It is half past five, and the field is still dark. Damir walks along the rows of balloons with a small lamp. Each balloon lies flat on the grass like a sleeping animal. Big fans hum. Pilots call to their crews. The first balloon will rise at 6:15.
现在是五点半，场地上依然一片漆黑。达米尔提着一盏小灯，沿着一排排气球走过去。每个气球都平平地躺在草地上，像一头头睡着的动物。大风扇嗡嗡作响。飞行员们在呼唤自己的地勤人员。第一只气球将在六点一刻升空。
Damir runs the launch field. Before every flight, he checks the pilot's papers. It is his one big rule. No papers, no flight.
达米尔负责管理起飞场地。每次飞行之前，他都要检查飞行员的证件。这是他唯一的大规矩：没有证件，就不许飞。
Ciro hurries across the grass toward him. He is the pilot of the yellow balloon. He wears a woolly hat and a worried face.
奇罗匆匆穿过草地向他走来。他是那只黄色气球的飞行员，戴着一顶毛线帽，一脸忧愁。
"Damir, I have a problem," he says.
“达米尔，我有麻烦了，”他说。
"What kind of problem?"
“什么麻烦？”
"My blue folder is gone. My licence is inside. My flight card and my map are inside too."
“我的蓝色文件夹不见了。我的执照在里面，飞行卡和地图也在里面。”
Damir stops walking. "When did you see it last?"
达米尔停下脚步。“你最后一次见到它是什么时候？”
"At the coffee van. Around five o'clock. I put it on the counter to pay."
“在咖啡车那儿。大约五点。我付钱的时候把它放在了柜台上。”
Damir looks at his watch. "Then we have forty-five minutes. Let us be quick."
达米尔看了看表。“那我们还有四十五分钟。咱们抓紧。”
They pass the gate hut on the way. Mattias, the guard dog, lies on a grey blanket by the door. Damir keeps cheese in his pocket for him, as always. He is a huge brown dog with a black nose. His eyes are shut, and his chest goes up and down. Damir frowns for a moment. At dawn, Mattias always barks at every van and every gull. Today he does not even lift his head.
他们路过门卫室。看门狗马蒂亚斯躺在门边的一条灰毯子上。达米尔口袋里总是装着奶酪给它，今天也不例外。它是一条棕色的大狗，鼻子黑黑的。此刻它双眼紧闭，胸口一起一伏。达米尔皱了一下眉。天一亮，马蒂亚斯总会对着每一辆货车、每一只海鸥吠叫。今天它连头都没抬。
"Strange," says Damir. Then he forgets it and hurries on.
“奇怪，”达米尔说。然后他就把这事忘了，匆匆往前走去。
The coffee van sits at the edge of the field. A woman there pours hot chocolate for a line of sleepy passengers. Ciro runs up to her.
咖啡车停在场地边上。一个女人正在给一排睡眼惺忪的乘客倒热巧克力。奇罗跑到她面前。
"Did you find a blue folder?" he asks.
“你有没有捡到一个蓝色文件夹？”他问。
"Yes!" she says. "I saw it on my counter. I knew it belonged to a pilot. I did not keep it. I gave it to a man in an orange jacket. He said he works for the field."
“有啊！”她说，“我在我的柜台上看到了。我知道那是飞行员的东西，没有自己留着。我把它交给了一个穿橙色夹克的男人。他说他在场地工作。”
"Do you know his name?" asks Damir.
“你知道他叫什么吗？”达米尔问。
"No. But his jacket said CREW."
“不知道。不过他的夹克上写着‘地勤’。”
Damir sighs. "Half of my field wears orange jackets."
达米尔叹了口气。“我这场地上有一半人都穿橙色夹克。”
They walk between the balloons and look at every orange jacket. At the third basket, they find a young man. He stacks ropes and sings a quiet song. Ciro stops in front of him.
他们在气球之间穿行，把每一件橙色夹克都看了一遍。走到第三个吊篮旁，他们找到了一个年轻人。他正在整理绳索，轻轻地哼着歌。奇罗在他面前站住。
"Excuse me. Did a woman give you a blue folder?"
“打扰一下。有个女人给过你一个蓝色文件夹吗？”
"Oh, yes!" says the young man. "I did not know whose it was. I thought, who looks after lost things on this field? The night guard, of course. So I took it to him."
“哦，有的！”年轻人说，“我不知道是谁的。我想，这场地上谁来管失物呢？当然是夜班门卫。所以我就拿给他了。”
"Where is he now?" asks Damir.
“他现在在哪儿？”达米尔问。
"His shift ends at half past five. He went to the gate."
“他的班五点半结束。他往大门那边去了。”
Damir and Ciro run back across the grass. It is now 5:50. The sky turns pale grey behind the hills. At the gate hut, the door stands open. The little room is empty. The night guard's coat is gone from its hook. His chair is pushed in.
达米尔和奇罗又穿过草地跑回去。这时已是五点五十分。山后的天空渐渐变成浅灰色。门卫室的门开着，小屋里空无一人。夜班门卫的外套不在钩子上，他的椅子也推回了桌下。
Ciro looks inside. He opens the drawers one by one. He checks the shelf and the floor. There is no blue folder anywhere.
奇罗往里看。他把抽屉一个个拉开，查看架子和地板。哪儿也没有蓝色文件夹。
"He took it home," says Ciro. His voice shakes. "My passengers arrive at six. I cannot fly without that folder."
“他带回家了，”奇罗说，声音在发抖，“我的乘客六点钟就到了。没有那个文件夹，我没法飞。”
"He did not take it home," says Damir. "He is a careful man. He never leaves the field with another person's papers."
“他没有带回家，”达米尔说，“他是个细心的人。他绝不会带着别人的证件离开场地。”
"Then where is it?"
“那它在哪儿？”
Damir stands very still and thinks. Three people hold the folder, one after the other. The woman gives it to the young man. The young man gives it to the guard. The guard is the last one. He keeps it safe before he goes home.
达米尔一动不动地站着思考。三个人先后经手过那个文件夹。女人把它交给年轻人，年轻人把它交给门卫。门卫是最后一个。他下班之前把它好好保管起来了。
"Ciro," he says slowly, "where does a guard keep a thing safe?"
“奇罗，”他慢慢地说，“门卫会把东西保管在哪里？”
"In a locked cupboard?"
“锁起来的柜子里？”
"Yes. Or with a guard."
“对。或者交给另一个‘守卫’。”
They both turn around. Mattias still lies by the door. His legs twitch, and he makes a soft sound in his sleep. Damir looks at the dog for a long time. Under the big body, a small blue corner sticks out.
两人同时转过身。马蒂亚斯仍躺在门边。它的腿抽动了一下，睡梦中发出轻轻的声音。达米尔看了那条狗很久。在那庞大的身躯下面，露出一个小小的蓝色角。
"Ciro," says Damir. "A sleeping dog is a tired dog. But Mattias is never tired at dawn."
“奇罗，”达米尔说，“睡着的狗是累了的狗。可天亮的时候，马蒂亚斯从来不累。”
"So why does he sleep?"
“那它为什么睡觉？”
"He does not sleep. He works." Damir kneels beside the dog. "The night guard says, guard this. So Mattias guards it. He lies on it, and he does not move."
“它没有睡觉。它在干活。”达米尔在狗旁边跪下。“夜班门卫说：看好这个。于是马蒂亚斯就看着它。它趴在上面，一动不动。”
Ciro stares. "Is my licence under him?"
奇罗瞪大了眼睛。“我的执照就在它身子底下？”
"I think so."
“我想是的。”
Damir puts a hand on the dog's warm side. "Mattias," he says softly. "Good boy. Up now."
达米尔把一只手放在狗温暖的身侧。“马蒂亚斯，”他轻声说，“乖孩子。起来吧。”
Mattias opens one eye. He looks at Damir. He closes the eye again.
马蒂亚斯睁开一只眼睛，看了看达米尔，又把眼睛闭上了。
"Stubborn," whispers Ciro.
“真倔，”奇罗小声说。
Damir takes a small piece of cheese from his pocket. He holds it under the dog's nose. Mattias's ears go up. The big nose twitches. At last, he stands and shakes himself. He takes the cheese with a happy sound.
达米尔从口袋里掏出一小块奶酪，举到狗的鼻子底下。马蒂亚斯的耳朵竖了起来，大鼻子抽动着。终于，它站起身，抖了抖身子，欢快地哼了一声，叼走了奶酪。
On the blanket lies a blue folder. It is warm and a little flat. It has a few brown hairs on it. Ciro picks it up and opens it. The licence is there. So are the flight card and the map. He holds the folder to his chest.
毯子上躺着一个蓝色文件夹。它暖暖的，有点被压扁了，上面沾着几根棕色的毛。奇罗把它拿起来，打开。执照在，飞行卡和地图也在。他把文件夹紧紧抱在胸前。
"I could kiss this dog," he says.
“我真想亲这条狗一口，”他说。
"Please do not," says Damir. "He does not like it."
“请别这样，”达米尔说，“它不喜欢。”
Ciro laughs. He shows the papers to Damir. Damir checks every page with his lamp. Everything is right. Damir signs the flight card at 6:02.
奇罗笑了。他把证件拿给达米尔看。达米尔举着灯，一页一页地检查。一切无误。六点零二分，达米尔在飞行卡上签了字。
"Thank you," says Ciro. "Come and fly with me one day."
“谢谢你，”奇罗说，“哪天来和我一起飞吧。”
"I stay on the ground," says Damir. "Somebody must guard the field."
“我留在地面上，”达米尔说，“总得有人守着场地。”
Ciro runs to his yellow balloon. His passengers already stand by the basket. The fans roar. The big yellow shape slowly lifts from the grass.
奇罗跑向他的黄色气球。乘客们已经站在吊篮旁边。风扇轰鸣。那个巨大的黄色身影缓缓地离开了草地。
Back at the hut, Mattias turns around twice on his blanket. He lies down again with a long yawn. He looks at Damir and gives one short bark.
回到门卫室，马蒂亚斯在毯子上转了两圈，又趴下了，打了个长长的哈欠。它看了看达米尔，短促地叫了一声。
"Woof."
“汪。”
