A/N:

This one shot has been written as part of a challenge set by the lovely people over at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry (Challenges & Assignments).

The task was to write about someone who is being protected in one way or another; Protego must not be used.

Extra Prompt: Barty Crouch Jr

A prisoner in his own home

Barty Crouch Junior roamed the back garden, hidden under the invisibility cloak his father had oh so generously provided for him to use for his own protection; Barty was no fool though he knew it was meant to keep him hidden from the nosy next door neighbours.

He caught sight of their House Elf Winky chasing after him to keep an eye on him, another ingenious idea of his father's, supposedly to protect him, which was ludicrous as far as Barty was concerned; his father wasn't bothered about his safety, he was far too concerned with his reputation and appearance. If anyone was to find out that he, Barty Crouch Junior, was not dead as the entire wizarding community had been led to believe, then his father's standing with the community would plummet in the blink of an eye.

As he began his second lap of the garden he thought back to the day that he had been "sprung" from captivity at the request of his mother.

He had been shuddering and shivering in the corner of his cell at Azkaban, bottling up all the screams that longer to escape him. He had lost count of the number of days he had been locked up, but day in and day out he had been mentally tortured by his worst nightmares which included but were not limited to: the only time his father had paid him any attention as a child when he had beaten him senseless, and the time that he had disappointed Voldemort and been tortured to within an inch of his life via the Cruciatus Curse, he had deserved it but that didn't make the memory of the agony of failing his master any less painful.

He had heard the keys jangling loudly before the door to his dingy, filthy cell swung open to reveal him mother and father standing before him in the doorway.

"You can have as long as you need. Give me a shout if you need anything," Alastor Moody had said to the couple before closing the cell door behind them and locking it.

"Thank you," his mother had whispered weakly several moments after the door had closed behind her.

Barty Crouch Junior had taken a few moments to observe his mother from the corner of his cell and it had been instantly noticeable that she was ill; her skin had been sallow and pale, she had deep, dark black circles underneath her eyes, and her clothes hung loosely on her skinny, frail body.

He had then turned to his father and analysed him, whilst being on the receiving end of a look of disgust and contempt. It had been clear from his standoffish demeanour that he would rather have been anywhere else but there. He had been wearing a dark blue suit and tie, so it had been evident that he had just come from work, and knowing his father his mind had been there for the duration of the visit.

"Bartemius," his mother had said meekly, as she opened her arms and moved towards him and embraced him in her warm and loving arms. She hadn't appeared at all disgusted by the horrendous smell coming from him, or by his dishevelled and dirty appearance. As always his mother had accepted him just the way he was, something his father had never been able to do.

Over the course of the minutes that followed, his mother had explained to him, in a hushed voice, the plan that she and his father had come up with to protect him from having to suffer a moment longer in this dreadful place. They were both going to take Polyjuice Potion and trade places; she would remain here for her final days and he would leave disguised as her. Barty hadn't been able to believe the love that his mother had still been showing towards him; despite all the 'evil' things he had done, she had still loved him enough to try and protect him. "

My final and dying wish is that you can have some semblance of freedom," she had concluded as she moved towards her son and pulled a few strands of hair from his head to add to the Polyjuice Potion.

They had each then drunk deeply from their Polyjuice Potion, and after a few agonising minutes their appearances had changed into that of the other. Barty had mouthed a quick "Thank you," to his mother, and then they quickly changed into each other's clothing.

After a brief and final goodbye, Barty and his father had departed the cell.

As soon as they had got out of the cell and hearing range of his mother, his father had hissed to him, "Make one false move and I won't hesitate to kill you boy."

Barty had simply shook his head, expecting nothing less from his cold, and heartless father.

As soon as Barty Crouch Junior and his father had arrived home, he had swiftly been placed under the Imperius Curse. He no longer had any free will, he was completely and utterly under his father's control, and no matter how hard he tried to fight it off he couldn't. Supposedly this had been done for his protection, as per his mother's final wishes; but Barty knew better, his father was afraid that he would succeed in his mission to find his master.

Barty had now been living under his father's protection for the past three months, and he could conclude that he would much rather be back in his cell in Azkaban than in this living hell.

He concluded his final lap of the garden when Winky reminded him that his ten minutes outside were up and walked back into the house he considered to be a prison worse that Azkaban.

This life was not one of protection, it was one of imprisonment.

A/N:

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