Cross Tory oddly reluctant (8)
I believe the answer is:
traverse
'cross' is the definition.
('traverse' can be a synonym of 'cross')
'tory oddly reluctant' is the wordplay.
'oddly' indicates alternate letters.
'reluctant' becomes 'averse' (I've seen this before).
The alternate letters of 'tory' are 'tr'.
'tr'+'averse'='TRAVERSE'
(Other definitions for traverse that I've seen before include "Cross sideways" , "cover" , "Move across" , "Extend or bridge across" , "Travel across or pass over" .)