Severus stared at his mother as the new information settled into his brain. Everything was so unbelievable, it seemed near impossible to sort out. Only one thought made its self clear enough to say. "Then... How do you fix things?" The question was the most unanswered in the swirl of an answer. Mother smiled as though she had expected it. It wasn't remotely uncommon for a lamp, a chair, a dish, or something else to be broken in one of his mother's rages.

In answer she picked up her empty soup bowl and held it up high. Then she let go. Severus watched it fall and smash on the floor. In his opinion it had been an unattractive and thin china bowl, but it was undeserving of being smashed. "Wave your hand over it." Mother said, gesturing at the broken bowl.

Severus looked at the shards of ceramic, and then at his mother. "But I do not know the spell..." He began, unsure of hat incantation to say. He was far better with potions. "I did not say repair it, I said wave your hand over it." Mother said sweetly, but in a firm tone. Severus did as he was told and to his astonishment the pieces of bowl flung themselves back together.

She smiled at his shocked look. "You see, everything in this house has been enchanted to seem as though the user is magical. How could I claim to be a pure blood witch and not be able to fix a bowl? When tapped on the end our spoons stir tea by themselves, and if you twist the handle even the brooms will sweep the floor on their own. All of this was set up by your father to keep us safe if anyone ever came looking around." Mother's smile was strangely calm.

Suddenly she seemed to have reached her limit for talking. "Goodnight, have a nice birthday dinner at your friends tomorrow." With that she stood and wandered to bed. The only sensible answer was that mother had finally lost her mind. Nothing else would make sense. Severus had almost convinced himself that this had all been one of her alcohol induced rantings when he noticed a strange letter on the table with his name on it.

It was his invitation to Hogwarts. Everything mother said had been true. He felt almost numb with the overwhelming flood of emotions he was ignoring. Instead of caving to the madness of the evening, he rose from his chair and went to the basement. The basement, where this could all seem more like a strange dream. As he moved down the familiar steps, cold metal brushed his fingertips in his pocket. The mirror!

Severus hastily ran down the stairs and pulled the mirror from his robes. The person in the mirror looked disheveled and irritable. He was pacing and gave Severus an expectant look. Severus took in a breath, fully prepared to say 'I name you Mirror!' when the boy waved his hands in warning and shook his head. "Can you read my thoughts?" Severus asked, taken aback. The blond boy nodded and seemed to think for a moment.

With a look of pleasant surprise the boy put his hand to the glass that separated then and began drawing symbols. He seemed to draw a pattern, then stop. Pause, and repeat the pattern. Severus watched him go through the run a number of times before he got the idea to copy the mirror's writing with his own hand. The boy was writing 'My name is Lethe.' Severus stared at his own writing. "That's your name?" He asked. The boy nodded his head in delight.

He shrugged his shoulders and in the most serious way possible he held the mirror up and proclaimed "I name you Lethe." The mirror flashed bright white again, and a strange melody could be heard... A melody that Severus swore he had heard some where before. It slipped away before he could fully recall it. "Thank you, my master!" The boy in the mirror said overflowing with gratitude. Severus blinked. Master? He smiled at the mirror's happiness. "I like the name Lethe." Severus said, not sure how exactly to address a mirror.

"As do I." Responded the mirror. "Would you like to see your past?" The mirror asked, excited to use its power for the first time. Severus thought for a moment and responded. "I don't believe there is much in my past for you to show me. Or at least nothing of interest. What about Dog? Can you show me Dog's past?" Severus asked. Watching a replay of his mother hitting him was not how he wanted to spend his first birthday ever.

"Show me the face of Dog and I will show you the hidden past within." The mirror bowed slightly, feigning seriousness. Severus turned the mirror to Dog, and Dog jumped away. "Its only a mirror you silly creature" Severus laughed, and when mirror had reflected the face of the dog it flashed once. Severus turned the mirror so that he could watch what played out. Dog crept up beside him, still cowering slightly, and the glass faded to black.