HP: Let professors walk towards the light

"I really didn't know you would feel sorry for the people in the Ministry of Magic. Now that you are already sitting here, you might as well be frank with me. Tell me, what do you want from me?

But I have to warn you, it is not easy to get benefits from me."

Crouch knew how tense he was in the Ministry of Magic, and he also knew that Dumbledore was not a nosy person. Now it was not like the past, and there were not many places for the two of them to interact. Unless there was some trick, he knew what it was for, but Crouch was not a good person.

Moody and Lupin had left the room at some point, and now they were the only ones left.

"In my opinion, you will eventually be held accountable for your cover-up, right? Things can still be fixed, don't worry."

What's the tone? Comforting? Sarcastic?

"Shelter? Take responsibility?"

Crouch chose his words carefully, denying his past actions, but Dumbledore didn't care, even if there was no evidence.

"It must be easy for you to do this. All it takes is a dose of Polyjuice Potion." There was more seriousness in Dumbledore's eyes, no longer the look he had when he first entered the door and invited the other party to drink sweet milk.

"I am not one of those people from the Ministry of Magic, and I will not send you to Azkaban, but the premise is that I need to know what I want to know, and we need to cooperate."

"Humph, is this how the Chief of the Wizengamot can do it? Or do you often do such things as stealing from the company? You have been pretending to be noble for so long that it has become ingrained in your bones, but no one will help you to remove the bones of this old man. I don't understand what you are saying, so you'd better not waste your energy. But I think I will not forget what happened today."

Crouch snorted and responded unceremoniously.

"Let me guess, what did young Barty say to you? He - Voldemort is back, right? I guess your son must have spent a lot of effort to find the dying Voldemort in some dark corner, and at this moment he must be looking all over the world for a way to make Voldemort return to his peak. With Voldemort's means, I think this method may have been implemented." Dumbledore did not say what Crouch said, but spoke to himself.

There seemed to be some fluctuations in Crouch's calm eyes. His son, the outstanding son who carried his name and all his expectations, was loyal to the dark lord who could only bring disaster, and even wanted to end his own life without hesitation just now.

"Voldemort will return soon, and the darkness of more than ten years ago will repeat itself. Your son will still stand by Voldemort's side. Who do you think will hold your future in their hands?"

"I can do it myself—"

"The reason why Barty Jr. escaped from prison is very simple. Even Severus told me. Or do you think there will only be one person who knows the truth? You know in your heart that it is impossible. The fact that you have met many mediocre people does not mean that the entire wizarding world is made up of fools.

Do you think you will be among the first batch of blood sacrifices after Voldemort's return? Even if you are not, Barty Jr. will definitely carve your name.

That's why I want to see you, Batty, we need to work together."

Dumbledore knew Crouch's pride. The questions he asked did not really require Crouch to answer. He directly interrupted Crouch's attempt to interrupt. There was only one thing that could break Crouch's pride, and that was his son.

"You can't save him anymore. You tried your best to hide the truth but failed to keep him. The fact is that he has already labeled you as an enemy. You should still remember what you were thinking when he pointed his wand at you just now."

What are you thinking about?

The man who took up arms to kill his own father was vicious but definitely outstanding. I am proud of little Batty's mind and ability...

Perhaps he should have said this, so that he could take back the initiative from Dumbledore in this verbal duel, but Crouch didn't, because he had already lost. He had lost the moment he was prepared to accept Barty Jr.'s attack.

Crouch knew that Barty Jr. didn't use the Killing Curse on him not because he suddenly softened his heart. He would take away his soul and use his body to commit a shocking atrocity at the Quidditch World Cup; or design a perfect trap in the upcoming Triwizard Tournament... and finally leave his body in a dark and damp place.

Maybe he will take his own corpse away and give birth to a corpse for the Dark Lord to use.

Crouch looked up at Dumbledore, his eyes behind the half-moon glasses. What could be in the eyes of this white wizard who had made great achievements and reached the pinnacle of the wizarding world?

Crouch gave a final, sarcastic laugh.

"On the condition that I will never join your Order of the Phoenix."

"That's easy to talk about."

……

?

In the evening, the indigo in the sky is slowly covering the last trace of orange, waiting to merge with black.

Draco finally returned to Malfoy Manor.

"Is Xiaolong back? How was your fun today?" Narcissa heard the noise upstairs and walked down the stairs into the hall.

"I'm fine. Mom, are you home alone? Where's Dad?" Draco sat on the sofa, unbuttoned a button and pulled the collar of his shirt, with his jacket casually draped aside.

"Your father didn't come home last night, and you left early this morning. Who else could be in this house besides me?"

Narcissa touched her son's head and sat on the other side, with a hint of resentment in her tone, but her hands continued to turn out the snacks made today in the kitchen and filled a glass with green apple juice.

Draco shrugged, ruffled his hair sheepishly, smoothed it out further, and touched his nose again.

"Well... Pansy and the others had a lot of fun today, and I was kept a little longer. I will come back earlier to accompany you next time."

"Pansy's mother also knows about that child. It's okay. Just play if you want to. It's a good time for children of this age to make friends. Isn't Reina with you?" Narcissa smiled lovingly at Draco's nervous look.

"No, Reina disappeared as soon as the holiday came, but I remember she said she was going to participate in a competition with Professor Snape during the exam."

"Speaking of exams, Xiaolong, your father told me about your grades before. Your major course this time is worse than that of the Gryffindor girl..."

"My dear mother, my father has analyzed my grades very thoroughly. Please let me go. Granger applied for a time turner. God knows how much time she spends studying every day. Am I going to become a nerd?"

"Of course not. I know you are very good. After all, you are just a Muggle-born. I heard that Reina is the third this time. Is she still trying to suppress her scores? Oh! This is what your father told me. I mean, he seems to like that child very much. What do you think?"

"Huh? Suppressing her scores or something, at least now everyone in Slytherin knows her strength. I can find an excuse to invite her to our house again, do you want to meet her yourself?"