Ollivanders Wand Shop was quiet at this hour, lined with wands of every shape and make. Mr. Ollivander had just finished tidying up the mess left by his last customer.
奥利凡德的魔杖店在这个时间没什么人，店内摆满了各式各样的魔杖。奥利凡德先生刚清理完上一位客人留下的狼藉。
“Ah, Daniel—how fares your father?” A thin, faintly proud old man climbed down from a nearby ladder, tucking a wand back into its cabinet.
“啊，丹尼尔——你父亲近来可好？”一个身形瘦削、略带傲气的老人从旁边的梯子上爬下来，顺手将一根魔杖放回柜子里。
“You know me?” Daniel started; he was stunned that this old man (Mr. Ollivander) would recognize his father—especially after all this time.
“您认识我？”丹尼尔吃了一惊，他万万没想到这位老人（奥利凡德先生）竟然认识他父亲，更何况都过了这么久。
“Of course I do. You’re the spitting image of him, and I never forget a customer who’s bought a wand from me.” Ollivander smiled.
“我当然认识。你和你父亲长得一模一样，而且我从来不会忘记在我这儿买过魔杖的顾客。”奥利凡德笑了笑。
“You have an excellent memory,” Evelyn said, catching on beside him, unable to help praising.
“您的记性真好。”伊芙林在一旁听明白了前因后果，忍不住夸赞道。
“Miss Greengrass—your mother made a fine impression. Kind, and very beautiful.” Ollivander met Evelyn’s blue eyes. “Her wand was twelve and three-quarters inches, vine wood with a dragon heartstring core—not very flexible, rather stiff.”
“格林格拉斯小姐，你母亲给我留下了很深的印象。善良，而且非常美丽。”奥利凡德迎上伊芙林湛蓝的眼眸，继续说道：“她的魔杖长十二又四分之三英寸，葡萄藤木材质，龙心弦杖芯——柔韧性不太好，相当坚硬。”
“Merlin’s beard, you remember that?” Evelyn gasped, turning to Yaslin. “Mr. Ollivander’s mind’s sharper than a brand-new blade.”
“我的天，这您都记得？”伊芙林惊呼一声，转头对雅思林说：“奥利凡德先生的脑子比全新的刀刃还锋利。”
“Yeah—mine’s like a goldfish’s next to his.” Yaslin’s jaw nearly hit the floor.
“是啊——跟他比起来，我的记性简直像金鱼一样差。”雅思林惊得下巴都快掉了。
“Miss Yorbeda—your mother was a servant for the Abbotts, and your father’s a Muggle. Correct?” Ollivander went on, sorting wands with careful focus.
“约尔贝达小姐，你母亲曾是艾博家的佣人，你父亲是个麻瓜。对吗？”奥利凡德一边专注地整理魔杖，一边继续说道。
“He is—but… my father…” Yaslin began, only to be cut off.
“他确实是——不过……我父亲……”雅思林刚开口，就被打断了。
Ollivander seemed to have the gift of Second Sight. “I know all about your father. He and your mother parted ways.”
奥利凡德仿佛拥有预见未来的天赋，他说：“我非常了解你父亲的情况。他和你母亲已经分开了。”
“Er… yes.” Yaslin sounded sad. “How’d you hear that?”
“呃……是的。”雅思林的声音带着一丝伤感，“您是怎么知道的？”
“Word gets around.”
“消息总会传开的。”
Evelyn noticed Yaslin’s mood, patting her shoulder gently. “It’s all right, Yaslin—don’t look so glum. I’ll worry about you!”
伊芙林察觉到了雅思林的低落情绪，轻轻拍了拍她的肩膀：“没事的，雅思林，别这么闷闷不乐的，我会担心你的！”
Ollivander picked out a wand of dry yew and handed it to Daniel. “Yew, dragon heartstring, twelve and three-quarters inches. Give it a wave, lad.”
奥利凡德选出一根枯紫杉木魔杖递给丹尼尔：“紫杉木，龙心弦杖芯，十二又四分之三英寸。挥一下试试，孩子。”
“Right—sure.” Daniel waved it… and went flying backward a meter. His head spun, and the ceiling swam with stars.
“好——好的。”丹尼尔挥了挥魔杖……然后整个人向后飞出去一米远。他头晕目眩，天花板在眼前晃成了一片星空。
“Not that one, then.” Ollivander swapped it for a stranger wand, looking like carved bone. “Try this. Thestral bone, unicorn hair core, thirteen and a quarter inches.”
“看来不是这根。”奥利凡德换了一根造型奇特、酷似兽骨雕刻的魔杖，“试试这根。夜骐腿骨，独角兽尾羽杖芯，十三又四分之一英寸。”
Evelyn helped Daniel to his feet, concerned.
伊芙林担忧地扶丹尼尔站了起来。
Daniel took the new wand and tried again. “Argh!” With a dull thud, he crashed into a cabinet—its wand boxes toppled, burying him.
丹尼尔接过新魔杖再次尝试。“啊！”随着一声沉闷的撞击声，他撞在了一个柜子上——柜子里的魔杖盒纷纷掉落，把他埋了起来。
“Blimey, that’s bad!” Yaslin and Evelyn hurried over to check on him.
“我的天，这也太糟了！”雅思林和伊芙林赶紧跑过去查看他的情况。
Ollivander smacked his forehead, waved his wand to levitate and clean the mess, then helped Daniel into a wooden chair.
奥利凡德拍了拍自己的额头，挥动魔杖施了个悬浮咒和清洁咒清理好残局，然后扶丹尼尔坐到了一张木椅上。
“Well, well—what’s this, an earthquake?” A sharp, haughty voice cut in. A pale, brown-haired girl stepped in, her tawny eyes slanting above a spiteful mouth.
“啧啧——这是怎么了，地震了吗？”一个尖刻傲慢的声音突然插入。一个肤色苍白、棕色头发的女孩走了进来，茶色的眼睛微微上挑，嘴角带着恶意。
Evelyn bristled at the tone, but her manners held. “Your words are rather unpleasant, Miss.”
伊芙林被这语气惹得怒火中烧，但良好的教养让她保持了克制：“小姐，你的话让人很不舒服。”
“So what? Did Fair’s words get in the way of you… ” A red-haired girl beside her tugged her arm. “—you fragile little pureblood? Gonna run cryin’ to Mummy? Merlin’s pants, look at that scowl—don’t tell me that chestnut-haired vagrant’s your bloke?”
“那又怎样？弗艾尔的话碍着你这个……”她身边一个红头发的女孩拽了拽她的胳膊，她接着说道：“……你这个娇弱的纯血小丫头了？要哭着去找妈妈吗？我的天，瞧你那怒目圆睁的样子——别告诉我那个栗色头发的流浪汉是你男朋友？”
Evelyn snapped—but Yaslin held her back, eyeing the blue-plaid girl with disgust. “Have you got a brain in that head? You talk like a feral git. Your eyes must’ve buggered off—you’re blind!”
伊芙林再也忍不住了——但雅思林拦住了她，用厌恶的眼神打量着那个穿蓝色格子衣服的女孩：“你脑子里长东西了吗？说话跟个野丫头似的。你的眼睛肯定是离家出走了——你瞎了吧！”
“Exactly—sniffing down your nose at everyone. Where are your eyes, anyway? Thick as a plank. The world’s supposed to be a battle between us real wizards and your lot of fakes!” Evelyn bit down hard on the word “fakes.”
“就是！整天鼻孔朝天地看人。你的眼睛到底长哪儿去了？蠢得像块木板。这个世界本就该是我们真正的巫师和你们这些伪巫师之间的较量！”伊芙林特意把“伪巫师”三个字咬得极重。
“You!” The redhead’s face turned puce. She pointed at Yaslin. “Look at you—crass, no manners, total country bumpkin. That rude way of yours is a laugh.”
“你！”红头发女孩的脸涨成了深紫色。她指着雅思林：“看你那粗鲁的样子，一点教养都没有，就是个彻头彻尾的乡巴佬。你这粗鲁的德行真可笑。”
“Her manners aren’t for feral lot like you. You’re pathetic—your IQ’s lower than the bloody sea level.” Evelyn let loose with a torrent.
“她的教养才不会用在你这种野人身上。你真可悲——智商比海平面还低。”伊芙林滔滔不绝地发起反击。
“That’s enough, Miss Seraphina. We didn’t come to bicker.” Fair flicked back her fringe, her voice turning sharp and high. “We’ll meet again. Come on, Seraphina—let’s find another shop. This place reeks of bad luck.”
“够了，塞拉菲娜小姐。我们不是来吵架的。”弗艾尔撩了撩额前的刘海，声音变得又尖又高：“我们还会再见面的。走吧，塞拉菲娜，换家店，这地方晦气透了。”
Evelyn rolled her eyes so hard they nearly vanished into her skull.
伊芙林使劲翻了个白眼，白眼都快翻到后脑勺去了。
Ollivander emerged from the back shelves with a wand, eyeing the tense group. “Something happen?”
奥利凡德拿着一根魔杖从后排货架走出来，看到气氛剑拔弩张的样子，随口问道：“发生什么事了？”
“Nothing,” Yaslin said.
“没什么。”雅思林说道。
“Ah—this one’s fourteen inches, phoenix feather core, hip bone and vine wood. Should suit you.” Ollivander grinned. “Let’s hope you’re luckier than Daniel.”
“啊——这根长十四英寸，凤凰尾羽杖芯，由髋骨和葡萄藤木制成。应该很适合你。”奥利凡德咧嘴一笑：“希望你比丹尼尔运气好。”
Evelyn took one look at the wand and fell for it. She waved it giddily—and the whole shop flooded with golden light.
伊芙林一眼就相中了这根魔杖，她兴奋地挥了挥——整间店铺瞬间被金光淹没。
“It’s chosen you,” Ollivander said, smiling warmly.
“它选中你了。”奥利凡德温和地笑着说。
“What?” Daniel woke to hear talk of his bad luck, and the shop glowing like a sunrise.
“什么？”丹尼尔醒了过来，刚好听到有人在说他运气差，还看到店铺里亮得像日出一样。
“Nothing—just catching up.” Ollivander thought a moment, then fetched a box from the very back of shelf E₂, Level 5. He opened it gently.
“没什么，我们只是在帮你找合适的魔杖。”奥利凡德想了想，然后从E₂排第五层货架的最里面拿出一个盒子，轻轻打开。
Inside lay a wand, dusty as if it hadn’t been touched in ages—though it looked new.
盒子里放着一根魔杖，上面积着一层灰，仿佛许久没人碰过——尽管它看起来崭新如初。
“Thirteen inches, yew with snake vertebrae, phoenix feather core.” Ollivander held it out.
“十三英寸长，紫杉木搭配蛇脊骨，凤凰尾羽杖芯。”奥利凡德把魔杖递了过去。
Daniel hesitated; two bad wand experiences had left him jittery. He was half-scared of wands now.
丹尼尔有些犹豫；两次糟糕的魔杖体验让他心神不宁，现在他对魔杖都有点害怕了。
“All right.” He took it, and waved.
“好吧。”他接过魔杖，挥了一下。
A soft wind ruffl接过魔杖，挥了一下。
A soft wind ruffled his hair—and the wand settled in his hand like a well-loved cat.
一阵微风拂过他的发丝——魔杖在他手中安定下来，就像一只备受宠爱的猫咪般温顺。
“That’s the one,” Ollivander exhaled. [Thought he’d trip up on wand-choosing again.]
“就是这根了。”奥利凡德松了口气。[差点以为这孩子又要在选魔杖这件事上栽跟头。]
“Now it’s just Yaslin!” Evelyn bounced. “What kind of wand d’you think you’ll get? I’m dying to see!”
“现在就剩雅思林了！”伊芙林蹦蹦跳跳地说：“雅思林，你觉得你会得到一根什么样的魔杖？我太期待了！”
“No idea—hope it’s honeysuckle wood.” Yaslin let herself daydream.
“不知道——希望是忍冬木的。”雅思林沉浸在美好的幻想中。
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