Author's Note: OK, I am so sorry I have not updated this story. But if you absolutely can't wait until I finish it (which may be in a few months) then please visit the site listed in my profile for the fuller version and please, leave a review at FictionAlley. It will be much appreciative. In the meantime, hopefully I will finish this. I think there's only one chapter left in this installment.

Chapter Eight: The Child

As the weeks went on, Tom and Geoffrey became closer and closer, like best friends. Lucy found Geoffrey laughing at Tom's sick and twisted jokes. She was horrified.

"That's disgusting, Tom!" she proclaimed as she prepared them their breakfast. "How can you make a disaster like that into something comical?"

"It's called humor, Lucy," Geoffrey said in angry defense. "Something you seem to have forgotten."

"Temper, temper you two!" Tom smiled as he looked from Geoffrey to Lucy who were glaring at each other. "Lucy just doesn't have the same sense of humor as we do. We must respect the girl's ways. She is only a woman after all." Taking offense, Lucy put her hands on her hips but Geoffrey and Tom didn't notice as they laughed.

"Take this, for example," Tom said. "Muggles aren't only like animals, but they're like savage, stupid animals. There was this hilarious thing that went on a few years ago… They called it 'The Great War!' I mean, it wasn't even that great. All these different countries just… fighting each other. I can just imagine the slaughter!" Geoffrey joined in with Tom's cackling. "And that's not the half of it! They said that would be the war to end all wars! Well guess what? A second Great War has recently gone on!" Geoffrey laughed even harder while Lucy bit her lip, trying not to retort.

She wondered why she hadn't seen the gruesome details in Tom's jokes until recently…

Lucy even found they were sharing secrets with each other, secrets that neither one of them would tell her.

"What were you speaking about in the kitchen, then, Geoffrey?" Lucy asked him tentatively.

"Nothing," he said, casually and coldly as he put on his black robe. "Merely small talk. Nothing you need to worry your little head about." Lucy scowled as Geoffrey swept out of the room like a shadow. How dare he be so condescending towards her! It was she who showed him this life, it was she who introduced him to Lord Voldemort, it was she who turned him against his uncle.

That's when she realized it.

"It was me…" she muttered, horrified as she fell back on the bed. "I made him this way. This is my fault."

Soon, Geoffrey wasn't Geoffrey anymore. It seemed as though the cold grip of Lord Voldemort was taking over him as well.

More weeks passed and Lucy began to perform spells to make herself appear slender. She thought of killing the horrible burden of prophecy growing inside her. But somehow, she couldn't. He was Geoffrey's son, Geoffrey's child. He was the son of Lucy and Geoffrey. She smiled at the thought and dreamed about how happy he would be to discover he was a father.

But she knew that discovery must never come.

Geoffrey was changing swiftly and Lucy regretted ever dragging him into this mess. He must never know he has a son, for Lucy feared he'd corrupt it, or worse. And Voldemort must never discover that Lucy carried Geoffrey's child. Not only is it a child of legend, of prophecy, but it was Geoffrey's son. He would go mad. He hated the thought of Lucy being unfaithful, and was only barely allowing her to have this liaison with Geoffrey for the greater good of the future. Neither of them could ever know.

"They will never know," Lucy vowed, quietly, knowing exactly what she would have to do.

When Lucy was four months pregnant, Voldemort called an urgent meeting that required all Death Eaters to attend.

"There must be a way I can call you in secret," Tom was saying. "I have graduated from Hogwarts not two months ago, away from Dumbledore's watch. Young Lucy had to leave before the year ended, to avoid any confrontation with our newest member's uncle. He spoke to me, asking where the boy was, but he had nothing to prove that I knew. A Missing Wizard's Report has been filed, so Geoffrey has to keep a low profile for a while. But in the meantime, I have discovered a way to bring you to me without sending out owls. I have devised a Mark that will be tattooed on your arm and burn black whenever I touch the Mark of any Death Eater. When your Mark burns, you must Apparate here instantly from wherever you are. Are we clear?" There were nods and mumbles of approval.

"The first to be marked is the newest addition to our circle: Geoffrey Dumbledore." Geoffrey rose to his feet and walked up to Lord Voldemort, a large grin on his face. Lucy seemed to be the only one present who was frowning.

Geoffrey rolled up the sleeves of his robes and held out his arm to the Lord, who touched his wand to the boy's skin. A word was uttered and a flash of black light engulfed Geoffrey's arm. There was an exclamation of pain from the newest Death Eater as the light disappeared and in its place left a picture of a skull with a snake protruding from its mouth.

There were gasps all around, even Lucy's jaw was open. Geoffrey grinned proudly at the mark on his skin. Lucy's focus swivelled to Lord Voldemort, who was grinning as well. Seeming to feel her gaze, he turned to her and his smile faded.

"Young Lucy," he beckoned. "Would you like to be the second?" Lucy rose from her seat elegantly, like a blossoming red rose, and approached the front. She held out her hand, a faint smile resting on her crimson lips. Voldemort took her ivory hand and kissed it gently before rolling up her sleeves. He touched his wand to Lucy's arm and shouted an incantation.

Lucy cried out. Her flesh seemed to burn and boil like water and it felt as though it was bubbling. But she looked away from the black light. She couldn't see, she didn't want to see…

When Voldemort drew his wand away, she looked and knew she would be forever emblazoned with the Dark Mark, like a cow on a cattle ranch. For the first time, the thought of being a General in Lord Voldemort's army sent shivers down her spine.

Voldemort and Geoffrey grew closer and closer and Geoffrey began to spend more time with him than with Lucy herself. Which, Lucy thought, was better, as her pregnancy went along. When she was beginning her third and final trimester and had just finished performing a spell to create an illusion of her thinness, Geoffrey entered their bedroom.

"Geoffrey!" she cried, surprised to see him. Geoffrey smiled at her warmly and Lucy wondered when the last time he had smiled at her like that was. "Geoffrey…"

"I love you, Lucy," he said, his eyes filled with the emotion.

"Oh Geoffrey, I love you too!" Lucy exclaimed. "I love you so much! And I miss you! When are you going to come back to me?"

"Tonight," Geoffrey said, as he put his arms around her. He frowned. "Something isn't right…" he looked Lucy up and down. She laughed nervously.

"What are you talking about? Everything's perfect, you've come back to me!" He smiled and dismissed his suspicions.

"Yes, I have," he said, and kissed her passionately.

"I love you." She smiled.

"And I love you," he replied.

The time had come. She knew it because she could hear the voices of the Fates whispering in her ear and the pain became overwhelming.

She tried to Apparate to the cave of the Fates, but could only get near it. They helped her birth the baby right there in the forest. But she was surprised.

"It's a baby girl," the crone informed her, handing Lucy the child. Lucy was full of blissful shock.

"A girl!" she shrieked, looking into the baby's green eyes. "So! I'm not part of your prophecy after all!" She laughed at them. "This makes me feel much better."

"A warning, young Lucy," said the child. "Protect this girl from harm."

"I will," Lucy said, falling in love with her little girl. "I'll make sure no one will touch her. Nothing will happen to my little girl…"

Lucy took the child to the Scarlet Glade.

"Do you see this place? This is where your father and I first said we loved each other. Though I didn't mean it at the time, he did. Ah…" Lucy bent down by the water and picked up a lovely white blossom. "Do you see this? This is a water lily. Isn't it gorgeous? But not as gorgeous as you… Who would have known a child, especially one who is supposed to be as dangerous as you, could be so easy to fall in love with! I love you, I do… But…" Lucy knew what she had to do. She had do keep the child away from Geoffrey and Voldemort. If either of them found out, they would ruin the child.

She remembered her foster parents, Pamela and Richard Michaels. She remembered once Pamela's brother came to visit. He had been so nice.

Lucy used her wand to flip quickly through the pages of the Muggle phone book as she searched for the name. What had been Pamela's maiden name? Lucy smiled.

"Evans," she muttered, and looked in the book. "Let me see… Alexander Evans, Darrel Evans, Gregory Evans… Ah, here it is, Nigel Evans…" She copied down the address, almost positive this was the person she was searching for and went searching for the street.

She approached it and smiled at the quaint and small little house: Number four Privet Drive!

She approached the steps with mixed feelings, clutching her child tightly to her breast.

"Oh, I love you…" Lucy never even thought herself capable of any sort of love other than the love she had felt for Tom. But Geoffrey had come and opened her eyes. And now, she was free of the romantic spell Lord Voldemort had cast on her without using a wand or potion of any kind, merely his own words.

Lucy laid the bundle with the child on the porch along with a note and was about to leave when a voice made her jump.

"Lucy, what are you doing?" The girl spun around to find Geoffrey hiding in the shadows.

"Geoffrey, there's something you have to know."

"Is that… Is that our child?" As he stepped out into the light, Lucy saw he was hurt, not angry. She smiled weakly.

"Yes," she said. "But… We can't raise it."

"Why not?"

"Tom will kill us. Literally. Geoffrey, there's something I have to tell you about Tom and I. We're—"

"I know," Geoffrey sighed, looking at his feet. "He told me. It's why I started to grow away from you, Lucy. I didn't think you really loved me."

"Neither did I," Lucy said. "Until that morning where we watched the sunrise together. I never told Tom, of course. If I told him, he would go mad."

"I know," Geoffrey nodded, understanding. "But… You do love me?" Lucy nodded with a grin.

"Oh Geoffrey, I have always loved you!" He embraced her warmly and pushed a strand of her red hair behind her ear.

"What's her name, then?" he whispered in her ear. Lucy smiled and told him. "That's a nice name," he said as he kissed her.

"I thought so," she said. "It reminds me of the Scarlet Glade."

"Me too," he agreed.

"You understand why we have to leave her here? Tom will destroy us if he finds out…" Geoffrey nodded, looking at the bundle on the steps, which had begun to cry. "How did you find me?"

"I love you, Lucy. I notice when you're hiding things. Changes in your behavior… Besides, I noticed you weren't feeling well tonight." Lucy smiled.

"So you followed me."

"So to speak." Lucy looked back at her child, her daughter.

"I love her so much, Geoffrey, I never knew…" She shook her head sadly.

"Come," Geoffrey said, offering his hand to Lucy. "Let's go home. It's all over now."

But it wasn't all over yet...

Lord Voldemort caught them when they sneaked into his estate late at night.

"Where have you two been then?" His voice was icy and merciless as it rang throughout the empty hall.

"Spying on Geoffrey's uncle," Lucy answered, before Geoffrey could say a word.

"LAIR!" Voldemort hissed, the word reverberating throughout the place. Geoffrey and Lucy both cringed. "I know what you were doing! You thought you could hide it from me, you thought I didn't know! I knew. Believe me, I knew about you two. I knew you loved him. Which is why I told Geoffrey the truth. But that didn't work, did it? And then I am informed that you were pregnant! The child is born then?" Lucy and Geoffrey didn't say a word, frozen in fear.

Jonathan Lestrange appeared by Voldemort's side.

"Lewis tells me everything, Lucy," he said, quietly. "Though he even kept this from me until tonight."

"YOU!" Lucy screamed and tried to attack, but Voldemort bound them both in chains with a wave of his wand.

"Where is he?" Voldemort hissed.

"I will never tell!" Lucy cried.

"Geoffrey, you have been a good lad. Where is he?!"

"He's my son, Tom, and I won't have any harm come to him!" Geoffrey said, resolutely.

"So you confirm that it is a boy?" Geoffrey winced. "Ah… It's a pity, Geoffrey. I liked you. But you broke my trust. You still love her, don't you? And Lucy! How dare you! I've always been there for you, I've always been there to love you!"

"Love!" Lucy threw back her head in laughter. "You don't even know what love is!"

"What?"

"You are disgusting!"

"This coming from a kleptomaniac!" Voldemort laughed.

"You've never loved anything in your life. I'm a possession to you!"

"I loved you, Lucy!"

"Right!" Lucy mocked. Voldemort scowled. He turned to Geoffrey again and sadly shook his head.

"You are more deceitful than I had intended you to be, Geoffrey. You even lied to me." Voldemort drew out his wand. "I know what your punishment should be." Geoffrey said nothing to him. Instead, he turned to Lucy.

"I love you, Lucy," he whispered. "I always have."

"Abyssus Extermino!" Voldemort shouted and a horrible plague consumed Geoffrey's mind. His pupils became suddenly large and he began to shake.

"NO!" He screamed. "NO! Get it away from me! Away!"

"What did you do to him, you bastard?" Lucy spat, horrified at the glee written across Voldemort's face. He laughed.

"He does not deserve to die. He deserves to suffer. He stole you away from me."

"He didn't steal me away! I left you, Tom! I left you long ago! I left you the day you became Lord Voldemort." Voldemort stopped laughing and narrowed his eyes at Lucy. There was silence in the hall, except for the screams from Geoffrey.

"You're more of a monster than I could ever be, Tom," Lucy whispered. Voldemort's breathing became heavy. He turned to Geoffrey and the smile returned to his lips as he saw the boy writhing in pain on the floor.

"Yes," he said. "Demons, Geoffrey. They're all around you. Ah, eternal Hell, isn't that what you fear, young Lucy?" Voldemort's contorted smile grew as Lucy continued to glare. She couldn't look at Geoffrey, not in his state. "It's a little invention of my own. He deserves it, though."

"What have you done to him?" Lucy's whisper was barely audible.

"I have altered the chemical balance in his brain, including his senses. He believes he is surrounded by fire and demons. He thinks you're the devil, Lucy. And I think that, even in his state, he is correct."

"I am no more of a devil than you are." Lucy's voice was even quieter. Voldemort's grin nearly spread to his ears. It was so sad to Lucy to see her once best friend only eighteen years old look so… cold. He had once been reserved, mature, intelligent. Now, he was sadistic, conniving and evil. It sent shivers up Lucy's spine and surprised her to think that he had been like this the whole time, even that day with the puppy dog. She had just been too blind to see it.

"We are who we wish to be," Voldemort hissed in her ear. Every ounce of the Tom Riddle she had once known was gone and there was only Voldemort. "You are, after all, the one who led Geoffrey to his insanity. Look at him." Voldemort stroked Lucy's chin and forced her gaze over to Geoffrey, whom Voldemort had released from his chains and was now wandering around aimlessly, unsure of his reality.

Finally, Geoffrey fell to his knees and his blood-shot blue eyes stared at the high ceiling of Voldemort's hall, unseeing. He threw his hands at the sky as if begging for forgiveness from a Supreme Being.

"LUCY!" He screamed. "LUCY!" he began to cry and broke down on the spot, muttering Lucy's name as he sobbed.

"See what you have reduced him to?" Voldemort said. "He is a shell of a man, with only you to blame for his lunacy. Every torture he endures, every demon he sees shares your face and only your face."

"No…" Lucy shook her head vigorously in denial. She glared at Voldemort with burning jade eyes. "I didn't do this to him," she hissed. "You did. You are worse than every evil I have ever encountered. I'm sorry I ever met you, Lord Voldemort. You aren't the Tom Riddle I knew. You're nothing!"

"You love me!" Voldemort reminded her harshly. But Lucy shook her head slowly.

"What I loved in you has now been murdered by who you have become. I loved Tom Riddle. But I never loved you."

"CRUCIO!"

The pain shot through her body like a lightening bolt as every muscle in her body screamed and the anguish squeezed her heart with ice-cold hands. Her head pounded with agony and she heard the blood rushing in her ears like waterfalls. She screamed louder than she had ever screamed in her life. She wanted to die, she wanted it all to end…

And then it did. Voldemort had stopped as soon as he had begun. Lucy opened her eyes to see she was on the floor now, her chains cutting into her skin and she was staring at the ceiling, breathing heavily. She looked over at Lord Voldemort, who was looking at her, surprised. Lucy was shaking as she slowly got to her feet and looked at him with pure disgust.

"You're mad…" she muttered, shaking her head and she Disapperated.