** I do not own True Blood or any characters from the show. They are the property of Alan Ball and HBO. I only own the original characters in this FF. Read and Enjoy. Please Review. **
Ann woke up the next morning to the smell of some kind of herb floating through the house. She got up and got dressed, by passing her shower at the moment. She opened the door and walked down the hall. As she turned to go down the stairs, Mike almost bowled her over running down them shouting profanities. Ann followed him down the stairs. As she reached the first floor she was bombarded with smoke.
Ann started coughing horribly and tried to make her way to the front door. As she reached the front door her mom grabbed her hand and turned her away from it.
"You can't go out there yet. The house isn't blessed," said her mom.
"You're out of your fucking mind!" shouted Mike from the fireplace. "Get out of the house Anni!"
"Ann!" she shouted as she opened the front door.
The smoke filtered out of the house and slowly out of the windows as Mike opened them. Ann walked backwards from the house as a fire truck came up the road. A firefighter walked up behind her and turned her away from the house guiding her towards an ambulance.
"You okay?" he asked taking his helmet off.
"Yeah," said Ann as she coughed a few times.
"You sure?" he asked again.
"You inhale some nasty smelling herbal smoke and see how you feel," said Ann.
"Herbal smoke?" he asked.
"Yeah, my sister has taken her Cajun heritage a little too far as to blessing the house," coughed Mike walking up to the ambulance.
The firefighter nodded and walked over to the house. Mike watched as he entered the house. Suddenly the door closed behind him. Slowly the house started to catch fire.
"MOM!" shouted Ann as she ran towards the house.
"Wait!" shouted Mike as he grabbed her around the waist and hauled her back towards the ambulance.
As the smoke cleared and the flames died down Ann could see the house. It was still intact, not burned or charred from the fire. The front door opened and the three firefighters that went in came out unharmed along with her mother, who was being carried by the last one out.
Ann ran over to the ambulance that they had placed her in.
"Mom?" asked Ann sitting down next to her.
No response.
"Come on Anni," said Mike. "We will meet her at the hospital."
"Ann," she corrected him again. "For the love of god listen to me! Shit!"
Ann jumped out of the ambulance and walked over to her mother's car. She hopped in the car and pulled out of the driveway. She followed her mother for a while, but turned off the road when she saw a sign for a local bar.
She pulled up to the front and parked the car. She got out and walked in. A red headed girl took her to an empty table and handed her a menu. She looked it over and decided that she needed a drink.
Another redhead came over to take her order.
"Hey, I'm Arlene and I will be your waitress," she said with a smile.
"Can I get a Jack & Coke?" asked Ann.
"Sure. Do you need a few more minutes to look over the menu?" asked Arlene.
"Please," said Ann as she scanned the inside.
Arlene smiled and walked over to the bar.
"I need a jack and coke," she said.
"It will be a minute," said Tara.
"How long will it take to make a drink?" asked Arlene.
"When I've got like thirty people shouting drinks orders at me," said Tara.
"Okay," said Arlene. "Anyone seen Sam tonight?"
"No, asked Sookie she might know," said Tara. "Wait, here is your drink."
Arlene took the glass and walked back over to Ann's table. She set the glass down and took Ann's order.
"Must be hungry," smiled Arlene.
"Yeah, haven't eaten much today," smiled Ann.
Arlene walked over to the window and put the order up.
"Lafayette, you seen Sam tonight?" asked Arlene.
"Nope," he said grabbing another order.
Arlene sighed as she turned around and walked back out to make her rounds.
"Arlene, your order is up!" shouted Lafayette.
Arlene walked back over to the kitchen and picked up Ann's order. She walked back over to her table and placed everything down.
"Can I get another one?" asked Ann pointing to her empty glass.
"Sure," said Arlene grabbing the glass.
Ann was about halfway through the food she ordered when Sam walked in the door.
"SAM! Where have you been?" asked Arlene walking over to him.
"Out," said Sam walked through the restaurant.
As Sam walked across the restaurant he spotted the girl who had taken him to hospital. He walked over to her table and sat down across from her.
"Yes, you can join me," said Ann.
"Well, since I own the place I figured I didn't need an invitation," said Sam.
"Well, I guess you're right," said Ann, smiling.
"What brings you to my fine establishment?" asked Sam.
Before Ann could answer Tara turned the TV up.
"Today, in Bon Temps, Louisiana there was a curious house fire. Witness's say that saw the smoke coming out of the house, then almost immediately after three firefighters went into the house it went up in flames. Here is a video that was shot from someone on scene," said the anchor.
The TV cut to a badly filmed video of her uncle's house. After the video finished it cut back to the news anchor.
"Reports say that the firefighters were not harmed and the house was perfectly fine. A building inspector went out there almost immediately when he was called. He said that the house was structurally fine and there was no smoke or fire damage on the inside. What caused the fire is unknown at this time, and was kept the house from being completely engulfed remains a bigger mystery."
Tara turned the TV down and went back to serving drinks. Sam turned back to look at Ann who now had her head in her hands.
"You okay?" asked Sam.
"Fine," said Ann.
"You sure, you look ill," said Sam.
"No, I'm not ill," said Ann.
"There you are!" shouted Mike coming into the bar.
Sam turned around to see whom he was shouting at.
"What the hell are you doing here? I thought you followed your mother!" shouted Mike. "But no, you came here to drink and flirt. Your mother always said you were a slut!"
"Shut the fuck up, old man," said Ann.
"Or what?" asked Mike.
Just as mike reached the table a dog ran in through the front door and jumped on him. It started biting his arm. Sam got up and was fixing to kick it off Mike when Ann shouted.
"WAIT!" shouted Ann. "I got it! Come on pixie."
The dog let go of Mike and followed Ann outside. Sam got down on the floor and started looking over Mike's wound.
"Jessica, I need you to get me a towel to wrap his arm up," said Sam.
Jessica, using her vampire speed, ran into the kitchen and back in the blink of an eye. Ann had the dog by the back of the neck and was in a dark part of the parking lot.
"Sit Pixie," said Ann looking at the dog.
"I don't think I've ever been told to sit before," said Candi.
"What the fuck!" shouted Ann stumbling backwards. "You're a dog?"
"No," said Candi walking over into the woods and grabbed her clothes.
'Then what the fuck are you!" shouted Ann.
"Hey, keep it down. Look, I'm a shifter," said Candi.
"A what?" asked Ann as she sat down on a log.
"A shape shifter. They are like werewolves, only I can change into any animal," said Candi shrugging her shoulders.
"You saw this like it is common," said Ann.
"Not as common as weres and vamps, but we are there," said Candi. "That Sam person is a shifter."
"What?" asked Ann.
"Yeah, I could smell that a mile away," chuckled Candi.
"Why did you attack my uncle?" asked Ann.
"He was going to hurt you," said Candi. "My go to shift is Pixie, so I could sense something, like how you were flirting with Sam Merlotte."
"Go home," said Ann. "Or where ever you are staying."
"Okay, I will see you tomorrow," said Candi walking away.
Ann slowly stood up and walked back into Merlotte's. She was walking over to her table when Sam grabbed her by her arm and pulled her back towards his office.