Coming awake as a jolt of magic pierced his core consciousness he opened his eyes to darkness and wondered where in blazes he was. The last thing that came to mind was moving a copy of his consciousness and memories into the- right. It seemed the spell had worked as intended. This version of himself was not the actual man but a copy. With that thought in mind he felt a sense of urgency befall him. There were only two ways to awaken the spell. One of them more dire than the other.
Appearing as no more than a wraith he glanced down at himself for a moment. Unlike a ghost he actually had color, though he was still partially see through. Striding toward where he could feel an echo of magic he passed through a wall into a large cavern. The first thing he laid eyes upon were two children. One was covered in blood and the other looked barely conscious. "What is going on here?" Unfortunately his regal and commanding tone seemed to have startled them as they both jumped and stared at him with wide eyes. The young lady clung to the boy weakly and he frowned. With quick steps he fell to a knee in front of them, hand outstretched as he performed a silent diagnostic spell over the both of them. "Is that your blood?" His tone must have been more abrupt than they were used to because the boy tightened his grip on the foci in his hand. Giving a judgmental sniff at the stick he wondered how old the children were if they had yet to move on from needing a tool to access their magic. True magic users had no need for such things, in most cases at least.
"N-no it's not. Well… actually… kind of." The boy looked down at his robes and grimaced. "Some of it is mine and some of it was from the basilisk." Head snapping upward he stared at the child, aghast. "Scerina's?" The children looked at him strangely as he stood and looked toward the giant figure of the snake. Now that his focus was not solely on the safety of the children he could feel the sore lack of the basilisk's presence. "I-I had to kill her." Blinking down at the boy he tried to remain calm but found it quite difficult to do so. "By the Gods, child- why?" The boy was taken aback by his tone but recovered quickly, thrusting out his jaw stubbornly. "She was attacking the students!" The words of the boy made his non-existent blood run cold. "Impossible, Scerina is one of the guardians of Hogwarts. She is here to protect the school from invaders!"
Pointing toward something just behind him the boy continued to speak. "There was a boy named Tom. He… he put part of himself into a book. He said he was a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, and was giving the snake orders to hurt people." Turning he saw the mess immediately. There was a destroyed book sitting in a puddle of ink. This was not how he had imagined waking up. If he'd had a proper body he would have been nursing a headache.
Just as he was wondering what to do with the book the redheaded girl tugged on the boy's robes. "H-Harry? Wh-what is he saying?" The boy blinked his green eyes down at her, momentarily confused. "What do you mean, Ginny?" She licked her dry, cracked, lips. "Y-you're speaking Parseltongue." The child's green eyes widened and his face paled slightly. An interesting reaction. The boy looked him in the eyes, silently asking if it was true. "Yes, child. We were speaking the tongue of the serpents. I beg your pardon, I did not mean to alarm you." Standing he stood back from the children, feeling that they were perhaps a little overwhelmed by his presence. Looking around at the cavern he frowned at the sight of the strange giant statue. It appeared that many things had changed from his time.
A beautiful song reached his ears and he looked up toward the ceiling of the cavern, smiling as he recognized the form of a Phoenix. "Fawkes?" The boy asked the immortal creature as he flew down to them. "Is that what they are calling you now, old friend?" Ignis, as he had once been called, trilled in happiness at their reunion as he flew tight circles around him. Once upon a time they had been good friends. No doubt his friend was filled with joy to see him again.
As he was busy watching the antics of the immortal the children got themselves into order. "Um, sir?" Turning back to the boy he followed his eyes and took note of what had disconcerted him so. "I am a spectre, child. I cannot hurt you." The boy nibbled on his bottom lip as he tucked the half destroyed book under an arm. The redhead held his hand tightly, half hiding behind him. "We have to go help my friends. My best mate, Ron, he's Ginny's brother. He's trapped in a cave-in." That wasn't good at all. "Did you come down here with anyone else?" It was concerning that a group of young children had come into danger so recklessly. "Well… there was the Defense Professor."
"Ah, someone competent indeed.I can leave you in goo-" The next words from the boy's mouth made him freeze. "Actually he's a fake." The boy's green eyes turned thunderous. "He tried to Obliviate me and my friend." That was not a spell he had heard before. "Obliviate?" The boy's brows furrowed and his frown deepened. "It's a spell that makes you forget things." Immediately he stood straighter, cold anger taking hold of him. "Who in their right mind came up with a spell like that? To rob someone of their memories is to compromise the core of their very being!" The boy nodded, his shoulders a little less tense.
"We should go." Leading the redheaded girl toward the end of the cavern he tried to keep his body between him and the strange adult. A small smile crossed his face as he caught up to them.
Walking beside the boy, on the side away from the little girl, he looked at them in confusion. "Why are you heading in this direction?" The girl looked between them, content to let the boy speak on her behalf. Perhaps she was feeling weak still? Or maybe she was just shy. Children could be like that sometimes. "This is where we came in. The entrance." A scoff left him. "The entrance is in the opposite direction. This is an escape tunnel leading to the armory." The two children looked up at him skeptically. "It leads to a girls bathroom." Mumbled the girl.
"How would you know?" The boy asked him, tone wary and eyes guarded. That was quite a rude way for a child to speak to their betters. What had happened to proper etiquette? "I built this place." The children froze in place, faces draining of color and eyes filled with fear. Stopping next to them he wondered what had them so spooked. "Wh-who are you?" He wasn't sure he liked that stutter or the way they were watching him, like he was a predator. Not one bit. "I am Salazar Slytherin, one of the founders of Hogwarts. Surely you have heard of me?"
The boy swallowed hard, his hands tightening around the book and the little girl's hand. "R-right, okay." It was almost as if they didn't believe him.
An uncomfortable and impenetrable silence fell upon them after that. The boy's pace had quickened, almost as if he were trying to get away. They crossed over the threshold and he tried to follow, only to find he couldn't. How could he have forgotten about the boundary? "I cannot go any further, children. Please be safe. Do come back, however, please try to use the main entrance this time." He called after them, his form flickering in and out of existence as he stood at the borderline. As they disappeared down a dark tunnel, practically running from him, he cursed under his breath. What had happened during all the years he'd been asleep?
Looking back at the statue of a wizened looking wizard he frowned. "What did you do?" He asked aloud before his form dematerialized.