Harry groaned and slowly opened his eyes as he woke up to his phone's alarm, cursing himself for setting it to wake him up on what was supposed to be his vacation.

He'd stayed up later than he'd planned playing Final Fantasy XIV with Callie, so he'd gotten less sleep than he would have liked. Now, after shutting his alarm off, he was seriously tempted to stay in bed and just sleep till noon.

Eventually he managed to force himself to his feet partly due to his bladder's insistence. He knew that if this was going to be his last day in Paris that he needed to take advantage of it as much as possible. He especially wanted to explore Rue Merveilleux before he left, wanting to see more fully how France's magical district compared to Britain's now that he wasn't focused exclusively on getting to Flamel's estate sale, or getting as far away as he could afterwards.

Shortly after getting out of bed he was showered and ready for the day, simply waiting for room service to bring him his breakfast. To entertain himself he started going through The Battle Mage's Compendium, wanting to expand his combat capabilities. The healing spells he'd learned already were very useful and he looked forward to learning more, however he couldn't help but wish he'd been able to bring those Death Eaters down faster so that the boy wouldn't have been injured in the first place. He could only imagine how traumatic the previous day had been for that family.

He'd just started reading about a more potent variation of the Blasting Curse meant to deal with enemy fortifications along with the soldiers behind them. Reading about what the spell could do impressed upon Harry that, despite his initial childish excitement at a book full of spells meant to make things go 'Boom', the Compendium was meant for serious situations, and the knowledge within needed to be used responsibly.

Considering what lay ahead in Harry's future it was definitely exactly what he needed, but his enthusiasm was dampened slightly at the details and warnings in the book.

Eventually his breakfast arrived and he tucked into an excellent omelette, savouring it along with the coffee he'd been served, feeling himself perk up more as his meal went on. Once he finished he put his books away so housekeeping wouldn't see them, and put Hermione's gift in a shopping bag so he could take it to be delivered. Then he left to explore Rue Merveilleux.

Upon reaching Paris' magical district Harry glanced around at the stores in interest as he walked. There were the normal assortment he was familiar with from Diagon Alley, clothing shops, book shops, and other staples, though the wares were different enough to be interesting. He paused for a long time at a Quidditch supply shop, studying the protective gear and broom care items. There wasn't a new broom model that could beat the Firebolt out yet, so there was nothing of interest in that department, but the rest definitely attracted his attention.

He passed by the place that Flamel's sale had been meant to take place, finding that it had been repaired and now had someone else's goods in it, people flitting about in search of a good deal.

Shaking off the memories of the previous day he continued on his way, soon coming upon the post office. Within minutes he'd chosen a next day delivery owl and sent the package along to Hermione. He'd need to make sure he didn't call her till evening the next day to make sure she'd received it first, as he wanted to hear what she thought of it once she had it in her hands.

Harry had found out not all that long ago that he very much enjoyed giving presents to the people he cared about. True, receiving gifts was great, and still a novelty after a decade receiving crap his relatives had begrudgingly given him, but there was something about making his friends happy when he could by giving them something they needed or wanted that made him happy. He wondered absently if it was a result of his upbringing or simply something innate to him, but in the end decided it didn't matter. He'd definitely be buying all his friends plenty of souvenirs as he traveled to give them when he got back.

Once the book had been sent off, after he'd made sure Hermione wouldn't be able to figure out it was sent from Paris (though by the time she received it he should theoretically be well on his way to his next destination), Harry decided to look through a local joke shop, wanting to obtain some samples to give the twins, to see if they got any ideas for their shop. Not that they'd need much, if everything they came up with during their time at Hogwarts was any indication.

The shop was interesting, yet strangely restrained for a joke shop. True, there weren't many kids there that day, but it was mostly quiet, and everything was in its place. He could not conceive of the twins' shop being anything like this. Every time he'd envisioned it he'd imagined pure chaos as kids set products off, or the products going off on their own when customers approached. Not to mention the loud advertisements and instructions. If he hadn't already known the twins, one look at the tarp that hid the soon to come Weasley shop told him all he needed to know.

In the end he ended up getting a very realistic looking spider that could be remotely controlled which he knew very well would frighten Ron at least once, some 'X-Ray Glasses' that were marketed to perverts but actually showed whoever you looked at as some sort of furry beast out of a mundane horror movie, and some soap that would paint the user's skin with various colors and patterns.

He'd just left the shop when he paused, looking down at his purchases, before heading back to the post office. He knew he could trust the twins not to reveal where the items were from, so he didn't feel too worried about sending them immediately rather than wait till he got home, like he would with everything else that could be identified.

After that he headed into a bookstore to find anything else of interest, sadly not coming up with much. It appeared that French and British magical bookstores were rather similar except for the language. Though he was tempted to buy the magical version of the illustrated Kama Sutra which he almost literally stumbled into. He was a hormonal teen, sue him.

After that he paused to eat at a nice little hole in the wall eatery, once again going for something French, in this case bouillabaisse, which brought a chuckle on when he remembered Ron proclaiming to love it when they'd interacted with Fleur for the first time. Once he had a taste he found it quite good. Not exactly something he'd eat all the time, but he definitely didn't mind it.

Once his stomach was satisfied he continued exploring the district for the next few hours. It was as he was getting tired and debating whether to leave or not that he came across something that surprised him.

Near the end of Rue Merveilleux stood a classically built building of good size which had plenty of foot traffic. Above the door rested a sign stating it to be Regine Garson's Museum of Magical Art.

He hadn't expected to find an art museum in Rue Merveilleux. Diagon Alley didn't have anything equivalent. Realizing that he probably should have studied the magical travel guide before deciding to explore he hesitated before walking in, quickly paying the entrance fee before beginning to wander the museum.

Much like the tent he'd stayed in during the Quidditch World Cup, it was obvious that the building'd had expansion charms cast upon the interior, because there was a lot more to see than Harry had thought there would be after seeing the outside.

The museum was structured in various wings displaying different types of art rather than arrange them by theme. The first he visited was the wing where paintings were hung, wondering how what he'd find would compare to what he'd seen at Hogwarts.

There were plenty of portraits hanging from the walls, and as he expected, they all moved and spoke, which detracted from the experience in Harry's view. Especially when they started to loudly argue with the patrons who were discussing a certain piece's value and attributes. As he'd thought to himself during his visit to the Louvre, there was something in the fact of their moving and talking that detracted from the artistic experience.

Oh, they were undoubtedly useful in some ways, such as as guards as in the Fat Lady's case, or when you needed information from someone deceased, like the paintings in the Headmaster's Office, but as actual art, Harry was of the opinion that they definitely lost out to non-magical pieces.

Instead he found himself gravitating to landscapes and 'still-lifes', though the term rather lost its meaning when, say, the vase of flowers that had been painstakingly painted moved in the breeze of the window they sat beside.

Still, he found himself enjoying paintings such as a view of the night sky in which the stars twinkled down upon what Harry assumed was a quaint French town, or the scene of a stormy ocean, the painted waves crashing upon a cliff upon which a lighthouse stood, tall and resolute, its light shining brightly.

The painting which attracted most of his attention, however, was a timelapse of a single, solitary tree standing proudly upon a small hill. As Harry watched it bloomed with flowers covering its branches among the green leaves, the wind ruffling the entire thing as it aged, flowers disappearing and leaves turning autumnal shades before falling, leaving it looking decrepit and sad. Soon it was covered in snow, which gave it a new, cold beauty, but that too passed as the snow melted, giving way for new greenery as the cycle started all over again.

"This piece is titled 'The Verdant Phoenix'." A female voice said behind him, and he turned to find an older woman of about fifty approaching. She was dressed smartly in a white blouse and grey skirt, with minimal jewelry and makeup.

"Oh?" Harry said, turning to continue observing the painting as the leaves once more fell off the branches. "I can see that. A sort of metaphor for renewal, which a phoenix is a more literal example of."

The woman smiled as she stopped beside him, pleased. "Indeed. I feel that it is, sadly, one of our most overlooked pieces. It can have so many different interpretations depending on who looks at it, but many people don't get the point like you just did. Still, it is probably my favorite painting in the museum."

"I'm assuming you work here, then?" Harry asked politely.

"Indeed. I'm the curator, Geneviève Bisset." She said with a smile.

"A pleasure to meet you. I'm H-Hermes. Hermes Black." Harry said with a nod.

"Ah, in that case, it is a pleasure to meet you, Monsieur Black. I heard of your exploits yesterday. One of those that were in attendance works for me acquiring art and he was there looking for new pieces amongst the Flamels' effects when the Death Eaters attacked. He had some glowing words for you." Geneviève said with a smile.

"I hope he is doing alright, in that case." Harry said as he blushed lightly.

"A bit rattled, but he'll live. I've given him a week off work to settle down." The woman said. "I'm glad I got to meet you. I admit that I'm surprised to see you here, however."

"Well, I'm actually travelling on vacation and decided to explore Rue Merveilleux before I leave Paris. I didn't expect to find a museum here."

"I see." She said with an understanding nod. "And what do you think of our humble home?"

"What I've seen of it is nice." He said before shrugging somewhat sheepishly. "Then again, the only other museum I've ever been is the Louvre, so I don't have much of a frame of reference…"

"Ah, I understand. It's hard for this small place to compare to the Louvre, if I'm being quite honest." At his surprised look she chuckled. "I am an art lover, Monsieur Black. Whether that art is magical or mundane doesn't matter to me. Of course I've been to the Louvre, as well as pretty much every other museum in Paris, not to mention many other cities around the world."

"It's nice to see you don't dismiss mundane art like many magicals would." Harry said with a smile. "I honestly prefer most of it to magical pieces. The portraits aren't as loud, for example."

Geneviève chuckled ruefully. "They can be a bit irritating, can't they?" She agreed just as another argument between two art critics and the portrait of a rather loud woman began nearby. "Have you seen our sculpture wing yet, though?"

"Not yet." Harry said, shaking his head.

"I highly recommend you do so, then. If you want to truly see the opportunities that magic affords art, it would be in the sculptures." Geneviève said with a smile.

Harry considered it. "I think I'll head there now then, thank you."

"Not at all." Geneviève said as she turned to leave. "Enjoy your time here, and feel free to ask for me if you have any questions."

Harry thanked her and said goodbye as she left. Then, with one last glance at 'The Verdant Phoenix' he began to head for his next destination in his tour of the museum.

A short while later Harry had to admit that magical sculptures had an edge on mundane ones. They could be set in poses or arrangements that just weren't possible without it, or for that matter made of things one normally wouldn't consider.

There was a tree made up of actual leaves and strands of grass, frozen in place to make it seem like an oak. An actual fire that changed shapes into various forms such as some dice, a shield and a boat, among others, drew Harry's attention for a bit as he just watched the flames dance. There was also a pool of water that formed insane shapes that had obviously been inspired by M.C. Escher.

All in all, Harry spent much longer among the sculptures than he had the paintings, studying each one intently and taking pictures of some of them with his phone, much to the confusion of some of the patrons.

By the time he finally had enough of the museum it was getting late, the sun beginning to set, and he was getting tired and hungry. Walking out of the building he stretched lightly, feeling surprisingly relaxed. With a smile he headed back to the non-magical side of Paris for a meal before heading back to his hotel to sleep. He had to be up early the next morning to catch his train.

Early the next morning Harry made sure everything was packed, including the new gaming headset he'd purchased the previous night from a shop near the hotel. Yawning and checking his phone to make sure his train ticket was all set he did one last check of the room and left a tip for housekeeping before heading down to the lobby and paying his bill. Once that was all complete he had breakfast at a small cafe not too far from the hotel, bought a coffee to go, and grabbed a cab to Gare de Lyon in order to catch his train.

Within the hour he was waiting for the train to arrive, sipping his coffee and browsing the internet on his phone. He looked up with his fellow travellers when he heard the announcement. "The 9:00 AM to Rome, Italy is now boarding."

When the train pulled out of the station Harry looked out the window as Paris went past, telling himself that once Voldemort was dealt with and he no longer had to live in fear, that he would return with his friends in tow and explore it more fully.

For now, though, there was so much more of the world to see, and he couldn't wait.

OMG it's finally finished!

I am so, so sorry for how long this took. I've had a severe case of writer's block when it came to this chapter, so much so that this is actually the third version of it, and I'm still not really satisfied with it.

I deleted the first one when it was halfway done, and the second was about 2500 words in before I decided to start from almost scratch. Not to mention that his next destination was constantly in flux.

Originally it was going to be Barcelona, but then I realized that I didn't actually know anything about it, and couldn't come up with anything in Spain that might draw Death Eaters there. All I know about the city is that it's a popular tourist destination for Europeans on holiday. That's… pretty much it. I get it's supposed to be gorgeous, but that's all.

In any case, in the end I decided to send him off to Rome. Much more for him to see there, and I have some ideas for things for him to get involved with there. I'll still need to come up with something more concrete before I begin the next chapter though.

I can't think of anything more story related to say, so I'll go into the two Pat A Ron related things I wanted to say.

The first is just a reminder that you can have a say in what I write when you donate to my Pat A Ron. Every dollar donated equals a vote in my monthly poll, and now I've made it so that the votes for the things that don't win in a given month roll over into the next. This should give those who donate lower amounts more of a say in what's written, since they can accumulate votes over time. So if you want to donate and see your favorite stories of mine updated more often, go to Pat A Ron dotcom /athanmortis.

The second, and to me, more important thing, is that my best friend has begun a Pat A Ron for their original fiction. Donate any amount you want and get access to some objectively excellent writing (far better than mine, if I'm being completely honest). They've posted their first chapter, which is a supernatural steampunk detective thriller that I very much enjoy called 'The Curious Investigations of Mister Jonathan Scott'. If you like, say, The Dresden Files, but want it more steampunk, this is for you. You can find their stuff by searching for Grimm Tales in Pat A Ron.

I would appreciate it a lot if you could help them out, as unlike me they've had employment trouble due to some disabilities, which this pandemic hasn't helped.

Please keep in mind though that we've been made aware of a bug with the site that makes it seem like you can't donate less than $5. If you don't want to donate that much, to either of us, just put a zero before the number you want to donate, such as 03. That should get you going.

Alright, that's it from me. Next thing I'll be posting is the next chapter of Brightest in Shadow. Then, depending on when that gets done, it'll be either my next voted for chapter, or the first chapter in a new story I've had in mind for years. We'll see.

In any case, thank you all for reading, please review, and stay safe.