A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed and followed my story! Sorry this chapter took so long but I just bought a new puppy a few days ago so I've been really wrapped up with her. For some reason, this chapter took me days to get it together and I don't know if the finished product is great so please don't stake me if it isn't as good as some of the others!
Pop! Claudine appeared at the foot of my bed smiling up at me.
"Sookie wake up dear!" She chanted.
Coming to my senses, I sat up and let my eyes adjust.
"Do Faeries have something against doors?"
"No, but why would I use a door when I can just appear right where I need to be?" She asked with a puzzled look.
"Maybe because you scare people when you just pop up beside them, especially when they're sleeping!"
"Oh rubbish! So I hear you have had quite the adventure in Nevada. I can also tell that you took the potion." She said grinning.
"Yea I did. Our plans went off without a hitch luckily, so Nevada was taken down and apparently now Eric is the King…or something."
"So he must have been the one to kill Felipe; that's interesting."
"Yes he killed Felipe and then the rest of the Nevada vamps stopped fighting and bowed down, swearing their fealty to him if he would spare them; it was pretty intense. They brought the surrendered vampires back here to let Russell have his say in what happens to them. I don't know what's going on with Eric being a King now, but apparently it's going to be figured out tonight."
"Well I'm sure it will all work out. If you don't mind me asking, what made you decide to drink the potion? I'm glad you did because I love you cousin and I want all the time with you I can; plus if you have more powers then I won't have to get my hands dirty taking care of you so often." She snickered.
"I wanted to think it over a little bit longer, but I felt like now was as good a time as any."
"So have you discovered any new abilities yet?"
Without answering, I mentally guided a muffin over to her.
"Hungry?" I asked cheesing at her.
"Telekinesis is pretty impressive cousin; many full blooded Faeries have that ability or at least some form of it."
"Yea it came in real handy during the fight. Oh and watch this." I say projecting an image of our last spa day together.
"Oh yes, that was a very fun day. I must admit I'm a little jealous cousin; I can't project like that."
"Don't worry I'm not taking your day job; I still can't do half the cool stuff you can" I didn't need to mention that a few vamps had told me that my magic was very powerful; it never hurts to stroke your faery Godmother's ego a little.
"Well just remember that I'm always here to help guide you through this change. When you return home, we'll make plans to start your training."
"Sounds good, but first we need to have some good old fashioned family time." I say sliding my arm around her. "I don't want to turn into your project Claudine, you're the closest thing I have to a mom and I don't want that to change."
She took my face in her hands and pressed her forehead to mine. "You are my child in every way that matters and that will never change. The fact that I get to teach you about our kind is only an added bonus. Plus, I'm more like your hot older sister." She said snickering.
We made plans to have dinner at my house on Sunday and she promised to invite Niall. When she left, I slipped into my favorite teal, sequined bikini and headed to the huge pool behind the mansion. No matter what else I have going on, lying out in the sun always improves my mood; I'm going to blame it on the whole sky Fae thing.
The chaise lounges around the pool were not your typical Wal-Mart special. They were extra wide with big, fluffy cushions in bright orange and sunny yellows. There were also four cabanas with ivory draping and what looked to be outdoor beds in them; didn't have to wonder too much about the use of those. Each cabana was equipped with a stainless steel mini fridge, small wicker table, sunscreens and tanning oils, and magazines. On the wicker table, there was a little intercom to call to the kitchen in the main house. After a one sided argument with myself for twenty minutes, I decided to walk into one of the cabanas and call the kitchen to have them bring me lunch to the pool. I felt a little guilty for having someone cater to me, but Russell had told me all along to do it and this was the first and only time I planned on using that service.
I laid on one of the lounge chairs soaking up the warm rays for about half an hour before a familiar young man walked up holding a bamboo platter filled with fresh fruit, a small pitcher of tea, and a grilled chicken salad. It was the guy who brought me the rental car a few days ago and he looked as eager as ever to please me.
Damn the way she looks in that bikini almost makes me want to switch teams…almost.
Oh boy, I guess I'll take his thoughts as a compliment.
"Hi, how are you today?" I ask cheerfully.
"Oh I'm great thanks! How are you Ms. Stackhouse?"
"I'm just right as rain and even better now that you brought all this delicious food out here. I hope it wasn't much trouble, I really appreciate it."
"Of course not, you are our guest and it's my pleasure. Is there anything else I can get for you?"
"No this is more than enough. I'm gonna have to mention to the King what a great staff he has here, especially how helpful you've been with my stay." I knew the boy was nervous about taking care of me to please Russell and I figured I'd put those fears to rest.
"Well thank you ma'am. If you need anything else, don't hesitate to call." He walked back inside, feeling more confident.
That will be my good deed for the day. I scarfed down every bite of the food before I picked up my phone to text Amelia. I hadn't spoken to my witchy friend since I've been here and I wondered what she was up to.
Hey hun what are u up to?
Sunbathing..what about you?
Same I think we're coming home late tonight
Yay! I'm bored as hell..what time are u going to be here?
Don't know yet but I'll text you later. XOXO
Bye Tink can't wait to see ya!
Now if only the rest of tonight could go easy, we would be out of here and heading home in less than 12 hours. Feeling like melted butter, I made my way over to one of the cabanas and laid back. With the radio on softly and the light breeze from the fan, I was blissfully peaceful. I must not have realized how peaceful I was because I woke up a few hours later with a very large, very aroused Viking kissing my neck.
"Hey you." I murmur trying to wake up.
"Hello my little Faery princess." He said dreamily as he licked and sniffed me up and down.
"You know your Majesty this is fun and all, but we have business to take care of so we can get back home tonight." Even as I say the words out loud, I want to kick myself for stopping him.
Pulling away with a fake hurt look on his face he says "You are a hard hearted woman. You are right though; there is much to be discussed in a little amount of time."
"Are you going to have to move to Nevada?" I ask nervously.
"Do you wish to move to Nevada?"
"No. If you can't get out of being the King though, won't you have to go there?"
"I have no desire to be King and I'm sure Sophie Ann and Russell will be all too happy to divide the kingdom between the two of them. If you wished to leave Louisiana and move to Nevada then I would enforce my claim on the kingdom."
I kissed him while sending him images of all the things I wanted to do to him later. This man had just offered to take a position he had no interest in, put up with countless political drama, and uproot his whole life if it would make me happy. I don't think any girl would be unmoved by that.
"Oh you really are cruel! I'm going to be hard all night thinking about what you showed me." He laughed with that almost growl that I love to hear and scooped me up.
"I believe a King and Queen are waiting for us, no need to drag this out any longer." He said as he eased me down to my feet in our living room.
"Alright well let me change, because I'm pretty sure it's not classy to entertain royalty in nothing but a sparkly bikini."
"Oh but how ravishing you look in that bikini" He said tugging at the string ties.
"Later." I say as I head off to the bathroom to get ready.
It's not long before we head back over to the main house and meet Pam at the door.
"Good evening master." She says giving a small head bow. "Good evening Sookie. Oh my! You smell fan-fucking-tastic!"
"Thanks Pam. I believe you smell my new perfume called 'my Faery Godmother and sunshine'" I say smiling.
"Indeed I do. You know that's why I got hurt last night; it was just an act so I could taste that delicious blood of yours."
"Aww Pammy, next time just ask real nice. No need for a silver dagger or anything."
Eric clears his throat, clearly amused by our little exchange. "If you ladies could quit flirting, I need to get inside."
I bowed deeply and curtsy like an idiot, waving him forwards and Pam drops to the ground and practically worships him. We can barely contain our laughter as he walks past scowling at us. That's one of the things I love about Pam; she's a vampire with a sense of humor. It's a very rare quality among the undead.
Russell, Betty Jo, and Bill are already sitting at the dining room table when we enter.
Russell stands and gives Eric a nod "Good evening Mr. Northman; Sookie; Pamela. I take it you rested well this day."
"Yes your Majesty, thank you. In fact, my bonded thoroughly enjoyed your pool today."
"Ah wonderful! I knew I smelled sunshine; you my dear are like a rare vintage." He purred
"Thank you sir." I replied feeling a wee bit uncomfortable.
"Good evening Sheriff; Sookie." Bill said nodding his head towards us.
"Hey Bill!" I say walking to him to get out of Russell's gaze.
"Shall we dine?" Russell asks.
Everyone took their seats with one very notable absence; Queen Sophie Ann. I guess Russell saw me looking to the empty seat where she had sat a few nights ago.
"The Queen left for Louisiana as soon as she rose for the evening. As you can understand, she is grief stricken. In my 3000 years on this world, I have only seen a maker destroy their progeny twice. I can't imagine how hard it must be for her."
The vampires all nod solemnly in agreement. That's the last that we talked of Sophie Ann that evening, and after everyone had their fill of either blood or food, it was time to get down to the important stuff.
"Well Sheriff, I believe we have much to discuss this evening." Russell said to Eric.
"Yes your Majesty."
"If you all would excuse Mr. Northman and me, my staff has set up the theatre room for your enjoyment or you may explore downtown Jackson. It is quite a sight in the dark."
I stood up to walk out with the other vampires, when Russell addressed me. "Ms. Stackhouse as the bonded of the Sheriff, you are welcome to stay if your mate wishes you to."
"Of course you can stay lover." Eric said taking my hand.
"Actually if it's alright, I think I'll stay with Pam and let you all talk in private." I said. I didn't want Eric to make any rash decisions regarding his future based on how he thought I might feel about it; I wanted him to do whatever was right for him.
"Are you sure?" Eric asked.
"Yes love, just call me when you're ready for me to come back." I bent down and kissed his forehead and walked out.
"Pam wait up!" I say running down the hall to catch up with her.
She stops and so does Bill who was a few feet behind her.
"You're not going to sit in on the negotiations?" Bill asked.
"Uh no, how about we go out and see the town?" I say to the both of them.
" Oh I'm sure they have some shoe stores open late where we can do some damage" Pam smiles deviously. "And look what I've got!" She pulls out the American Express card Eric pays for.
"Oh you mean one of these?" I say pulling out the same one he gave me.
"This is too good! Let's go!" She says and practically pulls me out the door.
"Come on Bill it will be fun!" I say over my shoulder and he reluctantly follows us.
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
The city was lit up like the fourth of July when we made our way downtown. Jackson had changed in the few years since the vampires had come out of the coffin. Sure there was still the grand southern charm of it all, but there was also a darker side now. Pretty much all major cities in the U.S. had changed their focus to accommodate a growing nightlife due to the existence of vamps and Jackson was no different.
One road you walked down might have the state building or some beautiful antebellum manor, and the next would have an all night movie theatre and a strip club catering to vampires.
Bill looked at me and said "See that city hall building over there? It was here when I was a soldier in the war; it was the only building nearby that wasn't burnt to the ground. Mississippi was a state of much contention during the war because if you could block off the Mississippi River, you could prevent supplies and trade from the confederates."
Though Pam looked at Bill like he was talking about the cost of milk in China, I was fascinated by this little history lesson. As you can imagine, one of the benefits of vampires coming out of the coffin was having the chance to talk to them about history that they actually lived through. The History Channel and National Geographic had jumped on the bandwagon quickly and hired many vampires to authenticate many historical sites and field questions. Talking to Bill about the civil war also reminded me of my Gran and how much she would have loved to take a tour with Bill and hear all he had to say about the war.
"It's beautiful." I said.
"That's even more beautiful" Pam said pointing to an all-night Saks store.
After an hour and a half of retail therapy, Pam and I emerged with a few pairs of shoes and a new handbag each. Pam found a Prada studded black leather clutch that she "needed" to go with the studded heels I gave her and I got a white leather tote style bag with a gold handle. The yin and yang of our purchases cracked me up when we were checking out. After using Pam's AMEX for our purchases, I pulled out my own personal credit card to pay for a lilac colored clutch I got for Amelia. I still wasn't entirely comfortable letting Eric pay for some of my shopping, but after many fights with him over it, I decided that once in a while would be ok since we were dating. Plus when Pam and I put our purchases together on one card, you didn't really know who had spent what; just that Pam most likely spent more than me.
We found Bill walking around the front of the store and if he wasn't already dead, he probably would have died from boredom waiting on us. We made our way back through the city, stopping for ice cream (for me) before heading into the parking garage to retrieve my car. I asked Bill to drive because let's face it; with it being dark and very crowded downtown, a vampire with perfect eyesight and reflexes was probably the best bet.
"So what do you think will happen with Eric and this Nevada situation?" I asked my fanged friends.
Pam answered me first. "Well it's hard to say really. If Russell and Sophie Ann want to split up Nevada, then they may offer Eric a higher position in one of their courts. If they have no interest in Nevada; which I can't see happening, then they would insist he claim the Kingdom for himself. With the Queen not here for negotiations though, it is most likely going to fall to Russell to make the decision. There is really a variety of options that could happen."
"If you don't mind me asking Sookie; what would you like to happen?" Bill asked.
"I don't know really. That's why I left tonight so Eric could figure out what he wanted to do for himself. I didn't want him sensing my emotions during their talk to influence his decision. I don't want to move to Nevada, but if Eric needs to do it and he wants me to come with, then of course I would do it. Then again I don't want to live in Bon Temps forever either. I just want Eric to be happy with his decision and hopefully it won't endanger either of us. Right now, being bonded to Eric and an employee of the Queen keeps me out of the hands of other vamps who might want to take me, and I just don't want that to change."
"That is very kind of you to allow Eric to make this decision of his own accord Sookie. I'm sure he will do whatever will keep you safe." Pam said proudly.
We arrived back at the mansion a few minutes later and I felt a rush of happiness hit me as Eric walked out the door as we were pulling in. He scooped me up in a big bear hug and kissed my forehead.
"Uh oh. Were my girls maxing out their credit cards?" He smirked as Pam started pulling our bags out of the trunk.
"Oh no, I'm sorry, I can take it back if.." I say
"Don't be ridiculous! I was only teasing; believe me if Pam has never maxed it out all these years, I doubt those few bags will add up to anything."
"Are you sure?" I say starting to feel guilty about the shoes.
"I have been around for over one thousand years my dear, your purchases are pocket change to me. In fact, I am delighted to see that you have finally allowed me to purchase you a few things without fighting me over it."
"Thanks" Is all I manage to say on the matter. "So can we go home now?"
"Yes, Russell and I have discussed everything and we are free to go. I'll explain everything to you later."
"When are you guys leaving? Do you want to ride home with us?" I asked Bill and Pam.
Pam looked at Eric who nodded his head. "Might as well, there's no women here and all the men in this house are driving me crazy." Pam said.
"I appreciate the offer Sookie, but I will be leaving Mississippi tomorrow to head to Arizona. I've been in contact with a few vampire members of the Anasazi tribe and they are going to tell me about some of the oldest members of their tribe. Vampires who lived in the region long before what Americans know of. If their information is accurate, there may be vampires there who are 6 – 8 times the age of our Sheriff." Bill said looking to Eric.
"Wow! Ok, well Pam if you want to grab your stuff we can get out of here in a few minutes." I said.
Pam set our bags back in the trunk and went to the house to retrieve her suitcase. We were on the road in fifteen minutes, heading back to Shreveport.
"So my child, how would you feel about being the new Sheriff of Area 5?" Eric said jumpstarting the conversation.
TBC…