I planned to stay in what had once been Severin Manor for a few days before going back to Skyrim. I needed to see how Ma was doing, as well as everyone else. I also wanted to see if Serana had succeeded in her quest to cure her vampirism. And with Gan gone forever, staying in the Redoran town for a little while wouldn't be a problem. First, however, I stopped at Tel Mithryn on my way back from the Skaal Village to Raven Rock.

The moment I landed in the laboratory, Neloth hurried toward me.

"Hold still. Let me get a good look at you." He grabbed my chin and turned my face roughly this way and that.

"What are you looking for?" I asked, resigned. It was no good arguing with the wizard.

"Incipient madness. Loss of self-awareness. Black spots in the whites of the eyes. Any of the documented indications of Hermaeus Mora's permanent influence." He squinted at me so hard that I thought for a moment that he was going to go cross-eyed. Then he shrugged. "Hmm, no, you look fine. Well, no different than when I first saw you."

I rolled my eyes. "Don't you want to know what happened with Miraak?"

"Who? Oh, him. Well, I assume you killed him. Or Hermaeus Mora turned on him when you looked like the winning bet. Or a bit of both. Miraak's influence has vanished from Solstheim. So I assumed you handled things. Why, did something interesting happen?"

I picked uselessly at a bloodstain on my sleeve as I said, "Not really. Only if you count the fact that I managed to stop Mora from keeping me as his new pet. He owns no part of me or my soul."

I refrained from sharing what else Hermaeus Mora had told me during our final conversation. I had the distinct feeling that, if I did, Neloth would want to use me as a test subject, and that wasn't something I was exactly keen on.

"Not a simple feat, I'm sure. Good for you."

I snorted.

"Now all that's left are these Black Books, waiting for another ambitious fool to be lured into Hermaeus Mora's clutches. Speaking of which… I think I've located another book, if you're interested."

I held up my hands. "Oh no. I'm not getting pulled into that Prince's machinations again."

I'd buried the one I'd used to get to Miraak out in the ash where no one would hopefully find it. Not for a very long time, at least.

Neloth shrugged. "All right, then. Suit yourself." He hesitated for a moment or two before adding, "I've been thinking recently, and you have proven to be a more valuable ally than I anticipated. I have a staff for you, but I would also like to make you a member of my household. A member of House Telvanni. No need to thank me. I know you are overwhelmed with gratitude."

I frowned. "What does that even mean?"

"For now, not much. But in a few decades when I return to Vvardenfell, you would be seen as Morrowind nobility. In the meantime, we would keep a place here for you."

"I… Thank you, Neloth."

Member of House Telvanni. That wasn't something I'd ever anticipated actually happening.

As Neloth bustled off, muttering to himself as he searched for something, I thought about what I'd learned in Apocrypha.

The curse… wasn't actually a curse. It was a piece of Sheogorath's mantle that had been left behind. That was why I was still around after everything that happened. Part of a Daedric Prince was stuck to my soul. Was that why it hurt to use Dragonrend? The fragment was shying away from the inherent mortality of it? Was that why it, as Mora said, was loose?

The Prince said I could keep it and stay the way I was, but that I could also… use it? What even required that kind of power to achieve?

Neloth returned, rambling about something as he held out a staff carved to look like a dragon. As I took it, I pushed the thought aside.

There was still time to decide what I would do.

A/N: To everyone still here, thank you so much. There's only one book left in this series. The final part of The Dragonblood Saga, Dragon Queen, will be posted soon. I hope to see you then.