AN: I'm back and I'm not dead or insane. Yet. Anyways, I hope those who read liked the previous chapters. Please don't kill me if it sucks; I still have younger cousins and baby nieces to guide through life. Anyway, enough of the drama, I give you, Chapter 3! By the way, Edward's date of birth and death is purely made up because I have no idea when he was born or when he died.

And I sure as hell do not mean for this to have sappy, cheesy love moments. But like I said; hints (understatement of the year) of romance. Anyways, this is just a filler chapter. To show you what happens before they head back to Washington. Don't like it? Don't read it. I ain't stopping you from doing so.

Chapter III:

Reminiscence

Alex and James were sitting on the staircase outside the second floor door. They searched every single room that they could but they didn't find a chapter page.

And they're still pissed at each other. Just then, Sam approached them.

"Found one!" She said.

"Found none." Alex countered.

"I guess that's it, then. We should get out of here." James said as he stood up.

"Who's shutting the fuse box, then?" Sam asked.

"You are. You lost two times in Roshambo. You turn it off." Alex said as she and James left to wait for her by the car. Sam was pissed at them for pulling that on her but at least she's not a chicken like those two. She was able to turn off the fuse box and run out of the house. They discarded their items and got on the car again. The tension around the car was suffocating Sam and she knew sooner or later, they're going to blow up.

"So, James, want to visit your mom?" She asked.

"Can I?" He asked. Alex rolled her eyes at his statement.

"I wouldn't ask if you can't now, will I?" Sam answered.

"Alright. Wouldn't hurt to see her again. I mean, it's not like I could die tomorrow with whatever Ancient threat could still be there, thanks to Miss Rising Star here." He quipped, the last statement obviously aimed at Alex.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"That was my fault." Sam said, cursing at herself for ever offering. The hurtful words are coming.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You want me to put it bluntly? Okay. You were the one that dragged me into this war with The Ancients in the first place." He said.

"Oh, yeah, how did that happen?" Alex asked.

"Yep, they're not going to last." Sam muttered as she drove for James' house.

"I mean, you brought me back here a year ago in the first place!"

"You could've said no!"

"How was I supposed to say no? You hung up on me after telling me to pack!" He yelled. Sam made a sharp 360 degree turn before moving onwards.

"What the hell was that for?" Alex asked angrily.

"Because I want the two of you to shut up!" She yelled at them. They did so immediately.

"I knew you guys wouldn't last 5 years or even a year. Jesus Christ! James, what the hell is wrong with you?" Sam said.

"Oh, so now this is my fault? Don't you think you're being a bit biased, Sam?"

"Based on what I heard from those talkies you guys left open, it started because Alex insulted you on those gym trips but why did it get to last year when all this shit started?"

James hesitated before answering.

"I'm mad because of that trapper but partially, I'm mad at Alex for dragging me into this in the first place!"

"And a year later, he starts complaining!" Alex yelled.

"Shut up, Alex. Time for me to play Psychologist here. James, do you really think Alex dragged you back here to Rhode to ruin your life? As far as I know she had no idea that what happened last year would happen. Understand that, kid. Because if you don't; don't you think your anger is a bit misplaced?" Sam asked.

"Drop me off here. I got to go to the bathroom." Alex said as she pointed at a gas station. Alex got out and ran off.

"You're right." He said.

"What?"

"You were right. My anger was misplaced. It's just-I want a normal college life again. The life we had before all of these bombs dropped on us." James answered. Sam sighed before speaking up.

"Another thing to understand, kid; you were the only one she had at the time. Her parents have been dead since she was 10. I was dead to her for seven years, I mean, she was told that her Aunt and Uncle's bodies were charred beyond recognition and her cousin's body was never found. Seven years later, she was told there was an accident with her grandfather. Who did she have to run to back then? It was you. You were her only source of strength at the time. So, please don't blame her for wanting you to stick by her side back then."

Just then, Alex came back.

"Alright, let's go." She said.

"Right." Sam said before driving away again. A couple of minutes later, they arrived at James' house.

"Alright, you guys go. I'll wait here." Sam said.

"You sure? I'm sure Mrs. Matthews would love to meet you." Alex said.

"Based on what James told me once upon a time, she thinks I'm dead so…not going to happen. I'll stay here and catch up on some sleep." Sam answered. Giving up, the two got out of the car and walked up to the door. James took her hand before knocking on the door.

"I'm sorry." He said. Alex ran a hand through his brown hair before kissing his cheek.

"I'm sorry too." She said. The door opened and there stood a blonde woman with green eyes. It was James' mother, Lucy Matthews.

"Alex, James, this is a pleasant surprise!" She said.

"Hi, mom!" James greeted her as they hugged. Then, she hugged Alex next.

"Wait a minute, you two are holding hands; you two are dating aren't you?" Lucy asked.

"The jig is up. Yes, we're dating, mother." James answered.

"Well, come on in. What are you guys doing here? Don't you have classes?" She asked.

"Oh, we're here to check something out at The Mansion and visit grandpa's grave. It's his death anniversary today, so here we are." Alex explained.

"Oh, yes. I remember. I put flowers in his grave just this morning." She said.

"I'm sure he'd appreciate it." Alex said.

"So, did anyone else come with you?" Lucy asked. Perfect bait to get Sam to meet her.

"Ah, yes, my cousin." Alex answered. James looked at her questioningly.

"Your cousin? I thought she was dead?" She asked.

"Oh, not dead. Just went missing for a few years. Turned out she was under the custody of my uncle's best friend and grandpa kept her existence from me. Let me go get her." Alex said before rushing out of the house. She closed the door and ran up to the car. Opening it, she saw the driver's seat reclined, Sam wearing sunglasses and eating a burger that came from god knows where. Without hesitation, she grabbed Sam by the tie and dragged her out of the car.

"Hey, what the-"

"You're coming with me. She already knows you're alive." Alex said as she dragged her cousin by the tie. Finally, they stopped by the door.

"Be nice, alright." Alex warned her before opening the door.

"Hey, there they are." James said.

"Mrs. Matthews, meet my cousin, Samantha Roivas." Alex said, using Sam's cover name. To the world, Samantha Chase was dead.

"Nice to meet you, Samantha." Lucy said as she held her hand out. Sam took it and they shook hands.

"Please, call me Sam." She said.

"Okay, Sam, Alex, I prepared breakfast, come into the kitchen and eat. I'm sure the three of you are starving." She said and she led them to the kitchen. They followed and sat down. They ate pancakes and bacon in very awkward silence.

"So, Sam, what do you do for a living? I'm sure you graduated college already." Lucy asked, trying to break the silence. Alex looked at Sam immediately.

"I'm a Professor at George Washington University." She answered.

"Oh, I'm sure you run into these two from time to time." Lucy said.

"Run into them? I'm their Literature Professor. I teach them whenever they have classes for it." Sam said.

"Literature Professor, huh? At 22? That's an impressive feat. Wh-when did you graduate?" She asked. Sam thought about if for a second. Recently, she's been having memory lapses of when a certain event happened.

"Let's see; I got out of Middle School when I was 15, I skipped high school so I graduated at 20." Sam answered.

"Impressive. You must have quite the brains." Lucy said, clearly amazed. After that, they kept eating in silence and they helped out clean up. It was time to leave after that. Sam left to get the car heated up.

"Now, the three of you take care on the way back to D.C. alright." Lucy said.

"Of course, Mrs. Matthews." Alex said.

"Oh, you're my son's girlfriend now, call me Lucy." She said. Alex simply nodded in reply.

"Hey, mom, whatever happened to dad?" James asked. Alex knew that James' father mysteriously died while serving in the Gulf War in 1991, when James was only 10. His body was never recovered.

"Honestly, son, I don't know. The army told me he was dead and his body was never recovered but you know what? He was a hero. He loved you very much and I'm sure he would be so proud of you if he saw you now. Now, go on." She answered and kissed James' forehead. They both left and got on the car. Waving one last time to the kind Lucy Matthews, Sam drove away from the house to their last destination of the day; Swan Point Cemetery.

A few minutes later, the three of them arrived at the cemetery after making a stop over at a flower shop. Since it's been a long time since they visited, they figured that they should also pay the respects to their parents. Those who could've possibly died at the hands of The Ancients. They went to the Roivas Family plot. The plot was filled with the tombs of every single member of the Roivas line since the cemetery was built. Aaron, his wife, Maximillian, his wife and their three children were transferred to Swan Point Cemetery in 1846 when the cemetery was first opened. A black metal fence was around the area to signify that a family owned the plot. They approached Edward's grave.

Edward M. Roivas

April 13, 1925 – October 13, 2000

Beloved Father, Grandfather and Friend

Taking a deep breath Alex sighed and put the flowers in front of the grave.

"We miss you, grandpa. We hope you're at peace now." She said as she wiped her tears away. Alex stood up and approached her parents' graves. They were buried side by side and a large tombstone stood for the both of them. Alex's father was Edward's oldest child and only son and the twin brother of Sam's mother.

Richard Edward Roivas Jennifer Erica Roivas

August 24, 1955 - July 21, 1991 February 17, 1955 - July 21, 1991

Loving Husband and Father Loving Wife and Mother

Both died in a car accident at age 36

"That is not dead which can eternal lie."

More tears escaped Alex's eyes. She missed her parents dearly. Even now, she could still remember their last gathering during July 3rd 1990 as a complete and whole family. She was 9, Sam was 11. She closed her eyes and remembered.

*Flashback Sequence*

9 year old Alex was at the harbor in Bristol County with her parents, waiting for her father's sister and her family. The Park was packed with families celebrating the upcoming 4th of July. In Bristol County, when it's July 3, everyone visits Bristol Harbor to have picnics and see the fireworks. Just then she saw a car pull over. The first person that came out was one of her most favorite people in the world; her cousin, Sam. She stood up and ran towards them.

"Sammy!" She yelled and she jumped in her arms.

"Hey, there's my favorite girl!" Sam yelled as she started spinning in circles with Alex in her arms.

"So, did you get in the softball team?" Alex asked enthusiastically.

"She sure did, Alex. She's the pitcher." Her Uncle, Julius Chase, answered.

"Really? Teach me how to play!" She begged.

"Of course but first, we're going to have a picnic and then before we leave, we're going to play softball." Sam answered. They went back to where they were having a picnic after that. A few minutes later after eating, Sam was trying to cajole everyone into playing.

"Who wants to play some softball?" Sam asked as she wore her gloves.

"I do!" Alex yelled.

"Alright, let's play!" Alex's father, Richard, said with an enthusiasm to match his daughter's.

"I'm in!" Julius said as he stood up.

"Well, no reason not to join." Jennifer Roivas said as she stood up as well. The only ones that didn't join were Richard's sister, Edwina and their father, Edward Roivas. They played before the fireworks started. Turns out, Sam was a mean pitcher like her uncle and that comes with a mean swing. Almost every ball they had went into the water or hit that 9 year old boy. Little Alex, however, didn't care about that. She was having the time of her life.

And that's all that mattered to her.

*End Flashback Sequence*

"I hope you guys are proud of me." Alex said as she cried. James wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm sure they are." He whispered. Sam came to sit down beside them.

"Hey, Sam, do you remember July 3 of 1990?" She asked.

"How could I forget? I was just made pitcher in the softball team during middle school. We were playing softball in Bristol Harbor waiting for the fireworks to start. That was like what? A year and 18 days before your parents died? We never got to celebrate after that because we had to go back to Italy because Dad had to do something." Sam asked.

"Yep."

"Bristol Harbor in July 3, 1990? You guys were there?" James asked.

"Yeah, we were." Sam answered.

"I was there too. That was the last day we spent together with my father as a family. There are these two girls about 9 and 11. The 9 year old was wearing a blue shirt and the 11 year old was wearing a light green polo shirt. Those two girls, man, the 9 year old; she can hit but she's not that good of a pitcher but she is a good catcher. But the 11 year old, man, that kid was insane. When she hits, it either goes to the water or hits someone in the face. That someone always being me." He recounted.

"Did they happen to look like this?" Alex asked as she pulled out her wallet and showed him a picture of her and Sam on that day.

"Yeah, yeah, this is them. Wait? That was the two of you?" He asked.

"Don't hold those balls against me, man. My father apologized to your dad for that." Sam said.

"No. You both were kind of cute. Especially Alex." He said as he gave the picture back.

"Thank you, Jimmy." She said and she kissed his cheek. Sam stood up and approached her parents' graves. Like Alex's parents, it was a big tombstone that stood for both of them. Sam's father, while not a Roivas, wanted to be buried next to his wife. She read both inscriptions on the graves.

Julius Andrew Chase Edwina Alexis Roivas - Chase

March 22, 1955 - September 4, 1993 August 24, 1955 - September 3, 1993

"And with strange aeons even death may die."

Sam was wondering why those quotes from the fictional Necronomicon was inscribed on their parents' graves. She brushed it off, thinking it was just because of the centuries long fascination of the family with the Arcane.

"Sorry."

Those were the only words Sam could say. Before her parents left to be in that car accident that claimed their lives, they had a big argument. She just had a broken arm from a softball game when she was 14. Her parents were dropping her off at Mark Williams' house to be babysat because she can't do much. Her father wanted her to leave the team to prevent anything like that happening again. In anger, she lashed out on them and after that, they left. She didn't know that was going to be the last time she'll see them. The next morning, she received word from her grandfather that they were dead and that she can never see Alex until he dies. At the time it seemed like the right decision; she was dead to the world and showing up would only confuse little Alex. She stayed behind a tree during the funeral. Even when everyone was gone, she didn't approach. Back then, Sam saw James approach Alex when she was crying by her pseudo grave. She left after that, knowing that someone would take care of her. After that, life was never normal for her. Her life became jumping from one middle school to another because of Mark's job, then CIA training while trying to obtain a college degree followed by missions around the world, all the while making excuses to her students just to keep her cover intact. She read her fake grave as well.

Samantha Verona Chase

April 16, 1979 – September 4, 1993

Verona. That was her middle name. Her father was half-Italian and grew up in Verona, Italy before he turned 14. She chuckled at her name. Verona. It means 'truth'.

"How ironic." She muttered. Her name meant truth, yet here she was. Living a lie. Using another identity. Again, she chuckled before walking away. She saw Alex and James by another grave away from the family plot. She approached and read the grave.

Hector Daniel Matthews

May 3, 1954 - January 31, 1991

A caring friend, A loving husband and father, A true hero

"Your dad?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. I want to know what happened to him so bad. Why his body was never recovered." He said. He shook his head and turned away from the grave.

"Let's go." Sam said. Alex and James followed her back to her car. She started the car and drove away.

"Hey, say this Ancient threat ends, what do you guys plan to do?" James asked.

"Finish College and find a decent job then I'll try and figure things out from there." Alex answered.

"Same, except I planned further than that." James answered.

"What about you?" Alex asked Sam as she drove. She stopped at the traffic light.

"Me? I guess, try and go normally again." She answered.

"You mean quit the CIA? Take an early retirement?" James asked curiously.

"No. You see before this started, I was assigned to every single mission the agency knew I was capable of doing. Since I just got back from sabbatical and I asked them to take things easy on me, they gave me a lot less field work. After this, I'm going to take up the usual load of field work again. Because whether I like it or not; that's how normal it's going to be for me from here on out." Sam explained before driving away. Back to the airport. Back to the plane that'll take them back to what, hopefully, could soon be their normal lives again.

AN: And that is chapter 3! I told you this is just a filler chapter! Worry not my dear readers; the next chapter will be The Lovecraft Chapter! But until then I hope you all liked this one!

To nyantasticMIO: Yes! I named James' mom after Fairy Tail's Lucy! That should take the question mark off of your head.