Letting Crouch sr. go?

[anakinbester]

No: HPFGUIDX 44645

Something that I've wondered about since re-reading GoF: Do 
any of y'all think that Peter might have either intentionally let 
Crouch get away, or, at least, was only watching him half heartedly, 
hoping that he would get away? 
  
It seems at least plausible to me for several reasons:
 
1) This is the most personal, but I've never bought into the 
"Wormtail is stupid and incompetent" fanon characterization 
that I 
see so often. He has nearly no spine in GoF true, but he 
doesn't seem dumb, or particularly negligent. The only person that 
accuses him of being such is Voldemort, but I'm not inclined to take 
that as any kind of definitive assessment to Peter's abilities. So 
guarding Crouch doesn't seem like it should be beyond Peter's 
ability. 
 
2) It would be a pretty good way to thwart Voldemort's plan. If 
Crouch had reached Dumbeldore, Voldemort, most likely, 
would have 
been stopped. At the very least, Barty Jr. would have been 
revealed. 
  
3) He can be fairly certain Voldemort won't kill him. Peter, to me 
at least, seems most afraid of dying. I'm sure he doesn't _like_ 
being tortured, but he seems truly terrified of being killed. 
Well, 
at that point in time, Voldemort, despite his threats, cannot afford 
to kill Peter. Consider, if Voldemort killed Peter, while still in 
his old body, who looks after him? Barty can't. He's at 
Hogwarts, and no other DE knows about Voldemort. So Peter could be 
relatively  sure(as sure as you can be with a crazy psychopath) that 
Voldemort wouldn't kill him for letting Crouch get away, at that 
point in time. 
  
Anyway, those are my thoughts. 
  
-Ani