A/N: Sorry it's taken me a while to get this chappy up. been back at school a week and im already weighed down with a tonne of work! I've written a whole heap more on my other story "An honourable betrayal" but am yet to post it. But what ive got ready for you all excites me. hoorah.

Chapter thirteen... Expired hope

Hermione unlocked the front door of Draco's villa and entered. It was quiet and peaceful. She needed quiet. Since Narcissa had disappeared Hermione hadn't been able to score a single quiet moment. She couldn't stop fretting for poor Draco. He was so shaken about his mother's disappearance and the possibility that his father was behind it. She sighed and sat down in the living room.

A sense of unease and dread suddenly filled her as she scanned the room looking for something out of place, when she heard someone's muffled cries.

"Manny!?" Hermione called out her voice trembling.

"Manny are you alright?" She turned into the kitchen and saw nobody. She felt her happiness slipping away from her as she had felt all too often as she turned and came face to face with two dementors. They lurched at her and she fell to the ground trembling. Hermione clutched at her pocket and pulled out her wand.

"Expecto Patronus!"

Hermione screamed and an otter burst from her wand. The dementors recoiled at the bright light and fled the house.

Hermione sat on the floor panting. The muffled cries once again sounded and Hermione turned around, her eyes scanning for the source of the sound. The muffled cries grew louder and Hermione looked towards the staircase.

Pulling herself from the ground Hermione softly padded towards it. 'Where is that coming from?' she thought. Hermione searched the base of the staircase for a seam showing the outline of a secret passage her fingers gliding over the soft marble until she found it. She pulled her wand out and cast a spell making the marble slab sink into the ground revealing a dark tunnel. Against her better judgement Hermione entered.

"Please let me go I wont tell I promise!" the woman cried

"Lucius may have made me swear not to hurt you Narcissa… But since when have I listened to him… Crucio!" The man shouted and the woman Hermione now recognised as Narcissa let out a blood curdling scream as she fell to the floor writhing in pain.

"You deserve this Narcissa so stop fighting it! You betrayed the Dark Lord and let the boy live! Lucius may have forgiven you but I haven't." The man seethed.

"Please Fenrir." Narcissa cried.

Hermione gripped her wand tight as she came to the door in which the screams were sounding from.

Fenrir Greyback laughed as he stared down at the woman at his feet.

"You expect me to give you sympathy? Show you a little bit of compassion as you did to the boy that night the Dark Lord was defeated?" Narcissa whimpered.

"Never!" He screamed.

"Crucio!"

"Expelliarmus!" Hermione yelled as she burst threw the door and pointed her wand at the beast of a man torturing Draco's mother.

Greyback stared wide-eyed at Hermione, stunned.

"Aren't you supposed to be lying dead in the kitchen mudblood!?" He seethed.

"It seems death-eaters haven't got any smarter the past few years have they. You seriously think I couldn't perform a patronus charm on those dementors?" Hermione snorted in disgust at Fenrir as his face filled with wild rage.

"It's too late Hermione. You may have saved Narcissa but you can't save your lapdog." He snarled.

"What are you talking about" She said calmly circling him.

Greyback chuckled.

"You foolish whore, Lucius has no heart, he has been driven deeper into his twisted sick insanity in the last few years. He will show no compassion to his disgusting excuse for a son."

Hermione felt her stomach drop at his words. He was right. She could sense something was wrong with Draco and her head began to spin. Fenrir cackled violently as Hermione stopped in her tracks.

"How are you in contact with Lucius!?" Hermione yelled panting. 'Maybe he was bluffing?' She thought, although she highly doubted it.

"You think the boy saviour is the only one who gets permission to enter Azkaban? In case you forgot, it is guarded by faithful followers of the dark lord. How stupid the Ministry is." He cackled.

Hermione stood frozen to the spot at his words. Her heart began to pound loudly as she felt the blood rushing to her head.

"Stupefy!" Hermione heard Narcissa yell. Hermione hadn't noticed her crawl over to where Greyback's wand had landed. Greyback was stunned as he fell to the ground. Hermione was shocked back into reality as Narcissa collapsed next to Fenrir.

"We have to find Harry and Draco!" Hermione said panicking, to the unconscious Narcissa. She levitated the motionless woman out of the tunnel back into the house leaving a stunned Greyback locked inside.

Hermione transported Narcissa to the lounge and laid her down gently.

"I'm sorry Narcissa; I must find your son." She said softly before running out of the living room towards the door.

She ran outside into the Villa Gardens in time to see Harry dissapparate outside the gate with a limp Draco in his arms. Hermione's heart began pounding hard against her chest.

"Draco!" Hermione screamed as she ran to where Harry was placing Draco down on the grass next to a fountain.

"Hermione you're okay!" Harry said through heavy breaths. Hermione pushed passed him to Draco's side.

"Draco, Draco please be alright!" She cried as tears began to run down her face as she shook his lifeless body.

Harry stood back unable to watch Hermione's face as she realised that Draco was gone.

Her sobs were endless as her whole body quaked. She placed her head on Draco's chest as she picked him up and held his body in her lap. His heart was not beating as Hermione writhed in pain. She felt as if her heart was being torn to shreds, and all she knew of her wonderful life was being ripped from her. Her heart, her mind, her soul, all of which belonged to Draco. Hermione let out an agonising scream in her pain. "Baby you can't leave me! Not now! You're supposed to save me! Save me Draco!" She began to scream as she leaned over and stared into his eyes. Their once silvery-grey colour was a dull had faded and looked no more mystical than the concrete paving he had collapsed upon.

Hermione felt that dying would be a better choice than living with the pain she felt right now. She began to rock, cradling Draco in her arms whimpering and muttering softly.

A/N: AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!! review...