哈利·波特与混血王子 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 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 TWENTY LORD VOLDEMORT’S REQUEST

第二十章　伏地魔的请求

Harry and Ron left the hospital wing first thing on Monday morning, restored to full health by the ministrations of Madam Pomfrey and now able to enjoy the benefits of having been knocked out and poisoned, the best of which was that Hermione was friends with Ron again. Hermione even escorted them down to breakfast, bringing with her the news that Ginny had argued with Dean. The drowsing creature in Harry’s chest suddenly raised its head, sniffing the air hopefully.

哈利和罗恩星期一一早就出院了，在庞弗雷夫人的照料下，他们已经完全康复，现在正享受着被打晕和中毒的好处，最好的一点就是赫敏跟罗恩和好了。她甚至领着他们去吃早饭，还带来了金妮跟迪安吵架的消息。哈利胸中那头昏睡的野兽突然抬起头，满怀希望地嗅着空气。

“What did they row about?” he asked, trying to sound casual as they turned onto a seventh-floor corridor that was deserted but for a very small girl who had been examining a tapestry of trolls in tutus. She looked terrified at the sight of the approaching sixth years and dropped the heavy brass scales she was carrying.

“他们吵什么？”他努力用随便的口气问道。三人拐进八楼的一条走廊，只有一个很小的女孩在看一幅巨怪穿芭蕾舞裙的挂毯。看到这几个六年级学生走过来，她好像很害怕，把她拿在手里的一个很沉的铜天平掉在了地上。

“It’s all right!” said Hermione kindly, hurrying forward to help her. “Here . . .”

“没事！”赫敏温和地说着，一边快步走过去帮她。“来……”她说，用魔杖敲了敲摔坏的天平，“恢复如初。”

She tapped the broken scales with her wand and said, “Reparo.” The girl did not say thank you, but remained rooted to the spot as they passed and watched them out of sight; Ron glanced back at her.

小女孩没有道谢，像木头似的立在原地，看着他们走过去。罗恩回头望了望她。

“I swear they’re getting smaller,” he said.

“我觉得天平变小了。”

“Never mind her,” said Harry, a little impatiently. “What did Ginny and Dean row about, Hermione?”

“别管她。”哈利有点不耐烦地说，“金妮和迪安吵什么呢，赫敏？”

“Oh, Dean was laughing about McLaggen hitting that Bludger at you,” said Hermione.

“哦，迪安觉得麦克拉根用游走球打你很好笑。”

“It must’ve looked funny,” said Ron reasonably.

“一定是挺滑稽的。”罗恩公平地说。

“It didn’t look funny at all!” said Hermione hotly. “It looked terrible and if Coote and Peakes hadn’t caught Harry he could have been very badly hurt!”

“一点儿都不滑稽！”赫敏激烈地反驳道，“可吓人了，要不是古特和珀克斯抓住了哈利，他可能会伤得非常重！”

“Yeah, well, there was no need for Ginny and Dean to split up over it,” said Harry, still trying to sound casual. “Or are they still together?”

“嗯，不过，金妮和迪安没有理由为这个闹崩啊。”哈利说，仍努力装出不经意的口气，“他们还在一起吗？”

“Yes, they are — but why are you so interested?” asked Hermione, giving Harry a sharp look.

“在一起——你为什么这么感兴趣？”赫敏问，一边尖锐地看了哈利一眼。

“I just don’t want my Quidditch team messed up again!” he said hastily, but Hermione continued to look suspicious, and he was most relieved when a voice behind them called, “Harry!” giving him an excuse to turn his back on her.

“我只是不想球队再出乱子！”他赶忙说，但赫敏仍然面带怀疑，这时后面一个声音叫道：“哈利！”他如释重负地转过身。

“Oh, hi, Luna.”

“哦，你好，卢娜。”

“I went to the hospital wing to find you,” said Luna, rummaging in her bag. “But they said you’d left. . . .”

“我去校医院找你，”卢娜一边说着，一边在包里翻着，“他们说你出院了……”

She thrust what appeared to be a green onion, a large spotted toadstool, and a considerable amount of what looked like cat litter into Ron’s hands, finally pulling out a rather grubby scroll of parchment that she handed to Harry.

她把一根葱一样的玩意儿、一个花斑大伞菌和一大堆猫褥草似的东西塞在罗恩手里，最后抽出一卷脏兮兮的羊皮纸递给了哈利。

REQUEST

“……这是让我带给你的。”

“. . . I’ve been told to give you this.”

是个小纸卷，哈利立刻看出又是邓布利多让他去上课的邀请。

It was a small roll of parchment, which Harry recognized at once as another invitation to a lesson with Dumbledore.

“今天晚上。”他一打开羊皮纸卷就对罗恩和赫敏说。

“Tonight,” he told Ron and Hermione, once he had unrolled it.

“你上次解说得很不错！”卢娜拿回葱、伞菌和猫褥草时，罗恩对她说。

“Nice commentary last match!” said Ron to Luna as she took back the green onion, the toadstool, and the cat litter. Luna smiled vaguely.

卢娜不置可否地笑了笑。“你在笑话我，是不是？”她说，“人人都说我很糟糕。”

“You’re making fun of me, aren’t you?” she said. “Everyone says I was dreadful.”

“不，我是说正经的，”罗恩真诚地说，“我不记得有哪次解说让我听得这么开心！哎，这是什么呀？”他把那葱一样的玩意儿举到了眼前。

“No, I’m serious!” said Ron earnestly. “I can’t remember enjoying commentary more! What is this, by the way?” he added, holding the onionlike object up to eye level.

“哦，这是戈迪根。”她说着把猫褥草和伞菌塞回包里，“你要喜欢就留下吧，我有好几个呢。这个能挡住大嘴彩球鱼①，很有效。”

“Oh, it’s a Gurdyroot,” she said, stuffing the cat litter and the toadstool back into her bag. “You can keep it if you like, I’ve got a few of them. They’re really excellent for warding off Gulping Plimpies.”

她走了，罗恩哈哈大笑，手里还抓着戈迪根。

And she walked away, leaving Ron chortling, still clutching the Gurdyroot.

“嘿嘿，我对她印象好起来了，对卢娜。”三人继续向礼堂走去时，罗恩说道，“我知道她神经有问题，但是她也有好的——”

“You know, she’s grown on me, Luna,” he said, as they set off again for the Great Hall. “I know she’s insane, but it’s in a good —”

他突然住了口，拉文德·布朗气势汹汹地站在大理石台阶下面。

He stopped talking very suddenly. Lavender Brown was standing at the foot of the marble staircase looking thunderous.

“嘿。”罗恩不安地说。

“Hi,” said Ron nervously.

“快走。”哈利小声提醒赫敏，两人匆匆溜走，但已听到拉文德说：“你为什么不跟我说你今天出院？为什么跟她在一起？”

“C’mon,” Harry muttered to Hermione, and they sped past, though not before they had heard Lavender say, “Why didn’t you tell me you were getting out today? And why was she with you?”

罗恩半小时后来吃早饭时，显得很恼火。虽然他和拉文德坐在一起，但哈利没见他们说一句话。赫敏好像对这一切浑然不觉，但有一两次哈利看到她脸上掠过一丝令人不解的笑意。一整天她心情似乎特别好，晚上在公共休息室她甚至答应看看（也就是帮着写完）哈利的草药课论文。在此之前她是坚决不肯的，因为她知道哈利会借给罗恩去抄。

Ron looked both sulky and annoyed when he appeared at breakfast half an hour later, and though he sat with Lavender, Harry did not see them exchange a word all the time they were together. Hermione was acting as though she was quite oblivious to all of this, but once or twice Harry saw an inexplicable smirk cross her face. All that day she seemed to be in a particularly good mood, and that evening in the common room she even consented to look over (in other words, finish writing) Harry’s Herbology essay, something she had been resolutely refusing to do up to this point, because she had known that Harry would then let Ron copy his work.

“多谢了，赫敏。”哈利说着匆匆拍了拍她的肩膀，又看了看表，发现已经快八点了，“哟，我得快点儿，不然去邓布利多那儿就要迟到了。”

“Thanks a lot, Hermione,” said Harry, giving her a hasty pat on the back as he checked his watch and saw that it was nearly eight o’clock. “Listen, I’ve got to hurry or I’ll be late for Dumbledore. . . .”

她没有回答，只是没精打采地画掉他的几个差劲的句子。哈利咧嘴一笑，赶紧爬出肖像洞口，朝校长办公室跑去。滴水嘴状石头怪兽听到“太妃手指饼”后跳到一边。哈利一步两级地登上螺旋形楼梯，他敲门时里面的钟正好打了八点。

She did not answer, but merely crossed out a few of his feebler sentences in a weary sort of way. Grinning, Harry hurried out through the portrait hole and off to the headmaster’s office. The gargoyle leapt aside at the mention of toffee éclairs, and Harry took the spiral staircase two steps at a time, knocking on the door just as a clock within chimed eight.

“进来。”邓布利多叫道。哈利伸手去推门，门却从里面被猛地拽开了，特里劳妮教授站在那儿。

“Enter,” called Dumbledore, but as Harry put out a hand to push the door, it was wrenched open from inside. There stood Professor Trelawney.

“啊哈！”她戏剧性地指着哈利，从她那像放大镜一样的镜片后面眨着眼睛看着他，“这就是我被粗暴地赶出你办公室的原因，邓布利多！”

“Aha!” she cried, pointing dramatically at Harry as she blinked at him through her magnifying spectacles. “So this is the reason I am to be thrown unceremoniously from your office, Dumbledore!”

“亲爱的西比尔，”邓布利多说，语气有点恼火，“没谁想把你粗暴地赶出去，但哈利预约了，而且我确实觉得已没什么可说——”

“My dear Sybill,” said Dumbledore in a slightly exasperated voice, “there is no question of throwing you unceremoniously from anywhere, but Harry does have an appointment, and I really don’t think there is any more to be said —”

“很好，”特里劳妮用受了很大伤害的口气说道，“如果你不肯赶走那匹驽马，也罢……也许我会找到一所更能欣赏我才华的学校……”

“Very well,” said Professor Trelawney, in a deeply wounded voice. “If you will not banish the usurping nag, so be it. . . .

她推开哈利，消失在螺旋形楼梯上。听到她在半道绊了一下，哈利猜她可能是踩到她的哪一条长披肩了。

REQUEST Perhaps I shall find a school where my talents are better appreciated. . . .”

“请关上门，坐下，哈利。”邓布利多的声音有些疲惫。

She pushed past Harry and disappeared down the spiral staircase; they heard her stumble halfway down, and Harry guessed that she had tripped over one of her trailing shawls.

哈利照办了，坐在邓布利多桌前的那个老位子上，他注意到冥想盆又摆在那里，还有两个小水晶瓶，里面是打着旋的记忆。

“Please close the door and sit down, Harry,” said Dumbledore, sounding rather tired.

“特里劳妮教授还在为费伦泽教课的事不高兴？”哈利问。

Harry obeyed, noticing as he took his usual seat in front of Dumbledore’s desk that the Pensieve lay between them once more, as did two more tiny crystal bottles full of swirling memory.

“不高兴，”邓布利多说，“占卜课比我想象的麻烦得多，我本人从没上过这个课。我不能让费伦泽回到林子里去，因为他被驱逐出来了。我也不能让西比尔·特里劳妮离开。我们私下说说，她没意识到城堡外有多么危险。她还不知道——我觉得告诉她这个也是不明智的——她做过关于你和伏地魔的预言。”

“Professor Trelawney still isn’t happy Firenze is teaching, then?” Harry asked.

邓布利多深深叹了口气。说道：“不过，别管我的教员的事了。我们有更重要的事情要谈。首先——你做了我上节课布置的作业吗？”

“No,” said Dumbledore, “Divination is turning out to be much more trouble than I could have foreseen, never having studied the subject myself. I cannot ask Firenze to return to the forest, where he is now an outcast, nor can I ask Sybill Trelawney to leave. Between ourselves, she has no idea of the danger she would be in outside the castle. She does not know — and I think it would be unwise to enlighten her — that she made the prophecy about you and Voldemort, you see.”

“啊，”哈利猛然想起，因为幻影显形课、魁地奇比赛、罗恩中毒、自己头骨碎裂，还有一心要搞清马尔福在干什么，他几乎忘了邓布利多要他搞到斯拉格霍恩的记忆……“嗯，魔药课后我问了一下斯拉格霍恩教授，可是，呃，他不肯给我。”

Dumbledore heaved a deep sigh, then said, “But never mind my staffing problems. We have much more important matters to discuss. Firstly — have you managed the task I set you at the end of our previous lesson?”

片刻的沉默。

“Ah,” said Harry, brought up short. What with Apparition lessons and Quidditch and Ron being poisoned and getting his skull cracked and his determination to find out what Draco Malfoy was up to, Harry had almost forgotten about the memory Dumbledore had asked him to extract from Professor Slughorn. “Well, I asked Professor Slughorn about it at the end of Potions, sir, but, er, he wouldn’t give it to me.”

“噢，”邓布利多从半月形的眼镜片上方盯着哈利，哈利又有一种被Ｘ光照射的感觉，“你觉得已经尽了最大努力，是吗？已经充分发挥了你的聪明才智？想尽了一切点子？”

There was a little silence.

“呃。”哈利语塞了，不知该说什么。他的那一次尝试突然显得那么微不足道。“呃……罗恩误服了迷情剂的那天，我把他带到斯拉格霍恩教授那里，我想如果能让斯拉格霍恩教授心情好，也许——”

“I see,” said Dumbledore eventually, peering at Harry over the top of his half-moon spectacles and giving Harry the usual sensation that he was being X-rayed. “And you feel that you have exerted your very best efforts in this matter, do you? That you have exercised all of your considerable ingenuity? That you have left no depth of cunning unplumbed in your quest to retrieve the memory?”

“成功了吗？”邓布利多问。

“Well,” Harry stalled, at a loss for what to say next. His single attempt to get hold of the memory suddenly seemed embarrassingly feeble. “Well . . . the day Ron swallowed love potion by mistake I took him to Professor Slughorn. I thought maybe if I got Professor Slughorn in a good enough mood —”

“嗯，没有，先生。罗恩中毒了——”

“And did that work?” asked Dumbledore.

“——自然，于是你就忘了找寻记忆的事，我没指望会有别的反应，因为你的好朋友有危险。但是，一旦确定韦斯莱同学会彻底康复，我以为你会回头做我布置的作业。我已对你说明那个记忆多么重要。实际上，我已竭力让你认识到那是最关键的一段记忆，没有它，我们只会浪费时间。”

“Well, no, sir, because Ron got poisoned —”

一阵火辣辣的、针扎一般的羞耻感从哈利的头顶传遍全身。邓布利多没有提高嗓门，甚至话语中也没带怒气，但哈利宁愿他大吼大叫，这种冰冷的失望比什么都令人难受。

“— which, naturally, made you forget all about trying to retrieve the memory; I would have expected nothing else, while your best friend was in danger. Once it became clear that Mr. Weasley was going to make a full recovery, however, I would have hoped that you returned to the task I set you. I thought I made it clear to you how very important that memory is. Indeed, I did my best to impress upon you that it is the most crucial memory of all and that we will be wasting our time without it.”

“先生，”他有点绝望地说，“不是我不上心，我只是有其他——其他事情……”

A hot, prickly feeling of shame spread from the top of Harry’s head all the way down his body. Dumbledore had not raised his voice, he did not even sound angry, but Harry would have preferred him to yell; this cold disappointment was worse than anything.

“其他事情让你惦记着，”邓布利多帮他把话说完，“我知道了。”

REQUEST

两人又沉默了，这是哈利在邓布利多身边经历过的最难堪的沉默，它似乎无休无止，只是时而被邓布利多头顶上阿芒多·迪佩特哼哼哧哧的鼾声打断。哈利有一种奇怪的渺小感，好像自己进屋后缩小了。

“Sir,” he said, a little desperately, “it isn’t that I wasn’t bothered or anything, I’ve just had other — other things . . .”

他再也受不了了，于是说道：“邓布利多教授，我真的很抱歉。我应该做得更多……我应该想到如果不是真的重要，你也不会叫我去做。”

“Other things on your mind,” Dumbledore finished the sentence for him. “I see.”

“谢谢你这么说，”邓布利多平静地说，“那我可否希望，你从此能把这件事往前提一提？如果没有那个记忆，我们以后再上课也就没有什么意义了。”

Silence fell between them again, the most uncomfortable silence Harry had ever experienced with Dumbledore; it seemed to go on and on, punctuated only by the little grunting snores of the portrait of Armando Dippet over Dumbledore’s head. Harry felt strangely diminished, as though he had shrunk a little since he had entered the room. When he could stand it no longer he said, “Professor Dumbledore, I’m really sorry. I should have done more. . . . I should have realized you wouldn’t have asked me to do it if it wasn’t really important.”

“我会的，先生，我会搞到它的。”哈利热切地说。

“Thank you for saying that, Harry,” said Dumbledore quietly. “May I hope, then, that you will give this matter higher priority from now on? There will be little point in our meeting after tonight unless we have that memory.”

“那我们现在就不再谈它了，”邓布利多语气亲切了一些，“接着讲上次的故事。你记得讲到哪儿了吗？”

“I’ll do it, sir, I’ll get it from him,” he said earnestly.

“记得，先生，”哈利马上说，“伏地魔杀了他的爸爸和爷爷奶奶，让人以为是他舅舅干的。然后他回到霍格沃茨向……向斯拉格霍恩教授打听魂器。”他惭愧地喃喃道。

“Then we shall say no more about it just now,” said Dumbledore more kindly, “but continue with our story where we left off. You remember where that was?”

“很好，”邓布利多说道，“现在，我希望你还记得，我在一开始给你单独授课时就告诉过你，我们会进入猜测和臆想的领域。”

“Yes, sir,” said Harry quickly. “Voldemort killed his father and his grandparents and made it look as though his Uncle Morfin did it. Then he went back to Hogwarts and he asked . . . he asked Professor Slughorn about Horcruxes,” he mumbled shamefacedly.

“记得，先生。”

“Very good,” said Dumbledore. “Now, you will remember, I hope, that I told you at the very outset of these meetings of ours that we would be entering the realms of guesswork and speculation?”

“我希望你也认为，到目前为止，我给你看的都是相当可靠的事实，凭这些我推想出了伏地魔十七岁前的情况。”

“Yes, sir.”

哈利点了点头。

“Thus far, as I hope you agree, I have shown you reasonably firm sources of fact for my deductions as to what Voldemort did until the age of seventeen?”

“但现在，哈利，现在情况更加迷离诡异，如果说找到关于少年里德尔的证据已很困难，那找到能记忆成年伏地魔的人则几乎不可能。事实上，我怀疑除了他自己之外，是否还有一个活人能向我们详细讲述他离开霍格沃茨后的生活。然而，我有最后两个记忆要跟你分享。”邓布利多说着指了指在冥想盆旁边闪闪发亮的两个小水晶瓶，“之后，我将很高兴听你判断我所得出的结论是否合理。”

Harry nodded.

邓布利多这样重视他的判断，使哈利对没能搞到关于魂器的记忆更加羞愧。他内疚地在椅子上动了动，邓布利多把第一个瓶子举到光线下细细地看着。

“But now, Harry,” said Dumbledore, “now things become murkier and stranger. If it was difficult to find evidence about the boy Riddle, it has been almost impossible to find anyone prepared to reminisce about the man Voldemort. In fact, I doubt whether there is a soul alive, apart from himself, who could give us a full account of his life since he left Hogwarts. However, I have two last memories that I would like to share with you.” Dumbledore indicated the two little crystal bottles gleaming beside the Pensieve. “I shall then be glad of your opinion as to whether the conclusions I have drawn from them seem likely.”

“我希望你没有对潜进别人的记忆里感到厌倦，因为它们是很奇特的。这两个。”他说，“第一个来自一个很老的家养小精灵，她叫郝琪。在看郝琪的见证之前，我必须简单说一下伏地魔是怎么离开霍格沃茨的。

The idea that Dumbledore valued his opinion this highly made Harry feel even more deeply ashamed that he had failed in the task of retrieving the Horcrux memory, and he shifted guiltily in his seat as Dumbledore raised the first of the two bottles to the light and examined it.

“你可能已经猜到，他以每门考试都是最优的成绩升到了七年级。周围的同学都在考虑毕业后要从事什么职业。几乎所有的人都认为汤姆·里德尔会有惊人的建树，他是级长，学习尖子，得过学校的特别嘉奖。我知道有几位教师，包括斯拉格霍恩教授，建议他进魔法部，并愿意主动为他引见，但他一概予以拒绝。后来教员们得知，他去博金－博克工作了。”

“I hope you are not tired of diving into other people’s memories, for they are curious recollections, these two,” he said. “This first one came from a very old house-elf by the name of Hokey. Before we see what Hokey witnessed, I must quickly recount how Lord Voldemort left Hogwarts.

“博金－博克？”哈利愕然道。

“He reached the seventh year of his schooling with, as you might have expected, top grades in every examination he had taken. All around him, his classmates were deciding which jobs they were to pursue once they had left Hogwarts. Nearly everybody expected spectacular things from Tom Riddle, prefect, Head Boy, winner of

“博金－博克。”邓布利多平静地说，“我想，等进入了郝琪的记忆，你就会看到那个地方对他有什么吸引力了。但这不是伏地魔的第一选择。当时没什么人知道——我是听老校长说过此事的少数人之一。伏地魔先找了迪佩特教授，询问他是否可以留在霍格沃茨执教。”

REQUEST the Award for Special Services to the School. I know that several teachers, Professor Slughorn amongst them, suggested that he join the Ministry of Magic, offered to set up appointments, put him in touch with useful contacts. He refused all offers. The next thing the staff knew, Voldemort was working at Borgin and Burkes.”

“他想留在这儿？”哈利更惊诧了。

“At Borgin and Burkes?” Harry repeated, stunned.

“我相信他有好几条理由，尽管他一条也没有告诉迪佩特教授。”邓布利多说，“首先，很重要的一条是，伏地魔对这所学校比他对任何个人更有感情。霍格沃茨是他最开心的地方，是他感到像家的第一个也是惟一的地方。”

“At Borgin and Burkes,” repeated Dumbledore calmly. “I think you will see what attractions the place held for him when we have entered Hokey’s memory. But this was not Voldemort’s first choice of job. Hardly anyone knew of it at the time — I was one of the few in whom the then headmaster confided — but Voldemort first approached Professor Dippet and asked whether he could remain at Hogwarts as a teacher.”

哈利听到这些话有点儿不舒服，因为这也正是他对霍格沃茨的感受。

“He wanted to stay here? Why?” asked Harry, more amazed still.

“第二，这座城堡是古老魔法的据点，伏地魔无疑比大多数学生探知了这里更多的秘密，但他可能觉得还有不少未解之谜，还有不少魔法的宝藏可以发掘。

“I believe he had several reasons, though he confided none of them to Professor Dippet,” said Dumbledore. “Firstly, and very importantly, Voldemort was, I believe, more attached to this school than he has ever been to a person. Hogwarts was where he had been happiest; the first and only place he had felt at home.”

“第三，当了教师，他可以对少年巫师有很大的影响力。这个思想或许来自斯拉格霍恩教授，那是跟他关系最好的一位教授。斯拉格霍恩使他看到教师能发挥多么大的影响。我从来没有以为伏地魔打算在霍格沃茨待一辈子，我认为他是把这里看成一个招兵买马的好地方，他可以给自己拉起一支队伍。”

Harry felt slightly uncomfortable at these words, for this was exactly how he felt about Hogwarts too.

“可他没有得到这份工作，先生？”

“Secondly, the castle is a stronghold of ancient magic. Undoubtedly Voldemort had penetrated many more of its secrets than most of the students who pass through the place, but he may have felt that there were still mysteries to unravel, stores of magic to tap.

“没有。迪佩特教授说他才十八岁，太年轻了，但欢迎他过两年再来申请，如果到那时他还想教书的话。”

“And thirdly, as a teacher, he would have had great power and influence over young witches and wizards. Perhaps he had gained the idea from Professor Slughorn, the teacher with whom he was on best terms, who had demonstrated how influential a role a teacher can play. I do not imagine for an instant that Voldemort envisaged spending the rest of his life at Hogwarts, but I do think that he saw it as a useful recruiting ground, and a place where he might begin to build himself an army.”

“你对此事怎么想的，先生？”哈利迟疑地问。

“But he didn’t get the job, sir?”

“非常不安。”邓布利多说，“我建议阿芒多不要聘他——我没有摆出刚才说的这些理由，因为迪佩特教授很喜欢伏地魔，对他的诚实深信不疑——但我不希望伏地魔回到这所学校，尤其是得到有权力的职位。”

“No, he did not. Professor Dippet told him that he was too young at eighteen, but invited him to reapply in a few years, if he still wished to teach.”

“他想要什么职位？想教什么课？”

“How did you feel about that, sir?” asked Harry hesitantly.

邓布利多还没回答，哈利就知道了答案。

“Deeply uneasy,” said Dumbledore. “I had advised Armando against the appointment — I did not give the reasons I have given you, for Professor Dippet was very fond of Voldemort and convinced of his honesty. But I did not want Lord Voldemort back at this school, and especially not in a position of power.”

“黑魔法防御术，当时是由一位叫加拉提亚·梅乐思的老教授教的，他在霍格沃茨已有将近五十年了。

“Which job did he want, sir? What subject did he want to teach?”

“伏地魔去了博金－博克，所有欣赏他的教员都说可惜，那样一个才华出众的年轻巫师去当了店员。但伏地魔不只是店员。他因为彬彬有礼，英俊聪明，很快就得到了只有博金－博克这种地方才有的特殊工作。你知道，哈利，这家店专销有特异性能的物品。伏地魔被派去说服别人将宝物交给店里出售，据说，他对此事特别擅长。”

Somehow, Harry knew the answer even before Dumbledore gave it.

“我相信。”哈利忍不住说。

“Defense Against the Dark Arts. It was being taught at the time by an old Professor by the name of Galatea Merrythought, who had been at Hogwarts for nearly fifty years.

“是啊，”邓布利多说着无力地微微一笑，“现在该听听家养小精灵郝琪的记忆了，她的主人是一位年纪很大、很富有的女巫，名叫赫普兹巴·史密斯。”

“So Voldemort went off to Borgin and Burkes, and all the staff who had admired him said what a waste it was, a brilliant young wizard like that, working in a shop. However, Voldemort was no mere assistant. Polite and handsome and clever, he was soon given particular jobs of the type that only exist in a place like Borgin and Burkes, which specializes, as you know, Harry, in objects with unusual and powerful properties. Voldemort was sent to persuade

邓布利多用魔杖敲了敲一个小瓶，瓶塞飞了出去，他把打着旋儿的记忆倒进了冥想盆，说道：“你先来，哈利。”

REQUEST people to part with their treasures for sale by the partners, and he was, by all accounts, unusually gifted at doing this.”

哈利站了起来，再次俯身凑近石盆中荡着涟漪的银色物质，直到面孔碰到了它。他翻着跟头在黑暗的虚空中坠落，落到了一间起居室里，看到一个很胖很胖的老太太，戴着一顶精致的姜黄色假发，艳丽的粉红色长袍在她四周铺散开来，使她看上去像一块融化的冰淇淋蛋糕。她正对着一面镶嵌着珠宝的小镜子，用一块大粉扑往已经鲜红的面颊上涂着胭脂。一个哈利所见过的最瘦小、最苍老的家养小精灵正在给老太太的胖脚上穿的一双紧绷绷的缎子鞋扣搭扣。

“I’ll bet he was,” said Harry, unable to contain himself.

“快点儿，郝琪！”赫普兹巴专横地说，“他说四点来，只有两分钟了，他还从没迟到过呢。”

“Well, quite,” said Dumbledore, with a faint smile. “And now it is time to hear from Hokey the house-elf, who worked for a very old, very rich witch by the name of Hepzibah Smith.”

她收起粉扑。家养小精灵直起腰，脑袋才齐到赫普兹巴的椅垫，纸一般的皮肤挂在骨架上，像她身上披的那块细亚麻布袍子一样。

Dumbledore tapped a bottle with his wand, the cork flew out, and he tipped the swirling memory into the Pensieve, saying as he did so, “After you, Harry.”

“我怎么样？”赫普兹巴问，一边转动着脑袋，从各个角度欣赏着她镜中的面孔。

Harry got to his feet and bent once more over the rippling silver contents of the stone basin until his face touched them. He tumbled through dark nothingness and landed in a sitting room in front of an immensely fat old lady wearing an elaborate ginger wig and a brilliant pink set of robes that flowed all around her, giving her the look of a melting iced cake. She was looking into a small jeweled mirror and dabbing rouge onto her already scarlet cheeks with a large powder puff, while the tiniest and oldest house-elf Harry had ever seen laced her fleshy feet into tight satin slippers.

“很美丽，夫人。”郝琪尖声说。

“Hurry up, Hokey!” said Hepzibah imperiously. “He said he’d come at four, it’s only a couple of minutes to and he’s never been late yet!”

哈利只能推测郝琪的合同里要求她在回答这个问题时必须咬牙说谎，因为在他看来赫普兹巴·史密斯离美丽差远了。

She tucked away her powder puff as the house-elf straightened up. The top of the elf ’s head barely reached the seat of Hepzibah’s chair, and her papery skin hung off her frame just like the crisp linen sheet she wore draped like a toga.

门铃丁丁当当地响了，女主人和小精灵都跳起来。

“How do I look?” said Hepzibah, turning her head to admire the various angles of her face in the mirror.

“快，快，他来了，郝琪！”赫普兹巴叫道，小精灵急忙奔出屋去。屋里非常拥挤，简直想象不出有人能穿过房间而不撞倒至少一打东西。陈列描漆小盒的橱柜，排满烫金书籍的书架，摆着大小星体和星相仪的架子，还有许多长在铜器皿中的茂盛植物。这间屋子看上去像是魔法古玩店和温室拼凑起来的。

“Lovely, madam,” squeaked Hokey.

小精灵一会儿就回来了，后面跟着一个高个子青年，哈利一下就认出是伏地魔。他穿着一套黑西服，头发比上学时长了一些，面颊凹了下去，但这些都很适合他，他看上去更英俊了。他小心地穿过拥挤的房间，看样子已来过许多次，然后低低地弯下腰，嘴唇轻轻碰了一下赫普兹巴的小胖手。

Harry could only assume that it was down in Hokey’s contract that she must lie through her teeth when asked this question, because Hepzibah Smith looked a long way from lovely in his opinion.

“我给你带了花。”他小声说着，手里变出了一束玫瑰。

A tinkling doorbell rang and both mistress and elf jumped.

“你这个淘气的孩子，你不该这样！”老赫普兹巴尖叫道，不过哈利注意到她已在旁边一张小桌上准备了一个空花瓶，“你宠坏我这个老太太了，汤姆……坐下，坐下……郝琪在哪儿……啊……”

“Quick, quick, he’s here, Hokey!” cried Hepzibah and the elf scurried out of the room, which was so crammed with objects that it was difficult to see how anybody could navigate their way across it without knocking over at least a dozen things: There were cabinets full of little lacquered boxes, cases full of gold-embossed books, shelves of orbs and celestial globes, and many flourishing potted plants in brass containers. In fact, the room looked like a cross between a magical antique shop and a conservatory.

家养小精灵端着一盘小糕点冲进屋来，把盘子摆在女主人肘边。

The house-elf returned within minutes, followed by a tall young man Harry had no difficulty whatsoever in recognizing as Voldemort. He was plainly dressed in a black suit; his hair was a little longer than it had been at school and his cheeks were hollowed, but all of this suited him; he looked more handsome than ever. He picked his way through the cramped room with an air that showed he had visited many times before and bowed low over Hepzibah’s fat little hand, brushing it with his lips.

“随便吃吧，汤姆，”赫普兹巴说道，“我知道你很喜欢我的糕点。你怎么样？脸色有点白。店里把你用得太狠了，我说过一百回了……”

“I brought you flowers,” he said quietly, producing a bunch of roses from nowhere.

赫普兹巴咯咯地笑了起来，伏地魔机械地微笑着。

“You naughty boy, you shouldn’t have!” squealed old Hepzibah, though Harry noticed that she had an empty vase standing ready on the nearest little table. “You do spoil this old lady, Tom. . . . Sit down, sit down. . . . Where’s Hokey? Ah . . .”

“哎，这次来看我的借口是什么？”她眨巴着眼睫毛问。

The house-elf had come dashing back into the room carrying a tray of little cakes, which she set at her mistress’s elbow.

“那副妖精做的盔甲，博克先生想出个更高点的价钱，五百加隆，他觉得这够公道的了——”

REQUEST

“哎呀，哎呀，不要这么着急嘛，不然我会以为你只是为了我的玩意儿才来的！”赫普兹巴撅着嘴说道。

“Help yourself, Tom,” said Hepzibah, “I know how you love my cakes. Now, how are you? You look pale. They overwork you at that shop, I’ve said it a hundred times. . . .”

“我是为了它们才被派来的。”伏地魔轻声说，“我只是个小小的店员，夫人，只能听人吩咐。博克先生要我问——”

Voldemort smiled mechanically and Hepzibah simpered.

“哦，博克先生，呸！”赫普兹巴说着小手一摆，“我要给你看一样博克先生从来没有见过的东西！你能保密吗，汤姆？你能保证不告诉博克先生我有这东西吗？他要是知道我给你看过，会永远不让我安生的。这个我不卖，不会卖给博克，不会卖给任何人！可是你，汤姆，你会欣赏它的历史，而不是只想着能赚多少加隆……”

“Well, what’s your excuse for visiting this time?” she asked, batting her lashes.

“我很乐意看赫普兹巴小姐给我看的任何东西。”伏地魔轻声说。

“Mr. Burke would like to make an improved offer for the gob-lin-made armor,” said Voldemort. “Five hundred Galleons, he feels it is a more than fair —”

赫普兹巴又像小姑娘似的咯咯笑了起来。

“Now, now, not so fast, or I’ll think you’re only here for my trinkets!” pouted Hepzibah.

“我让郝琪拿出来了……郝琪，你在哪儿？我要让里德尔先生看看我们最好的宝贝……干脆两样都拿来吧……”

“I am ordered here because of them,” said Voldemort quietly. “I am only a poor assistant, madam, who must do as he is told. Mr. Burke wishes me to inquire —”

“在这儿呢，夫人。”家养小精灵尖声说，哈利看到了两个摞在一起的皮盒子，好像是在自动飘过来似的，他知道那是因为那一丁点儿大的小精灵在举着它们，在桌子、躺椅和坐垫中间穿行。

“Oh, Mr. Burke, phooey!” said Hepzibah, waving a little hand. “I’ve something to show you that I’ve never shown Mr. Burke! Can you keep a secret, Tom? Will you promise you won’t tell Mr. Burke I’ve got it? He’d never let me rest if he knew I’d shown it to you, and I’m not selling, not to Burke, not to anyone! But you, Tom, you’ll appreciate it for its history, not how many Galleons you can get for it.”

“好，”赫普兹巴愉快地说着，从小精灵手里接过盒子，搁在膝上，准备打开上面的那个，“我想你会喜欢的，汤姆……哦，如果我家的亲戚知道我让你看了……他们马上就会来抢走的！”

“I’d be glad to see anything Miss Hepzibah shows me,” said Voldemort quietly, and Hepzibah gave another girlish giggle.

她打开了盖子。哈利朝前凑了凑，看到里面像是一个小金杯，有两个精致的耳柄。

“I had Hokey bring it out for me. . . . Hokey, where are you? I want to show Mr. Riddle our finest treasure. . . . In fact, bring both, while you’re at it. . . .”

“你知道这是什么吗，汤姆？拿起来好好看看！”赫普兹巴轻声说。

“Here, madam,” squeaked the house-elf, and Harry saw two leather boxes, one on top of the other, moving across the room as if of their own volition, though he knew the tiny elf was holding them over her head as she wended her way between tables, pouffes, and footstools.

伏地魔伸出细长的手指，捏住一边的耳柄，把杯子从柔软的缎子衬垫上拿起来。哈利看到他的黑眼睛里似乎闪过一丝红光。他那贪婪的表情奇特地反映在赫普兹巴的脸上，只是她的小眼睛在盯着伏地魔英俊的面庞。

“Now,” said Hepzibah happily, taking the boxes from the elf, laying them in her lap, and preparing to open the topmost one, “I think you’ll like this, Tom. . . . Oh, if my family knew I was showing you. . . . They can’t wait to get their hands on this!”

“獾。”伏地魔辨认着杯子上的雕饰，喃喃地说道，“这是……”

She opened the lid. Harry edged forward a little to get a better view and saw what looked like a small golden cup with two finely wrought handles.

“赫尔加·赫奇帕奇的，你很在行，聪明的孩子！”赫普兹巴说着倾身捏了捏他那凹陷的面颊，胸衣响亮地嘎吱了一声，“我没跟你说过我是赫奇帕奇的远房后代吗？这东西在我家传了好多好多年了。很漂亮，是不是？据说还有各种魔力，但我没怎么试过，我只是把它好好地收在这儿……”

“I wonder whether you know what it is, Tom? Pick it up, have a good look!” whispered Hepzibah, and Voldemort stretched out a long-fingered hand and lifted the cup by one handle out of its snug silken wrappings. Harry thought he saw a red gleam in his dark eyes. His greedy expression was curiously mirrored on Hepzibah’s face, except that her tiny eyes were fixed upon Voldemort’s handsome features.

她把杯子从伏地魔瘦长的食指上钩了回来，专心致志地把它嵌回原处，没有注意到杯子被拿回时伏地魔脸上掠过的一丝阴影。

“A badger,” murmured Voldemort, examining the engraving upon the cup. “Then this was . . . ?”

“好啦，”赫普兹巴愉快地说道，“郝琪在哪儿？哦，在这儿——把它拿走吧，郝琪——”

“Helga Hufflepuff ’s, as you very well know, you clever boy!” said Hepzibah, leaning forward with a loud creaking of corsets and actually pinching his hollow cheek. “Didn’t I tell you I was distantly descended? This has been handed down in the family for years and years. Lovely, isn’t it? And all sorts of powers it’s supposed to possess too, but I haven’t tested them thoroughly, I just keep it nice and safe in here. . . .”

小精灵顺从地接过装杯子的盒子。赫普兹巴的注意力转向了她膝上那个扁一些的盒子。

She hooked the cup back off Voldemort’s long forefinger and restored it gently to its box, too intent upon settling it carefully back into position to notice the shadow that crossed Voldemort’s face as the cup was taken away.

“我想这个你会更喜欢的，汤姆。”她轻声说道，“凑近一点儿，亲爱的孩子，看清楚……当然，博克知道我有这个，我从他那儿买来的。我敢说等我死后他一定想把它拿回去……”

REQUEST

她拨开精致的金丝扣，打开了盒盖。深红的天鹅绒衬垫上躺着一个沉甸甸的金色小挂坠盒。

“Now then,” said Hepzibah happily, “where’s Hokey? Oh yes, there you are — take that away now, Hokey.”

伏地魔这次没等邀请就伸手把小挂坠盒拿了起来，举到光下细细看着。

The elf obediently took the boxed cup, and Hepzibah turned her attention to the much flatter box in her lap.

“斯莱特林的记号。”他轻声说，光中闪耀着一个华丽的、蛇形的S。

“I think you’ll like this even more, Tom,” she whispered. “Lean in a little, dear boy, so you can see. . . . Of course, Burke knows I’ve got this one, I bought it from him, and I daresay he’d love to get it back when I’m gone. . . .”

“对啦！”看到伏地魔出神地盯着她的小金盒，赫普兹巴显然很高兴，“为这个我可花了高价，可是我不能错过，一定要把它加入我的收藏。博克是从一个寒酸的女人那儿买来的，那女人大概是偷的，不知道它的真实价值——”

She slid back the fine filigree clasp and flipped open the box. There upon the smooth crimson velvet lay a heavy golden locket.

这次错不了了：她说话时伏地魔的眼睛里闪烁着红光，哈利看到他攥着小金盒链子的手指关节都变白了。

Voldemort reached out his hand, without invitation this time, and held it up to the light, staring at it.

“——我敢说博克没付给她几个钱，可是你看……多漂亮，是不是？还有各种魔力，虽然我只是把它安全地收着……”

“Slytherin’s mark,” he said quietly, as the light played upon an ornate, serpentine S.

她伸手去收回小金盒。有那么一刻，哈利以为伏地魔不会放手，但它从他指间滑下，落到了红天鹅绒垫子上。

“That’s right!” said Hepzibah, delighted, apparently, at the sight of Voldemort gazing at her locket, transfixed. “I had to pay an arm and a leg for it, but I couldn’t let it pass, not a real treasure like that, had to have it for my collection. Burke bought it, apparently, from a ragged-looking woman who seemed to have stolen it, but had no idea of its true value —”

“好了，汤姆，亲爱的，我希望你喜欢！”

There was no mistaking it this time: Voldemort’s eyes flashed scarlet at the words, and Harry saw his knuckles whiten on the locket’s chain.

她端详着他的面孔，哈利第一次看到她脸上的傻笑呆滞了。

“— I daresay Burke paid her a pittance but there you are. . . . Pretty, isn’t it? And again, all kinds of powers attributed to it, though I just keep it nice and safe. . . .”

“你没事吧，亲爱的？”

She reached out to take the locket back. For a moment, Harry thought Voldemort was not going to let go of it, but then it had slid through his fingers and was back in its red velvet cushion.

“没事，”伏地魔安静地说，“没事，我很好……”

“So there you are, Tom, dear, and I hope you enjoyed that!”

“我以为——是光线吧——”赫普兹巴说，好像有点慌乱。哈利猜她可能也看到了伏地魔眼中那瞬间的红光。“来，郝琪，把它们拿走，重新锁起来……用老魔法……”

She looked him full in the face and for the first time, Harry saw her foolish smile falter.

“该走了，哈利。”邓布利多轻声说。小精灵举着盒子摇摇摆摆地走开时，邓布利多抓住哈利的胳膊，一起穿过一片虚空，升回了邓布利多的办公室。

“Are you all right, dear?”

“赫普兹巴·史密斯在这之后两天就去世了。”邓布利多坐了下来，示意哈利也坐下，“魔法部判定，是家养小精灵郝琪在她女主人的晚饮可可茶中误放了毒药。”

“Oh yes,” said Voldemort quietly. “Yes, I’m very well. . . .”

“不可能！”哈利气愤地说。

“I thought — but a trick of the light, I suppose —” said Hepzibah, looking unnerved, and Harry guessed that she too had seen the momentary red gleam in Voldemort’s eyes. “Here, Hokey, take these away and lock them up again. . . . The usual enchantments . . .”

“看来我们意见一致，”邓布利多答道，“当然，这起死亡案与里德尔家的命案有许多相似点。两起案子中都有替罪羊，替罪羊对杀人经过都有清楚的记忆——”

“Time to leave, Harry,” said Dumbledore quietly, and as the little elf bobbed away bearing the boxes, Dumbledore grasped Harry once again above the elbow and together they rose up through oblivion and back to Dumbledore’s office.

“郝琪承认了？”

“Hepzibah Smith died two days after that little scene,” said Dumbledore, resuming his seat and indicating that Harry should do the same. “Hokey the house-elf was convicted by the Ministry of poisoning her mistress’s evening cocoa by accident.”

“她记得在女主人的可可茶里放了点儿东西，后来发现那不是糖，而是一种罕见而致命的毒药。判决说她不是蓄意谋杀，而是老眼昏花——”

“No way!” said Harry angrily.

“伏地魔篡改了她的记忆，就像对莫芬那样！”

“I see we are of one mind,” said Dumbledore. “Certainly, there are many similarities between this death and that of the Riddles. In both cases, somebody else took the blame, someone who had a clear memory of having caused the death —”

“对，这也是我的结论。而且，也像对莫芬那样，魔法部本来就倾向于怀疑郝琪——”

“Hokey confessed?”

“——因为她是家养小精灵，”哈利说，他从没像现在这样同情赫敏组织的社团：家养小精灵解放阵线。

“She remembered putting something in her mistress’s cocoa that turned out not to be sugar, but a lethal and little-known poison,” said Dumbledore. “It was concluded that she had not meant to do it, but being old and confused —”

“正是，而且她又老了，她承认在饮料里放了东西之后，魔法部就没人想到再去调查。跟莫芬的情况一样，等我找到她，取得她的记忆时，她几乎已经走到生命的尽头。当然，她的记忆只能证明伏地魔知道杯子和挂坠盒的存在。

REQUEST

“郝琪被定罪时，赫普兹巴的家族发现她的两件最贵重的宝物已经丢失。他们花了一段时间才确定了这件事，因为她有很多秘密的藏宝地点，总是把她的收藏看得特别严。而在他们认定杯子和挂坠盒都不见了之前，博金－博克的那个店员，那个经常去看赫普兹巴并且那样会讨她欢心的青年，已经辞职消失了。他的老板也不知道他的去向，他们像别人一样感到意外。汤姆·里德尔在很长一段时间里销声匿迹了。

“Voldemort modified her memory, just like he did with Morfin!”

“现在，”邓布利多说道，“如果你不介意，哈利，我想再提醒你注意一下故事中的某些细节。伏地魔又犯下了一桩谋杀案。不知道这是不是继里德尔家命案之后的第一桩，但我想是。你想必也看到了，这一次他不是为了报复，而是为了利益。他想要那可怜的老太太给他看的那两件奇宝。就像他抢孤儿院其他孩子的东西一样，就像他偷他舅舅的戒指一样，这次他盗走了赫普兹巴的杯子和挂坠盒。”

“Yes, that is my conclusion too,” said Dumbledore. “And, just as with Morfin, the Ministry was predisposed to suspect Hokey —”

“可是，”哈利皱着眉头说道，“这好像很疯狂……冒那么大的风险，丢掉工作，就为了……”

“— because she was a house-elf,” said Harry. He had rarely felt more in sympathy with the society Hermione had set up, S.P.E.W.

“也许对你来说是疯狂，但对伏地魔不是。”邓布利多说，“我希望你将来能理解这些东西对他的意义，哈利。但你必须承认，至少不难想象他认为挂坠盒理所当然是属于他的。”

“Precisely,” said Dumbledore. “She was old, she admitted to having tampered with the drink, and nobody at the Ministry bothered to inquire further. As in the case of Morfin, by the time I traced her and managed to extract this memory, her life was almost over — but her memory, of course, proves nothing except that Voldemort knew of the existence of the cup and the locket.

“挂坠盒也许吧，”哈利说，“可为什么他把杯子也拿走呢？”

“By the time Hokey was convicted, Hepzibah’s family had realized that two of her greatest treasures were missing. It took them a while to be sure of this, for she had many hiding places, having always guarded her collection most jealously. But before they were sure beyond doubt that the cup and the locket were both gone, the assistant who had worked at Borgin and Burkes, the young man who had visited Hepzibah so regularly and charmed her so well, had resigned his post and vanished. His superiors had no idea where he had gone; they were as surprised as anyone at his disappearance. And that was the last that was seen or heard of Tom Riddle for a very long time.

“那只杯子曾属于霍格沃茨的另一位创始人。我想这所学校对伏地魔仍然有着很大的吸引力，他无法抗拒一个浸透着霍格沃茨历史的东西。我想还有其他原因……我希望将来能向你证明。”

“Now,” said Dumbledore, “if you don’t mind, Harry, I want to pause once more to draw your attention to certain points of our story. Voldemort had committed another murder; whether it was his first since he killed the Riddles, I do not know, but I think it was. This time, as you will have seen, he killed not for revenge, but for gain. He wanted the two fabulous trophies that poor, besotted, old woman showed him. Just as he had once robbed the other children at his orphanage, just as he had stolen his Uncle Morfin’s ring, so he ran off now with Hepzibah’s cup and locket.”

邓布利多把最后一瓶记忆倒入了冥想盆，哈利再次站了起来。

“But,” said Harry, frowning, “it seems mad. . . . Risking everything, throwing away his job, just for those . . .”

“这是谁的记忆？”

“Mad to you, perhaps, but not to Voldemort,” said Dumbledore. “I hope you will understand in due course exactly what those objects meant to him, Harry, but you must admit that it is not difficult to imagine that he saw the locket, at least, as rightfully his.”

“我的。”邓布利多说。

“The locket maybe,” said Harry, “but why take the cup as well?”

哈利跟着邓布利多潜入了流动的银色物质，落到他刚刚离开的办公室里。福克斯在栖木上酣睡着。书桌后是邓布利多，看上去跟站在哈利身边的邓布利多很像，不过两只手是完好无损的，脸上皱纹或许略少一些。这间办公室与现在的惟一区别是外面在下雪，淡青的雪片在黑暗中飘过窗前，堆积在外面的窗台上。

“It had belonged to another of Hogwarts’s founders,” said Dumbledore. “I think he still felt a great pull toward the school and that he could not resist an object so steeped in Hogwarts history. There were other reasons, I think. . . . I hope to be able to demonstrate them to you in due course.

年轻一些的邓布利多似乎在等待什么，果然，不一会儿便响起了敲门声，他说：“进来。”

“And now for the very last recollection I have to show you, at least until you manage to retrieve Professor Slughorn’s memory for us. Ten years separates Hokey’s memory and this one, ten years during which we can only guess at what Lord Voldemort was doing. . . .”

哈利差点儿叫出了声，但赶紧忍住了。伏地魔走了进来，他的面孔不是哈利两年前看到的从大石头坩埚里升起的那样，不那么像蛇，眼睛还不那么红，脸还不像面具。他的面孔似乎被烧过，五官模糊，像蜡一样，古怪地扭曲着。眼白现在似乎永久地充着血，但瞳孔还不是哈利后来所看到的那两条缝。他身上披着一件长长的黑斗篷，脸像肩头的雪花一样白。

Harry got to his feet once more as Dumbledore emptied the last memory into the Pensieve.

桌后的邓布利多没有显出吃惊之色。这次来访显然是有预约的。

“Whose memory is it?” he asked.

“晚上好，汤姆，”邓布利多轻松地说，“坐吧。”

“Mine,” said Dumbledore.

“谢谢，”伏地魔坐到邓布利多指的椅子上——看上去就是哈利刚刚离开的那张，“我听说你当了校长，”他的声音比先前要高一些，冷一些，“可敬的选择。”

And Harry dived after Dumbledore through the shifting silver mass, landing in the very office he had just left. There was Fawkes slumbering happily on his perch, and there behind the desk was Dumbledore, who looked very similar to the Dumbledore standing beside Harry, though both hands were whole and undamaged and his face was, perhaps, a little less lined. The one difference between

“我很高兴你赞成。”邓布利多微笑道，“可以请你喝杯饮料吗？”

REQUEST the present-day office and this one was that it was snowing in the past; bluish flecks were drifting past the window in the dark and building up on the outside ledge.

“那太感谢了，”伏地魔说，“我走了很远的路。”

The younger Dumbledore seemed to be waiting for something, and sure enough, moments after their arrival, there was a knock on the door and he said, “Enter.”

邓布利多站了起来，快步走到现在放冥想盆的柜子前，但那时摆满了酒瓶。他递给伏地魔一杯葡萄酒，给自己也倒了一杯，然后回到书桌旁。

Harry let out a hastily stifled gasp. Voldemort had entered the room. His features were not those Harry had seen emerge from the great stone cauldron almost two years ago: They were not as snakelike, the eyes were not yet scarlet, the face not yet masklike, and yet he was no longer handsome Tom Riddle. It was as though his features had been burned and blurred; they were waxy and oddly distorted, and the whites of the eyes now had a permanently bloody look, though the pupils were not yet the slits that Harry knew they would become. He was wearing a long black cloak, and his face was as pale as the snow glistening on his shoulders.

“那么，汤姆……是什么风把你吹来的？”

The Dumbledore behind the desk showed no sign of surprise. Evidently this visit had been made by appointment.

伏地魔没有马上回答，只是呷着酒。

“Good evening, Tom,” said Dumbledore easily. “Won’t you sit down?”

“他们不再叫我‘汤姆’了，如今我被称为——”

“Thank you,” said Voldemort, and he took the seat to which Dumbledore had gestured — the very seat, by the looks of it, that Harry had just vacated in the present. “I heard that you had become headmaster,” he said, and his voice was slightly higher and colder than it had been. “A worthy choice.”

“我知道你被称为什么，”邓布利多愉快地微笑道，“但是对我，你恐怕将永远都是汤姆·里德尔。这恐怕就是当老师的让人讨厌的地方之一，他们从来不会完全忘记学生当初的情形。”

“I am glad you approve,” said Dumbledore, smiling. “May I offer you a drink?”

他举起杯子，像要跟伏地魔干杯。伏地魔还是面无表情。但哈利感到屋里的气氛发生了微妙的变化：邓布利多拒绝用伏地魔选定的称呼，是拒绝让伏地魔支配谈话。哈利看得出伏地魔也感觉到了。

“That would be welcome,” said Voldemort. “I have come a long way.”

“我惊讶你在这儿待了这么久，”伏地魔停了一会儿说，“我一直奇怪，你这样一位巫师怎么从来不想离开学校。”

Dumbledore stood and swept over to the cabinet where he now kept the Pensieve, but which then was full of bottles. Having handed Voldemort a goblet of wine and poured one for himself, he returned to the seat behind his desk.

“哦，”邓布利多说，依旧面带笑容，“对于我这样的巫师来说，没有什么比传授古老技艺和训练年轻头脑更重要了。如果我记得不错，你也曾经看到过教师职业的吸引力。”

“So, Tom . . . to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“我现在仍然能看到，”伏地魔说，“我只是奇怪为什么你——经常被魔法部请教，并且好像两次被提名为魔法部长的人——”

Voldemort did not answer at once, but merely sipped his wine.

“实际上有三次了，但魔法部的职业对我从来没有吸引力。这是我们共同的地方，我想。”

“They do not call me ‘Tom’ anymore,” he said. “These days, I am known as —”

伏地魔不带笑容地低下头，又呷了一口酒。邓布利多没有打破两人之间的沉默，而是带着愉快的表情期待伏地魔先开口。

“I know what you are known as,” said Dumbledore, smiling pleasantly. “But to me, I’m afraid, you will always be Tom Riddle. It is one of the irritating things about old teachers. I am afraid that they never quite forget their charges’ youthful beginnings.”

“我回来了，”过了片刻他说，“可能比迪佩特教授期望的晚了一点……但是回来了，为的是再次申请他那时说我太年轻而不适合担任的职位。我来请你允许我回这座城堡执教，你想必知道我离开这里后见了很多，也做了很多，我可以教授你的学生从其他巫师那里学不到的东西。”

He raised his glass as though toasting Voldemort, whose face remained expressionless. Nevertheless, Harry felt the atmosphere in the room change subtly: Dumbledore’s refusal to use Voldemort’s chosen name was a refusal to allow Voldemort to dictate the terms of the meeting, and Harry could tell that Voldemort took it as such.

邓布利多从他的杯子上面打量了伏地魔一会儿才开口。

“I am surprised you have remained here so long,” said Voldemort after a short pause. “I always wondered why a wizard such as yourself never wished to leave school.”

“是的，我知道你离开我们之后见了很多，也做了很多。”他平静地说道，“关于你所作所为的传闻也传到了你的母校，汤姆。如果它们有一半可信，我将非常遗憾。”

“Well,” said Dumbledore, still smiling, “to a wizard such as myself, there can be nothing more important than passing on ancient skills, helping hone young minds. If I remember correctly, you once saw the attraction of teaching too.”

伏地魔依然面无表情，说道：“伟大引起嫉妒，嫉妒导致怨毒，怨毒滋生谎言。这你一定了解，邓布利多。”

“I see it still,” said Voldemort. “I merely wondered why you — who are so often asked for advice by the Ministry, and who have twice, I think, been offered the post of Minister —”

“你把你的所作所为称为‘伟大’，是吗？”邓布利多优雅地问。

REQUEST

“当然，”伏地魔说，他的眼睛好像烧红了，“我做了实验，可能已把魔法推进到前所未有的——”

“Three times at the last count, actually,” said Dumbledore. “But the Ministry never attracted me as a career. Again, something we have in common, I think.”

“是某些魔法，”邓布利多平静地纠正他说，“某些。但在另一些上，你还是……恕我直言……无知得可悲。”

Voldemort inclined his head, unsmiling, and took another sip of wine. Dumbledore did not break the silence that stretched between them now, but waited, with a look of pleasant expectancy, for Voldemort to talk first.

伏地魔第一次笑了，那是一种睥睨的讥笑，邪恶的表情，比暴怒更加可怕。

“I have returned,” he said, after a little while, “later, perhaps, than Professor Dippet expected . . . but I have returned, nevertheless, to request again what he once told me I was too young to have. I have come to you to ask that you permit me to return to this castle, to teach. I think you must know that I have seen and done much since I left this place. I could show and tell your students things they can gain from no other wizard.”

“老论调，”他轻声说，“可是，邓布利多，我在世上所见没有一样能证明你那著名的观点：爱比我那种魔法更加强大。”

Dumbledore considered Voldemort over the top of his own goblet for a while before speaking.

“也许你找的地方不对。”邓布利多提醒道。

“Yes, I certainly do know that you have seen and done much since leaving us,” he said quietly. “Rumors of your doings have reached your old school, Tom. I should be sorry to believe half of them.”

“那么，还有哪里比这儿——霍格沃茨——更适合我开始新的研究呢？”伏地魔说，“你肯让我回来吗？你能让我与你的学生分享我之所学吗？我将我自己和我的才能交给你，听你指挥。”

Voldemort’s expression remained impassive as he said, “Greatness inspires envy, envy engenders spite, spite spawns lies. You must know this, Dumbledore.”

邓布利多扬起了眉毛。

“You call it ‘greatness,’ what you have been doing, do you?” asked Dumbledore delicately.

“听你指挥的那些人呢？那些自称——或据说自称食死徒的人怎么办？”

“Certainly,” said Voldemort, and his eyes seemed to burn red. “I have experimented; I have pushed the boundaries of magic further, perhaps, than they have ever been pushed —”

哈利看出伏地魔没想到邓布利多知道这个名字，他看到伏地魔的眼睛又闪着红光，两道缝隙般的鼻孔张大了。

“Of some kinds of magic,” Dumbledore corrected him quietly. “Of some. Of others, you remain . . . forgive me . . . woefully ignorant.”

“我的朋友们——”他停了一刻说，“他们没有我也会继续干下去的，我相信。”

For the first time, Voldemort smiled. It was a taut leer, an evil thing, more threatening than a look of rage.

“我很高兴听到你把他们称作朋友，”邓布利多说，“我以为他们更像是仆人。”

“The old argument,” he said softly. “But nothing I have seen in the world has supported your famous pronouncements that love is more powerful than my kind of magic, Dumbledore.”

“你错了。”伏地魔说。

“Perhaps you have been looking in the wrong places,” suggested Dumbledore.

“那么，如果我今晚去猪头酒吧，不会看到那群人——诺特、罗齐尔、穆尔塞伯、多洛霍夫——在等你回去吧？真是忠诚的朋友啊，跟你在雪夜里跋涉了这么远，只是为了祝你谋到一个教职。”

“Well, then, what better place to start my fresh researches than here, at Hogwarts?” said Voldemort. “Will you let me return? Will you let me share my knowledge with your students? I place myself and my talents at your disposal. I am yours to command.”

邓布利多对他的随行者如此了解无疑使伏地魔更加不快，但他几乎立刻镇定下来。

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. “And what will become of those whom you command? What will happen to those who call themselves — or so rumor has it — the Death Eaters?”

“你还是无所不知，邓布利多。”

Harry could tell that Voldemort had not expected Dumbledore to know this name; he saw Voldemort’s eyes flash red again and the slitlike nostrils flare.

“哦，哪里，只是跟当地酒吧服务员的关系不错而已。”邓布利多轻松地说道，“现在，汤姆……”

“My friends,” he said, after a moment’s pause, “will carry on without me, I am sure.”

邓布利多放下空杯子，坐直身子，双手指尖碰在一起，这是他惯有的姿势。

“I am glad to hear that you consider them friends,” said Dumbledore. “I was under the impression that they are more in the order of servants.”

“……我们把话说开吧，你今晚为什么带着手下到这里来，申请一份你我都知道你并不想要的工作？”

“You are mistaken,” said Voldemort.

伏地魔显出冷冷的惊讶。

“Then if I were to go to the Hog’s Head tonight, I would not find a group of them — Nott, Rosier, Mulciber, Dolohov — awaiting your return? Devoted friends indeed, to travel this far with you on

“我不想要的工作？恰恰相反，邓布利多，我非常想要。”

REQUEST a snowy night, merely to wish you luck as you attempted to secure a teaching post.”

“哦，你想回到霍格沃茨，但你其实并不比十八岁时更想教书。你究竟想要什么，汤姆？为什么不能坦率一次呢？”

There could be no doubt that Dumbledore’s detailed knowledge of those with whom he was traveling was even less welcome to Voldemort; however, he rallied almost at once.

伏地魔冷笑了一声。

“You are omniscient as ever, Dumbledore.”

“如果你不想给我一份工作——”

“Oh no, merely friendly with the local barmen,” said Dumbledore lightly. “Now, Tom . . .”

“当然不想，”邓布利多说，“而且我看你也没有指望我给你。但你还是来了，提出了申请，你一定有所企图。”

Dumbledore set down his empty glass and drew himself up in his seat, the tips of his fingers together in a very characteristic gesture.

伏地魔站了起来，满面怒容，看上去比以前任何时候都不像汤姆·里德尔。

“Let us speak openly. Why have you come here tonight, surrounded by henchmen, to request a job we both know you do not want?”

“这是你的最后决定？”

Voldemort looked coldly surprised. “A job I do not want? On the contrary, Dumbledore, I want it very much.”

“是的。”邓布利多也站了起来。

“Oh, you want to come back to Hogwarts, but you do not want to teach any more than you wanted to when you were eighteen. What is it you’re after, Tom? Why not try an open request for once?”

“那我们就没有什么可谈的了。”

Voldemort sneered. “If you do not want to give me a job —”

“没有了。”邓布利多说，脸上露出深深的悲哀，“我能用燃烧的衣柜吓住你，迫使你赎罪的时间早已过去。可我希望能，汤姆……我希望能……”

“Of course I don’t,” said Dumbledore. “And I don’t think for a moment you expected me to. Nevertheless, you came here, you asked, you must have had a purpose.”

有那么一瞬间，哈利差点喊出一声无用的警告，他确信伏地魔的手突然移向了口袋里的魔杖……但那一刻过去了，伏地魔已经转身走开，门在关上，他不见了。

Voldemort stood up. He looked less like Tom Riddle than ever, his features thick with rage. “This is your final word?”

哈利感到邓布利多的手又抓住了他的胳膊，过了一会儿，他们站到了几乎相同的地点，但外面没有雪落到窗台上，邓布利多的手又变得焦枯了。

“It is,” said Dumbledore, also standing.

“为什么？”哈利马上问，仰望着邓布利多的面孔，“他为什么回来？你搞清了吗？”

“Then we have nothing more to say to each other.”

“我有些想法，但只是想法而已。”

“No, nothing,” said Dumbledore, and a great sadness filled his face. “The time is long gone when I could frighten you with a burning wardrobe and force you to make repayment for your crimes. But I wish I could, Tom. . . . I wish I could. . . .”

“什么想法，先生？”

For a second, Harry was on the verge of shouting a pointless warning: He was sure that Voldemort’s hand had twitched toward his pocket and his wand; but then the moment had passed, Voldemort had turned away, the door was closing, and he was gone.

“等你拿到斯拉格霍恩教授的那段记忆，我就会告诉你，哈利。”邓布利多说，“找到那最后一块拼图，一切都会明白的……对我们两人都是，我希望。”

Harry felt Dumbledore’s hand close over his arm again and moments later, they were standing together on almost the same spot, but there was no snow building on the window ledge, and Dumbledore’s hand was blackened and dead-looking once more.

哈利仍满肚子好奇，当邓布利多走到门口、为他打开门时，他并没有马上动身。

“Why?” said Harry at once, looking up into Dumbledore’s face. “Why did he come back? Did you ever find out?”

“他还是想教黑魔法防御术吗，先生？他没说……”

“I have ideas,” said Dumbledore, “but no more than that.”

“哦——他肯定是想教黑魔法防御术。我们那次短暂会面的后果证明了这一点。自从我拒绝伏地魔之后，就没有一个黑魔法防御术教师能教到一年以上。”

“What ideas, sir?”

①彩球鱼，见《神奇动物在哪里》一书第64页，人民文学出版社，2001年10月第1版。

“I shall tell you, Harry, when you have retrieved that memory from Professor Slughorn,” said Dumbledore. “When you have that last piece of the jigsaw, everything will, I hope, be clear . . . to both of us.”

Harry was still burning with curiosity and even though Dumbledore had walked to the door and was holding it open for him, he did not move at once.

“Was he after the Defense Against the Dark Arts job again, sir? He didn’t say. . . .”

“Oh, he definitely wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts job,” said Dumbledore. “The aftermath of our little meeting proved that. You see, we have never been able to keep a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher for longer than a year since I refused the post to Lord Voldemort.”

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