Chapter Four

Disclaimer; I do not own anything! I am just borrowing the characters for your entertainment, and I am borrowing Eric for my own dreams and fantasies. (;

Author's Note; Remember to reread all of the chapters, please, because I am making changes to them. Thank you to everyone who is reading my story. I am so grateful that you guys are reading my story. There isn't going to be a whole lot of Eric/Sookie interaction in these next few chapters, because as you know, they don't see each other right away.

Reminder; Italics mean that it's a dream (or in this case, Sookie's own thoughts), while Bold Italics mean that Sookie Is reading someone's mind.

Enjoy!

Reviews help me to know if you're enjoying my story or not :D

~Kimmeh

Sookie's Point of View - I'll be There for You

"What do you mean they are going to blow up MoonGoddess and Tara is inside?!" Lafayette was practically screaming at me as we sat in his living room. Jesus was sitting next to him, Jason was standing off to the side, whilst I sat in the chair next to them.

Once we had arrived at Lafayette's home, I immediately began telling him what had happened, and what Bill had planned to do about the situation. I knew that Eric was going to be in on the plan as well, but there was no need to mention that. "Well, as far as I know, they are planning on doing it tonight. All because of what Marnie did at the Dorchester last night." I spoke calmly, but inside, my stomach was in a knot thinking about what might come to pass.

"What did Marnie do at the Dorchester last night?" This time it was Jesus who spoke. He hadn't said a word, other than hello, since we arrived. He just sat there listening, a comforting hand on Lafayette's. I could tell that he didn't know what I was talking about, which was odd, considering he seemed rather close to Marnie. That was the impression I had gotten from the few scattered thoughts I saw last night. From Jesus' thoughts, I could gather that they had just gotten back from Mexico last night, so he was clueless to what Marnie had been doing since he left. His thoughts told her that he wished they hadn't left, thinking he could have done something to stop her.

'Believe me, Jesus, you wouldn't have been able to stop her.' I thought, not wanting to let him know that I had been reading his thoughts.

"Last night at the Shreveport Dorchester, Marnie made Eric try to kill Bill. But I stopped him." I explain quickly, not wanting to go into details. Especially of how I stopped Eric. I wasn't completely sure how I had done it myself. "There were a lot of deaths, mostly humans, and a lot of people were injured. It definitely made Vampires look bad, and extremely deadly."

"They are deadly, hooka!" Lafayette exclaims, throwing me an incredulous look. I knew that he wasn't a fan of vampires, and he had a good reason not to be. Being held captive by one for nearly three weeks would do that to anyone.."Why are you still defending them, especially when you know they are going to try to blow up your best friend?!"

I had no answer for him. I didn't want Tara to be blown up, but I also didn't want the vampires I knew and cared for to be fried in the sun. It was a lose/lose situation, unless I could figure out a way to stop Marnie and my vampires as well. Wait... since when did I start calling them MY vampires? Shaking my head, I push that thought from my head. At least for the moment. There were more important issue to be dealt with.

"I am defending them because they aren't as bad as you guys make them out to be in your heads. Just like I would defend you to them if I had to, which I did last night." My attention was solely on Lafayette as I spoke. "They just need to learn how to mix with humans. How to be more human. They have been in the shadows for so long." I shrug as I finish speaking. I shouldn't have to explain myself to them. They should trust me enough to know what I am doing. I shouldn't have to explain myself to the vampires either, but that was something I'm sure would never change.

"They locked me up and tortured me for nearly three weeks, Sooks! They are just as bad as I think." Lafayette nearly scowled at he spoke to me, his voice raising slightly again.

"That's because you were selling Vampire blood, Lafayette. And that's illegal! They're very touchy about their blood. They usually kill those trying to sell their blood." I level Lafayette with a look that would have made my Gran proud, and Lafayette shrunk back a little at it. "But they deserve a second chance. Just like you do." I finish in a light tone, trying to give him a slightly reassuring smile.

Instead of replying to my statement, Lafayette just stands. Grabbing his phone from his pocket, he walks away from us, to call Tara, I assume.

"Marnie is a victim in this too, Sookie. There's no way she's behind this. Antonia must be controlling her." Jesus spoke again, and my attention turned to him instead of Lafayette.

"Well, if she is, then we need to figure out how to get Antonia out of her, and get all of the innocent people to safety. I just don't know how to do that." I sigh in defeat. I had been thinking about what to do since Jason had showed up at my house, but I still couldn't figure anything out. Jason hadn't said a word since we arrived. He just stood off to the side, leaning against the wall.

"I cannot believe this!" Lafayette yelled, returning back to where Jesus and I still sat. "The Vampires are going to be on their way to blow up my only fucking cousin! We need to figure something out! We need to stop them!"

"Well, maybe we should go to MoonGoddess. First try to figure out what we're up against." Jesus suggests, sliding his arm around Lafayette, trying to comfort his boyfriend. "If I'm right about Marnie, which I'm sure I am, she'll be more than willing to try and help us."

Jason and I nodded in agreement, knowing that Jesus was probably right.

"We can take my truck." Jesus suggested, and we all nodded. "We better get going, then, if we plan on getting them out before sunset." With that, Lafayette and Jesus stood, and walked to their bedroom to get dressed, leaving Jason and I in the living room by ourselves.

I looked over at where Jason stood. I hadn't put my shields up, so every thought the three of them were having were flooding my brain. It was starting to give me a headache. I wanted to be able to gauge Lafayette and Jesus' reaction to the news. Even though they weren't please, they were going to help me. Which was more than what the vampires had done. 'Well, at least what BILL had done. Eric would've probably helped you if he could.' My thoughts, or maybe it was my magic, seemed to remind me. Pushing those thoughts from my mind, I quickly slam my shields into place, no longer wanting to hear Lafayette screaming about the vampires. He had always been a loud broadcaster, but since I have known him all my life, it had been easy to build up shields to tune his thoughts out when I chose to.

Barely 10 minutes later, Lafayette and Jesus return to the living room. Standing quickly, Jason and I move to fall them out of the house. Jason and I move wordlessly to Jesus' truck while him and Lafayette lock up their house. We all climb into the truck, Jesus driving, Lafayette in the passenger seat, with Jason and I in the back, before taking off to Shreveport. The ride to Shreveport was going to be a lot longer than if we had made the trip from my house, but I was glad that I at least had some back up. During the ride, the four of us discuss what the best course of action may be to get them all out, hopefully alive.

Since they already knew who I was, and that I was associated with vampires, I wasn't going to be the one to go inside. They would either try to capture me, and use me against the vampires, or they would just kill me. Judging by the fact that Antonia knew I was... different... I suspected they would try to capture me. I honestly didn't know which one I would have preferred. I might not be able to live with myself if I was the one to hurt the vampires that I cared about. Even if I wasn't as mad at Bill as I was right now, I still wouldn't wish for him to be hurt, least of all by me. Physically, that is, anyways.

Without even realizing it, I had reached into my pocket, and retrieved the vial of Eric's blood I had placed there. Turning it between my fingers, I examine it, feeling my magic tingle beneath my fingertips, attempting to reach Eric's blood through the vial. My magic had seemed to attach itself to Eric's blood ever since we had shared blood in his hidey-hole, but I hadn't wanted to think about it. There had been too much going on for me to actually think about what it could mean. Shaking those thoughts from my head, I turn back to the vial in my fingers. What did he possibly think I could do with this? He obviously didn't want me to sell it, contrary to what Jason had initially thought. He had told me that I would know when to use it. Would I really know when to use it? At this moment, I couldn't think of what to do with it, so why would I know what to do with it later? He obviously knew that I would be trying to save Tara. Why else would he have sent me this? More importantly, would he tell Bill?

'If he was going to tell Bill, wouldn't he have done it already?' My subconscious quipped at me. If he had told Bill, there would have been guards at my door this morning, making sure that I didn't leave. Then again, I would have figured out a way to get out of my house. I could be very resourceful, especially with my brother being a cop. I shake my head, attempting to push the thoughts of Bill putting guards on my house away. No, Eric didn't tell Bill I would be trying to save Tara, but Eric knew I would. I stared at the vial for a few more moments before Jesus' voice pulled me from my thoughts.

"Does that sound like a plan, Sookie?" I turn my head to look at him, realizing he was looking at me in the rear view mirror. Sliding the vial back into my pocket, I focus on Jesus.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention. What did you guys say?" I give them an apologetic look, and then a small smile.

Once again, they explain their plan to me. Every once and awhile, I would either ask a question, or I would have some type of input for the plan. The plan was actual well thought out, but fairly simple, and I had no reason to doubt that it wouldn't work. We were silent for the rest of the ride to Shreveport, or at least, I was. Jesus and Jason were talking about something for awhile, and I would hear Lafayette speak his piece every once and awhile, but I stayed quiet. My magic was humming in my blood, and I couldn't figure out why.

Yes, Eric's blood in my pocket was making my magic tingle where I could feel the vial through my jeans. However, there was something else pulling at my magic. Suddenly, the unopened box that Eric had sent appeared in my mind. He obviously thought that whatever plan we had come up with might not work, but then again, Eric was over 1,000 years old, and obviously knew a thing or two.

Reaching into my purse, I slide out the unopened box, hoping Jason doesn't notice what I am doing. Resting on my lap, with my arms covering it, I examine it for a moment. It is ornately decorated like the other box, and I could only assume that it had something to do with Eric's Viking background. I had no idea what was inside the box, considering the other box held a vial of Eric's blood, but my magic was vibrating at the mere touch of the box. I could practically see my body vibrating with my magic. Taking a deep breath, I clam myself and flip open the lid. I nearly gasp at the contents of the box, and almost drop it.

Inside of the box sat the most beautiful white gold ring I had ever seen in my life. Set in the middle of the band there was a green gem. It was not an emerald. The color was much too different to be an emerald. I didn't know what stone it was, but the color of the stone reminded me of a lush forest green. It seemed to gleam with different shades of green as the sun hit it. On either side of the green gem there were 2 diamonds that were about half the size of the green gem, with two more half the size of those right next to them. Half way down the ring there was an intricate design, much like the ones from the boxes, and it jumped out at me more than the middle gem. On the inside of the band, I could see 'Sookie' inscribed. It was absolutely breath taking.

Not only was the ring absolutely beautiful, my magic was nearly jumping out of my skin to touch the ring. My finger brushed against the green gem, and I felt what seemed like a shock of lightening shoot through my finger tips. It was an exhilarating feeling and I wanted to take the ring from where it sat in the box and slip it on my finger. I stopped myself, just barely from removing it from it's packaging.

After the initial shock of how beautiful the ring was, anger washed through me. I was absolutely furious that he would buy this for me. I didn't even know where he would find something like this. Obviously it was infused with magic. I could feel that much. And powerful magic. I couldn't tell what kind of magic, but there was definitely magic. It had obviously cost a lot of money. I was suddenly seething with anger. I couldn't believe he thought I would accept something like this. I quickly slammed the lid shut, even though my magic protested vigorously to the act. I quickly shoved the box back into my purse, and crossed my arms, attempting to clam myself, and my magic, down. I huffed out in anger, and pushed the ring to the back of my mind. I would deal with Eric later. Right now, I needed to focus solely on Tara.

As we got closer to MoonGoddess, every instinct in my body told me we should turn around, and go home, and the thoughts of the men in the truck told me they felt the same. My magic was the only thing that seemed to actually want to continue forward, so I kept the feelings of fleeing at bay. Although it had felt like they had only been driving for a very short time, a minute later, Jesus was pulling into a side street a few yards away from MoonGoddess. All four of us exited the truck as quickly and quietly as possible.

Everything was absolutely deserted, and my magic was telling me that it had something to do with Antonia. There were no cars on the road, no people in the streets or shops, and all of the stores were closed, which was very odd. This only increased the instinct to flee, but I refused.

"I am feeling some really bad juju here. Maybe we should leave." Lafayette said quietly, even though there was no one around to hear us, pulling me from my thoughts.

"It's a repelling spell. It's meant to keep people away from the store." Jesus stated matter of factly.

"Well, it's good to know that I'm not just chicken shit then, because all I want to do is turn 'round and run." Jason answered, removing his jacket to toss onto the back of the truck.

The four of us walked over to the side of the building closest to us, and peered around the side, looking at MoonGoddess. All the curtains were closed, and the sign was indicating there were closed as well.

"Well, I better get this over with, then." Jesus said, taking a deep breath before starting towards the store.

"I don' like this, baby. I'm getting some really bad vibes." Lafayette explained, grabbing Jesus' arm before he could turn the corner. "Are you really going to try and pull the Mavis move?" Lafayette looked uncertain, and worried.

"In theory. Antonia doesn't sound lost or scared. She just seems really pissed off." Jesus explains with a shrug of his shoulders, bringing his hands up to cup Lafayette's face. "Don't worry, baby. I know what I am doing. Whatever happens, I have to save Marnie. She's my friend, and I have to at least try." Leaning forward, Jesus softly presses his lips to his boyfriends before pulling away and turning to walk away again.

"Maybe I should just go? I'm technically the law." Jason spoke up before Jesus could walk away. "And you all know I am irresistible. Not to mention, I can run like the wind."

"But you're not magic, Jason." I quickly tell him, and the expression on his face makes my heart break slightly. I hadn't meant for it to sound so harsh.

"Don't worry guys, I can do this. I promise." Jesus gives us a reassuring smile before he once again moves to leave. Before disappearing around the corner, Jesus turns to look at me. "Listen for me, Sookie." He adds, tapping the side of his head, receiving a quick nod from me, before completely disappearing from our view and heading towards MoonGoddess.

I drop my shields almost instantly, stretching out with my telepathy. I close my eyes for a moment and focus, intent of focusing solely on Jesus' brain and not the other two men next to me. I hear all of the voices inside of MoonGoddess, including Tara and Holly. Tara was absolutely furious. I could hear her ranting all the way from here. She was pissed off, and sick of being trapped here. I laugh slightly, before tuning her out, focusing solely on Jesus.

"Sookie...Sookie... Sookie..." Jesus was just repeating my name over and over again in his head. I peer around the corner, and he was looking back at me for a second. Instead of nodding, I push my own thoughts, and magic, towards him. I can see the shock in his features as he feels my power brush against his own. He gives me a slight nod before turning back towards the magic shop.

The moment he turned back to the store, he had been sent flying backwards abruptly by some sort of barrier. Lafayette made to move around the corner, but Jason held him back, reassuring him that Jesus would be fine. Movement in the window of the magic shop, my eyes move from Jesus, who was beginning to stand, to the window. Tara and Holly were looking out, before a moment later, the curtain was closed, and they disappeared. A moment later, the door flew open, and Marnie came into view. I quickly hid behind the wall of the building, making sure she didn't see me. Stretching open my thoughts slightly, I confirm Marnie didn't see me. Then I hear my name being called from inside the shop. I push my magic towards Tara, and was pleasantly surprised to realize she felt me, as well.

"Sookie? Holly and me are tryin' to get out of here, but we can't get out the door. There's some type of spell keep us in here." I hear Tara tell me quickly. I once again push my magic towards her, trying to tell her to just hold on. To tell her that we were coming for her.

Turning her out once more, I once again focus on Jesus. I let myself completely be engulfed by his thoughts, and he allowed it. A moment later it was as if I had been sucked right into Jesus' mind, and he allowed me to. I was able to see the entire conversation between him and Marnie. It was odd to practically be in someone else's mind, and I didn't want to think about how I was suddenly able to do such a thing. Instead, I focused on what was happening between Marnie and Jesus.

To Be Continued...