Ron was utterly astonished.
In all his life, this was the first time he had ever seen someone willing to buy his pet rat.
"Uh, why are you suddenly saying that?" he asked in confusion.
"I'm a 'snake,' aren't I? Isn't it normal for me to like rats?" Rhys joked lightly, making Ron chuckle as well.
"No wonder I like all kinds of meat—because I'm a lion!" Ron replied.
Of course, Rhys wanting to buy Ron's rat wasn't because he was "possessed by a basilisk" or anything like that. It was because, after a brief glance just now, he had been shocked to notice that Ron's rat had a strong mana fluctuation!
It was definitely not an ordinary rat. Coupled with what Professor McGonagall had shown them during their very first Transfiguration class—her skill in becoming an Animagus—Rhys immediately realized that Ron's rat must be an Animagus.
And that made things very interesting: what would drive a wizard with decent talent to live in the form of a rat?
While it couldn't be ruled out that it was due to some peculiar fetish, it was much more likely that there was some hidden reason behind it.
As for Animagus—a very advanced branch of Transfiguration—Rhys was quite familiar with it, although he had never learned the spell himself. It wasn't because he couldn't learn it, but because he thought the spell was pretty useless.
The preliminary steps were extremely complicated, and the benefits after mastering it were pitifully low. Rhys couldn't be bothered to waste his energy learning such magic—he preferred to focus on spells that would help him survive in a grim world.
The uncontrollable nature of an Animagus's transformation form was one of the major reasons it was considered impractical.
Before completing the Animagus ritual, you could never know what you would turn into—you might become a tiger or a lion, but you might just as easily become a cockroach or a rat. It had a certain connection to your personality, but there were no absolute rules.
You might think of yourself as a "lion," but in reality, you could end up being just a "cat."
More importantly, while turning into an animal sounded cool—so what? It wasn't very practical.
All the advantages brought by transforming into an animal could be replaced by magic.
Even if a wizard who transformed into an animal was far stronger than an ordinary creature, they still ultimately gave up the most powerful weapon a wizard possessed.
Still, although Rhys considered the spell rather impractical, he never disrespected it, because it was undeniably very difficult.
And that only made it all the more intriguing—so Rhys decided to buy Ron's rat.
"It's quite special," Rhys said, without revealing too much, but even so, it made Scabbers wary.
It continued to coil lazily in Ron's arms as if asleep, but in truth, it had shifted all its focus to Rhys and Ron's conversation.
It was already preparing to escape.
"What's so special about it?" Ron looked completely baffled. "It's just a bit longer-lived than normal rats, that's all."
"That's exactly what makes it special."Seeing that Ron hadn't noticed anything unusual about his pet rat, Rhys didn't expose Scabbers' true nature. He merely told Ron that he suspected Scabbers had some kind of magical creature bloodline—or maybe it was even some undiscovered magical species.
Ron: "..."
He squeezed the fat rat in his arms and confirmed that it really was just an extremely ordinary, plump rat.
"You're overthinking it," Ron said, feeling like he had a lot to complain about but not knowing where to start.
"Anyway, could you bear to part with it? I'm genuinely interested in it."
Daphne chimed in from the side, "Yeah, this rat really does look unusual! Its longevity is already its most remarkable feature. I'd like to keep it at my house."
For Daphne, rats normally looked pretty disgusting, but since Rhys seemed so eager to get it, that changed everything.
She wanted to get her hands on the rat that even Rhys was tempted by and properly study why it was so special.
"Uh, Daphne, it might not be as long-lived as you think..." Ron said, feeling a bit embarrassed, because he honestly couldn't be sure how old Scabbers was.
In his memory, Scabbers had been living with his family since he was little, but was the "Scabbers" from back then really the same "Scabbers" he was holding now?
Ron didn't dare make any guarantees. After all, Scabbers had been passed down to him by Percy, Fred, and George, and at first, he hadn't been very familiar with the rat.
The moment Scabbers heard the name "Daphne," a different kind of thought stirred in his heart.
The reason he had spent ten years pretending to be a rat was partly because he was officially considered dead at the Ministry of Magic, making it inconvenient for him to show himself—any exposure would trigger uncontrollable risks.
The other, even more important reason was that he needed firsthand information from the wizarding world. Hiding with the Weasley family allowed him to receive news of the Dark Lord at the earliest opportunity, so he could immediately go and pledge allegiance.
That was the kind of person he was—always siding with whoever was strongest.
After the wizarding war, even though Voldemort had fallen, he hadn't truly died!
Unable to return to normal life, Scabbers chose to continue betting on Voldemort, remaining loyal to the side of strength.
The Greengrass family Daphne belonged to was far stronger than the Weasley family. In Scabbers' eyes, collecting information while living in her household would be far more efficient than staying with this Weasley.
There was hardly any need for thought—it was obvious he should cling to the "rich heiress."
Ron had no idea that the "rat" in his arms was already contemplating changing allegiances. Seeing how determined Rhys and Daphne were, Ron's own resolve gradually began to waver.
"So... um, then..."
Seeing that Ron's attitude was softening, Rhys, Daphne, and even the rat Scabbers were all quite happy.
But then Ron suddenly felt a pang of reluctance: after all, Scabbers had been with him for so long—man and rat sharing a bed every night—there was genuine affection between them.
If he really handed Scabbers over, Rhys and Daphne might use spells or strange potions on him for the sake of research.
Scabbers was old now; he might not survive being tormented...
"I'm willing to pay five Galleons—I would never take a friend's things for free!" Rhys's voice sounded in Ron's ear.
"How much did you just say?!" Ron jerked his head up.
"If it's not enough, I can—" Rhys, thinking Ron found the price too low, was about to offer even more.
"D-Deal!" Ron made his decision—how could he stand in the way of Scabbers moving on to a better life?
He believed that in Rhys's care, Scabbers would surely live the good life, enjoying far better treatment than he ever had with Ron.
With these five Galleons, plus the little pocket money he had saved, Ron could finally buy himself an owl, which was way cooler than a pet rat!
And so, Scabbers was sold to Rhys for five Galleons.
When Scabbers was handed over, a faint, almost imperceptible smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. He didn't notice that Rhys was also smiling as he watched him carefully.
After taking Scabbers into his hand, Rhys waved at Ron.
"See you in Egypt!"
"Alright!"
_______
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