Sol took a precautionary step back, his gaze slowly taking in the full, monumental form of the half-giant.
Thick, black, long hair and a beard framed a face that seemed both wild and kind, utterly untamed. Hagrid's hulking body was the biggest thing Sol had ever seen, a living mountain of a man towering well over eight feet, his sheer mass making the world around him feel miniature, his own smallness emphasized by the presence.
"Ye alright, lad?" Hagrid asked, raising his massive arms in a gentle gesture, his body language almost like he was coaxing a scared animal.
Sol swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry. "Uh, yeah? Sorry," he stammered, trying to compose himself, "I'm a little lost." He mumbled, desperately trying to conjure a plausible reason for appearing out of the now-identified Forbidden Forest.
"Aye, you're a little young to be playin' in the forest. Get lost comin' from Hogsmeade?" Hagrid peered down at him, his brow furrowed.
Shaking his head, Sol decided to at least offer a sliver of honesty. "I... I don't remember," Sol admitted, a convenient half-truth that felt disturbingly easy to utter, pointing a finger behind himself to where he'd emerged.
"I just... woke up in the forest. I don't know how I got there... or what happened to me."
Listening intently, Hagrid blinked a couple of times before letting out a soft sigh. "I reckon we need to see the Headmaster. He'll know what to do, follow me."
Hagrid turned and began walking towards the distant, illuminated castle, then paused, gesturing to the still-frozen Sol to follow. "C'mon, let's get you inside."
Dumbly nodding, Sol quickly moved forward and fell into step beside Hagrid.
They walked briskly across the outer grounds of Hogwarts, the cold evening wind biting sharply against their skin, a stark reminder of the reality he now inhabited.
Soon, two large oak double doors stood before the duo, their immense size easily dwarfing even the half-giant, making him seem like a child in comparison. As they approached, the doors automatically swung open in a welcoming gesture, allowing them to pass through without breaking stride.
Sol's eyes gleamed with undisguised wonder as they moved through the main doors and into a vast hallway.
The walls were adorned with moving paintings, their subjects engaged in hushed, animated discussions with one another. Along the sides, living suits of armor and knights stood perfectly still, their large, formidable frames acting like silent, watchful security guards.
"Impressive, ain't it, lad?" Hagrid said, turning his face down to gauge Sol's bewildered expression, a deep fondness for Hogwarts clear in his tone.
His gaze swept over the enchanted hallway once more, unable to tear itself away from the impossible reality. "This is real, isn't it?" Sol whispered, more to himself than to Hagrid, his voice tinged with a desperate, hopeful plea.
Nodding in confirmation, Hagrid continued walking at a brisk, but manageable pace as they moved through the hallway.
They then began their ascent up the grand staircase.
Sol found himself smiling, watching the monumental stairs shift and rearrange themselves with a soft, grinding murmur. They moved with an unpredictable whimsy he knew could be a nightmare for students late to class, but for now, their ascent felt pleasantly docile, almost guiding them.
Arriving on the third floor, Hagrid guided Sol through another large, yet silent hallway, before finally stopping in front of a stone gargoyle.
"I be needin' to see the Headmaster, we've a bit of an emergency," Hagrid stated, his eyes flickering between the reception-like gargoyle and the child beside him.
Sol watched as the gargoyle stood perfectly still, giving no inclination that it possessed sentience or had even acknowledged Hagrid's words.
Silence stretched for almost thirty seconds before the gargoyle spun slightly, its stony form parting to reveal a winding staircase within.
Sol and Hagrid quickly raced towards it, stepping onto the platform beside it. Sol watched in wonder and amusement as the ground beneath them began to spin and ascend higher and higher through the tower, carrying them skyward.
'Shit, I still have one more gacha pull, don't I?' Sol thought, a particular worry flickering into his mind as they journeyed closer to Dumbledore's office.
'What if he's the type of Dumbledore from those wild fan-fics who is evil? Oh God, did I just mess up massively? He could read my mind and find out about the System!'
A cold knot tightened in Sol's stomach, and a full-body shiver of fear flushed through him as his imagination began to run wild with conspiracy theories based off the fiction he'd read before.
Almost like an angelic savior descending from the heavens, the faint trill of the System sounded out in Sol's mind.
[The System and your knowledge are safely protected from outside influences. Mind manipulations, truth potions, and supernatural powers are nullified in any attempt to access this information. It is suggested you continue drawing, or study in an attempt to stop any and all attempts into your mind NOT regarding the System.]
Tension rapidly eased in Sol's mind and body at the information he was given. A silent prayer and thank you was sent to whatever cosmic entity had helped him in that regard.
After another slow minute of the staircase winding upwards, they arrived at the top of the tower. A small hallway stood before Sol as he followed Hagrid, who knocked on the door in front of them.
"Enter," a warm but aged voice, spoke from behind the door.
Hagrid gestured for Sol to move in before him, his massive hand gently pushing the door inward. Sol stepped through, the grandeur of the space washing over him even before Hagrid followed quietly behind.
Sol's eyes widened in awe as he looked around the fantastical room.
The office was a breathtaking, circular chamber, its high walls lined with countless ancient tomes packed onto dark wood shelves that curved gracefully around the room.
In the very heart of the office, a large, ornate wooden desk stood, its surface a fascinating jumble of instruments and peculiar, whirring silver devices that hummed with a faint energy.
Elegant, sweeping staircases ascended on either side of the desk, disappearing into the upper reaches of the grand library. Over in one shadowed corner, a simple, yet prominent, empty golden perch stood.
And seated behind the desk, impossibly real, was Albus Dumbledore himself – the very image of the greatest wizard Sol had ever read about.
He held a gentle smile, his blue eyes twinkling with a knowing expectation as he stroked his long, white beard. The man wore a particularly designed robe, just as Sol remembered, patterned with stars and moons.
Taking a couple of tentative steps, Sol stood before the desk alongside Hagrid, acutely aware of Dumbledore's scrutinizing gaze.
Those twinkling blue eyes seemed to pierce right through him, and a prickle of unease settled in Sol's gut before the Headmaster spoke.
"Hello, my dear boy," Dumbledore's voice was a soft, melodious inquiry, "you're quite the anomaly, aren't you?"
Sol's breath hitched.
Dumbledore knew.
Or at least, he sensed something.
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A/N: Third chapter done. I hope you enjoyed it, I needed to build up the world a little. Next chapter will be fun!