Author's note: Thanks to Aurora for the encouragement. Du bist die Dušana meiner Geschichte, aber du wusstest es ja schon.(You are the soul of my story, but you knew it already).

Twenty-One

Talking to Eric

I should have taken Jason with me.

Sookie cursed herself when she was entering the woods. It's dark, and there were many insects flying around the lights of her car. She might mishear things, but she swore there were so many noises out there, that made the woods look creepy.

But Jason was 'occupied' for the moment, she was sure of it. Jason had to use all the tricks he knew if he wanted to escape from his newest conquest and to get Dušana-Aurora. But then, Sookie believed, Jason would find his way out, like always.

She didn't know why she wanted to see Eric, because she knew it would be useless. But something told her she must. Usually, her instincts weren't wrong. Instinct. Hah, now she's using them too, to describe her motives.

What was she going to say to Eric? Was there any thing to say at all? That man's mind was made up. He wouldn't change it just because a woman told him to. His workers listened to him not because he's kind, but because he did what he said, or because he would get done whatever he wished, in anyway he could.

But if he's really following his instinct for the moment, his instinct must have told him too, that somewhere under that thick skull of his, maybe not as much as he wanted Aude, that he wanted her too? And if what Aude told her was true, that Eric hadn't shared his blood with any other, except Aude, and some days ago, he tricked her to drink his blood, was it possible, that he did wanted her, only didn't know it yet? If she could take advantage of it, she might be able to convince him to stop this, or at least to delay it until whomever Bill was looking for now came to Bon Temps, and ended this insanity?

Sookie was for all those 'true love' and stuff, but not like this. Killing himself is one thing, but dragging along other people with him, that's another thing. Even then, she would try to stop this person from committing suicide, if she could.

A sudden appearance of an animal on the street startled Sookie. She was out of balance, and for a split second her car was out of control, hit some branches of the tree which hang deep beside the small road, before she managed to step on the brake.

What had she hit?

She wanted to open the door, when she remembered that in many horror movies that was the time when a monster or the killer came out and attacked the main actors. She changed her mind, and decided to stay inside. Whatever she had just hit, she could look in the morning.

But what if it was a person? Nah, a person wouldn't be that small. Small people, perhaps? Ah, nonsense.

Before Sookie could make up her mind, something jumped on the hood of her car. A wolf, a big one. Different from any wolf she ever saw, the wolf had grey and red fur.

"Alcide?" She called out, tried to be as calm as possible.

That wolf bared its teeth, and jumped on the window.

"Oh…no!!" Sookie drove backward. It's not Alcide. And whoever it was, it looked very angry. But before she could move far, another wolf attacked her from the right, and from the left. The grey-red wolf was already back again on the front window. In panic, she stepped on the gas…and bang! She hit the tree.

"Oh, God…" she opened her purse, and took out her gun….she almost pulled the trigger when a thought came to her. If she shot one of the wolves while in the car, the bullet would break the glass first. And then the other wolves would jump in.

Oh no!!!

More and more noises came towards her.

She put her gun in front of her chest. She would shoot the first wolf that entered her car. The rest….she could only hope a help would come…Eric? Would he come? Would he feel what she felt for the moment, how her heart beat like crazy, and almost couldn't breathe because of angst and panic?

Suddenly something or somebody took the wolf on her left window on the neck, and threw it away.

Eric?!

Sookie tried to peep, but it was too dark. The other wolves jumped off to that person and soon they were swallowed by the darkness.

Sookie took a deep breath and wanted to start her car, when she heard somebody knocking on her window. She screamed. Ugh! It was Eric. If Eric was here, then who was fighting the wolves now?

Sookie opened the door, and she went out.

Eric lifted her, and without saying anything took her, flying. Sookie closed her eyes, and held him tight. She could feel the cold wind cut her face, and his long hair touched her nose. Soon they stopped. Sookie opened her eyes and saw that they were already in the garden.

"Alcide!!" Eric called out Alcide's name. His voice was growling. Sookie saw that his fangs were bared.

Alcide came in a second. "Sookie, what's going on?"

"I was…" Sookie stopped her sentence when she saw Eric was glaring at her.

"Your people attacked her. Double the security. And I want whoever attacked her be brought here."

Alcide's face was reddish. His green eyes looked at Eric in high alert. Sookie was afraid that anytime now, Alcide would change into a wolf. But he growled only. If I find whoever attacked Sookie, I'll bring them to the Council, and not to you. His head told Sookie, but he said, "I assure you, they will be found. I apologize to you, Sookie."

Sookie nodded.

Eric grabbed Sookie's hand, and dragged her inside.

Sookie tried to get free. "Let me go! Eric, I am not a child!"

Eric took her to the library room, and pushed her to the sofa. "I told you not to come! Especially not in the night! What should I do to make you listen to me?" His eyes were flickering. "You put every body in danger!"

I put everybody in danger?! Sookie wanted to protest, but when she saw how hard Eric's face was, she said, "I need to talk to you."

He sniffed. His fangs were in, but his eyes were still flickering. "Do you miss me so much that you can't wait for ten days?"

"You know that I might not be able to talk to you in ten days." Sookie tried to talk as soft as she possibly could. "You know that things can go wrong, and you end up dead."

"You do miss me." But he didn't smile. The normal Eric would all smiling and smirking. But now, he was just standing there looking at her with cold eyes.

"Eric, I know. Dušana-Aurora told me." Sookie took his hand, touching his fingers. "I know what you want to do."

He looked down on her. Eric looked so tall and menacing. "Do you?"

But she wasn't afraid anymore. That menacing facade might work on Alcide or others, but not on her. Gently she pulled his hand so that he kneeled down. Softly she touched his face. Those cold eyes were slowly becoming softer. "Is there no other way to say goodbye to Aude without endangering yourself, Eric? You are a vampire! You can live for eternity! If I had a chance, I'd want to see how the world is like 2,000 years from now, seeing if all prediction that we make today come true or not. Isn't it fascinating…" Moment…why do I talk like Aude? That woman is contagious!

"Have you ever been in love, the way that I am in love, Sookie? When every time you open your eyes, you only want to see the face of your beloved one? Aude is like adrenaline for my blood. She takes me up and down the way she wants it. She makes me laugh with her childish behaviour in the evening, drives me crazy on the bed with her passion, and makes me sad every time I have to go to my coffin. For the last 60 years, I have to guess what she would do next. I have to think one step forward to know what she's going to do! And I never find that in any other…" Two red stream flowed down his cheeks and made him somehow…vulnerable. He's not the same vampire who sparked out allure of sensuality, whom Sookie saw in the last days. He looked like a man who was afraid and panicking, knowing his wife was dying. The only thing that made him different was those blood tears.

"Would you take that chance, being able to see the world in the next 2,000 years, if you're given one?"

Sookie was taken aback. Eric was asking her, if she's willing to be turned into a vampire. "Wait a minute…it's not like asking somebody to get married or something, but this is a very serious question, Buddy. I don't even know you."

"You would have 2,000 years of time to get to know me."

Eric was dead serious. Sookie could see it from his blue eyes that narrowing.

"No." Sookie said. This conversation's got to end. They had to return to the first topic, or at least to the reason why she came here. And Eric had to get rid off that crazy notion right out of his head. Right now. She didn't like the look in his eyes, so sharp, so determined. Eric was panicking, he didn't think, otherwise he wouldn't asked her so bluntly like that. She wiped off the tears. "No, Eric. I don't want to get to know you in 2000 years. I want to get to know you in the living span that is given to me…" and enjoy every moment of it. "And honestly, I am worried. Thinking about what you're going through, and I'm worried."

"Don't you believe that I will survive this one?"

"I damn hope so. Because you are bonded to Pam, to Aude, and to…me."

"Lucky me, bonded to three women." He tried to make a joke, but his frantic smile didn't help at all.

"And…" thinking about the pain that he would go through made her shudder. Softly she touched his arm. Every inch of his body would slowly die…and maybe she would feel it too, to be honest, she couldn't imagine if she would be able to stand the pain.

Suddenly Eric pulled her in his arms, laid her down on the sofa and before she could fight back, he kissed her. His kisses were rough, and fast. He removed her jeans rudely and literally tore her panties apart. No less rudely, he opened his own trousers, and brief. Her blouse and her bra were also treated the same. His own t-shirt he threw away somewhere. Then as if he wanted to let out all his anger, sadness, and other feelings he had in his chest, he pressed her body hard and strong.

Sookie knew it's a mistake. Anything that's happening now, wasn't making love, or even having sex. Yes, they were having it, but not because of lust. Eric needed somebody to whom he could let the feelings he kept inside, out. She should've fought back; she should've pushed him, and told him to stop. This was not the way to face the fact that he's going to do something insane. And this was absolutely not the way she imagined of having sex with Eric. Instead, she held him tight, and stroked his back gently.

Their bodies moved faster and faster. Sookie couldn't think anymore if it's a mistake or not. All her senses were driven mad by Eric's roughness and strength. How he bit her neck, shoulder, the underarms beside her breast, it was strong, but apparently not deep enough that caused her bleeding, but still caused her more pain than pleasure. And how he squeezed her breast so strong, that she prayed they wouldn't explode because of it. But when he was inside her, he started moving slowly. Like apologizing for his roughness, he kissed her bitten skin gently, and tenderly. When he took her mouth, Sookie answered it in the same way. Soft, and gently, as soft and gently as she possibly could. She wanted to soothe any pain or anger Eric's having, calmed him down. She couldn't imagine what Eric's been through, but she knew how it felt when the one she loved was saying goodbye. And if the bond that they had was so strong that if one of them died, the other would follow, then what she wanted to do to Eric was relieving the pain, even only for a moment, for a very brief of his time.

Everything moved fast. Eric's body was shaken; his fingernails were bore deep inside her back that Sookie let out a scream. All her thought about doing something for Eric was gone, and changed into wanting him, even for a brief of time, only for her. She wanted Eric to forget everything he had in his head for a moment, and be there, only for her.

But because they moved too fast, they fell off the sofa. Ignoring anything else, Eric pushed the table and the sofa, and made space for them on the floor. The table flew away through the room and hit the window. Sookie heard the glass crashed, but her intention was soon taken back by Eric's touch and kisses. Slowly but surely, Sookie felt her body begging for more, and more. And she felt her whole existence just exploded when she felt Eric exploding inside her, and his fangs were bored on her neck. And then everything became silent. She didn't hear any noise, not even her own breath. The room was standing still, even the time stood still. Nothing existed anymore, but her own self, and the sound of Eric's mouth, sucking her blood.

After a while, he rolled himself off her body, and then took her to his arm. He kissed her cheek softly "Thank you." He said. "For listening to me and telling me what you think. You're the only one who thinks about my well-being. Nobody did that, not even Pam. I am a little bit disappointed with that girl. I thought she would be more loyal to me, than to the company."

Sookie looked at him. His face was more relaxed now. On his lips, there's still some rest of blood. She touched her own neck. The blood stopped already, but the wound was still there. "You aren't going to change your mind, are you?"

"Do you trust me?"

Sookie looked at those bright blue eyes. Those eyes were so determined that she felt like by looking at them, she gained new energy. "Yes."

"Good. That's what I want to hear from you."

"What did Aude say? Did you talk to her?"

"She broke her bond without telling me, do you think she deserves to know what I do?"

"What is it between you, a kind of competition who beats whose plan?"

"She's not supposed to know. It's her birthday present. In a week, she will be seventy-six. And she's never even been to Disney Land. It's always been her dream, to spend a whole day with me in Disney Land."

Sookie believed, she was out of her mind hearing it. But when she saw him smiling, she knew, Eric tried to change the subject. "Eric…she's dying, isn't she?"

"Yes." His voice sounded somber. "She doesn't tell me, but I can taste it in her blood. She is leaving me, Sookie. All her substance of life in her blood is getting stronger, like the taste of many dying human I fed. But since she broke her part of the bond, she can't share her pain with me. And for the first time in my life, I feel so alone…" then Eric broke into tears.

Sookie held him tight. Eric went down and held her waist and then hid his face on her stomach.

She didn't know how long they were there, on the floor, and she didn't know either how long Eric cried but when he finished, her stomach was sticky from blood. Eric lifted her, and took her to the swimming pool, and there, he washed her, gently, and thoroughly. His big hands touched, rub, and followed the shape of her body.

For the last hours before dawn, Eric made her forget her intention of coming to the Mansion. And it seemed by doing so, Eric could forget himself and got himself lost and buried in her arms, her touch, and her kisses.

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