"Sam," a sweet voice with a twangy Cajun accent whispered in his ear. "Sam, time to get up."
"No," Sam mumbled.
"Yes."
"Can't be. Too damn early." Sam shoved his face into his pillow. His whole body felt exhausted. Last night had been late, and yesterday had been stressful.
Anne Marie chuckled, and the sound reverberated pleasantly through Sam's body until he realized that at least one part of him was awake. This made him smile and reach for her, until he realized she was just out of reach, and out of the bed, and he remembered that they were sharing the room with Sookie and Peggy.
Sam could hear the shower running. He took a deep breath. It was Sookie in the shower. He could smell Peggy's perfume, her warmth. She was up, dressed… how could she be? She was more of a night owl than any of the rest of them.
"You hungry."
It wasn't a question, it was a statement, and the moment Anne Marie said it, it was true. Sam felt his stomach growl and thought about last night's beignets, followed by copious amounts of beer at a Werewolf bar where they had truly been made welcome to the city. There had been some strange vampire, and Eric laughing, but then it had been fun…
"What's for breakfast?" Sam mumbled, still debating whether it was worth his while to get out of the bed.
"We have reservations at the Court of Two Sisters," Peggy said, sounding happy. Her joy lifted Sam's heart. His head, however, was still buried in the pillow.
"Jazz brunch," said Anne Marie.
"Mmmph." But Sam had to admit it sounded like fun and as Sookie came out of the bathroom in a very cute green sweater dress and a cloud of steam, he thought he might be able to pull himself together for it.
He found himself much admired as he strolled into the restaurant, thankfully just around the corner from the hotel, forty-five minutes later, with three beautiful women on his arm. The old double-door opened on a long, bright hallway and they headed down it to be escorted into a bright courtyard, rife with plants and overhung with trees. It was a slightly chilly morning, but in the sun it wasn't bad and the charm of this place meant dining al fresco with a jazz band playing in one corner.
"Isn't it lovely?" Peggy said. "I was here once or twice, when I was entertaining a human friend of Sophie-Anne's…"
"What's she like?" Sookie asked tentatively.
"She's beautiful, and dangerous," Peggy said thoughtfully. "Like they all are."
Sam got the feeling that she'd said this before. He looked at her for a long moment. "Do you know anything about Bloody Mary's?" he asked.
"It's a vampire bar. The proprietor is a friend of mine, but I've never been there," she said thoughtfully. "It should be fun, though."
"If hanging around vampires can be called fun," said Sam gravely.
"Why, Sam Merlotte, do you still think that way?" Peggy asked and immediately Sam felt ashamed, looking from her to Sookie and back.
"I doubt it's going to do me any good to argue with the two of you," he said.
"Probably not," Peggy said, laughing. "Still… well. I guess I can understand why you don't care for Eric, but Bill is perfectly lovely."
"Thank you," said Sookie, lifting her chin.
"I think Bill be hiding sumtin from you, Sook," Anne Marie said seriously. Sam saw Sookie's face grow dark in denial and he braced himself for a storm.
"Bill would never—"
"Hope'm wrong," Anne Marie said. She took Sookie's hand and squeezed it. Sookie relented immediately.
The Court of Two Sisters featured a buffet with Eggs Benedict as the specialty, and everyone helped themselves to heaping platefuls of both Louisiana and general breakfast classics. Anne Marie enjoyed the boiled crawfish even at this hour, and Sam enjoyed watching her pinch the heads and suck the tails.
This hour. A glance at Sam's watch told him it was closer to lunch than to breakfast. Mimosas were debated and though Sam was leaning on the side towards pre-noon drinking, he was outvoted. Maybe just as well… but it was New Orleans, with Mardi Gras just around the corner.
"I'd like to do some sight-seeing if that's okay," said Sookie.
"Fine by me," said Anne Marie.
"Did you have anything in mind?" Peggy asked. "I know my way around the Quarter fairly well."
"Are there any Mardi Gras parades today?" Sam asked.
"Not until this evening," said Sookie. "I looked it up in the paper. I'm not sure what I'd like to see."
"Cemetery?" Peggy asked with enough excitement to make Sam feel it might be a little macabre. "We can go see Marie Laveau's tomb."
"I seen dat," said Anne Marie. "It innerestin enough, but de vampires, dey make a big deal out dat."
Peggy laughed. "I wonder what Eric would think." She looked so dreamy, so in love that Sam almost found it hard to recall that the object of her affection was an ancient Viking vampire.
"You know what," said Sookie. "Let's do go to the cemetery. But first, let's all have a round of mimosas…"
And about an hour later, Sam found himself slightly drunk in St. Louis Cemetery #1, standing guard while Anne Marie, Peggy and Sookie drew red X's in lipstick on the Voodoo Queen's tomb so she would grant their wishes. He wondered vaguely what Anne Marie was wishing for, but the mix of champagne and orange juice made him too muddle-headed to ask.
St. Louis #1 was quite a sight to see. Unlike in Northern Louisiana, where Bon Temps was, the tombs here were above ground due to the high water table. A corpse planted in the ground would only pop back up to say hello during the next rain storm, so large and often ornate crypts were the norm. Sam wondered how many vampires were sleeping in them. Both the dead and the undead probably surrounded them. He knew from hearsay that many of the less moneyed vampires stashed themselves in available crypts.
A flash of something shiny from around the corner caught Sam's eye. He glanced back at the girls, but they were involved in their ritual. He shuffled his feet for an indecisive moment and then decided to investigate. Slipping around the corner, he stole down the row of silent tombs, nearly tripping over the broken cement of the path. His vision swam. Maybe he was more drunk than he thought.
Around another corner, and then he saw her. A very tall, big woman in…a sequin dress? Wasn't it early for that? And she was watching him, staring at him… then she smiled…laughed. Sam started towards her, but she ran around the corner with a flash of a ridiculously high heel. Sam tripped over a brick, slamming down, skinning his hands and knees as he caught himself.
"Sam? You okay, dawlin?" asked Anne Marie, suddenly by his side. She helped him to his feet, which both comforted and embarrassed him at once.
"Someone was watching us," Sam said, shaking his head.
Anne Marie dashed lightly ahead, looked around the corners. "No one here, Sam. No one but us."