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To their fury, they had been unsuccessful,
令他們極其憤怒的是，他們一直沒有成功。
and now lived in terror of anyone finding out that Harry had spent most of the last two years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
現在他們天天擔驚受怕，怕的是有誰發現哈利過去兩年來的大部分時間一直在培養魔法師的霍格沃茨學校就讀。
The most the Dursleys could do these days was to lock away Harry's spellbooks, wand, cauldron and broomstick at the start of the summer holidays,
最近德思禮一家做得最多的事就是在暑假開始時把哈利的咒語書、魔杖、坩堝和飛天掃帚鎖起來，
and forbid him to talk to the neighbours.
并且不準他和鄰居說話。
This separation from his spellbooks had been a real problem for Harry, because his teachers at Hogwarts had given him a lot of holiday work.
對于哈利來說，接觸不到咒語書可真是不方便，因為霍格沃茨學校的老師給他布置了一大堆家庭作業。
One of the essays, a particularly nasty one about Shrinking Potions, was for Harry's least favourite teacher, Professor Snape,
論文之一，就是關于縮身藥劑的那篇，特別煩人，那是要交給哈利最不喜歡的老師斯內普教授的，
who would be delighted to have an excuse to give Harry detention for a month.
斯內普正巴不得有個借口罰他留校一個月呢。
Harry had therefore seized his chance in the first week of the holidays.
因此，哈利在暑假的第一個星期就抓住了一個機會。
While Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and Dudley had gone out into the front garden to admire Uncle Vernon's new company car
正當弗農姨父、佩妮姨媽和達力到前花園去欣賞弗農姨父的公司為雇員買的那輛新車
(in very loud voices, so that the rest of the street would notice it too),
（他們說話聲音很響，為的是讓鄰居們也都注意到這輛新車）時，
Harry had crept downstairs, picked the lock on the cupboard under the stairs, grabbed some of his books and hidden them in his bedroom.
哈利就悄悄下了樓，打開樓梯下面碗柜上的鎖，一把抓出他的幾本書，并且把書藏在他自己的臥室里。
As long as he didn't leave spots of ink on the sheets, the Dursleys need never know that he was studying magic by night.
只要他不在被單上留下墨水漬，德思禮一家就不會知道他在夜里研究魔法。
Harry was keen to avoid trouble with his aunt and uncle at the moment, as they were already in a bad mood with him,
現在哈利盡量不和他的姨媽姨父發生矛盾，因為他們已經對他不高興了，
all because he'd received a telephone call from a fellow wizard one week into the school holidays.
這都是因為暑假開始以后的第一個星期里他接到了魔法學校同學的一個電話。
