"Sirius Black?"
Upon hearing Maurise's words, the expressions of both Minister Fudge and Professor McGonagall instantly grew serious.
The affable smile faded slightly from Fudge's face. He asked in a steady voice, "Do you have a lead?"
"I do."
Maurise nodded and opened the suitcase in his hand.
Professor McGonagall, sharp as ever, immediately noticed something unusual about the luggage. "Is that an Undetectable Extension Charm on your case?"
"Exactly," Maurise replied casually. "But do not worry. I borrowed this from a friend, and it is fully registered with the Ministry of Magic. Minister Fudge should be able to verify that without any issues."
To avoid unnecessary trouble, he had specifically asked Frick to handle all the legal paperwork a while ago. The Ministry was usually strict about such inspections, but in the face of enough golden Galleons, all bureaucratic hurdles magically disappeared.
Fudge waved a hand, clearly unconcerned about the charm. "That is not important right now, Maurise. Where is this lead?"
Maurise did not say another word. He simply tipped the suitcase upside down and gave it a hard shake.
A man slid out of the opening and hit the floor with a heavy thud. The figure lay face down, completely motionless. A tangled mess of filthy hair obscured most of his face, and his ragged clothes gave off a sour, unwashed stench.
Fudge was startled by the sudden commotion, his eyes widening in shock.
Professor McGonagall was equally stunned. Her hand instinctively reached for her wand, but after getting a clearer look at the helpless state of the man on the floor, she slowly lowered it.
"Perhaps I should make an introduction," Maurise offered a perfectly measured smile. "This is Sirius Black."
He crouched down, grabbed Sirius by the shoulder, and rolled him over to reveal a gaunt, barely recognizable face.
Fudge opened his mouth, but it took him a long moment to force any sound out.
"You are not joking? This... this is Sirius Black?"
"Obviously," Maurise said as he stood back up. "So, where are my five thousand Galleons?"
Fudge completely ignored the question and immediately began pacing in circles around the unconscious fugitive. Professor McGonagall also leaned in, inspecting the haggard face closely.
"Can you wake him up?" Fudge asked.
"Of course." Maurise was just about to pull out his wand when he suddenly remembered he was not inside Hogwarts. Underage wizards using magic outside of school grounds were subject to strict penalties.
Fortunately, Professor McGonagall took the initiative. She gave her wand a gentle flick, and Sirius's eyelids immediately twitched.
A few seconds later, Sirius slowly opened his eyes. His gaze was vacant at first, but it rapidly snapped into focus. He saw Professor McGonagall, Fudge, and the young man who had knocked him out.
He was doomed.
A look of utter despair washed over Sirius's face. This was undeniably the worst possible outcome. If he was dragged back to Azkaban, he would never have another chance to escape. The Ministry would undoubtedly realize he was an Animagus now, and the Dementors would watch him around the clock. There would be no more loopholes left to exploit.
"Sirius Black?" Fudge's tone still held a heavy trace of disbelief.
Sirius did not answer. His eyes darted frantically around the room, taking in the windows and the door.
"He is trying to figure out a way to escape," Maurise pointed out smoothly, seeing right through the man's intentions. "It is entirely useless."
"Crafty criminal," Fudge muttered under his breath.
Sirius dropped his head in defeat.
The room fell silent for a few seconds.
Professor McGonagall shifted her gaze from the man on the floor back to the student. "How exactly did you manage to catch him, Maurise?" she asked, her expression deeply stern.
Maurise blinked innocently. "The process is not important, Professor. Only the result matters."
Professor McGonagall was always like this, getting overly concerned with trivial details.
Just then, Sirius jerked his head up. "I need to see Dumbledore," he demanded, his voice rough and gravelly.
"You are in no position to make demands, Black. You have caused enough trouble as it is." Fudge let out a cold sneer. "The Dementors will be coming for your soul very soon."
He just wanted to get rid of this massive political headache as quickly as possible.
"I am going to contact the Aurors right now," Fudge stood up, a look of profound relief spreading across his face. "They will come and escort Sirius straight back to Azkaban. Oh, and Professor McGonagall, the Dementors will no longer need to be stationed around Hogwarts. As soon as I have him locked away, I will order their immediate withdrawal."
"That would be for the best." Professor McGonagall let out a long sigh of relief. She had been thoroughly sick of those foul creatures for months.
"Wait!" Seeing his grim fate sealing shut, Sirius turned desperately to Professor McGonagall and spoke at a rapid pace. "Tell Dumbledore that Peter is the one who betrayed them! He is an Animagus! He is a rat, and he is right there with Ron Weasley!"
Fudge shook his head as he walked toward the door. "Listen to him babble. Every criminal tries to spin a web of lies once they are caught."
Professor McGonagall, however, furrowed her brow deeply, a highly thoughtful look crossing her face.
Maurise could not care less about the drama.
He simply asked, "Minister, when exactly can I expect my reward?"
Fudge turned back with a reassuring, politician's smile. "Rest easy, my boy. In a couple of days, once all this paperwork is finalized, the money will be transferred directly into your Gringotts vault."
"A couple of days?" Maurise raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, indeed." Fudge patted him on the shoulder.
From the floor, Sirius let out a hoarse, mocking laugh.
"Rest easy?" he scoffed. "I can guarantee the Ministry will not give you a single Knut."
Fudge's face darkened instantly. "Shut your mouth, Black."
At that moment, Professor McGonagall unexpectedly intervened. "Regarding the bounty, Minister, I strongly believe it would be best to compensate Maurise as soon as possible. He has more than earned it."
Maurise silently gave his professor a mental thumbs up.
Fudge's expression became rather awkward. Did they not trust the Ministry? Or did they just not trust him?
After a brief moment of silence, Fudge relented. "Of course," he said, his tone softening a bit. "You are quite right, Minerva. The boy has done us a great service. But the proper procedures must still be followed. The Ministry has its rules, after all."
"I will be waiting." Maurise maintained his polite smile.
Sirius was still mumbling absolute nonsense about Peter, rats, and Weasleys on the floor, but nobody paid him any further attention.
---
The Aurors arrived shortly after.
Once Sirius Black was securely taken away, Maurise returned to Hogwarts in exceptionally high spirits.
Five thousand Galleons. How wonderful. And he was just in time for lunch.
The moment he stepped into the Great Hall, a massive crowd swarmed him. Clearly, the Weasley twins had already spread the news far and wide.
Fred pushed his way to the very front, asking eagerly, "Where is Sirius Black?"
"The Ministry took him away," Maurise answered casually. He sat down at his usual spot and, completely ignoring the staring eyes of everyone around him, started eating a meat pie.
The crowd instantly erupted into a frenzy of noise.
"Merlin's beard, they finally caught him!"
"My mother just wrote to me telling me to be careful!"
"Did you hear the Dementors are leaving too?"
Conversations broke out everywhere, making the Great Hall as lively as a grand festival.
But the person who was undoubtedly the happiest about the news was Harry Potter.
With Sirius Black finally behind bars, it meant he was completely safe at last. He could finally visit Hogsmeade openly and without living in constant fear.
Standing at the edge of the crowd, Harry looked at Maurise being surrounded by excited students and let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.