Trouble Maker
A/N: Sorry, I am running a little late tonight. Anyone catch the Houdini movie on the History Channel? I thought it was awesome, and thanks to the wonderful DVR technology, I was able to watch both parts in a single go and not sit through commercials! (And this concludes my advertising for the night). Anyway, here's the chapter we've all been waiting for... WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH THIS PROPHECY!?
-Andi
-P.s_- All errors are mine and mine alone. This chapter was written, read, proofed, and re-read by me!
Chapter Twenty-Five: Another Limb on the Family Tree
Pam was finished drinking now, and the Room Service Girl left a bit wobbly legged after the vampiress sealed her bite marks. Sookie watched the girl, mentally, to the elevator as an assurance that she made her way there without issue.
"So," Sookie began once she was no longer distracted by Pam's meal, "when are we heading home?"
"First thing tomorrow night." Godric stated, "Dr. Ludwig will be meeting with us to discuss what she can of our destinies, as well as whatever it may be that she needs to speak with you over the matter."
"Aw, I was hoping to hang out with the Dallas pack a bit more." Sookie frowned, "Charlie and J.T. have been so cool about everything. J.T.'s really been coming around. It's amazing what a couple of weeks does for someone's perspective." She said thoughtfully.
"It really is." Eric smiled, "But with our new status, we can come to Dallas whenever we wish. Even just to check in with your new friends. If you wanted to come for only a few hours, I could fly you here myself. It would only take about an hour for me to get us here."
Sookie smiled to herself, "That's so awesome. You know I'm going to take you up on that, right?"
"I look forward to it." He laughed. "As far as your earlier question of what we do now... I suppose we will need to wait and hear what Ludwig has to tell us tomorrow evening." He stroked her hair carefully, contemplative of what new challenges awaited him the next nightfall. Looking down at the blonde head he was caressing, Eric smiled at his own personal trouble maker.
He had not looked forward to so many new evenings, as he did with her now, in a very long time. She was the most beautiful complication he had ever met, and he adored Sookie for loving and trusting him with all of her heart, to the point that he was the one she turned to when things seemed impossible. He loved her for every pang of worry Sookie sent jolting throughout his body. Not because he enjoyed seeing her in danger or pain, but because he knew she was strong enough to overcome and endure anything. She was fearless in the best way.
Those ways sent him on edge, and her infiltration of the VVA had the Viking ready to chew on his nails. However, she handled herself remarkably well, better than he could have thought one as young as she ever could. He knew, also, that what she had done scared her. Her powers were advancing, but none were any sort of offensive ability. Sookie still relied on Eric to protect her, but the way she had threatened Kathy, having the power to slit another human's throat, had shook his Bonded to the core. Only once before, Sookie had ever taken a life. One life more than most humans took in their entire time on this earth.
It was not unreasonable for his Sookie to question herself in these matters. After all, she was about to enter a world where death was not only common place, but one where she would technically be dead as well. How does one who does not "live" value lives? He knew that Sookie would be unique on this topic, and that centuries of being ensconced by it would be hard pressed to sway her on the matter.
That was another thing that he loved about Sookie. She made him weigh the values of life.
"Eric?"
"Hmm?" Eric shook his head from the thoughts swimming around it.
"Are you okay?" She asked gently.
Eric looked up from her curious gaze to see that both Pam and Godric had gone to their own rooms. The sun was rising, and it actually caused him to feel its call. Dallas was always so damned persistent from May through September!
"I should probably get to our room, Lover." Eric told her, rising from the couch and bringing her with him to nestle against his chest.
"Are you tired?" Sookie pressed.
Eric smiled at her. It was difficult for her to process the difference between "tired" and being rendered useless.
"The sun is pulling me." He explained, "I can feel the ache from the sun. It is too brilliant."
"Okay." She snuggled deeper into his embrace and closed her eyes, "I'm ready to sleep, anyway." She yawned as if to prove the point.
As Eric set her gently onto the mattress, the little blonde wriggled out of her clothes and underthings as Eric stripped down before settling into the covers. In a practiced ritual, Sookie scooted back into his chest, pressing her bottom into his groin as his cool arms wrapped her up in their strong shelter.
"Love you." Sookie mumbled as she kissed the top of his arm closest to her face.
"As I love you." He breathed against the back of her ear, and they both slipped away from consciousness.
"Sookie?" The girl's eyes were slow to open, but she smiled at Eric stroking her hair from her face. "I regret waking you, but we must catch our flight." He was still whispering.
"Flight?" She sounded just as disoriented as she felt. "Not til night." She murmured.
"It is night, Lover. You slept the entire day." Eric's voice remained a low timbre.
"Dun wanna." She tugged the blanket over her head to block out the lamplight.
Her Bonded chuckled at the childish display, "You must." He patted her bottom firmly, "You want to go home, correct? Sleep in our own bed?" He peeled back the blanket and exposed part of her back to plant gentle, encouraging kisses.
"Humph!" She flipped the cover from her face, cascading a thin layer of hair across her face and making her vampire laugh.
"You can go back to sleep on the plane." He kissed her face all over as he pushed the hair from it once more. "However, I already carried you off of one on this trip. I do not believe carrying you onto a second is a good sign. Anubis Airlines will start thinking that you are a carry on, not a passenger."
She stuck her tongue out at him and he laughed, helping her off of the bed and steering her away from the shower to get dressed right away instead. "I can't even take a shower?" She grumbled.
"You are the one who refused to get out of bed the first half dozen times I tried to rouse you." He reminded, "If you had, there would have been time for a shower. Instead you insisted on staying asleep."
The telepath pouted playfully at him, and dressed quickly, making Eric frown. Sookie usually made a show for him when taking her clothes on and off. "What?" She batted her eyelashes teasingly, "We don't have time for a show if we don't have time for me to shower." He responded by giving her bottom a little swat as he nudged her towards the door.
Godric and Pam were sitting in the suite's living room, staring off absentmindedly as they waited. Soon the four of them departed from the hotel and caught their flight home. Sookie dozed off even before takeoff, and slept the entire trip, only opening her eyes when Eric's lips against her ear encouraged her to do so.
Drowsily, Sookie walked to the car that was waiting for them, and rested her head against Eric's shoulder until they arrived at the house. Her vampire practically carried his Bonded into the house and laid her out on the sofa.
*POP*
"What happened!?" Sookie shouted, sitting up on the couch, eyes wide and looking for what had caused the noise.
"Calm, Little Girl." Ludwig smirked at Sookie's reaction, "It is only me."
"Oh, Doctor Ludwig," Sookie breathed a sigh of relief, "you finally going to let us know what is happening?" She asked, trying to keep the annoyance from her tone, and only succeeding minimally.
The doctor smirked, "As much as I can." Sookie groaned, "I will start with my error."
"Error?" Sookie thought that sounded promising, "Like, we're not part of a prophecy?" She asked hopefully.
"Oh, you are a key element in a very important event." Ludwig dashed her dreams, "My error was assumptions about you being part Witch." She explained.
"I... I'm not? Wait, what about the whole "you must become a vampire" thing? I mean," she looked at Eric apologetically, "I'm not backing out, I swear, I just would like to have more say in the matter of when it happens." Eric nodded in understanding.
"That," Ludwig began slowly, "is much more debatable."
"Umm, how much more debatable?" Sookie pressed.
"You have the chance of never crossing over."
"So my powers won't kill me?" The telepath gasped.
The doctor crossed her arms over her chest seeming to debate with herself on the best way to explain, "After I spoke to you in Dallas that first time," she began carefully, "Before I had even left your hotel room- I received a call. A summons. The Ancient Pythoness summoned me to discuss your future, and my ties with it. Of course, once I learned the truth, I was obligated as your doctor to tell you what was really happening, but there was a plea from the Voice of the Pantheon that I delay my findings to you."
Sookie frowned, her eyebrows scrunching as she vaguely remembered the doctor receiving a phone call before departing from their first meeting. "So, what was the summons about?"
"There is an old Fae legend..." Ludwig began anew, "Godric might have heard it, but it is unlikely that even he has." The oldest vampire raised his eyebrows at that, "The legend states that a special fairy would hold the capacity to partake in all the magics of the Fae realm. When the noblest bloods of all four clans are gifted to this fairy, he or she would gain all of the powers of the Kingdom and rise as the Immortal Queen, or King, of Elfyria."
"How does drinking fairy blood make me immortal? Or even a Royal?" Sookie frowned.
"You would not drink it." Ludwig cackled, "You have been hanging around vampires too long! It would need to be transfused. You already carry the noble blood of the Sky clan. You are the last living member of the Brigant line." She explained, making the vampires tense slightly.
"Brigant... Like, Nial Brigant? The former King of Elfyria?" Sookie asked, stunned.
"You have been learning a lot already!" Ludwig sounded relieved, "And yes, that is the line I speak of. You still need the blood of the Water, Earth, and Fire clans."
"Are the Fire clan not extinct?" Godric frowned.
Ludwig frowned as well, a tinge of sadness in her eyes, "They have all ascended, all that still exist are now Angels. However... The Goddess of the Pantheon that is the deity over Elfyria has already spoken to them, and there is one who has agreed to cut off his wings and become Fairy once more if his blood will bring rise to the Immortal Queen." She explained. "It is a great sacrifice he is willing to make for us all, Sookie."
The telepath was gawking at Ludwig like she had grown a second head, "Like a real Angel?" Sookie breathed. Godric and Eric had mentioned Angels before, but she had not thought twice about it then.
"Not like the biblical ones you are familiar with, but they are pure goodness." Ludwig explained.
"And, what's this Angel's name?"
"Fa." She answered.
"So, Fa... Mi, Re, Doe..." She shook her head at the little joke her brain had spewed out of her mouth, "So, he's willing to give up his status as an Angel so that I can do this... That's a huge sacrifice, I take it?"
"It takes around 50 years to gain status as a Guardian Angel, and another 500 to go from Guardian to full fledged Angel." Eric told her and Sookie flinched.
"He will be the last one who's blood you would take." Ludwig told her, "There are... Complications that can arise in this process, even more than I am aware of."
"How do you mean?" Sookie asked hesitantly.
"It has never been done." The doctor stated plainly, "Therefor, it could very easily kill you." Everyone in the room blanched simultaneously, "That is why your vampires have been able to remain aware during the day."
"Huh?" Sookie was more baffled than before, which was saying something.
"It is a gift from the Pantheon. In exchange for the sacrifice, they are offering you a "safety". If the metamorphosis begins to fail, or your body cannot handle the transition, your Bonded is being given the opportunity to turn you before you can truly die. Whether you begin to fade during night or day, he will have the chance to save you from true death." Ludwig was watching the girl carefully.
"How soon would we need to start the process?" Sookie asked worriedly, feeling tears building. She needed as much information as she could get before she could even pretend to be able to make a decision.
"Immediately."
Sookie choked on a sob and Eric sat beside her, rubbing her shoulders carefully, "You want me to... You want me to make a choice like this... One that sacrifices an Angel on a whim?"
"There is something else..." Ludwig said slowly, "It is why the circumstances are so pressing."
"Oh just spit it out!" Sookie cried and Eric hugged her tightly to himself.
"You are with child." Ludwig whispered.
"Impossible!" Eric snarled, "I am her only!"
"They are your children." Ludwig snapped right back.
Everyone in the room remained still for a long time.
"Children..? Plural?" Godric whispered. "The prophecy. A source of light that would fracture into three pieces and be infused with ancient souls." He shook his head, "We are part of that prophecy?"
"You are." It was Ludwig's turn to keep her voice hushed.
"So the whole estrus thing... Kathy was pregnant by a vampire, too, but she had an abortion." Sookie murmured.
"Yes. If you choose not to take the blood of the Fae Clans, I will be forced to terminate your pregnancy as well." The doctor tried to tell her gently, "They could not survive in your womb if you do not go through with this. Your inability to remain awake is a sign that you are already becoming unable to carry them. It would be much more humane to-"
"STOP!" Sookie rose from the couch, brushing away Eric's arms and hugging herself now. Now she realized why the doctor who had performed Kathy's abortion looked vaguely familiar. It had been Ludwig in disguise. "You've known all of this for nearly a month!?" She demanded of the doctor.
"I have."
"AND YOU THOGUHT THE PANTHEON HAD MORE OF A RIGHT TO KEEP ME IN THE DARK, THAN I HAD THE RIGHT TO KNOW!?" Sookie screamed.
"Sookie-" Eric reached for her.
"No," she shook her head, stepping away, pressing her back to a nearby wall and sliding down until she was huddled on the floor. "I can't. I can't think at all. I can't make a decision. Oh, God." She looked up towards the ceiling, "God, how can you keep doing this to me? I have nothing left. Why are you doing this? How is this fair? How is anyone suppose to take as much as you keep throwing on me? How much deceit do you think I can take before I can't trust anyone? I can't not do it." She put her hands to her flat belly and sobbed so harshly that she momentarily bounced against the wall, "How can I kill my babies? What sort of ultimatum is that? WHY DID YOU TELL ME THAT!?" She screamed at the doctor, "Why couldn't you let me make a decision before telling me about them..? What did I do?" She begged and babbled for an answer, turning her red, tear stained face at the others in the room. They all stared at her with blank expressions. Eric was the only exception. He looked absolutely destroyed, and she knew it was because of what he was feeling from her. "Eric," he was on the floor at her side instantaneously, pressing his cool forehead to her burning one, "I can't... I can't make this decision right now." Her eyes were wide, round saucers as her head shook frantically against his own, "I can't be here. Take me away. Anywhere but here. Please, God, please get me out of here!"
Eric lifted her into his arms and turned towards the others in the room as he headed towards the door, "She needs time. Can your fucking prophecy give her that?"
Ludwig gazed at the pair a moment before saying, "I must have an answer within the week. That is the longest the children can go before the transfusions need to begin." She was trying not to shout over Sookie's sobs, in deference to the delicate situation. Eric sneered at the pitiful amount of time to make such a monumental decision. "Please call me when a decision has been made," and the doctor teleported out of the house.
"We are leaving." Eric stated, and all Pam or Godric could do was nod.
The vampire was out the door and flying off into the night sky, with his destroyed Bonded clutched tightly in his arms. Her emotions were swirling around inside of him like a tidal wave, and there was no way of discerning what these emotions all were. All that he was certain of were that they made him want to plummet into an icy cold abyss and let it swallow him for the remainder of the universe.
Flying north, Eric managed to make it to Missouri before he could feel that Sookie just wanted to be wherever it was they were going. He landed at the first hotel he spotted, and carried Sookie in.
The clerk was stunned at the appearance, and more than a little concerned over the sobbing woman the giant of a vampire was carrying. Eric could see the way she looked between the two of them, and was more than aware that he should glamour the woman into forgetting about them, otherwise the police would be contacted over a suspected kidnapping.
Key card in hand, and a freshly glamoured clerk at the check in, Eric took Sookie to their room, lying her on the bed. The hotel was not a "first choice", but Sookie could not care less about accommodations. The only concerns for her, were in her own head.
"I want them, Eric." Sookie whispered after nearly an hour of silence and sniffling.
He knew that she was speaking of their children, "Sookie, are they so important that you want to rule over a kingdom the rest of eternity?"
Sookie smiled, "That's what legacies are for. One of them might want to rule somewhere along the line."
"Sookie," he reached over and brushed away some of her endless tears, "please, think longer about this-"
"If I ruled over Elfyria, you'd be able to come with me, right?" She hiccuped.
Eric swallowed unnecessarily, "I have existed in Elfyria before." He nodded. "But, Sookie, time moves much slower there. An hour in Elfyria is a day in this realm."
"So even if I only spent a few days there, it would be months here?"
"Yes."
"And my friends and Jason could all be dead in just a few short years..."
"Yes."
"And Godric and Pam might not want to go, and they wouldn't get to see you for years." Sookie choked.
"Yes."
Sookie sat motionless for a long time before she got off of the bed and stomped towards the window. Craning her neck, she spotted a sliver of the moon and shouted, "SELENE, BRING ENDYMION HERE RIGHT NOW!"
The Bonded couple stood in silence, and just as Sookie began to become irate, a sound like wind chimes rented the air, and a hot, white light blinded them.
"Ms. Stackhouse." Endymion stood before them, bowing his head.
"You're the Voice of the Pantheon, right? So you can talk back and forth between God and stuff?" Sookie demanded.
"I can." He nodded gently, unperturbed by her attitude. In fact, he seemed to expect it.
"Can you ask God, or Goddess, or Whoever, why They thought this was such a fan-freakin-tastic idea!?" She stomped her foot angrily, "Who came up with the idea of choosing between what YOU want and the lives of my babies!?" She snarled. "You shove me at what YOU want and then dangle my babies in front of my face like it's some sort of pacifier or-or- or bait! Don't look at the man behind the damned curtain, and you get to have children! It's CRUEL!" She was crying once more, and Eric held her against his chest, rocking from foot to foot.
"No, Sookie." Endymion murmured, "This was not fair to you at all. The children were not meant to be bait." He said, "We thought that they would make you happy, lessen the burden of your sacrifices... We did not want them to seem like a sacrifice if you chose not to do it, but a gift if you chose to do it, only... You went into Estrus so early, you were barely Bonded in time. There are so many futures, Sookie, that the free will of humanity makes it very difficult to discern which future will become the present."
"Why are the fairies so important that you did this to me? That the Council and Pantheon would both unanimously agree to ruin my life?" Sookie whispered nasally.
"Fairy magic is one of the oldest magics on the earth, Sookie. Without it, the world would degrade and fail. Humans spoil it in many ways, and it is Fae magic that lets the world recover and heal. Life is magical, Sookie, and without magic, all that is, is death. We need you to save one of the oldest and greatest magics in our world." Endymion beseeched.
"Why me?" Sookie asked.
Endymion smiled, "Because... You are my granddaughter."
TBC
A/N: So, I know more than a few of you saw the baby thing coming. For those of you who were hoping I wouldn't go that way- sorry, but it is where my muse lead me. Just so you all know- I don't do the baby thing well. I tend to gloss, and we might get to the birth chapter, and it'll be "Poof, and now there's babies!" And just a little heads up- we will be doing quite a bit of time jumping soon, but it is pretty cut and dry as to when things are happening and how much time has elapsed.
PLEASE REMEMBER TO REVIEW!
-ANDI