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 Sam Winchester on Jan 31, 2021 8:45:22 GMT -5
While Dean's anger seemed to carry him as far from the motel room as fast as it could, Sam found himself lingering in front of the smashed window a moment. Curiosity ate at him over this stranger, this woman who had hurt his brother more than anything or anyone else ever had. Who was she and what was she hiding that she so refused to answer Dean? Because even Sam could see that there was something. Dean might not be able to, angry as he was, but Sam could see that she was hurting just as much as his brother was.
So, when he finally turned to follow his brother, he was still close enough to overhear a light ringing and then Sid shouting, presumably, at the person or persons on the other end of the line. Again his steps faltered. His ears pricked at hearing the name of a 'doctor'. Without really meaning to, Sam tuned in harder, hearing Sid talk of a 'she' and 'stable'? Then outright screaming. Sam really needed to walk away now. Yet he still heard the promise that Sid would be there, wherever 'there' was, in two days. So she was leaving again. For this other person, this 'she' that she had been asking after? Was that why she had left Dean? Questions upon questions, secrets upon secrets. Sam forced himself to walk away even as he heard her curse again.
Post by Dani Harlow on Jan 31, 2021 13:13:55 GMT -5
Dani just walked, wandered, headed down the street in a random direction because she was too afraid to go home. No. It wasn't home. It wasn't even close to home, yet her mind kept calling it that out of habit. Her stomach twisted with that very thought, feeling her hands shake before her cell began to ring and vibrate within her coat pocket. With a gasp as it snapped her from her thoughts, she fished it out, sighing at recognizing the number.
She was going to be pissed, wasn't she?
Swallowing a lump in her throat, she answered, "Hey, Sid." That must have been a short fight. Maybe, by some crazy chance, Cassidy killed Dean and his brother- that would make this soon- to-be very difficult situation less troublesome. She wasn't about to ask about it, though, so long as she wasn't about to ask her to help bury a couple bodies. Dani didn't get her hands dirty unless she had to.
Post by Sid Rivers on Jan 31, 2021 13:50:28 GMT -5
Standing in the shield of the open door of her truck, Sid resisted the urge to look around and see if Dean and his brother were still around. "Hey," she said back, almost relieved to hear someone actually relatively pleased to hear from her. "Where are you? We still have business." There was nothing given away in those words, nothing even hinting at the fight with Dean that was already receding back into a dark corner of her mind where it wouldn't torture Sid with every breath she took. It was almost easy with the pressure of needing to go, to leave, to already be on her way to Camille. There was only the familiar gruff impatience of a hunter keen to get things moving along. Alright, and maybe a little bit of weariness from the fight, a little bit of the pain that she was still pushing back. "Is there someplace we could meet?" Someplace other than the recent battleground you just left behind? It didn't need saying. It was implied. "I know I said I'd be around for a while but...there's a been a change of plans. I've got to be somewhere."
Post by Dani Harlow on Jan 31, 2021 17:04:21 GMT -5
Relieved? Dani was pretty relieved it wasn't some bloodsucker calling her to get her back to the club. She had been more than happy to realize it was Sid on the other line, even if further dealing with her meant trouble with the Winchesters. The way Dean had been fuming, however, she was going to assume she had some time before shit really hit the fan.
Yet, when Sid mentioned having less time, that relieved thought quickly went out the window.
Eyes narrowed in question, knowing the family wasn't going to like this, but there was no indication of such in her voice. “Uh, yeah…” she answered, idly trailing off as she looked at her surroundings; catching sight of the neon sign of the closest bar. “I'm at Crossings, right on Second Ave.”
Dani was already inside the moment she hung up the phone, managing to find an empty table at the far corner of the bar. This wasn't her usual haunt, but it would do. Waiting for a waitress, she took a seat; leaning back with her feet propped up on the table and her head falling back in tired aggravation. Moments passed, and she was beginning to feel more unnerved.
Finally, hearing the door open with the obnoxious little jingle of a bell, even over the noise in the bar, she let her head loll to the side to see Sid. Dani offered a light wave to catch her attention, along with a soft smirk. They still had business...and she had nearly forgotten. How could she have when Sid had something that she desperately needed? Not that her new acquaintance would know of any of this. There were a lot of things Cassidy didn't know, and would never know.
She watched as she approached, wanting badly to ask how her reunion with the eldest Winchester went, considering it hadn't lasted very long. It was hard to tell by Sid's attitude whether it had gone badly or not, because the girl was always this "moody".
last edited Jan 31, 2021 17:07:45 GMT -5 by Dani Harlow
Post by Sid Rivers on Jan 31, 2021 23:00:31 GMT -5
Halfway into her truck, Sid stopped at the name of the bar that was practically just around the corner. "Oh." Well, she didn't get very far. Brought up short, there was a moment where Sid carefully considered simply walking there but decided against it. "See you in two," she muttered, ending the call as she slid into her seat and started the old Chevy pickup. Glancing at the motel, Sid just hoped she was already out of town by the time someone called the cops.
Two minutes later, Sid was pulling up to Crossings, a dive if there ever was one. It was the kind of place townies frequented because there just wasn't anywhere else to go. Parking at the street, she got out, stopped to lock her duffel bag into the toolbox in the bed of the truck, and made her way inside, brown eyes scanning for Dani.
It wasn't so much that Sid was 'moody' but rather that she had a low tolerance for bullshit and a very high capacity for being a bitch. And it wasn't that Sid was actively, consciously mean, or cruel. She was just impatient and preferred to get things done rather than waste time on unnecessary shite like politeness and cooperation. Her teaming up with Dani was not a common thing nor was it likely to become a habit. Theirs was a partnership of convenience. Sid needed money and had the skills, Dani had money and the information. That wasn't to say that Sid didn't respect her. She wouldn't give the time of day to someone she didn't respect. Hell, maybe in another life, they might even have been friends. As it was, this would probably be the last time Sid ever saw Dani.
Inside, she found the woman right away, acknowledging her with a lift of her chin before veering toward the bar. The bartender behind the counter made some 'knight in shining armor' noise about Sid not needing to put up with a boyfriend who would treat her that way. With weary brusqueness, Sid brushed off his concern, rolling her eyes, and ordered a glass of ice and a glass of whiskey. After a second, she asked for a second glass of whiskey. At least he didn't ask her if she was from England. (No. She was from the moon. Everybody there talked like this.) Anyway, he might have given it to her on the house but she flicked a thumb over her shoulder at Dani in the corner. "Tab is on her."
Taking up her glasses, Sid made her way over the Dani. As she dropped into the seat, a glass of amber liquid slid noisily across the table to Dani. "You're buying," she muttered, settling back into her seat. One hand cradled her whiskey glass while the other lifted the one filled with ice to her jaw, wincing when it touched the hot, tender flesh. "Might have a loose tooth." Her words were distorted with the pressure of the glass and the gentle working of her jaw as she tested the offending molar with her tongue. "I'll send you my dental bill." The sardonic smile offered around the glass was tired.