CHAPTER NINE

1

The Writing on the Wall

2

‘What’s going on here? What’s going on?’

3

Attracted no doubt by Malfoy’s shout, Argus Filch came?

shouldering

?his way through the crowd. Then he saw Mrs Norris and?

fell back

,?

clutching

?his face in horror.

shoulder /'???ld?/ v. (用肩膀)推開

fall back?后退

clutch /kl?t?/ vt. (因害怕或痛苦)突然抓住

4

‘My cat! My cat! What’s happened to Mrs Norris?’ he shrieked.

5

And his popping eyes fell on Harry.

6

‘You!’ he screeched, ‘You! You’ve murdered my cat! You’ve killed her! I’ll kill you! I’ll –’

7

‘Argus!’

8

Dumbledore had arrived on the?

scene

, followed by a number of other teachers. In seconds, he had swept past Harry, Ron and Hermione and?

detached

?Mrs Norris from the?

torch

?

bracket

.

scene /si?n/ n.?事發(fā)地

detach /d??t?t?/ vt.?分離

torch /t??t?/ n.?火把

bracket /?br?k?t/ n.?支架

9

‘Come with me, Argus,’ he said to Filch. ‘You too, Mr Potter, Mr Weasley, Miss Granger.’

10

Lockhart stepped forward eagerly.

11

‘My office is nearest, Headmaster – just upstairs – please?

feel free

?–’

feel free?隨便

12

‘Thank you, Gilderoy,’ said Dumbledore.

13

The silent crowd parted to let them pass. Lockhart, looking excited and?

important

, hurried after Dumbledore; so did Professors McGonagall and Snape.

important /?m'p??t(?)nt/ adj.?自命不凡的

14

As they entered Lockhart’s?

darkened

?office there was a?

flurry

?of movement across the walls; Harry saw several of the Lockharts in the pictures dodging out of sight, their hair in?

rollers

.

darkened /'da:k?nd/ adj.?沒有燈光的

flurry n.?慌張

roller /?r??l?(r)/ n.?卷發(fā)筒

15

The real Lockhart lit the candles on his desk and stood back.

16

Dumbledore laid Mrs Norris on the?

polished

?

surface

?and began to examine her. Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged?

tense

?looks and sank into chairs outside the?

pool

?of candlelight, watching.

polished /'p?l??t/ adj.?擦亮的

surface /'s??f?s/ n.?桌面

tense /tens/ adj.?緊張的

pool /pu?l/ n.?一小片（液體或光）

17

The tip of Dumbledore’s long, crooked nose was barely an inch from Mrs Norris’s?

fur

. He was looking at her closely through his half-moon spectacles, his long fingers gently?

prodding

?and?

poking

.

fur /f??(r)/ n.?毛皮

prod /pr?d/ vt. (用手指或尖物)戳

poke /p??k/ vt.?撥開

18

Professor McGonagall was bent almost?

as

?close, her eyes narrowed.

as /?z/ adv.?同樣地

19

Snape?

loomed

?behind them, half in shadow, wearing a most peculiar expression: it was as though he was trying hard not to smile.

loom /lu?m/ v.?（尤指陰森森地）隱約出現(xiàn)

20

And Lockhart was?

hovering

?around all of them, making suggestions.

hover /?h?v?(r)/ vi.?走來走去

21

‘It was definitely a curse that killed her – probably the?

Transmogrifian

?

Torture

. I’ve seen it used many times, so unlucky I wasn’t there, I know the very counter-curse that would have saved her …’

transmogrify /tr?nz'm?gr?fa?/ vt.?使變形

torture /?t??t??(r)/ v.?拷打

22

Lockhart’s?

comments

?were?

punctuated

?by Filch’s dry,?

racking

?sobs. He was slumped in a chair by the desk, unable to look at Mrs Norris, his face in his hands.

comment /?k?ment/ n.?意見

punctuate /?p??kt?ue?t/ vt.?不時打斷某事物

racking /'r?k??/ adj.?拷問的

23

Much as he?

detested

?Filch, Harry couldn’t help feeling a bit sorry for him, though not nearly as sorry as he felt for himself.?

detest /d??test/ vt.?厭惡

24

If Dumbledore believed Filch, he would be expelled for sure.

25

Dumbledore was now muttering strange words under his breath and tapping Mrs Norris with his wand, but nothing happened: she continued to look as though she had been?

recently

?

stuffed

.

recently /'risntli/ adv.?新近

stuff /st?f/ v.?制作（動物）標(biāo)本

26

‘… I remember something very similar happening in?

Ouagadougou

,’ said Lockhart,

Ouagadougou /?wɑ:ɡ??du:ɡu:/ n.瓦加杜古(非洲布基納法索首都)

27

‘a(chǎn) series of attacks, the full story’s in my?

autobiography

. I was able to provide the?

townsfolk

?with various?

amulets

which?

cleared the matter up

?at once …’

autobiography /???t?ba???ɡr?fi/ n.?自傳

townsfolk /'ta?nzf??k/ n.?鎮(zhèn)民

amulet /'?mj?l?t/ n.?護身符

clear up?處理

28

The photographs of Lockhart on the walls were all nodding in agreement as he talked. One of them had forgotten to remove his?

hairnet

.

hairnet /'he?net/ n.?發(fā)網(wǎng)

29

At last Dumbledore straightened up.

30

‘She’s not dead, Argus,’ he said softly.

31

Lockhart stopped abruptly in the middle of counting the number of murders he had prevented.

32

‘Not dead?’ choked Filch, looking through his fingers at Mrs Norris. ‘But why’s she all – all stiff and frozen?’

33

‘She has been?

Petrified

,’ said Dumbledore (‘Ah! I thought so!’ said Lockhart). ‘But how, I cannot say …’

petrify /?petr?fa?/ vi.?石化

34

‘Ask him!’ shrieked Filch, turning his?

blotched

?and tear-stained face to Harry.

blotched /bl?t?t/ adj.?有污漬的

35

‘No second-year could have done this,’ said Dumbledore firmly. ‘It would take Dark magic of the most?

advanced

?–’

advanced /?d?vɑ?nst/ adj.?高級的

36

‘He did it, he did it!’ Filch spat, his?

pouchy

?face?

purpling

.

pouchy /'pa?t??/ adj.?松垂的

purple /'p??p(?)l/ v. (使)發(fā)紫

37

‘You saw what he wrote on the wall! He found – in my office – he knows I’m a – I’m a –’ Filch’s face worked horribly. ‘He knows I’m a?

Squib

!’ he finished.

squib /skw?b/ n.?啞炮

38

‘I never touched Mrs Norris!’ Harry said loudly, uncomfortably aware of everyone looking at him, including all the Lockharts on the walls. ‘And I don’t even know what a Squib is.’

39

‘Rubbish!’ snarled Filch. ‘He saw my Kwikspell letter!’

40

‘If I might speak, Headmaster,’ said Snape from the shadows, and Harry’s sense of?

foreboding

?increased; he was sure nothing Snape had to say was going to do him any good.

foreboding /f??'b??d??/ n. (對不祥之事的)預(yù)感

41

‘Potter and his friends may have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time,’ he said, a slight sneer curling his mouth as though he?

doubted

?it,

doubt /da?t/ n.?懷疑

42

but we do have a set of suspicious circumstances here. Why were they in the upstairs corridor at all? Why weren’t they at the Hallowe’en feast?’

43

Harry, Ron and Hermione all launched into an explanation about the Deathday Party, ‘… there were hundreds of ghosts, they’ll tell you we were there –’

44

‘But why not join the feast afterwards?’ said Snape, his black eyes glittering in the candlelight. ‘Why go up to that corridor?’

45

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry.

46

‘Because – because –’ Harry said, his heart?

thumping

?very fast;

thump /θ?mp/ vt. & vi.(指心臟)急速跳動

47

something told him it would sound very?

far-fetched?

if he told them he had been led there by a?

bodiless

?voice no one but he could hear, ‘because we were tired and wanted to go to bed,’ he said.

far-fetched /'fɑ:'fet?t/ adj.?牽強的

bodiless /'b?d?l?s/ adj.?無形的

48

‘Without any supper?’ said Snape, a triumphant smile?

flickering

?across his?

gaunt

?face. ‘I didn’t think ghosts provided food fit for living people at their parties.’

flicker /?fl?k?(r)/ v.（表情）掠過

gaunt /ɡ??nt/ adj.?枯瘦的

49

‘We weren’t hungry,’ said Ron loudly, as his stomach gave a huge?

rumble

.

rumble /?r?mbl/ v.?（肚子因饑餓而）咕嚕作響

50

Snape’s nasty smile widened.

51

‘I suggest, Headmaster, that Potter is not being entirely truthful,’ he said.

52

‘It might be a good idea if he were?

deprived

?of certain?

privileges

?until he is ready to tell us the whole story.?

deprive /d??pra?v/ vt.?剝奪

privilege /?pr?v?l?d?/ n.?特權(quán)

53

I personally feel he should be taken off the Gryffindor Quidditch team until he is ready to be honest.’

54

‘

Really

, Severus,’ said Professor McGonagall sharply,

really /'r??l?/ adv.?說實在的

55

‘I see no reason to stop the boy playing Quidditch. This cat wasn’t hit over the head with a broomstick. There is no evidence at all that Potter has done anything wrong.’

56

Dumbledore was giving Harry a?

searching

?look. His?

twinkling

?light-blue gaze made Harry feel as though he was being?

X-rayed

.

searching /'s??t???/ adj. (問題、目光)洞察真相的

twinkle /'tw??k(?)l/ vt.?使閃爍

X-rayed?用x光檢查

57

‘

Innocent

?until proven?

guilty

, Severus,’ he said firmly.

innocent /??n?snt/ adj.?無罪的

guilty /?ɡ?lti/ adj.?有罪的

58

Snape looked?

furious

. So did Filch.

furious /?fj??ri?s/ adj.?狂怒的

59

‘My cat has been Petrified!’ he shrieked, his eyes popping. ‘I want to see some punishment!’

60

‘We will be able to?

cure

?her, Argus,’ said Dumbledore patiently.

cure /kj??(r)/ vt.?治愈

61

‘Professor Sprout recently managed to?

procure

?some?

Mandrakes

. As soon as they have reached their?

full

?size, I will have a potion made which will?

revive

?Mrs Norris.’

procure /pr?'kj??/ vt.?獲得

mandrake /'m?ndre?k/ n. [植]曼德拉草（可作鎮(zhèn)靜藥用）

full adj.?足足的

revive /r??va?v/ vt.?使蘇醒

62

‘I’ll make it,’ Lockhart?

butted in

. ‘I must have done it a hundred times, I could?

whip

?up a Mandrake?

RestorativeDraught

?in my sleep –’

butt in?插嘴

whip /w?p/ v.?攪打（奶油或蛋清使成糊狀）

restorative /r??st??r?t?v/ adj.?有恢復(fù)健康作用的

draught /drɑ?ft/ n.?飲劑

63

‘Excuse me,’ said Snape?

icily

, ‘but I believe I am the Potions master at this school.’

icily /'a?s?l?/ adv.?冷冰冰地

64

There was a very?

awkward

?pause.

awkward /???kw?d/ adj.?尷尬的

65

‘You may go,’ Dumbledore said to Harry, Ron and Hermione.

66

They went, as quickly as they could without actually running.?

67

When they were a floor up from Lockhart’s office, they turned into an empty classroom and closed the door quietly behind them.

68

Harry squinted at his friends’ darkened faces.

69

‘D’you think I should have told them about that voice I heard?’

70

‘No,’ said Ron, without hesitation. ‘Hearing voices no one else can hear isn’t a good sign, even in the wizarding world.’

71

Something in Ron’s voice made Harry ask, ‘You do believe me, don’t you?’

72

‘Course I do,’ said Ron quickly. ‘But – you must admit it’s weird …’

73

‘I know it’s weird,’ said Harry. ‘The whole thing’s weird. What was that writing on the wall about? The Chamber has been opened … what’s that supposed to mean?’

74

‘You know, it?

rings a sort of bell

,’ said Ron slowly. ‘I think someone told me a story about a secret chamber at Hogwarts once … might’ve been Bill …’

ring a bell?使某人想起某事

75

‘And what on earth’s a Squib?’ said Harry.

76

To his surprise, Ron?

stifled

?a?

snigger

.

stifle /?sta?fl/ vt.?強忍住

snigger /'sn?g?/ vi.?暗笑

77

‘Well – it’s not funny really – but as it’s Filch …’ he said.

78

‘A?

Squib

?is someone who was born into a wizarding family but hasn’t got any magic powers. Kind of the opposite of Muggle-born wizards, but Squibs are quite unusual.

squib /skw?b/ n.?啞炮

79

If Filch’s trying to learn magic from a Kwikspell course, I reckon he must be a Squib. It would explain a lot. Like why he hates students so much.’

80

Ron gave a?

satisfied

?smile. ‘He’s?

bitter

.’

satisfied /?s?t?s?fa?d/ adj.?確信的

bitter /?b?t?(r)/ adj.?憤憤不平的

81

A clock chimed somewhere.

82

‘Midnight,’ said Harry. ‘We’d better get to bed before Snape comes along and tries to?

frame

?us for something else.’

frame /fre?m/ v. <非正式>誣陷

83

For a few days, the school could talk of little?

but

?the attack on Mrs Norris.

but /b?t/ prep.?除…以外

84

Filch kept it fresh in everyone’s minds by?

pacing

?the spot where she had been attacked, as though he thought the attacker might come back.

pace /pe?s/ vt. & vi.?踱步于

85

Harry had seen him?

scrubbing

?the?

message

?on the wall with ‘Mrs Skower’s?

All-Purpose

?Magical?

Mess

?Remover’, but to no effect; the words still gleamed as brightly as ever on the stone.

scrub /skr?b/ vt.?用力擦洗

message /'mes?d?/ n.?消息

all-purpose /'?:l'p?:p?s/ adj.?多用途的

mess /mes/ n.?臟亂

86

When Filch wasn’t guarding the scene of the crime, he was?

skulking

?red-eyed through the corridors,

skulk /sk?lk/ vi.?偷偷隱躲

87

lunging

?out at?

unsuspecting

?students and trying to put them in detention for things like ‘breathing loudly’ and ‘looking happy’.

lunge /l?nd?/ v.?猛沖

unsuspecting /??ns??spekt??/ adj.?無戒備心的

88

Ginny Weasley seemed very?

disturbed

?by Mrs Norris’s?

fate

. According to Ron, she was a great cat-lover.

disturb /d??st??b/ vt.?使不安

fate /fe?t/ n.?命中注定的事（尤指壞事）

89

‘But you hadn’t really got to know Mrs Norris,’ Ron told her?

bracingly

. ‘Honestly, we’re much?

better off

?without her.’

bracingly?令人振奮地

better off adj.?更好的

90

Ginny’s lip?

trembled

.

tremble /?trembl/ vi.?發(fā)抖

91

‘Stuff like this doesn’t often happen at Hogwarts,’ Ron?

assured

?her.

assure /?????(r)/ vt.?使確信

92

‘They’ll catch the?

nutter

?who did it and have him out of here in no time. I just hope he’s got time to?

Petrify

?Filch before he’s expelled. I’m only joking –’?

nutter /'n?t?/ n.?瘋子

petrify /?petr?fa?/ vi.?石化

93

Ron added hastily, as Ginny?

blanched

.

blanch /blɑ?nt?/ vt.?使變白

94

The attack had also had an effect on Hermione. It was quite usual for Hermione to spend a lot of time reading, but she was now doing almost nothing else.

95

Nor could Harry and Ron get much?

response

?from her when they asked what she was up to, and not until the following Wednesday did they find out.

response /r??sp?ns/ n.?回答

96

Harry had been?

held back

?in Potions, where Snape had made him stay behind to?

scrape

?

tubeworms

?off the desks.

hold back?扣住

scrape /skre?p/ v.?刮擦

tubeworm?多毛蟲

97

After a hurried lunch, he went upstairs to meet Ron in the library, and saw Justin Finch-Fletchley, the Hufflepuff boy from Herbology, coming towards him.

98

Harry had just opened his mouth to say hello when Justin caught sight of him, turned abruptly and sped off in the opposite direction.

99

Harry found Ron at the back of the library,?

measuring

?his History of Magic homework. Professor Binns had asked for a three-foot long?

composition

?on ‘The?

Medieval

?

Assembly

?of European Wizards’.

measure /?me??(r)/ vt.?測量

composition /?k?mp??z??n/ n.?作文

medieval /?medi?i?vl/ adj.?中世紀(jì)的

assembly /??sembli/ n.?集會

100

‘I don’t believe it, I’m still eight inches short …’ said Ron furiously, letting go of his?

parchment

, which?

sprang

?back into a roll, ‘a(chǎn)nd Hermione’s done four feet seven inches and her writing’s tiny.’

parchment /'pɑ?t?m(?)nt/ n.?羊皮紙

spring /spr??/ v.?突然彈開

101

‘Where is she?’ asked Harry, grabbing the?

tape measure

?and?

unrolling

?his own homework.

tape measure?卷尺

unroll /?n'r??l/ vt. & vi.?展開

102

‘Somewhere over there,’ said Ron, pointing along the shelves, ‘looking for another book. I think she’s trying to read the whole library before Christmas.’

103

Harry told Ron about Justin Finch-Fletchley running away from him.

104

‘Dunno why you care, I thought he was a bit of an?

idiot

,’ said Ron,?

scribbling

?away, making his writing as large as possible. ‘All that?

rubbish

?about Lockhart being so great –’

idiot /??di?t/ n.?笨蛋

scribble /?skr?bl/ vt.?潦草地書寫

rubbish /'r?b??/ n.?廢話

105

Hermione emerged from between the bookshelves. She looked?

irritable

?and at last seemed ready to talk to them.

irritable /??r?t?bl/ adj.?易怒的

106

‘All the copies of Hogwarts: A History have been taken out,’ she said, sitting down next to Harry and Ron.

107

‘And there’s a two-week?

waiting list

. I wish I hadn’t left my copy at home, but I couldn’t fit it in my trunk with all the Lockhart books.’

waiting list n.?等候批準(zhǔn)的申請人名單

108

‘Why do you want it?’ said Harry.

109

‘The same reason everyone else wants it,’ said Hermione, ‘to read up on the?

legend

?of the Chamber of Secrets.’

legend /?led??nd/ n.?傳奇故事

110

‘What’s that?’ said Harry quickly.

111

‘That’s just it. I can’t remember,’ said Hermione, biting her lip. ‘And I can’t find the story anywhere else –’

112

‘Hermione, let me read your composition,’ said Ron desperately, checking his watch.

113

‘No, I won’t,’ said Hermione, suddenly?

severe

. ‘You’ve had ten days to finish it.’

severe /s??v??(r)/ adj.?嚴(yán)厲的

114

‘I only need another two inches, go on …’

115

The bell rang. Ron and Hermione led the way to History of Magic,?

bickering

.

bicker /?b?k?(r)/ vi.?斗嘴

116

History of Magic was the?

dullest

?subject on their timetable.

dull /d?l/ adj.?無趣的

117

Professor Binns, who taught it, was their only ghost teacher, and the most exciting thing that?

ever

?happened in his classes was his entering the room through the blackboard.

ever /'ev?/ adv.?一直

118

Ancient and?

shrivelled

, many people said he hadn’t noticed he was dead.

shrivel /??r?vl/ vi.?皺縮

119

He had simply got up to teach one day and left his body behind him in an armchair in front of the staff-room fire; his routine had not?

varied

?in the slightest since.

vary /?ve?ri/ vt.?改變

120

Today was as boring as ever.

121

Professor Binns opened his notes and began to read in a flat?

drone

?like an old?

vacuum cleaner

?until nearly everyone in the class was in a deep?

stupor

,

drone /dr??n/ n. <非正式>單調(diào)乏味的講話

vacuum cleaner?真空吸塵器

stupor /?stju?p?(r)/ n.?目光呆滯

122

occasionally coming round long enough to?

copy

?down a name or date, then falling asleep again.

copy /?k?pi/ v.?抄寫

123

He had been speaking for half an hour when something happened that had never happened before. Hermione put up her hand.

124

Professor Binns, glancing up in the middle of a?

deadly

?

dull

?

lecture

?on the International Warlock?

Convention

?of 1289, looked amazed.

deadly /?dedli/ adj.?非常的

dull /d?l/ adj.?無趣的

lecture /?lekt??(r)/ n.?演講

convention /k?n?ven?n/ n. (某一職業(yè)、政黨等人士召開的)大會

125

‘Miss – er –?’

126

‘Granger, Professor. I was wondering if you could tell us anything about the Chamber of Secrets,’ said Hermione in a clear voice.

127

Dean Thomas, who had been sitting with his mouth?

hanging open

, gazing out of the window, jerked out of his?

trance

;

hang open?（嘴巴，門等）保持開啟狀態(tài)

trance /trɑ?ns/ n.?恍惚

128

Lavender Brown’s head came up off her arms and Neville’s?

elbow

?slipped off his desk.

elbow /?elb??/ n.?肘部

129

Professor Binns blinked.

130

‘My subject is History of Magic,’ he said in his dry,?

wheezy

?voice. ‘I deal with facts, Miss Granger, not?

myths

?and?

legends

.’

wheezy /'wi?z?/ adj.?氣喘的

myth /m?θ/ n.?神話

legend /?led??nd/ n.?傳奇

131

He cleared his throat with a small noise like?

chalk

?snapping and continued, ‘In September of that year, a?

sub-committee

?of?

Sardinian

?sorcerers –’

chalk /t???k/ n.?粉筆

subcommittee /'s?bk?m?t?/ n. (由大委員會成員組成)小組委員會

Sardinian /sɑ:?dini?n/?撒丁(島)人

132

He?

stuttered

?to a halt. Hermione’s hand was waving in the air again.

stutter /?st?t?(r)/ vt. & vi.?結(jié)結(jié)巴巴地說

133

‘Miss Grant?’

134

‘Please, sir, don’t legends always have a?

basis

?in fact?’

basis /?be?s?s/ n.?基礎(chǔ)

135

Professor Binns was looking at her in such amazement, Harry was sure no student had ever interrupted him before, alive or dead.

136

‘Well,’ said Professor Binns slowly, ‘yes, one could?

argue

?that, I suppose.’

argue /?ɑ?ɡju?/ v.?認(rèn)為

137

He peered at Hermione as though he had never seen a student?

properly

?before. ‘However, the legend of which you speak is such a very?

sensational

, even?

ludicrous

?

tale

?…’

proper /?pr?p?(r)/ adj.?真正的

sensational /sen'se??(?)n(?)l/ adj.?聳人聽聞的

ludicrous /'lu?d?kr?s/ adj.?荒唐可笑的

tale /te?l/ n.?故事

138

But the whole class was now hanging on Professor Binns’s every word. He looked?

dimly

?at them all, every face turned to his.

dimly adv.?遲鈍地

139

Harry could tell he was completely?

thrown

?by such an unusual show of interest.

throw /θr??/ v.?使困惑

140

‘Oh, very well,’ he said slowly. ‘Let me see … the Chamber of Secrets …

141

‘You all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago – the?

precise

?date is uncertain – by the four greatest witches and wizards of the?

age

.

precise /pr??sa?s/ adj.?精確的

age /e?d?/ n.?時代

142

The four school houses are named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin.

143

They built this castle together, far from?

prying

?Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much?

persecution

.’

pry /pra?/ vi.?窺探

persecution /p??s?'kju??n/ n.?迫害或受迫害

144

He paused, gazed?

blearily

?around the room, and continued,

blearily /'bl?r?li/ adv.?模糊地

145

‘For a few years, the founders worked in?

harmony

?together, seeking out?

youngsters

?who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be?

educated

.

harmony /?hɑ?m?ni/ n.?和睦

youngster /?j??st?(r)/ n.?年輕人

educate /?ed?uke?t/ vt.?培養(yǎng)

146

But then disagreements?

sprang up

?between them. A?

rift

?began to grow between Slytherin and the others.

spring up?出現(xiàn)

rift /r?ft/ n.?不和

147

Slytherin wished to be more?

selective

?about the students?

admitted

?to Hogwarts.

selective /s??lekt?v/ adj.?精心選擇的

admit /?d?m?t/ v.?接收(入學(xué))

148

He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle?

parentage

, believing them to be?

untrustworthy

.

parentage /'pe?r(?)nt?d?/ n.?父母親的身份

untrustworthy /?n?tr?stw??ei/ adj.?靠不住的

149

After a while, there was a serious argument on the?

subject

?between Slytherin and Gryffindor, and Slytherin left the school.’

subject /'s?bd?ekt/ n.?話題

150

Professor Binns paused again,?

pursing

?his lips, looking like a?

wrinkled

?old?

tortoise

.

purse /p??s/ vt.?縮攏

wrinkled /?r??kld/ adj.?有皺紋的

tortoise /'t??t?s/ n.?烏龜（等于testudo）

151

‘

Reliable

?historical?

sources

?tell us this much,’ he said,

reliable /r??la??bl/ adj.?可靠的

source /s??s/ n.?信息來源

152

‘but these?

honest

?facts have been?

obscured

?by the?

fanciful

?legend of the Chamber of Secrets. The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing.

honest /'?n?st/ adj.?可靠的

obscure /?b?skj??(r)/ vt.?遮掩

fanciful /?f?ns?fl/ adj.?想像的

153

‘Slytherin, according to the legend,?

sealed

?the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true?

heir

?arrived at the school.

seal /si?l/ vt,?密封

heir /e?(r)/ n.?繼承人

154

The heir alone would be able to?

unseal

?the Chamber of Secrets,?

unleash

?the horror within, and use it to?

purge

?the school of all who were?

unworthy

?to study magic.’

unseal /?n'si?l/ vt.?開啟

unleash /?n?li??/ vt.?把(感情、力量等)釋放出來

purge /p??d?/ vi.?凈化

unworthy /?n'w??e?/ adj.?不配的

155

There was silence as he finished telling the story, but it wasn’t the usual,?

sleepy

?silence that filled Professor Binns’s classes.

sleepy /'sli?p?/ adj.?欲睡的

156

There was?

unease

?in the air as everyone continued to watch him, hoping for more. Professor Binns looked faintly annoyed.

unease /?n'i:z/ n.?不安

157

‘The whole thing is?

arrant

?

nonsense

, of course,’ he said.

arrant /??r?nt/ adj.?徹頭徹尾的

nonsense /?n?nsns/ n.?胡扯

158

‘Naturally, the school has been searched for evidence of such a chamber, many times, by the most?

learned

?witches and wizards. It does not exist. A tale told to?

frighten

?the?

gullible

.’

learned /?l??n?d/ adj.?有學(xué)問的

frighten /?fra?tn/ vt. & vi. (使)驚恐

gullible /?ɡ?l?bl/ adj.?易受騙的

159

Hermione’s hand was back in the air.

160

‘Sir – what exactly do you mean by the ‘horror within’ the Chamber?’

161

‘That is believed to be some sort of?

monster

, which the heir of Slytherin alone can control,’ said Professor Binns in his dry,?

reedy

?voice.

monster /?m?nst?(r)/ n.?怪物

reedy /'ri?d?/ adj.（聲音）尖細(xì)的

162

The class exchanged nervous looks.

163

‘I tell you, the thing does not exist,’ said Professor Binns,?

shuffling

?his notes. ‘There is no Chamber and no monster.’

shuffle /???fl/ v.?匆忙地整理（或瀏覽）

164

‘But, sir,’ said Seamus Finnigan, ‘if the Chamber can only be opened by Slytherin’s true heir, no one else would be able to find it, would they?’

165

‘Nonsense, O’Flaherty,’ said Professor Binns in an?

aggravated

?tone. ‘If a long?

succession

?of Hogwarts headmasters and headmistresses haven’t found the thing –’

aggravate /??ɡr?ve?t/ vt.?使惱火

succession /s?k?se?n/ n.?繼任

166

‘But, Professor,’ piped up Parvati Patil, ‘you’d probably have to use Dark Magic to open it –’

167

‘Just because a wizard doesn’t use Dark Magic, doesn’t mean he can’t, Miss Pennyfeather,’ snapped Professor Binns. ‘I repeat, if the likes of Dumbledore –’

168

‘But maybe you’ve got to be?

related

?to Slytherin, so Dumbledore couldn’t –’ began Dean Thomas, but Professor Binns?

had had enough

.

relate /r??le?t/ vt. & vi. (把…)聯(lián)系起來

have had enough?受夠了（表示對某事感到厭煩）

169

‘

That will do

,’ he said?

sharply

.

that will do?行了

sharply /'?a:pli/ adv.?嚴(yán)厲地

170

‘It is a?

myth

! It does not exist! There is not a?

shred

?of evidence that Slytherin ever built so much as a secret broom cupboard! I?

regret

?telling you such a foolish story!

myth /m?θ/ n.?神話

shred /?red/ n.?最少量

regret /r??ɡret/ vt.?后悔

171

We will return, if you please, to history, to solid, believable,?

verifiable

?fact!’

verifiable /?ver?fa??bl/ adj.?能證實的

172

And within five minutes, the class had?

sunk

?back into its usual?

torpor

.

sunk /s??k/ v.?陷入

torpor /?t??p?(r)/ n.?不活潑

173

‘I always knew Salazar Slytherin was a?

twisted

?old?

loony

,’ Ron told Harry and Hermione,

twisted /'tw?st?d/ adj.?扭曲的

loony /'lu?n?/ n.?瘋子

174

as they?

fought their way

?through the?

teeming

?corridors at the end of the lesson to drop off their bags before dinner.

fight one’s way?奮斗前進

teeming /'ti:mi?/ adj.?擁擠的

175

‘But I never knew he started all this pure-blood stuff. I wouldn’t be in his house if you paid me. Honestly, if the Sorting Hat had tried to put me in Slytherin, I’d’ve got the train straight back home …’

176

Hermione nodded?

fervently

, but Harry didn’t say anything. His stomach had just dropped unpleasantly.

fervently /'f?:v?ntli/ adv.?熱誠地

177

Harry had never told Ron and Hermione that the Sorting Hat had seriously considered putting him in Slytherin.

178

He could remember, as though it was yesterday, the small voice that had spoken in his ear when he’d placed the Hat on his head a year before.

179

‘You could be great, you know, it’s all here in your head, and Slytherin would help you on the way to?

greatness

, no doubt about that …’

greatness /'greitnis/ n.?偉大

180

But Harry, who had already heard of Slytherin house’s?

reputation

?for?

turning out

?dark wizards, had thought desperately, ‘Not Slytherin!’

reputation /?repju?te??n/ n.?名聲

turn out v.?生產(chǎn)

181

and the Hat had said, ‘Oh, well, if you’re sure … better be Gryffindor …’

182

As they were?

shunted

?along in the?

throng

, Colin Creevey went past.

shunt /??nt/ vt. & vi.?把……推到一邊

throng /θr??/ n.?人群

183

‘Hiya, Harry!’

184

‘Hullo, Colin,’ said Harry?

automatically

.

automatically /???t??m?t?kli/ adv.?自動地

185

‘Harry – Harry – a boy in my class has been saying you’re –’

186

But Colin was so small he couldn’t fight against the tide of people?

bearing

?him towards the Great Hall; they heard him squeak, ‘See you, Harry!’ and he was gone.

bear /be?(r)/ v.?運送

187

‘What’s a boy in his class saying about you?’ Hermione wondered.

188

‘That I’m Slytherin’s heir, I expect,’ said Harry, his stomach dropping another inch or so, as he suddenly remembered the way Justin Finch-Fletchley had run away from him at lunchtime.

189

‘People here’ll believe anything,’ said Ron in?

disgust

.

disgust /d?s?ɡ?st/ n.?嫌惡

190

The crowd?

thinned

?and they were able to climb the next staircase without difficulty.

thin /θ?n/ v.?（使）（擁擠的人群、植物、物品等）變稀少

191

‘D’you really think there’s a Chamber of Secrets?’ Ron asked Hermione.

192

‘I don’t know,’ she said, frowning. ‘Dumbledore couldn’t cure Mrs Norris, and that makes me think that whatever attacked her might not be – well – human.’

193

As she spoke, they turned a corner and found themselves at the end of the very corridor where the attack had happened.

194

They stopped and looked.

195

The scene was just as it had been that night,?

196

except that there was no stiff cat hanging from the torch bracket, and an empty chair stood against the wall?

bearing

the message ‘The Chamber has been opened.’

bear /be?(r)/ vt.?支撐

197

‘That’s where Filch has been keeping guard,’ Ron muttered.

198

They looked at each other. The corridor was deserted.

199

‘Can’t hurt to have a?

poke around

,’ said Harry, dropping his bag and getting to his hands and knees so that he could?

crawl

?along, searching for clues.

poke around?閑逛

crawl /kr??l/ vi.?爬行

200

‘

Scorch

?marks!’ he said. ‘Here – and here –’

scorch /sk??t?/ vt.?燒焦

201

‘Come and look at this!’ said Hermione. ‘This is funny …’

202

Harry got up and?

crossed

?to the window next to the message on the wall.

cross /kr?s/ v.?渡過

203

Hermione was pointing at the topmost?

pane

, where around twenty spiders were?

scuttling

, apparently fighting to get through a small crack in the glass.

pane /pe?n/ n.?窗玻璃

scuttle /'sk?t(?)l/ vi.?急促地跑

204

A long, silvery?

thread

?was dangling like a rope, as though they had all climbed it in their hurry to get outside.

thread /θred/ n.?線

205

‘Have you ever seen spiders act like that?’ said Hermione?

wonderingly

.

wonderingly /'w?nd?ri?li/ adv.?覺得奇怪地

206

‘No,’ said Harry, ‘have you, Ron? Ron?’

207

He looked over his shoulder. Ron was standing well back, and seemed to be?

fighting

?the?

impulse

?to run.

fight /fa?t/ v.?努力抑制(情感)

impulse /??mp?ls/ n.?沖動

208

‘What’s up?’ said Harry.

209

‘I – don’t – like – spiders,’ said Ron tensely.

210

‘I never knew that,’ said Hermione, looking at Ron in surprise. ‘You’ve used spiders in potions loads of times …’

211

‘I don’t mind them dead,’ said Ron, who was carefully looking anywhere but at the window, ‘I just don’t like the way they move …’

212

Hermione giggled.

213

‘It’s not funny,’ said Ron,?

fiercely

.

fiercely /'fi?sli/ adv.?兇猛地

214

‘If you must know, when I was three, Fred turned my – my?

teddy bear

?into a dirty great spider because I broke his toy broomstick.

teddy bear /?ted? be?(r)/ n.?泰迪熊

215

You wouldn’t like them either if you’d been?

holding

?your bear and suddenly it had too many legs and …’

hold /h??ld/ v.?抱住

216

He broke off, shuddering. Hermione was obviously still trying not to laugh.

217

Feeling they had better get off the subject, Harry said, ‘Remember all that water on the floor? Where did that come from? Someone’s?

mopped

?it up.’

mop /m?p/ vt.?擦干

218

‘It was about here,’ said Ron, recovering himself to walk a few paces past Filch’s chair and pointing. ‘Level with this door.’

219

He reached for the brass doorknob but suddenly?

withdrew

?his hand as though he’d been burned.

withdraw /w?e?dr??/ v.?抽回

220

‘What’s the matter?’ said Harry.

221

‘Can’t go in there,’ said Ron?

gruffly

, ‘that’s a girls’ toilet.’

gruffly /'gr?fli/ adv.?生硬地

222

‘Oh, Ron, there won’t be anyone in there,’ said Hermione, standing up and coming over. ‘That’s Moaning Myrtle’s place. Come on, let’s have a look.’

223

And ignoring the large ‘

Out of Order

’ sign, she opened the door.

out of order adj.?無次序的(混亂的,?有毛病的,?出故障的)

224

It was the gloomiest, most?

depressing

?bathroom Harry had ever?

set foot in

.

depressing /d??pres??/ adj.?令人消沉地

set foot in v.?踏進

225

Under a large, cracked and?

spotted

?mirror were a row of?

chipped

, stone sinks.

spotted /'sp?t?d/ adj.?有斑點的

chipped /t??pt/ adj.?有缺口的

226

The floor was damp and reflected the dull light given off by the?

stubs

?of a few candles, burning low in their holders;

stub /st?b/ n.?樹樁

227

the wooden doors to the?

cubicles

?were?

flaking

?and scratched and one of them was dangling off its?

hinges

.

cubicle /'kju?b?k(?)l/ n.?小臥室

flake /fle?k/ vi.?剝落

hinge /h?nd?/ n.?鉸鏈

228

Hermione put her fingers to her lips and set off towards the end?

cubicle

.?

cubicle /'kju?b?k(?)l/ n.?小臥室

229

When she reached it she said, ‘Hello, Myrtle, how are you?’

230

Harry and Ron went to look. Moaning Myrtle was floating on the?

cistern

?of the toilet,?

picking

?a spot on her chin.

cistern /'s?st?n/ n.?水池

pick /p?k/ v.?掐去

231

‘This is a girls’ bathroom,’ she said, eyeing Ron and Harry?

suspiciously

. ‘They’re not girls.’

suspiciously /s??sp???sl?/ adv.?猜疑地

232

‘No,’ Hermione agreed. ‘I just wanted to show them how – er – nice it is in here.’

233

She waved?

vaguely

?at the dirty old mirror and the damp floor.

vaguely /'veigli/ adv.?含糊地

234

‘Ask her if she saw anything,’ Harry?

mouthed

?at Hermione.

mouth /ma?θ/ v.?用口型默示

235

‘What are you whispering?’ said Myrtle, staring at him.

236

‘Nothing,’ said Harry quickly. ‘We wanted to ask –’

237

‘I wish people would stop talking behind my back!’ said Myrtle, in a voice choked with tears. ‘I do have feelings, you know, even if I am dead.’

238

‘Myrtle, no one wants to?

upset

?you,’ said Hermione. ‘Harry only –’

upset /?p?set/ vt.?使心煩

239

‘No one wants to upset me! That’s a?

good one

!’ howled Myrtle. ‘My life was nothing but?

misery

?at this place and now people?

come along

?ruining my death!’

good one?絕妙的笑話

misery /?m?z?ri/ n.?痛苦

come along?一起來

240

‘We wanted to ask you if you’d seen anything funny lately,’ said Hermione quickly, ‘because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Hallowe’en.’

241

‘Did you see anyone near here that night?’ said Harry.

242

‘I wasn’t paying attention,’ said Myrtle?

dramatically

. ‘Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to kill myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I’m – that I’m –’

dramatically /dr??m?t?kli/ adv.?劇烈地

243

‘Already dead,’ said Ron helpfully.

244

Myrtle gave a?

tragic

?sob, rose up in the air, turned over and dived head first into the toilet, splashing water all over them and vanishing from sight;

tragic /?tr?d??k/ adj.?悲痛的

245

from the direction of her?

muffled

?sobs, she had come to rest somewhere in the?

U-bend

.

muffled /'m?fld/ adj.?蒙住的

U-bend n. (尤指污水管的)U形彎頭

246

Harry and Ron stood with their mouths open, but Hermione shrugged?

wearily

?and said, ‘Honestly, that was almost cheerful for Myrtle … come on, let’s go.’

wearily /'wirili/ adv.?百無聊賴地

247

Harry had barely closed the door on Myrtle’s?

gurgling

?sobs when a loud voice made all three of them jump.

gurgle /'g??g(?)l/ v.?作汩汩聲；

248

‘RON!’

249

Percy Weasley had stopped dead at the head of the stairs, prefect badge?

agleam

, an expression of complete shock on his face.

agleam /?'ɡli?m/ adj.?光亮的

250

‘That’s a girls’ bathroom!’ he gasped. ‘What were you –?’

251

‘Just having a look around,’ Ron shrugged. ‘Clues, you know …’

252

Percy?

swelled

?

in a manner

?that reminded Harry?

forcefully

?of Mrs Weasley.

swell /swel/ vi.?膨脹

in a manner?在某種程度上

forcefully?強有力地

253

‘Get – away – from – there –’ he said, striding towards them and starting to?

chivvy

?them along, flapping his arms. ‘Don’t you care what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone’s at dinner …’

chivvy /?t?ivi/ vt.?催促

254

‘Why shouldn’t we be here?’ said Ron?

hotly

, stopping?

short

?and glaring at Percy. ‘Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat!’

hotly /?h?tli:/ adv.?激烈地

short /??:t/ adv.?突然

255

‘That’s what I told Ginny,’ said Percy fiercely,

256

‘but she still seems to think you’re going to be expelled; I’ve never seen her so upset,?

crying her eyes out

. You might think of her, all the first-years are?

thoroughly

?

over-excited

?by this business –’

cry one's eyes out?淚如雨下

thoroughly /'θ?r?li/ adv.?完全地

overexcite /'ov?r?k'sa?t/ vt.?過度刺激

257

‘You don’t care about Ginny,’ said Ron, whose ears were?

reddening

?now. ‘You’re just worried I’m going to?

mess up

your chances of being Head Boy.’

redden /'red(?)n/ vt. & vi. (使)變紅

mess up?搞糟

258

‘Five points from Gryffindor!’ Percy said?

tersely

,?

fingering

?his prefect badge. ‘And I hope it teaches you a lesson! No more?

detective

?work, or I’ll write to Mum!’

tersely /'t?:sli/ adv.?簡潔地

finger /'f??g?/ v.?用手指觸摸

detective /d??tekt?v/ n.?偵探

259

And he strode off, the back of his neck as red as Ron’s ears.

260

Harry, Ron and Hermione chose seats as far as possible from Percy in the common room that night.

261

Ron was still in a very bad temper and kept?

blotting

?his Charms homework.

blot /bl?t/ vi.?弄上墨漬或污漬

262

When he reached?

absently

?for his wand to remove the?

smudges

, it?

ignited

?the parchment. Fuming almost as much as his homework, Ron slammed The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 shut.

absently /'?bs(?)ntl?/ adv.?心不在焉地

smudge /sm?d?/ n. (尤指因擦而形成的)污點

ignite /?ɡ?na?t/ vt.?點燃

263

To Harry’s surprise, Hermione?

followed suit

.

follow suit?跟著做

264

‘Who can it be, though?’ she said in a quiet voice, as though continuing a conversation they had just been having. ‘Who’d want all the?

Squibs

?and Muggle-borns out of Hogwarts?’

squib /skw?b/ n.?啞炮

265

‘Let’s think,’ said Ron in?

mock

?puzzlement. ‘Who do we know who thinks Muggle-borns are?

scum

?’

mock /m?k/ adj.?假裝的

scum /sk?m/ n. (罵人的話)敗類

266

He looked at Hermione. Hermione looked back,?

unconvinced

.

unconvince /??nk?n'vins/ vt.?使不確信

267

‘If you’re talking about Malfoy –’

268

‘Of course I am!’ said Ron. ‘You heard him: “You’ll be next, Mudbloods!” Come on, you’ve only got to look at his foul rat face to know it’s him –’

269

‘Malfoy, the heir of Slytherin?’ said Hermione?

sceptically

.

sceptically /'skeptik?ii/ adv.?懷疑地

270

‘Look at his family,’ said Harry, closing his books, too.

271

‘The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin, he’s always?

boasting

?about it. They could easily be Slytherin’s?

descendants

. His father’s?

definitely

?evil enough.’

boast /b??st/ v.?吹噓

descendant /d??send?nt/ n.?后代

definitely /?def?n?tli/ adv.?明確地

272

‘They could’ve had the key to the Chamber of Secrets for?

centuries

!’ said Ron. ‘

Handing it down

, father to son …’

century /'sent??r?/ n.?世紀(jì)

hand down?把……傳下去

273

‘Well,’ said Hermione?

cautiously

, ‘I suppose it’s possible …’

cautiously /'k?:??sli/ adv.?謹(jǐn)慎地

274

‘But how do we prove it?’ said Harry darkly.

275

‘There might be a way,’ said Hermione slowly, dropping her voice?

still further

?with a quick glance across the room at Percy.

still further?更進一步

276

‘Of course, it would be difficult. And dangerous, very dangerous. We’d be breaking about fifty school rules, I expect.’

277

‘If, in a month or so, you feel like explaining, you will let us know, won’t you?’ said Ron?

irritably

.

irritably /'irit?bli/ adv.?性急地

278

‘All right,’ said Hermione coldly. ‘What we’d need to do is to get inside the Slytherin common room and ask Malfoy a few questions without him realising it’s us.’

279

‘But that’s impossible,’ Harry said, as Ron laughed.

280

‘No, it’s not,’ said Hermione. ‘All we’d need would be some?

Polyjuice Potion

.’

Polyjuice Potion?變身水

281

‘What’s that?’ said Ron and Harry together.

282

‘Snape mentioned it in class a few weeks ago –’

283

‘D’you think we’ve got nothing better to do in Potions than listen to Snape?’ muttered Ron.

284

‘It transforms you into somebody else. Think about it! We could change into three of the Slytherins. No one would know it was us.

285

Malfoy would probably tell us anything. He’s probably?

boasting

?about it in the Slytherin common room right now, if only we could hear him.’

boast /b??st/ v.?吹噓

286

‘This Polyjuice stuff sounds a bit?

dodgy

?to me,’ said Ron, frowning. ‘What if we were?

stuck

?looking like three of the Slytherins?

for ever

?’

dodgy /'d?d??/ adj.?冒險的

stick /st?k/ vt.?卡住

for ever?永遠(yuǎn)

287

‘It?

wears off

?after a while,’ said Hermione, waving her hand impatiently,

wear off?逐漸消失

288

‘but?

getting hold of

?the?

recipe

?will be very difficult. Snape said it was in a book called?

Moste Potente Potions

?and it’s?

bound

?to be in the Restricted Section of the library.’

get hold of?得到

recipe /?res?pi/ n.?配方

Moste Potente Potions?強力藥水

bound /ba?nd/ adj.?肯定的

289

There was only one way to get out a book from the Restricted Section: you needed a signed note of permission from a teacher.

290

‘Hard to see why we’d want the book, really,’ said Ron, ‘if we weren’t going to try and make one of the potions.’

291

‘I think,’ said Hermione, ‘that if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the?

theory

, we might?

stand a chance

?…’

theory /?θ??ri/ n.?理論

stand a chance?有希望

292

‘Oh, come on, no teacher’s going to?

fall for

?that,’ said Ron. ‘They’d have to be really?

thick

?…’

fall for?上當(dāng)

thick /θ?k/ adj. <非正式>?愚鈍的

293