By the time Sookie and Tara had finally risen, I had circled the house a total of 316 times, showered, and nearly put my own head through a wall out of boredom. Thankfully nothing happened; no sign of the wolves, or other vampires, not even Sookie's boyfriend stopped by. The night had proved to be quite uneventful and boring after Jessica left as the sun began to rise. A part of me wishes there was at least a little action..

The girls left the house to find me laying on the front lawn, my arms crossed over my eyes, humming quietly to myself. Sookie stepped in front of me, blocking the sunlight, and stared down at me. I waved, and pushed myself up from the ground, towering over her. For some reason, I found the height difference amusing.

"Trying to catch a tan?"

"Nope, just bored as all hell," I looked down at her shirt. "Off to work?" I asked, noting the Merlotte's t-shirt.

"Yeah. You coming with, or no?"

"I have to. Eric's orders," I made a face. "I'll only be around for a little while, though."

"How come? I thought you were supposed to say with me. And," Sookie grabbed my wrist and dragged me off to the car, "do you have to do everything he says?"

"Unfortunately, yes, and I have some things I need to attend to."

My having to obey the Viking vampire appeared to irk her. "Why?"

"He is my Keeper. He…owns me, basically. So I have to do as I'm told," I said with a grimace.

Which really isn't fun. I have always hated being pushed around and ordered like some slave, despite being born into a race that is bred to take orders. I've yet to have a defiant streak for fear of dying, but dammit, if I could, I would have raised Hell.

It's why I chose to leave the Underworld. To break free from being slave to the demons. I held a position of power in Underworld, but I still had to obey those above me. And I'm not much for following rules.

"That…sucks."

. . .

My day was spent wearing a path in the dirt around Merlotte's as I restlessly paced around the perimeter. Sniffing wildly, on edge for the entire morning and afternoon. Nothing happened. There was no sign of any wolves; no prints, no scent, nothing. And it's driving me insane. I've been preoccupied with patrolling the grounds outside, but damn, I wish something would happen. A fight, a fire, something.

Fire.

Why hadn't I thought of that before?

I jogged off to the side of the building and snapped a few branches off of the tree and set them down in a messy pile. I touched a finger to a branch and lit the stack ablaze, and sat down on the ground, watching the flames. The orange flames danced, rising higher and higher as I added more bits from the trees around me. I stepped back, admiring the small pyre I had created. It rose to at least seven feet. Not entirely small, but certainly not as large as the fires I have created before.

I thought of the first night I had been with Eric. Spilling blood, burning bodies, and destroying buildings in less than two hours time. And now, here I am, pacing around a local hick eatery, bored out of my mind…when I could be surrounded by unpredictable vampires, danger…I crave it, the action, the violence. It is a part of me. One that, if every day continues to be this dreadfully boring, will either slip away, or drive me to destroy the entire damned town.

God, this is killing me, I thought, and looked around wearily. I feel like a ticking time bomb.

The bonfire sat far away enough from Merlotte's and any foliage so that it would not cause any damage. As much as I love fire, I don't plan on setting the whole surrounding area aflame.

"Not yet, anyway," I mumbled, staring into the bonfire.

Coming toward me from the lot was a tall blonde, his tanned skin slicked with sweat and dirt from a hard day's work. His eyes flitted from me to the fire, the expression on his face a mix between angry and confused. The man wasn't angry though. His energy is fairly calm. As he came closer, he stuck a hand out and pointed to the fire.

"You do this yourself?" He asked, breathing heavy.

I stared at him. His heart beat fast, body hot and worn out from a long day in the sun. The sleeveless shirt signified he did public works jobs; construction, maintenance, anything of the sort. I answered him.

"Yeah, why?"

"It's a pretty big damn fire. Don't you think it's a little too hot for a bonfire, though?"

I shrugged. "Never too hot for a fire. Heat don't bother me much, anyway."

"Huh," He said, placing his hands on his hips. "The name's Jason. Jason Stackhouse," He extended a hand.

I shook it. "Adrian."

"So where you from? Never seen you around here before."

I hesitated. "A very…hot place."

"Like where?"

"Arizona," I lied, smirking.

"Ohh. What's it like there?"

"Hot and dry, all the time…and somehow, I never managed to catch a tan," I joked. "You a local here?"

"Yup," Jason said proudly. "Born and raised. What brings you all the way down here from Arizona?"

"Just lookin' for a new start, you know? Get away from all the drama my old home brought me."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Wish I could do that, but this is my home," He frowned. "I'm afraid you ain't gonna get much freedom from the drama, 'specially since the vamps came out of the coffin not too long ago. Ever since my sister's gotten involved with one, all sorts a' shit is happenin'."

I walked away from the fire and stood next to him. "Why, them vampires aren't running around here biting the shit outta everybody, are they?"

"Oh, no, no, no. They're raising a little hell, mostly with my sister, but as long as you keep away from 'em, you won't have any trouble," He assured me. "Just whatever you do, don't go down to Shreveport."

"They got that vampire bar, right?"

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I've heard of it. Never been to it, though."

"Good," He said, taking hold of my arms. "Keep it that way. You don't wanna get mixed up in none of that crap."

"Oh, no," I said. "I don't need anymore shit in my life."

I certainly don't, and yet I'm right in the middle of a vampire conflict. One that I'm far from ecstatic about being involved in.

"Nobody does," He stepped away. "What're you doing out here by yourself, anyway?"

I have a lie for just about everything else, but of course now my mind draws a blank. "I'm…"

"Oh, Jason, there you are!" Sookie said happily as she came running out of the front door.

"Hey, Sook," Jason lifted her off the ground as he wrapped her in a tight hug. "What'd you need me for?"

Sookie looked over at me. "This is my brother, Jason. But, I see you two have already met."

I nodded. "We've been talking for a few minutes, yeah. Had no idea he was your brother, though."

Jason looked between us. "You two know each other?"

"Jason, this is Adrian. She's the one I told you about. The one that's supposed to protect me?"

He looked heartbroken. "You're that Hound, thing? From the Underworld? Jesus, and you said you were from Arizona."

"Arizona?" Sookie snorted.

I shrugged, snickering. "Hey, I couldn't just say 'Oh, hi, I'm Adrian, and I was just summoned from Hell.' It was the first thing I thought of."

"Well, you better stick to it, cause that's what you'll be telling people from now on," She said, elbowing me gently in the ribs.

"I'm actually from Shreveport," I laughed. "Arizona was the first thing I thought of. Closest thing to Hell, as far as the heat goes."

She smiled, and looked at her brother. "Now, don't you go treating her like you did Bill. Adrian's a good person. She's only here to help."

Jason glanced at me, a pained look in his eyes. "You're not gonna cause anymore shit are you?"

"No. I plan on putting an end to all of it." I put a hand on his shoulder, offering a small smile. "Relax. I'm not as evil as you think."

"I hope not," He sulked, shaking his head at Sookie.