All this feels strange and untrue

And I won't waste a minute without you

My bones ache, my skin feels cold

And I'm getting so tired and so old

The anger swells in my guts

And I won't feel these slices and cuts

I want so much to open your eyes

'Cause I need you to look into mine

Tell me that you'll open your eyes – Snow Patrol

Pam POV

We had only been thinking about getting Sookie back. In our minds there was just no other way that this could end. We would be getting our friend, our sister, and our wife back; of this there was no question. We hadn't really thought of much beyond that, except for planning the honeymoon that Sookie and my maker deserved.

The honeymoon that will again be delayed until Sookie is well enough to take it. Because just as there was no other option than getting her back, there is currently no other option than her recovering and being able to take that trip.

At this point, they have earned a two-month vacation.

I look over at the two males that have not left her side since she was brought here. Many of us have only left the room for a short period of time when dealing with the fallout of everything, but these two have been monopolizing the area closest to her bed all night. However, with the sun approaching most of us will have to leave the hospital and I don't want to think about moving Eric away from her side. It's going to be hard to pull her away but if he wants to be here when she wakes up instead of being a burnt pile of blood, he will need to seek shelter.

Jason will be able to stay with her during the day, at least. I feel bad for him; he was lost on where to go when we first arrived here; should he follow his sister who is unconscious or should he go with Thalia who lost an arm during the battle? The poor boy's indecision lasted mere seconds. Thalia ended it for him when she hit him over the head with her good arm and told him she'd be fine and he needs to make sure the same could be said about his sister.

Though re-growing an arm is not fun, I am taking the hit to Jason's head as a sign that Thalia is going to be okay. And with a kiss to her head, Jason went off and followed Sookie, and hasn't left her side since, except to see to his human needs.

And he's had stiff competition from my maker for the most concerned award.

Jason is not able to be the deathly still of a vampire. Actually, I'm not entirely sure that Jason is able to be still at all under any circumstances. He's been at Sookie's side tapping his foot, bouncing in his chair, tapping his fingers. His constant motion is such a stark contrast to the stillness that has taken over Eric. He has sat there, staring at her and holding her hand for hours. The only motion from him coming after Dr. Ludwig was done examining Sookie the first time and he demanded that she come back and update him once more before the sun rose. Other than that, he has been eerily still, even for a vampire.

There is one more being in the room that has been more still than Eric, however; Sookie. Ludwig sees no reason to why she should not wake up saying it is only a matter of time. Her mostly human body needs to recover from what was done to it. Both her wrists were shattered and an arm and a kneewas broken as well. Those were on the mend thanks to the blood Eric gave her. Obviously the more serious injury is her head, which like Tray, her body needs time to heal. She is unconscious giving her body time to recover. She is not currently in a coma. However also like Tray, the longer she stays unconscious the larger the chance of her slipping into a coma. Ludwig seems determined that will not happen. She was right with Tray and I am hoping that she is right again with Sookie. The little doctor may not always have the best bedside manner but she does know her medicine. And she has been spending so much time with us we may be growing on her.

She may quote Sookie on that though and say it is, 'like a fungus or a mold.' As much as I have gotten used to her presence, both with helping Sookie heal and then with Tray, I hope we don't have to see her again for a long time after this, after she helps Sookie wake up and helps Tray regain the use of his side.

Speaking of the devil, Ludwig comes back in as Eric asked to give another update on Sookie's condition before sunrise. I can tell by the look on Eric's face that he is surprised to see the doctor and had no idea it was this close to sunrise. It is clear that he does not want to leave Sookie but he will do no good to her as a pile of goo.

Hopefully, he remembers that.

Ludwig takes a look at Sookie, takes her vitals, and does whatever it is she does when she places her hand over the patient and closes her eyes. Eric still does not move except for the change in his facial expressions.

Thalia POV

Re-growing an arm is no picnic. I definitely am not recommending it to anyone in the future, immediate or otherwise, except for my enemies. I will wish it on my enemies, particularly the one who sliced through my arm. I would wish it on him. I would wish it on all of his limbs for the rest of eternity; I would just continue to cut them off as they re-grow.

That would be fun.

It would be fun and be exactly what I would do if the vampire responsible for my current condition wasn't already finally dead, thanks to Jason. He took one look at what the vampire did to me, launched himself off of the ground, and had a branch through the vampire's chest before I had his sword pulled out of me. I am not sure where exactly Jason got the branch but it will not be something I will be complaining about.

Thinking about Jason, the pain I am in lessons a bit. I know he was torn between his sister and me and I know that he would be here if he could be in both places but I understand he needs to be there for his sister. I need him to be there for his sister. Though I know she would not be alone, I need to know for sure she has someone who cares for her watching over her during the daylight hours.

Add to that that I have no want to have Jason watch me in the agony of re-growing my arm and the decision was simple. Jason and I have years, possibly lifetimes ahead of us; I can handle a few nights without him.

Especially, taking into consideration that I do not want him to see me cry.

Pam comes into the room complete with flowers and a stuffed bear that I know are not from her. She puts them down on the table by my bed, takes the bear out and puts it in my arm, the one I still have, so I can grasp onto that instead of simply the bed sheets. I lift it up to my face and it smells like him. My god, does it smell like Jason.

And that brings a round of tears for a completely different reason.

"He says the second it is safe for him to be here without getting whacked on the head he will be here. I told him to simply stay on your side without the arm but he didn't really see the humor in that."

"Sookie?" I ask knowing that even the risk of getting hit on the head would not keep Jason away is Sookie is awake and okay.

"She's still unconscious," Pam tells me. "But Ludwig told Jason she doesn't see a reason that Sookie won't wake up soon." Pam looks worried at that and I know it is because that though offering hope, that also means that if she doesn't wake up tonight, it could be that the issue is a lot larger than we know. "He can come here to visit you," she tells me. "I know he would love to."

I think about this. I would like him here too but would rather he not see me like this, I am not going to lie about that. But this is not only about me. This is about him and me and I can feel just how torn he really is and how much he wants to see me. And I really want to seem him too.

So I nod my head and Pam smiles and quickly leaves the room and I know the next time I see her she will not be alone. I am not disappointed when only minutes later she is coming through the door and Jason is coming in behind her. The smile on his face when he looks at me makes this decision to have him see me like this so worth it. Suddenly, my arm hurts quite a bit less.

Eric POV

The seven minutes it takes me to get to the hospital after the sun sets is simply seven minutes too long for my liking. This hospital of Ludwig's did not have enough vampire safe accommodations for me as well as, the vampires that were being treated for their injuries. One of us had to go and no one listened to me when I tried to say it should not be me. So I had to leave; well, Pam may have had to drag me. I had just enough time to answer Karin's questions about the health of everyone and to be updated by her as she had stayed at the warehouse for most of the evening before the sun took me, concern for my wife on my mind.

As I walk into her room and see her eyes still closed the concern I feel increases. I understood what Ludwig had told me; her body was taking the time to get better and that is why she was still unconscious. And that makes sense and I want her to take the time and heal properly. But I also heard Ludwig explain to Jason that the longer she was unconscious the larger her risk of slipping into a coma. The human body is confusing. Sleep is good but too much sleep is bad. It is a fine line I suppose and that is something that I can understand, having walked one for most of my life.

Jason has his head on her bed and is sleeping himself. I had always known the older Stackhouse loved his sister, even if some of his actions did not always suggest it, it was clear to me. He does not look like he has left his sister's side during the day and though I know he in no way did it for me, it is something that I am thankful for. I would have hated the thought of her finally opening her eyes and having no one here looking back at her.

I take my position in the chair in the other side of the bed. I look at all of the monitors she is hooked up to that Ludwig is using to keep an eye on her vitals. I close my eyes and let my senses take over, having more faith in them than in these machines. I listen to her heart rate. I listen for her breath and the movement of her blood that will tell me about her blood pressure. I am both happy and anxious when I find that they are all steady and strong. Happy for the obvious reason as that is a sign that she is in fact okay as Ludwig continued to tell me last night. It makes me anxious because if she is indeed strong and okay why hasn't she woken up yet.

Pam comes into the room, wakes up, and grabs Jason explaining that Thalia will finally let him see her. He gives his sister's head a kiss, tells her he will be back soon, and follows Pam back out of the room. Their visit will help both of them. Jason has been sitting here day and night and though I understand where he is coming from, I know it would be better for him to get up every so often. I am sure that Pam will tell me exactly the same thing.

Pam comes back into the room to inform me that Karin will be by later. She was going to stop at the warehouse one last time to make sure that nothing was missed. It does not seem like anyone who was working for Appius and Felipe actually survived and we need to make sure we can sift through any evidence left behind to ensure that this is the end of it, that we will not find out in a few weeks that there is more to the story. I am praying that there will not be.

Sophie-Anne and surprisingly Freyda have been helping sort this all out. They both have something to gain in making sure that the trail ends here and it does feel like there is more than that going on though I am only getting that from what information Karin is relaying to me. I am thankful for Pam's support here but I am also thankful for Karin's support making sure this is all settled. I can be here with Sookie knowing that my child is there, ensuring everything that needs to be done gets done directly. I appreciate that wholeheartedly but I cannot wait until we are all together again, awake and together again.

Pam also says that Amelia and Tray are almost here. The two have been missing from the group and having Tray here would be easier on the doctor as she is still overseeing his care as well. I know my child will be happier when the two of them get here. Pam can get support from me but as I have learned in the last few months, sometimes a different support can be beneficial as well.

Jason comes back looking a little lighter than he had appeared when he walked out. He still looks a little worn down but the visit with Thalia did him good and I am sure it did her good too. Knowing Thalia, I can understand why she was hesitant to let Jason see her like that but I also know how much she would enjoy seeing Jason.

"Anything?" Jason asks but unfortunately I have to shake my head at him. There had been no change and he was here earlier when Ludwig gave us an update. No real change and there is no reason I should not be able to look into Sookie's eyes tonight. I have never wanted the small doctor to be correct more than now. Jason's face falls a bit at my words and he moves around the bed to take his spot again and the three of us continue to sit here and wait, sending Sookie our strength.

I take her hand in mine. These situations have not always ended the best for us in the months that we have been together. They tend to end with someone getting amnesia or shutting down or soda can bombs going off, or a battle between monarchies, or in kidnapping. I cannot deny that I want more than anything for her eyes to open at the moment yet given all of the events in our life lately, I am also terrified of what it could bring.

She took a hit to the head. What if she does not remember me? What if there is more danger and she does not understand it? I have worst-case scenarios moving through my mind at alarming speeds. I have to force myself to push them to the side. Our minds can play scary tricks on us and distract us from the true focus, which is lying right in front of me.

I cannot tell you how long I sit there, simply staring. In any other situation Sookie would call me creepy and say my actions verge on stalking. Yet I do believe that if the situations were reversed, she would be doing the exact same thing. She would be sitting here holding my hand, looking for any sign I was awake, begging it to move.

And it is with that thought that I feel a slight movement from her hand in mine.

My eyes jerk up to her face and I can see her eyes twitching more than usual. I know the doctor has said that twitching was normal and would happen while she was still unconscious, there is something more about this. I had felt minor tremors of her hand the entire time I was holding it but this was different. But her as her eyes stop moving and her hand relaxes in mine, I am wondering if it was all a part of my imagination.

Pam, sensing my unhappiness, lays a hand on my shoulder in my support. I almost knock it off of me as a jump out of my seat as Sookie's hand does not just move but wraps her fingers around mine in a distinct movement. I quickly drop to my knees though as I do not want her hand slipping from mine; as if there was any chance of that with the way I am gripping onto her and the way she is gripping onto me.

Jason looks confused and worried at my movements but Pam is soon at his side and physically turning his head to face his sister's, whose eyes are slowly starting to blink open. They open and I internally rejoice but they then blink closed again. This continues a few times and I stroke her fingers with mine and softly say her name. Jason follows saying, "Sook?" in question.

Then her eyes, her gorgeous eyes open and stay open, with the exception of the need to blink. They focus on me and that is when I see the moisture start to build up in them. It is also when I feel the moisture starting to build up in mine. She then turns to see her brother and Pam both of whom have moved past the moisture building up in their eyes and it is currently running down their cheeks. Sookie then looks back to me, and smiles.

She still looks exhausted even after the rest that her body needed for the last twenty-four hours. Her eyes have shadows under them but what has my focus is that they are open. They are open and they are clear and there is recognition in them when she looks at me. In this moment, regardless of the past events and what we will need to do in the near future to put this situation to rest, that is what is most important to me. That I am here with my wife, that she is awake, that my family is all okay, that is what is important.

I take a deep breath and I thank whichever god has listened to my prayers to allow this moment to happen. After that I send him one more prayer, simply praying that this is the end.

Hello dear readers. I do hope you've enjoyed this chapter as things start to wind down here. We've got two more chapters and an epilogue (or one more and two epilogues of sorts if you look at it that way). As always thanks for reading and I appreciate those doing so and taking the time to review. Happy Easter to those that are celebrating today. The link I tried to post last week didn't see to show so let's try this again. It's fanfictionaffliction, add the period, and end with the letters C-O-M. Maybe FF will let that through.

VampMad50 – Hope you liked seeing that though hurt, Thalia will be just fine – and Jason has the bump on his head to prove it.

Jfozz – Sookie has earned the right to kill Appius after all of this. It was always going to be her so I am happy you like it. Hope all is well.

Jsm88 – Happy you enjoyed Sookie was the one to kill Appius. I felt she had earned it.