Before Frick could speak, Morris interjected, "I'm sorry, madam, this dog is my pet; it's not a product of this shop."
Upon hearing this, Madam Caroline's empty eye sockets turned to Morris, and she elegantly rested her chin on the back of her hand. "Oh, little wizard, where did you get this dog? I like it very much. Could you sell it to me?"
Morris felt the Skeleton Dog in his arms shift uncomfortably.
He reached out and stroked the Skeleton Dog's head, soothingly whispering, "Silly dog, how could I possibly sell you?"
The Skeleton Dog immediately quieted down and affectionately nuzzled Morris's face with its head.
Yes, how could its owner possibly sell it?
It's the owner's third favorite pet!
Seeing this, Madam Caroline understood Morris's attitude.
She shook her head with a hint of regret. "What a pity, I really wanted to have a Skeleton Dog as a pet. I would put a jewel on its head so it Winky... Oh, that would be so beautiful."
"I have no intention of selling it," Morris said firmly.
"Are you really not going to reconsider?" Madam Caroline continued, "I can offer you a very good price... How about two hundred Galleon? That's the highest I can offer. You know, your living people's pets only sell for a dozen or so Galleon."
Two hundred Galleon!
Morris glanced down at the Skeleton Dog in his arms, his eyes gleaming.
Skeleton Dog: "?"
It suddenly had a bad feeling.
The air was silent for a few seconds.
Finally, Morris turned to Madam Caroline, giving her a friendly smile. "Then let's talk about the price, madam."
Skeleton Dog: "!!!!!"
Of course, Morris ultimately didn't sell the Skeleton Dog.
Although it wasn't much, he still had some affection for the Skeleton Dog.
When Morris revealed that he had even better-quality Skeleton Dog, Madam Caroline immediately placed an order.
After some haggling, the final price was set at 250 Galleon.
"Then see you in two days, Madam Caroline," Morris said. "We'll exchange money for goods then. That's the fairest way to do business."
Madam Caroline nodded slightly. "It was a pleasure talking with you, Mr. Black. I like you. I hope the Skeleton Dog you bring will satisfy me."
After saying that, she nodded to Frick beside her, then turned and left the shop.
Looking out the window, Morris saw a fine silver carriage that had somehow appeared at the entrance, blocking the entire passageway.
Madam Caroline boarded the carriage, took off immediately, and disappeared into the horizon.
It's worth mentioning that the carriage was Thestral.
Yes, Thestral.
This was the first time Morris had seen Thestral outside Hogwarts.
Before this, he had always thought that Thestral were unique to Hogwarts.
Frick, standing nearby, interrupted Morris's thoughts, belatedly exclaiming, " Merlin! Mr. Black, you've closed a deal for two hundred and fifty Galleon!?"
When Morris and Madam Caroline were talking earlier, he tried to join the conversation, but Madam Caroline ignored him, and he has remained silent ever since.
Morris put down the Skeleton Dog, turned around, and replied, "I think so."
Unfortunately, this was far from certain; he needed to prepare a lively, Skeleton Dog within two days in order to receive the money.
Frick remained silent for a while, seemingly lost in thought.
At that moment, Morris asked casually, " Madam Caroline is very wealthy, isn't she?"
"She's incredibly rich," Frick nodded. "Don't you know her? Madam Caroline is the lead dancer of the Skeleton Dance Troupe, the most famous dance company in the entire Wizarding World."
"I see," Morris said. "No wonder Madam Caroline's joints are so flexible."
This remark caused Frick to suddenly adopt a hostile expression.
He said coldly, " Mr. Black, if you think you can steal Madam Caroline from me, you've got the wrong idea. She will always have only me in her heart!"
"?"
Morris's small face showed great confusion.
Aren't these two people a customer and a shop owner?
Morris didn't know how to respond, and could only say dryly, "I just want to make money."
Frick scoffed, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "Really?"
"Really!" Morris replied decisively.
Although everyone is free to have their own preferences, he still hoped that Frick would see the doctor at St. Mungo's's.
I heard that hospital, just like the one in the Muggle world, has a position for a psychologist.
"Ahem... Let's get down to business, Mr. Frick," Morris cleared his throat, steer the conversation back on track, "I don't intend to pursue the matter of the incomplete Crup skeleton you sold me before."
"But you must sell me another Crup skeleton, and guarantee it's complete, without the slightest defect."
Upon hearing this, Frick turned his gaze to the Skeleton Dog in Morris's hands and shouted, "Don't think I don't know what you're up to! You want to turn my Crup skeleton into Skeleton Dog like this and sell it to Madam Caroline to win her favor, don't you?"
"Ah, I've seen that before! A young, handsome wizard, with all sorts of novel trinkets, seduce her with sweet talk, and then... and then..."
He was panting heavily and didn't continue speaking, but the anger on his face was obvious.
This guy is hopeless; he's definitely got something wrong with his head.
Morris sighed and rubbed his temples helplessly. " Mr. Frick, please calm down. I'm only eleven years old, just a child."
Frick frowned again and looked Morris up and down.
"I don't believe it," he said.
Then, as if remembering something, Frick pulled out something that looked like an electronic scale from the bottom of a shelf in the corner.
After he had Morris stand on it, several lines of glowing text immediately floated in the air.
This includes Morris's age, weight, height, and a range of other physical information.
This appears to be some kind of health monitoring tool; it's quite convenient.
Once Frick confirmed that Morris was indeed only eleven years old, he immediately became friendly.
He not only called Morris by his name affectionately and readily agreed to sell the skeleton, but also fitted the Skeleton Dog with a suitable toe.
Finally, upon learning that Morris had been introduced by his mother, he even agreed to Morris's request to buy on credit.
Of course, there are conditions for buying on credit.
The Skeleton Dog was temporarily stored (pawned) in the shop to serve as a watchdog.
Morris observed Frick's reaction and guessed that the other man was probably also curious about his Skeleton Dog.
This is not surprising, though— Frick does own a shop that specializes in selling bones.