this is all I have lived for

Dom was practically frozen in place as she glanced at the long gone but very recognizable form in her sight. The Lamia was nearly in tears but turned to look at Grey, finally able to break away from her own staring. “ Yeah it is” Dom managed to say quietly under her breath. “ Grey I don’t understand any of this.” She replied looking up at her parental figure. Her blue eyes starting to fill with tears.

Grey shook his head slowly as if that would spread the message that he also didn’t understand it. None of this made sense. And he certainly hated to see Dom like this, so upset, so distraught.“Me neither, kid,” he said sotly, finally. He helped her onto her feet. “Come on, let’s start getting you out of here.” He didn’t want to say that he wasn’t sure if it was safe, if they could be harmed or even killed out here, not when she was already so upset.

Grey grinned to himself as he angled his face away from his partner, stifling a chuckle that he knew would infuriate her or rather she would pretend that it did. “Come on, this is kind of fun and you know it.” He rolled the paint roller in the paint before spreading it over the recently redone wall. “You know you love this.” Of course, he already knew what he was going to hear- that he was the reason they had to paint because they got termites.

Grey was always early to work at the Inn, to have a small chat with Morgan if there was the time or to get right to work if there wasn’t. This morning he was even earlier with two to-go coffee cups in his hands. He went inside and set them on the desk, leaning on the wall while he waited for Morgan.

The moment he saw her, he straightened his stane and said, “Hey, kid. Were you there last night? Are you okay?”

Dom had thought she was having a good night but the longer she spent time out in the cold the more her body felt a chill that had nothing to do with the weather. She could see everyone in her life that she had cared about. It was why she tried not to get close to anyone in such a way because there was always the risk of losing people. Now all of those people were around at once and Dom had no idea what to do. She was the type to always smile and attempted to never be serious but now the facade had dropped and the petite Lamia was nearly in tears. The dam burst though once she saw her husband’s form. He had died so long ago and yet she remembered him so clear. Seeing him haunted her though, because she was the one who killed him and the guilt settled deep within. “ Grey?” Dom replied turning trying to wipe her face. “ What the Hell is happening?”

Grey stared at the young girl for a moment with a wrecked expression, paned at seeing her so hurt. He moved closer and knelt beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as his eyes scanned her for signs of injury. “I don’t know,” he admitted. He hated not knowing or understanding bad situations, had always hated it. He turned his head and his eyes focused on a ghostly form of a man. First, he felt confusion but that quickly faded to sorrow and sympathy. There was only one person he could think of, besides possibly her family, who could get that response. “Is that...?” he asked, even though he was already almost ninety-eight percent certain.

In all the times she felt like her twin bond with her brother had helped her, Violet was in a near state of panic over the fact that she could not find her brother. The town was being haunted and in some cases tormented by the ghosts of their past and while the witch was more frightened of someone who was alive and after them, she didn’t want to take her chances. The whole situation had made her stress and anxiety peak and she wanted nothing more to be invisible and hide. However she felt like this was an impossibility and started to panic. Violet’s sprint had turned nearly into a full on run as she bounded through the festival hoping to find some relief before nearly tripping and falling to the floor. She caught herself before the inevitable collision but it still hadn’t been a good look on her. “ Shit” She muttered holding her balance as she tried to get her breathing normal. Violet turned quickly to realize her behavior had caught someone attention and now he felt even more embarrassed. “Um, I’ll be fine. I just- I just need to get out of here I can’t find my brother. I can usually find him but I don’t understand what’s happening.”

Grey looked at the girl for a moment, feeling reluctant sympathy strike him hard. Even though he wasn’t a fae he could feel her panic and he knew what it was like, recalled how terrible it was to worry for someone in a dangerous situation. “I’ll help you,” he said quickly. “Don’t worry about it. What does he look like? Anything distinguishing? Where did you see him last?” Realizing he had peppered her with questions and she was probably overwhelmed. “My name is Grey, okay? I’ve seen worse than this. We can find him together, I’m sure he’s fine.”

In the chaos, Julian had been separated from Avery and, eventually, pushed to the ground. Mere seconds later, Grey marched up to him and offered a hand. Julian blinked up at the much larger man and pushed himself up, nodding hastily. “I am… I am alright. What are you doing here? Don’t you have a wife to… oh. Oh my. You look like you’ve seen a ghost, man.”

Grey raised an eyebrow and offered a hand to help the kid up the rest of the way. “Yeah, something like that. But trust me, my partner doesn’t need me around to protect her.” He glanced around them at the chaos and darkness and snorted lightly. “Just about have. Have you seen what’s going on here, kid? There are actual ghosts here tonight.” God he hoped it would end by morning. He wouldn’t be able to handle living with his ghosts, not when he had been ordered to kill so many or stood aside for the slaughter. Or that that he had done on his own

Town events weren’t particularly his thing, but every single one tended to bring some kind of hardship. It was concern and curiosity that pulled him out tonight, to see if something would happen, to see if he could help if something did. 

But even in his wildest dreams, he hadn’t expected anything like this. 

Now, people were everywhere and spirits were everywhere and all he could do was stare because he saw old war buddies that he hadn’t been able to save, only those of supernatural origin, and he had to force himself to remain in this present moment, memories of the war flashing through his mind.

Grey pushed his way through the crowds, looking for anyone who might be in need of help, who might need assistance as he ignored any shaded faces of those he once knew and avoided the possibility of seeing more (his mother, his uncle, Dom’s family, any of those his mother had ordered the slaughter of). Finally, he found someone on the ground and knelt down, reaching out a hand to their shoulder. “Do you need help?” he asked.

“Not the type of place we want catching on fire, there’s a lot of flammable things in there,” she said dryly. In the craziness of last night, and the painfulness of the evening as she sat in the waiting room to find out whether Ingrid would live or die, she had forgotten about the flames. Grey’s hug broke the memories from her head, and she settled her head against him. “Someone lit Ingrid’s parlor on fire, she caught them in the act and tried to stop them. They stabbed her.” It was a murmur, and Morgan shivered saying it even though it had been hours. Ingrid was fine, she reminded herself. “I’m fine, I got a little burnt because I thought she went inside and I followed her. She wasn’t in there, she was outside still. Fighting.” She stepped away from the hug, arms crossed, holding onto her own elbows, and she indicated the doors, yanking them open so they could go inside, away from the cold. “She’s okay, they said she was going to be fine. No silver, so that’s good. What happened to you?”

Grey gave a small snort of agreement; clearly, she was right. The fire had been horrible, overwhelmingly destructive. He knew someone had died, but he wasn’t sure who it had been. He paused before pulling back enough to study her face as she spoke. “Is she alright? Are you okay?” He watched as she stepped away and held her elbows before leading the way inside. He followed her quietly, already guessing the answer to his question. No. She wasn’t. She was at the very least worried and shaken up. “But she’s alright?” he asked her, guessing that however Ingrid was was a direct indication to how Morgan was so it was important enough to make certain. “Not going to be too messed up from it? She in the hospital?” He slid his own hands into his jeans pockets. “Nothing happened to me at all. Introverted hermit that I am I was barely outside during the event at all. Just got worried about you.”

Date: September 23, 2020 Time: 11:02am Location: Oddities Inn Driveway

@greywyatt

Morgan didn’t step out of the ride share so much as stumble out, waving off the driver with a sharp jabbing motion that sent him pealing out of the Inn’s driveway. Good riddance, his jokes had sent her fragile nerves to the edge, and another second in his presence might have made her scream. She shivered, wearing a baggy shirt the hospital had given her to replace the bloodied one she brought in, and she stopped in her tracks when she spotted Grey sitting on the stoop like a god damn Gargoyle. “Grey? Why are waiting outside in the cold?” she asked stupidly, arms crossed tightly over her midsection. She stepped closer, scanning him over. “Did you… I mean, were you there last night? I heard it got crazy at the parade, too, but they didn’t talk about it at the hospital. Said it would make people panic.” As if they weren’t panicked enough. The waiting room was filled to the brim, and that was the only reason Morgan had been coerced to leaving. Ingrid would live without her for an hour or two, even if Morgan itched to see her again.

Grey was on his feet immediately when he saw Morgan approaching, concern etching over his already tired features. “Not really. I was in and out of the whole place. I did go by though during the incident. Auto-shop caught fire.” He took her in carefully before moving closer and pulling her into a hug. He wasn’t that touchy of a person, but when it came to Charlie or Morgan or Dom it was different. They were different, family- the family that he had chosen. “I heard about what happened, vaguely.” He didn’t know much of it. Really, all that he knew was that someone had gotten seriously injured and that Morgan had spent the night at the hospital. “What happened? Are you alright?”

Her arms were crossed over her chest. “I wasn’t going to know?” she asked in an annoyed tone… then batted her lashes and grinned. “I’m not just yelling, I’m smiling too,” she slurred. Something that she loved about Grey was he didn’t make her feel her age. Maybe because he was naturally so grumpy and turned-off, she always felt more excited than him. He emphasized, amplified her emotions, because of his lack of any. She wasn’t as angry as she had sounded, and yes she had missed him, dearly. She had recently begun thinking about how her welcome home party should appear when she got the call to come back early. There was often an inkling of Greyson in her mind at all times, no matter what. 

Charlie narrowed her eyes. “I don’t believe your words, but I believe your intentions are true.” She sighed and let her arms fall to the sides. “I get to pick the house sitters, then. For the next, oh, two hundred years? Video record them and send me the .mkv files and I’ll choose someone whose credentials I believe the most. Now, where did you come in from, hon? I just landed a job in Pittsburg. Its just about wrapped up, so I should be able to work remotely and only fly out there a couple times a month, if that.” She narrowed her eyes once more, for good measure. Then she mussed his hair with her right hand, grinning while doing so and directly after finishing. Again, she wasn’t acting her age. Also, she’d make him grovel just a bit before kissing him hello. 

Grey couldn’t stop himself from laughing gruffly. She was right; she was smiling. It was one of his favorite things- seeing her smile while she yelled at him. It was warm and affectionate, yet still, let him get under her skin enough to make her fly off the handle at least a little. “Fine, fine. You pick the house sitters then. That’s fair enough, I suppose,” he replied, taking up the tone of someone who might actually be bothered by it, which he wasn’t of course. “Wonderful,” he told her genuinely, snaking an arm around her waist carefully. “I was with Dom for a bit while she traveled around, then she said she was coming back here and I decided to follow like the stalker dad I am. Figured I hadn’t been to Lethe in a long while.” It was only to Charlie that he would admit the amount of care that he had for several of the younger supernaturals around here, such as Dom and Morgan. Typically, it was something that he would want to keep hidden away, so as to not show any weakness. But with Charlie it was different. She wouldn’t use it against him, she would never mock his ability to love. He was lucky that he had been able to find someone who was so vastly, unlike his mother. He pulled her closer carefully, brushing his lips over hers. “I think I want a warmer greeting than all the yelling, you know.”

Dom raised a brow at Grey’s comment. She wasn’t gonna pretend she didn’t love getting what she wanted even if what she wanted was to be right in a conversation. “If I’m a know it all it’s partially your fault” She teased back at him. It was true though. After her family got wiped out for the most part, Grey was there to help pick up the pieces. She was together primarily cause of him during the harder years of her life. “ That is true. Here I was gonna break in and just living off your property” She joked again. “ Are you staying for a while then?” 

Grey grinned at her, tonguing lightly at the inside of his cheek. “You’re such a little shit,” he told her affectionately. Before she could say a word, he lifted his hand with a wry, defeated grin. “Yes, I know, that is my fault as well, you don't need to remind me, thank you, Dom.” He laughed and gave her an affectionate roll of his eyes, thinking of the chewing out he was sure to receive from Charlie when she got there. “Good thing you aren’t serious. The house got termites. I’m staying over at the Inn till it gets fixed up, but I expect Charlie to beat my ass. She always turns up when I don’t want her to catch me in something, so she is, of course, going to be here soon, I’m certain of it.” He nodded at her then with a warm smile. “Yeah, I think I’ll stick around for a bit.”

The ‘lemonade, cookies, and awkward conversation’ dynamic is not exactly her scene, so Aurélie had been somewhat hesitant to join in on the group. What she’d found on entering, thought, was not that at all. She had found the group surprisingly reassuring, at least in that she discovered that there were more people with similar experiences to hers in this town than she would have begun to imagine. Her circumstances were so impossible that they had felt isolating at times, living out in DC – but finding common ground is easier in a town full of people who have lived much longer than most. Aurélie has taken to cleaning up the snack station that she got no use out of when she hears a familiar voice behind her. Turning with a stack of cups in her hand, she smiles. “I did not think it was bad at all. If I am being honest, I enjoyed it much more than I expected to.” She admits freely, straightening out a stack of napkins before continuing. “I thought for a long time that I was the only person in this world who had served in both the second World War and Afghanistan. It is reassuring, I suppose, to know that is not the case.” Once she has decided the snacks have been adequately cleaned up, Aurélie crosses the room toward Grey, beginning to stack chairs on the other side of the circle. “How did you feel about it, though? You seemed to find a rhythm eventually, yes?”

Grey’s eyebrows arched slowly in surprise. It wasn’t bad? He wasn’t sure how in the hell that was possible when he wasn’t even sure what he was doing at all. He looked at her with an appreciative nod of his head as he moved a stack of chairs to the wall before returning to stack more. “Thanks for the help,” he told her, both gruffly and genuinely, even though he didn’t mind the work really. The company was nicer than he wanted to admit, but he had always been taught that he shouldn’t like people the way he often did, that he should be standoffish at best if not cruel. “Definitely not the case,” he told her with a small chuckle. “Though it does seem like many in this town served in both, doesn’t it? Really, I was done after Vietnam.” He hadn’t thought about it before speaking and just had to hope she didn’t ask why. Vietnam had been ugly, brutal, and left him feeling cold and empty. It wasn’t anything he talked about, but if he was going to lead this group he might have to learn how to and that thought unsettled him greatly. “It went better than I expected,” he admitted. “But I’m not sure I can say it went well either. I think there’s a lot of improvements to be done. This might come as a surprise, but I don’t know what I’m doing.” His eyes sparked with the amusement of his statement, well aware that his newness to the job showed.

“You got it, tough guy” the doctor replied without any obvious intention to take orders -or recommendations on how to go about his work- from his current patient. Ewan had seen Wyatt at Inferno enough times beating the shit out of plenty of fighters but it was his first time patching him up, usually it was his opponents he had to heal at the end. He’d already taken care of the other guy, who had been in much worse shape than the grumbling lamia. “I needed a hobby” the man responded with a wolfish grin, stitching flesh together as if it was nothing. “You could say I was recruited” he added, giving an honest reply this time “I came here to fight a match a while ago and ended up healing the fellow I fought against after beating him to a pulp. The owner thought she could use my skills, I could use the extra money, and here I am”.

Grey couldn’t stop the chuckle from escaping him at the words.”Strange hobby,” he told the guy, eyes glinting with amusement. He processed the words carefully with a nod. “Probably not what you expected upon coming here, huh? This your main job or just something you do on the side?” Grey had been here off and on for years and the truth was that he really wasn’t sure just how much work a place like the Inferno would be able to offer.

Dominique couldn’t contain how excited she was to see Grey again so soon. When she had left him last time she wasn’t sure how long it would be before they saw each other again. They were close but the pair had their own lives their own worlds, but it was so nice to finally have them merge again. “ You’re really going to have to top this for your next surprise” Dom laughed as she hugged him again. It was weird to be so close to the family that had killed her own, but neither of them had truly been part of it. They were innocents in a terrible situation and she never felt it in her heart to lay any guilt with him. “ You really think you can keep me out of trouble? You practically let me fall into it headfirst” She teased

Grey grinned at her with a slight shake of his head. She wasn’t wrong though, was she? He had never been a good example of staying out of trouble and he had always found enough of it for both of them. “Alright, let me rephrase then, you know it all,” he teased, hugging her close again. If someone knew about their pasts, they wouldn’t have thought that there was any chance that Grey and Dom could be close. Thankfully, they were, because there had been several instances where Dom was one of the only things helping Grey keep going. “I figured I hadn’t been in town for a while, but I have a house and everything, there’s no excuse for me not being here when you are, y’know?”

“I’m not too worried about a lawsuit, more so about the bad rep I’d get. Imagine the headlines: ‘Oddities Inn lets guests play on the roof!’ or ‘Oddities Inn, haunted by the guests who die inside!’ or ‘Inn or Out? The story of an innkeeper’s incompetence’,” she rambled, shaking her head. Enough people were skeptical that she could live up to Lettie’s too big shoes, but she avoided thinking about all her problems, especially the important ones. Morgan hummed thoughtfully. “Well, the uniforms are already kind of blue, you know? I was thinking something a bit darker to accent it and maybe some white. But I don’t want to be an ocean inn either. Maybe I’ll just do…” She trailed off and huffed, annoyed. People like Grey were the good sort, they didn’t care what color the room was so long as it had a comfy bed, but Morgan always agonized over small decisions. Her lips curved into a smile and she nodded. “Thanks, I’m sure he’ll be more scared of you than he is of me. You still flinging your fists around?” She wasn’t much of a fighter, to Isaac’s disgust. “Do I need to keep an eye out on anyone coming to kill you in your sleep?”

Grey laughed, unable to help it. But of all the people that he interacted with, there were three that he was the most honest and open with. Charlie, Dom, and Morgan. “Those headlines would suck,” he agreed, chuckling to himself as he worked. “Okay, yeah. That sounds pretty good. To be fair, as long as you don’t go and move the inn to the beach and litter it with seashells, I think you’ll be okay.” He paused to study his work before starting up again. “He better be. I will knock that kid right on his ass without a second thought, and he’ll be lucky if that’s all I do. Promise you’ll let me come with you?” His tone had evidently darkened as he spoke about the other Wyatt of her life. Sometimes, he thought that it would be better if he just killed the guy, but he wouldn’t. He wouldn’t do it to Morgan, and he had learned over the years that it was wrong no matter what for someone to make a decision like that on their own. Violence was, regrettably, not usually the proper response. But he had been taught that it was, and centuries of habit were hard to break. “Oh yeah. I definitely am. Probably not stopping anytime soon,” he admitted. He should, maybe. But it was all that he knew. “But nah, don’t worry. I stopped being stupid about it years ago.” He finished his work and looked at it with a satisfied nod before making his way down the ladder and dropping to his feet with a thud.