"I want to see Draco," Sirius Black repeated firmly. His grim expression didn't change under his old nemesis' stormy glare. "I am a professor in this school with every right to speak with a student."

Severus didn't budge. "I know exactly what you are doing, Black. He may be a student, but he is in my House. You have no place discussing the incident with him. Why don't you go tend to your famous godson?"

Anger coursed through Sirius' veins. Severus enjoyed making this situation worse. "Not that it is any of your concern, Snape, but I have already talked to Harry."

"Congratulate one and accuse the other? Draco had quite enough of that today, I'd say." Severus didn't always like Draco's behavior, but he was appalled at the way the latest stunt played out among the staff.

Sirius didn't feel like bickering with Snape at the moment so he inhaled deeply, silently counted to three and spoke again. "They both could have gotten hurt or hurt someone else. Harry may be on the team, but that doesn't mean he is free from punishment. The professors may not have seen fit to reprimand him, but I do. As you said, he is my godson." He shot Severus a pointed look. "And Draco has been considered my nephew since he was born. It has been a difficult year with my family, but that will not affect how I treat the boy. You can bring him to me now or I will simply wait until my class tomorrow."

Severus' jaw set. He hated that Sirius had a point. The adults in the boy's family were acting like children, but Draco didn't need to suffer. He was raised under Black's watchful eye even more-so than Harry. When Sirius filled the Charms position, he made it abundantly clear he was there because the family limited his time with the boy so severely and he wouldn't have it.

He didn't say anything, just spun on his heel and called for one of the older students to summon Draco Malfoy.

Sirius smirked at Snape's retreating back. He won! Bloody bastard. No one would keep him from Draco.

"Sir?"

Sirius' head jerked in the direction of the voice. "Draco," he said calmly. The boy was doing his best "I'm Draco Malfoy and you can't bother me" impression, but Sirius knew better. He saw the way his "nephew" ever so slightly twitched when Sirius spoke. He beckoned him over with one finger. "Come with me. We are due a discussion, young man."

Those words never bode well. Draco didn't budge. He knew if he left the safety of Slytherin, he was in deep trouble. "No," he said stubbornly. "You can't make me! Mother and Father don't even want me speaking to you anymore!"

Sirius reminded himself that the child was repeating what his parents wanted, but the words didn't sting less. "Well, that is too bad," Sirius replied. "I may not be your parents' favorite person right now, but you are still a child in my family." He knelt so he was eye level with the boy. "I will pick you up and carry you out of this dorm," he threatened. "Do you want a repeat of what happened in Diagon last year?"

His uncle fairly whispered the threat, but Draco knew he was serious. His stomach sunk. "No, Uncle Sirius."

"Good." Sirius straightened up again. He placed a hand at Draco's back and kept it there during their walk back to his chambers.

Draco's eyes widened when he saw Harry sitting on Sirius' sofa. "What is HE doing here?" Was Sirius just trying to rub Harry's good luck in his face? He didn't realize his eyes clouded over at that thought, but Sirius caught it.

"Harry is here because you both disobeyed the same rule and you both face the same consequences for that." Sirius knew he would be in for an argument if he tried to get Draco to move any further after that so he merely bent to pick up the small child in his arms. However, even as Draco squirmed, Sirius gave him a quick hug in hopes of calming him a bit.

He plopped the little Slytherin on the couch, but left a cushion between the pair. "I already know what happened," he informed them, "And neither of you are completely innocent OR guilty. I don't care what happens, I won't have either of you endangering yourselves."

"Dad said you lot got into tons of scrapes!" Harry protested. He was glaring daggers at Draco. It was all his stupid fault. "And no one is mad anyway! I am on the team! You heard what Professor McGonagall said!"

Sirius rested a hand on Harry's shoulder. "We did get into plenty of mischief," he agreed. "In some cases, we were very lucky to not have been hurt. But we ALSO caught plenty of trouble for it with teachers and parents alike." In reality, he knew he came off like a hypocrite, but he was an adult now and he would gladly die rather than allow the boys to hurt themselves. "I don't want you seeing this as a reward, Harry. Your parents said you can stay on the team, but that doesn't mean you are not still in trouble."

"But he-" Harry jerked a thumb toward Draco.

"He is in trouble too." Sirius pushed Harry's hand down. "You two don't need to be best mates, but I won't have you trying to kill each other either." He pulled Harry up into his arms then. "Draco, I expect you to sit here, do you understand me?"

Draco's stomach twisted. He was confused. He had no doubt about what Sirius planned to do to him, but he hadn't expected Harry to face that too. He half expected it was some joke.

"Draco?" Sirius prompted.

"Yes, Uncle."

Sirius nodded. "Good." With that, he turned to carry Harry into the next room. He shut the door, set a silencing charm on the room, and then sat on the bed with Harry in his lap. "I know Draco said some mean things and I know he took something that wasn't his, but that doesn't give you the right to break an important rule about your safety." He cupped Harry's chin. "I also would very much appreciate it if you tried to get along with him."

"But Uncle Sirius!"

Sirius sighed. "I know. He'll get the same conversation, believe me. But you know I love you both and I don't want today to become a repeated affair." He gave Harry a hopeful look.

Harry just shrugged. "I'll try, but he sure makes it hard, Uncle Sirius."

Sirius chuckled a little. "He is a bit like me that way." He quickly sobered. "You know what comes next, don't you?"

Harry cringed, but nodded. Sirius rarely spanked him. In fact, it only ever happened when Harry's parents left him for their once a year holiday together. He guessed Hogwarts counted now. He let out a little whimper as his uncle flipped him over his lap and outright whined when he felt his pants taken down.

The next few minutes were not at all pleasant, but they were over quick enough and Harry found himself cuddled into Sirius' arms. He sniffled as he cried the last of his tears out. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"I know." Sirius held him for a few moments before he forced Harry's chin up. "When this is all done, I'll expect you both to apologize to each other." His firm expression headed off any complaint.

"Alright," Harry said in a resigned tone.

"Come on now." He set Harry down, took his hand, and guided him back to the living area.

Draco knew better than to leave the couch although he was very curious about what was happening next door. However, he quickly realized Harry DID get spanked as the boy shuffled out with a pink nose and bleary eyes. Well, good then.

Harry avoided Draco's wondering eyes as he took his seat again. He felt Sirius bending to pick up Draco, but he didn't glance at them.

Sirius really wasn't looking forward to giving another spanking, but he had a feeling he'd be in for a few more double doses in the future. He sat on the bed with Draco in his lap and gave his tiny cousin a plaintive look. Unlike Harry, Draco was in this position far more often than Sirius liked. Sirius took control of the boy's upbringing under the guise of being the Black family head, but, mostly, he knew how harsh Lucius could be so he always tried to catch Draco first.

Draco looked at his uncle with blank eyes, but Sirius knew better. "I don't like it when you tease people, young man. Part of being a good young man is treating others kindly. And I certainly don't like it when you take things that don't belong to you."

Draco fiddled with a thread on his pocket. In many ways, he saw Sirius as his father. Lucius rarely spent time with him. When he did? It was usually to tell Draco he wasn't a proper heir. Sirius, however, had been in his life for as long as he could remember. Sirius was the one who cuddled him, took him places, taught him things, and made him feel like he was a good boy. "I know," he said in a small voice. Uncle Sirius certainly didn't think he was a good boy just then.

"Good," Sirius replied. "I am not punishing you for those things although I am disappointed. This punishment is for putting yourself in danger. Do you understand me?"

Draco's grey eyes clouded when Sirius mentioned his disappointment. "Yes, sir."

Sirius sighed and flipped Draco across his lap. He did spank Draco a bit harder than he smacked Harry since Sirius felt he instigated the whole thing, but not any longer. He also pulled the child into his arms as soon as he was done. "It is okay to cry," he reminded Draco. "We all need a good cry once in a while." Draco always tried to be so brave, even when Sirius could feel the silent tears soaking his shirt. "I love you," he whispered into Draco's ear as he rocked him. "No matter what." Draco was much less secure than Harry, which was why Sirius left him to last. The child always needed extra reassurance after a punishment. "But you WILL apologize to Harry, do you hear?"

That did make Draco cry a bit harder, but he nodded into his uncle's shoulder.

"That is my good boy," Sirius said as he rubbed Draco's back. Draco was the closest thing he had to a son and he wasn't going to let him become some spoiled brat, but he also wasn't going to leave him thinking he was a bad child. He set Draco back down then and took his hand. "C'mon, kiddo."

Harry looked up when he heard the door open. He winced on seeing Draco's cherry nose. The boy was still crying pretty hard too. Part of him thought it served him right if Sirius was harder on him, but the other part sympathized. Spankings were no fun.

"Alright," Sirius announced as he took a seat next to Harry and pulled Draco next to him. "I think you boys have something to say to each other." He kept an arm around each pair of tiny shoulders, but looked at Draco first.

Draco sniffled. Sirius said he started so he had to go first. "Harry," he said in the bravest voice he could muster, "I am sorry I said mean things and stole that ball and I am sorry we went flying and got our bums smacked."

Sirius' lips twitched at that apology. "It is not your fault Harry got on that broom," he reassured the child. "Harry made that choice and that is why he got a sore bum, kiddo." He really didn't want Draco thinking he blamed him for Harry's punishment. That was all on Harry.

Draco turned watery eyes toward Sirius. "It is not all my fault?"

Sirius' heart tugged. "No, little one, it isn't. That is why you both where punished." He was glad to see Draco's slight smile at that. "Harry?" Sirius prodded then.

Harry took a deep breath. "I am sorry I fought with you and said things about the flying and was mean in front of Ron."

Sirius quirked a brow at that, but said nothing. Apparently this went further than he thought. He did squeeze Harry's shoulder in a silent applaud though.

"Alright," Draco said softly.

"Good boys, the both of you." Sirius gave them both a little squeeze. "I trust we won't have a repeat of this any time soon?"

"No, Uncle Sirius!" He couldn't help laughing as both blurted out the same hurried promise. He sure hoped so. "Alright, you both can go back to your dorms."

Harry slid out of his reach, but Draco didn't move. Harry gave the other boy a quizzical look. Sirius gave his godson an encouraging smile. "It is alright. Go on."

Harry shrugged. Draco was weird alright. "Bye, Uncle Sirius!" He glanced over his shoulder. "Bye, Draco," he added as an afterthought. He didn't wait around to hear if Draco replied. He was anxious to get back to his friends.

"Draco?" Sirius looked down at the boy. "What is it?" He was surprised when Draco crawled into his lap and wrapped his arms around his neck.

"Father says you are going to get blasted if you aren't careful. Will you be careful? Please?"

Sirius' grip tightened on the young boy. He couldn't make that promise, but he could make another. He took this job for a reason. "No matter what your father says or what my mother does, you will always be my nephew. I will ALWAYS be here for you." He gently pushed Draco backward so they could lock eyes. "Promise ME that you'll never forget that you are my boy even if your dad says something different."

Draco's eyes bore right through him. "I promise," he said finally. "You spanked me really hard, you know."

Sirius grinned. That was more the cheeky little boy he was used to. "You won't go repeating today now, will you?"

Draco sighed like he was greatly put out. "I bet Harry's was easier."

Sirius wouldn't lie to him. He cocked his head and looked at Draco gently. "I'm not raising Harry," Sirius told him. "I love him a whole lot and he is very special to me, but YOU are the closest thing to a son that I have. Do you know what that means?" He didn't bother waiting for an answer. "It means I am a little harder on you because I have to be, but that doesn't mean Harry gets away with things or that you are less important to me."

Draco liked it when Sirius said he was close to a son, but he still felt a jealous pit in his stomach.