Chapter 2
Dashboard
"Steve?" Jason stared at his visitor in disgust. "God dammit," he rolled his eyes and he moved to close the door.
"Let me in, Jason," Newlin sheathed his fangs.
"You are obviously new at this whole vampire thing if you think you can bare your fangs at someone and then ask to be let in. Good-fucking-night, Steve."
Jason shut the door, and after a moment's hesitation, reopened it. "By the way, even as a vampire, you still look like a pussy."
"Look, Jason, I know we got off to kind of a rough start," said Newlin from behind the closed door. "But I'd really appreciate your help right about now.
"You don't want to kill me?" asked Jason curiously.
"I wouldn't dream of such an awful deed!"
Jason unlocked the door, looking Steve up and down. "Okay...come in, I guess."
Steve walked in cautiously, patting Jason on the shoulder as he did so. "I always knew you weren't a COMPLETE blasphemous demon of Hell. Got anything to drink?"
He plopped onto the couch, propping his feet up onto the coffee table.
"What the hell, Newland?" exclaimed Jason, slamming the door. "You can't just disappear for a month and then show up at my home. What happened to you?"
"Well, for starters, I was kidnapped by vampires."
"No kidding."
"They tortured, beat, and raped me."
Jason took a seat next to Steve.
"They raped you?"
"Well, no," said Steve. "Not physically, but emotionally, yes. I was brutally raped."
"Uh-huh. So what, and then you were turned, and they just let you go?"
"Yup, pretty much."
"And you decide to come visit me?"
"I had nowhere else to go."
"How about your wife, for starters?"
"Sarah? Oh, no, she threatened to stake me as soon as I showed up at our door. Being the angel she is, she spared me. So then I-"
"So then you came here?"
"Correct."
"And it never occurred to you," said Jason, his face contorting into one of confusion, "that the last time we met, you tried to kill me and my sister?"
"You slept with my wife!"
"They hardly compare, you shit face!"
Newlin sighed, got up from the couch and made his way toward the door. "Alright then, Jason. I guess I was wrong about you."
"Fuck yeah, you were."
"I never though you were type of man to throw a person out into the cold, all alone, with nothing to eat."
"You'll find someone to eat."
"Perhaps one day, you will be able to forgive me for all the horrendous deeds I committed against you and your loved ones?"
"Don't count on it."
"Farewell then, Jason Stackhouse. In my last life, you were the closest I ever came to having a friend. Goodbye, once and for all-"
Jason threw his hands up in exasperation. "I'll go get a sleeping bag. Jesus-fucking-Christ."
"It's okay, Jesus. Jason didn't mean it," mumbled Steve, retaking his place on the couch.
Sookie fiddled with the phone in her hand, dialing and erasing Alcide's number over and over again. She just couldn't stand to hurt him after all he'd done to help her. Even if he denied it, he loved Debbie. He always would, it was part of his wolf-like mentality and undying loyalty. Sookie sighed and put the phone down.
"Sookie Stackhouse," the grumbled to herself, "pick up the damn phone and dial the number, you wuss."
She picked up the phone and dialed Alcide's number again, about to press call, when a loud tapping noise startled her enough to drop the phone. She sat still for a moment, waiting for the sound again. When it didn't come, she grabbed a butcher knife off the kitchen counter and walked cautiously into the living room.
She maneuvered around the couch to the cubby, where the door stood ajar.
"Tara?"
"Sookie."
She jumped a bit, not having heard Tara sneak up on her. The knife dropped with a clang at her feet. Pulling Tara into an embrace, Sookie shivered at the iciness of her friend's skin.
"I thought I'd lost you," Sookie mumbled.
Tara put her hands on Sookie's shoulders and pulled away from her embrace, a confused expression on her face. Absentmindedly, she found her eyes wandering to the jugular vein that lay underneath her friend's skin. It pulsed tantalizingly slowly. She could hear the blood rushing. The rhythmic thumping of her heart. Ba-dum Ba-dum. The light inhale and exhale of breath. The flutter of eyelashes, the licking of lips in anticipation. She could feel the life inside Sookie, and at the same time, the total absence of it in herself. All at once, memories came flooding back and she felt her knees give way. Sookie sat on the couch beside her.
"It was the only way," she said after a moment of silence.
Sookie's words were overpowered by the sound of rushing blood.
"You should have let me die," said Tara, staring at the floor in shock. "At least then, I would have died with an ounce of dignity."
"I have gone to too many funerals to plan on adding yours to the list any time soon."
Tara pulled her gaze angrily away from the floor, feeling liquid pool in the corners of her eyes.
"You are the most selfish person I have ever met. You turned me into the one thing that can manage to make my skin crawl. I feel like I'm being violated all over again!" Tara buried her face in her hands, only to pull back when she felt something warm and sticky. "Great, I can't even fucking cry like a normal person. Fucking great."
She stood up from the couch and rubbed at her face, trying to remove the blood. Sookie stood up with her.
"I'm going home."
Tara moved towards the door, but Sookie blocked her path.
"Wait, uh...at least let me get you a True Blood?"
"I don't want no damn True Blood, Sookie! I want to go home!"
Tara shouldered her, but Sookie was in her way again. Tara rubbed the bottom part of her lip with her tongue in aggravation.
"What, I'm not allowed to go home now?"
"The sun's out."
"Good. Let me die."
Tara made a move to pass, but Sookie shoved her onto the couch harshly and scowled at her. Feeling aggravated with the new vampire, she put her hands on her hips and stared her down.
"You sit right here, Tara Mae. I've had enough of your self-loathing pessimistic attitude. Breathe and calm down. This ain't so bad once you think about it. I mean, I can't read your mind anymore more, right? You've got that going for you."
Tara crossed her legs and arms, scowling up at Sookie in defiance.
"How'm I supposed to breathe and calm down when my lungs ain't functioning?"
"Then kill something and calm down, I don't know! Just sit here."
Sookie dialed the number for Fangtasia and put the phone between her shoulder and ear. Absentmindedly, she opened a bottle of true blood and poured it into a glass.
"Fangtasia. What do you want?"
"Hey, Pam!" said Sookie cheerfully, throwing the leftover True Blood bottle into the trash bin. "Is Eric there?"
"He's, uh, occupied at the time being. Can I take a message?"
"Occupied with what exactly?"
"In case you haven't noticed," drolled Pam, "Nan is dead, there's a bounty on Eric's head, and...the sexiest pare of Romanian twins decided to stop by tonight."
"Ew," grimaced Sookie. "That last part so wasn't necessary. Can you just let him know that Tara is awake. He'll know what I'm talking 'bout."
"Sure thing, princess."
The line went dead and Sookie turned around, jumping a little again when she was face to face with Tara.
"You have got to stop doing that," she said, placing a hand over her heart.
"Sorry," mumbled Tara.
Sookie reached to the side to grab the glass of True Blood, when it was smacked out of her hand. The scent of the synthetic blood made Tara's fangs unsheathe themselves.
"What the hell, Tara?"
"I think you're cursed, Sookie. You hurt everyone you're around. Your Gran, Eggs, and now me. Nothing is ever enough for you. I jumped in front of a fucking bullet for you," Tara's red-brimmed eyes stared hysterically into Sookie's, begging her for an answer. She grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her with every word. "What more could you need from me? Haven't I given enough?"
"Tara!" screamed Sookie, thrashing at her wildly. "Tara, stop!"
Before Sookie could react, Tara dug her fangs into her neck.
Yes, Russel is going to be in this. The AVL/Authority, not so much. I wouldn't be comfortable using them as a major plot line when I know hardly anything about them.