Chapter 1: The Chai That Opened a Portal
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It started, like all great Indian tales, with a cup of chai.
Aarav was sitting on the terrace of his uncle's farmhouse near Nashik, legs crossed, hoodie up, and a warm cutting chai in his hand. It was sunset, and the breeze carried the scent of lemongrass, dust, and nearby pakoras. The sky was glowing gold. He wasn't meditating. He wasn't chanting. He was just... vibing.
He took a sip of his chai and muttered, "Ah, this is life."
And that's when the universe blinked.
Literally blinked. Like someone took a cosmic remote and hit the "pause" button on reality. The birds froze mid-air. The steam from his cup hovered like a paused YouTube video. Aarav looked around, raised one eyebrow, and said, "Bhai… yeh kya MetaVerse chal raha hai?"
Suddenly, in front of him, a giant golden lotus bloomed in midair. It floated just above his mom's drying laundry. A dazzling light burst from the center, and out stepped… a cosmic delivery man?
No, wait — it was a celestial being dressed like an Indian sadhu, but with Bluetooth earphones and Air Jordans.
"Hello, Aarav," the being said, "You have unlocked all divine frequencies through your chilled-out vibes. Congratulations. You now possess the powers of all Indian gods."
Aarav blinked. "Sorry, what? I just drank chai. What divine frequency?"
"You didn't try to become powerful. That's why you are now the most powerful. You are chosen."
"But… I don't want to do anything. I just wanted pakoras."
"Exactly."
And then the lotus pulsed once, twice — and exploded in a burst of sanskrit-coded stardust. The world snapped back into motion. Birds flew, time resumed, and the chai had gotten slightly cold. Aarav sipped it again.
Suddenly, a spiraling golden vortex opened beside his beanbag. The center showed a tall castle, glowing with candlelight and floating staircases. Owls flew past it. There were kids with wands.
He recognized it instantly.
Hogwarts.
"Oi, this looks familiar..." Aarav said, sipping again.
"Wait—is that the Harry Potter world?"
The voice of the cosmic sadhu echoed again:
> "Go. Explore. Or don't. You're free. But the portal will follow your vibe."
Aarav shrugged.
"Eh, why not. Nothing good on Netflix anyway."
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⚡️Cut to: A Ripple in Hogwarts Airspace
Somewhere in Scotland, inside a post-Voldemort era Hogwarts, the magic sensors in the Headmistress's office started buzzing.
Minerva McGonagall (still sharp, still sassy, now with silver highlights) looked at her old friend Professor Flitwick, now balder and grumpier.
"Something's… wrong," she muttered.
"Wrong?" Flitwick squeaked. "More wrong than Peeves replacing all the ink bottles with butterbeer yesterday?"
"No," McGonagall said slowly. "Something powerful has entered this realm. But it doesn't feel dangerous…"
At that very moment, in the middle of the Black Lake, a glowing shape appeared on the surface. The merpeople screamed. The giant squid hiccupped and sank deeper.
From the light, Aarav stepped out.
Still in his hoodie.
Still sipping his now perfectly warm chai.
He stood on water.
Looked around. "Whoa. Real 4K."
A raven flew overhead. It tried to caw at him but ended up chanting a mantra.
Aarav noticed the castle in the distance. "Ah, the school from the movies. Neat."
And then casually, he took one step forward — and the water turned into lotus leaves underneath him.
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🧙♂️ Inside Hogwarts: Chaos Breaks Out
The portrait of Dumbledore yawned awake. His eyes widened.
"He's here," he whispered.
"Who?" asked a nearby knight painting.
"The one who doesn't try… and therefore is more powerful than all of us combined."
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🏰 Castle Gates — The Arrival
Hagrid was the first to spot him. The half-giant had come out to feed the Thestrals when he saw a boy floating down a hill, sipping chai and waving at the birds.
"Oi—hello there! You alright?" Hagrid called.
Aarav waved. "Hi! Nice beard!"
Hagrid blinked. "Well, thank yeh. Uh, are yeh lost? Are yeh... magical?"
"I guess?" Aarav said, looking at the trees, "I just sort of... ended up here."
The sky crackled briefly as a storm cloud appeared, formed the shape of Shiva doing tandav, and then vanished.
Hagrid clutched his umbrella-sword. "Oh blimey…"
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🪄 Inside the Great Hall
McGonagall, Flitwick, and the new professors gathered as Aarav entered the Great Hall. The enchanted ceiling flickered, confused by his aura. The Sorting Hat, sitting on a stool, twitched.
"Where did you say you came from?" she asked him gently.
"Nashik. You ever had misal pav?"
"I—no."
"Tragic."
Before she could respond, the Sorting Hat leapt off the stool, floated in the air and shouted in panic:
> "I CAN'T SORT HIM! HE'S TOO OP! HE'S ALL HOUSES—AND ALSO A COSMIC ENERGY FIELD!"
And then it self-combusted into flowers.
Aarav stood there, sipping chai again. "Uh… do I still get a dorm?"
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🧃 Later That Evening…
The castle adjusted itself. Literally. A new corridor appeared on the seventh floor: carpeted in rangoli, walls lined with incense, and ceiling fans even though there's no electricity.
A portrait of Goddess Saraswati smiled serenely on one wall. The house-elves bowed each time he passed.
Aarav plopped onto his magically summoned floor mattress and pulled out his phone.
No Wi-Fi. But cosmic 6G worked.
He opened YouTube.
"Let's see if Hogwarts has good food vlogs."
Outside, owls flew in confused spirals, ghosts sang bhajans, and the staircase to the Divination Tower started doing garba.
Aarav didn't care. He had his chai.
He was vibing.
And this was just day one.
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