Kota

My head hurt from what Luna, Owen, and Sean just told us. Morpheus wanted Luna. No, he wanted more than that, but how much more? Were his interests only in those three or... I just couldn't wrap my mind around it.

Gabe howled with laughter as he taunted Sean, "So if you have sex with Morpheus is that like fucking yourself?"

Sean rolled his eyes and flicked his finger, throwing a puff of wind and light at Gabe who fell out of his chair but didn't stop laughing. I guess not everyone was bothered by this.

"Mhac tíre, you seem very pensive," Luna said, placing her hand on my knee. "Please talk to me."

"I don't understand. I mean with Loki, I understood because he was your soulmate as well. Then with Deimos, I understand that the blood bond has triggered something, but now Morpheus..." I looked up at her hating the words that I was about to say. "How many more? How many more mates, lovers, or whatever are going to pull you even further away from us? I know I'm allowing my own jealousy to speak, but I just don't understand."

"I feel the same way," Victor said. "Maybe it's the possessiveness of my dragon kicking in, but I'm tired of sharing you outside of our family. Morpheus even said you draw beings to you, well are all of them going to want you as a lover, a mate, or a pet? How many more times will we face this?"

The look on her face was pure shock...and hurt.

"Do you think I don't love you anymore, that somehow my feelings for all of you have changed?" she whispered as she swiped away a tear. "It only took a century for what I worried about to come true. I knew someday you would resent sharing me."

"That's not what I said, Jewel," Victor growled. "I can handle sharing you with my family, but not Deimos, not Morpheus, not anyone else. I just can't keep doing this."

The room had gone completely silent. I had no idea Victor had been struggling with all of this so much. I just wanted to understand, not give her an ultimatum.

"So what are you saying?" Luna asked him. "Are you telling me to choose?" He scowled, his mouth opening and closing but not saying anything. She spun to me, "What about you Kota?"

"I'm asking you to help me understand, Luna. For me it isn't about choosing, it's about communication. I'm overwhelmed and I don't understand." Her shoulders sagged. I stood before her, pulling her against me. "What would be the parameters of this relationship with Morpheus? Is it just the three of you, or is he seeking to join our family? Or, is this just a fling for him? I don't really know the guy. Hell, other than Sean, none of us do. I think that's my biggest concern." I wrapped my arms around her. "I'm on edge, Luna. After all we've been through, I'm honestly scared of my own shadow sometimes. I apologize if that makes me selfish, but I can't help it."

She gripped me tightly and nodded, "I understand. I didn't think of it that way. I admit I don't know what I feel for Morpheus. There is definitely an attraction, but beyond that, I don't know."

Victor huffed, making a sound of disgust, and walked out the door, leaving Luna gaping as tears began to stream down her face.

Gabriel

Oh, the fuck he didn't! I shot up from my seat, giving Kota and Eveleen a sympathetic look before following my hard-headed husband. I found him in the courtyard, pacing and fuming, his body flickering with shadows and flames. I launched a wave of magic at him, sending him flying backward where he landed on his ass looking at me furiously.

"What the fuck?" he roared.

"You! That's what the fuck, Victor!" I yelled back. "Twice. That's twice you have walked out on our wife. Do you get that? You fucking walked out not once but twice! How many times do you expect her to put up with your little temper tantrums? For fucks sake, not even North gets this way - only you. So what is really going on, because I sure as fuck know this isn't just about Morpheus or Deimos."

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about, Gabe!" he hissed.

"But I do," Morpheus' voice came out of the air as he manifested before us. "Care to share your dreams with your husband, Victor, or should I?"

"You son of a bitch!" Victor roared, hurling shadows toward the god. Morpheus dodged them easily, vanishing and reappearing in a different location. "You have no right. None of them do! They fucking play with our lives as if we were pawns! I'm fucking sick of it!" I gaped as I watched my husband's form expand. He towered over us, a maelstrom of flames and smoke as he continued to roar, launching wave after wave of magic at Morpheus who was beginning to tire.

"That's enough!" Typhon shouted, appearing behind Victor and grabbing him in his arms. They wrestled as he finally fell to his knees sobbing and swearing. "I know," Typhon told him as he held him like a father holding a small child. "None of this has been fair to you, to her, to any of you. Not even the gods are immune to suffering."

"We feel it more than humans often. We see it coming, yet are powerless to change it," Morpheus added. "I know you blame Deimos, and even me for what has happened, but I think you also know we are merely pawns."

I reached out and took Victor's hand. His fingers dug into mine as he struggled to control his breathing. "Please don't shut me out, love," I said, pulling him from Typhon's grasp and into my arms. "I love you more than life, Victor. Let me help you with this."

"Would you like for me to show him?" Morpheus asked quietly. Victor simply nodded. "Gabriel, what I'm about to show you will not be easy. Your husband has been getting visions almost like a floodgate since his elevation to godhood. Add in the volatile nature of his gifts and well..." He touched his fingertip to my forehead, "Deep breaths, and please don't blow me up. That shit really hurts."

I smirked and started to answer when a wave of emotions and images flooded my mind. I saw all of us back with Sang and the Toma's with Kaylie. I watched an entire alternate timeline where they corrupted us with Deimos powers while we were still human. Each of us becoming something monstrous and depraved. Then time slipped back even further until I was watching a young boy being tortured and tainted by demons. Daniel. I watched as his life unfolded, turning him into the creature we know now as Deimos. Another blur had me watching him in a second timeline where he was happy, content, and never tainted. We had a happy life with Sang - marriage, children, but Eveleen...

I watched my little wolf raped by Erebus, then forced to bear his monstrous offspring, her soul becoming twisted and dark.

Then I watched the version we had lived, but without Deimos coming after her. My son, Michael was never born. None of us ever evolved into gods or anything more, and Eveleen became pregnant again with North, but this time she and the child didn't survive the birth. We lingered in misery living only for our children as we all fell into despair, choosing to give up our immortality and die.

I didn't realize I was crying until I felt Victor's arms around me, his deep voice comforting me. "I'm sorry I lashed out, please don't hate me, Gabe," he begged.

I looked up into those fiery eyes, "I could never hate you. I just don't understand why you're so angry. Is there more? What is making you so scared?" I looked back to Morpheus. "What else?"

Morpheus sighed, "The future is never set. Each action causes a new reaction. What you saw were all of the possible outcomes had things gone differently. If your family had gotten your happily ever after with Sang and Kaylie, then Eveleen's life would have been misery. The cost was the fate of the girls - the changes and sufferings your family now has endured." He looked to Victor, "Please understand, I've stood by for thousands of years watching her soul long before it took a form. She is a force of nature that has defied all the odds. The potential of her path is unparalleled, Victor. She is stronger than any god or goddess I've ever known and I'm one of the originals. A dream cannot die, it merely moves and shifts, even when it becomes a nightmare. I am dreams. Even if you deny my request, I will never leave her. I am her guide and have been since the dawn of time."

"Wait, what do you mean the dawn of time? How old is her soul?" I gaped.

"Timeless," he grinned. "Even without a form, she absorbed knowledge and light."

"That's part of why Erebus is so fixated," Typhon added. "Eveleen defies all logic. She shouldn't even exist. She was created from the original essence of light. All creatures from that time were given forms long ago and have since vanished. Her essence refused to find a form. I think she was waiting for you, Gabriel. When your soul called to hers, she was drawn from the light to find you - all of you."

"But she said you had a part in that?" Victor said, pointing at Morpheus.

He nodded, "I did, but not in the decision, just in the manifestation. Her essence knew he was a god long before he did. Her Fae form had no idea, but her essence knows far more than she realizes."

"If she's light, then how was she claimed as a dark goddess?" Victor asked.

"That would be my fault," Callieach said as she suddenly appeared. What is this a fucking reunion? "Don't be sassy, Gabriel," she snapped, "You can't hide anything with that eye roll, dear."

I snorted, "So fucking true. Now, you were saying?"

"While I knew her soul was pure light, Eveleen had already experienced darkness through her very conception. She would need to be guided to avoid falling into the potential path you saw with Erebus. As for her claiming...well, that was an attempt by the Void to sway her. While it was the best way to achieve her ascension, he did try to cloud her transition." She turned to Morpheus, "Now, I need to know what you think you're doing. Is this some new twist in her evolution that I wasn't informed of?"

His cheeks flushed crimson like a child just scolded as he sputtered, "No, this um...well, I didn't expect the feelings I've developed. I don't understand it myself."

"He fell in love," I said simply.

"No, I'm just..." he started to say, but Victor cut him off.

"You love her. Shit, you really do love her." It was more of a realization than a statement. "This whole time I've just thought you and Deimos were toying with her - with us, but fuck me, you really do love her." Then his eyebrows shot up, "Wait! You fucking fell for Sean and Owen too, didn't you?"

Oh, shit, I didn't quite realize that one myself, but he's right. It all makes so much sense now. "How could he not?" I said, "He literally lived in Sean's body, and shared his feelings and thoughts. How could he not fall in love with all of them? He fell just like we all did for each other and for her when we met." I facepalmed.

"I love them," Morpheus said, his voice awed at the revelation. Golden tears streamed down his cheeks as he looked up at us. "I love them - all three of them."

Victor squeezed my hand and told him, "I think we need to let the others see what you showed Gabe, and you need to tell Sean, Owen, and Eveleen how you feel."

"Are...are you sure?" the god stammered.

"I am now. I just need to realize this isn't something I can control, any more than I can control the rising or setting of the sun. I might as well get over my stubborn ass now. I'm fairly certain Deimos will be joining the family as well soon," Victor said. I noticed how Morpheus glanced away for a moment.

"What was that?" I asked. He gave me a look that spoke more than his words ever could.

"The future is never set." 

Author's Notes:  Any guesses about what he's alluding to?

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