Spells and Handcuffs (Remus Lupin)

Christmas

"You must be kidding," Sirius snorted. "Barty Crouch under the influence of the Imperius curse? No way. "

"What makes you think such a thing?" Remus asked me.

"It's hard to explain," I sighed. "Feeling, I don't know. I remember the looks of my classmates under its influence, Crouch behaves very strangely, as if he is a different person sometimes. "

"There's no way," my uncle challenged again. "Barty Crouch is a very powerful wizard, it will be very difficult for anyone to put him under the influence of the curse. And for what would someone need it? Barty has no such influence in the Ministry as before. If someone wanted to do something bad, they would use Fudge, a much easier and more influential target. "

Remus nodded at Sirius's words, then he said trying to reassure me: "Look, if something really bothers you, you can ask some of your colleagues who know him well. As far as I understand, you think he's under constant control. But that is damn, damn hard. Crouch is a very capable Wizard; it will be difficult for someone to control him even for a short time. Not to mention for a long time. "He approached me and hugged me, putting his chin on my head " Is there anything else that has impressed you and bothered you around him? Did something specific happen?"

I hesitated for a moment. The Vow.

"No. " I lied, shuddering at him. "Maybe you're right. "

Maybe they were really right. I had no concrete evidence of such a thing. Besides, I didn't know Crouch well. Maybe he was just an odd guy. I decided I didn't need to ruin my holidays because of some false feeling. Maybe the letter would help me understand what kind of person Barty Crouch was. Maybe. But that would happen after Christmas. I would try to forget what's happening today for now.

And I've really succeeded in that so far. One of the reasons was that Sirius and Remus reassured me, and another of it was Percy's assurance that Crouch was just very busy. Still, he knew him better than I did.

***

Christmas was approaching, and in addition to my work and worries, I had completely forgotten that I had to buy presents for Remus and Sirius. Although my uncle was an odd fish, I already had an idea of what to give him. I needed just to get him out of the house for a while. I didn't want him to sniff around me while preparing the surprise. 

What about Remus? It had been several years since I had bought a gift for a boyfriend. At that time I didn't attach much importance to this. I just had to give something and to get something. Stephan's interests were so ordinary and basic that it wasn't difficult for me at all. But now it was different. Remus was so different. I was different.

I decided to go to Diagon Alley hoping to find what I was looking for. In my home country, we had something like a square with many stalls and outpatients. From there we bought the things we needed for school. It was wide and usually not as busy as Diagon Alley. But that was exactly the charm of this British street. It always amazed me with its variety and noise. Peering through the crowd, I came to the shop that interested me. Luckily for me, I got the gift for Remus inside.

The day before Christmas came imperceptibly fast. The Christmas mood was everywhere. Even in the Ministry. Instead of the usual letter planes that circled between the departments, small talking bells now flew, wishing merry holidays. I managed to get out of work early, although Percy tried to stop me with a pile of letters waiting to be translated.

"Come on, Perce," I told him, forgetting long ago that he was actually something like my boss. "It's Christmas. Leave the work for a moment and drink an egg punch. Where will you spend the holiday?