Chapter Eleven
When sleep overcomes me, it is like slipping into a warm bath. Even though I get practically knocked out when the sun rises, sleeping in a coffin makes me feel safe. I still had not learned to know when people were near me while I slept, so when Eric came home I hadn't known it. He was older, and so he could rise before other vampires. He required less sleep to function. I had slept longer than is usual for a vampire, which was weird. The sun had been down nearly an hour when I woke.
I could instantly feel Eric's presence, and I leap out of my coffin. He was standing there, with a mug of warm blood waiting for me. He was standing in the doorway of the hidden cubby, and as I jumped into his already waiting arms, we staggered back a little. Everything felt right, and the dread that I had had about Bill dissolved into nothingness. I kissed Eric's face furiously all over, crying at the same time.
He laughed and stepped back, handing me the mug. I took it eagerly and took a big drink. It was mostly human blood, but I could taste a faint hint of tea. I looked at Eric, shocked.
"Tea? Really, you make bloody tea?" I asked him in disbelief. He laughed heartily.
"Are you saying you don't like it?" He reached for the cup and I wretched it back, keeping it out of reach.
"No! I just didn't think vampires cared much about how the blood tasted." I said, staring at the thick blood in my mug.
"Sometimes, we just need a little something extra." he said, kissing my forehead gently.
We stood in silence for a while as I drank my blood. We were sitting on the sofa at the end of the bed, but not in awkwardness. It felt safe, and right. Eric had his arm wrapped around my waist, keeping me as close as possible. I could feel that he was tense, his muscles very rigid. I finished my blood and set the cup down carefully, and turned to look at him.
"Are you okay, Eric? Is everything alright?" I asked him quietly. He smiled weakly at me, and stroked my face tenderly.
"I am as good as I can be at the moment." His voice was small and nearly silent. I knew something was on his mind.
"What's bothering you, under that gorgeous head of blonde hair?" I pried, hoping he would give in. He just smiled at me, but I couldn't help but pick up an image of me in the tree. I could see myself, huddled up to myself staring down at Bill Compton. I was full of terror and I looked like a small dog, huddled up because I was so scared. I frowned at myself, and at Eric.
"That is what is bothering you? Because I was scared, does that shame you?" I asked, suddenly offended. Eric's eyes widened in shock and disbelief.
"No, no Aurora! I am not shamed of your self preservation at all. I am proud of you for doing what you did. You are not nearly strong enough to take on a vampire such as Bill Compton. If I were here, he would be dead already. I am so sorry that I was not here for you, you and Pam both. I am ashamed of myself, not you." he looked down at the floor, and covered his eyes with his hands. I didn't know what to say to him. I had no idea how to respond. I rubbed his knee and hoped that he would understand my gesture.
"You had no choice to leave, Eric. Pam and I both understand that. I know that you would not have left if it were not vital. I am safe, and so is Pam. Do not beat yourself up over this, because no one was hurt in the process." I told him sincerely. He looked up from his hands and stared at me. His blue eyes were as big as I had ever seen them. They looked like glaciers, set delicately in a perfect face. He was impossibly beautiful, and it made me feel insignificant every time I looked at him in the eyes.
He smiled at me again, still not the same cocky smile he usually gave. I hugged him then, and tried my hardest to make him feel like everything would be okay. He was much, much older than I was, but I hoped that I could somehow make him feel better. I know he had seen many horrible things, and had done even worse. I knew that he had been with thousands of woman, and eaten even more. Nothing would pull me away from my Maker. And it wasn't even just that he was my Maker, but I loved him. It sounds absurd to say you love someone with such little time, but it was true. We loved each other, and the word love doesn't even quite cut it. It was the most odd feeling, but I relished in it.
He grasped my hand and squeezed very gently.
"I will never do that again, that is my promise to you." He told me, staring me straight in the eyes. I would have blushed if I was able. I smiled tenderly at him and stroked the side of his cheek. Pam briefly crossed my mind, and how her face had had dried blood on it.
"Was Pam hurt terribly bad?" I asked Eric. He shook his head and kissed my hand.
"No, not horribly and nothing that wasn't able to heal right away. Bill hit her a few times and tossed her across a room so she would stay out of his way." He told me solemnly.
"Pam is not taking this very lightly, mind you. She is pissed beyond belief, but glad that you are I are safe. She will take great pleasure in causing Bill great pain." He sounded proud.
Pam was a very strong woman, and she took joy in being sarcastic and cocky. I could only imagine how mad she was that a man had tossed her around like a rag doll. Eric interrupted my thoughts.
"You know he was after you, don't you?" He asked me, his voice slow and thin. I stared momentarily before nodding at him.
"Yes, I had a feeling he was. He was searching the grounds for something, and when I saw Pam all bloody, I knew he was not there for her." I frowned a little.
"He wants to take you from me, and use you as leverage. Or maybe just torture you, at this point I don't have a single idea." Eric looked angry, which made me uneasy.
"Don't worry about me, I will always have you and Pam there with me." I told him firmly. This made his face lighten a little before he leaned in and kissed my lips gently.
"Any news about Sookie?" I asked. Eric looked stunned that I would ask him.
"Well, the doctors and scientists haven't gotten any definitive answers from her blood work. But what I am thinking is that because she is a fairy, the change treated her differently. I mean, she is most certainly a mixture of creatures, but her fairy blood kept her from dying indefinitely." This made me feel a little sick.
Poor Sookie was tortured and experimented on and then she was murdered, only to wake in a total confused mess. She had no idea what she was or what she would turn into at the full moon. This made me horribly sad, and guilty. Her fairy blood had saved her, but also damned her. I clutched Eric's hand tightly.
"She is not safe there, Eric." I told him. He nodded very slowly, clearly thinking.
"Where would you have her stay?" He asked me. I was silent for a moment, thinking of an appropriate answer.
"Here." One word, solid as stone.
Eric looked extremely dazed at my suggestion. I laughed and pulled him into a hug.
"What other place could you possibly think of, where she would be more safe?" I asked him.
"Aurora, please remember that Bill infiltrated my home just last night. He harmed Pam and he could have found you, what makes you think Sookie will be safe here?" He stared at my face, examining my reaction.
"Bill is not that stupid, I do not think. If he risked coming back here now, he would surely die. Why would he risk anything of such magnitude, for something he thinks is dead. He doesn't know that Sookie is alive, remember. No one does, she will be save under our protection."
Eric looked impressed by my response which made me feel proud of myself.
"Not only are you beautiful, but you are smart." He laughed and kissed me again. I felt like I had accomplished something important, and something worth accomplishing. After that we made love, furious love. I could feel his relief that I was alright, and in his arms. I knew that he was angry, but he was also very calm. He was calm that I was there with him and not away somewhere having God-knows-what done to me. He was angry that Bill had done such horrible things to the people he loves most.
We lay in bed, wrapped in each others arms for a long time. The silence was so peaceful that I didn't dare move and ruin it all. Eric seemed to enjoy the mood as well, so we stayed like that. Pam waltzed into the room, dressed in a silk kimono with gold flowers all over it. It was beautiful, like every other piece of clothing Pam owned. I covered up my bare chest and propped myself up on one elbow to see her.
"Eric, Jason Stackhouse is on the phone. He says it is urgent." She tossed a phone at Eric and then left the room. I looked at Eric as he picked up the phone. I heard Jason say that Sookie had to be moved, and that he wasn't safe with her in this state. Eric was silent while Jason explained that Sookie had tried to kill him when she woke that night. He also went on to explain that Bill had come by the house, acting like he had not killed Sookie at all. Jason had rescinded his invitation into the home, so Bill could not enter of course. Bill had been furious when Jason would not invite him in.
Eric said he would be sending someone to get Sookie right away, and hung up the phone. He looked at me, his eyes furious.
"Why would Bill go to Sookie's house, if he believed her dead?" He sounded confused. I had no idea how to answer what Eric was asking me.
"I really don't know, Eric." was all that escaped my lips. Eric hollered Aetos name, and Aetos was in the room before I had a chance to blink.
"Yes, Eric?" He bowed politely to Eric.
"I need to you go get miss Stackhouse, from Bon Temps. And there is absolutely no time to waste. You get there and come back, within an hour. Do you understand? The sun will be up in two hours and I want to make sure she will be comfortable settled by then." Eric ordered.
Aetos nodded and was gone. The new life I now had was so different, that I didn't know how to really act or think of things. Eric pulled me into a strong but tender embrace, holding me there until Aetos came back. When Aetos walked through the door, he closed it behind him and asked us to dress ourselves before he allowed the guests into the room. We did so, and quicker than I really liked. Aetos let Sookie in, but she was not alone. Jason walked in after her, his face pale and sad.
"I would not leave him there by himself. It is not safe." Sookie said defensively.
Eric nodded next to me and bowed at Aetos, who stepped off to the side.
"Hello Jason, you are welcome here. It is much safer than in Bon Temps." Eric told him. Jason nodded slowly. I lay back down while Eric showed Jason to one of the guest rooms, and took Sookie to one of the various vampire cubby holes that Eric had hidden all over his home. When he returned the sun was almost up. He scooped me up and carried me to the cubby, kissing me the whole way.
I knew that having Sookie here might be tense, but it was best for everyone to have her in the most possible safe place. That was here. Eric kissed me deeply as he rested me into my coffin. He looked me in the eyes and said he loved me, kissing me one last time before closing the lid to my coffin.
What would be to come, I wondered.
If only I had known.
If only.