As Bon Temps Turns

Chapter One

Authors Note: As done with the series episodes, I'm picking and choosing at will from the books and the series and throwing in my own ideas. This picks up at the beginning of the Season 5 finale and carries on in my own little world in a way that I would have liked to have seen it played out. I can't say, for certain and at this time, how many chapters there will be. I'm also going to go ahead and label it MA because I'm not sure what direction I plan to take as of yet. It might boil down to how it's received as well! J

Sookie shook her hand in irritation like she would a nearly empty spray bottle of Windex. She was trying desperately to get anything out of it, that she could, to join in with her Fae cousins to counter-attack Russell Edgington before he could rip inside of their world and drain them all to nothing. Then who knew what he'd go on to do…

Ohhh come onnnn! WHY didn't I take this more seriously? DAMN IT! I should have been training for something like this and I was too busy pushing it off as a disability!

Russell laughed manically as he advanced on them, talking about how it only tickled that they shot dozens of light rays into him. She could feel her cousins start to panic even more and started to wonder if they were truly lost.

Suddenly, Russell was in the grip of Eric Northman and relief flooded through Sookie, even as her cousins gasped in shock. They weren't sure if this was a new threat or salvation. She had to admit that to the average person Eric was terrifying. Hell, to a fairy? The stuff of nightmares. To her, though, he looked like the perfect balance to her own light. Her mate. She blinked at that thought and stuffed it back into the dark corner of her mind where it had apparently pounced from. Now was definitely not the time. Sookie smiled to herself as Russell was promptly staked and blood splattered against the side of Eric's face. And so there it is. Eric's revenge. I bet that felt good.

"Well that felt better than I thought it would," Eric said in slight wonder, with a small smile. He vaguely registered Steve Newlin running off in terror, but let him go. He'd be dealt with later.

Sookie was proud of him. Not only had he just saved her and her cousins, and probably her idiot brother, from Russell, but he had finally found his revenge for his family. Her idiot brother… oh! How could she forget and just stand there staring at Eric? She ran past him to Jason in a blur of pink concern.

"Jason! Jason! Are you ok?"

Nora stopped mid-sentence as Sookies scent wafted through the air in her wake. Eric recognized the hungry look and grabbed her by the throat before she could do anything about it. He watched Sookie while issuing his order not to harm his fairy.

Nora squirmed in his grasp, "What is she? She smells like… what is she?!"

He pulled his eyes from Sookie to look sternly into Nora's eyes, "She is a waitress. And you will not harm her. Understood? Honestly, do you have so little control? Our father would be so disappointed."

Nora huffed and conceded, "Alright! I won't harm her."

Eric let her go and came to Sookie's side just as she was getting Jason onto his feet. He was silent as he watched her lovingly check her brother for any damage and explain to him she wasn't their mother.

"Jason," Sookie laughed a little worriedly, "I'm not mama. I'm Sookie. Wow, that's a big knot on your head…"

Jason laughed a small confused laugh and Sookie rolled her eyes. She turned to Eric and stared into his eyes for a brief moment before completely shocking him, and everyone else for that matter, by throwing her arms around him and pressing a kiss to his chest. He didn't know how to react. If he melted, like he so wanted to do, he'd be setting himself up for a possible let down. If he didn't do anything, then he would seem like he didn't want her to do this; and he most certainly did. She must have sensed his inner battle because she leaned back and reached up to press a small hand against his cheek and in the most sincere manner he had ever seen from her said, "Eric, thank you so much. You just don't know how proud I am of you. You not only saved me, my cousins, and my brother? You also avenged your family. You probably just saved the whole human world from extinction as well. If Russell had gained the power to walk in the sun? He would not have stopped 'til he slaughtered everyone. You stopped that from happening and I'm so proud of you."

Eric stared down at her in wonder. Did she take a bump to the head like Jason? In a thousand years he couldn't remember anyone saying they were proud of him. Maybe Godric got a certain look to him when he had mastered certain skills over the years and Pam had that "adoring her master" look from time to time. For the most part, vampires didn't indulge in praise or warm fuzzies. But for Sookie to say she was proud of him? He blinked. He had no idea how to react.

Sookie didn't seem to mind that he just stood there staring at her, not saying anything. She pressed another kiss to his chest and gave him a small squeeze, then turned him loose to focus on Nora who kept sniffing the air around her.

"I'm assuming that's me and my cousins that you smell. I'm sorry. It's probably pretty overwhelming. My name is Sookie. Sookie Stackhouse. Thank you for helping Eric."

Nora looked from Sookie to Eric in surprise and Eric shrugged, "She's southern. If she didn't extend an introduction and some niceties she would be in danger of her head spinning and blowing up. Try shaking her hand. That seems to end things in the proper manner."

Sookie laughed and swatted Eric's chest, "You hush."

Nora extended her hand and shook Sookie's, "I'm Nora. Eric's sister. The pleasure is all mine."

"A sister! Eric you never told me you had a sister!"

From behind Sookie Jason groaned, "Oh for fucks sake Sook! I need to go home. Russell's dead. You're safe. Let's go."

"You hush too. I haven't seen Eric in forever. I want to make sure he's ok too."

Eric felt his chest swell up a little and a small ray of hope shot through him. Yeah, that's right redneck boy, she's worrying about ME right now…

"I'm fine Sookie. It's been a little… chaotic. But…" he was about to say it was over now. Killing Russell had left its edge of finality with him. He remembered where he had come from and felt a wave of tension shoot through him again. "And it's not over yet. I have to return to The Authority and try to set things right there."

"What's happened Eric? Why do I feel like you're getting in over your head with something?"

"Because I am," he chuckled. He cast off any feelings of worry about pushing too far with her. He may not live to see another night after this one. He reached out and pulled her to him. She didn't resist. That was a good sign. In fact, she sighed and pressed her cheek against his chest.

"What's happened?" she asked again.

He held her while explaining everything that had happened since him and Bill had been taken to The Authority. He left out some bits about his and Nora's reunion. He sure wasn't expanding on all of that, even though he had seen her with the wolf, Alcide. He growled softly in memory but shook it off. At least she'd puked on the wolf. That had made him chuckle…

Sookie sighed, "So you've been very busy. And Bill is… nuts. Awesome. It's like a soap opera. As Bon Temps Turns! So how can I help?"

Jason groaned again from behind her. He had slid back down to sitting on the ground in a heap. "Hush Jason, this is important."

"Oh! And my head bustin' and me seein' mama and daddy ain't?" he grumped before rubbing the knot on his head for emphasis and then pointing to it.

"You'll be fine when that pump knot goes down," she told him as though he were 5 years old and had gotten a scrape on the playground. She turned back and tipped her gaze up to Eric with a smile, "Now, tell me how we can help, Eric."

Jason grunted as he pulled himself up again, "WE?! What's this we shit? Sook I ain't lettin' you or me be a we tonight to help his sorry dead ass."

Sookie whirled in Eric's arms with a gleam of anger in her eyes and shot Jason with a small bolt of light that temporarily knocked him out again, "I saidHUSH!"

Eric chuckled and hugged her close. He loved this tiny powerful sunlit woman.

"I'm sorry Sookie, but I have to agree with your brother this once. I don't want you in danger. This is serious."

She rolled her eyes at him and gave an exasperated little sigh, "I'm always in serious danger. I'm going to help whether you like it or not so you may as well just help me help you. Got it?"

He looked up at the sky as if pleading with the Powers That Be to help him out and sighed, "Of course you will. When have you ever done as I tell you?"

Sookie nuzzled against his chest and smiled, "I invited you into my house when the werewolf showed up that time and you killed him. I trusted you at the Fellowship of the Suns church when you told me to. There are other things you asked me to do that I can't repeat in polite company… and I did them…"

Eric's chest rumbled with laughter, "So you did. So. You. Did. And did them well. Damn…" He mentally shook the memories of his time with her when he'd had no idea of who he was. It was surprising that she would bring that up. He didn't know what had brought on the change in Miss Stackhouse since he'd seen her last but he hoped it was a permanent one. He'd missed her terribly.

Nora watched the exchanges with extreme interest. Who was Sookie to her brother? Why did she shoot light out of her hand? Why did she smell sooo good. Why was Eric putting up with her telling him how it was going to be? And… shouldn't they be getting back to The Authority before they were discovered & hunted?

As if sensing Nora's thoughts, Eric pulled back reluctantly and frowned, "I suppose we should get back there. If anyone can talk Bill out of his madness… it will be you."

She bit her lower lip and looked up at him worriedly.

"What is it Sookie?"

"My guess is we'll have to put him down. And the worst part is I don't even care. I'm not sure I like that about myself. I should probably think about saving him first and not just killing him off."

Eric nodded and eyed her curiously, "It's very possible that will be what happens. Why would you not care though? As I remember you still felt… something." He had a look of distaste as though he'd had some bad blood.

Sookie nodded, "I did… I thought. But I've had a lot of time to think and the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. From day one, he only meant for me to be a means to an end; him climbing the ranks and having power. This is what the whole Lillith thing is about as well, I'm sure. He's power hungry. It's the only thing he cares about. My blood will be of very little importance to him now that he could have the power of Lillith, instead. I doubt what I say to him will carry much weight."

Eric nodded again and felt hope run through him like one of Sookie's light rays, "Well it's about time you realized that."

Sookie looked him straight in the eyes and breathed, "I've realized a lot of things."