Stuck With You / drarry

Signore Malfoy

The portkey spat Harry out with a twisting stomach and his head spinning. He had never travelled this far before, and he felt like he was going to vomit from the seemingly endless churning of the journey. The portkey had taken him to a coastal town in Italy whose name Harry didn't know how to pronounce. He had ended up in a shaded alley as to not been seen by muggles, and he sat down on the pavement next to his bag, having to take several deep breaths to settle his swirling stomach. Only after some minutes of leaning onto a cold stone wall, he was able to lift his head to take a look around.

The alley he was in sloped steeply downwards on his right, and on the left, it was uphill to the nearest street. Harry could smell the strong scent of the ocean, like salt and algae, floating through the air. He heard seagulls screeching not very far from where he was sitting on the cold pavement. It was late morning, and the warm humid air caressed Harry's skin and hair. He was glad he wasn't wearing his robes, mainly because he wanted to seem like any regular muggle, and now he was grateful for the choice. The previous day, Harry had visited some common clothing stores to acquire summer attire, something that had turned out to be quite the smart move. He was wearing jean shorts paired with a black V-necked tee, and old sneakers he almost never used.

Slowly, Harry stood up and grabbed his bag, which was disproportionately heavy compared to its size. He had performed a simple Undetectable Extension Charm on his rucksack, and was now flinging it on his shoulder with difficulty. He dragged the bag and himself uphill towards the sunny street. He could hear people lazily making their way up and down the paved lane, and cursed that he couldn't simply float his belongings with him.

Harry stepped into the sunlight of the street, and was almost blinded by the brightness. He had to shade his face with his hand, and even so, it took him a few moments to get used to the light. When he could finally make out what was happening around him, he saw only a handful of people, some climbing upwards to the right, and some making their way down to the left. He saw that the people were wearing what looked like robes, and one was carrying a small cauldron filled with vegetables. One woman had an owl sitting on her shoulder as she was cycling down the street. So, it must have been a wizarding area, then. Come to think of it, of course it had to be a wizarding area, since Malfoy was keeping his shop there. Harry shook his head to himself, and kept dragging his rucksack on his shoulder.

The street was wide and paved with stones that were worn smooth. Harry checked the street name on the nearby building, and was happy to notice that he had arrived in the right place. He started to make his way slightly uphill, and was curiously looking at the buildings on both sides. They looked very old, and their paint had started to crack near the corners and windows. The stone houses were painted white, peach, light blue, all kinds of pale colours that were all somehow in harmony with each other. The buildings looked like private homes, and their wooden shutters were wide open to let in the gentle sea breeze. Flowers had been put up in the windows, and their sweet smell wafted into Harry's nose.

The sun was already high, and it was burning Harry's back as he walked the now steady street. As he was admiring the houses to his left, he caught a glimpse of the glimmering sea in between the buildings. He hadn't realized how high he was on the mountain, and couldn't resist the urge to cross the boulevard and walk in between the houses, just to get a better look of the stunning view that was now unfolding itself in front of him. Harry went down some steps he knew he would have to go up again, and stopped to stand on a platform, not able to take his eyes off the brightly flickering water. The coast curved on his left to form a bay filled with large yachts and ships, the beach shimmering with white sand and dotted with colourful sunshades. It was breathtaking, nothing like he'd ever seen before.

After reluctantly making his way back up the stairs and taking a left again, Harry found himself standing on a small, round plaza. There was a modest fountain in the middle, the statue distantly resembling a phoenix, but looking at it quickly, it could have been any bird. The water from its beak was flowing peacefully, gently rippling in the pool at the bottom. On the other side of the square, the street continued into what seemed to be a forest of sorts, with tall green trees towering behind the houses surrounding Harry. He knew he was in the right place when he gave a glimpse at the buildings around him, they were all stores of sorts, stores whose names he couldn't pronounce, and even if he could, wouldn't know what they meant. One of them seemed to sell cauldrons, another was specialized in magical pets, one just looked like a regular corner store.