Foreword

All text displayed in italics are the thoughts of Cole.

Chapter 2 – A Strange Awakening

"Holy mask of Nethys! Featherfall!"

As it turns out, casting an inertia dampening spell at terminal velocity hurts, like, a lot.

The last thing Cole saw before blacking out from G-shock was a massive castle built at the foot of a great lake and forest. grand spiralling towers shot from a monumental keep, all in all it was an amazing view, unfortunately for young Cole he was unconscious and thus could not enjoy the rapidly nearing vista, he was also heading strait for a window.

Dumbledore, being an elder wizard and great war hero, was not easily frightened, thus when his office window was smashed by a young figure his chocking on a lemon drop was a comical understatement. Snape, on the other hand, almost flew from her chair at the sudden crash, with Minerva not faring much better.

Coughing out a lemon drop Dumbledore and his guests rushed over toward the now bleeding unconscious heap on the floor,"Full marks for entrance, aye Severus?" Dumbledore remarked.

"Really, Albus, now?" Minerva retorted.

Cole's gasp felt like his first breath in ages, wheezing he took in his surroundings. He was lying inside a strange metal bed, surrounded by a veil, outside he could hear elderly voices conversing.

"He's been out for days Albus, and we don't even know who he is or where he came from."

"Presumably outside, and then right through the window."

"Albus Percival Dumbledore could you be serious for one bloody second!"

"What do you make of this," a new motherly but strict voice hesitated,"child, Dumbledore? Ashen skin, amber eyes and soot hair darker than Severus', he is no normal boy."

"He could be the victim of an unfortunate experiment." An oily voice added.

"I'm not so sure Severus, the detection charms seem to not work." The motherly voice said,"One even said that he's forty eight."

Spellcaster or maybe a cleric. Cole cursed inward, the last time he had faced a wizard it was but a friendly duel and he was still nearly killed, at least then he had spells, now he was at the mercy of these people.

"Oh, Albus," the motherly voice said,"It seems our guest has awoken."

The veil drew back and Cole saw only robes. Hell, now I'm in for it, four spellcasters, and I'm out of spells, I'll have to tread lightly. After the initial shock he saw the room to be apothecary, he identified the younger motherly woman as a healer, with the age old symbol of physicians upon her robes.

The other older woman was dressed in well cut black robes with a younger grim faced man in the same attire beside her. The oldest man wore a grandfatherly smile, dressed in colourful patterned robes with half-moon spectacles upon his brow, he stood out like a death priest in a church of Iomedae. Obviously the lord of the area, Cole thought, only the rich can afford to dress with such poor taste.

"Good morning my boy," the grandfatherly man said,"You have been out for some time now, it's been nearly five day's since your accident."

"Five days?" Cole could not remember how he had came to be in this strange place, he only his mother's face and words.

Yes, after your crash and burn you slept like a log, but I suppose involuntary demolition would have such an effect."

"I fell..." Cole let the words hang," Excuse me my lord, my name is Cole, may I ask, where am I?"

"Lord! Come now lad nothing that fancy, I am but a simple headmaster."

"You teach...?" Cole asked, suddenly understanding,"This is a magic academy!" he said with excitement.

"Correct you are lad." Dumbledore said,"Welcome to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry."

"I am professor Dumbledore headmaster of Hogwarts, this is deputy headmistress Minerva McGonagall, and Professor Severus Snape." Dumbledore gestured to each teacher in turn.

"Hogwarts?" Cole asked confusedly,"I have never heard of it, on which continent is it?"

"Europe lad, Britain to be precise."Please Nethys no.

"You've never heard of Hogwarts boy?" Severus said,"All magical children dream of being allowed to attend Hogwarts."

"Europe, where on Golarion is that?" Please, I've not deserved this.

"What? Lad, I've never heard of such a place" McGonagall answered confused.

Cole suddenly remembered what had led to his strange arrival,"Oh, please Nethys no not me, why me, what did I do to deserve this!" Cole cried out,"First my father gets mauled and burned alive now I get stranded in the ass end of nowhere!"

Dumbledore was surprised with the child's sudden mature outburst. Minerva's heart panged, such a young child, so much loss. Snape merely listened in curiosity, this was getting interesting.

Cole grabbed his belt from the bedside table and pulled out his bag of holding, he spoke a command,"Pathfinder's guide to the multiverse."

The 'Pathfinder's guide to the multiverse' what an amazing book, containing all the knowledge of the multiverse known to the pathfinders guild. Cole got his copy from Erasmus, his father friend and his teacher, what an amazing twenty third birthday that was…

Oh, A quick mention to quell confusion, being an emberkin Cole ages four times as slowly as a normal human would, he's currently forty eight, but looks about twelve or thirteen by normal standards.

It was a deceptively simple tome bound in black stained leather. The cover had an intricate silver relieve of the planar spheres, a great constellation containing every plane and realm of god, angel, devil, fey and eldritch horror.

The teachers looked on in interest, this child was surprising and confusing at the same time, where could he have found a mokeskin pouch?

Cole spoke a command and the constellation flared to life, the outer sphere spun slowly as the realms of Heaven Elysium and Nirvana glowed golden. Those of Abaddon and Hell seemed to glow a malevolent red. The abyss and Maelstrom churned not grasping form or colour while Axis stood firm.

With the outer sphere lit the inner sphere illuminated, the elemental planes took on their respective shades, with the star field of the Material plane glinting, like pinpricks of light. With the constellation complete the great copper clasp of the tome slid open.

He looked at the index and spoke,"Inner Sphere, Material plane, Golarion, Global Map."

The teachers look on in surprised awe at the strange book, seemingly come to life like no other animate book could.

The pages flipped themselves, each granting the teachers a glimpse of a different fantastical plane or hellish realm, until it stopped ate an intricately drawn animate map. Cole had seen this map thousands of times, Golarion his home, he held the book toward the teachers.

"Sir,"he spoke to Dumbledore,"have you ever seen a map like this?"

Dumbledore stared in confusion,"No, I don't recall ever seeing such a fantastical place." Damn

"The it is as I feared, I am displaced with no way home."

"Displaced?" Minerva asked,"Have you nowhere to go?"

"I fear I shall never return home to finish my studies, not that I have a home anymore, with it burning down with my father inside." The teacher were again take back by how lightly the child took death.

"And what of your mother child?" Minerva asked fearing the worst.

"Not on this world, she saved me before I came here."

"Albus," Minerva spoke,"We need to speak."

"Come Severus let us leave Cole to rest, hearing all this has to have been quite a shock." Dumbledore and the other teachers walked out the door seemingly leaving Cole to his own devices. Fools, leaving a spellcaster with their spellbook.

"Spellbook." Cole commanded the bag.

At first Cole was confused by the strange book that emerged from his bag, it was definitely not his spellbook, but for some strange reason he felt as if it belonged to him. Instead of his own leather bound, a red tome with gold trim emerged. On the cover as a beautiful relieve of a black rose wreathed in flames, the universal symbol of the Peri. Mother...

On the back a grand phoenix of gold stood proud, seemingly alive, as if breathing on the red binding. He flipped open the cover and saw an inscription written with an intricate hand in golden ink,'My son, I leave you my old spellbook, may it serve you as well as it did me against the forces of evil.'

He studied the tome in complete shock, it contained every spell he had ever heard of (1). Flipping through the bliss filled pages he could hear snippets of the conversation happening outside.

"Orphan or not Albus this is a prestigious school, not an orphanage."

"Severus! Have you now heart. Albus the boy is obviously confused and in shock after his father's death, the poor child needs support."

"Destitute orphan fund-"

Cole was taken back, his father was a rich man being an adventurer and all. In retrospective I should have grabbed the chest of holding. He could pay any cleric's fee, it was the least he could do to repay them.

"I Nominate Snape," Minerva said," Since he's so eager to help the child."

"Seconded"

"Fine! But on one condition, we test his magical aptitude, he seems twelve or thirteen and he's obviously magical otherwise he wouldn't have gotten through the wards."

"Agreed."

After nearly three hours the strange teachers came through the door. At least now he was prepared, an assortment of new spells, his arcane reservoir filled to the brim and an escape plan. What fool doesn't ward against travel spells?

Dumbledore spoke,"Are you feeling better Cole."

"Yes sir, much better." Especial now that he had his spells.

"I could not help overhearing a mention of funds, give the good nurse my regards, she heals as well as any cleric." Cole grabbed a flawlessly cut violet garnet from the bed stand and held it towards Dumbledore. Snape's eyes widened when he saw the gemstone.

"Oh, child Poppy would never accept payment for her work, keep it, please." Dumbledore said flustered.

"Please sir, it's but a pittance" Cole handed the semi precious violet stained mineral rock to the strange old man. These people must literally have no connection with the multiverse if they value gemstones so highly.

"Very well child, but don't blame me when Poppy comes screeching through the door."

"Seeing as you an orphan we would like to extend an invitation to Hogwarts to you." Minerva said motherly," But we would first like to witness your magical potential, would you mind to cast us a spell." A free spot in a prestigious magical academy! These people are insane, of course he could pay, but why when these people are more charitous than a cleric.

"Oh," she added,"you do have your wand with you, do you not." Wands? Are these people all wizards, and why not a familiar?

Cole thought for a second then smiled, the air buzzed with power as in celestial he incanted," Desperate weapon." A thick rod of ash wood broke from a nearby pillar, Cole grabbed it and smiled at the gob smacked teachers."Refine improvised weapon," The rod shuddered as it shifted from a plain rod into an intricately carved staff, engraved with spiralling silver runes running down its length, with a silver cap tipping the bottom.

"I Prefer staves myself headmaster" Actually Nethys prefers staves, I just find the more useful at bashing with than wands.

Before the others could react, Dumbledore clapped lightly and spoke" Very good Cole, almost on par with the second years wouldn't you say Minerva?"

"I wouldn't say that Albus, Cole, your a brilliant transmuter, but you must never do magic without a wand, it can have unfortunate side effects." These strange wizards, don't they recognise other spellcasters on this plane?

"Well, it seems our arrangement has been met, Cole, you may attend Hogwarts with the new second years if you like."

"Thank you Sir, you are most charitable, I would happily accept."

"Please Cole, headmaster or professor will do."

"I will be instructing you in transmutation." McGonagall said.

"And I the art of brewing, I shall also be taking you to buy school supplies tomorrow." Snape said

"Who will be teaching combat magic and conjuration" Cole asked excitedly.

"Professor Lockhart will be teaching defence against the dark arts," Dumbledore said,"as for conjuration, professor McGonagall will be teaching it in your sixth year."

"Why so late professor?" Cole asked bewildered by the strange wizards who had seemingly deemed it their job to rename every arcane terminology.

"It's a very difficult branch of transfiguration thus most of it is taught only to older students." Minerva said,"I will be instructing you on some basic conjuration this year, but nothing remarkable, only the conjuration of water and birds."

"Professor, what about pure summoning." Cole asked.

"Oh heavens no child, that is much too hard for school."

Cole was getting suspicious of these 'wizards' they seem too strange to be waved away as eccentric, on a hunch Cole reached out to his inner magic, a secret taught only to arcanists. He strained as an octagonal summoning circle appeared on the floor and from it flew a pseudodragon, a cat sized miniature dragon with fine lavender scales and curled horns.

If the boy's display of magic earlier could be described as brilliant, this summoning was godly. The teachers stood, absolutely entranced by the tiny dragon, just as quickly as it came it left when Cole snapped his fingers.

"That's fine professor, I study summoning well enough on my own." Cole said with a smile that would make a devil envious. It seems the rules of magic are different on this plane, I will need to find out what will surprise these 'wizards' and keep it secret, this plane may be friendly now but that could change in a heartbeat.

Afterword

Hello dear readers, I would like to thank you for reading this far writing this has been such fun, I would ask you to please leave a review. I'll try to update as frequently as possible but school exams are coming thus please be patient.

(1) Only common spells, thus no spatbook nonsense, this isn't Harry potter and the natural 20 and thus I will try to keep the pathfinder magic in check, but Cole needed a way to acquire other spells.

(2) Cole is a first generation emberkin, thus I have bumped up his longevity.

(3) Cole always casts in Celestial, because it's cool.

(4) For those wondering Cole is a level 5 peri arcanist with the occultist archetype, he will be taking all counterspell related exploits, for obvious reasons.

(5) I plan to follow the original story of the second book.

(6) I chose desperate weapon and refine improvised weapon because they most closely resemble transfiguration, and because I thought it was cool.