Several years pass, Evelyn smiles as she leans over the bow of her new ship. It had taken a great deal to talk Artemis into joining her. Even after all this time he still didn't like the idea of traveling by ship. His argument that she wasn't on the last one. Which was fair enough, but he finally gave in. From Skyrim, to all over, there wasn't a place they didn't go. She feels bad they missed their son's eighteenth birthday, but she had a gift to make up for it. She honestly had no idea how long the trip was going to take. "You think he missed us?" Artemis leans his head back slightly. "Knowing how scattered brain the boy can be, I doubt it." She rolls her eyes at him. Adrian had picked up several habits from her. Mostly that he liked to keep busy and found just about anything to keep himself busy with. Artemis had gifted Adrian his dagger for his sixteenth birthday. He just kept Mehrunes' Razor and Chillrend. Evelyn still had Charon's Claw and that's all she really needed. "Come now, he's not that bad." He just grumbles softly, wanting off the ship. They were slowly getting closer to Solitude. She had hired a small crew to man the ship. She promised she would, because she had no idea how to handle a ship. He refused to even step foot on the thing until she hired people that did know what they were doing. The years had been kind to them, Skyrim, as well as Tamriel had known peace unlike anything before she took charge. Even Artemis had changed, though his personality was mostly the same. But whenever they were alone, he would relax more and be more open. Whatever effects Idalia's Flute had worn off by now and he was more sure of himself.
It was high noon by the time they finally docked in Solitude. Artemis was more then happy to finally be off the ship for good. He was never going to admit that he did kind of enjoy it. She slowly follows after him, just shaking her head at him. A few people took notice of the ship. It was almost the same build as the old Katariah, just a bit smaller. As she gets onto the dock, she smiles wide to see a familiar face waiting for them. Adrian was now a inch taller then she was. He wore his hair the same way as his father, short and tied back neatly. He also kept his face completely shaved. He now wore a dark wizards robe, along with the clock given to him by Jarlaxle. He also kept the hat as well, must to Artemis' dismay. Seems magic really did run in her blood as he had taken a shine to it at a young age. He rushes over to them and hugs Evelyn first, lifting her. She just laughs a bit. "Glad to see you too." He lets go and hugs Artemis, who grumbles slightly. He was still rather angry his son had outgrown him. "How was the trip?" She hands over a small box to Adrian. His eyes light up as he opens it. She had gotten him a silver circlet that would help with his magic. "Oh wow, thanks!" "Sorry we missed your birthday, we would have made it home sooner if...well, reason." Artemis just lets out a huff. "I'm hardly at fault." "You wouldn't get on the ship because you kept swearing we sprung a leak!" He crosses his arms and looks the other way. She lets out a low sigh. Their son just chuckles at them. He was more or less used to this sort of thing by now.
Solitude hadn't really changed that much over the years. Lady Elisif had gotten remarried to her housecarl of all people. From what she's heard, the two where happy together and had two children together. Evelyn was still fine with just the one. She had told Adrian everything, mostly the important stuff. Her being Dragonborn, Empress. The leader of the thieves guild as well as the Companions. She however left out her being a part of the Brotherhood. They had both agreed to tell the boy when he was older, but hadn't really gotten around to it. She had also told him, as well as most her friends about her immortality thanks to her dragon soul. Her friends in the Companions had been surprised when she had told them. She was completely honest with Adrian, her being Dragonborn won't effect him. But there was always a chance his father being half shade might. He didn't seem to bothered by the news when they had told him. Much like his mother he just took things in stride. Nothing really bothering him, though he did have his fathers temper at times. Though those moments were very rare. She was happy to be inside Proudspire again. Adrian had been left to take care of the place. Allowing him to put more focus on his magical talent. He didn't mind the year to himself, it gave him time to really find what he was good at. They spent the rest of the day catching up, mostly Evelyn telling their son of all the places they had seen. She picked up a ton of new books, Adrian couldn't help but laugh, she still liked to hoard books. Her eyes had never changed from the dragon slits, so at least she didn't have to explain that to him. He just figured it was because she was Dragonborn.
Night rolls around and Adrian pulls up the hood of his Piwafwi cloak. She rises her brow at the boy. "I'm heading back to the Collage, Urag promised me I could study some of the new books." She smiles and kisses his cheek. "Alright, behave yourself." He rises his brow at this. "Where's the fun in that?" She shoos him off as he chuckles and heads off into the night. Artemis watches for a moment. "Never pictured the boy to become a wizard." She turns her head. "Does it bother you?" He shakes his head slightly. "He has the skill for it...must be something that runs in your family." "That's my guess, which side of the family is a different question, but I guess it's not that important." After a few minutes she dresses in her Nightingale armor. After Adrian had gotten older, she had returned to her duties with the Brotherhood. As well as her other duties around Skyrim. "I'll be back soon." She kisses her husband, figuring he could do a few minutes alone. Before she pulls up her mask he tugs he slightly and kisses her deeply. Once he lets go she just blinks and chuckles slightly. "Love you too." She turns and heads out the door. She was still able to teleport, she was still the Arch-Mage after all so her room hadn't been touched in the slightest. It only took a few minutes to get herself to Dawnstar. She walks into the Sanctuary still felt like home even after all this time. Babette greets her. "Welcome home Listener." She looks around slightly. "Where's Cicero?" The old Jester was still kicking, but age was starting to slow him down just a bit. "He's near the Night Mother." Nizar was still around as well, he to was slowly starting to show signs of his age.
She makes her way to the Night Mother, Cicero was cleaning away some of the old wax. His red hair was a bit duller now. He glances up and smiles. "Listener, your back, how did your trip go?" "Very well, thank you. We now have a foothold in Black Marsh, High Rock, Cyrodiil, and even Elsweyr..." She had to preform a few ceremonies for the doors. Which Artemis greatly enjoyed afterword. She blushes just thinking about it. "Now if you don't mind?" She pulls out a small notebook she made as well as a pen to use. "Of course!" He slowly moves out of the way as she sits down and gets to work. she was given a few contracts, but she mostly got information to a new member. From what the Night Mother told her, he was a up and coming Necromancer. He would make a great addition to the family. She writes down the location on where this Necromancer was and soon gets up. "Looks like we're adding to the family. Wolfskull Cave..." She blinks at the name. "Oh Gods they better not be trying to raise Potema again...I already took care of that once." She lets out a deep sigh, she might as well get going before this Necromancer does anything stupid. So she ends up teleporting her way back to Solitude. Once outside the gates she lets out a loud whistle. Shadowmere runs up to her, looking happy to see her was well. "Hello old friend." She pets the horse before jumping on and heading down the path.
She heads down till she reaches a fork and turns north. She follows the road till she hits another fork and makes her way to the old cave. A few skeletons stand guard but make no move against her. She passes them, watching them closely. She enters the cave, the place didn't have the same feel as before. She wore her bow as Charon's claw, keeping the blade within reach. She makes her way into the main hub of the cave when she hears an oddly familiar voice. "No...that's not right..." She enters the room, surprised to see Adrian. The boy rubs his chin, looking at a newly raised skeleton. "It's still missing something..." He takes a look at a book, one that had belonged to her. It was mostly notes on what she had learned. Not that she ever practiced it. To much work for her taste. But it seems he had been killing a few people for his work, mostly those no one would miss. She shouldn't be surprised he would take after his father in some way. She makes her way into the room and lets out a low cough. He turns his head, readying a spell. "Who are you?" Her head tilts to the side. "The Night Mother has taken notice." He lowers his arm slightly. "The...you're with the Brotherhood?" He's heard a few stories about them over time. "But I...." He blinks and glances down. "I killed someone you had a contract on..." She rolls her shoulders, if he did, then it hardly maters now.
"Maybe, but the Night Mother has recognized your...talents." "Talent? I can barely get this thing to listen." He waves his hand and the skeleton wonders off. She couldn't help but chuckle softly. He was stubborn also. "Those notes are incomplete." He gives her and odd look. "And how would you know?" She lowers her hood and smiles. "I wrote it." He quickly drops the book. "Mother! I...wait..." He lowers his arm, staring hard at her. "I've been wanting to tell you, not really the way I expected this to go down. But aye, me and your father are assassins." He doesn't say anything at first, he shuffles as he looks at his boots. "So you're....not disappointed?" "Disappointed, why would I be?" "You always told me Necromancy was frowned upon." She chews on her lip and nods. "That is true, mostly because it causes more problems then necessary. It also creates Lichs...and I don't want to deal with those....again." She shakes her head after a moment. "But no, honestly, I'm not even that surprised." He moves slowly, walking over to her. She just smiles warmly up at him. "But some warning would have been nice. Though I guess this makes us even on things we didn't know." He laughs softly at this. "Aye, so this makes us even. So...what happens now?" "Well, you join us, the Brotherhood. Doing so will no doubt teach you want to know if this is the path you wish to follow." He glances at his work before he turns to her. "I would like to continue my work. It's just so...fascinating how it all works. Raising a skeleton, building them so they don't turn to dust." He looked so excited about the whole thing.
She can't help but laugh. "Alright, lets get out of here. This place should have been closed off after a group tried to raise Potema..." He rises his brow as he follows after her. "Why would someone do that?" Much like her, he loved to read so there wasn't much he didn't know. "I have no idea...but I put a stop to it." As they head outside, he pauses, looking at her. "You...still love me...right?" She gives him a surprise look and quickly walks over to him. "Of course I do hun." She places her hands on his face. "Nothing in this world will ever change that." He leans in slightly. "Thanks mum." She turns and makes her way over to Shadowmere. He joins her and they ride off to Dawnstar. This was going to be interesting to explain to Artemis, but she had the feeling he wouldn't be as surprised like she was. Her fellow members where surprised however but assured them there was no confusion. He oddly feels at home here. After he makes himself comfortable she heads out the door. She finds herself standing at the shore, watching the waters. She just waits, it wasn't long before Artemis made his way over to her. Still riding Blackfire, he kept the statue close to him at all the times. He jumps down and walks over to her, looking out into the waters. "Strange to think this is where we met all those years ago." She smiles at him slightly. "Well, you were kind of out cold but you get the idea."
He lets out a low sound as he stands at her side. She moves a bit closer as she wraps her arm around his shoulders. "Have any regrets?" He tilts his head slightly. "No." He honestly couldn't picture his life any differently. "I have a surprise." He rises his brow at this and she giggles softly. She leads him into the Sanctuary. His eyes widen when he sees Adrian there. "Seems he takes after us in more ways then we thought." He shakes his head slightly. "Are you sure?" "The Night Mother is never wrong." He chuckles helplessly. "I'm somehow not surprised. Didn't think the boy had it in him." "Seems he's taking a liking to Necromancy." He shutters slightly. "You think that's safe?" "Oh I'll make sure of it." He shakes his head again as Adrian walks over to them. "So this is where you two ran off too. I always wondered what you were up to, but I never asked." Artemis just shrugs at this. "We were going to tell you." Adrian just smiles back. "It's fine, explains a bit." Evelyn turns to let them have a moment to talk things over. Once she was gone, Artemis turns his gaze to his son. "How long have you been doing this?" "Since you left, I sort of got board and wanted to try something new." Adrian shuffles a bit as he looks down. "I should have told you..." Artemis after a moment or so shakes his head. "It's fine, Necromancy though?" Adrian lets out a soft chuckle. "I couldn't help myself. There's something about it I find interesting. The unknown, I kind of got the hang of it, but I can't get the skeletons to listen..." Artemis listens to the boy, he seemed to have taken a shine to this new path.
"I may have a solution. Jarlaxle might have something you can use that would be helpful...I just have to find him." Jarlaxle took to traveling, there was no telling where he wondered off to. "Can't say I know much myself since I never took to magic." He takes a deep breath. "As long as your happy." Adrian hugs him tightly, having to kneel down just a bit. Artemis just grumbles softly at this. But pats his back, no matter what he still cared about his son. Nothing in the world would change that. After a moment, Adrian stands back up. "Do I even want to know how long you two have been doing this?" Artemis glances at Evelyn, talking to Cicero. "I've been an assassin since I was young, I've been at this far longer then your mother. Mind you, it was a way to keep alive." Over the years, he had told his son where he came from, what his old home was like. Even told him how they met and how he ended up here in the first place. "Still a shame I won't be able to see Calimport." "Trust me son, there's not much to see. There's no telling how badly it's changed over the years. I don't even want to know what the Spellplague has done." He still considers himself very lucky to have gotten out of there before things had gotten to bad. No doubt he wouldn't have survived it. He shakes the thought out of his head and places his hand on his son. "Come on, we have work to do." Adrian just smiles and follows after him.
