"Is this about your comfort or her safety?" Quinn asked Eric, as they stared one another down.

The Sheriff snorted. "Well it's certainly not about my comfort, sending my bonded away with a filthy animal, so even I cannot find her."

Eric, Quinn, Hunter and I were all out in my fairy meadow that evening, having a conversation that threatened to turn violent at any second. Eric had just ordered me to leave my family home forever - and I had to go tomorrow. Neither Quinn nor I were happy about that.

"If this is about her safety, then you really need to start talking," Quinn insisted. "We both need to know what's going on, right now."

Eric crossed his arms over his chest. "You kept her safe for the last month," he sneered. "I fail to see why you suddenly have to know now."

"Because you're asking me to hide her!" Quinn snapped. "It's one thing to secure her house so it's hard for anyone to get to her here. Everyone knows where she is, so all I had to do was keep it looking like tomorrow would be a better day to come for her than today, and make sure that when 'tomorrow' comes, we're all ready for that. Hiding her is totally different!"

"Then I will find a better guard for her," Eric shrugged. "It is short notice, but I'm sure I can come up with someone suitable by tomorrow."

"Right," Quinn muttered darkly, "you let me stay here the last month because there's so many other people who could keep her safe."

"Stop it!" I screamed. "Stop it, both of you! I'm not going anywhere! I'm staying right here, and neither of you can make me leave."

I glared back and forth between them, challenging either of them to try.

"It's true," Quinn confirmed, smiling. "Neither of us are strong enough to make her leave any more, so I'll just have to keep protecting her here." He shrugged and came over to me, rubbing my back soothingly, trying to reassure me that he'd help me stay here.

"You might not be," Eric smirked, "but I am."

"No, you're not," Hunter corrected.

Eric stared at him in disbelief.

"It's a fairy meadow," he explained. "You can't make Aunt Sookie do anything here. Or me. Or Uncle John. Our magic's stronger here. Yours is different magic. It's weaker here. But you can't make her. Not even where you were before. I told you, you have to tell her."

"Tell me what, Hunter?" I asked gently. "What's he keeping from me?"

"He has to tell you," my nephew insisted. "He 'splains better than me."

"It's not that easy," Eric sighed, looking at us all like we were idiots for thinking he could just tell us what the heck was going on.

"You can trust them." Hunter walked over to him. "They won't tell on you. She still loves you. And he wants to keep her safe. More than anything else. If they know, she'll be safe. If they don't, he'll get her."

"Who'll get me?" I asked, annoyed that my eyes were filling with tears again. "Who wants to hurt me this time? I haven't done anything to anyone..."

Eric looked me in the eye for just a moment, and I could feel him probing our bond, looking for something. It took a few seconds to realize what: my feelings for him. He wanted to know if what Hunter told him was correct. I knew it wasn't, but I wasn't about to correct him. But whatever he found there, it reassured him enough that he decided to tell us.

"My King has plans for you," he said simply.

I literally blinked, and the whole scene in front of me changed. Eric was suddenly flat against the nearest tree, his feet far enough off the ground that it looked like he was standing on top of the long blades of grass that grew around the trunk. Quinn was holding him there. By his throat. Eric didn't seem remotely perturbed though; he just crossed his arms and rolled his eyes at the whole situation. Hunter had wisely decided to come stand beside me again, knowing he wasn't easily seen by himself.

"You fucking idiot," Quinn snarled, fury radiating off him. He was still naked, so I could see every single muscle in his body tensed for a fight.

Eric just snorted. "You are the one holding a vampire by the throat. We don't breath, moron."

"No, but if I break the right bones, you won't be able to lie for a day or two," he growled back.

"Stop it!" I yelled at them. "Put him down, John. Now."

He did it immediately - and, I realized a second later, involuntarily. He wasn't at all happy about that.

It was a real OSM, an Oh shit! moment. Oh no, I thought. No no no no no no no. I don't want this power over anyone. Shit! What do I do? Shit!

I walked over to where they were both standing, still glaring at each other, and took Quinn's hand so I could 'speak' to him silently, gently dragging him away as I did.

I'm really sorry, I told him. I didn't know I could do that. Am I supposed to be able to do that? Is it a mated shifter thing? Can you do that to me?

He stared at me for a second, completely perplexed, then realized I really didn't know. Does anyone ever tell you anything? he asked.

I shook my head. Other than you...

OK, I guess we need to work out every other thing you should know but don't. His thoughts gave the impression that was going to be a huge task. What you just did... it's a fairy thing. I don't think fairies can do it to each other, not that they'd tell me if they could, but when fairies mate with any other species... their magic's stronger, so they can do shit like that.

You knew I'd be able to do that? I silently screamed. Why on earth did you agree to it? Why did you let me do this to you?

He just kissed me on the forehead and chuckled. No fairy would do that to their mate very often, he explained. Fairies crave adoration, they need it to live, or at least to power their magic or something. Y'all keep your mate loyal by making them so happy they'll do anything for you... as happy as you make me. Besides, all fairies seem to have some kind of empathic ability and-

I snorted, thinking of my cousin Claude.

What he thought back wasn't all words, but I got the message clearly: he figured Claude probably found it painful being around humans and absorbing their bad feelings, so he chose to only interact with them in the setting where he gets the most adoration: showing off his body in a strip club. In his opinion, a lot of the most empathically sensitive people became really unpleasant individuals simply because it was such a strain for them to be around people at all, which just made me all the more incredible for being so nice.

That was why most fairies never used their power to command their mate: they could feel exactly how it made their mate feel when they did.

You can command me if you want, he concluded. But I don't think you want. That's why I let you do this.

I nodded then, understanding. A man of his size and strength knew all about being able to force people to do things if he wanted to, but he rarely did - and he would only have to see their angry reaction, not hear what they thought of him, like I would.

"OK, so de Castro has plans for me," I got back to the topic at hand, just as Eric started getting suspicious. Talking silently was a lot quicker than speaking out loud, so the short conversation Quinn and I just had took well under thirty seconds, but it was still long enough for Eric to know something was going on. "And you think my best way to thwart those plans is to run and hide. Why on earth was it so hard to tell me that?"

Eric looked at me as though I were an imbecile. I was clearly missing something that ought to be obvious.

"Because he just committed treason by telling you," Quinn explained. "If anyone ever found out... well, the penalties are pretty awful."

"Oh." It made sense then. "He's not supposed to go against what the King wants, even if it's bad for me."

Quinn nodded.

"Then why did you just attack him, when he's risking so much to warn me that I'm not safe here?"

"Because he went to so much effort to convince me de Castro wasn't a threat to you, that I've just spent a month making sure you're safe from anyone and everyone else who could possibly have a beef with you... everyone except his King, basically. You'd be a helluva lot safer now if he hadn't gone to so much trouble to change my mind that the little creep is a danger to you."

Eric snorted. "What would you have done? Stormed into his castle and got yourself killed? She'd be so much safer then." His voice dripped contempt.

Quinn turned to glare at him. "Right, because I'm so stupid I'd take on his entire guard, on their own turf, and expect to win."

"What else could you do?" Eric taunted.

"A lot more than you can, clearly," Quinn shot back. "I spent three-and-a-half months in that monster's compound, with him threatening my family the whole time. I did develop a few resources in there."

"So some dopey shifter day guard will tell you what little they know," Eric rolled his eyes. "That won't help her."

I caught in Quinn's thoughts that he had something a lot better than a few gossipy guards; that if Eric hadn't sent him on a wild goose chase, he would know exactly what de Castro had planned for me, and might have already resolved this situation.

"What do you have in there?" I asked curiously. "How are you able to find out things that he can't?"

Quinn's eyes darted around for a few moments, as he debated whether to let Eric in on a secret he felt sure would get him into a lot of trouble, if he were ever found out. On the one hand, he didn't trust vampires at all, and trusted Eric even less than most, given his attitude towards me. On the other hand, he was sure de Castro would hurt me a great deal more than Eric would, and was reasonably certain the Viking was sincere in his desire to keep me from his King, if only so he could reclaim me at some point... and he wasn't sure he could keep me safe from, quote, that sadistic little cretin without Eric's help. That last fact was what made his mind up.

"OK, I'll show you what I've got," he decided, "because it'll be a helluva lot easier for you to keep her safe if I do. But if anyone finds out about this, you'll be in just as much trouble as I will," he threatened Eric. "No vamp will believe a moron like me did this by myself, and when they ask who was behind it, I'll tell them it was you."

"Fine, show me whatever this secret resource of yours is," Eric hurried him up.

"Will it -" Quinn started to ask a question.

"Yes," Hunter interrupted. "I can make it."

"OK, I'll be back in a minute," he kissed my forehead. "You'll be safe here?"

"Sure," I grinned ferally. "You don't wanna known what happens to anyone who tries to harm a fairy in a fairy meadow." Amelia had taught me how to invoke the meadow's protective magic a few days ago, so I knew that as long as Hunter and I were here, nobody could hurt us.

"Don't worry," he added for Eric's benefit. "I can get in and out without being seen."

Then Quinn was off, jogging towards my house to retrieve whatever it was he'd decided to show us, enjoying the chance to stretch his legs.

Eric and I just stared at each other across the clearing. I couldn't work out what to say or do now it was just him and I here with Hunter, and he didn't seem too certain about anything, either.

"She won't stop you," Hunter informed him, cryptic as ever.

Eric seemed to consider that for a moment, and then an instant later, he was right in front of me. I literally didn't see him move, he just appeared barely a yard away.

"Sookie," he murmured, as he slowly, tentatively, stepped closer and wrapped his arms around me. "I will miss you."

"So this is a goodbye hug?" I checked.

"I supposed it is," he sighed, pulling me tight to his side. "My obstinate, faithless, infuriating wife." The lingering, impassioned way he said it made it sound like a compliment. "Life will be so different without you... I will miss you, my lover."

He buried his nose in my hair and inhaled deeply, and just for a moment, I let myself relax. The gentle, undemanding way he held me was actually quite pleasant. Comforting even. I found myself leaning into him, letting him rock me a little, even as I hoped this wasn't really a farewell... because I didn't want to leave my home, of course.

For a moment, it felt exactly like the days just before he left, when he was sweet, and considerate, and for the very briefest time, all mine.

"Why are you like this, Eric?" I pondered aloud, my voice muffled against his chest. "So sweet some days, and so mean on others?"

"Why are you?" he replied gently, as he stroked up and down my back with the tips of his fingers.

It didn't feel like he wanted a reply; he was simply making the point that he found my behavior as inconsistent as I found his. I finally let my arms encircle him, almost by way of apology that I hurt and confused him, the same way he did me. He planted a goodbye kiss on top of my head in response, and rested his face against my hair.

Then I felt Quinn approaching and pulled away from Eric hastily, wondering what my boyfriend's big secret was.