Disclaimer: All recognizable characters and settings belong to J.K. Rowling.
A/N – Warning for Corporal Punishment scene. If this will upset you in any way, please skip this chapter.
"There has to be something fun we can do," Enzo said as he, Cassius, and Jason sat in the Slytherin common room. They had finished their assignments for the weekend.
"Exploding Snap?" Jason suggested.
"Nah," Enzo sighed.
"Chess?" Cassius offered. He had been getting better since playing with Draco.
"No," Enzo leaned back on the sofa. "Something new."
Cassius tried to think of something. He would suggest flying but he hadn't been cleared yet. He and Ron used to explore the castle when they were bored but he didn't have his cloak. Unless... "You know, the previous years I used to sneak around the castle with Ron. If we were bored or sometimes I would just go when I couldn't sleep. We would explore the secret passageways."
"What secret passageways? Here, in the castle?" Jason asked, looking interested.
Cassius nodded. "Yeah, and one in particular...we could go to Honeydukes." he said suddenly.
"Are you mental?" Jason snorted. "Like they're going to let three second years walk to Hogsmeade."
"They won't know," Cassius said smugly. "One of the secret passageways leads to the Honeydukes cellar."
"Are you serious?" Enzo sat up excitedly.
Cassius nodded. "I also have a map that shows where everyone is in the castle. That way we can make sure no one is around the statue when we use it."
"Which statue?"
"The One-Eyed Witch statue by the Defence classroom," Cassius answered.
"I don't know..." Jason said hesitantly.
"Oh, come on. We'll go, buy some sweets, and come straight back," Enzo urged.
Jason broke into a smile. "Okay. Let's do it!"
"I'll go get the map," Cassius said, ignoring the fact that he was not to walk through the halls without an escort. Thankfully, no one noticed as Cassius left to go to his quarters and grab the Marauders Map. He used it to get back to the common without being noticed by any professors or upper years. "Come on," he whispered to his friends.
The trio made their way to the one-eyed witch. Cassius took his wand and tapped the witch's hump. "Dissendium."
"Wicked!" Enzo breathed as the passageway revealed itself.
"Let's go!" Cassius cast a Lumos so that they could see in the dark tunnel.
"This is so brilliant!" Jason said as they walked. "We can get sweets anytime we want! We don't have to wait until next year for Hogsmeade trips."
"You can't tell anyone about it," Cassius warned. "The less that know, the better."
"We won't," Enzo promised. "It wouldn't be as brilliant if everyone knew about it."
Almost an hour later they reached a large stone staircase. "Be careful when we climb up, there's a trap-door that leads to the cellar," Cassius told his friends as he lead them up the stairs. He carefully opened the trap-door and climb out of the passageway. Inside the cellar there were wooden crates and boxes and a large wooden staircase. The three pre-teens headed up and carefully opened the door that led to the store. Once sure that no one was looking their way, they slipped inside the store.
"We did it!" Enzo grinned as he surveyed the many shelves of practically every sweet imaginable.
"Come on, we shouldn't stay too long," Jason said as he hurried over to where the toffee was.
Enzo made a beeline for the barrel of Every Flavour Beans and Cassius headed over to the Treacle Fudge. He also grabbed some Chocoballs and some sugar quills for Draco. He figured he could just tell his brother that he had asked a upper year to get them for him during the next Hogsmeade trip. After filling their arms with treats, the boys stood in line to pay for them. Cassius was glancing around as they waited and his gaze swept past the window. He froze. Rita Skeeter was staring at him with a gleeful expression.
"Oh no! We have to go!" Cassius said, dumping his sweets on the counter.
"We haven't paid yet!" Enzo protested.
"We've been seen!" Cassius hissed, his eyes on Skeeter as she made her way to the door. "Come on!"
"Mr. Malfoy! A few words please!" Skeeter called as she entered the store, her photographer with her.
The three boys ran to the back of the store and Cassius was glad the store was busy, Skeeter wouldn't be able to find them as easily. They slipped into the cellar and pulled open the trap-door. They slipped inside, shut the door and waited, breathing heavily. After several minutes, Cassius relaxed. If someone had seen them, they would have opened the trap-door to follow them. "That was close."
"Who saw us?" Enzo asked.
"Rita Skeeter," Cassius said. "She wants to do an interview with me. And now that she saw me..."
"What?" Jason asked.
"She'll write about seeing us in there," Cassius realized with a sinking heart. "I know she will."
"Then the Headmistress will know we snuck out," Jason said with wide eyes. "And Professor Snape -"
"Will turn us into potion ingredients," Enzo paled. "We're done for."
"Draco's going to kill me," Cassius shut his eyes. How could he have been so stupid? His brother was going to be so mad and... I probably won't be able to sit for week, he thought with a wince. Sneaking out of the castle was definitely putting his life in danger. There was no doubt in his mind that Skeeter would write about him so the only thing he could do was come clean to Draco and hope that lessened his punishment. "I'm going to have to tell."
"What? Why?" Enzo panicked.
"Because everyone is going to find out anyway," Jason said with a resigned voice as they made their way back to the castle.
"Maybe she won't write about it," Enzo said hopefully.
"She will." Cassius said with certainty. "It will be better if we tell." He glanced back at his friends. "I'm really sorry."
"It's not your fault, we wanted to go," Jason said. "We knew we could get caught."
"Yeah, this is on all of us," Enzo sighed. "Merlin, I hope they don't write to our parents. My dad will probably floo here to punish me."
"Mine too. Actually, both my parents. My mum will want to lecture me and then when she is done, my dad will smack me." Jason said glumly.
Cassius glanced at them. So they got punished that way too? Huh. They made it back to the castle and using the map, made their way to their common room. Cassius put the map into his pocket right as Draco walked in.
"Ready to go, Cass?"
"Yeah," Cassius looked back at his friends.
"Good luck." Enzo said sympathetically.
/
Cassius waited an hour to tell his brother, trying to get up the courage to come clean. Finally, he approached his brother slowly, feeling so nervous and guilty he was surprised that Draco couldn't hear his heart pounding. "Draco?"
"Hmm?" Draco looked up from his Charms textbook. "Is something wrong?" he asked with concern, noticing how anxious his brother looked.
"I -" Cassius swallowed. "I did something. Something bad." He twisted the end of his shirt in his hands, averting his eyes from his brother.
Draco closed his book. "Okay. What did you do?" he asked, keeping his tone calm. By the way Cass was acting, he wasn't going to like what he heard.
"Please don't be mad," Cassius pleaded.
Draco reached out and pulled his brother closer. "Just tell me, cub," he encouraged.
Cassius relaxed slightly at the nickname. "I sort of...snuck out of the castle."
Draco froze. "What?"
"I, uh, see Enzo and Jason and I were kind of bored and I mentioned how I used to sneak around when I was bored or couldn't sleep and that sometimes I would check out the secret passageways." Cassius said really fast before he lost his nerve. "They wanted to know about the secret passageways and I told them about the one that lead to Honeydukes so we -"
"You snuck out to Honeydukes?" Draco stood up, looming over his brother with a fierce glare on his face.
"We, uh, just wanted to buy a few sweets," Cassius said, taking a step back. "But then -"
"Then what?" Draco took hold of him by his shoulders, his furious eyes staring into his brother's guilty ones.
"Um, Rita Skeeter walked by the window and saw me. She ran in trying to interview me and get a photo...we ran back to the passageway but she may write a article about seeing me there," Cassius gulped at the angry look in Draco's eyes.
"Do you have any idea how dangerous that was? There are still death eaters loose!" Draco snapped. "What did I tell you before? That you were not to go anywhere or leave the castle without me. What part of that did you not understand?"
"I just...they wanted to see and I've done it before," Cassius said weakly.
"I don't care if you have done it before!" Draco snapped. "You are twelve years old and have no business sneaking out of the castle! Something could have happened to you and I wouldn't even have known where you were!" He stalked to the other side of the room, needing to move. He paced back and forth. "Of all the foolish, immature, utterly reckless things to do!" He paused. "Is this the way you got into Hogsmeade my third year?" he asked suspiciously.
"Yeah," Cassius admitted. "I'd used the map -"
"What map?"
"The Marauders Map," Cassius said. "James Potter, Sirius, Remus and Pettigrew created it when they were in school. It shows where everyone is in the castle and all the secret passageways."
"Where is this map now?"
"My room," Cassius said.
"Give it to me."
"No!" Cassius protested. "It's mine!" Well, really it should be Remus's since he was the last of the Marauders but Cassius didn't want to give it up.
"Accio Marauders Map!" Draco caught the parchment as it flew into his hand. He glanced at it. "There's nothing on here. How does it work?"
Cassius lifted his chin. "I'm not telling."
"You really are in rare form today," Draco stared at him. "You sneak out of the castle, put yourself in danger and now are giving me defiance. Very well. Professor Lupin will tell me how to use it." He summoned a armless chair and sat down. "Come here."
Cassius paled slightly. "No, don't," he pleaded.
Draco shook his head. "You knew your backside would be in trouble if you disobeyed me. You put yourself in danger, Cass. I will not tolerate that. You knew better. Now, come here."
Cassius dragged his feet to his brother, already feeling like he was going to cry. He didn't want a spanking! "But I told you what I did," he pointed out in a last ditch effort to get out of trouble. "I came clean on my own."
"I appreciate that," Draco said, taking hold of Cassius's arm. "Of course, you only came clean because an article of your exploits may be in the papers tomorrow. If she hadn't seen you, would you have told me what you did?"
Cassius avoided his brother's eyes. Well, no. He probably wouldn't have, even though he really did feel guilty.
"Yeah, I thought so," Draco sighed. "Cass, I'm really disappointed in you."
"Don't say that," Cassius whispered, tears filling his eyes. "I'm sorry."
"Hmm," Was all Draco said before guiding him over his lap. To Cassius's shock and mortification, Draco lowered his trousers and pants. Without another word, Draco raised his hand and slapped it down on the pale backside. He spanked hard and fast and when Cassius's hand flew back to protect his behind, he silently grabbed it and held it place as he continued the punishment. His swats covered the entire backside and included the back of Cassius's thighs.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Cassius was crying hard, his feet kicking as the smacks fell. This was way worse than last time. "Draco, please!"
Draco paused, though he didn't let Cass up yet. The small backside was reddened and Draco knew it would be feeling quite sore for awhile. "You will not put yourself in danger, not for any reason. You deliberately disobeyed me Cass and I will not have it! I will not risk losing you, not again. I couldn't survive it. Don't you know how much you mean to me?"
Cassius felt even worse, which was quite a feat as his backside felt like it was on fire. "I'm sorry, Draco. I'm sorry I disobeyed," he cried out. "I don't want to disappoint you, I'm sorry!"
"I know, cub," Draco said, rubbing circles on his back. "We're almost done here, okay?"
There was more? Cassius burst into fresh tears, not wanting the smacking to continue.
"I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt here," Draco said, keeping his voice stern even though he hated making his brother cry. "You came clean with me so I'm not going to use a slipper on you. This time." With that, he raised his hand and aimed the next several sharp smacks on Cassius's sit spots.
"Ow, ow..." Cassius sobbed. He was sure he would never sit again. It took a moment before he realized that Draco wasn't spanking him anymore.
"Okay, it's over," Draco said softly. He gently raised Cassius's pants and trousers, mindful of his sore bottom. He helped Cass stand up and immediately wrapped his arms around him. "I love you, Cass. So much."
Cassius buried his face in Draco's neck, soaking up the comfort. "Do you forgive me?" He sniffled.
"Always," Draco said, running a hand up and down his brother's back soothingly. With a sigh, he gently pushed Cassius back. "But I'm serious, little brother. If something like this happens again..."
The slipper...Cassius shuddered at how much that would sting. He nodded, wiping the tears from his eyes. "It won't," he assured him. "I was just being stupid."
"Hey, no one calls my little brother stupid," Draco lightly admonished. "You made a bad judgment call but you're a kid. You'll learn."
"But I was an adult," Cassius sniffled. "Just recently, I was seventeen and dealt with Voldemort," he shuddered.
"You shouldn't have had to," Draco said, still angry at everything his brother had been through. "You were never allowed to just be a kid, Cass. And now you are. It's okay to just be a kid. That doesn't mean I don't want you making better decisions in the future," he warned lightly. "It just means if you start to fall too far, I'll be here to pull you back."
/
Cassius shifted uncomfortably in his chair as he worked on the lines Draco had given him. I will follow the rules put in place for my safety... he wrote again and again. He shifted again, his bottom still hurt!
"Cass, stop fidgeting," Draco said as he worked on homework. He glanced up and gave Cass a stern look.
"It hurts," Cassius whined. He was a little embarrassed to be complaining of a smacking, he had endured far worse with the in the past, with all his mishaps and being under the Cruciatus Curse. Merlin, even having to take Skele-Gro had been more painful. But still, the knowledge that his brother had been disappointed enough to spank him hurt way worse than any sore backside or curse could. Draco's disappointment was the worst punishment he could receive.
Draco sighed, a nagging feeling of guilt filling him. He hated being the source of Cass's pain. "Okay, stand up for a moment." He said after a moment.
Looking at his brother in confusion, Cassius obeyed. He beamed when Draco cast a cushioning charm on his chair. "Thanks, Dray!"
Draco gave a start. "Dray?"
"My nickname for you," Cassius grinned. His grin faded a little. "You know, like you have one for me. Is...is that okay?"
"It's fine," Draco shook his head with a smile on his face. Geez, this kid. Only his little brother would be able to get away with calling him Dray. I'm turning into such a softie, he thought ruefully.
"Dray? If you tap the parchment with your wand, say I solemnly swear I am up to no good. Then the map will show itself," Cassius said softly. "When you're done, say mischief managed."
Draco's eyes warmed. "Thank you, cub."
/
Later that evening, Snape flooed through just as Draco was coming out of Cassius's room.
"Is he asleep?" Snape asked.
"Yeah, I tucked him in and sat with him until he fell asleep," Draco dropped onto the sofa.
"He and his friends will need to face me tomorrow," Snape said as he settled into a chair.
"I figured," Draco said, looking weary.
"You punished him, I assume?" Snape asked after a moment.
"Yes. I gave him a pretty thorough smacking," Draco said a little guiltily. "Then I made him do lines."
"I would have done the same," Snape assured him. "I know discipline is difficult but it's what he needs from you, along with love, comfort and guidance. He's never really had anyone to hold him accountable for his rash actions before."
"I know, but I hated it," Draco said glumly. "I hate seeing him cry and knowing I was making him cry, it just gutted me."
"You're a good brother and guardian, Draco," Snape said. "Cassius is lucky to have you. Was he angry?"
"No, he just kept apologizing."
Snape nodded in approval. "He's a good boy. He just needs to curb that impulsiveness."
They ended up falling into a discussion about the latest article in the potions journal when Cassius shuffled into the room, rubbing his eyes tiredly.
"Cass?" Draco stood up.
"Can I have some water?"
"Of course," Draco murmured, heading to the kitchen.
Cassius noticed Snape and froze, looking at the man warily.
Snape eyed him and then crooked his finger.
Cassius went to him slowly. "Hi Uncle Sev." he said quietly.
"Hello young man," Snape said. "You should be sleeping."
"I'm thirsty," Cassius yawned. "Are you mad at me?"
"A little," Snape admitted. "But only because I'm worried about what could have happened to you. There will be consequences for you and your friends."
"Yeah," Cassius looked down.
Snape sighed and pulled his godson in for a hug. "I'm just glad nothing happened to you when you left the castle."
"I know it was stupid," Cassius said as he hugged his godfather back.
"Hmm," Snape agreed. "Your safety is the most important thing to me and to Draco, Cassius. You need to start understanding that."
Draco returned with a glass of water. "Here you go, cub."
Cassius took the glass and drank thirstily.
Draco sat back on the sofa and watched his brother fondly. He'd been afraid that Cass couldn't sleep because his bottom was still hurting but that didn't seem to be the case. Of course, he was probably so thirsty because he had cried so much earlier, he thought as fresh guilt rushed through him. When Cassius was done, he handed Draco the glass, which he sent back to kitchen. Then Cassius cuddled up to him on the sofa. "Don't you want to go back to your bed?" Draco asked, putting is arm around his brother. "Cass?"
"He's asleep," Snape chuckled.
Draco grinned and tightened his hold. "What am I going to do with him?"
"Exactly what you've been doing. Love him." Snape said simply.
/
"So you three were bored, I hear," Snape said silkily as he waved the Prophet around. The article had indeed appeared observing Cassius and his friends at Honeydukes and questioning why the children not in school. Skeeter had indicated that since Dumbledore left, the school was in chaos. "My Slytherins, being so bored they needed to sneak out of the castle. Well, I can't have that can I?" Snape crossed his arms and leaned back against his desk. "Let's see if I can help. You three will report to my classroom after dinner for a week, starting tonight. I have many filthy cauldrons that need to be scrubbed, tables that need to be polished and the floor could certainly use a good mopping. Yes, that should help alleviate your boredom." Snape gave them a mocking smile. "Does that sound good, gentlemen?"
"Uh, yes Professor," Cassius spoke up for the three of them.
"Good. Now get out," Snape snapped. "Except for you, Mr. Malfoy."
Enzo and Jason gave him a sympathetic look as Cassius stayed behind, facing his godfather.
"I hope you know it is not worth taking risks like that," Snape said after a moment. "You are not invincible."
"I know. Draco, um, made that point last night."
Snape hid a laugh. "I know. I hoped he helped you to see the error of your ways and that it is not worth your safety to sneak out of the castle?"
"I know. I just didn't think." Cassius said. "I've never had anyone to answer to before, not really. Draco said he was disappointed in me. It made me feel awful." His voice was low and sad.
Snape was quiet for a moment. "Draco loves you. He would do anything to keep you safe and happy. He was disappointed in your actions, as am I. He is not, however, disappointed in you."
Cassius looked up at him hopefully. "Really?"
"Really," Snape assured him.
"Are you still mad at me?" Cassius asked a little anxiously. It was so strange, to now care what Snape thought. But the man had been decent to him since the truth about his identity was revealed. And, well, he was his godfather.
Snape's eyes softened slightly. "No. I think you've learned your lesson. And if you haven't, your detentions will reinforce them."
Cassius made a face as Snape chuckled.
TBC: Next up, Halloween and a visit from our favorite twins! Also, Cass and his friends decide to find out what their Animagus forms would be and Twitchy makes an appearance...