That afternoon, after dealing with a crowd of overly curious students, Maurise strolled out of the castle at a leisurely pace, preparing to head back to the Ship in a Bottle.
He had barely stepped outside when Fred and George caught up from behind, flanking him on both sides.
"Hey, Maurise, wait up."
Maurise did not break his stride. "Are you coming to the club room? I need to tune up my broomstick today, so I probably will not have time to hang out."
"About that..." Fred hesitated, a remarkably rare occurrence for him.
Seeing this, George cut straight to the chase. "Did they mention when you would get the bounty?"
Since they had provided the crucial information regarding Sirius Black's location, it was agreed that Maurise would give them three hundred Galleons each. While three hundred might not seem like much compared to the full five thousand, it was an astronomical sum for ordinary students, easily enough to fund a year of wild spending at Honeydukes.
It was perfectly normal for them to be anxious.
Maurise slowed his pace slightly. "That depends entirely on the Ministry's efficiency."
Fred let out a dramatic sigh. "Then we will be waiting until next year."
They knew the Ministry of Magic's sluggish, bureaucratic pace all too well.
George suddenly changed the subject. "By the way, Maurise, how are you planning to spend all that money?"
"Hmm..." Maurise stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I have not decided yet. I will probably just save it for daily expenses." He did tend to spend quite a bit on a regular basis.
Fred and George exchanged a quick glance, their eyes lighting up simultaneously.
"Not decided?" Fred leaned in closer. "Would you consider investing in our shop?"
Maurise figured this was coming. The twins had brought up the idea before, talking about opening a joke shop after they graduated.
"I refuse," Maurise answered flatly.
He was not about to jump on board just because of a fleeting whim. Inventory, target audience, location, standing out from competitors... there were simply too many complicated factors to consider when opening a business. He was not entirely confident in the venture yet. Moreover, graduation was still a long way off for the twins, making this conversation incredibly premature.
Fred and George did not look particularly disappointed by the rejection. They probably had not held out much hope to begin with.
Maurise glanced at them sideways. "Are you two short on funds again?"
Sales of their Shadow Stones had been booming, with nearly a quarter of Hogwarts students acting as their loyal customers. Logically, they should have accumulated a very handsome pile of savings by now.
Fred scratched his head, looking slightly embarrassed. "We have almost spent it all."
George added with a bitter smile, "We have been heavily researching new prank products, testing out new formulas and different magical effects."
It was strangely ironic. When they were broke, their research had progressed at a steady, manageable pace. But the moment they had deep pockets, they could not resist buying all sorts of rare ingredients and expensive samples, conducting experiments that burned through cash at an alarming rate. It was highly addictive.
The pure joy of spending money was beyond imagination. Over time, their funds simply vanished into thin air.
Maurise stopped walking and turned to face them.
"In that case," he said, "I think it is time we consider selling the Shadow Stones outside of Hogwarts."
The school market was practically saturated, leaving no more profit to squeeze out. It was time to expand to a broader audience.
Hearing this, Fred's face instantly lit up with excitement.
"We already have a plan drawn up for that!" He cleared his throat eagerly. "We have reached out to several relevant shops, and they all expressed great interest in our product. As soon as you give the word, we can take this business nationwide!"
Oh? Maurise was genuinely surprised. These two brothers were certainly proactive. It seemed he would not need to waste much energy on this particular endeavor.
---
Over the next two days, there was absolute silence regarding the bounty.
On the evening of the third day, Maurise was reading quietly in the common room.
"Maurise, the Headmaster would like to see you in his office," Professor Flitwick's voice called out from the entrance.
"Right now?" Maurise closed his book and glanced out the nearest window. The moon was already hanging high in the night sky. Was it not a bit too late for a meeting? It had to be something incredibly urgent.
"The password is Honey Lemonade," Professor Flitwick instructed. "Make sure you return before curfew."
"Understood, Professor."
Maurise set his book down on a nearby side table and stepped out of the common room.
The corridors were deserted, illuminated only by the crackling torches mounted on the stone walls. He quickly arrived at the familiar stone gargoyle.
"Honey Lemonade."
The gargoyle leaped aside, revealing the rotating spiral staircase hidden behind it. Maurise stepped on with practiced ease and knocked on the heavy oak door at the top. The door swung open on its own.
Dumbledore sat behind his grand desk, his expression perfectly calm.
"Ah, Maurise, you are here," he said, gesturing to a chair opposite him. "Please, take a seat."
The moment Maurise sat down, the first thing that caught his eye was a bulging, incredibly heavy sack resting on the desk.
Could it be...
Dumbledore followed his gaze and smiled gently. "Cornelius asked me to deliver your reward."
Maurise beamed, his tone suddenly light and cheerful. "Ah, and here I thought the Ministry was going to default on the payment."
But why was Dumbledore the one delivering a Ministry bounty?
"The Ministry would not stoop quite that low." Dumbledore pushed the heavy sack across the desk. "Go on, take it."
Maurise gladly accepted the gold, briefly weighing it in his hands. It was delightfully heavy.
"Now then, onto more serious matters." Dumbledore paused, a glint of absolute seriousness entering his blue eyes. "Did Sirius say anything to you at the time?"
"What do you mean?" Maurise looked up.
"Before he was taken away. Did he say anything specific?"
Maurise cast his mind back and suddenly realized what the Headmaster was asking about.
"He did." Maurise gave a brief summary of Sirius's frantic claims. "Sirius Black said that Peter was the real traitor. He claimed Peter is an Animagus in the form of a rat, the very same one that hangs around Ron Weasley. What was its name again... Ah, Scabbers!"
Dumbledore listened intently, falling into deep thought for a moment.
"Do you believe him?" he asked quietly.
Maurise pondered the question before answering carefully. "I have no idea what he meant by 'traitor,' but as for the rat... I would say it is fifty-fifty."
He suddenly remembered that his cat had once pointed out how entirely unnatural Ron's rat was. At the time, Maurise had lacked the knowledge to determine if it was an Animagus or not. Furthermore, he remembered Ron complaining that the rat had been missing for quite some time now. Magical pets usually found their way back on their own if they merely wandered off.
Thinking about it this way, Sirius Black might not have been spouting pure nonsense. Ron's rat could very well be an Animagus. Could there be a hidden truth behind all of this?
Maurise glanced at the heavy sack of Galleons in his hand, then looked up at Dumbledore with total sincerity. "Professor Dumbledore, honestly, I highly recommend you track down that rat and verify it for yourself. I am not joking."
Dumbledore pinched the bridge of his nose wearily.
He certainly wanted to find it. But even for him, locating a single rat Animagus hiding somewhere within a massive, sprawling castle was a nearly impossible task to accomplish quickly.
To make matters significantly worse, the Dementors were no longer guarding the school grounds. Peter could easily find an opportunity to slip away at any given moment.