Author's Note-this is a quirky and admittedly strange idea that came into my head but thought the idea was funny and I could use some more humor in my stories. I will apologize in advance if it doesn't work. But I wanted to do something more lighthearted and humorous and I know it may not work but I just had to try…..please read and review and thank you!

PART ONE

Chapter 1

As reluctant as he was to travel to this realm, he wanted desperately to make up for lost time, to make up for his having fallen in such a deep depression. Though certainly it had not been his fault, none of it. Things were good and he accepted the ring finally, a ring that Niall had crafted along with a couple others for Pam and Willa to withstand the sun. they had needed them to come to his aid and it was a dangerous situation to be certain and thought he rings had caused Niall to be drained of enough power to eventually pass on prematurely, he had handpicked Aurora to take over the ruling of Faery. And over the past couple of months now she had done stunningly well and no longer did the idea of a mixed breed being scare or worry the people of the realm. Nor did the idea of her father coming to visit, even after the one time he did when things had gone to hell. Apparently Niall had done some heavy duty damage control and coupled with the relative forgiving nature of the residents of Faery, they were preparing to welcome not only Sookie back to Faery but her husband as well. For his part, he was wanting only to make a good impression, to start fresh. To start fresh like he had in the months since he had been controlled by a wicked force of darkness.

She poked her head into their bedroom, watching him change from…well, he did like to sleep au natural…..into jeans and a grey tank. Flip flops upon his feet may give off a more relaxed and fun loving Eric, but no one would make any mistake, as his reputation always precede him and certainly with his own daughter running Faery, this was a family one would be stupid to try to mess with. "You almost ready? She said she was going to meet us on the other side." Sookie was wearing a simple dress, his personal favorite-a sleeveless periwinkle sundress and leather sandals, her hair pulled up into a tight bun at the nape of her neck, copper colored earrings in her lobes. Topped off with a gentle coating of eye shadow and shimmery lip gloss, she looked a vision, innocent enough in her attire. But beneath the innocence was certainly a fierce fighter.

He slowly dressed, giving her the chance to drink it all in, smirking all the while. Thank goodness he seemed more like his old self, the recent party at Bellefleurs had certainly helped more than she thought it would. And for that she was eternally grateful. "You look…..exhilarating." he said as he finished dressing and grooming for the eventful day, a ring on his right ring finger the gift from Niall, allowing him not only to day walk, but to open a passage to Faery whenever he wanted. It was a platinum band with runes etched into its surface, pinprick sides crystals giving off light whenever the light hit them…or even when it didn't. it was a object of ethereal beauty and yet, what had gone into crafting it was not lost on any of them he rounded the bed and took her hands into his and she beamed up at him.

"It's nice to see a smile on your face again….its been way too long." she said as she let him pull her into him, her head against his silent chest and yet, she knew he did, in face have a heart. A big one, more so than he would ever dream to admit. "You know, we have been through everything you could ever think of and as much as I kind of like the excitement, it will be nice to have down time with her, won't it?"

"It has been far too long." he agreed. "Do you really think I am welcome there though? Do you really thing they have accepted her, being what she is, as a ruler. To think of the plots that could be being brewed up under her nose…" he trailed off as he tried to get images of his daughter being harmed out of his mind.

"She is fine, she said so in the letter. Craig and Cassia, her two bodyguards had not left her side and are always at least a split second from her. She couldn't be better protected and certainly she is a force in her own right. Learning from the best, right?" Sookie spoke reassuringly to him and though it had helped, she couldn't deny that she still worried about Aurora just as he did. "It's too bad the others couldn't make it but someone has to keep Ginger from making a mess out of things, right?"

"And from what she heard about Faery, Pam Isn't exactly one to want to go there. She said she would rather be surrounded by girl scouts selling cookies rather than being amongst a bunch of Tinkerbelles. Besides, she admitted she didn't know if she could control herself and Willa, she admitted she wouldn't be able to, she still has trouble controlling herself around you. Its only since you became a hybrid that it helped somewhat." he replied. "So…..are we ready?"

"I suppose so." she replied and using her inner magic, she opened a passage to Faery and nearby, she could make out a familiar figure in wait for them. And it was then they walked, hand in hand though the passage that sealed shut behind them almost instantly.

Chapter 2

The clearing was airy and bright and yet what was being planned out was far from being along the same lines. The fairy was talking to another as they stared into a bubbling brook deep in the lush forests of Faery. "Do you think it can work, what you will do to the waters? This spring..the magic in it is….powerful."

"And will be made more so when I am done with it." replied the older faerie, a stately looking man with graying temples said, looking regal and impeccably dressed in a tieless suit. "When all is done, the queen will be begging me for the cure and I will give it willingly…so long as she abdicates the throne."

"But Ronan, the waters…..how can you get him to drink it when all he can drink is-"

"By means of blood, it will get into him, when I concentrate the water as I intend it to become, well….they will be in for a big surprise. And I wish for no bloodshed. I believe in a bloodless coup and wish for no blood to be spilled, even that of the fanged persuasion who are part of our world….for now. Watch and learn, Kieran." he nodded at the red headed fairy to watch and as he scooped up some water from the stream in a bucket, he nodded at what was in his hand. "Glowing seeds, what remains of the light fruit. When harnessed the right way, it can be used to concentrate any liquid into a purer form. This is the last of what remains of the light fruit and I hoped to try this one day. Using the waters that keep us all youthful looking and the light fruit…..do you get what I am getting at, Kieran?"

The younger faerie nodded as a grin crossed his face. "Let me guess, it wont just take a few years off?"

"Youth is relative in terms of his life but rest assured it will be the sight to behold." Ronan said as the water churned and he chanted the incantation needed to craft the brew to his desires. "And as he has pledged to drink only from her, from what his daughter says…..well, it will be a matter of time before the show comes to pass." a shiver came over him. "They have arrived. Perhaps we can offer the girl a bottle of her favorite faerie wine." he changed the bucket of water before their eyes, a bottle of wine replacing it. The sweet smell of apple wine permeated through the bottle and he grinned at his talents. "Not many have the power I have and today, I use it to help bring Faery to a better day, a day when a hybrid is taken from the throne and replaced by a true resident, a true fae."

Chapter 3

The reunion was a warm one as hugs and kissed went all around the three and the parents marveled at how grown up their daughter looked in her burgundy leather jumpsuit. "I was just in sparring classes, Cassia and Craig are impressed in my sword handling."

"Naturally." Eric said as he hugged his daughter again, smirking with pride. "Have you made anyone bleed yet?"

She rolled her eyes. "If you're hungry, I arranged a tempered faerie blood brew up at the palace. Nothing that would make you go bat crap crazy like before…mom told that story so many times about when you drained Claudine and….." she giggled before she could remind her father of a less than red letter moment in his life. It was at that moment a red headed faerie and a older, stately looking faerie approached with the rest of the guards. Craig and Cassia were already there, never leaving the sight of their charge.

"Oh, the welcoming committee….I sent them to the winery to fetch something special for mom. And oh, this is Kiernan and Ronan, personal assistants to the crown. Polite and reverent, the two faeries were nothing short of charming to Sookie and her husband and it was all they could do to keep from chomping at the bit, wanting to see the show. Now.

They had hoped that the girl would dig into the bottle right then and there, knowing the weakness Sookie had for the sweet apple wine. But instead, she took it in hand and grinned. "A little something for when we get home later."

"Why not toast your return to your people? You are after all just as important to Faery as your sweet daughter here…..and we have a feast prepared and-" Kiernan was interrupted by Aurora, who had raised a hand gently.

"You two are planning to at least spend the night here? But I understand if you don't want to, I know how this place makes dad a little….uncomfortable." Aurora said as she and her mother looked to the Viking imploringly.

"I….would prefer to return to our home this evening. I must be honest. I didn't think I would even come at all but nothing could keep me from you. Nothing."

"Then up to the palace we go for a tour around the place-I remodeled some and then we can have a feast and dad, I think you are about to have the best blood in all the realms."

"There is none better than your mother's….perhaps a bit of that could be arranged?" he looked sideways as he walked along with Sookie.

"Not out here! That is a private thing…..and I could use a drink first anyway. I think the wine may give my blood a sweeter taste, Faerie wine enhances the blood, you know."

Walking behind them and overhearing the exchange, Ronan and Kiernan looked eager, ready for what was to come. Everything was about to come crashing down. Things would fall into place.

TO BE CONTINUED