Disclaimer I don't own Harry Potter. All rights to the characters and universe the story belongs in belong to JK Rowling

Chapter 20 - Foreign Exchange

Harry stretched awkwardly as he tried for the umpteenth to get comfy on the old wooden bench. Three legs were longer than the other, so it kept on moving underneath him. Groaning in frustration he gave up and sat up leaning his back against the wall.

He had been sat in a holding cell for at least a couple of hours (as far as he could tell) since they had been brought in by the French Aurors. The cell was small, damp and altogether dull. The only other object in there apart from the bench was a small bucket in the corner, conveniently, it hadn't been emptied since the last resident and really did stink.

There were silencing charms on each of the cells so he couldn't hear anything that was going on outside and he hadn't seen any of the others since he arrived. He guessed they were in a similar position to himself.

When are they going to let us out of here. He thought murderously. Bloody French Aurors, if I get a splinter off this bloody bench I'll shove the thing up their arses. He shifted again causing more worrisome creaking noises to spring from the bench, before there was a definitive cracking sound. Bugger.

The bench collapsed before he could move. He lay amongst the broken pieces of wood for a few moments cursing his luck before he gingerly picked himself up. 'Bastard thing.' He said picking up one of the slats and throwing it back down. He limped to the other side of the cell and sat on the cold stone floor.

He rested his head in his forearms and thought about his predicament. If he was honest with himself he was beginning to worry. It wasn't like the rest of the Auror office knew where they were, only Ron and Neville would recognise them as missing and they didn't even know what country they were in. If they don't let us out we could be here for a long time, if they don't believe us they won't even check with our government who we are.

He was just drifting off when the cell doors opened. His eyes shot open as his head whipped round to look at the person standing in the doorway. She was a tall witch wearing long deep blue robes with knee high leather boots. Her nose wrinkled in disgust at the smell from the bucket before her features contorted in outrage.

'You will pay for ze damage! Oui?' She demanded gesturing wildly at the ruined bench.

'There's no way in the name of Merlin's left saggy bollock am I paying for that.' Stated Harry flatly.

She just stared him in the eye before declaring 'Fine. Fine. Follow Me.' She stormed out of the cell and continued jabbering away to herself in French. From what Harry could gather as he followed, it was something to do with Englishmen and their lack of elegance and manners.

She stopped by a closed door, opening it slightly. 'In!' She demanded, before slamming the door firmly behind him. Harry looked around and saw the rest of his team in there along with four French Aurors. There was a pin up board of suspects on the main wall of the room.

'Ah, Monsieur Potter. Please sit, sit.' Said a man with a grey goatee and equally coloured curly hair. Harry made his way over and say next to Owens. The man proceeded with introductions 'These are my colleagues, Monsieur Bonnervielle, Madame Jubert and Monsieur Lonnovon.' Harry nodded to each in turn, recognising Lonnovon as the man he spoke with in the alley.

'And I am Monsieur Garde. I am sorry, for keeping you so long Monsieur it is just zat in times like zese we must be careful non? Even with the Dark Lord vanquished zere is trouble a foot and his old followers are branching into Europe.'

'They are?' Asked Harry distracted from his anger at being locked up 'Why haven't we heard about this? We just thought they were lying low, hiding.'

'Zey are being very careful. Zey have joined anozzer group. Zis Underword So-ciety as your colleague called it.' Said Garde pointing at Trott. 'Zese people have been giving us trouble for years, we've never got close to zem we zought today was our lucky day. Alas we were mistaken.'

So, they are helping over here as well then, it's not just the few that remained in Britain.

Harry glanced over at the wall of suspects he instantly spotted the picture of Younis Priory as well as some of the other werewolves he met during the raid. What caught his eye though was the picture of a short haired man with blue eyes. 'It still might be.' He muttered to himself.

He got up and walked over to the picture, he saw a name underneath Tryston Blade. 'Who is this man, what do you know of him?' Asked Harry.

'That man is Tryston Blade.' Answered Lonnovon 'He is, Ah what is the word, oui, a General of sorts. We do not believe he is in control of everything but he is very high up. It seems that everything is run zrough him. Why do you ask?'

'He tried to kill me a few months ago.' Said Harry thinking fast, 'Remember that letter Trott?'

'Yeah what's that got to do with anything?'

'The initials at the end were T.B.'

'And you think it was from him.' Trott completed for him.

'Yeah or at least made to look like it was. It makes sense, this is the man that told Priory to leave.' Harry turned back to the French Aurors, 'We caught wind of an employer, that employed both Blade and Priory. Have you got any ideas on that?'

The Aurors shifted uneasily and shared worried glances with each other. Garde eventually answered 'We have no name and no proof, but oui, we do believe zere is someone else. All we hear are rumours from across Europe, I am not surprised you have not heard of him though.

'All over ze continent zere have been disappearances, child disappearances, they only increased the last few years with all the attention on ze Dark Lord.'

'Why haven't we heard of this? We've not even been warned about it.' Demanded Trott.

'It's not zat simple madame. Before the Dark Lord returned to power Minister Fudge didn't want to know. He kept saying he didn't want to cause panic in Britain. Zen the Dark Lord returned and he blamed everything on him. I'm afraid when Scrimgeour was in charge we had already cut ties with Britain, to keep ze Dark Lord in.'

'Bloody Fudge he always was useless.' Ranted Harry 'Innocent lives never seemed to matter to him as long as he kept power.'

'Quite Monsieur Potter, he always seemed incapable whenever I met him. Unfortunately, so are too many politicians.' Agreed Garde. 'Anyway, back to zis mystery man. He has been called by some, what is it the Non-Magique call them? Ahh.' He waved his arms around trying to jog his memory 'Ah Oui! The Bogeyman.'

'The bogeyman.' Mimicked Harry surprised. 'How did he get that nickname?'

'It is not just magical children that have been taken.' Said Garde sadly. 'Zere is genuine fear in Europe, no one knows who is safe from zis. Ze society has been operating for around twenty years as far as we know. Zese stories go back further than zat zougth, zats why we think he is in charge.'

So, one man started this and then brought others into his way of life.

'Are there any sort of hotspots?' Asked Trott.

'Sorry, what do you mean?' Asked Garde confused.

'Is there any areas most likely to be hit by this group.' Clarified Trott.

'Zere is no pattern, but, oui we do have an idea of most likely to strike places.' He waved his wand at the board of suspects and it turned into a map with various areas circled. Some were larger than others. Harry figured the largest circles were the ones most effected. 'Zere are still attacks outside of zese but not often.'

Harry and Trott shared a glance. 'Would you be willing to let us work on this with you?' Asked Trott.

'Oui, we need all of the help we can get.' Said Garde 'Monsieur Robards, already asked if we would be willing to let you work over here. Now we are on the same case, so it seems, it's natural. It's good to have an open relationship with Britain again after so long.'

'Yeah I agree' Said Trott 'We've all been keeping each other in the dark for too long. Is there anywhere we can stay while we're over here to save going back?'

'Oui, there is a hotel near here. Would you like to begin straight away?'

'No, we have two more people we need to bring in. We'll bring them in tomorrow.' Confirmed Trott.

'Very well, you can floo from here to your ministry and zen you can floo back here from zere in ze morning.'

It was late when Harry walked into the Burrow that evening, he had just visited Neville to tell him to pack a bag and meet them at the ministry in the morning, now he was going to tell Ron. He opened the door and was surprised to see the Weasleys were all still up. He thought he might have to go and wake Ron up.

'How are you Harry?' Asked Molly pulling him into a bone crushing hug when he walked through the door.

'I'm fine thanks Molly, how are you?'

'I'm very good thanks. You look a bit peaky though, can I get you some supper?'

'That would be great, I've not stopped all day.'

'OK, I'll fix you something' She went bustling to the stove.

'How are we all?' Harry greeted, Arthur, Ron and George.

'We're good thanks mate, how's your day gone?' said Ron.

'Eventful.' Sighed Harry 'I need you to pack a bag for a week, maybe two. We're working in France from tomorrow.'

'Why? What's happened?'

Harry explained the day's events, halfway through the telling Molly handed him some Leek and Potato soup for him to eat. He thanked her, then continued the story. George was howling when he told them how they ended up leaving the country illegally and their subsequent arrest.

'Why is it always you.' Said George through tears of laughter when he had finished. 'Did you get any splinters from that bench?'

'No, I couldn't believe it when she asked me to pay for it.'

'Well you've got enough.' Said Ron smirking at him.

'Bugger off.' That just made him smirk even more.

'In all seriousness though, you think this is a lead?' Asked Ron.

'Yeah one of the areas was right around where the Confundus charm was marked on the map in France.'

'Are we going straight in?'

'Pretty much, recon first then we'll see where we are.' Harry managed through a yawn.

'Would you like to stay here the night Harry?' Asked Arthur.

'Thanks, I would but I need to pack my things. Thanks for the supper.' He said rising from the table.

'It's no trouble.' Said Molly 'Come back tomorrow for breakfast. It'll save you cooking before you go.'

Harry grinned 'Yeah alright, I can make sure this git's up as well.' He said poking Ron in the arm.

'Oi!'

Harry just laughed and said his goodbyes as he walked out the door to apparate home.

They arrived in France early the next morning and were shown to the hotel they would be staying in by the same witch who picked Harry up from his cell. She greeted the others whilst plainly ignoring him, much to the amusement of everyone else there.

It was only when she showed him the room he would be sharing with Ron that she finally addressed him. 'Don't break anything.' She warned Harry, Ron got his own look of disapproval when he snorted.

'So, what happened with you and the French witch?' Trott asked Harry teasingly when they all met up in reception. 'Weren't flirting with her were you?'

Harry rolled his eyes 'No I wasn't, I'll have you know. She wanted me to pay for a bench.'

'Why?'

'It collapsed when I was sitting on it.' Deadpanned Harry.

Trott and O'Manda laughed 'I didn't realise you were that heavy Harry. You always look so scrawny.' Said O'Manda mockingly.

'Must be all muscle.' Said Trott sarcastically as she clutched her side.

'You should hear about the splinter up his arse.' Said Ron grinning mercilessly.

'Don't encourage them.' Moaned Harry.

'Went right up apparently.' Continued Ron ignoring Harry and focusing on the two Aurors as they doubled over.

'Argh!' Exclaimed Harry.

'Enjoyed it did you Potter?' Asked O'Manda

'There was no bloody splinter.' Growled Harry.

'That's a shame.' Said Trott wickedly.

'Are you sure mate? You were limping a bit last night.' Smirked Ron.

Harry just shook his head at them. They quickly briefed Ron and Neville on what they found out Yesterday. Harry hadn't told Neville all that much and had only given Ron a brief overview. They were just finishing up when Garde, Lonnovon, Jubert and Bonnervielle turned up to collect them.

'Bonjour.' Greeted Garde enthusiastically. 'Zere are three towns I think we should stake out for ze rest of the week. As I won't be going and have too return to the Ministry I recommend splitting into three groups. Two groups of three and one group of four. Oui?'

They all agreed and split into their different groups. Harry would be going with Ron and Lonnovon to a small town in the alps. Harry wasn't all that enthusiastic about Lonnovon because of the way he had spoken with some kind of superiority complex when they first met.

Still, they were there to do a job and Harry was confident they could at least be professional. They walked out of the hotel and apparated to their destination.

They arrived on a hill overlooking a small village at the base of the alps with a singular high street and some quaint houses scattered around. It looked like a muggle Christmas card, snow was falling and there were large coniferous trees making their way up the mountain.

They walked briskly down the hill towards the high street, there were a few wizarding shops as well as a large welcoming pub. Inside the pub had large wooden beams supporting the ceiling and there was a fire raging in the hearth.

The three of them slipped off their cloaks and ordered their drinks to a table near the fire so they could warm up.

'So, is this an all wizarding village?' Harry asked Lonnovon quietly.

'Oui. Zis is Alpiner, it is only small but a very nice village. Zere are a few inns just outside of the village, it is a popular place for people to come on short breaks away from ze city.'

'Even with the attacks?' Asked Ron.

'Oui, it's just avoided on full moon. Zis weekend will probably be the busiest of the month.' Explained Lonnovon.

Harry put his head in his hands. 'We best make sure we're here.'

'Why?' Asked Lonnovon.

It was Ron who answered 'The potion, the one that lets werewolves turn at any time.'

'You zink they will attack early?' Asked Lonnovon.

'It's possible. You said there's no pattern to the attacks though.'

'Being a full moon is ze only one we saw. However, we never know which full moon. Sometimes zey leave places alone for two years, others zey attack one full moon after ze other.'

'OK, can you get a message back to your ministry asking for a report on all of the attacks?' Asked Harry 'A fresh set of eyes might help.'

'Oui. I'll ask tonight.' Confirmed Lonnovon.

'Why only on a full moon?' asked Ron. 'What about the vampires?'

'Zere aren't many vampires in France. zey prefer ze colder climates of Eastern Europe. Serbia, Russia, Romania zose kind of places.'

'They would be right at home here.' Muttered Ron under his breath.

'Are there any reports of vampire attacks in those countries?' asked Harry.

'Oui, not often zough. If zere are vampires involved, zey are keeping a low profile. You see many wizards and witches zat live near vampires 'ave blood banks so they don't get attacked. It is a sort of truce.' Answered Lonnovon.

'I wonder why they had that vampire in Britain then.' Mused Ron.

'I don't know.' Sighed Harry. 'So, what do we do now?'

'I know zis village well.' Said Lonnovon. 'Let me give you ze tour so you can familiarize yourselves with it and zen we can start asking questions tomorrow.'

Harry and Ron agreed, so they downed the remainder of their drinks and headed back out into the cold. The village itself, didn't take too long to look around, apart from the high street there were only a couple of small side streets, the majority of which were cul-de-sacs.

It was when they moved out of the village they recognised the scale of the place. There were around one hundred houses surrounding the village. Each house had its own fair share of land so you wouldn't be able to see from one house to another in the dark. You may just see the glow of light in a window.

This place is perfect for werewolves to attack. They can just single off any place they want. By the time anyone else knows what's wrong they'll be long gone.

'I take it you realise the problem with defending zis place?' Asked Lonnovon after they had moved about 10 miles away from the village (thankfully they were allowed to travel on brooms).

'Yeah' Said Harry with a grimace 'It's the distance between each house. One house could be attacked and their neighbour would never know.'

'Oui monsieur, in ze dark you would never see zem coming, even under the full moon.'

'Can't they protect themselves with silver?' Asked Ron.

'You can but ze werewolves gain a tolerance for it. Especially when taking the wolfsbane potion.'

'They attack under Wolfsbane? Merlin to think, I thought Greyback's savagery was one of a kind.' Said Ron.

'Yeah, I think some of this lot make him look like a puppy dog.' Said Harry.