Casted out {Jason}

[Deleted]

In response to Everleigh's question, Jason took the bag of burgers that the child had placed between the three of them and, very pointedly, tucked them away where they would be safe and stay fresh. Without a word, he sat himself back down next to Connie and laughed at Everleigh's shocked expression. "I have absolutely no idea. When I was young, I liked rock candy but was never much of a fan of chocolate. My mother, however...," his booming laughter filled the small space again as he shook his head, good-naturedly, "now she was the one in the family with the sweet tooth. My father knew that whenever he felt he needed to get back in her good graces, all it would really take was a bar of chocolate and all was forgiven." It wasn't really that it was a subject that he didn't like talking about but J just found that he really didn't talk about his family all that much anymore. Most of the pack, well, at least the older members, knew his story so he didn't really have the need to talk about his family and his past with the pack anymore. He was bringing it up so casually now, hoping it would coax the child into sharing some bit of information about her own past, since his question about her finding the cave didn't give him anything useful.

Another laugh escaped him. "Oh, a space heater now, am I? Well, I'll just add that to the ever-growing list of my useful traits. Let's see," and he reclined a bit, keeping his heat with Connie, ticking off his list with the fingers of one hand, "so far, I'm a carpenter, wood cutter, counsellor, cook, hunter, cable repairman, frisbee fetcher, patrolman, errand boy, messenger," he pretended to think for a moment, "Space heater, teacher, lifeguard...don't ask," That was said with a wink at the kid and a grin,"...um...yeah, so if you can think of anything else, well, I'm sure that list will grow some more a some point." And he nodded at his own prediction.

The smile started to slip from his face again when Connie voiced her concerns for Everleigh. Jason had just been contemplating the same thing and felt the same way. Honestly, he would love to just tell the child that she had to come with them, whether she liked it or not but that wouldn't do much to earn the girl's trust. To Jason, that was almost more important. There was a story to this girl, and he was betting it was a sad one. Given how skittish and timid the child was, he was betting those traits were gained for good reason. He didn't want to just add to the trauma that the kid's already faced by forcing her into living with strangers, as good and beneficial as he thought that life would be. Casually, Jason draped an arm over Connie's shoulder, his eyes remaining locked on the little girl. "If it does get too cold for you tonight, the pack house is just about a mile west of here, through the trees and to the left of the clearing. You can knock on the door any time and I'll be there, alright?" That might not have been the smartest suggestion, and the child probably wouldn't agree to it, but it was the only thing he could think to say that would allow him to walk away from this little girl.

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tagged: person you're writing to
words: word count
notes: notes
lyrics: we are one from the lion king II
credit: LAVIEBOHEME @ caution 2.o

[Everleigh Anne Mason]

For a moment, the child was afraid that she might have said the wrong thing, given how both of the adults reacted to her question. But then Jason sat himself back down where he had been before, with no comment at all and started talking and laughing as if nothing had happened. Everleigh thought it was a bit strange. Adults, in her experience, always had a comment or lecture or suggestion and the kid was sure that J would have something to say about her being so willing to give away food that she obviously needed for herself. His lack of response was a curious thing.

But his demeanor was friendly and boisterous and the more he talked, the more relaxed she was starting to become again. And his story about his mom made the girl giggle. "I didn't know my mom but I don't remember if my dad liked candy." She thought about it for a moment. "He did like bright Hawaiian shirts, though. I used to help him pick them out at the store and no matter how bright and colorful the shirt I picked was, he would wear it anyway. Sometimes it was kinda funny." And she grinned, herself. Everleigh never talked about her past or her family. Really, there wasn't a whole lot that she remembered about her dad. He had died so long ago now and she had been so young when she lost him that there wasn't much she could recall. Memories came in bits and pieces, flashes of memory, more like. Talking to Connie and Jason, though, here in her little cave home, for some reason, Everleigh was starting to feel like maybe sharing, just a little tiny bit, might be ok.

It was very clear that Connie was concerned for Ever's safety and her health. That, the child, had determined a while ago but even with the coat on, Connie didn't seem to feel much better about Everleigh's situation. Thankfully, Jason jumped in again before the girl had to say anything. As the man ticked off his humorous list of odd jobs, it started to slowly dawn on the little girl that she was, in fact, in the presence of the pack alpha. Who else in a pack would have so many jobs and responsibilities? For just a moment, the girl paled and fidgeted, biting her lip and not really knowing what to do with herself. This was the guy that was in charge of the entire town that she had settled in. One false move and he could just send her packing. Her panic faded slowly, though, in the face of the man's good humor and easy-going personality. He had been nothing but kind and gentle and personable to her, so far. What was she panicking for? Without much thought of what she was doing, Everleigh slowly slid herself off of the rock she was perched on and sat herself down just a foot or two away from the others, joining their little circle as J talked. She couldn't help that her eyes flickered between the pair a time or two, again silently wondering if they were more than just pack mates. They seemed to get along much better than just friends and it was unclear if J was just affectionate with everyone or Connie was special. Still, the girl wouldn't ask.

And there was that topic again. Everleigh understood how the woman could worry. It was cold. It was more than obvious now that the child was alone. They had already established that Ever lived in the cave and had nowhere else to go. Who wouldn't worry about leaving a child alone in such conditions, werewolf or not? Again, though, Jason provided her with an out from directly answering Connie. Instead, the child just nodded at Jason's invitation with a bit of a sheepish smile. Would she actually be able to do what he asked, though? Would she actually ever show up at the pack house? What if someone other than J or Connie answered the door and chased her away? What if the pack, as a whole, didn't want her around? Her eyes flickered down to her lap as she absently picked at the string on her jeans, biting her lip, clearly thinking about this new dilemma.

W O R D S * noofwords ;;
T H O U G H T S * stuffyouwannasay ;;
M U S I C * yourmuse ;;
T A G G E D * whofor ;;
W E A R I N G * clothes ;;
C R E D I T S * adele's chasing pavements ;;

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[Connie Lynn Marshall]

Connie smiled when Jason moved to place Everleigh's burgers somewhere they'd be safe and would stay as fresh as recently cooked burgers could be. She was glad he did, though she worried they'd be frozen solid by the time the girl got hungry again.

"My mom loved chocolate too," Connie said with a soft smile as she remembered her mother. She had been killed by hunters when Connie was seven. Even though she knew better, part of Connie still blamed herself for her mothers death. "I don't remember my dad though... He died before I was born." There was no love lost there for Connie, though she wished she could have known him if nothing else.

When Jason laughed at her comment about him being a space heater, Connie couldn't help but smile back at him. If he hadn't laughed, she would have worried she had offended him. But when he started ticking off his list of odd jobs he did around the pack, Connie caught sight of Everleigh stiffening a little. She wondered if the girl realized she was in the presence of the pack alpha. But as Jason continued to speak and laugh, the girl relaxed again, and Connie's smile turned happy and soft.

"You sure do have a lot of jobs Jason," Connie said with a laugh. "I'd offer help, but I don't know the first thing about most of those. I just work at the school." She shrugged. Connie wondered idly if Ever went to school, but then dismissed the thought. The only school was twenty miles from Converse and she doubted Everleigh cared to go that far from her cave just for school. She wondered if she could convince Ever to go to school, but had a feeling she'd have a hard time about it. She didn't know many kids that liked school.

She couldn't help but to glance back at Jason when he offered Ever the use of the pack house if she got too cold. She smiled brightly back at him, and though she didn't think Everleigh would take him up on the offer unless Jason or Connie dragged her there, she was glad he had made it. She didn't think Ever would be able to easily find Connie's house, as it was on the other side of town from the Pack house and on the outskirts of the town.

"I'd offer my house," Connie said with a sigh. "But it's hard to find unless you know how to get there. I have nosy neighbors too, but I like to scare them sometimes. Once I'd shifted and ran around my house naked for awhile." She grinned, remembering. "The old witches about had heart attacks." There was love lost with her neighbors. She couldn't wait until they died and someone cooler moved in.