Disclaimer: JKRowling owns the Harry Potter franchise and all its characters. No copyright infringement intended. I am not making any profit from this story.

CHAPTER 3

The ring seemed to have no effect. The wizard turned toward the dead body next to him. With a flick of his wand he cast an incendio spell, lighting the corpse on fire. For good measure, he tossed the small case, the news article, and the loose wrapping into the blue flames as well—keeping the letter and Potter's glasses. He watched as the small magical inferno quickly burned away all evidence of the evening's misadventures. Better to be safe than to have a misunderstanding with the Ministry. Those gits would just as soon send you to Azkaban as look at you, he thought.

"We are here," a voice called from behind the Wizard. Fearing his cover–up foiled, he spun like a top toward the voice in the darkness. He stood quiet as stone, his wand instinctively at the ready. As the fire died out behind him, he saw nothing ahead but fog, mist, and the blue–black silhouettes of trees, brush, and distant hills.

"Lumos!"

White light passed from his wand into the branches ahead. Now illuminated, some of the branches along the ground seemed to wriggle and move. Surprised, the wizard took a step back, lowering his wand to get a better look. About two–dozen black adders were slithering across the ground—some away from him, while others were flanking him at his sides. "Who's there?" One of the snakes moving to his left lifted it's head toward the light.

"We are here to sserve you," said the snake.

"Ah, thanks. But that's not necessary," the wizard was thrown by the idea that he was suddenly talking to a nest of adders.

"What'ss that you ssay?" said another snake to his right. The wizard jerked to the right as the loquacious snake hissed loudly at the offensive light.

"I said no thanks."

"Why have you beckoned uss, Wizard?"

"I didn't ask for you." His gaze moved down his wand to the urobara ring on his finger. "What is this maddess? I'm no parselmouth!"

"Why do you call on uss?" another adder called from directly behind him.

"What, is it the ring? Is that what you want?" Panicked, he pulled the ring off his finger and threw it in front of him. Loud hisses erupted from all directions, and the undulating mass of black adders moved toward him in unison.

"Ascendio!" cried the wizard. Instantly, the wizard levitated over the nest of adders and could now see there was more snake than dirt for five yards in every direction. The snakes continued to hiss loudly, but ceased to speak to him. Meanwhile, they seemed to ignore the urobara altogether. Levitating through the air, the wizard made his way over to a nearby oak tree and planted himself on a branch some twelve feet off the ground. After making several attempts to communicate, it became clear that the ring was what afforded him the power of serpent speech.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" commanded the drained wizard. With little effort, the schoolyard spell had the desired effect, and the ring came magically toward the tree and into his hand. "Now, hear me. Will you all please go back into the woods!"

"…that iss why we come to your aid," continued one of the snakes.

"Sorry?"

"He doesn't hear uss," said one snake to another.

"That iss not true. Do you hear uss, Wizard?"

"Yes, yes I hear you. Why are you here? What powers does this ring have?"

The snake looked back at the nest, "You ssee? He doesn't hear uss."

Another snake responded, "We must show him the power of the urobara."

"Agreed," replied the first snake. "You have come to this ssacred place to claim the right of the urobara. We will sshow you its power."

"No! Just tell me. That would be sufficient, I assure…" The wizard was not able to finish, as an adder along the branch behind him bit him in the back of the right shoulder blade. Over–adjusting from the shock, he swung violently to the left and fell off the tall branch chest–first, crashed against a lower branch with his stomach and leg, spun sideways, and landed on his back with his legs breaking most of his fall. Lying in a nest of adders, wind knocked out of his lungs, he saw that his wand had slid from its position in his cloak and now lay next to his left side. He reached over, feeling his chest stretch painfully from the fall, to grasp his wand. At that moment another adder bit his unnoticed right hand, instinctively causing him to retract both his arms and hands toward his body.

"Now go where you are bound, my lord," instructed one of the adders. The wizard began to feel a tingling sensation in his right hand—specifically the finger that carried the urobara. Taking a deep breath, he turned his body and reached for his wand. If he was going to die, he was going to take some of these snakes with him. He raised his wand just as he saw a black cloud covering the adders, the trees, and the stars. The velvet black consumed him, and then he was gone.

—

Laying in the dewy grass, exhausted from his clashes with midnight messengers and talking snakes, the embattled wizard, husband, and father breathed a sigh of relief. He had mysteriously apparated from that foul adder nest to a rather peaceful setting. With his back injured, all he could see were the stars above him. It was a clear night. The fog he remembered was no more. The sweet smell of gardenias filled his nostrils. He rested for a few minutes, taking in the night sky and filling his lungs with much needed air. He could make out the constellation Cassiopeia to the north, and smiled at his own cleverness. As sure as there were goblins running Gringott's, he was in Wiltshire. He looked to his right hand, and noticed there was no snakebite, although there remained a little dried blood. He was still bruised from his fall out of the tree, but he was pretty sure he felt no snakebite on his back either. Beyond his sheer exhaustion and the beating he took from his disagreement with the oak tree, he was none the worse for wear. Finding he could move his arms and legs with some care, he slowly lifted himself off the ground and smiled. Stretching his legs and rubbing his head, he took a good long look at the manor in front of him. The urobara had given Draco Malfoy the power to discern parseltongue, immunity from snakebite, and, apparently, the ability to apparate home. Draco felt for his wand and Potter's glasses in his coat. Both were there. With a quiet sigh, the lone wizard brushed off his clothes and started for his front door. In a few hours, Draco would collect his thoughts and craft a plan. For now, it was time for some much needed rest.

—

Draco awoke to find his wife, Astoria, nursing their son, Scorpius. Astoria was a little startled by Draco's sudden appearance in the nursery, as she had not heard him come in the night before. Draco put his hands up in quiet reassurance.

"It's alright Stori, it's just me."

"Where have you been? You look like you've been wrestling a basilisk all night." Astoria got up out of her rocker and laid her baby down in his crib. Draco came in behind her, wrapping his arm around her back as he watched young Scorpius fall asleep.

"God, you smell like a basilisk too!" she grinningly chided.

"Shh. Come with me into the den. There's something we need to talk about."

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing.