Seeing that Barty Crouch Jr. still looked utterly confused, Snape flicked his Wand and let out a heavy sigh, his voice full of appreciation and agreement. "Ah, every time I see you, I think of my past self.
"When we were at Walpurgis, you always stayed quietly by yourself, just like I used to hide away in corners."
"But you haven't attended the gatherings in a long time," Barty Crouch Jr. said in a lowered voice. "They all say you betrayed us. Is that true?"
"No, they betrayed me," Snape said mockingly. "I used to be like a believer, hoping to earn recognition and find a sense of belonging there. But after enough time, I realized that to them, I was nothing more than a disposable servant."
"And what does that prove?" Barty Crouch Jr. curled his lip disdainfully. "We can't officially join until after graduation..."
"Do you really think so?" Snape casually glanced at Barty Crouch Jr.'s left arm. "Mulciber clearly doesn't, though he's currently rotting away in Azkaban."
Barty Crouch Jr. gave a quiet snort.
"Do you know?" Snape leaned closer and looked Barty Crouch Jr. in the eye. "We have a great deal in common. For instance, we both have deeply disappointing fathers... deeply, deeply disappointing..."
"Is that so?" Barty Crouch Jr.'s lips twisted into a sarcastic smile. "My father isn't a Muggle."
"Yes, yes," Snape said, clapping his hands theatrically. "The renowned head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement—Mr. Barty Crouch. Who wouldn't know him?
"And yet at school, you've never mentioned him, as though he didn't exist."
A flicker of disgust crossed Barty Crouch Jr.'s face, as though someone had torn open an old wound.
Snape suddenly stood and dropped onto Barty Crouch Jr.'s hospital bed. They were so close that they could nearly