This is FAR from over. I'm building up to the ending of the Season Finale with the big vampire/human BBQ at the end, as long as I get reviews, I'll continue to write, even past those nasty infected vampires. What I was thinking when I wrote the last chapter-what's better than a non-infected vampire? Non-infected vampires who can walk in the sun still and a Kitsune! A VERY special thanks to all of you that have favorited/followed this story. And another special thanks to those of you who have reviewed. It is encouragement I need, and I hope to get more soon :)
Tyler sat in Lafayette's living room, gaining strange looks from Lafayette's ex-boss, Sam Merlotte-who had previously owned Bellefluer's-and Sam's girlfriend, Nicole. He was sure it was because Sam had never met him before now, he was used to people giving him strange looks just because he looked...well in his opinion-like a pot-head. Warlow was supposed to be the opening cook, which was why Tyler was just hanging out with Lafayette. There wasn't really anything else better to do, since he had no way to get ahold of Aurora.
"So...you're running for Mayor?" Tyler smiled at Sam.
"I am," Sam nodded.
"That's pretty neat," at least this gave Tyler something to talk about, though he hated the subject of politics. At least it was local and not federal government. "What made you want to run?"
"I wanted to make a difference," Sam shrugged right before he gave Nicole a soft kiss.
"That's the way to do it," Tyler nodded. "So what's your campaign going for?"
"Tolerance," Nicole answered for Sam.
"Tolerance for what? Vampires? Gays? Marijuana?" Tyler hoped the last word didn't come out too hopeful. Not too many states had legalized pot completely, some were still struggling with the whole medical marijuana laws.
"Tolerance for any supernatural out there," Sam sighed.
"Like weres, Fae, and shifters?" Tyler smirked, glad that he knew more about the supernatural world than most did. His own family didn't believe in any of that stuff, they still were close-minded about vampires and pot. Anything they couldn't understand, they hated. That was why Tyler supported any supernatural being he happened to discover.
Sam froze at the last word of Tyler's sentence, causing Tyler to stop and think for a moment. He felt as though he'd said something wrong. That was until a thought crossed his mind, that made his eyes widen, "You're a Shifter?"
"Why do you say that?" Sam frowned.
Tyler shrugged with a grin, "It's nothing to be ashamed of dude. I wish that I could turn into an animal whenever I wanted. It would be fucking bad-ass!"
Nicole laughed and started to relax, "So I take it you support the V.R.A."
"Shit, I voted for the V.R.A," It was the only thing I voted on besides the Medicinal Marijuana law in Montana.
"So I have your vote?" Sam asked.
"Why not? I bet the other person isn't as bad-ass as you anyways," Tyler smirked.
All morning had been a living Hell for Eric. The first thing he woke to was fucking Amelia rushing into the room he was using, and her spiking him off of the bed with one jump onto the edge, causing him to slam into the wall. He quickly recovered and stood, ready for anything else the bothersome vampire was going to do.
"You sleep too much," Amelia smirked.
"How the fuck did you get in here?" Eric demanded.
"Jason invited me in," Amelia stated in an annoyingly happy tone.
Eric closed his eyes and tried to calm himself. Why the fuck would Jason invite Amelia into his home that he had let Eric and Pam use as their pad? He thought that the bitch would have been gone by now since the whole Kitsune problem was fixed. He rushed out into the living room, actually hoping that Jason was there to kick Amelia out, but only Sora and Aurora sat on the couch in the living room. Annoyance spread throughout Eric quickly. Not only did Jason invite Amelia in, but he had invited her Progeny into the house as well.
"So I take it the two of you aren't leaving?" Eric scowled.
Aurora shrugged, "Sookie believes we need roots."
"And you do whatever Sookie tells you?" the mention of his ex pissed him off even more.
"When Niall and Warlow aren't around," Amelia grinned from Eric's side.
"And did she tell you to come here and bother me?" Eric demanded.
"Nope, I'm doing this of my own free will," Amelia's grin seemed to widen. "And to talk to you."
Eric shook his head and glared at Amelia, "About what?"
"The fact that Warlow and Sookie have taken over your job as a fucking Maker," Amelia growled, her smile and the spark in her eyes that had been there vanished. Sora and Aurora readjusted themselves to get a better view of what was going on between Eric and Amelia. "And they've done the same for your other Progeny's Progeny. Your Grand-daughter. They're taking care of Willa and Tara, and all you can think of is yourself. You are the most selfish vampire I've known."
"And you've known a lot, have you?" Eric's patience was wearing thin.
"Fuck you," Amelia glared right back at him. "The first several years are to teach the Progeny self-control."
"Why do you even care?" Eric asked.
Amelia glanced over at Aurora and Sora with a frown before turning her attention back to Eric, "Because those two very young vampires, will end up hating both you and Pam if you're not careful. Stop being so selfish and spend more time with your Progeny. And tell Pam she's not attached to your fucking ass, so she can take any amount of time to spend with her Progeny."
"You still haven't said why you even care," Eric pointed out. "Isn't that something that would make you happy?"
Amelia looked hurt, "The Maker-Progeny bond is sacred, you dumbass. I would hate to see any such bond broken or abused."
"Is that all you wanted to talk to me about?" Eric raised an eyebrow at her.
"Yes," it was clear that she was lying by the look on Aurora's face, but Eric didn't really give a shit.
"Then get the fuck out of here," Eric growled.
"Why didn't you tell him that you were asking for his help?" Aurora asked Amelia once they reached the cemetary between the house and Bill's.
"Because I fucked up, okay?" Amelia admitted. "I chose to annoy the shit out of him instead."
"Why would you want his help anyways?" Sora asked. "How would he even help you?"
Amelia shrugged, sensing Aurora's disappointment in her. She'd gone into the bedroom Eric was in and had seen the perfect opportunity to fuck his morning up. There really wasn't any harm in it. It had been a very long time since Amelia had rudely awoken anyone, and to be completely honest, it was funner than she had thought it was going to be. She had to stop herself from smiling when she thought of the look on his face when he was going through the air. Amelia was sure that if she did need Eric's help, she definitely wasn't going to get it now. Not after the way she had awakened him. Not that it mattered any. Amelia was positive that Tyler wasn't going to give her any problems...at least she hoped not.
"You know, it's going to be hard for you to make things up to Eric once we find out that I'm right about Tyler," Aurora stated.
Sora started to laugh, "That's what this is about? That cook who works at Bellefluer's with Warlow?"
"He's not human," Amelia said stubbornly.
Sora laughed even harder, "So you were going to ask a younger vampire than you, for help? You do realize that I have more powers than a vampire, right?"
"Are you offering to help me?" Amelia asked hopefully. She wasn't going to bring Sora into her paranoid mess. Not after Sora had been her first paranoid mess. Keeping the much, much older Kitsune out of the new situation was going to be Amelia's way to make it up to her.
"First, what is it that you think he is?" Sora asked. "He's not a vampire, and he sure as Hell isn't a fairy or a Kitsune."
"You'd know if he was a Kitsune?" Amelia frowned.
"Of course I would. Very bad things would start to happen around here if there was another Kitsune...we can't be together...that's why I left my family," Sora sighed. "Our home...it was beautiful...that was until we fucked up and gave into our Kitsune nature. I watched the sea take many Kitsune...along with my home."
"So we can cross Kitsune off of your list," Aurora said. "I bet we can cross every creature the two of you come up with off."
"Now you're getting to far ahead, Aurora," Amelia smiled. "Because this isn't going to be over until I find out what he is."
"And I'm telling you that he's human, Amelia," Aurora was actually arguing with Amelia, which must have meant that she truly did care for the boy.
"We'll see about that," was all Amelia said.
Lafayette wasn't in the mood for conspiracy theories...especially theories that came from a vampire who seemed to believe that Tyler was something more than human. Honestly, Lafayette would have loved just one day without all the drama that came with vampires. Amelia was on a rampage, and because Tyler was Lafayette's friend, she thought that he would know if he was something else other than human. In Lafayette's opinion, it didn't really matter if Tyler was human or not. The boy was fun to hang out with, he wasn't bothered by the fact that Lafayette was gay, and the only thing Tyler seemed to do was smoke pot. Lafayette wasn't sure what Amelia's problem was with Tyler...it could have been because she was afraid that Aurora would want to spend more time with him...Lafayette didn't know. He really didn't care, in his mind, he was already determined to stop this from getting out of hand.
"Hooka, from what I've seen, Tyler is just like every other poor fuck in this world. And human," Lafayette told the determined vampire.
"Are you absolutely sure that Tyler is human?" Amelia asked. "If you're absolutely sure about this...I'll need the proof."
Lafayette closed his eyes, What the fuck is up with this bitch? Is she determined to make another enemy? "Why the fuck do you need proof? We're friends, right? Shouldn't that mean something?"
Amelia shook her head, "Not if he's a threat to this town."
Lafayette's eyes snapped open. The last he'd heard, she'd been obsessed with something called a "Kitsune" and she could have cared less about anything else...not even Bon Tempt, but now that seemed to flip around, and she was focusing all of her energy towards Tyler and for some reason...Bon Tempt. He narrowed his dark eyes at Amelia, "Why are you so concerned about this town?"
"Because it's now my home," Amelia sighed, "And I've spent all morning trying to figure out a way to find out what the fuck Tyler is."
"And why is it so important to you that Tyler is anything other than human?" Lafayette asked.
He watched Amelia shrug, "I have no idea what to do with myself, to be completely honest. I've spent so long chasing Sora-"
"Your Sora..." Lafayette's eyes widened. That explained everything. "Sora? The little blonde girl you've been hanging out with?"
Amelia nodded, "She's not so little when she doesn't want to be. That turned out to be a huge misunderstanding."
"Hooka, I believe that you have a problem. You're not happy unless you've got something to hunt," Lafayette shook his head. "Now what else were you saying?"
Amelia looked down, "What you just said, but Tyler doesn't smell human. I can smell a werewolf a mile away, Sora fooled me by smelling like a human...but... I need to know what Tyler is."
"I'm sorry, I can't help you, Amelia. I wish I could," Lafayette sighed. He knew he was going to regret telling Amelia this, but he had to let her know that Tyler wasn't going to hurt anyone. "I don't think that Tyler would hurt anyone. Not if it put his chance with Aurora at risk."
Amelia's head snapped back up, "He...likes-" She started to laugh, "This should be easier then."
Lafayette frowned at Amelia, that was supposed to defuse the situation, not make it "easier" for her. It was obvious that she wasn't going to listen to reason. She was clearly determined to prove that Tyler was something else entirely than human. In his opinion, Amelia needed another hobby. And fast.
Aurora sat in Jason's house, waiting for Eric to finish the bottle of blood that his human friend, Ginger, had brought over for him and Pam to share. Amelia was out doing her own thing, trying to prove that Tyler wasn't human, and if she knew what Aurora planned on doing, Amelia would have been furious. She wasn't even sure if Eric would be willing to do what she was going to ask, but she did have a feeling that he would do it, just to spite her Maker.
"Where's your Maker, I thought you two were inseparable ," Pam smirked at Aurora.
"She's...busy..." Aurora didn't owe Pam any explanation.
"What do you want with me?" Eric passed the bottle of blood over to Pam and turned his attention to Aurora.
"I was hoping that you could...distract Amelia," Aurora had no better way to put it.
Eric grinned knowingly at Aurora, "Your Maker has no idea you've even come to speak to me, does she? How exactly do I distract her, and from what?"
"She's determined to prove that Tyler isn't human," Aurora said quickly. "It's very possible that she'll make up something just so she isn't...bored. I would like for you to...keep her mind off of that. I don't care how-"
"And if Amelia finds out about this," Eric's grin grew, "she'll be pissed off like no other."
Aurora nodded, "And she probably will hold it against me for the rest of eternity."
"And you'd risk your Maker being pissed off at you, why?" Pam narrowed her eyes at Aurora.
Because the look on Eric's face told her that he wanted to know as well, Aurora took a deep, unnecessary breath, "Because I don't think it's any of her business if Tyler is something other than human. He isn't hurting anyone."
"It's almost like a male version of Sookie. Isn't that sweet?" Pam stated sarcastically.
Aurora chose to ignore the underlying insult in Pam's voice. She didn't want to lose her chance for Eric's help. The Viking sat there quietly contemplating either or not he was going to do the favor for Aurora. He took let out a sigh and leaned back, "If I do this for you, and Amelia figures out what I'm doing...I'm taking you down with me."
"You've got yourself a deal," Aurora smiled brightly. Now all she had to do was prove Tyler was human before Amelia could use other methods.
The more Sookie watched Amelia with Warlow, the more the vampire reminded her of a predator hunting for it's prey. She was semi-stalking Tyler, on a mission as though he was another Kitsune. Warlow had told Sookie to just stay out of it, but the thought of Amelia trying to out another Sup was unsettling. A number of problems could occur if she was right. He could be a Sup that destroys everything in sight, or he could very well be as peaceful as the Tribe of Fae that had once protected her. Amelia's table had a clear view of the cooks, which only seemed to make her seem more like a stalker than anything else. Sookie had to pull her attention away from Amelia several times, because she found herself wondering what the older vampire was thinking. It really couldn't have been as bad as anything that Eric would have done.
"Sookie!" Amelia waved her over. Sookie noticed that Amelia actually stuck out without Niall, Aurora, Andy, or Adilynn there to keep her company.
"I'm working, Amelia," Sookie sighed.
"That's cool, I am too," Amelia stated.
Sookie had to hold in her laugh, she was sure that Amelia wouldn't even know what to do with a human job. It was clear that she really did look at stalking Tyler as a job, and it made Sookie wonder how Aurora was handling it. If it wasn't for Warlow, Sookie probably would try to calm Aurora down and try to talk her out of her destructive mission. Either way, Sookie was sure someone was going to get hurt in the end. Aurora could have her heart broken, or Tyler and Amelia could have ended up fighting to the death...and if Tyler was immortal...then Amelia was fucking with yet another Sup too strong for her to mess with. For Amelia's sake...and for Aurora's...Sookie prayed to God that Tyler was human. No doubt was in her mind about him being human now, mainly because Warlow and herself had already made the mistake of thinking that he was the Kitsune. Part of her wanted to just go up to Tyler and ask him the one question that had been asked of her so many times before, "What are you?" Sookie glanced quickly over at Warlow, who was watching her like a hawk from the pass-through, then she looked back at Amelia and shook her head, "Are you going to order anything?"
"Nope, I don't drink True Blood," Amelia said matter-of-factly. Sookie raised an eyebrow at the bubbly vampire, No one in the world is drinking True Blood now because of the Hep. V epidemic. Arlene won't even buy the stuff now since she watched the news a few weeks ago.
"So...you're just taking up table space?" the last thing anyone needed was for Arlene to come out demanding that Amelia buys something.
"No, I'm not taking up 'table space'," Amelia scoffed. "Like I said, I'm working."
"Even Andy buys something when he's working," Sookie tried.
"Fuck! Fine!" Amelia reached into her pocket and pulled out a twenty. "Whatever this will get me."
Sookie couldn't stop her smile as she turned and saw Violet grinning at Amelia. They all knew what Amelia was doing there. The only people that didn't know about Amelia's "job" was Arlene, Andy, Adilynn, Niall, and of course, Tyler himself. A good part of her wanted to warn Tyler about what Amelia was up to, but Sookie respected Amelia too much...and she wanted to see if the vampire was right.
There was a skip in Sora's step as she walked into Bellefluer's. She was meeting Alcide for a drink. She had stopped by to see Amelia at the house she was staying at, but she wasn't there. Instead, Tara questioned her until she fessed up that she was going on a date with Alcide...and the uppity vampire had graciously informed her that she was going to have a drink with a werewolf. The fact that Alcide was a werewolf made Sora quite happy, mainly because she wasn't sure how things would have worked if he was just a regular human. She was sure to keep her ears and tail hidden, though that was a lot of work when she was in this good of a mood. She wanted to turn to her most natural form and dance around...and play. Her natural form only caused her trouble though...Sora shook her head and spotted Amelia the second she walked through the door. There were several orders of food on the vampire's table, Bellefluer's was pretty full, but Alcide still wasn't there, so Sora hopped happily into the seat beside Amelia.
"What are you doing?" Sora asked.
"Working," Amelia forced her attention to Sora, as if she hadn't noticed Sora taking the seat beside her.
Sora looked to the cooks' window and grinned. She had forgotten about the whole Tyler situation. Until now. If Amelia wasn't careful, then Tyler was going to start thinking that she liked him. The thought made Sora snicker as she looked away from Tyler and back at Amelia, "So you're just going to stalk him?"
"I'm not stalking him...I'm just...spying on him," Amelia nodded once she found the right word.
"Your methods don't exactly make you any friends," Sora pointed out.
"Fuck friends, I'm over a thousand years old," Amelia glared at Tyler.
"You don't mean that, I'm over seven thousand and I still need a friend," Sora stated.
"And you've got me," Amelia turned to Sora completely. "What would you have me do? Forget about him?"
"I'm not saying that...but you're coming off too obvious, Amelia," Sora stole a fry off of one of Amelia's plates. She looked over at the door when a husky smell reached her nose. Alcide had just gotten there. "Speaking of friends...I've got a drink to have with Alcide."
"Take the food," Amelia sighed and placed her head on the table.
"Are you sure?" Sora stood quickly.
Amelia nodded, "I can't eat human food. Trust me, I tried when I thought..." Amelia shook her head, "Never mind, have fun with the wolf."
"Try to be a better stalker," Sora advised as she grabbed the plates of food and headed to the bar to sit beside Alcide.
"I'm...working!" Amelia called back to her in a soft voice.
Willa sat quietly in Jason's living room while Eric paced back and forth. He had summoned her, but he wasn't saying anything. Pam had gone out to do some kind of favor for Eric, Tara was at work, and now Willa was alone with her Maker for the first time since he turned her. A part of her wanted him to take responsibility for her...like Amelia was with Aurora for the last three hundred plus years. Honestly, she was jealous of the relationship Eric had with his first Progeny, her Sister...even released from their bond, their relationship was still strong, and he seemed to be focusing all of his attention on her. And yet...Willa prayed to God that Eric wasn't going to take responsibility of her, not when she had Tara. She had Warlow and Sookie as well to help her control her undying hunger that she was sure she'd have to spend the rest of eternity with.
"I don't even know how I'd convince her that I'm helping her," Eric finally mumbled, mainly to himself. Willa remained quiet, she wasn't even sure she knew who he was talking about. It could have been Sookie... "If you were looking to... 'help' someone who didn't trust you one bit... what would you do?"
"Depends," Willa shrugged. "Who are you trying to help?"
Eric shook his head, as if he hated the very idea, "Amelia."
Willa's eyes widened. Why did Eric even want to help Amelia? From what she knew, Eric couldn't stand Amelia, and Amelia was just annoyed by Eric. Instead of being able to help her Maker, like he expected her to, Willa was in shock. It didn't make any sense. Amelia was on some kind of new mission. Sookie, Tara, and Warlow had been joking about it that afternoon after Amelia and Aurora had taken off. She recovered, mainly because Eric was looking at her in a way that told her he really wanted her advice, "Find a way to earn her trust."
"Earn Amelia's trust?" Eric didn't sound too happy with that idea.
"Earn her trust," Willa nodded. "Amelia is always saying that the first step is trust."
"And I failed her test, if I recall correctly," Eric sighed.
"Why do you want to help a vampire you clearly hate?" Willa asked.
Eric didn't answer her, he didn't have to, he was her Maker. She couldn't even try to force him to give her an answer. Willa's mind was made up, she was going to head into work the moment she left Eric. She wanted the company of her...family. Her very unique family that Eric didn't want anything to do with. He hadn't taken a single bit of responsibility for her since he returned with Pam, Willa understood that he lost his Sister, but...Willa was a baby vampire, and she was being neglected by her Maker. The way he was with Pam told her it was unusual for him to be like this with a Progeny, but he didn't even seem to care. Why would he care? His younger Sister, who he loved very much, was dead, and the only thing that seemed to even remotely hold him together was Pam.
"I gave my advice, can I go? I have a shift in an hour," that was partly true. Arlene had offered an extra shift to Willa, only Willa had declined. Now Willa hoped that she could still take that extra shift. Anything to get away from the coldness she felt when she was around Eric.
"Go, I'll find my own way," Eric stated coldly.