Name:
Patrick Cross
Nicknames:
Cross, Sheriff
Age:
Forty-nine
Gender:
Male
Sexuality:
Heterosexual
Occupation:
Retired County Sheriff
Appearance:
Stocky, grizzled and weathered, Patrick looks every inch the hardened country cop. He doesn’t have a tan exactly, it’s as his skin looks like old leather that was treated by a particularly unskilled tanner after years of standing in the sun. There are a few scars here and there, mostly faded with age, which only add to his air of weary menace. There are also innumerable frown lines that spread out from his his like an impact crater and twist into their most comfortable shape whenever Patrick feels more annoyed or angry than tired. Which, it must be admitted, is getting more and more rare as he ages.
While he looks sturdy and capable, Patrick doesn’t look like the average fitness enthusiast or gym lover. He’s built like a barrel or a tree rather than a greek statue, with a thick trunk of a chest that’s barely sagged with age and arms that don’t look like much but have a grip like iron bands. His once auburn hair is now a stubborn grey and as he’s never been much one for styling his own appearance, it’s in the same unkempt style as it has been for years. His voice, however, is as deep and carrying as it ever was, simultaneously supportive, reassuring and a little scary whether it’s talking to his colleagues or a collar.
It only softens for his children, the lucky little devils.
While he looks sturdy and capable, Patrick doesn’t look like the average fitness enthusiast or gym lover. He’s built like a barrel or a tree rather than a greek statue, with a thick trunk of a chest that’s barely sagged with age and arms that don’t look like much but have a grip like iron bands. His once auburn hair is now a stubborn grey and as he’s never been much one for styling his own appearance, it’s in the same unkempt style as it has been for years. His voice, however, is as deep and carrying as it ever was, simultaneously supportive, reassuring and a little scary whether it’s talking to his colleagues or a collar.
It only softens for his children, the lucky little devils.
Personality:
Since boyhood, Patrick has liked to do things directly, a true straight shooter. If you like someone, tell them, if you don't like someone then make sure you tell them that too. Where other people tried to manoeuvre and position themselves in conversation, he preferred to barge straight on through to whatever it was that he wanted. As he's gotten older and hopefully wiser, Patrick has learned to refine this approach a little. Now he's more conscious of the best way of getting to his objective but less determined to go there via the most direct route. In short, age has taught him nuance.
When he was a sheriff, Patrick was the hard man with a heart of gold, the sort that gave you a hard time when you were starting out because he knew damn well you'd be getting a hard time from everyone else in this job and he didn't want you going out there unprepared. Not many came to thank him at the time but almost everyone saw what he did to the next rookie with a new perspective and quietly understood. Patrick didn't mind being a little disliked, he wasn't much one for socialising anyway. A classic workaholic, he was always the first one in and the last one out, pursuing a schedule that would've tired out any three of his subordinates without batting an eyelid, so now that he's retired he's feeling a little... lost.
Because Patrick isn't a sheriff anymore, he isn't really anything. Except a father, of course, a role that he worries he may have neglected for his son, Alex, but one that he's now positioned to fill almost too well for his daughter, Jack. After mentoring dozens of rookies, he feels he knows a thing or two about how to teach but there's no part of him that could bear giving tough love to his own flesh and blood. So instead he's haltingly, unassuredly kind and open to them. When out in public it's even harder to act as a proper parent, as his instincts kick in and the walls of stoic machismo kick in.
When he was a sheriff, Patrick was the hard man with a heart of gold, the sort that gave you a hard time when you were starting out because he knew damn well you'd be getting a hard time from everyone else in this job and he didn't want you going out there unprepared. Not many came to thank him at the time but almost everyone saw what he did to the next rookie with a new perspective and quietly understood. Patrick didn't mind being a little disliked, he wasn't much one for socialising anyway. A classic workaholic, he was always the first one in and the last one out, pursuing a schedule that would've tired out any three of his subordinates without batting an eyelid, so now that he's retired he's feeling a little... lost.
Because Patrick isn't a sheriff anymore, he isn't really anything. Except a father, of course, a role that he worries he may have neglected for his son, Alex, but one that he's now positioned to fill almost too well for his daughter, Jack. After mentoring dozens of rookies, he feels he knows a thing or two about how to teach but there's no part of him that could bear giving tough love to his own flesh and blood. So instead he's haltingly, unassuredly kind and open to them. When out in public it's even harder to act as a proper parent, as his instincts kick in and the walls of stoic machismo kick in.
Other Parent:
Suzanna Cross, Wife
Other:
-
Name:
Jaqueline Cross
Date of Birth:
13th of April 2012
Special Ability:
Telepathy
First shown:
Has not shown, other than perhaps being the cause of advanced reading and comprehension for her age in tests.
