Crouch!Moody's Surprise-- Or Lack ThereOf (WASRe: Harry"Winning"/HarryCan'tPlan)

[Juliet]

No: HPFGUIDX 60360

Pip:
>>
And Crouch-Moody doesn't seem at *all* surprised to see Harry back 
at Hogwarts, does he? Honestly, it'd almost make you think that 
Voldemort had a 'Plan B' ...

Pip!Squeak

(see http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/40044
for Voldemort's 'Plan B' in the Graveyard Scene of GoF.
>>

That's not the way I've ever seen Crouch!Moody's reaction.  While I 
really enjoyed your long analysis of the Graveyard Scene, I'm not 
sure I buy there being a "Plan B".  Crouch!Moody may well have been 
surprised...let me look at canon real quick.  Okay, it's arguable.  
Here goes...


Well, we really can't judge how Crouch!Moody initially responds to 
Harry's return, since Harry doesn't really see much besides the 
ground and a fuzzy blur of Dumbledore's face until he's been half-
dragged into Moody's office.  Once he's pepped up a bit so that he's 
seeing and thinking straight, he's able to actually see and notice 
the things around him.  

And once Harry gets a good look at Crouch!Moody, he is described as 
being "as white as Fudge had looked"(bit odd she compares Crouch!
Moody to Fudge...) and his eyes "were fixed unblinkingly upon Harry's 
face"(Pg. 674).

Obviously, Crouch!Moody is pretty focused on Harry at that point.  
But there's quite a bit of time there during which Harry is having 
focusing problems, particuarly on anything that's not a foot from his 
face.  What happens?  Well, we don't know.  We can only speculate(and 
aren't we all pretty good at that ;).  

Now Crouch!Moody, not knowing about "Plan B"(which I'm not really 
thinking there was...so I'm going on the basis that there's no back-
up plan), would have initially reacted in a very shocked way-  Harry 
is not supposed to return, no one is supposed to return.  He's down 
on the grass, presumably, still "patrolling" the walls of the maze.  
He's much closer to Harry than Dumbledore, who would be up in the 
stands.  Yet Dumbledore arrives at Harry first: 

Then a pair of hands seized him roughly and turned him over.
"Harry! *Harry*!"
He opened his eyes.
He was looking up at the starry sky, and Albus Dumbledore was 
crouched over him. (Pg 670)

That would be the first person to speak to Harry after he's arrived 
back at the pitch.  Why wasn't it Moody, who was, presumably, much 
closer?

We see no sign of Moody-- not until after Fudge arrives, not until 
after Fudge and Dumbledore pry Harry off Cedric's body, and not until 
after Fudge spots Mr. and Mrs. Diggory arriving and alerts 
Dumbledore.  Then, finally, we see Crouch!Moody make his entrance 
with a "I'll take Harry, Dumbledore, I'll take him--".   

What took him so long?

Well, who's to say Crouch!Moody wasn't off being shocked at his Dark 
Lord's obvious failure(it sure seemed to take him awhile to get 
there)?  His initial reaction could have been close to:  "How can 
this be?"  So, after getting over this mind-boggling shock(Voldemort 
can't fail!), he decides to go over to the huddle of people now 
around Harry, steal Harry away right under Dumbledore's crooked nose, 
and take him up to his office so he can find out *What Happened*.
I'm wondering if Crouch knew about the regeneration proceess...?  
Hmm...

Well, in canon, Crouch!Moody takes Harry up to his office.  On the 
way there he prompts Harry to tell him what happened.  Harry only 
gives him vague answers, so Crouch gives him a drink to smarten him 
up a bit.  Then he only asks for information on the regeneration 
process and Voldemort's treament of his DE's- even though Harry 
vaguely made remarks on the duel, the wands, and his parents.  But 
Crouch!Moody is not interested in finding out how Harry was able to 
see his dead parents.  He's not interested in how Harry got away.  
He's only interested in finding out if Voldemort was regenerated.  

So Crouch prompts Harry for details.  He's extremely keen on knowing 
what exactly it was that was taken from Harry.  Once he understands 
that Voldemort took Harry's blood, no more questions on that.  And, 
well, I've just answered my own question- looks as though Crouch 
*did* know about the regeneration thing.  And now, thanks to Harry, 
he knows it worked.  He knows his Dark Lord is back to the height of 
his powers.  The only thing left is to kill Harry Potter and leave 
the doors open for Voldemort to take over the Wizarding World.  So 
Crouch decides to do this- but, as we all know, is interrupted only 
just in time...

So...based on all that, I'm thinking there wasn't a Plan B and that 
Crouch!Moody was winging it when he snatched Harry for a private 
conference.

Aldrea, who would argue with herself on Crouch's reasoning to 
eliminate Harry, but thinks she has rambled enough.