"So, y-you're... out after curfew?" Quirrell asked. He looked up at the bright moon, then at Kane's two pockets, both stuffed full of spider silk.
"A young wizard is not only out after curfew but has also v-visited a spider nest. That's too dangerous. You wouldn't want Professor McGonagall to know."
"Oh, yes. I'm sorry. I'm guilty. I'll go turn myself in to Professor McGonagall right now."
With the look of someone who had just eaten something foul, Kane started to go around Quirrell. After what had happened that day, Quirrell was a confirmed freak in his eyes.
He'd rather be touched by Quirrell's wand than by those garlic-reeking hands.
"Wait. I-I didn't mean it that way. I was too eager earlier. N-no young wizard has ever come to me of their own accord, you understand. I can keep your secret," Quirrell said quickly when Kane tried to give him a wide berth.
Kane shook his head. "Nope. I'm going to confess. Bye."
"Perhaps we could make a trade. I need your instrument, the one that can hypnotize people. What do you need?"
Kane stopped cold and turned around. "Do you have gems? Red Gems, Blue Gems, Purple Gems?"
Quirrell nodded at once. Compared with disguising himself, spending heavily on a dragon egg, and pumping Hagrid for information, the creature-hypnotizing instrument in Kane's hands was much better value.
"I d-don't have gems, but I can give you Galleons. You can b-buy them from Gringotts yourself."
He actually took a weighty pouch from his pocket and handed it to Kane.
Kane had been cool and composed, but the weight of that pouch shattered his calm. He tried desperately to keep a straight face and failed.
"Y-you're really forcing me to make mistakes here," Kane said, his mouth twitching as he approached Quirrell.
He accepted the pouch and looked inside. It was full of bright gold Galleons, certainly more than a hundred.
Kane stuffed it into his pocket at once. "So, how many times do you need the Pan Flute? That's the hypnotizing instrument."
"How many times?" Quirrell was startled by Kane's shamelessness. He had paid more than two hundred Galleons. Was he renting it rather than buying it?
Kane saw from Quirrell's pained expression exactly what he was thinking and explained, "The Pan Flute is single-use. Increasing the number of uses on a single-use item is a lot of work."
Only then did Quirrell understand. Kane was not charging him a fortune to rent the Pan Flute, he was offering to increase its uses.
"Y-you're surprisingly nice," Quirrell said. Whether from excitement or a rush of blood, his face was red.
"Can't help it. I've been kindhearted since I was little. So how many uses do you need?" Kane asked, rubbing his hands together greedily.
"T-two should be enough."
Quirrell chose a conservative number. It would not make things too difficult for Kane, and it gave him a chance to experiment.
"I'll bring it to your office tomorrow."
Kane left without looking back. He even had the ridiculous thought that Professor Quirrell might be a decent person in real life.
On the way back from the Forbidden Forest, Kane played and blew the Pan Flute all the way to the dormitory, reducing its ten uses to two.
After sleeping until the next morning, he felt completely free of worries. Once he had eaten, he only needed to tell Dumbledore that he had sold the Pan Flute.
Harry and Ron began brushing their teeth and washing up as well. In the Great Hall, the three of them saw professors and Hagrid piling all sorts of packages in a corner, apparently preparing for the Halloween feast.
After breakfast, Kane knocked on Dumbledore's office door. Before he had even taken a seat, Dumbledore teased him.
"How did your mischief go last night?"
"Pretty well. I'll buy you Monster Lasagna sometime."
Kane conveniently left out the words "Monster Meat" before continuing with the important matter.
"Yesterday, I sold Professor Quirrell a Pan Flute with two uses left. I thought I should let you know in advance."
Dumbledore smiled and nodded. "You did exactly the right thing, Kane. And how effective is this Pan Flute? I believe I should experience it myself."
"Try it yourself."
Kane drew his wand and gave it a wave. The Pan Flute's strange music flowed into Dumbledore's ears from all directions, giving him the same sensation Kane had felt after eating a Mandrake.
Fortunately, Dumbledore had slept well the night before and deliberately resisted. He was only dazed for a moment before returning to normal.
"Oh? How much did you sell it for?"
"Two hundred Galleons."
Dumbledore shook his head. "You were underpaid. Anything else?"
Kane had been waiting for that. "Do you know a reliable way to buy gems? Preferably Purple Gems. My budget is two hundred Galleons."
"Certainly. This is Gringotts's owl-post address."
Dumbledore wrote an address on a piece of parchment.
"Tell them what type of gem you need, as well as its size, weight, quality, and your budget. They will give you a quote.
"They are a little greedy, but they are professionals. You need not worry that they will treat you differently because you are a child."
Kane took the parchment and shrugged. "Thanks. If I have anything left over, I'll buy you ice cream."
"And if you do not?" Dumbledore asked as Kane was already halfway out the door.
"Then I'll buy you Monster Lasagna."
Kane quietly closed the door.
Leaving the headmaster's office, he hurried straight to Quirrell's. He did not even step inside after opening the door. Instead, he used a Levitation Charm to float the Pan Flute into Quirrell's hand, shut the door, and said goodbye.
Then he saw Hermione approaching from farther down the hall.
"Hello."
Kane greeted her and started toward the library to write his letter. Hermione hesitated, then called after him.
"Kane, what were you doing in Professor Quirrell's office just now?"
"Dropping something off. Were you looking for him too?"
Kane looked at Hermione, who had already stopped in front of Quirrell's door, and decided he should act like a decent person.
"Personal advice: stay away from Professor Quirrell. He's kind of a freak."
Hermione looked at Kane, who had clearly just left Quirrell's office. The warning did not seem very convincing coming from him.
"Then what were you doing in his office?" she asked with her arms crossed.
"Making a trade. If you'd come ten seconds earlier, you'd have seen that I wouldn't even step inside his office."
As if worried Hermione would not believe him, Kane casually pulled a handful of Galleons from his pocket.
He pulled out a handful of Galleons without a second thought. It was terrifying.
Hermione complained inwardly, but Kane had gone this far...
She should trust Kane's judgment. He probably heard far more gossip than she did. What if Professor Quirrell really was a creep?
In an instant, she smoothly changed course. Rather than ask Quirrell about the Swamp Spell, she would ask someone else.
"So, do you have time later?" Hermione asked with an innocent smile, ready to ask Kane about the Swamp Spell.
Kane: ???