Morsmordre, Amor

Bartemius Crouch, Jr. had been bored at Hogwarts for two entire years before he met Nona Halix. He had passed the time before by focusing on his schoolwork with little to no complaining, staying up at the school for the holidays since he was such a disappointment to his parents for being sorted into the snake house. He had friends-- Rodolphus and Rabastan, Evan, Lucius, and the Black sisters, Narcissa and Bellatrix.

But, all of them were so ordinary. They were so average (save for Bella maybe, but she was a little less than sane). He would sit with them all in the Great Hall, talking bad about the Mudbloods of the school and going on about how there was little hope for the Half-Bloods. Yes, they were all true Slytherins, but Barty didn't care much for them. He didn't feel connected with anything.

On the first evening of his third year, however, he watched as a petite girl with pale, pink hair sat down on the stool for her sorting. Barty and his friends bet on her being a Ravenclaw, judging by her strange eyes and the knowing smile on her face, and all of them were taken aback when it called out their House title instead.

She slid off the stool and made her way over to the table gracefully, sitting down next to Narcissa Black, and ignored the surprised looks she was getting from everybody.

Barty didn't talk to Nona Halix that first night, or the following seven weeks, but he watched her. He watched her in the Slytherin common room, debating whether or not he should offer to help her with her first year Potions assignments. He watched her during Quidditch matches, wondering if she'd notice if he sat next to her. He watched her in the corridors, weaving through students like she had already been at Hogwarts for several years.

She fascinated him. She walked around with the confidence of a Seventh Year, always a bored expression on her face, like she knew that if anyone tried to get the best of her, she'd be able to hex them into a different dimension. Maybe she could.

Rodolphus teased him sometimes, noticing the way he stared at her-- "Honestly, she's a child, Barty--" but all it ever took was an irritated expression, and he'd cease his jibes.

He only ever saw her talking to another First Year girl, and occasionally Narcissa if she had any questions about anything, which was a rarity.

It was the evening before Winter Holiday when he finally spoke to her, working up whatever nerve he had lacked before, and sat beside her for the feast. Her normally pink hair was now a very light green, and he wondered if it was a spell she had learned or something else entirely.

She eyed him when he first took his place, normally sitting with the First Years, but she said nothing. Dumbledore made a small speech that made Barty roll his eyes, and then the food appeared on the table, courtesy of those tatty House Elves.

He could feel his friends staring at him from a ways down the table, probably laughing and making fun behind his back. That's just what Slytherins did. The idea made his temper flare, but he remained quiet, eating next to the small, pale girl.

The silence stood up until dismissal. She stood from the table, about to walk away before she turned back, looked straight at Barty and stated, "I'm a Metamorphmagus." He stared at her with half a biscuit in his mouth before swallowing slowly, opening his mouth to speak but not getting the chance. "I saw the question in your eyes when you first sat down. It's how I changed my hair. Festive, isn't it?"

She showed a small, sweet smile, then turned back around and basically skipped out of the Great Hall, and for the first time in what felt like years, Bartemius Crouch, Jr. actually let out something closely resembling a laugh.

It was easy after that. Barty wasn't afraid to approach her in the common room and ask if she needed help with Potions assignments. He wasn't afraid of sitting next to her during Quidditch matches. He walked with her in the corridors when he could, and sometimes, when he was feeling especially kind, he would bring her things from Hogsmeade-- new quills, Honeydukes chocolate, Zonko's toys, and in return, she provided him with friendship. Real friendship, not the fake your family is pure and powerful, and so is mine, so we should act like friends type.

No, Nona Halix was genuinely interested in him, his strained relationship with his father, his plans for the future, his best and worst subjects in school. They spent the entire Winter Holiday together, bundled up and gazing off of the Astronomy tower.

He learned that Nona was an only child but hadn't always been. She had, had an older sister named Prima who died when Nona was just three. It was a magical mishap, spell gone wrong, and the same accident had taken Nona's mother as well.

Graves Halix was a stern man who worked in the Ministry, though he was a large supporter of the Dark Arts. He was who Nona inherited the Meta gene from, and she told him that he mostly used it for his hair as well, to keep it from turning grey. Barty idly wondered if his father knew of him. Even if he did, it wasn't as if he would make time to talk to his son about the man.

Nona liked reading and practicing hexes on First Year Gryffindors. She was also very fond of her all-white kitten, Fyodor, who accompanied the two everywhere they went. She spoke softly, but Barty knew that there was a fire raging inside of the small girl, knew that when she got older, she would be a force to be reckoned with. She was always calm and composed, but there was a certain madness lurking behind her pale, green eyes. He wanted to meet the madness. He wanted to learn it.

Nona and Barty wrote back and forth to each other over the Summer Holidays, sending owls out almost every day. He mostly complained about his father, though he barely even saw him, and she told him about spells she was practicing and how Fyodor missed him terribly. He liked to think that she was actually the one missing him, but he wouldn't dare call her on it.

They met on the train, where Nona hugged him tightly, taking Barty by surprise. "My father doesn't hug either, but you looked like you needed one," she murmured into his shirt, and he couldn't help but relax into it, chuckling softly and letting his arms fall around her.

They snacked on Cauldron Cakes and Chocolate Frogs, and though they didn't have much to catch up on, they still found things to talk about.

At school, both excelled in their classes, Nona even moving up to Third Year Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, and Transfiguration.

She started spending more time with Barty's friends, who quickly accepted her into their group despite the age difference. She was a brilliant witch and shared the same interests. Narcissa became something of a big sister while Bellatrix stepped in as a new close friend. They would play with their little Gryffindor toys, shrinking heads, growing teeth, throwing bogies, and whatever else they could think of.

They spent the Holidays together again, only this time, they got gifts for one another. Nona gave Barty a nice leatherback journal (one that he would use for the rest of the year, filling page after page with thoughts of her), and he gave her a small figurine of a sparrow that was charmed to fly by her side whenever she wanted it to. She spent many nights letting it circle over her bed, watching it until she fell asleep.

That Summer, Barty spent two weeks with Nona at the Halix Manor. He met Graves Halix, who took an instant liking to him, and the two discussed the Ministry of Magic over dinner almost every night while Nona just stared and smiled at the two most important males in her life.

They never slept in the same room, though they did stay up very late talking and joking with one another, lying on the floor of the upstairs living area and debating their futures.

Barty realized that he was very fond of Nona Halix that summer, and the thought of being away from her for the rest of the holidays made his stomach churn.

On the Hogwarts Express the following year, it was Barty who embraced Nona first. She laughed into his thin chest, hugging him back tightly before plopping down on the seat next to him and resting her head on his shoulder. She would be going into her third year while he was going into his fifth.

"You've got OWLs to worry about this year. You won't make time for me," she had pouted playfully, and Barty simply turned to her and put a finger to her lips, shushing her and smirking.

"I'll make time."

And, he did, because there was a slight change that year, and it was that Nona was beginning to get noticed by other boys at Hogwarts.

Jealousy spiked when Barty saw the first boy approach her in the library, and he wasted no time in walking over and taking the empty seat at the table, grinning at Nona and sending the arrogant Ravenclaw a glare as fatal as The Killing Curse.

There were a couple of Slytherin boys who admired her, though they knew from the start that she was well protected, and there was even a fourth year Gryffindor who believed she could be saved from the dark side if she would just give him the time of day.

It was infuriating, and Barty found himself walking closer to Nona in the hallways, keeping a hand on her back and wrapping an arm around her when they sat in the Great Hall.

He knew the appeal, though. Nona Halix was the mysterious Slytherin girl with pink hair and knowing eyes. She was beautiful, she was witty (though not many knew this because of how quiet she was around those who weren't Barty and his friends), and she was extremely intelligent.

They spent days in Hogsmeade together, hours in The Three Broomsticks, and in the evenings, Nona would follow Barty into the Fifth Year boys' dormitory to help him study for his level exams.

Rumors began to spread about the two, rumors that eventually got to both of them, but they shrugged them off, neither confirming nor denying, and let it be a mystery among the students of Hogwarts. They were absolutely inseparable, and it wasn't until the Summer that someone dared come between them.

Barty and Nona wrote back and forth, as usual, for a solid month before he received a letter from her describing her first ever date, which she had gone on with a Pureblood wizard who attended Drumstrang Academy. His name was Cael, and Barty hated him without having ever seen his face before.

He was furious, tearing posters from his walls, knocking books from his shelves, toppling furniture over, and briefly debating blowing up his entire house. After writing eighteen drafts of his response, he ripped every one of them up and decided not to write back at all.

It took a solid week for another letter from Nona to arrive, and he read with a bitter smile:
Barty,

I haven't received a letter for some time. I don't know if your owl got lost, or if I wrote something in my last update that offended you. Whatever the case, I do hope you'll write back soon. It feels strange not talking to my best friend.

Love always,

Nona

He crumpled the letter and let it levitate as he set it on fire, watching her neat script burn. He was still angry, but he couldn't deny that he missed her painfully.

The next letter came two weeks later, making his heart ache, and he read it while biting his lip. This one was much shorter and held an angry tone. He was actually surprised she hadn't just sent him a Howler.

Bartemius Crouch, Jr., she addressed it.

You write me back this instant, you little git, or I swear, I'll curse you with boils the next time I see you!

Nona

He treated it the same as the last, burning it, though this time it did not bring him the same satisfaction.

She didn't write for the rest of the Summer, and though Barty told himself that he was happy with that, he knew that there was an emptiness inside of him.

Nona found Barty on the Hogwarts Express, sitting in their usual compartment where he'd later be joined by Lucius, Narcissa, and Bellatrix. It was empty save for him, though. She slid the door open, glaring daggers at him, and he immediately stood up, dozens of excuses running through his mind as she advanced, a predatory look in her eyes.

He opened and closed his mouth several times, short, stuttered syllables leaving his thin lips, but it was all interrupted by a hard slap to his face, and he stood silent, staring at her with wide eyes, unsure of what to feel exactly.

With her eyes still narrowed, Nona Halix hissed, "Next time you get jealous of someone spending time with me, just tell me, you prat!" Then, she stood on her tip-toes, used both of her hands to take hold of his face, and kissed him right on the mouth.

He stood dazed for a moment, and Nona pulled back just a few centimeters to look at his muddled expression, but he quickly came to his senses and pulled her back to him, returning her affections properly and even nipping her bottom lip.

She giggled, and he put his forehead against hers, looking into her eyes from such a short distance away, and breathed out, "No more dates with those Drumstrang gits."

"Hm, what about the girls from Beauxbaton?" She played, sticking her tongue out.

He shut his eyes and grinned, licking his upper lip before growling, "Don't tease me."

"How about no more dates unless they're with you. Does that work, Bartemius?"

He nodded against her, and they took a small step back just in time for Lucius to walk in, followed by the Black sisters. He looked at the two with a sneer and shook his head, throwing himself down on one of the seats and muttering, "About bloody time."

And, so they were together, and they fell into it naturally, retaining the same close friendship that allowed them to talk and joke without any awkwardness while adding the bit where they snogged in the common room and the corridors and the broom cupboards and the Astronomy Tower and the Prefects lavatory and his bed.

Barty and Nona were one of the 'It' couples of Hogwarts, though everybody feared them rather than fawning over them. She held his arm happily as they walked from class to class and around Hogsmeade Village, and he leered at anyone who even dared to glance at her. He was protective, he was possessive, and he was willing to admit to himself hat he was in love within the first few weeks. Maybe he had been before they even started dating.

They still made time for classes and studies and still spent time with the others, but they enjoyed their time alone most.

Barty spent the entire summer at Halix Manor, warming up Graves Halix even more and even getting on his good side to the point of being able to sleep in Nona's room with her. They were young and naive, but Graves liked the boy, and he saw a bit of himself in him in the way that he looked at Nona.

They didn't fight often, but when they did, it usually ended up with one of them getting cursed (usually Barty), and they would have to spend at least an hour looking for the counter.

Things in bed never escalated past snogging because Barty knew, while he was sixteen, she was just fourteen. She was barely a teenager, and adored her too much to pressure her into anything, despite the way his hormones were begging to ravish her 24/7.

This was the summer that Voldemort began to recruit. Barty could never forget because he met him. He had just walked downstairs for breakfast, clad only in a t-shirt and boxers, and there, sitting with Mr. Halix at the dining room table, was a pale man with a very strange face. It was serpent-like, with barely anything of a nose and no hair whatsoever. His eyes were a shade of red, and just looking at him sent shivers down Barty's spine.

Graves looked up and grinned, standing. "Here he is, now, the boy I've been telling you about, though, he might want to get dressed properly."

Barty nodded, feeling his face flush before he rushed back upstairs, hearing Mr. Halix call after him, "Bring Nona down, too, would you?"

Upstairs, he woke her, pushing pink hair from her face and kissing her cheek several times. "Wake up, love. Your father has company."

She groaned, turning slightly and opening an eye to peer at him as he pulled pants on and changed into a more respectable shirt. "Is it that Foldanorc fellow again?"

Barty chuckled, shaking his head as he thought about how awful a name that was. "Don't know, really. Does he look like a snake?" She nodded. "Then yes."

Nona sat up and stretched, laughing when Barty growled and tackled her back onto the bed. She ran her fingers through his hair and sighed. "Well, you should definitely prepare yourself for a long lecture about Purebloods being supreme and how the rest of those half-blood mutts and mudblood ants should get wiped from the planet." She was so cute when she talked genocide.

He stared at her for a moment, then grinned and kissed her chastely. "Consider me prepared."

His name ended up being Voldemort, actually, which was much better, Barty thought, and he did give a long, inspiring lecture that left the sixteen-year-old nodding in agreement and bouncing with energy. He was ready to rid the world of those animals, along with any blood-traitors who helped them, and he believed that following this Lord Voldemort would be a good way to accomplish that.

Nona had her OWLS the following year, and unfortunately, Barty also had his NEWTs. They spent many hours cooped up in the dormitory, pouring over books and practicing spells, critiquing one another and sometimes stumbling into petty arguments.

On the weekends, however, they returned to Halix Manor for small gatherings of dark wizards, headed by the Dark Lord, as he was slowly coming to be known as. He spoke and speculated, forming plans to recruit more of those worthy and thought of ways to get the message out, to strike fear into the public.

Barty and Nona preached to their group of Slytherin friends, bringing them to meetings afterward. Narcissa and Rodolphus had graduated the previous year, but after a few invitation letters, they joined their old friends at the manor to hear Lord Voldemort's message. Bellatrix took a special liking to the Dark Lord, absolutely captivated by him and spent the rest of the year obsessing over him. She spoke about him to whoever she deemed fit to listen, all Slytherin and all in agreement.

The group at the meetings didn't grow much, but they were all convinced that they would form an army, that one day, they would succeed.

Insecurity broke through only once on Nona's part, but it had nothing to do with their Lord. The two of them laid in front of the fire in the common room late one night, her head on his chest while he stroked her hair gently.

"Bartemius," she murmured, and he shifted in acknowledgement. "You're leaving after this year."

"Yes."

She paused and swallowed, not turning to look at him. "Well, I was just... I was just wondering. I-Is that going to be... the end of things?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, are you going to want to move onto bigger and better things, bigger and better people?"

He moved to look at her then, forcing her head to face him. "Are you asking if I'm going to end things between you and I when I graduate?" She gazed at him for a moment before glancing away and nodding.

Reaching up, Barty took her face in his large hands, demanding her attention again, and he moved forward so that there was little space between them. "Nona Halix, that is the most ridiculous question you have ever asked me." She flushed, pink tinting her normally pale cheeks, and he continued, "But, to answer it, no. Breaking up isn't part of my plans."

She visibly relaxed, tension leaving her small body, and she nodded. "Good, because I love you, and I don't think I'd be able to cope with losing you."

Barty fought the large grin that threatened to overtake his face, failing miserably. It was the first time she had said the words out loud, and he couldn't help but hold her close to him.

"No, no, you won't lose me. I love you, too. I adore you, really," he rambled. "You're my gem, my precious thing. I'll never let you go."

She hummed, content, and pulled him to her for a long kiss before ceasing and asking against his lips, "So, what plans do you have?"

He smiled and pulled back, looking at her darkly as he pushed her back to lay on the blanket they had spread out beneath them. "Well, I have plans to undress you in the near future, to kiss and lick and bite my way down your body, to put my face betwee--"

The sound of footsteps met their ears, and both looked up to find Rabastan standing at the bottom of the boys dormitory staircase, looking at them blankly before pointing to his left toward the lavatory. "I just wanted water," he said dumbly, and Barty and Nona laughed, blushing furiously and burying their heads in one another.

The couple attended their classes, studied, and took their exams like any normal Hogwarts student, but they knew that they were a part of something bigger. They knew that they had a bright future ahead of them, and having each other only made it seem brighter.

Barty graduated with extremely high marks in all of his classes along with his NEWTs. He was offered an internship with the Ministry that basically had him working in a low position in the Department of Mysteries. He was guaranteed to move up after a year, and it took little time for him to decide to take the offer.

He found it almost funny that he was working within the same building as his blood-traitor father, working against him right under his nose. He attended the meetings still, getting to see his Nona every weekend, and they wrote every day, just like the Summer Holidays. She stayed with him in her time away from school, talking about how pointless school was now that everyone had graduated and she already had a future with the Dark Lord. She asked about his job, which he actually wasn't supposed to talk about with anyone but still did because it was her.

And, that's how it was for a while. Barty got an flat when he was promoted, and Nona moved in on graduation day, throwing herself at him as soon as he opened the door with a smile. He gave her the tour, and they broke in the bed, then attended a meeting.

The following was growing, and they settled on calling themselves Death Eaters. They were loyal to Lord Voldemort to a fault, hanging on his every word when he spoke, agreeing with everything, and willing to do whatever he asked of them.

Small attacks were being carried out, raids just large enough to catch the press' attention. It wasn't much, but it was a start. They were going to take over the wizarding world. Whether it was a slow process or all at once, it didn't matter. They just knew that they would.

They were doing the world a favor, cleansing it of all the scum, taking the privileges from those undeserving of them, protecting the pure from the diseased.

Life carried on at a normal pace for a couple of years. The Death Eaters grew in number. Barty moved up in the Ministry so that he actually had a say in some things, and Voldemort's name was beginning to get the attention it deserved.

The general public knew of him, especially those whose family's had been victim to him, and The Daily Prophet began printing article after article about him, about his plan, about his army. Everyone was told to beware the dark wizard who was rising to power.

Aurors went out in search of Death Eaters and the Dark Lord himself, engaging in duels and managing to catch a few. It didn't matter, though, because where one was lost, three were gained.

Barty and Nona followed him blindly, gaining his trust and carrying out orders. They captured and tortured muggles and mudbloods, they killed without question, and they fell even deeper in love while doing it.

They were each other's anchors. They were partners in crime while out on the streets and lovers while safe inside. There was never one without the other, and as things got darker and more dangerous, Barty couldn't help but worry that in all this purification, there was a chance that he could lose her, especially when The Order of the Phoenix formed since they were much like the Death Eaters in the way that they didn't play by the Ministry's rules.

There was a grey area, now, unknown variables, and Barty wondered what would become of him should anything happen to his Nona.

He wouldn't even be able to function. He wouldn't be able to breathe without her. He would have a mental break. He was sure of it.

Because he loved her with everything inside of him and more. She was the air that filled his lungs. She was the blood in his veins. She was all the confidence and sanity he had, and she was his. She always had been.