Sorry I haven't posted in a while but I have been dealing with some pretty fierce morning sickness. I originally want this chapter to be Victor and Felipe but Sookie and Eric just wouldn't wait!! Enjoy.

Erics thoughts/words and in bold. Sookies thoughts and words are not.

Chapter 17

Vampire don't dream. So when Eric realised he was dreaming for the first time in a thousand years he was shocked, to say the least. Is this a dream? If so, how could this be? He asked himself. He looked around himself and found he was in a forest, similar to the primeval woods of this human days. All around him he could hear whispers and movements. Why am I here? he asked himself, spinning around again and again to locate the source of the soft voices but there were all around him. The night sky above him was clear and the bright moon illuminated the dewy fern fronds at his bare feet.

She was laughing and talking rapidly with the person beside her. All around her was hazy. A low clamour threatened to rise up if she stopped talking. Then her conscious mind kicked in and the haze cleared. Sookie blinked her eyes rapidly and gazed around at her surroundings. A lush forest lay before her. Trees so tall and straight she couldn't she the tops. The lush undergrowth of ferns and moss gave off an earthy scent. Sunlight shone sidelong through the trees. "What?...Where am I?" she asked the trees.

"In my kingdom, my child." he said

Sookie turned to look at the ethereal being by her side. He emanated warmth and love. She closed her eyes and bathed in it. Her movements where slow and fluid, and she loved it. "This must be what it's like to be high," she said to herself. She held her hand out in front of her face and waved it through the air a few times, enjoying the sensation. She looked again to Niall and they smiled at each other.

"The way you are feeling is due to Time."

"Time? I don't understand" she said gazing intently at the slow movements of the fern by her bare feet. She forced her attention back to Niall.

"My Dear One, a human lifetime is short. It is rush and chaos. So much to do with so little time in which to do it. It is unlike the life of the Fae, which can last many eons. Time passes slowly for us here. You are not used to this slow passage of time and as a result you can see time moving.

"That's something to think about but why am I here? I was...somewhere." she said, suddenly confused.

"I have something to offer you, Sookie."

"Offer? I don't know....I'm...I was with someone. We were... Niall, why can't I remember?" She asked, trying to fight the fog encasing her mind. She caught a glimpse of something moving through the trees.

"Look at me, Sookie" Niall cooed. She turned her attention back to him. His blue eyes, paled by his age, were so gentle. In her mind flashed the vidid blue eyes of a much younger man. Something began nagging at her but she couldn't catch the tail end of it as it fled from her thoughts. "Would you like to stay here a while. We have much to talk about, you and I."

"I would like that" she said, smiling. She embraced her kin and, glancing over his shoulder, she caught glimpses of the figure of a man walking behind the trees. He was a tangle of shadows, moving erratically. He would take a step, disappear, then reappear a few feet futher on. "Who is that?" she asked Niall.

Eric knew his bonded was close. He could feel her. Joy, love, confusion. This place he found himself in could only be the work of fairies. Damn them! I should never have introduced Sookie to her bastard Great grandfather. He has caused her nothing but pain. I can assume this is a last ditch attempt to lure her into to his realm. I must find her quickly. He called out to her. He felt eyes on him. Did she see him when he couldn't see her? He reached out to her through the bond, hoping her blood would recognise his. He could feel her keenly and began moving towards the clearing ahead of him.

"I see nothing" Niall said without bothering to look.

"He's right there, amongst the trees." she pointed to him. The man focused his attention on where Niall and Sookie were seated but he didn't seem able to see them. Niall ignored the man. "I know him. I have seen him before." she said, looking to Niall for answers. "Is he a fairy too? What is his name?"

"He is no fairy. That, my child, is your husband."

Sookie snorted. "Don't be ridiculous, I'm married to Eric" she said before her mind could catch up with her tongue. "Eric," she said aloud to herself. "I am married to Eric...Northman. She stood, releasing her hand from Niall grasp, and faced to strange man. She remembered everything. "Niall what is going on? Why could I not remember him? Why am I here, I should be dead. Eric turned me. If I am a vampire now how can I be in the sun talking to you?" she said. Sookie looked about her and noticed the edges of the clearing where darkening, as if the night stalked the day.

"It is Time, my child. This is my offer to you. You can stay here in the Fae realm. You will be safe. We are your family. You can take your rightful place as a Fae princess. You can have all the children you desire.

"What about Eric?" she asked looking at the collection of shadows.

"As you have seen, you will quickly forget him and the pain his kind have put you through."

For a second she was truly tempted. To stay in this beautiful world and all it held for her. "I'm sorry Niall, I truly wish I could stay. My future is with Eric."

"Eric, come to me," she said as she reached out to grasp the shadows. When she touched them the shifting shadows collected and fell into themselves. The darkness that had surrounded the clearing now engulfed them. Niall was gone. Sookie looked up at the sky. Once light blue, it was now royal blue and tinted with the glint of stars. Before her, the shadows were now the solidified form of Eric. She gazed up into his beautiful eyes as he gathered her to his chest. She closed her eyes and smiled.

Sookie jerked awake but found she couldn't move. The overpowering smell of wet earth flooded her senses. She drew breath instinctively but began to choke. She then knew where she was. In the ground. She reached out for Eric but found herself alone. She was still for a moment, thinking what to do when she felt her insides seize. All she could think of was 'dig'. She began clawing at the earth around her and the more she dug the looser the soil became. As her hands touched damp foliage she knew she was almost out. She was nearly frantic. Her emotions were a tangled mess of guilt, regret and anger. She was confused by what she was feeling until she realised they were not her emotions. Eric's mind was racing. Have I done the right thing? Will she hate me for this? I cannot know. All I feel from her is numbness. My gods! What have I done! He had called to her as her maker and commanded her to dig as he waited above ground for her to rise. With each moment his anxiety grew

With one last effort she pulled herself out of the ground and lay face up on the wet ground, using fallen pine needles as her pillow. She made a mental note of everything she was feeling. She could feel untapped energy rushing through, tingling at her extremities. She took note of every smell, sight and sound. After a long moment she stood up and looked at Eric. Her Maker, her lover, her husband. She saw the pain in his eyes and the rush of his emotions overtook her. I can feel everything he's feeling and it's too much for me. The look in her eyes was as pained as his but for a different reason. Sookie ran from him. With her new vampire speed she was out of sight in an instant.

Eric stood alone. Is this my heart breaking? If I call to her as he maker will she resent me? He suddenly caught a scent on the air and began running after her. The smell of animal blood and gunpowder indicated hunters in the area. If he wasn't fast his child may bevour the lot of them in her hunger. Quickly he came across their camp site. He found Sookie standing behind a tree gazing intently at the group of men. "Sookie, my Lover, please..." he started. She made no indication she heard him. Sookie was focused of the new sensations she was feeling. The burning in her belly was almost unbearable. Her new hunger seared her from the inside out. She closed her eyes as she dug her fingernails into the bark of the tree until they began to snap off. Eric could feel her thirst as he stepped closer to her. "Sookie," he whispered, "come away from here. You do not want to hurt anyone. I have True Blood for you to drink. " Sookie opened her eyes and turned to look at Eric.

"No. I don't want to hurt them," she said flatly. Eric placed his hands on her small shoulders and tried to lead her away but she refused to move. He would pick her up and carry her away if he had to.

"Sookie, my Child, come with me now!" he whispered hoarsely, using a Makers influence to gain her obedience.

Sookie turned to look up at him. "No, Eric, you don't understand." She reached up and took his face in both her face and brought him down to her eye level. "I can't hear them, Eric. I can't read their minds."

Eric began to feel small spasms of emotion coming from Sookie. Her hunger was great but with it was mixed a small amount of fear and suprise. Eric wrapped his arms around her waist and held her to him tightly. She smiled dreamily to herself. "It's so quiet." Eric held her away from him, her small head in his huge hands as he smoothed back her hair, still full of earth and leaves.

"I'm so sorry Sookie. I wish it could have been different. I had to make you choose me no matter what. I wasn't about to let you go queitly into the night. I'm a selfish bastard and I know I will pay dearly for what I have done to you. You will say you love me but I will always know a part of you will resent me for..."

"Stop right there Buddy," she said, placing her palm on his chest, "How could I resent you for the freedom you have given me?"

"How can you not?" he hissed, his anger rising. "I have ripped you away from all you knew and loved. I will regret it to the day I meet my final death." he said. He heard the sound of the slap before he felt it's sting. How did she do that?

Sookie stood fuming for a moment before reconsidering her actions. "I'm sorry." she said. She reached up and cupping his cheek, pulled him closer to kiss him. Softly at first but her passion grew quickly and soon they were clutching each other as if the world might end if they stopped. Eric felt her hunger for blood, and other things, growing. He held her close to him as he took to the sky. Within minutes they landing on a pebbled lake shore. Eric produced a bottle of blood for Sookie. "Sorry it's cold, Dearest" he said as he shook it, uncapped it and handed it to her. Sookie took the bottle in both hands and stared down at it hesitantly. Am I actually about to do this? After a moments thought she said, "It isn't a gin and tonic but I will have to do." She closed her eyes as she put it to her lips and began swallowing. Eric looked on expectantly while trying to hide a small smile. When the bottle was empty, Sookie placed it at her feet. She used the back of her hand to wipe her mouth.

"So..?" Eric asked.

Sookie look at him sheepishly. "What? You know what is tastes like."

Eric grinned back at her. "We need to get cleaned up. Remove your clothes and wash off in the water."

"But it's freezing in there!" she balked before remembering her new state of being. "Fine then."

Sookie quickly stripped off her filthy clothing and, throwing a sulty backwards glance at Eric, waded into the water. She heard Eric wading into the water behind her. When the water was up to her thighs, she dove underwater and began to kicked hard and fast. Her movement through the water amazed her. Eric stood in the shallows, water lapping at his waist, as he watched his new child dive in and disappear. He was feeling her emotions more keenly now. Her amazement and wonder at her new state were his joys to behold. Sookie swam deep down until all around her was black. Panic quickly took of her when realized she hadn't taken a breath yet. Vampires don't breath. The realisation soothed her. She looked up through the water and with her new vampire eyes she could clearly see the moon and stars above. It reminded her of the times she had laid on her lawn at home and star gazed. She wished she was back home again. Pop.Sookie landed with a slippery thud. Her wet hair hung in clumps over her face. "Eric! What the Hell..?" she asked. As she pulled the hair away from her face she realised with horror that she was on the porch of her own home back in Bon Temps. And that she was very wet and very naked.

Eric tensed and then jerked his head back suddenly. He couldn't feel her through the bond. "Sookie," he whispered. When he got no reply, he froze in panic, not knowing what to do. She just disappeared. How could this be? If I can not feel her though the bond she must be very far away or....in the Fae realm. Memories of her abduction mingled painfully with the strange dream he had during her turning. He had no way of finding her but one. He closed his eyes and called to his child. A makers call was a powerful tool and could reach around across the world. If needed it could bring a vampire back to its maker kicking and screaming. It was not something he ever used on his children but in this instance he felt it necessary.

Sookie stood up and looked around her. In the darkness she could see a figure moving in the woods. She could smell vampire. She turned to go inside the house knowing she would be safe from unwanted vamps. As she reached for the door knob she was pushed back by an invisible force. The harder she tried to reach the knob and harder the unseen force pushed her back. Then the other shoe dropped. Oh my God, I have to be invited into my own home. She heard movement coming towards her. She spun around to face the stranger. Suddenly she was overcome by an all consuming need to be near Eric. "What the hell is going on? I wish I was with Eric." Pop. Sookie hit the water with a splash. Water filled her mouth and nose and she let out a strangled cry. Before she could find her footing Eric had his arm around her waist and was hoisting her out of the water. When they landed on the shore Eric grabbed upper arms and squeezed hard.

"Where the fuck did you go!" he yelled. The rush of his emotions again overwhelmed her. When she was to stunned to answer he shook her violently. "Answer your Maker!" he roared.

Back at Sookie farmhouse in Bon Temps, Bill Compton stood on her porch. He wasn't sure what he just saw. She looked like Sookie, and smelled like Sookie. She just appeared out of thin air and just as quickly disappeared. Is my Sookie dead? Was it her ghost coming home? He started to shake with anger and sorrow for what he had thought he had lost. His eyes caught sight of puddles of water and wet foot prints leading to the front door. It hasn't rained today. How is this possible?He felt a glimmer of hope that she was still alive. If anyone could keep her alive it was that bastard Northman. Thanks God for him, he thought bitterly.