Trigger Warning: Possible spoilers, dysfunctional family, dog bite scar, broken nose, mention of a almost death, blindfolded, bound and gagged character, mention of torture

Note: This oneshot is based on my theory that Mr. Forkle is Gethen's father. The reasons I believe this can be found in my Random KotLC Stuff book.

The Errol Loki Forkle that is featured in this oneshot is the one that does not die in Loadstar.

. . .

Forkle was just coming back to Alluveterre. The fight at mount Everest hadn't ended the best, but at least Sophie and her friends would be working in closer proximity to the Black Swan, and they'd also been able to learn the identities of two members of the Neverseen.

   One had been lady Gisela, Keefe Sencen's mother and lord Cassius's wife. Also a polyglot who used her ability to mimic her husband to throw the Black Swan off her scent for the past few weeks. Errol didn't know what had happened to her after she fell off the mountain, but he assumed that she was just fine and they hadn't seen the last of her yet.

   The second...well, they'd actually managed to take him into custody. Blonde hair, blue eyes, crescent shaped scar from his jogger getup awhile ago, and now a broken nose from Sophie's super sucker punch. And the name that Errol had given him.

   Gethen.

   Errol entered the cell that the dwarves had placed his currently unconscious son in, blinded, bound and gagged tightly. He wouldn't be able to get away unless the collective ever decided to set him free—something that would all depend on Gethen's response.

   My wayward son. Errol thought, setting his mouth in a thin line as he took in Gethen's appearance. The white eye on his cloak stared up at him as though mocking, but he wasn't going to break down. He was stronger then this. It was Gethen's choice to go down this path—that was how his brother always comforted him.

   Errol really hoped this went well..

   He crossed the small cell so he was right over Gethen's body. First things first, he removed the blindfold.

   "Hey, wake up." Forkle said, clapping his shoulder. "Gethen, open your eyes." he ordered. When nothing happened, Errol used Gethen's shoulder to shake him until he woke up.

   Gethen's eyes opened slowly, then after taking in their surroundings rolled themselves. Gethen tried to sit up, but the move must've been hard on his nose, causing him to groan painfully through the gag. He settled for shooting a hard glare towards his father, and if looks could kill that would've done it.

   "I'm going to remove the gag so we can talk." Forkle debated warning him against screaming, giving him the classic "I'm gonna remove your gag but don't scream cuz no one will hear you." rundown, but ended up mentally shaking his head at himself. His son may've taken the wrong path, but he was no idiot.

   Once the gag was off, Gethen shifted his hands. "Would you mind removing the ropes too, father?" he sneered, saying that last word as one would a insult.

   Forkle shook his head. "No, they are necessary to ensure that you don't—"

   "What? Escape your little hideout? Steal my daughter and ruin your experimental project?"

   "She is not your daughter anymore then she is her mother's."

   "That's right, I forgot. You get to take my DNA and use it to create life, then tweak her DNA until she is just as you want your little moonlark to be, then hide her among humans and I'm not supposed to have any issues with my daughter being the secret weapon for the Black Swan."

   "You would rather she be forcibly recruited as a secret weapon for her torturers and near murderers."

   "The torture wouldn't have happened if you had let me take her beforehand."

   Errol noticed that Gethen absent mindedly ran his thumb along the bite scar that he'd earned while trying to trick Sophie into going with him.

   "What if I had stayed back? Would you have treated her well if she had issues with whatever it was you wanted her to do?"

   "We only wanted to help her find her true power. Something that I can already tell you aren't allowing."

   "Yes, that girl that broke your nose. She isn't powerful. Or when she inflicted on you and your little gang. Then lightleaped and faded badly, but managed to pull herself back. That little girl who also read a ogre king's mind, something that hasn't been done before. But no. She isn't powerful yet." Forkle noted with heavy sarcasm.

   Gethen looked at the wall to the cell. "Not as powerful as she could be, no."

   "And I'm sure your warped view of power includes murder, kidnapping and more murder. Am I right?"

   "Power is pushing your limits and setting new records, then beating those until you can't anymore."

   "So you'd have her fade again, this time worse, then pull herself back, and repeat until she actually does die."

   "Is this what you captured me up for? You didn't want to ask about identities, or plans, just talk about Sophie?"

   "You brought her up. I intended to see what made you leave, and how it's gone for you, but I believe I have my answer."

   Gethen just shrugged.

   Disheartened, Errol decided that the conversation, although short, had gone on long enough. He still had a lot of questions, but no idea how to ask them and no hope for a softening of his son's heart toward him.

   Forkle stood up. "I'll be back soon to rebind and gag you, and I'll bring a fresh change of clothes as well. And when I come back, I will have some questions about the—the Neverseen."

   "We'll see how many get answered," Gethen shrugged lazily, "Ta ta."

   Errol paused in the doorway. "This isn't how I raised you." he mumbled, unable to even look at his son.

   "You didn't raise me at all." was the cold response.

   Errol left the room without another word and told his brother all about the conversation. After a chat that was meant to comfort him (but didn't), Errol admitted that he didn't think he'd be able to go back into the cell, so his brother offered to do it for him.

   And later, his brother informed him that Gethen had refused to wake up, locking himself inside his own mind.

   Nothing woke Gethen up, until they brought Sophie into the cell to speak to him. But Forkle couldn't let Gethen tell her that he was her father. He wouldn't let her find out that he, Forkle, was her grandfather. He had to keep her family a secret, for her own sake.

   Knowing that her father was her enemy, he feared, would break her.

   Like it broke him.