THANKS TO:LostInSpace33, ncmiss12, ChickiesMom, evalilly, Eternal Kaila, VAlady, Olivia Williams, MsNorthman, Team-Sooric-Delena, evalilly, lunjul, patracco

Chapter 43

I hold her as we sit in silence for a good hour after everyone has left. I don't need to tell her how grateful I am that she's alive. Nor do I have to tell her how fucking stupid it was for her to show up last night. But I also don't have to tell her how grateful I am that she can explode. She simply knows.

"Alright, Vampire, let's get to it," Dr. Ludwig says as she appears suddenly in the driveway and Sookie jumps in surprise.

"Get to what?" Sookie asks.

"Check ups. Let's see those wrists of yours. Inside where we can have better light. Fucking vampires sitting in the dark."

Sookie laughs and we help each other hobble inside to the kitchen where she turns on all the lights. The doctor opens her bag and a case containing many needles.

"What the fuck are those for?" Sookie asks, leery of probably anything at this point.

"They're not all for you. Just a few. More donor blood."

"I don't accept human blood," Sookie says. "My body- I was in the hospital once and I started seizing when they gave me transfusions."

"It's vampire blood, to help." The doctor starts unraveling the bandages and I sit and watch. Her arms are all bruised up but the doctor has her move her wrists slightly and the bones seem to have mainly healed.

"Still really sore," Sookie says. "Hurts."

"Yeah, I'll inject some blood right into the wrists, but it'll still take time to heal. Bone takes longer than muscle to take the blood. I brought these though," she says and pulls out two glove type looking things and Sookie seems to know exactly how to put them on and it appears as though they have metal or something in them to keep her wrists how they should be. "A week, I'd say, and ice them as much as you can to help the bruising and swelling."

I know Dr. Ludwig can be a bitch and she hates vampires to the core. She's never treated Pam's humans this well and I'm grateful that she's being kind to Sookie. I'll send her an extra thousand for her troubles and perhaps earn some goodwill for her to take Sookie as a full time patient. She can't see a normal doctor because it's too risky.

"How's your side?" she asks.

"Claudette said it looked fine," Sookie says as she pulls up her shirt to reveal her side which shows no bruise or even scar.

"Excellent." Next come the needles and if it hurts, I don't feel it and her face certainly doesn't show it. I just want us alone again but this is necessary for both of us. "Alright, you're done. If anything else comes up, the vampire has my number."

"Thank you, Dr. Ludwig. So much, thank you," Sookie tells her and touches her arm gently which seems to mean something to the short one.

"Alright, Vampire."

"His name is Eric," Sookie says, a bit angrily. "And I'm sure he pays you quite well. You could call him by his name. He doesn't call you 'short one' or whatever the fuck you are."

"Sookie, it's fine," I tell her. "I don't care what she calls me as long as she comes when she's needed."

"Mister Northman," she says as she turns to me. "I can tell you're still not even close to recovery."

"No. Though the surface skin has healed, I know the muscles are not and my ribs haven't faired any better." A vampire knows, somehow, exactly what damage has been done to it.

"I'd recommend a lot of blood, which you know already. Probably for a few weeks until you feel it's healed. I brought a few needles of healing agents for you as well."

"Doc, I'm touched you care," I smile softly.

"Fuck you," she grumbles and jams the needle into my chest through my clothes.

Sookie is immediately angry but says nothing.

"You should rinse the socket with the saline like I said, once every waking hour. I know vampires aren't prone to infection, but it needs to stay hydrated to heal. I also brought a boosting serum to put in it."

"The socket?" Sookie asks and I know she's close to tears now.

"It should heal, min älva," I assure her softly.

"Should?" she says as tears start falling. "Should? You- lost your-"

"We had to remove it. It was too damaged. But vampires have been known to grow back limbs given enough time and blood," the doctor explains. "Perhaps you should step out of the room, young lady?"

Go, Sookie. You don't need to see this. I'll be fine.

She refuses though, because that's who she is.

Though she gasps and looks away as soon as the doctor removes the patch. She shows me how to rinse and add the serum to it and then we cover it back up.

"Looks good for what it did last night. Plenty of rest for both of you and I'd strongly suggest nothing strenuous. And you both need as much blood in your bodies as you have, so no sharing. I'll find you in three days."

"Thank you," I tell her honestly.

She packs her bag and walks off and then it's silent again.

"I should've gotten back sooner," Sookie says quickly and I reach for her and take her hand. "If I had-"

"You could have been injured worse and I was in no shape to even attempt to turn you. We're both worse for the wear, but we'll survive," I remind her.

"How long do you think it'll take for me to fucking forget what you looked like on the floor like that?"

"About as long as it'll take me to forget the sound of your bones breaking," I answer honestly, meaning never. "But… it'll fade."

"Are there any other psychotic vampires out there? Let's take care of them sooner rather than waiting for them to get us, Eric. I can't- I thought you being king was supposed to fucking fix all this."

Suddenly we're not alone in the house anymore. I sense something else, something… familiar. Something delicious. My fangs are out.

"Eric, what-"

"Viking," I hear a voice say and then she peers around the wall into the kitchen. "Can you control yourself?"

I'm still injured and it's very possible I can't, but Sookie's hand is on me glowing purple.

"Maurella," I smile as I turn to see her standing in the doorway. "Why- are you here? I didn't think you'd ever come. Claudette said she told you."

"I need to see it," she says softly. "Please… will you- can I pick it out?"

She's asking permission to go searching my memories for it. She needs to know for certain. I don't want to see it again. I don't want to see Eric lying there again. But I nod and close my eyes and think about it for her to make it easy.

I watch with her, reliving it all again and feel Eric's love coming through as well, to try and help me.

Her breath catches as we both watch him implode into a puddle of blood and guts on top of Eric and I close her out then because I don't want to see him again like that. Ever.

"It's extremely powerful," I tell her of the red glow.

"Yours exceptionally so, Sookie. Perhaps because of your bond?"

"I'm sorry for what he did to you," I tell her. "I'm sorry he hurt you and whatever else…" I know a fraction of what she must have felt: terrified, violated, hopeless, desperate. I know. "But he's gone now and he can't hurt you ever again, or anyone else."

She nods. "Thank you, Sookie. You've given me great relief. A great gift. So here's one for you." I watch as she places an envelope on the table in my foyer. Then she turns her gaze toward Eric. "I saw you speak of fairies with him, speak of the club."

"What?" I wonder and look at him. Oh yeah, he offered to- "He never would have actually done it," I assure her. "He was trying to distract him and buy time. He-"

"The Looking Glass sees all," Maurella interrupts me and I'm afraid she's here to hurt him. I- I will defend him but I don't wish to hurt her. I don't want to hurt anyone. "Even intentions."

Intentions?

I don't believe and I won't believe that he would have intended to sell them out. Ever. He wouldn't do that to me. He just wouldn't. I know he wouldn't.

"Maurella-"

"I don't understand how it happened," Maurella says. "And it's not my place to question why."

She's being so cryptic and I don't understand.

"How what happened?" I ask her, trying to sense her thoughts or feelings but she's much stronger than me at keeping her shields up.

"I came to repay a debt to you, Viking."

A debt? The severity of her tone makes me nervous and I immediately glow yellow to shield an attack, though it's weak because I'm not completely healed.

"I'm unaware of a debt you owe me," Eric tells her.

"I do," she says. "Sookie, calm him please, so I can repay my debt."

"Maurella, you're not coming near him unless you tell me what you intend to do."

"Give back his sight," she says and her hands are glowing the most intense blue I've ever seen and it illuminates the room.

"What? You can-"

"I intend to try. Never tried it on a vampire though. It may not work since his heart is dead."

I let that comment slide because though it no longer beats, his heart is very much alive.

I place my hands on his arms and my hands glow purple immediately which relaxes his fangs away and she approaches cautiously. "I'm okay," Eric informs us both. "But you should do it quickly and be ready to teleport in case. Both of you."

She stands beside him and places her hands over his patch and I can feel the energy pouring out of her into the air around us. It surges through him and fills him with an incredible warmth. It emanates through me and suddenly, my hands are glowing bright blue as well, hotter than they have before.

After what feels like an amazing forever, the glow dissipates and she disappears and reappears back near the door. "That's all I have to give."

"Well?" I ask him and look down to my wrists and notice the bruising is gone. Fuck. I didn't want it to heal me; I wanted it to heal him.

He pulls the patch away and I start bawling immediately because his beautiful blue eyes are staring back at me. I immediately jump over so I can pull his mouth to mine and kiss him happily. With the intense emotional turmoil of the past twenty-four hours, I needed to be able to look into his eyes.

"Maurella," I say as I pull away so I can look at her. "I-"

She puts up her hand. "That shouldn't have worked. That-"

Confirmation that-

And then the thought is stopped, or shielded from me. "Confirmation of what?" I demand of her. "It's confirmation that what, Maurella?"

"That there's humanity in him."

"Well there is; I told you that," I remind her.

She simply nods with a soft smile and then disappears.