Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Layla and a few of the plot twists.

Classical music filtered through the speakers of Layla's tiny silver Honda as she drove through the tiny town of Bon Temps, Louisiana. The windows of the car were rolled up to conserve the cool air conditioning. Layla glanced at the directions in her hand. The little house she had bought should be just around corner if she were following the directions correctly. It had been such a find. Small, one bedroom, and super cheap because some woman had been murdered there. Layla let out a breath of relief when she turned and saw her realtor standing out front. Pulling the car into the little driveway she took a breath before stepping out into the heat. She was thankful she was wearing sunglasses, because the minute she stepped out of the dimness of her car she was practically blinded by both the oppressive sun and the realtor's cheery smile.

"Layla Dahlin, it is such a pleasure to meet you, finally! I'm Sue Ellen Williams and let me be the first to say, welcome home!" the realtor, Sue Ellen, said in a voice so cheery and filled with southern twang it made Layla's ears hurt.

"It's nice to meet you, Ms. Williams." Layla said, her voice low but polite. The woman had big, blue eyes and artificial red hair to match her bright red power suit.

"Get a load of that accent. Where are you from again, sweetheart?" Sue Ellen asked. Layla winced at the mention of her accent. She was constantly told she had one, but she couldn't hear it. In her mind, everyone else had accents.

"Philadelphia." she told the woman. Sue Ellen nodded as though she were extremely interested but both women knew it didn't really matter.

After a bit more chatter and a promise to keep in touch, Layla finally got the chance to settle into her new home. She had spent most of her money buying the place, and the furniture she had brought from home wasn't enough to fill the place up, but she thought half the fun would be decorating the place over time, getting to know her new home. After unloading the boxes from her car she finally could sink onto the floor to rest on the lightly stained carpet. Her long dark hair had curled loosely in the heat, and her black makeup was smudged slightly around her tawny eyes. Maybe moving south hadn't been the greatest idea. The only reason she had done it was to avoid winter, and to start a new life for herself, away from the influence of others. Layla wasn't exactly a 'people person'. She worked form home mostly, as an online journalist. It wasn't a fantastic paycheck, but it payed the bills, and that's all she needed to do until she sold the novel she was so diligently working on. She mostly slept during the day, waking up around two in the afternoon and not going to bed until near sunrise. Most people back home had assumed she was a Vampire because of her odd sleeping habits. Actually, it wasn't just the sleep schedule that made them question her. It was her pale skin (which she prized), her cold maturity, and her seeming lack of interest in others. Truth was, Layla was just bored with reality, which was one of the reasons she wrote fiction in the first place. It was an escape. A few years ago, she had been thrilled with the idea of Vampires coming out of the coffin and integrating into society, and while she still supported the movement, the mystical quality of the Vampire seemed to have been lost in the shuffle. It hadn't become special...it had become normal.

Eventually Layla's stomach began to growl. She was in no mood to cook and so climbed back into the car so she could backtrack to a little restaurant she had passed earlier. Melrose? No, that wasn't it, but it was something along those lines. As she drove she changed her music to something a little more upbeat. Popping in one of her many mix cd's she flipped through the songs until she found one she liked.

Give me that corpse please

The one that tore nightly

I really want it now

She sang along as she pulled her car into the parking lot. Layla paused to fix her makeup and hair in the rearview mirror. Her black tank top and dark green cargo pants were a bit dusty from all the boxes, but hey, no big deal. Shoving her car keys into her back pocket and grabbing her black wallet she made her way up to the front door of Merlotte's, her black sneakers barely making a noise against the gravel. The door squeaked as she opened it and walked inside. The first thing that jumped out at her was the alligator's head behind the bar. The second was the cute, scruffy bartender who was watching her carefully. In fact, the whole place was watching her carefully. Layla tried not to feel uncomfortable as she took a seat in one of the empty booths. She felt a bit bad taking up a whole booth by herself, but she preferred them to a regular table in the middle. The vinyl stuck to her skin a bit as she slid in. She looked up and saw a redheaded waitress shaking her head at a tinier blonde waitress. She looked scared. Layla glanced at the menu. She could still feel everyone's eyes on her. She had heard small towns could be like this but, jeez! The blonde bounced over to her, looking a bit frazzled.

"What can I get you?" she asked, with a bit of a forced smile. The whole place seemed to be waiting on her answer.

"Uhm, a coke?" Layla asked, feeling extremely confused. She could practically here everyone give a sigh of relief. What the hell? The blonde giggled when she noted her face.

"Don't mind them, they thought you were a....vampire." she said, whispering the last word. The brunette nodded.

"I get that a lot. Apparently, if you don't tan you must be one of the undead." she said with her usual sarcastic tone.

"You're new?" the waitress asked. She was studying Layla's face, as if she were concentrating. Layla nodded.

"Yeah, I just moved into a house on Calumet Lane." I told her.

"That's Dawn's old place!" The blonde said. I shrugged.

"I guess so." I said.

"I'm Sookie." she said, holding out a hand. "Stackhouse."

"Layla Dahlin." Layla said, grabbing her hand. As they shook hands Sookie seemed even more upset. When they pulled them apart, Layla spoke again.

"Can I also order the steak? Rare." she added. Sookie pasted that forced smile on her face again.

"Sure thing. I'll be right back with your coke." she said before bouncing away towards the kitchen window. Sookie put her order in and chewed on her lip. Sam looked at her and frowned.

"If you're hungry Sookie eat a sandwich, not your lip." he told her. Sookie sighed.

"This new girl. I can't...hear her." Sookie said, her eyes going wide to get the message across. She couldn't hear the new girls thoughts.

"I thought that was only with the vampires?" he said with a raised brow. Sookie shrugged.

"So did I. I mean, it isn't complete silence. It's more like someone's turned the volume down. It's impossible to make it out." she complained.

"Well, are you sure she ain't a vampire?" Sam asked. "Sure as hell looks like one."

"Positive." Sookie replied. She looked over her shoulder at the pale girl, sitting by herself and couldn't help but be reminded of the first time she saw Bill. They gave off the similar, loner vibe, and just like with Bill, it didn't repel but instead drew her in, making her curious. Layla's eyes snapped up to look back at Sookie. The blonde smiled and went to grab the woman's coke.

------

Layla ate in silence, with the exception of her brief exchanges with Sookie. The girl seemed odd but sweet. Blonde, tan, bubbly with a cute gap between her teeth. The bite marks on her neck hadn't gone past Layla's notice. Good for her. It must have been hard doing something so scandalous in a town this size. Personally, Layla never cared about dating, whether it was a human or a vampire, but if a dead guy made Sookie the waitress happy, then she should go for it. As the blonde cleared away her plate, Layla saw one of the chubbier locals make their way over to her, glass of beer in hand. She sighed and looked out the window, trying to give out a clear signal that she wasn't interested in being hit on.

It didn't work.

"Hey there, new girl." the man said. Layla tried not wrinkle her nose and just nodded a hello back to him. He leaned closer to her, resting an arm on the back of the booth. Layla had to fight the urge to gag when she saw the dark stains beneath his arms. "You wanna dance?" he asked.

"No, thank you." she said as diplomatically as she could. The man, didn't seem to like that answer.

"Around here a lady don't turn down a gentleman's offer." he told her, an edge of threat to his voice. Layla's eyes turned to steel.

"I didn't realize a gentleman had asked me." she told him flatly. The man was about to say something nasty but Sookie appeared with the check. Layla paid quickly and left before the man could say anything else.

Sookie's heart tightened when she brushed her elbow against Tom Middlehouse's sweaty arm.

Yankee bitch. Don't know who she thinks she is. Turning me down. Probably a fuckin' fangbanger just like Stackhouse. She does have a nice ass though. I'm going to teach her how to appreciate a real man, whether she likes it or not-

Sookie nearly ran out of the bar but Layla was already starting her car and pulling away. Sookie stood and watched her go when the door opened behind her. It was Tom Middlehouse and his two buddies, walking to Tom's beat up chevy. She knew they were going to follow Layla home and then do God knows what to her. She moved quickly, going back inside to the bar Sam was wiping down.

"Sam, you've got follow Layla." she instructed him quietly. Sam looked at her like she was crazy, but Sookie was far too used to those looks to let them bother her.

"Sookie, why on earth-"

"I heard Tom Middlehouse thinking about hurting her. Just because she turned him down for a dance." The blonde confided quietly. Sam sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"What am I supposed to do about it Sook?"

"I don't know. Go protect her?"

"That's a job for the police." Sam told her gently. Sookie rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm sure Andry is just waiting for that phone call. 'Hi Andy, it's Sookie Stackhouse. I just thought you should know that the new girl might get raped tonight. How did I know that? Oh, I heard him thinking it.'. Sure, that would go over real well, Sam." she told him.

"She's not gonna want some strange guy coming into her house to watch over her because the psychic waitress thinks there might be trouble." Sam said. Sookie sighed and began untying her apron. Sam put a hand out to stop her. "What are you doing?"

"Someone has got to stop them and if you won't then I will." she said stubbornly. Sam sighed.

"I'm not paying you to be some kind of god damn vigilante, Sookie. Fine, I'll go over there, but this is the first and last time I do this. I'm not one of your Vampire buddies." he said, throwing down his rag and walking out back.