Chapter 12

SPOV

We were in the air, flying. It took some maneuvering, but my head was cradled against Eric's chest, and my mangled arm rested uncomfortably against my chest.

It was only moments ago that Longshadow used my arm as a chew toy, tearing skin and arm tissue. During the attack, I was too busy fighting back to pay attention to the state of my arm lodged between Longshadow's jaws. Everything happened so fast; one second he was mauling me and the next, he seemed to be decaying in front of my eyes.

Eric was quick to pull me outside of Fangtasia before things got any worse. Luckily, it was too dark for me to see the extent of my injuries, but I was certain I'd lost a good chunk of my arm. My forearm felt as if it was on fire and my flesh, slowly melting off my bones. I was a bloody, tear soaked mess; too tired and weak to realize how suicidally insane it was for a bloody, incapacitated woman to allow a vampire near her, nonetheless carry her off to God knows where.

So I asked him, "Where we goin?"

"My nearest safe house."

"Shouldn't you be taking me to a hospital?" He really should, I was sure I'd lose my arm otherwise.

"I will give you my blood."

It wasn't a question or an offer, it was an edict.

I was aware of the effects of taking vampire blood, Gran had taken Daddy and Pam's, afterall. I also knew how big of a deal it was for a vampire, especially one as old and revered as Eric, to offer. Vampires were extremely possessive of their blood, and knowing its many beneficial properties, I could understand why.

I was humbled by his gift.

And, I agreed without hesitation. Mostly because I was close to passing out from the pain, but also because you just didn't turn down a gift of that magnitude - not without seeming ungrateful or having it be monumentally insulting.

I closed my eyes and snuggled closer against him. His black tank top was thin enough for me to feel the definition of muscle on his chest.

Eric was right, I must've lost too much blood, because even though I found it a bit disconcerting to not feel his heartbeat, I still felt safe. Or maybe it was just the effect he had on me.

"Déjà vu," I whispered.

Of course, he heard me.

"Troublesome woman," he replied.

I shifted to look at his expressionless face, and instantly regretted it. Fuck, even the slightest movements made my arm feel like it was engulfed in flames. I swallowed a whimper and felt cold sweat break out all over my body. "Sorry if my near deaths have inconvenienced you." I retorted, but it lost its oomph due to how weak I sounded.

We landed in the backyard of a two story house. Eric must've been really determined to heal me since I didn't get a good look at anything else; faster than my eyes could see, we were in a black marble and granite bathroom.

"It's hereditary," he sighed while carrying me into a glass walk-in shower and slowly lowering me onto my feet.

Great, when the hell did I lose a shoe? I kicked my remaining shoe off and decided it was a good thing I was standing barefoot. My legs were a bit wobbly and I still felt very weak; add three inch heels to that combination and I was sure I'd have ended up with a cracked skull on top of a mauled arm.

"What is?" My body swayed and Eric moved to hold my arms steady. "Maybe I should sit down, I'm feeling kinda light headed."

He helped me down onto the stone bench and I tilted my head back against the cool marble wall.

"Your insolence," he replied, biting into his wrist and moving it to my lips.

Eyes on his anticipatory blue ones, I wrapped my lips around the punctured skin on bloody wrist, latched on, and sucked. Eric stiffened and I felt my cheeks flush. His eyes grew hungrier with each drag, and my heart beat faster with each swallow. My panties grew damp and I rubbed my thighs together. His nostrils flared and he made a sound deep in his throat like a growl. After a final drag, I licked his wound clean and licked my lips.

"Thanks," I said, after clearing my throat. That was not what I expected to happen. Gran didn't mention anything about, about feeling aroused. I looked at the uncomfortable bulge in Eric's jeans, apparently I wasn't the only one affected.

After a long stretch of silence, I glanced at Eric's stormy face. He looked like he was close to ripping something apart, and I was sure dentists would frown upon jaws clenched that tightly - it couldn't be healthy. His reaction threw me; if feeding someone their blood made them that horny, and thanks to Pam's over sharing I knew most vampires loved sex, I wondered why they didn't do it more often.

My arm felt weird and I looked down. My skin was torn to shreds and there was still exposed tissue and tendon. I even saw something ivory that I could've sworn was bone. I gritted my teeth as things I didn't know the names of grew, stretched and reformed, and tendon began to reknit itself together. I felt like barfing; not from the macabre scene that I was watching with a detached air, but from of the amount of pain I was in from the accelerated healing.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, hoping it would ease the nausea, and exhaled slowly. After some time, I got my body to cooperate and began to relax.

Deciding to change the subject before he broke his jaw, I wet my lips, and said, "My daddy's got respect ingrained so deeply in him from the womb that I wouldn't be surprised to find it tattooed onto his bones."

He stared at my lips. "That's absurd,"

"Yeah, well so are you," I retorted, closing my eyes. His entire existence defied logic.

I felt a whisper of something against my lips, but it was gone so quickly I might've imagined it.

"Closing your eyes after insulting a vampire, you're either a fool or have a death wish." He murmured softly.

He placed two fingers over the carotid artery on the left side of my neck and pressed lightly. My eyes opened with the sudden feel of his cool skin on mine. His nostrils flared. He looked at me as if I was the last pint of Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Therapy on earth and he, a jilted bride after she was left standing at the alter in front of her family, friends, and a tv news crew.

The hunger in his eyes changed to something else. It was as if he was having some sort of internal struggle over something. I figured he must've been having a hard time taking my pulse and trying not to eat me at the same time. It was a good thing my fairy blood was diluted by so much of my humanity, from the way Daddy had warned me, I would've expected Eric to have drained me already.

I smiled meekly, hoping he'd get his shit under control. Although I'd learned from Pam that in a bind, wooden stiletto heels worked as stakes, I was in no shape to fend off another hungry vampire. Besides, I really, really didn't want to have to stake Eric. Not only would I have to look over my shoulders for the rest of my life for an angry and bereft Pam, I was sure I'd miss him something fierce. He was my hero, my knight, afterall. I knew my silly little crush was just that, but sometimes we all needed something to hope for. An unrealistic dream or goal. It kept this mundane existence of a life I had slightly more tolerable. I was suddenly very glad to have quit my job at Merlotte's. If I survived this night, I promised myself I'd live instead of merely existing. That included taking risks in everything from my job and wardrobe, to my outlook on life in general. Maybe I'd even get an apartment in Shreveport and move into the city - that thought was squashed as quickly as it arrived; I couldn't leave Gran to take care of Hunter on her own. I'd have to think on that some more.

I cleared my throat and eyed him warily.

That seemed to be enough to snap him out of whatever he was thinking. Satisfied that I wasn't about to have a heart attack or go into shock, he removed his fingers from my throat and carefully lifted my arm. For someone so big and imposing, he sure could be gentle.

"Yeah, well maybe I trust you." I whispered. And I did. I trusted him with my life.

It was quiet for so long that I thought he'd left. With some effort, I opened a tiny slit of my left eye, found Eric looking both perplexed and torn, then closed it again. Some time later, hell it could've been hours I was so tired, he chuckled and startled me out of my rest.

"You gonna share with the class or hoard all the jokes?"

He lowered himself to my level, "You're an extraordinary woman, Sookie Stackhouse."

"Extraordinary as in astonishing and phenomenal, or extraordinary as in peculiar and weird?"

"You've already proven yourself to be the latter," Then, he grinned wickedly and wiggled his brows, "You'll have to demonstrate the former and just-" he nuzzled my neck, "how-" he kissed my chin, "phenomenal-" he paused to stare hungrily into my eyes, and the air became so thick with tension and want and need, that I found it hard to breathe. Then, when I was close to screaming in frustration, he moved in those last few inches and said against my mouth, "you are," before gently tipping my head back and planting soft kisses across my lips.

I opened my mouth and whimpered as his cool tongue slid against mine. He growled when he tasted his blood on my tongue, and his movements became more demanding. He took instead of tease, and I loved every second of it. Hands moving my head this way and that for better access, tongue forcefully plundering every inch of my mouth, lips sucking hungrily on mine. It was the most aggressive kiss I'd ever had in my life, and I never wanted it to end.

Unfortunately, I lifted my arms, forgotten about in the heat of the moment, to grab his hair. The strain from pulling on the still delicate tissues on my right arm was the bucket of cold water I wasn't prepared for. I didn't make a sound, I didn't have to; his blood was running through my veins and he felt everything I did - however muted it may be since we barely formed a bond.

For a second, he looked confused, then seemingly realizing that the pain was coming from me, he slowly released me and sat back on his haunches.

God, he looked amazing with mussed up hair and just kissed lips. Remembering my earlier decree to live for the moment, I nodded and declared, "Challenge accepted."

Eric let out an uproarious laugh, placed a chaste kiss on my lips, and examined my arm. It was still tender and raw for the most part, but at least the wound had reknitted already. "You will not scar."

Not that it was among my list of concerns, I nodded and said gratefully, "Thank you, Eric, for everything. I know how..." What was the word I was looking for? Covetous, greedy, protective, possessive? They were all true, but none of those words embodied the seriousness or the gratitude of what I was trying to express. In the end, I decided on, "sacred vampire blood is to your kind, and well, I just want you to know how grateful and appreciative I am."

He gazed deeply into my eyes, and for a moment I wished I could read his thoughts, and inclined his head.

The moment passed, and I wondered out loud, "Why are we in the bathroom?"

"I don't want bloodstains all over my house."

I stuck my tongue out at him. Pragmatic bastard. I looked down; blood from my wound was caked onto my arm and the front of my dress. I sighed, angry and dejected over the loss of the only luxury I'd ever allowed myself; the dress was completely ruined. At least I was still alive, I thought grimly. That thought sobered me quickly.

"What happened to Longshadow?"

Eric's fangs clicked into place and his face took on a stormy expression. "He has met his final death."

I nodded, that much I suspected. "That was pretty gross... The way his face pruned and kind of caved in on itself. And don't get me started on his hair, it was falling in clumps down on my face!" I shook my head, "top five of the nastiest things I've ever seen. And I've seen a lot of nasty shit with my disability."

He quirked a brow. "It could've been worse."

I mulled over that for a bit and replied, "yeah, I guess it could've. You spared me from watching my daddy and Pam do the dirty with your waitresses."

Eric chuckled, "I moved you before Longshadow's death was final."

"Did he go up in flames or something?" I shivered, would I have been caught in the flames and been burnt to a crisp?

"He..." Eric hesitated, choosing his words carefully. Satisfied, he nodded and continued, "imploded."

That was a mental image I didn't need. Then, I realized something, "what happens to three vampires when a human is covered in dead vampire?"

Eric's expression changed into one of hunger, and it was a ravenous hunger. Unlike the earlier ones I saw on his face where he looked like he wanted to devour me, but in the good way, this hunger was cold and scary, ancient and primal.

I gulped. "Got it." I wondered about Elvira and the others, and felt shame for thinking of their well being only now. "Are your waitresses still alive?"

"Alive, yes."

And that was all he was willing to say.

But I wasn't done.

"Belinda and the bleached blonde sweeping the floors have Swiss cheese for brains. Any more glamouring and I doubt they'd remember their own names." I admonished.

Eric shrugged. "That does not concern me."

Of course it didn't. Vampires were better than us, so who cared if our brains were fried while working for them.

I gritted my teeth, "Well, it should. When they agreed to work for you, they agreed to fulfill their duties as barmaids, be bitten if they were so inclined, and go home in the same condition they went to work in - minus a pint or two of blood. What they didn't agree to, was to have their minds violated night after night to the point where they're one glamour away from staring vacantly at the television with drool hanging out of their mouths."

Eric was suddenly inches from my face. He stared at me and with fire in his eyes and said slowly and icily, "Are you insinuating that glamour is the same as rape?"

I closed the gap. My nose touching his nose, I narrowed my eyes, and spoke one word. "Yes,"

He looked like he didn't know whether to kiss me or kill me. He'd be in for a rude awakening if he tried to kiss me. I was so angry I could spit nails and would've probably bitten his lip off.

I'd never know what he'd have eventually decided on, because at that moment, Pam and Daddy zipped into the bathroom.

"Who am I killing?"

A/N: Sorry this one took so long! After two discouraging guest reviews from the previous chapter, I went on a beta hunt. xQueen Nothingx, an extremely busy woman, was brave enough to take on the task of editing my writing. I changed most of the technical stuff she suggested and took her advice on something vampire blood related, but decided to keep their OOC behavior. *shrugs* This isn't canon and I'm not Charlaine; I write them how I want/wish them to be.

I apologize if they're not the same Eric/Sookie you fell in love with in the series, but know that my beta already pointed this out - I'm just too mule headed to heed her advice.

Anyway, I want to thank xQueen Nothingx for her help and taking time away from her crazy schedule to do this for me/us. Remember folks, none of us are getting paid for this. So, lots of e-cookies and hugs for your hard work QN!

As a wonderful reader, uriil, noticed I've started an AH fic called U Remind Me. I'm not sure how the scheduling for NED will be affected down the road, but Chapter 13 has already been completed and will be up in a few days. Hopefully I'll still be able to update twice a week (one update per story) but I have a feeling it might lag into updating each story on alternating weeks. *fingers crossed*

Thank you for your patience and I hope you stick with me while I try to figure out this mess. Your reviews have kept me going and shaped this story into what it is so please keep them coming!