5/2/10 – Re-post of edited Chapter. A brief recap of the changes is at the bottom of this page for anyone that has already read this.

1/4/10 Do you remember playing with dolls? I do. I'd take out my Barbie, Cabbage Patch or what have you and create a world for them. I loved to play pretend. You can make anything happen when you make believe. Now, instead of dolls I have characters from wonderful books.

I thank Mrs. Harris for providing some of the best characters to play with. I wish I could keep them forever but I didn't make them. Drat.

I hope you have as much fun as me.

(1) The Reluctant Acquaintance

Sometimes I find it amazing, this life of mine. Not amazing in a good way. Not that it is all bad either. But it sure seems that the bad outweighs the good much of the time. My first lover was a vampire and he was deceitful, My brother's best friend tried to strangle me to death as he'd done to several other girls, I've been shot at by the jealous ex-girlfriend of a werewolf, I was staked by a human that tried to off a vampire, I was raped by my first lover when we were locked in a trunk as he regained consciousness, I was in a building when several bombs exploded, I was with the queen and her entourage when her husband turned against her and a vampire war erupted, I was literally in the middle of a Were war, I was tortured... but I'm not thinking about that.

As I said, it isn't all bad. I found that I can be myself around vampires and most other supernatural people too, I can't read their minds like I can normal humans; I have saved many lives, especially in Dallas and Rhodes... oh and the Were pack in Shreveport, not only did I help them to live but I got them to be a united pack again; I learned that I had more family. Jason and I had more family.

For years it was just me, my Gran and my brother Jason. Our parents died years ago and Gran took Jason and me in. Gran is gone now, murdered by the man who tried to murder me the first time. With Gran gone, I thought that Jason was all I had left. But then I found out that that wasn't true. There was family that I hadn't even heard about. But they're gone too now, thanks to the motherfucking supernatural bullshit that is always going on. Excuse my language.

Dear lord, I'd better stop this train of thought now before I get all depressed and Eric demands to know what is wrong. Speak of the devil, Viking. There he is; tall, beautiful, blond and looking like a work of art. Michelangelo's David wouldn't look as good in a Fangtasia t-shirt and a pair of jeans as Eric does.

Eric rises from his throne in his bar Fangtasia. He steps down from the stage and kisses me. He directs me to a booth and orders a gin and tonic for me. I tell him that I do not drink alcohol when I am working.

He responds, "Glad to hear it." Eric smiles at me and then calls the server back over so that she can amend the order. Eric knows almost everything there is to know about me. We're kind of married. I'm still not sure how I feel about that, especially after the shit that went down a while back. But I'm still not thinking about that. Eric wants to talk with me about it, but he can go fly a kite. It ain't gonna happen.

Since I'm here to work for Eric tonight I order a ginger ale. It's hard enough to keep outside thoughts at bay, but man they can do a number when I have some drink in me.

Patron's were sizing me up and criticizing me before I even got to Eric. Many of the women can't believe the attention that I receive from the vampires here, especially Eric. "What's so special about her," is a common thought. Many think that I look too plain to be with a vampire. One woman thinks that it's because of my boobs, "He must be a chest man. She's got a large chest. Mine's bigger though. Maybe I'll drop something in front of him and bend over to give him a good view..." The brunette proceeds to test her theory, but gets nowhere fast.

For the next couple of hours I listen to the same thoughts over and over as Eric works in his office. I don't listen on just one or two people, but the result would likely be the same. All are thinking about sex in some form or other. Most are vying to go home with someone, two guys lament that Eric likes women. Three women are interested in Pam. One of those women has some pretty explicit day dreams, I start to blush. Eric, of course, senses something and has to check it out. I tell him it's nothing, he isn't satisfied with my response but he lets it go and returns to his office.

Pam comes and asks me if there is anything of interest. So far there is not a thing that they need to know. Even though I'm not getting anything, I keep reading the minds as I am here to do a job. If something happened because I was slack and did not pick up on a problem, I could never forgive myself.

Pam is about to leave when I 'hear', "I can't believe it worked. We're gonna have a good time tonight and get toasted good." I reach out to Pam and she stills for a moment as I continue to watch and "listen." The person, a slight young man with a prematurely receding brownish red hairline, is standing at the bar waiting for his drink order. He checks his ringing cell phone. "Fuck. I can't pick up here. They'll kill me... I'll call them back later and tell them that I had the ringer off during the movie."

I inform Pam that I believe we have an underage patron, I look to the table where his friends are and their thoughts confirm it. None of them are even old enough to vote. Thalia is about to put the tray of drinks out for the young man when Pam sweeps in. He and his three friends are summarily kicked out.

The blond fangbanger waitress, Sheila comes up and asks if I'd like more ginger ale. I say "yes," and she leaves to get me a refill. Sheila Blige has worked here almost since the place opened and is way too thin for her frame. I wish I could give her some of my extra padding. It's not like I like her, I don't really. She's always thinking about how I'm not good enough for her master and how she should be the one to share his bed, yada yada yada. I just think she's too thin to be healthy. She's never said a bad thing to me, it's not like she can control her thoughts... And here she comes again, "you're not even the prettiest whore that the Master has fucked." With more than a little envy, "I've been here for years, you should be serving me. Oh shit. She can 'hear' me. Did she just 'hear' me?" Sheila looks at me, "Did you 'hear' me?" I nod and Sheila becomes panicked. "Eric is going to kill me if he finds out. It's not like I'd do anything to her... Eric would kill me if I did." Sheila stalks off lost in her thoughts.

A few more faces filter in, some are regulars and I know what kind of people they are. I'll check them too, in case they were glamoured or for some reason went to the "dark side." But I'll start with the fresh faces. Sex, sex, V; Fudge. I don't see Pam or Eric, but I whisper "Pam" since I know she's the one working the floor. She's by my side in a flash and I tell her about the group of college kids looking for a V dealer. The small group is glamoured and herded into Eric's office.

Twenty minutes later the group is seen leaving. They look sick. Pam tells me that they believe they had a bad trip on V. The memory of it is so bad that they will get sick if they even think about taking V again. She winks at me and then leaves. I continue my scan.

"Twenty minutes. Man. Time moves slowly when you're in hell I guess. Ugh! I can't wait to leave this godforsaken hole!" I sit up in my seat. I scan the faces to identify the body to go with the thought. The tall, sandy blond woman drumming her fingers; it must be her. She has on a lovely red dress with a sweetheart neckline. She might blend in well at an upscale human bar, but in a sea of fangbanger black she sticks out. One of the fangbangers is talking to her. The fangbanger, Grace, is here almost every night in her black ensemble with dog collar, spiked hair and heavy Goth make-up. I get from Grace's mind that she is telling the other woman that the best man to be with is the one that I fuck. Great, another hateful fangbanger in the making, thanks Grace. I can't hear the conversation with my ears, but I can hear their thoughts. I listen to the new person some more. "This lady is strange. Maybe she's lost too much blood and that's why she ain't right in the head." She looks in my direction then at the Grace "That girl would have to be weird to even be here, but at least she looks normal... What in the Sam Hill am I thinking? I'm here too... It's not for me to judge."

Pam approaches the blond woman and Grace. Grace smiles, but the smile quickly fades as Pam addresses the other woman at the bar. "She seems nice. Wonder why she likes working in a vampire bar? Her outfit works well with this place, but she looks more like Alice outside of Wonderland." I chuckle to myself. I watch as Pam's fangs descend before walking back to the podium. "Was I just hit on by a vampire? A girl? Good lord, I think a girl just hit on me." I am trying not to laugh, but it's just too funny. "Dang, getting rid of that vampire is easier than getting rid of this person next to me... I just need to find a quiet area to think." Grace speaks to the woman, the woman subtly rolls her eyes as she thinks of an exit strategy, "I could strike up a conversation with someone and hope that they play along... No. Not here. Not in this bar I'm not."

Eric comes to sit next to me as I stare at the woman. He follows my eyes and sees the woman and Grace in a conversation. Surely, he can hear what they say with their mouths while I cannot.

Both ladies look our way as Grace points out Eric. Again, she has no kind thoughts for me; but she has plenty for Eric. The other woman is still trying to think of a way to tactfully pull away from the hanger on. Her thoughts rattle off quickly. "Geez, go away already. You're jealous of them? Get over it. You probably wouldn't want to be with a vampire anyway... fudge, I'm being prejudiced. How should I know if a vampire could be a good person or not?" She looks at my vampire. "He's one beautiful person...that blond lady vampire was nice, well maybe 'cause she thought I'd swing that way... Don't forget that they can kill you... stop thinking that..." She looks back at her conversation partner reluctantly. "I should at least have a name to call her by if I'm gonna be stuck here with her...Grace. She doesn't look very graceful. Stop that... you were raised better than to think such things! She might be pretty underneath all her gunk and maybe she has a better personality when she's sober... Grace is just jealous because the big vampire wants that Sookie person and not her. Geesh that Sookie is about the only person not wearing a black outfit with horrible make-up. Maybe the vampire likes his humans to look human. She is pretty... together for a while huh? Like I care..." She rolls her eyes, "Get over it already! He wants that Sookie person... and you are driving me insane and I need to think. Why did it have to be here? Ugh!"

I tell Eric that I want to get up and he gets out of the booth so that I can. When he sees that I am going over to the tall blond and Grace, Eric stops me. "What did you hear?" I stop for a moment, what should I tell him? Right then I hear her think, "They are such a good looking couple." I smile and kiss Eric. "That we are a good looking couple and that Grace ought to get over it!"

He watches me walk over to the bar as I introduce myself to the blond woman. Grace shoots hateful looks at me as I wish her a good evening and ask my new acquaintance, Patty if she'd like to sit with me. She looks around and notices that many people are watching us, being in the center of a scene makes her nervous. I gently tug her arm and lead her back to our booth. "What the heck is going on? Why is everybody staring? I shouldna come here... I can fight, but I'm no match for a vampire... wait... Don't panic yet... you're still in public... you're just going to a booth where the owner sits... I hear they can hypnotize...no, you're not going there Patty." She reprimands herself.

Eric stands so that I can slide back into my position in our booth. I introduce Patty to Eric. Patty says, "He… Hello Mr. Northman." Eric nods his head and says "Hello." Patty sits at the table opposite Eric and me.

"So what does a Public Relations representative want with me?" Patty asks. Her eyes flash on Eric for a moment, but that makes her anxious so she focuses on me or the picture over my shoulder. "She seems so normal. Well, except that she came up to me out of the blue to pull me to a private booth." I told Patty that I am an employee and that my area is public relations when I introduced myself. What would you call it? I can't exactly say that I'm one eighth fairy and that I'm telepathic. Fairies remain unknown to humans and I'm told that my telepathy comes from somewhere else.

I mix the truth with a lie. After all, I know she doesn't want to be here. "You look less than thrilled to be here. I was wondering if there was anything that happened. If so; we would be happy to fix it."

"Less than thrilled to be here? Now that is an understatement." She looks at me, then at Eric and then at the artwork behind me. Her pitch goes up. "What? There's nothing wrong with this place... It's uh, interesting." Eric leans forward. I think he is going to glamour her, but I put my hand on his arm to stop him. He sits back and listens to us talk.

"Patty, one of the reasons that I work for Fangtasia is that I am a pretty accurate bullshit reader. I know you don't want to be here, I'm just curious to know why you are."

She wrings her hands in her lap. "Yeah, like I'm gonna tell you." Patty smiles, on the outside she seems polite and mild mannered but her nerves are a mess. "What can I possibly say? I can't tell her what's going on... Wait, calm down... it's none of her business."

She hasn't spoken yet, Eric awaits an answer. Patty is very nervous. I have to give her credit though, her outside is calm. "We can talk alone, if it'd make you more comfortable."

"No. That's okay." She thinks, "Shitshitshit." Patty's face tenses a bit. "I just don't want to offend anybody." She glances up at Eric and comes back to me.

Eric raises his brows. He is curious. "If she takes much longer, I'll glamour it out of her." Her eyes open wide, betraying her relatively calm exterior.

"Eric!" I exclaim under my breath as I punch his shoulder. He doesn't appreciate that. I know I'm going to pay for it later. It's a good thing that no visiting vampires are around; he has a reputation to maintain and a human woman hitting him does not fit in with that reputation.

Patty softens a tad at the display between Eric and me. She confesses, "This isn't really my kind of place. I don't even drink, except for a glass of bubbly on New Years and maybe a wine on the Fourth of July."

I smile at her, encouraging her to continue. "So that's why you're uncomfortable." I look around, "Well, at least that is part of it." We chuckle. "So why did you come?"

Patty takes a deep breath. "A friend challenged me, saying it was beyond me to do such a thing, to come to a place like this." Patty has a good poker face; her brain has a totally different answer. "Some python something or other told me that I had to come here, or go to New Orleans and she didn't take too kindly to me hanging up on her so she sent some vampires over to prove that she means business."

'Some python something or other,' …could she mean the Ancient Pythoness? Why would the Pythoness want a human to come to Shreveport or New Orleans? Eric looks at me; he knows that I'm trying to figure something out. While he looks at me I feel a tinge of happiness, a lot of sadness and guilt coming from Patty. When I glance at her, I can tell she is looking in Eric's eyes. "They're the same eyes... What the hell are you doing Patty? He can glamour you!" She quickly looks away, but Eric and I both see it.

I ask Patty if she would like a drink and she reluctantly accepts. She asks for a tea with extra lemon. I have my ginger ale freshened and Eric has a True Blood.

Before saying anything more to Patty, I see my brother Jason heading my way. Like the three of us at the table, he has blond hair; only his is short. My brother is taller than me but nowhere near as tall as Eric. He's muscular too; he likes to keep himself looking good for the ladies. The ladies in my town of Bon Temps fawn over him all the time.

I motion to Eric to let me up. I am up just in time to hug Jason. He picks me up in a bear hug, puts me down and then turns to Eric to say "hello."

Patty's face falls when she sees Jason. She gropes for her purse. "Gun, I need the gun, gun gun" Patty looks at Jason, then at me. "What the heck?" She looks at Eric, "So much for vampires finding fairies tasty." Patty finally grabs her purse. As she opens it, Eric grabs her arm.

He looks at the item she had latched onto and pulls it out. It's a water gun full of liquid. People are starting to stare at us. Eric commands, "My office, now."

Eric hands her purse to me and leads Patty to his office. Jason and I follow. Patty tries to think of ways to get away from Eric, but keeps coming to the conclusion that she isn't strong enough or fast enough to pull off any escape attempt. She thinks about screaming, but then decides that that might make it worse for her.

Patty is released from Eric's grasp once she's inside the office. Eric closes the door behind Jason and me and motions for us to sit.

My brother and I sit, but Patty eyes the door. That is until she sees Eric narrow his eyes at her. She backs to a wall. "At least I'll see what's coming." With a shaky voice she says, "I'd rather stand." Patty gulps, but does not budge from her spot. "Safer in the lion's den; what the hell kind of advice was that? …The kind that gets me right where he wants me. Why here?"

Eric moves toward Patty but I hold my hand up, to ask him to stop. He leans on the edge of his desk.

I turn to Jason, "Why are you here?"

Already defensive Jason says, "'Cause he wanted me to be." He points to Eric.

Eric presses his lips together, nods his head and then says, "I want to discuss something with your brother but that can wait for the moment."

"Okay." I turn back to my brother. "Do you know this woman?"

"Sookie," His eyes fix on mine, trying to figure out what is going on. "Contrary to what you may believe, I do not know every woman in Louisiana. I ain't never seen her before." He smiles a bit, "I wish I knew why she's so scared of me."

I still have the woman's purse in my hands. I pick up the water pistol and smell it. Good lord, this woman is in a heap of a mess.

Patty remembers coming home with several bags from Food Basket and then making lemonade. She says something to someone, but the person doesn't respond. She looks around the home until she finds a corpse in a bathtub. She screams and she is grabbed from behind as she sees Jason come near her. Jason has a glow to him and he's snarling at her, telling her how he killed off her family. The man behind holding her suddenly releases her and screams, "Lemons." Jason's eyes turn red with rage before he runs off. That must have been Dermot.

"Jason. I need you to do something for me, okay?" He nods his head. "Squirt a bit of this into your mouth." He looks at me but then obliges and squirts it.

"The least you could do is put some sugar in it." He complains.

"Sookie?" Eric does not like being in the dark, but I'm still piecing it together.

"Fairies, Eric." It's all I've got so far.

"I figured that much for myself, lover." Eric looks from Patty to Jason. "She seems to think that Jason is a fairy. But if he were he wouldn't be able to drink that lemon juice." He looks at Patty. "So now you know that this man is not a fairy."

"Then he works for a fairy!" She yells. Jason stands up and moves toward her. The cornered blond stiffens, balls her fists and shrieks at Jason, "You told me how you killed my family. Tell me why!"

"That fucker!" Jason is pissed. "When did you last see him?" He looks at Patty. "The guy that looks like me, when did you last see that fucker?"

Patty is stunned. I can't hear anything with either type of reception. I tell Jason to back away as I move toward her. Eric offers to glamour her, but she doesn't need a hole in the head.

Finally she answers, "Just a few days ago. I had iron on me; I always do now... so he didn't get too close." She looks back at Jason.

"We've had problems with him too." I tell her. "His name is Dermot and though he and Jason look a lot alike, looks is all they've got in common."

Eric says. "Now that that's settled… How about you two ladies go back out front so that Jason and I might have a word in private?" Patty lets out a long slow exhale.

"Eric!" I am not letting this poor woman face fairies on her own.

"Yes Sookie?" He says to me. You are not that thick Eric. Quit playing dumb.

I go to the door, open it and ask for Pam. I tell Pam that I'd like it if she could keep an eye on Patty for a few minutes while I talk to Eric. I really don't want Patty to leave. Pam looks over at Eric and Eric nods. She's not happy to be doing something for me, but her fangs pop out when she sees that Patty is the blond she spoke with earlier. Maybe there's another 'Patty' in the bar tonight?

Pam watches with some amusement as Patty stays as far as possible from Jason as she exits the office. Pam is going to sit with her at our booth.

I ask Jason to wait a moment outside. Once we're alone I turn on Eric, "Eric, we have to help her. A fairy is tryin' to kill her."

Eric looks down at me and tells me, "this is a bar Sookie. I do not run a body guard service." He thinks for a moment, as though mulling over creating such a business. He can be so insensitive, it's infuriating. "Eric! I can't let her leave here knowing that as soon as she's away from here someone might attack her."

His eyes penetrate mine, he kisses my head. "You cannot save everyone Dear One."

"I know that, Eric. But I was raised to help others that need it. She needs it. I'd call Alcide, but they lost Tray because of those damned fairies." I can't help but cry. "I feel like I'm supposed to help her. I know I am but I just don't know how. Please Eric."

"If it will make you feel better I'll arrange for some day protection tomorrow." He kisses my temple. "We can negotiate the rest later."

"Thank you. Eric?" His gaze turns to me as he pulls out a cell phone. "I have to talk to her more but from what I heard in her head, I think the Ancient Pythoness is the one that got her to come here."

He kisses my forehead. "In that case, I have two phone calls to make." As I head for the door Eric says, "Please ask your brother to wait for me." I nod my head and leave, giving Jason the message to continue waiting where he is. It is near the two am closing time and most humans are gone.

As I walk toward our booth I can 'hear' Patty thinking over her strategy. The problem she's stuck on right now is how to sleep with her eyes open. She thinks about pouring lemon juice on herself before going to sleep; it wouldn't be comfortable but the fairies sure as heck wouldn't like it either.

"I apologize for flipping out like that. He just... he looks just like him." She paws the inside of her purse for her keys as she decides that she'll go to Walmart for lemon juice and that she'll pay cash to stay in the next hotel.

Pam slides out from the booth and I slide in. Pam's cell rings, she flips it open and reads a text message. The blond vampire sits back at the table, on the same side a Patty, blocking her exit. She looks at Patty, "It seems you have protection coming."

"What?! Why? None of these people know me… Thank god. Wait. What am I thinking? The fairies are after me. If anyone else interferes, it's just gonna get them killed." Patty looks at Pam and then at me. "I do appreciate that but I can't let anyone get hurt on my account."

My voice is firm. It's almost like I'm channeling Eric. "Patty. You do not stand a chance without help. When you're with us here, you're safe but fairies can walk in the daylight. You need daytime protection from the fairies." All the vampires in the bar hear this and their fangs extend.

Pam smiles with her fangs down, "Fairy? How very delicious." She slowly licks her lips.

Patty thinks, "Ohgodohgodohgod. I have to get out of here." Pam senses Patty's urge to run and puts a hand on the girls shoulder. "You will remain here until it is safe." Pam takes in a deep breath and closes her eyes. "You have an intoxicating smell Patty."

Patty freaks out some more. "No. Nonononono.... The bathroom. I'll tell them that I have to go to the bathroom and then I'll sneak out a window. God I hope there are windows in the bathroom." She tells us, "I need to use the ladies room."

Before Pam moves even a fraction of an inch, I tell the woman in front of me, "Don't bother. The windows are way too small. And they're high up." Pam smiles in amusement.

Ten minutes after the bar closes, Jason makes his way to the front exit. Patty gets tense and has another flashback to the dead man in the bathtub. Her tension lessens when he leaves. The remaining crew cleans up and prepares for tomorrow night.

"Tiger's here." Pam says. Moments later, Quinn walks in with Eric behind him. John Quinn is a weretiger and for a brief period of time, I thought I might have a future with him. That obviously didn't work out, which Eric is thrilled about. He is not thrilled that Quinn and I had sex when we were together, but who is he to complain? Quinn nods his head to Pam and then greets me, "Babe. This your friend?" He inclines his head toward Patty.

"Patty this here is John Quinn." I began, but Eric took it from there.

"Quinn here will be with you all day. You'll be staying at a hotel down the street, they have excellent security and the Were guards have been put on the alert. You'll have a vampire guard at night. Your guard will be with you wherever you need to go."

"Thank you, Mr. Northman, but I cannot accept all of that..." She speaks to him with a soft voice, forcing out the words.

He looks at me for a moment and raises a brow. Patty is thinking how she doesn't want someone to get killed on account of her and she doesn't want to owe a vampire anything. Her grandmother used to warn her about supernatural beings; never accept help, it would always come at a high price.

Eric cuts her off. "It is not for you to decline. Nor is this a matter of what I want, or what any person in this room wants. This comes from higher up."

She takes a deep breath and sticks out her chin. "I'm afraid that I must decline... I'm sorry for being a bother, I'll just go now." She looks at Pam, but Pam isn't budging.

Quinn looks at her. "If Sookie here says that you are in over your head, you are. If Mr. Northman here says you're in danger, then you are in a shit load of danger. Now he's arranging for your protection and forces higher than him want that too... I think you oughta listen."

"Patty. Look at me." I wait for her eyes to meet mine. "I know what you're thinking. You really don't want anyone to get killed because of you and you know that supernaturals take debt very seriously and you don't want to be indebted to anyone, least of all a supe."

Her head rambles so quickly that I miss some. "Oh my god. How does she know that? Shit. Shitshitshit. Shit on a stick. Does she know I'm part fairy too? Quinn, I bet he's not human... what if he can pick up on the fairy scent? If he does, I'll never be able to hide it."

I push my extrasensory hearing out to find out if anyone else remains in the bar with us. The other workers have left. There isn't anyone else so I set my eyes back on Patty. I ask her, "Do you know the name Niall Brigant?"

"Yes. He owned a successful business..." She's cut off.

"You know who and what he is?" Eric asks. He's getting impatient.

Her mouth contorts as she formulates her response. She knows that he's a fairy prince and oh my god. Tears come to my eyes as I smile at her. All eyes are on me, but I ignore them to look at her.

I reach for her hand, "me too." He's my great grandfather. Her eyes widen in surprise and she asks, "Really? Wow. So you're like a fairy princess." I nod my head and encourage her to tell me. "He came by once to tell us that Graidey, my great-grandfather, was dead. I remember 'cause he also said that someone named Fintan had died and my grandmother went into hysterics. Prince Niall and my great-great-grandfather were sort of allies, I guess." She starts to think about her family. Patty had a big family growing up, but now they are all gone. Every single member has been murdered; except her. She doesn't even have a brother that still lives. My eyes fill with tears.

Pam sniffs Patty. "That is why you smell so wonderful. Virgins always smell good, but you are positively mouth-watering." She smiles and her fangs run down.

"Pam!" Eric and I both chide. Well, more Eric than me; he's the vampire after all. Eric takes in a deep breath and his fangs come down too. He looks right at me, "Brings back some memories." He wags his eyebrows at me and the mood lightens again. Well, for three of us.

"I wouldn't go advertising that you have fairy blood in you." I say to her. "But these three are trustworthy... And as much as Pam might like to, I'm sure she won't bite you without permission."

Patty shakes her head. Pam sighs unnecessarily, "I don't get any of the fun around here."

Eric addresses us all, "There are things to be done before dawn. I suggest we separate now. There is still much to discuss, but it will have to wait until tomorrow." He looks at Patty again "Your vehicle will stay here; you will ride with your guard to the hotel." He notices the tall tale signs of a rising protest and he says in a flat tone, "If you do not cooperate I will place you in an underground dungeon. I have been charged with keeping you safe and safe you will be. I will warn you though, the dungeon is not pleasant for a human; it's dark, damp, cold and smells...like a dungeon."

She raises her voice, "What is wrong with you? You know I'm scared so you try threatening me into doing what you want, I don't think so buster."

"You will not raise your voice to me in my own establishment. I have told you about the hotel room, your transportation, and guard; and I have told you what the consequence will be should you refuse or try to refuse. I did not threaten you; my threats are much more memorable."

She sighs and it is almost a growl. Eric has Patty turn her keys over to Pam and Pam takes off like a bat out of hell.

A couple of minutes later Pam strolls back inside. She looks at Patty. "You're suitcase, and make-up bag are in the truck. Nice car by the way." Pam addresses the rest of us. "She has the same car I do, but hers is red."

Patty tries to be polite, but she is fuming on the inside. She feels like stalking out, but does fairly well at walking with purpose instead. She and Quinn make it to his truck and leave the parking lot.

Suddenly Eric bursts out laughing. He's laughing so hard that his stomach is doing crunches and I can see it even with his shirt on. Hey, I'm allowed to look. He's mine. Pam is amused by his outburst. We wait for him to speak.

Eric says to me, "you were really frustrated there for a bit." He would know. He could feel it through the bond.

I tell him. "Who wouldn't be frustrated trying to help someone that refuses your help even though it's needed?" This time Pam joins him when he began laughing again. "What's so funny? That she's so frustrating?" They laugh harder.

A red tear streaks down Pam's face. "You just got a taste of your own medicine."

What? What is she talking about? No. I was never that bad. I shake my head. Eric nods his and so does Pam. Eric says to me, "Now you know what I have put up with since I met you." He smiles at me and kisses me.

I had planned to go home after working in Fangtasia all night, but I want to get a chance to speak with Patty during the day so I ask Eric if I can use his phone book.

"What do you need, Lover?" He leans into the doorway.

Uh-oh. "I want to find a hotel nearby."

He crosses his muscular arms across that beautifully sculpted chest. "What do you need a hotel for?"

I bite my lip. "I was thinking that I'd like to spend some time with Patty. Get to know her and see if I can figure out what's going on. That's a whole lot easier in person than over the phone. 'Specially if I need to dip into her head. Besides, she's scared and needs a friendly face."

Does he even use a phone book? I open the closet door to see if there is one on the shelf. There is. But the shelf is too high for me. Eric comes over to me but instead of pulling the book down, he wraps his arms around my waist.

He turns me to look at him. "I am disappointed that you didn't ask me Sookie."

Ask him? Ask him if... whoa. "Eric, I've never been to your place before. Why would I think of it? Besides, the fewer people that know where you rest the safer it is for you."

He teases, "Are you saying that you'd betray me as soon as you knew my daytime address?" I give him my best stare and he smirks in response. "I would love nothing more than for you to come home with me tonight." He bows to gently kiss my hand and then looks at me, waiting for my reply. He knows my answer before I say it as a smile spreads over my face. "Let's go."

I haven't spent much time with Eric outside of Fangtasia. Not since… and the problem isn't really gone. Dermot is still in this realm. I need to relocate my water pistols and load 'em up with lemon juice again. Eric can't always be there for me. I know that all too well….

"Something is bothering you, Lover?" Eric feels my sadness and anxiety. It's touching that he cares so much, but it can be damned annoying too.

"Just thinking… Do you have any iron that I can carry with me during the day? I didn't think to bring the old garden trowel with me, but…" Eric stops me.

"You will have your iron. You will also have a guard during the day." He says as though it's set in stone.

"Eric, Dermot is after Patty. Not me. Besides, he doesn't know where I am." If he did, I'd have seen him by now.

He smirks at me. "Dermot wants you dead. If he knows that Patty is in Shreveport and he's looking for her he could come upon you in his search for your new friend. Should you be near her when he attacks Patty, he may go after you too… or, he could simply follow you after separating from Patty and Quinn and then kill you."

I hate being followed around everywhere. We don't even know if Dermot is anywhere near Shreveport. "Eric," He parks the car and stops my little speech by putting a finger to my lips. He smiles and tells me, "It is frustrating to try to assist someone that refuses your help even though it's needed." Ugh! His smile broadens.

Eric is out of the 'Vette and opening my door before my hand touches the handle. We're in a two car garage. I was so absorbed in thought that I completely missed seeing his home as we approached. Guess I'll look around tomorrow.

There are two doors aside from the big one. There is one door in front of the car, opposite the big one and there is another door on the wall to the left of the car. We walk into the door near the front of the car.

Just inside is a mud room. We take our shoes off and leave them there. Next I see a large living room/dining room area with a nice kitchen. There is a stone fireplace in the living room. The floors are hardwood. The color scheme and furniture screams "Southern Living," but it is not overtly feminine. It evokes a sense of nature. It was originally a three bedroom home, but one room was knocked out to make for a larger bathroom. Which, by the way, is exquisite. There is a skylight with retractable shades, you can bathe and stargaze at the same time. Way cool.

Eric tells me that ten minutes before dawn, light-blockable shades cover every window. They're programmed to open after sunset. He shows me a security camera where I can see whoever is at the front door. He instructs me on how to set his alarm system and gives me a key to his house.

Alcide will be here at noon to go with me anywhere I want. Alcide himself? Huh. Alcide Herveaux is the pack master for the Shreveport werewolf pack. We never really dated, but we did get on real well for a time. It might have gone somewhere if it weren't for his psycho ex-girlfriend.

I rummage through the suitcase that Eric put on a dresser in the master bedroom. I packed it some time ago to keep in the car for a 'just in case it's needed.' Crap. I didn't pack any night clothes.

Eric raises a brow, "Problem?"

I sigh. "When I packed this thing I didn't think about what I'd want to sleep in."

"You don't have to sleep in anything." He smiles at me. He goes to a drawer and pulls out a long, deep blue shirt. "How's this?"

"Perfect. Thank you." I give him a kiss on the cheek. He's being very good. The closest thing to a lewd comment from him tonight was just moments ago, and that was nothing coming from him.

After I shower, I sit to brush my hair. Eric takes the brush from my hand and brushes it out for me. He says to me, "Either Pam or I will need to claim Patty if she is to be safe from our kind."

I am in bliss right now as his hands caress my head; his fingers and the brush play with the strands of my hair. His words are ruining the whole effect. "She's not property Eric."

He continues to work with my hair. "I know that in this country, among humans, no human is property. Just as you know that in my world, she and you both are. If she has no master any vampire can claim her… If Pam hadn't told some of the others to back off tonight, Patty's night would be very different right now. They believe that either Pam intended to claim Patty tonight or that she was keeping watch over the girl so that I could claim her. You might wish to speak to her of this during the day to prepare her."

I take in a deep breath. I remember being pissed when Bill, my first vampire lover, claimed that I was "his." This will not sit well with Patty either. I'm sure of it. I say to Eric, "I'll explain it as best I can and that it's really just a formality…"

He speaks over the top of my head, "For us yes, for her no."

"What do you mean?"

I can hear the smile in his voice when he tells me, "When Bill claimed you as his I could have laughed myself off my throne. He hadn't bitten you and you were still a virgin." His voice becomes all business again. "Had I wanted, I could have challenged him for you. I thought of doing it too. But I've never challenged someone so incapable of defending himself. There would have been no thrill in the victory. And the fact that he hadn't touched you made me curious… I started to investigate after that. It took a while but I figured it out." His voice becomes angry. "I thought of ripping his throat out and staking him for what he did to you." I put my hand on his. Eric coerced Bill to telling me the truth, once Eric had put all the pieces together himself.

"She's gonna freak out big time." I say to him as he leans over and wraps his arms around me and kisses my cheek. I turn my head so that I get his lips.

I move so that I am standing in front of him and no longer have to twist my neck. His hands move up and down my back. His tongue is at my lips, licking them. I caress his chest, and then I reach around and grab that ass of his. It has been so long. I need this. I slip a hand under his shirt, slide it up his back and massage my way to his chest and play with a nipple. His hands feel like they're everywhere on me. I move to kiss the base of his neck and gently bite his skin. His fangs run down. He puts each of his hands on my arms, "no."

No? "No? Is something wrong Eric?" God I want him so bad. I used to have to fend him off. What's up with this?

"There are still issues that need to be discussed; Issues which you are avoiding." He looks at my face. "It seems that you're still not ready to talk about them either. I can wait. But I won't share my body with you until then."

Eric is refusing sex? What? All because he wants to have his discussion. I'm not ready, damn it!

Those things are horrible; their teeth are like razors, their eyes are insane, their scent is putrid and each time Thing One or Thing Two comes near me there is incredible pain, oh the pain… where is Eric, Eric is supposed to come… I call out to him, I cry out his name. He doesn't come, I am going to die. I am as good as dead… My world goes dark.

5/2/10 – Made a few changes, mostly with spelling and tense. Food Basket replaced Winn Dixie. Winn Dixie does not exist in Patty's area of the country. I decided on Food Basket as it was where my mother used to food shop the most and most certainly is in Patty's home state.

Sheila Blige (She'll oblige) was originally Ginger. Ginger was the waitress in my mind when I wrote the scene. –I pictured the TB actress which I think goes pretty well with the book. No readers have complained or even said "yes" to my question in an Author's note; I asked readers if I they thought I should make a change… I couldn't stand it anymore so I did it anyway. Ginger isn't undead, she permanently dead so she shouldn't be here.