Boy and the Begining

First week of December, Harry 9 years old, San Sebastian, Spain…

Harry, while missing Brocéliande and being around fellow Abnormals, even if they were mostly magic animals, was glad to be traveling again.

He had made a brief stop in a small town in France as he headed further south towards his latest destination and resupplied himself with sketch pads, pencils, and even charcoal, curious to experiment with various drawing materials. With all the various sketching he had done while in the Hidden Place, by this point Harry's skills had grown enough in drawing that he was able to render more than passable pieces, and, upon occasion, had even sold a sketch here and there, though he rarely, if ever, used the money he earned from them. He was more pleased by praise for his skills as confirmation of his growth more than anything, especially for a boy who had received rarely, if ever, praise with the Dursleys.

Harry entered Spain into the first week of December having crossed along the coast of the Bay of Biscay, enjoying the salty tang of the ocean air and the beautiful sea side scenery as he lazily soared through the skies with a wash of stars at his back, and sometimes reflected back to him in a carpet of seething sparkles beneath him. Such sights were what reminded Harry why he loved being what he was, even if he wasn't precisely sure what that is.

One afternoon, while enjoying a light lunch just before his crossing in a lush field of wild flowers with a stream filled with cool running water chuckling to itself nearby, Harry perused the latest book he had got in furthering his traveling education.

According to a passage he read about Spain's geography:

"…Spain is located on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. Its mainland is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with Gibraltar; " Harry paused in his reading, vaguely recalling the name, but not precisely sure why, something about a great rock? "to the north and north east by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west and northwest by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of three countries (Morocco, France) to have both Atlantic and Mediterranean coastlines. Spain's 1,214 km border with Portugal is the longest uninterrupted border within the European Union…" (1).

There was also mention of the Balearic Islands, which were also part of Spanish territories, situated somewhat south easterly from his current position in a tree line outside San Sebastian. They sounded interesting, as did a few other places, so for Spain, Harry decided that he would do a lazy criss-cross across the country, he hadn't completely decided yet on any specific destination, France being the closest to knowledge of places outside the UK. Still, even a lazy tour would occupy him for quite awhile, even if he missed something potentially interesting. Spain is the second largest country in western Europe after all, so he had a lot of chances to come across something interesting if he wanted.

Since he had been sticking strictly rural so much lately, he decided that a few visits to some major cities wouldn't go amiss either, and he would start with San Sebastien.

Ooo ooo ooo

San Sebastien, 1 day later…

Harry sat in at the base of a fountain in the city's busy downtown district, sipping some juice as he perused the Chapter in his guide book about San Sebastien (2).

According to his book, the city is also called Saint Sebastien by the French, and Donostia, by the inhabitants, who primarily referred to them signally as Donostiarra. The city itself was quite populous, so it made it easy for Harry, in his semi-best cloths, to fade into the background and just perch somewhere and people watch, or to venture into one of the many stores and Lift a few things discreetly to be shrunk and added to his supplies.

Finding English speakers wasn't all that hard either, if he so chose, as San Sebastien's main economic activities was in commerce and tourism, so there was always someone around he could ask questions from, if he so chose.

The weather was also pleasant, sitting at about 12 degrees Celsius, only requiring him to wear a long sleeved shirt. Not as warm as Brocéliande, but still better than the snowy bitter cold of Surrey. It was actually quite refreshing and only added to his experience, making his long walks more enjoyable.

In the early morning, just as the sun was peeking over the horizon, Harry went on a flight, taking in a panoramic view of the Bay of La Concha, marveling at the bay's pale golden sands gilded like red gold in the rising sun, the clear, calm waters  a fiery glass.

He had a picnic on a bit of tree studded rocky outcropping that sat in the middle of the mouth of the bay, watching the occasional boaters on the waters or people walking along the shore. He had to agree with his book that it really was picturesque, and spent some time sketching the scenery.

According to his book, the city had various districts, particularly after the demolition of the city's walls in 1863, so Harry decided that he would spend a week or so exploring the various districts. He wanted to thoroughly take in everything. He never really took the time to fully explore a city he passed through before. It was also possible that he may even run into another one of those Hidden Places that he couldn't enter or rightly see properly for some reason. Something he was curious in exploring further once he figured out how exactly he was able to enter. He decided he would start the next day.

Day 2 in Saint Sebastien…

The first district he decided to explore was Parte Vieja (Old Town) which is the traditional core area of the city.

There wasn't overly much to see in this district. There was a small fishing and recreation port, with two-floor picturesque houses lined under the front-wall of mount Urgull, as well as a fair amount of bars, though they were apparently more favored by the tourists then the locals. It wasn't bad, but not overly interesting either.

Harry did spend some time zooming around Mount Urgull though, and spent the night there, writing his thoughts so far in one of his journals, adding the last details on a sketch of one of the houses he had drawn.

Day 3 in Saint Sebastien…

The next district that Harry decided to explore was Antiguo, which stands at the west side of the city beyond the Miramar Palace and was a population nucleus in the city that caters to services and tourism as well. Harry was able to find a few interesting bookstores that provided English as well as local books.

Harry actually enjoyed a brief game of chess with a bearded man named Angelo, and explored an old monastery.

After that, he went to Amara Zahara distinct, the core of which is the Easo Plaza, with the railway terminal of Euskotren closing the square at its south. He tromped through the marshes at the left of the River Urumea, and enjoyed a spot of fishing and picking wild onion out of sight of the Normals before calling it a night.

Day 4 in Saint Sebastien…

According to the old man who he'd played chess with the previous day, munmbleing into his black knight, Amara Beri, or just Amara, was a district that harbors the main road entrance to the city, with Donostia's central bus station being located between the roundabout and the river, which meant it was likely heavily crowded. Though the man did reccomend one of the best little bread shops in the city, which Harry had to agree, had some excellent bread, but otherwise primarily housing a lot of business offices, so Harry didn't spend long there.

He also visited Gros, which is a district built on sandy terrain across the river, and had a fairly active commercial activity, which, according to a pamphlet he had found by a newspaper stand, was recently boosted by the presence of the Kursaal Congress Centre. Harry spent some time wandering the center, which looked like two translucent glass cubes, and according to the indulgent concierge on his smoke break out back, has been known to host up to 300 events and 600, 000 people a year (3).

Harry amused himself with what the Dursley's reaction would be to that many people suddenly flooding Privet Dr and couldn't help the giggles that fell from his lips for the rest of the day.

 It always boggled his mind sometimes, the amount of people that could gather in one place. Harry had spent the rest of the day, pretending to be visiting the building with his older cousin, father, brother, mother, aunt, etc. and got to stroll through a Star Trek Convention, a minor political get together which had a really good lobster salad, and a dentist's retreat where he was trapped for 30 horrifying minutes by a British dentistry couple that lectured him on the finer points of cavity fighting, and the horror stories of neglecting to brush ones teeth, and was given a roll of sugar free mints, free bright blue tooth brush and a small tube of toothpaste for his trouble. He made his escape with warnings to floss playing in his ears.

Day 5 in Saint Sebastien…

On his fifth day, Harry explored Aiete district's Bakearen Etxea or Peace Memorial House, and then ventured on to Egia district on the right side of the Urumea beyond the train station, ignoring the old cigarette factory, and wandering through Cristina Enea Park, enjoying the various plants on display. He also paid a visit to the city cemetery, Polloe, at the north-east fringes of the district, wondering with a small flare of sadness where his parents were buried. His aunt had never taken him. He knew they had died while driving drunk and his aunt and uncle hated them, but he hoped that they at least were given a grave stone, like the people buried in Polloe.

He mused that if the Dursleys did arrange anything, it was likely the barest minimum that being the good moral Christian's they thought themselves to be would allow them to get away with.

He finished the day off in a large district to the east of the city called Intxaurrondo and ate his dinner on the roof of the farmhouse Intxaurrondo Zar, a National Monument that had been around since the mid-17th century.

Day 6 and 7 in Saint Sebastien…

Growing bored of his district by district exploration by this point, Harry decided to round off his last two days by focusing on some of the more touristy locations, feeling he'd gotten enough of a feel of the local populous. So he visited San Sebastien's Cathedral, curiously watching a service, he walked along the Maria Christina bridge, admiring the statues rising from the bridge's support struts, and watched a football game.

By the time the sun had set, and the stars were peeking out in the wee hours close to midnight, Harry rose into the sky above the city and continued on his journey to explore Spain.

Ooo ooo ooo

December 20th, Spain…

Harry had landed as soon as the first drops of rain had wet his nose.

The following deluge had Harry huddled unhappily in on himself as he trudged through the mud of a seemingly endless rocky field of jagged rocks and scrub plants.

He had left his pack about a 5 minute flight a ways in a copse of trees at the base of some cliffs were he had made camp for a few days to restock his food supplies with local game and to study his Spanish from a few books he'd acquired, and read up on a few local legends and myths.

The rain had come on suddenly, having not expected it with the clear skies that morning, so he'd left everything behind while he went to hunt.

He didn't know how long he wandered in what he thought was the direction of his camp. He was so miserable that he didn't notice the tingle of his magic responding to a magical barrier. The slight resistance Harry felt he thought to be a strong gust of wind blowing against him.

It was then he spotted something looming ahead of him in the rain, briefly illuminated in the sudden rake of lightening cross the sky.

It was a castle. A castle that sat atop a small steep rocky hill, surrounded on either side by jagged toothed rocks.

"Well…" Harry mused out loud, "If that isn't the set of something forbidding, I'll eat Dudley's socks."

Harry knew enough that such settings as what was presented before him was often an opener for a few of his favorite stories where something sinister awaits the unwary traveler or hero.

Still, he really had no choice, there was no other shelter, and he couldn't risk flying in this storm. He needed a place to at least await the storm to be over then he would leave quickly to return to finding his camp.

Seeing that there was really no choice, Harry allowed himself to hover at least a few feet off the ground so he wouldn't be encumbered by the rocky, nearly impassable terrain, and ascended the short trip to the castle.

Once he was standing before the empty maw of where he assumed a rather large door might have been before the wood must have rotted away, Harry's misgivings further increased as he eyed the gloomy darkness warily.

Still, it looked at least dry in there…

After about 10 minutes listening to the hum of the rain and the crash of thunder from behind the thick dark stone walls of the empty arched ceiling and stone room that Harry had taken shelter in not too far from the entrance, Harry was beginning to relax as time passed and nothing happened.

This was probably just some more ruins he'd stumbled upon, probably belonging to some old dead ruler that people had long forgotten about. Rather boring inside actually…

That's when he heard it.

It started off as a distant whisper, which would have sent Harry running if it weren't for the fact that his feet had stopped obeying him. In fact, of their own accord, they whirled him around and, much to his rising panic walked him deeper into the darkness.

He tried his magic, but his connection to it felt lethargic and fuzzy, like he couldn't properly concentrate.

He ventured further and further into the twisting and turning darkness before him until it seemed as if he were caught, like Geppeto when the whale had swallowed him whole, forever lost in the belly of a great beast (4).

Then sweet beautiful gorgeous light flooded his deprived vision and he seemed to burst out of the mouth of said beast into an ostentatiously furnished round room, and couldn't help wondering what he would find.

Ooo ooo ooo

A/n: 1. Spain, Wikipedia passage, 2. All information about San Sebastien was found in Wikipedia, 3. Kursaal Congress Centre basic info is from their website, the conventions Harry rambles through I am unsure if they have ever hosted, it was mainly to amuse myself, 4. Pinocchio reference.