哈利·波特与混血王子
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

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    CHAPTER NINE THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE
    第九章　混血王子
    
    
    Harry and Ron met Hermione in the common room before breakfast next morning. Hoping for some support for his theory, Harry lost no time in telling Hermione what he had overheard Malfoy saying on the Hogwarts Express.
    第二天早上吃早饭前，哈利、罗恩和赫敏在公共休息室里碰面了。哈利希望有人支持他的想法，便立刻把他在霍格沃茨特快列车上偷听到的马尔福的话告诉了赫敏。
    “But he was obviously showing off for Parkinson, wasn’t he?” interjected Ron quickly, before Hermione could say anything.
    “他显然是在帕金森面前吹牛，是不是？”还没等赫敏说话，罗恩就抢着说道。
    “Well,” she said uncertainly, “I don’t know. . . . It would be like Malfoy to make himself seem more important than he is . . . but that’s a big lie to tell. . . .”
    “嗯，”赫敏迟疑地说，“我也说不清……也许马尔福是故意虚张声势，想显示自己很了不起……不过编出这样的谎话也太……”
    “Exactly,” said Harry, but he could not press the point, because so many people were trying to listen in to his conversation, not to mention staring at him and whispering behind their hands.
    “是啊。”哈利说，可是他没法进一步说明他的观点，因为许多同学不仅好奇地盯着他看，用手捂着嘴窃窃私语，而且还侧着耳朵听他说话。
    “It’s rude to point,” Ron snapped at a particularly minuscule first-year boy as they joined the queue to climb out of the portrait hole. The boy, who had been muttering something about Harry behind his hand to his friend, promptly turned scarlet and toppled out of the hole in alarm. Ron sniggered.
    “指指点点不礼貌！”他们排队通过肖像洞口时，罗恩冲一个特别矮小的一年级男生厉声喝道。那男生正在用手挡着嘴巴跟朋友嘀咕关于哈利的什么话，被罗恩这么一喝，顿时脸涨得通红，惊慌失措地从洞口跌了出去。罗恩得意地笑出了声。
    “I love being a sixth year. And we’re going to be getting free time this year. Whole periods when we can just sit up here and relax.”
    “我真喜欢上六年级。而且今年我们会有许多自由时间，可以整节课整节课地坐在这里，什么也不干。”
    “We’re going to need that time for studying, Ron!” said Hermione, as they set off down the corridor.
    “我们需要用那些时间来学习，罗恩！”赫敏说，这时他们正顺着走廊往前走。
    “Yeah, but not today,” said Ron. “Today’s going to be a real doss, I reckon.”
    “知道啦，但不是今天，”罗恩说，“今天要痛痛快快地睡一觉。”
    “Hold it!” said Hermione, throwing out an arm and halting a passing fourth year, who was attempting to push past her with a lime-green disk clutched tightly in his hand. “Fanged Frisbees are banned, hand it over,” she told him sternly. The scowling boy handed over the snarling Frisbee, ducked under her arm, and took off after his friends. Ron waited for him to vanish, then tugged the Frisbee from Hermione’s grip.
    “站住！”赫敏说着一把拦住一个四年级学生，那学生手里紧紧抓着一个深绿色的圆盘，正想从她身边挤过去。“狼牙飞碟是违禁物，快交出来。”赫敏严厉地对他说。
    “Excellent, I’ve always wanted one of these.”
    那个愁眉苦脸的男生交出了那个咆哮的飞碟，一猫腰从赫敏胳膊底下钻过，追他的朋友们去了。罗恩等他走远了，便把飞碟从赫敏手里夺了过来。
    Hermione’s remonstration was drowned by a loud giggle; Lavender Brown had apparently found Ron’s remark highly amusing. She continued to laugh as she passed them, glancing back at Ron over her shoulder. Ron looked rather pleased with himself.
    “太棒了，我早就想要一个这样的东西。”
    The ceiling of the Great Hall was serenely blue and streaked with frail, wispy clouds, just like the squares of sky visible through the high mullioned windows. While they tucked into porridge and eggs and bacon, Harry and Ron told Hermione about their embarrassing conversation with Hagrid the previous evening.
    赫敏的抗议被一阵响亮的咯咯笑声淹没了。拉文德·布朗似乎觉得罗恩的话特别好玩，她从他们身边经过时，还扭头朝罗恩看了几眼。罗恩显得非常得意。
    “But he can’t really think we’d continue Care of Magical Creatures!” she said, looking distressed. “I mean, when has any of us expressed . . . you know . . . any enthusiasm?”
    大礼堂的天花板瓦蓝瓦蓝的，飘着几缕淡淡的浮云，就像高高的、装着竖框的窗户外面的天空一样。哈利和罗恩一边大口喝粥，吃着鸡蛋和火腿，一边把前一天晚上跟海格的那段尴尬的对话告诉了赫敏。
    “That’s it, though, innit?” said Ron, swallowing an entire fried egg whole. “We were the ones who made the most effort in classes because we like Hagrid. But he thinks we liked the stupid subject. D’you reckon anyone’s going to go on to N.E.W.T.?”
    “他不可能真的以为我们还会去上保护神奇生物课吧！”赫敏显得很苦恼，说道，“我是说，其实我们谁也没有表示出……你们知道的……表示出任何热情呀。”
    Neither Harry nor Hermione answered; there was no need. They knew perfectly well that nobody in their year would want to continue Care of Magical Creatures. They avoided Hagrid’s eye and returned his cheery wave only halfheartedly when he left the staff table ten minutes later.
    “是这么回事。对吧？”罗恩说着把一个炸鸡蛋囫囵吞了下去，“因为我们喜欢海格，所以在他的课上是最用功的。可是他还以为我们喜欢那门愚蠢的功课呢。你们说有谁会去上他的提高班呢？”
    After they had eaten, they remained in their places, awaiting Professor McGonagall’s descent from the staff table. The distribution of class schedules was more complicated than usual this year, for Professor McGonagall needed first to confirm that everybody had achieved the necessary O.W.L. grades to continue with their chosen N.E.W.T.s.
    哈利和赫敏都没有回答。这个问题无需回答。他们知道得很清楚，在他们年级中，没有一个人想上保护神奇生物课。十分钟后，当海格离开教工餐桌，兴高采烈地跟他们挥手打招呼时，他们躲避着他的目光，浮皮潦草地朝他挥了挥手。
    Hermione was immediately cleared to continue with Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Herbology, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Potions, and shot off to a firstperiod Ancient Runes class without further ado. Neville took a little longer to sort out; his round face was anxious as Professor McGonagall looked down his application and then consulted his O.W.L. results.
    吃过早饭，他们仍然坐在座位上，等麦格教授从教工餐桌上下来。这学期发放课程表的工作比往常复杂，麦格教授先要确保每一个学生的O．W．Ls成绩达到要求，才能让他继续学习他所选择的N．E．W．Ts提高班课程。
    “Herbology, fine,” she said. “Professor Sprout will be delighted to see you back with an ‘Outstanding’ O.W.L. And you qualify for Defense Against the Dark Arts with ‘Exceeds Expectations.’ But the problem is Transfiguration. I’m sorry, Longbottom, but an Acceptable’ really isn’t good enough to continue to N.E.W.T level. I just don’t think you’d be able to cope with the coursework.”
    赫敏的课程立刻就确定下来了，她要继续学魔咒、黑魔法防御术、变形术、草药学、算术占卜、古代魔文和魔药学。她没再耽搁，立刻赶去上第一节古代魔文课了。纳威的情况多费了一些周折。麦格教授低头看着他的申请，一边核对他的O．W．Ls成绩，纳威圆圆的脸上满是焦虑。
    Neville hung his head. Professor McGonagall peered at him through her square spectacles.
    “草药学，很好，”她说，“O．W．Ls成绩是‘优秀’，斯普劳特夫人肯定很高兴看到你回去。黑魔法防御术的成绩是‘良好’，也有资格继续选修。问题是变形课。对不起，隆巴顿，‘及格’的成绩不够好，不能进修变形课的N．E．W．Ts课程，我担心你可能会跟不上的。”
    “Why do you want to continue with Transfiguration, anyway? I’ve never had the impression that you particularly enjoyed it.”
    纳威垂下了脑袋。麦格教授透过方形眼镜片望着他。
    Neville looked miserable and muttered something about “my grandmother wants.”
    “你为什么要继续学习变形课呢？我觉得你好像不是特别喜欢它。”
    “Hmph,” snorted Professor McGonagall. “It’s high time your grandmother learned to be proud of the grandson she’s got, rather than the one she thinks she ought to have — particularly after what happened at the Ministry.”
    纳威显得很难过，嘴里嘟囔了一句什么，像是“我奶奶要我学的”。
    Neville turned very pink and blinked confusedly; Professor McGonagall had never paid him a compliment before.
    “噢，”麦格教授哼着鼻子说道，“你奶奶终于知道应该为她的孙子感到骄傲，而不是总认为她的孙子应该更优秀了——特别是在发生了魔法部的那件事之后。”
    “I’m sorry, Longbottom, but I cannot let you into my N.E.W.T. class. I see that you have an ‘Exceeds Expectations’ in Charms, however — why not try for a N.E.W.T. in Charms?”
    纳威的脸变得绯红，眼睛困惑地眨巴着。麦格教授以前从来没有表扬过他。
    “My grandmother thinks Charms is a soft option,” mumbled Neville.
    “对不起，隆巴顿，我不能让你进入我的提高班。不过，我看到你的魔咒课成绩是‘良好’——你为什么不申请魔咒课的提高班呢？”
    “Take Charms,” said Professor McGonagall, “and I shall drop Augusta a line reminding her that just because she failed her Charms O.W.L., the subject is not necessarily worthless.” Smiling slightly at the look of delighted incredulity on Neville’s face, Professor McGonagall tapped a blank schedule with the tip of her wand and handed it, now carrying details of his new classes, to Neville.
    “我奶奶认为选魔咒课是图省事。”纳威嘟囔道。
    Professor McGonagall turned next to Parvati Patil, whose first question was whether Firenze, the handsome centaur, was still teaching Divination.
    “选魔咒课吧，”麦格教授说，“我要给奥古斯塔写封信提醒她，不能因为她的魔咒课O．W．Ls考试不及格，就认为这门功课不值得一学。”看到纳威脸上不敢相信的欣喜表情，麦格教授用魔杖尖敲了敲一张空白课程表，然后递给了纳威，那上面已经详细填好了他这学期要上的课。
    “He and Professor Trelawney are dividing classes between them this year,” said Professor McGonagall, a hint of disapproval in her voice; it was common knowledge that she despised the subject of Divination. “The sixth year is being taken by Professor Trelawney.”
    接着，麦格教授转向了帕瓦蒂·佩蒂尔。佩蒂尔的第一个问题是，那个漂亮的马人费伦泽今年还教不教占卜课。
    Parvati set off for Divination five minutes later looking slightly crestfallen.
    “他和特里劳妮教授今年共同承担占卜课。”麦格教授的语气里透着一丝不快，大家知道她一向看不起占卜课。“给六年级上占卜课的是特里劳妮教授。”
    “So, Potter, Potter . . .” said Professor McGonagall, consulting her notes as she turned to Harry. “Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Transfiguration . . . all fine. I must say, I was pleased with your Transfiguration mark, Potter, very pleased. Now, why haven’t you applied to continue with Potions? I thought it was your ambition to become an Auror?”
    五分钟后，帕瓦蒂垂头丧气地去上占卜课了。
    “It was, but you told me I had to get an ‘Outstanding’ in my O.W.L., Professor.”
    “下面……波特，波特……”麦格教授一边查看她的笔记，一边转向哈利，“魔咒，黑魔法防御术，草药学，变形术……都可以。我得说一句，我对你变形术的成绩很满意，波特，非常满意。可是，你为什么不申请继续学习魔药课呢？我记得你的理想是将来当一名傲罗！”
    “And so you did when Professor Snape was teaching the subject. Professor Slughorn, however, is perfectly happy to accept N.E.W.T students with ‘Exceeds Expectations’ at O.W.L. Do you wish to proceed with Potions?”
    “是的，可是你曾告诉过我，我的魔药课O．W．Ls成绩必须达到‘优秀’才行，教授。”
    “Yes,” said Harry, “but I didn’t buy the books or any ingredients or anything —”
    “斯内普教授教这门课的时候是这样。斯拉格霍恩教授很愿意接受O．W．Ls成绩‘良好’的学生进入提高班。你愿意继续学习魔药课吗？”
    “I’m sure Professor Slughorn will be able to lend you some,” said Professor McGonagall. “Very well, Potter, here is your schedule. Oh, by the way — twenty hopefuls have already put down their names for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. I shall pass the list to you in due course and you can fix up trials at your leisure.”
    “愿意，”哈利说，“但是我没买课本和原料什么的——”
    A few minutes later, Ron was cleared to do the same subjects as Harry, and the two of them left the table together.
    “我相信斯拉格霍恩教授可以借给你一些。”麦格教授说，“很好，波特，这是你的课程表。对了，顺便说一句——已经有二十位同学报名参加魁地奇球队了。到时候我把名单给你，你抽空安排一下选拔赛。”
    “Look,” said Ron delightedly, gazing at his schedule, “we’ve got a free period now . . . and a free period after break . . . and after lunch . . . excellent!”
    几分钟后，罗恩的课程表也排好了，他要上的课跟哈利一样，他们俩一起离开了餐桌。
    They returned to the common room, which was empty apart from a half dozen seventh years, including Katie Bell, the only remaining member of the original Gryffindor Quidditch team that Harry had joined in his first year.
    “看，”罗恩看着他的课程表高兴地说，“我们现在没有课……课间休息以后又没有课……吃过午饭还是没有课……太棒了！”
    “I thought you’d get that, well done,” she called over, pointing at the Captain’s badge on Harry’s chest. “Tell me when you call trials!”
    他们回到了公共休息室，里面只有六七个七年级的学生，凯蒂·贝尔也在，她是哈利一年级时加入的那支格兰芬多魁地奇球队里仅剩的一名队员。
    “Don’t be stupid,” said Harry, “you don’t need to try out, I’ve watched you play for five years. . . .”
    “我就猜到你会得到它的，真不错。”她指着哈利胸前的队长徽章大声对他说道，“进行选拔赛时告诉我一声！”
    “You mustn’t start off like that,” she said warningly. “For all you know, there’s someone much better than me out there. Good teams have been ruined before now because Captains just kept playing the old faces, or letting in their friends. . . .”
    “别说傻话了，”哈利说，“你用不着参加选拔，我看着你打球已经有五年了……”
    Ron looked a little uncomfortable and began playing with the Fanged Frisbee Hermione had taken from the fourth-year student. It zoomed around the common room, snarling and attempting to take bites of the tapestry. Crookshanks’s yellow eyes followed it and he hissed when it came too close.
    “你可别一开始就这么做。”她警告说，“你们都知道有些人的球技比我好得多。以前有一些很不错的球队，就因为队长总让熟面孔打球，让自己的朋友入队，结果把好好儿的球队给毁了……”
    An hour later they reluctantly left the sunlit common room for the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom four floors below. Hermione was already queuing outside, carrying an armful of heavy books and looking put-upon.
    罗恩有点儿不自在了，低着头玩起了赫敏从四年级学生那里没收来的狼牙飞碟。飞碟在公共休息室里飞来飞去，咆哮着去咬墙上的挂毯。克鲁克山的黄眼睛紧盯着它，每次看到它飞过来，便发出嘶嘶的叫声。
    “We got so much homework for Runes,” she said anxiously, when Harry and Ron joined her. “A fifteen-inch essay, two translations, and I’ve got to read these by Wednesday!”
    一个小时后，他们满不情愿地离开了洒满阳光的公共休息室，到楼下去上黑魔法防御术课。赫敏已经排在教室外面了，她怀里抱着一大堆沉甸甸的书，一副受了虐待的样子。
    “Shame,” yawned Ron.
    “魔文课的作业一大堆，”她焦虑地说，这时哈利和罗恩跟她一起排进了队伍，“一篇十五英寸长的文章，两篇翻译，还要在星期三之前读完这么多书！”
    “You wait,” she said resentfully. “I bet Snape gives us loads.”
    “真倒霉。”罗恩打了个哈欠说。
    The classroom door opened as she spoke, and Snape stepped into the corridor, his sallow face framed as ever by two curtains of greasy black hair. Silence fell over the queue immediately.
    “你等着吧，”赫敏愤愤地说道，“我敢说斯内普也会给我们布置一大堆作业。”
    “Inside,” he said.
    就在她说话的当儿，教室的门开了，斯内普走到了走廊里。他和以前一样，油腻腻的黑发从两边分下来，框住了那张蜡黄色的脸。队伍里立刻沉默下来。
    Harry looked around as they entered. Snape had imposed his personality upon the room already; it was gloomier than usual, as curtains had been drawn over the windows, and was lit by candlelight. New pictures adorned the walls, many of them showing people who appeared to be in pain, sporting grisly injuries or strangely contorted body parts. Nobody spoke as they settled down, looking around at the shadowy, gruesome pictures.
    “进来。”他说。
    “I have not asked you to take out your books,” said Snape, closing the door and moving to face the class from behind his desk; Hermione hastily dropped her copy of Confronting the Faceless back into her bag and stowed it under her chair. “I wish to speak to you, and I want your fullest attention.”
    走进教室时，哈利四下里看了看。斯内普已经在这间教室里烙上了他自己的性格特征。窗帘拉得紧紧的，只有蜡烛发出的微光，光线比平常更加昏暗。墙上贴了一些以前没有的图画，许多画面上都是遭受痛苦的人、狰狞的伤口和离奇扭曲的身体局部。同学们坐下后，谁也没有说话，都扭头望着墙上这些阴森恐怖的图画。
    His black eyes roved over their upturned faces, lingering for a fraction of a second longer on Harry’s than anyone else’s.
    “我还没有叫你们把书拿出来。”斯内普说着关上教室的门，走到讲台后面面对着全班同学。赫敏赶紧把她那本《遭遇无脸妖怪》扔回书包，塞进了椅子下面。“我有话要对你们说，希望你们的注意力高度集中。”
    “You have had five teachers in this subject so far, I believe.”
    他那双黑眼睛扫过一张张仰起的面孔，在哈利脸上停留的时间比别人略微长一些。
    You believe . . . like you haven’t watched them all come and go, Snape, hoping you’d be next, thought Harry scathingly.
    “迄今为止，这门课程想必你们已经换过五位老师了。”
    “Naturally, these teachers will all have had their own methods and priorities. Given this confusion I am surprised so many of you scraped an O.W.L. in this subject. I shall be even more surprised if all of you manage to keep up with the N.E.W.T. work, which will be much more advanced.”
    想必……就好像你没有看见他们一个个来了又走了似的，斯内普，希望下一个就是你。哈利尖刻地想。
    Snape set off around the edge of the room, speaking now in a lower voice; the class craned their necks to keep him in view.
    “不用说，这些老师都有他们自己的教学方式和教学重点。在这种混乱的状况下，我很吃惊你们竟然有这么多人还勉强通过了这门课的O．W．Ls考试。如果你们都能跟上提高班的课程，我将会更加吃惊，因为它的内容要高深得多。”
    “The Dark Arts,” said Snape, “are many, varied, ever-changing, and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, indestructible.”
    斯内普走下讲台，绕着教室走来走去，说话的声音放低了。为了能看见他，同学们一个个伸长了脖子。
    Harry stared at Snape. It was surely one thing to respect the Dark Arts as a dangerous enemy, another to speak of them, as Snape was doing, with a loving caress in his voice?
    “黑魔法，”斯内普说，“五花八门，种类繁多，变化多端，永无止境。与它们搏斗，就像与一只多头怪物搏斗，刚砍掉一个脑袋，立刻又冒出一个新的脑袋，比原先那个更凶狠、更狡猾。你们所面对的是一种变幻莫测、不可毁灭的东西。”
    “Your defenses,” said Snape, a little louder, “must therefore be as flexible and inventive as the arts you seek to undo. These pictures” — he indicated a few of them as he swept past — “give a fair representation of what happens to those who suffer, for instance, the Cruciatus Curse” — he waved a hand toward a witch who was clearly shrieking in agony — “feel the Dementor’s Kiss” — a wizard lying huddled and blank-eyed, slumped against a wall — “or provoke the aggression of the Inferius” — a bloody mass upon the ground.
    哈利盯着斯内普。把黑魔法当成危险的敌人来重视是一码事，而像斯内普这样，用喜爱和景仰的口吻谈论它们，就显然是另一码事了。
    “Has an Inferius been seen, then?” said Parvati Patil in a highpitched voice. “Is it definite, is he using them?”
    “因此，你们的防御，”斯内普稍稍提高了音量说，“也必须像你们需要对付的黑魔法一样灵活多变，富有创新。这些图画，”他一边走一边顺手指了指其中几幅，“生动表现了那些受害者的情形，比如说，中了钻心咒，”（他挥手一指一个显然在痛苦惨叫的女巫）“感受到摄魂怪的亲吻，”（一个男巫蜷缩在墙角，两眼失神）“或遭到阴尸的侵害”（地上一摊血迹）。
    “The Dark Lord has used Inferi in the past,” said Snape, “which means you would be well-advised to assume he might use them again. Now . . .”
    “那么，人们真的看见过阴尸吗？”帕瓦蒂·佩蒂尔用尖细的声音问，“他是不是真的在利用阴尸？”
    He set off again around the other side of the classroom toward his desk, and again, they watched him as he walked, his dark robes billowing behind him.
    “黑魔王过去使用过阴尸，”斯内普说，“这意味着我们应当假设他还会再次使用它们。好了……”
    “. . . you are, I believe, complete novices in the use of nonverbal spells. What is the advantage of a nonverbal spell?”
    他又绕到教室的另一边朝讲台走去，黑色的长袍在身后摆动着，全班同学的目光又一次追随着他。
    Hermione’s hand shot into the air. Snape took his time looking around at everybody else, making sure he had no choice, before saying curtly, “Very well — Miss Granger?”
    “……我想，你们对于无声咒的使用还很陌生。无声咒有什么好处？”
    “Your adversary has no warning about what kind of magic you’re about to perform,” said Hermione, “which gives you a split-second advantage.”
    赫敏立刻举起了手。斯内普不慌不忙地扫视了一下全班同学，看到没有别的选择，才生硬地说：“很好——格兰杰小姐？”
    “An answer copied almost word for word from The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Six,” said Snape dismissively (over in the corner, Malfoy sniggered), “but correct in essentials. Yes, those who progress to using magic without shouting incantations gain an element of surprise in their spell-casting. Not all wizards can do this, of course; it is a question of concentration and mind power which some” — his gaze lingered maliciously upon Harry once more — “lack.”
    “对手不知道你打算施什么魔法，”赫敏说，“这就使你占有一刹那间的优势。”
    Harry knew Snape was thinking of their disastrous Occlumency lessons of the previous year. He refused to drop his gaze, but glowered at Snape until Snape looked away.
    “这个回答是原封不动地从《标准咒语（六级）》上抄来的，”斯内普轻蔑地说（马尔福在墙角发出了讥笑），“不过基本正确。是的，施魔法时不把咒语大声念出来，可以达到一种出其不意的效果。当然啦，不是所有的巫师都能做到这点的。这需要很强的注意力和意志力，而有些人，”他的目光又一次停留在哈利脸上，“是没有的。”
    “You will now divide,” Snape went on, “into pairs. One partner will attempt to jinx the other without speaking. The other will attempt to repel the jinx in equal silence. Carry on.”
    哈利知道，斯内普想起了上学期那几节糟糕透顶的大脑封闭术课。哈利不肯垂下眼睛，怒视着斯内普，最后是斯内普移开了目光。
    Although Snape did not know it, Harry had taught at least half the class (everyone who had been a member of the D.A.) how to perform a Shield Charm the previous year. None of them had ever cast the charm without speaking, however. A reasonable amount of cheating ensued; many people were merely whispering the incantation instead of saying it aloud. Typically, ten minutes into the lesson Hermione managed to repel Neville’s muttered JellyLegs Jinx without uttering a single word, a feat that would surely have earned her twenty points for Gryffindor from any reasonable teacher, thought Harry bitterly, but which Snape ignored. He swept between them as they practiced, looking just as much like an overgrown bat as ever, lingering to watch Harry and Ron struggling with the task.
    “现在你们分成两个人一组，”斯内普继续说道，“一个试着给另一个施恶咒，但不许念出声来。另一个试着击退那个恶咒，同样也不许出声。开始吧。”
    Ron, who was supposed to be jinxing Harry, was purple in the face, his lips tightly compressed to save himself from the temptation of muttering the incantation. Harry had his wand raised, waiting on tenterhooks to repel a jinx that seemed unlikely ever to come.
    斯内普不知道，上学期哈利教过班上半数的同学（那些曾是D．A．成员的同学）怎样施铁甲咒。不过，他们谁也没有不出声地念过这个咒语。可想而知，接下来便是大量的作弊。许多同学在小声地念咒语，只是不把声音放大而已。不出所料，课上到十分钟的时候，赫敏一个字也没说就成功击退了纳威小声念出的软腿咒。哈利怨恨地想，这么了不起的成绩，换了任何一位通情达理的老师，都会给格兰芬多加二十分的，可是斯内普只当没看见。同学们练习时，他拖着长袍在他们中间巡视，和以前一样，如同一只巨大的蝙蝠，并故意停下来注视哈利和罗恩艰难地练习着。
    “Pathetic, Weasley,” said Snape, after a while. “Here — let me show you —”
    罗恩要给哈利施恶咒，脸憋得红红的，嘴巴闭得紧紧的，生怕自己挡不住诱惑轻声念出咒语。哈利举着魔杖，提心吊胆地等着击退一个看来永远不会发过来的咒语。
    He turned his wand on Harry so fast that Harry reacted instinctively; all thought of nonverbal spells forgotten, he yelled, “Protego!”
    “真差劲，韦斯莱。”斯内普看了一会儿，说道，“来——让我来做给你看——”
    His Shield Charm was so strong Snape was knocked off-balance and hit a desk. The whole class had looked around and now watched as Snape righted himself, scowling.
    说时迟那时快，他突然把魔杖转向了哈利，哈利本能地做出反应，把无声咒的事忘得一干二净，大喊一声：“盔甲护身！”
    “Do you remember me telling you we are practicing nonverbal spells, Potter?”
    他的铁甲咒力量太大了，斯内普被击得失去了平衡，撞在一张桌子上。全班同学都转过头来，看着斯内普挣扎着站稳脚跟，满脸怒容。
    “Yes,” said Harry stiffly.
    “你还记得我告诉过你，我们在练习无声咒吗，波特？”
    “Yes, sir.”
    “记得。”哈利生硬地说。
    “There’s no need to call me ‘sir,’ Professor.”
    “记得，先生。”
    The words had escaped him before he knew what he was saying. Several people gasped, including Hermione. Behind Snape, however, Ron, Dean, and Seamus grinned appreciatively.
    “用不着叫我‘先生’，教授。”
    “Detention, Saturday night, my office,” said Snape. “I do not take cheek from anyone, Potter . . . not even ‘the Chosen One.’ ”
    没等他反应过来，这句话已脱口而出。几个同学吃惊得抽了一口冷气，包括赫敏。然而在斯内普身后，罗恩、迪安和西莫的脸上露出了赞赏的笑容。
    “That was brilliant, Harry!” chortled Ron, once they were safely on their way to break a short while later.
    “关禁闭，星期六晚上，在我的办公室。”斯内普说，“我不允许任何人对我无礼，波特……即便是救世之星。”
    “You really shouldn’t have said it,” said Hermione, frowning at Ron. “What made you?”
    “太漂亮了，波特！”片刻之后，他们出来课间休息时，罗恩开心地咯咯笑着说。
    “He tried to jinx me, in case you didn’t notice!” fumed Harry. “I had enough of that during those Occlumency lessons! Why doesn’t he use another guinea pig for a change? What’s Dumbledore playing at, anyway, letting him teach Defense? Did you hear him talking about the Dark Arts? He loves them! All that unfixed, indestructible stuff —”
    “你真不应该那么说的。”赫敏朝罗恩皱着眉头说，“你当时是怎么了？”
    “Well,” said Hermione, “I thought he sounded a bit like you.”
    “他想给我施恶咒，你大概没有注意到！”哈利气冲冲地说，“我在那些大脑封闭术课上已经受够了这一套！他为什么不另外找个人给他当试验品？邓布利多葫芦里卖的什么药，竟然让他来教防御术？你有没有听见他谈黑魔法时的那种口气？他喜欢它们！所有那些变幻莫测、不可毁灭的东西——”
    “Like me?”
    “是啊，”赫敏说，“我觉得他的口气有点儿像你。”
    “Yes, when you were telling us what it’s like to face Voldemort. You said it wasn’t just memorizing a bunch of spells, you said it was just you and your brains and your guts — well, wasn’t that what Snape was saying? That it really comes down to being brave and quick-thinking?”
    “像我？”
    Harry was so disarmed that she had thought his words as well worth memorizing as The Standard Book of Spells that he did not argue.
    “是啊，你告诉我们面对伏地魔的感觉时就是这么说的。你说，光靠背熟一大堆咒语是不行的，还需要你整个人、你的头脑和你的勇气——嘿，这不就是斯内普说的吗？他不是说这涉及到勇敢和思维敏捷吗？”
    “Harry! Hey, Harry!”
    哈利没料到赫敏居然认为他的话像《标准咒语》一样值得牢记在心，他顿时消了怒气，没有再说什么。
    Harry looked around; Jack Sloper, one of the Beaters on last year’s Gryffindor Quidditch team, was hurrying toward him holding a roll of parchment.
    “哈利！嘿，哈利！”
    “For you,” panted Sloper. “Listen, I heard you’re the new Captain. When’re you holding trials?”
    哈利扭头一看，杰克·斯劳珀——上学期格兰芬多魁地奇球队的一名击球手——匆匆朝他奔来，手里拿着一卷羊皮纸。
    “I’m not sure yet,” said Harry, thinking privately that Sloper would be very lucky to get back on the team. “I’ll let you know.”
    “给你的。”斯劳珀气喘吁吁地说，“听着，我听说你当上了队长。什么时候搞选拔赛？”
    “Oh, right. I was hoping it’d be this weekend —”
    “还没定下来呢，”哈利说，他私下里认为斯劳珀要重回球队，除非吉星高照，“到时候我会通知你的。”
    But Harry was not listening; he had just recognized the thin, slanting writing on the parchment. Leaving Sloper in mid-sentence, he hurried away with Ron and Hermione, unrolling the parchment as he went.
    “噢，好吧。我本来希望会在这个周末——”
    Dear Harry,
    可是哈利已经不再听他说了，他认出了羊皮纸上细长、歪斜的字体。没等斯劳珀把话说完，他就和罗恩、赫敏匆匆走开了，他边走边展开了羊皮纸。
    I would like to start our private lessons this Saturday.
    亲爱的哈利：
    Kindly come along to my office at 8 P.M. I hope you are enjoy-
    我打算本周六就开始给你单独上课。请在晚上八点到我的办公室来。希望你开学第一天过得很愉快。
    ing your first day back at school.
    你忠实的阿不思·邓布利多
    Yours sincerely,
    又及：我喜欢酸味汽水。
    Albus Dumbledore
    “他喜欢酸味汽水？”罗恩说，他隔着哈利的肩头把短信看了一遍，一脸的迷惑不解。
    P.S. I enjoy Acid Pops.
    “这是通过他办公室外面那只石头怪兽的口令。”哈利压低声音说，“哈！斯内普肯定会不高兴……我不能去他那儿关禁闭了！”
    “He enjoys Acid Pops?” said Ron, who had read the message over Harry’s shoulder and was looking perplexed.
    整个课间休息时，哈利、罗恩和赫敏都在猜测邓布利多会教哈利什么。罗恩认为很可能是食死徒不知道的一些特殊的咒语和魔法。赫敏说这些东西是不合法的，她认为邓布利多更有可能教哈利一些高深的魔法防御术。课间休息结束后，她去上算术占卜课了，哈利和罗恩回到公共休息室，满不情愿地开始做斯内普布置的家庭作业。作业太难了，吃完午饭后的休息时间里，赫敏也来做作业时，他们的作业还没有做完（不过赫敏一来，速度就快得多了）。刚刚做完，下午两节魔药课的铃声就响了。他们顺着熟悉的路赶往地下教室，那里很长时间以来一直是斯内普专用的。
    “It’s the password to get past the gargoyle outside his study,” said Harry in a low voice. “Ha! Snape’s not going to be pleased. . . . I won’t be able to do his detention!”
    他们来到教室外面的走廊，看见只有十二三个同学来上提高班。显然，克拉布和高尔的O．W．Ls成绩没有达到要求，但是有四个斯莱特林学生考试通过了，其中就有马尔福。另外还有四个拉文克劳学生和一个赫奇帕奇学生——厄尼·麦克米兰，他尽管为人有些自负傲慢，但是哈利很喜欢他。
    He, Ron, and Hermione spent the whole of break speculating on what Dumbledore would teach Harry. Ron thought it most likely to be spectacular jinxes and hexes of the type the Death Eaters would not know. Hermione said such things were illegal, and thought it much more likely that Dumbledore wanted to teach Harry advanced Defensive magic. After break, she went off to Arithmancy while Harry and Ron returned to the common room, where they grudgingly started Snape’s homework. This turned out to be so complex that they still had not finished when Hermione joined them for their after-lunch free period (though she considerably speeded up the process). They had only just finished when the bell rang for the afternoon’s double Potions and they beat the familiar path down to the dungeon classroom that had, for so long, been Snape’s.
    “哈利，”厄尼看见哈利走近，便伸出一只手，端着架子说，“上午的黑魔法防御术课上没有机会跟你说话。课上得不错，不过对于我们这些D．A．老成员来说，铁甲咒已经是老掉牙了……你们怎么样，罗恩——赫敏？”
    When they arrived in the corridor they saw that there were only a dozen people progressing to N.E.W.T. level. Crabbe and Goyle had evidently failed to achieve the required O.W.L. grade, but four Slytherins had made it through, including Malfoy. Four Ravenclaws were there, and one Hufflepuff, Ernie Macmillan, whom Harry liked despite his rather pompous manner.
    他们只来得及说了一句“还好”，地下教室的门就打开了，斯拉格霍恩人还没露面，那个大肚子就已经先挺了出来。同学们鱼贯走进教室，他的海象胡子在笑眯眯的嘴巴上抖动着，他招呼哈利和沙比尼时显得格外热情。
    “Harry,” Ernie said portentously, holding out his hand as Harry approached, “didn’t get a chance to speak in Defense Against the Dark Arts this morning. Good lesson, I thought, but Shield Charms are old hat, of course, for us old D.A. lags . . . And how are you, Ron — Hermione?”
    与往常不同的是，地下教室里已经弥漫着蒸气，充满了各种古怪的气味。哈利、罗恩和赫敏走过一只只冒泡的大坩埚，饶有兴趣地闻着。四个斯莱特林学生坐一张桌子，四个拉文克劳学生也是一样。这么一来，哈利、罗恩和赫敏就只好跟厄尼坐在一起了。他们挑了一张离一只金色坩埚最近的桌子，坩埚里散发出阵阵香气。
    Before they could say more than “fine,” the dungeon door opened and Slughorn’s belly preceded him out of the door. As they filed into the room, his great walrus mustache curved above his beaming mouth, and he greeted Harry and Zabini with particular enthusiasm.
    哈利从没有闻过这么诱人的气味，它使他同时想到了蜂蜜馅饼，想到了飞天扫帚的木头味儿，还想到了一股准是在陋居闻到过的花香味儿。他发现自己正缓缓地、深深地往里吸气，药剂的气味像酒精一样充盈在他体内，一种巨大的满足感慢慢向他袭来。他咧嘴朝罗恩笑着，罗恩也在懒洋洋地望着他笑。
    The dungeon was, most unusually, already full of vapors and odd smells. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sniffed interestedly as they passed large, bubbling cauldrons. The four Slytherins took a table together, as did the four Ravenclaws. This left Harry, Ron, and Hermione to share a table with Ernie. They chose the one nearest a gold-colored cauldron that was emitting one of the most seductive scents Harry had ever inhaled: Somehow it reminded him simultaneously of treacle tart, the woody smell of a broomstick handle, and something flowery he thought he might have smelled at the Burrow. He found that he was breathing very slowly and deeply and that the potion’s fumes seemed to be filling him up like drink. A great contentment stole over him; he grinned across at Ron, who grinned back lazily.
    “好了，好了，好了，”斯拉格霍恩说。隔着许多热腾腾的蒸气望去，他那大块头的身形显得飘飘忽忽的。“各位同学，请拿出天平、药包，还有，别忘了拿出你们的《高级魔药制作》课本……”
    “Now then, now then, now then,” said Slughorn, whose massive outline was quivering through the many shimmering vapors. “Scales out, everyone, and potion kits, and don’t forget your copies of Advanced Potion-Making. . . .”
    “先生？”哈利举起手说。
    “Sir?” said Harry, raising his hand.
    “怎么啦，哈利？”
    “Harry, m’boy?”
    “我没有书，没有天平，什么也没有——罗恩也是——因为，我们没想到还能上提高班——”
    “I haven’t got a book or scales or anything — nor’s Ron — we didn’t realize we’d be able to do the N.E.W.T., you see —”
    “啊，对了，麦格教授提过这事……别担心，孩子，一点儿也不用担心。你们今天可以先用储藏柜里的原料，天平也可以借给你们，这里还有一些旧课本，你们先用着，然后你们可以写信给丽痕书店……”
    “Ah, yes, Professor McGonagall did mention . . . not to worry, my dear boy, not to worry at all. You can use ingredients from the store cupboard today, and I’m sure we can lend you some scales, and we’ve got a small stock of old books here, they’ll do until you can write to Flourish and Blotts. . . .”
    斯拉格霍恩大步走到墙角的一个储藏柜前，在里面摸索了一会儿，拿出两本破破烂烂的、利巴修·波拉奇所著的《高级魔药制作》，和两套暗淡退色的天平一起递给了哈利和罗恩。
    Slughorn strode over to a corner cupboard and, after a moment’s foraging, emerged with two very battered-looking copies of Advanced Potion-Making by Libatius Borage, which he gave to Harry and Ron along with two sets of tarnished scales.
    “好了，”斯拉格霍恩说着回到教室前面，他把已经很鼓的胸膛又往前挺了挺，马甲上的纽扣眼看就要迸掉了，“我准备了几种药剂让你们开开眼界，当然啦，只是出于兴趣。等你们完成了提高班的课程，就应该能做出这样的东西了。虽然你们没有亲手做过，但肯定听说过。谁能告诉我这一种是什么？”
    “Now then,” said Slughorn, returning to the front of the class and inflating his already bulging chest so that the buttons on his waistcoat threatened to burst off, “I’ve prepared a few potions for you to have a look at, just out of interest, you know. These are the kind of thing you ought to be able to make after completing your N.E.W.T.s. You ought to have heard of ’em, even if you haven’t made ’em yet. Anyone tell me what this one is?”
    他指着最靠近斯莱特林桌子的那只坩埚。哈利微微从座位上欠起身，看见那里面像是一锅清水在翻滚。
    He indicated the cauldron nearest the Slytherin table. Harry raised himself slightly in his seat and saw what looked like plain water boiling away inside it.
    赫敏那只久经锻炼的手抢先举了起来。斯拉格霍恩指了指她。
    Hermione’s well-practiced hand hit the air before anybody else’s; Slughorn pointed at her.
    “是吐真剂，一种无色、无味的药剂，强迫喝它的人说出实话。”赫敏说。
    “It’s Veritaserum, a colorless, odorless potion that forces the drinker to tell the truth,” said Hermione.
    “很好，很好！”斯拉格霍恩高兴地说。“现在，”他指着最靠近拉文克劳桌子的那只坩埚，继续说道，“这种比较出名……最近部里发的几本小册子上也重点介绍过……谁能——？”
    “Very good, very good!” said Slughorn happily. “Now,” he continued, pointing at the cauldron nearest the Ravenclaw table, “this one here is pretty well known. . . . Featured in a few Ministry leaflets lately too . . . Who can — ?”
    赫敏的手又一次抢先举了起来。
    Hermione’s hand was fastest once more.
    “是复方汤剂，先生。”她说。
    “It’s Polyjuice Potion, sir,” she said.
    哈利也认出了第二只坩埚里那慢慢泛着气泡的泥浆一般的东西，但他并不嫉妒赫敏回答这个问题。毕竟，在他们二年级时，是她成功地熬制出了这种药剂。
    Harry too had recognized the slow-bubbling, mudlike substance in the second cauldron, but did not resent Hermione getting the credit for answering the question; she, after all, was the one who had succeeded in making it, back in their second year.
    “太好了，太好了！还有这里的这种……你说，亲爱的？”斯拉格霍恩说，他看见赫敏的手又一次举起，显得有点儿惊异。
    “Excellent, excellent! Now, this one here . . . yes, my dear?” said Slughorn, now looking slightly bemused, as Hermione’s hand punched the air again.
    “是迷情剂！”
    “It’s Amortentia!”
    “一点儿不错。似乎根本用不着问，”斯拉格霍恩这时显出了由衷的佩服，说道，“我想你肯定知道它是做什么用的？”
    “It is indeed. It seems almost foolish to ask,” said Slughorn, who was looking mightily impressed, “but I assume you know what it does?”
    “它是世界上最有效的爱情魔药！”赫敏说。
    “It’s the most powerful love potion in the world!” said Hermione.
    “非常正确！我想，你是通过它特有的珍珠母的光泽认出来的吧？”
    “Quite right! You recognized it, I suppose, by its distinctive mother-of-pearl sheen?”
    “还有它特有的呈螺旋形上升的蒸气，”赫敏兴趣盎然地说，“而且，它的气味因人而异，根据各人最喜欢什么。我可以闻到刚修剪过的草地，崭新的羊皮纸，还有——”
    “And the steam rising in characteristic spirals,” said Hermione enthusiastically, “and it’s supposed to smell differently to each of us, according to what attracts us, and I can smell freshly mown grass and new parchment and —”
    她突然绯红了脸，不再往下说了。
    But she turned slightly pink and did not complete the sentence.
    “亲爱的，可以把你的名字告诉我吗？”斯拉格霍恩问道，似乎没注意到赫敏的不好意思。
    “May I ask your name, my dear?” said Slughorn, ignoring Hermione’s embarrassment.
    “赫敏·格兰杰，先生。”
    “Hermione Granger, sir.”
    “格兰杰？格兰杰？你是不是跟非凡药剂师协会的创办人赫托克·达格沃斯·格兰杰有亲戚关系？”
    “Granger? Granger? Can you possibly be related to Hector Dagworth-Granger, who founded the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers?”
    “不，应该不是，先生。我是麻瓜出身。”
    “No, I don’t think so, sir. I’m Muggle-born, you see.”
    哈利看见马尔福凑近诺特低声嘀咕了几句什么，两人偷偷地笑了起来。可是斯拉格霍恩倒没有表示出失望的样子。相反，他满脸笑容，看看赫敏，又看看坐在她身边的哈利。
    Harry saw Malfoy lean close to Nott and whisper something; both of them sniggered, but Slughorn showed no dismay; on the contrary, he beamed and looked from Hermione to Harry, who was sitting next to her.
    “嗬，对了！‘我有个最好的朋友也是麻瓜出身，她是全年级最优秀的！’我敢断定，这就是你说的那位朋友吧，哈利？”
    “Oho! ‘One of my best friends is Muggle-born, and she’s the best in our year!’ I’m assuming this is the very friend of whom you spoke, Harry?”
    “是的，先生。”哈利说。
    “Yes, sir,” said Harry.
    “很好，很好，给格兰芬多的格兰杰小姐加上当之无愧的二十分。”斯拉格霍恩亲切地说。
    “Well, well, take twenty well-earned points for Gryffindor, Miss Granger,” said Slughorn genially.
    马尔福脸上的表情就跟上次赫敏迎面给他一拳时差不多。赫敏喜滋滋地转向哈利，小声说：“你真的对他说过我是全年级最优秀的？哦，哈利！”
    Malfoy looked rather as he had done the time Hermione had punched him in the face. Hermione turned to Harry with a radiant expression and whispered, “Did you really tell him I’m the best in the year? Oh, Harry!”
    “得了，这有什么了不起的？”罗恩小声说，他不知为什么显得有些恼怒，“你本来就是全年级最优秀的嘛——如果他问我，我也会这么说的！”
    “Well, what’s so impressive about that?” whispered Ron, who for some reason looked annoyed. “You are the best in the year — I’d’ve told him so if he’d asked me!”
    赫敏笑了，但又做了个“嘘”的手势，以便他们能听见斯拉格霍恩说话。罗恩看上去有点不高兴。
    Hermione smiled but made a “shhing” gesture, so that they could hear what Slughorn was saying. Ron looked slightly disgruntled.
    “当然啦，迷情剂并不能真的创造爱情。爱情是不可能制造或仿造的。不，这种药剂只会导致强烈的痴迷或迷恋。这大概是这间教室里最危险、最厉害的一种药剂了——对，没错，”他朝马尔福和诺特严肃地点了点头，他们俩正在那里怀疑地讥笑，“等你们的人生阅历像我这么丰富之后，就不会低估中了魔的痴情有多么大的威力了……”
    “Amortentia doesn’t really create love, of course. It is impossible to manufacture or imitate love. No, this will simply cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. It is probably the most dangerous and powerful potion in this room — oh yes,” he said, nodding gravely at Malfoy and Nott, both of whom were smirking skeptically. “When you have seen as much of life as I have, you will not underestimate the power of obsessive love. . . .
    “现在，”斯拉格霍恩接着说，“我们应该开始上课了。”
    “And now,” said Slughorn, “it is time for us to start work.”
    “先生，你还没有告诉我们这里面是什么呢。”厄尼·麦克米兰指着斯拉格霍恩讲台上的一只黑色的小坩埚说。那只小坩埚里面的药剂欢快地飞溅着，它的颜色如同熔化了的金子，在表面跳跃着的大滴大滴液体，像一条条金鱼，但没有一滴洒到外面。
    “Sir, you haven’t told us what’s in this one,” said Ernie Macmillan, pointing at a small black cauldron standing on Slughorn’s desk. The potion within was splashing about merrily; it was the color of molten gold, and large drops were leaping like goldfish above the surface, though not a particle had spilled.
    “嗬！”斯拉格霍恩又来了这么一声。哈利相信斯拉格霍恩根本没有忘记那种药剂，他只是等着别人来问，以制造一种戏剧性的效果。“对了，那种还没说呢。女士们先生们，那玩意儿是一种最为奇特的小魔药，叫福灵剂。我想——”他笑眯眯地转过身来看着发出一声惊叫的赫敏，“你肯定知道福灵剂有什么作用吧，格兰杰小姐？”
    “Oho,” said Slughorn again. Harry was sure that Slughorn had not forgotten the potion at all, but had waited to be asked for dramatic effect. “Yes. That. Well, that one, ladies and gentlemen, is a most curious little potion called Felix Felicis. I take it,” he turned, smiling, to look at Hermione, who had let out an audible gasp, “that you know what Felix Felicis does, Miss Granger?”
    “它是幸运药水，”赫敏兴奋地说，“会给你带来好运！”
    “It’s liquid luck,” said Hermione excitedly. “It makes you lucky!”
    全班同学似乎顿时挺直了腰板。哈利只能看见马尔福那油光水滑的黄头发后脑勺，因为马尔福终于全神贯注地听斯拉格霍恩讲课了。
    The whole class seemed to sit up a little straighten Now all Harry could see of Malfoy was the back of his sleek blond head, because he was at last giving Slughorn his full and undivided attention.
    “非常正确，给格兰芬多再加十分。是的，这是一种奇特的小魔药——福灵剂，”斯拉格霍恩说，“熬制起来非常复杂，一旦弄错，后果不堪设想。不过，如果熬制得法，就像这坩埚里的一样，你会发现你不管做什么都会成功……至少在药效消失之前。”
    “Quite right, take another ten points for Gryffindor. Yes, it’s a funny little potion, Felix Felicis,” said Slughorn. “Desperately tricky to make, and disastrous to get wrong. However, if brewed correctly, as this has been, you will find that all your endeavors tend to succeed . . . at least until the effects wear off.”
    “那为什么人们不整天喝它呢，先生？”泰瑞·布特急切地问。
    “Why don’t people drink it all the time, sir?” said Terry Boot eagerly.
    “因为，如果过量服用，就会导致眩晕、鲁莽和危险的狂妄自大。”斯拉格霍恩说，“你们知道，好东西多了也有害……剂量太大，便有很强的毒性。不过如果偶尔谨慎地、有节制地服用一点儿……”
    “Because if taken in excess, it causes giddiness, recklessness, and dangerous overconfidence,” said Slughorn. “Too much of a good thing, you know . . . highly toxic in large quantities. But taken sparingly, and very occasionally . . .”
    “你服用过吗，先生？”迈克尔·科纳兴趣很浓地问。
    “Have you ever taken it, sir?” asked Michael Corner with great interest.
    “我这辈子服用过两次，”斯拉格霍恩说，“一次是二十四岁，一次是五十七岁。早饭时服用了两勺。那两天过得真是完美啊。”
    “Twice in my life,” said Slughorn. “Once when I was twentyfour, once when I was fifty-seven. Two tablespoonfuls taken with breakfast. Two perfect days.”
    他神情恍惚地凝望着远处。哈利觉得，不管他是不是在演戏，那效果是很诱人的。
    He gazed dreamily into the distance. Whether he was playacting or not, thought Harry, the effect was good.
    “这个嘛，”斯拉格霍恩似乎回到了现实中，说道，“我将作为这节课的奖品。”
    “And that,” said Slughorn, apparently coming back to earth, “is what I shall be offering as a prize in this lesson.”
    教室里一片寂静，周围那些药剂的每一个冒泡声、沸腾声似乎都被放大了十倍。
    There was silence in which every bubble and gurgle of the surrounding potions seemed magnified tenfold.
    “小小一瓶福灵剂，”斯拉格霍恩从口袋里掏出一个塞着木塞的小玻璃瓶，举给全班同学看，“可以带来十二个小时的好运。从天亮到天黑，你不管做什么都会吉星高照。
    “One tiny bottle of Felix Felicis,” said Slughorn, taking a minuscule glass bottle with a cork in it out of his pocket and showing it to them all. “Enough for twelve hours’ luck. From dawn till dusk, you will be lucky in everything you attempt.
    “不过，我必须提醒你们，福灵剂在有组织的比赛中是禁止使用的……比如体育竞赛、考试或竞选。因此，拿到奖品的人，只能在平常日子里使用……然后等着看那个平常日子会变得怎么不同寻常！
    “Now, I must give you warning that Felix Felicis is a banned substance in organized competitions . . . sporting events, for instance, examinations, or elections. So the winner is to use it on an ordinary day only . . . and watch how that ordinary day becomes extraordinary!
    “那么，”斯拉格霍恩说，突然变得精神振奋起来，“怎么才能赢得我这份奇妙的奖品呢？好，请把《高级魔药制作》翻到第十页。我们还有一个多小时，你们就用这段时间好好地熬制一份活地狱汤剂。我知道，这比你们以前做过的任何东西都要复杂，我也不指望有人熬出十全十美的汤剂。不过，做得最好的那个人将会赢得这小瓶福灵剂。好了，开始吧！”
    “So,” said Slughorn, suddenly brisk, “how are you to win my fabulous prize? Well, by turning to page ten of Advanced PotionMaking. We have a little over an hour left to us, which should be time for you to make a decent attempt at the Draught of Living Death. I know it is more complex than anything you have attempted before, and I do not expect a perfect potion from anybody. The person who does best, however, will win little Felix here. Off you go!”
    只听得一片刺耳的擦刮声，大家都把坩埚拉到了自己面前，然后是咣当咣当把砝码放在天平上的声音，但是没有一个人说话，同学们高度集中的注意力简直触手可及。
    There was a scraping as everyone drew their cauldrons toward them and some loud clunks as people began adding weights to their scales, but nobody spoke. The concentration within the room was almost tangible. Harry saw Malfoy riffling feverishly through his copy of Advanced Potion-Making. It could not have been clearer that Malfoy really wanted that lucky day. Harry bent swiftly over the tattered book Slughorn had lent him.
    哈利看见马尔福在疯狂地翻他那本《高级魔药制作》。马尔福显然很想得到那幸运的一天，这是再清楚不过的了。哈利赶紧低头看斯拉格霍恩借给他的那本破破烂烂的课本。
    To his annoyance he saw that the previous owner had scribbled all over the pages, so that the margins were as black as the printed portions. Bending low to decipher the ingredients (even here, the previous owner had made annotations and crossed things out) Harry hurried off toward the store cupboard to find what he needed. As he dashed back to his cauldron, he saw Malfoy cutting up valerian roots as fast as he could.
    令他恼火的是，他发现课本以前的主人在书上到处乱写，弄得每一页的空白处也跟印着药剂的地方一样黑糊糊的。哈利一边低头辨认着药剂成份（以前那位主人在这部分内容上也做了许多注解，还划掉了几种成份），一边匆匆奔向储藏柜，寻找他需要的东西。当他冲回自己的坩埚时，看见马尔福正在飞快地切着缬草根。
    Everyone kept glancing around at what the rest of the class was doing; this was both an advantage and a disadvantage of Potions, that it was hard to keep your work private. Within ten minutes, the whole place was full of bluish steam. Hermione, of course, seemed to have progressed furthest. Her potion already resembled the “smooth, black currant-colored liquid” mentioned as the ideal halfway stage.
    每个人都不停地张望其他同学在做什么，这既是魔药课上的一个优点，也是一个缺点，你很难不让别人看见你做的事情。十分钟后，整个教室里已弥漫着淡蓝色的蒸气。不用说，进展最快的似乎还是赫敏。她的药剂已经很接近那种“调匀的、茶褐色的液体”，书上说这正是药剂熬到一半时的理想状态。
    Having finished chopping his roots, Harry bent low over his book again. It was really very irritating, having to try and decipher the directions under all the stupid scribbles of the previous owner, who for some reason had taken issue with the order to cut up the sopophorous bean and had written in the alternative instruction:
    哈利切完了草根，又低头去看课本。真是太让人气恼了，他必须费力地从课本原来的那位主人胡乱涂写的文字中辨认出操作指南。那位老兄不知为什么，不同意书上说的要把瞌睡豆切成片，而是另外写了一条说明：
    Crush with flat side of silver dagger,
    用银短刀的侧面挤压，比切片更容易出汁。
    releases juice better than cutting.
    “先生，我想你一定认识我爷爷阿布拉克萨斯·马尔福吧？”
    “Sir, I think you knew my grandfather, Abraxas Malfoy?”
    哈利抬头一看，斯拉格霍恩正走过斯莱特林的桌子。
    Harry looked up; Slughorn was just passing the Slytherin table.
    “认识，”斯拉格霍恩看也没看马尔福，说道，“听说他死了，我很难过，不过这也是意料当中的事，那么大岁数还患了龙疫梅毒……”
    “Yes,” said Slughorn, without looking at Malfoy, “I was sorry to hear he had died, although of course it wasn’t unexpected, dragon pox at his age. . . .”
    说着他就走开了。哈利幸灾乐祸地暗笑着，又埋头对付他的坩埚。他看得出来，马尔福希望像哈利或沙比尼那样得到斯拉格霍恩的另眼相看，甚至还希望得到当年斯内普对他的那种优待。不过眼下看来，马尔福要想赢得那瓶福灵剂只能靠自己的聪明才智了。
    And he walked away. Harry bent back over his cauldron, smirking. He could tell that Malfoy had expected to be treated like Harry or Zabini; perhaps even hoped for some preferential treatment of the type he had learned to expect from Snape. It looked as though Malfoy would have to rely on nothing but talent to win the bottle of Felix Felicis.
    哈利发现瞌睡豆很难切。他转向了赫敏。
    The sopophorous bean was proving very difficult to cut up. Harry turned to Hermione.
    “我能借你的银刀子用用吗？”
    “Can I borrow your silver knife?”
    赫敏不耐烦地点了点头，眼睛一刻也没有离开她的药剂。书上说，药剂现在应该变成一种淡雪青色了，可她的埚里还是深紫色的。
    She nodded impatiently, not taking her eyes off her potion, which was still deep purple, though according to the book ought to be turning a light shade of lilac by now.
    哈利用短刀的侧面挤压着瞌睡豆。真没想到，豆子立刻渗出了大量的汁液，哈利简直不敢相信那颗干瘪瘪的豆子里竟有那么多水分。他赶紧把汁液放进他的坩埚，药剂立刻变成了书上所说的那种淡雪青色，他真是惊讶极了。
    Harry crushed his bean with the flat side of the dagger. To his astonishment, it immediately exuded so much juice he was amazed the shriveled bean could have held it all. Hastily scooping it all into the cauldron he saw, to his surprise, that the potion immediately turned exactly the shade of lilac described by the textbook.
    哈利对先前那位主人的恼怒立刻烟消云散，他眯起眼睛读着下一条说明。课本上说，他必须逆时针搅拌，直到药剂变得像水一样清。可根据先前那位主人所加的笔记，他应该逆时针搅拌七下之后再顺时针搅拌一下。那位老兄会两次都说对吗？
    His annoyance with the previous owner vanishing on the spot, Harry now squinted at the next line of instructions. According to the book, he had to stir counterclockwise until the potion turned clear as water. According to the addition the previous owner had made, however, he ought to add a clockwise stir after every seventh counterclockwise stir. Could the old owner be right twice?
    哈利屏住呼吸，逆时针搅拌了七下，又顺时针搅拌了一下。效果立竿见影，药剂立刻变成了淡淡的粉红色。
    Harry stirred counterclockwise, held his breath, and stirred once clockwise. The effect was immediate. The potion turned palest pink.
    “你是怎么做到的？”赫敏问，她的坩埚里冒出的热气熏得她满脸通红，头发也越来越乱了。她的药剂还是紫色的，丝毫不肯改变。
    “How are you doing that?” demanded Hermione, who was redfaced and whose hair was growing bushier and bushier in the fumes from her cauldron; her potion was still resolutely purple.
    “再顺时针搅拌一下——”
    “Add a clockwise stir —”
    “不行，不行，书上说的是逆时针！”她武断地说。
    “No, no, the book says counterclockwise!” she snapped.
    哈利耸了耸肩，继续忙他自己的药剂。逆时针搅拌七下，顺时针搅拌一下，停一停，再逆时针搅拌七下，顺时针搅拌一下……
    Harry shrugged and continued what he was doing. Seven stirs counterclockwise, one clockwise, pause . . . seven stirs counterclockwise, one stir clockwise . . .
    桌子那边的罗恩一直在低声地骂个不停，他的药剂看上去就像是稀薄的甘草糖。哈利的目光在教室里扫了一圈，没有看见哪个同学的药剂像他的一样变成了浅色。他觉得精神大振，这可是这间地下教室里以前从没有过的事情。
    Across the table, Ron was cursing fluently under his breath; his potion looked like liquid licorice. Harry glanced around. As far as he could see, no one else’s potion had turned as pale as his. He felt elated, something that had certainly never happened before in this dungeon.
    “好，时间……到！”斯拉格霍恩大声说道，“请停止搅拌！”
    “And time’s . . . up!” called Slughorn. “Stop stirring, please!”
    斯拉格霍恩在桌子之间慢慢地走动着，轮流检查每一只坩埚。他没作任何评论，只是偶尔搅拌一下，或凑上去闻一闻。最后，他走到了哈利、罗恩、赫敏和厄尼的桌子旁。他朝罗恩埚里那堆柏油似的东西苦笑了一下，又从厄尼熬出的那埚蓝色混合物旁走了过去。看到赫敏的药剂，他赞许地点了点头。可当他看见哈利坩埚里的东西时，脸上露出了难以置信的喜悦神色。
    Slughorn moved slowly among the tables, peering into cauldrons. He made no comment, but occasionally gave the potions a stir or a sniff. At last he reached the table where Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ernie were sitting. He smiled ruefully at the tarlike substance in Ron’s cauldron. He passed over Ernie’s navy concoction. Hermione’s potion he gave an approving nod. Then he saw Harry’s, and a look of incredulous delight spread over his face.
    “无可争议的优胜者！”他对地下教室的全班同学大声说，“出色，太出色了，哈利！天哪，你显然继承了你母亲的天赋，莉莉当年在魔药课上就是如此心灵手巧！给，拿去吧——我说话算数，给你一瓶福灵剂，好好利用！”
    “The clear winner!” he cried to the dungeon. “Excellent, excellent, Harry! Good lord, it’s clear you’ve inherited your mother’s talent. She was a dab hand at Potions, Lily was! Here you are, then, here you are — one bottle of Felix Felicis, as promised, and use it well!”
    哈利把那一小瓶金色液体塞进了袍子里面的口袋，心情十分复杂，几个斯莱特林学生的脸上气恼的表情让他看了心花怒放，而赫敏失望的神情又让他感到内疚。罗恩则完全是一副目瞪口呆的样子。
    Harry slipped the tiny bottle of golden liquid into his inner pocket, feeling an odd combination of delight at the furious looks on the Slytherins’ faces and guilt at the disappointed expression on Hermione’s. Ron looked simply dumbfounded.
    “你是怎么做到的？”他们离开地下教室时，他问哈利。
    “How did you do that?” he whispered to Harry as they left the dungeon.
    “大概是运气好吧。”哈利说，因为马尔福就在旁边听着呢。
    “Got lucky, I suppose,” said Harry, because Malfoy was within earshot.
    等到他们在格兰芬多餐桌旁坐定、准备吃午饭时，他觉得比较安全了，才把实话告诉了他们。赫敏听着他的叙述，脸色越来越阴沉。
    Once they were securely ensconced at the Gryffindor table for dinner, however, he felt safe enough to tell them. Hermione’s face became stonier with every word he uttered.
    “你大概以为我是作弊了吧？”哈利被她脸上的表情弄得很恼火，讲完后便问了她一句。
    “I s’pose you think I cheated?” he finished, aggravated by her expression.
    “是啊，你并不是自己独立完成的，是不是？”她生硬地说。
    “Well, it wasn’t exactly your own work, was it?” she said stiffly.
    “他只是按照和我们不同的方法操作的，”罗恩说，“也可能会闯大祸的，是不是？他冒险了，所以得到了补偿。”他叹了口气。“斯拉格霍恩本来可能把那本书递给我的，可是，唉，没有谁在我那课本上写过字。从五十二页的情形来看，好像有人在上面吐过，但是——”
    “He only followed different instructions to ours,” said Ron. “Could’ve been a catastrophe, couldn’t it? But he took a risk and it paid off.” He heaved a sigh. “Slughorn could’ve handed me that book, but no, I get the one no one’s ever written on. Puked on, by the look of page fifty-two, but —”
    “等等。”哈利左耳边上一个声音说道，他又闻到了他在斯拉格霍恩课堂里闻到的那种花香味儿。他扭头看见金妮也加入了他们的谈话。“我没有听错吧，哈利？你一直在按照别人写在一本书上的指令做事？”
    “Hang on,” said a voice close by Harry’s left ear and he caught a sudden waft of that flowery smell he had picked up in Slughorn’s dungeon. He looked around and saw that Ginny had joined them. “Did I hear right? You’ve been taking orders from something someone wrote in a book, Harry?”
    她显得惊慌而气愤。哈利立刻猜到她脑子里在想什么了。
    She looked alarmed and angry. Harry knew what was on her mind at once.
    “这没什么，”他压低声音宽慰她道，“你知道，这不像里德尔的日记。那只是一本被人涂写过的旧课本。”
    “It’s nothing,” he said reassuringly, lowering his voice. “It’s not like, you know, Riddle’s diary. It’s just an old textbook someone’s scribbled on.”
    “可是你照那上面写的做了？”
    “But you’re doing what it says?”
    “我只是试了试书上空白处写的几点小窍门，说实在的，金妮，没有什么蹊跷的——”
    “I just tried a few of the tips written in the margins, honestly, Ginny, there’s nothing funny —”
    “金妮说得有道理，”赫敏一下子来了精神，说道，“我们应该检查一下它有没有什么不对劲儿。我是说，所有那些古怪的说明，谁知道是怎么回事？”
    “Ginny’s got a point,” said Hermione, perking up at once. “We ought to check that there’s nothing odd about it. I mean, all these funny instructions, who knows?”
    “喂！”哈利气愤地抗议道，赫敏一把抽出哈利书包里的那本《高级魔药制作》，举起了魔杖。
    “Hey!” said Harry indignantly, as she pulled his copy of Advanced Potion-Making out of his bag and raised her wand.
    “原形立现！”她干脆利落地敲了敲封面，念道。
    “Specialis Revelio!” she said, rapping it smartly on the front cover.
    什么动静也没有。课本还是课本，破旧，肮脏，书角都卷起来了。
    Nothing whatsoever happened. The book simply lay there, looking old and dirty and dog-eared.
    “完了吗？”哈利恼火地问，“你还想等着看它会不会来几个后滚翻？”
    “Finished?” said Harry irritably. “Or d’you want to wait and see if it does a few backflips?”
    “看来没问题，”赫敏仍然怀疑地盯着课本，说道，“我是说，它看上去确实……只是一本课本。”
    “It seems all right,” said Hermione, still staring at the book suspiciously. “I mean, it really does seem to be . . . just a textbook.”
    “很好，那我就把它拿回来了。”哈利说着就把课本从桌上夺了过去，可是课本从他手里滑落下来，掉在地上摊开了。
    “Good. Then I’ll have it back,” said Harry, snatching it off the table, but it slipped from his hand and landed open on the floor.
    谁也没有注意。哈利弯下腰正要把书捡起来，就在这时，他看见封底的下端写着什么东西，还是那种小小的、密密麻麻的笔迹，跟那些帮他赢得福灵剂的说明的笔迹一样，而那瓶福灵剂，现在已经安安稳稳地藏在楼上他箱子里的一双袜子里了。
    Nobody else was looking. Harry bent low to retrieve the book, and as he did so, he saw something scribbled along the bottom of the back cover in the same small, cramped handwriting as the instructions that had won him his bottle of Felix Felicis, now safely hidden inside a pair of socks in his trunk upstairs.
    本书属于混血王子
    This Book is the Property of the Half-Blood Prince.
    
    
    

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