*Author's Note: OK so I found a Character Bio dump basically chronicles-of-nick-character-guide/ and I am now using it for the majority of my info and back grounds on characters. And it shocked me on all the spoilers that were in it. I don't know how accurate the info is so if someone finds something I got really wrong in my story, feel free to let me know please. Because while this is my fanfiction, I want to still stay true to Mrs. Kenyon's work as much as I can. Now to the next installment. Enjoy.

Nick Gautier wafted his Saints hat infront of his face, trying to give himself a little relief from the early July heat. Sweat had already started forming on his brow and upper lip, even though he had only been walking for five minutes. He picked up some speed as he saw the entrance to his destination .

Nick bypassed Remi with just a quick nod. The bear looked to be in a worst mood than usual this morning.

"Hey, Nick." Nick turned to see one of the shapeshifters looking at him. He waved to Jasyn, then walked towards him.

"They got you on bar duty this morning?" Nick asked the WereHawk, who was wiping down the bar.

The blonde man shrugged, "Not much happening this time of day. You here for those steaks and ribs?"

Nick nodded. "Yeah, Kim's having a cook out at her house today. Thought I'd help her out with food."

Jasyn waved Nick to follow him into the kitchen. "Aimee told me. Your woman's trying to get to know her 'new' friends better, right?" He pulled a large cooler out of the walk-in fridge, and handed it to Nick. "If she's inviting Simi or any Weres, I don't think this will be enough food."

Nick laughed, though his cheeks were dusted pink. "One, we're not dating. She's still getting accustomed to our world and us trying to have a relationship right now..." He tilted his head to the right, then shook it. "And two, she invited all the Bears and half the Wolves. Along with every Dark-Hunter, both ex and current, that live here." He smirked as he walked back through the swinging doors into the bar area. Jasyn went back behind the bar and picked up his rag again.

Jasyn chuckled, "Well, as long as she didn't invite any Charonte..."

"She invited Simi, along with her brother and sister."

The WereHawk gaped then turned to the cooler. "There won't be enough food... Or BBQ sauce."

Nick laughed, "Ash promised to feed Simi before they came. And Xedrix and Xirena said they would eat before also. But you know, when are Charonte ever full?"

"Probably about as often as you are, Gautier." Dev commented as he walked by.

The two shapeshifters shared a laugh at Nick's expense. Nick turned away and carried the cooler on his shoulder, toward the back of the restaurant. Cherise was there, taking orders from a family of tourist. After he caught her attention, he waved to let her know he wanted to talk.

Cherise smiled and finished writing down their food. "I'll be right back with your drinks." She joined her son at one of the high tables near the games and pool tables. "Hey, Boo. What's in the cooler?"

"A bunch of meat." He looked suddenly apprehensive. "Umm, so you know that woman I told you about?"

"Yes," Cherise replied, stretching the word out. Her eyes told him she was scanning him, trying to read his mind like mother's did. She headed over to the bar to get her table's drinks, causing Nick to have to follow her.

"Well, she's having a cook out today and she asked me to invite you. She's invited alot of the people we know. She's known a bunch of them for awhile now, and now she's inviting the others, too."

Cherise tried to hide her surprise, but she never did have a great poker face. "Oh! Well, umm... What time is it gonna start? I might not be off in time."

Aimee chose that moment to walk past, "Don't worry, Cherise. Go with Nick. We got plenty of hands 'round here. I'll pick up your tables and make sure you get your tips." She made a shooing motion with her hands, "The two of you go on to Kim's and let her know we'll be by later with reinforcements."

Nick gave her an arched eyebrow, "More people?"

She laughed, "No, more chow. She has no clue how much food are crew can put away. There's no way she'll have enough."

Nick pulled in Kim's driveway and put the car in park. Cherise leaned forward in her seat to look at the house and yard.

"Oh, my," she gawked, as she subconsciously started smoothing out her blue cotton dress. "What did you say she did for a living again?"

Nick laughed before taking his mother's hand. "Chill, ma. She's a Jazz singer at Momma Lou's."

Cherise looked unsure, "I didn't think Momma Lou's pays that well. She must be one heck of a singer for a house like this."

Nick had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Even at this age, she wouldn't stop herself from smacking him upside the head. "No, ma, she's not doing anything illegal or immoral. A few years ago, her and her best friend, they were down on their luck like we used to be. They were living together, trying to take care of Kim's son and Gabi's daughter and trying to make it on change." He turned in his seat to stare his mother in the face, "They were even living in our old condo. And they were about to be kicked out and be living on the street. Then, Ash met them at a Habitat of Humanity site and found out how bad things were for them." He gave her a meaningful look, "You know how Ash is. He helps anyone he can, whether they want it or not. Before they knew what he'd done, he'd already bought them both houses right next to each other, had their car fixed and college funds started for both kids."

Cherise scanned both houses again, this time with a soft look. "That boy does have a soft spot for the down and trodded."

He scoffed, "I don't think he'd take it too well knowing that you still call him a boy." Especially given the man was over eleven thousand years old.

She smacked his hand, then started to unbuckle her seatbelt, "You two will always be boys to me." She sighed, slumping in her seat. "Seems were kindred spirits. You and I, and these women you've befriended."

"Yeah, more than you know." He opened his door and went around to open the door for his mother. "Just come in and meet them, ma." He gave her a begging look. "I really like her. And I know you will, too."

Cherise smiled, then took his offered hand. "Alright, boo. Let's go meet these women."

After Nick pulled out the cooler and his mom took the bags of food, they headed up the drive way. Nick opened the side gate to the back yard where the grill was and had Cherise follow him. As they came around the corner, they could hear music coming from inside. Nick sat the cooler down on the back deck and took the bags from Cherise. They both started for the sliding glass doors that led to the kitchen, but stopped short of going in.

Gabi and Kim were inside, singing along with Megan Trainor's "All About That Bass". To make it worse, they were doing really old dance moves. Kim was sliding in her socks and doing the wave while Gabi was doing something akin to the running man. They each had kitchen utensils in their hands, singing into them without a care in the world. When they turned sideways to bump hips, they froze at seeing Nick grinning and Cherise staring wide-eyed.

Kim ran to turn off the music blasting from her laptop. She laid the whisk on the counter next to the computer, then started smoothing her hair down as she made her way to unlock the back door.

With her cheeks burning, she glared at Nick while standing in the doorway. "You will forget what you saw here today," she said while doing the Jedi mindwipe motion with her hand.

He chuckled and did his best Yoda impression, "Forget never can, shall I." He stumbled when she shoved him, playfully.

Kim then turned to the older woman who was staying silent. "Hello, Ms. Gautier. It's nice to finally meet you. Though, I wish you hadn't seen that. I'd rather you get to know me before I embarrass myself infront of you."

Cherise just shook her head, "Dear, don't be embarrassed by that. I've danced like that with Mennie for years. It just means you have a good friend." She smiled kindly at Kim and then to Gabi, who was dancing to the music playing in her head.

Kim gaped at her best friend. "Gabi! Really? I'm trying to make a good first impression here."

Gabi froze, her head thrown back so that she was looking at them upside down. "So? I'm not the one interested in dating Nick, though he is yummy." She winked at Cherise, "Ma'am, you raised one heck of a hottie there. Can you make me one? I'm getting tired of B.O.B."

Utterly mortified, Kim stepped through the doors and shut them quickly. Covering her face, she groaned deep in her throat. "I swear, she's trying to kill me." Kim peeked between her fingers at Cherise, "I'd apologize for her, but then we'd be here for hours because there's just not enough time in the day."

Nick laughed, put his arm around Kim's shoulders, and turned her to where the cooler was. "Come on. Ignore Gabi and tell me what to do with all this food. I brought steaks and ribs from Sanctuary."

Kim arched an eyebrow in confusion. "But I bought plenty of food?"

Cherise joined her son with a light chuckle of her own, "Trust me, dear. After working at Sanctuary for almost ten years, and cooking in my own home for most of the people Nick tells me you have coming over, you can never have enough food."

Kim collapsed in her lawn chair, exhausted. She watched as her guest sat at the multiple picnic blankets and tables she had spread across her backyard. For the past three hours, she had been running around like a chicken with its head cut off, trying to make sure everyone was happy and content.

She looked at Nick, who was sitting inbetween his mother and Anthony at a table. Cherise was scolding him over how messy he was being while eating. Though, in his defense, it was BBQ ribs he was eating. Anthony was laughing and trying not to spit watermelon everywhere. Gabi and Viviana sat across from them, watching over their burgers.

The Bears and Wolves were actually sitting together on blankets they had pulled together into a large pallet. Samia and Aimee were shaking their heads as Fang and Dev tore through plates of Ribs in a eating contest. What the prize was Kim didn't know, but judging by the two women's expressions, it wasn't worth it.

Acheron and Styxx's respective family was in the middle of the yard, in the center of everyone. Both men were looking aghast at the outfit's their wives had dressed their young children in. Bas and Theron were in matching sailor outfit's. But instead of the traditional white, the outfit's were black with neon green stripes. It wasn't lost on Kim that Tory was wearing a neon green shirt and Ash was in his ever present black on black.

Styxx was wearing a navy linen shirt open over a white tank and khaki shorts while Bethany had on a cream-colored blouse and jean skirt. Ari was sitting in her lap, eating on an ear of corn. He was wearing a bright romper that had fireworks covering it. And as Kim watched closer, she saw small LED lights blink within the sparks. Ari caught it also and began trying to grab the lights as they blinked on his belly. Urian rubbed his little brother's head playfully, making the child laugh harder.

Kyrian and Amanda sat at another table with Valerius and Tabitha on the opposite side, while their children chased one another around the table. Sunshine and Talon sat with them, watching the little ones play. Sunshine was trying to get Talon to eat some of her fruit salad, but he defiantly tore a bite off his T-bone and made a show of chewing on it. She just rolled her eyes as she took a dainty bite of strawberry while rubbing her extended stomach.

"You look exhausted." Kim looked up to see Xirena in her human form. She was in a skin tight black halter and black jeans, with her blonde hair flowing around her face in waves. And to Kim's surprise, the Charonte handed her a plate of food.

"Umm, thanks." Kim took the plate that was filled with ribs, baked beans and corn on the cob. Kim wasn't sure what to think of the tall demon beside her.

"Xiamara has told me about you and your family. How you've accepted her without any change once you discovered the truth of her heritage." Her eyes flashed red for a moment, "Not many humans have that kind of constitution. You treat my sister the same now as you did when you thought she was human."

"Well, am I not suppose to? Nothing about her has changed." Kim looked out to all of her guest and friends. "Nothing about any of them has changed. I just learned a few new facts, like finding out a friend is allergic to peanuts, or that they had an embarrassing school photo that their parent's love to show off." She shrugged, "So my friends are powerful immortals, demons, and shapeshifters that fight evil on a daily bases. It's better than a bunch of the people I called friends when I was younger that didn't think twice about throwing me under a bus when I got pregnant. And most of them are in jail now. Or dead. "

Xirena rubbed her jaw in thought. "I guess you do have a point there. Still, it means alot to Xedrix and I how you and your son have accepted her. Long ago, when humans found out about demons, they hunted us. Tried to kill us. Even during the time of the Atlantean pantheon, we were feared. It's refreshing to have a human be open with us." She looked down at Kim with a gleam in her eye that made Kim squirm.

"What?"

"I've heard about some legendary cookies that you make. Xiamara says that she doesn't even need to add BBQ sauce to them, and she loves her sauces."

Laughing in relief at the sudden topic change, Kim stood up with her plate and led Xirena inside. She grabbed the cookie jar off the counter and turned to offer a cookie to the blonde, only to see her standing just outside the sliding glass.

"You have protection seals. I can't come in unless you say it."

"Oh!" Kim's cheeks pinkened in embarrassment, "Sorry. Yes, you may enter my home."

And like that, Xirena stepped through and took the cookie from Kim. Her eyes widened after taking a bite, then she opened her mouth to show her serrated teeth, and swallowed the rest of the cookie in one gulp. Kim stared as the demon licked her finger tips.

"My little sister was right. I think BBQ sauce would make them taste less delicious."

Kim thanked her and handed her a few more cookies.

"I smell yummy yummy cookies!" SImi was there, sitting on the counter holding the jar before Kim even had time to register the voice.

Kim rolled her eyes before going to her pantry. "I knew it was a good thing I baked more last night since both of you like them so much." She pulled out a large pocorn tin and set it out on the counter. She opened it to reveal it full of the same cookies. Both demons actually squealed and set about devouring the cookies. Kim left them to it as she returned outside to eat the plate Xirena had given her.

It wasn't long before the sky had darkened and the lightning bugs had begun to emerge. The guy's had all helped set up the fireworks earlier in the evening, which they had argued on the best way to do it. And now, Kim was just praying that their thousands of years of combined knowledge was enough to avoid all of them exploding in a firey death. Everyone was stationed on the back deck, squished together in a modge-podge of supernaturals, with three naive humans smack in the middle.

Nick stood on top of a picnic table and turned to face everyone. "Alright, fireworks are bout to start y'all, so if you gotta go piss," he pointed to Kim's dogwood trees, "there ya go."

"Nicholas Aloysius Gautier!"

He hopped down quickly, and joined Kim and Anthony on the steps. It felt like everyone held their breath as they waited for the first explosions. A loud screech came from the side of the yard followed by a loud boom and red, green and blue sparks. The show lasted for another half hour before the grand finale, where dozens of the largest fireworks Kim and Nick could find went off at varying heights, along with mulitiple fountain-like screechers on the ground.

As the last ones died off, Kim leaned into Nick and rested her head on his shoulder. Nick slowly wrapped his arm around her shoulder, still nervous about scaring her. But when she lifted her head to smile up at him, the level of his nervousness was completely baffling.

"Thank you, Nick." She told him.

"You're welcome, but for what?"

She motioned to the families rising to their feet and gathering their things to head home. "I have no doubt that I would have made a mess of things had it not been for you tonight."

Now he really was confused, "All I did was bring extra food and help grill."

"You also helped by stopping Fang and Vane from transforming and wrestling over that last sausage. And a bunch of other incidents like that. You were able to diffuse situations that I would have been lost on."

He just shrugged, which caused him to bump her head with his shoulder. "Oh, sorry. It's only cause I've been around them all longer. I've learned from Ash a good bit about wrangling people." He gave her a light squeeze before helping her to her feet. "It won't be long and you'll pick up on some of it." He looked over to where Simi, Xirena, and Xedrix were huddled around the empty cookie tin. Simi was licking crumbs off her hands while her brother and sister seemed to be arguing over the last cookie.

Urian, in all his bravery, or was it stupidity, walked over and snatched the cookie from the demons. They stared in disbelief as he ate the treat in one go. Nick laughed as the blonde then made a hasty escape through the side yard, mostly likely so no one would see his teleport to safety.

"See? You have your own wrangling ways. If you could keep a steady supply of those cookies, you'd be able to command an ancient demonic army."

Kim laughed at something she knew wasn't really funny but she appreciated the gesture. "That is not something I aspire to ever do."

Kim split from Nick to tell her guest and new friends good-bye. By the time everyone but Nick and his mom was gone, Kim was ready to go to bed but knew she had a lot of cleaning to still do. Since Gabi had work in the morning, Kim had sent her on home, even though her friend had insisted on staying to help. As she entered her kitchen to get trash bags, she smiled at the last thing she'd expected.

Nick, Cherise and Anthony had already started on cleaning. Anthony was working on putting away leftovers while Cherise was washing dishes. Nick picking up paper plates and plastic cups and throwing them into the trash bag he was carrying. None of them gave much notice to her as she walked in. Cherise looked at Kim over her shoulder and smiled, then turned to rinse a spatula. Touched by the simple act, Kim grabbed a bag and headed outside to clean up.

Author's Note: if you haven't realized it yet, this is a 4th of July chapter.