"Derek-"

"No."

Derek walked out of his patients room and made his way to the nurses station. He rolled his eyes at the sight of his sister making her way towards him. She still annoyed him. Even after all these years, she was still the same annoying-

"It's your turn to scrub-"

"No!"

"No?" Amelia stood next to him. She pierced her icy stare at him. Shepherd eyes drilled a ray of anger into him but he had no time for it. In fact, he had already set this boundary with her. There would be no freakin way in hell he'd do it.

"No, I'm not doing it!" he clamored, "It's your responsibility! You're the chief of neuro!"

"Which is why I'm giving him to you!"

"No!" Derek argued again. He glared back the same blue icy stare at her, "I'm serious Amelia, I'm not doing it."

"Damn it Derek!" She slammed on the counter before following down the hall until he reached the elevator, "I'm gonna report you to the chief!"

"Oh no, not the chief," he scoffed as the doors closed in front of him, "I am terrified. Absolutely petrified for her punishment!"

Amelia gagged at the comment. Her stupid brother knew how to get under her skin. And it was terrible.


Meredith walked into the gallery with a coffee in her hand. She watched as one of the newly minted interns stood across from Dr. Bailey and Dr. Ndugu. Another attending surgeon stood next to him providing instructions.

This intern had screwed up. Royally.

He had one task. Amelia had prepped them. Talk to the next of kin of each patient. Tell them the truth. Their loved one was no longer going to wake. They were brain dead and they weren't coming back. And even though his execution was decent, he had broken the news to the wrong family. And Meredith was ready to kill him.

"A triple organ transplant?" Derek's voice broke her thought, "You let him scrub in on that after he mixed up the patient's families? Seriously? Are you out of your mind? Is the chief thing finally getting to your head?"

Meredith laughed as she turned to the place he was sitting at, "Nope. No it's not. You're just jealous I've got one under General before you got one under Neuro."

Derek shook his head, "It's their first week. They've barely gotten in on any surgeries to decide their specialties."

"Mmm, Cristina knew on her first day but this isn't that," Meredith hummed, "This is a lesson for him. To teach him that this job is sacred and what we're doing is no easy feat. Mistakes like that one can't happen here."

"I get it," he nodded.

The silence lingered as Bailey's commanding voice echoed through the O.R. Winston's soothing voice instructed the intern.

"The kid used to worship me, you know," Derek broke through the silence, "Thought I was some kind of surgical God."

"I know," Meredith smiled, "Then again you have dubbed yourself as a Neuro God so how could he not."

Lucas Adams. One of the five nephews Derek had told her about all those years ago. He was his favorite. Before Bailey, Lucas had been his accomplice. He'd take him out to baseball games, went to his sport games, and was always present in the kids' life. Until he ran from New York.

Now, Lucas had run as well and he made his way to Seattle where he was offered an internship at Grey Sloan.

His wife had officially become Chief of Surgery of Grey Sloan Memorial. And she was highly respected. No one had pieced together who Lucas was until he spoke in the O.R. on the first surgery he scrubbed in on. On his first day.

Miranda had frozen. Owen had stared at him. Maggie blinked. Only one person had said that before every surgery. He practically coined the phrase. It was almost a sacred psalm he held dear.

"It's not the first time he says it," Meredith continued, "He's says it every single time. He scrubbed in for the intern appy with Bailey and as soon as he said it, Miranda turned to me and the look on her face was priceless."

"She was probably cursing you at that moment for bringing in another Shepherd."

Meredith giggled as she continued to observe, "I'm kind of jealous. I wanted to scrub in but there's just so much I have to get done that I can't do the twenty five hour thing anymore. At least not today."

Derek hummed. He knew that feeling. Being chief was hard and it was worse when one was forced out of surgeries because of their chiefly duties.

"I don't think he has what it takes, Mer," Derek confessed in a whisper, "He's a mess. He breaks the rules-"

"Everyone here has-" Meredith tried to reason.

"He needs to do things his own way and doesn't give a crap about any consequences," Derek firmly said, "Did you hire him because he's related to Amy and me? Because he reminds you of me?"

"No!" Meredith assured him with a giggle, "Not you!"

Derek looked at her and sighed unconvinced. He shook his head as he turned back to the gallery and listened to the chief.

"Derek," she rolled her eyes before looking back down, "He is a mess. He does need to do things his own way but he's also got a stroke of the family genius. And he's a bit of a black sheep."

Derek shook his head again.

"You don't see it do you?"

Meredith watched carefully as she tried to assess any reaction. He opened his mouth but closed it again before sitting up straight and crossing his arms.

"It's why he drives me nuts," Derek turned to her, "He's Amelia. That's why you brought him in."

"Yes, he's Amelia," Meredith giggled, "And you said you, Bailey, and Scout needed another guy on your team."

"This isn't what we meant," he chuckled.

Meredith giggled again before lowering her voice, "Lucas is also arrogant. And overconfident. And he cares about the patient- even if he screws up, he cares! A lot."

Derek nodded, "Is this you implying he's me."

"He's a Shepherd," Meredith moved to sit next to him, "He's got the spark. The drive. He just needs a chance. And a bit of a push."

"And you think that push should come from me?"

"Look at what he's doing with his life," she nudged to the surgical floor, "He's a surgeon because of you. He worships you. You're a god to him."

Derek shook his head.

"Uncle Derek?"

"Yes, Lucas?"

"Is being a doctor hard?"

Derek looked up at the young boy on the floor. He was belly down pushing the toy train his favorite uncle got him for Christmas.

"Kind of," Derek smirked. This kid was a healthy mix of Shepherd and Adams. But he was determined to bring the Shepherd out of him as much as he could, "But it's really cool to see brains."

"Why brains?"

Derek held his breathe, "I just uh- I like helping people with brain injuries. I like to help them get home safe."

Especially those with bullet wounds and sports injuries.

"I want to be like you when I grow up."

"What?"

"I want to be like you, Uncle Derek," Lucas looked up with his big brown eyes, "I want to be a newer surgeon."

Derek chuckled, "Neuro, Lucas. Neuro surgeon."

The boy shrugged.

"You know I hate to be the one to inflate your ego here but as your chief, I think I may have to," she muttered.

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Derek," she sighed, "Look at the legacy you've made for yourself. Surgeons look to you not just because of your surgical skill, not just because of the miracles you pull off with your hands!"

Derek turned to her.

"They come to you because they know that the surgeon whose hands their lives are in, is a surgeon who cares," she explained, "You care so deeply. No one hurts like you when you lose a patient."

Some argued it was arrogance. Some said it was insincere. But those who talked were people who didn't know him. Meredith knew better. He hurt for each patient. For each family. His appreciation for his own life made him empathize.

"You're the one that taught me and every other resident who walked these halls that the minute that you don't feel the losses and they don't humble you-"

"It's when you know you're not cut out for this kind of work," he finished for her, "I remember. I told April Kepner that, when she was freaking out over coming back. Back when I was chief."

They continued to watch the surgery in silence.

"How did you remember?" Derek whispered, "How'd you- I mean it's been a while since we've been to New York."

"He reached out a few months ago asking if he could learn from the best," she whispered back, "And I know you're the best."

He pursed his lips together and nodded, emotion clouding his eyes.

"And I'm going to name you Director of the Residency Program so you better get used to teaching him," Meredith taunted with her sing-songy voice.

"So this was your plan all along? String me up so you can give me the mess? That was your plan?"

"See what I did there?" she nudged him, "I'm good aren't I?"

Derek laughed heartily. He'd kiss her right then and there if the room wasn't packed with so many attendings and residents.

Meredith turned back down to the surgical floor, "I thought I'd hear Zola say that next. I thought she'd be the one to say it and then Bails and then Ellie. I didn't expect it from him."

"Me either," he muttered before turning to her, "You're a good chief, you know that?"

Meredith turned to him and smiled.

Derek walked into the tunnels. He paused as he saw the set of interns sitting on the gurneys and let out a deep sigh.

He thought he closed some wounds and he was sure they were sutured tightly. But now his nephew- his favorite nephew was a resident at Grey Sloan Memorial.

The interns turned and straightened quickly off the gurneys as they watched him approach.

"Dr. Shepherd, did you-" Dr. Kwan began as he pushed himself off. He'd been on Derek's service for the last week and he had been excellent. But Derek wasn't here for him.

Derek didn't bother to look at him and stared at his target, "Adams!"

"Yes?" the intern tripped as he tried to straighten up.

"You still on duty?" Derek placed both hands on his hips as he assessed him externally and waited for his answer, "Your shift isn't up yet, is it?"

Lucas stumbled on his words, "Uh, n-n-n-no sir, I-"

"Good. You're scrubbing in with me!" Derek clapped his hands and walked past him. The other four interns were surprised.

"Sir?"

"Corpus Collosotomy," Derek turned back, "OR 2. Three hours. Be ready."

Derek marched down the halls without looking back.

Lucas stared at the man before a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Seriously? A freakin corpus callosotomy? I've been on his service all week!"

THey all clamored as they tried to understand what had just happened.

Lucas turned back to the gurney and grabbed his coat. He ran after the attending leaving the rest of the class staring in disbelief.

"I heard he was inbred," Kwan muttered, "Shepherd. He's one of them."

Derek walked into the scrub room. The intern had already beaten him and was watching as they prepped the O.R. He jumped a bit as he realized the door had opened.

"Oh, uh, Dr. Shepherd," he shook his thoughts, "I was just-I'll uh-"

"I heard about what happened yesterday," Derek reached for a mask and placed it around his neck. He tied it behind his blue ferry boat scrub cap.

"I'm surprised I wasn't fired," Lucas chuckled before turning to catch Dr. Shepherd's angry glare.

Lucas cleared his throat, "It won't happen again, sir. I learned my lesson."

"Good," Derek began to scrub, "Did you meet with this patient's family?"

"His wife. She is uh, waiting in the lobby," Lucas answered as he scrubbed, "I double checked it was his next of kin before-"

"Good," Derek nodded. They finished scrubbing in silence and walked into the O.R. Suddenly Derek stepped off the valve, shutting the water down and turned to his nephew, "First surgery I scrubbed in on? I almost sent my patient to the wrong O.R. For the wrong procedure!

Lucas turned with an intrigued look.

"None of us come in here thinking we're god's given gift to medicine," Derek continued to explain, "This job, this path, it should humble you. You can't afford to screw up. Because when you do, their life- what would be the rest of their life, is on you. The tears those families shed, are on you."

"I'll do better," Lucas nodded, "I told you I wanted to be just-"

"I know," Derek nodded before dropping his tone, "But I also know you have a huge ego like mine. Maybe worse. Keep it in check or else you won't make it far here."

"Because one day, you won't wear that intern cap." the doors to the O.R. slid open before Derek turned back, "You'll wear one with those trains you liked as a kid and you'll teach the next batch of interns not to make the same mistakes you made."

Lucas nodded with a slight chuckle, "Thank you, Uncle Derek."

Derek nodded and made his way through the door before stepping back.

"Dinner, Derek," Meredith had teased using his own words against him, "It's what people do!"

"We, uh, we have family dinners on Friday," Derek sighed, "And uh, you should stop by."

He walked out of the O.R.

As each of them took their positions, Derek looked up to the intern- his favorite nephew, "You want to do the honors?"

Lucas looked up with excited eyes. A look of awe and bewilderment. Like he'd won the coveted lottery prize.

His brown eyes flashed Derek back to years ago. Years when his sister told him he'd finally have a nephew and not another niece. Years of when he was playing on the train tracks with his favorite nephew. When they rode ferryboats and grabbed a pretzel or a hot dog from the city. When he couldn't explain why he had to leave New York so suddenly.

Now he was a full fledged adult. A surgical intern begging to follow in his footsteps. In the family business.

He could see his signature Shepherd smile under the mask before Lucas looked up to the gallery. His Aunts- er attending and chief of surgery watched carefully.

Lucas nodded, "It's a beautiful day to save lives."

"It's a beautiful day to save lives," Derek echoed, "Let's have some fun."


A/N: I mean...C'mon how could I not! And I'm a sucker for the Shepherds! (especially Dr. Derek Shepherd). Lucas is the only one I care about now and I shall continue to because Derek would as well. Even if he was hesitant at first.

Anyways, let me know what you think. I love Derek Shepherd. I will always love Derek Shepherd.