今年年頭在網上買了哈利波特系列的書，給自己放 career break 時閱讀。 開箱的時候，開心到哭了！ 二十年前第一次看這書，是問同學借的，看完就還，從來沒有擁有過。 喜愛了多年，現在手上拿著屬於自己的書，感覺很滿足。 經得起時間考驗的，定必珍而重之。 ❤️
剛剛重讀完第四本，想在這兒記下一些令我感受深刻的句子及重讀的新體會。 （劇透注意！）
書名（英）： 《Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire》
書名（中）： 《哈利波特：火盃的考驗》
作者： J. K. Rowling
‘I will allow you to perform an essential task for me, one that many of my followers would give their right hands to perform….’ (P.9)
Voldemort 對 Wormtail 的「獎勵」真是 literally 要了他一隻手！
Harry thought he knew what was going on behind the moustache: a furious battle as two of Uncle Vernon’s most fundamental instincts came into conflict. (P.28)
Now he watched the purple recede blotchily from Uncle Vernon’s face, making it look like badly mixed blackcurrant ice cream. (P.30)
很好笑！
‘I said to him, I said – Ced, that’ll be something to tell your grandchildren, that will… you beat Harry Potter!’
‘Always modest, our Ced, always the gentleman… but the best man won, I’m sure Harry’d say the same, wouldn’t you, eh? One falls off his broom, one stays on, you don’t need to be a genius to tell which one’s the better flier!’ (P.62)
可見 Cedric 父親多麼為他的兒子感到驕傲！ 他提到 grandchildren 是假設 Cedric 會活到有孫的年紀，這也是普遍父母對兒女的假設，但就與結局相反。 看到這個很多人 take for granted 但將會落空的期望，我的心忍忍在痛呢。
They could hear the sounds of thousands of people moving around them, shouts and laughter, snatches of singing. The atmosphere of feverish excitement was highly infectious; Harry couldn’t stop grinning. (P.81)
讀這段時一邊幻想那個情景，連自己也笑了出來呢。 這令我想起兩位朋友，她們閱讀速度很快，但你會感覺到她們除了「快讀」的快感外甚麼也得不到。 她們要是讀這段，應該都不會像我一樣感受到當中的氣氛吧。
‘I shouted at you before you left!’ Mrs Weasley said, starting to sob. ‘It’s all I’ve been thinking about! What if You-Know-Who had got you, and the last thing I ever said to you was that you didn’t get enough O.W.L.s? Oh, Fred… George…’ (P.124)
Molly 每次出現，都加深我對她的喜愛，由第一本書開始已是。 她把是孤兒的 HP 當做自己的兒子，代 Lily 照顧 HP。 這段是個很好的 reminder，要珍惜眼前人！ 不知在最後一本書，這對孖生兄弟當中一人離開前，Molly 跟他說了甚麼？ 要提提自己留意之後的劇情。
‘Good evening,’ he said, beaming at them. (He = Nearly Headless Nick)
‘Says who?’ said Harry, taking off his trainers and emptying them of water. (P.147)
‘Says who’ 這句 slang 很少在香港日常生活中聽到，是解作 disbelief / disagreement 的意思，也可寫作 ‘says you’。
在 Ch.14 The Unforgivable Curses 入面，Moody 問他們有哪三個不可原諒的詛咒，Neville 少有地舉手，回答了 Cruciatus Curse。 讀者很快就會知道為何 Neville 懂得答案，“was obviously shaken”，雙眼通紅，夜晚又睡不著了。 可憐的 Neville！ 他不是驚青，而是令他父母變得不似人形的詛咒，就是 Cruciatus Curse 了。
然後在 Ch.21 大家打開金蛋聽到尖厲的叫聲，Neville 的反應是 “someone being tortured” ，”who had gone very white, and spilled sausage rolls over the floor” ，覺得 HP 下個項目要 “fight the Cruciatus Curse” (P.309)。 可憐的孩子！ 看到他這樣我心痛了！ 這感覺是第一次讀時沒有的。 重讀的好處，是讀者會察覺到之前漏了的東西，有新的感受。
以下句子的寫法值得學習：
- Neville performed a series of quite astonishing gymnastics he would certainly not have been capable of in his normal state. (P.194)
- Hermione, who had turned rather pink again, seemed to be trying not to look too pleased with herself. (P.196)
- ‘There are those who’ll turn innocent occasions to their advantage,’ Moody retorted in a menacing voice. (P.235)
- It is a strange thing, but when you are dreading something, and would give anything to slow down time, it has a disobliging habit of speeding up. (P.268)
- ‘Winky is having trouble adjusting…’ ‘Can’t house-elves speak their minds about their masters, then? (P.321)
- ‘I got told off for going in there,… I thought I’d better not come back after that.’ (P.389)
- ‘Slow, aren’t you?’ (P.390)
- ‘…never crossed my mind he was in with You-Know-Who!’ (P.500)
讀到這兒，有幾個問題在我腦海揮之不去。
- 剛剛才舉辦完 Quidditch World Cup 這場大型國際活動，立刻就要進行停辦了幾百年的 Triwizard Tournament，太不合理了。 Triwizard Tournament 都等了這麼久，等多一兩年也可以吧，Ministry of Magic 的職員不會過勞嗎？
- Gringotts 是以安全出名的銀行，守衛深嚴，但它的提款制度鬆懈到不合理。 Molly 可以幫 HP 提款，上集 Sirius Black 又可以動用戶口的錢送禮給 HP（罪犯的戶口應該要凍結及長期有人觀察住的吧）。
‘Dumbly-dorr must ‘ave made a mistake wiz ze line,’ said Madame Maxime, shrugging.
‘It is possible, of course,’ said Dumbledore politely.
‘Dumbledore, you know perfectly well you did not make a mistake!’ said Professor McGonagall angrily. ‘Really, what nonsense! Harry could not have crossed the line himself, and as Professor Dumbledore believes that he did not persuade an older student to do it for him, I’m sure that should be good enough for everybody else!’ (P.233)
為甚麼 Dumbledore 說自己可能出錯？ 更大問題是，為甚麼個個怪責 Dumbledore 而沒有人指出火盃於同一間院校出了兩個名？ 火盃的 mechanics 出錯是更大的問題，因為它是負責選人的嘛！ 最後指出的人，竟然是放 HP 名入去的 Mad-eye Moody （Barty Crouch Jr.），還要說明是如何做到的。
Snape looked coldly at Hermione, then said, ‘I see no difference.’ (P.253)
這時 Hermione 間接中了 Malfoy 的 attack，牙齒變得好長，Snape 這樣說好 mean 呀。
‘I just wondered where you –‘ Ron broke off, shrugging. ‘Nothing. I’m going back to bed.’
‘Just thought you’d come nosing around, did you?’ Harry shouted. He knew that Ron had no idea what he’d walked in on, knew he hadn’t done it on purpose, but he didn’t care – at this moment he hated everything about Ron, right down to the several inches of bare ankle showing beneath his pyjama trousers. (P.283)
這段把 Ron 描述得很可憐！ 是出於對 HP 的關心，卻無辜地被責怪，還因為家貧穿著細件不合身的衣服，整個畫面當相淒涼。
Harry seized one of the POTTER REALLY STINKS badges off the table and chucked it, as hard as he could, across the room. It hit Ron on the forehead and bounced off.
‘There you go,’ Harry said. ‘Something for you to wear on Tuesday. You might even have a scar now, if you’re lucky… that’s what you want, isn’t it?’ (P.284)
HP 也可以很 mean，想當年 HP 的父親在學時也曾經蝦蝦霸霸，說明了所有人都有好壞兩面，會在不同時間展現出來。 段末再一次提到 ‘Ron just stood there in his too small pyjamas’，加深了讀者對 Ron 的憐憫。
And a second later, something miraculous happened…
As he soared upwards, as the wind rushed through his hair, as the crowd’s faces became mere flesh-coloured pinpricks below, and the Horntail shrank to the size of a dog, he realized he had left not only the ground behind, but also his fear… he was back where he belonged… (P.299)
一邊讀這段敘述，一邊看到整個畫面，恍如置身在天空中飛，這個感覺很特別，特此記下。
‘She’s lying,’ said Ron flatly, watching her go.
‘She’s not,’ said Ginny quietly.
‘Who is it, then?’ said Ron sharply.
‘I’m not telling you, it’s her business,’ said Ginny. (P.338)
Ginny 對 Ron 的回應，突顯了她成熟及忠誠的性格，在這個 moment，她由一個平平無奇的小角色變成一個讀者知道可以信賴的人。
讀到 Ch.23 Yule Ball 一章，我有點 sick of Ron 的妒忌心。 先前已因為妒忌 HP 和他鬧翻了一次，現在又妒忌 Hermione 是 Krum 的舞伴，我對 Ron 這個表現真的沒有太多耐性。
J.K. Rowling 在 HP 系列入面對天氣的形容變化多端，之前很多好的字句我都沒有記下，現記下一個：
- Snow was still thick upon the grounds, and the greenhouse windows were covered with condensation so thick that they couldn’t see out of them in Herbology. (P.367-368)
‘He’s really nice, you know,’ she said. ‘He’s not at all like you’d think, coming from Durmstrang. He likes it much better here, he told me.’
Ron said nothing. He hadn’t mentioned Viktor Krum since the ball, but Harry had found a miniature arm under his bed on Boxing Day, which had looked very much as though it had been snapped off a small model figure wearing Bulgarian Quidditch robes. (P.374)
整本書有很多笑位，這是其中一個大笑位，令我哈哈大笑的！
Ch.25 表達了 Harry 對 Hagrid 關心的程度。 Rita Skeeter 發表了一篇關於 Hagrid 的報道，當 Ron 及 Hermione 的第一反應是問她如何知道 Hagrid 是 half-giant，Harry 則質問 Malfoy 在報道入面說 “we (所有學生) all hate Hagrid” 的大話，Harry 絕不能接受別人對 Hagrid 人格的失實攻擊 (P.371)。 去到 chapter 尾段，Hagrid 回憶最初接 Harry 到 Hogwarts 的時候，他覺得自己跟 Harry 很似，父母雙亡，不知自己會否 fit in Hogwarts (P.384)。 另外當 Harry 說謊已找到金蛋的線索，”Hagrid’s miserable face broke into a wide, watery smile. ‘Tha’s my boy… You show ‘em, Harry, you show ‘em. Beat ‘em all.’” (P.385)。 之後一段加深了讀者了解 Harry 和 Hagrid 之間的感情：
Lying to Hagrid wasn’t quite like lying to anyone else.
… unable to banish the image of the happy expression on Hagrid’s whiskery face as he had imagined Harry winning the Tournament.
The incomprehensible egg weighed more heavily than ever on Harry’s conscience that evening… (P.385)
‘Really, Hagrid, if you are holding out for universal popularity, I’m afraid you will be in this cabin for a very long time,’ (P.382)
Dumbledore 又一至理名言，今次是在 Rita Skeeter 的報道後開解 Hagrid 時說的。
‘If that’s the best Rita can do, she’s losing her touch,’ said Hermione, giggling, as she threw Witch Weekly onto the empty chair beside her. ‘What a pile of old rubbish.’ (P.432)
Rita Skeeter 就是代表了英國的小報文化吧。 雖然外人很難透過書本是理解這文化，但英國人對它的吸引及討厭，均在這書表露了出來。 Hermione 的回應就是對付小報攻擊的最佳策略吧。
在之後的 Ch.28，Hermione 收到 hate mail 及恐嚇 (P.456)，Hagrid 更透露收過叫他自殺的郵件 (P.459)。 我沒想過小報會引發讀者做這種事，對當時人的滋擾影響遠遠超過報導的一時三刻，並不能讓它 die down 就完結。 Hermione 接受 Hagrid 的建議，沒有開這些信，但有不開也會自爆的 Howlers 這種東西 (P.461)，是暗示有些騷擾避也避不開。
P.460 Hermione說 “I’ll get her back for this if it’s the last thing I do!’ 要提提自己留意 Rita Skeeter的下場。
Sirius 約他們三人在 Hogsmeade 的一個 stile 會合 (P.438)，這個字解作木頭組成的讓人通過但不讓動物通過的圍欄。 是英國鄉郊常見的物件吧，香港是沒有的，我看了圖也不了解它如何發揮作用。
‘If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.’ (P.443)
一直記錯這句是 Dumbledore 的至理名言，卻原來是 Sirius 的，他填補了父親 / 老師的角色呢。
Ch.28 The Madness of Mr Crouch 入面提到酗酒這個大人的題材。 故事說到 Winky 因適應不到新的自由，一天喝足 6 瓶 butterbeer (P.452)。 其他 house-elves 說 “We is hoping you will not judge us all by Winky, sirs and miss!’ (P.453)
Ch.28 作者讓 Ron 的 Niffler 挖到最多金幣，與 Ron 家境貧窮形成強烈對比。 Ron sulkily 地說他 hate being poor，妒忌 HP 的錢多到 leprechaun gold 不見了也沒有察覺。 這本書裡的 Ron 妒忌心很重呢。
Ch.30 The Pensieve三次形容到 Dumbledore 的老態，在 Voldemort 逐漸壯大的謠言下多次帶出 Dumbledore 的 mortality，故事頓時黑暗起來。
- The silvery light from the Pensieve illuminated Dumbledore’s face, and it struck Harry suddenly how very old he was looking. He knew, of course, that Dumbledore was getting on in years, but somehow he never really thought of Dumbledore as an old man. (P.505)
- Dumbledore sighed again, and he looked older, and wearier, than ever. (P.507)
- Dumbledore was standing over the Pensieve, his face lit from beneath by its silvery spots of light, looking older than ever. (P.509)
Ch.30 終於解釋了 Neville 的身世及他父母的去向，HP 問 Neville 父母是否死了，‘No,’ said Dumbledore, his voice full of a bitterness Harry had never heard there before, ‘they are insane… They do not recognize him.’ (P.508) 看到我很心痛呢。
最後 Dumbledore 很耐心的說：‘Harry,’ he said, as Harry reached the door. ‘Please do not speak about Neville’s parents to anybody else. He has the right to let people know, when he is ready.’ (P.509) 這令我想起 HP 第一年去 Hogwarts 時遇到 Weasley 一家，Molly 千叮萬囑她的孩子不要在第一天上學就向 HP 提起他父母的事。
HP 問 Dumbledore 憑甚麼覺得 Snape 真心離開 Voldemort，Dumbledore 的反應及 HP 領悟到對話已結束，令我想起也曾經遇過同樣的事呢：
Dumbledore held Harry’s gaze for a few seconds, and then said, ‘That, Harry, is a matter between Professor Snape and myself.’
Harry knew that the interview was over, Dumbledore did not look angry, yet there was a finality in his tone that told Harry it was time to go. (P.509)
為甚麼 Dumbledore 要望 Harry 幾秒這般長？ 是否考慮把甚麼告之 Harry 但最後決定不告訴他？
最後一個任務開始了，Cedric 及 Harry 率先進入迷宮。 入去後聲音靜了那一刻，作者形容得好真實，我真的由有聲聽到無聲！
The towering hedges cast black shadows across the path, and, whether because they were so tall and thick, or because they had been enchanted, the sound of the surrounding crowd was silenced the moment they entered the maze. (P.523)
Ch.34 Priori Incantatem，當 HP 及 Voldemort 魔杖連接斷開後，HP 要在短時間內避開 Death Eaters，又要用不同的 spells，又要帶 Cedric 返去，比起他在比賽中過到的考驗更似比賽。(P.563) 後來我們就知道是 Barty Crouch Jr 把比賽中的障礙除去的。
Ch.35 Veritaseum，HP 由墓地返去 Hogwarts 後抓住 Cedric 的屍體不肯放手，那一幕我看到要哭了！
At that moment, Harry fully understood for the first time why people said Dumbledore was the only wizard Voldemort had ever feared. The look upon Dumbledore’s face as he stared down at the unconscious form of Mad-Eye Moody was more terrible than Harry could ever have imagined. There was no benign smile upon Dumbledore’s face, no twinkle in the eyes behind the spectacles. There was cold fury in every line of the ancient face; a sense of power radiated from Dumbledore as though he was giving off burning heat. (P.572)
和 Harry 一樣，這是讀者第一次見到 Dumbledore 強悍的一面！
Dumbledore 很懂得說服別人，就在 Ch.36 The Parting of the Ways 中，他要 HP 在不願意下把事發經過一五一十道出時這樣說：
‘If I thought I could help you,’ Dumbledore said gently, ‘by putting you into an enchanted sleep, and allowing you to postpone the moment when you would have to think about what has happened tonight, I would do it. But I know better. Numbing the pain for a while will make it worse when you finally feel it. You have shown bravery beyond anything I could have expected of you. I ask you to demonstrate your courage one more time. I ask you to tell us what happened.’ (P.584)
For a fleeting instant, Harry thought he saw a gleam of something like triumph in Dumbledore’s eyes. But next second, Harry was sure he had imagined it, for when Dumbledore had returned to his seat behind the desk, he looked as old and weary as Harry had ever seen him. (P.585)
不明白 Dumbledore 勝利眼神的原因。 上網查看，原來是因為 Voldemort 身上流著 HP的血， Lily 對 HP 的保護會令到 Voldemort 不能殺死 HP！
這時 HP 身心皆受重創（一隻腳骨折、一隻手被匕首弄傷、目睹朋友死亡、被人施以酷刑、遇見死去的父母、發現信任的老師就是害他的人），卻不能去 hospital wing 醫治，因要把可怕的經歷一五一十道出給 Dumbledore 及 Sirius 聽。 HP 的傷口應該繼續流血幾小時吧，到他講完之後 Fawkes 才用眼淚醫療 HP 的腳至完全康復 (P.587)。 為甚麼 Fawkes 不一早治療 HP 呢？ 又為何只醫腳不醫手？ 之後 Dumbledore 道出對 HP 的欣賞，但沒有提及 HP 流血不止幾小時：
‘You have shown bravery beyond anything I could have expected of you tonight, Harry. You have shown bravery equal to those who died fighting Voldemort at the height of his powers. You have shouldered a grown wizard’s burden and found yourself equal to it – and you have now given us all that we have a right to expect…’ (P.587)
Cornelius Fudge 作為 Minister for Magic 的理念：
- ‘It seems to me that you are all determined to start a panic that will destabilize everything we have worked for these last thirteen years!’
- … refusing, point-blank, to accept the prospect of disruption in his comfortable and ordered world – to believe that Voldemort could have risen. (P.594)
讀到這兒我大聲「Ohhh…」了出來，因為太似曾相識了！ 似曾相識，似曾相識，似曾相識！
‘You are blinded,’ said Dumbledore, his voice rising now, the aura of power around him palpable, his eyes blazing once more, ‘by the love of the office you hold, Cornelius!…
世界上很多人也眼盲的！
You place too much importance, and you always have done, on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognise that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be!… (P.595)
‘… But if you’re going to work against me –‘ (Fudge說)
‘The only one against whom I intend to work,’ said Dumbledore, ‘is Lord Voldemort. If you are against him, then we remain, Cornelius, on the same side.’ (P.596)
很好的回應，令到對方無聲出。
Dumbledore 果斷的行動：
- All those that we can persuade of the truth must be notified immediately, and Arthur is well placed to contact those at the Ministry who are not as short-sighted as Cornelius. (P.598)
- 召見 Hagrid及 Madame Maxime（關於巨人，但現在我們還未知）。 (P.598)
- It is time for two of our number to recognise each other for what they are. Sirius… if you could resume your usual form. (P.598)；You will shake hands. You are on the same side now. Time is short, and unless the few of us who know the truth stand united, there is no hope for any of us.’ (P.599) 逼 Sirius 及 Snape握手那段好好笑。
- 通知 ‘the old crowd’
- 叫 Snape 行事，詳情沒有透露了。
Ch.36 最尾那段，Mrs Weasley 像母親擁抱孩子一樣擁抱著 HP，然後 HP 崩潰哭了出來，我也看到哭了呢。(P.600) 然後 Hermione 捉到 Rita Skeeter 了（原來 Skeeter 真是 “bug” ，作者用字很 witty）！
‘No good sittin’ worryin’ abou’ it,’ he said. ‘What’s comin’ will come, an’ we’ll meet it when it does…’ (P.604)
Hagrid 的智慧，我希望自己也能做得到。
Hagrid’s chest swelled as he looked at Harry. ‘Yeh did as much as yer father would’ve done, an’ I can’ give yeh no higher praise than that.’ (P.604)
‘Lord Voldemort’s gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open…’ (P.608)
是對自己很好的 reminder，希望自己會記住。
‘Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right, and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory.’ (P.608-609)
去到這兒我也 screw up my face 了，太傷感了。
