Admittedly, he was earlier than normal. He usually did manage a short nap before coming down after a nightmare or pain in his arm. Still, he expected the usual tableau of Harry sitting in one of the chairs staring at the fire. Which, he had to admit, was the case. However, what he hadn't expected to see, but did, was a head in the fireplace talking to Harry. A man's head, with short, dark hair, who looked sort of familiar. Severus mentally subtracted some thirty-years from the man's face, and added in the additional fact that he was talking to James Potter's son and reached a conclusion.

"Black!?"

The man looked alarmed. Harry turned briefly, to give Severus a smile and a nod, then spoke to the man. "Don't worry, Sirius, he won't tell anyone. Matty's trustworthy."

Severus came to sit next to Harry, his gaze never leaving the face of the grown man who used to be his yearmate. "Hi," Severus greeted him, any dislike he still harbored dimming in favor of talking to somebody who he knew.

"Harry," Sirius began, warningly.

"He's Dumbledore's nephew," Harry told him, and Severus frowned slightly. This was Black. Potter's best friend. Shouldn't Harry be spilling secrets? The older boy had made it virtually impossible for Severus to not tell Ron and Hermione. He hadn't expected anything different here. But Harry looked to be intentionally emphasizing Matty over Severus.

Taking his cue from Harry, Severus quickly reviewed his next words before speaking them, "Your godfather, right?" Harry had mentioned it once, Severus vaguely recalled. He could have just as easily been speaking to Matty. Severus wasn't even sure that it wasn't Matty who had been told.

Harry nodded. "Sirius, this is Matty Groves."

Severus inclined his head politely. "Pleasure to meet you, sir." Sir? Sirius Black? Ooh, that hurt. But he had to play to character. He didn't miss the quick, odd look Harry shot him, though. That was almost worth the indignity, and he took an extra effort to hold back the amused smirk that he wanted to shoot back.

Even Sirius lifted his brows in surprise at him. Speaking to Harry again, "I'm assuming you told him the truth, then?"

"He knows it was Pettigrew who betrayed my parents, not you," Harry told him, nodding, though Severus had known no such thing. Time to reconstruct history using puzzle pieces again. Pieces: Lily and James were married and had Harry. Lily and James died. Harry lived through an Avada Kedavra, taking out Voldemort by doing so. Black didn't betray the Potters. Pettigrew did. Conclusions: Voldemort attacked the Potters. Pettigrew sold them out. Black was blamed.

Black, betray James. To Voldemort. In Severus's opinion, it was completely incomprehensible. Nearly as incomprehesible as Peter doing so. Severus couldn't help it. "Peter?! Peter - little quiet Peter who cries when a teacher looks at him funny - that Peter killed James Bloody-I'm-a-Gryffindor Potter?"

Both Harry and Sirius were staring at him. Blast, that was most definately not a Matty thing to say. Harry sighed. "I already told you, my father's middle name was Harold."

Sirius's eyes were narrowed suspiciously.

Severus looked at Harry. "He doesn't know about what happened, does he?"

"If he does, Professor Lupin told him, because I didn't."

A low growl came from the occupied fireplace, and Severus turned to look at Black, an innocent expression on his face. Sirius appeared more than a little annoyed already, and was watching Severus distrustfully. Severus smiled, trying to keep his evil thoughts from his face. "Did you hear about what happened to that poor sod Snape?"

Black's already narrowed eyes turned to slits, the growl repeated. Severus tentatively translated this to mean 'no.' "Turns out he was a Death Eater spy. What's-His-Name -"

"You-Know-Who," Harry corrected.

"You-Know-Who," Severus repeated, continuing his narrative as if he hadn't made a mistake, "found out and made him take an experimental potion. Bloody wretched thing." Severus held his hand level, palm down, even with the top of his head. "Transformed the guy." He began lowering his hand; as it descended, he appeared as Severus above the hand and Matty below. "Took away all his memories back twenty-seven years. Marked him again. Looks like a ten-year old." The hand reached the bottom of his chin, and he made a curt wave, turning the skin on his neck and below back to its normal color and losing the freckles. "Thinks he's twelve now. Real pity. I hear he was good at potions, though he evidently wasn't a very good or nice teacher. The kid's a real prat, too. A Death Eater in truth. Doesn't much care for Harry, here, but he really hates Ron and Matty Groves."

Severus returned his hand to the top of his head and repeated the procedure, turning back into Matty. "Matty's a nice boy. Third year. Dumbledore's nephew who transferred from Beauxbatons after his parents were killed in a Death Eater attack. Sorted into Gryffindor like the rest of his family, and adopted Harry, Ron, and Hermione as his big brothers and sister. Adopted in truth and legality by Albus Dumbledore himself." His hand reached the bottom of his chin again, a flick of the wrist later and the pale skin darkened slightly and developed freckles in the same places as before. "Snape claims not to have killed my parents, but the rumour was started by an auror, so most everyone believes it. Evil Slytherin sod. You can't believe a word he says." He paused a moment, then smiled brightly, in true Matty fashion. "Hi, I'm Matty Groves."

Severus smirked at the dumbfounded expressions he had generated from both his listeners. Getting that reaction from Harry was fun, but from adult Sirius? Priceless.

"That was really freaky, Sev," Harry said, breaking the silence first.

Severus's already smug smirk got worse. "Good, that's what I was going for."

Severus glanced aside to check on Sirius's response, but the fire was empty. He frowned, puzzled. Then the flames leapt with green, and a very grown-up, and consequently much taller, Sirius Black flew into the room, grabbed Harry, pulling the other boy off his chair and behind the man. Severus stared up at him, too startled, to move, and his eyes widened in worried surprise as he saw that Black had his wand drawn on him. "Sirius!" Harry protested. Severus looked past the threatening form of Black to see Harry sprawled out on the floor of the Common Room.

"You okay there, Harry?" Severus asked, appearing to ignore Black, to annoy him, not because he had dismissed his former year-mate as a threat. He most certainly had done no such thing. He was very much aware of every movement Black made. He was also being very careful not to make any sudden movements himself.

"Fine," Harry assured him. "Sirius, what do you think you're doing? You're supposed to be in hiding!"

Sirius didn't seem to hear him. The man's eyes never left Severus, and the second-year was started to get a creepy feeling inside. That wasn't just dislike in those brown eyes. That was fear and real hatred. Not disgust and mild hate like Fletcher's, but real, powerful hatred. Aimed at him. Severus pressed back into his chair's cushions, hoping he didn't look as intimidated as he felt. He didn't even hate Voldemort that much. Severus met Black's eyes, practicing hiding his fear.

"Snape," Sirius growled, still pointing his wand at Severus's forehead.

Severus waved his hand over his face again, turning back into Severus again. "That's me," he agreed, faking ease and facetiousness. He could only hope Black and Harry couldn't hear his heart pounding.

Black flicked his wand even before Severus had finished talking, and spoke a hex that Severus knew would bind him. He yelped, and launched himself out of the chair, narrowly avoiding the spell. "What was that for?!" he cried, rolling to his feet and drawing his own wand defensively. Harry had drawn his as well, and moved to stand between them, glaring at Black.

"Move Harry, that creature's dangerous."

"To you, maybe," Severus retorted, getting angry now.

"Sev, don't bait him," Harry warned.

"Bait him! He started it!" Severus protested his innocence, pointing left-handed at Black, and lowering his wand as he did so.

That could have been a fatal mistake if Harry hadn't been standing between them, forcing Black to sidestep to get a shot at him. By the time he had, Severus had his wand back up, and was crouched, ready to jump in any direction.

"Sirius! Stop this right now! What's gotten into you?"

"You saw what he did!" Black exclaimed, pointing his wand at Severus, who retreated a step.

"Put your wands away, both of you. What did he do, Sirius?" Severus didn't mind that Harry seemed to focusing mostly on Sirius. The fellow was clearly a deranged madman who obviously needed calming and humouring. He slowly put his own wand away, trusting Harry to defend him, and hoping it would made Black a little less antagonistic.

"That abomination," Black gestured with the wand again. Harry stepped forward, and neatly picked the length of wood right out of his hand. Severus silently cheered him, but outwardly just watched warily. Black hardly seemed to notice his disarming, as he glared hatefully at Severus, "is dangerous and likely not even human anymore."

Severus frowned in confusion. Of all the accusations he expected, that one wasn't even in the top twenty. "What?" Did he mean the Dark Mark? Admittedly, Death Eaters were frightening and awful people, but they were still human. If he'd met Nott in any other circumstances, he'd've probably liked the guy.

"What are you on about, Sirius? I know you didn't like him, but this is crazy."

"Hasn't anything to do with school," Black disagreed, his eyes never leaving Severus's, and for the first time, Severus realized that what lurked there held as much fear and terror of him as it did hatred. Severus cocked his head and narrowed his eyes speculatively, anger dissipating under this new discovery.

"Then what is it? Sirius, it's like he's only twelve again." Severus nodded, trying to look innocent and twelve. Kind of hard, when he knew he looked ten.

"That ain't no twelve year old," Sirius growled. Of course Black wouldn't go for it. He knew Severus when he really was twelve. He knew that he looked younger. Blast. He was about to try to explain about his ten-year-old appearance, when Black continued, "Ain't no twelve year old who can do wandless magic."

Severus blinked. Wandless magic? He hadn't done any wandless magic. He hadn't done any magic at all. He'd only drawn his wand when he'd been threatened, but he hadn't even used it. Harry was looking at him oddly, too. Not suspiciously like Black, but definitely more warily than he had been. "When?" Severus asked, trying to figure out what they were talking about.

"Changing your face, Sev," Harry said carefully. He looked like he thought he was dealing with two very volatile rabid dogs.

"Changing my face," Severus repeated, going back over the last few minutes. Right. He'd forgotten he'd switched back and forth between Matty and Severus a couple times. "I used a wand for that." They continued to just look at him, and doubt crept over him. "Didn't I?"

Harry shook his head.

"I didn't use a wand." Though the sentence passed itself off as a statement, the uncertain look on his face gave away his doubt.

Harry nodded.

"I'm still magically thirty-nine. Professor Snape must've done it enough to become habit."

"Well, he didn't think highly of wand-waving," Harry said, dubiously.

Severus heard him as background noise. He was too busy trying to remember actually casting wandless magic. It wasn't until he reviewed, for the the third time, his dramatic history of Matty and Severus in front of Black's head that he realized why he was having such difficulty with it. He hadn't noticed before because he hadn't noticed he was casting anything. He'd just kept up his narrative, without a wand, and used only gestures in place of spell words. "I can do wandless magic," he said, still sounding stunned, interrupting something that Harry was saying about the Professor.

When both Black and Harry were looking at him again, he broke into a smile, and repeated more excitedly, "I can do wandless magic!" Then, just because he could, he turned into Matty again. Wandlessly. "This is so bloody brilliant!" He pointed at an unlit torch and it burst into flame. He turned toward Harry, grinning widely, his green-blue eyes alight. He felt like Christmas had come months early. "Need to tell Uncle Albus!"

Harry laughed, and caught him before he could fly out of the room. "In the morning, Sev. This news will keep."

"But," Severus began, then conceded that, wonderful as his ability was, and as urgently as he wished to tell his . . . headmaster . . . about it, it probably wasn't worth a detention should Filch catch him coming or going. "Alright. Morning." Harry smiled approvingly, and let go of his nightshirt. "First thing, before the sun comes up," Severus qualified. He was sure he'd never be able to sleep tonight, anyway.

Black was staring at him as though he'd suddenly sprouted wings and breathed fire. Or perhaps as if he had drunk an experimental potion, lost twenty-seven years of memory and mental age, twenty-nine years in physical age, and then changed his appearance using wandless magic. Feeling too pleased with himself to continue the feud with Harry's godfather, he stuck his hand out toward Black, "Hi, I'm Harry's friend, Matty."

"Matty," Black repeated, almost blankly.

Severus nodded, grinning, "Yeah. Matty Groves. I'm a third year Gryffindor, Sorted by the Hat itself. Pretty embarassing, given my alter-ego."

"You're a Gryffindor." Stunned, no emphasis. Just parroting back Severus's words.

Severus nodded, his green-blue eyes dancing merrily. Harry grinned, too, silently laughing at Black's dumbfounded expression. "Got five points to Gryffindor yesterday for answering a question right in Herbology," Severus added smugly.

"You are a Gryffindor." Disbelief now.

"Made Snape lose twenty points from Slytherin today, too," Severus told him proudly. "And me and Ron'll get him good tomorrow, too. We'll make it look like his fault, too. Got my inspiration from you, of course." Flattery, for Sirius Black. Not only Father is spinning for this, but Professor Snape'll probably scream if and when he ever comes back. Well, that's the Professor's problem. Severus just wanted Harry's godfather to not spill his secret. If fighting the uphill battle of getting the Gryffindor to like him was the best way to assure that, then desperate measures must be taken.

"You're a Gryffindor?" Continued disbelief.

"It's really quite fun, plotting the loss of Slytherin points. We'll probably branch into Malfoy baiting if it gets too boring only picking on Snape. After all, we know how Severus will react."

"You are a Gryffindor." Slow acceptance, but still doubtful.

Severus grinned. "Yep. That's me. Matty the Reckless Hero Groves, Great Nephew to Albus Dumbledore, and Taker of Arithmancy and Muggle Studies."

Harry nudged him in the arm and stage whispered, "Arithmancy is a stereotypical Ravenclaw class, not Gryffindor."

Severus stage whispered back, "Well, I was trying not to insult Gryffindor by bringing up Divination."

At that, both Harry and Black started laughing.