A/N: Sorry it took me so long to post. I've had a bad couple of months, starting with passing out at the Bellagio (no I wasn't drinking- that would've been an awesome reason to pass out) to spending a few days in the hospital. Oh the joys of starting new medication. I'm good for now so I'm hoping to catch up on my writing

For everyone who has reviewed, favored, and are following I want to say thank you! I'm sorry if I didn't get to respond personally if you reviewed, I will do better this time, I promise. I also want to send out a big thanks to my Beta Itsmecoon, as always you're the best.

Changes Are Hard:

Draco watched in shocked fascination as Potter, in a fit of anger flipped his chair over and stormed out of the room. He started to get up and follow, hoping to watch his uncle lay into his enemy, but was stopped with by his mother's,

"Sit down and finish your lunch, young man."

"Mother…" Draco began only to be stopped again by his father's sharp,

"Draco, listen to your mother, don't argue with her. We still need to discuss your swearing so you don't want to test my patience anymore this afternoon."

"But Potter can do whatever he wants," Draco said with a pout and a kick to the table leg.

"Draco Lucius, stop your bratty childish display this instant and apologize to your mother," Lucius said angrily.

"Sorry Mother, sorry Father," Draco said looking down. He really couldn't understand why he was acting this way. His father was right he was acting childish and bratty.

"Very well," Lucius said, "now finish your lunch so we can have a discussion about your swearing, followed by a few hours in your room. Maybe a nap will improve your attitude."

Draco finished his lunch in silence dreading his upcoming discussion with his father.

Narcissa watched the dread traveling across her son's face and knew he was worried about his upcoming conversation with his father. Usually she didn't interfere in such matters, but knew her son's emotions were high due with the introduction of Harry in to the family.

The second Lucius looked into his wife's eyes he knew she wanted to discuss their son and he also knew that she would persuade him not to punish the boy with just a few words. He would never admit it but Narcissa had him wrapped around her little finger. He loved that woman more than life it self. He watched as his son finished his last few bites and said,

"Draco, you're excused."

"Father…" Draco began.

"Go on up to your room son, I'll be there shortly," Lucius said as he nodded his head towards the stairs.

"Yes sir," the blond said as he walked away pouting like there was no tomorrow.

"Lucius," Narcissa began only to feel herself being pulled out of her seat and into a warm kiss before she could continue.

"I'll let the boy off the hook my love, if that is your wish," Lucius said smiling.

"This is very hard for him."

"I know."

"Both the boys and Severus, need your help adjusting. You need to be patient, yet firm, loving, and understanding. All the things I know you are," Narcissa said giving her husband another kiss.

"And you'll be here for me?"

"Always my love. Always. Go check on Severus and I will talk with our son," Narcissa said breaking away from their embrace reluctantly.

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Draco was pouting and he hated it. It wasn't fair! Why did Potter get away with everything? If he had thrown a chair at the dinner table, he wouldn't have made it two feet before his Father dragged him back to the table, bared his bum, and spanked him without an ounce of mercy, not caring who was around to witness his humiliation.

All he did was call stupid Granger a Mudblood. Well, that's what she was. Everyone in Slytherin called her that, why couldn't he? Sure, his father said they weren't like everybody else and shouldn't act like the other children in Slytherin, but…

Draco's thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock.

'Great Father's here,' Draco thought before saying softly,

"Come in."

He was shocked when his Mother walked in smiling brightly. He stood up as he was taught to do when a woman walked into a room, which only made the woman smile brighter.

"Come and sit with me Draco," Narcissa said as she sat on the window seat across from Draco's dark green bed.

Draco walked over confused. His mother rarely came to his room except to say goodnight and she never punished him. So, why was she here?

The second he sat down, Narcissa turned towards her son and took his hand's into hers and said,

"How are you my darling Dragon?"

"Where's Father at?" Draco asked ignoring her question altogether.

"Severus needed his help, so we decided that I should talk to you."

"Potter, wins again," Draco mumbled angrily as he absently kicked the window seat.

Narcissa reached over and touched her son's leg, knowing he would stop.

"Is that what your attitude is about today? Jealously?"

"I'm not fucking jealous of Potter!" Draco screeched angrily. "He's a scar headed orphan, who hangs out with mudbloods, and blood traitors! He's a bloody Gryffindor! Dumbledore's puppet! He isn't worth anything, let alone my bloody jealousy!"

The twelve year old was shocked to find himself off the window seat, over his Mum's knees, and his bum bare with just a flick of the woman's wand. He cringed as he watched her turn a book into a hairbrush.

"MUM! Don't! Please do give me a smacking! Let Father do it! Please MUM!"

"Trust me, your father will hear about this as well. That language is unacceptable and if you truly feel that way about Harry, we have a long way to go young man. Starting with this," Narcissa said dropping the hairbrush until her little boy bum was a nice candy apple red, his eyes were raining tears, and he was sobbing hard.

The second she was finished, Narcissa used her wand yet again to dress her son and tried to pull him into a hug which he grudgingly accepted. While Draco knew better than to push his Mother away, but he was beyond embarrassed and he wanted to with all of his heart. He needed to go hide until he pulled himself together. It was ok for a twelve year old to cry after getting a smacking from their Father, but not their Mum.

Narcissa knew what was bothering her son. She knew his pride was wounded more than his bum. While Lucius would say that a little humiliation would do the boy good, she didn't feel the same, so she decided to lie to the boy,

"The hairbrush was magical Draco."

"So that's why it hurt almost as much as father?" Draco asked through his tears as he leaned into his mother's embrace and decided to climb onto her lap for more comfort, something he rarely did anymore.

"Yes my Dragon," Narcissa said kissing the top of his head.

"Mummy, please don't tell Father what I said since you used the magic hairbrush," Draco begged the second his sobs died down as he hugged her tight.

Narcissa smiled at Draco's manipulation technique before asking,

"I don't know Dragon, those were some pretty strong and vile words. I worry about the venom behind them. Do you really hate Harry so much?"

"I don't want to talk about Potter," Draco said angrily wiggling off of his Mother's lap, angry tears still streaming down his cheeks.

"I think we will leave it for now. I wish to talk to your Father and I think you could us some rest," Narcissa said walking over to Draco's bed pulling back his dark green duvet.

To her amusement Draco's lower lip popped out in full on pout mode as he walked over to the bed to climb in. Once in and on his stomach, Narcissa pulled the duvet over her son and kissed his brow.

"Get some rest Dragon."

"Please don't tell Father," Draco begged once again giving her the biggest saddest puppy dog eyes she had ever seen.

"I'll tell him I used magic hairbrush. Not to worry Dragon, not to worry," Narcissa said giving him a last smile before closing his door.

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Narcissa walked into Lucius study and wasn't shocked to see both Severus and Lucius sitting by the fire drinking three fingers of Fire Whiskey.

"How is Draco, my love?" Lucius asked.

"One confused and angry little boy. Right now he is nursing an extremely sore bum, pouting, and fighting a nap," Narcissa said, shocking both men as she sat on the arm of Lucius chair.

Severus could count on one hand the number of times Narcissa had taken Draco to task. She knew how much it embarrassed her son and didn't like putting him through it.

"Ah used your so called magic hairbrush?" Lucius said knowingly.

"Yes and since I used a brush, I hope you won't spank him again."

"What did he do?" Lucius asked.

"He used some inappropriate words…"

"Cissy, don't mince words. What did our son do?"

"His jealousy lead him to swear numerous times…" at Lucius' glare Narcissa finally said, "Luc, I don't like saying those words so I will not repeat them."

Lucius got up and started towards the door.

"Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, I handled it," Narcissa snapped angrily. The second Lucius turned around she added, "A twelve year old boy getting his bare bum smacked by his Mum, fake magic hairbrush or no, is a blow to his dignity. Now come back, finish your drink, and let's figure out how to help our son and Harry get along."

"I will be speaking to our son tonight about language choices," Lucius said as he sat back down.

"I would appreciate that and I'm sure sucking on a bar of soap tonight wouldn't hurt," Narcissa said smiling as she took her husband's hand into her own.

Severus watched the argument with fascination. Narcissa rarely said anything about Draco's discipline. He wondered about the new development and what that could mean for Harry as well.

"So how is Harry doing?" Narcissa asked.

"He's having a hard time adjusting and accepting the fact that I'm his father," Severus said.

"Maybe you should use the family pensive and share some of your and Lily's memories," Narcissa suggested.

"Darling, young boys are not into love stories. Sev, your letter might help," Lucius suggested.

"No," Severus said simply. He wasn't telling Harry about Voldemort being his Grandfather, if he could help it. "He saw Remus' letter and that should be enough. I was thinking about doing a heritage potion with him tomorrow afternoon."

"Would you mind if Draco joins the two of you?" Narcissa asked.

"Why?"

"I think it might help. He feels that Harry is lying and trying to steal you away," Narcissa said.

"That would be acceptable. I'm also thinking about talking to Draco tonight if that is ok with you Luc."

"You are always welcome to talk to him. I don't plan on restricting him to his room. I still hope the boys will spend some time playing Quidditch this afternoon. But first the boy will spend some quality time standing in the corner with a bar of soap in his mouth, thinking of ways to control his temper and keep his language under control especially in front of his mother," Lucius said.

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Harry woke up from his nap feeling refreshed. He still didn't want to believe that Snape was his father but so far, everything was point to it being true The more he thought about it, the more he wondered if it would be so bad. He hated his life at the Dursely's and honestly didn't think that living at the Malfoy's could be any worse. At least he didn't have to hide who he was and it looked like they would feed him everyday. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. A tap on his door interrupted his thoughts.

"Harry?" Severus' voice asked questioningly.

"You can come in. I'm up," Harry said sitting up.

Snape walked in and pulled a chair next to his bed.

"Did you sleep well?"

"I guess," Harry said shrugging his shoulders. To be honest it had been one of the best naps he'd had in years. Letting your emotions go could really tire a kid out. But thinking back he was a little embarrassed for crying like that in front of Snape.

"You heard my story and I was wondering if you would share yours?" Severus asked. He hoped his son would comply, but had a feeling Harry was going to hedge the issue. He understood why his son would be reluctant. It had taken years for him to admit all the abuses his father had heaped on him over the years as the man was trying to destroy Severus' magic.

"What's there to tell? My parents died and I moved in with my Aunt and Uncle," Harry said trying to sound nonchalant.

"I think there's more to it than that. That black eye had to come from somewhere. Also, happy children do not run away from home in the middle of the night."

"So what do you want me to say? It's simple, my Uncle and Aunt hated me and made my life miserable," Harry said harshly. He didn't want to talk about this with anyone, let alone Snape.

"Harry, there's more to it than that."

"Look, I don't want to talk about it, ok?"

"No, it's not ok," Severus said, "You need to Harry, it's the only way to heal."

"Professor…"

"I know you don't believe I'm your father, but you are living with me, so why don't you call me Severus or Sev?" Severus said deciding to change the topic for a few minutes.

Harry just shrugged his shoulders. Making Severus think to himself that he really wanted to break that habit, he found it disrespectful, even though he knew Harry didn't mean it that way.

"Harry, when we talk, I like to hear the sound of your voice, not see the shrug of you shoulders."

"Why does it matter?"

"First, it's a matter of respect. How would you like it if I shrugged when you asked me a question?"

Harry remained silent, so Severus decided to continue,

"Shrugging is also unbecoming and undignified. You're a bright young man and are able to express your opinions, so there's no reason to shrug. Does that make sense?"

"Yes sir," Harry said and wondered what the punishment would be for shrugging.

"Don't worry, I know it's a hard habit to break, so we'll work on it together," Severus said seeing the flash of fear that went across his son's face. "Harry, we really need to talk about your Aunt and Uncle. If you don't want to talk about it, I'm going to tell you what I think happened."

"Why can't you just leave it alone?" Harry asked hating the whine in his voice.

"Because while you were sleeping I ran a few scans and I was shocked by what I found."

"I'm clumsy," Harry said quickly.

"I'm sure that's something you've been told to say, unfortunately for you I'm a trained medic and I know exactly what your scans have to say. What surprises me is that Madame Pomfrey never said anything."

"Professor Dumbledore told her I was clumsy because that's what my Aunt and Uncle said and that's the truth!" Harry said adamantly.

"No Harry, that isn't the truth. Here's the truth. For as long as you can remember you were never given enough to eat and you were not allowed to sleep in a proper bed. When you were four or five you broke your left arm, it was a spiral fracture because your Aunt, Uncle, or cousin twisted your arm behind your back. On numerous occasions you were beaten with a belt to the point that your back was littered with blisters that became infected which left scars that have not healed properly. When you were about seven someone kicked you and broke three of your ribs, again the bones did not heal properly. You've had at least five concussions, broken over thirteen bones, and had far too many other injuries to count. All of these were caused by your family and I promise that you will never ever go back to them."

By the time Severus was finished, Harry had tears traveling down his face. Severus pulled the little boy gently off the bed and into his arms.

"I promise you will never go through that again."

"But Malfoy said you would hit me if I was bad."

"Harry, there is a huge difference between spanking and abuse. I will only use my hand, slipper, or if you really mess up a paddle on all swats will fall on you bum and only on your bum. The most you will ever get is twice your age and that is with my hand only. The slipper and the paddle will only add up to your age. It will hurt, but I promise no lasting damage will be done and the second it's over you will always be forgiven."

"What about Lord Malfoy?"

"Those are his rules Harry," Severus said. "Oh I forgot, if Narcissa ever spanks you, she will use a hairbrush for the whole thing."

"Mrs. Malfoy spanks?"

"Only when you really mess up," Severus said giving his son a reassuring smile. "She knows the embarrassment is worse than the smacking for you boys."

"She smacks Malfoy?"

"Yes and you won't tease him about it either if you know what's good for you."

"I wouldn't. It must be nice to have a mum," Harry said quietly.

"It is and I'm sure you're going to sick of Narcissa's mothering before you become of age."

"Huh?"

"Trust me, Cissy already sees you as her nephew and will be taking you under her wing soon enough. You should see the shopping list she has already made," Severus said smiling.

"I don't need anything," Harry argued.

"Trust me you do and you won't argue with Cissy if you know what's good for you. Don't worry I will never let you go through the torture alone. Draco will be going with you tomorrow afternoon."

"Great shopping with Malfoy," Harry mumbled.

"It could be fun. Are you feeling better?" Severus asked not wanting to let the boy go, but knowing Draco was probably waiting on the field by now.

"Yes sir."

Severus lifted Harry off his lap and reached in his pocket pulling out a miniature broom.

"Luc said you should have the same broom as Draco," Severus said as he extended the broom.

"A nimbus 2001!" Harry yelled in excitement.

"Yes, now why don't you go down and kick Draco's bum on the Quidditch pitch?"