A/N- True Blood and SVM characters belong to Mrs. Harris, Alan Ball and HBO. Original Characters and story line are mine. As always thank you for all your reviews, comments and feedback. Just a quick note about a wonderful group started by Fairyblood, the True Blood Lust Readers group. A great time is had by all and I hope you join us, just shoot a note to fangreaders (at) gmail (dot) com for an invite. There is a terrific live chat and discussion about various stories are scheduled. Now on with our story!

Chapter 23

Scene 1 - SPOV - Betting Man

As the pair approached us I reached for Tara's mind to find out how badly she had been glamoured, only Eric's arm supporting me and the strength he was sending kept me on my feet. Where Tara's mind should have been babbling at me was only a void, she was a vampire now.

I pulled myself together, now was not the time to fall to pieces and took a closer look at the pair. I am guessing Eric knew she was a vampire by scent, for Tara only appeared a bit paler to my eyes now that I knew what I was looking at. I compared her to Jessica and thought she must only be a month old if that. She still moved and looked like a human which is why I was fooled at first glance.

I looked Victor over discreetly and picked out right away the two weapons he had tucked in his boots for the hilts peaked over the top. He was dressed in leather pants and a vest along with fingerless gloves; in fact quite a few of the vamps were wearing some sort of gloves tonight. All the better to handle silver my dear, I thought to myself.

Eric figured out I wasn't going to collapse at his feet and loosened his grip on my arm though he continued to try to emotionally support me. Victor and Tara had stopped in front of us as Victor made introductions.

"Eric glad to see you made it safely," and then he smiled at me and Pam. "You ladies look delicious this evening."

"Magister," responded Eric with a brief nod while Pam's acknowledgment was a bit longer. I copied Pam except I kept my eyes lowered.

"I believe the three of you have met my companion before, though perhaps not in her current position. May I reintroduce you to Tara Thornton, Felipe de Castro's newest child?"

"Ms. Thornton you are looking well," Eric said before returning to converse with Victor quietly.

Tara didn't respond just looked over the three of us with a slightly hostile gaze. When her eyes met mine I saw a flinch before the hostility returned.

Well fine then if she wants to be that way, I thought to myself. She had made her choice apparently; it wasn't like anyone dragged her kicking and screaming from Bon Temps. I thought about Sam and Lafayette's reaction to all of this and groaned internally. As if Sam needed another reason to hate vampires and though I had blocked Lafayette's memories seeing his cousin as one of the creatures who terrified him was going to be difficult. Of course Tara may not want anyone to know about her new status in the undead life since she hadn't bothered to contact anyone since she had been gone.

Eric started to move through the crowd, taking me with him and interrupting my internal dialog. I shook my attention away from Tara and went back to observing the crowd around us. After I had cataloged the vampires I was familiar with I took a close look at the locals. I admit my stomach turned a little. I was spoiled by the good looks of most of the vampires I had met; many of the local vamps were anything but. I remembered the three vampires I had met at Bill's one evening who I thought at the time to be skanky. They were members of polite society compared to what surrounded me.

I hugged Eric's arm tighter to me, not wanting to get separated right now. He found a corner seating arrangement where we had our backs to the wall yet still had a view which let us see the whole upper lounge. I ended up seated between Eric and Pam and felt much safer. The three of us hadn't spoken and I figured out we really didn't need to. Any discussion could wait until we were back to the hotel and hopefully private, right now too many vampires could easily hear us.

I took a deep breath, reached over to squeeze Eric's thigh and dropped my shields partially to scan the club. There were just as many human's below partying as there were vampires above socializing in the lounge. As I filtered through minds for thoughts not centered on sex and blood, I vaguely noticed other vampires come and go as they spoke to Pam or Eric. I was human with no need to speak and I knew my poker face was still on tight so I ignored the conversation around me. If I was needed I knew Eric would catch my attention.

The club appeared to be clean, human wise that is. I hadn't found anyone with thoughts against vampires, just the normal fang banger lust. The humans who were part of the vampire retinues were so over glamoured there wasn't much there to read. I was thankful my ability made me immune to such a fate and appreciated a bit more Eric's treatment of me.

An hour or so later my body was reminding me I was decidedly human. I leaned over to whisper to Pam, who then in turn spoke quickly to Eric in their private language. He squeezed the hand which was still resting on his thigh to indicate I had his permission to leave. Pam escorted me to the ladies room where I took care of my needs. Pam had whipped out a lipstick from I don't know where and I was touching up my make up when Tara came in.

Since she was now a vampire there was no need for her to be in here, which meant she had to be seeking me out deliberately. She confirmed my theory by speaking directly to Pam.

"Ma'am may I have a few private moments with Sookie, please," she asked dipping her head in acknowledgment of Pam's sonority. 'I've been commanded not to feed this evening, so she has nothing to fear." So that explains how a baby vampire was allowed to be around so many humans. Eric would never have subjected Jessica to something like this club which was three times the size of Fangtasia. I also noticed Tara's speech was more lady like instead of the coarse street slang she was wont to use. It definitely was an improvement. Gran used to always correct her and wouldn't tolerate the language in her house but Tara had also been affected by Gran's death and her language had gotten nastier.

Pam looked at me with a raised brow and I nodded, I needed this discussion.

"I will wait just outside the door," Pam indicated before leaving us alone.

It became a bit awkward between the two of us once we were alone and I just thought to hell with it and reached out to give Tara a quick hug before stepping back.

She smiled weakly, "Look at you girl, lookin so fine."

"We missed you Tara, everyone is worried about you."

"Well I be doin pretty fine now," she ran a hand over her gold clad arm. "Sookie I ..." she started but I was already speaking and interrupted her.

"Tara what happened to you?" I asked with concern.

She wouldn't look me in the eye but she did tell me her story. She had left Bon Temps expecting to restart her life. She was going to take Sam's advice to heart. What she hadn't realized and what I had come to painfully learn on my own was once you were involved in the vampire world it rarely left you alone. She had garnered the attention of the scouting Nevada vamps because of her connection to me, the maenad's interest and her brief relationship with Franklin.

She had decided to head to Las Vegas because she had always wanted to see the sights and gamble. She thought it would be the perfect place to reinvent herself. She was a lousy gambler at first and was forced to sell her car. She had almost called home at that point, thinking she had failed again and figuring Lafayette could wire her some money so she could catch a bus back.

She walked into a casino she hadn't visited before. It was Gothic in look and flavor and she knew right away it was a vampire establishment. She thought she might as well spend one more night trying her luck before crawling back to Bon Temps so she played the tables and won. She won a lot, enough to make up her losses and then some. She was careless when she left the casino that evening and ended up being a victim of a mugging. The mugging was interrupted when the vampire which had been keeping tabs on her interrupted and took care of the muggers. Tara was then taken to the top floor of the hotel which also served as one of the head quarters of Felipe de Castro to recuperate.

She was introduced first to Victor, who explained they had been keeping tabs on her because of me. She had been furious at first, wanting to get up and leave immediately, but he promised she would not be glamoured and was considered a guest of the monarchy.

"Sookie you kept telling me Bill was such a good vampire, so I thought I might as well give these vamps a chance since they had helped me out." Tara tried to explain when I looked at her in disbelief. "They couldn't all be like Franklin, since you seemed to be getting along with some of them. What else could I have done?"

"You could have called Lafayette and we would have gotten you out."

"You woulda caused a war Sookie, if your vamps tried to interfere."

She continued with her tale. The vampires treated her like a lady, occasionally asking her questions about home. They were fascinated by the maenad and even though it made her sick to talk about it she explained how the creature had been defeated. Then they had started quizzing her about me. Tara looked over my shoulder as she admitted she had confirmed my ability one night after a lot of potent drinks served up by Victor. It was shortly after that evening she was introduced to Felipe.

She served me up on a silver platter just like Hadley, I thought with disgust.

Tara was still talking, "Felipe was such a surprise and such a hunk. He looks like every Latin actor and model you can think of but even better. He is so powerful and he treated me like a queen." I looked at her with skepticism. "Oh come on Sookie, don't tell me the power Eric exudes doesn't turn you on. Is it so bad I found a vampire who treats me good for once?"

She said once she was accepted into Felipe's household she was given the option to continue her education and a speech and diction coach had been supplied to her.

"I was expected to act like a lady at court and well I remembered how much your Gran tried to teach me so I thought cleaning up my potty mouth would be a way to honor her," Tara admitted sheepishly.

She had told me everything but how she had become a vampire, so I approached the subject directly. "How did you become a vampire Tara, I thought you hated everything about them. Obviously I was wrong since you seem to enjoy being one of their pets." She winced at the terminology but I am one to call a spade a spade. She had been a human pet, just as I would be if I did not possess my telepathy. The only other positions in the vampire world are as a donor or blood whore if you want to get graphic. Both Ginger and Bobby were considered donors since they traded their blood for Eric's favor.

She explained she was in the wrong place at the wrong time when Felipe was attacked in an attempt to over throw his throne. Victor had accepted the Authorities position and had resigned, leaving Felipe short one lieutenant. Someone had tried to take advantage and Tara was caught in the crossfire when a silver bullet meant to slow Felipe had ricocheted and taken her instead. She had been bleeding to death when Felipe had given her the option. She had taken a bullet meant for him and he wasn't finished with her yet.

"He told me I was dyeing Sookie, and offered to turn me." She looked into my eyes for the first time and I saw fierce determination glowing there. "I wasn't ready to die yet, there was too much left to experience, so I said yes."

"Do you regret it?" I asked curious whether or not she enjoyed her new lifestyle.

Her face and body became animated when she answered. "I love it, I have never felt so powerful so alive. Every sense is heightened and I feel so much."

I felt relief flood me, maybe Tara had finally found happiness, even if I was extremely suspicious as to how she got to this point.

I smiled at her and asked if she wanted the others to know where she was or better yet what she was. She said I could tell them if I wanted but she didn't want to see anyone yet and definitely would not be returning to Bon Temps. I had suspected as much. I wasn't egotistical enough to think the whole reason the vampires were interested in her was because of me. But obviously Tara had something about her that was attractive to the supernatural, and once you caught their attention, they didn't like letting their new toys go.

"Well I am glad you seem to have found your place Tara, it is good to see you happy."

"Good to see you too Sookie," Tara said obviously taking the cue I wanted to leave. 'A bit of advice before you go girl. If that hunky vamp of yours offers you the option to turn, girl I'd take it. I was wrong before, you'd be a kick ass vampire and then we could be friends forever." She was, pardon the pun, dead serious.

My reply was quiet, since I knew Pam was hearing the whole conversation. "I want to keep enjoying my tan." If Eric wanted to tell Pam I had agreed to become one of them he could, otherwise as far as I was concerned it was between the two of us.

She reached to give me another awkward hug. I don't know if we would truly be friends again, a lot of words had been said to sever the trust needed.

She left me with a word of warning. "Life's shorter than you think Sookie, be careful out there."

I followed her out the door and hooked up with Pam without a word. We made our way back to Eric, who was surrounded by Louisiana vampires talking quietly. I observed there were other vampires watching our little group with not so friendly expressions on their face and wondered how much longer we needed to attend this meet and greet.

Someone let out an ear piercing whistle and the crowd ceased their chatter when a female vampire with hot hazel eyes and straight light brown hair stepped forward. She was dressed in brown leather with what appeared to be a bull whip wrapped around her shoulder. I was betting it was tipped with silver.

"May I have your attention please," she requested with a surprisingly honey toned voice. "I am Jennifer Carter, the Second of Arkansas and on behalf of our people we welcome you to our State. I wish the circumstances requiring your presence would have been different but I hope you enjoy our hospitality. If you would follow me the entertainment you have all been waiting for is right this way." She turned and flanked by two other vampires walked to a door at the back of the lounge and passed through it. Faction by Faction the other vampires followed. Eric waited until we were the last to leave before following. I couldn't blame him I didn't want my back to anyone here either.

On the other side of the door was a covered walkway connecting this warehouse to one next door. Eric leaned down to me to whisper.

"If this is what I suspect it is, Sookie you need to stay very close to me and remember those you see within are here by choice. You've done exceptionally well this evening so far with all the surprises." He did not have a chance to say anything else because we were in the other building. I stumbled once when all the minds and the pain and blood lust they were broadcasting slammed into my shields but I swiftly recovered.

I swallowed back the bile which crawled up my throat when I looked down at the arenas below the catwalk we were on.

"Welcome to the Pits Sookie," Pam whispered from my other side.

The Pits, seven letters to describe a living hell. There were cat walks stretched around the warehouse as well as arena type seating. Below in each separate arena various shifters, humans and even vampires fought. There was the smell of blood and death everywhere. The sound of fangs snapping in place echoed throughout the area. I watched as two humans wailed on each other. The type of fighting was vaguely familiar from some of the cage fights Jason was hooked on for a short period of time. The vampires who were fighting were using various weapons and I was not surprised to see one fight end when the loser lost his leg to a sword and superior reach. Now I understood the need for weaponry there was enough tension in the air to spur on a spontaneous attack. In the arena furthest from us I caught the flash of fur and realized I was watching two were-wolves in battle. They appeared even more vicious than vampires.

Eric had once again edged us around so we had our backs protected with him and Pam standing slightly in front of me while I remained in the middle. I was still staring around me in sick fascination when our apparent hostess approached and signaled she wanted to speak to Eric privately. He stepped away from us to converse and I was caught unaware when the bond was flooded with elation and surprisingly blood lust. When he came back to us his eyes were glowing and his fangs were fully extended. He stripped off his coat and talked swiftly to Pam in that language I cannot comprehend. Pam started arguing with him which he silenced quickly with what appeared to be a command. All along I was becoming more anxious and because of the emotions charging through him and there for me, tense and jumpy.

When he was apparently satisfied Pam would obey him, he walked over to me and pulled me into a toe curling kiss. He was so enthusiastic he accidently nicked my lip and growled at the taste of blood. When he let me ago he was even more excited. He rested his forehead against mine for a moment and whispered, "You are my dearest," and then he just leaped over the cat walk railing and dropped out of sight.

"Pam what the fuck is going on?" I demanded grabbing her arm while leaning over the railing trying to catch sight of Eric.

"He is going to fight," she said harshly gripping my arm hard enough to bruise, and sure enough Ms. Jennifer sashayed into the center area for another announcement.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight we get a special treat for we are privileged to announce Mr. Eric Northman, Viking Sheriff of Area 5 Louisiana and Mr. John Quinn, Pit Champion and Were-Tiger extraordinaire have agreed to settle their blood feud in the Pits with us as witnesses. This will be a no holds barred battle and interested parties may place their bets with Gordon and Earl on the main floor. Please enjoy and may the best warrior win!"

The catwalks groaned under the weight as everyone fought for a view of the center pit.

"Get us down there Pam, where we can see him and still be safe." She grabbed my hand and led me swiftly through the mob until we found a view point right above the ring in the arena seating where once again our backs were protected. "Why is he doing this," I growled to her fighting the urge to scream at Eric. He didn't need me ruining his concentration so I tried to temper my emotional reaction. I could have just blocked him but I didn't want him to worry if he couldn't feel me.

"Quinn is here with Nevada, he approached them for asylum. When he saw Eric up top he figured he could challenge Eric."

I had seen both men fight but I couldn't imagine a battle between the two of them.

The crowd grew quiet as the contenders entered the arena. Eric was dressed in just his pants and weapon harness, his feet were bare. Quinn entered already a tiger and I could see he was more muscular than when he and Sam had traded blows. They were both beautiful specimens of their species.

"Are there any rules?" I whispered to Pam my fingers itching to do something.

"Eric is allowed one weapon and his fangs. He cannot use any special powers, for him that would mean he cannot fly or levitate to avoid the tiger. The shifter is allowed to enter already in their chosen form and if they have the capability they are allowed to change forms as many times as they wish."

Quinn still seemed to be at a slight disadvantage if Eric gets a weapon and I said so to Pam, even though I obviously wanted Eric to come out of this in one piece.

"The Tiger has more mass and size than Eric, and his reach with his claws are a match to Eric's sword if he slips Eric's guard." She grew quiet as it became clear the fight was ready to begin.

Eric stood quietly while Quinn paced around in his corner, lips peeled back from dagger like teeth and a growl rumbling in his throat. A whistle blew and the battle began.

Quinn wasted no time leaping at Eric and I held my breath when it appeared Eric was just going to stand there. At the very last moment Eric shifted slightly and somehow tossed the tiger over his shoulder and into the wall behind him. With the next second the Fae blade appeared in his hands and he took a fighting stance lightly balanced on the balls of his feet and his mouth stretched into an excited smile with fangs on full display.

There was a gasp and then muttering from some of the vampires when they saw the blade in Eric's hands, for its otherness was obvious.

"You gave him that blade?" Pam whispered to me in awe. I guess she had not seen it outside the harness yet.

"Yes," I whispered back proudly then remembered the rules. "He won't be penalized because it's not a plain sword will he?"

"No a weapon is a weapon, whether it's the latest laser or a flaming demon hammer. Quinn knew what he could be facing when he called challenge, some of Eric's other equipment is known to be unusual, including his former favorite sword," she said with a slight smile.

The fight had continued below us while we talked. Eric and Quinn had grappled a couple of times and both of them had separated bearing wounds. Blood was dripping from Eric's mouth where he had gotten a mouthful of Quinn when Quinn had bowled him over. Quinn was bleeding from multiple slashes to his shoulder and head area as well as a deep tear in his throat. Eric's wounds were already healing but I had to bite my tongue to stop my shout of denial when I saw Quinn's doing the same.

"V," Pam answered my unasked question. "The tiger took vampire blood before the battle." We watched a bit longer as Eric and Quinn clashed time and time again. Both were bleeding freely and I could feel Eric in the full throes of blood lust. Pam muttered worriedly, "He didn't take just your average vampire blood either; he shouldn't be healing that swiftly and still so strong after so much damage."

A horrible thought occurred to me. "You didn't find all of Eric's blood Pam, what if Quinn had been involved all along. Pam how much extra oomph does the blood give him? I saw Sam beat him relatively easily."

"He would have killed Sam in the first few seconds if he had been on blood no matter Sam's superior size or animal. Vampire blood combined with the two natured natural abilities is a lethal combination. It is what made Egington's pack of wolves so dangerous. You know how it enhances your own abilities." she explained.

"When we had to kill that were-wolf in my house, Eric told me just a little blood made them exceedingly dangerous, even for him." I said as memories tumbled around of the creature bleeding on my carpet and Eric burying it in a new grave.

"He faces something more dangerous than a wolf right now."

She didn't have to remind me. Both of the warriors below were bleeding freely as exhaustion began to sap their bodies healing abilities. Eric's blood lust had become tempered with caution, probably because he figured out the 'v' factor; as a result he wasn't baiting Quinn so much.

They pulled away from a clash which had Eric slashing through Quinn's haunches while Quinn tore into Eric's thigh in an attempt to pull him down. The crowd was screaming and cheering on the fight and I could hear bets flying around.

Where Eric was calculating each offensive blow Quinn was caught up fully in his animalistic instincts. Even I could see some of Eric's moves to be feints to get Quinn to attack in a certain way, but he just kept going after Eric. This allowed Eric to slowly whittle him down until the Tiger was nothing but strips of bleeding hide while Eric had been able to gain some breathing space for his wounds to heal. When Eric tossed the tiger over his shoulder after Quinn tried to knock him down again the tiger exploded with rage and came after Eric with everything he had. All I could see was flashing paws and glittering steel. I had to stifle my scream when I felt something sear across my stomach and I clutched at it thinking to find my insides flopping out.

Pam spun to me with a cry but there wasn't any blood just agonizing pain. "It's Eric," I hissed biting back a whimper. She tried to hide me with her body in an attempt to keep the vampires around us from noticing how close we were bonded but she was too late. I caught the measured speculation in a few eyes.

"It's too late Pam, some have noticed," I snarled over her incomprehensible muttering. I really needed to learn my vamps secret language. "I don't think Eric was expecting us to be linked this tight." He was getting tired and no longer able to temper the bond which meant I felt every blow the tiger landed over the next few minutes. I was tempted to send him some of my strength but we were too closely observed right now and I didn't want him to be accused of cheating if he won.

The battle was over a few short seconds later as Quinn charged Eric but the tiger was slower and less sure on his feet. Instead of dodging or throwing him, Eric leaped over Quinn and twisted in mid air, while he was reversed in the air his arms swung in a powerful blow and the Fae blade severed Quinn's head from his shoulders. Eric completed his flip and landed on his feet only to stagger and brace his weight on the bloody blade. The crowd was roaring around us and I prayed no one noticed Eric's sword seemed to absorb the blood dripping down it and in return Eric stood a tad bit straighter.

I didn't care where we were. I yanked off my heels and pushed through the crowd until I reached the edge of the pit then jumped in without concern for the length of the fall. I tucked and rolled as I had seen in various movies, surprised at how easy it was then sprung to my feet and ran over to Eric. He saw me coming and sheathed the sword and met me with open arms and voracious lips.

We were wrapped up in each other, oblivious to the now naked headless man on the other side of the arena or Jennifer Carter attempting to congratulate Eric over the roar of the crowd.

Pam was the one to pull us apart, growling we needed to get out of there and warning me if Eric and I continued the crowd would get a show I wouldn't want to remember.

Don't ask me how we made it to the hotel room. I don't have a clue. Eric was still with me and the tiger was dead and adrenaline was pouring through my body. My clothes disappeared as did Eric's and then we were rolling over the hotel bed. I bit Eric's chest with a growl when he slid home and was answered by the feel of his fangs sinking into my shoulder. I sucked on the wound, the taste of Eric in my mouth and the feel of him deep between my thighs my proof he was still alive. Every pull of my blood down Eric's throat was echoed by a thrust of his hips and I released his chest with a scream as the first orgasm crashed over me. There was no softness or tenderness between us, just two people verifying their existence. When Eric came apart in my arms for the last time I was feeling light headed and a bit starry eyed.

When I had the strength to lift my head I pulled away from his embrace and rolled him to his back as I allowed my hands and fingers to explore every inch of his body looking for wounds which had not closed.

"They have all healed lover, thanks to your blood," his voice was a contented purr in my ear as he gathered me close.

"I was scared," I admitted curling into him as tight as I could get.

"I was confident," he said and chuckled when I half assed slapped at him. "Rest now lover for dawn grows near." He hummed a lullaby and I allowed his soothing voice to sing me to sleep.