Disclaimer: All recognizable characters and settings belong to J.K. Rowling.

A/N – The steps to becoming an Animagi will differ from cannon. No mandrake leaves or anything =)

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"That was a good practice," Urquhart said happily. He was the Slytherin captain and was thrilled to have Cassius as seeker this year. "It's about time we start winning again."

Draco gazed up as Cassius and some of the other players were still flying in the air, playing around. "Yeah, he's amazing." Cassius had been overjoyed when Pomfrey had finally cleared him for Quidditch. He had just had his first practice with the Slytherin team and had done brilliantly. Draco was so proud of him.

"I'm glad you are letting him play." Urquhart remarked. "Finally."

Draco shrugged. "He had to wait until he was cleared by Pomfrey. His safety is more important to me than winning a game." he said honestly.

Urquhart snickered.

"What?"

Urquhart pointed up. "Your brother is fearless."

Draco looked and his face went pale at seeing his little brother standing on his broom to the cheers of his teammates.

"Hey, have you ever tried jumping from broom to broom?" One of the players called out.

"No. I bet I could, though!" Cassius called back.

"Cassius Aster, don't you dare!" Draco yelled. "Come down here!" He glared as his brother flew down and got off his broom. Cassius at least had the good sense to look sheepish as he faced him.

"I wasn't going to actually try it," Cassius said, averting his eyes.

"You better never ever try it," Draco snapped. "Unless you want to be banned from Quidditch for the rest of your life."

Urquhart looked alarmed. "No need for that. Cassius won't do any unnecessary moves, right?"

"Right," Cassius agreed. He gave Draco an innocent smile.

"Cheeky cub," Draco muttered, pulling his brother close and putting his arm around him. "Come on. Finish your homework and we'll work on your chess skills again."

Cassius smiled brightly. "Have I told you that you are the best big brother?"

"You can tell me over chess."

/

Halloween came and the feast was delicious. Cassius went to grab another caramel apple when Draco blocked him with his arm.

"I know there are a lot of sweets, but can you eat some real food first?" Draco asked in exasperation.

"It's Halloween," Cassius protested.

"I know, but you can't just eat candy and nothing else for dinner," Draco said, scooping some shepherd's pie onto his plate.

Cassius rolled his eyes.

"I saw that," Draco said mildly. "You know, there is a spell to keep the eyes rolling continuously."

"You wouldn't," Cassius narrowed his eyes.

"Wouldn't I?" Draco took a sip of pumpkin juice.

"Best not test him, Cass," Theo said, exchanging a grin with Daphne. Draco was so protective of his brother and such a mother hen to him, it was fun to watch.

Cassius studied his brother for a moment and decided not to risk it. Besides, he liked shepherd's pie. He took a bite. "Happy now?"

"Thrilled," Draco smirked. "Don't talk with your mouth full."

Cassius resisted rolling his eyes again and instead glared at his friends, who were snickering.

"Hey, it's Nearly Headless Nick," Jason said as the Gryffindor ghost floated by, taking the attention away from Cassius.

"Do you think Nearly Headless Nick would tell us how he lost his head?" Enzo asked eagerly. "Or almost lost his head. I've wanted to ask him but since he's the Gryffindor ghost I didn't know if I could."

"Of course you can. He's nice," Cassius said. "He doesn't really like it when people just focus on his um, nearly headless head. He likes to tell the story though."

"I want to hear it," Jason said. "Let's ask after dinner."

Cassius and his friends were talking and joking when suddenly the doors burst open and two men ran in.

"Troll! In the dungeon!" One of them shouted.

"Thought you ought to know." The other one said. Then they both collapsed onto the floor.

There were gasps and screams from most of the younger years but those that recognized the two young adults were laughing.

"Fred! George!" Ron yelled from the Gryffindor table, laughing. "You prats!"

Both twins jumped up, taking bows.

"Thank you, thank you -"

"Just a throwback to -"

"One of our favorite Halloweens here!"

Suddenly sparklers in the shape of fire-breathing dragons raced around the room, to everyone's delight.

"Very nice," McGonagall said dryly as she walked down to greet her past students. "This is a very welcome surprise. Happy Halloween."

"You too, Headmistress," Fred said cheerfully.

"We thought about bringing a real troll -"

"But were worried we would end up in -"

"Detention with Mr. Filch, who no doubt -"

"Misses us terribly." Both twins looked over at Filch who was glaring at them.

"No doubt," McGonagall couldn't help but laugh.

Cassius watched the twins with a grin as they greeted Bill and the other professors. He'd missed them. He was wondering if he should go say hi when they surprised him by stopping by the Slytherin table.

"Our little snakeling," Fred beamed, ruffling his hair.

George pulled him up and hugged him. "We've missed you, little brother."

"Really?" Cassius asked eagerly. "So you're not...you know, upset?" Hermione had said most of the Weasley's still cared about him but it still was a relief to see that they did in person.

A rare, serious look came over the twins faces.

"You may look different -"

"And have a different name-"

"But you're still you-"

"Same heart-"

"You're still our friend."

Cassius's face lit up. "Thanks, guys."

Draco had been listening, ready to intervene if the twins said anything that upset Cass and was pleasantly surprised by the troublesome duo. "Interesting entrance," he drawled. "You know, since you two are so shy and all."

Fred snickered. "That's us, shy and quiet."

"We loathe attention," George added with a smirk.

"Sure you do," Cassius shook his head. He was about to ask them how their shop was doing when Ron ambled over, an irritated look on his face.

"Really? You visit a snake before coming over to the Gryffindor table. Your old house and where your brother is? Where your sister is?" Ron glared at his brothers.

Fred raised an eyebrow. "We were coming over, Ronnykins. Don't worry."

"You know we've always considered Cassius a little brother," George added.

"No, you considered Harry Potter your brother," Ron shot back. He glared at Cassius. "So did I. Once upon a time."

"Geez Ron, grow up already," Fred sighed. "What if you found out one of us was adopted? That we weren't who you thought we were? Would you stop loving us all of the sudden?"

"Yeah, what if Charlie wasn't related to us? Or Bill? Or Percy?" George said.

"Well, Percy..." Fred shrugged.

Cassius smiled, amused until he saw the look on Ron's face. His smile faded and he unconsciously shifted closer to Draco, who put his arm around him protectively.

"That's different," Ron said. "None of them pretended to be a hero and none of them would be a Malfoy."

"I didn't pretend anything!" Cassius snapped. "I didn't know. I wish I had, then I could have been with my family."

"They're Malfoys!" Ron yelled.

"So am I! And I'm proud to be one!" Cassius yelled back.

Draco stood moved in front of Cassius. "Enough," he said, staring at Ron. "You've made your feelings quite clear. So much for Gryffindor loyalty, hmm?"

"Pettigrew was a Gryffindor and he betrayed his friends," Cassius muttered. "So not all Gryffindors are loyal."

Ron's face went red he started to pull out his wand.

"Expelliarmus." Draco caught Ron's wand and twirled it casually. "Be a shame if this broke. Accidentally, of course."

"Ronald, I think we should have a chat," Fred said, anger in his voice.

"Yeah, we've been wanting to talk to you and Ginny," George added. He nodded his thanks when Draco handed him Ron's wand. "We'll see you later, Cassius."

"Okay," Cassius watched the twins march Ron out of the hall, Fred stopping to grab Ginny on the way.

"Maybe they can talk some sense into those two," Draco muttered as he sat down.

"Or prank some sense into them," Theo joked.

"You okay?" Draco nudged Cassius.

"Yeah, I'm good," Cassius answered, giving him a small smile.

"You're really proud to be a Malfoy?" Draco asked, trying not to sound too eager.

"I really am," Cassius said honestly. "And I'm proud to be your brother."

Draco grinned. "Same here, cub."

/

A few days after Halloween, Cassius and his friends were in the library doing homework. Looking at his Transfiguration essay thoughtfully, he asked his friends, "Do you guys know what an Animagus is?"

"Yeah, my uncle is one. He can turn into eagle," Enzo said proudly.

"Cool," Cassius breathed. "Draco can turn into panther!"

"Brilliant," Jason exclaimed.

"I really want to know what I would turn into," Cassius said wistfully. "But he says I have to be older."

"It's advanced magic," Jason pointed out.

"Yeah, so is Polyjuice Potion and Hermione was able to do it her second year," Cassius mused. "This is just a spell."

"Wait a minute," Enzo hopped out of his chair and went across the library to where his cousin was. He dragged Sadie over to them.

"What is it? Do you need help with homework?" Sadie asked.

"We need help with the Spiritus Animalis Revelare spell,"

Sadie stared at them. "Are you three insane? We can't do that!"

"Why not? It's just a spell," Cassius said, ignoring the part of him that was telling his this was a bad idea. Draco would be furious but...it was the potion that would be the most dangerous, right? This was just a spell to find out your inner animal. It would be fine and Draco wouldn't know.

"You have to do it right when the sun sets, the wand movements have to precise and -" Sadie began.

"That's true with all spells," Enzo said. "The wand movements, I mean."

Sadie gave him an exasperated look. "We're too young. Something could go wrong."

"With the potion part, maybe. But the spell? The worst that would happen, is that nothing would happen," Cassius shrugged.

"I don't know," Jason said uneasily. "I heard even with the spell, bad things could happen."

"They probably just say that to keep kids from trying it," Enzo said. He nudged Sadie. "Aren't you curious what your animal would be?"

Sadie bit her lip. "Well, yeah." she admitted.

"So let's try it!" Cassius said excitedly.

"Let me study it more," Sadie insisted. "I'll need to check out some books, make some notes..."

Cassius leaned back in his seat as she and Jason discussed the best way to start. It was like his first second year all over again. Except not as dangerous. At least, he hoped not. But hey, there was no Voldemort anymore. He wasn't the boy-who-lived anymore. Things could only go smoothly now.

/

"Let's practice one more time," Sadie said, glancing out the window. "The sun will be setting soon."

They were in the Slytherin dorms, Cassius having asked if he could stay there to work on a group project. Draco would be coming by soon though, so Cassius only had a small window of opportunity to try the spell. Luckily, Enzo and Jason's dorm-mates were still hanging out in the common room. Apparently they put off going to bed until the very last minute.

Cassius practiced the slashing motion once more, confident that he had it right. The four of them had been practicing for days.

"Okay, ready?" Sadie said, checking the time. "Go!"

The four of them stood, doing the wand movement. "Spiritus Animalis Revelare." They all intoned all together.

Cassius grinned when a faint silver mist of a panther cub appeared. A panther! Just like Draco! He could feel the power of the spell working and frowned, starting to feel weakened. He tried to end the spell but he couldn't. He fell to his knees, feeling his magical core start to drain. Panicking, he could see his friends were having the same problem. He gasped, feeling scared now.

"Animum Deulcedine Summum!" Sadie suddenly gasped and just the like, the spell ended and all four were on the floor, groaning.

Cassius panted, feeling like he had run a marathon. "Wow," he said.

"I couldn't get it to end," Jason said, sitting up a little shakily.

"That was intense," Enzo said, shaking his head.

"I told you guys that the spell was dangerous!" Sadie snapped. "Our magical cores were draining!"

The four pre-teens were silent, still catching their breaths. Cassius still felt sluggish and could tell his friends felt the same way. He really hadn't thought the spell would be that dangerous. If Sadie hadn't been able to stop it... a wave of guilt rushed through him. This had been his idea, he had pushed for it and if anything had happened, it would have been his fault.

Recovering, Enzo sat up and grinned. "I saw my animal!"

"Me too!" Sadie said, her eyes brightening. "I'm a Hare!"

"I'm a fox!" Jason grinned.

"A dog. It looked like a collie!" Enzo said happily. "I love collies."

"A panther cub," Cassius said proudly.

"Wow," Sadie said, wide eyes. "Like your brother."

"I wonder if I will still be a panther cub when I get older or if I will be a full grown panther," Cassius said thoughtfully.

"Don't know. Only time will tell," Jason shrugged. "Either way, it's cool."

"I just wish we didn't have to wait so long to become Animagi" Enzo said.

"Well, we do," Sadie said. She narrowed her eyes at the look on Cassius's face. "Right, Cass? You said you only wanted to try the spell, not the potion."

"I know," Cassius said defensively. "I didn't say anything."

"You were thinking it," Sadie said shrewdly.

"Well..."

"No way. It's too complicated and dangerous of a potion," Sadie shook her head.

"Yeah, it's not worth the risk," Jason added.

"Okay," Cassius said, holding his hands up. "No potion."

A knock on the door interrupted them. The door opened and Draco poked his head in. "Cass, it's time to go." He frowned at all of them sitting on the floor. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine. I'm ready," Cassius said, hopping up. He still felt a little weak but was able to hide it from his brother.

"How is your project going?" Draco asked as they headed to their quarters.

"Really well," Cassius said in satisfaction.

/

The next day after History of Magic, Cassius and Enzo were waiting for Jason to finish asking Professor Binns a question. "I really want to do the potion," Cassius admitted quietly.

"Sadie and Jason won't help," Enzo said with certainty.

"I've had years of potions, remember? I bet I could do it," Cassius said more confidently than he felt.

"That's true, you have. I keep forgetting," Enzo said slowly. "How did you do in potions?"

"Um, well enough," Cassius hedged. It wasn't his fault Uncle Sev had always intimidated him, was it? Or that Crabbe and Goyle had thrown things into his potions, ruining them. He had managed an E on his O.W.L.s, after all. "I'll start researching the potion. But don't tell anyone, not even Jason and Sadie."

"Okay," Enzo agreed.

/

Cassius did start doing research on the potion and found it would be complicated to make and take a long time to do. It would take a month to brew and if he messed up at all, he would have to start all over. But before he could even start the potion, he had to get all the ingredients and that was going to take time. He didn't want to steal from Uncle Sev but he wouldn't have any choice if he wanted to make the potion. He knew Draco would be so mad, so would his godfather. Was it really worth doing the potion if it would make them upset? If it meant he had to steal? Besides, even if he succeeded in becoming an Animagus he wouldn't be able to transform anywhere Draco would find out. And he wanted to be able to transform so he and Draco could be panthers together. He sighed and closed the book on becoming Animagi that he had checked out from the library. He couldn't do it. He would have to tell Enzo that they would just have to wait until they were older. Maybe he would just think about it a little more but...he didn't think he could do it. Even though there was a small part of him that wondered if Draco would be impressed...after all, it was a difficult potion to make and if he succeeded then wouldn't Draco be proud of him? Even he was was upset, he would have to be proud right? Draco was so smart and Cassius wished he could get through his homework as easily as his brother seemed to be able to do. Even when he had believed himself to be Harry Potter, he had known Draco was one of the smartest in the school. He and Hermione were always neck and neck in top grades. And Cassius, well...he did okay. He still struggled in Transfiguration although he had gotten a bit better since Draco had begun helping him with his homework. He did well in Defence and Charms. History of Magic was still a bore and Herbology was okay. Potions was hit or miss, sometimes he did really well and other times he struggled a lot. At least now, Snape didn't yell at him in class. That helped.

Cassius sighed, wishing Draco would return from his meeting with Uncle Sev. Draco had told him not to leave their quarters and that Dobby would be keeping an ear out in case he needed him. As if I'm a little kid, he scoffed to himself. After all, who had saved the Sorcerer's Stone? Fought the Basilisk? Fought off hundreds of Dementors? Faced Voldemort? He would think Draco could appreciate that he didn't need all these rules as if he was a child. Even if part of him found comfort in having boundaries and someone to pull him back if he went too far.

Pop!

"Who are you?" Cassius stared at the old elf in front of him. He reminded him of Kreacher.

The elf gave a mean smile. "Your presence has been requested."

"What?" Cassius backed up a step. "I'm not going anywhere with you. Who are you?"

"Twitchy."

Cassius gasped. "You're the one who kidnapped me!"

Twitchy scowled. "I saved you from the evil Malfoy family."

"No, you took me and put me with a evil family!" Cassius snapped. "Leave me alone. Dobby!" He called.

Pop!

Dobby eyes widened when he saw Twitchy. "Run, Dobby will cover you!"

Twitchy waved his hand and Dobby flew into a wall, crumpling to the ground.

"Dobby!" Cassius ran to him. Before he could check if he was okay, Twitchy grabbed him and appareated them away.

TBC: Next up, Draco, Snape and Dobby go after Cassius...