What if Neville had become the Chosen One?

如果纳威成了救世主怎么办?

https://www.wizardingworld.com/features/what-if-neville-was-the-chosen-one

 

译者：CHEESE酱

 

It’s a question that so many fans often ponder about, and so do we. Today, we imagine a world where Neville Longbottom, not Harry, had been chosen as Voldemort’s target.

这是一个很多粉丝经常思考的问题，我们也一样。今天，我们想象纳威·隆巴顿是被伏地魔选中作为目标的世界。

 

Would Voldemort still have fallen? Would Harry have had a more ‘traditional’ life? Would Neville have still fulfilled the prophecy, or would the wizarding war still have waged on? And most importantly, would Neville still have had quite the same passion for Herbology with all this extra admin to take care of?! Of course, this is all hypothetical, so Accio a pinch of salt! But what if, indeed...

伏地魔还会倒下吗？哈利会过一种更“传统”的生活吗？纳威还会实现预言吗?巫师战争还会继续进行吗？最重要的是，纳威有这么多行政人员要照顾，还会对草药学抱有同样的热情吗？当然，这都是假设的，所以要有所保留！但是，如果……

 

‘As the seventh month dies’

“在七月逝去时”

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry is faced with a shocking revelation: his fate with Lord Voldemort was always sealed. It was told in a prophecy when he was just a baby.

在《哈利·波特与凤凰社》中，哈利面临着一个令人震惊的启示：他与伏地魔的命运永远是注定的。当他还是个婴儿的时候，就有一个预言告诉了他。

 

‘The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches … born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies … and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not … and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives … the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies …’

---Sybill Trelawney, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

“有能力征服黑魔王的人来了……出生于三次反抗他的人，在七月死亡时生的……黑魔王与他非常相似的，但是他有黑魔王意想不到的力量……其中一个必须死在另一个手上，因为只有另一个才能生存…拥有征服黑魔王力量的人将在第七个月死亡时诞生……”

---《哈利·波特与凤凰社》中的西比尔·特里劳妮

 

In one of Professor Trelawney’s rare prophecies that actually came to pass, she spoke of ‘the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord’, with a specific description of who that could be. Although the prophecy was told to Albus Dumbledore, quite unexpectedly in a pub no less, Severus Snape overheard it, and relayed the information back to Lord Voldemort, who interpreted this mysterious future assassin to be Lily and James Potter’s child. However, as Dumbledore explains to Harry, it could have meant another. Neville Longbottom, Harry’s classmate, was also born at the end of July, and also born to parents who had thrice defied Lord Voldemort.

在特里劳妮教授少有的预言中，有一个预言确实实现了，她提到了“有能力打败黑魔王的那个人”，并详细描述了那个人可能是谁。虽然这个预言是在一家酒吧里出乎意料地告诉了阿不思·邓布利多，但是西弗勒斯·斯内普无意中听到了，并把消息传给了伏地魔，伏地魔把这个神秘的未来杀手所认为是莉莉和詹姆·波特的孩子。然而，正如邓布利向哈利解释的那样，这还有可能意味着会有另一个神秘的未来杀手。

 

Nonetheless, Voldemort picked Harry for the reasons Dumbledore theorises here.

尽管如此，伏地魔还是选择了哈利。

 

‘But he might have chosen wrong!’ said Harry. ‘He might have marked the wrong person!’

‘He chose the boy he thought most likely to be a danger to him,’ said Dumbledore. ‘And notice this, Harry: he chose, not the pureblood (which, according to his creed, is the only kind of wizard worth being or knowing) but the half-blood, like himself. He saw himself in you before he had ever seen you, and in marking you with that scar, he did not kill you, as he intended, but gave you powers, and a future, which have fitted you to escape him not once, but four times so far – something that neither your parents, nor Neville’s parents, ever achieved.’

“但是他也可能选错了!””哈利说。“他可能选错了人!”

“他选择男孩他认为最有可能的危险，”邓布利多说。“还有一点，哈利，他选择的不是纯血统巫师（根据他的信条，纯血统是唯一值得存在或认识的巫师），而是混血巫师，就像他自己一样。他在见到你之前就在你身上看到了自己，在你身上留下疤痕，他没有杀死你，他的目的而是给你权力和未来，使你一次也能逃脱他的魔掌，但到目前为止的四次——无论是你的父母,和纳威的父母,都没有实现。”

---Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix《哈利·波特与凤凰社》

 

So, that was that. But what if the variables were different, and it had been Neville, who also grew up to play a vital part in Lord Voldemort’s eventual defeat?

就是这样。但是，如果变化不一样，如果是纳威，也在最终打败伏地魔的过程中发挥了重要作用呢?

 

Would Neville’s parents have died, like Harry’s did? And would Voldemort still have fallen?

纳威的父母会像哈利一样死去吗?伏地魔还会倒下吗?

Much like Harry, Neville also grew up without his parents, albeit in a very different sort of way. While both his mum, Alice, and dad, Frank, were still alive, they had been tortured to insanity by Death Eaters soon after Lord Voldemort’s fall from power and spent the rest of their days at St Mungo’s Hospital. But if Neville’s family had been targeted, and Lord Voldemort had gone after them instead, there is a chance that the Longbottoms could’ve been killed straight after Lord Voldemort learnt of the prophecy. After all, the Potters had been hidden by Albus Dumbledore, after Snape tipped him off and begged him to try and protect the woman he loved, Lily.

和哈利一样，纳威也是在没有父母陪伴的环境中长大的，尽管方式与哈利完全不同。他的母亲爱丽丝和父亲弗兰克都还活着，但在伏地魔倒台后不久，他们就被食死徒折磨得精神错乱，在圣芒戈医院度过了余生。但如果纳威的家人被盯上了，而伏地魔却去追捕他们，那么隆巴顿一家很有可能在伏地魔得知预言后就被杀死了。毕竟，波特一家是被阿不思·邓布利多藏起来的，在斯内普向他通风报信，恳求他努力保护他所爱的女人莉莉之后。

 

Snape did not have the same connection to the Longbottoms, and may well have not interfered, meaning nobody would’ve known the attack on them was coming. Although, perhaps Albus Dumbledore, after hearing the prophecy, would’ve put his own protective measures in place on both families (the Longbottoms and the Potters) anyway. But even without a Peter Pettigrew-type to betray anybody, Lord Voldemort has his ways of finding people. And there are no guarantees that Neville’s parents wouldn’t have tried to protect their son in a similar way that Harry’s parents did. Would a similar protective magic, forged from love, have saved Neville?

斯内普和隆巴顿家族没有同样的关系，很可能也没有干预，这意味着没有人会知道他们即将受到攻击。不过，也许阿不思·邓布利多在听到这个预言后，也会对这两个家族（隆巴顿家族和波特家族）采取他自己的保护措施。但即使没有小矮星彼得那样的叛徒，伏地魔也有他自己的办法。而且也不能保证纳威的父母不会像哈利的父母那样试图保护他们的儿子。由爱铸成的类似的保护魔法会拯救纳威吗?

 

It’s quite possible. Dumbledore does explain to Harry that Lord Voldemort went to Godric’s Hollow not knowing that by going to attack Harry, there would be a possibility the event would end in his downfall. This is because Snape never heard the entire prophecy.

很有可能。邓布利多确实向哈利解释过，伏地魔去戈德里克山谷时，并不知道他要袭击哈利，这件事就有可能以他的垮台而告终。这是因为斯内普从来没有听过整个预言。

 

‘He heard only the beginning, the part foretelling the birth of a boy in July to parents who had thrice defied Voldemort.

Consequently, he could not warn his master that to attack you would be to risk transferring power to you, and marking you as his equal. So Voldemort never knew that there might be danger in attacking you, that it might be wise to wait, to learn more. He did not know that you would have power the Dark Lord knows not –’

他只听到开头的那部分，预言七月会有一个男孩出生，他的父母三次反抗伏地魔。

因此，他不能警告他的主人，攻击你就是在冒险将权力转移给你，并把你当成他的对手。所以伏地魔从来不知道攻击你可能会有危险，所以等待是明智的，以便了解更多情况。他不知道你拥有黑魔王不知道的力量——”

---Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix《哈利·波特与凤凰社》

 

So, if Lord Voldemort had chosen Neville, maybe a similar phenomenon would have occurred...

所以，如果伏地魔选中了纳威，也许也会发生类似的现象……

 

Would Neville still have been friends with Harry, Ron and Hermione? And would they have all been friends?

纳威还会是哈利、罗恩和赫敏的朋友吗?他们会成为朋友吗?

Let’s say it did, and Lord Voldemort was still thwarted, and it was poor Neville who lost his parents, not Harry. Unlike Harry, Neville would’ve still grown up knowing he was a wizard, as presumably his grandmother Augusta would’ve still taken care of him.

假设是这样，伏地魔仍然受到挫折，失去双亲的是可怜的纳威，而不是哈利。不像哈利，纳威在长大的时候就知道他是一个巫师，因为他的祖母奥古斯塔可能还会照顾他。

 

And maybe we can also assume Neville would’ve still been the same nervous, clumsy child if he was still brought up by his strict grandmother. And let’s assume he was still in Gryffindor. What is not clear is how Harry’s life would’ve been different, and how that would’ve dictated events.

也许我们也可以假设纳威仍然是那个紧张，笨拙的孩子，如果他还是由他严厉的祖母带大的话。我们假设他还在格兰芬多。目前尚不清楚的是，如果那样的话，哈利的生活会有何不同，以及那样会如何影响事态发展。

 

Beyond that, what would Harry’s Hogwarts experience have been like? Would he still have pursued the same interests, still joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team? Still fallen for Ginny? Malfoy wouldn’t have bothered him so much without his fame, surely. And would he still have been friends with Ron and Hermione? Harry’s parents certainly knew the Weasleys, at any rate. But either way, we imagine Harry and Neville would’ve both still been in Gryffindor, and hence would’ve become friends through their house. And we simply can’t imagine a world where Harry and Ron don’t befriend each other eventually. And no matter what timeline of events – the defiant Hermione would always team up with Neville to find his lost toad, Trevor. So those friendships may have found a way...

除此之外，哈利在霍格沃茨的经历会是怎样的呢?他还会追求同样的兴趣，还会加入格兰芬多魁地奇队吗?还在迷恋金妮吗?如果没有他的名气，马尔福肯定不会给他带来这么多麻烦。他还会和罗恩、赫敏做朋友吗?不管怎么说，哈利的父母肯定认识韦斯莱一家。但不管怎样，我们可以想象，哈利和纳威都还在格兰芬多，因此可以通过他们的学院成为朋友。我们简直无法想象哈利和罗恩最终会成为朋友。不管事件发生在什么时间线上——桀骜不驯的赫敏总是和纳威一起寻找他丢失的癞蛤蟆——崔福。所以这些友谊可能有了出路…

 

How would Neville have dealt with Harry’s Hogwarts adventures?

纳威会如何对待哈利在霍格沃茨的冒险呢?

Finding the Philosopher’s Stone... Discovering the mysteries of the Chamber of Secrets... Taking part in the Triwizard Tournament... It's a lot. And in his younger years, lovely Neville was definitely not the first Hogwarts student that leapt to mind when it came to saving the castle from certain peril, or indeed, dodging Hungarian Horntails. He could barely keep Trevor under control, let alone a giant, scaly dragon.

找到魔法石……揭开密室的神秘面纱……参加三强争霸赛……而且，可爱的纳威在他年轻的时候，当谈到拯救城堡免遭危险，或者躲避匈牙利犀鸟时，他肯定不是第一个跳入脑海的霍格沃茨学生。他几乎无法控制崔福，更别提那只巨大的、有鳞的龙了。

 

Neville only truly came into his own when Harry, Ron and Hermione started up Dumbledore’s Army in their fifth year. And it’s not likely Harry would’ve started up Dumbledore’s Army if he’d been living a considerably calmer Hogwarts life, not having had to learn extra defensive spells, not having had to grow up far quicker than usual with the looming threat of a Dark wizard on his back. But it’s possible Umbridge would’ve still been around, and some sort of alliance would’ve still been needed. Maybe Hermione, who we can definitely still see being friends with Neville, would’ve started it up with Neville in tow?

直到哈利、罗恩和赫敏在五年级时组建了邓布利多军队，纳威才真正发挥了自己的作用。如果哈利在霍格沃茨过着相当平静的生活，不用学习额外的防御咒，不用在一个黑巫师的威胁下成长得比平时快得多，他也不可能组建邓布利多军队。但也有可能乌姆里奇还活着，还需要某种形式的联盟。也许赫敏，我们仍然可以看到她和纳威是朋友，会在纳威的陪伴下开始吗?

 

And how would things have ended?

事情会怎样结束呢?

When all is said and done, Lord Voldemort would’ve still had his Horcruxes, and Neville would’ve still known that neither must live while the other survives. We imagine Dumbledore would’ve still tutored Neville about Voldemort’s history – and we can still imagine Dumbledore dying, albeit maybe through Malfoy or the Death Eaters rather than Snape.

这样的话，伏地魔还会有他的魂器，纳威还会知道任何一方都必须在另一方生存时生存。我们可以想象邓布利多还会给纳威讲解伏地魔的过去——我们也可以想象邓布利多会死，尽管可能是通过马尔福或者食死徒而不是斯内普。

 

With the assumption Hermione and Neville would’ve still been friends... and Neville’s growing confidence shaping him into a great wizard... it is feasible Neville would’ve still fulfilled the prophecy. And if Harry ever found out that it could’ve been him, you’d have to think that he would’ve been on hand to help Neville?

假设赫敏和纳威仍然是朋友……纳威越来越自信，把他塑造成了一个伟大的巫师……纳威可能还会实现预言。如果哈利发现那个人可能是他，你会认为他会在旁边帮助纳威吗?

 

Of course, we’ll never truly know what would have really happened, but never forget the courage that Neville displayed, from a young, nervous first-year trying to stop Harry Potter sneaking around Hogwarts to a war-beaten hero who destroyed one of Lord Voldemort’s most precious Horcruxes. No matter what the prophecy truly meant, Neville would always have a huge part to play in the battle against darkness in the Wizarding World.

当然，我们永远不会真正知道会发生什么，但永远不会忘记纳威表现出的勇气，从一个年轻的、腼腆的一年级新生试图阻止哈利·波特在霍格沃茨鬼鬼祟祟地溜达，到一个被战争打败的英雄，摧毁了伏地魔最珍贵的魂器之一。不管预言的真正含义是什么，纳威在魔法世界与黑暗的斗争中总是扮演着重要的角色。

 

A note about Snape

关于斯内普

 

We can’t help but think about how Severus Snape’s life might’ve changed during this altered chain of events, especially as it could’ve resulted in Lily Potter never dying. In our eyes, we can imagine Lily and James would’ve continued to be married happily, and perhaps Snape would’ve simply continued to support Voldemort and never become a double-spy for Dumbledore. After all, his love of Lily and the grief of losing her is very much what shaped Snape’s story. Without that grief driving him on, would Snape really have changed his ways? Maybe that’s a conversation for another day...

我们不禁想到，在这一连串改变的事件中，西弗勒斯·斯内普的生活可能会发生怎样的变化，尤其是它可能会导致莉莉·波特不会在伏地魔手下死亡。在我们看来，我们可以想象莉莉和詹姆会继续幸福地结婚生活下去，也许斯内普会继续支持伏地魔，永远不会成为邓布利多的双重间谍。毕竟，他对莉莉的爱和失去她的悲伤是斯内普故事的主要塑造因素。如果不是那种悲伤驱使着他，斯内普真的会改变他的方式吗?也许这是我们以后的话题……