Standard disclaimers apply. All recognizable names and places are the property of JK Rowling.

Chapter Three

After another year, the seventh years were getting ready to go home for Christmas – not too enthusiastically. While the younger years celebrated the approach of a favorite holiday all over the world, they thought only of the marks that would soon mar their forearms.

Tempest and Lucius were frantic although they'd never show it. They had been married over the summer and had just had a baby boy – not exactly expected, but most welcome. Draco Malfoy looked much like his father, except with his mother's piercing eyes. He was almost three weeks old and staying quite contentedly with his grandparents – Lucius' parents. The two visited nearly every night.

They had kept that a secret.

"Tempest, please. Just agree to be a Deatheater!" Lucius exclaimed in a hushed whisper. They may have been at the lake, but no one could tell when there were other listeners.

"No! I won't have my son have a Deatheater for a mother!" He glared at her, but her eyes told him that she wouldn't let him win this. "Lucius, if both of us are death eaters, how could we live with ourselves?"

"Love, you know very well that everyone is going to be a death eater in this generation." He rested pale hands on her shoulders and gazed levelly at her. After a minute, she looked away. Even she could be bested by Lucius when he was this intense.

"But what about Draco? Don't you think that could be a problem?" She leaned against the big oak and looked at the lake where a banshee had once risen and talked to her in a dream. Her husband's hand stroked the cheek where five nearly invisible scars still remained as proof.

"Sweet, that won't affect our son." He insisted.

"What if we get taken to Azkaban? Then what?"

He stared at her sadly and brought his lips down to hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and clung desperately to him as though she would never see him again. Too soon, it seemed, he separated his mouth from hers and sat down, with her next to him. After another moment, he used long fingers to turn her face to his. His eyes delved deep into hers. "We won't be." He told her determinedly. Tears formed at the corners of her eyes and he kissed them away before they could fall.

Oh love… I could almost believe you when you say it like that…Almost. Her mind whispered. All that her body did was lean into his chest and let her tears fall into his robes as his hand traveled her back and he buried his face in her hair.

And as the two sat there taking comfort in each other, the rain began to fall, reminding both of them of a very different occasion from long ago.

"Lucius... I won't become a Deatheater… I'd rather die." She whispered. He didn't hear her. She hadn't wanted him to.

The Malfoy Manor wasn't normally a warm place, nor a place that was comforting. Not even for people who had lived there for their whole lives. It was the perfect place for a Deatheater meeting.

That would be taken advantage of on December twenty-fifth of 1980. The Lord Malfoy was a monster in his own right, his pragmatism and self-preservation standing out over any other character trait, and to all appearances enjoyed hosting the terrible meetings. He didn't, but what the Dark Lord said, was done. Playing host to these meetings had been his punishment for his hesitation to join the group.

At the time though, he was happy with the simplicity of watching his son and his wife play with his grandchild.

"Draco…" Tempest whispered softly, kissing him on the forehead. Lucius's arms were wrapped around her waist and his chin rested on her shoulder. Both watched their son, cradled in his mother's arms. The baby gurgled happily; piercing silver eyes content to suck on his thumb in his mother's careful embrace. The dusting of white-blonde hair, so like his father's, shone in the sunlight that came through the window.

Lucius hand raised itself to rub his son's soft head gently. "He's a cute little thing, isn't he?" He asked in a hushed voice. Tempest smiled lovingly at the 'cute little thing' and stroked his cheek, humming quietly to herself. The soft melody made Draco yawn happily and close his eyes, quickly falling into a pleasant dream. His mother laughed quietly and settled him under blankets in his crib.

She turned to face her father-in-law. "You've taken really good care of him, Dad." She said with a grin. "Thanks."

He smiled gently at her. "You're welcome. I'd never turn down taking care of my grandson, though."

Lucius smirked and led the way out of the room and into the room that he and his wife shared. Both of them sat in silence on the couch.

"Tonight." Lucius murmured softly. Tempest's eyes darkened.

"Yes."

With a grim smile, Lucius rolled up her left sleeve and kissed the underside of her wrist. She smiled sadly and leaned against his shoulder as his lips traveled up her arm to her neck and then her face. Each place that they touched briefly felt like a small star, pleasantly warm, but still the things that made up the entire universe. Then, his lips fell on hers and all that existed was them, their hearts, their bodies touching. Her eyes closed and she deepened the kiss, mouth opening to breathe before returning to the blissful contact. Nothing else remained, just them.

"I can't breathe…" She murmured as they separated.

Lucius just stared into her eyes longingly. "Then don't." His lips returned to hers.

Oh… Her mind whispered giddily. I can't do this… Lucius, you aren't being fair and you know it! Her hands linked behind his neck and pulled his face even closer, forcing his lips even closer to hers, if that was possible. His hands wrapped around her slim form, tangling themselves into her raven black hair.

After too short a time, she pushed Lucius away. "Stop." She whispered and laid her head on his chest.

"You won't reconsider, love?"

"No." She felt him swallow and his fingers touched her chin softly. Tempest let them turn her gaze to his face – his beautiful face that she could never ever see enough of – and his eyes bore into hers.

"Then I refuse." And his mouth fell on hers again.

Silk sheets rubbed against her bare arms. Her eyes opened to find Lucius lying next to her in their bed, her head resting on his chest. She sighed and snuggled closer to him. She must have fallen asleep and Lucius had moved her. She looked up at his closed eyes and serene face, so free from worry when he was asleep. Sighing, she checked the clock on the wall. 6:30. It would only be another half an hour until Deatheaters started arriving in the darkness. She frowned and kissed Lucius cheek before standing up. He stirred.

"What time…?" He asked lazily.

"Six thirty."

He cursed softly and stood up as well. Tempest looked at him sadly, his bare chest showing muscle that you couldn't normally see through his clothes. She looked away quickly as she felt tears burning at the corners of her eyes. Lucius understood immediately and crossed the room in three strides to wrap her in a strong embrace. She bit her lip to keep silent but couldn't stop her shoulders shaking.

She felt a water droplet land on her hair and looked up. Lucius was crying too. She raised an elegant hand to his face and cupped his cheek.

"Love, what will they think, a grown man like yourself crying?" But both of them knew that she didn't care that he was crying. He didn't answer, instead tightening his hold on her. She only cried harder and buried her face in his chest. Her hands linked behind his back and tangled in his beautiful white hair. After a few minutes, she looked up at him again, tears streaming down cheeks which Lucius immediately kissed, his tears mingling with her own. "Oh, Lucius… I can't do this! I can't just… die…" She whispered.

Then there were three soft taps on the door. "Yes?" Lucius asked, stepping away from her and ushering her into a different room and putting on a bathrobe before opening the door.

Severus looked him over with a smirk. "You might just want to hurry so that she can say goodbye before they arrive." He commented softly. Lucius smiled.

"Alright." He closed the door and relayed Snape's message to his wife. She called out that she was almost ready and five minutes later, she was out and dressed in long black robes. Her hair was a mess.

Lucius raised an eyebrow to the offending feature and she looked in the mirror to start blushing furiously. While she tore a brush through her hair, Lucius went into the other room to change as well.

"Draco…" Her soft voice, so quiet and beautiful was like a gentle ray of sunlight in the darkened room. Draco's silvery eyes opened immediately. His mother stood above him, eyes soft and sad. Although not very old at all, he could sense something wrong.

His father looked down at him as well, his fair pale hair tied back elegantly in a queue with a black silk ribbon. His mother smiled tensely at her husband and reached down to wrap her gentle arms around her son.

"Oh Draconis…" she whispered, resting her forehead lightly against his as she used his full name for the first time since his birth. A salty water droplet landed only an inch from his lips. "Be a good boy for your daddy… okay? Don't be a brat, be obedient but willful. Be strong and live like I would want you to, alright?"

Draco didn't understand the implications, but even at only a few months, he could sense that he needed to wiggle his head. He did so. Tempest choked on a sob and hugged him tightly, kissing his cheek before placing him back in his crib. His father wrapped a loving arm around her middle and laid a comforting hand on his son's cheek. "I'll be back soon."

His mother only wiped away her tears, her face becoming a flawless mask of impassivity. As both of them disappeared out of the door to the nursery, he heard a whispered farewell. Without really knowing why, the same salty liquid that had landed on him began to leak out of his eyes. There was something that was going to happen to his mother… and it wasn't good.

"Do you swear to do your lord's bidding at all times, as soon as he asks it?" Severus Snape's father recited monotonously. Tempest Lestrange Malfoy could feel the loathing fill her chest, but nodded from where she kneeled on the ground and kissed Voldemort's robes again. Cold fingers descended to her cheek and forced her to look up at the creature that had been a man named Riddle.
"Then take the mark on your arm." The creature whispered in its high-pitched voice. She stared at him for a minute and then smirked defiantly and stood up.
"No."
The gathering in the main hall of Malfoy Manor fell utterly silent. A wailing could be heard from where newborn Draco Malfoy was sleeping, cared for by his grandmother.
The Dark Lord looked amused. She could hear the swish of his robes as he stood up and took out his wand.

"Crucio." He whispered terrifyingly.
The pain filled every muscle in her body, trying to make her scream. She just needed to scream and it wouldn't hurt as badly. No. She wouldn't give that disgusting man that much satisfaction even.
Lucius watched from where he stood, getting used to the pain that was coming from the new Dark Mark on his wrist, holding to his promise not to interfere. It was damn hard though. He could sense through their bond only a ghost of what she was experiencing. His foot moved forward slightly, to try to stop her torment, then Draco's cry reached his ears. No... their son needed one of his real parents.
The torture only got worse. She wouldn't scream, even as she was forced through the Cruciatus. The pain from the Dark Lord's spell and the spells which joined it from other wands only growing.
After what seemed like an eternity, Voldemort stopped the spell. She crumpled to the ground, breathing heavily to keep from whimpering. He raised his wand again, ready to say the curse that would end her life with as much pain as possible, when Lucius stepped forward. Snape stared at him, but he didn't pay attention. "My Lord..." He began. The man turned to look at him. "She won't be as pained by physical injury as she would by the thought of the Dark Mark on her wrist." He managed to say it coldly, though it was a close victory.
Voldemort looked mildly interested. "Very well then..." He hissed. His snake slithered forward and bit the girl's wrist. Finally, she screamed. Lucius could feel tears burning at the corners of his eyes, but didn't step forward again. She might live through this. Another Cruciatus, and she'd be dead. Her scream echoed throughout the whole manor and most of the surrounding land.
After ten minutes, she crumpled into a pitiful corpse on the cold stones. Voldemort and the Deatheaters left quickly, finished with the night's business.
As soon as all of them were gone, he and Snape ran to his wife's side. "Oh, love..." Lucius whispered, picking her up gently in his arms. She whimpered and cringed. Being careful with her fragile form, he carried her up the stairs and to their bedroom, laying her on the bed and covering her with the sheets...

The pain was terrible. She tried carefully to move her arm, to show them that she was okay, but she couldn't. Slowly, her eyes opened. Through the agony she could just barely see Severus and Lucius standing above her. Lucius was crying again. Severus looked upset. He was holding a goblet half-full of bright emerald liquid. Another goblet on the table gleamed menacingly in the candlelight. It was full of a bright red liquid. What were they for? She tried to dredge up what had happened, but all that came was pain... pain and a high-pitched laughter.

Lucius took the green liquid from the other man and placed his hand behind her head, raising the goblet to her lips. "Drink." He commanded quietly, apologetically.

"What-" She managed, but Lucius poured it down her throat when her mouth opened. She swallowed, a sense of foreboding filling her every vein. "I'm sorry love." He whispered as the two men grew blurry. Her pupils dilated and she fell into an empty darkness. She was just barely conscious of lips being pressed to hers, with tears falling onto her cheeks. Then a burning liquid entered her mouth and a cold hand forced her to swallow it...

THE END

A/N: Okay, well that's all folks! Please, please please tell me what you think! And there is a sequel, I'm just not done with it yet.