Sookie Stackhouse was livid. The man she used to think was the love of her life was standing here telling her he was choosing to end his life, and that he was doing it "for her," so she could "have a normal life." As though she had no say. If he wanted an excuse for his decision, she would not be it. And on top of that, he was asking her to be the one to do it which was beyond gall, bordering on cruelty.
"Don't you dare put this on me, Bill Compton! You're making this choice for yourself, and taking one away from me. You don't get to decide how I live my life and who I live it with. You dying isn't gonna change that. And you have the audacity to ask me to be the one to end your life? To give up my powers, what makes me special and powerful? Part of my very being?"
"Sookie, don't you see? This is what's best for you," he pleaded.
"You think I'm not capable of deciding that for myself?" fumed Sookie, fed up with his selfishness, despite his seemingly good intentions.
"I think when it comes to me your judgment will always be clouded, same as my own when it comes to you. I must do this. Please, help me?" Bill all but begged.
"No. If you are set on doing this, then know that you are not doing it for me because it is not what I want, and I will not help you. I think you need to leave. I love you, but if you are set on doing this I don't want to see you again, it's too hard."
"Sookie, please try to understand..."
"No, Bill. How about for once YOU try to understand! Understand what you're doing to the people you claim to love. What you're asking from me is too much and you need to leave."
"I see. May I see you again, though? Before the end?"
"It's too hard, Bill. And there's nothing more to say. Please don't make me rescind your invitation."
"Can you at least think about it?"
"No, Bill. You don't have to die, you're choosing to. So I'm not gonna take on the guilt of your decision. And if you want to end your life, it won't be by my hands. I'd have to live with the pain of that the rest of my life and I can't accept that. I've done everything I can for you and you refuse to accept it. I will mourn you, but this is goodbye," she finished, leaning in to place a kiss on his lips before whispering, "Bill Compton, I rescind your invitation into my home."
Bill backed out of the door very slowly, but steadily; a single red tear falling down his face to match the ones on Sookie's face, but still she held firm. He stood in her front lawn, both of them gazing at each other for what would probably be the last time, before his head dropped and he turned to cross the cemetery back to his mansion.
Sookie sat in her dining room feeling empty, trying to reconcile her thoughts with the turns her life had taken. She loved Bill, she always had at least a little bit, even when he hurt her. Even when she was with other men, he was her first love and despite how awfully wrong it went with them, he would always own a piece of her soul. Which is why it was always him that hurt her the most. And she always forgave him. She gave him all the chances she never seemed to give anyone else. Not for the first time, she found her mind wandering to the "what-ifs" of her life. Imagining how things might be different if she'd never met Bill - she shuddered at that thought though, despite everything it cost her, meeting him was a catalyst to good things as well as bad things. For one, she'd never have known about her fairy heritage if it hadn't been for the vampires in her life, so she would always have wondered about her telepathy. For another, there were people she'd met that she never wanted to un-meet. There was also the fact that she'd be dead.
She paused at that and remembered a long ago conversation on her front porch. Eric saying Bill had let the Rattray's beat her within an inch of her life so that he could get his blood in her. She'd been so mad about everything else that it never occurred to her that her life wouldn't have been in danger if he hadn't orchestrated it. She frowned at this new thought and started cataloging all of these things she'd learned about Bill over the years, to try to help her jumbled mind make sense out of this chaos. He said he loved her, that he loved her so much he was choosing to die for her. But he'd been sent to procure her by the Queen - to seduce her and get her on their side, but he claimed he fell in love with her and he never did take her to the Queen. But he also never told her about it until Eric forced his hand, which Eric only did because Bill had tried to kill him to cover his own tracks.
Eric, now there was another thought all together. One of the "what-if" scenarios that frequently went through her head was what if she'd given Eric a chance as himself, with his memories intact? What life would be like with the real Eric. She wondered, not for the first time, how things would have been different if she hadn't been confronted by both of them at the same time - if she'd had time alone with Eric to discuss it without Bill's presence. Bill was right about one thing, he sure did cloud her judgement. As usual, though, when her thoughts strayed to Eric and what could have been, she came to the conclusion that it didn't really matter. It was over and done with, and they were no longer the two people they had been when they had fallen in love.
She'd been sitting at the table for so long, lost in her own thoughts, that she hadn't given any notice to how much time had passed. A noise from outside caught her attention and pulled her out of her reverie. She spared a glance at the clock before heading to the front door, grabbing her shotgun along the way. She peered through the window and saw that there were men standing in her yard, staring at the house silently. They were Japanese, and appeared from their clothing to be with the group of men she'd seen at Eric's bar the day before. She frowned, wondering why they had come to her house; especially as Eric didn't seem to be with them. Common sense told her not to open the door, remembering their swiftness to anger when she'd encountered them the day before. She panicked for a moment, trying to figure out what she could do against such skilled fighters who weren't inhibited by a lack of invitation into her home. But before she could fully form a plan, a blur of black leather and blonde hair had removed the necessity for plans or panic by removing the heads from her unwanted guests. This time she did open the door.
"Eric," she said, simply.
He looked up from his kill, glancing with amusement at the shotgun in her hands. "Sookie."
"Wanna explain?"
"In a minute. I need to dispose of the trash," he said, gesturing at the bodies at his feet.
Sookie just nodded, then moved to sit on the steps. What he did with the bodies, she neither knew or cared. She was just grateful he wasn't leaving them for her to deal with. The fact that she no longer cared about such brutal deaths occurring in front of her eyes, as long as it wasn't one of her own, only gave her brief pause. Her life had changed in so many ways. Not all for the good, but not all for the bad either. 'More to think about later' she thought as Eric approached her at last, covered in blood and looking positively gleeful. Until he saw her face and remembered their last conversation earlier that evening.
"Did you speak with Bill?" "What was that all about?" they both asked at the same time. They each gave a sad smile before Sookie decided she'd let Eric go first.
"Yes, I did. I let him speak his piece, and I can't say I approve of what he's doing, or why he's doing it, but it's his choice. There's nothing I can do. But I'll be damned if I'm gonna let him put it on me and ask me to help him do it."
"He asked you to do what?" Eric interrupted, anger apparent in his tone.
"He asked me to use the last of my light to kill him."
"Why? Why would he ask this of you?"
"It would take away all of my fae abilities, including my telepathy. In his eyes it would be a 'gift' to be rid of it, since he's so adamant about me having his idea of a normal human life."
"This is not something you desire as well?" Eric asked, looking mildly perplexed.
"No, and Bill would know that if he'd ever bothered to ask me my opinion on my own life. A normal life isn't in the cards for me."
"But if you lost your telepathy, you could be with a human and have a family."
"I'd still be passing it down to my children and I don't want that for them. Besides, it's my decision to make for myself, not his."
He was silent for a while, then finally he turned towards her. "I see. Then I apologize for my role in facilitating the meeting with Compton. I thought it was something you would want to hear but I see now that he was not completely forthcoming with me."
"It's alright. I did need to talk to him. If only to say goodbye."
"You do not wish to see him again?"
"No."
Wisely, Eric said no more on the topic and chose to answer her first question. "The men I killed were sent by the man you met at my bar yesterday. He found out that you knew about the cure and sent these men to apprehend you, or kill you. Either way, they won't be a concern again."
"Weren't there a lot more of them back at your bar?" she asked, confused.
"There were."
"Not anymore, I take it?"
"Decidedly not. They apprehended Pam while I was here earlier tonight and threatened to kill her to get your location from me. It was then I decided our partnership was through. I figured it was only right to come here next and take care of the issue personally."
"Who were those guys?"
"It might be safer for you not to know. But, since it concerns my next question for you, I suppose I should tell you some of it. They were going to synthesize Sarah's blood as a treatment for Hep-V, not a cure. Pam and I were to be partners with him, and I would be the spokesperson. However he threatened the two people I care about most, so I decided to - what is the phrase? Remove the middle man."
"Y'all gonna do it the same way? Or sell it as a cure?"
"A little of both." When Sookie only nodded, he frowned slightly. "You've acquired a sense of moral ambiguity, I see."
She just shrugged. "The world is a morally ambiguous place sometimes. Besides, it's not like you're hurting anyone. Vampires will still be helped, and you'll make a lot of money. I don't see the problem with that."
"Good because my next request concerns that exact topic, and you."
"How so?" she asked, hesitantly.
"I'm giving you and Jessica each a 5% share in the corporation that Pam and I will be creating in return for your continued silence about the existence of a full cure."
"Eric, that's not necessary. You know I won't say anything."
"I know this. But it is fair. And it would give you the opportunity to figure out what you want to do next, without having to worry about money. You can do anything you choose."
"But I won't have earned it, it wouldn't feel right."
"Sookie I know that to you, keeping this quiet just seems like the right thing to do but you don't see how rare of a quality that is. There are those that would try to extort us if the truth got out. Your continued silence is insurance against this. Therefore it is worth the money, even if you do not believe it to be so. Please do not fight me on this."
Sookie sighed, "Alright Eric. Thank you, then."
"You are more than welcome. I must go now. I have much to do, and you need time to grieve. Even for you, this has been a particularly bad week. But don't go thinking this is goodbye. I will see you again soon, Miss Stackhouse." He moved to stand up, taking her hand as he did to help her up as well, pulling her into a familiar embrace.
"Thanks again, for everything, Eric. I know I make it hard to care about me sometimes, but….well, thanks for doin' it anyway."
He said nothing, but held her marginally tighter. When they pulled apart, he said, "You will inform me when Mr. Compton has passed?"
"Yes. I'll do that."
"Thank you. I'll have paperwork drawn up for yourself and Miss Hamby soon, please speak with her about this, as I'm afraid I will not have time. Until then," he said, inclining his head before heading back down her driveway.