Nina Moreland had aged gracefully in the years since the twins had grown up. There were days she was happy to see her kids all getting along and then there were the days when they seemed to be at each others throats, especially Caleb and Chase. Since Chase lost Jacob when he was very young, he only had the vaguest memories of his father leaving Caleb and Connor along with Rick trying to help raise Chase the best way that they could. Unfortunately it seemed like Chase had inherited his father's temper more than anything. As she looked at an old picture of Jacob sitting with the twins on his lap, she heard vehicle doors slam happy to hear that her kids were back.
"Chase, how was...." Nina began to say before he sat down on the couch and put his hands over his face. Nina saw the rest of her kids along with Miles and Aaron looking perturbed as they entered the house with Chase walking back and forth as he shook his head and then tousled his hair.
"What happened now?" Nina asked Charlotte.
"It wasn't my fault mom." Chase said quickly.
"The hell it wasn't." Caleb said as he still paced on the living room floor.
"So...Aaron told us in the car that after Chase got out of the bathroom, he gave this girl a look and I guess her boyfriend who was next to her didn't like it." Charlotte began to explain as Nina put her hand on her head knowing where this was going to be going.
"Aaron tried to diffuse the situation, but the jerk insulted both Aaron and then you. That was when Chase and Aaron kind of started a bar brawl." Charlotte continued.
"Nobody got that hurt." Chase said trying to defend himself.
"Nobody got hurt?! Try telling that to the drunk down at the bar whose face you nearly pummeled into the floor. I can't believe how much you went off on him." Caleb said looking at Chase very displeased.
"He knocked Connor down with a chair! He could've gotten hurt!" Chase argued.
"You don't start a fight with a drunk man, no what the bastard might have said about Aaron or mom. You're supposed to be the bigger man in that situation." Caleb scolded him.
"I notice you've got a little blood on you too Caleb, were you involved in the fight as well?" Nina asked her oldest son as Caleb looked down on his shirt to see a little blood there.
"I may have been in the fight, but I didn't get carried away, mom." Caleb reassured his mother.
Caleb sighed, furrowing his brow at his baby brother and his best friend. "Just once, ONCE, I'd like to enjoy a drink without you picking a fight with the entire bar Chase."
"Look, I swear to you it was self defense." Chase argued with his brother.
"Self defense?!" Caleb rhetorically asked. "The bar was practically trashed by the time you stopped. You know, I had to pay a very large tab for damages you caused." Chase now shook his head as he looked at both Aaron and Chase.
"Aaron, I know you no doubt tried to make the situation worse, but I'm still disappointed that you didn't stop Chase sooner. But as of now, Chase, you are grounded from doing any demon hunting jobs." Caleb said sternly.
"What?! You can't do that, I already told you it wasn't my fault! Mom, please, you gotta understand the man insulted you personally, I just couldn't walk away without letting him know not to do it again." Chase said pleading to his mother.
"Chase," Nina sighed. "There are days when I really wish you acted more like a man than a boy. Why can't you be like your brother?"
"Brother, please, he barely acts like a brother to me at all sometimes. We're supposed to be equals, but he certainly doesn't treat me like it." Chase said as he stood up looking at Caleb directly.
"I'd treat you like an equal if you acted your age." Caleb argued.
"Acted my age? Get it through that thick stetson hat of yours: despite how much you try to be like him you're not dad and you never will be dad!" Chase yelled at Caleb leaving him speechless as Chase stormed out of the house leaving everyone else very quiet.
Chase now stormed off away far away from the house and his family for a while, he couldn't deal with anyone right now, not his mom, and not Charlotte, she would usually try to be the peacemaker of the family or at least between Chase and Caleb. While she and Chase both had training from their brothers and sister in-law, she was very close with her mom who had instilled in her to keep her brothers from knocking their heads off. Near the family home, which had been rebuilt many years earlier, was a big forest where he and his family would sometimes go camping. Chase never admitted it to anyone else, but he felt at peace here, he didn't have to argue with either of his brothers, and he didn't have to think about Charlotte always stepping in and being the problem solver.
After the bar fight now, he went out to the forest alone for some solitude. Here he sometimes thought about his father. He had seen pictures and the video message he left for himself and Charlotte, but he wondered what his father would have thought of him now. He wondered if his father would scold him for what he did just like Caleb did. He had a vague memory of his father kissing him on the forehead, but not much else. Chase now took out a photo his mother had given him some time ago of their father looking over the twins while smiling at the camera. Chase gently stroked the face of his father and sighed before he put the photo back into his pocket as he looked around and felt the wind around him.
"Dad? I'm in no way a spiritual man, but maybe you could send me a message on how to make Caleb stop being so....god damned stubborn all the damn time. Just please send me a sign you're looking out for me." Chase prayed to himself aloud, though as he said he was in no way a deeply religious person. Chase looked around him wondering if his father had heard him at all.
"YEEHAW!" A voice shouted in the distance. Chase looked behind him to see a girl riding on a horse through the forest, it looked like she was having a great time. Chase wanted to go over at talk to the girl, but almost turned around remembering the bar incident. He then heard the girl become alarmed and turned back to see that from out of nowhere a wolf jumped out in her path and was startling the horse, endangering the rider as she struggled to hold on to the horse. Chase knew he had to do something or else the girl would be in serious danger of rearing the girl off the horse and seriously inuring herself.
"Whoa! Steady, easy girl!" The girl said trying to keep the horse calm.
Chase now rushed over to the girl and the horse and calmed the horse down first to his best degree. Chase now turned his attention to the wolf as he stood in place and made direct eye contact with the wolf and made a yelling noise in the wolf's direction.
"Go on, shoo! Get goin'! Get outta here!" Chase shouted at the wolf trying to shoo her away. The wolf looked a little intimidated by Chase now and looked for one last moment at the humans and horse before decided to turn and leave the three alone.
Chase heard the girl getting down from the horse as he continued to watch the wolf leave making sure it wasn't coming back.
"Wow, thanks for the save, that wolf really came out of nowhere." The girl said as she finally got on the ground and began to take off her riding helmet.
"It was nothing, I couldn't let a....." Chase began before turning around to see the girl before her and he was definitely awestruck. She had beautiful, long flowing brunette hair, and her eyes were like shining emeralds.
".....b-b-b-beautiful....girl.....like you get hurt." Chase finally finished as the girl blushed and brushed her hair back a little bit.
"Thank you. I'm....Andromeda, by the way." Andromeda introduced holding off on her full name to this boy.
"I'm Chase, it's nice to meet you and...what's your horse's name?"
"Meadow, she's actually my Aunt's horse, she let me ride her today. She can carry two people, do you know how to ride a horse?" Andromeda asked as Chase gave a little chuckle before the two of them began to ride around a little in the forest away from any prying eyes.
Chase felt he needed this at the moment. He needed to get away from his family for the moment, his friends, and just be with this girl who was a total stranger to him, but seemed incredibly fun. The forest was breathtaking to the two of them, the air felt just right and the cool wind blew past their faces as they came to a little lake and got off the horse.
"So....Andromeda, you said your horse was your aunt's horse, do you live with your aunt and uncle?" Chase asked striking up a conversation.
"No, I'm just visiting with them right now. I wanted my siblings to come with me too, but they're....busy." Andromeda said using air quotes.
"Siblings? I know how they can be. I've got a sister and two brothers, although sometimes they treat me like I'm the youngest one." Chase chuckled.
"Ha! Oh my god, me too. I've got a sister and three brothers. We're all the same age, but they treat me like I'm the youngest one because I'm the most positive one." Andromeda said as she laid her back onto the ground and looked up at the sky.
"They should really treat you as an equal then. What about your parents? Are they around?"
"Oh, are they ever. My parents think the world of us and want us to be protected as much as we can. At home though, sometimes it can seem a little confining. That's why I like to come here, where I feel more free than I do at home with all my rules. So I guess it's your turn now." Andromeda said looking over at Chase who was still sitting on the ground.
"My turn?" Chase asked a little confused.
"Yeah, what about your parents, what are they like?"
"Well, my mom is a very caring woman and certainly can be a stickler for the rules. As for my dad, he....he died when I was barely a toddler." Chase now sighed.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories." Andromeda apologized.
"It's alright. I've got an older brother though, who sometimes acts like a father."
"Ugh, that can be the worst. One of my brothers sometimes likes to act like that too." Andromeda said shaking her head.
"Yeah, my brothers want me to live up to my father, but I can't when I never really knew him to begin with." Chase said as he looked at the lake.
"I think my father hopes that one day I'll inherit the family legacy, but sometimes I don't know if I really have it in me to do that." Andromeda said looking out at the lake as well.
"Sometimes, I wish I could just tell my family," Chase began to say. "Sometimes I just wish I could tell my siblings,"
"I don't want to live in my father's shadow." Chase and Andromeda both said at the same time as they looked at one another a little surprised.
"Wow, look at that. I didn't know the sun was setting already. I guess that means we should probably be getting back home." Andromeda said as she got her horse ready.
"Oh, I guess I didn't properly thank you earlier for saving me." Andromeda smiled as she gently walked up to Chase and leaned up to his face. "So, can I know the full name of my rescuer?" Andromeda asked as she almost touched Chase's lips.
"Chase....Moreland." Andromeda gasped and suddenly looked worried as she went over to ready her horse.
"I'm sorry, this was a mistake, I...I really should be getting back." Andromeda said trying to apologize.
"What's wrong? Did I do something wrong? Look I'm sorry if I said anything to offend you, but I just had a really crappy day and you made it a little better for me. Please don't leave." Chase begged as he grabbed her arm.
"Let me go!" Andromeda said as she turned her body around sharply and angrily at Chase who now looked surprised at her appearance. Andromeda realized he was looking at her vampire eyes and teeth as she turned her back to him now in shame.
"Are you....are you a vampire? Oh my god, have you just been seducing me this whole time?!" Chase demanded to know.
"No! I swear I haven't done anything like that. I just....I just talked to you because I thought you were nice. I....I am a vampire, but there's another reason why I wanted to leave just a moment ago." Andromeda admitted.
"If it's that you're a vampire, it doesn't really matter to me. You seem like one of the more nicer vampires I've heard about." Chase guessed.
"Okay, deep breath, you can do this." Andromeda said to herself. "How do you do, my name is Princess Andromeda Tepes." Andromeda said with a curtsy that seemed to have been drilled in to her head. Chase was nothing but shocked right now realizing just who he had been talking to this whole time.