Twisted Every Way(Phantom Of The Opera Fic)

Chapter 68: First steps

Eli looked happily to his younger sibling.

It was funny but sometimes he wondered if she-

Nah.

"Come on Winnie," he smiled happily, "You can do it."

Winnie held to the side of the piano bench shakily, her eyes distrusting and tired.

"Come on Winnie," He urged again. "You can do it."

"No!" The little girl yelped shaking her head, "No, no, no."

Eli frowned. She couldn't even say mommy and daddy yet but she was sure proficient at telling everyone no.

Eli just couldn't understand it. Everyone else had inherited their parent's talents, their natural aptitude for learning. Winnie seemed diffrent, she seemed...normal.

Ilios came in holding Wade gently and gave a sigh.

"No luck?" She asked.

"Please," Eli begged, "I never want to hear the word no again."

"No, no." Winnie babbled droolingly.

Eli's small smile returned and he looked to Wade, putting a finger to his little hand.

Wade turned away in nervous apprehension and gave a sigh. Wade seemed to be scared of him from the moment he could recognize faces.

It was logical he supposed. Babies liked order, routine, and his face was anything but.

"Come on Wade," Ilios cooed. "It's just Eli."

Eli didn't mind.

"Let him be Ilios. It's alright."

Ilios shrugged and grinned at Winnie.

"Come on Winnie," She said as she encouraged the little girl by spreading her arms open.

"Nope." Wade babbled, "She no go. Nope."

Eli laughed as Wade stuck a finger in his mouth and popped his p's with every nope.

Ilios glanced proudly with affection to her brother, "You look like Father when you do that."

Eli turned and shrugged, "Like what?"

"When you get that look in your eye. Like you've got something planned," Ilios smiled.

"I've always got something planned," Eli smirked. "Like your imminent demise."

Instead of her usual laugh, Ilios turned away and sat down beside Winnie, putting Wade to her right.

"You okay?" Eli asked with concern.

"Do you think we're diffrent? Then the other kids?"

Eli Sat down and crossed his legs, "I don't suppose so. No."

Ilios played gently with her little brother's hand. "No other ten-year-olds say stuff like imminent, do they?"

"Hey," Eli stated firmly.

Ilios's eyes turned upwards, the desperation of guidance evident in every begging glance.

"Is this about school?"

Ilios turned away, "I know I should go, I know if you could you would but- But I have a deformity of my own Eli. It's strange and twisted and diffrent. I never asked to be-"

"It's not a deformity," Eli stated firmly, "What makes us strange is what makes us powerful. And your right, we have a legacy to live up to that no one asked for. But It's our story now Ilios, and what we do, it decides how our parents end."

"And if they hate me-"

"They won't."

Eli went to pick up Wade and the small child broke into sobs as he struggled to get away. Eli feeling frustrated and quite honestly not at all happy at the idea of Ilios going away was at the end of his tolerance.

"No!" Winnie said again in a babble, only this time she staggered forward 7 or 8 steps and clutched to Elis pant leg.

"She did it!" Ilios beamed triumphantly, "She walked! Mother! Father!"

Erik raced into the room in a mad rush.

"Relax," Christine said floating in leisurely after him, "It's not like they died in the five seconds it took you to get here."

Erik shot her a glance, "And how would you know?"

"She walked over to Eli!" Ilios squealed, "She does have a talent after all!"

Erik frowned, "She's barely a year old Ilios, what talents do you expect her to have?"

"Well," ilios shrugged, "I don't know. Just Wades already running and talking. She just seems..."

"Diffrent," Eli finished with a discerning questioning look to his Father.

Erik and his son held eye contact until Winnie babbled and stumbled over to her Mother, arising a great cry from proud Christine.

Erik picked up Winnie in his strong arms and she laughed poking at his mask and trying to pick it off.

"She gets that from you," Erik muttered to Christine in annoyance.

"Please," Christine scolded, "We should have named her Delilah."

"Our parents are weird," Ilios said wrinkling her nose and whispering to Eli.

Eli smiled faintly, the very edge of his lips curling up ever so slowly as he had always been known to do in those short moments of uncontainable happiness.

"Yes," He nodded, "But I like them this way. It feels real."

"What does that even mean?" Ilios scoffed, "Freak."

"Drama queen."

"Degenerate."

"Snob."

"There will be no name calling in this household!" Christine said quickly grabbing Ilios by the dress collar as she darted to tackle her brother.

Christine gave a heavy sigh, "Ilios dear I know you have energy but you must try to act in the least degree proper."

"I can be proper," Ilios mumbled, "I just don't wanna."

"No wanna," Eli corrected under his breath, "Want to."

"Why you little-" Ilios started racing towards him again and this time it was Erik who stopped her.

"Your Mothers right." Erik stated firmly, "Too long I've let you wander in wildness. With the new children, you've strayed from my Fathering gaze." 

Ilios kicked and snarled making Christine groan at her disobedience. 

Erik raised an eyebrow at his daughter's commendable strength, "You resist, yet your soul obeys." 

"No, it doesn't!" Ilios yelped as her Father turned her upside down. "No, it doesn't!" 

"No, no no," Winnie said to her Mother tugging on her dress skirt. 

Winnie babbled and laughed gaily. 

"Eli," Erik laughed desperately as Ilios climbed a hold of his back and held tightly to his hair. 

Eli had already fled the loud scene of the crime and ran off to his room. 

Christine smiled fondly at her daughter. "You be a good girl Winnie."

She gave a sigh as she looked to her two wild children, her daughter, and her husband. 

"You and Wade stay exactly as you are. Sweet and quiet and perfect." 

Wade let out a sobbing cry as he stubbed his toe and Christine despite Eriks protests handed Winnie over to him. 

Ilios dropped off his back and went crashing to the floor. 

"I can't catch a break can I?" Erik laughed. 

That was alright. 

He didn't mind. 

He was happy.