Disclaimer: Charlaine Harris owns all.
Rated M for several reasons.
Chpt 7 Q & A
NPOV
These frequent trips are raising eyebrows back home, not that even the daughters would dare question my actions. And I must say their thinly veiled attempts to get me to tell them what is going on have been most diverting. If it actually occurs to one of them to prepare a roast they might finally get somewhere.
My little ray of sunshine looks tired and drawn, even with the stalker's blood running through her veins.
"I am glad to see you well Great Granddaughter."
"Thanks." She sighs, lowering herself onto the porch steps next to me and leaning into my side.
I put my arm around her and let her snuggle closer. Fairies thrive when they are close to each other, my proximity will finish re-charging her spent reserves of energy. I doubt she realises why she accepts me so easily, I should probably explain at some point.
"Hi Ortel." She murmurs.
"Princess." He acknowledges and I shoot him a glare. She has enough to deal with, she does not need all that rigmarole to sort through as well, I seriously doubt she would be pleased to hear it anyway. She is not that kind of fairy.
"Do you mind if I ask you some questions?" She asks after a long silence.
"Of course not. This is partly the reason for my visits. You wish to learn and I am happy to teach."
"What can you tell me about vampires?"
"Arrogant. Secretive. Allergic to silver. Frightened of emotions and wooden stakes. Prone to pomp, addicted to rules which most of them then ignore. Deadly to fairies."
"What?" She almost jumps to her feet but I keep her in place.
"Do not worry Sookie. They will never know you are fae unless you tell them, as with all my line you are gifted with a natural ability to mask your scent, you do not even need to think about it, you have been doing it all your life already. Fairy blood is highly attractive to vampires, it makes them intoxicated and any fairy unfortunate enough to be caught is always drained dry."
"Oh. That sucks."
"Quite. There are not many vampires left old enough to recognise the taste of fairy blood. Be careful who you share yours with, though it is diluted by your human genes an older vampire may recognise the taste."
She is thoughtful for a moment.
"Eric, the Sheriff, says I should ask Bill why he isn't protecting me properly." A pause. "It's come up a few times recently and I feel like I'm missing something important."
"He calls you his, yes?"
"Yes. Quite a lot actually." She huffs. "The first time we met Eric and the others Bill told me it would be better if they thought I was his, he said a vampire would not touch another's human, he was kinda embarrassed about it, like it was some sort of dirty secret, so I didn't mind playing along too much.
But it's gotten worse, the more time we spend around the others, and he seems particularly touchy about it where Eric is concerned. It's irritating but I also get the impression the other vampires are just humouring him when he does it, like it's not quite true or something."
She is very perceptive my little ray of sunshine.
"You have taken the oily little specimen's blood, yes?"
She nods.
"Blood is everything to vampires. They, and all other supernaturals for that matter, will be able to smell it in you. Vampires guard their blood jealously so its presence in yours suggests you have value to the blood's owner and if they know Bill then they will recognise the smell of his blood.
It is not permanent, the scent of him in you has been fading for some time, but it can be 'topped up'. It is also not a definitive claim of ownership over you. Some vampires would respect it and show deference to the blood's owner in their dealings with you, others would not. Drinking from you for example, would be considered rude, but not a breach of ownership. Vampires who are older than Bill, or have dominion over him, would be most likely to ignore the presence of his blood, possibly even going as far as taking you away completely."
I can feel her anger stirring, I assume this is not music to the ears of a modern woman, but in the supernatural world ownership and claim is what prevents, or starts, most of the trouble.
"Now that you have had Eric's blood, a far more powerful and older vampire, the oily specimen's hardly registers. A vampire who recognises Eric's blood in you is far more likely to observe the niceties for fear of the repercussions."
"So is Eric going to start puffing his chest out and calling me 'his' all the time now?"
"I do not know. I know a little of him and if he genuinely wanted to claim ownership of you I believe he would do it properly."
"You know Eric?" She seems surprised.
"I knew Godric." I admit and for a moment I think she is going to pursue that line of questioning but then, sensibly, she steers us back on track.
"So how would a vampire claim me properly?"
"A vampire and a human can bond through blood. It is called a blood bond unimaginatively enough. This is done by a mutual exchange, drinking from each other at the same time. The effects last longer than those of donated blood from the vampire and tie them together to a degree, again supernaturals will be able to smell the difference. This would be a recognised claim of ownership because in addition to the vampire feeling the human, the human would be able to feel the vampire and they do not like that sort of thing, therefore other vampires would recognise the significance. It is permanent only dissolving when the human dies but the bond of a single exchange does fade over time and the more time passes the more likely it is that another vampire can form a new bond and eradicate the first.
Exchanging a second time strengthens the bond, the participants are more aware of each other and its affects take longer to fade. Considering the lifespan of a normal human there is little chance of another vampire being able to bond to the human later, unless they have particularly powerful blood.
Exchanging for a third time binds the two together completely and is extremely rare and somewhat revered by vampires. No vampire would be able to break such a claim of ownership, no matter how powerful or ancient they were.
A vampire that has a bond to a human can control them through it, the stronger the bond, the greater the degree of control. It is not uncommon for some form of bond to be used to control a valuable asset. Such as a telepath, for example."
She is quiet for a long time.
"I don't know what to think." She says finally. "On the one hand Bill said he loved me but he never told me any of this. And he never offered to bond with me to protect me even though he was always saying other vampires would try to take me and abuse my disability. But I hate the idea of someone, him, being able to control me, that's just . . . ." She shivers. ". . . . wrong."
"Well, for once my child, you have an advantage. You are not human, you are fairy. A vampire cannot properly bond with you and they would never be able to turn you."
"I'm guessing this is something else I should never tell them?" She whispers.
"You are correct. When you merely take their blood they can feel you and track you in the normal way, if they choose to. When they bond with you it does not work quite the same way. Your fairy essence will reject their power. It cannot negate it, you will be bound, but the degree of it will be considerably impacted and it will be your choice how much of that impact you reveal."
"They wouldn't be able to control me if I didn't want it?"
"Absolutely not."
Another reflective pause.
"Is there another way I can be protected?"
"Yes, Great Granddaughter." I poke her forehead for emphasis. "Use this far more than you use anything else. And purchase silver bullets for your shotgun."
She is still giggling when I sense the oily specimen approaching.
"We must leave, your oily little friend is coming."
"Thank you for coming to see me." She sighs regretfully.
"It is our pleasure." I assure her. "You have no idea how much I appreciate our time together."
I nod to Ortel and we pop away into the top of one of the nearby trees.
SPOV
I don't know how far away Bill is so I drag my bag inside and flip on the lights as I make my way to the kitchen. A quick inspection reveals that my dear brother has been over and cleaned me out of any and all things edible and my stomach growls in protest.
With a sigh I start fixing myself a drink, gasping in shock when Bill's cool arms close round me, pressing me against the counter.
"Sookie." He groans, burying his face in my hair. "You are safe. I was so worried about you."
Funny how the arms that used to feel so good now feel like a cage.
Uncomfortable I wriggle away from him, thankful that he lets me go so easily I turn to face him. Wondering how to start this conversation . . . .
"Did you go to see Eric?" I ask.
"No. I came straight here to check on you."
"Are you going to see him?"
"Sookie." He counters. "Why did you take Eric's blood? You are mine . . . ."
"I was injured. He offered and he was the best of the alternatives available. And I am not yours Bill."
"Sookie, you know I only use this term to protect you from other vampires."
"So you keep telling me but it hasn't exactly worked has it? I have more of Eric's blood in me now than yours, doesn't that make me his instead?"
He narrows his eyes at me and he takes a step back. Oops, I may have overplayed my hand.
"What has Eric told you?" He asks, his voice becoming cold and hard.
"Nothing. I just assumed that having had your blood was the only way I could be classed as yours."
He shifts and actually looks uncomfortable. I feel bad but he hasn't been entirely truthful with me and I think, since he says he loves me, I'm entitled to know why.
"Is that not the case?" I press. "How is it that you are protecting me Bill?"
"Sookie, you do not understand."
"Then please explain it to me Bill."
"I cannot."
"Are you protecting me Bill?"
Silence.
"Bill?"
"Sookie, I have become very fond of you since I came to Bon Temps, I love you . . . ."
I sense a but coming.
". . . . and I am doing my best to make you safe, but it is difficult . . . ."
"If you love me why can't you tell me what's going on?"
He looks torn but I can feel my sympathy for him trickling away, seriously, if he loves me why can't he just tell me the truth?
"You should not have taken Eric's blood." He sighs finally, running his hand through his hair.
Obviously he isn't going to tell me anything. Fine. Two can play at that game.
"Bill Compton, I rescind your invitation."
It's almost funny, like someone's stuck a fish hook in the back of his shirt and is reeling him in.
"Sookie, no . . . ."
The door even slams behind him for extra emphasis.
Is my personality changing? It was very bad of me to have enjoyed that, Gran would be ashamed.
And there's a miserable thought.
I glance at the clock, I'm on the lunch shift tomorrow.
I switch the drink I was going to make for cocoa and lug it, and my bag down to my room, losing myself happily in my normal night time routine, finally laying my uniform out for tomorrow and setting the alarm. If it's nice in the morning I'll sunbathe for an hour to two after I've been to the store.
Sleep finds me easily but my dreams aren't what I was expecting. I'm pretty sure a naked Eric, riding a clam through the clouds, is cheese and not erotica . . . .