Hey everyone! Sorry it took me so long to update, I've been soooo busy with school, plus I'm American, so we had Thanksgiving. We also got an incredible amount of snow for where I live, so I was enjoying that as well. Oh, plus I had writer's block, which didn't help matters. But I've got another longish chapter for you guys!

Disclaimer: I do not owe anything in the Harry Potter world, nor am I making any money off of this plot. Thank you, now please don't arrest me ;)

Now for my thank yous:

Loslote: Thank you! I enjoyed writing Ron, he's such an interesting and funny character in the books that it would be hard to do him justice. But I really loved writing him :)

ArraBlack: Well, thank you very much! I'm so glad you're enjoying the story so far, and I definitely intend to write more. :)

Torch-SherlockWho-Wood: Thank you so much, I'm sooo happy you think so! I'm definitely writing more! :)

And as always, thank you so very much to the people who subscribe, favorite, and author alert this story and me!

You're all so amazing! Love ya!

Chapter Nine - Who Volunteers To Go Insane?

No one in the house slept very well that night. There was much tossing and turning, minds working too furiously, anxiously thinking about what they might be up against, to drift off. Hermione for one spent most of the night half asleep, half awake, in a kind of stupor, images of Fenrir Greyback attacking Ron replaying behind her eyes like someone had put it on repeat.

Needless to say, no one was talking very much the next morning as they bustled around, drinking coffee and tea, and chewing on eggs, not really tasting anything. Hermione checked to make sure the beaded bag was inside her jacket so many times that Draco glared over at her and asked blearily if she wanted him to put a sticking charm on her body to make the bag stay. He got a very rude hand gesture in return.

They were just finishing up breakfast when Harry, who had been leaning back into his chair, eyes drifting closed, suddenly sat bolt upright in horror.

"We forgot to make a replication of the locket!"

Hermione groaned. They had gone to so much trouble to prepare for their mission that they had completely forgotten one of the key points. "I'll do it," she said, and pulled out her wand. Clearing her throat, she performed the immensely complicated Transfiguration spell to produce something out of midair. With a flash of blue light, a gold locket, just like the horcrux, only with slightly different markings, appeared on the table.

"It's extremely hard to duplicate something to perfection," Hermione explained to Harry as he held the locket up to his eyes, examining it. "I'd have to have it right in front of me to get it down right."

"I reckon he's been away from it for so long he won't notice the difference," Ginny spoke up.

Harry nodded in agreement and stuffed the locket into his pocket. "She's right, he probably won't be able to tell it's a replicate, it's the same size, shape, color, and has similar markings on it. The only thing missing is the – the – the heart…" His voice faltered off a bit, and Hermione nodded.

The original horcrux had thrummed with the beat of what sounded like the heart of a very tiny, metallic creature.

Ginny and Draco both shivered a bit. "What do you mean?" Draco asked in a whisper, but Ginny had a look on her face as if she had an idea of what they were talking about – she had, after all, owned one of Tom Riddle's horcruxes at one time, and knew that it had taken on a form and life of it's own.

Harry and Hermione explained about the beating heart, and then Harry added on about what had happened when he and Ron had tried to get rid of it. Ron had stabbed it with the sword of Gryffindor, but not before being tormented by the – thing – inside of the locket.

Ginny shook her head. "It sounds like these – horcruxes – are almost as dangerous as the Chief Death Eater himself."

Draco stared at them. "You guys have the sword of Gryffindor?"

Both Harry and Hermione shook their heads. "A goblin stole it from us when we broke into Gringotts," Hermione explained. "He said it was goblin made, and he wanted it back. It's a long and complicated story about goblin beliefs but…Either way, we no longer have it."

There was silence following this statement, and then…

"Well, we've made the replica, so can we get going now?" Draco demanded. The others agreed, and got to their feet, clearing away the breakfast dishes. With a wave of their wands, the kitchen was back to the way it had been an hour ago, and the foursome headed upstairs, through the entrance hall, and out the front door, each glancing back once more, wondering if they would ever see it again…

"Right," Harry said, "we need to hang onto each other, since I'm the only one who's ever been there – I need to steer. Just keep on thinking cave on a cliff. I know it's vague, but…"

The others nodded, and they grasped hands – Harry clutched Ginny's hand, and Hermione held Harry's and Draco's – and on the count of three, they spun into suffocated blackness.

It was as if her lungs were tightening, being compressed, being shoved down into the deep hollows of her chest…

...And then Hermione found herself breathing in the cool, early morning air, crisp, with a salty taste that cut her tongue.

She looked around, and discovered that they were standing on a rocky cliff overlooking the dark, sea. On one side there was a sheer drop into the ocean – and rocky shore – and on another was a steep descent.

"So where's this cave you were talking about?" Draco demanded. "All I see is the possibility of a bloody death on the rocks down below."

"We can't apparate there," Harry said calmly, and suddenly Hermione realized they had never actually discussed what would happen once they got here. That couldn't be good…

"I think the Chief Death Eater set up protection to ward against wizards and witches who would mean his horcrux harm. There's a cave just around here, but first we need to go down a little bit."

He led them down the face of the cliff, carefully and slowly, until they reached a boulder, the one nearest the ocean. One by one, they leapt into the cold sea, and began swimming, Harry leading the way, towards a crack in the cliff. They soon reached a tunnel, and a little ways ahead, the water began to lower, and lower, until it was non-existent. There was a cave up ahead, and after drying charms, Harry led them to it. They quickly found themselves facing a blank wall.

"Payment," Harry explained. "Dumbledore thought the idea was for the penetrator to weaken themselves."

"What do they have to do?" Hermione asked uneasily, her stomach twisting in knots. She thought she might have a pretty good idea…

"Blood," Harry replied. "We have to cut ourselves."

They all exchanged looks: Who was going to be the one to mutilate themselves?

And then…

"I'll do it," Draco volunteered.

"Don't be an idiot," Harry retorted. "I should do it – "

"Are you crazy? You're the only one who's been here, you need to lead us on. Plus, you're the Chosen One or whatever crap they're spewing these days. If there's some way of tracing the owner of the blood – and I'm sure he's working on it – then he'll know you were here and that his horcruxes aren't safe. Hermione's a muggle-born, he'll be horrified. Weasel-ette – "

"Would be the best!" Ginny spoke up angrily. "If you're right, then he'll be extremely worried, you being a traitor and all. As for me – I'm a pureblood, and while I'm a blood traitor, I'm a seventeen year old girl and he won't be expecting me to get in very far."

"Don't be stupid, I would be the best, he wouldn't be expecting a mudblood to get past his precious enchantments," Hermione sneered.

There was a pause. There was definitely some logic in what she was saying. When everyone had been silent for ten seconds, Hermione swished her wand, said the spell, and a sharp knife appeared out of nowhere. She grasped its handle and not even flinching, she sliced it across her palm.

Scarlet blood bubbled to the surface and she bit her lip against the stinging pain. Keeping her left hand elevated with her right, she smeared the blood across the rock, and an arched doorway, outlined in silvery fire, appeared.

"This way," Harry said, and the others followed with Hermione healing her hand and Draco muttering,

"Thank you Captain Obvious."

They found themselves on the edge of what appeared to be a lake, in an unimaginably gigantic cavern.

They walked towards the water's edge, and Harry tapped one fist with his wand, remembering that this was what Dumbledore had done just over a year ago. The effect was instantaneous – a green chain flowed into his hand, and he beat his wand against it. At once, it began to rise and gather, and he yanked it up, hauling something heavy to the surface…until…

A small boat appeared.

"The Chief Death Eater only meant for one wizard or witch to be able to cross in the boat," Harry explained. "But I think he meant one extremely powerful wizard. The four of us might make up that weight. Barely." So they clambered into the boat, and it began moving across the water.

Hermione made the mistake of looking down into the water, and what she saw made her stomach wiggle: Dead bodies. She quickly looked away, but caught Ginny's eye, and saw that the other girl was every bit as freaked out and scared as she herself was.

The boat ride was made in silence, each wondering what would happen once they reached the island.

They soon reached a small island in the middle of the lake, and they hoisted themselves out. Standing on a pedestal was a white marble basin, and in that…

"Damn," Harry muttered. "The potion must refill itself."

"What does it do?" Ginny asked, sounding scared.

"It drives the drinker temporarily insane – it makes them go weak, and they relive – they relive their worse memories. At least, I think that's what happens. Dumbledore drank the potion, he said I had to keep on feeding it to him, no matter what." Harry's face was bone white, and Ginny slipped one slim arm around his waist and rested her face against his chest.

"You were only following his instructions," she murmured. "You didn't do anything wrong, you were trying to make the world a safer place."

Draco cleared his throat. "As much as I would hate to break up this sweet little party, we need to figure out which one of us is going to be tormented out of their effing minds. Any volunteers? Seriously, don't all go at once," he added with a grim smile as everyone glanced at each other, just like they had back at the wall.

"It can't be Harry, because we need him," Hermione spoke up. "It shouldn't be Ginny, not after what she went through with Tom Riddle. So that leaves one of us…"

"I'll do it," Draco volunteered. When Hermione opened her mouth to object, he cut her off.

"Seriously, I will. You cut your hand, it's my turn. Now, I'm going to need a cup or something to drink the potion."

Wordlessly, Harry made a small, clear goblet appear out of thin air, and handed it to Draco. With a flash of his trademark smirk, Draco lifted the goblet and plunged it into the deep green liquid. The same color as the killing curse, Hermione thought with a shudder.

Draco raised the cup to his lips, took a sip, and nearly choked. It burned like Pepper-Up potion, but worse. It made his throat smolder. Nevertheless he finished the cup and dipped it back in. Each cup, each sip, was worse than the last, making his throat burn worse than before…His vision was beginning to cloud, and instead…

...Images, past memories, danced in front of him, as if they were really there…Another cup…And then another…He was in the dining room at Malfoy manor, sitting at a long table, and watching Voldemort kill Charity Burbage, the muggle studies professor at Hogwarts…Another cup…He was in his sitting room, watching his Aunt Bellatrix torture Hermione Granger…Her screams seemed to ream through him at full force, cutting his insides…

...The burning liquid was making its waydown his throat once more…The others must've had to start force-feeding it to him…

...He was in the dining room once more, but this time he was on the floor, feeling the inexpressible agony of the Cruciatus curse tear through him as Voldemort used it on him again and again…He was so angry…Draco had not been able to kill Dumbledore…It didn't matter that Snape had taken care of it…It was Draco's job…Oh the pain!

Hermione watched as Draco fell to the ground. The cup clattered on the stone floor, and Harry snatched it up, refilling it with the evil green liquid, as Hermione positioned herself behind Draco so that his head was in her lap. With a look of sheer determination mixed with horror at what he was doing, Harry poured the first batch into Draco's mouth…Again…and again…and...

Draco began screaming, yelling, crying, tears pouring down his face, mingled with cold sweat…He was thrashing around so much that Harry had to toss the cup to Ginny and hold Draco down so he wouldn't hurt himself. Hermione's insides went cold. What could he possibly be seeing, possibly be feeling, that would cause him so much agony?

And then…with the last cup, Draco fell silent and still. Harry looked at the two girls.

"He'll need water, and we'll need to get it from the lake. There's inferi in the lake, and we're going to need to use fire to get them back under the water."

The other two nodded. "One – two – enervate!" Draco's eyes flew open. Ginny dove for the lake and filled the cup with water, dumping it into his mouth, just as a ghostly green, yet very solid, hand appeared. Harry nodded at the other two, and they performed the spell to create a fire, throwing it at the bodies now creeping out towards them. They dove back in, and there was silence.

"I say we go back," Harry suggested, and the other two nodded, just as Draco slumped back down again, unconscious.

So how'd everyone like this chapter? This one was particularly difficult to write, because I was trying to get all the details of the cliff, cave, sea, tunnel, and lake down right. I literally had "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" open in my lap while I was typing this out. I hope I got everything worked out okay though :) Once again, I'm sorry you guys had to wait a week for this chapter, I'm going to try to update a bit more often. Hopefully now that I've got them out of Grimmauld Place the story might flow a bit quicker :) Anyway, I would love to hear what you guys think about this chapter!

To those readers in the United States, Happy Belated Thanksgiving!

Love you all!

Science-Fantasy93 ;)