So Much for No Strings Attached

Chapter 17 Finding the Path

 

The fact he was the Dark Lord's heir might save Harry from any attacks from the Dark Lord. It would not, however, save Harry from any attacks from his father's servants. Harry would just hope his father would forgive him anything he might do in defence of his life.

 

Just then someone not something stumbled out of the Forbidden Forest looking disorientated and somehow not quite all there. His pencil brush moustache was no longer straight or even shaven. Indeed the previously perfectly groomed man looked completely dishevelled and in a good need of a shave.

 

'Barty,' Bagman said in shock.

 

Of all the things they had been expecting to stumble out of the Forbidden Forest Barty Crouch was not one of them. Barty Crouch hadn't been seen for months and now it seemed there was a good reason for that. It looked to them that Barty Crouch had completely lost it.

 

'Where have you been? Young Percy's been working very hard in your place. He said you were sick,' Bagman said.

 

Bagman stopped apparently only now taking in Crouch's appearance and thinking exactly what Harry did about Crouch's mental state. Harry wondered what Percy Weasley wold say if he knew of his bosses deteriorating mental state. The prattish young man probably would refuse to believe it.

 

Harry didn't like this at all. Harry had thought that Crouch's disappearance had something to do with his father. The fact that Barty Crouch was here looking quite mad didn't bode well for anyone on the Dark side or someone who had plans of joining the Dark side like him because the Light side planned to kill him when he offed his father.

 

Currently Barty Crouch was conversing with a tree he thought was Percy Weasley. Harry and Bagman shared a worried look at Crouch's actions. The man had clearly lost it at some point but why or how Harry knew not.

 

'Mr Crouch are you all right?' asked Harry.

 

Harry didn't get an answer as Crouch's eyes rolled madly into his head. Bagman was looking quite frankly alarmed. Harry didn't blame him in the slightest but Harry had seen worse than an insane politician in his short life so was taking Crouch's unexpected madness a lot better than Bagman.

 

'What's wrong with him?' asked Bagman nervously.

 

How on earth did Bagman think he a fourteen year old half-trained wizard would know when he an apparently educated wizard did not? Harry had come to expect this kind of logic from wizards who believed just because of the events at Godric's Hollow – or at least the published events – that Harry was responsible for saving them even before he found out the truth all Harry had wanted to be was normal but the Wizarding World would never allow that. Sometimes Harry really hated the Wizarding World.