Author's Note-follow up to Dejà vu all Over Again…..please read previous stories. and review. Hope you enjoy and please check out the other stories in my series-see my profile page for reading order J
Part One-Sookie's Recovery
Twelve days, 6 and a half hours and 34 seconds had passed. Not that he had been counting the time or anything but it had been a terrible ordeal they had been through. And with her having willingly become a faerie-vamp hybrid, a rare power had emerged from her, a power that had left her severely wounded and drained and yet had allowed her to get himself as well as Pam out of the building they had been in. not that they would have been killed, not necessarily, being what they were but if they had been injured, surely they could have been kept from coming after Sookie, to get to her before the inevitable storm of rescue workers came onto the scene. And then what? Would she be taken to be studied, poked, prodded? Eric had already seen enough of humans testing vampires, torturing them and therefore was grateful for Sookie's assistance at blasting him and Pam from the building moments before it had collapsed. And so here they were, days and days later, holed up in the humble castle Eric had been born in, protected and supplied thanks to the efforts of Pam. No one was foolish enough to trek up into this particular mountain area of Sweden and if they were….well, they would come to regret it. Having not trusted anyone else to care for such sacred grounds, Eric was pleased that Pam had taken the task seriously and without (much) complaint. There was so much dangerous terrain around the building that one would indeed be foolish to try to plunder it, the many artifacts that had been untouched in a thousand years. How such luck could have lasted all these years, he didn't know and as curious as he was to know the answer, the more pressing issue was, of course, Sookie
Pam had done wonderfully making sure the whole of the 6 room building was light tight and well heated thanks to the fireplaces and wood she had grudgingly gathered. There was enough to keep the place warm for many a winter and as cold as this place could be even now, in the summertime, there was enough supplies, blankets and clothes brought here by Pam to keep those residing within comfortable and safe. Still, he was starting to get impatient with the slow recovery of Sookie, though Niall had said that it would not be a quick one. He removed himself from her bed where she had been for weeks now and he strolled the halls that once held such promise, dreams. Not that he had really wanted to take over for his father and rule their people. But neither did he ever wish his family to end up the way they had, killed by the wolves of a enemy that he was thankful he had not long ego eliminated once and for all. But the ghost of Russell Edgington always remained, especially here in the castle, where his orders had led to the destruction of Eric's family. Shattering his life as he knew it and though things had worked out-in many ways, better than he dared dream-part of him was and would always be, furious at having been so helpless that fateful night when his loved ones were taken away forever. Ten centuries later, he lingered on, having cobbled together a new family and though some of then had even been taken from him, that which remained would forever be meaningful and precious to him. Especially the figure sleeping down in the other room.
Standing in the hall which had served for meals and the royal duties of his parents, he looked at all the weapons on display. Pam had taken care to truly restore this place to its ancient glory and fingering a axe that had been his fathers, he returned to the bedroom and crawled into bed next to Sookie. He felt the bleeds approaching but he had not rested well over the past days and weeks. And then, she stirred. His blue eyes widened in shock, in surprise. He had been so used to her sleeping like the dead that he hadn't expected to see her move anytime soon. It had been a long few weeks, to be sure, however and he braced himself for disappointment, that perhaps his mind was playing tricks on him. But then she blinked and sat up, gasping for air as if she were choking. Panic was in her eyes, her face until he grabbed her shoulders firmly but gently. "Sookie….it's me…please….don't be scared." Eric saw there was a fear in her eyes he had not seen in a long time. Was she lucid? Could she even recognize him? But as he held her she started to calm don as she came out of her fear spiral. Looking all around at her rustic surroundings, she fell into his chest and sobbed. "I didn't think I could make it back….I…I was somewhere else, hurt, wanting to wake up but I couldn't and….." she looked up at him. "I destroyed your company….your building…..oh god!"
He laughed gently. "It's already being rebuilt…..but I have decided that I am going to step away. I sold the company last week to the former owners of True Blood. On their word that they keep the product as it is and if I get wind of anything unscrupulous in the works, well, then they will find out personally what it means when one betrays my trust. I believe they understood loud and clear."
She pushed herself away from him and looked almost incredulous. "You….sold New Blood?"
"I got bored with the corporate life quite fast, though I had several day people running the show most of the time. But I am not ever going to be in want of money or anything else as long as I live. And that should be quite a very, very long time yet. I prefer a more quaint workplace.."
"You gave the business up so you can keep glowering on your throne at Fangtasia?" Sookie said, still in shock. "And since when is your bar "quaint?" she laughed at her own joke.
"Part of me gets off on that, I admit. Being the center of attention and all that…..but it lends me more time to be with…." he bit his lip, not wanting to go on. He still had trouble getting used to the fact that it was the one opposite him that had broken the walls down around his heart. That he was able to express himself better than he had been able to in the centuries since he had been turned. It seemed to him that she was nothing less than a miracle and as hard as it was to admit when he felt things, he knew he could with her. "Family has always been important to me." he managed to finish as he took her hands into his and as she looked around the room, took in the scents and sights with her vamp enhanced senses she knew right away where they were.
"How is this possible? How is it not destroyed after so long…." she whispered as she took in the simplistic beauty of the Viking castle. And he explained how Pam had been instrumental in keeping the place up and safe from intruders.
"She's made sure the terrain remains impossible for travelers to come up. And there have been long held rumors that the place is haunted-" he stopped dead in mid sentence as he looked past Sookie to the hallway. There again, he saw the family he had long ago lost and Sookie too, turned to look at what he was and she saw them as well.
"Is that-" she started to ask as he slowly got to his feet and watched him slowly approach the spirits of his family. And Godric. Not wanting to interfere, she remained on the bed and listened in. what she did know was that he knelt to no one and yet here he did as such, kneeling reverently towards the spirits of both of his fathers, his mother and infant sister, sleeping contentedly in the arms of the queen.
"There is no need for that, son." his father said as he gestured for his only son to get up. Eric obeyed but bowed his head, almost ashamed to look at his father. "Look at me." his father commanded and he did so, reluctantly, red tears trickling down his porcelain complexion. "You have carried too much guilt on your shoulders over the years…the blame…..there is only one place where blame belongs and you dispatched of that foe. And you have matured far beyond my expectations. We have watched you from afar for centuries and thought the time was right to see you face to face."
"Are you ashamed…..of what I became. That I didn't follow you into death like a proper Viking? That I never took the throne?" Eric asked, a slight tremor in his voice.
The queen took a hand and though she had no substance, Eric swore he felt a warm, loving sensation as she cupped his chin. "You are our son and we will love you always. This was your destiny as our gods saw fit, to send Godric to you in your funeral pyre and you have flourished. Using your gifts to protect your friends and family. And we have watched and waited to see what would become of this young lady with you." the queen nodded to Sookie.
"Come over Sookie…..it is alright." Godric said and to her continues shock, Sookie stumbled over to the side of her Viking and was face to face with those directly responsible for his creation, his existence. "It is good to see you again and I am pleased to see you two together…..I always hoped he would find what has eluded him for so long…."
Sookie was emotional at seeing those who she never expected to speak to and quickly bowed and curtsied to the king and queen. "it is…..an honor, I mean, how is this possible?"
"Magic is everywhere and this place is on sacred ground, imbued by the magic of our ancestors and of the gods we believed in. and it turns out that this one," the king gestured to Godric "was allowed entry into Valhalla. A honor we helped make possible with our talks with the gods. This place will never be touched by those who would try looting or desecrating it. Your child Pamela has done well but it is no necessary. The gods will ensure safety to this sanctuary." explained the king as he looked to Sookie. "You are as good as a daughter to us, for what you have done for our son and though we wish we could be amongst the living, we will always be here to speak to, to seek counsel from. This is the limits of where we can come, we can only appear within the walls of this palace." he started to fade as did the other spirits. "Though our visits and their time are limited, know that always we are proud of the both of you and will never truly leave either of you. Blessings to the both of you on where you may go from here." A warming glow came over them as the spirits departed.
"Pam will be happy to know she has less responsibilities." Eric mused, staring at the spot where his family had been moments ago. And where, he knew now, could appear again. That they were no longer gone forever was a comfort and he felt foolish to say what he just had said. The right words had escaped him and he was overcome with emotion and sat on the foot of Sookie's bed, burying his head in his hands. Sookie sat beside him and rubbed his back gently. "I mean, can you believe it….that this place…..that they aren't lost to be forever…..I….can't process this."
"Miracles are everywhere. I really think they are and it is about time that you got one for yourself. With the burdens, the pain you have carried all these years…" she trailed off as he touched her on her lips to stop her.
"You are the miracle that made this possible and I hate that it took for you to be so gravely injured to bring this to fruition…but the important thing is you are okay…you do feel alright, don't you?"
Tears that had threatened to flow from her eyes finally bubbled over and fell from her brown eyes to her cheeks to her pajamas she had been dressed in. "Never better. And that we can be together….I think that is a miracle don't you? After everything you and I have endured over the years…." she yawned. "That you can come here to speak with your family when you need to…" she cried again, this time out of happiness for her Viking. "You deserve such a gift and if it was me being hurt that made this come to fruition…..to bring them out of their realm to be able to reunite with you….then to me, its worth the sacrifice."
He shook his head. "Almost losing you is not a price I would ever pay to see my family again and as grateful as I am for having you back, to have them back in a way…..I am going to cherish my family all the more now. To stop taking things for granted. Sometimes, my arrogance can be a negative and I feel unstoppable. I can only hope today marks a fresh start. I believe this may be number 2,324 of the fresh starts I have attempted in my life." he quipped and she laughed gently.
"All I want to do now is explore. Show me this place. Show me the past I never got to see." Sookie said as she bolted form the bed. "Got anything other than pajamas for me to wear?"
He laughed at her enthusiasm and showed her the containers in which Pam had brought a variety of clothes for the two of them as well as for herself when she happened to be there. Finally, he had the chance to give her the tour of his beginnings and give her more background on who he had been before he was turned. As he waited for her to change into something else, he got lost in thought. If not for him being turned, he would have been mortal and never would have met Sookie. Fate was funny and with him being turned and after each event that had transpired in his life unfolded, he felt that it was almost like an obstacle course to happiness. Never again would he take any of this for granted. For if not the gift from Godric, he maybe never would have found such love from a woman. Nor would he have had the adventures he had had, met the people he had. And that,. He decided, he wouldn't trade for anything in the world. Ever.
To Be Continued in Part 2-