"Wake up." Sookie was laughing, I was drooling. The cool summer night had set in while I slumbered. "Oh hey Sook." I said while I wiped my mouth dry with the back of my hand. Bill was standing beside Sookie with an amused smile on his pale face. "Are you ready?" She asked, I nodded and sat up.
My body felt cold, my skin was especially white. "I'll just go upstairs and get my bags." I said, Sookie nodded. I ran up the stairs and went over to the window I grabbed my bags and glanced out onto the back yard for just a second. But, I had seen someone, I looked back. Next to the shed there was the woman, again. She looked beautiful. Dark hair, perfectly ivory skin, striking blue eyes. She was staring up at me with a bright smile. I blinked and she was gone. 'Wow you're really going insane.' I said to myself. Maybe I was going crazy. Jessica drove us in Bill's car to the airport. Me and Sookie would be sitting next to each other on the plane while Bill rode in one of the portable coffins. The plane ride was long and boring. I took a small paperback novel out of my bag and finished it for the third time.
When we landed we were ushered to a limo. Sookie looked to me she grabbed my arm for a second. She was hearing a man's thoughts. "Oh god, okay I have to get the girls, the blond one, and the fangbanger, I think. And take them to Mr. Newlin." Then the man walked out. I stared him down. "Ya'll come with me." He grabbed Sookie by the arm. He was nervous. I pushed him away from her, he turned back and was about to hit me in the face when Bill pushed him to the ground. It was the first time I had seen his fangs, they shined in the pale light like jagged pearls. "Who are you?" Bill growled. "I-I ain't telling y-you nothin v-vamp scum!" He stuttered out of shear horror. It was almost like he'd never seen a vampire before. Bill got up and picked the man up with ease. I grabbed his hand. His name was Josh, and he had never seen a vampire in his life, he was terrified of Bill. They knew Sookie and I were coming, there was someone giving them information. Steve Newlin was angry that we were going to mess up the burning of the vampire. I pulled my hand back. "They knew we were coming. Steve Newlin is going to force Godric to meet the sun." Bill nodded and looked at the man. "Look at me." Bill turned to me. "What is his name?" Bill asked. "His name is Josh." I answered. Bill turned back to him. "Josh, look into my eyes." Bill sounded seductive and unfathomable. As Josh turned to him Bill smiled, he seemed to be nothing more than a sweet trustworthy man. "You were coming to abduct the two girls, but, it looks as if they didn't make it." Bill's voice was almost enough to put anyone in a trance. "Oh golly, Mr. Newlin is going to be so mad. He'll tear me a new one." Josh said slowly. Bill drew back and turned to us. "Let's go." He said, we went to the rental car and got in.
Bill drove us to a hotel. I slid out of the backseat to marvel at the large building. "Nice." I said, Sookie was standing next to me. "Isn't it?" She agreed. A man about my age, maybe a few years older was loading our luggage onto a rolling cart. Bill got out of the car and stood next to Sook. To everyone else we must've looked like a weird bunch. A vampire, a southern belle, and some pale girl. "Welcome to Hotel Carmilla, sir! My name is Barry and I'll be your porter." The boy was falsely cheerful, that was easy to see. Put into other words, he was no fangbanger. Sookie tensed beside me, but her face was happy. I just let it go for the moment. "I'll just follow you with your luggage." The guy said.
When we got into the lobby I mused at the cliché vampire things all about the lobby. Red furniture, matched with black carpet. Fangbangers seated next to their vamp-daddies, or whatever you'd call them. Bill and Sookie had gotten away from me and were talking to a tall, skinny lady. She was everything you'd imagine a vampire to be. Her hair was brown and in a long braid, and her eyes were beautiful. She looked amazingly bored. As soon as she left I walked over. "Who was that?" I asked. Bill pursed his lips for a moment. "That was Isabel Beaumont." He said flatly, I nodded and left it at that.
My room was next to Bill and Sookie's. Barry gave them their luggage first then he followed me into my room. When I walked in I raised a brow. It was nice, very nice. "Swanky." I mused. Barry was standing at the door. "You can just put the bags wherever you feel the need to." I said. He looked at me with significant wonder. He walked in to put them beside the couch. Looking to me for consideration. I nodded and he sat them down. "Your tense." I said while I fished around in my jean pockets for a tip. He swallowed nervously. "Yeah, working with vampires makes me kind of uneasy." He sighed. I pulled out a ten dollar bill and looked at him. "That's kind of weird." I said while I flattened the bill in my hand. He shrugged nervously. "I mean your working in a vampire hotel and all." I spoke quietly. "Yeah, it's a funny story." He said and shrugged once more. I handed him the ten dollar bill and clicked my tongue. "Thank you for bringing my bags up." I said, he laughed a small nervous laugh. "What?" I asked. "No one ever thanks me is all. It's my job." He shrugged looking abashed. "Well then, thank you for doing your job." I laughed. "Your welcome." He smiled and went on his way.
I felt…sleepy. It still surprised me, it was a natural human need. But it was normal for me for the past two years to avoid sleep. But, now, I was sleepy. I fell onto the large soft bed and drifted away.
When I awoke it was dark, still dark? I got up and looked at the window, it was sealed off. Oh, a vampire hotel, no sunlight during the day, of course. I nodded to myself and checked my cell-phone it was actually three-twenty-seven in the afternoon. I went to the bathroom that was in the room and I closed the door behind me. As I looked into the mirror I saw my face, my slim cheeks and my eyes with their dark circles around them. My colorless skin and my red lips. I stuck my tongue out at myself and went back out into the small stylish living room. My bags were where Barry had left them. I opened my clothes bag and pulled out teal v-neck and some tight legged jeans.
I went back into the bathroom and showered. As I stood naked under the warm stream of water I thought of Eric. His memories really frightened me, but, he was something altogether different from what I had seen. He was a calm, confident, and controlled specimen. In his memories, he was vengeful, hungry, enraged, and afraid. This Eric Northman was very complex, and very unpredictable. As I dressed I felt my legs buckle. It was almost as if a weight was pressing down on me.
"This is our basement." A skinny man with disgustingly proper hair smiled at me. Sookie grabbed my arm. He was thinking awful things. "I'm sort of claustrophobic." Sookie said, but he didn't listen or care. I thought frantically to Sookie. 'Run, please run. I'll hold them off.' She wouldn't budge and told me so right then and there. 'Okay we'll run together…now!' As we tried to get away strong hands seized me.
I took a long breath in. It was like some kind of blackout or dream. But, I was awake and fully aware. It scared me tremendously. I coughed for a long second, unsure of myself. I didn't know what to do. I was wonderstruck by the questioning of my sanity. Someone was knocking on my door, I was only in my bra and panties, but in my thoughtless haze I answered the door anyway. It was Sookie and some slim geeky looking guy. Sookie's eyes went wide, but the man seemed neutral. Sookie came in and so did the man. The man closed the door and Sookie walked with me into my room.
She closed the door and looked over at me with worry on her clear face. "You look like you've seen a ghost." She said. "Something much more peculiar." I sighed. Sookie shook her head and pulled a light blue dress out of her purse and a matching headband. She handed them to me and shooed me wordlessly to the bathroom. I dressed reluctantly and put a bit of baby blue eye shadow on my lids. I looked like a child going to church. Then I realized it was time to go to the church. It seemed like it was happening pretty fast.
When I walked back out I did a small wry turn for Sookie. She beamed at me. "You look so pretty." She said. "So who's the dude?" I asked her. "His name is Hugo, he will be my fiancé." She said. "Oh, didn't know you two were so serious." I mumbled my stupid joke to cover up my worried feelings. "You're going to play my happy-go-lucky, and very religious sister." She said as we walked out. I nodded as if I had done this every day of my life. "Hello soon to be brother-in-law." I smiled at Hugo, testing my weak character. He chuckled and his face went straight as soon as he went silent. There was something off about him, I just couldn't put my finger on what it was.
We left the hotel and got into Hugo's car. As we drove to the church I grilled Sookie. "So want to tell me when the plans were made." I asked her looking at her through the mirror. "Well, last night. Bill said not to get you. He said it'd be boring and he also said that Eric didn't want you there." Sookie said with a slight yawn, it was apparent she didn't get much sleep last night. "Well, Eric can bite my butt." I said childishly. As we pulled to a stop I looked up. The church was huge, something of a masterpiece. They must've been doing quite well in the worshipping god business.
A young blond lady met us in the lot. "Hey there!" She called out in a perky southern accent. Her blond hair looked that of a Barbie's. What I mean by that, was that she had enough hairspray in it to look as fake as her nails. I wore a false yet believable smile on my face. "You look even more pretty in person." Sookie was doting while I looked off across the lot. Thank you and look as pretty as a Georgia peach yourself." The fake woman giggled. "What can I do for ya'll?" I looked back with my stressed smile. "My fiancée, and I wanted to see your beautiful church." Hugo said. "We're getting married." Sookie added like a lovely little housewife. "That's just great." The woman purred. I felt I needed to add. "Hope, god sends me that right person as well. My sister here was always the first at everything." I gave myself a little more of a country twang than I originally had which was hardly any. "Girl, me and my sister were the same way." The woman laughed. "Come on, you three. Our church is one of the best in Dallas, especially for marriages. Oh and I'm Sarah Newlin by the way." She laughed.
Every time she turned to us I made sure I brightened my smile even more. She went on explaining the church and it's history. I paid no attention, my thoughts roamed over to none other than Eric. Why couldn't he come and get this vampire himself? These people weren't that scary at all. If anything they were scary in a fashion sense sort of way, but I think a very old vampire has seen enough fashion disaster to withstand this. It couldn't be true that a vampire can't pass on holy ground if there was one holed up in here somewhere.
"My husband would love to meet ya'll." She grinned stupidly. Steve Newlin I assumed. Maybe he was scary. As we walked into the hall Sarah tapped on the door to an office with the name Steven Newlin on the door. "Come on in." He called, when we got into his large office I saw the man I had seen earlier in the dream-thing. My body went rigid for a second. My insides turned to jelly while I reinforced my outside mask, smile Ella. Look happy and dumb. When I was sure I was okay I stepped into better view of Steve.
There was also another man, a large bald man wearing a t-shirt with a large sun on it. Under it said: Fellowship Of The Sun! He measured us all up in his snide way. He stood and shook Hugo's hand. "Steve Newlin, you?" He asked. "Hugo Ayres." He said, and I thought to myself why the hell would he use his real name? "And this is Marigold and Sally." I had to think for a second about who was Marigold and who was Sally. I concluded that I would be Sally when Steve shook Sookie's hand and said. "Nice to meet you Marigold." Sookie peeped with a sweet. "You too." Then he came to me, it was my big time, my moment. He put his hand over mine eagerly. I saw Godric, I saw Jason, whom Steve knew well. I saw a weird stage with a huge crucifix sort of thing on it that Steve associated with meeting the sun. I pulled back my hand. "Nice to meet you Sally." He said with a sick smile. "Nice to meet you to Mr. Newlin." He moved close to his desk and looked back at me. "Please call me Steve." He insisted. Then he walked to the door. "Let's finish the tour, shall we?" Hugo nodded and we followed. I was waiting for all of it to end so I could just go back to cozy little Bon Temps, with less pressuring religious figures.