"Sookie Stackhouse, you have until the count of 10 to be in this house or it'll be double chores for a week!" Sookie smiled as she heard her mother's voice. She'd been outside playing and had completely lost track of time. That had been happening more and more frequently these days. She used to spend all her time playing with Jason. But, midway through the previous summer, he'd started distancing himself from her. When she asked him why he didn't want her around anymore, he told her he was too old to play stupid kid games with a girl. So, she'd been spending her time these days with her own imagination.

"Sookie, NOW!" Her mother sounded upset now. She stood, dusted herself off, and went running for the house. The minute she was inside, her mother grabbed her hand and began yanking her towards her bedroom. "Child, I swear you are a magnet for messes. It's a good thing I waited to put you in your pretty dress, if you'd gotten it dirty I would've tanned your hide!" Sookie tried to hold back her laughter. Her mother was always threatening to spank Sookie, but she'd never once actually done it.

Her mother grabbed a wet washcloth and cleaned her face and arms, pulled the dirty tank top and jeans off of her, and slipped the brand new summer dress she'd just bought onto her slim body. Sookie twirled, watching the soft fabric of the skirt billow out around her. The dress was white cotton, and had pink flowers. Her mother ran a brush through Sookie's long blonde hair, pulling it into a ponytail and using a pink ribbon that matched her dress.

"There, cute as a button! Now go back downstairs and find Daddy and Jason."

Sookie went bounding down the staircase in search of her father and brother. She found them seated in the living room just as the old grandfather clock in the hallway chimed, indicating that it was 6pm.

"Daddy!" She shouted as she jumped into her father's lap. He hugged her close, and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"Well don't you look pretty this evening?"

"I look like a Princess, Daddy!" She said, and he smiled at her.

"I'm hungry, why do we have to wait for this kid to get here, anyway?" Jason asked in a huff, rolling his eyes at his sister.

"Because it's polite to wait for your dinner guests to arrive before you actually begin dinner, Jason," their mother replied as she came down the staircase.

"I still don't get why he's gotta come stay with us, anyway," Jason added.

Their mother sighed in exasperation. "Jason, we have been over this. Eric lives with his grandmother, and she's getting too old to keep up with him when he's not in school. We offered him a place to stay and a job for the summer." The noise of car tires on the gravel driveway interrupted their conversation. "Be polite." She smoothed out the front of her dress, and walked to the door just as someone knocked.

She opened the door, and smiled brightly at her guests. "Hello, Mike, come on in," she said, gesturing with an open hand for her guests to enter the living room. Sookie watched as Mike, a man who'd worked for her father as long as she could remember, walked in, followed by a tall, skinny, blonde boy.

Mike removed his wide brimmed hat, nodded and smiled at Sookie and Jason, and said, "Peter, Miranda, this is my nephew, Eric." Then, he turned to the boy standing next to him. "Eric, this is Peter and Miranda Stackhouse, and their children, Jason and Sookie." Eric took in all the faces in front of him with wide eyes, but didn't say a word.

"It's a pleasure to have you here, Eric," Miranda said, putting her hand on the boys shoulder. "Well, come on y'all, let's eat before supper gets cold." They all stood and went into the dining room.

Peter followed his wife to one end of the table and held out her chair as she sat, then walked to his own seat at the head. Jason sat down in his usual spot, and Mike went to sit next to him, leaving Eric and Sookie to sit beside each other opposite them. Once everyone had settled in, Peter indicated that they should bow their heads to pray.

Once her father had finished blessing the food, Miranda insisted that everyone dig in, and the large serving platters were passed around until everyone's plate was as full as could be. After a moment of semi-awkward silence, Miranda asked, "Now, Eric, why don't you tell us a little about yourself?"

Eric looked up at her, and then quickly looked at his uncle, almost as if he was asking for permission to speak. After a reassuring nod from Mike, Eric did indeed speak. "Well, M'am, um, my name is Eric Northman, and I'm 12 years old." He gave a slight nod of his head, almost as if he'd just told his entire life's story.

Miranda Stackhouse grinned and said, "Well, that makes you the same age as Jason, isn't that right, son?" Jason looked up from his food and mumbled something with a full mouth, and went back to ignoring everyone else.

"You'll have to forgive Jason his manners, Eric, sometimes he forgets he's a human being," she said with a small amount of tension. Sookie burst into a fit of giggles, and Eric turned to watch her laugh. He grinned a little at her.

"Well, I know my manners. My name is Sookie. I'm 10 years old, and Daddy says ever since I was born, I've been able to wrap every man who's worked here around my little finger," she said with a huge smile. Peter just shook his head and laughed at his little girl's bluntness.

"Now if that isn't the truth, I don't know what is!" Mike added. "I've worked here for going on 10 years now, and I don't think I've seen a single man set foot on this ranch that didn't leave thinking that Miss Sookie here hung the moon." Mike laughed even harder as he saw Jason roll his eyes at this comment. Apparently, her brother was the only exception to that statement.

The rest of the meal continued in about the same fashion. Peter explained to Eric that the main thing they did on this ranch was raise cattle. Some were for milking, and some were sold to the beef company. Eric's uncle had explained most of this to him earlier, so he just nodded politely.

Once everyone had had their fill of the lovely dinner Miranda had made, they walked out to the large porch on the West side of the house to watch the sun go down over the mountains. Miranda passed out slices of fresh, homemade apple pie, along with coffee for the adults, and milk for the children.

Miranda tried again to get Eric to open up. "So, Eric, Mike tells me that you lived in Wyoming until you were 8. How do you like Colorado so far?"

"I like it just fine, M'am." He said. She turned to look at Mike, who simply shrugged. He'd never known his nephew to be shy, and he wasn't sure what to make of it.

After they'd all finished their dessert, Mike helped Eric bring his things in from the truck, and placed them in the upstairs bedroom that Miranda had shown him earlier. Because her mother told her to give him some space, Sookie avoided going to Eric's room like she wanted to. Instead, she sat at the top of the stairs, brushing her doll's hair. She was, however, close enough to the room to hear a conversation between Eric and his uncle.

"Uncle Mike, I understand why I can't stay with Grandma during the summer. And, I don't even mind working, but, why can't I stay with you?"

"Eric, you know why you can't stay with me. I can only afford to pay the small fee for me to have a room at the boarding house myself. I just can't afford one for you as well. I'm sorry that isn't what you want, truly I am. But, these are good folks. I think you'll really like it here. You just need to make friends with Jason and Sookie, and you'll be having fun in no time. Besides, I'll be here to work every day."

"What if I don't want to make friends? Jason won't even look at me. Sookie's nice, but she's a girl. I'm not gonna be friends with a girl."

Mike laughed. "Oh, Eric, I have a feeling that the day will come sooner rather than later where you'll be begging Sookie for her friendship." She heard a snort, and assumed it came from Eric. "Well, if you're all settled in, I've got to be going. I'll be back bright and early in the morning, and we can talk more then, alright?"

"Okay," Eric replied. Sookie heard footsteps, and saw Mike enter the hallway, before she heard Eric's voice yell, "Uncle Mike, wait!?

"What is it, Eric?" Mike asked. And in the next moment, Sookie watched as Eric flung himself into the hallway and gripped his uncle in a tight hug. Mike smiled down at him and hugged him back. After another moment, Mike ruffled Eric's hair, and walked away. As he passed Sookie on the staircase, he said, "Now you watch after him for me, Miss Sookie."

"Sure I will, Mike!" She smiled, and Mike winked at her, and left.

Sookie went into her own bedroom, changed into her pajamas, and lay down in bed. Her room was right next to Eric's, and her bed was against the same wall that his was. If it hadn't have been that way, she probably wouldn't have heard him cry himself to sleep that first night. She promised herself she'd help him be happier, starting first thing tomorrow.

The entire household was up and moving shortly after the sun rose the next morning. Eric knew that working on a ranch took quite a bit of energy, so, he made sure to eat well to support his strength. Once breakfast had been eaten, Sookie and Miranda stayed to clean up and wash the dishes, while Peter and Jason took Eric outside to meet the rest of the crew.

"Eric, this here is Jesse Compton, and that young man over there is his son, Bill. Now Bill is the same age you are, so you will be working with him and Jason the most. Jesse, Mike, and I are going to be branding today, and we've had some accidents in the past," he paused for a moment to glare at Bill, who blushed, "so, you boys won't be needed to help with that. Instead, I'd like for you to take those boards over there and nails and start patching up holes in the stable, and then this afternoon we'll get started on a large portion of the fence that got trampled down."

Eric nodded, and followed behind Jason and Bill. They collected the tools they'd need, and made their way to the stable. Jason led them to the furthest stall, which had several holes in the walls a few feet up from the ground. By way of explanation, Jason said, "a snake got in here somehow, and the buck in this stall is pretty young, and got spooked. He kept kicking the walls, and trying to stomp on the snake." Eric raised his eyebrows and nodded, and they got to work.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, Jason tried to begin a conversation. "So, um, Eric. How come you live with your Grandma? Where's your Mom and Dad?"

Eric looked over at the other boys, who had both stopped working and were watching him intently. "They died about a year and a half ago. My Mom's friend let them use her cabin for a weekend to celebrate their anniversary. I guess they forgot to turn the space heater off before they went to bed, and they died of carbon monoxide poisoning." Eric looked down at his hands, trying to blink back tears before they fell down his cheeks.

Jason and Bill continued to watch Eric for a moment, before Bill finally said, "That sucks. I'm really sorry," and went back to work.

After a couple of hours of hammering away, the holes in the stable were patched, and the boys made their way back to the adults. Seeing their approach, Peter motioned for them to stay where they were, and finished the calf he was working with.

"All done with the stable, boys?" He asked as he walked towards them.

"Yup. We put boards on the inside and outside of each hole. It should hold." Jason said, proud of himself.

Just as Peter was about to say something, they heard a ringing sound coming from the house, and turned to see that Miranda was on the back porch, ringing a large bell, letting them know that it was time for lunch.

They made their way to the small wash area on the porch. After washing their hands, they went into the house to join the women for lunch.

Once everyone was seated, Peter said the mealtime prayer, and they began to eat. Because Jesse and Bill were joining them, an extra chair had been added to each side. Eric sat between Bill and Jason, and on the opposite side, Sookie sat between Mike and Jesse. As everyone ate, Peter began to fill Miranda in on what progress had been made.

"So, what have you got planned for this afternoon?" She asked.

"Well, there's about 40 feet of fence line that got trampled a bit with that last thunderstorm, so, I guess we'll take the boys out there and see if we can't get it all patched up.

Sookie was practically bouncing in her chair as she said, "Ooh, Daddy, can I come too?"

Jason and Bill groaned with irritation, but were quickly silenced with a stern look from both of their fathers. "Well, Princess, I don't necessarily want you swinging a hammer, or playing with nails, but, you're more than welcome to ride out there with us."

Sookie clapped her hands rapidly and giggled, and proceeded to eat her food as fast as she could so she could change into her work clothes.

The men all sat outside, waiting for Peter to give them the go ahead to ride out. They were all mounted on horses, and Eric was excited to get moving, because it'd been a while since he'd ridden. Just when Jason was about to scream at the top of his lungs for his sister to hurry up, she came running out of the house in jeans, a short-sleeved black t-shirt, bright purple cowboy boots, and a matching cowboy hat, with her hair in two braids underneath. Eric thought she looked sort of sweet, but Jason and Bill laughed.

Once Peter had mounted and had Sookie in front of him, they set out. As they rode, Eric got to see for the first time just how beautiful the Stackhouse land was. It was 40 acres, and it was all beautiful. There was a substantial creek running just shy of the fence line, so they tied their horses up so they could drink some water while the men worked.

Peter showed the boys how he wanted things done, and then assigned them each a five foot space to begin with. Eric was closest to Peter, and by extension, to Sookie, who was sitting on the ground handing her father nails. Every couple of minutes she would pipe up with a knock knock joke, or some other silly story she'd learned, trying to keep both herself and her father thoroughly entertained. She even made Eric smile quite a few times, although he was sure she didn't know it.

Once Eric had finished his section, Peter had him shift down to the other end, where Jason and Bill were working. After about 30 more minutes of work, Jason yelled out to his father that they needed more nails, so Peter sent Sookie to him with a box full.

As she was reaching to hand the box of nails to her brother, he swiped his foot at her ankles, causing her to fall into a large mud puddle. Bill and Jason roared with laughter, while Eric stayed silent, just watching.

Sookie stood up, stuck her tongue out at her brother, and went down to the creek to wash herself off. As she was bent over rinsing her hands in the chilly water, Bill and Jason crept up behind her. Just as she was beginning to stand, Jason pushed her sharply in the back, and she landed in the creek on her knees. Both boys laughed, pointing at the now soaked little girl. Sookie stood, climbed out of the creek, and looked at her brother, tears streaming down her face.

"I'm telling Daddy," she said softly, hiccupping between words.

Jason just laughed harder. "Go ahead. All it's gonna do is make it so that you can't come next time, because he needs our help, but he doesn't need you out here getting hurt." She turned, walking away, her body shaking from the cold.

Jason and Bill turned and walked back towards Eric. "I wish that stupid brat would just get the hint and stay home with Mom where she's supposed to be. Working on a ranch is a job for men, not little girls." Bill grunted in agreement, and they got back to work. Eric kept replaying the incident in the back of his mind. He thought that it was very mean of Jason to treat his sister that way, but, because he was the odd man out, he decided to stay quiet about it.

A few minutes later, Peter approached them. "Boys, we need to be heading back. It's starting to get late, and it seems that Sookie fell in the creek, so I'd like to get her in some dry clothes before she gets sick." He turned his back and starting walking, and Jason and Bill gave each other a high five.

When they got back to the house, Jesse and Bill said their goodbyes and headed home, while Miranda took Sookie upstairs to take a hot bath, and change into some dry clothes. When they finally made it back downstairs, Jason and Eric had already set the table for dinner, and they all took their seats. Once Peter had said the prayer, Miranda spoke up.

"Jason, is there anything you want to tell me about this afternoon?"

He looked at his mother with feigned innocence. "What do you mean?"

Miranda and Peter made eye contact, and Miranda spoke again. "Jason, tell me the truth. Did you push your sister into the creek?"

Jason held his head high and looked his mother straight in the eye and said, "No. She'd gotten muddy, went down to the creek and fell in."

Sookie shouted, "LIAR! You tripped me into the mud when I was givin' you more nails, and then you pushed me into the creek!"

After a moment of thoughtful silence, Miranda turned to Eric and said, "Eric, what's the truth? Did he push her, or did she fall in?"

Eric glanced at Jason, who looked perfectly calm, sure the other boy would back him up. Then he turned his glance to Sookie, who looked like he was her life line. He knew this was bigger than just telling what happened. This would determine which of the siblings would be his friend. He could say Jason was telling the truth, and be friends with two other boys his own age. Or, he could say Sookie was, and have a girl 2 years his junior to hang around with.

"Jason's telling the truth, M'am." He said quietly. He didn't dare to look at Sookie.

"Very well. Sookie, you know we don't tolerate lying. You're grounded for a week. Now go to your room." She put her silverware on her plate, stood, and left the room without saying a word.

Eric barely saw her during for the rest of the week. She was at the table with them at mealtime, but she never spoke a word, unless she was asked a direct question. She never once looked at him. He was sorry that she'd been punished, but, since his friendship with Jason was growing, he couldn't bring himself to tell the truth.

As the weeks passed, Eric began to feel more and more comfortable. He was beginning to have fun with Jason and Bill, and loved working with his Uncle Mike every day. He got along with Miranda and Peter well because he always tried his hardest, and they appreciated his effort. The only problem was Sookie.

He expected her to yell, or hit him, just do something. But, she treated him with indifference. She stopped asking to help with any of the work, and stayed in the house with her mother instead. He overheard Mike and Peter talking about it, once. Peter couldn't understand why his adventurous little girl had suddenly turned so shy. Jason and Bill took every chance they could get to tease her. Eric never participated, but, he also never stopped them. In his own mind, and he assumed in hers, that made him as guilty as the other two.

On his final day, Miranda fixed all his favorite foods, and Bill and Jesse joined them for dinner. They'd forgone using the dinner room table, and instead were sitting on picnic benches just off the porch. Sookie sat by herself on the steps, and didn't utter a word the entire time. The next morning, Mike loaded all of Eric's things into his while Eric said his goodbyes. He hugged Miranda, and told Peter and Jason he was looking forward to working with them again. He ran up to his room to make sure he'd gotten everything, and noticed Sookie sitting on her bed.

"Sookie?" He said softly, standing in her doorway.

"Yes?" She said, not bothering to look up at him.

"Um, I'm leaving now to go back to my Grandma's. I'll see ya next summer, okay?"

"Okay. Goodbye." She hadn't looked at him the entire time.

After a few minutes on the road, Mike looked to Eric, and asked him what was bothering him.

"I messed up, Uncle Mike. I said something I shouldn't have said, and someone good got their feelings hurt."

Mike sighed. "Eric, give her time. I'm sure by next summer, Sookie will be ready to give you another try to be friends."

Eric looked at him, slightly shocked that he'd known exactly who Eric was talking about.

Mike laughed and said, "You'll come to learn that, at the Stackhouse place, if the women aren't happy, everyone feels it." Eric could only wonder what that meant.