Salome spoke softly, "Lillith chose well." She looked up at Bill with an air of expectation and acceptance, even as blood pooled softly from her open mouth. Bill then savagely pierced the stake through her heart, and she burst into a pile of bloody remains.
Bill relished his victory. Having defeated Salome and been declared to be Lillith's 'chosen one,' in spite of Salome's far superior age and experience, gave him a strong surge of confidence and adrenaline. Bill chose to manipulate Salome for his own ends, as a result of his own ambition. No one could deny his intelligence and autonomy after this. Bill had not come out on top as a result of being a puppet for a monarch, as in the case of Sophie Anne, nor was it due to self-preservation. It was a result of his growing lust for power that he barely understood himself.
After Bill stood and lightly brushed himself off, indifferent to the small chunks of Salome still embedded in his sweater, he was finally able to give Lillith's blood the full attention he felt it deserved. Right as he was about to uncork it, the doors to the suite burst open dramatically.
Eric, not due to a lack of breath but due to gratitude at having found Bill alone, heaved a sigh as he crossed the threshold. His blonde hair was slightly ruffled and his eyes were intense and serious. He did not appear to be driven by the same thirst for vengeance or hunger for retribution that typically characterized him. For nearly the past thousand years, Eric could be essentially described as a vampire who lived for the thrill of the hunt. All that drove him was his commitment to the value that his human culture placed upon loyalty. After he finally killed Russell though, his most prominent emotion was a mix of satisfaction and surprisingly, relief. This was likely because Eric had never been afraid of death until he met a certain blonde telepath.
It wasn't just her decadent fae scent that so reminded him of wheat, honey and sunlight, or her soft and supple curves that drew Eric to her like a moth to a flame, though. Nor was it simply her gentle and intelligent light brown eyes and that saw through his façade of indifference. It wasn't even her stubbornly held Southern sense of manners and morality, even after he had kissed and licked every inch of her, that drew Eric to Sookie.
It was her constant, unwavering ability to forgive and to see the good in others, no matter how horribly they had treated her. It was her ability to see the light in him, even after centuries of his having perfected the art of acting to better his chances of survival. It was because she made him question the purpose of just existing and retaliating in the first place. She gave him meaning and purpose aside from his quest to kill Russell and avenge his human family.
That was why his entire demeanor towards Bill was unusual to witness in light of his traditional response to such life altering situations. He was not afraid to die, but he was afraid that Sookie would. He was afraid that she would be harmed, and that he would be unable to protect her. Not even just from physical pain, but from the emotional pain that he knew Bill was capable of inflicting.
Eric was broken out of his reverie when he heard Sookie cut Bill off. "This isn't you." Bill responded with surprising rapidity,
"What the fuck do you know about me? How do you know everything I did wasn't an act? Calculated in order to elicit a particular response." While he was speaking Eric looked at her in surprise, almost as if he felt her shock and pain at what Bill is saying so harshly and without hesitation.
Sookie shakily answered, "I know that's not true."
With a cruel smile Bill advanced towards her. "Why, because of the light you bear? Have you ever considered that it is a handicap? One that blinds you to the most obvious of truths: that you are an abomination, as the Vampire Bible states."
Each words Bill stated had Sookie feeling more emotionally winded by the second. Combined with her self-loathing due to Tara's turning and loneliness after Eric and Bill disappeared, his words were almost too much for her to bear, and Eric felt as much in their bond.
Eric was quickly reminded of why he loved her as much as he did however, as she gathered her courage and inner strength without letting a beat pass. She brushed past his protective stance, pushing him back gently as if it was a natural gesture between them.
"You are better than this Bill," Sookie cried with feeling. "You are capable of kindness, and sympathy, and generosity. You are unique among all the vampires I have met. Don't throw that away!"
Sookie, gazing directly into Bill's cold and unfeeling eyes, was anxious to pull him back from the abyss she saw he was lost to, and into the man she once loved. She was oblivious to Eric's slight flinch of pain that her speech caused. A taste of bitterness filled Eric's mouth, as he thought of how Bill's false clinging to his humanity painted him in a better light to Sookie than Eric's innate sense of duty and honor ever could.
Bill quietly but passionately explained, "I have spent my entire life as a vampire apologizing. Believing I was inherently wrong somehow. Living in fear. Fear that God had forsaken me, that I was damned. But Lillith grants freedom from fear. Virsisitudes 3:24 'Fear not, for my blood is beyond fear. Fear of sin, fear of mankind, fear of retribution. For thou are begat by God, and this world is but a spring to slate thy sacred thirst.'"
Sookie inhaled deeply and begged, "If I ever meant anything to you at all -" Bill cut her off,
"I told you the first night we met. Vampires often turn on those they love the most."
Before anyone could stop him, Bill quickly downed the entire vial of Lillith's blood.
Eric and Sookie watched in horror as Bill instantly began to vomit and cry tears of thick, dark blood. Eric quickly moved in front of Sookie protectively, at the same moment that Bill's body burst into liquid red. Sookie choked back a sob and unthinkingly sought the comfort of Eric's arms. Eric kissed the top of her head almost naturally, but didn't take is eyes off of the bloody puddle that was once Bill Compton.
The liquid began to tremble, causing Eric to whisper "Sookie," not quite believing what he was seeing. She turned and they watched in horror as Bill's naked body slowly emerged from the blood.
"Fuck." Sookie swore, still too numb to truly react.
Bill's fangs extended at the same time that a vicious growl erupted from his throat. Eric screamed "RUN," and Sookie bolted away in terror.
Blinded by tears and adrenaline, Sookie ran from the monster Bill had become. She reached the elevator and pressed the button desperately, looking over her shoulder for Eric.
Eric and Bill moved too quickly for her eyes to follow. She willed her light to come to her fingertips to help her protect Eric, but all she was able to conjure was slight bursts of static electricity. She pressed the elevator button repeatedly, trying to remember if she had seen any obvious route to the stairwells at the sides of the building.
Suddenly, Eric and Bill become visible. It is complete déjà vu, as Bill stands over Eric holding a stake in almost exactly the same position that they had been, only reversed when Eric had amnesia. They lock eyes, and Sookie is overwhelmed by a need to protect Eric, far greater than she experienced when saving Bill`s life. It was something she felt in her blood. If Eric died she inexplicably felt it would be her end as well, and her heart felt ready to burst at the sudden realization of his mortality.
"NO MORE" Sookie cried with conviction, shooting Bill with the most powerful conduit of light that she had ever produced. It hit him squarely in the chest, and this time when Bill dissolved into nothing but crimson, she somehow knew that it was for good. Sookie suddenly felt as though all energy had completely abandoned her body. Barely able to stay standing, she stumbled into the wall behind her.
Eric, still on his back on the stone floor, supported himself with his forearms and leveled Sookie with an intense gaze. She gulped but was unable to look away from his dark blue eyes, so unreadable but so undeniably hungry.
Thankfully, before Sookie could stutter something incomprehensible and embarrass herself, Jason burst out of the elevator that had finally arrived. He quickly enveloped her in a hug, and told her, "Everything is gonna be alright Sook. You're safe now."
Sookie hugged Jason tightly and closed her eyes. When she opened them she saw Eric and Nora in a similar embrace. Eric's eyes met hers with guarded curiosity, and Sookie couldn't help but look away this time.
They drove back in near silence, aside from the sound of Jessica's light sobbing. Bill's death and having been rejected by Jason in the same night had her reverting back into the seventeen year old girl she had been before she was turned.
Sookie patted her arm soothingly. "There there, Jess. It's okay. You can stay in the cubby tonight if you don't wanna be alone –"
"Absolutely not." Eric cut her off.
Sookie felt a familiar but not unwelcome twinge of annoyance at Eric's intrusive behavior. "Like hell she's not. What business of it is yours?"
"It's my house. And we have much to discuss," Eric replied, his face an unreadable mask as he looked only at the road and focused on driving.
"But Eric," interrupted Nora, "We have to meet with the AVL to do damage control -"
"Fuck the AVL. Fuck the Authority. I am done with these false regimes dictating my behavior I have neglected business in my area for far too long which needs to be attended to, and that's final."
Nora looked as though she wanted to argue further, but she quickly bit her tongue after receiving a pointed look from Pam. She shot Sookie a glare and sharply turned her head to look out the window. Sookie sighed. Apparently finishing the night with a hot bath while drinking the rest of her peach schnapps wasn't going to be an option.