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哈利·波特与火焰杯
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

英文中文双语对照双语交替

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CHAPTER TEN - MAYHEM AT THE MINISTRY

第十章　魔法部乱成一团

Mr. Weasley woke them after only a few hours sleep. He used magic to pack up the tents, and they left the campsite as quickly as possible, passing Mr. Roberts at the door of his cottage. Mr. Roberts had a strange, dazed look about him, and he waved them off with a vague "Merry Christmas."

只睡了几个小时，韦斯莱先生就把他们叫醒了。他用魔法把帐篷收起来装进背包，然后他们尽快离开了营地，路上看见罗伯茨先生站在他小石屋的门口。罗伯茨先生的样子怪怪的，神情恍惚，他朝他们挥手告别，还含混地说了句“圣诞快乐”。

"He'll be all right," said Mr. Weasley quietly as they marched off onto the moor. "Sometimes, when a person's memory's modified, it makes him a bit disorientated for a while...and that was a big thing they had to make him forget."

“他不会有事的，”他们大步向沼泽地走去时，韦斯莱先生说，“有时候，当一个人的记忆被修改时，他会暂时有点儿犯糊涂……况且他们想使他忘记的又是那么一件大事。”

They heard urgent voices as they approached the spot where the Portkeys lay, and when they reached it, they found a great number of witches and wizards gathered around Basil, the keeper of the Portkeys, all clamoring to get away from the campsite as quickly as possible. Mr. Weasley had a hurried discussion with Basil; they joined the queue, and were able to take an old rubber tire back to Stoatshead Hill before the sun had really risen. They walked back through Ottery St. Catchpole and up the damp lane toward the Burrow in the dawn light, talking very little because they were so exhausted, and thinking longingly of their breakfast. As they rounded the corner and the Burrow came into view, a cry echoed along the lane.

他们走近放门钥匙的地方时，听见许多人在急切地吵吵嚷嚷；再走过去一点儿，他们发现，一大堆巫师把门钥匙管理员巴兹尔团团围住，都吵闹着要尽快离开营地。韦斯莱先生和巴兹尔三言两语地商量了一下，大家就站进队伍里，最后总算在太阳还没升起前领到了一只旧轮胎，可以靠它返回白鼬山了。在拂晓的微光中，他们穿过奥特里－圣卡奇波尔村，沿着湿漉漉的小路朝陋居走去。一路上大家很少说话，因为都累得要命，一心只想赶紧吃到早饭。他们转了个弯，陋居便赫然出现了，小路上传来一声喊叫。

"Oh thank goodness, thank goodness!"

“哦，谢天谢地，谢天谢地！”

Mrs. Weasley, who had evidently been waiting for them in the front yard, came running toward them, still wearing her bedroom slippers, her face pale and strained, a rolled-up copy of the Daily Prophet clutched in her hand.

韦斯莱夫人显然一直在前院等着他们，这时撒腿向他们奔来，脚上还穿着她在卧室里穿的拖鞋。她的脸色苍白，神情紧张，手里攥着一张卷起来的《预言家日报》。

"Arthur - I've been so worried - so worried-"

“亚瑟——我真是太担心了——太担心了——”

She flung her arms around Mr. Weasley's neck, and the Daily Prophet fell out of her limp hand onto the ground. Looking down, Harry saw the headline: SCENES OF TERROR AT THE QUIDDITCH WORLD CUP, complete with a twinkling black-and-white photograph of the Dark Mark over the treetops.

她一把搂住了韦斯莱先生的脖子，《预言家日报》从她无力的手中滑落到地上。哈利低头一看，标题是：“魁地奇世界杯赛上的恐怖场面”，还配有黑魔标记悬在树梢上的闪光黑白照片。

"You're all right," Mrs. Weasley muttered distractedly, releasing Mr. Weasley and staring around at them all with red eyes, "you're alive. . . . Oh boys. .

“你们都没事，”韦斯莱夫人惊魂未定的念叨着，松开韦斯莱先生，一双红通通的眼睛挨个儿看着他们，“你们都活着……哦，儿子……”

And to everybody's surprise, she seized Fred and George and pulled them both into such a tight hug that their heads banged together.

出乎每个人的意料，她一把抓住弗雷德和乔治，狠狠地搂了一下。她用的劲儿太猛了，双胞胎的脑袋“咚”地撞在一起。

"Ouch! Mum - you're strangling us -"

“哎哟！妈妈——你要把我们勒死了——”

"I shouted at you before you left!" Mrs. Weasley said, starting to sob. "It's all I've

“你们走之前我冲你们嚷嚷来着！”韦斯莱夫人说，忍不住哭了起来，“我一直在想这个事！如果神秘人把你们抓去，而我对你们说的最后一句话竟是你们O. W. Ls考试成绩不理想？哦，弗雷德……乔治……”

been thinking about! What if You-Know-Who had got you, and the last thing I ever said to you was that you didn't get enough OW.L.s? Oh Fred. . . George. ."

“好了，好了，莫丽，我们大家都平安无事。”韦斯莱先生安慰着她，从她怀里拽出一对胞胎，然后领着她向房子里走去。“比尔，”他压低声音说，“把那张报纸捡起来，我想看看上面怎么说……”

"Come on, now, Molly, we're all perfectly okay," said Mr. Weasley soothingly, prising her off the twins and leading her back toward the house. "Bill," he added in an undertone, "pick up that paper, I want to see what it says. . ."

他们都挤进狭小的厨房，赫敏给韦斯莱夫人沏了一杯很浓的茶，韦斯莱先生坚持往里面倒了一点奥格登陈年烈性威士忌，然后，比尔把报纸递给了父亲。韦斯莱先生匆匆浏览着第一版，珀西也越过他的肩头看着。

When they were all crammed into the tiny kitchen, and Hermione had made Mrs. Weasley a cup of very strong tea, into which Mr. Weasley insisted on pouring a shot of Ogdens Old Firewhiskey, Bill handed his father the newspaper. Mr. Weasley scanned the front page while Percy looked over his shoulder.

“我就知道会是这样，”韦斯莱先生沉重地说道，“魔法部惊慌失措……罪犯未被抓获……治安松驰……黑巫师逍遥法外……给国家带来耻辱……这是谁写的？啊……自然是她……丽塔·斯基特。”

"I knew it," said Mr. Weasley heavily. "Ministry blunders. . . culprits not apprehended.

“那个女人专门同魔法部作对！”珀西气愤地说，“她上个星期说，我们本来应该全力以赴去消灭吸血鬼，可却在坩埚的厚度上吹毛求疵，浪费时间！难道《非巫师的半人类待遇准则》的第十二段不是专门指出——”

. . lax security. . . Dark wizards running unchecked... national disgrace. . . Who wrote this? Ah. . . of course. . . Rita Skeeter."

“行行好吧，珀西，”比尔说着，打了个哈欠，“不要再说了。”

"That woman's got it in for the Ministry of Magic!" said Percy furiously. "Last week she was saying we're wasting our time quibbling about cauldron thickness, when we should be stamping out vampires! As if it wasn't specifically stated in paragraph twelve of the Guidelines for the Treatment of Non-Wizard Part-Humans --"

“提到我了。”韦斯莱先生读到《预言家日报》那篇文章的结尾处时，突然瞪大了镜片后面的眼睛。

"Do us a favor, Perce," said Bill, yawning, "and shut up."

“哪儿？”韦斯莱夫人呛了一口威士忌茶水，咳喘着问道，“我刚才要是看见，就知道你还活着了！”

"I'm mentioned," said Mr. Weasley, his eyes widening behind his glasses as he reached the bottom of the Daily Prophet article.

“没有点名，”韦斯莱先生说，“听听这段：那些巫师惊慌失措，在树林边屏住呼吸等候消息，希望得到魔法部的安慰，令人遗憾的是，他们大失所望。在黑魔标记出现后不久，一位魔法部官员露面了，宣称没有人受到伤害，但拒绝透露更多情况。究竟他的话是否足以平息那种一小时后从树林里抬出几具尸体的谣传，还有待继续观察。”

"Where?" spluttered Mrs. Weasley, choking on her tea and whiskey. "If I'd seen that, I'd have known you were alive!"

“哦，天哪，”韦斯莱先生恼怒地说，把报纸递给珀西，“确实没有人受到伤害呀。我应该怎么说呢？几具尸体从树林里抬出的谣传……好了，现在她写出这种话，肯定会谣传四起了。”他深深地叹了口气。“莫丽，我得去办公室了，这件事需要澄清一下。”

"Not by name," said Mr. Weasley. "Listen to this: 'If the terrified wizards and witches who waited breathlessly for news at the edge of the wood expected reassurance from the Ministry ofMagic, they were sadly disappointed. A Ministry official emerged some time after the appearance of the Dark Mark alleging that nobody had been hurt, but reflising to give any more information. Whether this statement will be enough to quash the rumors that several bodies were removed from the woods an hour later, remains to be seen.' Oh really," said Mr. Weasley in exasperation, handing the paper to Percy. "Nobody was hurt.

“我和你一起去，爸爸，”珀西自傲地说，“克劳奇先生肯定需要大家各就各位，而且，我还可以把我的坩埚报告亲自交给他。”他说完就冲出了厨房。

What was I supposed to say? Rumors that several bodies were removed from the woods. . .

韦斯莱夫人显得非常难过。“亚瑟，按理说你是在休假啊！这件事跟你们办公室毫无关系；没有你，他们也能处理好的，是不是？”

well, there certainly will be rumors now she's printed that."

“我必须去，莫丽，”韦斯莱先生说，“是我把事情搞得更糟糕的。我去换上我的长袍就走……”

He heaved a deep sigh. "Molly, I'm going to have to go into the office; this is going to take some smoothing over."

“韦斯莱夫人，”哈利再也控制不住自己，突然说道，“海德薇有没有带信回来给我？”

"I'll come with you, Father," said Percy importantly. "Mr. Crouch will need all hands on deck. And I can give him my cauldron report in person."

“海德薇？”韦斯莱夫人神情恍惚地说，“没有，亲爱的……没有，一封信也没有收到。”

He bustled out of the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley looked most upset. "Arthur, you're supposed to be on holiday! This hasn't got anything to do with your office; surely they can handle this without you?"

罗恩和赫敏好奇地望着哈利。哈利意味深长地看了他俩一眼，说：“罗恩，我能不能到你房间去清理一下我的东西？”

"I've got to go, Molly," said Mr. Weasley. "I've made things worse. I'll just change into my robes and I'll be off. . . ."

“好啊……我也去吧。”罗恩毫不迟疑地回答，“赫敏，你呢？”

"Mrs. Weasley," said Harry suddenly, unable to contain himself, "Hedwig hasn't arrived with a letter for me, has she?"

“好吧。”她立刻说道，于是他们三个人鱼贯离开厨房，往楼上走去。

"Hedwig, dear?" said Mrs. Weasley distractedly. "No. . . no, there hasn't been any post at all."

“怎么回事，哈利？”他们进到顶楼房间，一关上房门，罗恩就问。

Ron and Hermione looked curiously at Harry. With a meaningful look at both of them he said, "All right if I go and dump my stuff in your room, Ron?"

“有件事我没有跟你们说，”哈利说，“星期六早晨我醒过来的时候，我的伤疤又疼了。”

"Yeah. . . think I will too," said Ron at once. "Hermione?"

罗恩和赫敏的反应，跟哈利在女贞路的卧室里想象的几乎一模一样。赫敏倒吸了一口气，马上就开始提出各种建议，列举了一大堆参考书名，又列举了一大堆人名，从阿不思·邓布利多，到霍格沃茨的校医庞弗雷夫人。

"Yes," she said quickly, and the three of them marched out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

罗恩只是一副目瞪口呆的样子。“可是——他不在场啊，是不是？那个神秘人？我的意思是——上次你的伤疤疼的时候，他是在霍格沃茨的，对吗？”

"What's up, Harry?" said Ron, the moment they had closed the door of the attic room behind them.

“我知道他肯定不在女贞路，”哈利说，“可是我在梦里看见他了……他和彼得……你们知道的，就是虫尾巴。梦里的全部情形，我已经记不清了，只记得他们在密谋，要杀……一个人。”

"There's something I haven't told you," Harry said. "On Saturday morning, I woke up with my scar hurting again."

他迟疑了一下，差点就说出“要杀我”，但是他不忍心让赫敏的神情更恐惧了，因为赫敏已经大惊失色。

Ron's and Hermione's reactions were almost exactly as Harry had imagined them back in his bedroom on Privet Drive. Hermione gasped and started making suggestions at once, mentioning a number of reference books, and everybody from Albus Dumbledore to Madam Pomfrey, the Hogwarts nurse. Ron simply looked dumbstruck.

“这只是一场梦，”罗恩鼓励他振作起来，“只是一场噩梦。”

"But - he wasn't there, was he? You-Know-Who? I mean - last time your scar kept hurting, he was at Hogwarts, wasn't he?"

“是啊，尽管是一场梦，”哈利说道，转脸望着窗外渐渐明亮起来的天空，“很古怪，是不是？……我的伤疤疼了，三天之后，食死徒就游行了，伏地魔的符号就又在空中出现了。”

"I'm sure he wasn't on Privet Drive," said Harry. "But I was dreaming about him.. . him and Peter - you know, Wormtail. I can't remember all of it now, but they were plotting to kill...someone."

“不要——说出——他的——名字！”罗恩从紧咬的牙缝里嘶嘶地说。

He had teetered for a moment on the verge of saying "me," but couldn't bring himself to make Hermione look any more horrified than she already did.

“还记得特里劳妮教授说的话吗？”哈利不理睬罗恩，继续说道，“就在上学期结束的时候？”

"It was only a dream," said Ron bracingly. "Just a nightmare."

特里劳妮教授是他们在霍格沃茨的占卜学课老师。赫敏脸上惊恐的表情消失了，她发出一声短促的嘲笑。

"Yeah, but was it, though?" said Harry, turning to look out of the window at the brightening sky. "It's weird, isn't it?. . . My scar hurts, and three days later the Death Eaters are on the march, and Voldemort's sign's up in the sky again."

“哦，哈利，你总不会把那个老骗子说的话放在心上吧？”

"Don't - say - his - name!" Ron hissed through gritted teeth.

“你们当时不在场，”哈利说，“没有听见她说的话。这一次可不同以往。我告诉你们吧，她进入了催眠状态——是真的催眠状态。她说黑魔头还会东山再起……比以前更强大、更可怕……他能够这样，是因为他的仆人都会回到他身边……就在那天晚上，虫尾巴逃跑了。”

"And remember what Professor Trelawney said?" Harry went on, ignoring Ron. "At the end of last year?"

一时间谁也没有说话，罗恩心不在焉地摆弄着他那条查德里火炮队床单上的一个破洞。

Professor Trelawney was their Divination teacher at Hogwarts. Hermione's terrified look vanished as she let out a derisive snort.

“你为什么要问海德薇有没有回来，哈利？”赫敏问道，“你在等信吗？”

"Oh Harry, you aren't going to pay attention to anything that old fraud says?"

“我把我伤疤疼的事告诉了小天狼星，”哈利耸了耸肩膀，说，“我在等他的回信。”

"You weren't there," said Harry. "You didn't hear her. This time was different. I told you, she went into a trance - a real one. And she said the Dark Lord would rise again. .

“想得真妙！”罗恩说，脸上顿时多云转晴，“我敢说小天狼星肯定知道该怎么办！”

. greater and more terrible than ever before. . . and he'd manage it because his servant was going to go back to him. . . and that night Wormtail escaped."

“我希望他赶快跟我联系。”哈利说。

There was a silence in which Ron fidgeted absentmindedly with a hole in his Chudley Cannons bedspread.

“可我们不知道小天狼星在哪里……他可能远在非洲呢，是不是？”赫敏很明智地说，“海德薇不可能在几天之内到达那么远的地方。”

"Why were you asking if Hedwig had come, Harry?" Hermione asked. "Are you expecting a letter?"

“是啊，我知道。”哈利说道，可是当他望着窗外的天空，不见海德薇的影子，心里还是感到沉甸甸的。

"I told Sirius about my scar," said Harry, shrugging. "I'm waiting for his answer."

“来吧，哈利，我们在果园里来一场魁地奇比赛。”罗恩说，“来吧——三个人对三个人，比尔、查理、弗雷德和乔治都参加进来……你可以试一试朗斯基假动作……”

"Good thinking!" said Ron, his expression clearing. "I bet Sirius'll know what to do!"

“罗恩，”赫敏说，声音里透着“我认为你太不知趣了”的意思，“哈利现在不想打魁地奇……他心里很乱，很疲倦……我们都需要上床睡觉了……”

"I hoped he'd get back to me quickly," said Harry.

“好吧，我愿意打一场魁地奇，”哈利突然说道，“等一下，我要拿上我的火弩箭。”

"But we don't know where Sirius is. . . he could be in Africa or somewhere, couldn't he?"

赫敏离开了房间，嘴里嘀咕着什么，好像是说：“这帮男生！”

said Hermione reasonably. "Hedwig's not going to manage that journey in a few days."

在以后的一个星期里，韦斯莱先生和珀西都很少在家。每天一早，家里其他人还没有起床的时候，他们俩就离开了家，一直到晚饭以后很久才回来。

"Yeah, I know," said Harry, but there was a leaden feeling in his stomach as he looked out of the window at the Hedwig-free sky.

“真是乱成了一锅粥，”珀西煞有介事地告诉他们——这是一个星期天的晚上，第二天他们就要返回霍格沃茨了，“整整一个星期，我都像在救火一样。人们不停地寄来吼叫信，当然啦，如果你不马上拆开吼叫信，它就会爆炸。我桌子上到处都烧焦的痕迹，那支最好的羽毛笔也变成了一堆炭渣。”

"Come and have a game of Quidditch in the orchard, Harry" said Ron. "Come on - three on three, Bill and Charlie and Fred and George will play. .. . You can try out the Wronski Feint... ."

“他们为什么都要寄吼叫信呢？”金妮问。她正坐在客厅炉火前的地毯上，用透明魔法胶带修补她那本《千种神奇药草和蕈类》。

"Ron," said Hermione, in an I-don't-think-you're-being-very-sensitive sort of voice, "Harry doesn't want to play Quidditch right now... . He's worried, and he's tired. . . .

“抱怨世界杯赛的安全问题。”珀西说道，“他们希望对他们被损坏的财物进行赔偿。蒙顿格斯·弗莱奇提出索赔一顶带有十二个卧室和配套按摩浴缸的帐篷，可是我摸透了他的底细。我知道他实际上是在一件用棍子支着的斗蓬下面过的夜。”

We all need to go to bed..."

韦斯莱夫人瞥了一眼墙角上的那座老爷钟。哈利很喜欢这座钟。如果你想知道时间，它是完全不管用的，可它能向你提供许多其他情况。它有九根金针，每根针上都刻着韦斯莱家一个人的名字。钟面没有数字，却写着每位家庭成员可能会在的地方。有“家”、“学校”和“上班”，也有“路上”、“失踪”、“医院”、“监狱”，在普通钟上十二点的地方，标着“生命危险”。

"Yeah, I want to play Quidditch," said Harry suddenly. "Hang on, I'll get my Firebolt."

此刻，八根针都指着“家”的位置，韦斯莱先生的那根——是九根针里最长的一根，仍然指着“上班”。韦斯莱夫人叹了口气。

Hermione left the room, muttering something that sounded very much like "Boys."

“从神秘人失势那天起，你爸爸周末一直不需要加班。”她说，“现在他们要把他累坏了。如果他再不赶快回来，他的晚饭就糟蹋了。”

Neither Mr. Weasley nor Percy was at home much over the following week. Both left the house each morning before the rest of the family got up, and returned well after dinner every night.

“嘿，爸爸觉得必须弥补他在决赛那天犯下的过错，对吗？”珀西说，“说老实话，他没有请示他的部门领导就当众发言，有点不够明智——”

"It's been an absolute uproar," Percy told them importantly the Sunday evening before they were due to return to Hogwarts. "I've been putting out fires all week. People keep sending Howlers, and of course, if you don't open a Howler straight away, it explodes.

“都是斯基特那个讨厌的女人信笔胡写，你怎么敢因此责怪你爸爸呢！”韦斯莱夫人一下子就发火了，说道。

Scorch marks all over my desk and my best quill reduced to cinders."

“如果爸爸什么都不说，丽塔那老家伙又会评论魔法部的人一言不发，有失身分。”正在跟罗恩下棋的比尔说道，“丽塔·斯基特从来不写别人的好话。记得吗，她有一次采访了古灵阁的所有解咒员，然后管我叫‘长毛鬼’！”

"Why are they all sending Howlers?" asked Ginny, who was mending her copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi with Spellotape on the rug in front of the living room fire.

“我说，你的头发确实有点儿长，亲爱的，”韦斯莱夫人温柔地说，“你只要让我——”

"Complaining about security at the World Cup," said Percy. "They want compensation for their ruined property. Mundungus Fletcher's put in a claim for a twelve-bedroomed tent with en-suite Jacuzzi, but I've got his number. I know for a fact he was sleeping under a cloak propped on sticks."

“不行，妈妈。”

Mrs. Weasley glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner. Harry liked this clock. It was completely useless if you wanted to know the time, but otherwise very informative.

雨点啪哒啪哒地打在客厅窗户上。赫敏专心地读着《标准咒语（四级）》，韦斯莱夫人在对角巷给她、哈利和罗恩各买了一本。查理在织补一个防火的套头帽兜。哈利在擦拭他的火弩箭，那本赫敏在他过十三岁生日时送给他的礼物《飞天扫帚护理手册》，现在打开了放在他脚边。弗雷德和乔治坐在那边的一个角落里，拿着羽毛笔，脑袋凑在一张羊皮纸上，低声谈论着什么。

It had nine golden hands, and each of them was engraved with one of the Weasley family's names. There were no numerals around the face, but descriptions of where each family member might be. "Home," "school," and "work" were there, but there was also "traveling,"

“你们两个在干什么？”韦斯莱夫人严厉地问，一边用眼睛盯着双胞胎。

"lost," "hospital," "prison," and, in the position where the number twelve would be on a normal clock, "mortal peril."

“做家庭作业。”弗雷德含糊地回答。

Eight of the hands were currently pointing to the "home" position, but Mr. Weasley's, which was the longest, was still pointing to "work." Mrs. Weasley sighed.

“别丢人现眼了，现在正放假呢。”韦斯莱夫人说。

"Your father hasn't had to go into the office on weekends since the days of You-Know-Who," she said. "They're working him far too hard. His dinner's going to be

“是啊，我们有点拖拉了。”乔治说。

ruined if he doesn't come home soon."

“你们该不会又在写订货单吧？”韦斯莱夫人一针见血地指出，“你们该不会琢磨着又搞什么韦斯莱魔法把戏吧？”

"Well, Father feels he's got to make up for his mistake at the match, doesn't he?" said Percy. "If truth be told, he was a tad unwise to make a public statement without clearing it with his Head of Department first -"

“哎呀，妈妈，”弗雷德抬着看着她，脸上露出一副痛苦的表情，“如果明天霍格沃茨行快列车被撞毁，我和乔治都死了，你想到我们从你这儿听到的最后一句话是毫无根据的指责，你心里该是什么滋味啊？”

"Don't you dare blame your father for what that wretched Skeeter woman wrote!" said Mrs.

大家都笑了起来，韦斯莱夫人也忍俊不禁。

Weasley, flaring up at once.

“哦，你们的爸爸回来了！”她又抬头望了望钟，突然说道。

"If Dad hadn't said anything, old Rita would just have said it was disgraceful that nobody from the Ministry had commented," said Bill, who was playing chess with Ron.

韦斯莱先生的那根针突然从“上班”跳到了“路上”，一秒钟后，它就颤颤巍巍地和其他针一起，停在了“家”的位置上。这时，大家听见厨房里传来韦斯莱先生的喊声。

"Rita Skeeter never makes anyone look good. Remember, she interviewed all the Gringotts' Charm Breakers once, and called me 'a long-haired pillock'?"

“来了，亚瑟！”韦斯莱夫人大声说，匆匆出了房间。

"Well, it is a bit long, dear," said Mrs. Weasley gently. "If you'd just let me -"

片刻之后，韦斯莱先生用托盘端着他的晚饭，走进了温暖的客厅。他一副累坏了的样子。

"No, Mum."

“唉，事情越发不可收拾了，”他坐在壁炉边的一把扶手椅上，没精打采地摆弄着盘子里的有些皱巴巴的花椰菜，一边对韦斯莱夫人说，“丽塔·斯基特整个星期都在四处钻营，搜寻魔法部有没有更多的混乱情况可供报道。现在她发现了可怜的老伯茨失踪的事，看来这就是《预言家日报》明天的大标题了。我对巴蒂曼说过，他早就应该派人去找她。”

Rain lashed against the living room window. Hermione was immersed in The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4, copies of which Mrs. Weasley had bought for her, Harry, and Ron in Diagon Alley. Charlie was darning a fireproof balaclava. Harry was polishing his Firebolt, the broomstick servicing kit Hermione had given him for his thirteenth birthday open at his feet. Fred and George were sitting in a far corner, quills out, talking in whispers, their heads bent over a piece of parchment.

“克劳奇先生好几个星期一直在这么说。”珀西赶紧说道。

"What are you two up to?" said Mrs. Weasley sharply, her eyes on the twins.

“克劳奇还算走运，丽塔没有发现闪闪的事。”韦斯莱先生烦躁地说，“他的家养小灵精被抓，手里拿着变出黑魔标记的魔杖，这件事可以成为整整一星期的头版标题。”

"Homework," said Fred vaguely.

“我想，我们大家都认为那个小精灵尽管缺乏责任感，却并没有变出黑魔标记，对不对？”珀西激烈地辩论道。

"Don't be ridiculous, you're still on holiday," said Mrs. Weasley.

“如果你问我，我倒认为克劳奇先生真是非常走运，《预言家日报》的人竟不知道他是怎样虐待小精灵的！”赫敏气愤地说。

"Yeah, we've left it a bit late," said George.

“赫敏，你想想吧！”珀西说，“像克劳奇先生这样的魔法部高级官员，应该得到他仆人的绝对顺从——”

"You're not by any chance writing out a new order form, are you?" said Mrs. Weasley shrewdly. "You wouldn't be thinking of restarting Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, by any chance?"

“你是说他的奴隶！”赫敏激动地抬高声音，说道，“因为他不付给闪闪工钱，是吗？”

"Now, Mum," said Fred, looking up at her, a pained look on his face. "If the Hogwarts Express crashed tomorrow, and George and I died, how would you feel to know that the last thing we ever heard from you was an unfounded accusation?"

“我想你们还是都上楼去，看看行李是不是都收拾好了！”韦斯莱夫人打断了他们的争论，说道，“快去吧，你们都去吧……”

Everyone laughed, even Mrs. Weasley.

哈利把《飞天扫帚护理手册》收拾好，扛着他的火弩箭，和罗恩一起回到楼上。雨点砸在房顶上的声音更响了，还夹杂着一阵阵狂风的凄厉呼啸、呻吟，更别提住在阁楼上的食尸鬼发出的零星的嚎叫了。他们进屋后，那只叫小猪的猫头鹰开始吱吱叫着，在笼子里飞来飞去。它看到那些收拾了一半的箱子，似乎兴奋得有些发狂了。

"Oh your father's coming!" she said suddenly, looking up at the clock again.

“塞点猫头鹰食给它，”罗恩说道，把一包东西扔给哈利，“就会使它安静下来。”

Mr. Weasley's hand had suddenly spun from "work" to "traveling"; a second later it had shuddered to a halt on "home" with the others, and they heard him calling from the kitchen.

“它已经走了一个多星期了。”哈利看着海德薇的空笼子，说道，“罗恩，你说小天狼星会不会被抓住了？”

"Coming, Arthur!" called Mrs. Weasley, hurrying out of the room.

“不会，不然《预言家日报》上会有报道的，”罗恩说，“魔法部巴不得显示一下他们抓了什么人呢，是吧？”

A few moments later, Mr. Weasley came into the warm living room carrying his dinner on a tray. He looked completely exhausted.

“是啊，我推测……”

"Well, the fat's really in the fire now," he told Mrs. Weasley as he sat down in an armchair near the hearth and toyed unenthusiastically with his somewhat shriveled cauliflower. "Rita Skeeter's been ferreting around all week, looking for more Ministry mess-ups to report. And now she's found out about poor old Bertha going missing, so that'll be the headline in the Prophet tomorrow. I told Bagman he should have sent someone to look for her ages ago."

“瞧，这些都是妈妈在对角巷给你买的东西。她还从你的保险柜里给你取了一些金币……还替你把所有的袜子都洗干净了。”

"Mr. Crouch has been saying it for weeks and weeks," said Percy swiftly.

罗恩把一大堆包裹搬到哈利的行军床上，又把钱袋和一大包袜子扔在包裹旁边。哈利开始拆看韦斯莱夫人给他买的东西。除了米兰达·戈沙克所著的《标准咒语（四级）》外，还有一把新的羽毛笔、十二卷羊皮纸；还有他调配魔药的原料箱里需要补充的东西——他的狮子鱼脊粉和颠茄精快用完了。他刚要把内衣放进他的坩埚，就听见罗恩的后面很厌恶地嚷嚷起来。

"Crouch is very lucky Rita hasn't found out about Winky," said Mr. Weasley irritably.

“这是什么玩艺儿？”

"There'd be a week's worth of headlines in his house-elf being caught holding the wand that conjured the Dark Mark."

罗恩手里举着个什么东西，在哈利看来像是一件酱紫色的天鹅绒长裙，领口镶着仿佛发了霉的荷叶边，袖口上也有相配的花边。

"I thought we were all agreed that that elf, while irresponsible, did not conjure the Mark?" said Percy hotly.

就在这时传来了敲门声，韦斯莱夫人走了进来，怀里抱着刚刚洗净熨平的霍格沃茨校袍。

"If you ask me, Mr. Crouch is very lucky no one at the Daily Prophet knows how mean he is to elves!" said Hermione angrily.

“给你们的。”她说，把那些长袍分成两堆，“好了，装箱的时候要记住把它们放整齐了，别让它们起皱。”

"Now look here, Hermione!" said Percy. "A high-ranking Ministry official like Mr. Crouch deserves unswerving obedience from his servants -"

“妈妈，你把金妮的新衣服给了我。”罗恩说着，把那件衣服递给了她。

"His slave, you mean!" said Hermione, her voice rising passionately, "because he didn't pay Winky, did he?"

“我怎么会弄错呢，”韦斯莱夫人说，“这就是给你的。礼服长袍。”

"I think you'd all better go upstairs and check that you've packed properly!" said Mrs.

“什么？”罗恩说，表情很是惊恐。

Weasley, breaking up the argument. "Come on now, all of you. . . ."

“礼服长袍！”韦斯莱夫人又说了一遍，“你们学校开出来的单子上写着，你今年应该准备礼服长袍了……就是正式场合穿的袍子。”

Harry repacked his broomstick servicing kit, put his Firebolt over his shoulder, and went back upstairs with Ron. The rain sounded even louder at the top of the house, accompanied by loud whistlings and moans from the wind, not to mention sporadic howls from the ghoul who lived in the attic. Pigwidgeon began twittering and zooming around his cage when they entered. The sight of the half-packed trunks seemed to have sent him

“你一定是在开玩笑吧。”罗恩不敢相信地说道，“我决不穿这种衣服，决不！”

into a frenzy of excitement.

“每个人都要穿的，罗恩！”韦斯莱夫人恼火地说道，“那些衣服都是这样的！你父亲也有几件，是参加体面的聚会时穿的！”

"Bung him some Owl Treats," said Ron, throwing a packet across to Harry. "It might shut him up."

“我宁可一丝不挂，也不穿它。”罗恩固执地说。

Harry poked a few Owl Treats through the bars of Pigwidgeon's cage, then turned to his trunk. Hedwig's cage stood next to it, still empty.

“别犯傻了，”韦斯莱夫人说，“你必须有一件礼服长袍，你的单子上列着呢！我也给哈利买了一件……给他看看，哈利……”

"It's been over a week," Harry said, looking at Hedwig's deserted perch. "Ron, you don't reckon Sirius has been caught, do you?"

哈利有些惶恐地打开行军床上的最后一个包裹，还好，并不像他所料想的那样糟糕。他的礼服长袍上一条花边也没有——实际上，它的样子和他的校袍差不多，不过颜色不是黑的，而是深绿色的。

"Nah, it would've been in the Daily Prophet," said Ron. "The Ministry would want to show they'd caught someone, wouldn't they?"

“我想它会把你眼睛的颜色衬托得更漂亮，亲爱的。”韦斯莱夫人慈爱地说道。

"Yeah, I suppose. . . ."

“这倒挺好！”罗恩看着哈利的长袍，气呼呼地说，“为什么我不能有一件这样的？”

"Look, here's the stuff Mum got for you in Diagon Alley. And she's got some gold out of your vault for you. . . and she's washed all your socks."

“因为……唉，我不得不给你买二手货，这样就没有多少选择余地了！”韦斯莱夫人说着，脸红了。

He heaved a pile of parcels onto Harry's camp bed and dropped the money bag and a load of socks next to it. Harry started unwrapping the shopping. Apart from The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4, by Miranda Goshawk, he had a handful of new quills, a dozen rolls of parchment, and refills for his potion-making kit - he had been running low on spine of lionfish and essence of belladonna. He was just piling underwear into his cauldron when Ron made a loud noise of disgust behind him.

哈利移开了目光。他真愿意把他在古灵阁保险柜里的钱都拿出来，分给韦斯莱一家，但他知道他们不会接受的。

"What is that supposed to be?"

“我决不穿这种衣服，”罗恩还是固执地说，“决不！”

He was holding up something that looked to Harry like a long, maroon velvet dress. It had a moldy-looking lace frill at the collar and matching lace cuffs.

“好吧，”韦斯莱夫人严厉地反驳道，“你就光着身子吧。哈利，别忘了给他拍一张照片。上帝作证，我可以大笑一场了。”

There was a knock on the door, and Mrs. Weasley entered, carrying an armful of freshly laundered Hogwarts robes.

她走出房间，把门狠狠地关上。喀喀喀，他们身后传来一种很奇怪的声音，小猪被一粒过大的猫头鹰食卡住了喉咙。

"Here you are," she said, sorting them into two piles. "Now, mind you pack them properly so they don't crease."

“为什么我的东西都是破烂货！”罗恩气愤地说，一边大步走过去掰开小猪的嘴巴。

"Mum, you've given me Ginny's new dress," said Ron, handing it out to her.

"Of course I haven't," said Mrs. Weasley. "That's for you. Dress robes."

"What?" said Ron, looking horror-struck.

"Dress robes!" repeated Mrs. Weasley. "It says on your school list that you're supposed to have dress robes this year. . . robes for formal occasions."

"You've got to be kidding," said Ron in disbelief. "I'm not wearing that, no way."

"Everyone wears them, Ron!" said Mrs. Weasley crossly. "They're all like that! Your father's got some for smart parties!"

"I'll go starkers before I put that on," said Ron stubbornly.

"Don't be so silly," said Mrs. Weasley. "You've got to have dress robes, they're on your list! I got some for Harry too. . . show him, Harry... ."

In some trepidation, Harry opened the last parcel on his camp bed. It wasn't as bad as he had expected, however; his dress robes didn't have any lace on them at all - in fact, they were more or less the same as his school ones, except that they were bottle green instead of black.

"I thought they'd bring out the color of your eyes, dear," said Mrs. Weasley fondly.

"Well, they're okay!" said Ron angrily, looking at Harry's robes. "Why couldn't I have some like that?"

"Because. . . well, I had to get yours secondhand, and there wasn't a lot of choice!"

said Mrs. Weasley, flushing.

Harry looked away. He would willingly have split all the money in his Gringotts vault with the Weasleys, but he knew they would never take it.

"I'm never wearing them," Ron was saying stubbornly. "Never."

"Fine," snapped Mrs. Weasley. "Go naked. And, Harry, make sure you get a picture of him.

Goodness knows I could do with a laugh."

She left the room, slamming the door behind her. There was a funny spluttering noise from behind them. Pigwidgeon was choking on an overlarge Owl Treat.

"Why is everything I own rubbish?" said Ron furiously, striding across the room to unstick Pigwidgeon's beak.