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

"You were not to be alone and you definitely were not to go into Knockturn Alley!" Draco shouted as soon as he and Cassius entered their manor. "What were you thinking, little boy?"

"I just...I didn't mean to!" Cassius said, distancing himself from Draco.

"Don't give me that. You saw your friends and you meant to follow them, didn't you?" Draco gritted his teeth. "You just didn't care. Didn't care that you would panic Hagrid, didn't care you put yourself in danger, didn't care that you were disobeying me... I trusted you to stay with Hagrid!"

Cassius's face fell. "I'm sorry. I didn't plan to go there, I just...I saw Enzo and Jason and I wondered what they were doing there and then I got caught up in what they were looking for."

"There is no excuse," Draco hissed. "No excuse for putting your safety in jeopardy. No excuse for disobeying me!"

"I'm sorry," Cassius said weakly.

Draco shook his head. "I am furious with you, Cass. You like to claim you are not a child but then you act just like one! If I can't trust you, then you'll find a lot of your freedom taken away from you."

"You can trust me," Cassius whispered.

"Can I?" Draco rubbed his hand over his face. "You haven't shown that I can today, have you? Go to your room and wait for me. I believe you know what to expect when you put your life in danger. You've also lost your broom for the rest of the summer."

Cassius wanted to protest that that wasn't fair but self-preservation finally won.

"To your room. Now."

Cassius trudged up the stairs, knowing what was coming. He wished he could go back and do things differently. He hated disappointing his brother and he absolutely hated it when Draco was mad at him.

/

Ten minutes later, Draco entered the room and sat on Cassius's bed. "Trousers down." he said briskly.

Feeling like a naughty toddler, Cassius obeyed and then bent over Draco's lap. His brother wasted no time in pulling down his underwear and landing a hard slap to his backside. He spanked hard and fast, covering every inch of Cass's bottom and thighs. Cassius was crying and kicking his feet slightly at every smack.

"I'm sorry!" Cassius cried. "Ow! Draco, I'm sorry!" His bottom was on fire.

Draco finally paused. "You better start thinking before acting, Cassius. I will not have you putting your safety at risk, do you hear me?" he scolded as he summoned the slipper. He slapped it down on the already red bottom.

"Ahh! Ow! Draco, please! It hurts!" Cassius cried out, trying to twist out of his brother's grasp but Draco had a firm hold on him. "Dray...!"

Draco sighed and stopped after landing the fourth swat with the slipper. "Why are you getting spanked, Cass?"

"Beca – because I disobeyed you and lef -left Hagrid. I went into Knockturn Alley," Cassius managed to say through his tears. "I risked my safety."

"Exactly. You risked your safety and I won't have it," Draco said sternly and landed the slipper four more times, on his brother's sit spots. He decided to stop after eight with the slipper, even though he had intended to give him twelve. But Cass was crying so hard he couldn't bring himself to continue. His baby brother certainly knew how to disarm him. He banished the slipper and gently rubbed Cass's back. "Okay, cub. You're okay." he said soothingly. He raised his brother's underwear carefully over the sore looking backside. "Do you want your trousers back on?" he asked quietly.

Cassius shook his head. The less that rubbed against his backside, the better.

Draco pulled the trousers off and lifted Cassius up, hugging him. "I love you, Cass. I just want you to be safe." he whispered.

"I know," Cassius buried his face in Draco's neck. "I'm sorry."

"I forgive you. But your broom is still mine for the rest of summer," Draco said, dropping a kiss onto his blonde head.

Cassius sighed. It was just a few weeks till school started but still... "Okay." He pulled back from Draco's embrace and rubbed his eyes.

"Do you want to rest for a bit?" Draco offered. "I'm just going to be working on lesson plans for the first years."

"You could do them in here," Cassius suggested, a little shyly. He didn't know why he felt so clingy after being punished but he did. It would make more sense to not want to be around Draco after being punished by him, to be angry but Cassius never felt that way. He knew it hurt his brother to punish him, he could see it in his eyes.

Draco studied his brother. Emotionally, Cassius was younger than most others his age, due to everything he had endured as Harry Potter and due to the aging potion robbing him of five years of his childhood. He also still needed so much reassurance that he was wanted, it broke Draco's heart. "Sure. Go ahead and lay down." He summoned his books and quill and sat at Cassius's desk.

"So you talked to Hermione today?" Cassius asked as he laid on his stomach and bunched up his pillow under his head. His backside throbbed and he inwardly pouted. Stupid slipper.

"Briefly. She got a job at the ministry." Draco said as he made notes. He was looking forward to being Snape's assistant and teaching the younger years. He had really enjoyed teaching classes this past year.

"Yuck," Cassius said drowsily.

"Hmm?" Draco glanced at Cass.

"I don't have good memories of the ministry," Cassius closed his eyes. "Stupid Fudge."

"Well, he may not be sticking around much longer," Draco said. "I think that's why Hermione wants to work there, to help weed out all the corruption. She's pretty ambitious," he added with a chuckle. No sound except even breathing came from Cassius and Draco gazed fondly at his little brother before getting back to work on his lesson plans.

/

Despite Cass not having his broom, the rest of summer was fun. He and Draco went to the beach, which Cassius loved. Playing in the ocean had been so fun and he and Draco had made a sandcastle of Hogwarts. They also visited Hogwarts so that Draco and Snape could go over the lesson plans for the first through third years and Cassius got to help set up the potions classroom. He had a sneaky suspicion that Snape had intended it as a detention for his Knockturn Alley adventure but Cassius hadn't minded helping. Draco had also taken him back to Diagon Alley to visit the Quidditch shop and joke shop. Cassius had jokingly offered to hold his hand the whole time but when Draco had looked like he was seriously considering it, he recanted his offer and promised to not run off.

/

"It feels weird to not take the train," Draco said as he stood with Cassius. It was September 1st and he was seeing his brother off, then would floo to the castle. He still had his quarters there, and Cassius still wanted to stay there instead of in the dorms, which was fine with Draco. Part of the reason being Snape's apprentice was so perfect for him was that he got to stay at Hogwarts while his brother was there.

"Cassius!" Mrs. Weasley called as she bustled over. She enveloped him into a hug. "It's so good to see you again!"

"You too, Mrs. Weasley," Cassius said happily. "Thanks again for the birthday party."

"You're welcome dear. Draco, look at you. Getting ready to begin teaching already?" Mrs. Weasley beamed and hugged the shocked blonde.

"Uh, yes ma'am." Draco managed to say, quickly stepping back. Merlin, he had just seen her a few weeks ago at Cass's party!

"I can't believe it's Ginny's last year," Mrs. Weasley sniffled. "My baby will be graduating." She fondly ruffled Cassius's hair. "At least you will still be a student. I can send you care packages filled with biscuits, can't I?"

"Yeah," Cassius said eagerly.

"Oh, did you hear about my poor Bill?"

"No, what happened to him?" Cassius asked.

"He was flying on his broom and crashed suddenly. He's fine," Mrs. Weasley said quickly to Cassius's look of alarm. "But it will be a bit before he is cleared for teaching. So you'll have a substitute for a few weeks in Transfiguration."

"Oh," Cassius said unhappily. He liked Bill's teaching. "I hope he gets better soon." he said sincerely.

"Mum! I'm ready to board," Ginny yelled from further down the platform. She saw who her mother was talking to and pursed her lips. She quickly looked away when Draco leveled a glare at her.

"Write me, Cassius. I want to hear about your classes," Mrs. Weasley said. "And good luck teaching, Draco. Keep taking such good care of your brother." She kissed Cass on the cheek and then once again shocked Draco by doing the same to him.

"Yes ma'am," Draco said weakly as she left. He glared at Cassius, who had begun laughing. "Quiet, you."

"You're a honorary Weasley, like me," Cassius giggled. The look on Draco's face had been priceless.

He couldn't wait to tell Uncle Sev.

/

"You could ride with us," Cassius said mischievously as he scanned the platform for his friends. He spotted them getting ready to board the train and waved.

Draco made a face. "No thanks." the whistle sounded. "Have a good train ride. Don't eat too many sweets and stay with your friends," Draco instructed.

Cassius rolled his eyes. Draco was such a worrywart!

"I saw that, brat," Draco said, pulling him in for a hug. "See you at the feast."

"Bye!" Cassius ran off to join Enzo and Jason. "Hey guys!"

"How was the rest of your summer?" Jason asked as the found a compartment.

"Not bad. Draco and I went to the beach and I got to hang out at Hogwarts," Cassius said.

"The castle must be brilliant when you basically have it to yourself," Enzo said, looking a little envious.

"It's pretty cool," Cassius agreed. "I wish I could have used the pitch to fly but Draco grounded from my broom for the rest of summer."

"Oh, for Knockturn alley?" Jason asked. "I was on restriction for two weeks."

"I had to do gardening for two weeks," Enzo grumbled. "I hate gardening! Like it wasn't bad enough to get walloped?"

Cassius nodded sympathetically. The trolley came by and they bought sweets, joking and laughing.

Sadie appeared in the compartment. "Mind if I sit with you?"

"Sure," Cassius moved to make room for her. "What about your other friends?" Sadie usually hung out with her dorm-mates.

"They're being so annoying," Sadie complained. "They want to copy my Charms homework. I didn't do all that work just for them to copy it!"

"That reminds me!" Enzo rummaged through his bag. "I didn't finish my potions essay!" He looked at Sadie expectedly.

"Don't even think about it!" Sadie snapped.

"Aw, come on," Enzo whined. "We're family."

"Nope," Sadie took a book to read.

"It's not like I haven't started it, I just need help to finish it," Enzo grumbled. He looked at Jason hopefully, who sighed and handed over his essay.

Cassius peered at Enzo's essay. "Write big enough?" he chuckled.

Enzo shrugged. "I doubt Professor Snape will care."

"It's not Professor Snape who will be reading it," Cassius reminded him. "Draco will. And he will care." Draco had looked over all of Cassius's past homework to get a feel for how he was doing in school and had commented every time he read an essay that Cassius had written large to try and take up room.

"Do we call him Professor Malfoy?" Sadie asked.

"Yeah. Even though he is not officially a professor yet, he is Uncle Sev's apprentice and it just makes it easier for students. He thinks calling him Mr. Malfoy will either make him feel old or like he was still a student," Cassius chuckled. "I told him we could just call him Draco but he didn't like that idea either." They all laughed and before they knew it, they were at Hogwarts. Cassius thought it would be weird, riding the train without Ron and Hermione but it actually wasn't. It felt...right. This was how it was supposed to be.

/

Draco stirred the potion he was working on for the infirmary, waiting for it to simmer. He had been helping his godfather brew the potions Madame Pomfrey would need and he had enjoyed doing it. He had always found brewing to be somewhat relaxing.

"How is the Calming Draught coming?" Snape asked as he walked into the lab.

"Almost done." Draco added a sprig of mint and continued to stir. "Does this get used a lot at the beginning of the year?"

"Yes. Mainly for homesick first years," Snape said as he peered at Draco's potion and nodded in approval. "Hufflepuffs, usually." he sneered.

Draco chuckled as he turned off the burner and began to bottle the potion. "I heard Bill Weasley won't be teaching for a couple of weeks."

"No. Minerva hired a substitute, Marlene McKinnon. A former Gryffindor who was in my year," Snape said as he warded the cabinet that held his ingredients. He didn't want to take a chance of them being stolen again, although he hoped his godson had learned his lesson about that.

"I hope she is adequate at the subject. Cass struggles in that class." Draco cleaned up his work area.

"Anytime he needs assistance with his homework, I'm willing to help him," Snape offered.

"Thanks. I'm hoping this year he will ask for help before he falls behind," Draco said.

"He'll learn," Snape said.

"I hope so. He still acts without thinking and puts himself in danger," Draco said with a frown. That incident with Knockturn Alley really had him concerned. Cassius just didn't seem to grasp the danger he was still in. Despite Bellatrix and Carrow being locked away in Azkaban, there still were two known death eaters loose, Jugson and Gibbon. True, they weren't known to be that dangerous, they were the weakest of the death eaters but still, they were out there. And there were also those who were upset about Cassius not being Harry Potter and felt he had deliberately deceived everyone. Such idiots, Draco grumbled to himself. Those who thought that way could be dangerous because they could be so unpredictable.

"He's been doing that since your first year," Snape pointed out. "It's going to take time to break him of reacting rashly and not considering the danger around him. Most likely the influence of those muggles, as well as being told he was a hero and needed to save us all," he sneered.

"Thanks to Dumbledore," Draco muttered.

"He will learn Draco," Snape told him. "Just be patient yet consistent. Firm yet understanding."

"I'm trying to be," Draco said. "But Merlin, if anything happened to him I don't think I'd survive it."

"I know," Snape said quietly. "He's a remarkable boy. When we thought he was Harry Potter, I didn't let myself see any of his good qualities."

"About that," Draco leaned against the counter. "Several months ago, Cass mentioned he viewed your pensive and that you were, um, quite angry. He said it was because you didn't want Harry Potter seeing those memories."

Snape snorted. "I don't want anyone to see that particular memory. But yes, having who I believed was Harry Potter see made it worse. The memory included James Potter and Lily Evans."

"Oh," Draco said.

"James and Sirius Black were bullying me," Snape explained. "Lily, who had been my friend, came to my defense but in my embarrassment, I called her a mudblood."

Draco winced, remembering all the times he had referred to Hermione that way. He really regretted that now. They had never talked about it but he realized they should. She deserved to hear his apology.

"Our friendship never recovered," Snape continued.

"You cared for her?" Draco guessed.

"Yes." Snape admitted. "A lot. I was devastated when she was killed. I promised Dumbledore that I would protect her son but he looked so much like James Potter that I could barely stand to be around him. I treated him horribly, especially when he saw my pensive." He shook his head. "I am still surprised he has taken to me so well, with how cruel I was to him."

"Cassius is special," Draco said with a fond smile. "I wish I had seen it sooner. He has such a good heart, which is rather shocking with everything he had to endure over the years. He could have ended up bitter and malicious but instead he is loving, loyal and compassionate."

"A proud big brother, are you?" Snape said teasingly.

Draco shrugged and gave a lopsided grin. "What can I say? He's my cub."

Snape smirked. "Indeed. So I've been meaning to ask you. Is something going on with you and Miss Granger?"

Draco groaned.

TBC: