"Grrr, you sassy racoon you." Hamish held up Theo while she stood on her blanket mostly supported by him but doing her best to attempt walking. She was perhaps the most adorable Rocket ever, even more adorable than the actual racoon they used to make him. Theo kept reaching up to pull off her racoon hat only to have Hamish put it back on her head. "No Theo, it's too cold outside for your tiny brain, you have to keep that on." He was a bit sad he couldn't wear his Starlord mask since Theo had seen him in it and instantly assumed her daddy was a stranger and started crying when he picked her up. She had the strongest sense of stranger danger ever. "You are so perfect for an angry racoon character, you sort of are an angry racoon."
"This isn't going to work." Vera came down the steps as Hamish looked up at her.
"Oh." He paused. "Hoo…" He stopped himself from saying anything that might get him killed. Jesus she looked smoking in that outfit.
"I'm not doing the green skin."
"Yeah." Hamish shook her head and quickly tried to give Theo to her. "Could you take the baby please?"
"Sure, why?" Vera grabbed Theo and cuddled her.
"I feel wrong holding her right now."
"Oh...Hamish." He shrugged his shoulders at her. "You can control turning into a werewolf and partial shifting but you can't control that?"
"Not while you are wearing that." She looked down at the outfit, dammit, yes he was right. She couldn't go take Maddox trick or treating in this.
"I'm getting a jacket." She started walking for the entryway closet as Hamish watched her walk by.
"That aa…." He paused again and caught his breath "is a great idea Vera, I agree, it's chilly outside." He cleared his throat. "Can't let the girls get cold."
"Do you think this outfit is warm enough for her? If I put another coat on her would she be too warm?" She got worried about that now that it was getting colder outside. "You didn't mean those girls did you. Hamish, shut it off right now."
"I can't Vera."
"You can grasp complex magic in a matter of months but you can't stop being horny for five minutes?"
"Sure I can be, when you stop being ho…" He stopped himself again valuing his life over the opportunity to inform Vera that she was an absolute fox. "When you stop being so physically attractive for five minutes." Vera was a powerful practitioner but she wasn't THAT powerful.
"Go see if Maddox is done getting ready."
Was she giving up on this 'fight' because she knew at some level he was right? Vera was never going to admit when he was right but her silence was a tiny victory. "Hey Madds buddy, you done getting dressed?" He walked towards the old office now made into the kids bedroom. This house was starting to feel pretty small about now and Hamish knew Vera loved it because it was virtually on the campus with a lovey yard but this group of oddballs that had come to be known as a family was inevitably going to outgrow this place.
"Yeah."
"Cool, we are going to head out then before it gets too dark." Maddox felt it sucked going trick or treating with the sun still up but the reality was Theo wouldn't make it very long past 7. As everyone was learning life ran on Theo time because at leash Hamish and Vera's sleep patterns were built around hers. Maddox walked out of his bedroom wearing something Hamish hadn't actually expected. He had a pair of suit pants on with a white button up skirt and a vest and tie. The kid looked like he was going to an event rather than around the block. "What are you supposed to be?"
Maddox looked down at his clothes, "I'm supposed to be a werewolf teacher's assistant in a secret society." He paused looking back up at Hamish. "You said you guys were dressing up as superheroes, I picked mine." Hamish felt that, he really did, deep down in his chest.
"That's sweet." He sounded a little chocked up because he was. Since Maddox had come to live with them Hamish had done his best to take the kid under his wing and build a relationship with him. It wasn't so much a father and son relationship but more a mentor to a little frightened boy who had nobody left. Alright, maybe it was a fatherly relationship too, just not one Hamish was pushing at him. Even if Coventry was a bastard in Maddox's eyes he had still done no wrong and he still loved and missed his real dad. "Let's go con people out of sugared goods now as tradition dictates." Hamish put a hand on his shoulder walking over to Vera who very comfortably had her long black coat on. That didn't bother him because tonight when they went to that party at the den it was going to be too hot for coats.
Grabbing Theo from Vera he put her racoon hat back on her head since she's decided to rip it off again. It was actually funny she had a bigger problem with that then the tail hanging off her butt. FollowingVera out the door she turned back to Hamish, "Are you really going to carry her the whole time?"
"Vera, she weighs less than my aunts corgi. I don't think my arms are going to get tired holding her." He threw Theo up in the air a little making Vera slightly panic and reach out for her like he was going to drop his own baby. She HATED when he threw Theo up in the air which was a problem because Theo loved it. There was that deep trust that no matter what dad was going to catch her while Vera startled every single time, ready to rush in if necessary.
"Alright, just please be careful doing that Hamish she's still…"
"She's fine Vera." She wasn't that little anyways, alright she was, she was super tiny and cute. Still she was big enough and had enough coordination that she never got her arms or legs in the way when he was catching her. He looked at Theo then, "Your mother is not fine." He kept his voice down a little knowing Vera could still hear him. Theo smiled at that statement making him smirk a bit more. "You think giving her a heart condition is funny? Of course you do, you are a devious little monster."
They took the SUV into town where most of the family homes were since the college campus on Halloween wasn't the best place to walk around. At least with Maddox, he was old enough to see all the college age students dressed in their 'naughty insert profession here' outfits and young enough that Vera thought it wildly unnecessary for him to be exposed to the objectification of women. Theo on the other hand could give a damn. As far as she was concerned all fabric was just an exciting thing to gum at with varying levels of fabric softener taste and boobs were strictly where food came from. Nudity was also her preferred state of being and as soon as she figured out how those snaps worked they were out of luck keeping her dressed. It was bad enough that child virtually magiced her socks off into oblivion because every time she took one off it was anyone's guess where she'd tossed it.
Away from the campus the town had that cozy small town feel to it where people tend not to lock their doors at night and everyone knew everyone. Most of the kids over the age of seven were traveling in feral packs unsupervised by adults while most of the younger children had parents with them walking them up to the houses and trying to talk their kids through simple interactions with strangers they spent all year telling them to never talk to. Hamish wondered if next year when Theo could actually go trick or treating herself would she be that awkward kid with her fingers in her mouth looking at people like "what the hell is this?" or would she be outgoing and cute and try to sucker her wayy into more candy? She was Vera's daughter, absolutely the second one.
It was a little hard for Maddox to have Vera and Hamish waiting for him at the end of driveways while he ran up to houses meanwhile other kids his age were gathered in groups and laughing at each other's jokes. Blame Vera and her being overly protective. However as soon as Hamish started going up to the doors with him carrying Theo it was a little better. Instead of being the weird kid whose 'parents' had to follow him around like he was a baby he was now the cool 'big brother' helping to take his little sister out on her first trick or treating adventure. It was nice because Theo got attention which she loved and they also got extra candy despite the fact Theo was far too young to eat any of it. Now they had a scheme going, if they'd known that Theo was the bargaining chip for extra candy Hamish would have jumped in from the first house. "We are splitting that 50/50 since my offspring is racking in more loot."
Now it was just Vera standing at the end of driveways like a responsible adult taking out her 'three' children that she lacked total control over. He'd never expect her to go up and enjoy tonight since Holidays were never her thing. He was sure next year she'd be more invested because Theo wouldn't give her a choice. After all you could lead a horse to water but you couldn't make her have fun unless her foal went diving into the deep end and she frantically went after it.
As they walked back from their last string of hoses Hamish laughed a little seeing the small group of dads gathering around Vera while their wives took their small children up to the houses. It had started with one or two guys just holding some casual conversation but it had slowly turned into Vera's small dad army and being trapped in guy talk like sports. Oh dear god, poor Vera, she tried to ignore them but what could you do? When you were that pretty and men were trapped in a marriage to their high school girlfriend you were bound to gather attention. Hamish and Maddox walked back towards her parting the sea of 'nice' guys waiting on their spouses and put an arm around Vera. "I think we have successfully gathered our yearly candy tax on the locals. That bag officially weighs more than our baby." He made a point to say the 'our' so the guys got the hint.
"Did you have fun?" Vera asked taking Theo from Hamish, after a few bit the group of wayward husbands started drifting a little further from Hamish. That slow realization that foxy foxington was with a guy who still had all his hair, upper body strength, and hadn't given up on his dreams because Vera never tried to neuter him for her own satisfaction and acted as unyielding support to his goals. Theo pulled off her hat throwing it at the ground and looking a little tired. Hamish went to retrieve the tossed racoon hat while Theo rubbed her eyes and whined. That was about the proper cue that it was time to go home and get her settled in for the night.
Still rubbing her eyes and whining Theo leaned forward slobbering on her chest and throwing a slightly bigger fit making Vera have to hand her back to Hamish. "Crap." She sighed. Theo wasn't just whining anymore but full on crying and trying to wiggle out of his arms while he held her closer to his chest.
"Oh no Theo, that's so mean, she's just got the girls out like that and you can't even get to them, how rude." He honestly had never felt like he could relate to his daughter so much in his life until right now. Of course they both had different reasons for wanting to throw a tantrum over it. Theo was because she was tired and probably hungry, Hamish because...well… Theo kept throwing her tantrum all the way back to the car making getting her buckled into her carseat all the harder since dealing with a fussy Theo was like trying to give a cat a bath. Not only was she strong for her age but she was fast and limber too. Sometimes you thought you had her buckled in and then you realized one of her legs wasn't even in the harness. She was also quick at rolling over and even if she couldn't crawl off she could drag herself a bit.
Once she was buckled in and tightening even harder because now the full force of her godlike power was restrained by four nylon straps. Hamish tried to calm her down by giving her a pacifier and for a second it worked until Theo spit it out and gave her an actual 'fuck you' look. Since they had started trying to switch some of her feedings to a bottle due to Vera spending more time on campus Theo had gotten serious trust issues between a bottle and a pacifier and nine times out of ten she felt cheated by a pacifier. It was utter betrayal and stick a stupid plastic thing in her mouth and deny her food at the same time, basically criminal and like her mother she had very very little patience. "Look at you go." He commented watching Theo virtually try to tear into her carseat and angrily kicking at anything including her own blanket that was also pissing her off because it existed. "Your terrible twos are going to be so fun."