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A sudden silence fell downstairs.
楼下突然一阵沉寂，
Two seconds later Harry, heart thudding madly, heard Uncle Vernon coming into the hall,
两秒钟后，心脏怦怦乱跳的哈利听到弗农姨父走到门厅里，
calling, “Dudley must have left his television on gain, the little tyke!”
喊道：“达力准是又忘记关电视机了，这个小淘气！”
“Quick! In the closet!” hissed Harry,
“快！衣橱里！”哈利小声说。
stuffing Dobby in, shutting the door, and flinging himself onto the bed just as the door handle turned.
他把多比塞进衣橱，关上橱门，刚扑倒在床上，门把手就转动了。
“What — the — devil — are — you — doing?” said Uncle Vernon through gritted teeth, his face horribly close to Harry’s.
“你——到底——在——搞——什——么——鬼？”弗农姨父咬牙切齿地说着，把脸凑到哈利面前，近得可怕。
“You’ve just ruined the punch line of my Japanese golfer joke. . . .
“我正讲到日本高尔夫球手的笑话中最关键的地方，都被你给搅了……
One more sound and you’ll wish you’d never been born, boy!”
再发出一点儿声音，我让你后悔生下来，小子！”
He stomped flat-footed from the room.
他重重地跺着地板走了出去。
Shaking, Harry let Dobby out of the closet.
哈利哆嗦着把多比从衣橱里拉出来。
“See what it’s like here?” he said.
“看到这里的情况了吧？
“See why I’ve got to go back to Hogwarts?
知道我为什么必须回霍格沃茨了吧？
It’s the only place I’ve got — well, I think I’ve got friends.”
我只有那个地方可去——我想我在那儿有些朋友。”
“Friends who don’t even write to Harry Potter?” said Dobby slyly.
“什么朋友，连信都不给哈利波特写一封？”多比狡黠地说。
“I expect they’ve just been — wait a minute,” said Harry, frowning.
“我想他们只是——慢着，”哈利皱起眉头，
“How do you know my friends haven’t been writing to me?”
“你怎么知道我的朋友没给我写信？”
Dobby shuffled his feet.
多比把脚在地上蹭来蹭去。
“Harry Potter mustn’t be angry with Dobby. Dobby did it for the best —”
“哈利波特不要生多比的气——多比都是为了……”
“Have you been stopping my letters?”
“你截了我的信？”
“Dobby has them here, sir,” said the elf.
“信在多比这儿，先生。”小精灵说。
Stepping nimbly out of Harry’s reach, he pulled a thick wad of envelopes from the inside of the pillowcase he was wearing.
他敏捷地跳到哈利抓不到的地方，从身上穿的枕套里面抽出厚厚一沓信封。Harry could make out Hermione’s neat writing, Ron’s untidy scrawl, and even a scribble that looked asthough it was from the Hogwarts gamekeeper, Hagrid.
哈利认出了赫敏工整的字体、罗恩龙飞凤舞的笔迹，甚至还有一种潦草的字儿，好像是霍格沃茨的狩猎场看守海格写的。
Dobby blinked anxiously up at Harry.
多比焦急地眨巴着眼睛仰视着哈利。
“Harry Potter mustn’t be angry. . . . Dobby hoped . . . if Harry Potter thought his friends had forgotten him . . . Harry Potter might not want to go back to school,sir. . . .”
“哈利波特不要生气……多比原本希望……如果哈利波特以为他的朋友把他忘了……哈利波特也许就不想回学校了，先生……”
Harry wasn’t listening.
哈利没有心思听，
He made a grab for the letters, but Dobby jumped out of reach.
伸手去抢信，可多比一跳，闪开了。
“Harry Potter will have them, sir, if he gives Dobby his word that he will not return to Hogwarts.
“哈利波特先要向多比保证不回霍格沃茨。
Ah, sir, this is a danger you must not face! Say you won’t go back, sir!”
哎呀，先生，您千万不能去冒这种险！说您不会回去，先生！”
“No,” said Harry angrily. “Give me my friends’ letters!”
“不，”哈利生气地说，“把我朋友的信给我！”
“Then Harry Potter leaves Dobby no choice,” said the elf sadly.
“那么多比就没有别的选择了。”小精灵悲哀地说。
Before Harry could move, Dobby had darted to the bedroom door, pulled it open, and sprinted down the stairs.
哈利还没反应过来，多比已经冲到门边，拉开门，飞快地奔下楼去。
Mouth dry, stomach lurching, Harry sprang after him, trying not to make a sound.
哈利嘴里发干，五脏六腑都搅在了一起。
He jumped the last six steps, landing catlike on the hall carpet, looking around for Dobby.
他急忙跳起来追赶，尽量不弄出声响。他一下子蹦过最后六级台阶，猫一样地落在门厅地毯上，东张西望地寻找多比。
From the dining room he heard Uncle Vernon saying, “. . . tell Petunia that very funny story about those American plumbers, Mr. Mason.
他听到餐室里弗农姨父在说：“……梅森夫人，给佩妮讲讲那些美国管子工的笑话吧，
She’s been dying to hear . . .”
她一直想听……”
Harry ran up the hall into the kitchen and felt his stomach disappear.
哈利穿过门跑进厨房，觉得肚子里一阵发空。
