Reaper's Genetic Legacy Experiment [Complete]

[LivvieLove]

Like Mother
Dragon Valley: Present Day
Sheogorath stood numbly on the outskirts of Dragon Valley. His mind was racing. Churning. He bit his cheek and tilted his head slightly. He had tracked the filth, Stephen, all the way here.
His lips twitched. His mind still was not calm. He was insane. Alessandra told him so. He had to overcome what he was. He twisted his wedding ring on his finger. 

His mind was twisted.
“Always prepare yourself. You need to know everything you say before you say it. It’s the only way you can ever be sane.”
Alessandra had taught him that being quiet was the only response. He had to have the right answer every time he spoke. He had to know how she would react before she would react. It made it so difficult to hold lengthy conversations. She told him it was the only way he could ever function in society.
He just could never think fast enough. He could never think of all the possibilities. It was his insanity. That’s what she told him. He wasn’t sure how old he was when he figured out it wasn’t true, but he never forgot, and he couldn’t fix himself. The damage was done
He avoided Mania for the duration of their marriage. He couldn’t think fast enough. He couldn’t form the things he wanted to say fast enough. His father brought her to the Madhouse after she pledged herself to him and he couldn’t think of anything to say to her. Aleccas had though. He flirted and charmed and pursued her. His Saoirse.
Aleccas always had it lucky. He had charm and freedom. He had sanity. He had Mother.

Sheogorath panicked then. Had he lost it? His mind raced as his hands dug into his pockets. His fingers wrapped around the flower and he eased. He pulled the damaged flower out and examined it levelly. His wakeup call.
Anne wasn’t his mother. Alessandra was. He was insane. He was broken and insane. He had nothing left. His father took pity on him. His father arranged the marriage he never dreamed would happen and it was gone. He couldn’t think fast enough to find the words to tell her… what? What would he have told her?
He had far too much he wanted to say now. He only took the paths that he could predict the easiest in accordance with what Alessandra taught him. They were the shortest paths. They made her angry. She was cute when she was angry. The way she clenched her fists and stomped her feet. It was the only way he could figure out how to talk to her without looking like a fool. He couldn’t think far enough to ever tell her anything else.
He could tell her she was beautiful, but where would that go? He had no idea. He couldn’t prepare. She always talked so much and he could never think about what her exact response would be. He couldn’t know the answer. She would be annoyed with him for not being prepared. Alessandra always was. If he didn’t talk. He couldn’t mess up. He thought it was foolproof.
It wasn’t. She wanted more. He couldn’t give her more. He wanted to, but he couldn’t.
His mind was broken. Alessandra told him so. No one wants a broken mind.

That’s where everything fell apart. Mania wanted more, but he was broken. So she found Stephen. She had a child with him.
Sheogorath wasn’t cut out for children. He was broken. He couldn’t be a father. Alessandra told him so. Fate was never part of the picture. He never knew about her. Not until she was older. She turned into a monster. It ate away at him the person Fate had become and he knew it was partially his own fault.
Alice hadn’t been a good mother to her. Sheogorath frowned at the thought. Alice had been only a brief fling - something to dull his senses after he lost Mother. He didn’t care about her, not in the way he did about Mania. Alice got pregnant. He was already gone. She never told him. He never asked. He wasn’t cut out to be a father. Alessandra told him so. Not until he was fixed.
He knew all of these things. These things were truths. He was still angry though. Why couldn’t he say something?
If he just had words to tell her how he felt she never would’ve turned to the garbage to find someone. He knew she wouldn’t have. She was just so loyal. He knew she loved him. He couldn’t understand why she did, but he knew she did. He couldn’t think fast enough.
He couldn’t think fast enough and so he could never tell her that he loved her too.

He always had.
He wanted so badly to not mess things up with her that he messed them up anyways. It was his insanity. He was broken.
He would break Stephen. He would break him. He would melt his mind and show him insanity. Sheogorath was broken. Stephen would be broken too.
Sheogorath held his hands out in front of him and he looked at the flower with missing petals gently before replacing it back into his pocket. He focused his hands in front of him and bent the world around him.

“Poof.” He whispered with a soft smile. Teleportation was what he was best at. He had to be good at it. In order to see Mother he had to evade Alessandra. His teleportations had to be untraceable. That was always his strengths and Mother was always so proud of him. It made him think of her when he did it. He didn’t like it at first - remembering her - but now he clutched to her memory. He could smell the cookies she used to make and hear the music she loved in his ears.

Something was different with the magic in the air today. Something big was going to happen to him. He could feel it.
Teleportation wasn’t his only speciality. Sheogorath’s other talent was in making messes.
Not the kind with paint, like Mother, but the kind that didn’t need to be cleaned up. He made messes out of people. Clean messes. Pleasing both Alessandra and himself in one swoop. He could do something right. He could kill people without making even a small mess. Alessandra never let him make any messes.
He was just never allowed to make messes. Messes were not order. He wanted to make messes. He wanted it badly. It was like an urge he struggled to fight. He had to make messes.
So he made messes of people’s minds. He got very good at it.
On the outside, everything was clean. On the inside, everything was in ruins. Just like him.
Sheogorath could destroy any mind. He could break any person beyond repair. It was what he was good at and he would do it to Stephen.
Sheogorath looked at the Laboratory. It seemed so ordinary on the outside, but it radiated magic. Calypso was here. That was what Mania sensed. Sheogorath smiled sadly.

Her and those cards could see anything. Except his feelings. Of course they couldn’t see those. He clenched his fists. He would destroy Stephen. He would destroy him because he would’ve done anything to not be broken. He would’ve done anything to have had that chance with Mania back.
Mania had ordered Deliro to check the magical situation going on in Dragon Valley. When Sheogorath learned Stephen had relocated to the ancient kingdom he sent his brother home and took his place.
Sheogorath’s rage could not let this rest. Stephen would be broken. Sheogorath would destroy his mind and kill him. Sheogorath cloaked himself with a stealth spell - one he once learned from Quinn and spent the last century perfecting. He felt sadness in him, his lack of talent in stealth is what got her to nickname him Gondir. Rock-Man. He missed her constant chatter, her giggling, and her playful eyes.
He would only have one shot at this. He had to get this just right. He would destroy Stephen for touching his wife. He would break Stephen because he didn’t deserve to be sane.
Sheogorath waited for the opportune moment and snuck into the Laboratory. Sheogorath froze in the front room. White was everywhere.
He could feel his body tensing. He was sucking in a harsh breath. White. White walls. Order. No messes. His mind started churning rapidly. Clean. Perfection. White. Order. No messes. Alessandra was frowning. He disappointed her again. He wanted to water the plants. He watered too much. Dirt was on the white. Dirt was not order. Dirt was messes. Messes were not order. No messes allowed.

Sheogorath was rocking back and forth, his mouth agape as he zoned out. White walls. White floors. White. Order. No messes. He was broken. His insanity. He couldn’t take it any longer.
“Let’s not think about that. You’re very good at magic. Tell me how good you are at magic.” Mother was speaking to him. He had to answer.
“I’m good at magic.” He whispered into the veil that covered him.
“Very good.” She had corrected.

“I’m very good at magic.” He whispered again. It pulled him out of the dizziness. There was no time to think about order. He needed to make a mess. He would make a mess of Stephen. His hand snaked into his pocket and clutched the flower. He pulled it out and it stabilized him. She sang to him, Mother did. She told him that he was good. She calmed him down. He missed her. He missed her so much. Why had he shut her out when she died?
He looked down at the flower lovingly. He would be a better person for her. Once he took care of Stephen he would do whatever it took. The door opened and a gust of wind knocked it from his hands and down the hallway before him. He scrambled after it. He could lose it. He just got it back. It was his wakeup call. It was his reminder.
The flower kept shuffling forward until it stopped at the crossroads of another hallway and Sheogorath stooped to grab it. He clutched it tightly in his hands and eased. He could hear mother singing to him in his head. It was getting louder. He hadn’t let himself hear that song in so long. It was pulling at him, keeping him calm. A door opened suddenly and it was him. Stephen walked from a room and started slowly down the hallway, muttering under his breath. 
Sheogorath could sense him. He was magical? Yes. He was a weak magical source. He would be nothing when Sheogorath was done with him. Sheogorath looked down at the flower with determination. Mother had lead him here. Mother was helping him. The door he had come out of opened again briefly and that was when Sheogorath heard it.
The screams.

It was screams of pure agony. A girl was screaming. He stepped forward, clutching his flower and peered into the window of that very room. She was just a girl. She had neon hair. She was screaming. She was begging. Let her die. Tears were falling from her face. Magic was tearing from her as another girl tortured her.
Sheogorath watched. He looked back down the hallway, watching Stephen disappear, but he could not bring himself to move.
“PLEASE!” The girl threw her head back and screamed. She was repeating it over. A chant. A plea. Kill her now. Just end it.
Sheogorath looked back down the hallway. He could catch Stephen. He could break him.
She was choking on the tears, her screams were fading. The light was fading from her. She was just a girl.
Sheogorath swallowed and looked down at the flower in his hands. Mother had lead him here. The room exploded with lightning. Her magic was unstable. They were torturing her with her own magic.

Mother spoke to him again, repeating a conversation they had once before. “You’re going to be a wonderful father someday, Sheo. I know you will be.”
“You know, not all families are made through blood alone. You pick your family as much as, if not more, than family is picked for you.”
He wasn’t cut out to be a father; Alessandra told him so, but as he looked in at the girl who was screaming in agony he felt something shift in him. He could do something right.
The veil fell off of him as he blew the door off its hinges. He took in the look of the girl holding the remote. She was just a child too. A child torturing another child. It made him angry. Her face flashed from shock to anger. She started to speak, but Sheogorath silenced her, his fingers tapped her forehead with force and in he dug.

Her name was Aurora. He ripped at her mind from the inside. He glided through, knocking down everything she had built up in her head. She started to scream as he tore into her. He stepped forward, putting his arms around her to catch her as she crumbled.
He set her down on the floor where she rocked back and forth, muttering under her breath. Her eyes filled with panic and fear as insanity took hold. He did not break her permanently. He wouldn’t do that to a child. He just stunned her, and she’ll recover in a few days’ time.
Alarms were going off. People were shouting down the hallways as he approached the girl lying numb on the floor. Her lower lip was trembling, she was still barely conscious. She was half machine. A cyborg. Sheogorath had never seen anything like it before in his life. He never knew machines could feel pain.

“Let me die.” She whispered. “Please.” Her voice had no strength. She had given up. They had tried to make her mind a mess. They tried to knock her down. A single tear fell from her eyes and he touched it with his fingertip. He was wrong.
She wasn’t a machine.
She was a girl.
She was a little girl who needed someone to protect her.
He didn’t have time to think fast. He had to answer her. He had to. “No.” He responded then. He would not let her die. He would not. People were coming this way. He sensed them all. This Laboratory wasn’t just a normal Laboratory. This place didn’t belong to mortals. Every person he sensed bore the mark of Calypso.
“Please.” The girl whispered again. She trembled and a sob shook her frail, broken body. Who could do this to a child? Sheogorath was a child of chaos and he still could not fathom why anyone would dare harm a child.
Even his master avoided it at all costs if he could.
Sheogorath flung the door he knocked off the hinges back to the doorway, sealing it shut. He needed more time. He gently lifted her into his arms. He needed to comfort her, somehow. He couldn’t think fast enough. What could he even say? Nothing was coming. People were pounding on the door, trying to break his magical barrier. He was at a loss, when it finally hit him. The words came rushing back to him. “Hush my little swallow, the winter seems so long.” His voice was low, but he remembered the tune exactly. His mind scrambled to find the words. “Curl up my little angel, and listen for spring’s song.” The girl had quieted in his arms, drifting off into a restless sleep. Her face was tear stained and etched with pain. Her body was scarred and broken. She rested her head against him and he continued to hum to her as he slowly stood. He focused his magic as Calypso’s followers shattered the barrier, shouting and bursting into the room after them.

He walked calmly into his teleportation spell with the girl in his arms.

Mpart is responsible for a majority of the screenshots in the Lab. Solstice, Aurora, and Stephen are all her characters. =)
Find Solstice's version of events HERE!

[Magpie2012]

OMG OMG OMG! Sheo! Man, I love that notbroken guy <3

Sent from my BlackBerry 9720 using Tapatalk

[oshizu]

So Sheo loses Mania but gains a hawt, neon-haired lady to love instead? I certainly am hoping so.
Using the very words I've learned at the feet of the Queen of Mush....(ship, ship, ship)

[LivvieLove]

OMG OMG OMG! Sheo! Man, I love that notbroken guy <3

Sent from my BlackBerry 9720 using Tapatalk

@mpart and I love him too! So much! He's so adorable. I'm probably going to post a lot about his time with Solstice.

So Sheo loses Mania but gains a hawt, neon-haired lady to love instead? I certainly am hoping so.
Using the very words I've learned at the feet of the Queen of Mush....(ship, ship, ship)

As much as I love Sheo... I gotta jump in fast!! Solstice is a teen! We're going father-daughter relationship between then. Haha. No mush in that way! Just family mush!

[oshizu]

Awww, darn! I just feel so unhappy watching Sheo feeling so broken. I want Sheo to find some joy all for himself!
Well, thanks for letting me know right away so I can immediately stop imagining that relationship, lol.

[LivvieLove]

Awww, darn! I just feel so unhappy watching Sheo feeling so broken. I want Sheo to find some joy all for himself!
Well, thanks for letting me know right away so I can immediately stop imagining that relationship, lol.

Oh I love Sheogorath, and he definitely will get joy and happiness in love again... but it's Mania or bust for him. His Saoirse. Solstice is the happiness he gets from getting to be a parent. =) They're really adorable and she's already very attached to him with where we are in their story.
I know not everyone reads both stories, but Solstice is Gwen's daughter (the one who went on a date with Edward). She was kidnapped after a car accident and turned into a cyborg (half robot) during some experimentation at the Laboratory owned by Calypso, the Goddess of the Sea. Majnun is very interested in the Laboratory that Calypso has set up in Dragon Valley because Fate has slowly been building an alliance with her there. Solstice was supposed to be turned into a weapon to be used against Majnun. She's had it very difficult at the lab and she hasn't really been able to be a child or do child things.
Her father was never around, and Gwen was often gone due to the trauma that she endured... it's all a mess. That's why the Reapers/Keepers are here to save the day!
No, but really, I just wanted to make sure no one expected anything romantic between them, it's very far from that in our minds. It would be like Jupiter and Jack starting something up. It's often why I have Sheogorath refer to Solstice as a "child" or a "little girl." Apologies if that wasn't very clear! I hope to make it a lot more clear in coming chapters. =) They're so much fun to write.

[KRae]

Maybe Sheo needs a non-romantic relationship to help him realize that he is whole. After all, his relationship with Anne was very healing.

[LivvieLove]

Maybe Sheo needs a non-romantic relationship to help him realize that he is whole. After all, his relationship with Anne was very healing.

I certainly hope it helps him. =) He's taking being a parent like a fish to water it seems (we've written a bit ahead). Sheogorath deserves to find some peace in himself. He's so adorable, I feel bad for all he's been through in his life.

[Magpie2012]

I don't think it was really unclear that you weren't shipping them. I think Oshizu just wants Sheo to have a happy ending so bad (and Solstice too for that matter) that the idea of them being together was the easiest way to visualise it. Plus, it's hard to think of Solsti as a teen when she's been through so much in such a short time. That would age anyone lol It is going to be brilliant watching Sheo and Solsti learn that they aren't as broken as they think!

[LivvieLove]

I don't think it was really unclear that you weren't shipping them. I think Oshizu just wants Sheo to have a happy ending so bad (and Solstice too for that matter) that the idea of them being together was the easiest way to visualise it. Plus, it's hard to think of Solsti as a teen when she's been through so much in such a short time. That would age anyone lol It is going to be brilliant watching Sheo and Solsti learn that they aren't as broken as they think!

Oh I know! =) I hope it didn't seem like I was jumping on you @oshizu! I just would've hated to give the wrong impression about Sheogorath and Solstice! I really want Sheogorath to get that happy ending and he gets a happy ending with Solstice... it's just not in the way that normally people get happy endings in my story.
Oh man, you have no idea how fantastic Sheogorath and Solstice are together. She's so attached to him (as we write ahead) and he's very protective and paternal over her. It's been so good for both of them.

[LivvieLove]

Still Alive!
Hello there, everyone! I've been a bit sparse on my posting unlike usual and I'm just dropping in to say that I'm still alive! I hope all of you are well and I'm sorry that I've been MIA.
Well, I suppose it doesn't seem like I've been MIA much, but in reality I haven't written much for this story in a couple of weeks (save for the duel chapters I've been doing with @mpart). I've been dumping a lot of my time into other related stories that I'm not hosting on this forum as well as the fact that I've rewritten the next chapter that I need post 4 times and it still doesn't feel right. Either way, I'm on my fifth rewrite of it currently and it's going up whether or not I feel 100% satisfied with it.
Anyways, just wanted to give you guys a heads up that I'm still around and alive! =) I hope you all are having fantastic days/weeks/lives.
Much love!
Livvielove

[LivvieLove]

You know how they say the third time's the charm? Well this is the fifth time. I attempted to write this chapter five times and it just never seemed right. I gave up trying to make it seem right and here we are. XD Bear with me. I just need to get the next generation here and wrap up Majnun and Anne. I can do this! Thanks for hanging in there with me!

~~~ The following chapter has characters written by the lovely @mpart who deserves all the credit for her fabulousness! ~~~

Tensions Rising
Sheogorath stood anxiously as he stared at his feet. Order. Tidy. White. Clean. Messes.
He flinched at his inner thoughts and his gaze turned hesitantly up to Anne - to Mother. She had said there was a baby in her stomach and her stomach was only getting bigger to match. He didn’t want to upset Mother but deep inside everyday brought only more stress and anxiety in his head. He didn’t want the new baby to come. Mother would send him home. Mother wouldn’t need him anymore. The thought made him want to cry.
He never wanted to leave Mother.

His father told him to stay by Mother’s side for the entire time that his father would be away. He told him that it was important that Mother always be safe and that if anyone tried to get in that he should teleport her to the Madhouse. Sheogorath took his job very seriously. Mother needed to be safe always and he knew his father didn’t like leaving her. His father even called in uncle Quinn to help while he went away, so uncle Quinn was napping on the porch. Sheogorath thought it was weird, but apparently he was also keeping Mother safe.
Uncle Quinn was pretty weird though.
Anne began to hum quietly while she worked and Sheogorath repressed a sniffle. He struggled to shake the fear of having to go back to Alessandra… to go back to his mom. If Mother didn’t want him anymore then he would go willingly. He didn’t want to, but he would. He sniffled softly and it caught Anne’s attention this time and she looked at him with concern. “My Sheo, what’s wrong?”
Sheogorath straightened suddenly and began working quickly next to her. He shook his head nervously. Words. He needed words. What would Mother say to him? Should he lie to her? No. Absolutely not. He cannot lie to Mother. He cannot. His mind scrambled and he grew more distressed. What should he be saying? What would be the right thing to say? “I-I-I…” He clenched his fists and swallowed.

Mother’s hand brushed through his hair soothingly and his lower lip trembled. “Hush, little one. It’s ok. Take your time.” She smiled warmly at him. “There’s no rush.”
There was a rush. The baby was coming soon and Sheogorath didn’t want to leave. “M-Mother?”
“Yes, sweetheart?” She stopped what she was doing and gave him her full attention.
Sheogorath shifted under the spotlight anxiously and he wanted to cry. Why couldn’t he just say what he wanted? Why was it so hard? He just wanted to talk to mother. He sniffled again and wiped his nose hastily. He should tell her that he loves her, but… he also needed to ask her if he had to go back to his mom. He fidgeted in place. “W-W-Will… Will I…” He frowned harshly. No That wasn’t right. These words weren’t the right words! Again, he had to try again! “W-W-Will I… Will I have t-to go back… back to my mom... w-when… when the baby is born?”
Alessandra would have punished him for such a horrible response and he braced himself for it.

“Absolutely not, Sheogorath! Why would you think that?” Anne’s voice filled his ears and Sheogorath opened his eyes wide to stare at her - his saving grace.
His eyes began to water and he struggled to find the words again. “I… maybe… you won’t… want anoth-another son when the baby… when he gets here.” He whimpered. He was broken. The new baby wouldn’t be broken. A tear fell from his eyes and he found one solid sentence: one he had been practicing for weeks now. “I don’t want to go back.”
Anne reached down and grabbed his hand gently before lightly pulling him over to the rocking chair. “No, no. Come here, my Sheo.” Her voice was gentle yet firm. She sat down and pulled him into her lap gently and he felt all the tears come rushing out then as he held onto her. Anne looked at him gently and there was no anger in her eyes. Mother was never angry with him. Why couldn’t she be his mom? Why did Alessandra have to be his mom? He sobbed softly and sniffled when Mother wiped his face gently with her hand. “You’re never going back if I can help it, Sheogorath.” She paused and tilted his head up to look her in the eyes. “I will always want you. You are my son and you always will be. No baby will ever change that. Ever.”

Sheogorath threw his arms around her and hugged her tighter. “I-I love you, Mother. I don’t want to leave.”
“I love you too, Sheogorath.” Anne rubbed his back slowly. “I would never make you leave, sweetheart. You will always be my son.”
Sheogorath loved the sound of that, but how could that be? Mother was not his mom. He really wanted her to be. He would’ve done anything for her to be. He swallowed and took in a deep breath. “E-E-Even though we’re… we’re not related?”
Anne made a soft face in thought as she continued to rub his back. “You know, not all families are made through blood alone. You pick your family as much as, if not more, than family is picked for you.” She paused. “I choose you to be my son just as you choose me to be your mother and that’s more than enough for me.”
Sheogorath looked at her with his eyes red from the tears. “I… I always choose you.”
Anne smiled warmly at him. “And I always choose you.” She said softly. Slowly they began to rock in the chair while Anne hummed to him. Sheogorath closed his eyes and committed her song to memory, for this was his safe place.

A few weeks had passed and Mother was put on bedrest. She was not well and was only getting worse and it made Sheogorath scared for her. He would sit with her and she would have him read to her but a lot of times his father would interrupt because Mother would start growing very ill from the baby. Despite this, Mother still wanted Sheogorath to read to her. He wasn’t very good at conversation, but at least with reading the words were already there in front of him. When he wasn’t with Mother, which wasn’t very often, he was spending time practicing his magic with uncle Quinn and his father. That’s where he was that day.

Sheogorath sat in the study opposite of his father. He swung his legs back and forth idly as he bit his lip and waited for his father to say something to him.
Majnun grumbled as he shoved some papers off of his desk and kicked them with his shoes while he chuckled. “Paperwork is awful.”
Sheogorath grinned at his father and nodded. It looked awful. Anything with that many words on it had to be awful. Books he read to Mother were ok, but paperwork required you to think of your own words. He couldn’t even think of that many words at a time, let alone put them to paper.
“How has your practice been, Sheogorath?” Majnun turned his gaze on him then and looked at him curiously.
Sheogorath swallowed and thought of the ways this conversation would go. He would say he’s been practicing and his father might ask him how much. Too far. Too much. Instead of that he could say that things are good, which wouldn’t leave much room for negotiation. That could work, but he might ask him to elaborate. Words were too difficult to prepare. “I… I like magic.”
Majnun smiled softly and laughed slightly. “It’s a good thing you do.” He rested his head on his hand. “Your dear-old-dad is a little magically inclined.”
Sheogorath laughed slightly and closed his mouth. Perhaps that wasn’t meant to be a joke? He wasn’t sure.
Majnun jumped forward then and scowled at the lamp on his desk. “I’m not talking to you!” He swatted at it and it crashed into the ground.
Sheogorath looked at the lamp and then back to his father and finally back to the lamp.
Majnun crossed his arms and looked at Sheogorath then. “Do you have something to say, Sheogorath?”

Sheogorath looked back to him and pursed his lips. “Y-Y-You’re crazy.”
Majnun’s eyes went wide for a moment before he started laughing hysterically. Sheogorath sat, confused as he watched. After a long moment Majnun slowly calmed and nodded. “Yes. Yes I am.” He stood then and stretched before casually knocking the rest of the items off his desk. “Shall we go see what the ex-Genie is up to?”
Sheogorath smiled and hopped down from his chair, following his father down the stairs. Majnun reached the bottom of the stairs and threw open the front door, causing a great fuss when the door swung wide and nailed Quinn in the side.
Quinn, who was laying on the steps outside as he usually would be, opened his eyes with annoyance. “Go away, I’m napping.” He grumbled as he closed his eyes again.

Majnun kicked him idly. “You’re supposed to be guarding the house, you lazy Djinn.”
Quinn’s eyes came open slightly again and he sighed. “I am.”
Majnun stepped on his stomach and over him, eliciting a massive groan from the weight. “You appear to be sleeping.”
“I’m multi-tasking.” Quinn grumbled. Sheogorath smiled and poked Quinn’s leg with his foot. Quinn’s gaze shifted to him then and he stuck out his tongue.
Sheogorath watched his father roll his eyes and wave his hand, sending Quinn standing suddenly while he grumbled in response. “I’ve got a job for you.”
Sheogorath watched Quinn stretch and grin. “Oh? A job? Surely it can’t be anymore fascinating than this one.” Sheogorath was confused until it slowly sank in that Quinn wasn’t being serious. Sarcasm tended to go over Sheogorath’s head a lot, but he was trying and uncle Quinn gave him plenty of opportunities to learn.
Majnun rolled his eyes and sighed. “Alright then, if you’d rather sleep on the job than go undercover for me then I can find someone else.”
“Oh-ho?” Quinn’s eyes lit up. “Why didn’t you say you needed my glorious expertise in the art of disguise? Of course I’m in.”
“Good.” Majnun smiled darkly and Sheogorath stared at him in awe. Alessandra always told him that his father was insane and after this morning’s incident with the lamp Sheogorath was very aware that he was. Yet, his father never let insanity stop him and Sheogorath wanted nothing more than to be just like his father.

He slowly hopped down each step individually while his father and uncle Quinn spoke. When he reached the bottom he turned around and hopped back up all the stairs. “Why Nyx?” Sheogorath looked up as uncle Quinn asked the question. Nyx was the Goddess of the Moon. He studied that with both Mother and his father. His father always scowled when he talked about her so Sheogorath knew she wasn’t a friend.
“She’s acting very… chaotic lately and I’d like to know why.” His father pursed his lips and his eyes caught Sheogorath staring at him. Sheogorath’s eyes went wide and his father merely winked in response before continuing. “I need to know how much trouble she’s going to cause before she causes it.”
Uncle Quinn groaned loudly. “That’s kid stuff!”
Was it kid stuff? Sheogorath’s brows furrowed and he looked at his feet. He was a kid and that was certainly not stuff he did. Or was it? He hadn’t had much time to think about the conversation.
“Bah! Don’t be so whiny. We’re either going to war or a trial - and I need to know which one.”
Sheogorath was still staring at his feet, debating what was actually ‘kid stuff’ versus what wouldn’t be. Finally he let it go and went back to hopping up and down the stairs and ignoring the adult conversation. In the books Mother liked, wars involved people riding in on horses ‘gallantly’ - whatever that meant. He supposed it sounded like a good thing to do though, so perhaps he would do it too?
“Sheogorath?”
He stopped suddenly and looked over as Uncle Quinn disappeared through a portal and his father motioned for him to come back inside. His eyes went wide and he dashed back up the stairs to the space next to his father. Internally, his mind worked out a question. “W-We’re going to… going to war?”

Majnun ushered him inside gently before closing the door behind him. “Perhaps. It’s entirely up to Nyx.”
“Go-Goddess of the Moon?” His arms reached out and he gripped at the bottom of his father’s coat while they walked.
Majnun nodded. “Very good: the wicked witch of the big shiny rock has been stirring up a lot of trouble with the hybrid community lately and it will only end in spilled milk.”
Sheogorath grew confused. “M-Milk?”
Majnun nodded. “Lots of it.”
Milk and the moon? That didn’t make sense. Perhaps it wasn’t supposed to, but Sheogorath could never be sure with his father. He bit his cheek in thought. “C-C-Can I go to war too?”
His father chuckled and patted his back. “You know the Lady Anne wouldn’t be happy if I sent the boy she loves dearly into battle!” He clicked his tongue. “Early master fried. Twisted cantalopian verses…” Slowly Majnun scratched at something on his hand before jolting back to the conversation. “I get the sinking feeling that Nyx won’t play nice like I hope she might. We likely won’t have a war, but a trial.” He sighed.
Sheogorath looked up at his father with curious eyes. “A-Are trials worse than… than wars?”
His father thought about it for a moment. “They’re equally bad in different ways, my son.” He paused. “A war is over faster, typically, but it will put you and the Lady Anne in danger, which I cannot tolerate.” He cleared his throat and they walked back up towards the study. “But a trial will take longer and require me to be away from all of you, which is also something I cannot tolerate.”
“H-How will it be decided?” Sheogorath paused. “Between the two?” He added.

“Well, Sheogorath, if Nyx angers another god in the Pantheon with her chaos, it’ll be war. If she angers the Sisters of Time… it’ll be a trial.”
Shegorath nodded as it sunk in. “There are… there are more gods in the Pantheon than there are Sisters of Time...” Majnun nodded along with him as Sheogorath formed his thought. This was one of the longest conversations he ever held and he felt himself smiling as he spoke. “So… war would be more likely.”
His father smiled warmly at him, hints of pride in his face and Sheogorath beamed. “I certainly hope you’re right, but we will have to see.”
“We will have to see.” Sheogorath repeated, trying to mimic his father’s tone. All of the politics of his father’s work was new to him, but he was very determined to learn. He would be just like his father if he could.

Sheogorath curled up outside the study as he listened to his father arguing back and forth with Malice, the God of the Night. Sheogorath snickered as he heard his father calling him ‘Bat-Boy.’ There was nothing he admired more than how quickly his father could control a room.

“Surely you don’t want to turn this into a war, Majnun.” Sheogorath pressed his ear to the door as he listened. “Keeping that pretty wife of yours safe would prove awfully difficult on your own.”
Sheogorath clenched his fists. Bat-Boy was talking about Mother! Rage filled him. No one talked about Mother like they would hurt her! No one!
Sheogorath wasn’t the only one thinking it and he felt the floor shake with his father’s rage. Sheogorath wanted to watch. He wanted to see his father put this stupid god who threatened Mother back in his place. His father wasn’t afraid of anything or anyone. People feared him, not the other way around. He controlled the room and everyone in it. Sheogorath would be just like him one day. He could keep Mother safe too.
Sheogorath glanced across the hallway to Mother’s door. He should go check on her. Something didn’t feel right about the conversation Malice was having with his father and he had a bad feeling in his gut. He scrambled across the hallway and leaned against the doorway, getting ready to enter when he heard a sickeningly sweet laughter.
That laughter was not Mother’s.

“I apologize. I’m not really in the best shape, otherwise I would have greeted you properly.” Mother’s voice filled his ears and Sheogorath opened the door just a crack to peek inside.
“I should be the one worrying about greeting you improperly. You are Majnun’s wife, after all. What is your name, dear?” The woman who stood in the corner of the room was pretty and frightening. Sheogorath clenched his fists as he remembered seeing her around before when she would come to talk with his father.
Argue with his father, more like. Nyx was here and she was in Mother’s room!
“Anne.” Mother responded gently. “Anne Keeper.” She paused and Sheogorath strained to hear. “I’m afraid if you’re looking for my husband… well, I’m not sure where he went if he’s not in the study. I’m not likely able to help you in the state that I am in. I apologize if this is an inconvenience.”

He was in the study. Why was Nyx not in the study with him? Sheogorath glared and felt anger filling him. This old lady wasn’t where she was supposed to be. His father would be very angry. He needed to get him. He needed to go talk to him right now!
“Just rest, Mrs. Keeper. Don’t worry about me! You need to be in the best of health for your baby, and of course, yourself.” Nyx paused. Her voice was beautiful but it held undertones that didn’t sit well with Sheogorath at all. “Without Majnun’s help in your childbirth the child will likely destroy you. If they are even powerful enough it could be a one-way ticket to the Essence. I would hate to be in your position, Mrs. Keeper, but I do wish you the best of luck. Not every god is kind, after all.”
Mother hesitated and Sheogorath couldn’t take it anymore. He ran across the hallway and stopped before he knocked on the door as he heard the sounds of spells flying off. Majnun was busy too. He would need to take matters into his own hands.

Sheogorath took off running down the stairs at full speed, rounding the corner and looking around the kitchen desperately for something he could use to help mother. He opened the refrigerator and his eyes lit up. The old hag, Nyx, would pay for intruding on Mother’s space.
He climbed back up the stairs and pinned his ear to the doorway. “How kind of you to say, Mrs. Keeper.” Nyx’s voice was growing darker. “Things don’t always work out the same way for gods as they do for mortals.” She paused. “You are a mortal, correct, Mrs. Keeper?”
No. No. NO! Sheogorath focused in front of him and bent the world around him until he teleported into the familiar bedroom. Anne shifted in the bed uncomfortably. “I-”

Sheogorath launched one of his hidden weapons he pulled from the kitchen. The egg flew past Mother and landed directly on the front of Nyx’s dress. “STAY AWAY FROM MOTHER, YOU HAG!” He warned, arming himself with another egg. “Y-You shouldn’t be here!” He cocked the egg back as he prepared to throw it.
Anne looked at him with big eyes and opened her mouth when suddenly Nyx began laughing darkly. She wiped away the egg from the front of her dress and her eyes turned black except for the moon in the center. “Of course, Sheogorath.” Her voice was sweet and she laughed an unhinged laugh. “I’m just waiting for your father and was having a lovely conversation with Anne.” She spoke through gritted teeth as she stepped towards him. “How’s your mother doing, Sheogorath? I could always take you back to her if you would like. I’m sure Mrs. Keeper and Majnun would be fine with it.”
Sheogorath’s eyes went wide. Order. No messes. White floors. Clean. I’m broken. He clenched his hand together and felt the egg cracking in his hand.

“Absolutely not!” Mother’s voice was angry and it pulled him from his trance. He was tempted to flinch, but her anger was not directed at him. Instead, it was directed at the powerful goddess who stood before them. “My son stays here with his father and I, and you have no place in that decision at all.”
The panic Sheogorath felt early subsided as a determined smile grew on his face. He nodded in agreement. Nyx opened her mouth to rebuttal but Sheogorath wouldn’t let her. He couldn’t let her talk back to Mother. He tossed the egg he held as hard as he could. “HAG!”
He looked down at his hands and light grew as he summoned another egg from the kitchen. Slowly he bent the world around him and teleported across the room, releasing the egg at Nyx the second he fully stepped through. He summoned another egg and repeated his teleportation, moving smoothly around the room as he pelted the unwelcome guest. “STAY!” Another. “AWAY!” Another. “FROM MOTHER!” Sheogorath stopped then by the bed next to Mother where he held another egg threateningly.
Nyx let out a long breath. “Of course.” She held up her hands with defeat. “I can wait outside for Majnun.” She took a few steps towards the door, the egg vanishing from her dress with each step and Sheogorath glared at her. She was getting off too easy.
Mother shifted forward then and Sheogorath turned to look at her. She held her arms open and motioned him to come to her. Sheogorath shoved the egg he held into his pocket and ran for her, climbing onto the bed gingerly and hugging her tightly. Something clattered and they both turned suddenly to see Majnun as he pressed Nyx to the wall by her throat.

“Tell me, Nyx, how would you like to die?” His father tilted his head and Sheogorath grinned widely. He would watch his father destroy the intruder. “That is what you came in here for, isn’t it? To die? Because you surely know that I would never let anyone live who upset my wife in the manner you have…” He tightened his grip on Nyx’s neck and Sheogorath only smiled bigger. He wanted to cheer him on. His father was terrifyingly sane and it only solidified his admiration for him. “That’s not even factoring in the fact that my beautiful wife is pregnant with our child. So what will it be, Nyx?”
Nyx scrambled to free herself from Majnun’s grip, but Majnun only chuckled darkly before tossing her across the room like a rag doll.
“I’m sorry, Nyx, I couldn’t hear you.” His father’s footsteps were sure and he walked slowly and tauntingly across the room to her. “I asked how you would like to die.”
Mother tugged on Sheogorath’s arm as she slowly brought herself to the edge of the bed, clutching her stomach tenderly. “Help me stand, my Sheo.” She whispered to him sweetly, and he did.
“I assure you, Majnun… I meant-” Nyx gasped.

His father’s insane laugh boomed and echoed off the walls of the room. “Meant no harm? That’s hilarious, Nyx.” He bent over her and glowered at her. “It doesn’t matter what you meant. I’m still going to kill you.”
“No, Majnun. Enough!” Mother had steadied herself next to the bed while she held her stomach gently. Sheogorath pressed himself to her side. He would not let any harm come to her.
“I’m sorry Anne.” His father didn’t look their direction. “I will not let her live.”
“Yes, you will.” Sheogorath peeked up at Mother with wide eyes. He had never seen her so angry before. It was a bit frightening at first, but after a moment he felt himself smiling. “You will let her live, my sweet.” She put a gentle hand on Sheogorath’s back and he pressed his face back into her swollen stomach. “Do you hear that, Nyx? You can keep your life. You can keep your life because I believe in second chances, but I must tell you…” He felt Mother run a hand through his hair sweetly and he squeezed her tighter. “If you ever threaten to take my child away from his father and I again, I swear to you that death will come for you faster than you could ever dream of running. I believe in mercy, but mercy is not infinite.” Anne pointed for the door. “Now get out of our house.”

Suddenly his father was beside him as well, his arm gently around Mother and him. Nyx scrambled to her feet and made for the doorway when his father spoke. “Oh, and Nyx?” Nyx stopped in her tracks, but she did not look at them. “One step out of line and you’ll have a war on your hands that you don’t want to fight. This extends to Malice too. So go, run and hide behind him like I know you will, but think very carefully about your next steps before you take them - because I will be watching and waiting for you to fall.”
Nyx didn’t respond and instead she walked out of the room and through a portal of her own. Mother let out a long breath after Nyx disappeared and she smiled. “Well, that was exciting.”
Sheogorath grinned at her as he fished into his pocket for the egg he put there. “Eggs!” He cheered.
Majnun’s brow furrowed. “Where did you get those eggs, Sheogorath?”
Sheogorath smiled innocently as he teleported the egg back to the refrigerator. “I… I… I kept Mother safe!”

Anne laughed warmly. “That you did, my little hero.” She looked between him and his father sweetly when her eyes went wide and she jolted. Her arms wrapped around her stomach as pain crossed her face. Sheogorath was shoved back as his father stepped forward, his arms around Mother securely as she breathed raspy breaths. “It’s too soon!” She whimpered. “Majnun!” Her eyes held fear in them and Sheogorath felt panic filling him.
“Mother!” He cried.

His father’s head jerked towards him and back to Anne as he gently brought her to laying down on the bed. She breathed harshly and her face was contorted with pain.
Majnun turned to him suddenly and held his shoulders. “Sheogorath, I need you to go get Ms. Daisy right now. Do you understand?”
Daisy was Mother’s friend. She was married to a hybrid. A Death Keeper that his father kept hidden from the impending war. Sheogorath felt so proud of himself when he had figured it out on his own.
Sheogorath nodded, tears welling in his eyes. “What’s wrong with Mother?” He watched Mother double over with pain as she clutched her stomach.
“Majnun... I-” Her breathing grew more panicked and she screamed softly.
“Go! Quickly!” Majnun ordered him.

Sheogorath’s eyes went wide and he nodded, teleporting from the room as fast as he could. The next few days would be some of the longest in his entirely life.


**Nyx is a character of mpart who is awesome and she let me borrow her for this chapter. Nyx is the Goddess of the Moon, to be totally clear, and she's drop-dead gorgeous. Anyways, mpart is responsible for her dialogue and her gorgeousness!**

[Magpie2012]

New chapter! Yay! You go, Sheo! Show Nyx not to mess with a Keeper!

Wait... Did I hear correctly? Other RELATED stories that aren't hosted here?!? Where, where, where?!?!?! PM me please and thank you!

[LivvieLove]

New chapter! Yay! You go, Sheo! Show Nyx not to mess with a Keeper!

Wait... Did I hear correctly? Other RELATED stories that aren't hosted here?!? Where, where, where?!?!?! PM me please and thank you!

Thank you! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up! Oh man it was trying to write. XD Almost out of the woods.

YES! There are other stories out there. Currently one I'm sharing, and one that's heavily in the works that I won't release to the public until I've got a few more chapters under my belt. I do have pictures and excerpts though for those who are interested in the one coming out relatively soon. I'm not really the ones off the forum at the moment because I'm preoccupied in this thread (clearly), but I'm finally ready to share a few of them.
PMing you right now.

[mpart]

Awwwwww! Thanks for the mention.  I love little Sheo so much. He is Anne's REAL son in my opinion. I enjoyed writing Nyx's dialogue a lot, she is such an interesting character. Oh Quinn. I'm worried that his sass is going to get him into too much trouble in the end.