And it's all downhill from here

And it's all downhill from here – New Found Glory

Pam POV

If I thought the googly eyes between my maker and Sookie were bad before, and not that I did, you should see them now. The eyes these two make at each other are almost constant now. When they are both in the same room they are most certainly consistent with it. When they are not together they will even start to make googly eyes now. I have come to realize they make them by simply thinking about each other. Then, when they are in separate rooms and the other comes into their room, well, for the first minute or so they will only have eyes for each other. Their face gets all relaxed, except for the giant smile, and their eyes get this dreamy look in them filled with all the emotion they both now express as often as they can.

It's sickening.

It makes me nauseous and I am a vampire. We don't do nauseous.

But I love it. I wouldn't have it any other way. Well, it might be more fun if they let Thalia and I play their little googly eyes game too. Apparently when we do it though, it's just not the same. It's so different in fact that instead of getting googly eyes in return we, well I really, get a bottle of blood thrown dangerously close to my head.

I guess my attempt to replicate the googly eyes at Thalia when she entered Eric's office went unappreciative. And here I was just trying to give them as much joy as they give me.

I may have overdone it with the eyes though. And using my tongue was probably a no-no too. But of course Thalia didn't get anything thrown at her head, probably because Thalia would simply throw it back at them.

I did take it as my cue to leave my maker's office however. Though that may have been a bit of a mistake as checking IDs at the door is not fun tonight. Occasionally, there is excitement in it but tonight it's a snooze fest, and I don't even need sleep. I haven't even gotten the opportunity to throw anyone out or deny them entry. Well, at least not for any actual reasons. The fake ones are much more fun anyway.

And just when I thought that the rest of the night might be boring, Jason Stackhouse walks into Fangtasia. I don't miss Thalia's eyes finding him almost the second he steps through the door.

Yes, tonight just may be exciting yet.

Sookie POV

Eric is watching me and trying hard to keep the smirk off his face and failing miserably. I don't mind too much; I happen to like his smirk a great deal. However, usually it's not me cleaning up blood that causes him to smirk. Well, fake blood anyway.

I sigh in relief as I clean up the last spot that I can see. No doubt with his vampire eyes he can still see traces that I can't, even with my Gran's training. He doesn't say anything about the spots. At my sigh though he does say, "If you did not throw it at her, you would not have had anything to clean."

"She was taunting us," I say taking off the gloves and putting all the supplies back in the bucket. I start to make my way over to Eric who grabs me as soon as I am in arm's reach and pulls me onto his lap.

"She only does so because she cares."

"Okay. I'll remember that the next time you chuck a dinner roll at her head."

"The roll made much less of a mess than the glass bottle you threw did."

"It would have been nice for you to help. You could have had the whole thing cleaned up in seconds."

"But then I would not have had the oh so delightful sight of you bending over in those pants."

So that's why he didn't offer to help me. And in hearing that, I 'accidentally' drop something that I have to bend down again to pick up. Before I can straighten up, I feel Eric standing behind me. Well, what he is pressing into me is hard to miss and it might have been exactly what I had been aiming for. What I hadn't been aiming for was being interrupted.

The door opens, which has us on sudden alert. The only one who would come in without knocking is Pam, but even she tends to knock unless it is an emergency. I'm out of Eric's lap and I can feel the worry build as I see my brother trailing in after her. "Jason," I say moving across the room to him. "What's wrong?"

"Nothin' Sook," he says, wrapping an arm around me. "Can't a guy come and say hello to his sister?" Yes, a guy should be able to come and say hello to his sister. Usually the sister isn't in a vampire bar nightly involved in vampire politics. Usually the sister is not under threat by multiple sources, some unknown. I hate that Jason being here, simply the knowledge that he is my brother, could get him hurt. The threats would see him as a way to get to me. I don't want him hurt because of me. He had already been kidnapped and nearly killed because of me. I don't want it to be worse next time. Hell, I don't even want there to be a next time.

I don't miss Thalia following Jason inside and the look on her face tells me that she understands and may even share my concerns. Pam understands it otherwise she wouldn't have felt the need to bring him back here and I give her a look of appreciation. Even at getting him back here quickly though, by simply coming he may have put himself in danger. By simply being my brother, he may be in danger.

"Of course you can see me Jase," I tell him ignoring my fear for the moment. The truth is, I missed my brother. We spoke nearly every other day but I missed running into him a few times a day in the small town of Bon Temps.

"This came for you in the mail. I keep forgetting to mail it to your new address but I missed you so I figured I'd just bring it to you here."

He holds out an envelope with just my name on it. No address, not mine or a return address, only 'Sookie Stackhouse.' No clue to sent it but someone had obviously been to my house in Bon Temps. The air in the room gets heavy and I realize that the vampires in the room have come to the same conclusion as I have about the possible dangers this letter holds. The only one who doesn't is Jason, who is rambling on about something that happened with Hoyt and his mother at Merlotte's. I make a move to take the envelope out of Jason's hand but Eric's shoots out and grabs it before I can get to it. He places it right on top of his desk and I know he isn't trying to keep it from me. He just wants to make sure I am safe.

Eric and Pam share some eye contact before Pam slips quietly out of his office, pulling her phone out of her pocket. Jason still doesn't realize anything is off and continues to recall the latest humiliation of Hoyt by his mother because he drank too many beers. Of course, too much to his mother is if Hoyt has more than a half a beer.

Pam comes back into the office and nods to Eric. I'm not sure exactly what she did but it appears to work, which is always a good thing. But the happy look on Pam's face gives me one more clue, which tells me she had most likely called Amelia. Eric probably wanted to have the letter checked for a magical element before we open it. Jason handled it and appears fine, thank the lord, but you never know.

Jason stays for about an hour and even though I want to know what is in the letter, I let myself enjoy this time with my brother. It had been too long since we have gotten to laugh together at my brother's crazy stories. Now I had a few more stories to tell him, like our food fight or Thalia's attempt to make me dinner while simultaneously trying to drive Eric crazy with the mess. "Did she succeed," he asks, his eyes finding hers across the room.

"On both accounts," I say watching them and not knowing what to think about it. It's not for me to think about though. It's for them to.

As Jason says his goodbyes I find myself worrying about what the drive home will bring him. I know Eric would arrange for someone to make sure he gets home safely if I ask but it is Thalia who says she will do it before I can. There is something in her eyes usually not present as she says so and I can't ignore the smile that appears on my brother's face at her words either. Suddenly, I'm not so sure if I am the one he drove here to see.

Pam walks them out of the office leaving Eric and I alone but I know it won't be for too long. She is curious about the letter as well. Plus, she will most likely be bringing Amelia back to the office if my thoughts on that are correct. The letter still resting on his desk holds most of our attention. "I don't feel anything," I tell him remembering how the cluviel dor made me feel. Since learning what it is and it's power it's gone back into Eric's safe. "Are you getting anything from it at all?"

"No," is his response. "Which in itself is quite confusing. I should be getting your brother's scent from it at least, as he handled it coming here. I would expect to catch the scent of whoever wrote it and dropped it off. But I am getting nothing."

"Magic," I say, hating the word far too much. There has been too much of it in our life lately and too little of it has been for our benefit. Who knows what this could bring.

"I could touch it," I say reaching for it. "See if I get something from it." But Eric has my hand in his before it comes in contact with the envelope. He keeps a hold on my hand, interlacing our fingers and bringing me closer to him.

"Not until we know it's safe," he says. At that Pam comes in followed closely by Amelia. I take in the happy look on Pam's face now that Amelia is here. She may not admit it's anything serious but she's happier when she's with the loud witch, who just happens to be broadcasting what she is hoping to do with Pam a little later. Even Tray has had an affect on Pam, and I didn't think I'd see a man be able to do that let alone a Were.

Sometimes we can't help who we care about.

"I hear you got a letter," Amelia says, coming into the room.

Eric motions to the note, which is still sitting on his desk as he asks where Octavia is. Amelia puts a hand over the letter, careful not to touch it, and closes her eyes before responding, "She is helping the Queen at the moment."

And just like that, the tension in the room doubles. "Anything of importance," Eric asks.

Amelia sighs and opens her eyes. "She is looking for ways to make her private rooms well, private." I'm not sure how much Amelia knows about what is going on. Eric gives her a nod and starts to say something else before she sighs and tells him that it would be easier for her to do this if he keeps his mouth shut.

I'm really starting to doubt Amelia has any type of survival instincts. I can see Pam is thinking the same as I take my hand out of Eric's and wrap both my arms around one of his, all in attempt that Amelia can keep all of her parts. I'm not entirely sure what Eric's issue is with Amelia, but I know he's not too fond of her. Though he surprises me when he simply motions for her to continue with the arm I am not grasping as if someone's life depends on it. Then I see the look he shoots Pam and I understand it. I understand it completely. He's playing nice for Pam.

It's a few minutes before Amelia opens her eyes again and rests her hand on the letter itself. "I'm only sensing one spell on it and it's a pretty innocuous one at that. Definitely not a threat."

"And you are sure," Eric asks.

For her credit, Amelia doesn't react negatively to his question. She seems to be holding back a bit too tonight. Maybe they are both working hard on it for Pam. That's a sign Amelia could be planning on staying around for a while. She nods and explains that Octavia has showed her what to look for especially since she got caught in a trap herself.

Eric nods, happy with the explanation. "Can you stop the spell?" Amelia nods and he asks her if she needs anything to. She says no as she starts to chant quietly. Seconds later, the two vampires in the room are surrounding the letter breathing it in deep. I'm not sure how exactly to take that until Eric growls out, "Faery."

Eric POV

I knew the second the spell ends. Not only does Sookie's brother scent suddenly get stronger but the scent of Fae also circulates through the room. I beat Pam to the letter but just barely. The heavenly scent fills my nose. I have only smelled one thing more glorious than the scent covering this letter and that is the blond in the room currently looking confused as she tries to hold in her worry and laughter at the same time.

"So we are thinking the letter came from a Faerie?" Sookie asks.

I nod and take a step closer to her. She looks intrigued but holds her hands out to me, not enjoying something she sees. I stop immediately. It takes a great amount of control, but I do stop. I will not do something that scares her. I hear Pam and Amelia behind me and I know that though I stopped myself Pam did not have the control to.

Or maybe they just didn't want to stop. Either way the sounds aren't helping me.

I take the back of their shirts and yank them apart. Pam fights against me until I shake her a bit but Amelia simply hangs limply from my arms with a dazed look on her face. It matches the one on my child's. "Put the spell back up."

"It doesn't work like that," she says her voice shaking.

Of course it doesn't. "Can you put up another spell? One that will cover the scents?" We still need to find out what is in the letter, and I need a clear head to do so. Having that scent in the air will definitely not help me clear my head. As a matter of fact, it is helping fill my head with images of Sookie. I file them away for later use.

At that, Amelia nods and starts the chanting again. Pam has finally stopped struggling against me and I can finally put her down. I do not let her go, however. I know my child better than that. I hold onto her until the scent recedes and do not let go until the crazed look leaves her eyes. It is only then that I release my hold on her shirt. When my answer is no when she asks if I need anything else from Amelia however, she grabs the witch and takes her from my office, presumably to hers.

I'll let them have their fun.

I pick up the envelope off my desk and carefully open it. I trusted Amelia when she said there were no more spells but that does not mean that there is not anything else in the letter that could hurt the opener. I listen carefully while I open it to make sure that I hear nothing out of the ordinary. When the paper is out and I have made sure there are no tricks or traps, I hand it to Sookie without reading it first. I want to know what is in that letter but it has her name on it and with the scent, it may be from her family. She deserves to read it first.

It only takes her a minute to read it but it feels like a great deal longer, especially with all of the emotions I feel coming from her. She feels hopeful but cautious, which is a feeling that I am thankful for. Feeling cautious could save her life one day. That is definitely something I want to encourage with her.

"It's from my cousins apparently," she says and I can hear the smile in her voice at the prospect of more family. "They want to meet me."

"Who wouldn't?" I say to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Do you want to meet them?"

She leans into me and says, "I don't know. It's like how I felt when I met Niall. Part of me was excited and part of me was hesitant. These cousins of mine, they could have information that could help us against what Niall warned us and they could be family. But," she says before trailing off.

"The unknown can always be scary."

"But it can also be great," she says pulling me to her. She is right about that. So much about what I feel for Sookie was unknown to me for centuries. Realizing and admitting it was one of the scariest things I have done but it has also been one of the greatest. I would not take it back for anything. I thought that saying those three words would be the highlight, would be what felt best. But I was finding that the feeling grows nightly, sometimes by the hour. Almost with every touch, every glance, every time she tells me that she loves me, the feeling gets stronger, stronger than I ever thought it could. So as much as we can still fear the unknown, sometimes it gives us the best part of our life.

"Will you meet Claudine and Claude with me," she asks, her voice small as if I would say no.

I take her into my arms and tell her, "You never have to do anything without me. I will be there whenever you want me to be."

"So if I ask them to meet me at night?"

"I will be there. The Crane's may not like it much though."

"I hadn't said their last name. You know them too?" she asks me. I love that there is no accusation in her voice at her words. Not too long ago there may have been but not now.

"I know of them," I tell her. "It was not until you said their names that I thought of their possible connection to you through Niall."

"What do you know about them?"

"Not much," I tell her as I explain that Claude owns a strip club. "I also know that they had a sister, Claudette; they were triplets."

She grows quiet for a moment as sadness for a relative she has not even met fills her face. I pull her into my arms as she asks, "Do you know what happened?"

"I do not," I tell her, kissing the top of her head. "I could see if I can find out."

She nods against my chest as she burrows in deeper. "Thanks. I would hate to bring up the pain of the loss of their sister to them but if she was my cousin, I would like to know what happened."

"I will find out what I can."

"You always do what you can for me," she says and I can feel her gratitude at that.

"And I always will," I tell her, falling back on the couch pulling her with me. Her arms move to my shoulders as she works to steady herself as mine start to travel under her shirt. Their travels are cut short however as Pam slams open the door to my office, once again coming in without knocking. I start to say something about it until I take in the look on her face and the phone in her outstretched hand. I immediately get up and take the phone from her. I feel the panic start to seep into me as I take in the fear and the voice of the caller.

"Karin," I say my voice trembling as I say it. "What has happened?"

Hello dear readers. I do hope that you've enjoyed this chapter. As always thanks for reading. I do appreciate you doing so and thanks for those taking the time to let me know what you think.

JFozz – I do hope you can find me on WP. Let me know if you are still having issues. I will try to help.