"The Dark Lord?"
The moment Lupin opened his eyes, his pretense of sleep exposed, he saw Voldemort.
He cried out in surprise and instinctively reached for his wand at his waist, but there was nothing there.
"Looking for this, Lupin?"
Lupin turned toward the voice and saw a somewhat familiar face.
"Barty Crouch. We met at school," Barty Crouch Jr. said with a smile.
Lupin nodded, but his gaze wandered.
He was forcing himself to calm down and accept the fact that Voldemort was right there beside him.
Because he had been living in relative seclusion, and because Dumbledore had kept it from him, he knew nothing of Voldemort's return. He hadn't even heard a rumor.
Now Voldemort had suddenly appeared beside him, and Lupin couldn't accept it all at once.
"Calm down, Lupin. Don't try to resist."
Voldemort spoke as gently as he could. "Because I'm fond of you, I don't want to treat you harshly. But if you resist, I'm quite certain that fondness won't stop me from being cruel. So...understand?"
Lupin nodded again, his expression already calm. That surprised Voldemort a little.
Lupin's strength of mind was beyond his expectations.
Perhaps it had something to do with the tragedy of Lupin's life.
"What are you going to do?"
Lupin sat up, holding his head. It was still a little foggy.
"He needs your identity, Lupin, and your memories." Voldemort glanced at Barty Crouch Jr. as he spoke.
Lupin fell silent for a moment, then lowered his head and felt for the envelope in his robes. But it was gone.
"Here it is, Lupin." Voldemort held up the letter, already unfolded. "I imagine you were looking for this."
"Yes, Dark Lord." Lupin nodded, then asked, "Are you going to use my identity to infiltrate Hogwarts?"
"Yes, senior Lupin."