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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 TWENTY-ONE - THE HOUSE-ELF LIBERATION FRONT

第二十一章　家养小精灵解放阵线

Harry, Ron, and Hermione went up to the Owlery that evening to find Pigwidgeon, so that Harry could send Sirius a letter telling him that he had managed to get past his dragon unscathed. On the way, Harry filled Ron in on everything Sirius had told him about Karkaroff. Though shocked at first to hear that Karkaroff had been a Death Eater, by the time they entered the Owlery Ron was saying that they ought to have suspected it all along.

那天晚上，哈利、罗恩和赫敏到猫头鹰棚屋去找小猪，哈利想给小天狼星捎一封信，把自己安然无恙穿越火龙的经过告诉他。路上，哈利把小天狼星提醒他警惕卡卡洛夫的话一股脑儿地都对罗恩说了。罗恩听说卡卡洛夫是个食死徒，起初大吃一惊，可当他们走进猫头鹰棚屋时，罗恩又说他们早就应该怀疑到这一点了。

"Fits, doesn't it?" he said. "Remember what Malfoy said on the train, about his dad being friends with Karkaroff? Now we know where they knew each other.

“这就对了！”罗恩说，“还记得马尔福在火车上说过的话吗，说他爸爸和卡卡洛夫是朋友？现在我们知道他们是在什么地方认识的了。他们大概是在世界杯赛上一起戴着面具游行的……不过，有一点我要告诉你，哈利，如果是卡卡洛夫把你的名字放进火焰杯的，那么他现在就感到有点儿傻眼了，是不是？没有成功，你只擦破了点儿皮！过来——让我来——”

They were probably running around in masks together at the World Cup.... I'll tell you one thing, though, Harry, if it was Karkaroff who put your name in the goblet, he's going to be feeling really stupid now, isn't he? Didn't work, did it? You only got a scratch!

小猪一听说要让它送信，就激动得发了疯似的，在哈利头顶上飞了一圈又一圈，不停地鸣叫着。罗恩一把将小猪从空中抓下来，摁住了它，哈利把信拴在它的腿上。

Come here - I'll do it -"

“另外两个项目不可能这么危险了，绝对不可能。”罗恩抱着小猪向窗口走去，一边说道，“你知道吗？我认为这次争霸赛你能赢，真的，哈利，我说的是真话。”

Pigwidgeon was so overexcited at the idea of a delivery he was flying around and around Harry's head, hooting incessantly. Ron snatched Pigwidgeon out of the air and held him still while Harry attached the letter to his leg.

哈利知道，罗恩这么说只是为了弥补他前几个星期的行为，但他仍然觉得很感激。赫敏靠在棚屋的墙上，抱着双臂，对罗恩皱起了眉头。

"There's no way any of the other tasks are going to be that dangerous, how could they be?" Ron went on as he carried Pigwidgeon to the window. "You know what? I reckon you could win this tournament, Harry, I'm serious."

“要完成这次争霸赛，哈利前面的路还长着呢。”她严肃地说，“第一个项目就这样危险，我真不愿意想象接下来会是什么。”

Harry knew that Ron was only saying this to make up for his behavior of the last few weeks, but he appreciated it all the same. Hermione, however, leaned against the Owlery wall, folded her arms, and frowned at Ron.

“要看到一些光明嘛！”罗恩说道，“赫敏，你和特里劳妮教授很有共同语言，应该联合起来。”

"Harry's got a long way to go before he finishes this tournament," she said seriously.

他把小猪从窗口扔了出去。小猪向下坠落了二十英尺，才挣扎着重新飞了起来。拴在它腿上的那封信比往常长得多、重得多——哈利忍不住向小天狼星一五一十地描述了他与树蜂周旋的经过，怎样辗转腾挪、左躲右闪。他们注视着小猪消失在夜空中，然后罗恩说：“好了，哈利，我们最好下楼去参加为你举行的惊喜晚会吧——弗雷德和乔治肯定已经从厨房偷来不少好吃的了。”

"If that was the first task, I hate to think what's coming next."

果然，当他们走进格兰芬多公共休息室时，里面又一次爆发出一片欢呼和喧哗。桌子、椅子上都堆着小山一般的蛋糕，还有一壶壶南瓜汁和黄油啤酒。李·乔丹燃放了一些费力拔焰火，空气里闪动着许多星星和火花。擅长绘画的迪安·托马斯挂起了好几条醒目的新横幅，大多数横幅上都画着哈利骑着火弩箭绕着树蜂穿梭飞翔的场面，不过也有两幅表现了塞德里克脑袋着火的情景。

"Right little ray of sunshine, aren't you?" said Ron. "You and Professor Trelawney should get together sometime."

哈利吃了起来。这些日子，他几乎忘记什么是正常的饥饿感了。他和罗恩、赫敏一起坐了下来。他简直无法相信自己有多么开心：罗恩又回到了他身边，他通过了第一个项目，而第二个项目要三个月以后才去面对。

He threw Pigwidgeon out of the window. Pigwidgeon plummeted twelve feet before managing to pull himself back up again; the letter attached to his leg was much longer and heavier than usual - Harry hadn't been able to resist giving Sirius a blow-by-blow account of exactly how he had swerved, circled, and dodged the Horntail. They watched Pigwidgeon disappear into the darkness, and then Ron said, "Well, we'd better get downstairs for your surprise party, Harry - Fred and George should have nicked enough food from the kitchens by now."

“天哪，还挺觉的，”李·乔丹拿着哈利放在桌上的金蛋，用双手掂量着，说，“快把它打开，哈利！让我们看看里面是什么！”

Sure enough, when they entered the Gryffindor common room it exploded with cheers and yells again. There were mountains of cakes and flagons of pumpkin juice and butterbeer on every surface; Lee Jordan had let off some Filibuster's Fireworks, so that the air was thick with stars and sparks; and Dean Thomas, who was very good at drawing, had put up some impressive new banners, most of which depicted Harry zooming around the Horntail's head on his Firebolt, though a couple showed Cedric with his head on fire.

“他应该自己解开线索，”赫敏赶忙说道，“争霸赛的章程规定……”

Harry helped himself to food; he had almost forgotten what it was like to feel properly hungry, and sat down with Ron and Hermione. He couldn't believe how happy he felt; he had Ron back on his side, he'd gotten through the first task, and he wouldn't have to face the second one for three months.

“我也应该自己解决怎样穿越火龙的问题呀。”哈利嘀咕了一句。他的声音很低，只有赫敏能够听见，赫敏心虚地咧开嘴笑了。

"Blimey, this is heavy," said Lee Jordan, picking up the golden egg, which Harry had left on a table, and weighing it in his hands. "Open it, Harry, go on! Let's just see what's

“好了，来吧，哈利，把它打开！”几个人响应着。

inside it!"

李把金蛋递给了哈利，哈利用指甲抠进金蛋上的一圈凹槽，把蛋撬开了。

"He's supposed to work out the clue on his own," Hermione said swiftly. "It's in the tournament rules. . . ."

里面是空的，什么也没有——但就在哈利把它打开的那一瞬间，一种极为恐怖的、尖厉刺耳的惨叫声充满了整个房间。哈利以前只是在差点没头的尼克的忌辰晚会上叫到过类似的声音，那是鬼魂乐队用乐锯演奏的噪音。

"I was supposed to work out how to get past the dragon on my own too," Harry muttered, so only Hermione could hear him, and she grinned rather guiltily.

“快关上！”弗雷德用手捂着耳朵吼道。

"Yeah, go on, Harry, open it!" several people echoed.

哈利把金蛋猛地合上。

Lee passed Harry the egg, and Harry dug his fingernails into the groove that ran all the way around it and prised it open.

“那是什么？”西莫·斐尼甘盯着金蛋问道，“像是女鬼的叫声……哈利，你下次可能要从一个女鬼身边通过！”

It was hollow and completely empty - but the moment Harry opened it, the most horrible noise, a loud and screechy wailing, filled the room. The nearest thing to it Harry had ever heard was the ghost orchestra at Nearly Headless Nick's deathday party, who had all been playing the musical saw.

“好像是什么人在受折磨！”纳威说——他脸色惨白，把香肠肉撒了一地，“你要对付的是钻心咒！”

"Shut it!" Fred bellowed, his hands over his ears.

“别说傻话，纳威，那是不合法的，”乔治说，“他们不能在勇士身上念钻心咒。我倒觉得这声音有点像珀西在唱歌……说不定你要在他冲澡的时候去袭击他，哈利。”

"What was that?" said Seamus Finnigan, staring at the egg as Harry slammed it shut again. "Sounded like a banshee ... Maybe you've got to get past one of those next, Harry!"

“来一块果酱馅饼吗，赫敏？”

"It was someone being tortured!" said Neville, who had gone very white and spilled sausage rolls all over the floor. "You're going to have to fight the Cruciatus Curse!"

赫敏怀疑地望着他递过来的盘子。弗雷德咧开嘴笑了。

"Don't be a prat, Neville, that's illegal," said George. "They wouldn't use the Cruciatus Curse on the champions. I thought it sounded a bit like Percy singing . ..

“你放心，”他说，“我没有对它们做什么手脚。你需要留神的是蛋奶饼干——”

maybe you've got to attack him while he's in the shower. Harry."

纳威刚咬了一口蛋奶饼干，一听这话就噎住了，把饼干吐了出来。弗雷德哈哈大笑。

"Want a jam tart, Hermione?" said Fred.

“我只是开个小玩笑，纳威……”

Hermione looked doubtfully at the plate he was offering her. Fred grinned.

赫敏拿起一块果酱馅饼，然后说道：“这些东西都是你们从厨房拿来的，弗雷德？”

"It's all right," he said. "I haven't done anything to them. It's the custard creams you've got to watch -"

“是啊。”弗雷德说，笑嘻嘻地望着她。他憋出一种尖细刺耳的声音，模仿家养小精灵：“‘我们可以为你准备一切，先生，什么都行！’他们真是热心啊……只要我一说我有点儿饿了，他们就会给我烤一头牛。”

Neville, who had just bitten into a custard cream, choked and spat it out. Fred laughed.

“你们是怎么进去的？”赫敏用一种若无其事的随便口吻问道。

"Just my little joke, Neville.. . ."

“很方便，”弗雷德说道，“有一扇门藏在画着一碗水果的那幅画后面。只要轻轻挠一挠那个梨子，它就会吃吃发笑，然后——”他住了嘴，警惕地打量着她，“怎么啦？”

Hermione took a jam tart. Then she said, "Did you get all this from the kitchens, Fred?"

“没什么。”赫敏赶紧说道。

"Yep," said Fred, grinning at her. He put on a high-pitched squeak and imitated a house-elf. "'Anything we can get you, sir, anything at all!' They're dead helpful...

“又想领导家养小精灵出来罢工，是吗？”乔治问，“你准备放弃那些传单之类的玩艺儿，动员他们起来造反？”

get me a roast ox if I said I was peckish."

有几个人被逗得咯咯直笑。赫敏没有回答。

"How do you get in there?" Hermione said in an innocently casual sort of voice.

“你可不要把他们的思想搅乱，告诉他们必须穿衣服、拿工钱！”弗雷德警告她说，“你会弄得他们不想做饭的！”

"Easy," said Fred, "concealed door behind a painting of a bowl of fruit. Just tickle the pear, and it giggles and -" He stopped and looked suspiciously at her. "Why?"

就在这时，纳威突然变成了一只大金丝雀，暂时分散了大家的注意力。

"Nothing," said Hermione quickly.

“哟——对不起，纳威！”弗雷德在大家的笑声中喊道，“我忘记了——这就是我们施了魔法的蛋奶饼干——”

"Going to try and lead the house-elves out on strike now, are you?" said George. "Going to give up all the leaflet stuff and try and stir them up into rebellion?"

还好，不到一分钟，纳威就脱却了羽毛，当羽毛全部掉光后，他的样子又完全正常了。他甚至也和别人一起大笑起来。

Several people chortled. Hermione didn't answer.

“金丝雀饼干！”弗雷德对情绪高涨的人群喊道，“我和乔治发明的——七个银西可一块，很便宜啦！”

"Don't you go upsetting them and telling them they've got to take clothes and salaries!"

当哈利终于和罗恩、纳威、西莫和迪安一起回到楼上的宿舍时，已经差不多是凌晨一点了。哈利在拉上四柱床的帷帐前，把他的匈牙利树蜂小模型放在了床边的桌子上。小龙打了个哈欠，蜷缩起身子，闭上了眼睛。哈利一边拉上四柱床的帘子，一边想道，海格其实是有道理的……龙还是蛮可爱的，真的……

said Fred warningly. "You'll put them off their cooking!"

十二月给霍格沃茨带来了狂风和雨加雪。尽管城堡里冬天总是有穿堂风，但每次哈利走过停在湖面的德姆斯特朗的大船时，都为城堡里热腾腾的炉火和厚实的墙壁感到庆幸。那艘大船在狂风中颠簸摇摆，黑色的船帆在黑暗的夜空中翻飞起舞。他想，德姆斯特朗的活动住房里一定也冷得够呛。哈利还注意到，海格给马克西姆夫人的那些骏马不断提供它们最喜欢的纯麦芽威士忌。临时马厩角落里的饲料槽飘过来一阵阵酒味，熏得保护神奇动物课的同学们都有点晕晕乎乎的。这并没有什么好处，因为他们仍然在照料可怕的炸尾螺，需要运用一些智慧呢。

Just then, Neville caused a slight diversion by turning into a large canary.

“我拿不准它们是不是冬眠，”在下一节课上，海格告诉在南瓜地里瑟瑟发抖的同学们说，“我们不妨试一试，看它们想不想睡觉……我们把它们安顿在这些箱子里……”

"Oh - sorry, Neville!" Fred shouted over all the laughter. "I forgot - it was the custard creams we hexed -"

现在只剩下十条炸尾螺了。显然，它们互相残杀的欲望并没有彻底根除。如今它们每个都已接近六英尺长。它们厚厚的灰色保护层，它们胡乱摆动的有力的腿，它们不断爆炸喷火的尾巴，还有它们的刺和吸盘，所有这些加在一起，使炸尾螺成为哈利见过的最令人恶心的东西。同学们无精打采地望着海格搬出来的大箱子，箱子里都铺着枕头和毛绒绒的毯子。

Within a minute, however, Neville had molted, and once his feathers had fallen off, he reappeared looking entirely normal. He even joined in laughing.

“我们把它们领进去，”海格说道，“然后再盖上盖子，看看会出现什么情况。”

"Canary Creams!" Fred shouted to the excitable crowd. "George and I invented them -seven Sickles each, a bargain!"

结果，他们发现炸尾螺并不冬眠，而且不喜欢被人塞进铺着枕头的箱子，盖上盖子。很快，海格便喊叫起来：“别紧张，别紧张！”因为炸尾螺在南瓜里横冲直撞，地里已经撒满了冒着青烟的箱子碎片。大多数同学——马尔福、克拉布和高尔打头——已经从后门逃进了海格的小屋，把自己关在里面。哈利、罗恩、赫敏则和其他一些同学一起留在外面帮助海格。他们齐心协力，总算制服了九条炸尾螺，把它们捆了起来，但他们也付出了惨重的代价，身上被烧伤和划伤了无数处。最后，只剩下一条炸尾螺了。

It was nearly one in the morning when Harry finally went up to the dormitory with Ron, Neville, Seamus, and Dean. Before he pulled the curtains of his four-poster shut. Harry set his tiny model of the Hungarian Horntail on the table next to his bed, where it yawned, curled up, and closed its eyes. Really, Harry thought, as he pulled the hangings on his four-poster closed, Hagrid had a point.. . they were all right, really, dragons. .

“哎，别吓着它！”当哈利和罗恩用魔杖着朝炸尾螺喷射火星时，海格喊道——炸尾螺恶狠狠地朝他们逼近，背上的刺拱了起来，微微颤动着——“用绳子拴住它的刺，它就不会伤害别的炸尾螺了！”

. .

“是啊，我们可不愿意发生这样的事！”罗恩生气地嚷道，这时他和哈利退缩到海格小屋的墙根下，仍然用魔杖的火星阻止炸尾螺靠近。

The start of December brought wind and sleet to Hogwarts. Drafty though the castle always was in winter. Harry was glad of its fires and thick walls every time he passed the Durmstrang ship on the lake, which was pitching in the high winds, its black sails billowing against the dark skies. He thought the Beauxbatons caravan was likely to be pretty chilly too. Hagrid, he noticed, was keeping Madame Maxime's horses well provided with their preferred drink of single-malt whiskey; the fumes wafting from the trough in the

“好啊，好啊，好啊……看起来确实很好玩。”

comer of their paddock was enough to make the entire Care of Magical Creatures class light-headed. This was unhelpful, as they were still tending the horrible skrewts and needed their wits about them.

丽塔·斯基特靠在海格菜园子的栅栏上，看着这一幕闹剧。她今天穿着一件厚厚的洋红色长袍，紫色的领子是翻毛皮的，那只鳄鱼皮手袋挂在她的胳膊上。

"I'm not sure whether they hibernate or not," Hagrid told the shivering class in the windy pumpkin patch next lesson. "Thought we'd jus' try an see if they fancied a kip . .

炸尾螺把哈利和罗恩逼得走投无路了，海格扑过来压在它的身上，把它制服了。它尾巴后面喷出一团火焰，把旁边的南瓜苗都烧焦了。

. we'll jus' settle 'em down in these boxes. . . ."

“你是谁？”海格一边问丽塔·斯基特，一边把一个绳扣套在炸尾螺的刺上面，系紧了。

There were now only ten skrewts left; apparently their desire to kill one another had not been exercised out of them. Each of them was now approaching six feet in length. Their thick gray armor; their powerful, scuttling legs; their fire-blasting ends; their stings and their suckers, combined to make the skrewts the most repulsive things Harry had ever seen. The class looked dispiritedly at the enormous boxes Hagrid had brought out, all lined with pillows and fluffy blankets.

“我叫丽塔·斯基特，《预言家日报》的记者。”丽塔回答，满脸笑容地望着海格，嘴里的金牙闪闪发光。

"We'll jus' lead 'em in here," Hagrid said, "an' put the lids on, and we'll see what happens."

“好像邓布利多说过，不许你再进学校了。”海格微微皱着眉头说，一边翻身从压得有点儿变形的炸尾螺上下来，用力拖着它朝它的同伴们走去。

But the skrewts, it transpired, did not hibernate, and did not appreciate being forced into pillow-lined boxes and nailed in. Hagrid was soon yelling, "Don panic, now, don' panic!" while the skrewts rampaged around the pumpkin patch, now strewn with the smoldering wreckage of the boxes. Most of the class - Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle in the lead - had fled into Hagrid's cabin through the back door and barricaded themselves in; Harry, Ron, and Hermione, however, were among those who remained outside trying to help Hagrid. Together they managed to restrain and tie up nine of the skrewts, though at the cost of numerous burns and cuts; finally, only one skrewt was left.

丽塔好像根本没听见海格的话。

"Don' frighten him, now!" Hagrid shouted as Ron and Harry used their wands to shoot jets of fiery sparks at the skrewt, which was advancing menacingly on them, its sting arched, quivering, over its back. "Jus' try an slip the rope 'round his sting, so he won hurt any o' the others!"

“这些迷人的动物叫什么？”她问，脸上笑得更灿烂了。

"Yeah, we wouldn't want that!" Ron shouted angrily as he and Harry backed into the wall of Hagrid's cabin, still holding the skrewt off with their sparks.

“炸尾螺。”海格粗声粗气地回答。

"Well, well, well. . . this does look like fun."

“真的吗？”丽塔说，一副兴趣盎然的样子，“我以前从没有听说过……它们是从哪儿弄来的？”

Rita Skeeter was leaning on Hagrid's garden fence, looking in at the mayhem. She was wearing a thick magenta cloak with a furry purple collar today, and her crocodile-skin handbag was over her arm.

哈利注意到海格蓬乱的黑胡子后面的脸涨得通红，他的心往下一沉。海格是从哪儿弄到这些炸尾螺的？赫敏似乎也想到了同样的问题，赶紧说道：“它们很有趣，是不是？你说呀，哈利，是不是呀？”

Hagrid launched himself forward on top of the skrewt that was cornering Harry and Ron and flattened it; a blast of fire shot out of its end, withering the pumpkin plants nearby.

“什么？噢，是啊……哎哟……很有趣。”哈利被她踩了一下脚，支吾着说道。

"Who're you?" Hagrid asked Rita Skeeter as he slipped a loop of rope around the skrewt's sting and tightened it.

“啊，你也在这里，哈利！”丽塔·斯基特转过脸来，说道，“这么说，你喜欢保护神奇生物课，是吗？是你最爱上的一门课吗？”

"Rita Skeeter, Daily Prophet reporter," Rita replied, beaming at him. Her gold teeth glinted.

“是的。”哈利毫不含糊地说。海格笑容满面地望着他。

"Thought Dumbledore said you weren' allowed inside the school anymore," said Hagrid, frowning slightly as he got off the slightly squashed skrewt and started tugging it over to its fellows.

“太好了，”丽塔说，“真的太好了。教书时间长吗？”她又问海格。

Rita acted as though she hadn't heard what Hagrid had said.

哈利发现她正把目光移向迪安（他的半边脸颊上有一道难看的伤口）、拉文德（她的长袍被烧焦了一大块）、西莫（他正在护理几根被烧伤的手指），接着她的目光又移向小屋的窗户，大多数同学站在那里，鼻子压在窗玻璃上，看危险是不是已经过去。

"What are these fascinating creatures called?" she asked, beaming still more widely.

“刚教第二年。”海格说。

"Blast-Ended Skrewts," grunted Hagrid.

“太好了……不知道你是不是愿意接受一次采访，嗯？把你保护神奇生物的经验与读者分享一下？《预言家日报》每星期三有一个动物学专栏，我想你一定知道。我们可以介绍一下这些——嗯——响尾狼。”

"Really?" said Rita, apparently full of lively interest. "I've never heard of them before...where do they come from?"

“炸尾螺，”海格亲切热切地说，“呃——是啊，可以嘛。”

Harry noticed a dull red flush rising up out of Hagrid's wild black beard, and his heart sank. Where had Hagrid got the skrewts from? Hermione, who seemed to be thinking along these lines, said quickly, "They're very interesting, aren't they? Aren't they. Harry?"

哈利觉得这件事有点不妙，但在丽塔·斯基特眼皮底下，他没办法把这种想法传递给海格，只好站在一边，默默注视着海格和丽塔·斯基特安排本周晚些时候在三把扫帚见面，好好长谈一次。这时，城堡的铃声响了，这堂课结束了。

"What? Oh yeah . . . ouch . . . interesting," said Harry as she stepped on his foot.

“好了，再见，哈利！”当哈利和罗恩、赫敏离开时，丽塔·斯基特愉快地喊道，“那么说定了，海格，星期五见！”

"Ah, you're here. Harry!" said Rita Skeeter as she looked around. "So you like Care of Magical Creatures, do you? One of your favorite lessons?"

“她会任意歪曲海格说的每一句话。”哈利压低声音说。

"Yes," said Harry stoutly. Hagrid beamed at him.

“但愿海格没有非法进口那些炸尾螺和其他东西。”赫敏焦虑地说。他们互相对望着——这正是海格可能做的事情。

"Lovely," said Rita. "Really lovely. Been teaching long?" she added to Hagrid.

“海格以前惹进很多麻烦，邓布利多一直没有开除他，”罗恩宽慰他们道，“最坏的可能性就是海格必须丢掉炸尾螺。对不起……我说的是最坏吗？我的意思是最好。”

Harry noticed her eyes travel over Dean (who had a nasty cut across one cheek). Lavender (whose robes were badly singed), Seamus (who was nursing several burnt fingers), and then to the cabin windows, where most of the class stood, their noses pressed against the glass waiting to see if the coast was clear.

哈利和赫敏笑了起来，他们去吃午饭时，觉得心情轻松了一些。

"This is o'ny me second year," said Hagrid.

那天下午，哈利觉得那两节占卜课上得愉快极了。他们仍然要画星象图，要作预测，但现在罗恩重新成为他的朋友，这一切就又显得非常滑稽可笑了。由于哈利和罗恩一直在预言自己可怕的死亡，特里劳妮教授对他们非常满意。可是今天，当她解释冥王星干扰日常生活的不同方式时，他们一直咯咯笑个不停，她很快就恼火了。

"Lovely... I don't suppose you'd like to give an interview, would you? Share some of your experience of magical creatures? The Prophet does a zoological column every

“我认为，”她说，声音低低的，充满神秘感，但并没有掩盖她显而易见的恼怒，“我们中间的一些人，”——她意味深长地盯着哈利——“如果看见我昨晚做水晶球占卜时看见的东西，恐怕就不会这样轻狂了。昨晚我坐在这里，埋头做我的针线活儿，突然产生了一种无法遏制的冲动，想请教一下我的水晶球。我站起来，坐到水晶球面前，凝视着晶体的深处……你们说，我看见什么东西在凝望着我？”

Wednesday, as I'm sure you know. We could feature these - er - Bang-Ended Scoots."

“一只丑陋的老蝙蝠，戴着一副特大眼镜？”罗恩压低声音嘟嚷着。

"Blast-Ended Skrewts," Hagrid said eagerly. "Er - yeah, why not?"

哈利拼命绷着脸，不让自己笑出来。

Harry had a very bad feeling about this, but there was no way of communicating it to Hagrid without Rita Skeeter seeing, so he had to stand and watch in silence as Hagrid and Rita Skeeter made arrangements to meet in the Three Broomsticks for a good long interview later that week. Then the bell rang up at the castle, signaling the end of the lesson.

“是死亡，我亲爱的。”

"Well, good-bye, Harry!" Rita Skeeter called merrily to him as he set off with Ron and Hermione. "Until Friday night, then, Hagrid!"

帕瓦蒂和拉文德都用手捂住嘴巴，神色惊恐。

"She'll twist everything he says," Harry said under his breath.

“是的，”特里劳妮教授煞有介事地点点头，说道，“它来了，越来越近，它像一只兀鹫在头顶上盘旋，越来越低……越来越低，就在城堡上空……”

"Just as long as he didn't import those skrewts illegally or anything," said Hermione desperately. They looked at one another - it was exactly the sort of thing Hagrid might do.

她目光犀利地盯着哈利，哈利毫不掩饰地打了大大的哈欠。

"Hagrids been in loads of trouble before, and Dumbledores never sacked him," said Ron consolingly. "Worst that can happen is Hagrid'll have to get rid of the skrewts. Sorry . . . did I say worst? I meant best."

“她这套把戏已经玩过差不多八十遍了，如果不是这样，倒是有点吓人。”哈利说——这时他们终于来到特里劳妮教授房间下面的楼梯上，重新呼吸到了新鲜空气，“可是，如果每次她说我要死，我都倒地死去，我就变成一个医学上的奇迹了。”

Harry and Hermione laughed, and, feeling slightly more cheerful, went off to lunch.

“你会成为一种超浓缩的鬼魂，”罗恩说着，吃吃地笑了，“至少我们没有家庭作业呀。我希望赫敏从维克多教授那儿领回一大堆作业，我最喜欢她做作业时我们闲着……”这时他们正与血人巴罗擦肩而过，巴罗那双睁得大大的眼睛恶狠狠地瞪着。

Harry thoroughly enjoyed double Divination that afternoon; they were still doing star charts and predictions, but now that he and Ron were friends once more, the whole thing seemed very funny again. Professor Trelawney, who had been so pleased with the pair of them when they had been predicting their own horrific deaths, quickly became irritated as they sniggered through her explanation of the various ways in which Pluto could disrupt everyday life.

可是赫敏不在晚饭桌上，后来他们去图书馆找她，也不见她的影子。那里只有威克多尔·克鲁姆一个人。罗恩在书架后面徘徊了一会儿，望着克鲁姆，一边小声与哈利争议要不要请他签名——但后来罗恩发现六七个女生躲在旁边那排书架旁，正在为同样的事情争议不休，他便对这个想法失去了热情。

"I would think," she said, in a mystical whisper that did not conceal her obvious annoyance, "that some of us" - she stared very meaningfully at Harry- "might be a little less frivolous had they seen what I have seen during my crystal gazing last night. As I sat here, absorbed in my needlework, the urge to consult the orb overpowered me. I arose, I settled myself before it, and I gazed into its crystalline depths . . . and what do you think I saw gazing back at me?"

“真奇怪，她到哪儿去了呢？”在和哈利一起返回格兰芬多的塔楼时，罗恩说。

"An ugly old bat in outsize specs?" Ron muttered under his breath.

“不知道……胡言乱语。”

Harry fought hard to keep his face straight.

胖夫人刚开始向前转开，他们身后就传来急促的脚步声，赫敏来了。

"Death, my dears."

“哈利！”她气喘吁吁地说道，在哈利身边刹住脚步（胖夫人垂眼望着她，扬起了眉毛），“哈利，你必须来一下——你必须来一下，出了一件最离奇的事——求求你，快来吧——”

Parvati and Lavender both put their hands over their mouths, looking horrified.

她一把抓住哈利的胳膊，拉着他往走廊上走。

"Yes," said Professor Trelawney, nodding impressively, "it comes, ever closer, it circles overhead like a vulture, ever lower. . . ever lower over the castle. . . ."

“出了什么事？”

She stared pointedly at Harry, who yawned very widely and obviously.

“我们到了那里你就会看见——哦，来吧，快点儿——”

"It'd be a bit more impressive if she hadn't done it about eighty times before," Harry said as they finally regained the fresh air of the staircase beneath Professor Trelawney's room. "But if I'd dropped dead every time she's told me I'm going to, I'd be a medical miracle."

哈利扭头看着罗恩，罗恩也看着哈利，一逼迷惑不解的样子。

"You'd be a sort of extra-concentrated ghost," said Ron, chortling, as they passed the Bloody Baron going in the opposite direction, his wide eyes staring sinisterly. "At least we didn't get homework. I hope Hermione got loads off Professor Vector, I love not working when she is. . . ."

“好吧。”哈利说着，和赫敏一起沿着走廊往回走去，罗恩加快脚步跟了上来。

But Hermione wasn't at dinner, nor was she in the library when they went to look for her afterward. The only person in there was Viktor Krum. Ron hovered behind the bookshelves for a while, watching Krum, debating in whispers with Harry whether he should ask for an autograph - but then Ron realized that six or seven girls were lurking in the next row of books, debating exactly the same thing, and he lost his enthusiasm for the idea.

“喂，你们不管我啦！”胖夫人在他们身后恼火地喊道，“你们打搅了我，一声抱歉也不说！难道我要一直开在这里，等你们回来吗？”

"Wonder where she's got to?" Ron said as he and Harry went back to Gryffindor Tower.

“是啊，谢谢了！”罗恩扭头喊了一声。

"Dunno . . . balderdash."

“赫敏，我们到哪儿去？”哈利问。这时她已经领着他们下了六层楼，正顺着大理石楼梯进入下面的门厅。

But the Fat Lady had barely begun to swing forward when the sound of racing feet behind them announced Hermione's arrival.

“你会看到的，很快就会看到的！”赫敏兴奋地说。

"Harry!" she panted, skidding to a halt beside him (the Fat Lady stared down at her, eyebrows raised). "Harry, you've got to come - you've got to come, the most amazing thing's happened- please -"

到了楼梯下面，她往左一拐，匆匆朝一扇门走去。哈利曾经看见塞德里克·迪戈里进过这扇门，那是火焰杯喷出他和哈利名字的那个晚上。哈利以前没有到这里来过。他和罗恩跟着赫敏走下一道石阶，下面不是一条昏暗阴森、像通往斯内普地下教室的那种地下通道。相反，他们发现自己来到了一条宽阔的石廊里，火把照得四周很明亮，到处装饰着令人愉快的图画，上面画的主要是吃的东西。

She seized Harry's arm and started to try to drag him back along the corridor.

“噢，慢着……”在石廊里走到一半时，哈利慢慢地说道，“等一等，赫敏……”

"What's the matter?" Harry said.

“怎么啦？”她转脸望着他，期待他说出答案。

"I'll show you when we get there - oh come on, quick -"

“我知道是怎么回事了。”哈利说。

Harry looked around at Ron; he looked back at Harry, intrigued.

他用胳膊捅了捅罗恩，指着赫敏身后的那幅图画。画面上是一只盛满水果的巨大银碗。

"Okay," Harry said, starting off back down the corridor with Hermione, Ron hurrying to keep up.

“赫敏！”罗恩明白过来了，说，“你又想说服我们参加你那套‘呕吐’的把戏！”

"Oh don't mind me!" the Fat Lady called irritably after them. "Don't apologize for bothering me! I'll just hang here, wide open, until you get back, shall I?"

“不是，不是，我没有！”她着急地说，“而且不是呕吐，罗恩——”

"Yeah, thanks!" Ron shouted over his shoulder.

“怎么，改名字了？”罗恩对她皱着眉头，说道，“那么是什么呢？家养小精灵解放阵线？我可不愿冲进厨房，动员他们停止干活，我决不会——”

"Hermione, where are we going?" Harry asked, after she had led them down through six floors, and started down the marble staircase into the entrance hall.

“我没有要你这么做！”赫敏不耐烦地说，“我刚才来过这里，跟他们交谈过了，我发现——哦，快来，哈利，我要带你去看！”

"You'll see, you'll see in a minute!" said Hermione excitedly.

她又抓住哈利的胳膊，把他拉到那幅大水果碗的图画跟前。她伸出食指，轻轻挠了挠那只碧绿的大梨子。梨子蠕动起来，吃吃笑着，突然变成了一个很大的绿色门把手。赫敏抓住它把门拉开，用力推了一下哈利的后背，把他推了进去。

She turned left at the bottom of the staircase and hurried toward the door through which Cedric Diggory had gone the night after the Goblet of Fire had regurgitated his and Harry's names. Harry had never been through here before. He and Ron followed Hermione down a flight of stone steps, but instead of ending up in a gloomy underground passage like the one that led to Snape's dungeon, they found themselves in a broad stone corridor, brightly lit with torches, and decorated with cheerful paintings that were mainly of food.

匆匆一瞥之间，哈利只看见一个天花板很高的大房间，面积和上面的礼堂一样大，周围的石墙边堆着许多闪闪发光的铜锅和铜盆，房间另一头有个砖砌的大壁炉。还没等他看得更清楚，就有一个小东西从房间中央飞快地朝他跑来，一边尖声叫着：“哈利·波特，先生！哈利·波特！”

"Oh hang on . . ." said Harry slowly, halfway down the corridor. "Wait a minute, Hermione. . . ."

接着，尖叫的小精灵猛地撞在他的上腹部，把他紧紧地、紧紧地搂住了，他觉得肋骨都要被勒断了，肺里的空气全被挤了出来。

"What?" She turned around to look at him, anticipation all over her face.

“多——多比？”哈利喘着气说。

"I know what this is about," said Harry.

“是多比，先生，是多比！”那个声音从他的肚脐附近尖叫着说道，“多比一直盼呀盼呀，盼着见到哈利·波特，先生，结果哈利·波特亲自来看他了，先生！”

He nudged Ron and pointed to the painting just behind Hermione. It showed a gigantic silver fruit bowl.

多比松开手，向后退了几步，满脸带笑地抬头望着哈利，那双乒乓球般的绿色大眼睛里含着喜悦的泪花。他和哈利记忆中的样子分毫不差。那只像铅笔一样细长的鼻子，那对蝙蝠状的耳朵，还有那长长的手指和双脚——一切都没有变，只是衣服与原来大不一样了。

"Hermione!" said Ron, cottoning on. "You're trying to rope us into that spew stuff again!"

当年多比为马尔福家干活时，一年到头穿着那只脏兮兮的旧枕套。现在，他这一身穿戴真是哈利见过的最奇怪的组合；他比世界杯赛上的那些巫师穿戴得还要糟糕。他头上顶着一只茶壶保暖套，上面别着一大堆五颜六色的徽章；赤裸的胸膛上挂着一条马蹄图案的领带，下身穿的是一条类似儿童足球短裤的东西，脚上是两只不配对的袜子。哈利看到，其中一只正是他从自己脚上脱下来，诱骗马尔福先生扔给多比，从而使多比获得自由的那只黑袜子。另一只袜子上印满粉红色和橘黄色的条纹。

"No, no, I'm not!" she said hastily. "And it's not spew, Ron -"

“多比，你在这里做什么？”哈利惊奇地问。

"Changed the name, have you?" said Ron, frowning at her. "What are we now, then, the House-Elf Liberation Front? I'm not barging into that kitchen and trying to make them stop work, I'm not doing it -"

“多比来霍格沃茨工作了，先生！”多比兴奋地尖叫道，“邓布利多教授给了多比和闪闪工作。先生！”

"I'm not asking you to!" Hermione said impatiently. "I came down here just now, to talk to them all, and I found - oh come on, Harry, I want to show you!"

“闪闪？”哈利说，“她也在这里？”

She seized his arm again, pulled him in front of the picture of the giant fruit bowl, stretched out her forefinger, and tickled the huge green pear. It began to squirm, chuckling, and suddenly turned into a large green door handle. Hermione seized it, pulled the door open, and pushed Harry hard in the back, forcing him inside.

“是啊，先生，是啊！”多比说着，一把抓住哈利的手，拉着他穿过四张长长的木桌子，走进里面的厨房。哈利发现这些桌子摆放的位置跟上面礼堂里四个学院的桌子一模一样。此刻晚餐已经结束，桌上没有食物，但他推测一小时前这里肯定堆满了美味佳肴，然后通过天花板送到上面对等的桌子上。

He had one brief glimpse of an enormous, high-ceilinged room, large as the Great Hall above it, with mounds of glittering brass pots and pans heaped around the stone walls, and a great brick fireplace at the other end, when something small hurtled toward him from the middle of the room, squealing, "Harry Potter, sir! Harry Potter!"

至少有一百个小精灵站在厨房里，当多比领着哈利从他们身边经过时，他们一个个满堆笑，鞠躬，行屈膝礼。他们都穿着同样的制服：一条印着霍格沃茨饰章的茶巾。他们像闪闪以前那样，把茶巾当袍子裹在了身上。

Next second all the wind had been knocked out of him as the squealing elf hit him hard in the midriff, hugging him so tightly he thought his ribs would break.

多比在砖砌的壁炉前停住脚步，指给哈利看。

"D-Dobby?" Harry gasped.

“闪闪，你看，先生！”他说。

"It is Dobby, sir, it is!" squealed the voice from somewhere around his navel. "Dobby has been hoping and hoping to see Harry Potter, sir, and Harry Potter has come to see him, sir!"

闪闪坐在炉火旁的一张凳子上。她和多比不同，看样子不是随随便便地找来衣服就穿。她穿着一套整整齐齐的小裙子和短上衣，头上还戴着一顶配套的蓝帽子，上面掏了两个洞，露出她的两只大耳朵。不过，多比那身奇怪组合的衣服保护得一尘不染，像是崭新的一样，而闪闪则显然对自己的衣服毫不在意。她的短上衣上溅满了汤渍，裙子上有一块地方烧焦了。

Dobby let go and stepped back a few paces, beaming up at Harry, his enormous, green, tennis-ball-shaped eyes brimming with tears of happiness. He looked almost exactly as Harry remembered him; the pencil-shaped nose, the batlike ears, the long fingers and feet - all except the clothes, which were very different.

“你好，闪闪。”哈利说。

When Dobby had worked for the Malfoys, he had always worn the same filthy old pillowcase.

闪闪的嘴唇发抖，接着便放声大哭，眼泪从她那对棕色的大眼睛里滚出来，洒落在她胸前，和魁地奇世界杯赛上一模一样。

Now, however, he was wearing the strangest assortment of garments Harry had ever seen; he had done an even worse job of dressing himself than the wizards at the World Cup. He was wearing a tea cozy for a hat, on which he had pinned a number of bright badges; a tie patterned with horseshoes over a bare chest, a pair of what looked like children's soccer shorts, and odd socks. One of these, Harry saw, was the black one Harry had removed from his own foot and tricked Mr. Malfoy into giving Dobby, thereby setting Dobby free. The other was covered in pink and orange stripes.

“哦，天哪。”赫敏说道——她和罗恩也跟着哈利和多比一起来到厨房里尽头，“闪闪，别哭了，求求你——”

"Dobby, what're you doing here?" Harry said in amazement. "Dobby has come to work at Hogwarts, sir!" Dobby squealed excitedly. "Professor Dumbledore gave Dobby and Winky jobs, sir!

可是闪闪哭得更凶了。多比倒是喜滋滋地抬头望着哈利。

"Winky?" said Harry. "She's here too?"

“哈利·波特想喝一杯茶吗？”他用尖细的声音大声问道，盖过闪闪的哭泣声。

"Yes, sir, yes!" said Dobby, and he seized Harry's hand and pulled him off into the kitchen between the four long wooden tables that stood there. Each of these tables, Harry noticed as he passed them, was positioned exactly beneath the four House tables

“嗯——行，好吧。”哈利说。

above, in the Great Hall. At the moment, they were clear of food, dinner having finished, but he supposed that an hour ago they had been laden with dishes that were then sent up through the ceiling to their counterparts above.

立刻，就有六个家养小精灵从他后面匆匆跑上来，端着一只很大的银托盘，上面放着一只茶壶，还放着哈利、罗恩和赫敏的杯子，一壶牛奶和一大盘饼干。

At least a hundred little elves were standing around the kitchen, beaming, bowing, and curtsying as Dobby led Harry past them. They were all wearing the same uniform: a tea towel stamped with the Hogwarts crest, and tied, as Winky's had been, like a toga.

“好丰盛啊！”罗恩用一种很激动地声音说。赫敏朝他皱了皱眉头，但小精灵们看上去都很高兴。他们低低地鞠躬，退了回去。

Dobby stopped in front of the brick fireplace and pointed.

“你来这里多久了，多比？”多比递茶时，哈利问道。

"Winky, sir!" he said.

“刚一个星期，哈利·波特，先生！”多比欢快地说，“多比来见邓布利多先生，先生。你知道，先生，一个被开除的家养小精灵是很难找到新工作的，先生，真的很难很难——”

Winky was sitting on a stool by the fire. Unlike Dobby, she had obviously not foraged for clothes. She was wearing a neat little skirt and blouse with a matching blue hat, which had holes in it for her large ears. However, while every one of Dobby's strange collection of garments was so clean and well cared for that it looked brand-new, Winky was plainly not taking care other clothes at all. There were soup stains all down her blouse and a burn in her skirt.

听了这话，闪闪号啕得更厉害了，她那像一只被压扁的西红柿一般的鼻子淌出鼻涕，啪哒啪哒地滴在胸前，她也不想把它止住。

"Hello, Winky," said Harry.

“多比四处游荡了两年，先生，就为了找一份工作！”多比尖声尖气地说，“可是多比没有找到工作，先生，因为多比现在要工钱了！”

Winky's lip quivered. Then she burst into tears, which spilled out of her great brown eyes and splashed down her front, just as they had done at the Quidditch World Cup.

厨房里的那些家养小精灵本来都很感兴趣地看着他们，听他们说话，听到这里，他们都把目光移开了，就好像多比说了一些粗鲁的、令人尴尬的话似的。但赫敏动说：“好样的，多比！”

"Oh dear," said Hermione. She and Ron had followed Harry and Dobby to the end of the kitchen. "Winky, don't cry, please don't..."

“谢谢你，小姐！”多比说着，朝赫敏一笑，露出了好多牙齿，“但是大多数巫师都不想要一个想拿工钱的家养小精灵，小姐。‘那不是一个家养小精灵的品质。’他们说，然后就对着多比把门重重关上！多比喜欢工作，但他也想穿衣服、拿工钱，哈利·波特……多比喜欢自由！”

But Winky cried harder than ever. Dobby, on the other hand, beamed up at Harry.

霍格沃茨的家养小精灵开始悄悄地挪开，躲避多比，好像他身上带着某种传染病菌。闪闪倒是待着没动，但她哭号的音量显然又增高了。

"Would Harry Potter like a cup of tea?" he squeaked loudly, over Winky's sobs.

“后来，哈利·波特，多比去拜访闪闪，发现闪闪也被释放了，先生！”多比兴高采烈地说。

"Er - yeah, okay," said Harry.

闪闪听了这话，从凳子上往前一扑，脸朝下倒在石板铺的地面上，捶打着小小的拳头，痛苦地尖叫起来。赫敏赶紧蹲在她身边，试着安慰她，可是不管赫敏说什么都不起任何作用。多比继续讲他的故事，高声尖叫，盖过了闪闪的哭号。

Instantly, about six house-elves came trotting up behind him, bearing a large silver tray laden with a teapot, cups for Harry, Ron, and Hermione, a milk jug, and a large plate of biscuits.

“然后多比突然有了主意，哈利·波特，先生！‘多比和闪闪为什么不能一起去找工作呢？’多比说。‘哪里有工作够两个家养小精灵干的呢？’闪闪问。多比想啊想啊，就想起来了，先生！霍格沃茨！多比和闪闪就来找邓布利多教授了，先生！邓布利多教授就把我们都收下来了！”

"Good service!" Ron said, in an impressed voice. Hermione frowned at him, but the elves all looked delighted; they bowed very low and retreated.

多比脸上露出非常灿烂的笑容，喜悦的泪水又充盈在他眼睛里了。

"How long have you been here, Dobby?" Harry asked as Dobby handed around the tea.

“邓布利多教授说，既然多比想要工钱，他可以付给多比工钱！所以啊，多比是一个自由的小精灵，先生，多比每星期得到一个加隆，每个月放一天假！”

"Only a week. Harry Potter, sir!" said Dobby happily. "Dobby came to see Professor Dumbledore, sir. You see, sir, it is very difficult for a house-elf who has been dismissed to get a new position, sir, very difficult indeed -"

“那不算很多！”赫敏在地板上气愤地喊道，盖过闪闪不断哭喊和捶拳头的声音。

At this, Winky howled even harder, her squashed-tomato of a nose dribbling all down her front, though she made no effort to stem the flow.

“邓布利多教授本来要给多比一星期十个加隆，周末放假，”多比说着，突然打了个寒噤，好像这么多财富和闲暇时间是非常可怕的，“可是多比跟他讨价还价，小姐……多比喜欢自由，小姐，但他不想要太多自由，他更喜欢工作！”

"Dobby has traveled the country for two whole years, sir, trying to find work!" Dobby squeaked. "But Dobby hasn't found work, sir, because Dobby wants paying now!"

“那么你呢，闪闪，邓布利多教授付你多少工钱？”赫敏好心好意地问。

The house-elves all around the kitchen, who had been listening and watching with interest, all looked away at these words, as though Dobby had said something rude and embarrassing. Hermione, however, said, "Good for you, Dobby!"

她如果以为这会使闪闪高兴起来，那就真是大错特错了。闪闪确实停止了哭泣，但她坐起来，两只巨大的棕色眼睛狠狠地瞪着赫敏，湿漉漉的脸上突然变得怒气冲冲。

"Thank you, miss!" said Dobby, grinning toothily at her. "But most wizards doesn't want a house-elf who wants paying, miss. 'That's not the point of a house-elf,' they says, and they slammed the door in Dobby's face! Dobby likes work, but he wants to wear clothes and he wants to be paid. Harry Potter.... Dobby likes being free!"

“闪闪是一个被扫地出门的家养小精灵，但闪闪还没到拿工钱的地步！”她尖声刺耳地说，“闪闪还没有堕落到那个程度！闪闪为自由感到羞愧！”

The Hogwarts house-elves had now started edging away from Dobby, as though he were carrying something contagious. Winky, however, remained where she was, though there was a definite increase in the volume other crying.

“羞愧？”赫敏茫然地说，“可是——闪闪，你听我说！应该感到羞愧的是克劳奇先生，不是你！你没有做错任何事情，他对你太残忍了——”

"And then, Harry Potter, Dobby goes to visit Winky, and finds out Winky has been freed too, sir!" said Dobby delightedly.

可是闪闪听了这话，赶紧把手捂在她帽子的两个洞眼上，把耳朵压扁，这样她就听不见了，然后她尖叫起来：“不许你辱骂我的主人，小姐！不许你辱骂我的克劳奇先生！克劳奇先生是一个好巫师，小姐！克劳奇先生开除了坏闪闪，他做得对！”

At this, Winky flung herself forward off her stool and lay face-down on the flagged stone floor, beating her tiny fists upon it and positively screaming with misery. Hermione hastily dropped down to her knees beside her and tried to comfort her, but nothing she said made the slightest difference. Dobby continued with his story, shouting shrilly over Winky's screeches.

“闪闪还调整不过来，哈利·波特，”多比尖声尖气地悄悄告诉他们，“闪闪忘记她跟克劳奇先生已经一刀两断，她现在可以怎么想就怎么说了，可是她做不到。”

"And then Dobby had the idea. Harry Potter, sir! 'Why doesn't Dobby and Winky find work together?' Dobby says. 'Where is there enough work for two house-elves?' says Winky.

“怎么，家养小精灵评论他们的主人时，不能怎么想就怎么说吗？”哈利问道。

And Dobby thinks, and it comes to him, sir! Hogwarts! So Dobby and Winky came to see Professor Dumbledore, sir, and Professor Dumbledore took us on!"

“哦，不能，先生，绝对不能，”多比说，表情突然严肃起来，“这是家养小精灵奴隶身分规定的，先生。我们为主人保守秘密，保持沉默，先生。我们维护家族的荣誉，从不说主人的坏话——不过邓布利多对多比说，他并不坚持我们一定要做到这点。邓布利多教授说，我们可以随意——随意——”

Dobby beamed very brightly, and happy tears welled in his eyes again.

多比突然显得局促不安，凑到哈利跟前来，哈利倾下身子。多比小声说道：“他说如果我们愿意，可以叫他傻瓜大笨蛋，先生！”

"And Professor Dumbledore says he will pay Dobby, sir, if Dobby wants paying! And so Dobby is a free elf, sir, and Dobby gets a Galleon a week and one day off a month!"

多比发出一声恐惧的干笑。

"That's not very much!" Hermione shouted indignantly from the floor, over Winky's continued screaming and fist-beating.

“可是多比不想这么做，哈利·波特，”他说，现在语气又正常了——他摇晃着脑袋，两只耳朵啪啪地拍打着，“多比非常喜欢邓布利多教授，先生，愿意替他保守秘密，为他保持沉默，并以此为自豪。”

"Professor Dumbledore offered Dobby ten Galleons a week, and weekends off," said Dobby, suddenly giving a little shiver, as though the prospect of so much leisure and riches were frightening, "but Dobby beat him down, miss. . . . Dobby likes freedom, miss, but he isn't wanting too much, miss, he likes work better."

“那么对马尔福呢，你现在是不是想怎么说就怎么说了？”哈利咧嘴笑着，追问多比。

"And how much is Professor Dumbledore paying you, Winky?" Hermione asked kindly.

一丝恐惧的神色掠过多比那双巨大的眼睛。

If she had thought this would cheer up Winky, she was wildly mistaken. Winky did stop crying, but when she sat up she was glaring at Hermione through her massive brown eyes, her whole face sopping wet and suddenly furious.

“多比——多比可以，”他不很确定地说，挺起小小的脸膛，“多比可以告诉哈利·波特，多比的旧主人是——是——很坏的黑巫师！”

"Winky is a disgraced elf, but Winky is not yet getting paid!" she squeaked. "Winky is not sunk so low as that! Winky is properly ashamed of being freed!"

多比呆立了片刻，浑身发抖，被自己的大胆行为吓傻了——然后他一头冲向最近的桌子，开始把脑袋狠狠地往上面撞，一边尖叫着：“坏多比！坏多比！”

"Ashamed?" said Hermione blankly. "But - Winky, come on! It's Mr. Crouch who should be ashamed, not you! You didn't do anything wrong, he was really horrible to you -"

哈利抓住多比的领带后面，把他从桌子旁拉开了。

But at these words, Winky clapped her hands over the holes in her hat, flattening her ears so that she couldn't hear a word, and screeched, "You is not insulting my master, miss! You is not insulting Mr. Crouch! Mr. Crouch is a good wizard, miss! Mr. Crouch is right to sack bad Winky!"

“谢谢你，哈利·波特，谢谢你。”多比上气不接下气地说道，用手揉着前额。

"Winky is having trouble adjusting, Harry Potter," squeaked Dobby confidentially. "Winky forgets she is not bound to Mr. Crouch anymore; she is allowed to speak her mind now, but she won't do it."

“你只需要多练习练习。”哈利说。

"Can't house-elves speak their minds about their masters, then?" Harry asked.

“练习！”闪闪气愤地尖声嚷道，“你应该为自己感到羞愧，多比，那样评论你的主人！”

"Oh no, sir, no," said Dobby, looking suddenly serious. "'Tis part of the house-elf's enslavement, sir. We keeps their secrets and our silence, sir. We upholds the family's honor, and we never speaks ill of them - though Professor Dumbledore told Dobby he does not insist upon this. Professor Dumbledore said we is free to - to-"

“他们已经不是我的主人了，闪闪！”多比不服地说，“多比再也不在乎他们怎么想了！”

Dobby looked suddenly nervous and beckoned Harry closer. Harry bent forward. Dobby whispered, "He said we is free to call him a - a barmy old codger if we likes, sir!"

“哦，你真是一个坏精灵，多比！”闪闪呜咽着说，眼泪又一次顺着面颊扑簌簌滚落下来，“我可怜的克劳奇先生，他没有了闪闪该怎么办呢？他需要我，他需要我的帮助！我从一生下来就照顾克劳奇先生一家，在我之前，是我妈妈，在她之前，是我外婆……哦，如果她们知道闪闪被释放了，会怎么说呢？哦，耻辱啊，真是耻辱！”她把脸埋在裙子里，放声大哭。

Dobby gave a frightened sort of giggle.

“闪闪，”赫敏语气坚决地说，“我可以肯定，克劳奇先生没有你照样过得很好。你知道吗，我们见过他——”

"But Dobby is not wanting to, Harry Potter," he said, talking normally again, and shaking his head so that his ears flapped. "Dobby likes Professor Dumbledore very much, sir, and is proud to keep his secrets and our silence for him."

“你们见过我的主人？”闪闪喘着气问，从裙子里重新抬起泪痕斑斑的脸，瞪大眼睛望着赫敏，“你在这里，在霍格沃茨看见他的？”

"But you can say what you like about the Malfoys now?" Harry asked him, grinning.

“是的，”赫敏说，“他和巴格曼先生是三强争霸赛的裁判。”

A slightly fearful look came into Dobby's immense eyes.

“巴格曼先生也来了？”闪闪尖声问道，突然又变得怒气冲冲，令哈利大吃一惊（从罗恩和赫敏脸上的神情看，他们也吃惊不小）。“巴格曼先生是一个坏巫师！一个很坏很坏的巫师！我的主人不喜欢他，哦，一点儿也不喜欢！”

"Dobby - Dobby could," he said doubtfully. He squared his small shoulders. "Dobby could tell Harry Potter that his old masters were - were - bad Dark wizards'."

“巴格曼——坏巫师？”哈利说。

Dobby stood for a moment, quivering all over, horror-struck by his own daring - then he rushed over to the nearest table and began banging his head on it very hard, squealing, "Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby!"

“哦，是的，”闪闪说着，气愤地点着头，“主人告诉了闪闪一些事情！可是闪闪不能说……闪闪——闪闪替主人保守秘密……”

Harry seized Dobby by the back of his tie and pulled him away from the table.

她再一次泪如雨下。他们可以听见她把脸埋在裙子里哭泣。“可怜的主人，可怜的主人，再也没有闪闪帮助他了！”

"Thank you. Harry Potter, thank you," said Dobby breathlessly, rubbing his head.

除此之外，他们从闪闪嘴里再也问不出一句明白的话了。于是他们随她去哭泣，只管自己喝茶。多比在一旁兴高采烈地说个不停，讲他作为一个自由小精灵是怎么生活的，以及他打算怎么花他的工钱。

"You just need a bit of practice," Harry said.

“多比下一步就买一件套头衫，哈利·波特！”他把着赤裸的胸脯，高兴地说。

"Practice!" squealed Winky furiously. "You is ought to be ashamed of yourself, Dobby, talking that way about your masters!"

“告诉你吧，多比，”罗恩似乎对这个家养小精灵产生了极大的好感，他说道，“我要把我妈妈这个圣诞节给我织的毛衣送给你，我每年都能从她那里得到一件。你不讨厌暗紫红色吧？”

"They isn't my masters anymore, Winky!" said Dobby defiantly. "Dobby doesn't care what they think anymore!"

多比开心极了。

"Oh you is a bad elf, Dobby!" moaned Winky, tears leaking down her face once more. "My poor Mr. Crouch, what is he doing without Winky? He is needing me, he is needing my help! I is looking after the Crouches all my life, and my mother is doing it before me, and my grandmother is doing it before her ... oh what is they saying if they knew Winky was freed? Oh the shame, the shame!" She buried her face in her skirt again and bawled.

“我们必须把它缩小一些，适合你的身材，”罗恩对他说，“它跟你的茶壶保暖套倒是很相配呢。”

"Winky," said Hermione firmly, "I'm quite sure Mr. Crouch is getting along perfectly well without you. We've seen him, you know -"

他们准备告辞时，旁边的许多小精灵都围拢过来，向他们递来许多点心，让他们带上楼去。赫敏不肯拿，她望着小精灵们不停鞠躬、行屈膝礼的样子，脸上露出痛苦的神情。哈利和罗恩却往口袋里装了好多奶油蛋糕和馅饼。

"You is seeing my master?" said Winky breathlessly, raising her tearstained face out of her skirt once more and goggling at Hermione. "You is seeing him here at Hogwarts?"

“太感谢了！”哈利对小精灵们说——他们都簇拥到门边，向他们三人道晚安，“再见，多比！”

"Yes," said Hermione, "he and Mr. Bagman are judges in the Triwizard Tournament."

“哈利·波特……多比有时候可以来看你吗，先生？”多比试探地问。

"Mr. Bagman comes too?" squeaked Winky, and to Harry 's great surprise (and Ron's and Hermione's too, by the looks on their faces), she looked angry again. "Mr. Bagman is a bad wizard! A very bad wizard! My master isn't liking him, oh no, not at all!"

“当然可以。”哈利说，多比顿时眉开眼笑。

"Bagman - bad?" said Harry.

“你们知道吗？”罗恩说道——这时他和赫敏、哈利刚离开厨房，正往通向门厅的楼梯上走，“这些年来，我一直觉得弗雷德和乔治很了不起，能从厨房里偷出吃的东西——闹了半天，实际上并不困难，是吗？小精灵们那么热情地把东西塞给你！”

"Oh yes," Winky said, nodding her head furiously, "My master is telling Winky some things! But Winky is not saying.. . Winky - Winky keeps her master's secrets. ..."

“我认为，对于那些家养小精灵来说，这是一件最理想的事，”赫敏领头往大理石楼梯上走，一边说道，“我指的是多比来这里工作。别的小精灵会看到他获得自由是多么愉快，慢慢他们就会明白自己也愿意那样！”

She dissolved yet again in tears; they could hear her sobbing into her skirt, "Poor

“但愿他们不要太仔细地观察闪闪。”哈利说。

master, poor master, no Winky to help him no more!"

“哦，她会高兴起来的。”赫敏说，不过她的口气也有些犹疑，“等这场惊吓过去，她习惯了霍格沃茨的生活时，就会看到她离开了那个叫克劳奇的家伙，日子要好过得多！”

They couldn't get another sensible word out of Winky. They left her to her crying and finished their tea, while Dobby chatted happily about his life as a free elf and his plans for his wages.

“她似乎很爱那个男人。”罗恩含糊不清地说（他刚咬了一口奶油蛋糕）。

"Dobby is going to buy a sweater next, Harry Potter!" he said happily, pointing at his bare chest, "Tell you what, Dobby," said Ron, who seemed to have taken a great liking to the elf, "I'll give you the one my mum knits me this Christmas, I always get one from her. You don't mind maroon, do you?"

“不过，她对巴格曼的评价可不高，是吗？”哈利说，“不知道克劳奇在家里是怎么议论巴格曼的？”

Dobby was delighted.

“大概说他不是一个很称职的司长，”赫敏说，“说句实话……他这么说是有道理的，是不是？”

"We might have to shrink it a bit to fit you," Ron told him, "but it'll go well with your tea cozy."

“跟克劳奇那老家伙比起来，我还是情愿在他手下工作，”罗恩说，“至少巴格曼还有点儿幽默感。”

As they prepared to take their leave, many of the surrounding elves pressed in upon them, offering snacks to take back upstairs. Hermione refused, with a pained look at the way the elves kept bowing and curtsying, but Harry and Ron loaded their pockets with cream cakes and pies.

“可别让珀西听见你这么说。”赫敏说，淡淡地笑了笑。

"Thanks a lot!" Harry said to the elves, who had all clustered around the door to say good night. "See you, Dobby!"

“是啊，说到珀西，他可不愿意在任何一个有幽默感的人的手下工作，是不是？”罗恩说——他现在又开始吃一块巧克力松饼了，“一个笑话哪怕只穿着多比的茶壶保暖套，几乎是光着身子在他面前跳舞，他也认不出来。”

"Harry Potter . . . can Dobby come and see you sometimes, sir?" Dobby asked tentatively.

" 'Course you can," said Harry, and Dobby beamed.

"You know what?" said Ron, once he, Hermione, and Harry had left the kitchens behind and were climbing the steps into the entrance hall again. "All these years I've been really impressed with Fred and George, nicking food from the kitchens - well, it's not exactly difficult, is it? They can't wait to give it away!"

"I think this is the best thing that could have happened to those elves, you know," said Hermione, leading the way back up the marble staircase. "Dobby coming to work here, I mean. The other elves will see how happy he is, being free, and slowly it'll dawn on them that they want that too!"

"Let's hope they don't look too closely at Winky," said Harry.

"Oh she'll cheer up," said Hermione, though she sounded a bit doubtful. "Once the shock's worn off, and she's got used to Hogwarts, she'll see how much better off she is without that Crouch man."

"She seems to love him," said Ron thickly (he had just started on a cream cake).

"Doesn't think much of Bagman, though, does she?" said Harry. "Wonder what Crouch says at home about him?"

"Probably says he's not a very good Head of Department," said Hermione, "and let's face it... he's got a point, hasn't he?"

"I'd still rather work for him than old Crouch," said Ron. "At least Bagman's got a sense of humor."

"Don't let Percy hear you saying that," Hermione said, smiling slightly.

"Yeah, well, Percy wouldn't want to work for anyone with a sense of humor, would he?"

said Ron, now starting on a chocolate eclair. "Percy wouldn't recognize a joke if it danced naked in front of him wearing Dobby's tea cozy."