Author's Note time:
Okay people, that last chapter was intense, and quite honestly I hated doing that to my girl Arabella, but I needed to for plot purposes. I was truly flattered that so many people were mad for Arabella. Hopefully it means that she connects as a character and that means the absolute world to me.
Here are some rambling thoughts to ponder on from that chapter …
Eric being with Sookie was Eric's rock bottom and an epiphany moment for him. Sometimes you have to lose something to really know just how valuable it is to you. And, sometimes what you think will make you happy, actually is not worth it. Like Godric said, his actions moving forward will make or break his already broken relationship with Arabella.
Sookie… their coupling was an example of how anyone, even an inherently good person, can have a moment of weakness; a moment of extremely bad judgment, even someone as close as a sister (but that's not to say it's an excuse). The blood bond wasn't helping her either. (They are extremely strong when the blood comes from a very old vampire – older vampires can manipulate the dreams and feelings - in my universe and Eric really laid it on thick and conversely the bond is not so strong at all with a young vamp.)
Normally I probably wouldn't have put this all here, but I felt that with the strong reactions I received in the reviews that I needed to say something, so that ya'll didn't think I was just doing bad things for the sake of doing them.
About Arabella's rudeness to Godric and Jason in the beginning… well, she just got shit on majorly by Eric and then got claimed by another vampire that, let's be honest here, she didn't know well and almost drained her. And, let's not forget that she's just dealt with the Fellowship of the Sun stuff the day before, killing another guy. Her nerves are shot, and I'd like to think that most people would have been in a pretty bad mood being in her position. Also, Eric left, so he wasn't there to yell at. Who hasn't taken their frustrations out on the wrong person before?
There were some questions about Emma. She was introduced in Ch. 7 in the flashback scene and was part of the reason why Eric wanted revenge on Bill. Emma is a "slutty bimbo" as Trish said in her review. There will be more about her in this chapter, at least Eric's musings about her.
As for Nora, I really haven't decided yet. Me personally, I could take her character or leave her. I put out a poll to see what people prefer. It's at my profile; so if you want to, please vote. Majority rules on this one.
I hope you all keep reading to find out everyone's fate. And, if you have questions, please feel free to ask.
And, just a final thought, it's always darkest before the dawn…
As always, thank you for staying with the story, welcome if you're new, and please read, review (I do love to hear your thoughts) & of course enjoy!
Kilera…
…
After Godric and Eric entered the elevator, Eric reached over quickly and pressed the lobby button.
"I came to get Arabella's belongings Eric. She's been through enough and wants to go home." Godric said, wondering why Eric was taking him back to the lobby.
"I'll bring them down to the lobby for you." Eric replied, not looking at his maker, thoughts of his betrayal of Arabella, his misguided revenge at Bill, and what the future held all overwhelming his psyche.
"Eric, what is going on in your room? What don't you want me to see?" Godric asked disappointedly. No matter Eric's current emotional state, Godric knew his child was hiding something, something important.
Eric said nothing and continued to avoid eye contact with Godric.
"Eric…" Godric demanded in that even but commanding manner of his that made Eric understand he would not be able to avoid the question.
"Sookie." Eric finally replied in a voice so low that a human probably wouldn't have heard it, and with such vulnerability that Godric was taken slightly aback. Eric was always bold, cocky, and unrepentant. He was surprised to see his child this exposed and astounded by the rush of raw emotions rolling off of Eric. It was clear that Eric was unable to hold them back any further. Godric could tell through their bond that Eric was beyond upset at his recent decisions and devastated at the loss of his human; no… his love. He also knew that the worst part about this for Eric was there was no one to deflect the blame to. No, the blame was all Eric's and it put the younger vampire slightly at a loss. For as long as Godric knew Eric, Eric expertly deflected blame, always coming up with an angle for making someone else responsible for a wrong. In this case however, the wrongs he committed were solely his to bear; there was no way to hide that fact. And further, he alone would have to set them right.
Godric, stunned with the response, finally asked the question that was in the back of his mind, "Why?" While he knew what the situation was in Eric's room with Arabella's sister by Eric's simple reply, Godric just could not understand why his child would do such a thing… now.
"I don't know Godric. I don't know. It seemed what I should do, what I normally would do but…" Eric answered as if he were a little boy lost, his crystal blue eyes staring straight ahead with a trace of red rimming them as he tried to keep himself together.
Godric nodded in understanding, knowing that his child was experiencing an overwhelming influx of emotions and confusion right now, and a seemingly impossible task of undoing his disastrous mistakes.
As the elevator dinged and the doors opened, Godric finally said, "We'll talk about this later my child." They then stepped out of the elevator and entered the busy lobby. While he wanted answers, Godric knew this wasn't the time or the place to delve into it; a room full of unfamiliar vampires, all with superior hearing and curiosity.
Eric nodded dejectedly, not looking forward to that conversation, as they walked over to an empty seating area and sat down.
"I will wait here while you retrieve her belongings." Godric said just before his attention was redirected to the television positioned behind Eric's head. On the news was a picture of the block the nest was on with the ticker at the bottom stating, 'Explosion on residential street.'
"Eric, turn around, that's the street that the nest is on. Arabella is still there with her brother." Godric said, genuinely worried and wondering if this was retaliation for what happened with the Fellowship of the Sun. He knew that there were still a couple key members unaccounted for. Eric quickly turned his head and became wide-eyed at the sight.
If Godric was worried, Eric was terrified. He couldn't lose her forever. Even though he severely fucked up with her, he still held on in the back of his mind to a small but distinguishable glimmer of hope of winning her back, but he couldn't do that if she was dead. The world would seem so much bleaker without her in it.
As Eric turned back to look at Godric, they wordlessly knew what they needed to do. Both flew out of the lobby and into the night sky to race as fast as they could to the nest, to Arabella.
…
Godric and Eric reached the street the nest was on within seconds but were dismayed to find it had become a three ring circus, complete with dozens of police cars, TV camera crews, curious bystanders, frantic homeowners, and the bomb squad. They knew that they would have to be beyond cautious if they were to try to navigate that chaos. Bringing unnecessary attention to their search for Arabella or their vampire status would be a bad idea on many levels. Before they moved on, both scanned the mess, noting that neither she nor her brother were among those on the street.
Even though Godric's thoughts lay heavily with finding Arabella, he could not ignore his duties as sheriff, who he still was until Isabel was notified of her impending promotion. And so, he immediately he began texting his nestmates to not return to the nest tonight at all and to find lodging at either a trusted off-sight resting place or at the Hotel Carmilla. He knew the less vampire involvement here, the better. After spending way too long for his liking with Nan Flanigan, he couldn't help but wonder what an even bigger bitch she would be if all that good PR she just got from the Fellowship's downfall would go down the drain with a vampire debacle here.
After Godric sent the text, he looked to Eric, no words needed as he signaled their next move. They headed out of eyeshot before speeding off at vampire speed to the backyard of the nest. While the street was abuzz with excitement, the backs of the houses were left virtually alone.
Godric entered the code into the keypad at the backdoor once they reached it, gaining them quick access to the nest. Both he and Eric then zoomed through the house, looking for any sign of Arabella, or at least some information on where she could be. After their search they stopped in the living room to regroup.
"No one's here." Eric said with a heavy edge to his voice, anger seeping through. These situations were becoming too familiar, not knowing what happened or where she was, and he didn't like it one bit.
"No. But look here Eric, she went through her belongings and things are missing." Godric said, looking at the coffee table where Arabella sifted through the glassy mess.
Eric briefly looked absentmindedly at the table as he began to take in the faint sweet smell that still lingered in the air and belonged to Arabella, a small sad smile forming on his lips. Notes of vanilla, strawberries, and most of all sunlight entered his being, the specific combination he knew to be particular to her. If he could bottle the smell he would, however he would have preferred to be smelling it directly from her in person, knowing she was safe. But in that smelling, his nose began to pick up traces of other, more noxious smells. He sensed the nasty but unmistakable odor he smelled was coming from the front door. Not responding to Godric, he instead walked over to the door and opened it. He didn't need to worry about anyone seeing the open door because the power had been cut off for the street by the bomb squad, who worried about a secondary explosion. It would be too dark for anyone on the street to notice the activity at the house.
"Godric, that smell…" Eric began to say.
"Yes, I recognize it too. The suicide bomber was here, at the door." Godric said aloud the thoughts going through Eric's mind, causing them both much alarm. Now as both stood at the front door, they not only smelled the distinct smell of the explosive which they had become accustomed with during their escapades in Europe during WWII, but also that of an unknown human. This information only strengthened Godric's assumption that the bomber had indeed targeted the nest, but something obviously changed his path.
Looking out towards the street, Eric saw the rental car that he had gotten for Arabella was still parked in front. Upon further inspection he noticed that the windshield was broken with blood on it. He couldn't help but wonder if she may have tried to go to the car. He needed to know more; needed to make sure she wasn't there, hurt; that it wasn't her blood. So after making sure the coast was clear for a moment, he sped at vampire speed to the car, looked into it, and brought back something.
"What did you find Eric?" Godric asked, knowing it was a body part by the smell, but not one of Arabella's.
Eric held up a charred and bloodied lower part of a male arm and hand; a hand with a very distinctive silver ring on it.
"The human this part belonged to was at the door." Godric said, sniffing the air.
"Yes. So we know that the bomber came here, probably with the intent of blowing up the nest, but then blew up down the street. And Arabella isn't here. What did she do?" Eric reiterated the facts aloud, curiosity abound in his voice, as he had no doubt that she was responsible for the bomb going off elsewhere. She was too resourceful and had the biggest perchance for self-preservation of anyone he knew. Even without knowing the details of what happened, he felt in his core that she bettered the fool.
"I don't know, but she's not here and for now I will take that as a good sign." Godric said before continuing, "Eric, that ring on the hand, it's made of silver and there's symbols on it, old symbols."
"I'm not familiar with them." Eric said as he held the hand closer and examined the ring, careful not to get too close as it was made of silver.
"I must admit that my knowledge of those symbols is a bit rusty, but I know that I've seen them before. They definitely are very, very old, older than you in fact, my child, and not in use anymore; which makes this all the more curious. Where would a human such as this get a ring with those markings?" Godric asked baffled as to what this could mean.
"I don't know, but we're going to keep it until we find out." Eric said as he grabbed a tissue from a box on the table and carefully took the ring off the finger, placing both in his leather jacket pocket. He then raced back outside to place the body part back into the car, in the exact position in which it had landed in the first place, so that no one would notice it was ever missing. The police were still busy collecting evidence further up the street and hadn't gotten to the car yet. Eric couldn't help but thank Odin at his luck, because now no one would be the wiser of the ring going missing.
"Does she have a phone?" Eric asked his maker once he reentered the nest because Godric honestly would know more now than him what Arabella could possibly have on her person at the moment.
"I gave her back all her belongings from her purse, except for her phone. I couldn't give that back with the images on it." Godric replied solemnly. He normally was one to think five steps ahead, but tonight he missed a step. He should have given her a phone, a just in case phone. He of all people knew that things often don't go the way you would expect, but tonight's events seemed to move at a pace all their own and he missed this crucial step.
Eric understood the logic behind the decision to not give her back her phone, but hated the timing of it. They would have no way to reach her now.
"Do you think that she'd go back to the hotel?" Eric asked worriedly. As much as he wanted her safe, the hotel harbored the horrible secret which he didn't want her to know about.
"No, my child. It was clear that she did not want to see you right now. Also, she gave me a message to give to her sister." Godric replied.
Eric flinched at the mention of Arabella's sister… of Sookie. He'd have to deal with her still tonight. "What was the message?" He finally choked out.
"See you at home." Godric replied, but then something dawned on him before he spoke. "We should get out of here before someone notices we're here. Besides, I think there may be another way to locate her at the hotel."
Eric agreed as he too suddenly realized what Godric was getting at. And so, the two flew out the back of the house, once again into the night sky, out of view from the mess in front of the house and back to the Hotel Carmilla.
…
When the two of them arrived at the hotel, they were greeted immediately by a small yet worried and curious group of Dallas nestmates, Isabel among them.
"Godric, what is happening?" Isabel asked as the others looked to her to get some answers, knowing the two were close.
Godric, instead of answering her question, turned his attention to the small crowd before him and said, "I know you all have questions, but they'll have to wait. We are still gathering information. In the meantime, you should get a room here if you haven't already unless you have made other arrangements. You all need to stay away from the nest until you receive notice that it is safe to go back."
There were many grumbles at that, because everyone was curious about the situation, but they all obeyed his command by flitting in all directions to wherever they were planning on going for the night.
As he sensed Isabel was about to leave as well, thinking his command included her too, he grabbed her arm. "Let us talk in private."
She nodded and said, "Of course Godric."
"Eric, we will use your room to discuss matters." Godric said, not wanting to deal with getting his own at the moment as he wanted to swiftly deal with the situation. It didn't escape his mind however that there was another matter still to deal with in the room.
"Yes Godric." Eric replied. He knew there would be no discussion in the matter, even though he really didn't want to go back there yet, let alone with company.
"Let's proceed then." Godric said as the three of them headed to the elevators.
Godric could not believe his luck when the elevator door opened to once again reveal none other than Nan Flanigan.
"Godric, fuck you are hard to find. What is it with you? Anyway, do you know what the fuck is going on by your nest? It's like pandemonium on the TV. You are sheriff, well at least until tomorrow, shouldn't you be researching that shit out?" Nan erupted with her questions in a manner her human TV fans would be appalled to hear after stepping out of the elevator she was in. Godric had to admit his was slightly impressed at her ability to shift from one character to another, like Jekyll and Hyde and so seamlessly at that.
"I've assessed the situation as best I can with the media circus around. Suffice to say, there was a suicide bomber, but he blew himself up further down the street. No vampires were harmed and the nest escaped unscathed. The nest has also been advised to not return until the all clear is given. I dare say; crisis averted Ms. Flanigan." Godric explained, sounding bored while Isabel and Eric both looked at him in shock. But before they could ask their questions, Nan cut in again.
"Well, good. When you find out more, make sure to text me your findings. By the way Isabel, congratulations; you are the new Dallas sheriff as of tomorrow. In all honesty this had to be the fastest confirmation I've ever dealt with because of your outstanding record. Please stop by suite 2112 at 8:00 pm tomorrow night to sign the appropriate paperwork. Shit. I really was hoping to have more information. I'm supposed to be on the local news in fifteen minutes." She said looking at her watch before she burst away at vampire speed to her next press conference.
Godric could tell that Eric and Isabel had their questions, but the elevator banks weren't the place to answer them. So he quickly raised his hand to silence them and walked into the next elevator that came, wordlessly beckoning them to follow with the promise of answers.
…
Sookie, as tired as she was, couldn't fall asleep, not with the knowledge of what she had done and especially not in the bed she did it in. The weight of the guilt was getting heavier with each passing minute. How could she have done it? How could she give into something that could only promise but a moments respite from her immediate pain, but then add to it tenfold? How could she betray two of the most important people in her world? What was wrong with her? She had no answers, but knew in her mind that she would do everything in her power to make amends.
As she laid there with her thoughts her only company, she was surprised when the door opened to reveal not only Eric, but also Godric and a female vampire, Isabel if she remembered her name correctly from her brief visit to the nest.
Sookie automatically grabbed the sheet and pulled it closer to her now purple and blue spotted neck; bruising setting in from Lorena's previous attack. Since she now not only had Eric back in the room but also two other vampires, she wanted to feel a little more concealed.
"Have you heard from your sister?" Eric spoke first. And though he wanted to question why Godric was no longer Dallas Sheriff, he needed to know first if Arabella made contact, if she was alright.
"No. Should I have? Oh God, is everything okay?" Sookie asked, scared of the answer.
Eric paused, not knowing if he should say anything further to her, but then realized, she was going to hear the conversation anyway because there was nowhere for her to go. "An incident occurred on the street the Dallas nest is on. She was at the nest when it happened, but we don't know where she is now."
"What kind of incident?" Sookie asked incredulously.
"An explosion." Eric answered simply. She obviously had not turned on the TV in his absence.
"An explosion? Are you kidding me? What kind of explosion? And is Jason with her? Where's Jason?" Sookie asked horror-struck.
"A suicide bomber..." Godric replied this time as Sookie grabbed her mouth with one of her hands in shock. Godric then added, "We don't know where he is either, but I feel that it's safe to assume that they are together."
While Sookie sat there in shock, Isabel took the moment to interject herself, "Godric, do you know why or what the target was?" This really was her first chance to ask questions on the matter from her Sheriff.
"No, not for certain. However, if I had to make an educated guess, I believe that it was an attempted retaliation for the incident at the Fellowship." Godric replied solemnly. Poor Farrell would never have wanted all of this to happen because he wanted to meet the sun. But to be fair, how could he have predicted this outcome?
"We found this ring and believe it has something to do with the bombing." Eric said as he took the ring out of his pocket and placed it on the console table close to the door. "Does it mean anything to you Isabel?"
"No; should it?" Isabel asked as she looked at the silver ring warily, knowing its immediate danger to her, but wondering what the underlying danger was.
"No, I suppose not, but it was on the hand of the bomber." Eric responded. 'It was worth a shot.' He thought to himself.
"Its markings are old… very old. There is something deeper at work here." Godric said, staring at the ring again before continuing, "I will hold onto the ring to investigate that further, but as for the rest of the situation, this will now fall into your hands Isabel, as the new acting Sheriff…" Godric started to say, but was cut off by Isabel.
"What? What are you talking about Godric, you're sheriff." Isabel said not believing her ears.
"Isabel, I am taking a leave of absence; my reasons being my own. I put in a good word with the AVL and requested that you take my place in the meantime. And as we heard before, it seems Ms. Flanigan has already put it through. I have no doubt that you will excel in the position." Godric explained with a sad smile, as Eric looked on confused. He asked no questions at the moment, knowing his master would explain later.
"I know you're reasons are your own Godric, but I can't stress how much I wish you weren't doing this. I'm going to miss you. I hope I can keep the peace as you were able to." Isabel said sadly. Godric was not only her closest vampire companion in the nest, but also her mentor.
"Isabel, this is your time." Godric said simply, making is clear there was no room to change his mind.
"Well, I am honored that you think this highly of me Godric, and swear that I will try to lead in the same manner as you did." Isabel said admiringly to her friend.
"I am sure you will." Godric said reassuringly.
Before they could continue their conversation there was a banging at the door. Eric rushed to it, looked through the peep hole and upon seeing who was on the other side, sighed and opened the door warily. He wasn't looking forward to what he assumed would come.
"Eric." Bill said through gritted teeth, but then noticed the other two vampires and Sookie sitting upright in the bed, large purple bruises littering her neck, covered only in a sheet.
"What have you done to her?" Bill yelled at Eric, who just stood there with a blank face. Bill then took in the sight of the other two in the room suspiciously.
"Bill, please, there's a lot going on and we need to talk. This isn't what you think, well, maybe part of it, but…" Sookie tried to interject, to calm down her beloved, but her plea went ignored.
"I know what you did with her Northman. You know I could feel it. But with two other vampires and she's got bruises? I never thought you would stoop that low." Bill spat out his interpretation of the scene in front of him, anger rising by the second.
Realization struck Sookie as to what Bill thought had happened in the room before she yelled out, "What! Ewwww. No Bill nothing like that happened. I wouldn't even know how to work that out." Godric and Isabel both shot an eyebrow up at that while Eric remained still.
Sookie's words didn't register to the now fully infuriated Bill. All Bill could focus on was his burning desire to kick the shit out of Eric. And so, acting on that overwhelming impulse, he took a swing at Eric. Nothing stopped his fist as it made contact with Eric's chiseled face, causing his head and shoulder length blonde hair to violently turn and blood to splatter against the wall beside him. Godric normally would have interfered, being Sheriff he was bound to keep the peace, but not only that, this was his child being attacked. However, he could feel from Eric that he was to allow at least one blow.
With so many other things on his mind now, Eric just stood there wearily, blood dripping down his chin, not moving an inch to react to Bill's blow. While he normally wouldn't have allowed such an offense against him go unanswered, he would allow it this once because he knew he more than deserved this.
Bill stood there with a stunned look on his face while Godric and Isabel moved quickly to restrain him.
"There will be no further altercations here. Am I clear?" Godric commanded.
"Yes sheriff." Bill responded, still not believing he was able to actually hit Eric. And, he couldn't believe how good it felt.
Now there was another knock on the door. 'Who could this possibly be?' Eric thought as he went to answer the door again, blood still dripping down his face, though the wounds had already started healing.
"Mr. Northman, you look like you're having the same kind of night as me I'm afraid." Lorena said as she noted the blood on Eric's face. 'Great.' Eric thought as he rolled his eyes. 'If this wasn't a party before…' "Lorena." He finally said evenly, moving aside to let her in the room.
Bill got wide-eyed as he saw his maker walk into the room, thankful now to be in Godric and Isabel's custody. Sookie clutched the sheet closer to her, fear flashed across her eyes briefly before anger set in, causing them to narrow, but mercifully she kept her mouth shut for once.
Godric took notice of the reactions from Bill and Sookie and so he said, "I am sheriff of this area. I am not familiar with you. Why are you here?"
"I was just conducting some business here in Dallas when I happened to run into my child, William." Lorena began, trying to sound as charming as possible while still managing a glare in Sookie's direction, making the only human in the room more agitated. She still remained quiet though, what with Bill restrained, Eric not seeming to be himself, and two other vampires who she wasn't quite familiar with, she didn't want to rock the boat, at least not yet.
"You know that it is custom to notify the nest of an area when you enter, do you not?" Godric stated with authority. He took his responsibility as a sheriff seriously.
"I apologize for not notifying you first thing Sheriff, but I was planning on doing so as soon as my business was finished." Lorena answered sugary sweet while taking a quick look around the room. Her eyes narrowed though as they noticed the intricately engraved unique silver ring on the console table. "You all realize there is silver in the room, do you not?"
"That is none of your concern." Godric said with authority, but noted her interest in the ring, before adding, "We are in the middle of some things here, so if you don't mind…"
"In that case, I'll just be leaving with my progeny. William, come." Lorena said, looking straight into Bill's eyes with lust.
Sookie, remembering Eric's words from before on a maker's control over their child, shouted, "You're forcing him to do things he doesn't want to do!"
Lorena scoffed at Sookie, "Pa-sha… we were just catching up is all. I will admit that things got heated, but that so often happens when old lovers catch up. Speaking of which, since we're not done catching up, William, if you will." She again tried to get Bill to follow her out of the room.
Bill wasn't having this though. "Lorena you were most certainly keeping me in that room against my will. You released me many years ago. This situation you're compelling me into now goes against our laws, isn't that right Sheriff?" Bill looked at Godric, hoping the sheriff would take his side and get him out of this mess with Lorena.
"If you have released your child and are holding him against his will, then he is correct and you would have to leave him be." Godric responded. This was true according to their law.
Lorena realized it would be futile to work this angle any further, so she turned her attention to Sookie instead and said, "Did you know that your lover hit me over the head with a 52' plasma TV earlier tonight?" She then touched her hair for added effect. "You know, everyone says how thin and light they are, but when wielded properly, they are quite the weapon. You know, domestic violence should never be tolerated."
"It was one thing to use me for your little games Lorena. I figured you'd eventually leave and I could escape, but you nearly drained that poor bellboy dry by your animalistic feeding. I did what I had to do." Bill replied feeling completely justified in his attack of her. Her vicious attack on the bellboy brought back too many bad memories of all the lives they had taken when she first turned him and it made him sick. He'd worked so hard to not just be a better vampire, but a better person, that he was not going to let her drag him down again.
"It's what we do William… feed, oh and fuck. Oh my, here I thought that you had only fallen in love with that pathetic human in the bed over there, who by the way smells of sex, but it seems that you've fallen in love with the whole human race. That's so tragic it's funny." Lorena said while laughing hysterically by herself. Unbeknownst to her, she picked the wrong room of vampires to human bash.
"You know what you can't deal with here Lorena; you lost. Bill is not yours anymore and you can't deal with it; can't deal with the man he's become. He loves me and I love him. Now who's the pathetic being? And don't even try to play the domestic violence bit with me, you crazy bitch. You nearly choked me to death in the hallway. " Sookie said, finding her voice again. Bill looked towards Eric when she mentioned that it was Lorena who left the marks on her neck. Eric just shrugged it off. Now wasn't the time to get into Sookie's particular situation.
"I already told you once to mind… your… place… human. You are nothing but a blood bag, ripe for the picking." Lorena hissed as she lunged across the room at Sookie, so quick that she managed to get her fangs into her neck, tasting her sweet blood. Pulling back for a moment, Lorena asked perplexed, "You taste so good. What are you?"
"Enough!" Godric yelled as he took the moment Lorena pulled her fangs out of Sookie's neck to yank the vampire off of her and throw her across the room, into the minibar fridge. The door busted open, True Blood bottles falling out and breaking all over the floor, creating a red pool that looked like a crime scene. There was a reason for the high security deposits on the rooms at this hotel. Rooms often needed to be redecorated.
Eric rolled his eyes and shook his head at the scene while sitting down to watch it play out. Godric was the authority here, so it would have been inappropriate for Eric to intercede anyway. But while he sat there, he couldn't help but feel bad for Bill. Bill had told him years ago that his maker was bat shit crazy and a handful, but he just assumed Bill was exaggerating. 'Guess he wasn't.' Eric thought, now regretting completely his call into Lorena. The Lorena he knew before she turned Bill was not the same Lorena she is now. He couldn't help but wonder what happened to her. He was brought back to the situation when Lorena spoke again.
"Ye ee eee ssss, Sheriff." She staggered out. She wasn't expecting that.
"This human is right, you are pathetic. Because your child doesn't wish to be in your company any longer due to your own actions, you use your powers to try to belittle, frighten and hurt the human who he does wish to be with. You treat her as if she were a daisy, pulling petals until you get your way. No wonder so many humans hate us when so many of us still act like… this."
"She provoked me!" Lorena said huffily to Godric. She was not used to being put in her place.
"And you provoke me. You disrupt the peace in my area. I could snap you in half right now if I wanted, but I haven't. Do you know why?" Godric said, gazing upon Lorena with a look that made her cower in fear.
"Because it's your choice." Lorena answered softly, gazing down at the carpet. She knew she had lost.
"Yes, it is." Godric answered back simply and continued, "I can tell you are an older vampire, having many years, different lifetimes to better yourself, make the world better, and yet you haven't. You treat the world as if it were your playground and people as if they were nothing but portable food stations. You are still nothing but a savage and I fear for all of us if this type of behavior persists."
Lorena had nothing say in response and did not wish to anger the sheriff any further, so she remained silent.
"I want you out of my area before dawn and do not plan on coming back anytime soon." Godric ordered, wanting to get this situation off his plate and back onto finding Arabella.
"Yes, sheriff." Lorena replied but then turned to Bill, blood red tears streaming down her face, and said, "I don't know how it got this way. You are a part of me and I can't help that I still love you. But now, my caring for you has just become a huge humiliation; a joke."
"The pain you are suffering now is of your own doing. You say you care for me, but do you really, or do you just like the idea of having me under your thumb. You know, for the life of me I could never tell." Bill said somewhat sad, but with a tinge of spite.
"I have always loved you William." Lorena choked out.
"Do not attempt to make contact with me again Lorena. I will not be your lapdog anymore. And if you think that TV left a mark…" Bill replied, as if he never heard her words of longing.
"Don't you see William, there's so much passion between us…" Lorena started to respond, but was cut off by Godric.
"Out!" Godric finally said, done with this maker-child reunion.
Lorena didn't have to be told twice after Godric's final command and bolted out of the room, and further, out of Dallas.
When Lorena left the room, there was an uncomfortable silence for a moment. There obviously were several elephants in the room that needed addressing, but which was to go first?
Finally, Bill spoke, "While I appreciate your assistance with my maker Sheriff, I would like to speak with Eric and Sookie in private, if you two don't mind."
Godric replied, "Normally I would not interfere with that request, however before you and your maker showed up, we were discussing a serious matter."
"There was an explosion by the nest and no one knows where Arabella and Jason are." Sookie broke in quickly.
"Oh… what happened?" Bill asked with concern.
"That's what we were discussing." Isabel replied, as Eric took this moment to go into the bathroom to finally wash his face.
"Is your child still here?" Godric asked.
"Yes, Jessica should be in her room. Why do you ask?" Bill replied.
"She gave Jason blood, so she should be able to feel if he's okay and might be able to track where he is." Godric answered, hopeful for the results.
"I will go retrieve her at once." Bill said, shooting out of the room at vampire speed and returning shortly after with a very put-out Jessica.
"What the hell? I was in the middle of a very good por… I mean movie." Jessica said sulkily. Eric smirked as he walked back in the room upon hearing her, because he knew exactly what kind of movie she was watching.
"We need you to concentrate on where Jason may be." Bill said to his child.
"Why?" Jessica asked confused.
"We just need to know where he is Jessica. Now, concentrate." Bill replied, slightly impatient.
"Ummm… I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to be looking for." Jessica said truthfully.
"You are young, so I know it will be a little difficult to do, but I'm sure you will succeed." Godric said before continuing, "Look into yourself and try to find the emotions and thoughts that don't seem to be your own. Sometimes these will appear as colors, lighter, brighter, than your own, or wisps of words, floating around in your head."
"Wow, I've never noticed this before. Yeah, ummm, I see some that are light blue. They're beautiful… happy, safe, simple…" Jessica said as she had latched onto Jason's aura.
"Good, now can you make out where he is? Try to latch onto one of those wisps, it should lead you to see through his eyes and see where he is." Godric was glad that there seemed to be nothing remiss with them, but still wanted to know where they were.
"Everything's moving… fast. It reminds me of a bird? Maybe a bug…no…a bird." She said. This was so exciting to her now. Bill never had even attempted to teach her anything like this before; always saying she wasn't ready to learn more, that it was dangerous. And when he did try to teach her something, he usually was impatient, wanting to get back to Sookie, or anything else but her. She welcomed this opportunity and hoped that she could learn more from Godric.
"They are traveling then, moving quickly and over a large distance." Godric said sadly. Jessica's description of what she saw was common among young vampires when those they are bonded to are on the move. They have to learn to adjust their vision to the vision of whomever they are trying to track in order to see exactly where their bonded is. She would get there one day, but not today. And so, they would not find Arabella and Jason tonight. "My guess is we are going to have to wait until they make contact with Sookie. Thank you Jessica; that was a very good first effort." Jessica smiled big at the compliment.
"Yes, thank you Jessica, you can go back to your movie now." Bill said quickly. Eric smirked a bit at that because it was obvious that Bill didn't catch on before as to what she was watching. Jessica got a sly smile on her face, said a quick goodbye and bolted out of the room, looking to not only finish her movie, but order room service as well.
"It would seem that the three of you have more to discuss about this situation, but I don't think that Sookie and I would have much to add to the mix. Is it alright if I take her back to our room now?" Bill asked the three, but was looking at Godric as sheriff to give the okay.
"That is fine. Let us agree that if either one of us hears from Arabella we will notify the other." Godric replied.
"Of course." Sookie replied as she stood up, wrapped the sheet around her like a toga dress, and walked towards Bill, purposefully not looking at Eric. She made a mental note that he didn't give a sarcastic remark about that, like he normally would, and wondered just how upset he was about her sister. Bill then put his hand on her back and headed her out the door to their room, leaving Godric, Isabel and Eric to finish their conversation.
"This has turned into quite an unusual night, I must say." Isabel said, taking in the night's turn of events.
"It has." Godric agreed and then added, "Isabel, you might want to try to discretely head back to the nest and see if you can find out any further information, maybe glamour a police officer or two to see what's not being told to the public. Also, you should send out Gerry and Tomas to search for the missing Fellowship members that the police were looking for. We need to make sure this type of thing doesn't happen again. As I said before, I will keep the ring and research it further. Tell no one about it. The symbols are disturbing to me and I feel that we need to keep that close to vest."
"Yes, of course Godric." Isabel replied obediently.
"I will text the nest a message to meet at the Opportunity Park Pavilion tomorrow night, after your meeting with Nan of course, so I can say farewell and pass the torch to you." Godric said, thinking of one of his favorite places in the city. The red and silver structure always spoke to him. Its steel construction looked like a piece of Japanese origami, folded to a represent a butterfly floating freely above the ground, surrounded by majestic pecan trees. Beautiful in its simplicity and meaning, it was a place that Godric often visited to think on things, or read, or just sit and enjoy nature. This was the perfect place to say goodbye. Thankfully it was also big enough for the group to congregate at.
"Godric…" Isabel started to speak, but the words wouldn't come as the red tears rolled down her face.
"I know." Godric simply said in return and gave his friend a hug.
"You will keep in contact still, right?" Isabel asked, hoping this wasn't the last she'd hear from him.
"Of course my friend." Godric said with a smile. "Don't think of this as goodbye, but rather until next we meet again."
Isabel smiled at that and said, "Well, in that case, it seems like I have some things to attend to before morning comes. Godric, I will do as you ask and will see you tomorrow at the Pavilion. Eric, it's been interesting as always when you visit. Don't think that I've forgotten about the gymnasts you brought back to the nest two years ago. It was quite a show."
Eric took in a slow unnecessary breath and let it out before answering her, "Yes, well they were quite limber…" There was none of the usual humor that he would have shown at that remembrance because of all the other stuff on his mind now.
Isabel could sense that she should leave now so she said, before whooshing out of the room, "Well, I will go now. Goodbye." And then there was one very big elephant left in the room.
…
Godric looked upon his child for a moment and silence filled the air, much to Eric's appreciation. Eric just needed a moment before having to deal with the questions he no doubt knew were coming from Godric.
"She is fine Eric." Godric finally spoke after sitting in a chair by the desk in the room.
"She is and yet she isn't." Eric replied knowing that even though she may be physically fine, that she was probably pissed as all hell at him, upset by what happened at the church and at the nest.
"I see your point, but she will be fine. She is strong Eric." Godric said trying to reassure his child.
"Yes she is Godric, and now, she is also yours." Eric said dejectedly.
"For the moment." Godric replied cryptically, but he could already sense the hope within his child.
"You'll help me get her back?" Eric asked, nearly begging.
"No Eric. You will have to do that yourself. But if she should ever ask to be released, to be yours again, I would not hesitate to release her. But know that it will be her decision Eric. You have to earn your way back to her." Godric said, hoping every word hit home.
"How am I supposed to do that Godric? I can't glamour her. She probably won't want to speak to me…" Eric began to say before being cut off by Godric.
"You will have to figure that out Eric. For so long we've relied on tricking, coercing, glamouring and the like to get what and who we wanted. I think that we actually need to try to have a real relationship. That, my child, involves give and take, honesty and selflessness." Godric replied with his sage advice.
"Godric, I don't know if I can…" Eric started to say before getting cut off again.
"You can and you will." Godric replied without any hesitation, but then switched focus. "How do you intend to tell her about what happened with her sister tonight?"
Eric looked at Godric like he just grew two heads. "I don't Godric. She must never know."
"I feel you are making a mistake with that course of action, but it is your choice. I will not tell her, as it is your story to tell, but I wish you would reconsider and come clean. If this comes out later, it will be much worse." Godric said, hoping his child would heed his words.
"Godric, she must already hate me. I can't give her another reason to; not now." Eric replied, knowing he was damned if he did and damned if he didn't.
"I fear that she will be angrier if you don't come clean now." Godric tried to reiterate.
"It's the chance I have to take Godric. I just can't tell her right now." Eric said definitively.
"And what of the sister?" Godric asked, knowing there was still that loose end.
"I don't think she'll be saying anything either. And before you ask, we both realized it was a huge mistake and it will not happen again." Eric replied.
"Why did you do it in the first place Eric? I don't understand." Godric asked the question he asked earlier in the night again.
"I had wanted revenge against Bill for something he had done years ago. I wanted him to feel the pain of disloyalty that I did at the time." Eric started to say.
"And how did it feel?" Godric asked, knowing that Eric didn't get the satisfaction he wanted but needing to hear Eric's words none the less.
"Hollow. And as fate would have it, Bill wasn't even responsible for what happened; that bitch Emma was. I have never misjudged a situation that badly before Godric." Eric replied, shaking his head in the disbelief he still felt over the situation.
"Eric, though we may seem like gods to the humans, we are not. We are just as fallible. We make mistakes. Look at what happened with Farrell and me at the Fellowship. I probably should have been more careful stepping into the lion's den, but… well, it doesn't matter now." Godric said.
"Godric, they were savages!" Eric said with anger at what his maker had endured.
"And yet so are we. But, I think we can strive for more. I think that you should start by sending an olive branch to Bill. Explain and apologize. You two were friends before, weren't you?" Godric asked.
"Yes." Eric replied.
"Maybe you can be once more." Godric replied earnestly.
"Maybe." Eric replied simply, again.
"I will not make you go over this further tonight. I feel that you've had enough for now." He then stood up and added, "Since Arabella is probably headed back to Bon Temps; she will not need her belongings tonight. Why don't you take them back with you to Shreveport? I will have enough to deal with in having my own belongings sent there myself."
"You're moving to Bon Temps?" Eric asked surprised, and also hoping that he wasn't moving in with her.
"No Eric, I'm not moving in with her." Godric said, knowing how his child's mind worked. "But I am moving to the town to be closer to her and you. It will take me at least a week before I am able to settle everything here and find appropriate lodging there. So, in the meantime, you can take this as a legitimate opportunity to see her again. She couldn't blame you for returning her things." Godric said with a small smile. He knew that Eric wasn't going to win her over again with a big show, it would be little things that would help him back into her heart.
Eric smiled, because he knew Godric was giving him a chance, but then said, "You know Godric, you can stay with me until you find a place to live."
"I may have too, but I'll deal with that once I arrive there." Godric replied as he stood up. "I think you could probably use some time alone, so I will leave. I will let you know when I'm coming. Please tell Arabella when you drop off her belongings that I will be in town shortly. Goodbye my child." Godric said before speeding out the door.
And so Eric turned to look at the now empty room, relieved and agitated at the same time at the notion of being alone with his thoughts. He went to sit on the bed to watch TV, but it smelled of both Sookie and Arabella and the mix repulsed him. So instead he walked over to the desk, deciding to try to do some work and check his messages to keep his mind from rehashing all that he couldn't undo now anyway.
The first couple messages were from the Queen, wanting more supply flowing, more money coming in. 'She's going to bleed her kingdom dry because she can't fucking stop buying antiques!' He thought angrily to himself. 'Maybe if she started some of her own damn businesses she wouldn't have to lean on the rest of us like she's doing. Someone's going to take her out if she keeps this up.' He saw a message from Lafayette asking if he needed to do anything else. 'I need to show him some appreciation for the work he's doing before he flips out.' And finally he saw a message from Pam…
What the fuck Eric? Your emotions are all over the fucking place. It's making me feel like I need to buy some tampons and chocolate. FIGURE YOUR SHIT OUT!
Eric let out a chuckle, one that was needed to relieve some of his stress. He could always depend on her for the words he needed to hear.
He then grabbed some paperwork and dived into his work for the rest of the night.
…
Bill had gently and quietly escorted Sookie back to their room and once inside, he remained just as quiet. Sookie was a little unnerved by this, because she knew that he knew that she and Eric had sex. She needed him to say something.
"Bill…?" She started, but didn't quite know what to say next.
Bill said nothing and did not look at her while he took a seat in a plush side chair in the sitting area of the room. He had many thoughts and emotions running through him at the moment and needed a place where he could feel some comfort, even if it was only physically.
Sookie knew she would have to be the one to start this conversation. "Bill, there's no excuse for what I did. I screwed up big time and I am so incredibly sorry. I just lost it with Lorena and then Eric showed up and was in pain, and…" She started spouting out her attempt at explaining and saying sorry, but Bill finally cut her off.
"Did Eric trick you into being with him?" Bill asked, hoping she'd say yes.
Sookie looked down at the floor, tears welling up because she knew Bill would not like the answer. "No." She answered truthfully and regretfully.
"I see. Then why Sookie? Why did you do it?" Bill asked, tears forming in his own eyes, breaking her heart for she knew she was the reason for them.
"It all seems like a blur now. Everything seemed so urgent and wrong and hurtful. I guess I just let myself get lost in that and sought anything that would make me feel better, even if that was Eric. I saw you lying there in our bed, our bed, naked, Lorena in that tacky see through nightie and shit-eating grin, and I just lost it. Part of me knew that you didn't want it, but part of me just saw red and wanted to make you hurt like I hurt, I guess. It was childish and immature and wrong and I'm so incredibly sorry. You have to believe me Bill. I will never do that again, especially not with Eric." Sookie said, trembling and sobbing between words.
Bill sat there for a moment, taking in what she said, thinking on it, and trying to wrap his head around the words. He also felt her feelings, her regret, her sorrow, her guilt, her fear, her hurt and her love.
The longer Bill took to respond, the more Sookie fell into despair. She moved over to the bed to sit down, her hand shaking as it sought stability from the bed, no longer feeling strong enough to stand. The weight of everything was making her legs feel like jelly. She felt like she was about to lose everything in her world that made sense and that she loved because of her own stupid actions.
Bill finally replied to her admissions, "I cannot say that I am happy with what happened; you know that. I also cannot say that I will forget about it quickly. But, what I can say is that I know in your heart you regret it and love me and only me. I would be foolish to sit here and judge you harshly when I myself have not been a sinless man. I have made many grievous mistakes in my days, many much more grievous than what you did tonight. We vampires often find it hard to control our impulsiveness, our selfishness, and of course our viciousness. So, that being said, I can understand if you gave into those impulses given the state you were in and Lorena pushing you over the edge, even if I don't like that you did. But besides all that, you digested a large amount of Eric's blood. It was bound to come to head eventually. And if the worst outcome of that was being with Eric for one night instead of dying because of the attack, then it was a price worth paying. We obviously have much to discuss about our relationship and ourselves, but that can wait until tomorrow." He recognized that between this situation and her siblings gone missing, again, she needed a break from her worries.
Sookie couldn't believe her ears. Had the situation been reversed, she knew she would have kicked him to the curb and the thought of this humbled her. She felt even more undeserving of his love as she took her head into her hands and cried tears of relief and self-worthlessness. "How? How can you be so forgiving? How can you stand to be next to me?" She sobbed out.
Bill whooshed over to her and took her into his arms, shhhing and rocking her in an attempt to soother her. "We love each other, despite the odds being against us, despite those that would like to keep us apart, despite ourselves even. It is worth fighting for; worth believing in even when there is room for doubt. Your love has made me better, stronger. Maybe you gave me some of your strength and I need to return it now that I am stronger."
"What did I ever do to have you enter my life Bill Compton? I surely don't deserve you." Sookie said, finally bringing her tears to a halt.
"You are a good person Sookie. You saved me when I thought it wasn't possible…" Bill started to say before he began to get choked up again himself.
"What a pair we make. We must look like the biggest train wreck ever!" Sookie said, an attempt at light humor as they both looked like they could use it. Bill chuckled at the observation he made of the two of them in the mirror.
"Yes, that is an understatement." Bill said with a small chuckle. He then lifted her gently and moved her up the bed, placing her so her head now rested on the soft goose down pillows, his head soon following. And so there they laid, holding each other, the pain each felt fading, even if just a little.
…
I so looked forward to finally going home as I settled into my first class seat. Normally I would never have spent that kind of money on airline tickets, but after the past few days that Jason and I had, shoot, we more than deserved a little indulgence. Admittedly, the seat wasn't as nice as the one on Anubus Air, but it was soft, comfy and more importantly, vampire and crazy human free.
As an attractive stewardess came down the aisle, I noticed her stop at Jason's seat. Unfortunately because we bought our tickets so last minute; they weren't able to sit next to each other. While looking upon the scene, it was more than obvious that the stewardess was flirting with my brother. To Jason's credit, he answered her questions politely and then graciously let her know he wasn't interested. The stewardess brushed it off and continued with her duties. Jason turned to me and gave me the thumbs up, but not for scoring with another chick, but rather for being able to say no. I was proud of my brother and gave him the thumbs up in return. Maybe this really was the catalyst he needed to get his life in order. Unfortunately for me, it felt like this trip was tearing my world apart.
Not wanting to get emotional on the plane, I turned to look out the window. There wasn't anything there to see really. It was pitch black in fact due to the clouds keeping the stars out of view. But somehow it was comforting. There was nothing there; nothing to worry about; nobody to think about; no bad people to be scared of; nope; just nothing. And to be honest, thinking about nothing felt good.
…
Author's note #2: I hope you didn't find Eric too OOC here, but in the show, it seemed to me that he was able to let his guard down in front of Godric and let his true emotions be present. Also, everything from the night was so fresh; it was hard for him to hold back.