nature has a certain order.

A family wasn't something he'd ever had or understood. In fact, most of his life had been spent detesting the very thought and gathering who felt like nowhere could be home for them. Maybe that was why it had initially been so strange falling into a routine with Atta, never expecting to fall in love but certainly not get married. One woman, one woman who accidentally stumbled into his life, had changed everything. He felt like he was becoming a joke to the old version of himself after everything he used to hate had become his normal. Now every night he went home to someone, kicked off his shoes at the door, and sat at a dining room table to enjoy a meal with his wife. Bennett had miraculously turned into the very thing he said he never would. Still, this new life wasn't one he wanted to alter in any way. It was kept quiet from his co-workers, his contentment with this white picket fence lifestyle but Buster knew they could see the changes in him.

It hadn't all been good, knowing it was him that drove a wedge between the sisters. While he wanted to give Dot the time she needed to adjust to his addition she'd made it clear that she didn't believe his intentions. "Good, dinner's almost done," he chimed back from the stove as he smiled proudly down at his roast that had been smoking for the majority of the day. A good meal wouldn't convince her but he figured it never hurt to be well-fed, not to mention the fact he'd become quite obsessed with grilling and smoking since turning into a failed foster. When the younger Dreyfus entered her comment made it clear how she'd felt about Buster joining them that night. "Don't worry I'm just here to cook and then I've got to get back to the Junkyard anyway for a delivery," he replied holding up his hands in defense, giving his wife an unsaid acknowledging nod. That way the girls were still able to have their time alone but he at least put forward the effort in seeing her since the accident. "You want a drink?" The man offered Dot before pouring himself a glass of bourbon, Atta her current favorite wine, knowing they'd need it with the way things were starting. @blueberrydot

His mention of the Junkyard immediately had any tension that had been eased by her sister’s hug forming right back up in her shoulders. It was a reminder of exactly why it was that Dot was struggling so hard to trust him and welcome him into their family - his life of crime and the circle that he ran with, the trouble that he was involved in that felt all too familiar to the other man that had been slowly ruining the Dreyfus name. She doesn’t comment on it though, knowing that doing so would only start a legitimate fight - and that wasn’t something she wanted to deal with, not tonight. It was going to come eventually, she could practically feel it bubbling under the surface as they all tiptoed around each other, but not tonight. “Yeah, I’ll take a drink. Whatever Atta’s having is fine,” she agrees with a small nod, looking back to her sister and feeling so wrong for struggling with what else to say. “So, uhh, how’s work been?” It wasn’t the type of question she ever asked before, hardly getting involved in the business in any way at all, but it felt like a safe enough start. And it was at least a bit more personal than bringing up the weather, which had been her other option. @attaant

"Wine for you, then," she announced, taking the two glasses from the counter and handing Dot one of them. Atta didn't think her sister had ever willingly asked her how work had been going, but she supposed it was a good thing she had, especially if she was wanting to know the truth about what she did every day. "Actually, it's complicated, right now," she admitted. "We hare warehouses off the island, and they've always been more difficult to manage, especially when the borders were closed. But, now that they're open, naturally, Hopper wants something to do with them." She hated having to bring his name up anytime in conversation, but especially now, when she was trying to keep spirits high. "I'm hoping other things are keeping him busy enough, for now, so I have time to prepare. I think we'll be fine: I've been in contact with the managers of the warehouses, and he hasn't tried to threaten them, or anything, so." Atta paused, feeling sheepish in offering the truth to her sister for the first time. @nohousedog

After an attempt at dancing with his wife turned sour, resulting in Lilah practically running off into another man’s arms, Tristan wasn’t exactly in the best mood of his life. Downing another cup of whatever red alcoholic mixture the closest server was carrying around on their tray, he tried his best to calm the rising temper within him. It wouldn’t do to cause a scene, not with so many people here who hated him. Laying low was the name of the game tonight. Or at least, that’s what he was trying to tell himself he needed to do. In reality, he hardly knew how to do anything other than create some form of chaos everywhere he went. A point that was proven the moment he looked around and spotted a familiar face, one that had his feet moving before his brain even realized where he was going. “Atta,” he greeted as soon as he was close enough, hand reaching out to grip firmly on her arm to keep her from trying to run away the way his ex-wife had just minutes before. “Dance with me. It’s been too long, we need to catch up.” Not that there was really anything new going on in his own life, but like hell was he going to just stand around like some kind of loser. And the blonde had been the first person he noticed that was actually worth spending any time with. Maybe he could get some information about Lilah and his kids out of her, since no one else ever seemed to be willing to tell him anything these days.

After the attack of the festival and her failed attempt to get any new dirt on her sister’s supposed husband, Dot had needed a break from it all. Spending time with Atta meant being around Buster, and she still just wasn’t ready to do that - not even after he took a literal bullet for her. There was a guilt there, of course, that she couldn’t seem to just get over it and start liking him for that one simple act alone - but it wasn’t strong enough to actually get her to take the time and effort to change her stance on the man. Instead, she put another forced amount of distance between herself and the couple and focused entirely on the upcoming school year. So much had happened over the summer that she’d barely been able to prepare anything for her classroom, and after what felt like a failure of last year, she was determined to come back stronger than ever this time around.

But now the first two weeks were done, the routines were starting to be built, and every major task to prepare for the year had been completed. Of course there was still the day to day amount of busy work and tasks at hand, but none of those were a good enough excuse to keep up the distance between herself and her sister. And the guilt of not spending any time with her, of barely giving her more than just a few quick phone calls over the past month, that was one that was starting to truly eat away at Dot. Which was what led her to agree to a dinner at Atta’s place, despite the fact that she knew Buster was likely going to join them at some point. Avoiding the two of them forever wasn’t a possibility, not if she wanted to keep a relationship with her sister - which she absolutely did. So it was probably about time she sucked it up and just faced the couple head on.

Arriving with their mother’s famous honey cake in hand, Dot waited for the door to open after she gave it a good few loud kicks with her foot. Thankfully it was the eldest Dreyfus that answered, and a bright and genuine smile grew on her face at the sight of her sister - but it faltered after just a moment at the sound of a distinctly male voice calling out from the kitchen. She shouldn’t be surprised that Buster was here already, but she had been naively hoping to get at least some time alone with Atta before he made his presence known. “I brought dessert, like I promised,” she states the obvious, holding up the round tupperware as proof before stepping in and making her way through the house to the kitchen. And there he was, just like she’d heard, but the sight of him feeling so familiar and at home here was different than simply hearing his voice. Taking a breath to steady herself, a forced smile was plastered on her face as she stepped into the room and set her container down on the counter. “Didn’t realize it’d be a full house tonight - I would have made a bigger cake.” It was her not so subtle way of trying to jab at Buster’s presence here tonight, and while she’d play it off as being completely innocent if either one of them called her out on it, she also knew they’d know exactly what she really meant.

"I'll get the door," she called behind to Buster at the stove, knowing exactly who was at her front steps. It was with a smile and a breath of relief that she actually showed up that Atta opened the door for her sister. Her grin faltered, though, as it seemed Dot couldn't even manage more than a sentence without making a dig at her husband's presence--Atta thought she'd mentioned that it would be the three of them. "I think it can still be a cake for two, right? We'll just forget to leave out a third fork." Atta's arms wrapped tightly around her sister as she set the dessert down, eager to squeeze in a hug after one of the lengthiest periods of absence between the two. "I missed you," she told her, "I want to hear all about your first few weeks. We'll hang out, just us, after dinner?" Atta asked quietly, hoping the offer was one Dot had wanted to hear. @nohousedog

Hopper paused when she mentioned Gaston. "You had a relationship with him, eh?" he asked, tilting his head slightly. He didn't know the details or if anything was still going on between them, so he watched her reaction closely. "What makes you think he would cooperate with you?" he continued. "Unless he's still into you, in which case, by all means."

"A long time ago," she confirmed, "but he still ... despite my current relationship status, he thinks he might have a chance of rekindling that, so." Atta cut herself off, not caring to dive too into detail with him before his amusement could grow. "Either way, I think I could probably get him to talk, or at least, get him to tell me enough until I can get a meeting between the two of you on the calendar, if that's something you'd want." Atta could only imagine being a fly on the wall between the two of them, and, unfortunately, she would probably have to witness it sooner than later.

It’s not until her sister keeps going, this time about Mavis and Myles, that she’s really brought back to being fully alert and paying attention. “Wait Mavis was hurt?” is the first thing out of her mouth as she sits forward and sets her glass down on the table in front of them. No one had told her about the older girl being involved in the attack and Dot had been too nervous about seeing Buster to go anywhere near the room holding everyone that had been injured. A wave of guilt washed over her for having been so sucked into her own issues that she hadn’t thought to see who else might have been hurt, but she tries her best to stifle it, knowing there’s nothing she could really do now. “Is she going to be okay? Was anyone else hurt? That we know, I mean. I.. I only knew about Buster - no one told me about anyone else.” Then again, she hadn’t really spoken to anyone to have been told about them in the first place. It was also a bit telling, the amount of concern she had for Mavis, a girl she barely knew other than through stories Myles had told her, compared to what she’d shown for the man who had quite literally taken a bullet to save her life. But that’s not something Dot was going to think too hard on.

Going to bed does sound like the better option of the two - because for all she wants to be near her sister, she doesn’t necessarily want to actually talk to the older girl. But that would be rude and it’s clear that Atta wants this, wants to spend time together like they used to before Buster swooped into their lives and decided to stay. “Yeah, I could drink a glass,” she finally agrees with a small nod, knowing that neither of them were likely going to stop with just one but not wanting to out herself or the blonde on that fact quite yet. It probably wasn’t healthy, the way they sometimes turned to alcohol to help them in tough times like this - but could they really be blamed? After all, they’d been through a lot these past few years. These last few months even: this island wide attack not even being in the top three worst situations.

As Atta pours them each their drink, she knows she needs to ask about Buster. Not because she actually really cares or even wants to know - but because it’s what’s expected of her. Because if she doesn’t she’s going to seem like a bratty little bitch that refuses to talk about him just because she’s upset. Or like she’s not beyond grateful and appreciative of the bullet he had quite literally taken in her place. So as she reaches to take her offered glass, bringing it to her lips for a hefty sip, Dot lets out a small breath of a sigh. “How’s he doing? He’ll be alright, right?” Even though she can’t bring herself to say his name, they both know exactly who she’s talking about.

Atta wasn't even going to mention him, so it came as another surprise that Dot herself was the one to bring up her husband, who was still very much in recovery from taking the shot that had nearly gone to her sister. It was the sorest spot of their relationship, and though she could gush about how heroic it had been, or how impressed she'd been by what he'd done for her, this certainly wasn't the time, nor the audience, to do that. "Yeah, he will," she confirmed simply, keeping it at that. Atta wasn't sure that the brunette cared to hear more than that, anyway. "So will Mavis, I think, thankfully. I mean, it's terrible, obviously, that she was hurt in the first place, but after all Myles has been through … I can't even think about if he lost someone so important to him." It was the first time she'd seen him happy, building a life for himself that didn't involve his brother, and Atta was simply thankful that it hadn't been ripped away. "I offered to let him stay over at the house, if he just needed some space, but I think he wants to stay here."

Buster had better things to worry about than how his wounds would heal now wondering what was to come. He'd been prepared for something of this caliber but for hunters to come for those who weren't magic was far too personal. That was the thorn in his side and not the stitches from the bullet pried from his flesh. The intentions behind it had him feeling its presence long after the ammo left his body. Now that he had something real to protect there were motivations Buster never experienced before, only feeling whole with her beside him now. A content hum came from his lips before the future was brought back into the light and his eyes flickered down. "And what do you think of that?" His opinion only mattered to some extent when it was Atta who had the most to lose. "At least it's keeping Hopper off your tail," Buster mused out loud. He had been grateful for that at a time like this when he wasn't in the shape to properly protect his family. "About damn time if you ask me." Buster's own business was looking for expansion and now also the safety of those he'd come to care about more than himself.

It had been hard to get hold of the blonde girl lately. Kit felt like something big was about to happen, with major shadows moving around. There were whispers of the borders opening, an idea he found insane. Who would want to risk such an unknown? And hadn’t this island been enough for them in the first place? Of course, Kit only knew luxury, as he was, well, Kit. The bombing at the festival confirmed his suspicions—there was indeed a lot happening in the background. With Dot hurt and several others injured, he knew Atta must know more.

When he finally caught up to her at an event, he sat her down and began, "How's Dot feeling?" Kit asked, his voice filled with concern. "I've been hearing things, but this is all new to me," he remarked. Kit had always been more occupied with his work, and the sudden influx of gossip was overwhelming. "Have you known about this for a while?"

"She's okay," Atta assured him, "just a little scratched up. Buster actually took a freaking bullet for her, which was … wild." Atta was repeatedly in awe of what her husband had done for her sister; despite promising that he would take care of them, it was another thing entirely to watch him keep his promise in such a drastic fashion. "No, I had no idea, I mean … Hopper's been trying to get the borders open, for business purposes, for a while, but nothing successful. He wasn't behind this, though, I know that."

After the way his day had gone, it was nice to see a friend, especially now that he was certain she'd stayed safe. Those he was closest to would be okay but that didn't forgive the actions done against them. He'd failed to protect Mavis once before from his own blood, and now there were more dangers to her than just Hopper; next time he swore would be ready. Myles had never been the merciless man his brother was but he was beginning to understand why he'd been prepared for carnage from such a young age. In fact, he thought Colin would be quite proud to know that his little brother had finally decided to use the skills he'd grown up being taught. A gun on his hip had never felt right until now, wanting more than ever to expect the unexpected.

"I'm glad you two are safe," he said allowing himself to smile a little now that he'd gotten the confirmation. Her hug had been exactly what he needed at a time like this and feeling uncertain about what the future held more than ever. "You and your family are always welcome here, you know that." While her husband hadn't been someone he'd gotten to know well anyone that Atta considered family was cleared in his mind. After all they'd been through together Myles trusted her more than just about anyone else, their trauma from his brother bonding them eternally. "I just wish there was more I could've done. Seeing her like that..." His voice faded off, not wanting to replay the scene again in his head. It had already been on repeat until she walked in and he didn't want to restart the reel. "Of course, follow me." Myles nodded towards the hallway to lead them to his room where they could speak privately and get cleaned up after the day they'd had.

With her arm in his, Atta followed his lead toward his room, Myles seeming to feel even more at ease the more time he spent at the hotel. "So, is the plan to just stay here for as long as they'll have you?" Atta teased, leaning into his shoulder with a curious raise of her brow. Atta couldn't tell the exact nature of the relationship between Myles and Mavis, but she did know that she'd never seen him so happy. While she knew that was partially due to the new freedom he had from his brother, Atta also had a feeling that the girl in his life had something to do with it, too. "If it's too much chaos here, you know you're welcome to come stay with me, too."

Despite her annoyance lately at how many decisions keep getting made without her input or even a warning offered to her, Dot was actually okay with staying the night at the hotel. The last thing she wanted was to go back out into the open, where more hunters might be waiting. Of course, the logical part of her brain reminded her that if anywhere was going to be targeted actually, it would be the hotel, the known safe haven for magical creatures and beings. And if Hopper was the one behind the chaos at the festival then his next mark would surely be here… he’s shown before that he has no issue with aiming an attack at Hotel Transylvania. But she tried her best to shut those thoughts down. If everyone else said they were safe here, she’d just have to believe it. And it’s not like she’s really felt safe in her own home lately, anyway. So rather than fighting she just gives a small nod. “Okay. Is Myles here? Is he okay?” It’s not the person she should be asking about, considering Buster had been the one to save her life, but Molt’s the person she cared to know the answer for the most. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.” Because she has no other choice but to be fine. It was the same thing that happened after the kidnapping - life had to just keep on going… whether she wanted it to or not.

With a nod, she confirmed her sister's question, having just seen the man who'd made this place his second home. He was the reason they'd come here; Atta wasn't sure how she'd ever be able to thank him for their safety, especially when she felt like she'd hardly done anything for him to deserve it. "He is, his girlfriend, Mavis, was hurt, though. I don't know if she's officially his girlfriend, but it kind of sounds like she is," Atta explained with a shrug. As long as they were happy, she wasn't going to question it. She hardly had her own relationship figured out. She could tell Dot was struggling, but trying to be strong--the last thing she wanted was to push too hard in the opposite direction. "Do you want any of this?" she asked, holding up the bottle of wine. "I was kind of thinking we could hang out, just the two of us … if you're feeling up for it, that is. I wouldn't blame you if you just wanted to go to bed, either."

"No promises," he replied. He cared little for Atta's demands; his priority was getting his artillery distributed for their offensive. This temporary alliance served his purpose, but once the borders opened, Hopper intended to seize her properties to expand his domain. For now, this was the plan. Hopper threw her a paper with numbers on it, the amount of vehicles he needed, and three people in charge of distributing it. "They would know what to do," He stated, leaving her out of words again.

Sliding the paper toward her, Atta was unsurprised with his terms: he'd never been known to leave her with much for herself, at the end of the day. But, it was a better deal than she'd gotten in the past. The only word that stuck out to her was a name, one that she should've foreseen on the short list of people Hopper wanted on this. "Scamp? You think Lilah's going to let him?" It wasn't her business, though--this was between the two men, and Scamp's mother, so she simply scribbled her signature on the bottom of the page in approval. "I can speak to Gaston, if you need me to. See what he's willing to tell me."

Most of the time Buster was a man who kept to himself, that was the case until he met Atta Dreyfus. Now he was not only putting himself into the light but in the line of fire in order to protect this newfound family. These were actions that most of his crew would've laughed at if they'd been told he put himself in harm's way for someone else. While they had been his closest friends and employees it was widely known that Buster wouldn't be putting himself in front of them if a bullet came their way. That was different for the girls he'd come to call his family, even if Dot hadn't been entirely supportive of his union with her sister. At first, all he was able to give was a nod from the uncertainty of how to accept the concern that came along with his actions. To Buster, it was a simple decision but he knew there were bigger things at hand now, not thinking twice before putting himself in front of her sister. "But I am," he assured her again, making sure to keep the severity to himself. The last thing Atta needed right now was knowing how close he'd come to a much darker ending. "You don't need to thank me, Atta." The man adjusted so that his arm was able to drape over her shoulders and pull her into his broad chest. "You know there was no question, you two are my family now and I'm just glad you're both safe."

The Locusts, busy planning their own offensive, were not part of the festival. "There's more to come," he stated matter-of-factly. "I've heard your sister was targeted. They will continue to be so," Hopper said, taking a sip of whiskey, his head still bowed over his desk as he scribbled notes. "Some factions of Hunters are provoking, no one is safe until the borders are opened."

He continued to explain without giving her room to question. "I need you to facilitate the direct transport of my artillery to the magical beings on my list, and my men. I'll open the borders before the Hunters annihilate them all," Hopper declared. "Tell me, Atta, is your ego more important than the safety of the people?" It wasn't a request; it was an order. Finally, Hopper lifted his head and fixed his gaze on her, awaiting her response.

This move was one of the first Atta could actually agree with. Not only were there personal benefits in going against the Hunters, having known a certain ex-boyfriend of hers had something against magical beings, but she knew this was actual good that she would be doing. "I can do that," she agreed easily. "I have trucks at a warehouse on the other side of the border. You can use them, as long as they remain intact by the end of their use," Atta added, in reference to how many he'd blown up in the past.