Chapter 37 Fighting through

Ok Allie...just relax and breathe.

It's day time. Eric won't be awake.

I can slip into the house like I promised Godric I would do and I won't have to face Eric until tonight. I can do this.

Just breathe

I had to keep this in mind as I stood outside Eric's home early in the morning and stared up at the magnificent house that housed the vampire who had been making my life almost unbearable for the past week. I didn't want to come back here, I didn't want to face him. But I knew I couldn't stay at Bill and Sookie's house forever. They had been kind enough to let me stay as long as they had and they never once complained about it. But I knew them and I knew how much they liked it when it was just the two of them. So I had to get out of there soon anyway, not to mention I had also made a promise to Godric that I would return to the Shreveport house since it was safer for me for right now and try and talk to Eric once I was there. And I couldn't really say no to Godric, so disagreement was not an option. But I made very sure that when I did decide to come back, that it was going to be in the early morning, when I was sure Eric would not be awake to try and jump start a conversation. I may be back here, but I was not quite ready to talk to him. At least by being here now, I had the whole day to work myself up to it and that was exactly what I was going to do.

"Here goes nothing." I whispered to myself, gripping the strap of the duffel bag that I had flung over my shoulder and slipped the key into the lock, turning it quietly before rushing inside as quick as I could. I guess I was more paranoid then I thought as I locked it shut behind me with a sigh. It felt weird to be back inside this house, feeling like I had been gone longer then almost a week and I felt the heaviness of being in the same building as Eric start to creep up on me. I tried to keep my heartbeat as steady as I could while I turned around and prepared to head towards the staircase. But my moment of fragile calmness was shattered as soon as I completely turned around and found a tall figure leaning against the banister with his arms crossed. "Jesus Christ, you were suppose to be sleeping. It's morning."

"I'm aware of that." He said, unlocking his arms and strolling forward to me where I was frozen to the spot. "But Godric told me you were returning sometime today and I figured you would try and come at a time when you thought you wouldn't have to deal with me."

"You know me too well." I grumbled, gripping the strap nervously as I felt my heart flutter the closer he came. I wasn't sure what to expect from him now and to be honest, it kind of freaked me out. I had never been this on edge around Eric before and after what he put me through, I didn't quite know how to act. I was finally able to feel my legs again and when I could, I tried walking around him to the stairs. But as I was passing him, his hand shot out and grabbed me by the arm, his action so quick and alarming that it scared me and I flinched rather hard before crying out. "No! Stop it!"

"What the hell?" Eric immediately let go of me, stepping back as if he thought his touch had electrocuted me and to me, that's how it felt. Sharp, stinging and scary. I watched the way Eric looked at me, trying to establish what was going through my head since I had cut off my bond to him. Finally I saw it dawn on him and he and he stepped back towards me with a frown. "You're afraid of me aren't you?"

"I don't want to be, I really don't but yes...I am scared of you." I whispered honestly, looking down at the floor as I bit my bottom lip and fought back the urge to cry. I seemed to be doing that a lot around Eric. "I didn't think you could ever make me feel that way again."

"I didn't mean to." He said, looking almost ashamed which was a rare thing for a vampire like him, but there he was managing to do just that. And any other time I probably would have bought it but this was not one of those times. I had been pushed too far and even though Eric didn't know the truth, it still didn't give him a right to behave the way he had. He made another move over to me and said. "Allison..."

"You have the bleeds Eric, you should be resting." I told him, pointing up to his ears where there was a steady stream of blood rolling down from them as I backed away and headed for the stairs, not wanting to prolong this encounter. "Go to sleep. I will see you tonight."

"Are we going to talk later?" He asked as I reached the first step and turned back around to look at him. He tucked his hands under his arms with a frown. "Are you actually going to let me get anything worthwhile out?"

"It depends on what you say." I said back, before turning around and leaving him behind.

A few hours later

"Hey Holly? Can I talk to you for a minute? It's kind of important."

"Of course you can talk to me, I'm always here to listen."

"That's good because I need you to listen to me very carefully because I need a favor from you. And it's not something you should take lightly in any sense..."

Sookie knew that when she pulled Holly aside that morning at Merlotte's that it was going to be one of the tougher conversations she had ever had to initiate. It wasn't just tough because of the subject matter, although that was pretty difficult. But it was also because she was going to be asking a favor of someone she didn't know all that well. Sure she and Holly worked at the same bar, but they were work friends and things had never gone passed that except when Sookie had gone to her for help when Allie was under that spell. So now she was standing here with her co-worker about to jump right over that line that kept them from being friends outside of work. Because once Sookie explained everything to her and why she needed to ask this favor of her, it was going to throw them together in a big way. And there was no way it wouldn't because of one little fact in the equation.

She was trying to recruit Holly and Holly's coven to join them in battle.

"Uh, I'm sorry. It must be the early morning sun causing a weird brain reaction, but I'm sure you just asked me to join a war."

"That's exactly what I did. I need your help again and if possible, I would like you to try and convince your coven to help too."

"This is about the trouble your cousin is in isn't it? With that coven in Dallas?"

"Yea, it is and it if the situation wasn't getting more desperate then we would handle this on our own. But we can't do that any longer. I know you have heard about the attacks and all the destruction going on and we can't just sit by and let it continue to happen. Because if these witches succeed...if they end up getting Allie and taking her powers...then no one can stop them..and I highly doubt they will leave the rest of the world alone. With that much power, they might even try and come after any other witches they think they can take easily..."

"So you want me to join the battle...and get the rest of my coven in the fray as well..."

"It would be more helpful if we had witches on our side, yes...but I'm not going to force you, threaten you or guilt trip you into helping us...I just want to state the facts...and then the decision is up to you."

Sookie knew that it was going to be tough to convince Holly to do this and it should be tough. She was basically asking this woman, who she didn't know that well, to join forces with a bunch of vampires and go to war, while blindly believing that it was all going to be worth it in the end. Of course Sookie was hoping that it did turn out as well as it possibly could, but she wasn't so naïve as to assume it definitely would. This was a battle after all, there were going to be deaths and injuries and mental scars that would last a lifetime. Even if they all lived, there would still be lasting effects from this time. And it wasn't just any battle, it was a battle involving supernatural creatures. Vampires and witches and god only knows what else would be there so it was going to be a fight to the death times a million. And there was no use in pretending it wasn't going to be like that, because it would be a lie. This battle was going to be the toughest thing any of them ever faced, because it was essentially their lives on the line. If they didn't stop these witches, then they would take Allie and take her powers, simple as that. And if they succeeded in making that happen, they would be more powerful then then they already were. And then there would be no stopping them after that. They would have all the power they needed to get anything they wanted and who knew who else they would go after. She wasn't lying to Holly when she said the witches could possibly go after other witches, including her. And the only way to insure they wouldn't cause more destruction would be to stop them now before they got to Allie and her powers. But then again it was up to Holly to decide whether she wanted to put herself in the position to be in this battle and risk everything for the future. No one could force her.

"You know what? Count me in."

"Seriously?"

"Yes...i don't know about the rest of my coven, but I will explain the situation to them and see if I can convince them to also help...but you still have me either way...I'm not willing to risk having my freedom taken away by a bunch of witches that are ruining it for the rest of us...so yea, I will help you."

"Holly thank you so much"

"Of course, I mean, this is no longer just about your cousin..the fate of all of us hang in the balance with the outcome of this war...This is everyone's battle now."

6:00 p.m.

"Hello Godric."

"Hello Isabel, I trust to find you well?"

"For now, things remain at a standstill, as I have been awaiting your next call and I assume this what this is about."

"Unfortunately, you assume right. I wish I was calling for other reasons, but it is for the exact reason I reached out to you before."

"The attacks are getting worse?"

"Yes, and it turns out this coven is targeting the people and beings around Allison in an attempt to send a message."

"What have they done?"

"More accurately...what haven't they done.."

Godric hated making phone calls like these because he hating being the bearer of bad news but he had no choice but to reach out to his former Dallas comrade and hope she could provide him with the guidance he was seeking. He may have had thousands of years on her, but he saw her as his equal and more importantly as his friend. And contrary to what he told Allison, it wasn't just the two of them who knew the truth about how this situation would really end. He had quietly explained the whole truth to Isabel, knowing without a doubt that she would keep it to herself and thus ensuring he would have someone to speak to about this whenever he felt too alone in the situation. And if there was any other vampire who was better to talk to about this other then Eric, then it was Isabel. It also helped that she was still Sheriff of his former area and could easily keep an eye on things down there and keep him updated on any trouble brewing. And when this problem with the coven and the Fellowship had started up, she had been the first one he reached out to for any kind of help and for the last few months they kept in touch trying to figure out a way to end all this peacefully, but it seemed like that just wasn't in the cards for them.

"Godric, there is something I have been meaning to say to you for a while now and I think this is as good a time as any to say it."

"What is it?"

"I think, and this is entirely still up to you...but I think we should still go through with creating an army...I think if we don't then it will a mistake."

"I've been going down that road myself."

"Even if Allison does die, there's not a good chance that this coven is going to stop attacking anyway. And if that happens, they may come after anyone associated with her and try to exact revenge for keeping her from them. So we need to be prepared just in case."

"I can't believe it has come to this...will there ever be peace amongst the supernatural community?"

"At this point in time, I do not believe that is a possibility."

Godric hated resorting to violence as a means to establish peace but there was no other way to get to that end result except by going to war. It wasn't as if he could just walk up to the leader of this coven and talk them into submission. He would wind up dead before he could even finish his argument and he had promised Allison that he wouldn't put himself at risk like that. And he had no desire to have his life come to an end. It was a different story last year, a different time. And this year, he was determined to come out fighting for his life. He would not simply let it be taken from him, which is what the witches would intend to do if they weren't stopped. With Allison's powers, they could easily control vampires and anything else they desired. So unless they all wanted to be slaves to this disgustingly evil coven, then they had to fight, even with the promised death sentence laid before his Faerie friend.

"Godric, I have gathered together as many willing vampires in my area to bring with me when we come to fight. I tried to get more, but I do not feel it is right to force my comrades to fight if they do not wish to. So I only accepted the willing."

"That is fine Isabel, you have done all you can. As long as we can join the Dallas vampires with the vampires here in Shreveport, then I think we have a fighting chance. Especially if Sookie succeeds in recruiting a local coven to fight with us."

"Will it be enough?"

"We could always use more vampires, but if there are none who want to fight then...wait a second."

"What is it Godric?"

"I think I know where I can find a few more vampires that are willing to fight...it will just require me to go out of town for a short while."

Later that night

"Allison, it's Godric. I need you to listen to me very carefully and follow any order I make of you. I need to go out of town for a little while on business and it's extremely important that you do not do anything to put your safety in jeopardy. I know this won't be easy for you to do, but stick close to Eric until I get back. It may not always seem like it, but he does have your best interests at heart and he will protect you. So please do this for me until I return. I won't be gone long. Stay safe little Fae."

"Damn you Godric, you don't skip town with out talking to me in person." I groaned, hitting the end button on my phone and tossing it on the nightstand a little harder then I intended to. I had woken up from a late nap to find Godric's voice-mail on my cell phone and I listened to it, hoping to hear that he would be coming here to keep Eric away from me. But it turned out to be the exact opposite as he wanted to stay by Eric's side while Godric ran off and did who knows what. As if this week weren't bad enough, I now had to deal with Eric on my own. And I guess there was no time like the present to do it.

I slid out of bed, dressed in only a pair of black pajama bottoms and a gray tank top and left my room in search of the vampire I really wished I could avoid. But I had basically been in my room all day since I had arrived here this morning and it was high time that I got out of there and attempted to have a semi-normal routine going on while I was here. I slowly walked down the stairs, gripping the banister tightly as I went and listened for any sound of Eric moving though the house but there was none. I heard the cracking of the fire coming from the library and with it now being night time, Eric was most likely in that room. I almost wanted to run back up to my room, but I held my ground and walked down the remaining steps. Eric had amazing hearing and probably already knew that I was downstairs so I might as well go see him.

I reached the door of the library and peeked around the frame work and into the room, finding Eric stretched out on one of the leather sofas with an old, worn book in his large hand. However, when my presence became aware to him, he tossed the book aside and swung his feet down to the floor.

"Godric left me a voice-mail, he said he was going out of town on business." I spoke up before he could, wanting to have charge of this extremely short conversation and watched as he nodded for me to go on. "Did you know he was leaving?"

"He did tell me he had something to do. He called me after he left that message for you and explained probably exactly what he told you." Eric replied, his blue eyes staring into mine intensely as he spoke as if he were trying to hold me here as long as he could with that look. "But he didn't divulge what he was doing or where he was going."

"Ok then." I said dryly, prepared to turn around and leave but I decided against it and instead found myself walking across the floor and sitting on the sofa with Eric. Granted it was on the opposite end of the sofa, but still on the same one. I didn't look at him as I got settled with my bare feet on the floor and my hands in my lap while my eyes stared blankly ahead with my heart pounding wildly inside of me. For a while there was only the sound of the fire cracking and the occasional screech of the wind that blew through the yard. Other then that, it was virtually silent as we sat there not saying anything to each other for what felt like the longest two minutes of my life. I didn't know what to say to Eric, so until I did, I wasn't willing to break the silence.

But he was.

"I'm sorry." His words came out so fast and so jumbled together that I almost didn't catch it but there was nothing to distract me in that room and so I was able to hear him when he said this. I turned my head to the left, allowing my eyes to drift up to his face as he repeated those two words that should have fixed everything. "I'm sorry."

"Yea...you should be." I surprised myself for two reason. One for the simple fact that I responded at all, because I could have been childish and refused to talk to him, but I was too mature for that. And the other reason was because I normally let things go and said it was alright. But not this time, this time I wasn't letting him get away with it. "You should be sorry Eric."

"That's it?" He asked with a frown, like he wasn't understanding what was going on. I guess my answer took him as much by surprise as it did me.

"What did you expect Eric?" I asked, getting annoyed that he was under the impression that I would just accept his apology and we would move on like he always had. Well, it was time for a wake up call. "Seriously, did you think I was just going to let it go like I usually do? Did you think I was going to let you run me into the ground and scare the shit out of me for no reason, only to be the passive girl and let it be over? Just let it roll off my back like it's nothing? Like it's no big deal? Well it is a big deal. Bigger then you think. And I'm tired of having to put up with your attitude and behavior. It's not working for me anymore and I can't take it."

We both fell silent again, my words seeming to have a silencing effect on Eric as he sat back against the leather cushions and stared straight ahead just like I was doing. I knew he was pissed that I wasn't letting this go, I could feel it through our blood bond and he was mad. But I wasn't at all worried about that because frankly I didn't care. I knew I was in the right here. I was perfectly allowed to be made at him for how he had treated me and whatever method I used to feel better was the right one because Eric had messed up big time and it was up to him to say all the right things, not me. And through our bond I could feel a rush of things from him that said he was perhaps on the path to doing just that. I felt his fear and frustration, his anger and loss of control, his love for me and his deep shame,t he last of which shook me harder then I thought it would.

"I don't want to hurt you anymore." Eric's body was settling on the spot right next to me so our hands were almost touching on the space between us but they weren't. "I'm asshole and I hurt people without a second thought, including you. And I don't want to do that anymore."

"Then don't." I whispered, turning to look at him with a wetness rimming my eyes and almost blurring my vision. "Just love me and let me love you. Stop finding excuses to push me away, because that's what you're doing."

"I know." He nodded and then he took a giant leap of faith by closing the distance between us and took my hand in his, forcing me to look at him when he spoke. "You're right...i was wrong."

""You're wrong a lot." I told him him with a heavy sigh and upon seeing the look in his eyes, I removed my hand from his and moved my body until I could lean my head against his shoulder and wrap my hands around his arm. "But deep down, I know you only act like this because you care."

"I do care." He said, placing his hand on my face so I was looking at him while his thumb traced a circle on my cheek. "Can you ever find it in your heart to forgive me?"

"That depends..." I replied back, looking into his eyes for clarity. "Will you always love me no matter what?"

"Of course I will." He exclaimed, obviously taken aback by my question but I simply laughed and laid my cheek against his shoulder again, hoping that maybe this time we would find a more stable ground to stand on together. "I could never stop loving you."

"Then I just may be able to find it in me to forgive you."