The Sookieverse was created by, and belongs to, Charlaine Harris. Alan Ball and HBO own these incarnations of Lafayette and Tara, as well as the creation of Lettie Mae's character.

Please note this piece was written and published after the first episode of season three aired, but before the second episode airs.

Tara's POV

Apparently Lafayette's Klonopin and tequila cocktail hadn't worked too well.

That was the only thought running through my zombified mind as I stared out the passenger side window of Lafayette's car. My eyes registered that trees and then streetlights were passing by us, but I didn't really see any of them.

When we arrived at my cousin's place, he guided my numb body to his couch and covered me with his ugly-ass crocheted throw blanket. I laid on my left side and stared blankly at the wall across from the couch. I couldn't close my eyes. I didn't dare even try. I made that mistake once already tonight, which was when Lafayette loaded me up on Klonopin. I'd screamed bloody murder all over again as I saw Eggs lifeless body tattooed on my eyelids.

Seconds dragged by into minutes, but nothing changed. I am here to tell you that all those songs and sayings about time being a healer are bullshit. As my numb mind existed and my unseeing eyes stared, I registered some banging and tussling in the background.

Eventually my bladder caught up to me. Rappers and urban poets forget to mention how drinking so much Patrón, or any liquid really, will leave you needing to pee, but it will-believe me. I finally managed to force my body to stand up, though I'll tell you, wetting the couch had become a very attractive option in the meantime. When my feet stumbled to Lafayette's web-camera'ed bathroom, I leaned heavily upon the doorknob and turned-but nothing happened.

He'd locked it. The bastard had locked his own cousin out of a toilet. My shoulders hung limply and blood didn't seem to be circulating into my hands. I pondered my options. I decided on plan A-just standing there until some external force acted upon me. Fortunately for Lafayette's polished wood floors, his piercing alarm went off before long. I just continued to stand there frozen, my fist still surrounding the locked doorknob, my eyes held wide open but not seeing anything.

"Hooka', whatcha' think you're doing? Lemmie open that for you," Lafayette's sleep-heavy voice grumbled as he forced my hand off the door knob so he could unlock it. He held the door open for me, but he didn't close it after I'd stepped inside. Instead, he leaned against the doorframe, regarding me with droopy eyelids.

"It isn't enough you locked me out of the bathroom? You gotta stand guard while I pee? What? You afraid I'm gonna drown myself in the tub?" I don't know who said those spiteful words. They sounded like they came from somewhere near me, but I don't remember anyone else coming into the house.

"It's fo' your own good," Lafayette stated firmly, apparently addressing me. "Now, you's get you' business on and then we can both go back to sleep."

"I want my momma." Where did that come from?

"Well, I su' don't think Lettie Mae wants to be woken at 4 am, so you gotta put up with me until a more reasonable hour."

After I "did my business" I stumbled past Lafayette and collapsed back on the couch, this time on my right side, still facing the wall, my arms still curled up around me. Despite the early hour, I heard Lafayette talking to someone, presumably to a someone over the phone since I didn't hear anyone else moving around.

I watched the clock on the wall. The turning of the clock's hands was absolutely riveting. At 10 AM, Lafayette came at me with a tiny round white pill and a tall glass of water.

"Drink this whole glass; dehydration does your brain chemistry no favors. And take this pill, you need to get some sleep. I don't need you pulling no schizo-manic-bullshit when's Lettie Mae is alone wit'you. Woman's likely to have all the preachers in the parish come over for an exorcism and the last thing we need is preacher folk up in our business."

Lafayette helped me sit up and I took the pill and poured the water down my throat without desire or want, I was just following orders. I fell back on the couch in a sitting position. I don't know what Lafayette made me take, but I sure as hell wouldn't let it put me to sleep. I heard a knock at the door and Lafayette and my momma chatting outside for a minute. I missed most of it, though I did manage to pick up Lafayette complaining about missing work. Sorry to be such a fucking inconvenience to your fucking life. I didn't fucking ask you to even fucking take me here you fucking asshole. I'd rather have my hands around that vampire-fucking, bitch's cold clammy neck. What the fuck is this bullshit anyways?

My mental tirade was interrupted by momma's cooing and overbearing attempts to be comforting and maternal. But I didn't have the energy to lash out at her. The sleeping pill was pulling at my brain and I was focusing on just fighting that pull and staying awake. I was more terrified at that moment of closing my eyes than of anything else, even in this world full of monsters.

I was successful. I seemed to have short term amnesia because I can't tell you what my momma had done or said but I knew I hadn't gone to sleep and that the clock read seven pm, and there was some man sitting in front of me running his mouth about something or other.

I could see the bathroom door from my vantage point and it was unlocked and wide open. A plan slowly materialized in my cottoned brain. I deducted why Lafayette had locked me out of the bathroom, and why he'd watched me like a hawk when I was in it. A genuine smile of peace spread across my lips as the plan took shape in my mind.

I excused myself, closed the door behind me after I entered the bathroom, and began my plan. A small smirk managed to cross my lips as I turned the lock on the bathroom door. Momma always did have a fit about even the possibility of me masturbating. She had no idea how many times I'd had sex. But I didn't have to put up with her no more. No, I was gonna have peace for the first time in my life and. It. Would. Be. Glorious.

Lafayette's POV

I used all of my strength to finally bust open that door. Tara was standing there, her eyes crazed and bug-eyed, pills being shoveled into her mouth by the fistful. I grabbed her jaw with one hand and her pill-filled fist with the other.

"SPIT IT OUT!" She didn't obey. I wrenched her body around, and pounded my palm against her back while I forced her jaw wide open. Pills exploded from her mouth in a rainbow colored spray. While she gasped for air, I held her tightly against me, not letting her reach any of bottles or pills scattered on the floor, toilet, or sink. My fist was buried deep in her stomach as I held her against my hip and shoved around the contents of my medicine cabinet, looking for some iapec syrup.

I finally found some and I pulled Tara up to a standing position, leaning the back of her body against my chest and pinning her body there with my elbow. I pried open her jaw with that hand and drained the contents of the red glass bottle into her throat, massaging her neck so she would have to drink it down. As soon as the bottle was drained, I dropped it and sealed my hand across her lips, keeping them shut. I sent up a silent prayer and waited to see if this would work. I got my answer in the form of stomach acid and mushed up powder violently being vomited against my hand. I let go of my grip immediately and gently kneeled her in on the side of the bathtub, holding her hair back while the putrid contents of her stomach spewed out.

"Thank you Baby Jesus!" I cried out and then turned to find Lettie Mae, frozen at the bathroom doorway. My eyes narrowed at her, filled with poison, as I ordered, "Get me a glass o'water." Watching that pitiful, poor, woman who'd pulled my own shotgun on me and let Tara get to this point, I promised myself then and there, she would not be allowed in my home ever again.

When I turned my attention back to my cousin, I found her lolling against the side of the tub, her eyes glazed over. Eric's blood still had some residual effects on me (besides the unwelcome erotic dreams) and I could still hear her heart beat, though it was slightly slower than it ought to have been. I yanked her up and carried her to my bed. Lettie Mae came at me with the water as I was rushing out of my bedroom to grab the purse I'd dropped at the door.

"Get out of here!"

"But, I, Tara," she babbled incoherently.

"I said, get the fuck up out of this joint or I will throw you out my damn self!"

She finally did something with some sense and skittishly ran out the front door. I followed her, grabbing my purse, pulling out one of the smaller vials that skank-ass, bitch, Pam, had forced on me tonight. I paused to send up another quick prayer. Jesus and I were getting real close tonight.

I gently pulled Tara Mae's chin up, opening her throat, threw up another prayer, and used an eyedropper to squeeze a few drops down her throat. I held my breath and listened.

No change.

I tried again, this time squeezing down five drops.

Shit. ShitshitshitshitshitSHIT!

I didn't know if V worked the same as vamp juice straight off the tap, so I had no idea if it work in the first place, but I figured it was worth a shot. I took a deep breath and went over my options. A) I could take Tara to the emergency room. B) I could call one of the vampires I knew and ask for a mighty big favor. C)…. Well, there was no option C.

I thought about it for a moment. I didn't think Tara'd appreciate having dirty dreams of her best friend's man; then again, she didn't have health insurance. Sam Merlotte is nice and all, but you ain't gonna get insurance in this country as a barmaid. Shit! Sookie said last night that Bill was missing. Even with Vampire Bill, I was cynical he'd do a favor for free, but there was no way in hell I was gonna put her in debt to Eric or Pam. Debt collection agencies, it is.

I carried her to my car and gently placed her in the back seat. Watching her head loll seemingly lifelessly to the side, my eyes watered and I had to squeeze them tightly shut to make sure I didn't cry.

This whole supernatural mess? This shit is BULLshit.

I waited as the psychiatrist on call evaluated Tara to see if she needed to be held on the psychiatric ward. I thought it wouldn't even be a question, but apparently there were laws or some such. They asked if she'd want to be physically restrained, put in isolation or chemically sedated if she became a danger to the staff or the patients, including herself. Shit, that was like asking if you wanted to die by guillotine, firing squad or electrocution. Ain't not much of a choice, and you sure as hell never imagine that question 'til it's thrown at you. Tara was looking around the room wildly; they'd had to pin down her wrists in restraints after she tried to escape once.

It was getting hard to watch her go through this and when the psychiatrist asked me to leave after she'd asked me a few questions, I tried to hide how relieved I was to finally get a break. As I wandered the floor, looking around, someone caught my eye. Someone I knew. Someone I definitely did not expect to see with a stethoscope around his neck and a white coat on his back. When he finally noticed me, his eyes bugged out for a moment and he turned to the male nurse next to him and murmured something. Then he jerked his head towards a door and started walking there himself.

Thank Jesus Almighty! were the first words that ran through my head. I could make this work. I knew I could.

He closed the door behind me after I slipped in.

"Why are you here?" No one expects to see their drug dealer outside of their usual arrangement. No one should wisen up a bit, world's a small place, 'specially in our neck of the woods.

"My cuz' in a bit o' trouble. Looks like she's gonna be here a while."

My customer's face relaxed visibly. "Oh."

"But that don't mean I ain't got something for you." I opened my purse and pulled out the big bag of vials full of V.

His eyes widened in surprise.

"Now this is some good shit. Top of the line. I take it you use the V on mo' than youself?" I motioned my head towards the patients outside the room. He nodded tersely. "Well, I'z got a family situation to tend to, as you can see, so if you want to buy some in the immediate future, now's probably going to be your only chance."

As I expected, panic flickered across his face. "How long will you be out?"

"I don't know. I hope not long, but psychiatric holds can be a while, and I want to be there for my cuz'. Now is you interested in buying or is you not? Because I sure as hell ain't got all night, I gotta get back to her."

"How much you selling them for?"

I quoted him the usual high price, but I added on the end, "But if you buy all of it, given the circumstances, I would be much in your debt, and I'd give you a 10% discount."

"10%? That's not enough. What about 20?"

I hid my smile, the science of influence holds true no matter how educated the victim or how odd the situation. "You is driving a hard bargain. I don't think I can manage 20%, but 15% will keep me in the black, barely. Now is you going to buy all o' this V or not?"

He shushed me immediately, "Yes. Here, I'll run to my house. I keep a large amount of cash hidden, so I'll be okay if my wife ever decides to divorce me and squeeze every penny out of me, but I'll use part of the stash to get this deal."

I could hardly believe my ears. Dude kept more than that sum, in cold hard cash, in his house? Hadn't he ever heard of FDIC insured? Shit, no one said doctors had to be smart. Well, maybe they had, but I ain't listening to that shit.

Once he left, I waited a minute before leaving the room, and used that time to pull out my phone and give Pink Bitch a ring.

"Now how much dough is it gonna take to get you fuckers off of my back?"

A/N Please, please review! Your reviews are like rays of sunlight in my otherwise pitch-black world, if you could, please take a moment to write and send a review!

I've been terribly depressed this week, hence the dark Tara centered piece instead of the first chapter of the sequel to "You Deserve Much Better." Besides, characters other than Eric, Bill & Sookie need some FF loving!