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.
Post by Mattie Harris on Aug 23, 2020 21:20:44 GMT -5
Mattie parked her silver Volkswagen Beetle outside the clinic and hopped out of the car, smoothing the skirt of her 50's style dress as she turned to look at it. Just being here had her smiling so wide her face almost hurt. This was beyond exciting, and she couldn't wait to get to know the town and its people. She'd been dreaming of getting away for almost three years now, about the same amount of time she'd known Blake, but she'd never known how to make it happen. Finding a new job and a new place had seemed impossible, and it was so much easier to just go through her same routine and worry about her clients, not herself. This was the first step into a new chapter of her life.
She moved to the trunk to grab her things: a bag and one box--she'd thrown away most of the things that were on her old desk and wound up with just one box which was maybe a little too heavy thanks to her books. She just needed...fresh. Holding onto old items seemed just as bad as holding onto old memories. She had a new, cute, cat themed tape dispenser and stapler, pens, paper, and a few other basic items. Her laptop was in the messenger bag she slung over her shoulder, along with the books that hadn't fit in the box. She couldn't get the hatch closed, so she went to the door of the clinic and couldn't get that, either, while trying to hold onto her box. When she tried, the bag slid off her shoulder and yanked her elbow as it nearly hit the ground. Mattie groaned. Why couldn't she ever do things by herself?
Cal couldn't keep that grin off his face and it was beginning to hurt. But Blake was all over the place, like he was hopped up on too much caffeine, all because of their new employee that was on her way. He'd just finished up with a patient and found his way into their small break room to get another cup of coffee. The carafe was still basically full, so...that meant his buddy was just nervous. Excited? Both? It was a little hard to tell at the moment, even with those wolfish senses. Regardless, it amused him, and Cal had been teasing him since yesterday about it. Call it payback for being a pain in the ass about the date-that-wasn't-a-date with Paige.
But this, well...this seemed like something.
"Sooo...you're pretty uppity. I hear we've got someone starting today. Who is she again?" That smile somehow managed widen even more as he brought the paper cup up to his lips. He had only asked Blake about it a hundred times, and might ask him a few hundred times more. Y'know, because he was thorough. However, keen ears picked up on something outside, a slight commotion. The clinic was currently quiet, so he knew someone was just outside that door. "Also, I think she's here."
Post by Blake Carson on Aug 24, 2020 0:14:20 GMT -5
I was Christmas! No, his Birthday! Blake had never liked or really celebrated either days, but everyone always talked about how excited they were on those days. That childlike glee. Well, he was certainly filled with the childlike glee. Why?
Mattie was coming.
He'd met Haven's newest employee three years ago while he'd been living in San Diego under...well rather unfortunate circumstances, but the two had chatted and quickly became friends. Their lines of work were somewhat similar, and Blake sometimes called or refereed patients to Mattie so she could help them. When he Cal had called him about the clinic, finally agreeing to start it with him, he'd told Mattie about it. Telling her if she wanted she could joined them and have a spot. She'd told when he made it happen she'd be there, and...Blake Carson never broke a promise.
The day he called her, he felt like the gift horse, and he'd been smiling ever since. She'd made her way up to Xander's Cross, and finally she was ready to move into the office they'd made for her on the upper floor of the building where she'd have a office with a street view, and whatever else she needed. Today was the day she was coming in, and needless to say Blake was hyped up on sugar. Or Mattie, as she was as sweet as sugar.
Blake had barely touched the coffee that morning, and was practically running circles around Cal all morning. There was definitely a pep in his step, with excited energy. He was shoving the last of his sandwich in his mouth when Cal came in, filling up his coffee. Blake's leg was bouncing up and down as he'd been on his lunch break. he grinned widely at Cal before rolling his eyes, but he didn't miss a beat to tell him. "She's a friend from San Diego, met her three years ago. I sometimes called her up for some patients or recommended they talk to her." He said in a rush. At Cal's next statement, Blake's blue eyes went wide. "WHAT?!" He said scrambling up from the table. "And you didn't let her in!?" He asked. Thinking Cal had seen her right before he came into the staff room. Blake practically burst from the staff room. They didn't have any patients scheduled around this time, so Blake didn't bother about "no running in the clinic" as he flew down the hallway. His keys jingled in his scrub pocket, and his stethoscope bounced against his neck. He could see her struggling outside with her box, and watched her computer bag slide down her arm. He couldn't stop the large grin spread across his face, and he skidded to a halt so he didn't mow her down bursting through that door.
His hand reached out on the door, pushing it open slowly so as not to startle her. "Gimme." His movements were quick then as the box disappeared from her hands, suddenly being set down right inside the door before her bag was also off her arm. Blake stuck his arm through it, putting he strap over his head, before he scooped down. Wrapping his arms around her. "MATTIEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" If she allowed, Blake would literally scoop her up in his arms, spinning her around out there on the sidewalk before he set her down, giving her gentle squeeze. He let her go then, placing his hands on his hips as he grinned down at her. "What did I tell you?" He asked giving her a pointed look before he put his index finger on her forehead, pushing against it lightly. "I'd make it happen."He sure as hell did make it happen. As soon as there was talk about needed a counselor for the clinic, he told Cal he knew the perfect person, and here she was. He grinned then, before he gestured to the building. "Welcome to Haven! For warning, We have a pest issue. We call them Cal Hunt, and the only way to get rid of him is to not laugh at his jokes, tell him he has grey hair, and that he's NOT funny!" He turned to say a little louder towards the door. And just because he couldn't help himself, he'd wrap an arm around her shoulders and squeeze her into his side. "I'm glad your here Matt. Seriously." He said a bit quieter as he looked down at her. that lopsided grin of his still plastered on his face.
Post by Mattie Harris on Aug 24, 2020 9:52:42 GMT -5
Mattie stumbled back out of the way of the door as it opened, nearly toppling off the curb before the box was being unceremoniously removed from her arms.
"Hey! I can--"
There went her bag, too. She was trying her best to look put out, but it was too late, Blake was already scooping her into a hug and twirling her around in a circle like it was a gosh darn movie or something. She couldn't help giggling, all protest falling away in her happiness at seeing him again.
"Gosh, Blake, you'd think you missed me or something!" she teased, and made a face when he poked her in the forehead. "And I never said you wouldn't! I just try to have reasonable expectations, and this is way past reasonable, honey!"
When he wrapped his arm around her shoulder she sighed contentedly and leaned into him. It was good to be here, and it was already starting to feel like home.
"A pest, huh? And here I was all excited to meet this 'husband' of yours! What'd he do to get himself in the doghouse now, hm?" she teased, grinning up at him. Gosh it was good to see that goofy smile on his face.
last edited Aug 24, 2020 9:59:18 GMT -5 by Mattie Harris
"No, I just-" Cal began to explain that he hadn't actually seen her, but Blake was already scrambling up to his feet and rushed towards the front of the clinic. "...heard the car door." Well, now he was standing there talking to himself before a laugh rumbled deep within his chest. This woman was either a very good friend and the feelings were platonic (was that even a thing, though?) or Blake was holding out on him.
And that meant Cal would have to get involved, and his best bud did not want that.
After a moment, he emerged from the break room to slowly make his way down the hall, idly stirring the coffee around in his cup. Hunt didn't need to look or strain his ears to hear the excited commotion outside and it kept that smirk on his face. Well, weren't they just the cutest fucking things? He hadn't seen Blake this excited about much of anything in awhile, perhaps not since they opened the clinic.
'...tell him he has grey hair...' What the fuck? Now, for just a second, he was self-conscious and had to quickly examine himself in the reflective glass of one of the pictures hanging up on the wall. He didn't have any grey hair, dammit! Why were people saying that so much these days? To be fair, his wolf form did have some grey, but that wasn't the point!
Finally, he was stepping out into the waiting room, casually leaning against the desk at reception. "I'm thinkin' about a divorce," he spoke up. Right off the bat, Cal knew Mattie was human...except there was something else. That slight charge to the air around her alerted him to the fact that she was much more than that. The smirk spread into a wide grin as he approached, extending his hand out in greeting. "It's great to finally meet you and put a face to the name that this idiot hasn't stopped saying for days now." Ocher eyes, glinting in mischief, shifted over to Blake for a moment, still talking to Mattie, "You, uh...must be really somethin'." He almost waggled his brows at his friend but refrained.
Post by Blake Carson on Aug 24, 2020 17:46:25 GMT -5
Blake grinned widely starting to head back into the clinic and held the door open for Mattie. "Withholding exclusive details, but he's forgiven." Blake laughed. He heard Cal then, and looked in horror at him. "You wouldn't dare!" He said pointed a finger at him. "Unless you magically learned how to feed yourself overnight." He gave him a pointed look before leaning into Mattie to talk in a hushed whisper as he saw that grin on Cal's face. "Careful Matt, that smile gets him in trouble." He warned. Blake snorted then as Cal introduced him self, reaching out to playfully shove his shoulder. "Because our patients can finally receive the full service that Haven has to offer, Thank you!" He really was excited. It was just one more thing they could offer the people of Xander's Cross. Him and Cal could handle any emergency's with Emelia's help, and with Mattie being here they could also provide counseling. And from what Blake had seen on some of the patients files, some really needed it.
She was an asset he'd wanted since they bought the place. "Don't be getting jealous on me now hubs." Blake said reaching down for the box Mattie had been carrying before he forced it into Cal's arms. "You're still my favorite." And because he could, and was two inches taller, Blake placed a hand on top of Cal's head pulled his head toward him, where Blake made a "Mwah!" kiss on his cheek. Grinning widely he patted Cal's cheek, before he was turning to go back to get whatever Mattie left out in her trunk. Closing the hatch he came back in with an alarmed look on his face while he juggled books. "Mattie, you forgot something!" He exclaimed, looking between her and Cal. "Where's your step stool?!" He asked in good humor, turning his body away from the in coming swat he knew he was going to receive.
Post by Emilia Royce on Sept 21, 2020 17:43:32 GMT -5
While everyone was off on lunch break, Emilia was stuck in one of the clinic rooms helping a patient. She had already been seen by one of the doctors and Emilia was applying a cast on the woman's leg, bandaging, and dressings on her wounds. The poor woman had gotten into an accident. Once finished, she fitted the woman for a set of crutches and was training her on how to use them, and of course, gave her all her discharge notes.
Emilia held the door open, keeping her back against the door so the woman could pass through and try out the crutches. It wouldn't be long before the halls filled with the friendly British accent belonging to Haven's favorite nurse.
"Alright... Take it slow... You're doing just fine, love. One step at a time." She smiled, walking alongside the woman as she led her towards the main area, where she spotted the two doctors and the new woman. Was she the only one working here? She often teased and joked around about how she could run circles around the two doctors. Of course, she did not mean any of it, but she enjoyed making it known that she worked her ass off for them.
As they came to the small gathering, Emilia cheered for the woman. "Look at her go! Oh, you're a natural on those things! You'll be runnin' circles around all of us in no time!" She let out a small laugh and gave a nod to the doctors before guiding the woman to the front desk. "Miss Harland is good, and all set!" She gave Mattie an apologetic look briefly, afraid that she had interrupted their conversation. She placed a hand on the woman's shoulder and smiled at the receptionist. "Could you be a dear and take care of my friend?" She smiled at the woman. "Give us a ring should you need anything, yeah?" The woman nodded, thanking her before she turned her attention to the receptionist.
Emilia had to walk by the small crowd to get through to where she was heading next. She winked at Mattie before speaking out. "Do you boys work here, or have you bloody sacked off already?" She laughed softly and placed walked through them, placing the woman's chart into the bin to be put away later by the receptionist.
[British Slang: ‘To sack off’ is to avoid doing something or to give up doing something - normally something that you didn’t want to do in the first place.]
Post by Mattie Harris on Sept 21, 2020 22:29:53 GMT -5
Mattie laughed and shook Cal’s hand. As their skin met, she got the feeling that he was a bit smug about how excited blake was, almost mischievous. Well, that certainly fit the image of him she’d gotten from Blake. Her eyes crinkled with the strength of her grin.
“Don’t you worry, Blake, I’m immune to all the charmers. A little psychology training’ll do that to a girl.” She winked right back at Cal as Blake shoved the box into his friend's hand and dramatically kissed his ‘work husband’s cheek. What goofballs. It made her happy to see Blake so jovial and at home here; the circumstances that had brought them together the first time hadn’t been nearly so cheerful. Both of them had been in such dark places back then…
Her face fell a little as she remembered that night, meeting him in the waiting room at the police station, then again at the hospital. They’d both been confused, each worried the other was following them around until they’d finally talked about what happened. Something had clicked, and they’d been friends ever since.
Thankfully Blake was returning to distract her. She turned towards him with confusion written on her face when he said she’d forgotten something. What had she missed?
“Where’s your step stool?”
Mattie dropped her head backward and rolled her eyes. “Blake, you had me for real worried!” She complained, swatting him gently on the shoulder exactly as he’d expected. “Rude!”
She watched curiously as the blonde woman passed through their group again, and laughed when she shared a wink. This must be Emilia. She was even prettier than Mattie had imagined, although she seemed to remember hearing that the nurse had dark hair when she was hired…maybe she’d dyed it since then? Or maybe Mattie’s memory just wasn’t good for those kinds of things. She’d been imagining Mary Poppins in scrubs if she was honest with herself.
“Oh, didn’t you know? These two are more likely to distract themselves for hours arguing about sports, or about their ‘marriage’ than anything else. It’s going to be up to us ladies to keep them in check,” she chimed in, returning the wink with one of her own. She then turned back to Blake with her hands on her hips.
“I’ll have you know my one step stool is in the moving truck, and I ordered another one on Amazon that’s getting shipped here. So there.” She looked back to the others with a sheepish smile. “It’s a running joke that I can’t live my life without a step stool. Chances are I’ll even need one on my wedding day, just to reach the groom!”
As Blake shoved the box into his arms, he set his coffee down upon the receptionist's desk. 'You're still my favorite.'"Am I?" he continued the charade because it was simply what they did. "You know, you could say that every once awhile...and cuddles are also nice..." Were anyone else to walk into that clinic, they might honestly think the two docs were together. Hell, Cal was pretty sure some of the patients thought that, but it never bothered him any. Hunt was straight as a ruler, but that didn't mean he didn't adore his friend. The two just had a strange way of showing it sometimes.
He was still grinning even as Emilia emerged. Cal stepped away from reception so that the patient wouldn't have to unnecessarily walk around him. It was instinct for him to offer help, but their nurse was already handling it. Once Emilia's attention was on them, however, he was grinning again. "No," he said in response to working there. "I just like to stand around in scrubs and poke people with tongue depressors." He shifted that box under one of his arms to easily hold it while he reached over for his coffee. "Mattie's here, Em! Did you know that Mattie's here! She's here!" It was clear that Cal was mocking Blake's excitement- not rudely, of course, because it was genuinely a good thing that the woman was here...but it was just too easy.
Mattie was making a comment about keeping them in check and his smirk only became sly. Normally he'd follow up with something sarcastic, throw in a pet name, but for one, she was apparently immune to charmers. And secondly, a wolf doesn't hunt in another's territory.
Cal did scrunch his face up when Blake kissed his cheek and made a whole spectacle about it. Damn weirdo. He was chuckling again soon after over the whole stepstool comment, and those ocher eyes were flickering between Mattie and Blake, silently sizing them up. She said something about needing one on her wedding day, and the following words could not be stopped from slipping past his lips, "Well, yeah, with how freakishly tall Blake is..." Had he said that too loudly? Or did he murmur it like he had originally intended? Not that he cared either way.
Before anyone could say something on it, he gestured to the box he was still holding as he regarded Blake, "So, where's this going?"
last edited Oct 13, 2020 9:27:26 GMT -5 by Cal Hunt