When the minute hand of the wall clock clicked into place at the stroke of twelve, Maurise threw his robes over his shoulders and slipped out of the dormitory.
The common room and the corridors beyond were deserted. The only sound was the rhythm of his own footsteps echoing through the hollow air. He had deliberately softened his tread, yet in this suffocating silence, even the friction of fabric against stone seemed deafeningly loud.
Upon reaching the first landing of the Grand Staircase, Maurise stopped. He leaned against the cold stone wall, waiting in the shadows.
He had arranged to meet the Weasley twins here.
Nearly three minutes ticked by without a sound. The surroundings remained still.
Maurise frowned slightly, staring at a seemingly empty patch of air in front of him.
"Fred?"
Ripples distorted the space before him, like heat rising off pavement. Slowly, the grinning figures of Fred and George materialized out of thin air.
"You spotted us?" Fred asked, unable to hide his surprise.
"Lucky guess," Maurise lied smoothly, shaking his head. "Though I must say, your Disillusionment Charms are far superior to mine."
In truth, he hadn't noticed them at all until they revealed themselves.
Hearing the compliment, Fred wiggled his eyebrows triumphantly. "How do you think we manage to roam the castle at night without ever getting caught by the professors? Pure skill."
"Didn't you two just get detention last week?" Maurise reminded them dryly. "You spent two whole days scrubbing bedpans in the hospital wing without magic."
"That was only because Fred wasn't watching the Marau—"
George drove his elbow sharply into Fred's ribs.
Fred's sentence cut off with a wheeze. He rubbed his side, offering a sheepish, pained grin.
"The what?" Maurise asked, his interest piqued.
"Nothing important," Fred deflected quickly. "Just a minor technical error."
Maurise knew better than to press. That was clearly a trade secret between the brothers. Instead, he waved his hand and took the lead. "Come on. We'll take this route. Filch should be patrolling the Astronomy Tower right now."
Fred and George exchanged a peculiar look as they watched Maurise stride confidently ahead of them.
Why did it feel like Maurise was more seasoned at breaking school rules than they were?
The trio successfully sneaked down to the dungeons, stopping before the heavy oak door of the Potions classroom.
The student store cupboard for potion ingredients was located inside the classroom itself. Unfortunately, the classroom was directly adjacent to Professor Snape's office. At this hour, there was a high probability the Potions Master was still lurking in his lair.
They had to be exceptionally careful.
"We'll go in and scout the situation," Fred whispered to Maurise. "Don't worry about us. If anyone comes down the corridor, save yourself and run."
Maurise nodded.
Fred and George cast the Disillusionment Charm on themselves once more. Their bodies took on the color and texture of the dungeon walls until they faded from view entirely.
The classroom door slid open a fraction of an inch, silently, and closed just as quickly.
Maurise was left alone in the dim corridor.
Time stretched. The silence of the dungeons was heavy and damp.
Five minutes later, Maurise stifled a yawn. He was beginning to feel the weight of the hour. What on earth were those two doing in there? It shouldn't take this long to check if Snape was awake.
Click.
The door opened. Two shimmering outlines slipped out.
Fred and George dropped their charms, reappearing with disappointed expressions.
"Snape is still in his office," Fred reported in a hushed tone. "And he doesn't look like he's leaving anytime soon. We listened at the crack of the door; he's grading essays. Viciously."
George nodded in agreement. "If we want to raid the cupboard, we'll have to wait for a bigger distraction. Halloween, maybe."
Maurise nodded. He wasn't particularly disappointed. Tonight was just a reconnaissance mission, after all.
"I'll head back, then," Maurise gestured toward the stairs. "See you in the morning."
If he hurried, he might still have time to slip into the Restricted Section for a quick browse.
However, before he could take a step, Fred grabbed his arm.
"Not so fast, Maurise. Since you're already up, stick with us a bit longer."
Maurise felt a sudden premonition of trouble.
"Where are we going?"
"Don't ask questions," Fred grinned, his eyes glinting in the torchlight. "Just follow the leaders."
Maurise found himself being forcibly escorted back up the Grand Staircase.
They stopped at a corridor on the third floor.
Under the moonlight streaming through the high windows, this particular hallway seemed exceptionally eerie. The air here felt colder than the rest of the castle, carrying a stillness that warned of danger.
Maurise paused. "Isn't this the corridor Headmaster Dumbledore explicitly forbade us from entering?"
"Exactly!" Fred snapped his fingers, looking delighted. "Last time, George and I didn't manage to find the secret hidden here. But this time is different. We can feel it."
George puffed out his chest. "Are you ready to embrace adventure, Maurise?"
"No. I'm going back to bed."
Maurise turned on his heel without a second of hesitation.
He wasn't bored enough to waste time wandering aimlessly with the twins. If a task didn't interest him, he saw no reason to force himself to participate. The library was a much better use of his time.
The twins hadn't expected such a decisive rejection.
Fred reacted purely on reflex, grabbing the back of Maurise's robes.
"Wait! Don't be such a wet blanket."
"We did help you figure out how to get those potion ingredients," George added persuasively. "Quid pro quo, Maurise. A favor for a favor."
Maurise sighed internally. "Fine. You win."
He didn't really understand why the twins were so keen on dragging him along on their night walks. Logically, his presence offered them no benefit; if anything, he was a liability.
But looking at their eager faces, he had a vague theory. The twins operated solely on the principle of amusement. For whatever reason, Maurise was currently on their list of "entertaining things."
"Let's get on with it, then," Maurise said.
Fred waved his wand, tapping each of them on the head. He cast Disillusionment Charms on all three of them this time, his spellwork slightly more polished than George's.
Bathed in moonlight, three blurred distortions moved deep into the forbidden corridor.
Twenty minutes later.
They had walked up and down the corridor several times. They had found absolutely nothing.
In the face of such fruitless repetition, even the twins' high spirits were beginning to fray.
As they began their fourth lap, Maurise stopped.
"How about... we call it a night?"
"No," Fred shook his invisible head, his voice stubborn. "There is absolutely something special about this corridor. Dumbledore wouldn't have made that announcement at the feast for nothing. 'A painful death' isn't usually his idea of a joke."
"Next plan," George whispered. "We check every room in the corridor."
Maurise shrugged.
Fine. Let's play along.
He had recently discovered that he could function perfectly well on five hours of sleep. Staying up a little late for this nonsense wouldn't kill him.
"You take the left side, Maurise," Fred directed.
The search began anew.
Halfway down the hall, Maurise stopped in front of a heavy wooden door.
He tried the handle. Locked.
Naturally, this was hardly an obstacle.
"Alohomora."
The unlocking charm clicked softly. The mechanism yielded. His proficiency with this particular spell was improving rapidly.
Maurise pushed the door open, satisfied.
Darkness greeted him. Then, in the gloom, three pairs of massive eyelids snapped open. Six eyes, glowing with a dull, sanguinary red light, stared down at him.
A gust of hot air blasted into his face, carrying the overwhelming stench of rotting meat and wild beast.
It was a Cerberus. A fully grown, three headed dog.
"..."
Maurise stared for one second. Then, calmly, quietly, and with great politeness, he pulled the door shut.
He turned to the twins, who were investigating a broom closet down the hall.
"Excuse me," Maurise called out, his voice perfectly level. "I believe I've discovered something rather... significant. Would you care to come and have a look?"