Severus brought the two boys directly into the kitchen, where he set them down none-too-gently on two hard wooden chairs. Both boys winced, but neither of them dared to protest, for they sensed the older man was at the limit of his tolerance and one wrong word might send him over the edge.

Severus raked them up and down with a ferocious glower and then pulled his wand to run a diagnostic on each of them.

Both teenagers jumped as he leveled the tip of his wand at them and he gave a disgusted snort, saying irritably, "Oh, please! Don't act like I'm going to blast you into next week, though the idea is tempting, I'll admit. You know perfectly well I've never used harmful magic on any child in my care, no matter how irritating they may be." Both boys relaxed slightly at that declaration. "Now hold still, I'm going to run a standard diagnostic so I can see what you did to yourselves."

Not that most of the damage wasn't plain to see upon their faces, he thought angrily. Harry had a beautiful shiner on his left eye and Draco's nose was swollen and trickling blood. The blond also had a large bruise across one cheekbone plus a nasty cut across one eyebrow. Harry had a fat lip that was bleeding sluggishly and the professor's keen eyes caught the way his son was cradling his arm about his chest, suggesting bruised ribs. Draco was favoring his right knee, not putting his weight on it. 

Bloody damn hell, Sev, but they look like they've been through the first Wizard War and fought all the minions of Voldemort singlehandedly. God grant me the patience to keep from throttling them.

His diagnostic revealed no major trauma to either of the boys, for which he was profoundly grateful. The worst injuries were Draco's wrenched knee and a bump on the back of his head, while Harry had badly bruised ribs and an odd contusion just above his navel, where one of the standard pressure points was located.

Severus's eyes slitted to ebony shards of fury. Kin-sa-dor. Those little brats were using kin-sa-dor upon each other! How DARE they? He took a deep breath, trying to restrain himself. Or at least one of them was, judging by the size of the bruise on Harry's stomach, the more rational part of his mind reminded him.

He tucked his wand back in his robes, counted to twenty, then spun on his godson. "Draco, did you attack Harry using kin-sa-dor techniques?" he rasped.

Draco gulped hard, for his godfather looked ready to chew him up and spit him out. He had never seen that particular expression of anger upon the elder wizard's face before, not even the time Draco had mouthed off to him and earned himself a spanking. Then, the anger had been mingled with disappointment. Now, there was only black fury.

Merlin save me, but I'm dead, the blond thought frantically. For one of Snape's ironclad rules was that his students never use kin-sa-dor in earnest upon anything save a mortal enemy. But in the heat of the fight, Draco had not been thinking, and he'd just reacted.

"Uh . . .I might have, sir."

"Might have?" Snape repeated dangerously. "Either you did or not. Yes or no, Draco. Answer the question."

"Yes . . .sir," he admitted, his voice quivering slightly. Then he added swiftly, in a last ditch attempt to mitigate Severus's wrath, "But I didn't really mean to, sir! I . . .wasn't thinking, I just got mad . . ."

"I see. Then you don't consider Harry an enemy?"

"Huh?"

"Do you consider Harry an enemy?" Severus repeated implacably. "It's a simple question, boy. Now answer it."

"No . . .I-I mean I don't really . . .we don't get along . . .he's a Gryffindor, sir . . .but I wouldn't want him dead or anything."

"No?" Severus's voice cut like a whip, and he reached out to pull Draco up so the blond was looking right into his eyes. "Then what in hell were you doing using lethal combat techniques on him, Draco Michael Malfoy? You could have killed him if you'd hit him just a little harder. Ruptured his stomach wall and caused him to bleed internally. What the bloody damn hell were you thinking, young man?" he roared, shaking Draco sharply.

"I . . .I wasn't . . ." coughed Draco miserably.

"What was that?"

"I said, I wasn't thinking, sir."

"Damn straight you weren't. If you'd been thinking about anything save your stupid schoolboy rivalry, you would've remembered my first and most important rule for kin-sa-dor. It is to be used only against a mortal enemy, not against your foster brother. Damn it, Mr. Malfoy, you know that! How many years have I been tutoring you?"

"Four, sir."

"Four years. You have no excuse then. You ought to have learned discipline and restraint by now." His teacher declared coldly. "However, since you haven't, perhaps I should stop teaching you. For if you can forget yourself over a few childish taunts or whatever, you can't be relied on in a true fight."

"No! Please, Uncle Severus!" Draco begged. "Don't do that! I want to continue the training. I promise I'll do better."

Severus eyed him consideringly. "I'll reserve judgement for now. You're on probation, however. Starting now. Step out of line once more, boy, and I'll cancel the lessons permanently and Obliviate the knowledge from your mind. For anything less than a dedicated practitioner is too dangerous."

"I understand, sir."

"I certainly hope so. I expected much better from you," Severus frowned in disapproval. "From both of you, as a matter of fact." He snapped his fingers and a basin and two cloths plus several jars appeared on the kitchen table. "Start talking, Mr. Snape, while I tend to the mess you've made of yourselves." Wordlessly, he began fixing up the boys' faces, cleaning away the clotted blood and applying magical salve where necessary. He had Harry remove his shirt so he could heal his ribs and navel, using both a spell and salve. Then he did likewise with Draco's knee and head, wrapping the blond's knee in a pressure bandage just in case.

By then Harry had finished relating what had happened. Severus vanished the first-aid items, then whirled about and paced for several long minutes with his hands clasped behind his back, scowling blackly. Clearly, his temper was still smoldering.

Draco and Harry sat still as mice, wondering what punishment he was going to come up with this time.

At last Severus stopped pacing and came to stand before them. "So, you were fighting because of a race over which Draco cheated, or at least Harry thought he cheated, and instead of settling it in mature fashion, like another contest, you two brilliant imbeciles decide to beat each other senseless. Have I left anything out, gentlemen, or did I miss something?"

"No, sir," the two answered, very subdued.

"I cannot tell you how sick and tired I am of your endless squabbling. You're like two roosters, fighting at the slightest provocation over the stupidest things. Sometimes I wonder if you two really are fourteen, because you've been behaving like a pair of four-year-olds ever since Draco walked through the door two weeks ago. I ask you to promise me to behave and practice tolerance and instead what do I get? Jealousy, attitudes, and smart mouths. Well, I've had it up to here with it. I've half a mind to take you both over my knee for a good licking, punish you like the four-year-olds you've acted like." He shook his head disgustedly. "Here I thought I was raising two teenagers, not two bratty preschool babies! It would seem I was mistaken. Go to your rooms, both of you. I'm so disgusted I can't stand the sight of you." He pointed a finger at the entrance to the kitchen. "Well, get moving! NOW!"

Draco and Harry jumped to their feet like scalded cats and scuttled down the hallway as fast as they could. They had been granted a reprieve of sorts, but only until Severus mastered his temper.

The two exchanged glances and once they were far away enough from the kitchen, held a quick conversation. "What do you think he's gonna do to us?" Harry asked.

Draco shrugged. "Haven't a clue. But we sure as blazes won't like it, that much I know."

Harry rolled his eyes. "No, really? Because I was looking forward to another round of scrubbing the dungeon with a toothbrush, or writing I will not have an attitude towards my father three hundred times, or eating a bar of English Lavender for lunch like the last time."

"You forgot getting your bum whacked with a wooden spoon," Draco added with a grimace.

"He's never done that to me, only threatened that he would."

"Lucky you."

Harry halted. "Wait. You don't mean he actually . . .when he spanked you that time . . .?"

"No. Not then. After that. He . . .he caught me trying to cast a Withering Curse on some roses in my garden and he damn near had a fit. Told me I shouldn't be walking down such a dark road and such spells weren't meant to be played around with and I had better things to learn and next thing I knew he'd summoned a wooden spoon and bent me over and walloped me two times with it. It wasn't really a spanking, but it hurt."

Harry winced in sympathy. "Ow. Bet you never practiced that spell again."

"No. After that I started thinking about what it was I really wanted to do with my life. And I decided I didn't want to be like my father. Otherwise I wouldn't be here now." Draco shook his head. "He's right, you know. We have been behaving like dumbasses. I promised him I'd get along with you before I came here, same as you did."

"I know." Harry agreed. He recalled Severus saying he was so disgusted he couldn't stand the sight of them, and he knew he deserved every bit of his father's scorn and anger. "I feel really bad now." He scowled at his rival. "You know, none of this would've ever happened if you didn't start crap with me, Draco."

"Me? How about you? Don't act all bleeding innocent, Snape!" spat Malfoy. "You're just as guilty as I am for this mess, more so even. You knocked me on the ground first."

"Yeah, but you used kin-sa-dor on me, so we're even." Harry argued. "Look, let's just forget about it for now, okay? We're already in so much trouble that if he catches us arguing again, he might just disown us."

"Sure, after he beat us senseless," Draco smirked. "This is the calm before the storm, Snape. Something tells me he's not just gonna smack us and ground us for a few days over this."

"Tell me about it." Harry made a face. Then he went into his own room and Draco retreated to his room also, to sit and stew and ponder their possible punishments until Severus summoned them to his study with an amplified voice spell.

Harry felt his heart drop down to his shoes, but he came out of his room and walked alongside his partner in crime down the hallway to the study. He couldn't help feeling like he was taking the last walk of the condemned. He shot a sidelong glance at Draco and saw that the blond boy was just as nervous as he was, he could tell by the nervous twitch of Draco's eyebrow. You brought this on yourself, Harry Albus Snape, his conscience reproved. Whatever he does to you, you've earned and well you know it. Even so, it didn't make him feel any better.

Draco reached the study a scant half second before Harry and turned the knob and went in.

They found their father seated behind his large mahogany desk, still looking forbidding and angry, despite having had a good forty minutes to calm down. "Sit, you two." He pointed to the two chairs in front of his desk.

The two obeyed, not looking up at him, but down at their feet.

Severus let them wait an endless five minutes before he began his lecture. "When I brought Draco home to the manor, I knew you had a past to live down with each other. But I had hoped that you two could manage to come to some sort of truce and agree to disagree about some things and learn tolerance and respect for one another. You two have a great deal of common ground, which you would have seen if you'd been concentrating on something besides trying to humiliate each other in front of me. Don't look so surprised, I'm not blind or deaf or stupid. Perhaps I was mistaken, however, in thinking you two are mature enough to shelve your differences and act like siblings . . .or barring that, at least cousins. Your actions today, especially yours, Draco, have proven to me that you can't be trusted to be let out without a keeper. But I'll deal with that later," he said ominously, and Draco suppressed a shudder.

"Since you have proven that you are nothing more than irresponsible, quarrelsome, immature brats, you will surrender your brooms to me for the rest of the summer. And that is about two months by manor time, just so you know."

"Dad!" Harry cried, for flying his Firebolt was one of the best things, and to be without it for two months . . .He'd rather be spanked with a spoon.

"Quiet, young man!" barked Severus. "I'm not done yet. Your brooms are mine and you also will be getting double the chores around here, which now includes doing the laundry by hand," Harry groaned at that, for he knew just how bad that particular chore was. "And also harvesting and pickling potion ingredients, such as rat livers, toad spleens, stinkweed, bubotubers, and crayfish eyes."

Now it was Draco's turn to groan, for he'd been Snape's apprentice potion maker before and knew firsthand that all of those ingredients were a bitch to harvest and prepare, they were hard to find, they stank, were disgusting, and it took ages to get the awful smell off of your hands and out of your nostrils.

"Last but not least, I've decided to try one last thing to get you two to cooperate instead of quarreling endlessly. The both of you will now share a room until the beginning of school. In it you are allowed to put only basic necessities, and no reading materials save your school texts."

Draco was horrified. "But Uncle Sev! You can't do that to us! It'd be like prison . . .or worse."

"Yeah. It'd be like living in hell," Harry choked. Was Severus insane? One of them would end up dead in two days.

"Oh? And what would you call what I've been living in for the past two weeks? I've done nothing but be a glorified babysitter, and try and mediate between you. I felt like checking myself into a mental institution. In addition to that, you will both have a new bedtime of nine-thirty, and we'll see if more sleep won't sweeten up your tempers," Severus said with a slight smirk. "I'll escort you to your new quarters in a moment." Then his expression changed to something more severe. "While both of you have behaved abominably, it is your actions, Draco, that have shocked and disappointed me the most. Your forbidden use of kin-sa-dor could have resulted in Harry's death. You owe him an apology, which you will deliver right now."

"Yes, sir." Draco said, then turned to Harry and said, "I'm sorry for hurting you like that. I didn't really mean to do it."

"I forgive you," Harry said.

"Actions tend to speak louder than words," Severus intoned. "That being so, I hope you remember this punishment, Mr. Malfoy." Then he withdrew a wooden spoon from his pocket. "Come here."

Draco bit his lip hard and got up.

Harry opened his mouth to protest, but closed it when Draco shook his head firmly and glared at him. The proud Slytherin wanted no one to intercede for him, knowing in all fairness he deserved Snape's punishment.

"May I go, sir?" Harry spoke up then.

Severus fixed him with a stern look. "What's this? You can pound him bloody but you can't stand to see me administer a few swats, Mr. Snape? I would've thought you'd be glad he got what was coming to him."

Harry flushed. "That's different. I was mad before, when I did that. I'm not now. This . . .it's not the same. May I go, Dad?"

Severus waved him off. "Go."

Harry was out the door in a flash, and as he was shutting it, he heard Severus ordering Draco to lie over his knee.

Five seconds later, Harry heard the distinct crack of spoon on flesh and a muffled whimper.

Two minutes later Draco emerged from the study, rubbing his backside and sniffling.

"You okay?" Harry asked, then could of kicked himself. Stupid!

The Slytherin shrugged. Then he winced. "I'll live. He only gave me three. It's not as bad as . . .nevermind."

Not as bad as what? Harry wondered, but before he could query Draco further, Severus emerged from the study. 

"This way. Your new room is next to mine, and when you are not doing chores you will be spending the majority of time together in it." He led them past their former rooms and into another slightly larger one, which contained two twin beds and was colored a soft dove gray with blue carpeting. Severus waved his wand, and the boys' schoolbooks were transported inside on the two desks that were across from the two beds.

Upon opening the closet, Harry discovered all of his clothes and shoes inside, and Hedwig's cage rested next to Stormrider's beside the window, which overlooked the garden. He wondered how all of their things had gotten here so quickly, then mentally smacked himself upside the head. Obviously, Severus had brought their things here while they'd been lingering in the corridor, it would only take a minute or so for the master wizard to cast the spells. Sneaky and clever, Dad! He thought with grudging admiration.

Severus came to stand in the center of the room, hands on his hips. "This is your final warning to shape up and act your age, Harry and Draco. If I catch you fighting again, no matter the provocation, I will treat you like a pair of naughty four-year-olds and turn you over my knee for a sound spanking."

"Dad, we're fourteen!" Harry protested.

"Then start acting like it, son. Otherwise you know the consequences." Severus scolded. "As much as I dislike doing so, I will follow through with it, so beware. Now, it's nearly time for supper. Harry, it's your turn to prepare supper tonight. I'm going for a quick walk, but I'll be back in ten minutes. Hopefully you'll have managed to set the table and cook supper without committing murder."

"We'll try, Dad," Harry replied cheekily.

"Brat!" his father mock-growled, swatting him on the bottom as he went past.

Harry hid a smile, then went to do as he'd been told. 

"Behave, Dragon," he heard Severus say softly to Draco. "I trust you won't make me do that again."

"No, Uncle Sev."

Harry peeked back into the room and saw his father giving Draco a hug. He felt a sudden surge of resentment, but he quickly squashed it. Draco needed reassurance too, and Severus was only giving the Slytherin comfort the way he had Harry after he'd punished him. Draco was his ward and in a way that made him Severus's son too.

He turned around and resumed walking down the hallway.

He was followed a minute later by Draco, and for once they kept their mouths shut and completed a task in silence, without sniping or taunting. It was a small thing, but it was still a step in the right direction.