Cities Of The Shifters ( Book Cover Done And Credit Goes To @MeowSniper Thanks)

Let's See An Avalanche - Denver, CO

Life is strange. It was a simple fact that Clinton had learned all too well growing up in small town Nebraska and yet everywhere he went only seemed to reaffirm that notion. Everything had seemed so random and happen stance when he had been little more than a farm boy running away from home, living and learning overseas under the watchful eye of the US Military. When he returned to the states he had managed to put himself through medical school in one of the busiest cities in the world, New York City. Yet none of that could have prepared him for the entire other world he would discover once he moved to Evermore, Colorado. With the comet striking his eyes were opened to a whole other existence, a world full of fanciful creatures and a tense Cold War that was hidden away from the prying eyes of the public.

In his time in the city he had been with a wielder of the elements, the Initia, and lived amongst the fiery and passionate Phoenix until he had accidentally betrayed there trust. It wasn't until after he had joined the Ailward Guard to help protect this slice of crazy heaven that he called home that he had gotten close with the new Ambassador of his old Faction. Aaliyah had been there when he seemed to lose just about everything that he had built up in the city and in the time since they had become a strong support for one another, feeling closer to his older faction than he ever had while wandering from one section of the city to another.

Mid-day, January 6th, 2016. The stress and pressure of work had been building up for each of them for some time now, Clint juggling his work up at the hospital with his duties as a Guard and the slivers of personal time that he got in between and Li coming to terms with her new responsibilities as the leader of a whole faction. They both needed a chance to get away from it all, some time away from the craziness that they called everyday life. Relief had come in the form of two tickets given to him by another doctor as a way of thanking Clint for covering several of his shifts. The Colorado Avalanche would be playing the St Louis Blues at the Pepsi Center in Denver and he could be there, center rink, in what he was told were quite amazing seats. The night game would require a few hour drive and would likely last until late at night so he had went ahead an gotten a reservation at a nearby hotel.

There had been little forewarning of the trip, receiving the tickets the night before and only asking the blonde ambassador the morning of the event. Now early in the afternoon Clint went about packing an overnight bag from his dresser and bathroom down in the basement of Li's home. The doctor didn't particularly follow hockey, but he had made a point of wearing a burgundy and white thermal with his jeans today in order to support the home team. Perhaps they would have to pick up a jersey or two once they were in Denver, maybe some face paint if they were feeling particularly crazy.

With everything packed he walked up to the living room with his small overnight bag and his preferred pillow from off of his bed, looking around for Li and starting to get antsy about getting on the road. Setting his things near the front door he pulled his car keys from his pocket and hit the button for the remote start, the engine roaring to life without needing to go out in the cold and snow and hopefully getting it toasty for them before they were ready. "How much longer are you thinking Li?" Clint called out upstairs once he was certain that the Volvo was warming. "Don't forget that it's burgundy and not blue. Wouldn't want to get booed out of the place." He said with a laugh and a wide smile, his spirits particularly high as he thought about getting out of town for a while.

Aaliayh ran around her room like a chicken with its head cut off. Toss some clothes into the Lulu bag she had on her bed she rested her hands on her hips and glared down at what she had packed as if the clothes had done something wrong. "One night, it's just one goddamn night and yet I feel like I need to pack more!" She had picked out two pairs of jeans and three different tops to choose from. She was wearing clothes comfy enough for a road trip and already had her makeup and hair supplies pack in the bag with the clothing. Shaking her head she zipped the bag closed and sat on the edge of her bed, taking a breath.

Samson, her white English Retriever came over and rested his head on her lap. Smiling down at the young dog she pet his silken fur and sighed. So much had happened in the last few weeks. So many things had changed and when she really thought about it all it started to get a little overwhelming. She was doing alright though considering everything. After her rescue from the mansion she had found an apartment, a boyfriend for a while, and she had thought that would make her happy, help her settle into real life. It hadn't. She had ended things with Mason, staying very good friends with him but nothing more, and decided to purchase a house outside of the city.

Then, she had suddenly become the assistant ambassador to Quinn. Only a few weeks after that happening she was suddenly leading the Instar Diviners. It was something she had never pictured happening nor something she had ever really aspired to do in her life but when she had been offered the position she couldn't say no and now she had all these ideas about how to make life for the diviners in the city better. She had a long way to go before she was actually good at being the ambassador for her people but she knew she could get there over time.

Hearing a voice shout at her from downstairs she groaned. "You can't rush perfection Frost! Shush!" but even as she shouted it she smiled and rose to her feet. Grabbing her purse, she slung her overnight bag over her shoulder and headed downstairs to where her roommate was waiting for her. Clint had moved in only a few days after the Rave party that had happened at the d'Fierro mansion, a party Aaliyah certainly hadn't attended but apparently a lot had gone down and Jason, Roxy's boyfriend and baby-daddy, had removed Clint from the mansion. Al had taken him in and the rest was history.

Bounding down the stairs she smiled as she came around the corner and saw him waiting. "Ready when you are! and is burgundy really my color? I might have to wear blue just cause," she smirked teasingly. She paused for a moment and quickly ran downstairs making sure Sam's doggy door was unlocked so he could get in and out as he needed and then she fed him twice as much as she regularly would. Even though it was a day trip she could see them not making it back home tonight. Hearing the rumble of his car already running, Al headed out the front door and climbed into the passenger seat, tossing her overnight bag in the back. "Hurry up Clint! Aren't you ready yet?"

The sassy response from his roommate was more than expected, chuckling softly to himself about the way they interacted. They had a way of picking at each other, but it was always in good fun, and even when one of them had done something particularly dumb... okay, okay, when HE had done something particularly dumb they had always been able to move past it and laugh about it now. How else could you explain a pool full of jello? An entire bathroom dyed blue? ... or showing up late at night with a black eye and no place he called home?

Pacing near the front door Clint looked up with a smile as Li rounded the corner into the foyer still undoubtedly trying to stir things up. "You know? Maybe blue suits you better. We are center rink, we'll just make sure you're on the blue side." His grin grew with another chuckle, throwing the teasing right back at her. While she was making sure that Sam would be prepared for their little trip, the fellow Diviner did one last check to make sure he had everything they might need. Keys, wallet, tickets, phone, and overnight bag. No, that seemed to be everything. One last stop at the fridge to grab a few bottles of water for the road and he was ready to go.

In the time that it took him to turn around Li was already out the door, coming out the front door himself just in time to hear her calling him a slow poke. "Who's rushing perfection now?" His grin remained wide as he tossed his bag into the back seat and then got into the drivers seat, handing her one of the waters and setting his into the cup holder. Sliding the keys into the ignition and buckling his seat belt he didn't a quick check of his mirrors before shifting into reverse and pulling out of the driveway and onto the icy back road with a "Here we go." before heading off down the road.

Road conditions were a little shoddy for a while at least until they got out onto a main highway but Clint handled his car beautifully. Once they hit the open road he even proved to be a bit of a lead-foot, passing other cars quite regularly while still having everything under control and occasionally singing along to the music coming through the speakers. (Glass Animals - Hazey) As big a part of there life that it was, he did his best to avoid the topic of Evermore in their conversation. Today was about getting away from it all and just having fun. "Is there anything else you want to do in Denver? We're going to have a couple hours to kill before the game."He asked curiously, his eyes straying from the road only momentarily. He was unused to treating himself but wanted to have fun.