Blind Man in the Dark

By: Sam Lincoln

Disclaimer: The characters from Harry Potter belong to JK Rowling and are used here without permission. Likewise the characters from Justified belong to Elmore Leonard, Sony Pictures, and FX and are also used without permission.

Spoilers: For Harry Potter, post Deathly Hallows. For Justified this is set between Seasons 3 and 4 with no season 4 spoilers.

Chapter 1

Us Deputy Marshall Raylan Givens strode into the Lexington Marshalls' office as unobtrusively as possible. Which, for a man wearing a Stetson, was to say not very unobtrusively at all.

"You're late," Deputy Tim Gutterson said.

Raylan glanced over at Tim who was sitting at his desk. "I suppose I am," he replied. Raylan sauntered over to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug of the hot beverage.

"Off disarming more psychopaths?" Tim asked.

"It was Limehouse who did the disarming," Raylan said. "I just…caught it. And to answer your question no, my alarm clock died. It happens," he added when he saw the disbelieving look on Tim's face.

"Well Sleeping Beauty, Art's looking for you."

"What for?"

Tim shrugged. "He didn't see fit to tell a lowly peon like me, but I reckon it has something to do with the suit that's been in his office all morning. You kill somebody you're not supped to again?"

Raylan made a show of thinking the question over before answering Tim's question. "Nobody comes to mind, but there's only one way to find out." He placed the mug on his desk before walking over to the glass door of Art Mullen's office. He knocked on the door before opening it. "You wanted to see me Art?"

"Nice of you to join us Raylan, come on in," Chief Deputy Art Mullen said.

As Raylan entered the office he glanced across the room and saw the suit Tim mentioned. The man, who Raylan did not recognize, was sitting in one of the chairs opposite Art's desk. He was dressed in a charcoal gray two-piece suit. A shock of unruly black hair sat atop the man's head with bangs that hung low on his forehead. The way the man was evaluating Raylan told him he was another lawman of some stripe.

"I suppose introductions are in order," Art said. "Deputy Marshall Raylan Givens I'd like you to meet Chief Superintendent Harry Potter of the Metropolitan Police Service, you might know it by its other name, Scotland Yard."

"That's quite a title you've got there Chief Superintendent," Raylan said as he held out his hand.

Harry stood up and reached out to shake Raylan's hand. As he did so Raylan noticed he was not carrying a gun. "I could say the same to you Deputy Marshall," he said with a clipped British accent.

"Point well taken," Raylan said. "And no offense Chief Superintendent, but you're a long way from home."

"Please call me Harry. If you keep saying Chief Superintendent, and not to be a part but my title is more properly Detective Chief Superintendent, we'll be here all day. To answer your question though, I'm not here on holiday."

"Detective Chief Superintendent Potter," Art added extra emphasis to the word detective, "is here in need of our services."

"Somebody made a runner for Kentucky?" Raylan asked as he and Harry settled into their chairs. Raylan took off his Stetson and set it down on Art's desk.

"In a word, yes," Harry said. "A criminal my unit was investigating slipped passed up when we were going to arrest him. An…informant of mine told me that he has relatives here, though I don't know the precise location. My counterparts at your FBI said you, Marshall Givens, were the best man to help me apprehend my fugitive so here I am."

"Why would the FBI?" Raylan began to ask when he saw a mischievous glint in Art's eye. "Oh don't tell, he went to ground in Harlan."

Art tossed a manilla folder into Raylan's lap. "That's what the intel Harry provided suggests."

Raylan opened up the folder and examined the contents. "So what exactly did Bernard Nott do?"

"It would be quicker to ask what he didn't do," Harry said. "Bernard Nott is at the center of most of the organised crime my unit is tasked to investigate."

Raylan looked up from the folder. "So he's a bad man is what you're saying."

"Very much so, the worst I've seen since…well, in a long time," Harry said.

"And you said he has kin in Harlan?"

"That's what my…source lead me to believe."

"But you don't know who they are?"

"Unfortunately no. My source didn't know their name, just that they existed."

Raylan closed the folder. "That's not much to go on."

"We've started with less," Art said.

"That we have. I'll head down to Harlan, shake up the usual suspects and see what falls out. I'll let you know what I find," Raylan said. He made to get out of the chair.

"Actually Deputy Givens, I must insist I accompany you. If you do find Nott it's important that I be present for the arrest. I'm afraid it's a requirement of our courts."

"Afraid I might rough your suspect up or ship him off to Gitmo?"

Harry held up a hand. "No nothing like that. It's merely a formality to keep the barristers happy Plus I've been after Nott for a long while and I want to be there when he finally gets arrested.

Raylan stared at Harry for a long moment before nodding. "Alright fine, but do you have a change of clothes handy?"

Harry glanced down at his suit. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

"Nothing, I just wouldn't want to see you ruin that fancy Saville Row suit in some holler mud puddle."

"Oh, right, fair point."

"Also, this is Harlan and wearing a fancy suit like that might just get you shot," Raylan said. A trace of smile sketched itself across his face.

"I see…" Harry said. "He's just taking the piss, he's taking the piss right?" He asked Art.

Art leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. "I wouldn't worry too much about it. Besides, folks in Harlan are far more likely to take a shot at Raylan. So as long as your don't stand too close to him you should be fine."

Harry stared at Art for a long moment, trying to figure out if the older man was joking. "I will keep that in mind. In the meantime, is there anywhere I can change? My wife would kill me if I ruin another suit."

"There's a locker room through that door over there," Art said and pointed in the direction of the locker room. Harry nodded in thanks, stood, picked up a small carry-on bag, and walked out of Art's office.

"I'll give him this, man knows how to travel," Raylan said after the door closed. "Do I really have to escort Inspector Lestrade over there all around Harlan on some sort of wild goose chase?"

"Well Raylan, last I checked you were still a United States Marshall. Your job is to track down wanted fugitives and this Bernard Nott is a wanted fugitive. So go out there and do your damn job! Who knows, maybe this will take your mind off all your other shit."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Art leaned back in his char. "Ever since Arlo got arrested for Tom Bergin's murder you've been mopey."

"I have not!" Raylan said.

"Yes you have. Now go on out of here before I think of something for you to do to snap you out of your doldrums. And believe me you'll like that even less. At least this way there's a fair chance you'll get to shoot somebody."

"Oh and won't that brighten my day," Raylan said.

"Admit it, you miss those little chats with the District Attorney."

Raylan stood up and put his Stetson back on. "No, I really don't. And is it just me, or does Mr. Potter look a little young for a title as fancy as Detective Chief Superintendent?"

"Hell Raylan, who knows, maybe he's some kind of lawman savant, or maybe that's just what they call their traffic cops." Raylan grunted noncommittally and turned to leave. "Either way, keep me in the loop," Art said as Raylan walked out of the office. "Not that you will," he said to himself after the door closed again.

Harry looked around the tiny locker room to make sure nobody else was around before he reached into the magically enhanced carry-on bag to withdraw a change of clothes. As he changed out of his suit he thought back to the conversation he'd had earlier in the week with his American counterpart in Washington DC.

"Chief Auror Potter. It is an absolute honor to meet you," A man in a nattily tailored suit said as Harry entered the office of the Deputy Director of the Bureau of Magical Investigations. "Director Krisky sends his regrets but he has a meeting with the Secretary of Magic, and you know how the politicians get."

"I'm afraid I do," Harry said as he walked over to the man's desk. "At least in my case the Minister is a former Auror who still remembers what it's like on the streets."

"You're lucky. I don't think the Secretary has ever set foot outside of DC. I'm Deputy Director Mark Phelps by the way." He held out his hard to Harry.

"A pleasure to meet you Mr. Phelps," Harry said as they shook hands.

"The pleasure is all mine Auror Potter. Please, have a seat. Can I get you anything to drink, coffee or tea perhaps?"

"No thank-you, I'm fine," Harry said as he settled into his seat.

"And your trip was uneventful?" Phelps asked as he sat back down at his desk.

"As much as Portkey travel can be," Harry said.

Phelps, sensing that Harry was growing tired of the idle chit chat, opened a folder on his desk. "So you're here because you think a dark wizard has fled to the United States?"

"Bernard Nott, yes that is correct. My office had just finished a year-long investigation into his criminal enterprises and he skivved off before we were able to rid his house."

"And how he's in Kentucky. So what is it you need from the BMI?"

"Help finding and arresting Nott," Harry said. He felt his temper flare at having to explain what he thought would be self-explanatory.

"I'm afraid we can't do that," Phelps said.

"What?" Harry said as he nearly leapt out of his seat.

"It's not that we here at the Buerau don't want to help, but you have to understand. This is a big country, and we have a staff not much larger than yours. We simply don't have the manpower available at this time."

"But isn't there some sort of local constabulary?"

"Sure, in the more populated areas, but many of the more remote enclaves function almost autonomously from the Department. We're a country of individualists Auror Potter. But I also don't want to send you home empty handed so I checked our census records and there is a wizarding community located in what the Muggles call Harlan County."

"Do you have anything more specific?"

Phelps shook his head. "No it would seem our records were tampered with at some point."

Harry's eyebrows shot up at that revelation. "Sounds like somebody is hiding something."

"Like I said, we value our privacy here in America."

"So at the very least I have a better idea where to look for Nott," Harry said in an attempt to find the bright side of a mostly wasted conversation.

"I can do you one better. I reached out to my counterpart over at the Muggle Bureau of Investigation to see if they could offer any assistance. They provided me the name of a man who is something of a specialist in that region." He handed a piece of paper.

"US Deputy Marshall Raylan Givens," Harry read aloud. "That sounds like something out of a cowboy movie."

Phelps chuckled. "You don't know the half of it. I took the liberty of setting up a meter for you with Gives and his supervisor, Art Mullen. I also arranged for a Portkey to take you to Lexington."

"Thank-you for all your help in this matter Mr. Phelps," Harry said.

"There is one other thing. As far as Mullen and Givens know, this request is coming from the FBI. The Statute of Secrets is still in effect."

"That could make things more difficult," Harry said.

"I can sympathize with that, but we both know the importance of maintaining the Statute. Consider this our authorization to use whatever memory charms you see fit.

Harry nodded. "I understand. Is there anything else?"

"Just this, be careful. There's a reason they call it Bloody Harlan."

"I'll keep that in mind." Harry stood up from his chair. "Thank-you very much for your help Deputy Director."

"It's been my distinct honor to help Auror Potter. We'll keep digging through our records to see if there's anymore information we can find about Nott's relatives, and if we find anything we'll let you know immediately. My secretary has your Portkey. And Auror Potter, good luck." Harry nodded in response and walked out of the office.

After Harry finished changing out of his expensive suit in favor of a comfortable pair of blue jeans, jacket, and hiking boots he double-checked that his wand was securely strapped to his forearm and walked back into the main office. "Is there more suitable?" He asked Raylan who was leaning against his desk.

Raylan eyed Harry before slowly nodding his head. "It'll do. Oh, one more question, are you carrying?"

"Excuse me?"

"A gun, are you carrying a gun?"

"No, of course not. Why would I?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe because the people we're looking for are going to be armed to the teeth?"

"Deputy Givens, I'm sure you know we don't arm our police in the UK, and quite frankly I'd be more of a danger to you and myself if you did give me a handgun."

Raylan let out a long sigh. "You don't know how to shoot do you?"

"Not in the slightest," Harry said.

"And you probably don't want to take the time?"

"I'd rather not."

Raylan sighed again. "Of course you wouldn't. Ok, wait here." Raylan ducked into the locker room and returned a moment later holding a bulky vest. "Here, put this on."

Harry eyed the vest. "Is that a?"

"A bullet-proof vest, yes, and when you get to Harlan you're going to put it on."

"Is this really necessary?" Harry asked as he took the vest from Raylan.

"If you're going to Harlan with Raylan, yeah it is," Gutterson said.

Raylan glared at Tim, bout didn't respond to the other marshall's jibe. "Look Chief Superintendent, where we're going there's a very real chance gunplay is going to be involved, and I'd really hate to have to explain to my boss how I let the fancy VIP get shot by some shitkicking redneck in Harlan, so wear the damn vest."

"Are you going to be wearing one?" Harry asked.

"He should," Tim said.

"Showing up in body armor makes folks jumpy," Raylan said.

Harry raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "So naturally that means I should wear it?"

"We'll if you're not going to carry a gun then you need something to protect yourself."

"Deputy Givens. I've been chasing down criminals for over a decade now. While I appreciate the concern, I know when to duck."

Raylan shrugged. "Alright, suit yourself."

"Don't feel the need to coddle me," Harry said.

"I will keep that in mind," Raylan said after the two shared a long look. "Now if you'll just follow me Chief Superintendent, let's get you to Harlan." Raylan motioned for Harry to follow him out of the Marshall's Office. As he held the door open for Harry, Raylan noticed that he was still carrying the bullet-proof vest. Raylan chuckled to himself and walked out of the office.

Author's Notes: Ok, I should explain. Elmore Leonard's recent passing motivated me to post this as a memorial of sorts. I've had the rough outline for this crossover in my head for a while now. However, I don't have much written beyond this chapter, nor do I expect to circle back to this work anytime in the foreseeable future. So enjoy my own little tribute to a great crime novelist.

-sam, 2013-08-24