The Seven Seas of Rhye

by ShadoKat

Ignore the title! It has nothing to do with the content! This is what I think should have happened between Eric and Sookie at the end of the season. He did not remember their time together, but he was damn sure going to find out! M for ESN and kinky sex

1. Chapter 1

Now, I didn't like the way AB and company ruined Season 4, did you?
Once again, all of Eric's goodness was somehow glossed over...
(Even though Mr. Skarsgard played him adorkably perfect, didn't he?)
Making Bill king? Insult to injury...
Sookie still loves Bill? YOU GOTTA BE F*CKING KIDDING!
Dumping Eric because she can't choose between them? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU, GIRL?
RIP and good riddance to Nan Flanagan, Tommy Mickens, and hopefully Tara Thornton too. (Please, if there is a God!)

This is what I think should have happened between Eric and Sookie, even though the show character (Sookie) is so stupid that she doesn't deserve Eric. Liberties have been taken with the timeline. Eric had amnesia for a month with Sookie, not just a few days. This is approx. three weeks after he regained his memory. She should just be stuck with Bill, let him lie and cheat on her. But I digress...

The title of this story has nothing to do with Vampires, Weres, Fairies, or any of the other creatures/subjects in our fandom. This is the title of one of my favorite songs by Queen, and it's modeled after one line from that song:

You are mine, I possess you
I belong to you forever...

Don't you think that's appropriate for Eric to say to Sookie, or at least think?

Please enjoy the story! At the end, I'd like you to tell me if I should continue or leave it here. This is unbeta'd and published without consulting any of the wonderful authors I work with. Please forgive me, ladies! All mistakes are mine.

Of course, Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries, and all characters contained within are the property of Charlaine Harris. I own nothing. No copyright infringement is intended.

WARNING: Eric has a little darkness. Extreme sexual content and kinky sex throughout. Do not continue if you are under the age of legal consent where you live. You have been warned!

Now, without further adieu...

---

Sookie was sound asleep, so it was impossible for her to see the sharp blue eyes that watched her from across the room. The beautiful, powerful Vampire Eric Northman leaned negligently against the door frame, his arms folded, his brow uncharacteristically furrowed. Since regaining his memory a few weeks ago, he had been troubled, unable to get her out of his mind.

She refused to talk to him, and it infuriated him! He had called her at least a dozen times and she never answered. She didn't return his calls. Tonight had been the last straw for him. NOBODY blew off Eric Northman and got away with it. He was finished chasing her and she was done running. He was going to make sure of it. He had stormed into Merlotte's bar demanding to see her, only to learn that she no longer worked there. Frankly, he was glad to see the end of that job for her. If he had his way, she would never work again, or she would work for him at Fangtasia.

She began to stir. Sookie opened her eyes, a strange feeling overtaking her. There was some part of a dream that she remembered… Or had there been a dream? What had caused her to wake? She stretched her legs beneath the bedcovers and turned over… And there he was. The man she loved. The last man in the world she wanted to see. She opened her mouth but nothing came out, so she closed it and blinked at him, a question in her eyes.

Eric was momentarily stunned by the full force of her eyes, now open and silently asking why he was there. He caved to a few seconds of insecurity, but then a thought occurred to him and he straightened his back; his resolve had returned. A new revelation had just happened for Eric. For the last several minutes he had been silently compelling her to wake, never thinking that it would work. Sookie was immune to glamour and he had tried to compel her before without success. Tonight, she had responded!

Pam had told him that he had stayed at Sookie's, actually his, house during his brief period of amnesia. That had explained why he had woken in the sleeping chamber he had built in their house. He was sure that something had happened between them. Something Sookie did not want to talk about; the reason she was avoiding him. He couldn't imagine staying in the same house with her and nothing happening. The house smelled of sex but it was faint now; it wasn't recent. This agitated him. He didn't like being unsure about things. Even if he hadn't remembered who he was, the attraction between them had been strong from the day they met. Sookie wouldn't admit it, of course, but it was true. He could be extremely persuasive when he wanted something, or someone, and oh, how he wanted her! She thought he wanted to bed her just as another conquest, for bragging rights. She was very wrong. She was special. He wanted her by his side as he walked through the world. He couldn't even imagine one day in his life without at least seeing her, and he wanted to be much, much closer. He wanted her to be his, forever.

Sookie finally found her voice. "Eric?" she asked sleepily. "What are you doing here?"

He pushed away from the door frame and sauntered toward her, knowing how good he looked. His long blonde hair was freshly washed and braided in a neat herringbone style. Black jeans covered his magnificent ass and well-muscled legs. He wore shiny black motorcycle boots and a thick leather belt. A muted blue-purple silk shirt under a black leather blazer completed the ensemble. He thought that Sookie had a great poker face, because her expression remained neutral and her eyes never left his.

She pulled the sheet up to cover herself as he sat on the side of her bed. He did not like that one bit! He wanted to tear the sheet away from her and pull her into his arms, kiss away all her protests and have his way with her. Something about sitting there on her bed felt strangely familiar. He had no right to manhandle her the way he wanted to, or did he?

He made his decision about what he was going to do here. "We need to talk, Sookie. You have been avoiding me," he accused her, affecting a hurt tone of voice. "I had to, how do they say? Get the drop on you." He smiled, only just keeping his fangs in check.

"You're right!" she admitted sourly. "I don't want to talk to you! Why don't you take the hint?" She let her voice show annoyance, but that wasn't what she really felt. She was in danger of crying, but years of schooling herself not to show her feelings, because of her telepathy, just barely kept the tears at bay.

The night Eric had regained his memory had been one of the worst nights of her life. He'd climbed up out of his hidey-hole and made a tasteless, sarcastic remark that had left no doubt that he'd forgotten all that had happened between them. She'd been in the process of running into his arms but a strange vibe had made her stop short and she'd almost tripped. That was when he'd made the remark and she'd known. She'd only just kept it together while they'd waited for Pam to pick him up. For some reason he hadn't wanted to fly. She had cried for that entire night, and the next day. Now here he was, insinuating himself into her life again. She couldn't let him in again. She would give him nothing!

Eric, on the other hand, had vowed not to leave until they got to the truth of the matter. He had opened his phone and was texting Pam to tell her not to expect him back until he got back. In other words, don't call, don't text.

At Fangtasia, Pam rolled her eyes in exasperation at his texts. She'd been glad when the two of them had finally fucked, hoping that Eric could get Sookie out of his system once and for all. He hadn't been normal since he'd met her. Since the amnesia had cleared, he'd only become more obsessed.

"Whatever," she texted back. "Don't come back until you fuck her." She'd almost added "again" to the text but stopped herself. She actually liked Sookie, for a human. It was a girl thing. It was up to Sookie to decide if and when to tell him.

As Eric snapped his phone shut, Sookie was angry that he'd disturbed her sleep only to ignore her and play with his phone. "Why don't you go tell her in person?" she snapped, knowing it was Pam. She wasn't jealous of Pam. Pam's and Eric's sexual relationship had ended long long ago. Now they were a lot like father and daughter, but she would never tell them that. They'd be embarrassed and deny it.

This time his fangs did come down. "I am not leaving until we set some things straight!" he snapped back.

Unfazed, unafraid, she climbed out of bed on the opposite side of where he sat and started to head for the door. Eric grabbed her arm a little bit harder than he meant to. "Eric! You're hurting me! Let go!" she yelled, trying unsuccessfully to pull away from him.

He knew he should apologize but he was too agitated to say the words. "Where are you going?" he demanded, softening his words by gently taking her hand and caressing the arm he'd grabbed so roughly.

She looked away, still barely keeping her emotions under control. "Human needs, you know," she said softly.

He let go of her, nodding his head. He was too preoccupied with his own emotions, surprised at how strong they were, to notice her deception.

She walked to the bathroom and closed the door, leaving a slightly stunned Eric to ponder the depth of his feelings. But after a few minutes, the silence behind the bathroom door caught his attention.

"Sookie?" he called, walking to the door. No answer. "Sookie, are you all right?" He knocked and heard nothing, so he opened the door. All he found was an open window with a very tall tree outside. He roared in anger and flew to the front door of the house at Vampire speed. She was running in the direction of "King" Compton's house, almost to the edge of her property. He took to the air.

Sookie hadn't heard his angry roar, nor had she seen him on the porch when she turned around a split second too late to check. She had no idea what was coming.

Eric flew swiftly across the lawn, high enough to be concealed by the darkness. His eyes zeroed in on his prey, and he swooped down, plucking her cleanly off the grass and clamping a hand over her mouth when she would have screamed.

"Be silent!" he hissed at her as he reversed direction back toward the house. He never slowed down as he raced them back inside, closed and locked the door, and stopped on the landing of the staircase between the two floors. He knew that this was the only place in the house that could not be seen from the outside.

She was trying to pry his hand away from her mouth and remove herself from his grasp. He gathered both wrists in one hand and held them together as he pressed her tightly into the corner from behind. She squealed in protest but stopped trying to break away from him. Eric had to pause as a fleeting thought entered his mind and just as quickly left like tendrils of smoke. He wondered if he'd held her this way before and, if so, what they had been doing. He filed that away for later discussion.

Eric used his Vampire hearing to listen to the night to see if an alarm had been raised at the "palace." He still thought of Bill Compton being King as a major joke and sneered derisively at the thought. Sookie didn't see his facial expression but felt something deep inside that made her wonder if she was somehow sensing his feelings. She, too, had just had the thought that Bill should never have been made King. Only the crickets and bullfrogs disturbed the silence of the night. Satisfied that nobody was going to show up to investigate what was going on over here, Eric slowly removed his hand from Sookie's mouth.

"Eric!" she started to say something else in a voice that showed her anger, but he clamped his hand right back where it had been.

"Quietly, Sookie. Promise?" he said in a voice that could melt steel. She nodded after glaring at him for a few seconds and he took his hand away.

"What are we doing, Eric?" she demanded softly but firmly, still making no effort to pull away from him. He put one hand on the wall and turned her to face him. Her face tilted up to look at him and he was momentarily speechless. Neither of them noticed how his fingers absently stroked her back, or how her hands clutched at his shirt as though she needed his support. He recovered quickly and reached into his jacket, pulling out a small black box. She stared at it as though she'd never seen a remote control in her life. "What is that for?"

"Watch," he said simply. He punched in a long series of numbers, and a mechanical sound began somewhere above their heads. As Eric watched with pride, Sookie with horror, dark shutters appeared on the outside of every door and window. They came down from the tops very quickly, effectively sealing the house off from the outside world in less than a second. "Do you like it?" he asked, magnanimously sweeping his hand around to indicate the room at large.

Sookie turned to watch as all traces of light from outside were blacked out by the shutters that appeared to be something other than metal. She looked at Eric in disbelief. "Why did you put shutters all over my house?"

"MY house," he corrected her, earning nothing but a dirty look. She was still waiting for an answer. "For your safety, Sookie," he responded as though it should be obvious to her.

"Well, thank you, I guess," she pursed her lips. "But why are you showing them to me now? I suppose they make the house plenty dark but you have plenty of time to get home before the sun comes up." She was guessing at that, hoping it was true.

He cocked his head. "I am home, Sookie, or have you forgotten?"

"I don't understand!" she exclaimed, completely misunderstanding what he meant. "You told me before your, well…." She didn't know how to describe his period of amnesia. "You said I could stay here!"

"Did I say anything about making you leave?" he wanted to know.

"Well, no, but…"

"But nothing!" he told her. "We have things to discuss, and I am not leaving here until you tell me what went on while I stayed here. And neither are you!" He paused to let that sink in, knowing it wouldn't make her very happy. He finally moved back so that he was no longer crowding her.

"You left here three weeks ago," she told him, now allowing her voice to show her pain and frustration, finally over his little episode of whatever this was, "with no thought of what you were leaving!" She stood tall, pointing her finger at him. "YOU left! You didn't stick around to talk to me or even to thank me! Now you're back having a temper tantrum about ME avoiding YOU? NOW you are interested in what went on here. You're a real piece of work, Eric! I don't have to talk to you! I have nothing to say!" She folded her arms and turned her back on him, heading down the stairs and away from him. He was in front of her in an instant, blocking her path.

"Where do you think you are going?" he demanded, his hands back on her shoulders again. She shrugged them off.

"I would like a cup of tea, thank-you-very-much, since you've seen fit to wake me up in the middle of the fucking night! Do you mind?" she snapped.

He made a huge deal out of stepping aside and bowing her in the direction of the kitchen. "By all means, my princess!" he said sarcastically, then trailed an inch behind her as she passed him. He sat negligently in one of her kitchen chairs, arms folded in a posture of stubborn indignance, and watched her heat water for tea. Eric did not let anyone speak to him that way. Most humans he would drain, Vampires would spend some time in silver chains in the secret room under Fangtasia. Why did he let her get away with it? He should at least punish her for her attitude, but knew he would not. The silence stretched between them.

All Sookie could think was that he was back and she had no idea what to do with him. She was pissed as hell at him for leaving the way he had, going back to his life without a thought for the disruption to her life he had caused. She had thought his declarations of love were genuine, but how could he have just forgotten them? That kind of love didn't just go away. Amnesia or not, it left its mark on your heart. Did Eric even have a heart? For a few weeks she'd thought he did."

Of course, he had come racing back to her side as she'd cried over the remains of her best friend Tara in her kitchen. He had done everything. Disposed of that good-for-nothing murdering Debbie Pelt's body, gotten rid of her car, and cleaned the kitchen. Bill had been nowhere to be seen. Jason had been beside himself, finally realizing that he'd had feelings for Tara, and had been no help. Eric had been her only solace, and had held Sookie while she cried for her friend. The next day Sookie had set it all aside, vowing to get on with her life, what was left of it, and it had been no surprise to her that Eric hadn't come back.

She'd planned a future with Eric in that month when he'd turned sweet and loving without the memories of his past life. But not all of him had been gone, and she'd had the delicious marks of living and loving with a sexually dominant Vampire to prove it. Eric had taken her places that Bill never had, and she'd hoped to go there many times in the future. At those thoughts, she felt a distinct throb in parts down south and felt moisture building up inside her core. She tried her best to cover it up, hoping that he didn't notice.

Behind her, Eric's head snapped up as he felt the turn his Sookie's thoughts had taken. His fangs ran out and he discreetly sniffed the air, easily catching the faint traces of her arousal. Where had this mood come from? She wasn't happy with him, as was evidenced by the way she slammed doors and drawers and almost broke her Gran's dishes throwing them around. He had only guessed at the relationship that had gone on between them while he'd been here without his memories. But as she was aroused, he also felt her sadness in his heart. What did this mean?

Sookie had perfected her poker face her entire life, so when she turned to face Eric, there was no trace of embarrassment, sadness, or excitement. Instead, she was aloof, determined to hold herself above what she felt for him until she knew what the hell he wanted.

"So?" she finally spoke, walking daintily to the table to sit across from him with her tea.

Eric thought she looked extremely proper and ladylike for the thoughts he knew she'd been having. He wanted to lay her across the table and decipher those thoughts, but he decided to tread lightly for the time being. He WOULD touch her eventually, in all the ways he wanted to and then some. Somehow he would find a way in. He was determined.

"So." He responded by raising his brows. Sookie noticed that he'd thrown his jacket over the back of the chair. That meant he planned on staying. She sighed.

"Why are you sitting there looking like I ought to have something to tell you?" she wanted to know. "You're the one who showed up and woke me up out of a good night's sleep. The ball's in your court, not mine." She took a sip of her tea, her hands fidgeting as they formed a circle around the cup, which meant that she was very uneasy.

But wait, Eric thought. How did he know that? He didn't know Sookie well enough to know her tiny little mannerisms. Did he? He would never admit to anyone how confused he was. Sights, smells, and thoughts had come to him in the past weeks. They reminded him of Sookie. A woman's perfume he recognized as hers. When had he learned what perfume she wore? A customer at Fangtasia had tickled his date a certain way, just the way that drove Sookie mad. How did he know that? Kissing the soft spot behind her left ear made her smile a smile meant only for him, or did it? It had driven him crazy! He was determined to find out if he was right about these things, and others.

While Eric had had his introspective moment, Sookie had decided she'd had enough. He could either say what he came here to say, or he could leave. "Eric!" she exclaimed, drawing him out of his thoughts. "You may be a nocturnal creature, but I am not. You obviously had a reason to come here. Please, just say whatever it is you have to say or get the hell out of here and let me go back to bed!"

Eric knew that he was losing his "in," and her patience was almost gone. He would rather not have her openly hostile, because he had no intention of leaving. "Cards on the table?"

"Cards on the table!"

"Fine!" He stood up, taking her tea in one hand and her hand in the other and leading her into the living room, seating her on the couch and handing her the cup. He remained standing, wanting to say his piece from a position of power. He paused dramatically, staring resolutely into her eyes. "I think that something good happened here between us, Sookie! For lack of a better word, something magical. And I am just selfish enough to want to know what it is, and I want to play a part in deciding what we do about it. I am sorry, Sookie, but no, you do not get to do this!" His hand swept the air in front of him for emphasis. "I will not let you pretend that nothing happened! You will not hide from me! You will not take refuge with Compton!" Later he would ask her why she had run from him in the direction of Compton's house, but now was not the time. "Whether you like it or not, neither of us is leaving this house until I know everything that took place here. Do you understand me? EVERYTHING! You will not shut me out. This is why I bought the house. You can no longer rescind my invitation. I can keep other Vampires out, but you can not keep me out." He folded his arms and took on a posture of smug triumph. Sookie didn't think she'd ever heard Eric say so much at one time, ever.

"You can't do this, Eric," she began, hoping to reason with him. She got to her feet. "You can't keep me cooped up in this house! I have things to do. I have a j…"

She never got to finish her sentence because he was instantly in front of her, fangs bared, eyes angry. He took hold of her shoulders when she would have stepped back from him, lifting her chin and forcing her to look at him. "Are you sure that you want to say this to me, Sookie?" His tone was soft, dangerously deceptive. "Think before you speak. I was in Merlotte's not two hours ago looking for you. You no longer work there!" He was going to make this point early in the game and he wanted no misunderstanding. "I despise deceit. I do not tolerate lies of any sort, especially from the few I allow close to me. You, least of all! Now, do you still want to tell me that you have a job to go to?"

She reddened beneath his close scrutiny, embarrassed and more than a little bit afraid. In truth, she hadn't meant to lie. She had worked for Sam Merlotte so long that she hadn't yet gotten used to the fact that he had actually fired her. Not that she didn't deserve it, but that was another conversation. "I'm sorry, Eric," she whispered, turning her head and shaking off his grasp, unable to look him in the eye. "Honestly, I didn't mean to lie to you. It's taking a while to sink in. I've worked for Sam forever, you know? Before that I always had a job, since I was fifteen. It's hard to imagine now…" She didn't know how to continue. A single, fat tear fell from her eye and landed on Eric's wrist.

That was Eric's undoing. He sensed the honesty of her confession and he could not stand to see her cry. Only two women could ever soften his heart with tears. One was his child, Pam, and the other was Sookie. He lifted his wrist, smelled the tear and licked it from his skin before cradling the back of her head in his hand and pulling her close. "I am not trying to frighten you, Sookie," he relented in a gentle voice. "But would it not be wise to begin our time together with a pledge of truth and openness between us?"

Sookie pulled back from him, embarrassed at her emotional display. She began to try to smooth out Eric's shirt. "Look what I've done to your shirt, Eric!" She continued to fuss until he pulled the shirt over his shoulders and flung it across the room.

"It is only a shirt, Dear One," he soothed, suddenly wondering where the endearment had come from. He'd never called her that before, had he? Now it was his turn to draw attention to something else and he said the first thing that came to his mind. "It is late. I feel the dawn approaching." He managed to keep his voice even.

"I washed all the linens from your bed downstairs," she told him, referring to the chamber he had built for himself beneath the house. "I think I got all the blood out…" Only too late did she realize her mistake. This Eric did not remember what had happened down there.

His face once again took on an angry mask. "Blood? Why would there be blood in my chamber? Whose blood is it?" he demanded, gripping her arms a little too tightly.

"Eric! You're hurting me!" she cried, tears streaming in earnest down her face now as both arms felt like he was about to crush them.

He loosened his grip but didn't let go. "Explain!" he ordered. "NOW!"

"Let go of me and I will!" she practically screamed at him. He let go but forced her backwards into the little alcove between the fireplace and a large book case next to it. She was only just barely small enough to fit.

Eric loomed over her, one hand on the fireplace mantle and the other on the bookshelf, leaving her no place to go, or to hide. "Why was there blood in my sleeping chamber?" His voice had risen in volume, something very unusual for Eric. He was normally soft-spoken but there was never any doubt of his age, strength, or power. She had never heard him use this tone with anybody.

"You're scaring me, Eric!" Her voice, on the verge of hysteria, somehow broke through the red haze of Eric's sudden anger. This was Sookie he was talking to. She had done him no harm, nor had she let anyone else do him harm. He trusted her with his life, which was why he'd built a sleeping chamber here in her house.

"All right, Sookie, all right, I am sorry." he said in a quieter, but still firm, tone. He managed to get his fangs to retract with a click. "Now tell me, and leave nothing out!"

She realized that this was as calm as he was going to get, so she struggled to find words that would appease him. "OK well, you know the witch, Marnie, right?" He nodded stiffly, still looming over her but in a less threatening manner. His fangs came back out at mention of the witch who had caused all of this to begin with. "She was crazy, and she had some help from Antonia, the ghost witch who had possessed her." Eric had been briefed about this by "King" Compton, right before they'd disposed of that irritating Nan Flanagan.

"At one time Antonia and Marnie were working together?" he asked. By the time the spell inhibiting Eric's memory had broken, the ghost Antonia had wanted nothing to do with Marnie.

"Yes, Eric," she nodded, then went on. "Antonia knew a spell to make every Vampire for miles around walk into the sun and burn." Eric inhaled loudly through his teeth, knowing how dangerous such a witch could be. He thought he was beginning to grasp the scenario, but he let her continue. "Bill sent away most of the Vampires around here but, well, you refused to leave me." At this she flushed, wondering if Eric would blame her for the injury he had sustained during this time.

Eric was starting to relax, and he reached out to stroke her cheek. She covered his hand with her own.

"Bill brought over a bunch of silver chains to tie you down to your bed so you wouldn't walk into the sun. He and Jessica stayed at his place and did the same thing." She looked down at the floor again, hoping that Eric wouldn't notice the fresh tears welling from her eyes. Of course he did.

"Why do you cry?" he asked her softly.

"It hurt you. A lot," she told him, her voice barely audible. "You're so strong, and I had to put an awful lot of them on you. When I thought I was done you made me put on more."

He lifted her chin gently. "Compton dropped off a bunch of silver chains and made you put them on me?" At her nod, his level of respect for their monarch dropped even lower, if that was possible.

Sookie couldn't help but cry harder as she related the rest of the story. "When the spell came, you tried to get up, but you couldn't. You screamed at me to take the chains off. You said you didn't care if you burned and…" she paused. "…died." The last word was only audible to Eric because of his Vampire hearing.

"I am sorry, Sookie," he apologized again, his voice sincere and emotional.

She sniffled and shook her head. "But that isn't the worst of it."

'How could it get any worse?' he thought to himself.

She continued, haltingly. "Finally, the spell was over. We could tell because you weren't trying to get up any more. After the sun went down we knew it was safe, so I started pulling chains off." The tears continued, and she no longer bothered with trying to wipe them. He did that for her, brushing below her eyes gently with his thumbs every few seconds. He thought he knew what was next, and he was right.

"Every time I pulled one off, a chunk of your skin went with it. Mostly your wrists, hands, a little bit on your stomach…" She touched him below his belly button, above the waistband of his low slung jeans where he had been hurt. "But then we got to your neck." She shuddered, remembering. "When I finally got all the chains off, there was no skin left. I could see everything inside!"

Eric had seen a lot of blood and gore in his time on this earth. He had caused a great deal of it too, so he knew perfectly well what Sookie was talking about. He reached up and felt his throat, and it felt perfect to him. "How did I heal?" he wanted to know.

"Well, I had true blood in the fridge but it wouldn't have helped. I was afraid to leave you alone in case somebody came and tried to hurt you. That left only…"

"You," he whispered, his touch almost reverent now as he cupped her cheeks with his hands and drew her out of the alcove. There was no doubt in his mind that Sookie's blood had healed him. He started to put his arms around her, when something occurred to him – and what a horror it was. "Sookie!" he exclaimed suddenly. "Did I force you? Did I hurt you?" He pulled her head to one side and then the other, checking for scarring that would have occurred if a hungry Vampire had torn your throat out. He checked her wrists, the insides of her elbows, and then he started to lift her nightgown to look for signs of vicious bite marks anywhere else.

"Eric!" she tried in vain to keep up with his hands as they touched her while he looked her over. "Eric!" she cried louder. "Eric!" she tried again. "Stop it, Eric!"

He was still lifting her nightgown and was about to let go when something caught his attention. Faster than Sookie could move to stop him, he grabbed her left knee and pulled her leg out from under her. She was forced to grab his other arm to keep from falling, but then she realized what he was looking at.

There, on her inner thigh, were two sets of nearly-healed bite marks. Eric was staring at them, wide-eyed in disbelief. 'Oh, shit!' Sookie thought to herself. 'What is he going to think?' She stared at him helplessly as his eyes captured hers, full of questions.

"Who?" he said softly.

"Oh, come on, Eric!" she responded in disbelief. She almost laughed, but afterward was very glad that she hadn't.

"Do not toy with me, Sookie!" he sneered at her, his voice even softer. The quieter Eric got, the more trouble you were in. He let go of her leg, almost throwing it down. He grabbed her upper arms and marched her to a living room chair, looming over her with his arms folded and a dangerous frown on his face.

"This is ridiculous, Eric!" she exclaimed, moving to get up. She didn't like him hovering over her like a disapproving parent. He pushed her back down. "What I do is my own business!" she told him, shaking her head. "You don't own me!" Honestly, what did he think? How would she have had time to see another Vampire, get bitten, and have the bites nearly healed in the time since he had left her?

"You are mine, Sookie Stackhouse, and do not ever forget it!" He had put both hands on the arms of the chair and bent right down to get in her face. His fangs had come out. "I think you will want to revise that statement, will you not?"

She could see that he was visibly upset and she didn't want to hurt him. She sighed. "Will you just think about it for a minute, Eric?" she asked him. "When and where would I have met another Vampire and gotten to know him well enough that I would let him bite me there?"

"What about Compton?" he demanded.

"Oh, Eric, no!" She scrunched up her face. "Just, no. Ewww." She stuck out her tongue and made a sick face.

Eric was amused but didn't let her see that. "Why should I believe you? Just a few minutes ago you were running across the lawn to his house, to get away from me! How am I supposed to take that?"

"He knows, Eric," she said dryly. "He knows what you did to me. How you just walked away. Who do you think consoled me while you went back to playing Sheriff?"

She was instantly sorry that she had said that when he got even angrier. "Consoled you how? Like this?" He pointed to her legs. "Did we not just talk about honesty between us?" He walked back to the fireplace, put his head into his hands, and made a gesture Sookie couldn't see. Then he put both hands in his pockets and turned back around. "I do know a little something about how humans heal, Sookie," he continued. "I have been gone three weeks. Humans do not take three weeks to heal, especially from a Vampire bite. The Vampire has ways to make the bite heal faster, immediately if he likes. It does not take three weeks for a Vampire bite to heal." His expression and tone had turned from angry and accusing to tired and resigned. Maybe it was already too late for them, he thought.

Sookie refused to look at him. "We did just talk about honesty, Eric, and that's the second time you've doubted mine," she said quietly. "Is this what I have to look forward to with you?" Eric said nothing and she didn't look up at him. A moment of tense silence passed. "For your information," she said tightly, barely able to keep her tears from flowing, "you wanted to make them last. You bit deep and you hurt me, and you let them bleed. You said you didn't know what would happen if your memory came back. You wanted your marks on me for as long as possible to keep away other Vampires. The bruises only just went away."

His head snapped around to look at her, flinging something small and wet in her general direction. That sounded like something he'd do. He was very possessive! But that meant that if it actually was him that marked her there… his resignation turned to a stunned amazement. "It WAS I?" he asked her. In his wildest imagination, Eric would never have expected to see his own bite marks in a very intimate place on Sookie. As far as he knew, he had never gone there with her. Somehow he now felt the truth in her words.

He moved toward her and bent to scoop her up out of the chair but she put her hand out to stop him. "What, now that you believe me it makes everything OK?" she exclaimed. "Really, Eric? How many times do I have to let you doubt me? Don't you know me at all?" She put her head in her hand and then noticed something on her leg. A big drop of blood was slowly making its way down between her thighs. She looked up at him. "Eric?"

Yes, Eric was crying too. Eric. Was Crying. And he wasn't trying to hide it. Inside Sookie felt a huge swell of emotion so big that it almost overwhelmed her. Her heart melted. She put her hand on her chest and stared at him in disbelief. What was she feeling? This was just like that night… Sookie quickly put two and two together. Then she sighed, shook her head, stood up, and reached out to him. "Come here Eric," she crooned softly. She knew what it took for someone like Eric to cry in front of anyone, especially a woman AND a human. She was willing to forgive.

He didn't have to be told twice. This time she didn't protest as he picked her up and swung her around. Then he sat them together on the couch and took her face in his hands. "I am sorry Sookie!" he said fervently. "I promise you now – for the rest of eternity I will not doubt you again. I will not!"

She wasn't sure about the rest of eternity but she would take that for now. "OK Eric I believe you," she told him and leaned in close to lick the blood from his face. She had only ever been with Vampires and knew what this gesture would mean to him. His blood tasted sweet to her. Eric was nearly overwhelmed by her tenderness but he was still Eric. He tried to go in for a real kiss but she stopped him. "Can I finish telling you?"

He had forgotten about the story the moment he thought another's hands, and fangs, had been on Sookie. It had made him maddeningly, violently crazy with jealousy and he had started plotting the demise of whoever it was in his mind before they had cleared it up. "Yes I want to hear the rest."

"Well then, here goes. There wasn't anybody there but me to help you and I couldn't let you stay like that, so…"

"Wait a minute Sookie," he interrupted again, and he stared at her, wide-eyed with disbelief. "You were willing?" He had to ask again. "You gave me your blood, as injured as I was?" He was looking at her as if he had never seen her before. She nodded. "I was unrestrained, in pain? You trusted me not to tear you apart?"

"Yes, I did, Eric," she replied. "what's wrong?"

His face had become stormy, stern, and he jumped back to his feet. "You will never, ever, ever do that again! Am I clear?" When she didn't respond right away, he got right into her face again. "Am I clear?"

She smiled at him, knowing why he said it. "Yes, Eric. But if it's you, I won't keep that promise."

This made him angry and proud of her at the same time. "How will you ensure your safety?" He wanted her to think about the consequences of such an act.

"You made me hold the silver in my hand and said to shove it down your pants if you got out of control." She giggled a bit at that.

Eric was in awe. How had the Gods seen fit to bless him with this brave, beautiful woman after over a thousand years of existence? He sent up silent thanks. He was still upset with Sookie for her carelessness. "Sookie, a Vampire is a feral creature, a predator! You cannot know when one will turn on you!" He included himself in that statement, although he knew that he would do anything in his power to keep from hurting her.

"Without your memories you were a gentle giant, Eric," she told him softly. "Even timid sometimes."

He raised his eyebrows, unable to imagine any part of himself being timid.

"It's true Eric!" she insisted, and he felt the truth of her statement. "The point is, no way would you hurt me. I knew that deep down, just like I know now that even though you're all yellin' at me and stuff right now, you won't do anything to me that will really hurt me." He raised his eyebrows as she said that.

"You said so," he argued. "I was not myself. You could not know!" He was stubborn in his insistence.

"Isn't the fact that I'm standing next to you talking to you enough evidence for you?" she countered.

Eric had to admit, she was right. "Then what happened?" He demanded.

Sookie almost felt like he was interrogating her about being with another man even though it was him. "Well, you pulled me up on to your chest so you wouldn't have to sit up. Then you latched on to me pretty tight and took what you needed."

"Did I take too much?"

"Huh-uh, no," she reassured him, shaking her head.

"Then what?" For Eric most of the time feeding was tied to sex. He almost felt jealous of the other Eric holding Sookie like that, especially since she hadn't fought him. Of course, he wanted to know if sex was involved.

Sookie knew what he was getting at, but she was going to disappoint him. "After a few minutes your head fell back and your arms loosened. You said 'thank you' and then closed your eyes. Then I watched your skin stitch itself back together, but your neck was still red and raw."

"And then?" Eric wanted every single detail.

She was starting to get annoyed with Eric and this third-degree. "Why is this bugging you so much Eric? It's not like I was with another man. It was you, remember?"

"Sookie, do you not understand? That was the first time, ever, that you let me hold you in my arms without fighting to get away – and you were conscious at the same time!" he reminded her. "Only once before had you let me feed from you, again to heal. I am jealous of my own self!" He finally admitted it to her.

Her eyes softened. "Even if you don't remember, Eric, it was you." She took one of his hands in both of hers and squeezed gently. "Will you sit down for the rest of this?" She asked.

Eric was feeling a bit numb. "Yes, yes, of course."

She pulled him down next to her. "Well then, you slept all that night and the next day."

"What did you do while I slept?"

"That first night? I slept with you!" she told him. "I was not about to leave you alone like that so I locked up the top latch of the hidey-hole. When I came back you pulled me on to your chest again and that's where I stayed until the next morning." Then she looked down at her hands. "I had to put the chains back on you again because I was afraid Marnie would try to make you walk in the sun again. But before I did that I got some heavy blankets to cover you. I wasn't about to hurt you like that again."

Eric could only sit and listen, very stunned that she had slept with and cared for him that way. "Tell me more, please?" he asked.

Sookie looked at him like he'd grown a spike out the top of his head. Eric wasn't known to say "please." She smiled then. "The spell didn't come back and you slept all day. I took the chains off just before the sun went down. Then when you woke up you were kind of disoriented. I was sitting in the corner reading a book and then you were calling for me. You fumbled around and ripped my shirt, trying to get at me."

Eric jumped all over that. "See? This is why you do not trust an injured Vampire!" He felt triumphant until she continued.

"No, Eric, you don't understand," she admonished him. "You said you were cold. You were trying to get my skin next to yours. Vamps don't usually get cold, do they?"

Eric shook his head.

"I knew you were sick, so I got under the blankets with you and let you have my blood again. The more you drank, the more your focus came back. But by then you'd ripped all my clothes to shreds."

Eric thought that was something he'd like to do right now.

"When you were finished," she continued, unsure of whether she wanted to tell him this part, "you bit into your own hand and offered it to me."

Eric perked up at that, looking directly into her eyes. "I did what?" A Vampire did not offer blood lightly and the last time he remembered giving his blood to a human was Pam.

"You wanted to give me your blood and you wouldn't take 'no' for an answer!" she told him. Then she blushed. "I didn't want to, but you said 'we will be one.'" She looked up at him to see his reaction.

Eric's eyes were wide and his fangs were out. Sookie hoped he'd take this part well.

"Well, like I said, you wouldn't let me say 'no,' so I did and…" she blushed again, not wanting to continue. Eric nudged her impatiently. "Something weird happened. All of a sudden I could feel everything you were feeling. You were happy, scared, uhm, horny." She blushed even deeper.

Eric continued to stare at her with huge eyes. This had never occurred to him.

"And then we both had some kind of a dream, or a vision, I guess, since Vampires don't dream. We were outside, and there was a big bed. We got in it, and it started to snow." Then she looked at Eric for an explanation. "What happened, Eric? What was that?"

Eric swallowed a couple of times and cleared his throat, something Vampires don't usually do. They aren't prone to nervous habits. He had forced this account out of her, so he knew he had to answer her question. "We bonded, Sookie. We bonded." The second time he said it softly, more to himself than to her. That explained a lot, especially all the times when he'd thought of Sookie. He hadn't been thinking of her. He'd been feeling her. If he had remembered bonding with her he'd have been back weeks ago. He'd never have left!

"What does that mean?" she wanted to know, a bit worried by his reaction.

"We are now bound by blood, and magic," he explained. "In the very simplest terms, it is like a marriage, but there is no possible divorce. And you are mine!" He felt like a beggar who'd just found out he'd won the lottery. Sookie really was his, now and forever!

She sighed with annoyance. "Eric, will you cut the macho 'you are mine' crap already? You've been telling me that ever since you bought my house. Just explain this bond thing, OK? Please?"

"Sookie, this is different!" He took both of her hands in his. "Our blood is now mixed inside of us. We will feel each other's emotions. The magic that binds us makes us feel happier when we are together."

"Why would you do that to me, Eric?" she insisted. "Without explaining it to me first?"

"You said it; I was not myself! I would never consciously do this to you without explaining it beforehand!"

"You mean like you tricked me into drinking your blood in Dallas?" she shot back at him.

"That was different, Sookie! I should not have done that, but that was starting to wear off. This cannot be undone!"

"So there's nothing I can do to get out of this bond thing with you?" she demanded.

That took him aback. "Well, no, but, do you really want to?" He knew from the bottom of his heart that he wanted this bond, and intended to strengthen it. She had no choice. How he would handle things would depend completely upon her attitude. He didn't tell her that if they didn't share blood again the bond would weaken over time.

Sookie knew that she loved Eric with all of her heart. She didn't want to be apart from him. But had she felt that way before amnesiac-Eric had taken the choice from her? She couldn't blame him. He might not have remembered at the time the full consequences of what would happen. He had been impulsive and reckless more than once during his "illness." Then again, they had been declaring their love before the bonding – ever since Bill had set Eric free instead of killing him. So, maybe he had gone about it a bit backwards, but had he done anything wrong?

She leaned into him, and he automatically put his arms around her. "This is a lot to take in, Eric. Can we just go to sleep now?"

He had been feeling the dawn for quite some time now and knew the sun was at least partially up outside. The shutters he had purchased for the windows and doors made the entire house light-tight. "This is a surprise for me too, you know," he said softly. "I agree that we should sleep before more talking."

She stood up. "Well, everything is nice and cozy down in your bedroom," she told him before starting to turn away.

He stopped her with a hand on her arm. "I am not sleeping down there, Sookie. Not unless you are coming with me." Did she really want to sleep alone, especially now that she knew they were bonded? When she hesitated, he became stern. "I have been all over this house, Sookie, while you slept. You know how sensitive a Vampire's sense of smell is." She nodded wearily. "I have more questions about the activities that went on all over this house. But for now, I will just tell you that I know I did not sleep alone downstairs. I slept in your bed with you, every night for some time. Would you now deny me what you freely gave to me before?"

She wanted to argue, to tell him that was a different Eric, and that she wasn't so sure of the Eric who now sat in front of her. But she honestly wanted him in bed beside her, she had to admit. She held out both hands to him. "You are so stubborn! Come on then," she beckoned.

With a smile Eric swept her up into his arms and flew them up the stairs. When he put her down, Sookie watched to see what he would do. He took her hand, walked her around to the far side of the bed, and settled her in. Then he walked back around, stripped down to a pair of royal blue silk boxer shorts, and climbed in next to her.

Sookie's heart stopped and her breath caught in her chest. Eric in silk boxer shorts was breathtakingly, heartbreakingly beautiful! The blue contrasted well with his pale skin and she knew what was underneath was just as soft and smooth as what he wore.

Eric pretended not to notice, but he was quite happy at her reaction. He'd purchased quite a few pairs because he knew how squeamish she was about sleeping in the nude, and how much she loved soft things. He had brought enough clothing with him to stay a while.

It made Sookie very happy to see that he had chosen the same side of the bed where he'd slept during his amnesia. Now that Eric knew why he was feeling all of these extra emotions, he asked her what she felt so pleased about.

"You remember which side of the bed to sleep on," she said, simply, blushing and looking down at her hands.

"I will always sleep closest to the door, in order to protect you," he told her gently.

Sookie lay down and automatically turned toward him, just as she'd gotten used to doing when he'd lived here with her before. Eric also turned toward her, but instead of settling into the pillows, he held himself above her. His arm was around her waist, his leg covered hers, and his fangs were out His eyes were wild, predatory, but also held a question. She knew what he wanted and knew she would comply. She had made a decision after that first night letting him feed from her. She would always let him feed, because she wanted him to have safe, clean blood. She hadn't known if or when he'd come back to her when she'd made that decision, but she stood by it now.

"Are you hungry, Eric?" she asked, reaching out to him. He nodded, having the good sense to look a bit embarrassed to be asking. She pulled him close to her, nodding her acquiescence. "But no sex tonight, Eric. I'm not ready for that yet." He lowered his eyebrows and growled playfully but nodded his agreement, disappointed but not surprised. A lot had been brought out into the open tonight. Even he was reeling after finding out about the blood bond.

Was it crazy to love being bitten by a Vampire? Sookie had often asked this of herself since that first time she'd allowed Eric to feed from her. The way he did it made her swoon.

Eric pulled her into his arms, making them both comfortable. Then he ran his face up and down her throat, taking in her scent, growling deep in his chest and giving her goosebumps, his beard stubble tickling her skin. When he was ready, he took the other side of her neck in a firm grasp and tightened his hold on her body, as though he thought she might try to flee. Then with a final growl he slipped his fangs into her skin, causing no pain while a bunch of other feelings went fluttering straight to her core. She relaxed in his embrace, trusting him completely as he made little slurping sounds taking her life's blood into him. When he was finished, he licked the tiny puncture wounds and cut his own tongue to heal them with his blood. Then he kissed her softly where he'd bitten her and whispered "thank-you" in her ear, easing her back down to the mattress.

"Before we retire," he whispered, "I will ask only one other thing of you." At her nod, he continued. "I wish for you to be here with me when I wake. Now that you have no other obligations, we will begin to keep nearly the same hours."

"But Eric, you know how I love the sun!" she exclaimed, sitting back up.

He pulled her into his arms, leaning back against the headboard. "I will never keep you from the sun, My Sookie," he said softly. "I love the sunlight on your skin, in your hair…" He rubbed his cheek into her hair. "That is why I said 'nearly' the same hours." He took out the same remote that he'd used earlier to close the shutters around the house. Another series of numbers, and a very solid door closed across the top of the stairs, and another closed across the door leading up to the third floor. On this floor were only the main bedroom and the bathroom.

"Why did you have those installed?" she asked suspiciously.

"For your safety, and mine," he explained but knew he owed her more information. "Sookie, I am the most powerful Vampire in the territory, even more so than our so-called King." He sneered when he mentioned Bill Compton. "There are those who would love nothing better than to kill me, or to take you to force something from me. Once our bond is made public, you will once again be in danger." He looked at her apologetically. "I know how you value your independence but some changes may have to be made. Short of that, these doors are here for your protection." He didn't say that the changes he wanted entailed her living with him. She would fight him but this was important. She needed protection. And he was being selfish. He wanted her in his home where he could teach her the kind of loving he favored.

"But Eric, you had all of this installed while I was missing! No way could you have predicted this!"

"You are quite right, Sookie. My initial reasoning for them was my own safety, and Pam's, in case we needed sanctuary. I knew you were alive somewhere, but I did not know if or when you would come back. I was truthful when I said I never gave up. But things have now changed, and I have you to protect. I would meet the sun if something were to happen to you because of your association with me, if I neglected to protect you!"

"Eric, that's just crazy talk!" she exclaimed. "I don't want to hear any more of that out of you! OK?"

"Agreed," he nodded. Then he decided he had to have something from her before she went to sleep. "On one condition."

"Oh yeah, what?" she challenged him.

"A kiss," he said simply. "Just one kiss. A real kiss," he clarified.

Sookie was suddenly brought back to another day when Eric had asked for a kiss. Just hours later Bill had come and taken Eric from her and had wanted to execute him. "Oh, Eric!" she cried softly, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his chest. She had almost lost him forever, before she'd ever had a chance to really know him. Then he had come back with the miraculous news that Bill had let him go. She reached up and pulled his face down to hers, kissing him like there was no tomorrow.

Eric was confused by her sudden mood change but was not going to turn down what she was offering. He kissed her back with the same urgent passion, careful to keep his eager fangs from cutting her. But when he would have deepened the kiss and gone further, she stopped him.

"I can't, Eric. Not tonight, not yet," she repeated to him, pulling back and gently touching her fingers to his lips. He bit lightly with his teeth, eyes glowing softly as evidence of his passion, letting her know that he accepted this, for now. She touched both fangs lightly with her fingertips, earning a shiver from him, Then she moved forward and kissed him again, lightly. "'Night baby," she whispered softly.

"Dream of me," he responded.

And she did.

Sookie woke slowly, reluctant to leave her dream. It was a dream in which Eric lay beside her and pledged to stay forever. Eventually she was forced back to reality, her eyes opened and she realized that she wasn't dreaming. There he was beautiful and boyish, almost innocent, in his sleep. He had somehow managed to wrap himself around her while she slept. She lay on her side, her head on his bicep, with that arm curled around her waist. His other arm had found its way under her nightgown and his hand rested in the small of her back. His leg was atop hers, and he had bent his knee in such a way that he'd pulled her leg between his. His head was bent toward her. She was literally wrapped in an Eric cocoon!

It didn't creep her out that Eric didn't move or breathe, or that his body temperature was lower than hers. The temperature made it comfortable to let him hold her this way and stay under the comforting weight of the bedcovers. She had never woken next to a human man so this was normal to her.

She wondered what time it was. She picked her head up to look over Eric's shoulder and saw that the clock had been turned off. Why had he done that? Her cell phone was downstairs in her purse. As she lay in his embrace she took the time to think about what had happened last night. Though she had tried to steel herself against him, he had managed to melt her heart and she had let him back into her life.

And what about this bond thing? She still couldn't wrap her head around it. They had taken each other's blood at almost the same time and had a vision together, and that made them bonded. Was Eric telling the truth? According to him they would be able to feel each other's feelings and she hadn't felt him lie. But then again, how would she know if she felt him lie? According to him it was like they were married. She wasn't sure how she felt about being married to Eric, especially when there had been no proposal, no engagement, no wedding…

Human needs finally forced her to wriggle out of Eric's tight hold, and it wasn't easy. She brushed the hair back from his eyes and kissed his still lips. She couldn't help but think, 'now what?'

She remembered Eric being here before and the thought made her blush. Eric had always gotten upset with her if she showered before he rose. He said he loved the smell of a woman, especially this woman. "Besides," he'd said. "I am just going to make you dirty again!"

With Bill it had always been the missionary position, once when he rose and once before she retired. He would feed at both times, and sometimes wanted a "snack" mid-evening. Sookie had thought this was wonderful, until she slept with Eric. With Eric it was any time, anywhere, any way. He had done things to her that her country-girl imagination could have never thought of in a million years! Eric could go for hours and a few times she'd had to ask him to stop. But he wouldn't stop. He would ask what was wrong and move on to something different. The something different had always made her come in minutes if not seconds! Then, he would stop. He had made it clear that he was the boss in bed. Thinking about it now made her toes curl and her butterflies tickle her from the inside. If her shy, goofy, playful, timid Eric had been that way, how would this Eric be? Then she had to remind herself that she wasn't going to have sex with him yet. Yet. If they could work out their differences she would jump all over him, especially in those silk boxer shorts.

Heading back from the bathroom after brushing her teeth, she just had to get a peek at Eric in those boxers. She felt very wicked as she pulled back the covers. He would never know. He was truly dead to the world. She sat behind his knees and touched the silk as it molded itself over his perfect ass cheeks. She couldn't help sticking her fingers under the waistband. His skin was just as soft and smooth as she remembered it. He was still curled up on his side the way he had been wrapped around her so she couldn't play with the front side of the boxers. She lay her head down atop his waist and put her arms around him. "Oh Eric," she said softly, "what am I going to do with you?"

She didn't want to get caught fondling him so after just a few minutes she stood up, ran her hand from the waistband of those boxers to his neck and shoulders a few times, and kissed his shoulder. Then she covered him back up. Even though she wasn't a Vampire, somehow she could feel the night approaching. 'This must be coming from Eric!' she thought, amazed. 'This is what his body feels to tell him to wake up!" She found it fascinating but also a bit scary. But, with the night approaching, she knew there was something she had to do.

She went to the closet and there, on a hook, was a white silk robe. She took off her nightgown and put it on, leaving it open in front. She wore nothing else. Then she went in to brush her hair again. When she came out she went to the bed and sat next to Eric. She knew without a doubt that the sun was setting outside.

Finally he stirred. His eyes opened, wild and predatory, and immediately locked on her. His fangs clicked into place and, before she could think, he was on her. He maneuvered them so that they were on their knees, his between hers, forcing her legs apart, his arms like bands of steel holding her still. A low growl came out of his chest and he slowly moved his nose, just millimeters from her skin, up and down her throat, then across the back, where he seemed to notice the robe. He bared his teeth and grabbed it with his fangs, and ripped it in two down the back. He tore it from her body and used one half to tie her hands behind her. Then he resumed his inspection of her neck and throat while one hand moved to fondle her breast and the other went south.

"Eric," she said in a shaky voice. She was half scared, and half turned on.

As soon as the sound left her lips he clamped his hand over her mouth, hard, and roughly pulled her head to the side. At the same time his other hand found what it was looking for and he slipped a finger inside her, finding her moist but not fully wet. This all happened within less than five seconds.

Holding her that way, he struck, his fangs cutting deep, causing her to cry out a little. He tightened his grip, holding her completely immobile. Now that she knew about the blood bond she was more conscious of the fact that she was feeling what he felt, and she felt the darkness inside of him that controlled his actions. She tried not to succumb to the fear his dark madness instilled in her, knowing that it would be over in a few seconds. Something similar had happened the first few times amnesiac-Eric had woken up next to her. Once her blood allowed him to recognize her he would become himself.

As he tasted her familiar blood, his grip loosened. He slowly pulled his finger from out of inside of her but ran all of his fingers deliberately over her clit before gently embracing her around the waist. The other hand covering her mouth moved to her shoulder, where he began to caress her. Having finally satisfied his blood lust, he sealed and healed the wounds, then he kissed the spot where he'd bitten her. "Did I frighten you?" he asked contritely. "I should have warned you about the bloodlust."

"More than just bloodlust!" she corrected him, leaning her head back on his shoulder and moving her bound hands against him.

"Hmmmmmm," he breathed against her, moving both of his hands to encircle her arms. "I am not sure that I am ready to let you go yet." He bit her earlobe, then her shoulder, playfully, laughing and earning a giggle from her. "Tell me Sookie, are you mine?"

The room was instantly tense. "Eric.." she started to say but couldn't think of how to continue without hurting his feelings.

Eric became silent and methodically removed the torn garment from around her wrists. "I will of course give you time to think about this," he told her. He knew she thought she had hurt him. She had, but the hurt was secondary to his conviction that her answer would change. He was determined and ready to use any means to keep her by his side. He hadn't felt quite this strongly about it before he had learned about their being bonded. His own alter-ego had taken the choice from both of them but he was going to stand by it. Sookie would see reason, he was sure. But her fate was already sealed whether she did or not.

"Can we talk about this Eric?" Her voice brought him from his musings. She had turned to face him and put her hands on his cheeks.

He leaned forward and they shared a long, slow kiss. Then he moved back onto the bed and leaned against the headboard, holding his arms out to her. She didn't hesitate to crawl into his embrace. They sat together like that for several minutes while she gathered her thoughts.

"Why is it so important to you?" she finally asked.

He was stunned that she didn't know. "I am Vampire, Sookie! The blood bond is the highest form of commitment we can make to a human!"

"But you didn't choose this, either!"

"I did choose this. It may not have been the Eric sitting here with you now, but it was my doing. The responsibility is mine."

"You see this as a responsibility? Eric, you don't have to. You're not obligated. It wasn't you!" she insisted.

"Sookie, look at me," he demanded, turning her around to face him. "The other Eric. Do you not see him when you look into my eyes?" He stared fervently into hers.

She softened. "Of course I do, Eric! Otherwise I wouldn't be wrapped up with you in the middle of my bed like this." She looked down and blushed. "But you didn't know what you were doing!"

"Tell me something," he said. At her nod, he continued. "Did I know that I was a Vampire?" Another nod. "Did I seem to know customs? For example, I bowed to our so-called king." She nodded again. "Did I ask you to be mine, or if you were mine?"

"More times than was polite!" she told him, chuckling.

He smiled back. "Then I knew exactly what I was doing when I bonded with you. My error was not explaining it beforehand. I do not understand why I did that." He stared off into space for a few seconds.

"I think I can help you with that," she said. At his curious nod she continued. "You weren't yourself, at all! You were impulsive for one thing. You ran out and drained my fairy cousin Claudine in about ten seconds one night! Then you disappeared and the next day I found you swimming in the lake, in the sun, naked!"

"I did what?" he laughed disbelievingly.

"It's true! If I hadn't gotten you back home I don't know what would've happened to you. You threatened to kill Alcide and he was just helping me look for you!"

"That doesn't sound too different than my usual self!" She poked him in the ribs. "OW!" he exclaimed even though she hadn't hurt him at all.

"Ow yourself!" she hollered back, sticking her finger in her mouth. "Are ya gonna let me tell you or what?"

Still smirking, he gestured for her to go on.

"You did crazy stuff like that, the whole time!" she explained to him. "It's not much of a stretch to imagine you doing what you did. Maybe you got sick of hearing 'no' from me and took matters into your own hands." She shrugged.

"I am still sick of hearing 'no' from you." He responded sincerely. "When will you start telling me 'yes'?"

"Eric!"

"And, we go back to the beginning of this conversation." He frowned. "Say yes, Sookie! Say yes!" His hands started to wander.

"No!" she cried out. "Eric! Stop!" she couldn't help but giggle as his hands began to squeeze and tickle her curves. Finally he pinned her down and got on top of her, holding her hands at the sides of her head and resting on his elbows. He was fully aroused and his fangs had come out to play. His eyes had gotten back that soft glow that she loved. It was hard to resist but she tried. "Eric, please!" she said softly.

"Why not, Sookie? I want you!" he tried to reason.

"This isn't just about sex, Eric! There's more at stake here. Just because I want you doesn't mean I have to have sex with you. If I had a nickel for every time….."

"What?" he interrupted his eyes growing big. "What did you say? When did you want me and not have sex with me? Tell me, Sookie! When did you want me?" He began to playfully nip with his fangs at her neck, then her shoulders, then her collarbone, and progressing lower.

She was screaming and laughing at the same time. "Stop it! ERIC! Stop it! Damn it! Eric! If I tell you will you stop?" Tears were streaming down her face, she was laughing so hard.

"Tell me, Sookie! Tell me now!" He stopped nipping but captured her lips in a passionate kiss. He didn't let go of her hands or remove himself from on top of her. "When?" This time his tone was serious. He really wanted to know.

"Well," she blushed, wishing she hadn't ever opened her big fat mouth. "Eric will you stop that!" He had her earlobe in his teeth and was licking along its edge. She tried to yank her head from him but he dug in with his fang and drew a tiny drop of blood, which he happily lapped up.

"Tell me," he whispered, and it was an order. She heard it in his tone.

"You're distracting me!" she pleaded with him. So he kissed her soundly on the lips, made a "lock and key" gesture over his lips, and sat there with an expectant look on his face. She rolled her eyes, blushed again, and decided she'd better tell him. "Remember when you saved me from those fanatics at the fellowship of the sun?" He nodded. "You leaned down and said 'trust me,' and I did, and I wanted to do more than trust you." She blushed darker red than she ever had before and refused to meet his eyes. He was genuinely shocked speechless, so she went on. "After Godric, well, you know, I wanted to come to you, but everything was wrong, and I was there with.."

"Compton," he finished for her. "Even after what I did to you?"

"Before and after," she told him, deciding just to come clean and be honest with him. "I wanted to be with you before that, and you just made it worse by what you did. But then I couldn't tell if it was really me or if it was your blood talking."

"What do you think now?" he asked.

"I think, no I know, that the feelings were there. Your blood only made them stronger. If I didn't have any interest in you at all, would your blood have been able to give me such strong dreams? And last for such a long time?" She looked up into his eyes, hoping for a truthful answer. He decided to give her one.

"The blood cannot create what is not already there." He explained. "I have told you this before. Only now do you believe me?"

"I didn't want to believe you before. I thought I loved Bill. If I felt anything for you I thought I was being unfaithful." She admitted.

"Perhaps you were being unfaithful to me the entire time," he said, only half jokingly.

"Huh?" she tilted her head to the side.

"He did not bond with you, ever, though he gave you his blood many times. Even as I tricked you, I bonded with you. The amount of blood was minimal but it was mutual."

"What are you talking about Eric?" she was confused.

"You had a small cut on your hand. I licked it clean and it bled for me as you sucked out the silver from my chest."

"You did what?" She pushed against him, trying to get up, but he held her there. "Eric, why didn't you tell me?"

"You were angry enough at what you knew I had done. I did not want to antagonize you more," he told her. "Godric was angry with me for what I had done. He demanded to know my purpose for it. My thoughts were centered on him, and his safety. I was only beginning to suspect Compton's deception, and I wanted you. I am afraid that, at that time, my motivation was purely selfish."

"Why are you telling me this at all?" she wanted to know.

"It appears this is a night for confession," he said. "You confessed how you wanted me when we went to Dallas. I thought you should know the truth."

"Is there more?"

"I wonder how things might have gone if I had enforced your new status as my bonded?" he asked her. "I could have taken you from him that very night."

"Eric…" she didn't want him to go on. "I think you know. I would have hated you. Never forgiven you."

"We do not know that," he said, "although I agree with you. It is very likely. I decided that you would come to me by a different road. And here you are!"

"Yes, again by another trick of yours, bonding yourself to me without my consent! How should I feel about this Eric?" She was upset now, nearly in tears.

"I did not tell you this to make you angry with me," he told her. "But I have demanded honesty from you. I must demand it from myself as well."

"Let me up, please, Eric!" she demanded. He turned over both of her hands and kissed them before releasing them and helping her to sit up. She turned away from him for a minute. He started to talk and she held her hand up. Finally she turned to face him. "This is what I think. I should be pissed. I should yell at you. I should leave, since my house now belongs to you." She reached out and took his hand. "But I won't do any of those things. I love you. I accept what you've done. And I expect you to stop tricking me. You don't have to do that any more. Understand? No. More. Tricks."

He wasn't sure what he expected, but complete acceptance wasn't it. He wondered again what had happened to her in the year she had been gone. It was hard for him to comprehend that, to her, it had only been a few hours. He reached out tentatively to touch her face. She covered his hand with her own and gave him a look of determination, a few tears finally sneaking through. He pulled her into his arms and she let him. His shoulder and chest were wet by her tears.

"Bill put me through a lot," she told him, haltingly. "I moved heaven and earth to get him back from Lorena and Russell, because I loved him. What did I get in return? He almost killed me for my blood. He kept lying to me." She pulled back and looked into his eyes, her own full of resolve. "I can't have that with you Eric. I just can't! I won't survive it. Promise me, Eric! Don't you lie to me. No more tricks. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. Promise me!"

"Sookie, you have my pledge, my vow. I will not do to you what Bill did. I will protect you from him and those like him. I have no hidden agenda. I, too, am not going anywhere!"

"I feel the truth in you," she said, putting her hand over his unbeating heart. "It's a little scary but I like it. You overwhelm me sometimes." She kissed his chest next to her hand and laid her head there. "I'll give you what you want Eric," she told him.

"Do you mean?" The intensity of his gaze increased, as did the feeling in his heart for her. The possessive Vampire in him woke up to hear the rest of the conversation.

"I am yours, Eric. Yours."

The darkness in Eric laughed diabolically; she had no idea what she had just done. The light side of Eric smiled at her and held her close. "Mine," he said in amazement. "How long I have waited to hear you say that. I love you Sookie! You are mine!" Then he pulled back, holding on to her shoulders. His fangs had come back out. This was Eric's Vampire side joining the party. "Will you share blood with me? Strengthen the bond?"

She hesitated for a split second. She had just committed herself to Eric, completely. Did she want to make their bond stronger? This was important to Eric; this would be part of her life with him. She also knew about the other part of what she had agreed to. Eric was fierce and dominant. She knew that she had just given him free rein over her body. If he was anything like his amnesiac self, sometimes he would be rough, and sometimes he would hurt her, but it was a good hurt. She could only expect this Eric to double that, and she looked forward to it. For now he only wanted to share blood. "What will happen?" she asked him.

"I must be honest," he told her. "This will be our third time if you include what happened in Dallas. The bond will be sealed, completely unbreakable, and will never diminish over time. We truly will be as one, for eternity. Will you do this with me?" He looked at her with a mixture of hope and demand, his expression as fierce as his nature.

Sookie had already made up her mind. 'In for a penny, in for a pound,' as her Gran had said. If she was going to be with Eric, she would give him everything. She reached out and gently touched his fangs with her fingertips. He shivered in response, capturing her hand and holding it to his face. Then she nodded shyly. "I will, Eric, but, I… I don't know what to do," she told him softly.

His answering smile made her feel guilty for her little moment of insecurity. He took her other hand and pulled her with him as he moved back to lean against the headboard. He put her in his lap, facing away from him. He put one arm around her waist and stopped to explain. "I will open my vein. When I offer it to you, you must take it quickly because it will begin to heal right away. Do not be alarmed that I seem to be badly injuring myself. I will heal in minutes. At the same time, I will bite you. Are you ready?" She grabbed his hand for strength and took a few deep breaths, then she nodded. He kissed her behind her ear where he knew it tickled, just to lighten the moment. She giggled and moved her head to the side, lifting her shoulder to protect her vulnerable ticklish spot. As soon as he saw her relax, he bit into his wrist.

Sookie gasped when she saw what he had done to himself, but remembered what he had said. She remembered his blood tasting sweet to her even as she'd found the practice to be a bit strange. This time was no different. As soon as she got her first taste, she greedily licked and sucked at the wound. Eric moaned sensuously and immediately hardened at her back. He nudged her head to the side, tightened his grip around her waist, and struck, his fangs penetrating her skin like a hot knife to butter. She gave an answering moan as the mutual feeling of taking each other's blood filled their bodies with waves of pleasure. Eric moved against her from behind and she gyrated against him. The hand that was around her waist came up to fondle her breast. He caressed the nipple gently until it stood up for him, then he rolled it between his fingers, applying steady pressure until she cried out at the pleasure-pain. A low growl erupted from within his chest as he continued to drink.

The wound at Eric's wrist closed just as he had promised, and Sookie licked to clean the spot where the injury had been. At the same time, he pulled his fangs away from her skin and sealed the wound, leaving it to heal later. He grabbed her hips and pushed her onto her knees, rising up behind her and testing with his fingers to see if she was wet for him. She bucked against his hand and he held her around the waist to still her, biting into her shoulder not to take blood, but to hold her. She felt his fangs in her and it hurt; she cried out a little and reached around, grabbing his hips and pulling him closer to her. He forced his knee in between hers to spread her thighs, giving him better access to her center. He dipped his fingers in and out of her, using the moisture to put pressure on her sensitive clit, sliding his fingers up and down. "Eric!" she breathed, her head thrown back against his shoulder.

He grabbed both of her hands and pulled his fangs out, then pushed her forward until she was resting on her elbows. He pulled her hips back and she arched her back for him as he pushed her thighs apart. Without preamble, he pushed into her, burying himself to the hilt. She cried out and he slowly pulled himself almost all the way out, then thrust forward again, hard. He used his long reach to rest his hand on the back of her neck, holding her head down, resting on her arms. She moved against him, arching and opening herself completely to him, then using her inner muscles to squeeze as he pulled out. He growled with pleasure when she did that, and kept his rhythm slow for a few strokes. Then he decided that he was in charge, and the next time she squeezed him he spanked her, hard. She jumped and cried out, then squeezed him even harder, and he spanked her even harder.

His hand went underneath and between her legs, easily finding her clit and circling it with his fingers until she lost control and could no longer hold on to him from inside. Through the bond he felt her coming close, so he stopped his movements and began to thrust against her, hard and fast. Then he slowed and leaned down next to her ear. "Sookie," he growled, "you may not come until I say. Do you understand?" He punctuated his question with a hard thrust, and she answered by locking her hips and meeting him halfway. He spanked her ass again. "Answer me!" he ordered.

"Yes, Eric!" she cried breathlessly, moving against him and squeezing him some more. He spanked her one more time and pulled her hips back against him, his thrusts speeding up to Vampire speed. He could feel her in the bond.

"Not yet, My Lover!" he ordered her, reaching around to pinch a nipple. She met him thrust for thrust and then he knew he was going to come. The growl in his chest got louder, his thrusts wilder, and he reached around and put his hand on her stomach. She arched against him, moaning and saying his name under her breath. "Almost there, Lover!" he growled, his hand slowly making its way toward its destination.

Then he growled and cried out as it hit him, his thrusts becoming wild, his seed ready to shoot inside of her. He reached down and pinched her clit, then put pressure on it and began to circle with his finger. "Now!" he growled.

"Eric! Oh! Eric!" she cried out as it hit her too, and together they rode the waves of a strong climax. For Sookie it was deep, and intense, and uniquely Eric.

As the waves turned into small aftershocks, they slowed their movements, moving together, until, spent, they lay still. Eric moved to take his weight from her but she stopped him. "No, stay!" she breathed, loving the feel of him inside of her. After a few minutes of erotic silence, she finally spoke. "Wow! That was intense!"

But Eric wasn't finished. He gently pulled out of her, earning an impassioned "oooooooohhhhh" from Sookie. He moved her onto her back and pushed in again, this time making sweet, gentle love to her, full of kisses and sighs, and touches, until together they found their release.

Sookie got up to tend to her "human needs," and Eric propped up all the pillows on the bed. When she came back she had brushed her hair and her teeth, in addition to putting on deodorant. "You know that is not necessary for me," he said gently as he reached for her. He laid her back on the pillows, then turned on his side and used his hand to bring her to another intense climax. As the shocks died down for her, he lay back on the pillows himself and pulled her onto him. But instead of making love again, he pulled her against his chest to hold her as he was nestled warmly inside of her. Eric loved this intimacy, and Sookie told him that he had liked to do this when he had amnesia as well.

Sookie dozed for an hour and then Eric woke her by moving inside of her. He taught her how to ride him, to move different ways to bring herself different types of pleasure. As she moved and gyrated atop him, he squeezed and fondled her breasts, , then held her still so he could bite, his fangs going in on either side of her nipple. This was Sookie's undoing, and she couldn't help but come, and come again as his tongue laved across her nipple, pulling away her life's blood. Eric didn't take too much because he didn't want to tire her.

He left her in bed, squirming and moaning after his hands brought her to another climax.

When he came back, he had washed, and he held something in his hand. He held it up for her to see. It was a pair of leather cuffs. She blushed a deep red. "What are you doing with those?" she wanted to know.

"I brought them with me. When we go to my home I will show you my vast collection of toys. For now, just come here." He took her hand and moved her to the edge of the bed, where he secured her hands behind her back. She was curious He got a pillow and put it on the floor, then he moved her to the pillow, on her knees.

She was still blushing and he asked why. "I never, umm… I don't know how.." she sighed and looked pleadingly at him. She knew what he wanted her to do but she was completely inexperienced.

"You have never taken a man into your mouth?" He asked incredulously. She wouldn't look at him, her face still beet red. He pulled her up to sit next to him. "Not even when I….?" She shook her head. "I will not force this on you, Sookie." He put her back to him and started to remove the cuffs but she stopped him.

"No, Eric, I want to try. Will you teach me?" She leaned into him and shyly lowered her gaze. The dominant Vampire in him roared in triumph at this submissive behavior. If it was possible, he got even harder.

"You are sure?" He wanted to make sure. She nodded.

He helped her get back to her knees on the pillow and sat before her. "Take the head into your mouth – be careful with your teeth!" he said gently. "Roll your tongue around it. Feel the edges. Yessssssss! Oh yes, perfect, Sookie!" he hissed in pleasure as she obeyed him. "Put your tongue in the hole, taste the moisture that is there. Feel the place where everything connects." Sookie tenatively touched her tongue against the small drop of moisture pooling at his tip. She wondered what he would taste like. The first taste was salty and she touched him again, a little harder. He was both salty and sweet and she found herself enjoying his taste. He threw back his head and moaned, and she smiled. "OK now, pull it in. Suck on it a little as you come closer to my body. Do not try to take it all yet." There was something about Sookie's mouth that felt different, special, he decided. Maybe because they could feel each other. She was truly his and this excited him. "You can use your teeth a little, but not much." She gently scraped her teeth against the top of the head and then rolled it around in her mouth again. Eric had to grab the bedcovers to keep from forcing himself into her throat.

"Try moving in and out, see if you can go a little faster. Take as much as you can but do not choke yourself. Relax your throat muscles." He was inarticulate for a few moments as she experimented. Sookie liked doing this for Eric. He smelled wonderful, and his juices tasted like his blood, diluted. She could feel when something she did gave him extra pleasure and she tried to memorize what he enjoyed.

"I am going to hold your head and push in now. Breathe through your nose and relax your throat. Even if I hold myself there for a few seconds, I will not choke you. If you panic I will stop." She nodded her head, causing some delicious sensations for Eric, and he gently put his hand on the back of her head. He started to push in, but the first time she choked, and he pulled all the way out. She had forgotten to relax her throat and the first time he pushed in she had felt smothered. It was strange and scary sitting with her hands tied, giving Eric total control over her, but she trusted him. She leaned her head against his thigh until her breathing calmed, then she nodded at him. He put himself back in and pushed. This time she relaxed her throat muscles and leaned her head back to make more room for his cock. He held himself there for a few seconds until he felt her start to panic, and he pulled back out. "Sookie, I am at the limits of my control," he said tightly, his dick throbbing with pleasure and wanting release. He was pushing it gently in and out, still holding the back of her head. "I am going to come very soon. When I come, I want you to swallow it. All of it. Understand?" Another nod. "Ready?" Another nod.

Eric tried to be gentle, but her mouth was so sweet and hot that he couldn't help himself. He grabbed handfuls of her hair and pushed deep into her throat, over and over, and once she did try to pull back but he held her firmly. She moved her tongue to caress him as best she could, sucking with the back of her throat and learning that when she made a swallowing motion it excited him. She relaxed and let him do what he wanted. It wasn't long before he said "I'm coming, Sookie! I'm coming!" She could feel his cock pulsing against her tongue. She breathed in quickly and felt something hit the back of her throat. She swallowed automatically. It happened again, and once more, and then again. Finally he relaxed his grip on her head and moved slowly in and out. She could feel it twitching and swelling, and finally softening. He pulled it out gently and it made a "POP!" sound. Her jaw ached and she leaned against his thigh, watching his cock change shape as it softened.

She had never really looked at Eric's cock up close before. It was very thick; she was sure that Bill's had not been so thick. The head was large, but not overly large. It was a deep rose in color, and next to the paleness of his shaft it was beautiful. She leaned forward and rubbed her cheek against it affectionately, wanting to see how soft his skin was.

Eric lay on the bed, deep in an orgasmic high of Sookie's making, when he felt her touching him with her face. Her skin was soft, and her eyelashes tickled his sensitive member. He rolled onto his side and reached for her, bringing her up on to the bed next to him. "Thank you Sookie," he said, rolling her atop him and kissing her. Then he put his head back down and closed his eyes.

"Eric?" she inquired, worried. Eric was never tired. Vampires in general were not tired creatures who felt the need to lay back the way Eric was doing. And he certainly was NOT the average man who rolled over and went to sleep as soon as he came.

"Sookie, love," he said softly, a smile on his face, his eyes still closed. "I can still feel what you did to me with my entire body. I do not want the sensation to stop!" He caressed her arms, suddenly remembering that her wrists were locked in his cuffs. He rolled over so that she was on the bed, rolled her on to her stomach, and undid one cuff.

"Eric? What are you doing?"

He was hauling her up toward the headboard, where he looped the short chain around one of the rails and fastened the cuff back onto her wrist. "You are mine, Lover," he said wickedly. "It is my turn to have my way with you! Do you think you can be quiet for me?"

Sookie grinned at him. Amnesia-Eric had played this very game with her, except he hadn't had a pair of handcuffs to put on her. She thought she knew what he wanted, so she said, "Yes, Eric," and firmly closed her mouth.

"If you speak, I will punish you," he told her dangerously, and she noticed his fangs had come back out. "Now, close your eyes. I want you to feel."

Sookie was a bit tired from their marathon session and she thought of asking him if they could continue later. But the minute he touched her she changed her mind. He started at the top of her head, running his fingers through her hair and spreading it out around her head. She relaxed and smiled at him; she could feel his face just inches from hers even if she couldn't see him. He massaged her face next, starting at her forehead, the space between her brows, her temples, her cheekbones, her jaw and under her chin. His fingers came up to trace her lips. "Open," he said softly. She did and he pushed his long finger into her mouth, all the way in until she had to relax her throat to accommodate him. He added another finger and moved them in and out a few times, his other hand on her throat.

This panicked her for a split second but he felt her unease and stroked her throat instead of holding his hand there. Sookie knew that Eric wouldn't harm her and she concentrated on feeling her bond with him, finding no malicious intent anywhere below the surface. Eric, satisfied with her trust in him, moved on to massage her shoulders and her upper arms, feeling the tension in them from being restrained for so long. He used his considerable skill to massage the knots out of her arms, shoulders, and neck, then moved downward.

Eric's hands were like magic to Sookie. It was like a light flow of erotic current from his skin into hers everywhere he touched her. She had only one other lover to compare with but that other had never made her feel the way Eric did. Eric turned her on just by existing, by being in the same room. When he touched her it was pure bliss!

He covered her body with his own and began to lick, suck, and nip his way down her torso. Eric knew how to make a hickey, and he made several on the undersides of her breasts, earning giggles from Sookie. He tickled her ribs to torment her, try to get her to speak so he could punish her, but she played his game well. He got up next to her ear and growled playfully, putting his tongue in that one spot where he knew he would make her crazy. This time she was unable to protect her sensitive spot from him. As he tormented her with his tongue and his hands on her ribs and hipbones, another ticklish spot, she couldn't help but cry out. "Eric! Stop!"

His playful growl turned more menacing and he grabbed her earlobe with his teeth, biting harder than he normally would. "Lover, you are in big trouble now!" His voice had taken on a deeper tone even as he became more soft-spoken, a trademark of Eric's personality. He injected danger and a threatening tenor into his words as he started to debate himself. "How should I punish you?" He pretended to contemplate. "Sookie, Lover, I think you should ask me how I intend to punish you. Go ahead. Ask me!"

She said nothing, knowing through the feelings Eric projected through the bond that he was playing with her. She obstinately pursed her lips, keeping them tightly shut.

"That will not do, Lover," Eric admonished her. "I want you to ask me. Ask me how I will punish you. Do it now or I will…." And he began to tickle her unmercifully.

She could do nothing to escape his torment, so she cried out finally, "All right! All right! Stop! Please!" She was laughing so hard that tears were flowing down her face even though she kept her eyes tight shut as he had ordered her. "Eric!"

He stopped the tickling, but kept his fingers threateningly in place. "Ask me, Lover!"

Feeling very silly and unable to keep from grinning, she asked him. "Eric, how are you going to punish me?" This earned a kiss on the lips and a playful nip with his fangs on her vulnerable throat. Goosebumps covered her body and he enjoyed watching as they covered her chest all the way to her nipples.

He lightly drew his fingernails across her nipples and then produced a couple of clothes pins from the side nightstand. "I have not decided yet. Maybe I will torture your nipples." He took her left nipple in his mouth, sucked on it to make it stand up for him, and clamped it with the clothespin. She cried out at the pain, and he quickly repeated his action on the other side. Then, just as quickly, he removed them both, causing her to cry out again at the rush of sensation that came up. "Nope! I do not think so!" He kissed and licked both nipples to soothe them. Then he whispered in her ear, "I will be right back"

Sookie lay there, highly aroused, feeling both fear and anticipation of what he would do when he came back. He wasn't gone long. As soon as she felt his weight hit the bed he shocked her by inserting a very slippery finger in her ass. She tried to pull away from his invasion but he held her still and wiggled his finger. She squirmed as much as he would allow at the uncomfortable sensation of being penetrated there. "Maybe I will plug your tight little ass and spank you!" he threatened in her ear. She lay still, stiff and tense, afraid that he would make good on this threat. Nobody had touched her there before.

Just as quickly as the finger had gone up, he pulled it out. "No, I will have to think of a different punishment for you," he said in that threatening voice. "Ask me if I have any more ideas." As he said this, he began playing with her clitoris, very softly stimulating it with his finger. The sensations were delicious, and she began to move along with him. But he stopped. "Ask me, Lover."

She sighed, beginning to tire of his game. "Do you have any more ideas, Eric?"

He sensed the irritation in her tone and through the bond. "No, you will ask me in a civil manner. It is vitally important to you to know what I intend to do to you, is it not?" As he spoke, he added a second finger and started to arouse her once again. "Ask me, Lover."

She knew he would stop again if she didn't ask, and a particularly strong wave of pleasure hit her suddenly. "Ohhh!" she breathed. "Eric. Do you have any more ideas?" His fingers kept up their ministrations, and he added his tongue and fangs to the mix, sucking and biting her nipples in turn. He brought her right to the edge, and she was about to go over…"

"You know," he said, completely stopping his movements. "I do have an idea." Sookie let out a deep sigh and wanted to scream. He must have sensed this, because he covered her mouth with his own, kissing her deeply and keeping her right on that edge as his fingers softly touched her again. "I could deny you release," he whispered to her, kissing his way up her jawbone to her ear and back, then up the other side. His fingers would move a little, then stop. She thought she could fool him if she lay still but she couldn't. He had quickly become very adept at reading the signs she sent him through the bond, and he knew when she was about to lose control. He continued to kiss her, over and over, making her feel light-headed and almost drugged, as his fingers kept her right on the edge. "I could keep this up for hours, even days," he whispered.

But then, just as she was resigned to him tormenting her as he was threatening to do, he put pressure in just the right spot, sending her into an earth-shattering, screaming climax the likes of which she had never felt before. He held her still when she would have bucked and writhed and squirmed along with the waves as thy crashed over her body, and somehow that made it stronger. "Eric! Ohmigod Eric!" She wasn't sure if she was singing his praises or cussing him out but she couldn't help but to cry out his name.

"I changed my mind!" He said playfully as she lay there, spent and floating somewhere above the bed in her mind. She wanted to hit him, but she couldn't, so she just smiled and sighed contentedly. Then he reached up and undid the cuffs from both of her wrists, taking each one in turn and rubbing and kissing it to take away the red marks that had appeared.

"You are in so much trouble!" she whispered. "Wait until I get my strength back!" Eric knew it was an idle threat.

"You have been a very good girl, My Lover!" he told her. "You kept your eyes shut the entire time! Now, open them and look at me." This was an order, even if given gently.

She opened her eyes and found herself smiling into his. She thought his eyes had never looked so deeply, beautifully blue as they did now. He positioned himself between her legs and guided himself in, penetrating her gently, keeping his forehead touching hers so that they could see each other's eyes. No words were needed. Their eyes and the blood bond said everything that needed to be said.

Within minutes Sookie had another strong, deep release and Eric followed soon after. As he filled her with his seed, again, he could only think "Mine! You are finally mine! And I will never let you go!" His fangs ached for her, and he knew she wasn't used to going for hours like this. He would give her his blood, for strength. As she watched, he opened his own vein with his fingernail, making specific eye contact with her as he did so. "Drink, now!" he ordered, and pulled her head up to take his vein. At the same time he bit into the same spot he hadn't healed before. It hurt her a little, and she jumped, but as they shared blood with him buried deep inside of her, another orgasm overtook them and they went on a wild ride. To Eric, Sookie's hair blew back from her face as a strong, fragrant breeze carried them through the clouds, her face bathed in moonlight. To Sookie, Eric's strong arms protected her from a fierce storm. And then they both blacked out.

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All right, that's it! What did you think? Please review. Should I keep going? Write my own Season 5? Keep Eric and Sookie locked up together for a while longer? He does have more questions for her, and I have my own ideas about where to take other characters (even though I prefer to just isolate these two and write about them). I need your feedback! Thank you in advance!