Sookie's POV
David Bowie pipes through the sound system. It's a soundtrack I haven't heard since my childhood when Gran would let me and Jason rent a video as a special treat. It's strange hearing it in a room full of screaming lustful women. I look to the backstage to see that the gigantic Viking made it back out standing next to the hot Cajun clad in blue jeans. Both the men are laughing and conversing with one another. The big Viking must've decided to ditch his cheap helmet but he kept the rest of him covered in that cheap fur cape.
"Belinda's man Remy and Mag are best buds and business partners. We're hoping we can save the family business," Auggie says loudly over the music. Goblin boy ditches the cape and a screaming church lady catches it. His slender frame is now in tight white pants with a cod piece showing while Mr. Bowie sings about the underground.
"What kind of business is it?" I ask, trying to make small talk. I don't expect Auggie to answer me back. I thought it would be polite to engage in some sort of conversation while we watch the goblin crawl around on the stage.
"Oh it's a nature preserve of sorts. A hostel for wayward and unwanted supes. Eric is our number one client. We haven't asked him for any money after that girl was found in his flower bed. Only a hand full of trusted vampires know about the rare varieties of supes we keep. He leaves Louisiana, so will we," Auggie frowns and take a sip of her martini. "It's too dangerous and risky for us to stay."
"Daddy Karma's Haven? I saw the van parked outside," I take a sip of my gin and tonic.
"Of course you can see that. Most humans think it's a catering van for Daddy Joe's Craw-Daddy Shack. That spell has helped our friend Daryl's business to flourish. Actually it used to be Remy's restaurant that he inherited from his father. He sold it to his cook shortly after we opened the preserve for business," Auggie tells me as she whips out a five from her sweatshirt pocket. Goblin King is making his rounds after he slowly loses his pants.
"You're in the business of boarding supes. I bet that's pretty interesting work," I said.
"I'm not, Remy, B and Mag are but it will hurt my business as well. Me and my half-sis own and run Karma's Backbone. You may have heard of us?" Auggie stirs the olives around in her drink.
"That's the record store close to the antique store downtown. I've been by it but never inside. Looks like an interesting store though," I take a sip of my drink while Auggie leans her elbows on the table.
"Yeah, we're in danger of losing that too if another vampire takes over. Eric has always allowed my sister and me to work under the supernatural radar so to speak. We've been friends for a very long time. He never knew my sister until right before the vampires decided to come out of the coffin. Essie likes it here because she can be close to civilization without actually being a part of it. The world is not ready for her kind to return just yet. Mag can get by with it but not his poor old mother. It is important Eric stays right where he's at. Not just for you and my family but for the sake of others as well. Most vampires don't want a new sheriff, they are happy with the one they got now," Auggie looks distant and sad as she stirs the toothpick. "Eric leaving Louisiana has more of an impact than you realize."
"Where will you go?" I ask, trying to keep the conversation going. Augustine Spark is unusual as in she seems to want to share unlike a lot of supes I know.
"Essie has some land in the backwoods of North Carolina. It's one of those areas where humans get lost easily so it's pretty much protected. Remy, Belinda, and her kids are moving with us. Brooke is close to getting her teaching degree so that we can home school the kids and younger supes. That is if she can come along. Remy grew up in the bayou so he should be at home there. We have cabins already built and there's a nice clear lake. B and Remy like to take the kids there on summer vacations. A lot of places for her pup to hunt but I'm afraid Belinda is a city girl at heart. Brooke and her need other humans around," Auggie then bites an olive off the toothpick with her razor sharp teeth.
"What about Remy?" I ask still curious of the vibe the Cajun gives off.
"Remy is Remy. He's a rare sort of minor supe known as a hunter. His kind protects humanity from our kind. Remy hunts down the trouble makers and…well you know. There's not many of his kind left. Hopefully B can give the world another healthy little hunter so Remy can pass on the tradition. Although I have a feeling their boy is going to be hunting in a different kind of world than his father. More like paid mercenary sort of stuff. That is if we have to move to the backwoods. If not, he can help with the family business," Auggie looks distant again as she watches for the gyrating goblin.
"Belinda is expecting?" My curiosity peeked.
"She found out two weeks ago and told me tonight before she came to the bar. Yeah, there's a double pregnancy going on with our merry bunch. It's a good thing I've done the midwife thing a thousand times over. Between the two B's I'm going to be one busy little supe. Brooke's a little further along. Hopefully we can get something settled before she gets too far along. I worry about her. She needs her medicine. There is no way around it. Hopefully Dr. Ludwig makes wilderness calls. Brooke isn't going to be able to go to her regular neurologist if we have to move. Mag refuses to leave her behind even though Brooke said she will do what she has to. She might even have to go back to Ohio where her human family is. Her supernatural family will miss her," I feel pity for Auggie and I feel really bad for Mag all the sudden. I have never known supes to be so open about everything and here is Augustine Spark airing it all out.
"I worry about the humans in our party as is but Brooke doubly so as well as B's special need daughter. Although wilderness living might agree with Izzy. Odin knows that the organic living has helped some with her autism as well as the supes. They help with B's daughter quite a bit. They all love her, even the vampires. Especially my honey bunny, he has a way with kids and they seem to love him in return," Auggie sighs as she absently stirs the remainder of her martini. There is something honest in the way Auggie carries herself which makes me want to believe her.
"I need a laugh," she says as the goblin king slinks his way to our table. "You got an Honest Abe on you?"
"Sure, but isn't he only worth a Washington?" I ask her and that razor sharp smile returns.
"I like the way you think. I'd have to agree with you on that but really I was thinking more like a penny. That'll just fall out anyways. Make sure he sees the picture. Jareth absolutely loathes Lincoln. He winces every time a customer pays with a five at the store. He had a traumatic experience involving the sixteenth president. It was a case of mistaken identity. Abe thought he was a vampire and tried to kill him. That drunken goblin bastard managed to get away. To this day Jareth gives away every fiver and penny that comes his way. He's probably going to giveaway every Lincoln he gets tonight to the preserve," Auggie gives me a playful wink. "You're gonna love this. Watch!"
Goblin King comes strutting our way. He comes to me first and shakes those narrow hips. The cod piece and the black riding boots look downright ridiculous. "Why hello there love," he licks his teeth and gives me a playful eye fuck. He holds onto the handles of my chairs and slinks his way up my body. "Too bad you're not my kind beautiful. Auggie here must've told you that you're lacking a bit of something for my taste," he snaps his teeth at my ear. For being gay, this guy is sure playing straight to perfection. He reminds me of my no good fairy cousin except I have a strong feeling this guy is nicer than Claude. The way he showed concern for his friend backstage told me so much about his character. A genuine pompous ass wouldn't care about anybody else's feelings the way the goblin seemed to care about the giant. Even though I can't read his mind, I know Jareth the goblin king is all smoke and mirrors with his cocky demeanor.
I smile as I get a glimpse of those strange eyes. "You have something for me love. A tribute for the bloody goblin king," he gives me that sharp smile. I have to admit there is something oddly sexy about this supe even though he doesn't have much going on in the looks department. My guess is it has to be the accent or the way he seductively moves like a predator ready to go in for the kill.
"As a matter of fact I do," I said rather tartly making my own accent sound exaggerated. "Here you go sugar," I said as I wave the fiver in front of his sharp nose. He jumps and recoils a bit when he catches sight of the bearded man on the bill. He then allows me to stuff it into the G-string making sure a George Washington is covering his pale skin under the five dollar bill. He does his best to keep his composure and character as he gives me a playful wink. Auggie is right; it is comical that the goblin treats a five dollar bill like its kryptonite. Well worth the five bucks wasted.
Jareth strolls over to Auggie, still maintaining that 'I want to fuck you' stripper look. "You put her up to it, didn't you, you bloody little bint," Jareth practically growls and Auggie giggles.
"I needed a good laugh. You're lucky I didn't have her stick a penny between your ass cheeks," Auggie said as she stuffed her bill into his G-string. "Besides I know you plan on giving Remy and B a good portion of your take, fivers or not. I wouldn't insult them with pennies," she reaches up and pats his cheek playfully sticking her tongue out. Jareth the goblin smirks and snap his teeth playfully at her before moving on.
I glance to the backstage to see the giant giving me a warm smile. "He likes you," Auggie speaks out of the clear blue again. "He thinks you're lovely."
"Not the goblin," I answer and Auggie shakes her head.
"Mag," she answers back. "He thinks you're a good woman and he's sorry he scared you like he did. He never meant to. Mag really is a big sweetie. Just ask Belinda, she'll tell you. I'm not saying it because he's my nephew."
I look to the backstage to see Mag motioning Auggie. She nods at him and he returns it. "He is wondering if you would like to come see him at intermission. He's probably made some iced coffee. Mag makes a mean cup of Joe. You can meet Remy too while we're there," the little supe tells me.
"How can I turn down iced coffee? Of course I'll come," I politely tell her. Auggie gives me a smile that she somehow managed to make look warm despite that mouth full of sharp choppers. I figure I better make my peace with Mag considering he never really did anything wrong except for being all big and Viking. You'd think I would be used to that by now? Besides I was the one being rude, not Mag. He spoke like a gentleman and handled me like I was the most important person he has ever met even though it was the other way around. I just froze and stood there like a ninny.
Auggie nods to the big man behind the stage. Mag nods back with that warm smile again. He also gives Auggie a thumbs-up gesture which last I checked, not in the supe etiquette handbook. Then again, maybe being a deity of sorts makes you exempt from having a stick up your ass.
"Supes do have sticks up their asses," Auggie lets out a sigh. "Then again rules are meant to be broken. It's not like we have Ms. Manners breathing down our necks. Mag just wants to be an average guy. He's through with the whole worshipping thing. Being worshipped was never a favorite of Mag's, even as a child. Being the son of Thor has its downsides."
"I need to make my amends. I was rude to him. My Gran raised me better than that," I mumble and the tiny supe gives me a smile.
Belinda's POV
"We need to talk," I tell the awestruck vamp before me. "In private. Away from the others."
Eric lets out an exasperated sigh. He takes me into his arms careful of the silver tip on my cane. I've gotten quite used to our privacy arrangement whenever I meet with Eric here at Fangtasia. The roof over at the strip mall has become our personal conference room. There have been several times I didn't trust Eric's office, hell I don't even think Eric trust his own office. Knowing Felipe De Castro or as I like to call him Felipe De Castrate, he has hidden bugs all over the place. It didn't matter that Esmeralda's assistant Harvey came around once a week to do a sweep, there was always a bug or two to be found.
"We are going to have to find a new meeting place. Felipe still has spies you know," Eric tells me as he takes to the air. "If this is about Karma business, we can conduct it at your place. It's not safe here."
"I know, Harvey found three bugs out in the bar the other day. I don't like talking about our little nature preserve here at Fangtasia anymore than you do. Besides, it's not about that, it's about you," I thought Eric was going to drop me before we made it to the flat rooftop where there always seems to be couple of folding chairs. Seems this is where the strip mall maintenance department goes to slack. Thank God for slackers because my knees were always grateful to have those chairs there. Eric set me down on the concrete rooftop still being careful of the dull silver tip of my cane. Eric is no dummy when it comes to the amount of silver Remy and I carry on us. Even my little girl Izzy sports a silver crucifix that she always removes whenever she knows Eric is around. My boy Andy on the other hand suffers from a silver allergy called being a werewolf. He has silver tipped weapons, silver bullets, and a silver coated sword but never anything he can wear. Too risky and plus he can turn much quicker than any werewolf out there. Andy is sort of considered a super alpha amongst his kind, the king of the wolves but he's still my son and I worry oodles about him all the same.
"About me? Belinda, you must explain yourself. You know I can always leave you on this rooftop," Eric always thinks he has the upper hand with me when truth be known many supes would hurt him if he did such a thing, especially my buddy the frost giant. I don't mean Mag, I mean Mag's Uncle Vaftinrudir. Uncle V and I are as thick as thieves and Eric doesn't want to be on the bad size of a twelve foot four frost giant. I've seen them two wrestle. What Eric has in speed, V has in might and needless to say the giant knows how to throw his weight around which is close to that of an elephant.
"You do know that's not going to work. I'm missing for five minutes and one hell of a search party will be sent out. Not to mention one very pissed off hunter and frost giant. I've seen you and Vaft fight before. He nearly took your arm clean off. My money is on him," Eric's smirk wiped clean off his face. Eric knows he is no match for the giants, any of 'em. They are much older and stronger than any vampire I know. According to Vaft and Essie, most giants are as old as the earth itself. They prefer to live near nature and know how to stay under the radar of man and other supes. Unfortunately the giants are running out of places to hide because of human progress. I guess giants are the original tree huggers.
"You have way too many friends in high places," Eric gives me that smirk again like he is enjoying his word play.
"V felt really bad about that. He's a big 'ole softie. Besides, he likes you. You're one of the few fanged he likes," Eric and I seem to be going into conversational mode, something that seems to come pretty natural for the both of us these days.
"Is the boy still giving him troubles?" Eric asks about Randal.
"Plenty, but you know V. He does a fair job of taking care of it. I think he showed you his pit he made the last time you stopped by. We reinforced it with concrete and silver bars. V makes sure he keeps it covered during the day. The other night he supervised Randal for Remy. I made him clean the dog house toilets," I tell Eric about our teenage problem child vamp.
"That is very cruel and unusual Belinda," Eric laughs a bit. "I like the way you think. I guess that's one reason I keep you around."
"That and the supes seem to take somewhat of a shine to me," I said as I sit down holding my cane between my legs. "We need to get down to the brass tacks Northman. Why are you avoiding Sookie?"
Eric lets out a low growl at the mention of her name. If I were any ordinary human being I would be shaking in my shoes and trying to find an escape route ASAP. I've seen big, bad and blond like this several times before. I've seen him destroy phones, desk chairs, bar stools, the bar, and his desk all because of Sookie Stackhouse. A growl is nothing which means he must have thought long and hard.
"I don't want to talk about it. You are one of the few humans I trust Belinda but you can't possibly understand," Eric began to pace back and forth.
"Try me. I know this has to be about that stupid marriage contract," Eric moves at me with his speed, baring fangs. He huffs at me with a pissed off look in his eyes as he gets up into my face. I should be pissing my pants by now but as I've said before, I know better. I unscrew the hidden knife just in case. I make good and sure he sees it even though we both know I won't use it. Eric then gives me a frustrated sigh and lets go of the chair handles. He runs his hand through his thick blond hair.
"I must go through with it. There is no way out of it. It is my maker's final wishes. I've tried to get myself free of it but Sookie took away my final hope only to save that…shifter," Eric spits out in disgust.
"Watch it now! Some of my closest friends are shifters and Weres. There will be no hating on the two natured in my presence. You might as well tell me I'm a bad mother for having a werewolf son. What does Pam think of all this?" I ask, surprisingly Eric has shared with me a lot lately which is very unusual for any vampire let alone the great and powerful Eric Northman. It all started with his feud he has been having with his progeny. Eric needed someone to vent to and Sookie was way out the question and so that responsibility fell on little old me. Lucky me, right?
"She thinks I need to kill Fredya and Felipe. That would only cause war. Sookie has been through so much already. I am not prepared for another war. My alliances are too thin. I thought to ask Magni," Eric tells me, obviously trying to hold back his blood tears. Eric and I have developed a close friendship, something I have a strong feeling that the vampire hasn't had in a very long time. He comes to me for advice about humans and I give him the best advice I can. He keeps my supernatural family under wraps from the vampire hierarchy so I guess we watch out for each other.
"Mag won't help you, you know that. He can give you advice but he can't free you of this contract with his godly powers. No matter if he is a powerful god or not. Mag promised his grandpa he will never interfere. Odin's word is law amongst his people, you know that better than anyone," I tell him as I put my knife away. "Maybe I can talk to him about backing you up some other way. Problem is, Mag doesn't want much to do with the supe world either, especially since he found out there's a kid on the way."
Eric's eye widened at the mention of Mag being a father. "Good God Northman, don't tell me I have to explain the birds and bees to you. I've already explained it to Andy, can't you wait until I have to explain it to Izzy? Awkward enough having to explain it to my boy," I jokingly tell the shocked vampire. I then give him a serious look. "She has a medical condition. Odin assured Mag that the child will have no Asgardian traits other than it being part frost giant. Her condition requires a human doctor, there's no magic that can fix it. She has one here in Shreveport Mag takes her to. She needs her medicine or she won't be able to make it if we have to move out of Louisiana. Mag will have to leave her behind and he will be heartbroken. Mag has built a life with her in it and he plans on staying with her for the long haul but he can't do that if you are no longer sheriff. Brooke will move back to Ohio where she will end up being a single mother working slave wage jobs because no one likes to hire epileptics. Giants aren't cheap as is let alone a growing one. Mag will send all the money he can but that's not the point. We need you here as much as Sookie needs you here."
Eric hangs his head low and sits on the folding chair next to mine. He lets out a frustrated sigh. "The long haul you say," Eric repeats. "This is a bigger dilemma than I thought."
"Yep, he plans on staying with her through the gray hair, wrinkles, and all," I said and Eric gives me a thoughtful look. Another look shadows his features. "Already discussed it. Mag doesn't what her to be a vampire. Believe it or not, Mag likes her as is."
"Sookie offered to run away with me," he tells me out of the blue. "I don't want to take her away from her home. She has too many fond memories of her home. She needs to stay but…"
"You're thinking about bolting anyway, aren't you? That's not much of an option. It's one thing for us to pull up stakes and leave but Eric this is not you. We have to leave to protect the giants. The world is not ready. Mag knows this and so does his mom. Think of how the world as whole would react to know that they are not the superior ones anymore. It sure the hell wouldn't be like the Great Revelation that's for sure. We would have the Viking age all over again even though the peaceful ones stayed in this realm. You are and will always be the giants main source of protection. You go and marry that bitch it all goes to hell in a hand basket," I ranted on. Eric gives me a smirk. I know he gets amusement every time I get on my soapbox.
"Still a firecracker, aren't you? Belinda, I understand your dilemma. It's just…" Eric gets that distant look in his eyes.
"You don't want to leave either. You're talking about bolting yet you can't," I calmly tell him.
"It would be for the best. I can't hurt Sookie anymore than she already is. Compton and Pam offered to watch over her for me but they will in indebted to Felipe. I hate to think what will become of her. I know Felipe will force her to do his bidding," Eric puts his head in his hands. I do something I would never do in front of the other vampires, Pam included. I get up out of the cheap plastic chair and I give Eric a half hug. Bloody tears roll down his cheeks as we both sit here in silence on the dirty rooftop of Toys R Us.