Struggling to survive at Hogwarts

Chapter 158 Crouch's Old House

Inside Riddle's old house.

Peter Pettigrew shakily removed the letter from the owl's foot, only to have it snatched away by another strong and powerful hand a second later.

Not long after, the letter was read aloud by Little Barty, and a cloud of black mist was floating in front of him.

"Dear Father:"

Thank you for finally allowing the owl into the old house!

I'm doing well here, and I hope you are too.

I wonder how Mr. Crouch is doing? To be honest, before meeting him, I had never seen a father so cruel as to control his own son with the Imperius Curse for so many years!

However, in order to avenge Mr. Crouch Jr., I hope you can send him here. I will go with him into Crouch's old house and give Mr. Crouch Sr. a chance to atone for his sins.

If you agree with my whimsical idea, please have Mr. Crouch Jr. arrive at the café 100 meters east of Crouch Estate before 8 p.m. on the 25th of this month.

Also, please give my regards to Nagini and I hope she's been eating well these days.

Dorothea Black

What do you think of Thea's idea?

Voldemort's hoarse voice rang out, his tone unreadable.

Upon hearing his master's question, Little Barty dared not delay and immediately replied respectfully, "I will set off immediately upon master's command!"

"Then go ahead, but remember, Thea is my daughter. What you did last time was a bit impulsive..."

"I'm sorry, Master! I will remember this fact and never do it again!"

Before Voldemort could get angry, Barty immediately knelt down and begged his master for forgiveness.

"Heart-piercing and bone-scraping!"

A curse shot straight at Little Barty, but he didn't dodge and took the curse head-on. The pain deep in his soul made his body tremble uncontrollably.

“This is a warning to you,” Voldemort waved his hand. “Go and see what my daughter is doing.”

Upon receiving Voldemort's order, Barty Jr. seemed to instantly regain his full strength, respectfully withdrew, and immediately Apparated to Crouch's old house.

Looking at the familiar house in front of him, the intense hatred almost made Barty the Younger almost break in, but when he saw the coffee shop next to the old house, he managed to control his reason.

"Are you Mr. Crouch? Miss Black is waiting for you over here."

As soon as they entered the coffee shop, Little Barty was greeted by a Muggle waiter and led to Thea.

Looking at the waiter leading the way, Little Barty's suppressed anger made him unconsciously raise his hand...

"Mr. Crouch!"

Thea's voice interrupted Little Barty's actions, causing Little Barty's fierce eyes to shoot straight at the relaxed girl next to him.

"you can go now."

Thea stepped forward, handed the waitress a few bills, and then waved for her to leave.

"Don't be so stern! I'm practically your savior, after all."

Thea smiled and pushed a glass of sobering medicine in front of the other person.

Little Barty picked up the cup with a look of disgust and drank it all in one gulp.

Why choose this location?

Little Barty closed his eyes, and after feeling his emotions stabilize, he asked in confusion.

"Because you can see Crouch's old house clearly from here, including the scene when you first arrived."

Little Barty instantly understood what Thea meant. If he had gone in first, perhaps...

"When do we go in?"

Thea glanced at her watch. "Perfect timing! Mr. Crouch will be off work in half an hour. We can go in and wait for him!"

Since Barty Jr. was still considered a member of the Crouch family, they didn't encounter any defenses at the old mansion as they entered. Especially after Barty Jr. used the Stun and Petrify Charms to defeat the house-elf named Shiny, the two of them had no trouble passing through.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Chief Crouch! Please explain why you dismissed that house-elf?"

"Mr. Crouch! Please explain directly why there was a terrorist parade during the Quidditch World Cup!"

"Mr. Crouch! What are your thoughts on the Ministry of Magic's security measures?"

As soon as Barty stepped out of the Ministry of Magic's gates, he was immediately surrounded by a bunch of cameras. The reporters' aggressive tone and the microphones that seemed to be shoved into his nose annoyed him immensely.

With the help of the new Weasley kid, they finally managed to break through, but Batty's mood didn't improve; in fact, it got worse.

He looked up at the dark sky and, as usual, complained about London's awful weather.

He then waved goodbye to the solicitous young man and hurriedly used Apparition to return to his old house.

The path from the front door to the living room was unusually quiet, which made Old Barty's expression even more grave.

But he's already experienced the worst things in the world, so what else could possibly happen...?

"Blake!"

"Except your weapons!"

Along with Old Barty's voiceless roar, his own son also uttered the disarming spell.

When Barty the Elder saw his wand being held by Barty the Younger, Barty the Elder's face darkened beyond measure.

Old Barty used all his reason to figure out a way to break through the current situation, then shouted sternly at Thea, who was leisurely sitting on the sofa:

“Miss Black! I expect an explanation. After all, forcibly entering the residence of a Ministry of Magic official is a crime punishable by imprisonment in Azkaban!”

Thea, however, said nonchalantly, "Then go ahead and report me to the Ministry of Magic. I'd like to see who exactly got into Azkaban."

Crouch shuddered, his eyes fixed fiercely on the girl on the sofa.

Before he could make his next move, a petrification spell struck him precisely!

"Pfft!"

Crouch collapsed stiffly to the ground.

"To ensure our conversation goes smoothly, I may have to trouble you a little, Mr. Crouch."

The girl had a gentle smile, and even though Crouch had seen many children her age, Thea's beauty was definitely the best among them.

"...What...what exactly do you want to do?"

Crouch was shocked to discover that he could still speak.

Thea noticed Crouch's shock and said modestly, "It's just a little trick that can petrify a person from the head down while their brain can still function and they can still speak."

“Mr. Crouch is busy, so I’ll get straight to the point. I’m here today to cause trouble!”

"Whether you want the position of Director-General of the Department of International Exchanges or not is entirely up to you!"