Sirius and Barty Crouch met each other's eyes. After a moment, Crouch was the one who backed down.
Just as Sirius had said, Crouch was no longer the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. He no longer even worked in the department. And the two greatest mistakes of his life were his son and Sirius Black.
With the man he had wronged standing before him, Crouch naturally had little confidence.
"Barty, leave this to me." With a pop, a tall woman appeared on the outskirts of the group.
This was another person Harry and the others knew: Madam Amelia Bones.
Madam Bones passed the circle of wizards and came over to Harry and the others. When she saw which youngsters they were, she frowned slightly. By the time she turned back to Crouch, a hint of reproach had appeared on her face.
"Barty, I understand your loathing of Death Eaters and your zero tolerance for them. But you also need to pay attention to who you're dealing with, don't you? Look who's here."
"Who? Harry Potter, perhaps?" Barty Crouch said irritably.
But as soon as he said that, quite a few people present began looking at him rather strangely.
While resting at the campsite, Harry and the others had greeted quite a few of Mr. Weasley's colleagues, several of whom were now in the surrounding circle. They all recognized Harry, Ron, and the others.
They had not looked closely when they first attacked, acting on the principle of striking first. But afterward, the sea of red hair had already told them who stood in the middle.
"Yes, Harry Potter. My godson." Sirius looked proudly at Crouch. "Do you still think he cast that Dark Mark?"
Barty Crouch said nothing and simply turned away rather than look at him.