Chapter 20
The corridor was silent, but the air in it was as tense as a string.
Sarah entered and stopped immediately. A scene unfolded before her that she would have liked to take a picture of with a Muggle camera and hide for later. James, Sirius, and Remus stood facing Barty—covered from head to toe in blue glitter. Colorful bows fluttered on their robes, billowing with every movement as if they had a will of their own.
It even seemed as if James’s legs were tangled around his, as he sat sprawled on the floor. Sarah blinked and after a moment simply crossed her arms over her chest. No one said a word. A silent, wordless conversation passed between her, James, and Barty, filled with tension, unspoken emotions, and amusement that she tried to hide.
It was more than clear that she and James did not want to see each other. And it also seemed that Barty had said something to James that he didn't like.
Sirius finally broke the silence first. "This... this is absolutely ridiculous."
Barty smiled in his calm, amused way. He spoke before Sarah could. "The glitter suits you, Black."
Sirius snorted and tried to brush the blue dust off with his sleeve, but it only seemed to make it worse. The glitter glowed even brighter. James looked like he was about to explode next to him.
"You're not going to get away with this, Crouch," he growled.
Barty just shrugged. "A little humor never killed anyone." Finally, his eyes flicked between the Potter siblings and added. "Besides, I've gotten over it."
James turned to him so quickly that Sirius flinched. There was something wild in his eyes—frustration, anger, and maybe a shadow of something else. But then his gaze slid back to Sarah, who was still standing there, motionless as a statue.
The silence between them was different from the one between him and Barty. The silence between the Potter siblings was cold, measured, and painfully familiar. Sarah stared at him, her face stony, as if waiting for him to finally turn away.
It was Remus who finally spoke. His voice was calm, even—the way only he could. "Sarah… Can I ask you something?"
James turned to him immediately, a look that said clearly, 'You're not serious.'
Sarah narrowed her eyes as if considering whether to help him, but in the end she just looked away. She opened her bag and searched for a moment before pulling out a book. A heavy, a slightly worn book with a dark cover.
Without a word, she handed it to Barty.
Barty took it with a confused look. “What is this?”
Sarah sighed as if it were the least interesting thing in the world. “I thought you might like it. I found it in the big room. It was supposed to be James’s, but he never noticed it was missing.”
Barty looked down at the cover of the book and slowly read the title. “The Most Creative Jokes.”
The silence that followed was almost comical.
Barty looked up, this time with a look of utter bewilderment, but his eyes sparkled with amusement. Sarah just smiled. It wasn’t your ordinary smile, though—it was the kind that said she knew something the others didn’t.
Before Barty could say anything, she was gone.
•••
Pandora entered the Slytherin common room with a feeling that something was wrong. The air was tense, as if there was a tension in the air that was hard to miss. It was only when her gaze fell on Regulus that she realized what it was. He was sitting on the sofa, but his usual dispassionate expression was broken - something had disturbed him. Rabastan, sitting opposite, was silently contemplating the chessboard, but he too was somehow slowed down, as if the room did not have the typical, slightly haughty atmosphere.
Regulus looked up when he saw her. Just a glance, but something in his eyes indicated that something had changed in him. He was different. Evan had noticed it in class too. He had mentioned it briefly, but Pandora had only now seen it for herself. He was distraught. The reason escaped her, but her brother was sure it had nothing to do with his family. It had to be something else. Something that had even Regulus Black himself baffled.
Pandora decided not to start with him right away, instead turning her attention to Barty, who was sitting next to the boys. What had caught his attention? Barty Crouch Jr. had never been one to get caught up in a book. No, his style was more about studying everything in his mind and having the answer to anything almost immediately. But now – his face was completely focused, his gaze immersed in the page of the book. Pandora found herself interested.
“What are you reading?” she asked curiously, noticing Barty almost getting lost in the text with the book.
Barty looked at her, a kind of conspiratorial gleam in his eyes that was not unusual. His characteristic smile played on his lips, as if he were enjoying some secret joke that the others didn’t know.
“A gift from Potter,” he said with a touch of irony. He held up the book for everyone to see. "The most creative jokes."
Pandora paused for a moment. The book he was holding didn't look like something Sarah would normally give to someone in Slytherin. It was a bookcase you'd expect to find in Gryffindor.
"Sarah gave you a joke book?" she asked, surprised. She was used to Sarah being more into the scientific and learned stuff, she had never seen her as one to give jokes.
"Yeah, a lovely gift," Barty continued, his voice holding a strange edge. "I got revenge for how older Potter ruined my mood here."
Pandora froze. "What do you mean you got revenge?" she asked carefully. Her voice said she wasn't taking it lightly.
Regulus, who had not been involved in the conversation in any way until now, looked up now. His eyes were misty, as a gloomy mood had clearly been creeping into him for some time. The room was so quiet that Pandora could hear the crackling of wood in the fireplace. He answered without any pretense, his voice unusually calm.
“Sarah and her brother had a fight in Gryffindor Tower,” he said quietly. “When she decided to be friends with you guys, they didn't like it, and Potter yelled at her for it. Very loudly.”
Pandora looked at him, startled by what he had just said. “Wait… Sarah? And James? What are you talking about?” Pandora didn't have any classes today with Sarah, so she was out of the picture, but it seems she missed the silence at Gryffindor.
Regulus looked at her, his eyes deep and hard to read. “Older Potter didn’t even try understand. It was more than just an opinion. It was about Sarah choosing to be friends with you. And Potter couldn’t imagine a Gryffindor having friends among the Slytherins.”
Rabastan looked at Regulus for a moment, his gaze completely unclear, but when he met Pandora’s for a moment, a shadow of understanding seemed to flash over him. He sighed softly, but then focused back on the chessboard. Pandora was sure there was more to this than she had originally thought. Why was Regulus talking about Sarah and James as if he were somehow involved? She understood that Rabastan might feel guilty. He was one of Sarah's Slytherin friends, but mostly it was Dorcas.
"So, Barty," Regulus continued, leaning back against the sofa again and starting to smile slowly, almost calmly. "You know Sarah well Pandora. It really hurt her that her brother acted so... stupidly. And because I knew Barty wouldn't mind... I asked him to take care of it."
Barty, who was toasting his own victory in the game, smiled conspiratorially. "I was more than willing. You have to admit, it was a sensible move for anyone, who want to všude trouble."
Pandora stared at him, her mind trying to put the pieces together. It was clear that this game wasn't just about jokes, it was about something more. Regulus didn't seem like someone who would get involved in dirty games himself. But now it seemed like he had a plan in place to deal with James Potter. And Barty? He was more than willing to get involved.
"So Sarah had a fight with James because she wanted to talk to us?" Pandora asked again, knowing there had to be some other dimension to it. What's more, everyone here knew that this wasn't just about a fight. It was about something personal.
"Exactly," Regulus said, his voice calm, but a certain spark in his eyes. "And I was going to make sure that it didn't happen again."
Pandora wondered what all this meant, but Barty seemed very smug, so that mean that He is part of it. Maybe Pandora's dreams of Regulus and Sarah together will come true someday.
He seems to care about her.