Hi all

So this is my first Fanfic and an attempt at staying within the original SVM story as written so far. It takes place post Dead Reckoning. I will attempt to tie up some loose ends and questions that were left open in the books in my way. I have had this rattling around in my head for awhile now and only recently found the Fanfic site and decided to start to write it down. I have an end point and some plot points along the way so I hope to be able to get this completed for y'all if you enjoy it enough to read. All will be in Sookies POV at this stage.

I am very open to constructive criticism as I would like to become a better writer, so hit me up with grammar, structure, pacing and anything else you like or don't like.

All mistakes are my very own, I have no Beta.

All belongs to Charliane Harris, I just need to get their voices out of my head...

Chapter 1

I came back to consciousness slowly. I felt warm and safe and more rested than I remembered feeling for a long while. I stretched out and felt my skin and muscle tense and relax. I rolled onto my back and bumped into a body.

I was not alone. I gasped and opened my eyes.

"Good morning Niece"

"Dermott, what are you doing in my bed." I said suspiciously "Get out!"

"I apologise dearest niece", He said sheepishly, "when I came home last night, I noticed that you were restless and sobbing in your sleep so I came to sleep with you so you would be recharged, comforted and refreshed when you woke. I hope I have not upset you."

I took a breath. The massacre of Victor and his entourage and all that followed with Sandra Pelt came flooding back. I groaned as a wave of nausea started to rise up. I had a clear flash of the blood and body parts all over Fangtasias bar room, heard the crack of Sandra Pelts skull as Jannalyn killed her, could smell the blood, felt the pain of Eric biting my neck. My hand flew to my neck as I gasped and the nausea changed to grief.

"I am sorry niece, I will pack my things and leave your house now" said Dermott, climbing out of my bed with a pained look on his face.

"What!..No! Uncle Dermott, why are you going to pack!" I exclaimed.

"I have upset you and overstepped like Claude. You will not want me to live here anymore now" He said mournfully. "I apologise niece for being in your bed, I know it is uncomfortable for you as you do not know the fae ways, I will go"

"No, no Uncle," I said as I grabbed his arm, "its OK I just got a shock that's all. I do feel better and I'm grateful for a good nights sleep after the horrible couple of days I just had."

"I will move to Claude's if you wish me too"

"I don't wish it, but you may go whenever you want to. I'm happy for you to live here still but I don't want to wake up with you in my bed again without my permission. If you want to make me feel better you could start brewing the coffee for me. I said with a yawn."

"Thank you Sookie" he said and took off for the kitchen.

Now I was awake and alone I checked under the sheet, yep got clothes on and so did Dermott, OK nothing to be embarrassed about. Its not the first time the fairy had slept in my bed with me, but it still weirds me out. At least Claude wasn't in here too this time. I did feel relaxed and refreshed. The touchy feely fairy sleepovers really do recharge the batteries. If I was being honest I had been finding a deep comfort in being close to my fairy kin. That internal comfort still didn't make it any less awkward on the outside though.

I stretched and swung my feet out of bed to find myself facing the window instead of the door. Huh, why did the bed get moved? I was sitting on the edge of my bed in a bright patch of sunlight, not unpleasant, looking out across the lawn to the woods. It was a bright sunshiny day. I took a deep breath, made a mental note to ask Dermott about the bed position, and went to the bathroom.

When I entered the kitchen I found a cup of steaming coffee on the table and Dermott at the cooker fixing eggs and bacon. I smiled at him, grabbed my coffee and went to sit out on the porch. I turned my head to watch some birds fighting over a morsel and felt the soreness of Erics bite on my neck. He had healed it but the way he bit into me had left a sore spot on my neck. An image of Eric covered in Victors blood with a triumphant look on his face came into my head. I felt a stab in my heart and forcefully pushed it and the image away. I would not think about all that just yet. I will enjoy the morning and not be upset by the many things I needed to deal with.

Just then Dermott came out with two plates of bacon eggs and toast. Sometimes it's real nice to have someone living in your house. "It's a beautiful morning Uncle, lets go eat on the lawn chairs in the sun." I said with a smile.

We settled down to a companionable breakfast. The sun felt good on my skin, it felt like I hadn't been in its warm glow for sometime. Which reminded me about my bed.

"Uncle Dermott", I questioned, "why is my bed all turned around?"

"To catch the sky" he said

"Why does my bed need to catch the sky exactly", I asked

"Not the bed niece, you. We are sky fae."

My stomach clenched a bit, Oh no more Supe shit. I don't know if I'm ready to deal with this when I've only just got out of bed. I started to just let it go but then thought the better of it. Maybe if I knew more and asked more questions instead of relying on blind faith I wouldn't end up in situations that require me to make new year resolutions about not getting beat up, stabbed or killed. Must be some good coffee today.

I drew in a breath and jumped in. "What does that mean exactly, catch the sky"

Dermott turned to me and folded his legs up under him. "We are sky fae, Sookie. We are tied to the sky and all that exists in it. There is great magic in the sky for the ones who have kinship with it. We can find many things when we connect with the sky."

"Like what?"

"Healing, comfort, light and hope for the soul. Sometimes answers, sometimes magic."

"Really? I've always loved sunbathing, my tan is legendary in Bon Temps. I always lie out as soon as it's warm enough."

"It is because you are sky fae. You feel the kinship with the sky. We feel better after exposing our skin to sky. Sun, clouds, moon, stars it makes no difference, it is the connection to the sky we crave."

I thought about that. Every time I had hard times and bad patches I always would come out to the yard and work or lay in the sun. I always felt better for it too. Where most people would curl up on the couch or under the covers, in times of trouble I would be outside in the sun.

I looked up at Dermott, "I think I've always done that. I've always come outside when I was down and out and I've come back more relaxed and happy."

Dermott smiled a gentle smile, "You're sky fae, you are my kin."

I smiled back at him. 'So what about the bed then?"

"I knew you were troubled and your energy had waned. The best thing for you would be to catch the sky while you slept with kin. So I moved the bed, opened the curtain and window so you would sleep under the sky. Did you feel better when you woke and did you sleep deeper?" He questioned.

I made a quick assessment of myself. Though I know the events of the last few days are still waiting for me to deal with I don't feel weary or emotionally flat as I have at other times. My sleep was deep and dreamless. "Yes, I answered, I do feel rested and ready to get on with things even though I had a difficult few days. Does it always work like that?"

"Yes. The combination of sky and family is a powerful one for the fae. It heals many ills of the soul."

"It doesn't make them go away though." I could still remember and feel my distress about Eric and the massacre; I just felt more in control of myself.

"No it doesn't make them go away. You are just recharged and able to deal with the situation with a fresh mind and body."

I felt like a piece of the puzzle just slid into place. Is this why my brain is firing on more circuits than usual, particularly after the trauma of the previous two days? Normally I'm still pretty shaken up and exhausted emotionally the next day.

"Wow. Thank you Uncle Dermott for explaining that to me. I know so little about my fae heritage. This is definitely a neat trick I can use over and over" I raised my coffee mug in salute and gave him a big smile.

"I would teach you anything you wish to know dear niece. You have given me a purpose and I am grateful to you. I was ungrounded and waning till you allowed me to stay and work in your home. I feel much more magical and steady since you have become my purpose. Thankyou".

I felt my eyes widen and my mouth fall open a little. "What do you mean I am your purpose?"

"I have been lost for a long time. I was cursed and confused until you broke it. Since then I have been unfocused till you let me stay in your home. You have given me a task. I am helping you in your home. I will also help you to know fairy if you wish it. You are my task. I am here to help, guide and protect you my niece."

"Uncle", I exclaimed feeling a wave of guilt. "I didn't mean to make you feel you owe me anything. You don't, you're free to do your own thing now".

"Sookie, I am doing my own thing. We fae need a direction to move toward, a purpose. When we have one, we are powerful and driven. Already I feel my magic and vital force strengthening since I chose you as my purpose."

"Uncle I don't want to be responsible for your happiness, I have enough trouble figuring out my own happiness. I don't want to drag you into my troubles."

Dermott chuckled, "you can not pull me into anything I do not choose to participate in. I have chosen to look out for you, I can choose when and how to look out for you, or not to at all. You can tell me to go away as well. This is not a vampire bond. I do not own you. Sookie, you are the grand daughter of my twin. I have no children, no grandchildren. I have come to think of you as my own child. If I can guide and protect you I feel closer to my brother and a sense of family."

I felt my throat tighten and my eyes start to tear up. I hadn't realized the void I had inside me from having lost Gran and my parents till Dermott said I think of you as my daughter. To have someone want to be a parent for you is a touching thing. My newly switched on brain was advising caution though. I still don't know enough about the fae or Dermot to let all my guards down.

I got up and gave Dermot a hug. "Thank you uncle. That means something to me. I will give what you have said a lot of thought. For now you are still welcome to be in my home and I would like it if you would teach me more about the Fae. Thanks for breakfast". I walked back into the house with more on my mind than when I had walked out of it.

I started to tidy up the kitchen, it's only fair since Dermot was nice enough to cook me breakfast. Dermot came in as I started to do the dishes. He picked up a dishcloth and started to wipe up.

"Uncle Dermot, am I becoming more Fae?" Might as well jump in since Dermot was in a sharing kind of mood and I was wondering how far the "I'll teach you about your Fae side" would go.

"No Sookie, you can not be more Fae in blood than you already are. You will always be as you are, as I will always be half Fae half human."

"Then why am I feeling stronger, faster and shielding better." Not to mention more blood thirsty and ruthless in the way I think lately, very disturbing I must say.

"You are starting to focus more toward your Fae side."

"Huh" I looked at him with a blank look on my face. I handed him the last dish and let the water go. "I think we better sit down so you can explain this to me. I really want to know what's happening to me cause I know something is. Even Sam had noticed something."

As Dermot put the last of the dishes away I grabbed a jug of ice tea and two glasses and motioned to Dermot to go out onto the porch. We sat down on the swing.

"So…..My Fae side"

Dermot smiled, "It's okay Sookie. You and I have a mixed blood. We can choose which part of our blood we wish to put our attention on and we will grow in strength in that part. You have always had Fae ability you just never knew it was there and never turned it on."

I frowned in concentration, trying to figure out what he meant.

"I am equal parts human and Fae. I choose to ignore my human side and focus completely on my Fae side. Therefore I am very strong in my Fae side, my magic is strong and I will live a very long life. I am also not very good at being human or having human instincts as I have ignored my human blood."

"So I am very human because I have had no idea that I was part fairy. So now that I know and am in contact with you and Claude and with Claudine and Niall before they ahhh left I am starting to strengthen my Fae side?"

Yes" he said with a happy smile. "You are starting to put more of your energy into your Fae side now and you are becoming stronger in it, your instincts are waking up."

"So if I choose to put more time and focus into learning my Fae side what will happen to me and can I stop it if I don't like it?" I was concerned about my ears growing pointy, and getting some of Claudes stirling character traits.

"You will find your magic, you will not be as strong or wide ranging in your ability as a full blooded Fae but you will be able to do most things with proficiency and find that you have a particular skill at one or two things." He smiled a secretive sort of smile, 'you may even have gifts the full blood Fae can't master."

"Dermot, how do you compare with a full blood Fae and what was that smile for?" He's got a secret, I thought, and one he's proud of.

"Oh I am nearly as strong as a full Fae, because Niall is my father and his magic is very powerful. Those of his direct bloodline are very gifted in magic." He smiled again.

"Dermot", I asked with caution and curiosity, "what can you do. If I understand you right, you should have a particular skill. What's your special talent? Please don't answer if I'm being rude"

"I have not told another Fae what I can do. If I tell you, you must promise to never tell another soul, no one, not Eric, Jason and not Claude. Do you swear it.?"

"I promise Dermot, I would never betray a trust." I am like a vault. I have heard so many things about people that I shouldn't know and I just store it in the vault and move away. I am good at keeping secrets. Telepathy will teach you all sorts of survival skills.

"Dermot carefully looked around the yard and sniffed the air before answering. "I can open portals into Fae. It is a very rare gift and one only the ruling families possess" he said with both pride and sadness.

I put a hand on Dermots arm. "What's wrong, why are you sad about your talent?"

"Only Niall and Breandon have the ability to open portals and now, since the Fae war, it's only Niall. In all his family there is no one who can do it but me, and he does not want me."

"What happened between the two of you?"

"Niall has always loved Humans. He loves to play with them and humans fall very easily in love with him. My mother was deeply in love with him and he played with her. He would come for a few hours or a day and then it would be years before she saw him again. Every time he came I would watch my Mothers joy and her pain and suffering when he was gone. As she aged he came less and less till she died of a broken heart. She never looked at another man, I think Niall ruined her for other men" he said sadly. "Niall came and took Fintan and I into Faery. I resented him and his treatment of my mother. We had many arguments but he failed to understand that what he did was wrong. He always favoured Fintan as Fintan was as fascinated with humans as Niall was, hence your existence." He smiled at me. "Breandon was talking about being separate from humans and closing off all contact with this world. I thought it was a good idea having lived a difficult life as a half Fae in Faery and having seen the suffering we bring to our human lovers. During one of our bigger arguments he cursed me. The rest you know."

"I am truly sorry, Dermot" I said. I poured some iced tea and handed him a glass. I decided to bring the topic back to me before Dermot became too melancholy and clamed up. It's not that I had no sympathy for him, I had plenty. I could relate to not fitting in with your world, being different and treated as less than. I also remembered how my mother was infatuated with my father to the point that she would be jealous of Jason and I. I understand how much I love Niall when he is near me even though I know I shouldn't trust him. It's not a big stretch to imagine the despair and the joy Dermots mother felt about Niall. But I wanted to keep Dermot talking about Fae stuff while he was still willing. I might not get another chance at this for sometime. "So will I be weaker than you and not live as long as you either."

"Not necessarily. The amount of Fae blood you have doesn't really restrict your ability much. Magic is more about the energy you bring to it. You have plenty of that, it's part of why your like a beacon to supernaturals. If you put more focus onto your fae side and keep it that way you could live quite a long time and be only slightly less powerful in some ways than any other Fae."

"How old are you Dermot"

He thought for a while, "maybe around 700 human years. I don't really keep track and time in this place moves different to time in Faery. I am still young for a Fae."

"Will I smell like a fairy, will my blood become more potent to vampires?" I was thinking about my relationship with Eric and perhaps that's why he bit me like he did the night Victor was killed. I touched my neck.

"No Sookie. You cannot change what you already are. You will always be more human in your physical make up. Your Eric will not be driven into fairy frenzy even if you become more magical and think more like a Fae. He will be able to smell the magic you use and some magic does smell irresistible to vampires"

I felt a certain relief about that. I didn't want Eric suddenly draining me because he lost control of himself. I felt myself touching my neck again. If it wasn't a taste thing that made him bite me like that, what was it? He knew he should have stopped, if Bill hadn't intervened would he have? A shocking thought burst into my head. Was he trying to change me, turn me into a vampire. I felt sick. I felt my world start to slide a little. No, not now and I forced my brain back to the moment.

"Dermot, the night you were injured, you hunted down the men who did it and killed them. Why? And what was with the breathing thing you did to me?"

"When we are wronged or injured we will hunt our enemy. There is magic in it. Your enemy takes your energy from you when they injure or wrong you. You must take it back if possible. The best way is with blood. That night I anointed my head wound with the blood of those who did it to restore my damaged energy and repair my body. It is a natural part of the fae make up and most supernaturals have this drive. It's why you think us blood thirsty. You yourself have probably felt a need to take vengeance on those who have hurt you."

Well that explains a few things. I have never in my life wanted so many people dead and I would never have found it justified like I have lately. No wonder I am in so much turmoil. My human conscience is at war with my growing Fae nature. Oh geeze louise, this is going to keep me up all night thinking. Well, you wanted to know answers and now you do. Its just I can't imagine ever being ok with all the killing and blood I have been a part of recently.

"What about the breathing thing?" I asked, leaving that train of thought for later. It was a big dilemma I wasn't ready to deal with right now.

"Bellenos shared his life energy with me. He boosted my life force so I could start to heal myself and be ready for the hunt."

"Why did you do it to me?"

"I was responsible for you being in danger and I wanted to make you feel healed as well. I wanted to replace any energy you had lost to those who were hunting you or trying to hurt you. I am sorry if you were offended" he hung his head.

"I was a little shocked but it was interesting." We sat in silence for a little while sipping our sweet tea.

"Thank you for telling me so much about myself. It helps me to make sense of a lot of things that have been worrying me lately. I would like it if you could teach me more but for now I have to get ready for work." It was after midday already and I was due to start the dinner shift in a few hours. I wanted some time to absorb what he had told me before I left as well. It felt like my head needed to shut down but I knew I had to sort out what this all means and that there were some big decisions to be made as well.

"It would be my pleasure, my niece" he said and he kissed the back of my hand. "I have dedicated myself to you and your protection. You do need to know how to live with your fae side, particularly if you continue to walk in the supernatural world. You need to learn how to protect yourself." He smiled a toothy grin, "I will be upstairs sanding."

I watched him walk away and shook my head. Men and power tools.