The sky was painted with hues of deep orange and soft purple as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows across the earth. The air was crisp and cool, carrying a faint hint of damp soil and pine, the lingering remnants of a recent rain shower. The clouds, tinged with gold and fading into twilight, seemed to drift lazily, unhurried by time, as if they held secrets of their own.
It was strange being back here, where time moved slower, calmer—where minutes felt like hours and the weight of what had just happened seemed heavier somehow. The forest had been cloaked in night when we left, thick with shadows and the scent of magic lingering in the air, but here on earth, everything felt… ordinary. Just another quiet evening, unaffected by the chaos we'd just walked away from.
A gentle breeze stirred the leaves, rustling through the trees that lined the path home. The street lamps flickered on, casting a warm, familiar glow along the sidewalk. Each step brought a strange mix of relief and nostalgia, yet the memories of what had just happened felt like a shadow over us, unshakeable and still too raw to ignore.
We walked mostly in silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts, letting the sounds of the world around us fill the quiet. A bird called somewhere in the distance, its song sharp against the deepening dusk. I could feel the weight of Ava's gaze every so often, but I didn't meet it, unsure if I was ready for the questions I knew were lingering behind her eyes.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity of walking, our house came into view, tucked away on the quiet street. I paused, letting the sight sink in—the familiar porch, the ivy creeping up the sides of the house, the soft glow of the lights inside. For a moment, it almost felt like any other day.
But I knew things would never be the same. We walked in and were welcomed by the familiar scent of dust and coffee. We all collapsed on the couch and sat in silence for a bit until Ava broke the silence.
"This place is just like we left it. No major differences."
"Except that our mom is no longer with us."
"Mom wouldn't want us to spend the rest of our lives grieving her. She'd want us to move on. She came from a family of warriors so losses are a thing that wasn't foreign to her." Dad said, obviously trying his best to stay strong for the rest of us. "That's why we moved to this part of the planet. We were trying to avoid confrontations. Well so much for that now."
"It's okay dad. I understand. You tried your best to keep us safe." I said, trying to console him. "But some things are just beyond our control."
"But you're going to have to do a lot of explaining. Because there's a lot that went on back there that we didn't understand."
"Yeah." I said. "What was the whole deal about my blood being special, me being bonded to the crystal and why did the crystal turn on who summoned it to listen to me?"
"It's a long story."
"Don't worry, we have time. We have nothing better doing."
"It happened when you were born. Vampires normally shouldn't be able to give birth. We are supposed to turn whoever we want to join us into a fledgling by biting them. Your mom fell in love with a human and for a while, she actually felt human. She started having human emotions and started craving what humans craved."
"Dad, you were human?"
"Yes but not for long. When your mom's parents discovered that their daughter was involved with a human in other ways that didn't involve her biting my neck, they lost it. They sent a search party and brought me back to their world, to execute me in front of everyone as a warning of the dangers of having relationships with humans." Dad cleared his throat before continuing. "Your mom had to find a way to save me so she broke into my cell and made me choose between being dead or being undead. I wanted to be with her so I allowed her to turn me into a vampire. When they discovered I was a vampire, they lost it so they banished your mom and I but by that time she was already pregnant for me. How it happened? I have no idea."
"Did you make me before you were a vampire or after you were a vampire?"
"Before. Yes, Ava. You're a halfling."
"So why is she more powerful than me? I'm a full vampire right? Shouldn't I be stronger than her?"
"I'm getting to how you came to be soon, Ethan." Dad replied. "Your mom was able to conceive but delivering you was the main issue. We tried all we could but we couldn't find a way to safely extract you from her without killing her so we went to the witches to help. They refused to help us and even wanted to kill us for coming to their sanctuary. We searched and searched for a means to save you both. We were already running out of time. The more time we wasted, the lower the chances of your survival dropped. We were able to meet someone that connected us to the guardian of the heartstone. He agreed to help us use the Heartstone's power to bring out the baby from your mom. That was how we had you Ava."
"So why is Ethan the one with the special blood and not me?"
"The heartstone was used to extract you. It didn't merge with you. But from then, a part of the heartstone remained in your mother. It bonded with her after you had been removed from her so you weren't affected in any way but Ethan on the other hand..." Dad continued. "He was in the womb long enough to develop a blood that had the magic of the heartstone coursing through it."
"This doesn't explain how Emily's parents knew about it."
"At the time, Emily's parents were the witches working for the guardian. All guardians have their crew. No one works alone. They knew about us and the connection our offspring would develop to the heartstone that's why they knew to come for us."
"Seraphina said I was supposed to be the next guardian."
"She's not wrong. You were already bonded to the crystal from birth."
"But I'm just seventeen. Shouldn't there be a age I have to reach to become a guardian first?"
"There's nothing like that. Anyone that the heartstone allows to be it's guardian can be its guardian."
"So you're saying you want me to go?"
"It'd be crazy if you didn't."
"What about you and Ava? I can't just leave you guys alone."
"You're forgetting that we've been alive longer than you. I think we will be able to manage."
"So I should go?"
"Enough with the questions already."
"Fine fine."
"But do you have a way to get to the place?"
"Definitely."