Xander's Cross, Oregon: a small town ringed with forbidding mountains and misty forest. The sky may be gray, but the townspeople are welcoming to people of all kinds...and things that are not quite human as well. Here the native shifters, aliens, werewolves, and witches live in peace. They have yet to find out the new business owners encroaching on the land are also vampires.
The peace has been broken by murder, however, and things in Xander's Cross are about to become quite a bit darker.
Welcome to your new home.
is it better to out-monster the monster or to be quietly devoured?
August 20, 2020
The mayor, Rowan Starkwood, was found dead less than a mile from his home. Rumors say his body was mutilated, but the state of the body has not yet been released to the public.
Andie's eyes fluttered open abruptly from a deep sleep. She'd been dreaming again. Of what, she couldn't remember but there was a familiarity there. Not quite deja vu, but like she'd had it multiple times. If only she could remember...she remembered a woman, she knew that much, but she was in a fog. She could faintly hear her voice but couldn't place it. The same dream, at least once a week. At least it wasn't yesterdays of being stuck in a jar of peanut butter with no choice but to eat herself out of the jar.
She closed her eyes again, snuggling into her pillow. She could feel the firm chest behind her pressed into her back, and an arm lazily draped over her waist. She listened to Conor's quiet breathing, feeling warmth spread through her chest at having him so near and close. Contentment. Blissful contentment filled her in those early morning moments. That is...Until the alarm went off. The shrill beeping screamed loudly at her, and she peaked an eye open to see 7:00 am flashing at her in angry red numbers. She scowled at it before her hand fumbled to hit the snooze button, and then she began the grueling process to untangle herself her husband's arms. She threw her legs over the side of the bed and turned her body, reaching over to run her hand through her husband's hair gently before she leaned down to kiss his forehead.
Standing up she padded over to where her navy blue silk bathrobe hung, and she slipped it up onto her shoulders. Once on over her pajamas of plaid shorts and a tank top, she tied the sash around her waist and went out into the hall, closing the door softly behind her. She padded down to Kit's room, knocking on the door, and then staring at it before she counted to ten. When no response came, she slowly pushed it open. Having given her daughter a bit of a warning before she came in. See! Look at her, she knew where her boundaries were. Sort of...
Andie pushed open the door, traversing the teenager's room until she made it to the mound that was the desired teenager. "Rise and shine Kit-Kat." She murmured softly. "If you wanna catch a ride with dad on his way to work, you better get up." She murmured near her ear, placing a quick kiss on her head before she rubbed her back gently. She made her way out of the room, closing the door behind her before walking down to the next door. She wasn't keen on waking this one up. She merely cracked the door open to ensure he was in fact still asleep and not awake playing with his toys in his bed. A soft smile appeared on her face as she saw the terror nugget passed out, his arms and legs spread every which way while he sucked on his thumb. Still out like a light. Closing the door softly, Andie made her way to the stairs, nearly tripping and possibly breaking something if it wasn't for the stair banister. Her heart was beating rapidly, and there was a brief moment of panic. She placed a hand over her rapidly beating heart let her shoulders relax after she steadied herself. She was certainly awake now! "Eli..." She sighed reaching down for the small rubber ball she'd stepped on. Apparently she'd missed it in her late-night sweep of toy pickup. Tucking it under her arm she walked down the stairs, tossing the ball into the living room before she wandered into the kitchen. Her first order of business?
Kit had mostly unpacked her things, however, that didn't mean she had put them away. Clothes were still piled on the chair in the corner, her books were half on her shelves and half in piles scattered all over her room, while other knick-knacks still hadn't found their place. It was a mess and she was clearly dragging her feet.
How many times had Daddy said they wouldn't need to travel anymore? Why was this place any different? Kit had left behind all her friends and everything she had ever known...and for what, exactly? Things that her parents refused to tell her. Things that she would find out "when she was older". She was sixteen, nearly seventeen, and might possibly be driving soon- how much older did she need to be? Their age, ancient?
The girl was buried under the blankets with the pillow clutched against her like a stuffed animal when her mother came in. She barely heard the door to her room open but was woken up with the whispered words and kiss to her head. Kit grumbled in slight protest but at least she acknowledged her mother. She had been wanting to try and find a summer job (or, it was more like she was being forced to), seeing as they were "supposedly" going to be here for a while, and certainly didn't want to ride her bike into town.
After Andie left, Kit was slow to rise, yet she indeed got up. Eventually. Bright eyes blinked constantly to try and rid herself of sleep, moving about her room like a shuffling zombie as she got dressed into a navy-colored jumper and her comfortable converse. The only piece of jewelry she wore was the charm Aunt Sol had made her, resting just an inch below the hollow of her throat. This ensured that she could still wear it during a shift because it wouldn’t choke her, and it wasn’t dangling too low to snag on anything.
Wandering her way into the bathroom to freshen up, she was eventually making her way downstairs, still only half-awake before plopping into one of the seats at the kitchen table. "I thought summer meant vacation…" she quietly whined. Kit should be going to hang out with friends. Well, you know, if she had any.
He liked to think he was a heavy sleeper, but in truth, he was far from it. Conor couldn't remember the last time he ever slept soundly through the night without waking up once. Without seeing certain faces in the dark whenever he shut his eyes. It was just a common thing with him now and he had gotten so used to it. But Andie's presence always made it better, always eased any bad memory just from being near. His conscience sensed that she had woken up and thus, he was slowly beginning to but not quite as fast. That arm around her waist tightened a little bit, drawing her back even closer against him so that he could bury his face into her hair and softly inhale her scent.
Then that fucking alarm went off and the peace was gone.
There were inaudible grumbles of protest when she began to slip away from him, and he reluctantly let her go while he tried to will himself to get up as well. Everything was suddenly so cold with her gone, temporarily returning with her touch and the kiss. Conor nearly grabbed for her to pull her back down, but knew if he did that he'd never want to get up. Being a handyman in town was a bit of boring job, but it was still a job. It was something that put food on the table and it was safe. He wasn't asked to do things that would plague him for the rest of his life.
One of those blue eyes drifted open, just enough to watch her slip the robe on, and he grinned faintly in his sleepy state. In that brief moment, Conor recalled what he thought when he first saw her, how he felt that strange pull that only intensified the more time they spent with each other. Even after all these years, after two children, that draw was still there and he knew it wasn't because of that damned spell. Andie was still the center of his universe, and he prayed that coming back to Xander's Cross kept her and the kids safe. They deserved this peace. They deserved a lot more.
Conor just laid there after she left, attempting to further wake up, and he'd manage to sit upright before running a hand down his face. After a few, he was dressed, bending down to tie the laces on his work boots when he heard Elijah beginning to cry out. Guess the monster had woken up as well, and he hurriedly finished tying his shoes before he was in the boy's room. "Guess you're hungry too, bud, huh?" The toddler was balancing himself in his crib, holding onto the railing while bouncing up and down. The tears slowly began to subside now that he had someone's attention. Conor scooped him up, fingers attempting to smooth out the wildness of his auburn hair- but, let's face it, the child took after him in that regard. He was just going to look like a little madman. "Story of my life, kid." The kid was also in desperate need of a diaper change. Guess he'd handle that before taking Elijah downstairs, but the toddler wasn't going to make it easy. He could see the mischief in his son's eyes already.
After a few moments, when the boy's crying finally subsided, the girls downstairs might hear the commotion of Conor actually arguing with the child before Elijah's shrilling giggle echoed through the house.
Post by Andie Grey on Aug 18, 2020 13:29:56 GMT -5
Once the low rumble of the Coffee Pot turning on filled the room, Andie set to digging out the pans to start breakfast. She covered her mouth as she yawned, having staid up later then she planned to finish the next chapter in her book. She had a feeling she just might join Elijah at naptime if only to make up for the lost hours of sleep. Pulling out the frozen bag of hash browns, she poured them into one of the heated up pans with some oil, before quickly getting bacon in another. Since they were going to take the longest to make, she got them started first while she then started on making Conor and Kit's lunch.
She hummed quietly as she worked, hearing Kit come down the stairs she caught her going to the table out of the corner of her eye. A small smile curling her lips at her whine. "It doesn't stay a vacation for long sweetheart." She chimed in. "Besides, I thought you wanted more money?" She asked. Andie had thought it was time for Kit to start taking on some more responsibility. Nothing did that more than a summer job. She wished she'd had a summer job her age. Her father had been strict. Extremely so, to the point Andie and Sol were each others only friends. They weren't allowed extra curricular activities or friends really. Andie wanted to give Kit the opportunity she hadn't had. Whether she realized it yet or not, she'd even get a bit more freedom with a job. A sense of accomplishment that she'd earned the money, and it was hers to spend as she pleased.,
Andie turned to flip the bacon and hash browns over before she filled a glass of orange juice and brought it over to place in front of Kit. "Be a good chance to meet new people too. Make some new friends." She said gently, tucking a piece of hair behind Kit's ear. She knew all the moving was hard on her, never getting to settle before they had to move again, but Conor promised this would be the last time. And Andie was determined to help him keep that promise now that the spell was complete. She turned her head in the direction of the stairs, hearing Conor's voice making an argument and then Elijah's higher pitched one. "I don't know if its a good or bad thing he's starting to talk more." She said with amusement. Elijah was already a handful, and with his vocabulary growing everyday Andie wouldn't be surprised if he started negotiating with them. It pained her to think her littlest kit was already getting to that point where you could nearly have a conversation with him. Wishing he was smaller again where all he wanted to do was cuddle or crawl after Kit. Now they were the ones chasing after him as he wanted to get into everything.
Moving back to the oven, before the shrill shriek of childhood laughter filled the air the faint "No, Daddy!" sounded before the giggling started again. Andie could feel Conor's amusement about whatever was happening upstairs and it brought a smile to her face before warmth flooded her chest. The little moments like this were what she loved most. Hearing Conor with their children, she didn't think she could love him anymore than she already did, but apparently she could.
She quickly finished the sandwiches, doing another flip on breakfast before the coffee peeped at her that it was done and she busied herself with making two cups.
"Which is why I should be enjoying it now while it lasts..." she countered with a grumble, resting her head within her hand as she refrained from letting out an exasperated sigh. It was too early to be up right now, but she also didn't really want to sit around the house. It was summer, and she should be enjoying it...even if she had to find a job. Even if it might prove to be a waste of time when her parents decide they have to get up and move again.
The only highlight of the day would be that she could explore this strange, little town more. Dad said she could tag along with him on his jobs, but in truth, Kit was hoping she'd be able to just wander on her own. She had her phone and everything, she'd be perfectly safe. Soon, she wasn't as grumpy with the smell of breakfast being cooked, and it was enough to make the teenager at least switch which hand her head was leaning in so as to look at her mother. Her other hand wrapped fingers around the glass of orange juice but she didn't drink it yet. "Friends?" Nearly rolling her eyes, she finally just sighed, staring into her glass. "This is a small town, Mom. I bet everyone already has their little...cliques already." She drew the juice closer before lazily bringing it to her lips for a long sip.
Regardless of her mood, she heard her brother's crying out and she chuckled quietly, her stomach beginning to rumble from her sudden hunger. Well, it was never really "sudden" because Kit was often always hungry and could always eat. It was that werefox need, and people always wondered how she could be so skinny but eat nearly a whole pizza in one sitting. Mm, pizza. Maybe she'd scope out a good pizza joint today, and a record store. Would they have one of those here? She was already thinking of how she could spend money before she was even making any money. Whoops.
Post by Conor Grey on Aug 20, 2020 10:41:35 GMT -5
Dealing with a shrieking and argumentative toddler this early in the morning hadn't been the plan, but there he was anyway. As frustrating as it was, it was also fairly amusing, if only because Elijah was developing a wee personality already. He was already brilliant. Which meant that he was already beginning to grow up too fast.
Conor had never seen himself as a father until the reality was thrust at him and he had no choice. Perhaps he could have walked away, as young and reckless as he had been...but staying with Andie had been the first and possibly smartest thing he had ever done. Despite how much trouble it rained down upon them. His mother had been so confused and devastated yet learned to accept his choice, regardless of nineteen "being too young to be a father". He didn't have to explain that intense draw to another, even if she was not of their kind. Conor knew the connection was real and he wasn't about to let it go.
And he would die for his family, yet even that would be a bit complicated considering the other foolish thing he and Andie had done.
It was a few minutes before he was coming down those stairs with a smiling child in his arms, and once again, Conor was attempting to smooth out the wispsof auburn hair atop the boy's head. "Maybe next time, huh? And next time you won't go runnin' off..." They were attempting to slowly introduce Eli to the idea of potty training, but he was having none of it. He rather just run butt naked throughout the entire house instead, which was precisely what almost happened.
"Alright, little man, in ya go," he said, slipping Elijah into his highchair and carefully strapped him in. Then he wandered his way over to Andie to embrace her from behind, pressing a kiss to the curve of her neck and shoulder before he was looking across to see if there was any food done that he could swiftly pilfer before it made it to the table.
Post by Andie Grey on Aug 20, 2020 14:52:20 GMT -5
Andie glanced up for putting a spoonful of sugar in one of the cups, her index finger pointed down towards it, and made a twirling motion with it. The spoon she’d just put in the cup began to stir by itself, while she got the eggs out and began cracking them into a pan. Working on Elijah’s eggs first so they’d have time to cool a bit before he ate them. “You never know sweet pea, you might find somebody you have a lot in common with.” She said, continuing the conversation. She turned to get plates out, grabbing one of the child sized ones in a bright neon green color, and brought them over to the stove. Using a spatula she dished up Elijah’s share, making sure everything was bite sized for him before setting it off to the side.
She could hear Conor’s steps coming down the stairs as she cracked another egg. As soon as he entered the room their connection made itself known again, as warmth flooded into her chest, and there was that “complete” feeling. Her body also visibly relaxed with his presence. She glanced over as Eli was placed in his highchair, and she made a mental note to start looking for booster seats. The kid was outgrowing a lot of things as of late, and Andie hoped that now they were in a more stable place that they could finally start getting what they needed to accommodate Elijah's rapidly growing little body.
Turning her attention back to the eggs, a small smile crept onto her face as she felt Conor’s arms go around her. She leaned back into him as a reflex as he kissed her neck and shoulder, her body flooding with a warmth that only he could create. She swatted at his hand playfully when it got too close to a done piece of bacon. “Impatient already are we?” She asked softly. Her hand that wasn’t in use rested atop his arm. Where it was wrapped around her middle. Her grin grew as she reached for one of the other plates and quickly put Kit’s eggs, hash browns, and bacon on, and then quickly did Conor’s plate before she turned in his arms. “Mornin’ handsome.” She grinned before giving him a quick kiss in greeting, and then forced the ready plates on him. If he was going to stand there and look pretty, he could make himself useful.
Andie turned and grabbed Eli’s plate, grabbing one of the kid forks from the drawer as well as the “grown up” ones as they called them. Holding the utensils and plate in one hand she grabbed Conor’s coffee mug, and went and placed it at his spot, before diving up the forks, and placed Eli’s breakfast on his tray. “Goooood morning.” She told him. The toddler seemed far more interested in breakfast then his mother at that moment, but she did receive a grin as she kissed his little cheek in passing. Going back to finishing lunches. She reached over and flipped of the burners on the oven. “What’s on the agenda for the day?” She asked curiously. Wondering what everyone had planned.
Kit just sighed lightly. "Sure, Mom," she relented, practically murmuring it to herself. Maybe there were other kids her age that wouldn't mind befriending a semi-quiet werefox teen into their fold, but she still had reservations. She still struggled with the idea that they really weren't going anywhere. They had this nice house now, something they didn't really have before, so it was a step closer in the right direction...
But there was still dread at the pit of her stomach.
Although, it seemed as though she was going to have to slave away at some job for the entire summer anyway, so when was she going to have time to find any friends, let alone spend time with them? Again, she didn't argue this, simply accepting it because maybe she was too tired to. "Hey, little dude," she said to Eli as he was put in his high chair and Daddy went over to Mom like he always did. You know, it was sweet sometimes...but then it was kind of gross, like sometimes they forgot that she was there or that she could very easily hear things even when they were whispered.
The hand she swatted away recoiled immediately, moving to her hip. 'Impatient already are we?' It was almost reflex for his fingers to curl into pliant flesh, his whispered voice warm at her ear as another kiss was pressed against her temple. "Mm, maybe..." he murmured with implication. Bacon? What bacon? His mind was briefly drifting elsewhere just as he could basically hear how hard their daughter's eyes rolled. A low chuckle as Andie kissed him and handed off plates, he brought them over to the table.
"Could you maybe not be all gross in front of me? You know I can hear, like...everything," she whined and sneered in typical teenager fashion. Conor set down the food in front of her before settling into his seat. "There will come a time where you will- wait, y'know what, no. That time will not be happening until you're at least thirty." He noticed the amusement flicker across her face and the fox was aware that his little girl was about to get smart with him. "So...I can't even look at a boy until I'm old?" "I am not old!" he protested lightly. Her smile grew, "I didn't say you were, Dad. You did that on your own." Conor blinked, his expression falling into soft bewilderment before those blue eyes flickered over to Andie. "She gets all of that from you." "But I'd like to know what Swayze would do," Kit added, struggling so hard not to laugh. He was attempting to do the same, but even as he pointed his fork in her direction, trying to come up with something stern and dad-like, the amusement was slowly cracking across his face. "No. No Swayze for you. It's dangerous."
He told his wife thank you for bringing the coffee over and he was instantly bringing it to his lips for a few sips. "Well, apparently the girl that runs the bakery had her AC crap out on her, so that'll be the first stop. Is there anywhere you'd like to look for a job, Kit?" "Anywhere that doesn't require a lot of work?" Okay, she got that from him.
Post by Andie Grey on Aug 30, 2020 23:44:03 GMT -5
Andie shook her head and just giggled quietly to herself as she listened to the conversation at the table. One thing was for certain, there was never a dull moment at the Grey house. Not when everyone of them was a sass master or smart ass in their own right. Andie often times felt bad for the boy, or girl, that Kit would one day bring home to meet them. Conor was going to be merciless, and they were going to have to prepare themselves for dad joke galore. In all honesty Andie hoped her daughter found someone she loved and enjoyed as much as she did her dad. Sixteen years. Sixteen, glorious, albeit difficult years Andie and Conor had been together, and only death was going to part them. Maybe she'd find that special person here.... and hopefully, they really wouldn't have to move again.
There was a huff of laughter as Swayze had been mentioned, and Andie finished up putting Conor's sandwiches in his lunch box as well as Kits. She didn't know when she'd be home, so she settled on making her a lunch anyway and if she didn't eat it she could at least have something to snack on. She nodded her head as Conor said what the morning plan was. An AC unit huh? That poor woman... She could only imagine what she was going through in a bakery and no AC. "You'll find something, I'm sure." Andie chimed in finishing with the lunch packing. She grabbed her sticky pad she kept on the counter and a pen and started to scribble her little notes she always did. On Kit's she wrote "Keep you eye's pealed you never know what you might find around the corner. Love youuuu <3" And on Conor's.... Andie couldn't keep the sly grin that appeared on her face. "Don't make yourself too hot and sweaty today, that's my job Love you to infinity! Mwah!" Slipping the sticky notes into the right bags, she sighed contently with herself before she was making her own plate. "Mama, Can I have juice?" She heard Eli ask. She glanced up and arched an eyebrow at him form where he was hanging over the side of the highchair to look at her. "Pwease?" He added about two seconds later. "Yes you can." She told him before she got one of his sippy cups down and got the apple juice out of the fridge. She filled the cup and then walked over to set it on his tray. "Tank you!"He said cheerily, and Andie couldn't help but smile and and try to flatten down some of the auburn hair that was sticking up more. "Your welcome baby."
A minute later she was finally taking her place at the table, coffee and food in hand while she sat down. Sipping her coffee and sighing. She was going to need it today with how little she slept. "Here Kitty!" Andie smiled over the rim of her mug watching Elijah hold out a piece of his bacon out to his sister. She glanced over at Conor and slid him the extra piece of bacon she nabbed for him, while the three year old distracted the teenager.
Post by Conor Grey on Sept 16, 2020 14:29:27 GMT -5
Even though he joked and teased, Conor really was against his daughter dating anyone. Perhaps he was secretly being a little over dramatic, but...he had been there. He had been a young teen once. And although he wouldn't have changed anything, his and Andie's idiocy cost them a lot. They had been on the run because of it. All because of stupid teenager mistakes. Then again, would they be where they were today if they hadn't been so careless?
Still, that didn't mean Kit had to complicate her life by falling for the first boy she met. He knew what those boys thought about. Nuh uh.
He glanced sideways as he heard that small laugh from Andie. The Swayze may not have been properly executed that day on the beach, but it had clearly worked. They had a sassy daughter to prove as much. Shaking his head lightly, he laughed at himself as he began to eat. "It's a small town," he chimed in on the job front. "But summer usually means people are looking for extra help. The arcade might still be open." And was hopefully not as outdated as it had been even when he was a kid. After eating half his eggs, he shrugged a shoulder. "Hey, maybe even the bakery is hiring."
She was complaining about needing to find a job, but in all honesty, what else was she going to do? There was nothing to do at home, and it wasn't like she actually knew anyone in Xander's Cross to hang out with. Her parents kept telling her that would change, that it was alright to take the time to make friends because there was no more moving around the country...but still, she was cautious. Kit wanted to believe her dad, it was just really hard to at the moment.
As Elijah held out the piece of bacon for her, she slowly leaned towards him, acting like she was going to chomp his little hand off, only to draw back in time not to. Her brother shrieked in laughter, so she did it a couple of more times before one of those chomps actually bit the piece of bacon, drawing it from his tiny fingers. Thank you, little man," she told him once she chewed the delicious breakfast meat and swallowed.
At Conor's mention of the arcade, followed by the bakery possibly hiring, her gaze drifted sidelong to him with a questionable look. "Right, because that wouldn't be torture? I'd eat everything in sight!" She was only half-joking.
Andie smiled to herself as the kids entertained each other for the moment, and then started to nod along with what Conor was suggesting for Kit. The only way to know was to try right? Maybe she could meet some friends or even a nice boy through a job. It'd get her out of the house and Andie wouldn't have to worry about her coming depressed. She knew the moving had taken a toll on her, and she didn't want Kit to suffer any more than she already had.
"And you could bring home sweet goodies for the rest of us!" Andie chimed in. Waving her fork at her. "You could always skip getting your license and just walk to and from work for some extra exercise." She also brought up with a small smile. She was teasing, of course. A were-anything had a far better metabolism than most humans. Considering the usual shopping list, you would think Andie was shopping for teenage boys. She nibbled on a piece of bacon before she glanced between Conor and Kit. "Anyways, you two best hurry up. The AC is waiting." She said. "You don't want to keep the lady waiting." She waved her fork at the two of them, to shoo them off to the work, and the rest of the day they had ahead of them.
[End thread]
last edited May 1, 2021 20:24:14 GMT -5 by Andie Grey