The snake hissed, "You speak the lie that you know as truth..."
Harry asked, "Is that some innate snakey-thing?"
"No..." the snake said, "Ask him what's the snakeyist thing he's ever done?"
So Harry did.
"I once hid inside a chest, and when my godfather walked by, I threw flour all over his robes!"
"Yes..." the snake said, "You know nothing of snakey ways. Not to worry, I will teach you..."
The snake coiled slowly around Draco Malfoy's arm, his hand having been resting on the bed of the lorry.
"Snakes do not have hands, our ways twist and turn, but are mostly about opportunities." The snake said, and Harry repeated.
From the expression on Draco's face, he'd never thought of that.
"I will teach you how to hunt, hatchling split-tail."
"We will give you many juicy meals," Harry said, "We do need a favor from you..."
"Ask, and we shall see..." the snake said.
"We need you to twist and twine upwards, when he plays his flute..."
"insulting..."
"You will make fools out of the entire audience, who thinks you unable to do anything but spiral upward..."
"Interesting... tell me more..."
"You can twine up his arms, and around his head, scare the daylights out of those who are afraid of snakes."
"And he will just stand there?"
"He will do as you please."
"Excellent, I accept your bargain..."
"He accepts!" Harry cried, and turned to Draco, to explain the bargain. Draco's eyes glittered with excitement. Even Blackie gave a little happy bark.
Snape was less than happy, having found little trace of two boys - scant rumors, and those seemed to disappear like mirages whenever he looked at them too closely. He was truly dead if he couldn't find the little Malfoy heir. Lucius would stop at nothing to make certain his beloved son survived. As of this moment, Snape's spells still spoke of both boys' lifeblood being drained. He couldn't even use a locator spell to find them!
It would do no good to tell Lucius, even the familial spells would break with the life-drain.
Whatever this life-drain was, it was a strange thing. There were few things in the world that stole life - or was it soul? Snape felt a chill at that. He prayed not, and this from a man who'd damned G-d's own soul, and for good reason.
They were still alive, Snape knew, still somehow clinging to life.
Not that it did him any good, if he couldn't find them.
Both his masters would torture him alive to find their charges, if that was what it took. Unfortunately, that would get them precisely nowhere and nothing.
[a/n: 'both his masters' in this case means Dumbledore and Lucius. In case it wasn't clear. Minerva would not condone torture, but Dumbledore's a different breed. Leave a review! (in case you can't tell, I haven't been in much of a mood to write this story, but i slogged through for my loyal readers!)]