Author's note-I had a reader wonder about the second part of the party festivities and so I decided to write a part two to this story…..enjoy!

They had all met up at the grounds where the Katrina ruined Six Flags had been. In its place was a fun center, complete with go carts and mini golf. But before everyone went off on their own, exploring the arcade-to which Sookie and Pam had bought hounded of dollars of tokens and go kart/golf tickets for the party. The staff that was running this place were being paid well for the late hour and as the group of humans, vamps and others entered the center, the sprawling glowing neon lights before them, Jason was only too eager to get a laser tag game going with Hoyt and their kids Harper was growing like a weed and Jason had joked to his sister once that it was clear she was smarter than her daddy. But with Bridgette expecting number two, the hour of this party was too late for her and she had elected to remain home. There were few kids, other than Arlene and other kids who were there, well they had grown up fast. It had been a disappointment to Sookie to hear Lafayette and James would be out of town for the party but in true Lafayette fashion had given her a gift to send along to him. And on their way over here tonight, the Viking had opened it and had seen some….toys for the bedroom. "I haven't seen things like these since Pam and I inherited the video store that became our bar. Suffice it to say I don't need any help. Though this is quite amusing." Eric had mused as she reddened at seeing the toys in the box. Laughing at her face, he grinned. "You should have seen the basement of the bar before it was a bar. You think this is bad…..nice to see the little innocent Sookie come out but lets face it, you've not been little miss innocent for some time now." she responded by removing the toys from the box and slapping him with them, mush to his amusement.

A half hour later , Sookie was dragging the reluctant looking Viking towards the fun center, pointing out all the fun things that they could do and though he wasn't entirely shocked, having seen the inadvertently left out flier on the bed stand last night, Eric was certainly out of his element. But as they rounded a corner, there was a surprise that shook him out of his wary mood two faces he hadn't expected to see stood at a shooting came, firing plastic guns at the glow of the screen, dressed in modern clothing but usually dwelled in a place that was frozen in time, save for some electricity and a couple other modern conveniences Pam had helped bring into their village. Their little kingdom. Gunnar and Elsa broke away from their game and smirked at their loved ones, a smirk that they so shared with their mutual loved one. Gunnar being the son of the faerie and the Viking and Elsa, the once thought dead baby sister of the Viking. And now, here they were, Elsa, the vampire Viking queen of the three hundred or so of her kind back in the Scandinavian mountains where Eric had been born and raised. Until everything changed that night with the wolves.

There was a awkward silence and throwing his preferred stoic nature to the wind, the Viking took to hugging his sister and son, but looked at them with concern. "Who is looking after the people back home?"

Elsa looked pained but put a brave face on. "It would have been my husband….but he was out hunting too late and…didn't make it in time….the sun….it took him."

Sookie gasped in shock. "Oh, I am so sorry…." and for his part, Eric offered his sister a gently hug.

Elsa managed a wan smile. "I have not wed again but left our people in the hands of Ruger…someone I think I can find happiness with again…..and with your son having been so helpful protecting the village, our people…." Elsa paused. "With him being a hybrid, he can go in the sun and scout the land, keeping watch and I know the land was spelled by sookie, to keep trespassers at bay….he is a good hunter and has provided plenty of animal blood for our people. And some humans here and there."

"Don't worry, I don't kill anyone." Gunnar was quick to point out. And seeing the relief on his parents faces his own smile faded. "We can't stay long, after tonight, we have to return home." he noted his mothers face, knowing it still pained her that eh had chosen to live overseas. "My other home." he amended. "I had to teach Elsa here the finer points of arcade games….." he wanted to divert the subject to something more fun. After all, tonight was a party. "We are happy in our little kingdom but a night away, for this…." Gunnar grinned wickedly. "I have taken trips to places like this and I think it would be fun to school those who haven't had the pleasure before." he gave Elsa and Eric a look. And Eric gave Sookie a look that seemed to ask what he had gotten himself into.

"Jason! Wait for us. I've got more players for you." Sookie shouted across the room to where her brother and several others were getting their gear together, to enter the dark chamber where the game of laser tag would commence. Pam looked to be somewhat bored, watching all the people, her friends and family milling about and with a reluctant sigh, decided to join the others at tag. Gear on and their little laser guns in hand,, the group entered the room when the siren went off and scattered inside a room lit by florescent lights and strobe effects.. The chest pieces everyone wore were lit up and there was a flurry of shooting at the chest pieces by the laser buns and with each beeping noise that signaled a hit, it was clear who the winning team was and as the door opened to let them out after the game was done, the scoring was finished, Jason grinned as he shook his head at his brother in law, seeing how many times he had been hit. "You may be a bad ass vampire Viking but you can't play this game to save your life."

Lets go again, shall we?" retorted the Viking as he pointed at Jason. "One on one….no witnesses." he grinned mischievously. Stealing a glance at his sister Jason was hesitant to enter a dark room one on one with someone like Eric. Granted, he knew they were family, friends but still, it was something of a fright to face.

"Don't be a wuss." Sookie said as she put her gear back on the rack where she had gotten it. "And you," she pointed a finger at her Viking. "Play nice with my brother, he is the only one I have."

Winking at her, he still had that Cheshire cat grin as he followed Jason back into the tag arena. Left to her own devices, Sookie wandered around, getting a soda from the café which was paid for and whoever wanted something to eat, it was already paid for . On the house. This party certainly hadn't been cheap and she smiled as she watched Arlene and Keith sitting at a table with their little family, the kids gulping down sodas and pizza before darting out to the go karts where Andy, Holly and their family were having fun doing laps. The night sky was clear and star filled, the moonlight and the lights of the building illuminating the happy faces of all those that were there. There was a card that Sookie had secretly had passed around to all those present and it was one of those novelty, larger than normal card, so she had to be discreet to get well wishes and signatures from all those there because there was no way a normal sized card would do. There was not a cake like there had been the night before when she and Pam and Willa had had a more intimate and personal celebration for him. Tonight was just for family and friend time, to have them wish their friend a happy birthday. Simple and yet complex, considering who the guest of honor was and just how many more years he possibly had ahead of him. And now, seeing him so deliciously out of his element, comfort zone, she was nevertheless amused as she watched him take up one of the controls at the arcade. As she approached, she saw it was some kind of old west shoot em up game. Amused, she stood back behind one of the dividers that kept the arcade separate from the rest of the place and peered around it as she watched him start the thing up. And shooting like a pro, unsurprising, since she had certainly seen him armed with read weapons before. But it was seeing him playing, enjoying himself….she suspected that the Xbox at home she had gotten him some time back that had been collecting dust would be getting more use in the near future. She covered her mouth as she watched him get annoyed, hearing the noises that signaled he had missed. In reality, she knew he would always hit his mark but the virtual world was something different and in a flash of sparks, he had torn the pistol from the console of the game and put it and a fist through the screen, thin and pale streams of smoke emitting from the defeated machine and seeing the looks from those around him and meeting the gaze of his waitress, he bit his lip, looking at everyone with a shrug. "I wanted it to be more interactive."

Pam had seen the scene and rolled her eyes, taking out a notebook from her pocket. "Add that to the tab…though at least he waited until we were a hour in to this before destroying something." and with those words, she stalked up to him and pulled him aside, a brief lecture that left him holding his hands up in a giving up kind of way. But that devilish smirk crossed his face as a exasperated Pam walked away from him, her face turning to one of amusement as well. "Seems like the older he gets the less mature he gets….that he liked blowing crap up, such a teenage boy." she with that, she went to flat among the guests, none of who seemed too upset about the outburst that had led to the demise of a game. All things considered, so long as they all remained intact, the guests, things were going along swimmingly. A broken thing here and there was easily repaired and paid for, what with the immensely deep pockets of those hosting this party.

"He's doing better than I thought he would." Sookie said as she took Pam aside and nodded towards where he was stalking towards. The front door, which either meant he had had enough of, dare they think, to the go karts. Leaving the rest of the partiers to their own activities, Pam and Sookie, soon joined by Elsa, Gunnar and Willa, rounded the turn to the sprawling track just in time to see the Nordic giant barely fit into one of the carts and seeing them watching him with amusement, he muttered some foreign curses under his breath and as they sidled up to his choice of car====a blue one with lightning streaks on the side, he spoke a little louder but sounded no less annoyed.

"A little problem there?" Willa said, looking amused. Pun intended…..looks like you've got very little wiggle room in there."

Glaring at her with a amused smirk, he didn't bother with the safety belt. He never did in regular cars either. "I know Americans are not as impressively built as Scandinavians but I thought this country was trying to be more inclusive. Apparently it doesn't include the taller people from abroad, specifically us Nordic people." he sighed. "Rude."

"Oh god, now he is gonna rant about inclusivity. A few years ago he wouldn't have cared….you have really done a number on him." Pam glared at Sookie, though she looked amused.

"Well, it's a tight fit….bit he can reach the pedals, no problem." Sookie said, always trying to find the silver lining and it was true enough. The race was about to start and as always, he was in hyper competitive mode. And against only two others, the girls decided they would partake, add some spice. And with the three joining the fray, the Viking looked at them with interest before a evil grin took over. "This will be interesting….I've got a lead foot as you all well know….."

"That means nothing, one wrong use of your lead foot will send you into a spin or worse." Sookie said. And they all watched the stoplight that was alight turn to yellow before the man running the track finally waved the green flag, a signal pealing out into the night and under the glare of the bright lighting, they were off, the winding track being one of the biggest in the state. It was a five lap race and by the time they had made it to the third lap, the girls were lagging behind the men, but only just. A crowd had joined Elsa and Gunnar from the sidelines, watching the race taking place and it was due to some crafty moves of her own that had allowed Sookie to overtake the lead and as she came in sight of the finish line after the fifth lap, she gunned it enough to let her coast over the line, the others managing to keep a decent enough pace behind her and coming in second to last only ahead of Pam was the Viking, looking stunned at his defeat.

As they all poured out of their respective cars, there was an appreciative cheer for the winner of the race as another round of racers took to the cars and another race began. "Good race." Pam needed led her maker, seeing he was clearly annoyed at losing. He had never liked losing, never liked defeat. Even with something as pointless as this race had been. A loss was a loss. For a moment, Sookie, Willa and Pam thought perhaps something else was about to be wrecked and with a one man wrecking crew as powerful as he was, a lot of damage could be wrought in a little amount of time. Instead, he walked with a purpose over to where his immediate family stood, waiting with baited breath to see what he may do. Unpredictable as he could often be, it was smart to keep tabs on him, lest there be another mini tantrum. That the building still stood was a plus, Sookie thought to herself as she grabbed a hand of tokens from a chest on a table where people were welcome to help themselves to. For her part, she was more than ready to let her inner child come out to play and passing the remains of the one destroyed arcade game, she took to the skee ball game where she found Holly and Andy enjoying a game themselves, clearly in competition as to who would win the most tickets. Judging by the ribbons of yellow tickets being expelled by the games, Holly was better at this than Any was and the frustration on his face showed with every ball he sent up the ramp, his face falling at coming short of the higher scoring holes. She was on her third wooden ball when she felt a cool hand encase her own, gently guiding the ball from her hands and she started talking, well aware of who it was behind her.

"You know, there's a row of machines here, you can play your own….." she put in tokens into the machine to the right of her and nodded. "How about a competition, birthday boy?" she paused. "Are you having a good time? I know this isn't exactly what you would choose but…..it could have been Chuck E Cheese….." she grinned and he rolled his eyes and smirked. "So come on, you're always good at scoring., beat my balls." she said saucily as nearby, Holly snorted with laughter.

"you're the only one in the world I would let beat mine." he said saucily and Andy nearly dropped the one he had in his hand and turned, looking past Holly to the Viking.

"Jesus, do you two need a room…because there are kids here and Jesus Christ…." Andy was glowering but there was a hint of a amused look on his face. "You know, for someone as old as you are, for all you've lived through, you've got a way with women and words. Smooth as silk."

"He's well practiced. He may be old as dirt but sometimes he doesn't act like it. Honestly, sometimes its like I married a teenager, what a dirty mind he has sometimes." Sookie said. "Now, how about you two finish your game and we do couple versus couple?"

Andy was always up for a challenge and so the couple took to their 8 balls each and ten minutes later, the tickets and points were runneth over. But in the end Sookie and Eric had won but only by two hundred points. Most importantly, the game stood in tact, though there were not new dents in the wood from where the Viking had slid his balls up the ramp, his enhance strength unintentionally making slight grooves in the wood. Another thing to add to the list of repairs, Sookie had thought to herself. But it could have been worse. Taking her tickets, Sookie offered them to Holly and Andy. "Find something fun to get…..maybe a stuffed animal for the wife, Andy?" she grinned as she folded up the tickets she had won and passed them over. Andy made a face but nodded at them,

"Good game." he said. "And this is kind of….fun." Andy was always work oriented and had struggled in the past to relax and have a good time. So it was nice for her to see him having fun. And that he and Holly were so happy together. Their kids hadn't made the party tonight, what with Holly's boys being sent to military school as they had both started to get too out of control. As for Adilyn, she had been taking night classes to learn about fashion design. Not the upper class, snooty variety, but a more casual, country style that she herself preferred. And she was earning top grades and nearly about to graduate. Otherwise she would have been here tonight. Looking around the complex at their friends and loved ones having a good time, it warmed her heart to see everyone-normal and supernatural-sharing a fin and entertaining evening together.

"This has been…..interesting. Not the kind of evening I am used to having but….it wasn't unpleasant." he was leaning against a rear wall of the place, Sookie beside him, looking out at the small crown of people scattered about, playing, eating and looking….happy. She knew her Viking was trying not to say just how much he had, in fact, enjoyed this night. She knew he was always intent on keeping up that bad boy image and it amused her, that she and everyone else hew knew better anyway. "The smell of that processed food in the café though…." he made a face and sighed. "I wonder if it would have appealed to me if I could actually eat it…."

"Its fattening and at least you being what you are, you don't have to worry about losing that svelte figure." she said, tapping his middle with a hand playfully, as he snorted with laughter.

"Not eating junk food is a small price to pay for having the life I have today." he replied with a shrug. "humans are so strange with what they come up with their food….Pam was telling me and showed me pictures of what is called a unicorn frappucino…..it looked like someone vomited a rainbow into a cup…..so strange." he shook his head, though eh looked amused and Sookie laughed.

"Odd styles of drinks are the rage these days…I heard they tried vampire themed drinks too." she pulled her phone out and through Google, came across a reddish drunk with cool whip, cherries and about ten ingredients that had went into it. The Vamp-er-cino, it was called, according to the caption and it made the vampire looking at it roll his blue eyes with annoyance and a hint of amusement. She laughed too and sighed. "I guess you are better off not being able to eat."

"The only thing I have a appetite for is standing in front of me….but later, of course. If you don't mind. Since unlike last night, there is no blood cake to enjoy." he made a pathetic sighing sound and patted his stomach. "I can't go hungry, now can I?"

"we've got the place for another hour." she replied, looking at her cell phone screen. "Time flies when one is having fun and I think it would be a missed opportunity if we didn't get your-our-kin involved in a laser tag battle royale. Winner gets bragging rights."

"Did we overhear a family challenge?" Gunnar and Elsa had approached, along with Willa and Pam, most looking eager for the battle and Jason too had come along. Pam looked as if she would rather be getting a mani-pedi somewhere but because it was a party for her maker, she had made some serious sacrifices. And was trying to make the most of things.

"I pick teams." Pam said. "Me, Willa, Eric and Gunnar versus Sookie, Elsa and Gunnar and Jason." Pam smirked. "Lets go." she sighed and as they geared up once more for another round and before they entered the dark room, Eric took Sookie aside and looked down at her with a smirk.

"This was probably the best birthday I have ever had…..a two day affair….you certainly pulled off quite the feat."

"Less talk more me and my team kicking your butt." she replied with a wink and a slap to his butt." amused, he followed her and the others into the darkness where entertaining chaos ensued.

THE END