll be begging us for a Snackbox before long.'

“五年级是O．W．Ls年①。”乔治说。

'And why would starting fifth year mean I want a Skiving Snackbox?' asked Hermione.

“那又怎么样？”

'Fifth year's OWL year,' said George.

“那就是说，你们要没完没了地应付考试，是不是？它们会像一块砂轮在使劲打磨你们的鼻子，会把鼻尖的皮都磨破。”弗雷德幸灾乐祸地说。

'So?'

“就为了O．W．Ls，我们年级一半的同学都闹了点儿小毛病，”乔治兴高采烈地说，“哭鼻子抹泪啦，发脾气啦……帕翠霞·斯廷森动不动就晕倒……”

'So you've got your exams coming up, haven't you? They'll be keeping your noses so hard to that grindstone they'll be rubbed raw,' said Fred with satisfaction.

“肯尼思·托勒全身长满了疖子，你还记得吗？”弗雷德回忆道。

'Half our year had minor breakdowns coming up to OWLs,' said George happily. Tears and tantrums . . . Patricia Stimpson kept coming over faint . . .'

“那是因为你往他的睡衣里放了大泡粉。”乔治说。

'Kenneth Towler came out in boils, d'you remember?' said Fred remmiscently.

“噢，对了，”弗雷德说着顽皮地笑了，“我忘记了……有时候真是很难记得清楚，是吧？”

That's 'cause you put Bulbadox powder in his pyjamas,' said George.

“总之，五年级真是噩梦般的一年，”乔治说，“如果你们比较在乎考试成绩的话。还好，弗雷德和我总算精神头还不错。”

'Oh yeah,' said Fred, grinning. 'I'd forgotten . . . hard to keep track sometimes, isn't it?'

“是啊……你们后来，怎么说来着，每人通过了三门O．W．Ls？”罗恩说。

'Anyway, it's a nightmare of a year, the fifth,' said George. 'If you care about exam results, anyway. Fred and I managed to keep our peckers up somehow.'

“没错，”弗雷德漠不关心地说，“但我们觉得我们的前途是在学术成就之外。”

'Yeah . . . you got, what was it, three OWLs each?' said Ron.

“我们严肃地讨论过是不是还要回来上七年级，”乔治眉飞色舞地说，“既然我们已经有了——”

'Yep,' said Fred unconcernedly. 'But we feel our futures lie outside the world of academic achievement.'

他看到哈利警告的目光，赶紧刹住了口，哈利知道乔治就要说到他送给他们的那笔三强争霸赛的奖金了。

'We seriously debated whether we were going to bother coming back for our seventh year,' said George brightly, 'now that we've got-

“——既然我们现在已经有了O．W．Ls证书，”乔治赶紧改口道，“我是说——难道我们真的需要N．E．W．Ts②证书吗？但是我们想妈妈肯定不会让我们提早离开学校的，现在珀西又成了世界上最大的傻瓜，妈妈就更不会同意了。”

He broke off at a warning look from Harry, who knew George had been about to mention the Triwizard winnings he had given them.

“不过我们不会浪费在这里的最后一年的，”弗雷德说，一边留恋地环顾着礼堂，“我们要利用这一年时间做一些市场研究，弄清霍格沃茨的普通学生到底希望从笑话商店里买到什么，认真鉴定我们的研究成果，然后生产出满足需要的产品。”

' - now that we've got our OWLs,' George said hastily. 'I mean, do we really need NEWTs? But we didn't think Mum could take us leaving school early not on top of Percy turning out to be the world's biggest prat.'

“可是你们从哪儿去弄开办笑话商店的本钱呢？”赫敏怀疑地问，“你们需要所有的配料和原料——我想，还有场地……”

We're not going to waste our last year here, though,' said Fred, looking affectionately around at the Great Hall. 'We're going to use it to do a bit of market research, find out exactly what the average Hogwarts student requires from a joke shop, carefully evaluate the results of our research, then produce products to fit the demand.'

哈利没有看双胞胎，他感到脸上发烧，便故意把勺子掉在地上，然后俯身去捡。他听见弗雷德在他头顶上说：“别问我们，我们不会编谎话骗你，赫敏。走吧，乔治，我们如果去得早，还能在草药课前卖掉几只伸缩耳呢。”

'But where are you going to get the gold to start a joke shop?' Hermione asked sceptically. 'You're going to need all the ingredients and materials - and premises too, I suppose . . .'

哈利从桌子底下钻了出来，正好看见弗雷德和乔治走开的背影，每人手里拿着一摞面包。

Harry did not look at the twins. His face felt hot; he deliberately dropped his fork and dived down to retrieve it. He heard Fred say overhead, 'Ask us no questions and we'll tell you no lies, Hermione. C'mon, George, if we get there early we might be able to sell a few Extendable Ears before Herbology.'

“那是什么意思？”赫敏说，看看哈利，又看看罗恩，“‘别问我们……’莫非他们已经弄到了一些开办笑话商店所需要的资金？”

Harry emerged from under the table to see Fred and George walking away, each carrying a stack of toast.

“其实，我也一直在纳闷这件事呢。”罗恩紧锁着眉头说，“他们今年暑假给我买了一套新礼袍，我真不明白他们是从哪儿弄来的钱……”

'What did that mean?' said Hermione, looking from Harry to F.on. ' "Ask us no questions . . ." Does that mean they've already got some gold to start a joke shop?'

哈利认为必须赶紧转移话题，离开这片危险的水域。

'You know, I've been wondering about that,' said Ron, his brow furrowed. 'They bought me a new set of dress robes this summer and I couldn't understand where they got the Galleons . . .'

“你们说，这个学年真的很够呛吗？因为那些考试？”

Harry decided it was time to steer the conversation out of these dangerous waters.

“噢，是的，”罗恩说，“那是肯定的，是吧？O．W．Ls确实非常重要，影响到以后可以申请什么工作等等。这个学年下学期我们会得到求职方面的建议，比尔告诉我的。这样明年我们就可以挑选自己需要的N．E．W．Ts科目了。”

'D'you reckon it's true this year's going to be really tough? Because of the exams?'

“你知道你从霍格沃茨毕业后想做什么吗？”哈利问他们俩，这时他们已经离开礼堂，朝魔法史课的教室走去。

'Oh, yeah,' said Ron. 'Bound to be, isn't it? OWLs are really important, affect the jobs you can apply for and everything. We get career advice, too, later this year, Bill told me. So you can choose what NEWTs you want to do next year.'

“还没想好，”罗恩慢吞吞地说，“除非……嗯……”他显得有点儿不好意思。

'D'you know what you want to do after Hogwarts?' Harry asked the other two, as they left the Great Hall shortly afterwards and set off towards their History of Magic classroom.

“什么？”哈利催促道。

'Not really,' said Ron slowly. 'Except . . . well . . .'

“嗯，当一个傲罗倒是蛮酷的。”罗恩用半真半假的口吻说。

He looked slightly sheepish.

“是啊。”哈利热情高涨地说。

What?' Harry urged him.

“可是他们差不多都是精英，”罗恩说，“你必须非常出色才行呢。你呢，赫敏？”

Well, it'd be cool to be an Auror,' said Ron in an off-hand voice.

“我不知道。”她说，“我想做一些真正有价值的事情。”

'Yeah, it would,' said Harry fervently.

“当一个傲罗就很有价值！”哈利说。

'But they're, like, the elite,' said Ron. 'You've got to be really good. What about you, Hermione?'

“是的，但是有价值的事情并不止这一件，”赫敏若有所思地说道，“我是说，如果我能进一步推动家养小精灵权益促进会……”

'I don't know,' she said. 'I think I'd like to do something really worthwhile.'

哈利和罗恩都小心地不去看对方的眼睛。

'An Aurors worthwhile!' said Harry.

魔法史被公为是巫师界设计的最枯燥的一门课程。他们的鬼魂老师宾斯先生说起话来呼哧带喘，拖腔拖调，几乎肯定能在十分钟内使人昏昏欲睡；如他们就在底下做笔记，或者更准确地说，是在睡眼矇眬地发愣。哈利和罗恩的这门功课一直勉强能够及格，多亏了在考试前照抄赫敏的笔记。似乎只有赫敏一个人能够抵挡住宾斯声音的催眠力量。

'Yes, it is, but it's not the only worthwhile thing,' said Hermione thoughtfully, 'I mean, if I could take SPEW further . . .'

今天，他们忍受着宾斯教授拖着腔调地讲述巨人战争的话题，足足忍受了一个半小时。哈利刚听了十分钟，就模模糊糊地意识到如果换了另外一位老师，这个题目大概会比较引人入胜，接着他的大脑就走神了，在剩下来的一小时二十分钟里，他和罗恩一直在他羊皮纸的一角玩刽子手的游戏，赫敏不时用眼角的余光狠狠地瞪着他们。

Harry and Ron carefully avoided looking at each other.

“如果我今年不把笔记借给你们，会怎么样呢？”他们离开教室出去休息时（宾斯教授穿过黑板飘走了），赫敏冷冷地问他们。

History of Magic was by common consent the most boring subject ever devised by wizardkind. Professor Binns, their ghost teacher, had a wheezy, droning voice that was almost guaranteed to cause severe drowsiness within ten minutes, five in warm weather. He never varied the form of their lessons, but lectured them without pausing while they took notes, or rather, gazed sleepily into space. Harry and Ron had so far managed to scrape passes in this subject only by copying Hermione's notes before exams; she alone seemed able to resist the soporific power of Binns's voice.

“我们的魔法史O．W．Ls就会不及格。”罗恩说，“如果你想受到良心的责备，赫敏……”

Today, they suffered an hour and a half's droning on the subject of giant wars. Harry heard just enough within the first ten minutes to appreciate dimly that in another teacher's hands this subject might have been mildly interesting, but then his brain disengaged, and he spent the remaining hour and twenty minutes playing hangman on a corner of his parchment with Ron, while Hermione shot them filthy looks out of the corner of her eye.

“哼，那是你们活该，”她厉声反驳道，“你们根本就没有认真听他讲课，对吗？”

'How would it be,' she asked them coldly, as they left the classroom for break (Binns drifting away through the blackboard), 'if I refused to lend you my notes this year?'

“我们努力来着，”罗恩说道，“我们只是没有你那样的大脑，你那样的记性、那样好的注意力——你就是比我们聪明嘛——你就不要哪壶不开提哪壶了好不好？”

'We'd fail our OWL, said Ron. 'If you want that on your conscience, Hermione . . .'

“哼，别给我灌这些迷魂汤。”赫敏说，但她的表情微微缓和了些，领头来到外面湿乎乎的院子里。

'Well, you'd deserve it,' she snapped. 'You don't even try to listen to him, do you?'

天上下着蒙蒙细雨，因此，三三两两挤在院子里的人们看上去轮廓有点儿模糊。哈利、罗恩和赫敏在一个不断滴水的阳台下面找了个隐蔽的角落，竖起长袍的领子抵挡九月的寒风，一边谈论着在本学年的第一节魔药课上，斯内普会给他们布置什么作业。他们一致同意那大概是一件很难很难的事情，为的是在两个月的假期后给他们一个下马威，就在这时，有人绕过拐角朝他们走来。

'We do try,' said Ron. 'We just haven't got your brains or your memory or your concentration - you're just cleverer than we are - is it nice to rub it in?'

“你好，哈利！”

'Oh, don't give me that rubbish,' said Hermione, but she looked slightly mollified as she led the way out into the damp courtyard.

是秋·张，更希罕的是，她这次又是一个人。这真是不同寻常，秋几乎总是被一大帮叽叽咕咕的女生包围着。哈利还记得他曾经有过的痛苦：他千方百计地想在她独自一人时碰到她，好邀请她参加圣诞节的舞会。

A fine misty drizzle was falling, so that the people standing in huddles around the edges of the yard looked blurred at the edges. Harry, Ron and Hermione chose a secluded corner under a heavily dripping balcony, turning up the collars of their robes against the chilly September air and talking about what Snape was likely to set them in the first lesson of the year. They had got as far as agreeing that it was likely to be something extremely difficult, just to catch them off guard after a two-month holiday, when someone walked around the corner towards them.

“你好。”哈利说道，感觉到自己的脸热得发烫。这次至少你身上没沾着臭汁，他对自己说。

'Hello, Harry!'

秋似乎也想到了同样的事情。“看来，你把那玩意儿清除干净了？”

It was Cho Chang and, what was more, she was on her own again. This was most unusual: Cho was almost always surrounded by a gang of giggling girls; Harry remembered the agony of trying to get her by herself to ask her to the Yule Ball.

“是啊。”哈利说，竭力想露出点笑容，似乎他们上一次见面不是尴尬的，而是挺好玩的。“那么，你……嗯……暑假过得好吗？”

'Hi,' said Harry, feeling his face grow hot. At least you're not covered in Stinksap this time, he told himself. Cho seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

话一出口，他就后悔不该这么问——塞德里克曾是秋的男朋友，他的去世一定影响了她在暑假里的心情，就像哈利自己也没有过好暑假一样。秋的脸上似乎微微紧了紧，但她说：“噢，挺好的，你知道……”

'You got that stuff off, then?'

“那是龙卷风队的徽章吗？”罗恩突然指着秋的长袍前胸问道，那里别着一枚天蓝色的徽章，上面有两个鲜艳醒目的金色字母“Ｔ”③。“你该不是支持他们吧？”

'Yeah,' said Harry, trying to grin as though the memory of their last meeting was funny as opposed to mortifying. 'So, did you . . . er . . . have a good summer?'

“我确实支持他们。”秋说。

The moment he had said this he wished he hadn't - Cedric had been Cho's boyfriend and the memory of his death must have affected her holiday almost as badly as it had affected Harry's. Something seemed to tauten in her face, but she said, 'Oh, it was all right, you know . . .'

“你是一直就支持他们呢，还是从他们开始赢得俱乐部联合会杯后才支持他们的？”罗恩问，用的是一种在哈利看来没有必要的指责口气。

'Is that a Tornados badge?' Ron demanded suddenly, pointing to the front of Cho's robes, where a sky-blue badge emblazoned with a double gold 'T' was pinned. 'You don't support them, do you?'

“我从六岁起就支持他们了，”秋冷冷地说，“好吧……再见，哈利。”

'Yeah, I do,' said Cho.

她走开了。赫敏等到秋走到院子中间，便回过头来责骂罗恩。

'Have you always supported them, or just since they started winning the league?' said Ron, in what Harry considered an unnecessarily accusatory tone of voice.

“你太不懂事了！”

'I've supported them since I was six,' said Cho coolly. 'Anyway . . . see you, Harry.'

“什么？我不过问她是不是——”

She walked away. Hermione waited until Cho was halfway across the courtyard before rounding on Ron.

“你难道看不出来，她是想跟哈利单独谈谈吗？”

'You are so tactless!'

“那又怎么样？她完全可以谈嘛，我又没有拦着她——”

'What? I only asked her if - '

“你凭什么对她支持的魁地奇球队横加指责？”

'Couldn't you tell she wanted to talk to Harry on her own?'

“指责？我没有指责她，我只是——”

'So? She could've done, I wasn't stopping - '

“谁在乎她支持不支持龙卷风队？”

'Why on earth were you attacking her about her Quidditch team?'

“哦，得啦，你看见戴着那些徽章的人，一半都是上个赛季刚买的——”

'Attacking? I wasn't attacking her, I was only - '

“可那又有什么关系？”

'Who cares if she supports the Tornados?'

“那就说明他们并不是真正的球迷，他们只是跟风，赶浪头——”

'Oh, come on, half the people you see wearing those badges only bought them last season - '

“上课铃响了。”哈利无精打采地说，罗恩和赫敏吵得太厉害了，没有听见铃声。

'But what does it matter?'

他们在走向斯内普地下教室的一路上还在吵个不停。这使哈利有足够的时间想道，他身边有赫敏和罗恩这两个人，不知这辈子还有没有运气在不离开自己国家的情况下，跟秋说上两分钟令他回味无穷的话。

'It means they're not real fans, they're just jumping on the bandwagon - '

他们排在斯内普教室门外的队伍里时，他又想道，她是主动来跟我说话的，是不是呢？她曾经是塞德里克的女朋友，本来是很有理由恨他的，因为他活着走出了三强争霸赛的迷宫，而塞德里克却死了，然而她却用十分友好的态度跟他说话，似乎她并不认为他头脑不正常，谎话连篇，或对塞德里克的死负有某种可怕的责任……是的，她确实是主动来跟他说话，而且是两天里的第二次了……

That's the bell,' said Harry dully, because Ron and Hermione were bickering too loudly to hear it. They did not stop arguing all the way down to Snapes dungeon, which gave Harry plenty of time to reflect that between Neville and Ron he would be lucky ever to have two minutes of conversation with Cho that he could look back on without wanting to leave the country.

想到这里，哈利的情绪欢悦起来，就连地下教室的门打开时发出的吱吱嘎嘎的阴森声音，也没有刺破那似乎在他内心深处膨胀起来的小小的希望泡沫。他跟在罗恩和赫敏后面走进了教室，又跟着他们走向他们惯常坐的那张位于后排的桌子，假装没有听见他们俩发出的气呼呼的拌嘴声。

And yet, he thought, as they joined the queue lining up outside Snape's classroom door, she had chosen to come and talk to him, hadn't she? She had been Cedric's girlfriend; she could easily have hated Harry for coming out of the Triwizard maze alive when Cedric had died, yet she was talking to him in a perfectly friendly way, not as though she thought him mad, or a liar, or in some horrible way responsible for Cedric's death . . . yes, she had definitely chosen to come and talk to him, and that made the second time in two days . . . and at this thought, Harry's spirits rose. Even the ominous sound of Snape's dungeon door creaking open did not puncture the small, hopeful bubble that seemed to have swelled in his chest. He filed into the classroom behind Ron and Hermione and followed them to their usual table at the back, where he sat down between Ron and Hermione and ignored the huffy, irritable noises now issuing from both of them.

“安静。”斯内普冷冷地说，反手关上了教室的门。

'Settle down,' said Snape coldly, shutting the door behind him.

其实他根本没有必要命令大家安静，全班同学一听见门关上了，立刻变得鸦雀无声，所有的小动作都停止了。一般来说，只要斯内普一出现，就足够让整个班级沉默下来。

There was no real need for the call to order; the moment the class had heard the door close, quiet had fallen and all fidgeting stopped. Snape's mere presence was usually enough to ensure a class's silence.

“在我们今天开始上课前，”斯内普快步走向讲台，严厉地望着他们大家说道，“我认为需要提醒你们一下，明年六月，你们就要参加一项重要的考试了，那时你们将证明自己学到了多少魔药配制和使用方面的知识。尽管这个班上有几个人确实智力很迟钝，但我希望你们在O．W．Ls考试中都能够勉强‘及格’，不然我会……很生气。”

'Before we begin today's lesson,' said Snape, sweeping over to his desk and staring around at them all, 'I think it appropriate to remind you that next June you will be sitting an important examination, during which you will prove how much you have learned about the composition and use of magical potions. Moronic though some of this class undoubtedly are, I expect you to scrape an "Acceptable" in your OWL, or suffer my . . . displeasure.'

他的目光这次落在了纳威脸上，纳威吓得倒吸了一口冷气。

His gaze lingered this time on Neville, who gulped.

“当然啦，过了这一年，你们中间的许多人就不能再上我的课了，”斯内普继续说道，“我只挑选最优秀的学生进我的N．E．W．Ts魔药班，这就是说，我们有些人将不得不说再见了。”

'After this year, of course, many of you will cease studying with me,' Snape went on. 'I take only the very best into my NEWT Potions class, which means that some of us will certainly be saying goodbye.'

他微微噘起了嘴，目光落在哈利脸上。哈利也毫不示弱地瞪着他，一想到过了五年级，他就可以放弃魔药课了，不由感到一种恶狠狠的快意。

His eyes rested on Harry and his lip curled. Harry glared back, feeling a grim pleasure at the idea that he would be able to give up Potions after fifth year.

“但是在那告别的愉快时刻到来之前，我们还需要再坚持一年。”斯内普轻声细语地说道，“因此，不管你们是否打算参加N．E．W．Ts考试，我都建议你们大家集中精力学好功课，达到我要求我的O．W．Ls学生们达到的较高的及格水平。

'But we have another year to go before that happy moment of farewell,' said Snape softly, 'so, whether or not you are intending to attempt NEWT, I advise all of you to concentrate your efforts upon maintaining the high pass level I have come to expect from my OWL students.

“今天，我们要配制一种普通巫师等级考试中经常出现的药剂：缓和剂，它能平息和舒缓烦躁焦虑的情绪。注意：如果放配料的时候马马虎虎，就会使服药者陷入一种死沉的、有时甚至是不可逆转的昏睡，所以你们需要格外注意自己的行为。”

'Today we will be mixing a potion that often comes up at Ordinary Wizarding Level: the Draught of Peace, a potion to calm anxiety and soothe agitation. Be warned: if you are too heavy-handed with the ingredients you will put the drinker into a heavy and sometimes irreversible sleep, so you will need to pay close attention to what you are doing.' On Harry's left, Hermione sat up a little straighter, her expression one of utmost attention. The ingredients and method - ' Snape flicked his wand ' - are on the blackboard - (they appeared there) ' - you will find everything you need - ' he flicked his wand again ' - in the store cupboard - ' (the door of the said cupboard sprang open) ' - you have an hour and a half . . . start.'

在哈利的左边，赫敏把身子坐得更直了一些，脸上是一种全神贯注的表情。

Just as Harry, Ron and Hermione had predicted, Snape could hardly have set them a more difficult, fiddly potion. The ingredients had to be added to the cauldron in precisely the right order and quantities; the mixture had to be stirred exactly the right number of times, firstly in clockwise, then in anti-clockwise directions; the heat of the flames on which it was simmering had to be lowered to exactly the right level for a specific number of minutes before the final ingredient was added.

“配料和配制方法——”斯内普一挥魔杖，“——在黑板上——”（黑板上果然出现了）“——你们所需要的一切——”他又一挥魔杖，“——在储藏柜里——”（他所说的那个储藏柜的门一下子打开了）“——你们有一个半小时……开始吧。”

'A light silver vapour should now be rising from your potion,' called Snape, with ten minutes left to go.

正像哈利、罗恩和赫敏所猜测的，斯内普布置他们配制的这种药剂是最难、最费手脚的一种。必须按照严格的顺序和份量将配料加进坩埚；必须将混合剂搅拌到规定的次数，不能多也不能少，先是顺时针，然后是逆时针；坩埚沸腾时火苗的温度必须降至某个特定的标准，不能高也不能低，并保持一段特定的时间，然后才能加入最后一种配料。

Harry, who was sweating profusely, looked desperately around the dungeon. His own cauldron was issuing copious amounts of dark grey steam; Ron's was spitting green sparks. Seamus was feverishly prodding the flames at the base of his cauldron with the tip of his wand, as they seemed to be going out. The surface of Hermione's potion, however, was a shimmering mist of silver vapour, and as Snape swept by he looked down his hooked nose at it without comment, which meant he could find nothing to criticise.

“你们的药剂现在应该冒出一股淡淡的、银白色的蒸汽。”还剩十分钟的时候，斯内普说道。

At Harry's cauldron, however, Snape stopped, and looked down at it with a horrible smirk on his face.

哈利忙得大汗淋漓，绝望地抬头扫了一眼教室。他自己的坩埚冒出一团团深灰色的气体，罗恩的坩埚正喷溅着绿色的火花。西莫发了疯似的用魔杖尖去捅他坩埚下面的火苗，因为它们眼看就要熄灭了。赫敏的药剂倒是正冒出一股微微闪烁的银白色蒸汽，当斯内普快步走过时，鹰钩鼻上的眼睛低垂着看了看赫敏的坩埚，没有做任何评论，这就是说他挑不出任何毛病。可是，在哈利的坩埚旁，斯内普停下脚步低头望着坩埚，脸上带着一种可怕的讥讽。

'Potter, what is this supposed to be?'

“波特，这是什么东西？”

The Slytherins at the front of the class all looked up eagerly; they loved hearing Snape taunt Harry.

教室前排的斯莱特林们都很感兴趣地抬起头来，他们最喜欢听斯内普挖苦哈利了。

'The Draught of Peace,' said Harry tensely.

“缓和剂。”哈利紧张地说。

'Tell me, Potter,' said Snape softly, 'can you read?'

“波特，告诉我，”斯内普轻声细语地说，“你认识字吗？”

Draco Malfoy laughed.

德拉科·马尔福大声笑了起来。

'Yes, I can,' said Harry, his fingers clenched tightly around his wand.

“认识。”哈利说，手紧紧地攥住了魔杖。

'Read the third line of the instructions for me, Potter.'

“把操作说明的第三行念给我听听，波特。”

Harry squinted at the blackboard; it was not easy to make out the instructions through the haze of multi-coloured steam now filling the dungeon.

哈利眯眼望着黑板。现在地下教室里弥漫着各种颜色的蒸汽，要看清黑板上的操作说明真不容易。

' "Add powdered moonstone, stir three times counter-clockwise, allow to simmer for seven minutes then add two drops of syrup of hellebore." '

“‘加入月长石粉，逆时针搅拌三次，沸腾七分钟，然后再加入两滴嚏根草糖浆。’”

His heart sank. He had not added syrup of hellebore, but had proceeded straight to the fourth line of the instructions after allowing his potion to simmer for seven minutes.

他的心往下一沉。他没有加嚏根草糖浆，他让药剂沸腾七分钟后，就直接执行第四条操作说明了。

'Did you do everything on the third line, Potter?'

“第三条里每一项你都做到了吗，波特？”

'No,' said Harry very quietly.

“没有。”哈利很小声地说。

'I beg your pardon?'

“对不起，请你再说一遍。”

'No,' said Harry, more loudly. 'I forgot the hellebore.'

“没有，”哈利提高了声音说，“我忘记放嚏根草了。”

'I know you did, Potter, which means that this mess is utterly worthless. Evanesce.'

“我知道你忘记了，波特，这意味着这一坩埚垃圾毫无用处。消隐无踪。”

The contents of Harry's potion vanished; he was left standing foolishly beside an empty cauldron.

哈利的药剂一下子消失了。他傻乎乎地站在一只空坩埚旁。

'Those of you who have managed to read the instructions, fill one flagon with a sample of your potion, label it clearly with your name and bring it up to my desk for testing,' said Snape. 'Homework: twelve inches of parchment on the properties of moonstone and its uses in potion-making, to be handed in on Thursday.'

“凡是认真读了操作说明的同学，请把你们的药剂样品装进一个大肚短颈瓶里，仔细标上自己的姓名，拿到我的讲台上接受检验。”斯内普说道，“家庭作业——在羊皮纸上写十二英寸长的论文，论述月长石的特性及其在制药方面的用途，星期四交。”

While everyone around him filled their flagons, Harry cleared away his things, seething. His potion had been no worse than Ron's, which was now giving off a foul odour of bad eggs; or Neville's, which had achieved the consistency of just-mixed cement and which

哈利周围的同学都在往短颈瓶里装药剂，他把东西一样样收起来，心里气得不行。他的药剂并不比罗恩的差，罗恩的那一坩埚东西现在发出一股臭鸡蛋的气味；也不比纳威的差，纳威的药剂变得硬邦邦的，像刚刚搅拌好的水泥，他这会儿不得不使劲把它从坩埚里抠出来。然而偏偏是他——哈利，今天的作业得了零分。他把魔杖放回书包里，一屁股坐在座位上，望着其他同学一个个拿着装满药剂、盖上软木塞的短颈瓶，走向斯内普的讲台。

Neville was now having to gouge out of his cauldron; yet it was he, Harry, who would be receiving zero marks for the day's work. He stuffed his wand back into his bag and slumped down on to his seat, watching everyone else march up to Snape's desk with filled and corked flagons. When at long last the bell rang, Harry was first out of the dungeon and had already started his lunch by the time Ron and Hermione joined him in the Great Hall. The ceiling had turned an even murkier grey during the morning. Rain was lashing the high windows.

过了很长时间，下课铃终于响了，哈利第一个冲出地下教室。他已经开始吃午饭了，罗恩和赫敏才来到礼堂。天花板比上午的时候变得更昏暗阴沉了，雨点啪啪地打着高处的窗户。

That was really unfair,' said Hermione consolingly, sitting down next to Harry and helping herself to shepherd's pie. 'Your potion wasn't nearly as bad as Goyle's; when he put it in his flagon the whole thing shattered and set his robes on fire.'

“那真是很不公平，”赫敏安慰他道，她坐在哈利身边，给自己拿了一块肉馅土豆泥馅饼，“你的药剂远不像高尔的那么糟糕，当他往瓶子里装的时候，整个那堆东西突然四下迸溅，把他的袍子都烧着了。”

'Yeah, well,' said Harry, glowering at his plate, 'since when has Snape ever been fair to me?'

“是啊，这也难怪，”哈利说，气呼呼地瞪着面前的盘子，“斯内普什么时候公平地对待过我呢？”

Neither of the others answered; all three of them knew that Snape and Harry's mutual enmity had been absolute from the moment Harry had set foot in Hogwarts.

赫敏和罗恩谁也没有回答。三个人心里都清楚，斯内普和哈利之间的敌意，从哈利踏进霍格沃茨的那一刻起就已经根深蒂固了。

'I did think he might be a bit better this year,' said Hermione in a disappointed voice. 'I mean . . . you know . . .' she looked around carefully; there were half a dozen empty seats on either side of them and nobody was passing the table ' . . . now he's in the Order and everything.'

“我还以为他今年会有点儿好转呢，”赫敏用失望的口气说，“我的意思是……你们知道的……”她小心地望了望四周，他们两边都空着六七个座位，也没有人从桌子旁走过。“……现在他加入了凤凰社，还有所有的一切。”

'Poisonous toadstools don't change their spots,' said Ron sagely. 'Anyway, I've always thought Dumbledore was cracked to trust Snape. Where's the evidence he ever really stopped working for You-Know-Who?'

“毒蘑菇是不会改变它们的斑点的，”罗恩一针见血地说，“反正，我一直认为邓布利多真是疯了，居然相信斯内普。有什么证据能证明他真的不再为神秘人工作了呢？”

'I think Dumbledore's probably got plenty of evidence, even if he doesn't share it with you, Ron,' snapped Hermione.

“我认为邓布利多大概得到了足够的证据，尽管他没有拿给你看，罗恩。”赫敏毫不客气地说。

'Oh, shut up, the pair of you,' said Harry heavily, as Ron opened his mouth to argue back. Hermione and Ron both froze, looking angry and offended. 'Can't you give it a rest?' said Harry. 'You're always having a go at each other, it's driving me mad.' And abandoning his shepherd's pie, he swung his schoolbag back over his shoulder and left them sitting there.

“哦，闭嘴吧，你们两个。”罗恩张嘴正要反驳，哈利烦躁地说。赫敏和罗恩都怔住了，显得又生气又委屈。“你们就不能消停一会儿吗？”哈利说，“总是没完没了地斗来斗去，都快把我逼疯了。”说完，他扔下自己的肉馅土豆泥馅饼，把书包甩上肩头，扬长而去，留下两人坐在那里直发愣。

He walked up the marble staircase two steps at a time, past the many students hurrying towards lunch. The anger that had just flared so unexpectedly still blazed inside him, and the vision of Ron and Hermione's shocked faces afforded him a sense of deep satisfaction. Serve them right, he thought, why can't they give it a rest . . . bickering all the time . . . it's enough to drive anyone up the wall . . .

他一步两级地走上了大理石楼梯，与许多匆匆忙忙赶去吃午饭的同学擦肩而过。刚才突然爆发的那股无名火，还在他心里熊熊燃烧着，想到罗恩和赫敏脸上惊愕的表情，他感到一种深深的快意。那是他们活该，他想道，他们为什么就不能安静点儿……总是一天到晚争争吵吵……换了谁都会被逼疯的……

He passed the large picture of Sir Cadogan the knight on a landing; Sir Cadogan drew his sword and brandished it fiercely at Harry, who ignored him.

在一处楼梯平台上，他从骑士卡多根爵士的大幅画像前走过。卡多根爵士拔出宝剑，恶狠狠地朝哈利挥舞着，哈利根本不理睬他。

'Come back, you scurvy dog! Stand fast and fight!' yelled Sir Cadogan in a muffled voice from behind his visor, but Harry merely walked on and when Sir Cadogan attempted to follow him by running into a neighbouring picture, he was rebuffed by its inhabitant, a large and angry-looking wolfhound.

“回来，你这逃跑的懦夫！不许退缩，跟我战斗！”卡多根爵士从面罩后面用发闷的声音喊道，但哈利只顾继续往前走，卡多根爵士想来追他，于是跳进相邻的一幅画里，但住在画里的一只模样凶狠的大狼狗把他赶了回去。

Harry spent the rest of the lunch hour sitting alone underneath the trapdoor at the top of North Tower. Consequently, he was the first to ascend the silver ladder that led to Sybill Trelawney's classroom when the bell rang.

在剩下来的吃午饭时间里，哈利一直独自坐在北塔楼顶上的活板门下。当上课铃响起时，他便第一个爬上了通往西比尔·特里劳妮教室的银色梯子。

After Potions, Divination was Harry's least favourite class, which was due mainly to Professor Trelawney's habit of predicting his premature death every few lessons. A thin woman, heavily draped in shawls and glittering with strings of beads, she always reminded Harry of some kind of insect, with her glasses hugely magnifying her eyes. She was busy putting copies of battered leather-bound books on each of the spindly little tables with which her room was littered when Harry entered the room, but the light cast by the lamps covered by scarves and the low-burning, sickly-scented fire was so dim she appeared not to notice him as he took a seat in the shadows. The rest of the class arrived over the next five minutes. Ron emerged from the trapdoor, looked around carefully, spotted Harry and made directly for him, or as directly as he could while having to wend his way between tables, chairs and overstuffed pouffes.

除了魔药课，占卜课是哈利最不喜欢的课程，这主要是因为特里劳妮教授有一个习惯，每过几堂课就要预言哈利会死于非命。特里劳妮教授是一个瘦巴巴的女人，裹着厚厚的披肩，戴着一串串闪闪发亮的珠子，她的眼镜把她的一双眼睛放大了好几倍，总使哈利联想起某种昆虫。

'Hermione and me have stopped arguing,' he said, sitting down beside Harry.

哈利进屋时，她正忙着把一本本破破烂烂皮革装订的书分发在每张桌子上，那些单薄的小桌子杂乱无章地摆放在教室里。盖着罩布的灯发出的光线和散发出一股难闻气味的不太旺的炉火都十分昏暗，当哈利在阴影里找到了一个座位坐下时，她似乎没有看见他。接下来的五分钟里，班里的同学陆陆续续地来了。罗恩从活板门里探出头，仔细往四下里张望着，看见了哈利，直接朝他走了过来，或者说是尽量直接走了过来，因为他必须小心地绕过那么多桌子、椅子和一只只塞得鼓鼓囊囊的小坐垫。

'Good,' grunted Harry.

“赫敏和我已经不吵了。”他说，在哈利身边坐了下来。

'But Hermione says she thinks it would be nice if you stopped taking out your temper on us,' said Ron.

“很好。”哈利嘟囔了一句。

'I'm not - '

“但赫敏说，她希望你不要动不动就朝我们发脾气。”罗恩说。

'I'm just passing on the message,' said Ron, talking over him. 'But I reckon she's right. It's not our fault how Seamus and Snape treat you.'

“我没有——”

'I never said it - '

“我只是传个话，”罗恩好言好语地劝说道，“但我认为她说得对。西莫和斯内普那么对待你又不是我们的错。”

'Good-day,' said Professor Trelawney in her usual misty, dreamy voice, and Harry broke off, again feeling both annoyed and slightly ashamed of himself. 'And welcome back to Divination. I have, of course, been following your fortunes most carefully over the holidays, and am delighted to see that you have all returned to Hogwarts safely - as, of course, I knew you would.

“我从没有说过——”

'You will find on the tables before you copies of The Dream Oracle, by Inigo Imago. Dream interpretation is a most important means of divining the future and one that may very probably be tested in your OWL. Not, of course, that I believe examination passes or failures are of the remotest importance when it comes to the sacred art of divination. If you have the Seeing Eye, certificates and grades matter very little. However, the Headmaster likes you to sit the examination, so . . .'

“同学们好，”特里劳妮教授用她模糊的、如梦似幻的惯常声音说道，哈利赶紧闭了嘴，心里既恼火又有些羞愧，“欢迎你们回到占卜课上。当然啦，整个暑假我一直十分用心地关注着你们的命运，看到你们全都安然无恙地返回霍格沃茨，我非常高兴——因为，当然啦，我知道你们都会回来的。

Her voice trailed away delicately, leaving them all in no doubt that Professor Trelawney considered her subject above such sordid matters as examinations.

“你们会发现在你们的桌子上有一本伊尼戈·英麦格写的《解梦指南》。解梦是占卜未来的一个十分重要的方法，也是你们的O．W．Ls考试中很可能会出现的一个题目。当然啦，我认为相比于占卜这门神圣的艺术来说，能否通过考试实在是很不重要的。只要你们有了慧眼，什么证书啦，等级啦，都是区区小事。不过，校长愿意让你们参加考试，所以……”

Turn, please, to the introduction and read what Imago has to say on the matter of dream interpretation. Then, divide into pairs. Use The Dream Oracle to interpret each other's most recent dreams. Carry on.'

她的声音很优雅地逐渐降低了，使得同学们都确信，特里劳妮教授认为她这门课要比考试之类的俗事重要得多。

The one good thing to be said for this lesson was that it was not a double period. By the time they had all finished reading the introduction of the book, they had barely ten minutes left for dream interpretation. At the table next to Harry and Ron, Dean had paired up with Neville, who immediately embarked on a long-winded explanation of a nightmare involving a pair of giant scissors wearing his grandmother's best hat; Harry and Ron merely looked at each other glumly.

“请把书翻到导论，读一读英麦格关于解梦问题的说法。然后，分成两人一组，用《解梦指南》来解释对方最近做过的梦。开始吧。”

'I never remember my dreams,' said Ron, 'you say one.'

这门课倒是有一个好处，它不是连上两节。等全班同学都读完那本书的导论时，就只有十分钟时间让他们解释梦境了。在与哈利和罗恩相邻的桌子上，迪安和纳威分在一组，纳威立刻就开始啰里啰嗦地解释一个噩梦，梦里有一把大剪刀嘎吱嘎吱地剪他奶奶最好的一顶帽子。哈利和罗恩只是愁眉苦脸地大眼瞪小眼。

'You must remember one of them,' said Harry impatiently.

“我做梦从来不记得。”罗恩说，“你说一个吧。”

He was not going to share his dreams with anyone. He knew perfectly well what his regular nightmare about a graveyard meant, he did not need Ron or Proiessor Trelawney or the stupid Dream Oracle to tell him.

“你总能想起一个的。”哈利不耐烦地说。

'Well, I dreamed I was playing Quidditch the other night,' said Ron, screwing up his face in an effort to remember. 'What d'you reckon that means?'

他不想把自己的梦说给任何人听。他心里很清楚他三天两头梦见一片墓地意味着什么，他不需要罗恩、特里劳妮教授，或愚蠢的《解梦指南》来告诉他。

'Probably that you're going to be eaten by a giant marshmallow or something,' said Harry, turning the pages of The Dream Oracle without interest. It was very dull work looking up bits of dreams in the Oracle and Harry was not cheered up when Professor Trelawney set them the task of keeping a dream diary for a month as homework. When the bell went, he and Ron led the way back down the ladder, Ron grumbling loudly.

“好吧，那天夜里我梦见自己在打魁地奇球，”罗恩说，皱起眉头拼命回忆着，“你认为那意味着什么？”

'D'you realise how much homework we've got already? Binns set us a foot-and-a-half-long essay on giant wars, Snape wants a foot on the use of moonstones, and now we've got a month's dream diary from Trelawney! Fred and George weren't wrong about OWL year, were they? That Umbridge woman had better not give us any . . .'

“那大概意味着你要被一颗巨大的软糖吃掉。”哈利兴味索然地翻看着《解梦指南》说道。

When they entered the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom they found Professor Umbridge already seated at the teachers desk, wearing the fluffy pink cardigan of the night before and the black velvet bow on top of her head. Harry was again reminded forcibly of a large fly perched unwisely on top of an even larger toad.

在《指南》上查找一个个梦境真是一件枯燥乏味的事情，后来特里劳妮教授布置他们记录下一个月里每天做的梦作为家庭作业，哈利听了更是闷闷不乐。下课铃响了，他和罗恩领头走下梯子，罗恩大声抱怨道：“你知不知道我们已经有多少家庭作业了？宾斯叫我们写一篇一英尺半长的论文，谈巨人战争；斯内普要的论文是一英尺长，讲月长石的用途；现在特里劳妮又要我们记下一个月里每天做的梦！弗雷德和乔治说这个O．W．Ls年日子难熬，看来确实这样，是不是？那个姓乌姆里奇的女人最好别再给我们……”

The class was quiet as it entered the room; Professor Umbridge was, as yet, an unknown quantity and nobody knew how strict a disciplinarian she was likely to be.

他们走进黑魔法防御术课的教室时，发现乌姆里奇教授已经坐在讲台的后面了。她穿着前一天晚上穿的那件毛绒绒的粉红色开襟毛衣，头顶上戴着那个黑天鹅绒的蝴蝶结。哈利又一次强烈而鲜明地想到一只大苍蝇愚蠢地落在了一只更大的癞蛤蟆身上。

'Well, good afternoon!' she said, when finally the whole class had sat down.

全班同学走进教室时都默不作声，乌姆里奇教授还是个未知数，谁也不知道她对于课堂纪律的要求有多么严格。

A few people mumbled 'good afternoon' in reply.

“同学们，下午好！”全班同学都坐下后，她说道。

'Tut, tut,' said Professor Umbridge. 'That won't do, now, will it? I should like you, please, to reply "Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge". One more time, please. Good afternoon, class!'

几个同学嘟哝着“下午好”作为回答。

'Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge,' they chanted back at her.

“啧，啧，”乌姆里奇教授说道，“这可不行，是不是？我希望你们这样回答：‘下午好，乌姆里奇教授。’请再来一遍。同学们，下午好！”

There, now,' said Professor Umbridge sweetly. That wasn't too difficult, was it? Wands away and quills out, please.'

“下午好，乌姆里奇教授。”他们异口同声地回答。

Many of the class exchanged gloomy looks; the order 'wands away' had never yet been followed by a lesson they had found interesting. Harry shoved his wand back inside his bag and pulled cut quill, ink and parchment. Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, extracted her own wand, which was an unusually short one, and tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once:

“这就对了，”乌姆里奇教授声音嗲嗲地说，“这并不太难，是不是？请收起魔杖，拿出羽毛笔。”

Defence Against the Dark Arts

许多同学交换着郁闷的眼神。跟在“收起魔杖”这个命令后面的，从来都不是他们觉得有趣的课。哈利把他的魔杖塞进书包里，拿出了羽毛笔、墨水和羊皮纸。乌姆里奇教授打开她的手提包，抽出一根短得出奇的魔杖，在黑板上使劲一敲，黑板上立刻出现了两行字：

A Return to Basic Principles

黑魔法防御术

'Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn't it?' stated Professor Umbridge, turning to face the class with her hands clasped neatly in front of her. The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your OWL year.

回归基本原理

'You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory-centred, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please.'

“同学们，你们这门课的教学一直是断断续续的，不成系统，是不是？”乌姆里奇教授转身面对着全班同学，两只手十指交叉，端端正正地放在胸前，然后说道，“教师不断更换，其中许多人似乎并没有遵照魔法部批准的课程标准进行授课，这不幸使你们现在远远没有达到O．W．Ls年理应达到的水平。

She rapped the blackboard again; the first message vanished and was replaced by the 'Course Aims'.

“然而你们将会很高兴地知道，这些问题即将得到改正。今年，我们将要学习的是一门经过精心安排、以理论为中心、由魔法部批准的魔法防御术课程。请把这些话抄下来。”

1. Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.

她又敲了敲黑板，刚才那两行字消失了，取而代之的是“课程目标”。

2. Learning to recognise situations in which defensive magic can legally

1、理解魔法防御术的基本原理。

he used

2、学会辨别可以合法使用魔法防御术的场合。

3. Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use.

3、在实际运用的背景下评定魔法防御术。

For a couple of minutes the room was full of the sound of scratching quills on parchment. When everyone had copied down Professor Umbridge's three course aims she asked, 'Has everybody got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?'

教室里只听得羽毛笔在羊皮纸上写字的沙沙声，两三分钟后，当每个同学都把乌姆里奇教授的三个课程目标抄录下来后，她问道：“是不是每位同学都有一本威尔伯特·斯林卡的《魔法防御理论》？”

There was a dull murmur of assent throughout the class.

班里响起一片喃喃表示肯定的声音。

'I think we'll try that again,' said Professor Umbridge. 'When I ask you a question, I should like you to reply, "Yes, Professor Umbridge", or "No, Professor Umbridge'. So: has everyone got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?'

“我认为我们还要再来一遍，”乌姆里奇教授说道，“当我问你们一个问题时，我希望你们回答‘是的，乌姆里奇教授。’或者‘不，乌姆里奇教授。’再来一遍：是不是每位同学都有一本威尔伯特·斯林卡的《魔法防御理论》？”

'Yes, Professor Umbridge,' rang through the room.

“是的，乌姆里奇教授。”全班同学大声回答。

'Good,' said Professor Umbridge. I should like you to turn to page five and read "Chapter One, Basics for Beginners". There will be no need to talk.'

“很好，”乌姆里奇教授说，“我希望你们把书翻到第五页，读一读‘第一章，入门基础原理’。读的时候不要交头接耳。”

Professor Umbridge left the blackboard and settled herself in the chair behind the teacher's desk, observing them all closely with those pouchy toad's eyes. Harry turned to page five of his copy of Defensive Magical Theory and started to read.

乌姆里奇教授离开黑板，在讲台后面的椅子上坐了下来，用那两只眼皮松垂的癞蛤蟆似的眼睛盯着大家。哈利把他那本《魔法防御理论》翻到第五页，开始读了起来。

It was desperately dull, quite as bad as listening to Professor Binns. He felt his concentration sliding away from him; he had soon read the same line half a dozen times without taking in more than the first few words. Several silent minutes passed. Next to him, Ron was absent-mindedly turning his quill over and over in his fingers, staring at the same spot on the page. Harry looked right and received a surprise to shake him out of his torpor. Hermione had not even opened her copy of Defensive Magical Theory. She was staring fixedly at Professor Umbridge with her hand in the air.

内容十分枯燥，简直就跟听宾斯教授讲课一样毫无趣味。他感到自己的注意力一点点地减退了。很快，他就盯着一行文字看了六七遍，却只看懂了开头几个单词。几分钟过去了，教室里鸦雀无声。在他旁边，罗恩心不在焉地把羽毛笔在手指上转来转去，眼睛呆呆地瞪着书上同一个地方。哈利把目光转向右边，猛地大吃一惊，一下子从麻木的状态中清醒过来。赫敏甚至没有打开她那本《魔法防御理论》。她眼睛一眨不眨地盯着乌姆里奇教授，一只手高高举起。

Harry could not remember Hermione ever neglecting to read when instructed to, or indeed resisting the temptation to open any book that came under her nose. He looked at her enquiringly, but she merely shook her head slightly to indicate that she was not about to answer questions, and continued to stare at Professor Umbridge, who was looking just as resolutely in another direction.

哈利记得赫敏以前从来不在老师要求读书的时候不照着做，或能够抵挡住诱惑，不去翻开任何一本出现在她面前的书。哈利询问地看着她，但她只是微微摇了摇头，表示她现在不想回答问题，随即继续盯着乌姆里奇教授，而乌姆里奇教授的目光正同样坚定地望着完全相反的方向。

After several more minutes had passed, however, Harry was not the only one watching Hermione. The chapter they had been instructed to read was so tedious that more and more people were choosing to watch Hermione's mute attempt to catch Professor Umbridge's eye rather than struggle on with 'Basics for Beginners'.

又过了几分钟，注视着赫敏的可不止哈利一个人了。老师吩咐他们读的那一章实在太啰嗦乏味了，越来越多的同学都更愿意注视赫敏怎样不出声地吸引乌姆里奇教授的目光，而不愿再去吭哧吭哧地啃什么“入门基础原理”。

When more than half the class were staring at Hermione rather than at their books, Professor Umbridge seemed to decide that she could ignore the situation no longer.

后来，班上超过一半的同学都在盯着赫敏，而不是看着他们的课本了，乌姆里奇教授似乎认为她再也不能对这种情况视而不见了。

'Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?' she asked Hermione, as though she had only just noticed her.

“亲爱的，你是对这一章的内容有什么疑问吗？”她问赫敏，似乎刚刚注意到她。

'Not about the chapter, no,' said Hermione.

“不，不是关于这一章的内容。”赫敏说。

'Well, we're reading just now,' said Professor Umbridge, showing her small pointed teeth. 'If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of class.'

“噢，我们现在是在读书，”乌姆里奇教授说，露出嘴里又小又尖的牙齿，“如果你有其他问题，我们可以下课的时候再谈。”

'I've got a query about your course aims,' said Hermione.

“我对你的课程目标有一个疑问。”赫敏说。

Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows.

乌姆里奇教授扬起了眉毛。

'And your name is?'

“你叫什么名字？”

'Hermione Granger,' said Hermione.

“赫敏·格兰杰。”赫敏说。

'Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully' said Professor Umbridge in a voice of determined sweetness.

“好吧，格兰杰小姐，我认为，这些课程目标写得非常清楚，只要你把它们从头到尾仔细读一遍。”乌姆里奇教授用坚定不移的嗲嗲的口吻说。

'Well, I don't,' said Hermione bluntly. There's nothing written up there about using defensive spells.'

“可是，我不这么认为，”赫敏直言不讳地说，“那上面一个字也没有提到使用防御性咒语。”

There was a short silence in which many members of the class turned their heads to frown at the three course aims still written on the blackboard.

一阵短暂的沉默，班里许多同学都扭过头仔细看着仍然写在黑板上的那三条课程目标。

'Using defensive spells?' Professor Umbridge repeated with a little laugh. 'Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?'

“使用防御性咒语？”乌姆里奇教授轻声笑着重复道，“哎呀，我无法想象在我的课堂里会出现需要你们使用防御性咒语的情况，格兰杰小姐。你总不至于认为会在上课时受到攻击吧？”

'We're not going to use magic?' Ron exclaimed loudly.

“我们不能使用魔法吗？”罗恩大声喊了一句。

'Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr - ?'

“在我的班上，同学想要讲话必须先举手，你是——”

'Weasley,' said Ron, thrusting his hand into the air.

“韦斯莱。”罗恩说着赶紧把手举了起来。

Professor Umbridge, smiling still more widely, turned her back or. him. Harry and Hermione immediately raised their hands too. Professor Umbridge's pouchy eyes lingerec. on Harry for a moment before she addressed Hermione.

乌姆里奇教授笑得更慈祥了，一转身背对着罗恩。哈利和赫敏马上也举起了手。乌姆里奇教授那双松泡泡的眼睛在哈利身上停留了一会儿，然后她对赫敏说道：“怎么，格兰杰小姐？你还有别的问题要问吗？”

'Yes, Miss Granger? You wanted to ask something else?'

“是的，”赫敏说道，“黑魔法防御术的总体目标当然应该是练习防御性咒语，是吗？”

'Yes,' said Hermione. 'Surely the whole point of Defence Against the Dark Arts is to practise defensive spells?'

“你是魔法部专门培训的教育专家吗，格兰杰小姐？”乌姆里奇教授用她那甜得发腻的假声音问。

'Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger?' asked Professor Umbridge, in her falsely sweet voice.

“不是，但——”

'No, but - '

“那好，我想你恐怕没有资格判断任何一门课的‘总体目标’是什么。我们的最新学习计划，是由比你年长得多、聪明得多的巫师们设计制定的。你们将以一种安全的、没有风险的方式学习防御性咒语——”

'Well then, I'm afraid you are not qualified to decide what the "whole point" of any class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised our new programme of study. You will be learning about defensive spells in a secure, risk-free way - '

“那有什么用呢？”哈利大声问，“如果我们受到攻击，那肯定不会是以一种——”

'What use is that?' said Harry loudly. 'If we're going to be attacked, it won't be in a - '

“举手，波特先生！”乌姆里奇教授用唱歌般的声音说。

'Hand, Mr Potter!' sang Professor Umbridge.

哈利赶紧把手高高举起。乌姆里奇教授又故伎重演，立刻转过脸去看别的地方，可是现在又有另外几个学生举起了手。

Harry thrust his fist in the air. Again, Professor Umbridge promptly turned away from him, but now several other people had their hands up, too.

“你叫什么名字？”乌姆里奇教授问迪安。

'And your name is?' Professor Umbridge said to Dean.

“迪安·托马斯。”

'Dean Thomas.'

“说吧，托马斯先生。”

'Well, Mr Thomas?'

“嗯，就像哈利说的那样，不是吗？”迪安说，“如果我们受到攻击，是不可能没有风险的。”

'Well, it's like Harry said, isn't it?' said Dean. 'If we're going to be attacked, it won't be risk free.'

“我再说一遍，”乌姆里奇教授说，一边以那种特别令人恼火的方式朝迪安微笑着，“你认为在我的班里会受到攻击吗？”

'I repeat,' said Professor Umbridge, smiling in a very irritating fashion at Dean, 'do you expect to be attacked during my classes?'

“不会，可是——”

'No, but - '

乌姆里奇教授的声音压过了迪安的声音。“我不愿意批评这个学校的一些办学方式，”她说，脸上堆起虚假的笑容，把那张阔嘴咧得更大了，“但是在这个班里你们接触了几个很不负责任的巫师，确实很不负责任——更不用说，”她发出一声刺耳的笑声，“还有特别危险的半人半兽。”

Professor Umbridge talked over him. 'I do not wish to criticise the way things have been run in this school,' she said, an unconvincing smile stretching her wide mouth, 'but you have been exposed to some very irresponsible wizards in this class, very irresponsible indeed - not to mention,' she gave a nasty little laugh, 'extremely dangerous half-breeds.'

“如果你指的是卢平教授，”迪安气愤地说，“他可是我们遇到的最好的老师——”

'If you mean Professor Lupin,' piped up Dean angrily, 'he was the best we ever -

“举手，托马斯先生！正如我刚才说的，他们给你们介绍的魔法都很复杂，不适合你们这个年龄段，而且具有极大的潜在危害。你们被吓得不轻，竟然以为自己三天两头就会遭到黑魔法的攻击——”

'Hand, Mr Thomas! As I was saying - you have been introduced to spells that have been complex, inappropriate to your age group and potentially lethal. You have been frightened into believing that you are likely to meet Dark attacks every other day - '

“不，我们没有，”赫敏说，“我们只是——”

'No we haven't,' Hermione said, 'we just - '

“你没有举手，格兰杰小姐！”

'Your hand is not up, Miss Granger!'

赫敏举起手，乌姆里奇教授转过脸去。

Hermione put up her hand. Professor Umbridge turned away from her.

“我认为，我的前任不仅在你们面前施用了非法的咒语，而且还在你们身上施用了这些咒语。”

'It is my understanding that my predecessor not only performed illegal curses in front of you, he actually performed them on you.'

“可是，后来发现他是个疯子嘛，是不是？”迪安气呼呼地说道，“说实在的，我们仍然学到不少东西呢。”

'Well, he turned out to be a maniac, didn't he?' said Dean hotly. 'Mind you, we still learned loads.'

“你没有举手，托马斯先生！”乌姆里奇教授用颤颤的声音说，“好了，魔法部认为，理论知识能够更有效地帮助你们通过考试，说到底，让学生通过考试才是学校的宗旨所在。你叫什么名字？”她瞪着刚刚把手举起来的帕瓦蒂问道。

'Your hand is not up, Mr Thomas!' trilled Professor Umbridge. 'Now, it is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more than sufficient to get you through your examination, which, after all, is what school is all about. And your name is?' she added, staring at Parvati, whose hand had just shot up.

“帕瓦蒂·佩蒂尔，我们的黑魔法防御术课的考试里就没有一点实践性的内容吗？我们是不是应该显示出我们确实会施破解咒和其他魔法呢？”

'Parvati Patil, and isn't there a practical bit in our Defence Against

“只要你们把理论学得非常扎实，就没有理由不会在严格控制的考试条件下施魔咒。”乌姆里奇教授轻蔑地说。

the Dark Arts OWL? Aren't we supposed to show that we can actually do the counter-curses and things?'

“事先不需要练习吗？”帕瓦蒂不敢相信地问，“难道你是在对我们说，我们第一次施那些魔咒就是在考试的时候吗？”

As long as you have studied the theory hard enough, there is no reason why you should not be able to perform the spells under carefully controlled examination conditions,' said Professor Umbridge dismissively.

“我再说一遍，只要你们把理论学得非常扎实——”

'Without ever practising them beforehand?' said Parvati incredulously. Are you telling us that the first time we'll get to do the spells will be during our exam?'

“理论在现实世界里有什么用？”哈利又把拳头高高举起，大声问道。

'I repeat, as long as you have studied the theory hard enough - '

乌姆里奇教授抬起目光。

And what good's theory going to be in the real world?' said Harry loudly, his fist in the air again.

“这是学校，波特先生，不是现实世界。”她轻声说。

Professor Umbridge looked up.

“那么我们不需要做好准备，迎接等在外面的一切吗？”

'This is school, Mr Potter, not the real world,' she said softly.

“没有什么等在外面，波特先生。”

'So we're not supposed to be prepared for what's waiting for us out there?'

“哦，是吗？”哈利说。他的火气一整天都在内心暗暗翻腾，这时就要临近爆发点了。

'There is nothing waiting out there, Mr Potter.'

“你想象谁会来攻击你们这样的小孩子呢？”乌姆里奇教授用亲昵得可怕的声音问道。

'Oh, yeah?' said Harry. His temper, which seemed to have been bubbling just beneath the surface all day, was reaching boiling point.

“嗯，让我想想……”哈利用假装若有所思的口吻说，“也许，伏地魔？”

'Who do you imagine wants to attack children like yourselves?' enquired Professor Umbridge in a horribly honeyed voice.

罗恩倒吸一口冷气，拉文德·布朗发出一声低低的尖叫，纳威一歪身从板凳上摔了下去，然而乌姆里奇教授却没有显出害怕的样子。她只是盯着哈利，脸上露出一种恶狠狠的心满意足的表情。

'Hmm, let's think . . .' said Harry in a mock thoughtful voice. 'Maybe . . . Lord Voldemort?'

“格兰芬多扣除十分，波特先生。”

Ron gasped; Lavender Brown uttered a little scream; Neville slipped sideways off his stool. Professor Umbridge, however, did not flinch. She was staring at Harry with a grimly satisfied expression on her face.

教室里一片沉默和寂静。大家要么盯着乌姆里奇，要么盯着哈利。

'Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr Potter.'

“好了，让我把几件事情弄弄清楚。”乌姆里奇教授站了起来，身体朝前探着，两只手指短粗的手掌按在讲台上。“有人告诉你们说，某个黑巫师死而复生了——”

The classroom was silent and still. Everyone was staring at either Umbridge or Harry.

“他没有死，”哈利生气地说，“但是没错，他回来了！”

'Now, let me make a few things quite plain.'

“波特先生你已经让你们学院丢了十分，可别再把事情越弄越糟，”乌姆里奇教授一口气说完这句话，眼睛看也没看哈利，“正如我刚才说的，有人对你们说，某个黑巫师又出来活动了。这是无稽之谈。”

Professor Umbridge stood up and leaned towards them, her stubby-fingered hands splayed on her desk.

“这不是无稽之谈！”哈利说，“我看见他了，我跟他搏斗了！”

'You have been told that a certain Dark wizard has returned from the dead - '

“关禁闭，波特先生！”乌姆里奇教授得意洋洋地说道，“明天傍晚，五点钟，在我的办公室。我再说一遍，这是无稽之谈。魔法部保证你们不会遇到来自任何黑巫师的危险。如果你们仍然心存疑虑，请务必在课后来找我。如果有人用黑巫师死而复生的鬼话吓唬你们，我倒很愿意听一听。我随时准备帮助你们。我是你们的朋友。好了，请大家继续阅读第五页，‘入门基本原理’。”

'He wasn't dead,' said Harry angrily, 'but yeah, he's returned!'

乌姆里奇教授在她的讲台后面坐下了。哈利却站了起来。同学们都呆呆地望着他，西莫看上去半是害怕半是好奇。

'Mr-Potter-you-have-already-lost-your-house-ten-points-do-not-make-matters-worse-for-yourself,' said Professor Umbridge in one breath without looking at him. 'As I was saying, you have been informed that a certain Dark wizard is at large once again. This is a lie.'

“哈利，不要！”赫敏小声警告道，拉了拉他的衣袖。

'It is NOT a lie!' said Harry. 'I saw him, I fought him!'

但哈利一甩胳膊，不想让她碰自己。“那么，照你的说法，塞德里克·迪戈里是自己倒下来死掉的喽？”哈利问，他的声音微微发颤。

'Detention, Mr Potter!' said Professor Umbridge triumphantly. Tomorrow evening. Five o'clock. My office. I repeat, this is a lie. The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours. If someone is alarming you with fibs about reborn Dark wizards, I would like to hear about it. I am here to help. I am your friend. And now, you will kindly continue your reading. Page five, "Basics for Beginners".'

全班同学同时倒吸了一口冷气，因为除了罗恩和赫敏，他们谁都没有听见哈利谈论过塞德里克遇难那天夜里发生的事情。他们急切地望望哈利，又望望乌姆里奇教授，只见她抬起眼睛盯着哈利，脸上再也看不见一丝假笑了。

Professor Umbridge sat down behind her desk. Harry, however, stood up. Everyone was staring at him; Seamus looked half-scared, half-fascinated.

“塞德里克·迪戈里的死是一场不幸的事故。”她冷冷地说。

'Harry, no!' Hermione whispered in a warning voice, tugging at his sleeve, but Harry jerked his arm out of her reach.

“是谋杀。”哈利说。他感觉到自己浑身发抖。他几乎没有跟任何人谈过这件事，更不用说当着三十个竖起耳朵聆听的同班同学的面。“伏地魔杀死了他，你明明知道的。”

'So, according to you, Cedric Diggory dropped dead of his own accord, did he?' Harry asked, his voice shaking.

乌姆里奇教授的脸上毫无表情。有那么一刻，哈利还以为她要冲自己失声尖叫呢。可接着她用那种最最温柔、最最嗲声嗲气的小姑娘一般的声音说道：“过来，波特先生，亲爱的。”

There was a collective intake of breath from the class, for none of them, apart from Ron and Hermione, had ever heard Harry talk about what had happened on the night Cedric had died. They stared avidly from Harry to Professor Umbridge, who had raised her eyes and was staring at him without a trace of a fake smile on her face.

哈利把椅子踢到一边，从罗恩和赫敏身边绕过，走向讲台。他可以感觉到全班同学都屏住了呼吸。他实在太气愤了，根本不在乎接下来会发生什么。

'Cedric Diggory's death was a tragic accident,' she said coldly.

乌姆里奇教授从她的手提包里抽出一卷粉红色的羊皮纸，在讲台上摊平了，用她的羽毛笔在墨水瓶里蘸了蘸，匆匆地写了起来。她身子俯在讲台上，因此哈利看不见她在写什么。谁也没有说话。过了一分钟左右，她卷起羊皮纸，用她的魔杖敲了一下，羊皮纸就自动牢牢地封死了，使得哈利无法打开它。

'It was murder,' said Harry. He could feel himself shaking. He had hardly spoken to anyone about this, least of all thirty eagerly listening classmates. 'Voldemort killed him and you know it.'

“亲爱的，把这个拿给麦格教授。”乌姆里奇教授说着，把羊皮纸递给了哈利。

Professor Umbridge's face was quite blank. For a moment, Harry thought she was going to scream at him. Then she said, in her softest, most sweetly girlish voice, 'Come here, Mr Potter, dear.'

哈利一言不发，从她手里接过了羊皮纸，也没有回头看一眼罗恩和赫敏就离开了教室，反手把门重重地关上了。他顺着走廊飞快地往前走，手里紧紧攥着给麦格教授的便条，转过一个拐角，猛地撞上了皮皮鬼——专门喜欢搞恶作剧的鬼魂。他是一个长着一张阔嘴巴的小个子男人，正平躺着悬在空中，像玩杂技一样抛接着几个墨水池。

He kicked his chair aside, strode around Ron and Hermione and up to the teacher's desk. He could feel the rest of the class holding its breath. He felt so angry he did not care what happened next.

“哎呀，是傻宝宝波特！”皮皮鬼咯咯笑着说，让两个墨水瓶落到地上摔得粉碎，墨水溅到了墙上。

Professor Umbridge pulled a small roll of pink parchment out of her handbag, stretched it out on the desk, dipped her quill into a bottle of ink and started scribbling, hunched over so that Harry could not see what she was writing. Nobody spoke. After a minute or so she rolled up the parchment and tapped it with her wand; it sealed itself seamlessly so that he could not open it.

哈利赶紧往后一跳躲开，大吼一声：“滚开，皮皮鬼！”

Take this to Professor McGonagall, dear,' said Professor Umbridge, holding out the note to him.

“哎哟，怪人儿发怪脾气了。”皮皮鬼说，在走廊上追着哈利，在他上面往前飞，一边调皮地斜眼看着他，“这次又犯了什么事儿，我亲爱的傻宝宝朋友？脑子里听见声音啦？眼前有幻觉啦？又开始说——”皮皮鬼轻蔑地大声咂了一下舌头，“——怪腔啦？”

He took it from her without saying a word, turned on his heel and left the room, not even looking back at Ron and Hermione, slamming the classroom door shut behind him. He walked very fast along the corridor, the note to McGonagall clutched tight in his hand, and turning a corner walked slap into Peeves the poltergeist, a wide-mouthed little man floating on his back in midair, juggling several inkwells.

“我说了，别来烦我！”哈利大喊一声，转身跑下离他最近的一道楼梯，但皮皮鬼平躺在他旁边的栏杆上也滑了下来。

'Why, it's Potty Wee Potter!' cackled Peeves, allowing two of the inkwells to fall to the ground where they smashed and spattered the walls with ink; Harry jumped backwards out of the way with a snarl.

“哦，好多人以为他脾气暴，波特波特傻宝宝，有些人心肠不算坏，知道他只是太悲哀，皮皮鬼心里最清楚，说他是发疯犯糊涂——”

'Get out of it, Peeves.'

“闭嘴！”

'Oooh, Crackpot's feeling cranky,' said Peeves, pursuing Harry along the corridor, leering as he zoomed along above him. 'What is; it this time, my fine Potty friend? Hearing voices? Seeing visions? Speaking in - ' Peeves blew a gigantic raspberry '- tongues?'

他左边的一扇门突然间打开了，麦格教授从她的办公室里走了出来，脸色严峻，微微透着疲惫。

'I said, leave me ALONE!' Harry shouted, running down the nearest flight of stairs, but Peeves merely slid down the banister on his back beside him.

“你到底在嚷嚷什么，波特？”她厉声问道，皮皮鬼开心地咯咯笑着，嗖的一下消失了，“你怎么不去上课？”

'Oh, most think he's barking, the potty wee lad,

“我被打发来见你。”哈利倔强地说。

But some are more kindly and think he's just sad,

“打发？你这是什么意思，打发？”

But Peevesy knows better and says that he's mad - '

哈利把乌姆里奇教授的便条递过去，麦格教授从他手里接过，皱着眉头，用魔杖一敲把封口撕开，展开读了起来。她读着乌姆里奇写的文字，眼睛在方方的镜片后面飞快地来回移动，每读完一行，眼睛就眯得更紧一些。

'SHUT UP!'

“进来，波特。”

A door to his left flew open and Professor McGonagall emerged from her office looking grim and slightly harassed.

哈利跟着她走进她的办公室。门在他身后自动关上了。

'What on earth are you shouting about, Potter?' she snapped, as Peeves cackled gleefully and zoomed out of sight. 'Why aren't you in class?'

“怎么回事？”麦格教授突然厉声对他说，“这是真的吗？”

'I've been sent to see you,' said Harry stiffly.

“什么是真的？”哈利问，语气咄咄逼人，他本来不想这样的。“教授？”他又找补了一句，努力使声音听上去礼貌一点儿。

'Sent? What do you mean, sent?'

“你真的冲乌姆里奇教授大吼大叫啦？”

He held out the note from Professor Umbridge. Professor McGonagall took it from him, frowning, slit it open with a tap of her wand, stretched it out and began to read. Her eyes zoomed from side to side behind their square spectacles as she read what Umbridge had written, and with each line they became narrower.

“是的。”哈利说。

'Come in here, Potter.'

“你说她是个骗子啦？”

He followed her inside her study. The door closed automatically behind him.

“是的。”

'Well?' said Professor McGonagall, rounding on him. "Is this true?'

“你告诉她那个连名字都不能提的魔头回来啦？”

'Is what true?' Harry asked, rather more aggressively than he had intended. 'Professor?' he added, in an attempt to sound more polite.

“是的。”

'Is it true that you shouted at Professor Umbridge?'

麦格教授在她的书桌后坐了下来，紧皱眉头望着哈利。然后她说：“吃一块饼干吧，波特。”

'Yes,' said Harry.

“吃——什么？”

'You called her a liar?'

“吃一块饼干，”她不耐烦地又说了一遍，指着桌上一堆文件上的一只方格图案的饼干盒，“坐下吧。”

'Yes.'

以前曾经有过一次，哈利原以为要被麦格教授狠狠教训一顿，结果却被她选进了格兰芬多学院的魁地奇球队。此刻他坐进她对面的椅子里，自己拿了一块生姜蝾螈饼干，感觉就像那次一样迷惑不解，不知所措。

'You told her He Who Must Not Be Named is back?'

麦格教授放下乌姆里奇教授的便条，非常严肃地望着哈利。

'Yes.'

“波特，你需要小心啊。”

Professor McGonagall sat down behind her desk, watching Harry closely. Then she said, 'Have a biscuit, Potter.'

哈利咽下嘴里的生姜蝾螈饼干，不解地瞪着她。她的语气跟他以前所熟悉的完全不同。不再那么敏捷、干脆和严厉，而是低沉的、忧心忡忡的，似乎比平常更有人情味。

'Have - what?'

“在多洛雷斯·乌姆里奇的课上不守纪律，你付出的代价可能要比学院扣分和关禁闭严重得多。”

'Have a biscuit,' she repeated impatiently, indicating a tartan tin lying on top of one of the piles of papers on her desk. 'And sit down.'

“你这是什么——”

There had been a previous occasion when Harry, expecting to be caned by Professor McGonagall, had instead been appointed by her to the Gryffindor Quidditch team. He sank into a chair opposite her and helped himself to a Ginger Newt, feeling just as confused and wrong-footed as he had done on that occasion.

“波特，用你的常识想一想，”麦格教授厉声地说，突然又恢复了她平常的腔调，“你知道她是从哪儿来的，你一定知道她会去向谁汇报。”

Professor McGonagall set down Professor Umbridge's note and looked very seriously at Harry.

下课铃响了。他们的头顶上和周围响起几百个学生同时走动的嘈杂声。

'Potter, you need to be careful.'

“这里写着，她这个星期每天晚上都要罚你关禁闭，从明天开始。”麦格教授又低头看了看乌姆里奇的便条，说道。

Harry swallowed his mouthful of Ginger Newt and stared at her. Her tone of voice was not at all what he was used to; it was not brisk, crisp and stern; it was low and anxious and somehow much more human than usual.

“这星期每天晚上！”哈利重复了一遍，简直被吓坏了，“可是，教授，难道你——”

'Misbehaviour in Dolores Umbridge's class could cost you much more than house points and a detention.'

“不行，我不能。”麦格教授断然地说。

'What do you - ?'

“可是——”

'Potter, use your common sense,' snapped Professor McGonagall, with an abrupt return to her usual manner. 'You know where she comes from, you must know to whom she is reporting.'

“她是你的老师，她完全有权罚你关禁闭。你明天下午五点钟开始到她办公室去，开始第一次。记住：在多洛雷斯·乌姆里奇身边要千万留神。”

The bell rang for the end of the lesson. Overhead and all around came the elephantine sounds of hundreds of students on the move.

“可我说的是实话！”哈利愤愤不平地说，“伏地魔回来了，你知道的。邓布利多教授也知道他已经——”

'It says here she's given you detention every evening this week, starting tomorrow,' Professor McGonagall said, looking down at Umbridge's note again.

“看在上天的分儿上，波特！”麦格教授生气地正了正眼镜，说道（刚才她听见哈利说出伏地魔的名字，脸部肌肉很厉害地抽搐了一下），“你真的以为问题在于说实话还是说谎话吗？问题在于你必须低着头做人，尽量不招惹麻烦，管好你自己的脾气！”

'Every evening this week!' Harry repeated, horrified. 'But, Professor, couldn't you - ?'

她站了起来，鼻孔张得大大的，嘴唇抿得紧紧的，哈利也跟着站了起来。

'No, I couldn't,' said Professor McGonagall flatly.

“再吃一块饼干吧。”她烦躁地说，把饼干盒推给了他。

'But - '

“不用了，谢谢。”哈利冷冷地回答。

'She is your teacher and has every right to give you detention. You will go to her room at five o'clock tomorrow for the first one. Just remember: tread carefully around Dolores Umbridge.'

“别犯傻啦。”她厉声道。

'But I was telling the truth!' said Harry, outraged. 'Voldemort is back, you know he is; Professor Dumbledore knows he is - '

哈利拿了一块。

'For heaven's sake, Potter!' said Professor McGonagall, straightening her glasses angrily (she had winced horribly when he had used Voldemort's name). 'Do you really think this is about truth or lies? It's about keeping your head down and your temper under control!'

“谢谢。”他满不情愿地说。

She stood up, nostrils wide and mouth very thin, and Harry stood up, too.

“多洛雷斯·乌姆里奇在开学宴会上的讲话你没有听吗，波特？”

'Have another biscuit,' she said irritably, thrusting the tin at him.

“听了，”哈利说道，“听了……她说……进步将被禁止……嗯，这就说明……说明魔法部企图干涉霍格沃茨。”

'No, thanks,' said Harry coldly.

麦格教授打量了他片刻，然后从鼻子里哼了一声，绕过桌子，为他打开了房门。

'Don't be ridiculous,' she snapped.

“好吧，不管怎么说，我很高兴你能听赫敏·格兰杰的话。”她说，示意他离开她的办公室。

He took one.

①指的是普通巫师等级考试。

Thanks,' he said grudgingly.

②指的是终极巫师考试。

'Didn't you listen to Dolores Umbridge's speech at the start-of-term feast, Potter?'

①龙卷风队，即塔特希尔龙卷风队，其英文的两个词的第一个字母都是T。

'Yeah,' said Harry. 'Yeah . . . she said . . . progress will be prohibited or . . . well, it meant that . . . that the Ministry of Magic is trying to interfere at Hogwarts.'

Professor McGonagall eyed him closely for a moment, then sniffed, walked around her desk and held open the door for him.

'Well, I'm glad you listen to Hermione Granger at any rate,' she said, pointing him out of her office.

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