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CHAPTER ONE THE WORST BIRTHDAY
第一章 最糟糕的生日
Not for the first time, an argument had broken out over breakfast at number four, Privet Drive.
这天，女贞路四号的早餐桌上又起了争执。
Mr. Vernon Dursley had been woken in the early hours of the morning by a loud, hooting noise from his nephew Harry’s room.
一大早，弗农德思礼先生就被他外甥哈利屋里的一阵高声怪叫吵醒了。
“Third time this week!” he roared across the table.
“这星期是第三次了！”他隔着桌子咆哮，
“If you can’t control that owl, it’ll have to go!”
“如果你管不住那只猫头鹰，就让它滚蛋！”
Harry tried, yet again, to explain.
哈利再次试图解释。
“She’s bored,” he said. “She’s used to flying around outside.
“它闷得慌，它在外面飞惯了，
If I could just let her out at night —”
要是我可以在晚上放它出去……”
“Do I look stupid?” snarled Uncle Vernon,
“你当我是傻子啊？”弗农姨父大吼道，
a bit of fried egg dangling from his bushy mustache.
一丝煎鸡蛋在他浓密的胡子上晃荡着。
“I know what’ll happen if that owl’s let out.”
“我知道把一只猫头鹰放出去会有什么后果。”
He exchanged dark looks with his wife, Petunia.
他和他妻子佩妮阴沉地交换了一下眼色。
Harry tried to argue back but his words were drowned by a long, loud belch from the Dursleys’ son, Dudley.
哈利想反驳，但他的话被表哥达力一声又长又响的饱嗝淹没了。
“I want more bacon.”
“我还要一些腊肉。”
“There’s more in the frying pan, sweetums,” said Aunt Petunia, turning misty eyes on her massive son.
“煎锅里有的是，宝贝，”佩妮姨妈眼眶湿润地看着她的大块头儿子说道，
“We must build you up while we’ve got the chance. . . .
“我们要抓紧时间把你养胖……
I don’t like the sound of that school food. . . .”
学校的伙食让我听着不舒服……”
“Nonsense, Petunia, I never went hungry when I was at Smeltings,” said Uncle Vernon heartily.
“胡说，我在斯梅廷上学时从没饿过肚子。”弗农姨父情绪激烈地说，
“Dudley gets enough, don’t you, son?”
“达力吃得不差，是不是，儿子？”
Dudley, who was so large his bottom drooped over either side of the kitchen chair, grinned and turned toHarry.
达力胖得屁股上的肉都从座椅的两边挂了下来。他咧嘴一笑，转身对哈利说道：
“Pass the frying pan.”
“把煎锅递过来。”
“You’ve forgotten the magic word,” said Harry irritably.
“你忘了说咒语。”哈利恼火地说。
The effect of this simple sentence on the rest of the family was incredible:
这样简单的一句话，对家中其他人产生了不可思议的影响。
Dudley gasped and fell off his chair with a crash that shook the whole kitchen;
达力倒吸一口冷气，从褥子上栽了下来，整个厨房都被震动了；
Mrs. Dursley gave a small scream and clapped her hands to her mouth;
德思礼太太尖叫一声，迅速捂住嘴巴；
Mr. Dursley jumped to his feet, veins throbbing in his temples.
德思礼先生跳起来，太阳穴上青筋暴露。
“I meant ‘please’!” said Harry quickly.
“我的意思是‘请’！”哈利连忙说，
“I didn’t mean —”
“我不是指——”
“WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU,” thundered his uncle, spraying spit over the table,
“我没跟你说吗，”姨父厉声怒斥，唾沫星子溅到了桌上，
“ABOUT SAYING THE ‘M’ WORD IN OUR HOUSE?” “But I —”
“在我们家不许说那方面的词！”“可我——”
“HOW DARE YOU THREATEN DUDLEY!” roared Uncle Vernon, pounding the table with his fist. “I just —”
“你怎么敢威胁达力！”弗农姨父捶着桌子咆哮道。 “我只是——”
“I WARNED YOU! I WILL NOT TOLERATE MENTION OF YOUR ABNORMALITY UNDER THIS ROOF!”
“我警告过你！我不能容忍你在我家里提到你的特异功能！
“All right,” said Harry, “all right . . .”
“好吧，”哈利说，“好吧……”
Uncle Vernon sat back down, breathing like a winded rhinoceros and watching Harry closely out of the cornersof his small, sharp eyes.
弗农姨父坐了下来，像一头气短的犀牛一样喘着粗气，那双精明的小眼睛紧瞟着哈利。
