Under age magic - just wondering? - The West Country

[bboyminn]

No: HPFGUIDX 188336



---  "Geoff" <gbannister10 at ...> wrote:
>
> ---  "bboyminn" <bboyminn@> wrote:
> 
> bboyminn: 
> > There is a missing 24 hours between when Harry's parents are 
> > killed and when Harry was dropped off at the Dursley on Privet
> > Drive. Where was Harry during that time? Who was taking care 
> > of him? 
>  
> > Why did they fly in from Bristol in the west, and not
> > from the north in the direction of Hogwarts and Scotland? 
> 
> > ...
> > 
> > The implication is that Hagrid flew in from near Bristol,
> > further implying that Harry was stashed near Bristol during
> > that missing 24 hour period. But, it has never been explained. 
> 
> Geoff:
> Because, Steve, you're barking up the wrong tree. They didn't fly 
> from the north.
> 

bboyminn:

The flying down from the north along the Irish Sea was a 
speculation from a long ago discussion. An idea shot down for
the very reason cited in the section below that I deleted. 

> Geoff:
>
> ...
> 
> But to get back on topic. Harry's parents James and Lily were
> killed at Godric's Hollow. There was a lot of discussion on 
> this topic a few years back in which it was suggested that 
> the village was in South Wales which would tie in with 
> Hagrid's flight path.
> 
> However, since then, other information has surfaced, to wit:
> 
> '"... Most celebrated of these half-magical dwelling places 
> is, perhaps, Godric's Hollow, the West Country village
> ..."' (DH "Godric's Hollow" p.261 UK edition)
> 
> ...
> 
> However, it is feasible that Hagrid may have steered 
> sufficiently far north, five or six miles or so, to be 
> skirting the southern suburbs of Bristol. Bristol is an 
> extensive city. ...
> 
> As regards Harry possibly being kept overnight - and where
> - remains a source of speculation.
>

bboyminn:


Well, "West Country" covers a lot of area, I suspect Bristol
itself would be considered 'West Country'. Next does 'West
Country' refer to England itself, or would Wales be included
in the 'West Country'? 

In previous posts, I suspect that Harry might have been at
the Longbottom's (Alica and Frank) which may have been on of
the reasons why the DE's including Barty Jr and Bellatrix
attacked them a couple years later. 

I get the impression that Neville's Grandmother lives in 
the North 'country'. Though I may only think that because
Matt Lewis, who plays Neville in the movies, live north
of London. 

Also, keep in mind that Hagrid is flying, so he could be MANY
miles from Bristol and still see it clearly. As he flew over
or near, it would be the largest local landmark that could be
seen at night. So, Hagrid could have been 20 to 30 miles 
away (perhaps even 50 miles away) in any direction and still 
could have said he flew over Bristol. 

I suspect, as you seem to imply, that like many modern cities
the Bristol metropolitan area is huge compared to the city of
Bristol itself. This is even true of London. The REAL London
is just one small section in the center of a much larger city. 
The larger space we call London, is not really London at all, 
but a collection of what we would now call suburbs that spread 
out for many many miles in all directions. 

So, again, Hagrid could have been 30 miles or more from Bristol
proper, and he would have still said he flew over Bristol. 

But, we still don't know where Harry was. In my opinion, they
would have certainly wanted to get Harry out of Godrics Hollow.
I don't seem him staying with Bathilda Bagshot or with anyone 
else in Gordrics Hollow. Too close to the scene of the crime.
But none the less, he had to stay in that broad area somewhere
in order to be flying into Surrey from near Bristol. 

He could have been across from Bristol in Southern Wales. I
think JKR used to live in that area. They could have moved him
to safety in Ireland. Though that is a long flight. Or Hagrid
could have been flying from the near North or South, and simply
turned east near Bristol in order to reach Northern Surrey. 

Though I have absolutely no proof, I still like the idea of
Harry being stashed at with the Aurors Frank and Alice 
Longbottom. Also, since they had a son near Harry's age, they
would be equipped to deal with the needs of a baby. At least,
far better than Hagrid alone was able to deal with a baby. 

And one of the reasons I like it is because it could be used
as the justification for the DE's thinking Frank and Alice 
might have some information on Voldemort. 

Still, I don't think this will ever be more than pure 
speculation. 

Steve/bboyminn