Marlow neatly placed the last of the dirty dishes into the dishwasher, sighing happily once the machine started up. Life had treated her kindly lately. She had everyone and everything she could hope for. Taking a moment to gaze out the window, she couldn't help recalling what started it all. The day she murdered her former master was the day the wheels started turning, leading her to a bright future she never would've imagined. The last four years had been pure bliss.

Her eyes suddenly darted to the refrigerator where numerous photos were pinned among a bunch of magnetic letters that spelled out everyone's names. Ever since the Nighthunters had been taken care of, Marlow hadn't seen too much of their Creepypasta friends. She assumed they'd been as busy as her family, so she didn't blame them. But with all the memories flashing through her mind, a smile tugged at her lips. She couldn't help but wonder what they were up to. Perhaps she could visit them sometime soon.

The sweet aroma of freshly baked cookies hit her nose, snapping her from her thoughts. She hurried to the oven, checking the treats before taking them out to start cooling. She chuckled at the frantic sound of footsteps rushing down the stairs, followed by a head of red hair poking into the entryway.

"Hi, Mo- I mean, Marlow." The male nonchalantly walked into the kitchen, all while hiding his hands nervously behind his back. "I smelled cookies. Could I please have one?"

Marlow raised a brow skeptically. "They have to cool first." She was already onto him. "Say, Zane, how come you didn't give me a kiss first?"

Zane blinked at her. "Um...'cause I...I accidentally bit my lip and it's sore."

Marlow leaned closer, inspecting his lip. "It looks fine to me. Come on, just one little kiss." She puckered her lips and made an exaggerated kissy face.

"No!" Zane objected a bit too loudly. "I mean, I wanna but it really is sore! It hurts really bad, Mommy!"

Marlow grinned triumphantly. "Ha! Gotcha, Alissa."

Making a pouty face, Zane's figure shifted, shrinking down to a young girl. Her hair was still the same red color, but her now jade eyes peered up at Marlow. "No fair, Mommy! You tricked me!"

"Sorry, Alissa, but you tried to trick me first. Besides, I'm the one who taught you how to transform. I won't fall for it so easily." She smiled and crouched to hug the child. "And yes, you can have a cookie once they cool. You'll burn your tongue if you eat one now when they just came out of the oven." She kissed her daughter on the cheek. "I still have dinner to cook, so go play. Daddy will be home soon, okay?"

Alissa smiled and nodded. "Okay, Mommy!"

The child ran right out of the kitchen, leaving Marlow to shake her head and laugh before getting on with dinner preparations. Alissa peeked into the living room where some of her toys and books were laying about. But other than a few stuffed animals, the room was vacant --- no sign of anyone. With an annoyed hum, the girl went on to the foyer and up the stairs.

The mansion had been renovated a lot in the last few years. Rooms were cleaned out and redesigned to everyone's liking. In fact, the last of Mr. Richmond's money went into Alissa's playroom. That's why three of the guys all went out and got jobs to keep sustaining their life. Marlow was still the head of the household, of course. She made the big decisions, cooked, cleaned, cared for her little girl and her family, and she normally led every hunt. Alissa looked up to her like no other, and even after all that time, she was still amazed by her ability of transformation. She almost couldn't wait until her parents let her join them on hunts as a Nightstalker.

Alissa came to a particular door upstairs, quietly pushing it open. Her eyes landed on the blond sitting at his desk in front of his laptop. "Uncle Oliver?" The boy jumped a little in surprise, then turned his head to look at her. "Will you play with me?"

Oliver opened his mouth to respond, but paused to think over his words. He wasn't the best with children, but Alissa liked him just for the fact that she could talk to him as much as she wanted while he silently listened. "I'm a bit busy at the moment," he softly told her.

Alissa went right over, climbing onto his lap and looking at the computer screen. "Doing what?"

On the computer was a bunch of police documents that were classified. Oliver's role in the family was to keep the police off their trail and stay up to date on the news of their killings. He'd become quite the hacker, a useful skill for the pack. He was also in charge of obtaining fake ID's for the others to use for their jobs. Like Marlow, he took care of his family in his own way.

"I'm, uh...well, the police...you see..." The blond stumbled over his words, unsure of how to explain the complexity of his work to a four-year-old.

Alissa looked up at him. "It's okay, I can tell you're busy. I'll come back when you're done. Keep up the good work, Uncle Oliver!" She pat him on the head, smiled, and got off him, leaving his room.

The little girl then went to the next room, already hearing the explosions and gunfire before she even opened the door. "Oh yeah! Get wrecked you mutant freaks!"

Alissa cracked the door and poked her head in. "Uncle Paul, are you playing that game with the guns and the aliens again?"

Paul was quick to pause the game, grinning at the child. "Hi, Alissa! Yeah, I'm playing it again. You need something from old Uncle Paul?"

The girl giggled and stepped inside. "I'm bored. Can I watch you play?"

"Sure, just don't tell your mom, okay?" He winked at her and pretended to zip his lips.

Alissa copied his gesture and went over to sit on the bed beside him, beaming happily. She watched him shoot down gross, alien monsters, getting nearly as pumped up as he was playing the game. She cheered him on and helped him spot the enemies before they could ambush him. It seemed all of Jasper's bedtime stories had numbed her to a lot of the violence. It wasn't until a cutscene played that Paul dropped his controller to clamp his hands over the child's ears, keeping her from hearing the dialogue which had quite a few swear words. Once it was over, he uncovered her ears, smiling nervously.

"Alissa, there's gonna be more boring cutscenes coming up. Why don't you go do something else? I'm sure your dad will be home any time now."

The girl got up and smoothed out her flower-print dress. "Well, okay. But tomorrow can we play Lego Star Wars again?"

"Sorry, I've got work tomorrow. But the day after we can. Is it a date?"

Alissa nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! See you later, Uncle Paul!" She kissed his cheek and left.

Paul was quite fun and entertaining in Alissa's eyes. He was nice, funny, and he loved playing all kinds of little games with her. Even though she wasn't very good at video games, she still had fun playing with him. Paul had matured in the last four years, at least enough to hold onto his job at the local game store. But he was still the goofy, happy-go-lucky joker that would still bug his friends on occasion.

Alissa started heading for her playroom, but paused when she heard a car pull in the driveway. She went to the nearest window, standing on her tippy toes to look outside. She recognized the shine of the black car in the setting sunlight. With a delighted smile, she turned and sprinted down to the stairs as fast as her legs could carry her. When she made it to the foyer, a teenage goth girl walked through the front doors.

"Uncle Jasper! Uncle Jasper! Uncle Jasper!"

The goth crouched and caught the child who ran straight into her arms. As soon as she picked up Alissa, the teenager shifted until Jasper was standing there in her place. His dull brown eyes held a tender look in them, and a faint smile graced his lips.

"Yes?" he replied in his monotone voice. "Did you miss me that much?"

"I did," Alissa answered with a nod. "Everyone's too busy to play with me. I'm bored, and hungry, and I want one of Mommy's cookies."

Jasper was, surprisingly, a really great caretaker. He was understanding, and never lost his cool when Alissa happened to be in trouble. He was always the most trusted babysitter whenever Marlow or Zane were out. But what Alissa liked most about him was his stories. He could make up the best stories that entertained her yet also put her right to sleep when it was bedtime. Other than his lip piercing, he hadn't changed much. And thanks to Oliver's fake ID's, he had gotten his dream job at the mall's Hot Topic.

"Bored, hungry, and in need of cookies," Jasper repeated with a hum. "Well, what can I do to make you feel better?"

"You could tell me the rest of that story," the child suggested. "I wanna hear how it ends."

Jasper carried Alissa upstairs and down the hall to his room. With the heavy curtains and dark wallpaper and decorations, there was always a more creepy atmosphere there. The goth sat the little girl on his bed where she immediately snatched up the spider plush she left there. She hugged it to her chest, beaming with excitement.

"Where did I leave off again?" Jasper asked.

"We were at the part where the reaper boy was about to make his first kill."

Jasper smiled calmly. "Ah, that's right." He sat beside her. "Well, the little reaper was eager to impress his father. He was determined to bring back the head of his victim as a trophy. So, with his sharpened scythe at the ready, he crept up behind the unsuspecting target. All it took was one swing, and the man's head came clean off."

Alissa squealed with glee, completely engrossed in the story. Jasper's monotone voice might've been dull to some people, but the child liked the way he spoke. It made his tales that much darker, which would normally spook most children and give them nightmares. But not Alissa. She was brave. She'd been raised around those kinds of things. She was so absorbed in the story that she didn't realize the last member of the household had returned. It wasn't until she heard a knock on the bedroom door that she was finally torn from the spooky tale.

A head of red hair poked into the room. "Hey, Jasper, you telling her horror stories again?"

Zane looked more mature than he did four years ago. He'd gotten rid of the eyebrow piercing, though he kept the multiple earrings. His arms and torso were more muscular due to all the workouts he partook in. Not to mention his job as a mechanic kept him pretty fit, and it gave him the badass look he was fond of whenever he rode his motorcycle around.

Alissa leapt off the bed, dropping her plush in the process. "Daddy!" She ran to the door where Zane kneeled and opened his arms wide. His daughter tackled him in a hug. "You're home!"

Zane wrapped his arms around her, chuckling as a small grin tugged at his lips. "You make it sound like I wasn't coming back." He kissed her head. "And how's my sweet little princess been today? Been having fun?"

The child nodded. "I watched Uncle Paul play a game and shoot a bunch of aliens! And then Uncle Jasper told me the story of the grim reaper!"

"Sounds like you had a blast. Did you know Mommy made cookies for us?"

Alissa made a pouty face. "Yeah, but she said I couldn't have any yet. They still had to cool off."

Zane stood, scooping the girl right up. "Well now that I'm home, we're allowed to have cookies." His daughter cheered with delight. The redhead looked over at the other male. "You coming, Jasper?"

"For cookies? Definitely." He stood, stuffing his hands into his hoodie pockets. "I'm with Alissa, Marlow's cookies rock."

"Cookies! Cookies! Everybody loves cookies!" Alissa sang about the treats all the way down to the kitchen.

To her, life was perfect. The perfect house. The perfect family. She felt like she truly had it all. The only thing that would make it even better would be a hunt in the forest. The one thing she'd wanted to do since she learned to walk.