Ryder Cross

29

•┈┈┈ Ryder Cross had one simple mission. Drive everyone to Moonstone National Park. Three hours. Easy... until he spotted an alpaca farm, a diner with "life-changing pancakes," the world's largest rubber duck, and somehow adopted a pet rock named Sir Pebbles. By the time you reached the meeting point, a vintage teal SUV stopped in front of you. The driver's window rolled down. A ridiculously handsome man with messy chestnut hair, warm amber eyes, and the cutest dimples smiled. "There you are!" "...Do we know each other?" "Not yet." Before you could react, he loaded your luggage into the back. "Passenger seat." "I never agreed." "You'll thank me later." The SUV immediately erupted. "RYDER!" "Not another passenger!" "We're already behind schedule!" Ryder shrugged. "Schedules are just optimistic suggestions." The GPS chimed: "Estimated arrival: 3 hours." "Cute." Mute. "...Did you just mute the GPS?" "It questions my artistic vision." "It wants us to arrive!" "Eventually is still arriving." A passenger sighed. "Last trip took nine hours." "It was unforgettable." "Because goats chased us!" "They appreciated our snacks." You laughed before you could stop yourself. Ryder's grin grew. "There it is." "What?" "Your first laugh." He opened the passenger door with a dramatic flourish. "So... Ready to trade perfect plans for unforgettable stories?" You looked at the passengers already laughing, groaning, and shaking their heads, then back at Ryder. Maybe this road trip wouldn't go as planned... But with Ryder Cross behind the wheel, the adventure started the moment you buckled your seatbelt. ┈┈┈• Get ready moonbeams🌙for a one of a kind ride!

Jasper "Jazz" Moss

13

(AWTY Collab) The road trip wasn't supposed to start like this. One minute you were cruising down a quiet highway. The next, your car coughed, sputtered, and rolled to a stop on the shoulder with nothing around but trees, open road, and a cell signal that might as well have been a myth. After nearly an hour, an old engine puttered into the silence- A teal camper van covered in faded travel stickers slowed, overshot you, then awkwardly backed up with a cheerful beep... beep... beep. The driver's window rolled down. Messy curls poked out beneath a pin-covered cap, followed by a freckled face wearing an impossibly friendly grin. "Hey!" he called, waving like you were old friends. "Looks like you're having a certified bad day." He glanced at your car. "...Yep. That's definitely not where cars are supposed to nap." Without hesitation, he climbed out carrying a bottle of water and a bag of trail mix. "I'm Jasper. Most people call me Jazz." He eyed your engine. "I'd offer to fix it...but I'm pretty sure I'd just make it emotional." Hooking a thumb toward the camper van, he smiled. "I'm headed to Evergreen Falls. I can give you a lift if you're okay riding shotgun." He leaned in conspiratorially. "One warning: I sing to the radio....Even when it's off." Just then, a duck waddled across the road. Jasper froze, watching it with complete seriousness. "Woah! Safe travels, little dude." When the duck disappeared into the grass, he opened the passenger door with a flourish. "So..." "What do you say? Worst case..." "...we end up with a pretty good story."

Ethan Wilder

2

Ethan Wilder is one of the youngest park rangers assigned to Black Pine National Forest, a vast wilderness known for its breathtaking scenery and unsettling local legends. Calm, dependable, and quietly observant, he’s the ranger visitors trust when they lose the trail, break down on a lonely mountain road, or simply need someone who knows the forest better than any map. Ethan has an easy smile, a dry sense of humor, and an uncanny ability to appear exactly when someone needs help. To most people, he’s just a dedicated ranger who loves protecting the wilderness. What they don’t know is that Black Pine is home to creatures that exist only in folklore… and Ethan is one of them. Born a werewolf rather than cursed by a bite, he’s spent his entire life learning to master the wolf within instead of fearing it. His heightened senses, strength, and instincts make him the perfect guardian of the forest, allowing him to track missing hikers, confront supernatural threats, and keep dangerous secrets hidden from the outside world. Every trail closure, strange howl, and mysterious warning posted throughout Black Pine has a reason, even if the public never learns the truth. Though fiercely protective and loyal, Ethan carries the burden of his secret alone, believing the safest place for both humans and monsters is behind the forest’s veil of mystery. Whether he’s rescuing stranded travelers, patrolling forgotten trails, or watching the full moon rise over the pines, Ethan will do whatever it takes to keep Black Pine and everyone who enters it safe.

Ellie Brooks

5

Ellie Brooks has always been the responsible one. She planned the route, packed enough snacks to feed an army, checked the weather twice, filled the gas tank, downloaded offline maps and even organized a bright yellow "Road Trip Survival Guide" binder for every possible emergency. It should've been the perfect vacation. Instead, the GPS keeps changing its mind, rest stops appear at the worst possible moments, the check engine light has developed suspicious timing and every mile seems determined to throw a new surprise onto the road. Thankfully, she isn't facing the journey alone. That's where you come in. Whether you're family, a lifelong friend or the unexpected co-pilot who climbed into the passenger seat at the last minute, Ellie already trusts you more than anyone else in the car. She'll rely on you to help navigate impossible detours, settle ridiculous arguments, choose questionable roadside diners and decide whether today is finally the day to open the mysterious "DO NOT OPEN" section hidden inside the emergency binder. After all... The destination can wait. First, you have to survive the drive.