Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros, and to Mike Newell and the production cast and crew who brought them to life. I.e. they're not mine.

A/N: Muse wouldn't let me sleep until I got this out of my system. Story is movie-verse, and plays loosely with what is written in GoF. Apologies to purists; this is my take on that missing scene in the movie, and how I imagined a Moody-meets-Crouch Jr. scenario would play out. Am not a big HP fan, so do excuse discrepancies and inaccuracies – unlike the other 5 billion people, I have not read past GoF.

So I do hope you'll enjoy this odd, cobbled together in 4 hours, attempt. Cheers!

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Alastor pulled the shirt on his large frame, and glowered at his reflection in the mirror as his stiff fingers worked the buttons.

They had earlier released him from his makeshift tomb, where the bastard had kept him for… how many months? He'd lost track, down in the deep, damp dark. But he'd held onto one notion those long hours; that when he got out, he would kill Barty Crouch Jr. slowly, and with great relish.

Professor Dumbledore had taken him to the hospital wing, where he was given a soporific potion that knocked him out like a light.

He had come to, some time later. Dumbledore, with his impeccable timing, had been there to gently order him to change and clean up. He had stood staring at the sink dumbly for a minute or so before reaching out a leaden hand to run the water.

It had brought him to his senses, the cool fast-flowing water. Or what was left of it after his period of solitary confinement. But it had been enough to jumpstart his brain for him to clean himself of the accumulated muck and grit and to work the clothes onto his self once he was dry.

When he emerged from the bathroom, the Head Master was seated on an old chair with a spot of tea brewing on the table beside.

"Tea, Alastor? It does cure a remarkable variety of ills."

He had scowled fiercely at the old man, looked at the delicate china cups in disdain.

"Where's Crouch?"

"He's still in the basement where we left him- Alastor!"

He stormed out the room, ignoring Dumbledore's unconvincing protests and cautions. He knew that Dumbledore, despite himself, would let him exorcise his demons, somewhat.

Snape had assumed guard of the Death Eater while the others had convened to decide how best to deal with the situation. When he was being led away from the room, Moody had caught snatches of conversation in which "Azkaban" was mentioned. The Kiss; he had rightly assumed.

Well, he wasn't going to let a bloody Dementor get to Crouch before he did.