A/N- Forgive me, from the moment I read the name Felipe de Castro my thoughts flew to Fidel, sorry I made the Freudian slip of the fingers.

'Don't do anything stupid'

It isn't Eric.

I know from that line alone that the writer of my letter is not Eric. Though he usually does speak bluntly, in fact he seems to enjoy it; I know he would never speak like this to me. His words would be more formal, he would tell me not to be foolish or rash. He wouldn't risk insulting me by suggesting I would do something stupid.

"Who wrote this?" I whisper the question to Pam as we inch along the hallway, delaying for as long as possible. She shrugs her slim shoulders, "Read on and find out" she advises and I scowl at her.

'The vamp is doing what he can to help you, so are the were creatures, for what help they are...'

I lower the letter in my hands and tilt my head back to the ceiling, closing my eyes and whispering a quick prayer. The rude insulting tone, the obvious disregard, could I be so lucky?

'Claudine will have wanted me to protect you, so I'm going to rescue you. I'll write you again soon.Claude. The twin brother of Claudine and the older brother of the deceased Claudette. The arrogant, egotistical, obscenely rude fairy- in more ways than one.

Claude'

"Why didn't he go back to Faery, when Niall closed off the gates between the worlds?" I ask Pam, stunned. She shrugs again,

"I have not spoken to him, from what I know...he turned up to Fangtasia and asked Eric to deliver this to you"

And far be it from Claude to give anyone an explanation as to his actions. Even when I had been helping him to prepare for his return to Faery we hadn't spoken much, in fact apart from a few brusque orders I don't think we'd spoken at all. I didn't even know whether to be shocked or touched that he was delaying or giving up his chance to return to his home world all together and that he was helping me to boot.

Hopefully I will be able to ask him one day.

I fold the letter and go to tuck it into my back pocket before realising my mistake. Regretfully I hand it to Pam, who folds it more than I would have thought possible and rips it into tiny shreds, so that even if their lives depended on it, Felipe and his vamps wouldn't be able to put the letter back together. She slips the little pieces into her jacket pocket and gives me a small smile.

I can't help but feel a little disappointed that I've been at the Mira Hotel long enough to start destroying any contact I have with the outside world.
And to know that it's absolutely necessary.

Unable to delay any longer, I step into the elevator and face Pam,

"Madden called my baby a fae..." I place both hands just above my womb, "He smelled my child and knew it was a fae"

Pam nods reluctantly, "The scent both you and your child give off is unmistakable Sookie, even if it were to be born with fangs the entire supernatural world would know that it was a fae"

"Felipe knows this?" I'm not so much asking her as stating a fact, but she nods again, confirming my worst fears.

"I was never going to be able to have Dr. Ludwig prove this though was I? Felipe is just using that as an excuse to hold me here"

Pam looks up at the screen, watching as the numbers went higher as we passed the floors,

"Yes" she answers churlishly, not looking at me.

I take this all in and try to reach a sensible conclusion, though the sheer reasoning behind this elaborate plan is beyond me. Giving up I spin on my heel and lean against the elevator wall, weary from the day's activities.

"Pam..." I wait for her to look at me, "Why?"

She sighs to show how put out she is by my questions, "Felipe de Castro is-presumably- afraid of Eric..." she holds up a hand when I make to interrupt, "Let me explain. Eric is older than Felipe by a good few millennia, his powers are stronger and, according to legend, his maker already had some years on him when Eric himself was made. During his years in Europe, Eric amassed great support from the royalty there, he developed contacts and allies and was privy to more secrets than Felipe de Castro could ever harbour. Though Eric shows no desire to be a king in America, he was offered kingship over his homeland and several others as well, despite his contentment at serving royalty as a Sherriff in Louisiana, the sheer respect held for him in Europe is not something Felipe can forgive him for. Where Sophie-Anne saw it as a powerful weapon for her arsenal, de Castro sees him as a potential threat"

I let the information sink in, now able to join the elusive dots.

"So, I'm here to keep Eric in his place" I surmise, wincing when the elevator bell dings and we step off to find ourselves staring at the door to the King of Nevada's suite. Before we go in however, Pam wraps an arm about my waist and presses her mouth to my ear,
"Never underestimate your own attractions my dear little telepath"

With that we push open the door and walk into Felipe's receiving room, to find it full of vampires and three non-vampire supes. I blink rapidly in shock,

"Amanda? Dr. Ludwig?"

The goblin and her were driver turn to face me, Dr. Ludwig grinning triumphantly,

"Hello Mrs Northman"

Beside me I feel Pam moan and know immediately that she doesn't see this ending well.

She and I are in perfect accord on that.