英語故事:威廉王子的天作之合

英國王位第二順位繼承人、全球最受矚目的英國王子威廉，於2011年4月29日，在倫敦迎娶交往8年的女友凱特·米德爾頓。這位準新娘雖出身中產家庭，然而在威廉面前卻不乏幽默自信，面對媒體大方得體，與威廉家人關係融洽，難怪能獲得英國舉國上下一致認同，被認爲是威廉的理想新娘。

Flipped
怦然心動

Prince William's four-year stay at St. Andrews would draw the interest of the world's media. To protect the Prince, an agreement was made banning camera crews and pres except on selected occasion meaning Will, as he was known, could live university life much like any other student.
全球傳媒均對威廉王子在聖安德魯斯（大學）四年生活深感興趣。爲了保護王子，王室與媒體達成協議，規定除了在特定的場合，校內不準有攝影隊以及傳媒人員出現。這便意味着威爾（他的別名）可以像其他學生一樣，過上普通的大學生活。

But, a year into his studie Prince William was finding it hard to settle in his art history course, the same course as his friend Kate Middleton. It's said that Kate's persuasive character made William stay, and he switched to geography. Late in their first year, the friends moved into a house-share together, but not before William attended a student fashion show, where Kate was revealed in a new light.
但威廉王子讀了一年後，覺得難以適應藝術歷史學科，其朋友凱特·米德爾頓也在讀這一專業。據說是因凱特的說服，才令威廉留下，轉讀地理。第一學年年尾時，他們搬入共同租住的屋子，但這是威廉出席一場時裝表演後的事，那晚的凱特展現出讓人刮目相看的一面。

Jules Knight (William's Fellow Student): I think that was the moment when everyone realised how beautiful she was. There was this lovely, unassuming girl, who also had a sexy side as well, and she got up there and she flaunted her stuff and looked fantastic.
朱爾斯·奈特（威廉的同學）：我想就是那一刻，大家才發覺她如此美麗。這個可愛、謙遜的女孩也有性感的一面。她走上臺，昂首闊步，美豔動人。

Geordie Greig (Editor): All her contemporaries at St. Andrews saw her as the most attractive girl there.
喬迪·格雷格（編輯）：聖安德魯斯大學與她同輩的學生均視她爲校內最美麗的女郎。

By now their friendship was growing closer, and they were getting to know one another, warts and all.
此時，他們的友誼更爲密切，他們互相瞭解，瑕瑜互見。

Stumbled
出師不利

Kate spent her early years in the English county of Berkshire, 60 miles outside London. It was an ordinary childhood amongst genteel villages and rolling fields. Born six months before William, on January the 9th, 1982, Katherine Elizabeth Middleton is the eldest child of Carol and Michael Middleton.
凱特早年住在伯克郡，距離倫敦60英里。其孩提生活平凡，住在上流社會的村落，四周都是起伏不平的廣闊土地。凱瑟琳·伊麗莎白·米德爾頓是嘉露跟米高·米德爾頓的大女兒，於1982年1月9日出生，她比威廉大6個月。

Chris Robben (Editor): Kate comes from a very stable middle-class family: her parents run their own business. They both were in the airline business—initially her mom, a stewardess and father, a pilot. She's got a younger sister, Pippa, and Jame a younger brother, so it was normal stuff. They're really very much like a lot of ordinary, middle-class families. Not, certainly, someone you'd expect to be marrying into the royal family.
克里斯·羅本（編輯）：凱特來自穩健的中產家庭：父母自己做生意，以前均從事航空業——起初媽媽是空姐，爸爸是飛機師。她有個妹妹叫碧帕，以及一個弟弟叫詹姆斯。一切都很中規中矩，跟典型的中產家庭沒什麼兩樣。她不像是一個會嫁入王室的女郎。

It was at his "passing-out parade" at Sandhurst in late 2006 that Kate made her most significant appearance in the presence of the senior royal accompanied by her parents. The occasion, however, did not pass without controversy.
2006年年尾，凱特最爲重要的一次露面是在英國陸軍軍官學校，出席威廉的畢業閱兵典禮；凱特及其父母，在一衆王室高層成員面前亮相。然而他們的這次出席也備受爭議。

Piers Morgans (Broadcaster & Journalist): The cameras caught Kate's mom chewing gum during the Sandhurst parade, and this was a social disaster. You just do not…one does not chew gum at the passing-out parade. Well, I felt quite sorry for her. You know, I don't think she probably gave it a moment's thought. She's probably incredibly nervous. I mean, if you're the mother of the potential future Queen of England, and you're surrounded by the in-laws-to-be, it'd be terrifying. A little crafty bit of gum to calm your nerve and the next thing you know everyone's going, "Oh, this is a disaster! I mean you can't have a gum-chewing mother-in-law." So that was the kind of thing I think you…you buy yourself into as a family. It's not just about Kate, it's about all her family. They're all wedding into this.
皮爾斯·摩根(廣播員、新聞工作者)：攝影師拍攝到凱特的媽媽在閱兵時嚼口香糖，這確是社交大忌。在畢業閱兵典禮中，沒有人會嚼口香糖。其實，我也挺同情她的。你也明白，我想那時的她也沒細想過這事。她很可能非常緊張。我的意思是，若你是潛在未來王后的母親，而你身邊全是準親家成員，那情形一定令人感到不安的，嚼口香糖能讓人平靜一些。然而接着就是，人人都覺得這樣很無禮，“噢，這太糟糕了！我說的是，你不能有個嚼口香糖的岳母呀。”這就是加入王室的代價。這不止是凱特的事，而是他們一家人的事，因爲他們所有人一起嫁入王室。

Poised
泰然自若

So what is it that binds these two together?
那麼，是什麼令兩人結合在一起的呢？

Hannah Sandling (Friend of William & Kate): I think the key to their relationship is independence. They have their own friendship they have their own hobbie they don't hang around each other's necks and suffocate each other. They've been through so much together: they've been such good friend you know, through university, coming out of university, and I think, because of all of that, it's made the bond between them super strong—totally indestructible.
漢娜·山德林（威廉與凱特的朋友）：我覺得，他倆關係的關鍵是獨立。他們有各自的朋友，有各自的嗜好，他們不會苦纏令對方窒息。他們一起經歷了很多事情，他們是如此要好的朋友，你也知道，一同經歷大學時期，然後畢業。我認爲這一切令他們關係堅固，牢不可破。

Geordie Greig: They enjoy the same joke they enjoy the same sort of outdoorsy good fun, and she knows how to make him feel relaxed and that he doesn't have to worry about her when they're together in public.
喬迪·格雷格：他們享受同一類笑話，享受同一種戶外玩樂。凱特懂得如何令他放鬆。當他倆出現在公衆場合，他又不用擔心凱特的言行。

Ollie Baines (William's Fellow Student): She's very calm and very collected, and together they are a very calm and collected couple. You might sort of think, "Isn't it very serious that people who met, you know, mid-twenties are that close to one another?" But with those two, it really work because, they, you know, they're totally meant for each other.
奧利·貝恩斯（威廉的同學）：她很冷靜，泰然自若，所以他們是冷靜且泰然自若的一對。你可能會想，“二十來歲才認識的兩個人，就如此親密無間，不會是認真的吧？”但對於他倆，還真的是這樣，因爲他倆真的是天生一對。

Scenes of Prince William, his brother, Prince Harry, and Kate partying and clubbing, became familiar in ways unthinkable in previous royal generations. But with great strength of character, Kate has always been careful to manage both hers and William's public image.
威廉王子跟弟弟哈里以及凱特一起去派對玩樂是常見事，這樣的情形是以往歷代王室成員難以想象的。但由於凱特個性較強，她總會確保她跟威廉兩人均保持良好的公衆形象。

Chris Robben:Where Prince William has always been seen as the good boy against Prince Harry the bad boy…actually, a lot of the time when he was at university, you know, he'd sunk a few pints. The truth i she'd be the one who'd be pulling him back a little bit an saying, "You need to calm down a little bit, just in case you're caught out."
克里斯·羅本：威廉王子在大衆的眼中總是好男孩的形象，而哈里王子則是壞男孩，但其實威廉讀大學時，常常會去暢飲一番。事實上，是凱特經常對他加以約束，叫他冷靜以免被人捉到做文章。

Geordie Greig: You've never seen her exit a nightclub apart from in the most elegant and supremely poised way, even if it is 3 AM.
喬迪·格雷格：你看到，她離開夜店時，即使是凌晨三點，都永遠是優雅得體的。

Chris Robben: They'll be great ambassadors together on a public stage—young, good-looking, intelligent—but they'll be great ambassadors for Great Britain, PLC.
克里斯·羅本：他們將會是公衆舞臺上出色的大使，年輕、迷人、聰明，會是英國出色的大使。

Hilary Alexander (Fashion Director): The country's struggling through a recession, you know, economic gloom everywhere you turn—everything's doom and gloom—and to have this is just like a rainbow. I think it's fabulous! 　
希拉里·亞歷山大（時尚總監）：你知道，英國正遭受經濟衰退的打擊，處處都是經濟蕭條的景象。所有一切都是灰暗陰沉的樣子，而這場婚禮則恰像一道彩虹。我覺得這實在是無與倫比！