Being a passerby in HP female protagonist fanfiction

Barty Crouch Jr. would always remember that damned mystery man, shrouded in a black robe, his face distorted by some strange magic, making it impossible for him to recall anything.

He, or rather she, broke into Crouch's mansion and rescued Barty the Imperius, who was trapped under the Imperius Curse for many years. But in the blink of an eye, he placed an even more vicious and insidious curse on Barty.

Little Barty crawled in the mud, smelling the scent of the forest. His mind, which had been in a daze for many years, began to clear, but the pain in his body followed him like a shadow.

And that person, standing in the shadows, showed no flaw whatsoever.

He heard the man chuckle, with a subtle hint of mockery.

“Barty Crouch Jr.,” the man said slowly.

"A loyal Death Eater... a puppet under control..."

"It took a lot of effort to rescue you, what are you going to do to repay me?"

"Oh, right... that child isn't with anyone yet, how about I send you there?"

"Huh? You don't want to? You're still thinking about running away?"

Little Barty was startled.

It is soul-capturing and thought-stealing.

He should have undergone a brain shut-in procedure, but he couldn't; fear and pain filled his mind, and he couldn't escape them at all.

"There's nothing you can do if you don't want to. You can't go back to Voldemort even if you want to. Everything has a price, doesn't it?" the person said softly, then raised their wand.

He heard some meaningless murmurs; were they some kind of unknown incantation?

An immense sense of oppression instantly descended, and after a brief period of freedom, Little Barty was once again branded with the mark of control.

His body stood up uncontrollably, even though he was curled up in pain and had no strength left.

This is not a soul-stealing curse, but simply control over the body. Willpower is ineffective at this moment; one is like a walking corpse.

"If you don't comply, a corpse should suffice," the man said. "Choose, Mr. Barty, do you want to die, or do you want to live?"

Little Barty couldn't speak.

"I want to live..." the man sighed, "Then I'm counting on you."

"Don't think like that. I only need you to do one thing: stay close to that child, keep an eye on her, and then wait for my orders... Once everything has settled down, you will be free."

"If you can't do it, you'll just die."

These were the last words Barty heard.

In a certain realm of thought, another dialogue takes place.

"Claire is struggling on her own, but I can't be around her for long..." the person rambled on, "How hard will it be for her without me taking care of her! It's practically abuse! We definitely need to find her a caregiver!"

“She’s not a real child. She can be fierce and not hold back when she’s angry. She can use Avada Kedavra whenever she wants… Don’t spoil her too much.”

"How dare you say that about me? I just found Claire a nanny, and you secretly became her private tutor behind my back. If I'm not mistaken, you even confessed your feelings to her before, right? Right? What was that idiom Claire used again? 'Sima Zhao's intentions are obvious to everyone!'"

"Pah! You're just up to your old tricks..."

After that, Barty was left in the forest with a piece of paper that described what he was going to do next and his new identity.

After recovering, Little Barty considered leaving immediately, but the mere thought of it brought a soul-wrenching pain to his head.

Just like that person said, if Little Barty wanted to live, he had no choice but to obey orders and complete that task.

He needed to live for his master's sake. He knew his master would definitely come back, so... he went to the child's side.

That child, named Claire.

We need to monitor her.

“Gavin!” Claire called out his pseudonym, “Would you like to try my roasted turkey first?”

“Of course.” The young man smiled.

The freshly baked turkey was still steaming, its aroma filling the air, along with perfectly cooked potatoes, and—the strange Stargazing Pie that Claire silently served.

Little Barty watched, and under Claire's secretly expectant gaze, took a bite.

It was a bit fishy, ​​but considering its explosive appearance, the taste was actually barely acceptable and still within the range of human edibility. Little Barty adjusted his expression and swallowed it.

"Gavin is amazing!" That was the little witch's exclamation.

Little Barty's fake smile :-D

Claire, an Asian witch, attends Hogwarts. Her parents are not around. So far, she appears to be independent and able to live on her own. Her parents' identities are in doubt.

Why would that person specifically rescue Barty and even have him spy on Claire?

The word "surveillance" itself carries connotations of hostility and hostility, so what aspects of her should be the focus of surveillance? Is it her family, herself, or the people she comes into contact with?

Using the image of a caring older brother is probably the easiest way to obtain information.

Little Barty's eyes darkened.

Even though he had only been away from Crouch's mansion for a short time, he had already regained his previous magical state, and his Occlumency spell was activated, making his disguise even more undetectable.

With a wand in hand, magic can be used.

So, should we just...?

The crazy idea had barely formed when an excruciating pain swept over him, and his magic seemed to come to a standstill.

Little Barty's face contorted instantly, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

No—he can't, he can't—

The pain stopped, but Claire still noticed that something was wrong with little Barty.

"Gavin, are you feeling unwell?" came the little witch's worried voice.

"I'm fine," Little Barty replied instinctively, adopting the persona of a reliable young man. "I just suddenly feel a little dizzy."

"Could it be because of that Stargazing pie?!" Claire looked surprised and started spinning around anxiously; Little Barty could hear her hurried footsteps.

She seemed to suddenly remember something, and ran back upstairs to get a bottle of magic potion.

"The potion our teacher taught us to make in potions class has anti-dizziness and calming effects. Would you like some?"

A calming potion made in first grade?

"No need, I'm fine now, and my dizziness has subsided." Little Barty could tell from his keen eyesight that the potion was not properly made and contained impurities, so he politely declined.

"Oh." Children always want to show off, and Claire was a little disappointed.

Barty had experience in disguise as a Death Eater, but he had no experience interacting with children. He acted as an easy-going older brother by referring to the methods he learned from books in his memory.

"Thank you, Claire is such a reliable kid." The praise came out of nowhere, but it surprised even Little Barty himself.

These are things his father would never say.

After dinner, Little Barty said he wanted to go back to his room to rest.

“Oh, Gavin, take care of yourself. Don’t forget the gift at the door,” Claire replied immediately.

It was a beautiful gift box, with warm colors as the main theme, just like the gifts Claire had prepared yesterday.

Little Barty opened it, his expression a perfectly theatrical display of surprise.

It's a small, knitted, white, fluffy flower with lots of snacks.

Claire must have woven these flowers herself; children this age would enjoy handicrafts.

As expected, Little Barty still kept it safe and treasured it, just like his character would, waiting for it to come in handy someday.

Surveillance is a long-term task, so be prepared for anything.