A/N: Let me start out by saying a few things. Once again, thank you everyone who has reviewed and alerted to this story. I am a feedback addict. The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. XD Seriously though, it really brightens my day when my phone gives the familiar notification of an e-mail and I read one of your amazing reviews. I couldn't be more thankful, and this story wouldn't be out if it weren't for you. So thank you again. Secondly, I would like to point out a peeve of mine. I don't know about all of you, but it annoys me to no end when I read a fanfic and the word 'orbs' is used to describe eyes. *shudders* So don't be surprised when that word isn't used at all except to describe a round, shiny object. That is all. Now this chapter took a while to do because it was the foundation of the rest of the story, so I really hope you enjoy!
I stepped out of the shower some ten minutes later. I had almost fallen asleep in standing up in the hot water. It was something about showers that always relaxed me. It must have been the idea of scrubbing all the events of the day away. Whatever it was, it was nice.
I lifted my feet up and onto the cool linoleum. I picked up the towel from the rack and dried my body and hair. I spotted my hair dryer in my overnight bag on the sink. I plugged it in and began drying my hair on cool. I was hoping the cool air blowing in my face would wake me up some, but it seemed it was unsuccessful. A sigh emitted from my lips, causing me to yawn.
"Hurry up in there." I heard Eric say from my bedroom. "Women take far too long in the bathroom." He mumbled.
"Well, you're the one who wanted me to look presentable." I mumbled.
I put my makeup on quickly, but accurate. My eyes found the dress Eric had gotten me, and I got goosebumps looking at it. It was still one of the most beautiful dresses I've ever laid eyes on. It was tied up there with the Vera Wang evening gown I had seen on a celebrity in Vogue. I guess this dress was the most beautiful dress I've ever touched. That didn't mean I wasn't going to try and sneak it back into Eric's possession when I got the chance. I had morals, and those didn't include accepting gifts for the soul purpose to make me look good when I have nothing else in my wardrobe.
I sighed again and grabbed the dress. I knew there was no use in arguing over wearing the dress with Eric. I would try to sneak it into his desk at Fangtasia the next time I got the chance.
Once the dress was on me, I admired myself in the mirror.
I had pulled half of my hair up and secured it up at the back of my head with a big black velvet bow clip, letting the rest of my hair fall in soft waves down my shoulders. The dress fit my figure perfectly, as if it was made just for me. It made me question exactly how Eric was able to get a dress for me that seemed to fit my unusual measurements to a tee. I decided quickly that I didn't want to know. Maybe it was a vampire thing. Regardless, the dress fit me like a glove, hugging all my curves in all the right places. I looked elegant, but not too much so. I was dressed nice, but not so much that I would stand out given the circumstances.
With one last look at myself, I took a deep breath and stepped out of the bathroom. I took in Eric's figure, his back to me, standing in the middle of the room. He turned over and took in my appearance, his fangs extending ever so slightly as his eyes roamed my body.
"It seems I have an excellent taste in fashion, despite what Pam may think. You look amazing Rayne." He said, striding towards me.
He was wearing his usual get up, with minor differences. He was wearing a black long sleeved button-up that fit his body as well as the dress did mine. His solid black pants looked brand new, not a hint of fading on them what so ever as they hugged his long legs. He had his black leather jacket on, covering most of the shirt with three buttons open to give a peek of his muscular chest. Eric might be an asshole sometimes, and might know how to push my buttons sometimes, but there was no denying he had fashion sense and knew exactly what to wear to make him look absolutely mouth-watering.
As I suppressed the urge to rip every shred of clothing covering that perfect body, I merely nodded. "You look nice as well. Though, you're the reason people think vampires only wear black."
He chuckled. "I've always been fond of the color. You seem to have no complaints."
That was true. Dark colors on this vampire just accentuated his amazing body. I wonder what he'd look like underneath all those clothes..
Stop it Rayne! This is Eric! Get those thoughts out of your head!
He must have felt my quickly hidden emotion, as he stepped closer to me so I had to crane my neck upwards just to look at his face. He smirked down at me. I was beginning to think he had no other facial expressions.
"Am I distracting you?" He said, his cool breath feeling fantastic on my now red face.
I shook off all evidence of my thoughts and stormed towards the door, picking my jacket up along the way.
"We're going to be late, come on." I said, looking over at the vampire who was watching me, a smile on his face.
"As you wish," he said, motioning for me to continue on out the door. "I have to make sure Sookie and Bill are ready. Let's hope they didn't get too distracted."
I shuddered at the thought of Sookie and Bill doing the nasty. I shook off the disturbing images as we arrived at their door. Eric knocked rather loud, probably another one of his ways to show dominance. Men. What can you do?
Bill answered the door before nodding, motioning for us to come in. Sookie was sitting on the couch, and stood up when we came in.
"Is Jessica coming?" I asked Bill.
"She better not be, I can't handle two humans and that nuisance of a vampire you've created, Bill." Eric said, his eyebrows furrowing into a frown.
Sookie and I both shot Eric a glare before Sookie retorted. "No, she's been talking to Hoyt all night. I wouldn't be going tonight either Eric if I wasn't ordered to." She spat venomously.
Eric merely snickered and motioned towards the door. "Are you both ready to leave? We've already been held up long enough thanks to the tiresome primping women feel the need to exalt whenever they go out."
I took this time to look at Sookie. She was dressed in a short red dress that looked like a giant bandanna. Her blonde hair was clipped on the side of her head with a pin decorated with three small daisies. She looked like your typical 'girl next door'. That's what I loved about the contrast of Sookie and I. Sookie gave off the innocent vibe, while I gave off one different all together. I gave off the "don't screw with me, I'm a force to be reckoned with" vibe. I knew different though. Sookie could pack a punch if she wanted to. She didn't take shit from people, and I loved that about her. Still, she could use a make over.
"Piss off, Eric." I growled before stepping out of the door.
We had taken Eric's Corvette to the Dallas nest, all of us piled into the small sports car.
I'm going to take this time to add: Eric's driving scares me shitless.
We had to have been going 80mph in a residential neighborhood. Bill had yelled at Eric to slow down multiple times, seeing that me and Sookie were grasping onto the 'oh shit' handles for dear life. This just egged Eric on and he merely sped up, causing both Sookie and I to nearly have a panic attack.
Once we were outside of the Dallas nest, I jumped out of the car and thanked a god I didn't believe in that I was still alive. Sookie almost kissed the ground when she rushed out of the car with the same urgency I had. Bill stepped out of the car, rubbing Sookie's back and shooting Eric a glare. Eric merely smirked as he looked over to me. I frowned and stormed up to him. I slapped him in the face with all the strength I had and he stumbled into the car, a look of surprise crossing his features.
"Eric, you may not remember, but we're human! You might not die from a fatal car crash, but to us it's just as it's labeled... FATAL! I swear if you ever drive like that again with me in the car, I'll stake you myself!" I seethed, my eyes piercing him.
Sookie watched wide eyed as Eric straightened himself, a big red hand print on his face. I gasped at the power I had. I hit him as hard as I could, only because I knew he could handle it. I thought I'd hurt myself more than him. It seems I guessed wrong.
"Oh shit, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you that hard!" I apologized, running up to him and pressing my hand to his face gently, assessing the damage I had done.
As soon as my hand came in contact with his face, an shock wave radiated through my fingertips. I whipped my hand back at the sudden feeling and looked down at it. The feeling wasn't painful, it felt more like a small shock, like static electricity from touching Eric's skin. It actually felt... nice.
Eric looked over at me, a smirk playing his lips. "You never cease to amaze me, Rayne. You're much more powerful than I gave you credit. Shall we go."
I watched as the big red hand that was imprinted on Eric's face began slowly paling, until there was no evidence of it being there at all. I watched wide eyed. I was getting used to seeing the rate at which vampires healed, but that didn't mean it wasn't still amazing to me. I nodded after a moment and we all followed Eric towards the large house. It wasn't as miraculous as I was expecting. Don't get me wrong, it was a lavish house. But for some reason I was expecting an over-the-top mansion with guards patrolling the grounds and what not. Before we even reached the porch, the door opened to reveal a young, hispanic vampire.
"Welcome, Eric. We've been expecting you." She said as she held the door open for our party.
Eric nodded and we all followed him into the house. It looked so much bigger on the inside. There were bookshelves on almost every wall filled to the brim with literature that I was sure I wouldn't be able to understand. We were ushered into a large, open living room. There was another vampire sitting on the couch, a hat covering his face. I chuckled when I saw that this was a cowboy hat. This vampire looked he took fashion advice from Chuck Norris. Knowing the density of vampires, he probably did.
The hispanic vampire motioned us to have a seat on the large couch, and only me and Sookie obliged. I had to admit, this woman was gorgeous. Her mocha skin contrasted with the cream of her suit in the most elegant way. She had a very warm aura, but I was sure that wasn't all this vampire was. She smiled sweetly at us as she introduced herself.
"It's been a long time Eric." She said, nodding to Eric. "Bill, I assume? I've heard much about you." Her head bobbed to Bill, who nodded in return. "Now let me guess," she said with a slender finger lightly touching her jaw before she lifted it to point at Sookie. "You must be Sookie." Sookie nodded and bowed a small bit. The woman's eyes met mine as she studied me for a moment before speaking. "That must mean you're Rayne. It's nice to meet you all. My name is Isabel." She smiled, then her expression changed as she frowned and nodded her head towards the vampire cowboy who was now standing. "This is Stan."
I took in the other vampire and tried as hard as I could not to laugh. He was a lot to observe. He removed his black hat, holding it in one hand. He was wearing a dark brown button up shirt with large round buttons, a black suede jacket covering it. Dark brown slacks covered his legs and (surprise) a leather belt with a large metal buckle fastened them to his hips. I stopped myself from looking down at his feet, almost certain I would find cowboy boots and spurs.
Stan wrinkled his nose and looked over to Isabel. "You should have told me Eric hired fucking humans, Isabel." He seethed.
"Well wait just a minute!" Sookie spat out, hand on her hip. I merely rolled my eyes.
"Respect her!" Bill growled.
"Thank you, Bill." Sookie said, nodding at Bill and smiling.
"I couldn't tell you Stan, you've been off on your own for days." Isabel said, crossing her arms and glaring at Stan. All the warmth this woman had when we first arrived was wiped out when she started conversing with the cowboy.
Eric ignored their bickering and paced behind me. "Are you certain Godric was abducted by the Fellowship of the Sun?" He asked, stopping his routine to look at the two.
They both answered differently at the same time, Stan agreeing while Isabel disagreed. They looked at each other before Stan rolled his eyes and stated his point.
"They're the only ones with the organization and man power." He said, sounding annoyed.
It was Isabel's turn to do some eye rolling. "But they're amateurs. It doesn't make any sense. This is Godric we're talking about; two thousand years old." She said, looking straight at Eric.
I gasped a little. I had figured Godric was an old vampire, but I didn't expect him to be that much so. I mean, two thousand years of walking the earth? I'm sure he'd be able to tell someone whether or not Jesus really existed.
"Old don't make you smart." Stan retorted, raising his eyebrow. I had to admit, that was true. Eric still showed signs of being less than wise sometimes, and he was probably older than these two.
Isabel ignored his statement and continued. "Besides there's no proof." She said, turning her head towards Stan. These two were really starting to give me a headache from their constant bickering.
It was my time to speak. "If they've got him, we'll hear it." I said, the two turning their attention towards me. "That's why we're here."
"There's no reason to wait. We need to take these fanatics down; full out attack. Exterminate them like the vermin they are, and leave no trace." He said smugly. Everyone rolled their eyes at his ludicrous idea.
"Hm. Vampire hating church annihilated, wonder who did it? Fucking brilliant!" Isabel said, her words dripping with sarcasm.
"I doubt the king of Texas would approve the destruction of our international political agenda." Bill said. Isabel waved an arm in exasperation, looking to Stan. That Bill, always reasonable.
"Fuck that." Stan said. Personally, I liked Stan's idea. Those bastards tried to kidnap me and Sookie. God knows what they would have done to us, had they succeeded. Go ahead, kill them all. In fact, turn them all into vampires. See how they like being hated on. "The Great Revelation is the biggest mistake we ever made." Apparently Stan missed being able to be the beast he was, hunting without fear of imprisonment.
"Don't use Godric to make your own little power play." Isabel hissed at Stan.
"You're completely incompetent!" Eric howled. I jumped a little at the sheer volume of his voice. It was clear he was getting just annoyed at I was at the pair. We were here to discuss a plan. A reasonable plan, at that. We weren't here to be an audience while these two argued forever. Since they were both strong opinioned vampires, they could do just that. "What's happened to Godric that he surrounds himself with clowns." He spat.
"We invited you as a courtesy. This is not your territory. You have no voice here." Isabel spat, stalking up to Eric with her eyes narrowed.
Eric glared at her and clenched his jaw. I knew well enough that Eric didn't like being talked to in such a disrespectful way. I was just surprised he didn't try to show his authority.
"Yeah sheriff, why don't you run on back down to Louisiana." Stan sneered. Of course, they finally agree and it's on trying to down Eric. These two were starting to get on my nerves. We were here to help, and all they were doing was arguing. If anything, Eric's accomplishing more than they are. "We don't need you or your puppets." Stan spat, smirking at Eric.
I narrowed my eyes at Stan. Right about now, I was wishing a piano would fall on this assholes head. We were here to help, and he was just being an unappreciated jackass. I really didn't like this guy.
"Oh, I'm not going anywhere." Eric said, bowing his head to stare down at the shorter vampire.
"And we're nobody's puppet." I said in disgust.
"What we need is a plan." Bill said after rubbing the anger out of Sookie's shoulders. She was just as insulted and annoyed as the rest of us.
"I have a plan," Stan shouted.
"It's not a plan, it's a movie!" Isabel retorted, rolling her eyes at Stan.
"It's not a movie. It's a war." Stan said, his eyes narrowing.
I rubbed the bridge of my nose. He just didn't get it. Of course, I wanted the same thing he did: to kill all of these fanatics one by one. I also knew that it was out of the question. I had seen how hard the AVL is working to give vampires the same rights as humans. Killing an entire church of humans would be taking too many steps backwards.
"Idiots." Eric said through clenched teeth before stalking off.
I stood up and looked over at the two vampires who were still arguing amongst themselves. I frowned and followed to where Eric ran off to.
I stepped outside to see him pacing on the front lawn, muttering curses in Swedish. I closed the door behind me and leaned against it, watching Eric release.
"What the hell is wrong with the two of them? Do they even want Godric back?" Eric hissed.
"They're desperate Eric." I said, walking closer to him, leaning on the railing. "Godric seemed to be more than just their sheriff. It looks like he might have been the only one keeping them from arguing for eternity. They need authority. They probably wouldn't admit it, but they do."
Eric finally looked up and his eyes met mine, the anger still laying just below the surface. "They're idiots. We're supposed to be coming up with a plan, but their constant bickering is getting tiresome."
I motioned for him to sit down on the porch steps. He looked confused for a second before doing as I asked. I stood behind him and pressed my hands on his shoulders. I felt the shock when I touched him again, but it was warmer. I didn't pull away, however. Instead, I kneaded the tension out of his shoulders. It seems even vampires get tense.
"Don't fret, Eric. We'll find him. I know Godric is your maker, and I promise you I won't stop until he's back, safe and sound." I said, continuing to knead his shoulders. A moan escaped his lips and I chuckled. "I'm very stubborn. I tend to get what I want, and I don't want you angry. Besides, I have a plan." I said. I stopped massaging his shoulders and he groaned in disappointment. I grabbed his arm and pulled him inside. We walked back to the living room and stood there. I could feel Eric begin to tense again. I looked over at Sookie who was staring at me with a raised eyebrow. She moved her gaze to my hand and I looked down, noticing I was still holding onto Eric's arm. I hurriedly dropped it and brought my arms to my side. My cheeks turned bright red. It felt so comfortable to be holding onto Eric. I can't explain why, but having him beside me made me feel safe, despite the fact that my only use to him was my powers.
"We take them all out at once! Preempted strike!" Stan boomed.
"Of course, so the federal government can bomb us back into the Middle Ages." Isabel yelled, matching his volume.
"Ha, things were better then." Stan said, slightly raising his upper lip.
"Then go to Romania and live in a cave you Ranchero poser!" Isabel yelled, getting in his face.
All of a sudden, Eric picked up a vase that was resting on a table nearby and threw it against the wall. It shattered into pieces and I jumped in surprise.
"Godric has protected you, made you rich and you stand here spitting and scratching like infants!" He howled, his accent thickening. I had only now realized that anger brought out Eric's Viking roots. He was practically oozing fury, and I became furious just being in the same room. I was annoyed at first, but now I was livid.
"Don't any of you care that their is a traitor in your midst?" Bill asked.
"No." Stan disagreed. Apparently no one told them the events of the airport.
"Impossible." Isabel stated in confusion.
"Someone tried to kidnap us from the airport." I said, crossing my arms and looking at the two childish vampires.
"You were the only ones that knew they were coming." Bill said, looking between both of them suspiciously.
Eric stalked up to the both of them, a killer look in his eyes. "Explain." He demanded.
"Unless it was you." Stan said, looking at Isabel.
"Unless it was you." Isabel defended.
"Look, if you two argue anymore I'm either gonna fall asleep or start screaming." I said, ignoring the drowsiness that was tugging at me and trying to stifle a yawn. "So this is what we're gonna do: We'll infiltrate the Fellowship of the Sun."
"Absolutely not!" Bill said, his frown now directed at me.
"Let her speak," Eric asked.
Stan groaned but Sookie ignored him and continued for me. "Since Bill glamoured the kidnapper, no one knows who we are."
"We'll pretend we want to join the church and check out all of their thoughts." I finished.
"No!" He said, looking at Sookie with worry in his eyes. "During the day none of us can help you."
"It'll only take a little while. Really Bill, it's simple." She said, comforting Bill.
I looked over to Eric, who seemed skeptical about the plan. "Besides, I've been manifesting new powers like mad lately. If being a telepath doesn't help us, I'm sure I could glamour the fanatics into telling me what we need." I said.
Oh shit.
Everyone was looking at me with wide eyes except Eric. I had completely forgotten I was going to keep this a secret. Now everyone knows I can glamour as well. "It's a long story, one for another time." I said to Sookie, who was looking at me like I just announced I was from an alien planet a thousand years from the future.
Stan ignored my comment and spoke. "Waste of time." He said before walking off. He grabbed his hat from a table and put it on his head just like the cowboys in old westerns. "When we could drink them all. I want no part of this." He finished before walking out of the door.
Gosh he was corny.
"There's no other way to find out if they're involved." Isabel said, the warmth returning to her now that Stan was gone.
"Sookie will go." Eric said simply.
Bill, Sookie, and I looked at him bewildered.
"You want Sookie to go alone?" Bill asked incredulously.
My face was contorted as I stared at Eric, wondering what the hell he was doing.
"Sookie will infiltrate the Fellowship tomorrow morning. Should she fail, Rayne will be sent in to glamour the church into releasing both her and Godric." Eric said.
"No, Eric. I'm going in with Sookie. I'm not just going to stand here and hope Sookie succeeds. If anything, because of my powers, I should be going in first. Shit, I could shift into a squirrel and sniff around." I said, my eyes practically bulging out of my head at Eric's stupidity.
"That's exactly why we need you. If you and Sookie enter at the same time, it will arouse suspicion. However if Sookie goes in first, she'll be able to find out if they're harboring Godric or not. We might not even need you." Eric said staring at me.
"I'll be fine. I've been a telepath a lot longer than Rayne and I could probably get a better reading from people than she can." Sookie said, throwing me and apologetic look for the almost insult. "I'll be fine, Bill." She assured, smiling at Bill.
"No, I'm going with you Sookie." I stood my ground. How and the hell did Eric expect to just leave me out of the loop like this. I came here to help, and he's just going to make me sit around while I watch my best friend go undercover for his benefit? Oh, no. I won't have any of that.
"You will do as I say." Eric commanded, his fangs flashing.
"Like hell I will." I said, my hands on my hips.
Eric appeared in front of me in a flash, his fangs extended. "You will not stand in the way of getting Godric back. You will do as I say or I'll rip out your throat." He growled.
I looked up into his eyes and saw the anger flashing through them. There was something else though also. It was desperation.
"Fine." I sighed. "I'll stay."
Eric nodded and looked around the room at the other three. Bill was hesitant at first but accepted, telling Sookie to be careful at least a dozen times before he finally backed off. Isabel nodded when Eric explained what would happen if Godric should be held captive by the Fellowship. I was left there, pretending like I was being obedient.
But I wasn't.
I had no intention on staying until I had word from Sookie.
I was going to go to the Fellowship before her.
I had to help my best friend.
A/N: I LOVE Stan and Isabel. I know most fics with Stan make him out to be an asshole, but I love him. If I thought I could get away with putting him in the story more, I would. Also, I've figured out what I'm going to do with Godric. I can only hope you guys like my idea. Feed my addiction and review?