A/N: Captain of The Wimbourne Wasps. Write about your chosen character pre-Hogwarts. Barty Crouch Jr.
July 1973.
"Mother! Father! My Hogwarts letter, it came!" Shouted an excited Barty as he burst into his parents' bed chamber.
But as usual his mother was the only one in the bed. Barty screwed up his face. This meant that his father had either already left for work, or had fallen asleep in his study again.
"Mother? Mother? Wake up! It came! My Hogwarts letter came!" Barty cried excitedly.
His mother stirred and smiled at her son. He had so few moments of excitement in his life and to see a rare smile and air of enthusiasm about him made her melt. She opened her arms for him, and he crawled into bed beside her.
"Oh Barty, my darling, I shall miss you terribly when you go," whispered his mother sadly.
"I shall miss you too, Mama, but I promise I will write to you, every week!" Barty smiled happily.
"I know you will, but it won't be the same." She smiled sadly and pulled him a little closer into her embrace.
Barty hugged her back as fiercely as his young body would let him. That was where Winky their House-Elf found them twenty minutes later.
"Good morning Mistress and young Master. Breakfast is in the dining room," said Winky squeakily.
"Thank you Winky, is my husband home?" asked Rose Crouch.
"No Mistress, he isn't," replied Winkly uncomfortably.
Rose compressed her lips together to stop a sigh from escaping her. That was all her husband ever seemed to do - work. By now, she was fed up with him always working. But she knew better than to say anything, for he could be most attentive towards her when he was home. She just wished he would show as much attention to their only son.
It had taken a lot of her to fall pregnant. She, with her fragile health for most of her adult life, had made conception hard. Then, once their son was born, her health had made her deteriorate further. Maybe it was his son being born that he resented, for it had made his wife a mere shadow of her former self. But how could he blame the child, really? But it seemed he did.
"Come along, my darling, it's time we got up."
Barty hugged his mother again and dashed away. He washed and dressed before appearing at the table. It would do him no good if his father arrived home and found his son still in his pajamas. He would only be yelled at.
But then it didn't need a lot for his father to yell at him, or worse, completely ignore him as if he wasn't there. This action hurt Barty more than being yelled at because at least during those times, his father was, taking notice of him. Even if the wrongs were imagined.
Moments after the Crouch's sat down to breakfast, Barty Sr. arrived home. Barty Jr jumped up from the table and waved his Hogwarts letter at his father.
"Father! My Hogwarts letter arrived this morning. Isn't it wonderful?" asked Jr trying to get a response.
His father merely grunted at his son and sat down. His solicitude was directed at his wife.
"How are you feeling today, my dear?" he asked lovingly.
Barty Jr felt like a knife had been driven into his heart. His small shoulders slumped and he sat back down at the table and picked at his breakfast. His eyes blinked rapidly, so the tears that had accumulated wouldn't fall.
"I am fine. Aren't you pleased for your son? His Hogwarts letter arrived this morning."
"Glad you're feeling stronger today, my dear," replied Barty's father, completely disregarding what his wife said about their son and buried his head inside The Daily Prophet.
Rose looked down the table at her son. She could see just how upset at his father's actions he was. Feeling his mother's eyes on him Barty Jr raised his head to look at her. She tried to give him a smile, but it was more of a grimace.
"Mother, please may I leave the table?" asked Barty Jr quietly.
His mother gave him a nod and he gladly got up to escape to the sanctity of his bedroom. Once the door had closed, young Barty allowed the tears to fall. He slid down the door to the floor. He pulled his knees towards his chest and wrapped his arms around his legs. He allowed his head to fall softly to his knees and wished himself already at Hogwarts.
Anything had to be better than being at home. He couldn't understand why his father always, always had to disregard him so. When he did acknowledge him, it was always with the regard of something nasty that had stuck to the bottom of his shoe. If it wasn't for his mother, he would have ran away.
A light knock disturbed his musings. The door pushed open and he found his mother stood in the doorway.
"Again, sweetheart?" Asked his mother softly.
Barty just nodded sadly.
His mother closed the door, and sat on the floor in front of him. She drew the young boy into a hug. She finger combed her son's straw colored hair, until the child had relaxed.
"My poor boy, my poor, poor boy," his mother whispered over and over.
"Mistress, the Master is looking for you," said Winky as she appeared with a 'Pop'.
"I must go and see what he wants. Let's go together, then we can ask him about taking you to Diagon Alley to get your school supplies," said Rose as she struggled to her feet.
Mother and son headed to Barty Sr's study. Rose knocked lightly, and once summoned she pushed her son gently into his father's study.
"Ask him," mouthed his mother.
Barty Jr took a deep breath and approached his father's desk.
"Father?" asked Jr quietly and nervously.
"What do you want? Where is your mother?" Snapped Sr.
"Father, I will need at some point to go to Diagon Alley to get my new school supplies, can we go soon please?" asked Jr as confidently and as politely as he could.
"School supplies? Why would you need school supplies?" his father asked tersely.
"My...my Hogwarts letter arrived this morning, Sir," replied Jr stumbling a little.
"Hogwarts letter? Don't be silly boy, you aren't old enough yet!" Sr replied with an air of distraction.
"But father, I turned eleven last month."
Barty Sr stopped what he was doing to look at the boy. He was actually looking at him with an expression of incredulity. His son was eleven? Already? The young boy became uncomfortable, he turned his face away and drew his Hogwarts letter from his trouser pocket and gently placed the letter down, lest his father could accuse him of lying.
"Here father, this is the letter that came this morning," said Barty Jr softly.
His father looked down. A look of complete astonishment crossed his face. It only lasted a moment before he became terse and business like again.
"Winky or your mother can take you, I am far too busy."
He waved his hand at his young son, silently dismissing him. Barty Jr sighed quietly and picked up his letter and left.
Once outside of his father's study, Barty let go a deep breath and tried to subside his shakes a little. At least it had gone better than he thought it would. He hadn't been yelled at or been completely ignored. His mother smiled softly at him and entered her husband's study and closed the door.
Young Barty went in search of their faithful House-Elf. He found her in the kitchen doing the family's laundry.
"Winky, can you please take me to Diagon Alley to get my new school supplies soon?" Barty asked excitedly.
"I can take young Master tomorrow, if you like?" asked Winky dutifully.
"Thank you Winky, that would be great! Can I have some milk and cookies please?" asked the boy cheekily.
Now that he was away from his father, his shakes had melted away and he felt happier about this encounter.
"Now, now Master Barty, you don't want to ruin your appetite before lunch!" scolded the House-Elf.
"I won't have that many! Please?" begged the boy.
Winky stopped what she was doing and with a snap of her fingers a glass of milk and a plate with four cookies appeared.
"Thank you Winky!"
The lad threw himself down at the kitchen table and hungrily ate the cookies. He was starving after not having had his breakfast. Winky was secretly pleased the boy was eating. She would be glad to see him go to Hogwarts, maybe there he'd find friends that would appreciate him more than his father did. Barty was a good boy.