Chapter 15
(Wow really long time since I uploaded sorry about that. X Thanks for all the reviews and favourites etc really appreciated, you lot rule!)
We got to the bar shortly after sundown, Tray drove like a maniac, clearly he was looking forward to the fight. Or perhaps giving his new relationship status, he was just eager to get it over with. When we entered the bar we were all relieved that it was fairly quiet. Monday night wasn't the busiest night of the week, most folks worked, some like the town drunk were in, and those who just wanted to kick back with a beer after a less than stellar day at work. I beamed when I saw Eric behind the bar, as soon as I rose for the night I could feel his tension through the bond, and his impatience. He was behind the bar with Sam, his eyes lit up when he saw me. I walked over to him and kissed him, I didn't have to lean far with Eric's long body. I glanced down and noticed that Eric kept my hand next to the Bellini, he must have gotten it back from my brother. I wondered how that exchange had gone, my brother and I weren't exactly on the best of terms. Eric just smiled and projected "I'll tell you all about it after the battle". I smiled winningly and produced a piece of his gateau. Pam looked over at us from her seat by the bar, sniffing appreciatively.
"Eat up while you're still human" I chuckled, "in case we die or get switched back"
"You're going to ask your great aunt aren't you?"
"I'm considering it" I answered honestly.
"Is it really so bad being a Vampire?" He asked quietly, an oddly hurt look in his/my eyes.
"No, but I would prefer you in your own body if we're going into battle" Eric nodded in understanding "Look you have a thousand years of fighting skills and you're trapped in my body"
"But my lover, whilst you have a valid point" he smiled up at me "you should see that you are safer in my body, you are harder to kill, and you forget, your body is not without natural defences"
"You want to use my telepathy to anticipate your opponents' moves?" I asked, it was a good plan, perhaps we could do this. Eric tucked in to the cake, for now at least he was smiling happily.
Rachel the Shifter walked out from the bathroom, hips swaying rhythmically, she shot a million dollar smile at Sam, while Pam shot her a look which by all rights should have withered the flesh from her bones. Something about their stances reminded me of a good ole western style standoff.
"Pam" I called to her smiling, trying to avert some tension "How'd you get here?"
"I ran" Pam answered glancing at me before reverting back to a staring contest with the female Shapeshifter. I move along the bar Eric and Sam followed suit, they were waiting patiently, steeling themselves for the evening ahead.
"I could set off the fire alarm, put the sprinklers on too?" Sam muttered. All the Supes in the bar could follow the conversation easily. I looked at my boss questioningly. "To get the regular folks out" he clarified for me. Eric smiled, glad that Sam had thought about avoiding having unnecessary witnesses.
"Why don't you suggest they leave?" I whispered to Eric.
"I can't go telling customers to get out, we might lose revenue!" Eric whispered back shocked.
"No honey I mean suggest" I tapped my forehead indicating my mental ability. Comprehension dawned in his/my eyes.
"Gotcha" he nodded. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, I tried to lend him strength through the blood bond, he smiled almost imperceptibly, and I knew he appreciated my efforts.
"I need to go, I feel so tired, I think I'll have an early night tonight". "What do you think?" He asked. We looked around the bar and noticed a few of the patrons had begun to yawn, Jane the drunk nearly toppled off her stool, stared at her watch wide eyed, and dragged herself up. It was the first time in five years she'd left the bar voluntarily. I wondered if my gift could be used to help her get over her alcoholism.
It took twenty minutes and some more thought provoking from Eric, but the patrons of Merlotte's all left and we took up our strategic positions around the bar. Eric and I took centre stage, we would probably be singled out first, he slapped Arlene and I looked like a big vampiric target. Tray was by the door, just out of the field of vision of anyone entering the Merlotte's. Sam was acting natural behind the bar. Pam and Rachel were occupying bar stools as far from each other as possible but each seemed to be at equal distance from Sam. Amelia was on the same side of the room as Tray but sat in a booth so she could sit low and go unnoticed, in case she had to work her magic undisturbed.
John, Matthew and Whit were the first to show up, posturing like they thought they were something special. They made me sick to my stomach, I could feel my lip curl. Eric gave a low growl, which would have possibly been more effective had he been in his own body.
"Oooh lookee here boys, we got ourselves a rabid waitress, seems to me like she's been hanging out with this here animal too long" He said with a contemptuous nod in Sam's direction.
"Watch your mouth" I snapped, but with Eric's voice it boomed out like a battle cry. All three goons turned to me.
"Well hold on now big man, we don't want no trouble, we just want us a drink, think you can control yourself?" Whit asked, even without my telepathy I could tell that was a crock of shit. I guessed their plan was to lull us into a false sense of security, little did they know we had a fairy as a spy.
"We have no problem with customers" Sam said diplomatically, but I noticed the muscles in his right arm twitch as he made a fist beneath the bar, oh yeah Sam was ready for a good fight. The men took seats near the back, probably hoping to block off our escape. They were fools, but in their minds their plan was genius.
Arlene came in not long after with a woman I didn't recognise, she had mousey brown hair and suspicious eyes that darted around the room, never settling for a moment. They were flanked by a set of burly looking bald twins. She waved at Whit and acted surprised to see him in the bar. Another five minutes past and still no one made a move. Moments later the last set of FotS morons arrived, acting oh so surprised to see their buddies, this time it was a middle aged man with black hair, a red headed man with fresh stubble growing in (I'd wager he hadn't gotten much sleep preparing for this insanity), oh and an older man with a red puffy face, almost none of his original hair, he looked a little like a puffer fish, it was clear they weren't expecting any problems with us, if they had been they wouldn't have brought such a liability along. I was thinking more and more like Eric, I didn't see them as people anymore, they were enemies, that was all, they wanted to kill my loved ones, and that was something I would not allow. I had always believed that murder was wrong, I did try to be a good Christian, but I think the good lord would forgive us for defending ourselves against prejudice, after all he's the one who said all men are equal, although I always thought it should say all people are equal. The latest bunch grabbed a table near the main entrance, not the most elegant strategy, but if they were good fighters it would have been fairly effective, blocking off the exits (I'd read enough crime novels and even the odd SAS thriller to know about setting traps and tactics).
We were tense for a moment, and then the bald twins rose simultaneously. Well no beating about the bush.
"We don't think your kind are right, now we're pretty tolerant"- (I nearly choked on a laugh at this point) "but you" the bald goon on the left nodded at Eric (still in my body) went and bodily harmed a friend of ours". At that Arlene had the sense to look a little abashed. "No we don't have no qualms with the innocent so anyone who has the good sense to forget tonight and go home is welcome to" nobody moved. The FotS bastards still had no idea everyone in the room was a Supe of one form or another. I was a little worried that there were ten of them and seven of us, but I'd seen Arlene fight, and she wasn't exactly a force to be reckoned with.
I smiled, and wondered absently how long it would be before we won and I could go home with my Viking. That's when I got shot. Right in the arm, I was glad I was in Eric's body, I glanced down as the bullet began to work its way out.
"That the best you got?" I taunted. Eric was reading their minds, so he knew what the bald mans twin was planning, he nodded to Tray who was waiting by the door, the werewolf sprang into action, unfortunately there was a beer spill that we had been too preoccupied to clean up, and even his preternatural reflexes weren't enough to stop him faltering. It was enough time for the bald man to slam a chair squarely over Tray's head. It was a good sturdy chair, and Tray wobbled a tad before hitting the ground. Amelia who proved that she was a hot head at the oddest of moments, jumped up from her hidden position and jumped on the bald man screaming like a banshee (which for all I knew were real too).
All hell broke loose then, I knocked the gun from the left bald twin's hand and it went flying across the floor, Sam jumped over the counter and started swinging, he was flanked by Rachel and Pam. Arlene my former friend seemed a little put off at the idea of a real fight, I rolled my eyes and Eric winked at me. Everyone joined the fray, Amelia was still hanging on bless her soul, Eric appeared to be making the red headed man clutch his face in pain. Pam was holding Matthew by the throat and chuckling. As Rachel was eyeing Sam, the woman with mouse brown hair managed to land a blow and Rachel staggered.
That was when the main doors burst open. "Aww Darling I think they started without us" exclaimed a tall Were, he was huge, even by Were standards I noticed, by his side was a petite Vampire woman with long black hair, it seemed to ripple like waves in the dim light. Behind them was a demon, the red eyes were a dead giveaway he had an amused smirk on his face. "I thought we'd have time for a snack" the Were added.
"Mongrels" the vampire woman muttered "always thinking of their stomachs, my father always taught me it was best to be early for a battle" The demon rolled his red eyes, and flayed the FotS goon with black hair just before he stabbed Eric. "Thanks" I called (After all it was my body that was nearly stabbed). I held Whit at arm's length as he frantically swung at me, with Eric's long arms it was easy to restrain him, but I didn't know if I could kill him, I mean killing in self defence was one thing, but in my current form he wasn't much of a threat.
Moments later I heard Eric yell "Sam look out" one of the bald twins -I wasn't sure which-had managed to find the gun and Eric had heard who baldilock's was gunning for. Sam darted to the side but the bullet clipped his right leg. "Damn it" he bellowed. Immediately Rachel and Pam were at his side dragging him behind the bar. Sam managed to grab the Bellini and enjoy the makeshift cover of the bar. I was fighting back to back with Eric, we rotated so that I was mostly in front of the FotS members, I didn't want him getting hurt whilst he was mortal, and I also wanted to save my own skin. We moved nearer the bar so we could regroup. The new Supes were still near the entrance fighting valiantly but the mousy haired woman had a silver crucifix which was keeping them at a distance.
I spotted Pam before anyone else, the woman moved like a blade, eyes gleaming with rage, she had the bald man by the throat biting deeply tearing at his throat before she grabbed his head and twisted it to the side, his neck snapped with a deafening crack. For a second or two there was silence, then Whit pulled free from my grip to run to his fallen comrade. In that moment I think he realised what he was actually trying to fight, the hope seemed to die in his eyes. Pam was back behind the bar in less time than it took her to kill the bald twin. She went to Sam and sucked the bullet from his leg, luckily it wasn't silver, she tore at her own arm and used her blood to kick start the healing process, Sam didn't put up a fight as he might have in the past.
"That won't get you anywhere Vampire" Rachel hissed at Pam, "you're still just a walking corpse".
"Child I don't have time for you" Pam responded as she ripped the bottom of her skirt and made a tourniquet. Rachel growled low, and something in Pam snapped, she spun on her heel and slapped Rachel square across the face. "If you want to help keep quiet and tend to his wound!"
"Pam remember whose team you're on will you" I hissed.
"I know whose side I'm on." Pam snapped, "And she verbally abused me first"
"Girls please there's a battle going on in my bar, save the fighting talk for them" Sam winced as Rachel checked the wound, it was healing fast.
Eric and I went back into the fight, resuming our positions back to back; somehow he had managed to sneak his broad sword behind the bar and was now wielding it like a maniac. If we lived through this and managed to switch back I knew my arms would be sore. We were in the middle of the bar trading blows, when Eric suddenly called out "Weren't you at the bar last night?"
"Yeah, oh hey, sorry we're late, great fight though" The tall Were called back.
"It's not a party it's a matter of principal" His female counterpart added.
"Still fun though" the Were chuckled as he sucker punched John. To us he added "I'm Todd by the way, and this serious lady is my wife, Dahlia"
"You married a Vampire?" Eric asked mildly? "How's that working out?"
"Not bad, we don't know how things are gonna work out in terms of aging yet, but we agreed to cross that bridge when we came to it" Todd said as he tripped another goon who Eric proceeded to kick in the nuts.
"Sounds sensible, I'm Eric by the way, the tall guy over there with the great butt is Sookie, and no I've not been hit in the head and gotten confused, we had a magical mishap"
"Ahh, I don't judge. I've got a little experience with transformations myself after all". Todd chuckled as he threw the red faced man to Dahlia, who was incredibly spry and leapt into the air easily to kick the man right in the centre of his bulbous head. The red headed woman ran at me with a stake, déjà vu, but this time, I was fast enough to dodge and Todd grabbed her in a head lock.
"Thanks, oh who's the red eyed demon you guys came with?" I asked my saviour.
"Ah that's Red, he's a nice guy, not usually one for fighting, but hates the Fellowship, but wouldn't you if you were a demon?" he replied.
Red seemed to have been following the conversation and waved shyly from across the room, he was perched on the bar guarding Sam and Rachel. Pam was back in the fray, and she seemed to have found some rope from lord knows where.
I ran back to cover Eric as John and Matthew rushed us at once, I extended my arm to Eric and spun as he grabbed it, he kicked the goons around us as we moved together, the perfect team. We moved like a single entity. That was when things went a little fuzzy. There was a blinding flash of light, everyone took a step back, using their hands to shield their eyes. I opened my eyes and I was a whole lot closer to the ground, I looked up to see Eric he still had hold of my arm, I grinned up at him.
"Honey you've never looked so good" I laughed and jumped up into his arms. We kissed as the battle kicked off again all around us. This time the Supes had the advantage, they were quicker at getting back on their feet.
As battles go it was very short, in ten more minutes five members of the FotS were dead, their corpses spread all over the bar, the five remaining members were tied up. Pam proved to be quite the Girl Scout when it came to knot tying.
"What are you gonna do with us?" Whit spat out, (literally, his mouth was filled with blood).
"Well, you wished to torch our businesses and burn us along with them; surely it would be just to return the favour" Pam noted as she finished tying Whit to Arlene.
"Sookie, please, we used to be friends, you can't go along with this, you aren't like them!" Arlene said, her voice was hoarse and her mascara was bleeding down her cheeks.
"Arlene you have never taken my side over a guys, hell as friends go, she" I nodded at Amelia knocked out on the floor next to Tray "is a better friend, and she accidently trapped me in the wrong body". Arlene looked a little puzzled at that.
"We are better than you" Sam said, as Rachel helped him back to his feet. "Arlene I gave you a job when no one else would, and I thought we were friends, but the second you found out that I wasn't human one hundred percent of the time, you decided I was evil incarnate, Hell woman would I have thrown you a wedding party if I was, or given you the afternoon off so you could be with your kids, god damn it I've baby sat for you". Arlene was crying outright now, since I had my gift back I could poke inside her head. She was thinking that Sam was right, but she was afraid he wouldn't forgive her. She knew Whit wouldn't forgive her if she sided with the Supes, but she was afraid of being alone.
I crouched down in front of Arlene, "I know deep down there's some good in you" for a moment she looked hopeful as she looked into my eyes "I also know you can be a hateful bitch who wasn't exactly raised to be Miss Tolerance USA. I know you're scared of being alone and of things you don't understand. Fear makes people stupid, but I've seen you when you're with your kids, and you're a good mother, for their sake get away from these hateful people".
"I don't know how. I've said such terrible things". Arlene cried. Sam limped over and muttered:
"You know you have us, if you wanted you could have your job back too".
"Arlene you can't listen to them, they are trying to trick you into believing they are more than unholy infidels" Whit hissed frantically.
"Hey watch it buddy, I'm all American one hundred percent pure breed" Todd complained.
"I'm so sorry Sookie" Arlene cried "I just wanted it to work out for once, you know, make a proper family for the kids, they need a father figure"
"But do you want this for them?" Dahlia asked. "Extremists breed extremists, one day your children may join this cause and they could be killed. Is that really what you want?"
"No..." Arlene breathed. Pam untied her.
"You are lucky Sookie can vouch for you human, leave, go to your children." Pam said, the evening didn't seem to have phased her in the slightest. Harmony walked into the room as Arlene left.
"Oh sorry I'm late I bumped into an old friend and we had a few drinks and the time escaped me, you seem to have done very well. These are all the survivors?" Harmony asked.
"What do we do with them?" I asked.
"Well we could incinerate their organs" Harmony replied. Red smiled at this. "But I think that would only give their organization more reason to hate us".
"So you have a plan?" Eric wondered aloud.
"I think we should alter their minds" Harmony smiled serenely. "We make them alter their opinion entirely, leave the Fellowship, it should cast doubt in the minds of the other members, and no one need know what happened here."
Harmony walked over and took my hand, I felt her enter my head, our thoughts joined "glad to have you back in your right mind" she thought."Glad to be back" I replied. We made the four remaining members believe with every fibre of their beings that they had had a change of heart.
"What do we do with the bodies?" Rachel asked.
"Oh I think Red can handle that" Harmony replied, winking at the demon, who blushed furiously. Red held out both hands and focused on the bodies, they burst into purple flames and within three minutes they were done, and by that I mean they were ash. Red grinned and Todd and Dahlia actually clapped.
Harmony glanced down at the former FotS members still tied to the chairs, a wave of her hand and they were gone. Everyone gaped at her for a second.
"Teleportation, fae one oh one".
"Ok everyone out; I wanna go to sleep" Sam roared," thanks for the help". We all departed after that, after saying our goodbyes. Eric took my hand and smiled "The night is ours" he roared.
(Thanks for reading, if you notice any mistakes or inaccuracies please let me know, I try to catch them all but it's easy to glide over daft mistakes. Also if you guys have any ideas you want to see or if there's any characters you'd like stories about, I'd be more than happy to oblige. Much love and thanks for reading x)