A.N: I apologise if my characterisation of Barty Crouch Junior isn't great. I have to admit I've never written or read him before and now I'm planning on writing a short multi-chapter with him as the main character. . . Sometimes I wonder . . .
Anyway, this is written for Sophie (Screaming Faeries). I really hope you like it.
The entrance hall was bare. It was quiet and cold and odd. Luna knew there was something wrong but she couldn't figure out what it was. It was confusing.
Luna wasn't often confused. She was good at confusing other people, something she was proud of, but she wasn't often confused herself. She looked out at the dark night just peaking through the high windows. What is wrong? She turned her eyes back to the silent hall and studied every crack and crevice she could see, hoping to find something that would end her confusion.
Wind-chimes, beautiful and haunting, echoed through the quiet and a chill ran up her spine. Where did that come from? They were so quiet she almost didn't hear them.
A throat clearing interrupted her thoughts and she forgot about the chimes. She plastered her vague look over her face like a mask—she just couldn't be herself when she was so confused—and turned to face the person. He was handsome, a student. He had short dark hair and an angular face. There was a green tie peaking through his tailor cut robes and there was a small badge with the word prefect on it. House of the snakes, then. Her heart gave a jolt but he wasn't someone she recognised and, as she knew every face at Hogwarts, she paled.
"Well, what do we have here?"
Luna, masking her continuing confusion, smiled at the teen. There was no point antagonising the student until she figured out who he was.
"What is a little raven doing out after curfew?"
Luna smothered her glare. She wasn't little; she hadn't been for a long time. He had no right. Luna's frowned deepened—though her anger disappeared—when she noticed something odd. The teen was somewhat familiar, almost like she'd met him before. He wasn't a current Hogwarts student, she knew that for sure, but his features were similar to someone she once saw during her third year. But who?
"Answer me."
"It's not uncommon to hear heliopaths galloping through the forest at night. If one listens close, one might hear them." Luna's response was more instinctive than thought out. She didn't know what was happening or how to go about the situation. She figured it would be better to bluff her was through.
The teen's smirk turned to mocking amusement. "Still dreaming, are we?"
That expression.
She'd seen it once before. Only once and only a glimpse but it was enough to imprint in her memory because of the fanatic eyes that came along with the smirk. He was Barty Crouch Junior.
It's not possible.
It's not possible.
How is this possible?
Luna wanted to start talking. She wanted to tell him to go away or ask him how he was alive. She couldn't. Her throat felt like there was a block in it and her nose started to itch. She was about to cry and there was nothing she could do to prevent it.
"What's wrong?" The teen's voice was still smug but there was a waver that suggested he was uncomfortable. He stepped towards her but she backed up, towards the large wooden doors.
Luna was more confused than she'd ever been before. Barty Crouch Junior was standing in front of her and surrounding her was a Hogwarts that didn't feel right. Barty Crouch died over two years ago and yet there he was. He looked sane, almost normal, and he was stepping towards her in concern. The whole world was wrong and she didn't like it. She was scared and out of place. She wanted to return home to her dad and her friends. She did not want to be with this snake.
"It's oka—"
"It's not," Luna snapped. Her chest heaved with each breath and her ears were starting to buzz. The world turned into a blur for just a moment but it was enough for her legs to give out from under her.
"Whoa."
She heard the voice of Crouch Junior but only just. It was almost like he was speaking through a tunnel. She felt his hands grab her shoulders moments before her heaving chest was pressed against his calm one.
"Breathe with me," Crouch said.
Luna tried but being pressed against someone who hurt her friend so much just made her panic worse. It wasn't long before darkness crept into her vision. She let it take over.
Luna woke in the hospital wing. For a moment she thought she was back at her Hogwarts and she'd fallen and had a bad hallucination. The thought disappeared just as quick as it'd appeared. Tears welled in her eyes but she smothered them. Think.
The last thing she remembered was wandering through some abandoned classrooms. Her potions text was missing and she thought it could have wandered into a dark corner. She remembered entering one near the History of Magic classroom and she'd stumbled into a pile of dust.
That was it.
Maybe it wasn't normal dust. Luna took a deep breath and stared at the ceiling. She knew the Blibbering Humdingers were laughing at her and she hated it. Someone cleared their throat beside her and she jumped almost off the hospital bed. The last time someone cleared their throat near her didn't end well.
She turned and met the face a younger version of Headmaster Dumbledore.
Oh no.
"I must say, your appearance has surprised me. Not much can do that these days, my dear."
"A lot of people say that," Luna said. Her mouth moved without consent. She was in a state of complete shock. Well, it's better than confusion.
"May I ask, where, or rather, when are you from?"
"Nineteen-ninety-six."
The Headmaster didn't show his surprise but he stayed silent for a long time. Luna knew this was his was of processing. She'd surprised the Headmaster a few times over the years so she was well accustom.
"I see."
Luna looked at the wizened wizard and hope started to swell in her breast. "Can you send me home?"
The Headmaster turned to her and Luna knew the answer before he spoke it. "I don't know."
Luna sunk into her bed and nodded. "Of course, one can't know the solution without knowing the cause."
Headmaster Dumbledore's face lit up. "Exactly, my dear, I couldn't have said it better myself." He moved so he was holding her hand in a gentle grip. "If there is a way, I will find it for you. You must go home, after all."
"Of course," Luna whispered, looking down. "Thank you."
The Headmaster removed his hand and stood from the chair he was seated in. "I will leave you be. It's the middle of the night so you should try and sleep but before you do. . ."
Luna looked up and saw the twinkle that Luna knew was caused by early exposure to a star dust. His finger was tapping his chin and he was wearing a bright smile.
"I believe there is someone here to visit you."
Luna stiffened and a muffled gasp could be heard from two beds over.
"As long as he doesn't keep you awake for too long, I believe a visit is okay." With those words, the Headmaster left, leaving Luna alone with Barty Crouch Junior.
The dark was suffocating and the silence almost unbearable but Luna couldn't bring herself to break it. Thankfully, she didn't have to.
"I'm just curious," Crouch Junior said, appearing from behind the curtain. "I don't care."
Luna found the teen's awkward movements and defensive words amusing and she started to relax against the bed. "Of course not," she said with a small smile. She wasn't completely relaxed, her jaw was still tense but she knew he wasn't evil yet.
"So," Crouch said after a moment of silence, "time travel."
"Of course, it's the only thing that makes sense."
Crouch raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Oh, really? How do you figure?"
Luna opened her mouth to respond when a sound registered in her mind in the brief silence. Wind-chimes again. Luna closed her eyes and tried to locate the sound only for it to disappear.
"You live in your head, don't you?"
Luna hid her sigh. "It's the best place to live. It's free and decorated exactly how you want," she said with a smile. She opened her eyes and her smile widened at his bemused look.
"Right," he said. "I better go."
Luna was surprised when she felt disappointment swell in her. "Of course," she said. She watched as Crouch started to turn and head to the door. He was just reaching for the door handle when he turned and looked at her, directly in the eye.
"Can I come and visit?"
Luna's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I thought you didn't care."
"I don't. I have . . . questions, about your time and stuff."
Luna stifled a chuckle and nodded. "I would love you to come back and visit me, company keeps away the wrackspurts. Very annoying, those are."
"Right," Crouch junior said, shaking his head. "See you tomorrow."
Luna watched as the teen disappeared out the hospital doors. "See you tomorrow," she said, closing her eyes with a smile. Maybe this time travel thing wasn't going to be so bad.
(w.c 1,553)
WolfWinks-xx-