Sitting in the chair, watching my father leave, I didn't feel that I was getting better. There was an intermittent buzzing in my ears. For a long time, I actually couldn't tell whether the pain had stopped or my body had fallen into numbness. The movements of everyone around me seemed very slow in my eyes. Professor McGonagall held a glass of water to my lips. I stared at it for a while before reaching out to take it, almost spilling it on my robe.

"Moody," I heard Harry muttering in disbelief. "How could it be Moody?"

"That wasn't the real Alastor Moody," Dumbledore said as he opened the trunk in the office with a large bunch of keys. I wanted to lean over and take a look, just like Harry and Mr. Potter, but I found it difficult to move my body. My senses had become dull. I could only hear Harry's exclamation, and it seemed as if Dumbledore's voice came from far below: "The real Moody was stunned by them and controlled in this trunk with the Imperius Curse. The polyjuice potion was in that curved flask. It was a seamless plan. No one would suspect because Moody only drank from his own flask. — James, throw down the fake Moody's cloak. Alastor looks frozen, but he's not in danger of losing his life."

"Once an hour," Dumbledore climbed out of the trunk, sat down in a chair, and looked at the unconscious fake Moody on the floor with sharp eyes. "He seemed overly excited tonight. Otherwise, he wouldn't have used the Unforgivable Curse on a student directly at Hogwarts. I think he didn't take his medicine on time either."

Gradually, changes began to occur on the face of the unconscious man on the ground. The twisted and terrifying scars gradually disappeared. The blue eyeball was pushed out and rolled around on the floor. The wooden leg also fell aside and was replaced by a real one. The eyeball rolled right to my feet. I looked at it and couldn't help turning my head to the side and retching.

"Albus," Professor McGonagall said worriedly. "I don't think it's a good idea to keep Iris here. She's only fourteen and has just been hit with the Cruciatus Curse..."

"It's all right," I took a few sips of water and forced myself to keep looking at the man on the ground. He was completely different now, with messy light - colored hair and a pale face. But one of his sleeves hung empty, drooping uncomfortably. Neville's eyes widened. He seemed to recognize who this was.

"Crouch!" Mr. Potter stood there, stunned. "Barty Crouch Jr.!"

"My goodness..." Professor McGonagall was also dumbfounded. "I don't understand. Didn't he die a long time ago?"

Hasty footsteps sounded in the corridor. Dad appeared at the door. When he saw the man lying on the ground, he too showed an expression of shock.

"Severus, the potion."

Dad handed Dumbledore a small vial of clear liquid and helped Dumbledore drag the unconscious man on the floor up, propping him against the Mirror of Erised. Dumbledore poured three drops of the potion into the man's mouth and then pointed his wand at him, whispering, "Rennervate!"

The man opened his eyes, but his eyes were blank, his cheeks slack. The Veritaserum had taken effect. It seemed that Dad had to use a great deal of effort to stop himself from taking out his wand and casting some spell on him. With a sullen face, he walked over to me and reached out to touch my forehead, which was constantly sweating.

"Tell me if you want to leave, okay?" He gently squeezed my wrist.

"Mhm," I answered him in a small voice and turned my head away. At this time, Crouch Jr. was already being guided by Dumbledore and started to speak in a flat tone about how his seriously ill mother had begged his father to use a substitution method to get him out of Azkaban. The Veritaserum had stripped him of his basic human emotions, and he could only state the reality in a tone without any ups and downs — he calmly recounted how his mother had died in Azkaban in his place, how he had been imprisoned at home by his father under the Imperius Curse, and how Bertha Jorkins, who had stumbled upon the truth, had been hit with a powerful Memory Charm by Mr. Crouch.

"But my father was gradually getting old," he said woodenly, his eyelids twitching unnaturally. "I could gradually regain a bit of consciousness, but I couldn't show it. Without a wand, I couldn't resist him. I needed to wait for an opportunity. My father couldn't refuse any chance to get close to power, which kept him very busy. Most of the time, I was taken care of by the house - elf. She pitied me and would secretly bring me newspapers to read. I saw the news of Wormtail's capture in the newspaper."

"I felt angry," but his tone was as flat as still water. "I read that report over and over again until I could recite it by heart. The Aurors were attacked. Peter didn't have such ability. My master was in Albania. I saw hope. I had to find a chance to go to Albania and help my master. This belief gave me the strength to resist my father. He began to realize that he might not be able to control me, so he stopped trusting Winky. Whenever he wasn't at work, he made me wear the Invisibility Cloak and forced me to stay within his sight."

"Although my resistance didn't set me free, it consumed a lot of my father's energy. Coupled with the heavy work at the Ministry of Magic, he finally followed the advice and took a leave to go to St. Mungo's, and he took me with him. This was my chance. I escaped during one of his lapses in attention and fled to the upper floors of St. Mungo's, hoping to snatch a wand from any wizard I came across. On the way, I accidentally overheard the conversation between Dumbledore and the Boy Who Lived. I heard the prophecy — I was discovered after hearing just the first few words. I realized I couldn't be caught by Albus Dumbledore. When I was running away, I bumped into Snape's daughter. It was dangerous, but she distracted Dumbledore, and I wasn't discovered."

"My father caught me. He flew into a rage and was determined never to let me leave his side again. To this end, he started to shirk some of his work. But he had to attend an occasion like the Quidditch World Cup. So he made a very elaborate plan and gave Winky a lot of strict orders. Winky couldn't help me anymore. But it didn't matter. I no longer needed to rely on a house - elf. I knew what I was doing and what I had to do. I saw a wand right in front of me, in a boy's pocket — it was so easy to steal it. I was wild with joy. But I couldn't act rashly. I couldn't let Winky find out, nor could I let the people around me notice. There were Ministry of Magic officials and Aurors everywhere. I couldn't end up like Peter Pettigrew."

"I was waiting for an opportunity. But after returning to the tent, I heard the voices of those Death Eaters — those who had never suffered and had managed to get out of Azkaban with smooth talk. They had their freedom but didn't go to look for my master. They just used his remaining power to have fun. But it didn't matter. My father went out to rescue the Muggles. I would be free soon. Winky realized something was wrong with me. She used magic to tie me to her side and wanted to find my father. After being controlled for so many years, I couldn't even resist a lowly house - elf."

"I wanted those people to pay the price, so I used the stolen wand to send the Dark Mark into the sky. But before I could see how those cowards would react, I was hit by the Stunning Spells cast everywhere by the Ministry wizards. My father found the unconscious Winky and naturally knew I was nearby. He guessed that I had done all this. He drove Winky away because she hadn't watched over me properly."

A twisted smile appeared on his face. "But I knew my master would surely come back. The prophecy I heard said that nothing could stop his return. At first, he didn't know I existed. I guessed he was just possessing Bertha Jorkins, trying to find a chance to control the high - ranking officials of the Ministry of Magic. My father was worried that someone would break the Memory Charm on Jorkins. After she disappeared, he had been secretly searching for her with all his might. Just like that, my father brought my master right back home — my loyalty allowed me to recognize him at a glance. I was his most loyal servant."

"Without anyone noticing, my father was put under the Imperius Curse by my master. I suggested to my master that he could use my father's body, but my master had other plans. He wanted a body completely his own. Bertha Jorkins was too conspicuous. With my help, my master barely had the strength to survive on his own. I told him to rest at ease at home, and I would do whatever he needed me to do."

"And then what did you do?" Dumbledore asked.

"We interrogated Bertha Jorkins and my father and learned about the Triwizard Tournament to be held at Hogwarts. Jorkins died soon after. I transfigured her into a skeleton and buried her in the backyard. I also told my master the half - heard prophecy. After thinking for a long time, he made a perfect plan. He asked me if I was willing to take risks for him. This was my dream, to prove myself to him. I was his most valuable servant, and I was willing to sacrifice everything for him."

"How did Voldemort interpret what you said?" The name made everyone present shiver, but Dumbledore looked calmly into Crouch Jr.'s eyes.

"My master reflected on himself. He said he might have made a mistake with Neville Longbottom. This mistake couldn't be repeated. This time, we had to solve all possible problems. He wanted to prove to everyone that he was invincible," Crouch Jr. replied. "I didn't quite understand what he was talking about, but he told me that the so - called remaining candle flame referred to Harry Potter, the son of an Auror. But it didn't matter. There was just one more person. We could kill them both. He needed the bones of his father, the flesh of a servant, and the blood of an enemy. The first two were easy. We chose the graveyard of my master's father. I didn't hesitate to cut off my own hand and give it to my master. He also needed the blood of Potter and Longbottom, saying that this would be foolproof. So he had to arrange someone to be an inside man at Hogwarts. Neville Longbottom was too conspicuous. If we touched him, Dumbledore would be on alert immediately. But Harry Potter was different. The people at the Ministry of Magic all knew that James Potter's son was outgoing, active, and not disciplined. It would be very suitable for him to get the Triwizard Cup in the end. But first —"

"You needed Alastor Moody," Dumbledore said, his eyes ablaze with anger, yet his voice remained calmly controlled.

"Father and I managed to subdue Moody. It was a risky move, but it was highly successful. Arthur Weasley didn't suspect a thing. I brought Moody to Hogwarts locked in that trunk. Everything went smoothly, except that Lily Snape came to chat with me. I pretended to have an even worse temper and managed to fob her off. I kept asking Moody questions, learning about his past and his habits. I stole African tree snake skin from the Potions master's office to brew the Polyjuice Potion. That map almost ruined everything. Fortunately, I made Potter believe that the person he saw was my father."

"What map?" Mr. Potter asked.

"The map in Potter's possession that can show everyone in Hogwarts. I confiscated it right away. From then on, I had a tool to keep an eye on everyone in Hogwarts. It was very useful. However, I alerted Snape, so I couldn't go to his office myself anymore. I retrieved Winky from the Hogwarts kitchens. She was more than willing to keep working for me. Of course, she had no idea what the things she stole were for. The plan went even more smoothly than I'd imagined. Potter became the fourth champion. I hinted to him about how to get past the dragon, and he successfully completed the first task. For the second task, I had originally arranged for Longbottom to tell him about the use of Gillyweed. But his arrogance exceeded my expectations. I almost thought I had to step in myself. Fortunately, Snape's daughter gave him a hand. (At this point, I looked at Dad in fear. He had an expressionless face.)"

"For the third task, I first proposed placing a large number of Portkeys in the maze. This way, turning the Triwizard Cup into a Portkey would go unnoticed, and Dumbledore wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Then I cast the Imperius Curse on Longbottom, covered him with the Invisibility Cloak, and had him follow me. But I couldn't let Longbottom disappear right under Dumbledore's nose. He was keeping an eye on that boy all the time. I asked Winky for help. We stunned a Gryffindor boy, cast the Imperius Curse on him, and made him drink the Polyjuice Potion. It was a huge risk, but I was all alone and had no other choice. All I needed was to buy a little time to hand the real Longbottom over to my master."

"I cleared the way for Potter all the way. I stunned Fleur Delacour, cast the Imperius Curse on Krum to make him attack Diggory, making them fight each other... But Diggory still didn't want to give up. I couldn't let him be an obstacle, so I directly controlled him to set off the firework indicating withdrawal, ensuring that Potter could touch the Triwizard Cup. The moment he was teleported, I used the Portkey in my hand to send Longbottom to the place where my master was waiting. Even if the remaining candle flames were lit, my master would extinguish them all together. Nothing could stop him from regaining his power." A perverted smile appeared on his face. "We succeeded. My master has returned."

He stopped talking and his head slowly drooped.

Dumbledore stood up and began to arrange what to do next. I felt myself still shaking, my heart pounding violently because of what I had just heard, as if it would not stop until it jumped out of my throat.

"I think Miss Iris had better take some hypnotic medicine to help her sleep tonight," Dumbledore said gently. "Severus, although this request is excessive, I still hope you can come to me after you send her to Madam Pomfrey. Don't forget to inform Madam Pomfrey to come and take care of Alastor. I've just sent a Patronus to notify Lily. I think she'll be here soon."

"Professor," Harry raised his blood - stained arm and said with difficulty, "I still have a few questions..."

"Yes, so I hope you and Neville can come to my office first," Dumbledore looked at Mr. Potter. "James, you come too. Minerva, you stay here and guard Barty Crouch Jr. I'll inform Cornelius Fudge to come here. He should need to interrogate him alone."

I was drowsy as I arrived at the hospital wing. It was not until Dad left that Hermione, Talos, and Ron came over from behind the curtain of another bed. I thought they were injured. Hermione shook her head and said they had made an excuse to visit Seamus who had been under the Imperius Curse. Mrs. Potter had just been called away, and they had been hiding there waiting for us. I had just briefly told them that Harry and Neville were safe and that they were still in Dumbledore's office when Madam Pomfrey rushed over with a bottle and a goblet.

"The Cruciatus Curse!" she exclaimed with a horrified expression. "How could they... How could they bring themselves to do it! Here, drink this. I've added a bit more calming potion. Have a good sleep, sleep for a while longer — don't disturb her!"

"What Cruciatus Curse?" Hermione grasped my hand in panic. "Iris..."

"Let her have a good sleep, Hermione," Ron placed his hand on her shoulder. "Madam Pomfrey is right. We shouldn't disturb her."

I took several sips of the lavender - colored potion. Before I could taste it properly, everything around me became blurred. All sensations were slipping away from me. My heart finally seemed to return to its normal rhythm, as if a warm hand was gently closing my eyelids, urging me to fall asleep.

I didn't know how long I had slept. I just felt like I had been slowly sinking, wrapped in something gentle and sweet. This peaceful feeling lingered even after I opened my eyes. The bright sunlight almost blinded me. I struggled a few times before getting out of bed. The hospital wing was quiet, with no one in sight. I had no idea how long I'd been asleep. Seeing a clean robe placed at the bedside, I drew the bed curtain and changed into it.

The Dark Lord had returned. I recalled this sluggishly, and the calm created by the medicine was shattered in an instant. I touched the two ugly braids on my head and instinctively reached out to untie them, but my hand stopped in mid - air and then slowly dropped.

The sun was still shining brightly, I looked out of the window. But there was no doubt that our summer had ended prematurely.