"Neil!" A woman's voice called out from the doorway of a pale salmon house. Round golden eyes filled with tears as Trisha rushed forward and hugged her younger cousin. Her grip was tight as if she feared he would run the moment she let go.

"Jesus Christ Neil." The words came out muffled against his shoulder as she buried her face in it. Hot tears pooled against him as Alexander slipped into character. He responded with a tight hug as he let out a sorrowful sigh. After a few seconds she finally pulled back and tried to hide her pathetic expression with a wilting smile. Even though she was a few years older, they looked nearly like twins. The two cousins had often been mistaken as siblings by outsiders.

"I'm sorry Trish." A half sigh, he let his voice waver a bit as he looked down at the gravel. "I'm really sorr-" Like that, his tone broke and became saturated with tears as he cried silently against her shoulder.  As they were the same height, neither felt uncomfortable as they stayed there for a little while longer, caught in the rush of emotions that the reunion brought.

If only it had been under better circumstances...

It was Rusty who broke the delicate state as he put a callous hand on his wife's strong shoulder and made a motion towards the house. It was best they headed in before the mosquitoes made too much of a meal of them. Trisha did not argue, just pulled back with a light nod before smoothing out her dirty blond hair. Alexander took notice of a few rosettes that had begun to appear among the vertical gradient, a feature that they had both inherited from their family. She gave a somewhat confident smile, but it was betrayed by the redness of her eyes as she led Alexander in.

The house wasn't huge. From the entrance almost all the downstairs could be seen as the living room opened up into an airy kitchen and dining room. A pair of glass sliding doors showed off the well-maintained back yard which was currently home to a number of playing children. 

Careful with his steps, it was like Alexander had entered a mine field as he toed around a carpet of kid's toys to reach a saggy beaten up old brown couch. In front of him a half-eaten bowl of bloated cereal sat precariously on the edge of the coffee table as Trisha's quick hands grabbed it pushed it into a safer position.

Alexander's back faced the backyard, but he could still hear the shrieks and shouts of kids at play as he felt a faint desire to growl. He squished it though as they were Neil's baby cousins, he couldn't be hostile when he would be living their house for a few weeks. As annoyed as it made him, the sounds of kids playing was better than the gloomy atmosphere that had followed them in and weighed heavily on the three adults.

Next to Trisha on the red love seat, Rusty held his wife's hand. Consoling her in silence as he ran a large gentle finger softly along the back of her hand.

Alexander felt a sting of dissatisfaction as he watched the small display of affection. He wanted to hold his husband's hand right now too. He wanted to be comforted through his character's trauma. Instead he had to sit on a saggy couch and deal with Neil's trauma alone. Sourness welled up in his chest as he turned his eyes away to focus on something else and found a row of pictures that took up the mantle under the TV. The first few were photos of their kids, as well as an old picture of their entire pack. But as he moved along, he saw an image that made him want to throw something.

In a large frame sat the wedding day picture of the married couple. Trisha was no more than 21 at the time and was in an abomination of a wedding dress she had borrowed from her soon to be Mother-in-law. Even if it made her look like a cupcake, the joy that radiate in her eyes was genuine as she held onto a trimmer, clean shaven Rusty. His dark red hair suavely combed back as he wore a suit and tie while holding his wife's lace clad hand. A rare smile graced his features, bring forth a wild youthful energy that the current silent man seemed to lack. All the same, Alexander felt even more bitter as he tore his eyes away and focused on a set of Legos that currently sat abandoned close to his empty seat.

Where's that damn charger?

"I know we didn't part on good terms..." Trisha's words brought him back to the moment. Quickly he flipped through what memories he had inherited. Most were quick snippets that had barely formed as he sped the process up to give him some general timeline of their last interaction. A solid memory formed as he visualized Trisha's exit from their familial pack.

It had not been pretty. While Neil had stood on the side lines with their younger cousins, their parents had tossed every curse in the book, condemning the woman for breaking the cycle they had so long maintained. Eight generations pure and the eldest of their newest generation eloped with a werewolf. Even though Neil had looked up to his older cousin, when faced with the pained and angry expressions of his family, he could not utter a word in her defense.

"How could you have expected this?" Alexander gave a sad chuckle and lowered his head. Ah, he really didn't want to have to cry again. It was exhausting. Luckily, Trisha had enough tears for the both of them as she started to cry again.

"We hadn't talked for almost 9 years." Ever since she got the news, old memories began to return in her sleep. The same scene of being chased out. Nightmares that would not end.

"It wasn't your fault." Neil was a coward, at the time of the incident he had been 17, but many years had passed yet he did not try to reach out to his cousin once in that time.

"But mom's dead. Dad's dead. Everyone..." She choked out the words as Rusty pulled her into his big embrace. At the same time with a rough hand he patted her back as she tried to composure herself. "We can't make up anymore. The last time we met, it will always be that fight."

"So, you regret your decision to leave?" It was harsh. His cavalier attitude a sharp contrast from the appeasing soul he had been playing moments ago. A fortunately brief reveal of his true face. The thing was this was too much of a pity party for Alexander. While he knew how to play the empathic character, he was in no mood right now. Anyway, it was Michael who preferred to be everyone's best friend. The thought of Michael carelessly getting on with others while he was stuck with this family melodrama made Alexander's teeth ache as he forced himself to comply with the scene.

So, another round of tears was summoned as he looked up with glistening yellow eyes. His heavy lashes wet and pitiful as his lips trembled and features turned gaunt. In the listless movement of his hand, he pushed back his wavy hair and tried to stop his tears. But they kept falling like an endless waterfall down his handsome youthful face. From lively grown man into bereaved child, he did not need the System Administrators to complete flawless transformation. If only his husband were here to see his spectacular performance.

Trisha sat there stunned. For a moment her anger flared up against his arrogant attitude, but it was just as quickly tempered by his pitiful appearance. 

When she left, she knew what would have happened. Their family was prideful. Even if she had begged, they would have shunned her until she broke off any relationship with Rusty. If she hadn't left, she would never have been able to be with Rusty. If she hadn't left, she would never have had her wonderful children. If she hadn't left, there was a high chance she would have been dead too. That last thought rang in her head as she tried to fight off the joy she felt from being alive. Her family was dead, she should only be in mourning, but a part of her could only think it was better them than her.

Such thoughts tormented her and left her unable to respond. Fortunately, Rusty came to his wife's rescue as he looked flatly at Neil. "The past is the past. No use regretting decisions. Best we can do is respect the dead." His deep gravelly voice was hardly soothing for Alexander, but Trisha found comfort as she looked at her husband with eyes filled with appreciation. He didn't say much else, just rested her hand inside of his warm palm.

"Sure." 

Awkwardness settled in. While the other two thought he was still upset about Trisha's absence, Alexander was sulking because he had to continue to witness this PDA. He could only bite his tongue and let the long silence continue. To tell the truth, in most normal situations it made sense. It is difficult to suddenly heal 9 years of distance and silence even if both sides were now adults. The memories were persistent as Alexander was forced to endure the increasingly dramatic past. At this point memories were running wild and he held little control over their last meeting and the short period of time that followed.

After Trisha eloped, Neil was the oldest of the cousins. Perhaps out of fear he might follow in Trisha's footsteps, the pack tighten up their restrictions on him. He only knew school and work. They rarely allowed him much else as he spent most of his time on the family property. It was a miracle they didn't try to marry him off to another wereleopard, but Alexander exerted his own creative control to temper that. However as structured as his life was, for a long time he did not fight against it. He was only 17 when Trisha left and like the rest of his cousins, he had felt hurt and confused that their cousin would abandon them for an outsider. It was only when he finally attended college away from his family and got the chance to interact with others that he began to understand what had happened. Still he had a hard time breaking the years of resentment that had harden around his heart. He couldn't make the first step to reach out and they remained strangers until the massacre.

Still 9 years left a lot of leeway for Alexander to play and to his "good" fortune, everyone who would know Neil well was dead. So, there was plenty of open and easy space for him to fill in with little resistance.

The silence stretched on unbearable but unbreakable as neither side could give in. One side at a loss at what to say, while the other did not truly care. Perhaps someone was looking out for the couple as the sound of an opening sliding glass door and excited shouts broke the silent war. Ester, Billy and Oliver followed one after another, with the eldest Ester at the lead. Another pair of kids followed them as the group rushed into the kitchen to get a snack. However, their adventure stopped as they saw a stranger in their living room. With her sun-tanned arms raised, Ester made her little pack stop to get a look at him. With a defiant gaze, the 8-year-old measured him up with a dominating stare. Well as dominating as a little girl could be.

Alexander looked back bored. Another thing he hated dealing with, kids. Tiny, annoying, and clingy, he often left them to Michael. He should just ignore them, but a petty part of him wanted to taunt the little red head as he gave her aggravated frown and rolled his eyes. A small huff echoed as she stuck her tongue out and turned back to her pack. With a shout, she led them forward into the kitchen. But no matter his opinion on children, they had done the one thing the three adults couldn't do. Broke the atmosphere.

With the tension gone, Trisha just let out a tired sigh and stood up. "You haven't eaten anything today have you? Come on, I'll fix you something."

Alexander just nodded and pulled out his phone. "Where's your charger?"

She gestured to the side table where a tangled collection of cords hung half off the top. It took a moment to track down the right one as he hooked it in before following her to the kitchen.

While the kitchen was somewhat hidden from view in the living room, the moment they turned the corner the kids became completely visible as they scavenged among the counter and drawers.

"Grab them quickly!" Knowing their mother was about to bust them, the smaller child who had been hoisted on Ester's shoulders worked harder to grab their prize. It was as Trisha entered the kitchen that they got their items and quickly booked it down the hall before they could get scolded. The soul soothing sound of childish laughter echoed after them and helped ease a bit of tension on Trisha's heart.

She went about frying him some eggs and bacon while maintaining small talk. Most was about weather, though a bit was about a mosquito problem they had been having recently.

It was dull, but Alexander did the bare minimum to keep up the conversation as his thoughts kept sliding to his phone. Finally, she settled into the topic of upcoming hurricanes. No one in this house was a stranger to them, but the last hurricane Neil had been out of state for an internship. Even so, it seemed that the centrally located pack territory was rarely affected by them anyway. That didn't mean the place wasn't busy though. Apparently, they often operated as a shelter for the coastal packs that would get dislodged during the storm. After a bad season last year, they had begun work to build some additional lodgings after they hosted over 10 different packs during Hurricane Leroy. It had been quite cramp, and they had some issues with supplies. So, they had been working hard since the end of the last season to prepare for the new one.

The topic seemed to calm Trisha as she talked about a few of the funny incidents that had happened, including the pre-hurricane party they had thrown once everyone had settled in. According to her, the jell-o shots they made had been strong enough to take out Rusty in two shots and the werewolf had slept through the few gusts they had gotten.

Seeing that Neil seemed uninterested, Trisha misinterpreted it as pained apathy caused by her talking about the pack. So, she switched the topic to something completely unrelated. Unfortunately, her knowledge of pop culture at the moment was filled with Disney movies and children's tv shows, making it hard to relate to the single man.

Trisha quickly finished breakfast and slide it forward to him on the bar. Taking that moment, she quickly excused herself to check on the children. Alexander watched as she left before he stood and went to the living room to check on his phone.

The charge hadn’t yet past 10% as he opened it and looked at his downloads. The apps looked almost done but had frozen at the 70% mark. It made him wonder who in the Archives he had offended to give him such a slow connection. While he waited, the food quickly disappeared from his plate as he realized how hungry this body was. Even with four eggs and a few thick slices of bacon, he felt like it was a drop in the bucket. Whatever, he could get more food later as he wiped his hands off and started to make his accounts on the app. But before he could browse through his local matches, Trisha reappeared.

"Come on, Neil. Richard asked us to introduce you to some of the folks." Oliver, the youngest, was held in her arms as the toddler looked at his cousin with an innocent smile. While Ester had been weary, this child held out his hands as he tried to climb on to this new man.

Internally Alexander shouted no but held his tongue and stood up.

Why did the needs of the man and the needs of the character have to differ so greatly? He mentally wept and even Trisha could see his reluctance but didn't let up.

"There's a lot of good folks around and they've been wanting to meet you. I might have told them a story or two about you, and they are curious about my handsome cousin. Come on." She also hoped that he might find a suitable partner among the other young adults around. Anything to help him find a distraction from their loss and to keep him on pack territory.

"Fine." He stood and left his phone to finish charging. Michael would understand. He was the one who always pushed world development first.

As they left the house, the little pack returned. Barreling from around back, Ester took two seconds to look at her mother and younger brother before turning her attention to Neil. With a raised hand, she commanded her pack to attack. Suddenly four children were hung off of Alexander as two hopped on his back and the other two grabbed an arm. With their combined strength they tried to pull him over, but he was stronger as he balanced the four weights.

"Enforcers, bring him down!" Ester gave another command, while she wasn't the oldest, she was the only one able to shift which made her the de facto leader. However, the pack was too inexperienced as they struggled against him. Finally, she decided to join, aiming to headbutt him in the gut to make him yield.

Used to their antics, Trisha did little to stop them. The amount of times they tried to wrestle with Rusty was impossible to count. It was just the playfulness of children.

Alexander did not agree as he shook off the two on his arms and quickly stopped Ester before she could hit him. The other two on his back tried to grab at his face with little grubby fingers and he had to internally chant a calming mantra as he lifted Ester and put her to the side before working on the little shits on his back. But as soon as he put her down, Ester charged again, headbutting his back. The force made him stumble until he knelt.

Suddenly the other two jumped off as Ester hopped on and stood upon him like she had reached the mountain peak. "You are now my subordinate!" With her hands on her hips she bellowed her command and Trisha held back a chuckle.

It was good for Neil to play a bit, but Ester shouldn't be too cruel to her relative as Trisha waved her down. "Ester, get off of him."

The child looked at her mother for a second, but rather than being upset, she agreed and hopped off satisfied with her conquest of the new guy. Now that he was in her pack, she would act as the respectable alpha and offer him a hand.

Sour on the inside, Alexander reminded himself he was the adult here as he took the offered small hand and she patted him off. The eight-year-old only reached the middle of his abdomen, but her attitude was like that of someone three times her size. The rest of her pack quickly followed suit, cleaning the dirt off of him. After that, the excitement of the stranger was gone and they ran off to play elsewhere.

Trisha just shook her head and kept walking. "Sorry about that. She's quite lively. We blame it on being a wereboar." She chuckled then added, "We didn't even know where it came from with Rusty being a werewolf and me a wereleopard. But Rusty said that his great grandfather was a wereboar, so we figured it was just waiting to come out."

The way werebeasts worked in this world was pretty simplistic. As long as one parent was a werebeast, there was a chance the child would be one as well. Though they would take after their parent's animal. If two werebeasts married, it could vary. If they were the same animal the child would most likely come out that animal. If it was two different animals, there was a chance it could be either animal. However, for werebeasts with more mixed background, there was the chance of an older generation's animal being the child's wereform. It was one of the reasons their familial pack had been so isolated. They practically worshiped line purity. With over eight generations of wereleopard with no interbreeding, they were one of the few pure packs in the region. This in turn had negatively affected their relationships with other more integrated packs.

"I see." Following her lead, he was introduced to a slew of neighbors. While a majority went to work during the day, there were more than a few at home parents that helped to take care of the pack's children. This included a vampire who had married into the pack with their werebat partner. While she couldn't go outside much in the sunlight, she still invited them in for a few snacks while Oliver played with her children. They had adopted four and two were the same age as Trisha's youngest.

After some pleasant conversation, the vampire agreed to keep an eye on Oliver for Trisha while they went to look around more. Other than the vampire there were only 3 others non werebeasts who lived in the land. One was a witch who specialized in werebeast anatomy and worked as one of the pack's doctors. Then there was then a half fae who had married in and a selkie that had been mistaken for a wereseal while young and had been raised by a pack couple.

After a good hour of chatting and walking, the both of them were covered in a layer of sweat. With all things considered, it was a pleasant cool summer day. But the humidity had started to rise as dark storm clouds quickly rolled in.

As they picked up their pace back home, Alexander felt a familiar energy brush past them. Strong and warm, it differed from the heat of the outdoors and instead felt like it nourished his soul. He looked over as they passed by the Mother Tree.

It was hard to ignore the giant banyan that sat a little way into the territory. From its massive canopy hung thin strong vines that anchors it to the ground as an expansive but shallow root system broke the dirt in irregular angles.

Trisha noticed his curious stares and stopped beside him to look over the old tree. "Richard should have told you about her. Our land is protected by the Mother Tree. It's stood for longer than any of us remember."

Alexander just nodded and felt his theory that this was a World Root was gaining more credence. "Are we allowed to climb it?"

There was a pause as Trisha looked at him like he was an idiot and then just shook her head. "No, generally climbing on her is not allowed."

"I see." That meant he would have to climb it when they weren't paying attention as they continued their tour. The energy that came from it was too similar to a World Root. If it was one, then he had a nearly guaranteed way to contact Overworld when nothing else worked

They managed to wrap up their tour and return home with Oliver just as the first sheet of rain fell upon the parched land. Under the harsh crackle of lightning and heavy rains, Trisha had her hands full as she dealt with her kids and finally left Alexander alone. With a full charge he went to the guest room they had prepared for him. It was simply a small office that had all of its contents stacked to the side as a large camping blowup laid crudely made on the ground. It would do for now as Alexander pulled out the desk chair, put his feet up on the desk and began to look for Michael.

 

A/N

My cat Artemis growls anytime there are kids playing outside our front window or USPS drive by. But when kids play with her she never scratches them and will even let them hold her shortly. I tell you, cats are amazing things, I love them. Also pregaming hurricanes is a thing, even in areas that the hurricane is directly going to hit. It's kind of crazy, but par for the course really. I remember last major Hurricane, Dorian, there were guys on the pier just shirtless and fucking around doing push ups and standing on the edge as the Hurricane was only a few miles off the coast. They ended up fine, but the new caster interviewing them was definitely confused and worried.