Magic Tricks

Summary: Godric's Hollow was a mixed magical/muggle community, so it's plausible that muggle police would have been alerted to something happening at the Potter home, but they wouldn't have been allowed to pursue it. What if the case of two murders and one missing child sat open, gathering dust, until UCOS decided to investigate? How much would they find out?

Crossover: Harry Potter/New Tricks

Pairing: None

A/N: New Tricks was a great show, at least with the original cast, so I thought it would be nice to set them on the unsolved (for muggles) case of the murders of James and Lily Potter. It requires fudging questions of jurisdiction, but hopefully you can ignore that. This would be a short story, probably only three or four chapters, and the focus would be almost entirely on the muggle investigation as it closes in on answers about what happened to the Potters... among other mysteries that develop.

As always, thanks to Bonnie for not only reading this and improving on the original, but also for her help in developing the plot so far.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, JK Rowling does. I don't own New Tricks, the BBC does.

Chapter 01 - Digging Up Dirt

Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad Office, London. August 24, 2005. 8:40AM.

"Got a minute, Sandra?"

"Sure, Jack, have a seat."

Jack Halford closed the door to his boss's office and sat down across from her. "So, is the Islip case finally closed?" he asked conversationally.

Sandra nodded. "Apparently they're making a deal, so we won't have to testify. In fact, Strickland told me privately that the Commissioner was anxious to make arrests and get a conviction, so we may be in for a commendation for having closed the case so quickly."

"Nice to be appreciated occasionally."

"That may start happening more often," Sandra said, smiling. "Our reputation in the Met has been steadily improving. We may have begun as a joke and a dead end, but people are really starting to see the value in what we're doing here. The more of these old cases we can finally close, the more respect we'll all earn."

"Good, glad to hear it... because I have a favor to ask." Jack hesitated for a moment before passing a folder across the desk. "I've brought you a case that I'd like us to take next."

"You know it's against policy to take on cases like this," Sandra said with a frown, though she accepted the folder anyway. "We're supposed to pick from the open case files that the Commissioner has lined up."

"I know, I know, but this was one of mine," Jack said. "It's one that I was never able to solve and have never been able to get out of my head."

"Well, I know what that's like," she murmured as she started flipping through the documents. "How did you get this file, anyway?"

"I made a copy when I was pulled from the case."

Sandra frowned. "But you retired. You shouldn't... ugh! Jack, how many official files did you keep?" Jack shrugged. "No, don't tell me, I don't want to know!" Frowning, she returned to the file and read through a bit more. "We've all had cases like this, Jack, but they aren't all worthy of time and attention from UCOS. We have to be particular about the cases we take. What's so special about this one? Why does it bother you so much?"

"Aside from two dead bodies with no obvious cause of death? The little boy who lived but disappeared."

UCOS, 9:00AM.

"James Potter, age unknown," Sandra said as she passed out packets of information to the members of her team. "Found dead in the living room of the family home in Godric's Hollow, cause unknown. Lily Potter, also age unknown, found dead in a destroyed nursery of the same home, also cause unknown, despite the extensive physical damage to the room she was in."

"No photos?" Gerry asked as he flipped through the papers.

"No photos or other records of any sort," Sandra said. "That's part of the mystery."

"What did the autopsies say?" Brian asked.

"None were performed."

"That's not right - that's a violation of procedure!" Brian protested.

"I know," Jack said. "But all we have is the statement from PC James Nesbitt about the location and condition of the bodies. He was the first on the scene and, as it turns out, the only officer to even view the scene. Everything was cleaned up within a day."

"Can we interview him?" Gerry asked. "Maybe we can get something not in the official report."

"James Nesbitt," Brian began reciting from memory. "Promoted to Detective Inspector in 1992, shortly after moving to London and joining the Metropolitan Police Service. Transferred to North Yorkshire in 1993. Retired in 1999." He paused slightly. "Died of a heart attack last year."

"What about exhuming the bodies?" Gerry asked next.

Sandra shook her head. "Not unless we can't get anywhere with anything else."

"It's unlikely that we'll still be able to get much from the bodies after all this time," Brian pointed out. "Only certain poisons would still be detectable in the skin and hair. Though according to Nesbitt's report there were no obvious signs of violence or injuries, so something like poison is a real possibility."

"More importantly, this isn't a case that has come to us through official channels," Sandra added. "It's one of Jack's old cases, and I've agreed that it's worth pursuing. However, I don't want to draw any more official attention to it than I have to. I'd rather wait until we have some solid leads to show for our efforts - then they won't dare tell us to step away."

"What's this about a nursery? Was there a child involved?" Brian asked with a frown.

"There was a son, Harry James Potter - age also unknown, but he was described as appearing to be about one to two years old. At the time, Nesbitt reported that he was alive, but suffering from a head injury," Jack replied. "The exact nature of the injury is unknown, and there are no hospital records that I know of."

"Well, that's a dead end - he won't be able to remember anything," Gerry said glumly.

"The bigger problem is that he went missing," Jack went on with a frown. "Nesbitt saw him and reported his existence, but after that he disappeared. That's part of the case, at least as far as I'm concerned. A young couple dropping dead like that always bothered me, and I never understood why I was pulled from it before I could even get started. No one ever explained their reasoning, no one came to talk to me, and nothing was ever done. It just seemed to fall through the cracks. It stinks and I don't like it. But more than anything, I always wanted to be able to explain to that boy how and why his parents were taken from him at such a young age. I believed that I owed him that much, if nothing else."

Both Gerry and Brian nodded approvingly. "First we have to find him, though," Brian said.

"I'd like you to work on that, Brian," Sandra said. "Get with Izzy and see what you can dig up on the computers. I'll take Jack and Gerry to reexamine the crime scene and see what we can turn up there."

"You're leaving now?"

"It's a long drive, and I want to be back before dinner."

UCOS, London. 6:30PM.

"That was the biggest waste of time ever!"

"Not entirely, Gerry. We did manage to locate the graves, so now we know where they are in case we do have to file for exhumation."

"But still, that's just the graves, Sandra. What about the house? Who loses a house?"

"I'm telling you, it was there back in '81," Jack insisted. "I didn't get a chance to enter it, but I did see it from the street. I'll never forget how the upper west corner looked like a bomb had gone off inside, that's for sure."

"I still say we simply made a mistake with—" Sandra stopped in surprise when she saw Brian's head pop up from behind a computer terminal. "Oh, hullo, Brian. I'm surprised you're still here."

"I'm waiting for him," he said, pointing at Gerry. "He's my ride home."

"That's right, I forgot!" Gerry exclaimed, snapping his fingers. "We'd better get moving, then. I promised to meet Emily for a pint later on."

"Wait, let's hear if he made any progress first," Jack insisted.

"As a matter of fact, I did," Brian said, looking more than a bit smug. "With the able assistance of PC Izzy Clark, I managed to track down school records for one Harry James Potter."

"Where?" Jack asked, sounding eager.

"In Little Whinging, Surrey," he answered, handing over a thin file.

"Is that all levels of schooling?" Jack stared at the small photograph of a thin, black-haired boy with large glasses. It was his first look at a boy his mind had returned to somewhat regularly over the past two decades.

Brian frowned. "That's the troubling thing. We couldn't track down any school records past age eleven, not in Little Whinging nor anywhere else. There's no record of a transfer to another school, nor is there any death certificate on record that would give a reason for him no longer being in any school."

"Is it possible that those records simply haven't been put in the computers yet?" Gerry asked.

"I thought of that, but no," Brian answered. "All primary education institutions are required to digitize all their old records in accordance with the Millennium Data Access and Protection Act of 2001. The process is still ongoing in a lot of places, but the schools in Surrey got a special grant in 2003 which allowed them to complete it all. They should have a record of his continued schooling there or a record of his transfer to another school."

"Then I wonder what could have happened?" Sandra asked, frowning.

"It's yet another mystery in a case that keeps giving us mysteries," Brian grumbled.

"Funny thing... something similar happened to a mate of mine when I was a kid," Gerry said absently.

"Oh?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, we were thick as thieves for a couple of years, then the first day of school came and he wasn't there," Gerry said as he stared off into space, reliving a memory. "After a couple of days I went around his flat, and his mum said that he'd gone away. Wouldn't be back again." Gerry shook his head. "I haven't thought of him in ages. Huh."

"What was his name?" Brian asked.

Gerry stood there, his brow furrowed. "I dunno. Can't seem to remember. It's right on the tip of me tongue, too... Bah, I'll think of it eventually."

Jack looked back at Sandra and saw that she was frowning now. "Something wrong?

"No, just thinking about something that happened to a friend of my cousin," she said softly as she shook her head.

"PC Clark and I will expand our search tomorrow for any information relating to the parents," Brian said. "In the meantime, here's the address which the school had for young Mr. Potter. Number 4, Privet Drive, the residence of a Mr. Vernon and Mrs. Petunia Dursley. I couldn't find any record of the Dursleys adopting or being granted any sort of guardianship over the boy, though. He's got a birth certificate and school records, but nothing else has turned up so far."

"Are they still living at the same address?" Jack asked.

Brian nodded as he put on his jacket. "It's a modest, four-bedroom suburban home. Mr. Dursley is a retired salesman, while Mrs. Dursley hasn't worked outside the home since she got married."

"Any sign of them living beyond their means - spending ill-gotten insurance money, perhaps?" Gerry suggested.

"Not likely," Brian answered as he handed Sandra a piece of paper. "For years he only drove a company car, they have rarely travelled abroad, and their tax returns show a moderate income. If he's hiding something like that, he's doing a good job of it."

"Our task for tomorrow?" Jack asked while Brian and Gerry hurried out.

Sandra nodded. "We'll interview whoever's home and see what we get. Maybe if we track down the boy, we'll learn more about his parents."

"And the Dursleys might know something about the parents, too. They took the boy in, after all."

"Family friends, maybe?" Sandra suggested.

"One can hope."

Little Whinging, Surrey. August 25, 2005. 9:30AM.

"Mrs. Dursley? Mrs. Petunia Dursley?"

"Yes?"

"I'm Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman," she said as she held up her ID card. "I'm with the Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad in London. This is Jack Halford. May we come in to ask you and your husband a few questions?"

"Uh... why, yes," Petunia said uncertainly as she stepped back. "Vernon isn't here right now - he's at the store."

"That's alright, we'll talk to him later if we need to," Sandra said with a disarming smile as she took in everything within sight.

"Would you like some tea?" Petunia asked as she entered the living room.

"No, thank you," Sandra replied as she allowed herself to be led to the couch. "You have a lovely home."

"Nice photos, too," Jack commented from the far side of the room where the wall was covered in framed pictures. "It looks like you and your husband had one taken every year."

"Yes, yes we did."

"Is that your son?" he asked, pointing at a wide figure in one of the photos.

"Yes, that's my Dudders," Petunia said. "Such a big, strapping young man. He's going places, you know. He's really making a name for himself."

"Dudders?" Jack asked, raising one eyebrow.

"Dudley, I mean. He doesn't like it when I use Dudders anymore. Thinks he's too grown up for that."

Jack nodded in understanding. "So, it's just the three of you? You, Vernon, and Dudley?"

"Yes, of course. Why?"

"And what about Harry?" Jack pressed, his eyes narrowing. "I don't see a second boy in any of these photos."

"H-harry?"

"Yes, Harry Potter," Jack said as he pulled a small notebook from his coat and flipped it open. "We know he lived here from 1985 through 1991, at the very least. Why isn't he in any of the photos you display, Mrs. Dursley?"

"Wha-what is this all about?" Petunia demanded in a quavering voice. "Why would you be asking about him? We don't know anything about him - not anymore. We don't want too, either."

"We're investigating the deaths of James and Lily Potter," Sandra said, causing Petunia to start in surprise, as if she'd forgotten that there was a third person in the room. "But we're having some trouble, so we're taking a look into what happened to their son, too."

"Li-lily? What do you want with her?"

"Did you know Mrs. Potter?" Jack asked.

"Certainly I knew her! She was my sister, unfortunately!"

Jack and Sandra exchanged a meaningful look. "So, Harry Potter was your nephew, then?" Jack continued.

"Of course he was! He was dumped on our doorstep after my sister got herself murdered, with no regard as to whether we wanted him or not! We'd just had Dudders, and Vernon was new in his job! We were barely making ends meet, we had so many bills to pay, and suddenly we were saddled with another mouth to feed! More nappies to buy! Not that our opinion was ever asked, mind you - what we thought didn't matter! We were just expected to raise him, whether we wanted to or not!"

"Still, he was your nephew," Sandra said, trying to be understanding. "He was your family. Surely you cared—"

"He was a freak, is what he was!" Petunia spat. "Just like my sister and her good-for-nothing husband, not that that was any surprise. Oh, we tried to prevent it. We said that we'd make sure he turned out differently. That he'd be normal. But it was no use - we wasted our time with him."

"Mrs. Dursley, what do you know of your sister's dea—"

"Pet, I'm home!" came a loud, booming voice from the front hall.

"Oh, Vernon!" Petunia wailed, hurrying out of the room, leaving behind two confused and even more concerned police officers while a hushed, angry conversation took place out in the hall.

"What is the meaning of this, barging in here and bothering decent folks like us?" Vernon demanded when he stomped in after a few moments. He tried to loom over Jack, but since he was more wide than tall the effect was lost.

"Mr. Dursley, is it?" Sandra asked, moving slowly so she could provide Jack with backup if things turned ugly. "As we explained to your wife, we're from the Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad—"

"Yes, yes, I've heard of you," he interrupted with a dismissive wave of his large, beefy hand. "Waste of our hard-earned taxes, if you ask me, spending all that time on long-forgotten cases when you should be protecting decent folk here and now! Decent folk who can't walk the streets at night!"

"Well, you're certainly entitled to your opinion, Mr. Dursley, but—"

"And why are you bothering us so early in the morning instead of being out there doing your jobs? Surely there are actual criminals that need to be tracked down?"

"This is our job, Mr. Dursley," Sandra said, starting to lose her polite facade. "We're investigating the deaths of James and Lily Potter. We came to learn about what happened to their son, Harry James Potter."

"They were just a couple of freaks - what else do you need to know? Freaks who were killed by other freaks, we were told, not that that's any of our concern. And I have no idea what's happened to that little freak they saddled us with. Alive or dead, I don't care. He's gone now, not eating our food or living under our roof, and that's all that matters. Good riddance, I say. Should have kicked him out long before! He was more trouble to us than he was worth!"

"Mr. Dursley, if you have any information about—"

"Are we under arrest?" Petunia interrupted.

"What? No, of course not," Jack answered.

"Are we under suspicion of having committed any crimes?" she asked.

"No, not at this time," Sandra answered with a frown.

"Then I'll have to ask you to leave," Petunia insisted, standing up a little straighter. "We've said all we care to on the subject and don't wish to speak any further."

"Yes, leave!" Vernon boomed. "We don't want to talk to you about any freaks! We've had enough freakishness to last us a lifetime! We thought we were done with all that, done! You have no business bringing it back into our home like this. We pay our taxes - we know our rights!"

Sandra stiffened. "Very well, we won't bother you any further. Today, at least."

"I can't believe them!" she half-shouted once they were in the car and driving back into London.

"I don't like it either," Jack agreed. "There's something very wrong with that family. We should get Brian and Clark to see what they can find out about them."

UCOS, London. August 25, 2005. 11:00AM.

"Brian, have you got anything new?" Sandra demanded when they got back to the office.

"No joy so far, and we've gone through most of the databases available to us..."

"Fine. New direction: instead of focusing on the parents, I want you to focus again on Harry, with special attention on the Dursley family. See what you can dig up. I want everything." She kept right on walking into her office and slammed the door.

"Petunia Dursley was Lily Potter's sister," Jack added. "They know something - that much was obvious - but they didn't want to talk about it. I think they were scared of something."

"Or someone?" Brian suggested.

Jack nodded. "Could be. Maybe you can track the mother by starting with the sister."

"That can't be what's got Sandra all in a tizzy, though," Gerry whispered, peering over that day's edition of The Sun just in case she could hear him through the wall. "That time of the month, d'you suppose?"

"No, it was the Dursleys," Jack said with a scowl. "They're a real piece of work, going on and on about 'freaks' and how they never wanted to raise the boy in the first place."

"Sounds rather ominous," Brian responded with a frown.

"It's more than ominous," Jack insisted. "I could easily see Vernon bullying someone smaller than him. I'd be surprised if he didn't, in fact. And the way he kept shouting about 'decent folk' and 'freakishness'..." Jack trailed off and shook his head. "I'm starting to get worried about what happened to that boy."

"Let me guess," Gerry said as he folded up and put down his paper. "Vernon was a big, thick-set guy. He talked tough, but looked like he'd fold if challenged directly. He got red in the face when he raised his voice and spent more time talking about himself than anything else. Everything kept coming back to him - what he wanted, what he was owed, that sort of thing."

Jack frowned. "Yes, as a matter of fact. Do you know him?"

"Nah, but I know the type," Gerry replied, standing and buttoning his jacket. "Simple, salt-of-the-earth sort of gent. Lots of anger issues, but easy enough to soothe if you push the right buttons. You just have to know how to deal with people like him, and then they'll give up their own mothers if you ask it of 'em."

"Where are you going?" Brian asked as Gerry started to leave.

"Little Whinging, to do some digging around," Gerry called back. "Don't wait up."

Brian and Jack shot each other a disbelieving look and just shook their heads.

UCOS, London. August 25, 2005. 4:30PM.

"Alright Brian, what have you and Clark got for me?" Sandra asked as she came out of her office.

"Prepare to be amazed," Brian said dramatically, picking up a stack of papers. "Petunia Dursley," he began. "Born Petunia Evans on February 23, 1956. Married to Vernon Dursley on October 17, 1977. No criminal record, not even a parking violation. Aside from membership in a few local organizations, like the Little Whinging Garden Club, she's a non-entity." He put down one piece of paper before continuing, "Vernon Dursley. Born April 18, 1951. Former sales manager for Grunnings Drills, took early retirement for medical reasons. No criminal record, though he does have a number of speeding tickets and parking violations. Otherwise, also a non-entity."

"Is there a point to all this, Brian?" Sandra asked, looking bored and annoyed.

"Be patient," he replied as he set down a second piece of paper. "Dudley Dursley. Born June 23, 1980. Never married. As a youth he was suspected of being involved in quite a few crimes, mostly things like vandalism, but the Surrey police were never able to get enough hard evidence to charge him with anything. All that stopped about ten years ago, though. Currently works part-time as a bouncer, is pursuing a boxing career, and spends a lot of time volunteering with anti-bullying programs in local schools."

"Do you have a current address?" Sandra asked, perking up a bit.

"Right here in London," Brian said, handing her the third sheet.

"That's a start, but I thought we were going to be amazed," Jack said.

Brian sniffed in Jack's direction and continued, "I was reliably informed that Petunia Dursley, born Petunia Evans, had a sister named Lily, also presumably named Evans. With that information, PC Clark was able to track her and her sister down to where they were born: Cokeworth." He handed Sandra a fourth piece of paper. "Lily Evans. Born January 30, 1960. Died October 31, 1981. Date of marriage, unknown."

"Excellent work!" Sandra exclaimed. "Now we're getting somewhere. We just need to... Wait, Brian, why do these records stop in 1971?"

"What, 1971?" Jack asked as he shifted to get a closer look at the paper. "Age eleven?"

Brian nodded. "Age eleven, just like with her son. Nothing more exists for Lily Evans past that date - not in any of the databases I've been able to check, and nothing at all for Lily Potter."

"And you've checked everything?" Jack asked.

"Including a few I probably shouldn't even know about," Brian said softly.

"I didn't hear that!" Sandra said, putting her hands over her ears.

"Why isn't there anything more?" Jack asked, dismayed. "And what's so special about age eleven?"

"That's a very good question," Brian admitted. "I expanded my search to encompass the schools which Harry Potter and Lily Evans attended, to see if I could find any wider patterns. I found nothing in Little Whinging, but I did get an interesting hit in Cokeworth." He handed Sandra another piece of paper. "Severus Snape. Born January 9, 1960, so the same age as Lily Evans. He, too, disappears from all records at the age of eleven."

"Amazing," Sandra said, and Brian beamed.

"On top of that, there are notations in Snape's school file about repeated bruising and other injuries," Brian continued. "Although no explicit conclusions were drawn from the evidence at the time, or at least none that were written down, looking back I think the cause was obvious."

"Abuse," Jack said darkly.

"Most likely." Brian confirmed with a nod. "The reported injuries fit all the standard patterns."

"Any evidence that Snape and Evans knew each other?" Jack asked.

"No direct evidence, no, and they were definitely from different socio-economic classes. However, in addition to being the same age and attending the same school, their residences weren't too far apart. Close enough to walk."

"So, it's a good bet that they were at least acquainted, though we can't prove it," Jack mused.

"If Harry was abused, then that's another similarity between them," Sandra observed. "But where would Lily fit in here? There are no signs or reports of abuse with her, and she clearly lived long enough to marry and have a child. Did Snape? Did Harry? If so, where are they? What happened to them?"

"I don't know," Brian said with a sigh. "There's nothing that I can find that they all have in common. Nothing to link them all together."

"Keep digging - this is good work," Sandra said after she read and reread the papers a few times. "Tomorrow morning I'll go and have a chat with 'Dudders' - see what he has to say about growing up with Harry. Jack, you and Gerry..." She paused, looking up and around the room. "Where's Gerry?"

Jack and Brian glanced at one another, but quickly looked away.

"I saw that. Tell me, what happened?"

No one said anything.

"Jack?" she prompted, warning in her tone.

"Gerry said he knew Vernon Dursley's type," Jack answered reluctantly. "He told us he was going to Little Whinging to see what he could learn."

"He was sure that he could get him to talk," Brian added quickly, trying to sound encouraging.

Sandra growled in the back of her throat. "He'd better not screw this up! Fine - Jack, do you think you can handle interviewing the Dursleys' neighbors by yourself?" Jack nodded. "Good, do that first thing tomorrow. Ask around the school, too, if you have time. Maybe there's still someone there who remembers Harry. And if you see Gerry, drag him back here. By his ears!" She stormed out, leaving Brian, Jack, and Izzy to all look at each other nervously.