Dina POV

Eric had carried and situated me on the bed and was carefully taking the ropes off me. He was apparently going to keep the ones he didn't snap and fray with his fangs. He told me not to move my arms too fast after they had been still for so long. He massaged each part of me as he freed me from the bindings. He let me lower myself to the bed and I curled up comfortably. Part of me wanted to stretch out, but I was tired. My head was a little sore. I hadn't had a headache in a while; I'd forgotten how bad they felt. I hoped that since my health was so much better with Eric's blood and I had enough caffeine today I wouldn't get a migraine. I relaxed on the bed and took it easy while Eric put the ropes away and said he had to get something.

He came back and sat beside me. I looked up at him and smiled. He pushed some strands of hair that had fallen out of my face. I didn't know why I thought having bangs would be a good idea. I was growing them out.

"How do you feel? Any pain in your arms?"

"Nope. Just stiff from holding position." I said honestly.

"We can fix that." He smiled and produced a bottle of massage oil. "Its pomegranate scented. Stretch out for me."

I was very pleased he picked a fruit I loved. He pushed my hair out of the way. It was getting knotted. I would need to brush it soon. He began to rub the oil into my shoulders. It was a little cold, but warmed against my skin after a few moments. His touch was almost too gentle. I kinda wanted more pressure to work out my kinks.

"Is this good, lover?" He asked me.

"Yes…thank you…if you want you can go a little harder. I won't break."

"You don't have to thank me to seeing to your body. Tell me if it's too much. I want to make your body feel good."

I told him I would and stretched my muscles again. It felt good to move around. The pain in my head still hadn't gone away. I felt Eric's fingers slide down my shoulders and I moved my arms away from my body. Instead of rubbing my back and sides, he used both hands on my right arm. He was firmer this time and watched my face to make sure I was enjoying his ministrations. I sighed contently and closed my eyes. He worked my arms. Eventually they were so relaxed I felt like they were made of jelly. He went back to rubbing my back and when he moved lower to my ass, his touch was about soothing me, not to initiate something sexual.

Sadly, the pain in my head was getting worse. I was now keeping my eyes closed to avoid the light. As long as I laid here and focused on Eric's hands, the pain was manageable. I knew Eric had no medication. I wondered if his blood would cure a migraine. I also wondered if it was normal to take a sip of his blood for every ache I had. I suppose it wasn't as weird or different than taking a pill.

"Flip over." Eric told me.

I rolled over and hated the movement. It made me very aware of the pain in my head. I held my eyes shut tightly. A bit of nausea ripped through me and I knew my ache had escalated to a migraine.

"Dina, don't move so fast if your body is still sore. It's hard when you aren't used to being bound. You are getting much better. Tonight was spectacular." I heard the pleasure in his voice. I thought about not correcting him about what was causing me pain. But then remembered what we had been going over. I wanted to just wait this out a bit, but it was my responsibility to tell Eric and let him decide how to handle it. Ugh. I didn't even want to speak at this point, but I had little choice.

"Eric…I'm getting a migraine." I let my eyes crack open just a tiny bit and regretted it, but I wanted to be looking into his eyes when I told him.

He stopped everything that he was doing, one hand poised in midair dripping oil all over my upper chest. "A what?" He didn't sound very concerned. Didn't he know what I was talking about?

The oil had started to run back through the bend where my neck meets my shoulders. It would be all over my hair now! "Eric!" I cried out through clenched teeth. "The oil!" I squeezed my eyes tight shut but the tension that caused in my forehead made a newer, stronger wave of pain roll through the back of my skull.

I moaned pitifully as nausea battered my stomach. I put one hand over my eyes and pressed my other palm to my stomach. Thankfully, the nausea passed without doing any more damage, so I put my hand over my eyes with the other one.

The oil stopped running immediately and I felt Eric's fingers on the back of my neck, probably trying to rub in the excess oil. "Dina, what is a migraine?" he asked again, sounding impatient.

"Keep doing that Eric, please!" I squeaked out in a tiny, tight voice. His fingers were soothing the pain somewhat. I sighed, wishing I didn't have to explain this. "It's a headache, honey. A very very bad headache. It makes my whole head feel like a boulder just fell on it, and my stomach pretends it wants to throw up. Most of the time it doesn't."

His fingers didn't stop, but the touch became more… not gentle… therapeutic. Somehow he'd been able to sense what I needed. I sighed in pleasure as his hands moved up to where the last bolt of pain had been and his fingers began to move in circles. His cool hands cradling my aching head were easing the pain, although it hadn't gone away.

"What has caused this?" He asked, all business now. "Is it because I wouldn't let you have more of the stimulant?"

Stimulant? I had to think back to what he meant, and it was an effort.

"What?" I whispered, momentarily baffled. Then I remembered. Pepsi. He had quizzed me about how much caffeine in it was too much. Great, now he would think that had caused my headache and take my caffeine away from me. I could say he would 'try to' take it away, but when Eric made a decision there was no changing his mind. He would have the last word. I had to convince him otherwise. "No, Eric, no..." I shook my head but immediately lamented that. I tried to find words in my sore brain to placate him.

"If anything, I didn't have enough!" I told him honestly. "The top and back of my head hurt super bad. My neck too. If I move it gets worse – I get like waves of pain!" I spoke slowly and it wasn't too bad. "And I feel like I have to throw up except I don't." At his look of confusion I went on. "Yeah, it always feels like that but I never do. Only if the migraine is really bad. And usually I have to lie in the dark to make it go away, so could you turn out the light? Please?"

The expression on his face was obvious. He was thinking. I could almost see the wheels turning in his mind. But he immediately did what I asked; before I could take another breath the overhead light was off and the lamp on his side of the bed was on. It had a dimmer and he'd turned it to low. Then his eyes rested on me and I saw nothing but care and concern. "May I lie next to you?" he said quietly. Somehow he had picked up on the fact that loud noises – and voices – were bad for me right now. I inclined my head once and hoped he would know that was a nod.

I cracked my eyes open again to look at him and managed a weak smile. It was weird to watch – he levitated himself up off the bed and moved so it looked like he was laying down on his side facing me. Then he lowered his body to the mattress, touching down so gently that I didn't feel any movement. His eyes, still gazing at me with that same expression of concern, glowed slightly like one of those long thin tubes of light that they sell at Fourth of July carnivals. He rolled carefully onto his stomach, propping himself up on his elbows to hover over me.

"Showoff!" I couldn't help but tease him quietly. He smirked and chuckled, shrugging his shoulders, but in a second his expression had sobered.

"It distresses me when you're ill, Love. How can we fix this? Will my blood heal you?" He brushed my temple with his lips in a feather-light kiss.

I really loved my Eric and his absolute confidence that his thousand-year-old blood would cure everything. I wasn't sure at all that Vampire blood would fix a migraine but I was willing to try. "I don't know, Eric," I whispered hoarsely. "I've never tried!"

"We will try now!" Eric stated emphatically, firmly taking charge like the Dominant he was. My heart skipped a beat and I felt a definite throb in my nether region. Eric heard and felt it too, and looked at me, amazed. "And we will take care of that later! Hold still!" he whispered. He leaned down then and kissed my lips gently but firmly with a proprietary air. Nobody had to tell me I belonged to him – we both felt it. I reveled in it! I gasped in surprise when I felt his fingers gently tracing my labia. Then he stroked his finger down the center of me, dipped his finger just barely inside, and circled round and round several times.

It felt good but not too good – not so good that it would worsen my headache. Eric stopped his swirling circles, pulled his finger out and made a single, smooth stroke across my clit. My breath came in short pants for a few seconds as my mind tried to process the feeling. He started to pull his hand away, and I tried to hold it there. Eric chuckled and kissed me again. "Later, Lover," he whispered. "I promise!" He smiled at me and the corners of his eyes crinkled in that special cute way that was only Eric. I brought the same hand that had tried to hold him back up to his face and stroked his cheek with my fingertips.

"Promise!" I demanded, weakly.

"Promise!" Eric repeated in his growling, sexy purr. I was satisfied with that. "Do you think you can sit up?" he asked, once again all business.

"I can try," I croaked. But then he looked at me as though he were trying to figure something out.

"Don't move, Lover!" he ordered me, and he knew I would comply. He did his floaty-thing to get out of the bed and I felt a breeze as he zipped off. About fifteen seconds later he was back with a glass of ice, a straw, and one of my vitamin waters. It was the açai-blueberry-pomegranate flavor, one of several that I liked. He picked up the bottle and looked at it suspiciously. "Does this have any of your… caffeine in it?"

I laughed lightly. "No"

He turned the bottle over and around in a matter of seconds, scanning everything with unnatural speed with his Vampire vision. "Did my restriction of the amount of caffeine you had tonight cause this?" He wanted to know.

Again, I answered truthfully. "I don't know. It might have been partially responsible but caffeine doesn't usually affect me this strongly."

"Would having more of it take the migraine away?" Eric was very intelligent, and even with his lack of knowledge about human diets he had asked the right questions. I reached up and squeezed his wrist; both of his hands were still occupied in turning the bottle around and around for a second look. His eyes moved to look into mine. I smiled at him and shook my head.

"Caffeine won't have an effect on it one way or the other now," I explained.

Seemingly satisfied, he poured the drink into the glass and set it on his night stand. Then he leaned back against the headboard and put his hands under my armpits. "Try to stay still, relaxed as much as you can," he said softly. "I'm going to lift you up and back against my chest." I reached back and found his knee with my hand, and squeezed it in acknowledgment. I straightened my arms at my sides just in time for Eric to begin to pull me firmly toward him. Before my head could bump into him and hurt worse, he lifted me and before I knew it I was leaning on him, my back to his chest, his hand on my forehead. "You don't seem to have a fever." he told me. "Are you ready for my blood?"

I was always ready for his blood. "Okay," I said as enthusiastically as I could feeling this lousy. Eric's arm slipped around my waist to hold me securely against him. He took his other hand away from my forehead and I cringed as I heard his fangs click into place and the sound of him biting into his own flesh. He brought it around in front of my face and I reached for it.

He helped me as I pulled it to my lips and my nostrils flared, taking in the marvelous scent that was Eric. I sighed contentedly as I leaned back against his chest, taking his bleeding wrist with me. His blood was so good! I mean, it was always delicious, but now it was like a gourmet meal! The texture, the temperature, and the taste were all perfect at that moment, exactly what I needed.

As I swallowed the first two mouthfuls, I felt my headache diminish slightly. It was already helping! All too soon the wound closed and he pulled his wrist away. I followed it with my tongue, trying to lick away the last smears of blood that were still on his arm. As he had done before, Eric put his hand on my forehead and pulled me gently back so that he could have his wrist back.

He chuckled. "Greedy, I love that! I always do!" His lips found the side of my neck and he inhaled as he smoothed his nose up and down. I thought he wanted to bite and rolled my head to the side, encouraging him. "No Lover, I will not take your blood now. Not while you are ill."

Once again his concern touched me. Mean, ruthless, bloodthirsty Eric Northman would not take my blood when I wasn't feeling well, even though I was freely offering it. I reached up with my arm and put it around his neck, then I turned my head to the side far enough to steal a kiss from him. He ended up stealing one from me as he took my breath away with his soft lips and masterful tongue. The headache was swiftly declining, and soon all that was left was the residual soreness that comes after every migraine. It was like the aftermath of Katrina. The storm was gone but things were still out of place, the residual work remaining for my body to do so that I would be 100% OK again.

I didn't even notice as Eric's arm slipped beneath my knees, picking me up so that he could pull back the covers on my side of the bed. Then he maneuvered me beneath the sheet and slid in on his side once I was situated. "How do you feel?" he asked.

"Better!" I said. "Thanks to you. Thank you Eric!" I gushed at him.

"No need to thank me for taking care of you," he stated firmly. "That's my job!" He smiled and kissed my temple. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt!

Suddenly I yawned. "Oh no, not again!" I complained. But sure enough, no sooner had I said that than my eyes closed and I was out like a light, feeling safe and secure in the arms of my Vampire.

Eric POV

I told Dina to rest and that I didn't mind. My blood and her body taking its natural rest would hopefully restore her to full health. She talked about migraines as though they were normal. I really needed access to her medical records. Dr Ludwig didn't want any that I had glamoured from a receptionist. She seemed to want me to do this in an above board manner. I was going to talk with Dina about formalizing our arrangement with a contract. We would, of course, legally transfer any property of her that needed documentation over to me. Personally I hoped she'd be okay with me having her car sold for scrap metal. I might try to explain that even selling it another human for use is irresponsible and unfair for the next driver who had to deal with it. Why, it might even kill them if it broke while they were driving! I had a feeling she'd know I was exaggerating a bit, but without a doubt that 'previously owned' (emphasis on previously) vehicle had a lot of miles on it.

I also wanted to outline some of the basics of our relationship. We could make a clean sweep of things and have her sign to transfer over her property (to me), medical records (to Dr Ludwig), and perhaps draw up some of those 'next of kin/power of attorney' papers in the far fetched event that she was taken to a human hospital with injuries. I would do what was necessary to get to her and see to her care, but doing it without causing a scene might be better. My blood worked better than any treatments a human could give her.

I put this to the back of my mind and went to call the doctor. I wanted to know about this stimulant and its effect on her. I grabbed my cell and found her in my contacts. Her menu was boring and I quickly pressed 0 to talk to her 24/7 nurse staff. I told them I needed the doctor and would pay the charge for the call. This motivated them to pass me along to her quickly. I waited patiently for her to greet me in her oh-so-professional manner.

"What is it now vampire?" I rolled my eyes at her usual irritated tone.

"Hello, doctor. I would like your expert opinion on …pop and caffeine. My human had a migraine tonight that may or may not because of the amount of this drink she's had." I waited for her reply and it was just as pleasant as her original greeting.

"Oh jezz…alright, I take it you have no idea what we're talking about. I don't know if your human gets migraines for other reasons – you still haven't provided me with her records! – but a lack of caffeine can cause a migraine in people with a dependency on it."

"Dependency?"

"Yes, dependency. Caffeine addiction is the most under-diagnosed addiction. Did you treat the migraine?"

"We have nothing here to treat a migraine, so I gave her my blood," I said to the doctor. "But tell me more about this dependency!" I would not have my Dina addicted to something harmful! I had seen the effects of drug addiction all too often in my club. Crack, V, meth, ecstasy, cocaine on occasion, and there were many more! It was funny that I'd never heard of caffeine! Was it so hardcore that only a few humans could handle it? I knew that Dina had trouble balancing school and work, one reason why I'd wanted her to live with me. I could take the financial pressure away so that she could concentrate on getting her degree. But she'd continued to drink her Pepsi drink even afterward.

"Where are you now?" Dr. Ludwig wanted to know.

"At home." I was relieved. The only reason Dr. Ludwig would ask where I was, was because she wanted to pay a visit.

"Meet me at your front door in thirty seconds." I was right. The doctor hung up before I could say anything else. I actually thought Pam might be able to teach her phone manners and I had already forbidden her from talking with clients due to her 'skills'.

I made my way past all the security doors and upstairs to the front door. She was just ringing the doorbell. "Thank you for coming, Doctor," I greeted her as I opened the door.

"You won't be thanking me when you get my bill," she responded, but then her face broke into a wide grin, which I returned. Dr. Ludwig had a great sense of humor when you caught her in the mood. Or maybe she was just happy to get so much money from me. "Now, where is the young lady? I quite liked her when I saw her before, even though you hovered overprotectively around her." She rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"If she belonged to you, wouldn't you do that?" I asked her.

She chuckled. "Yes, with that little beauty I suppose I would. Now, where is she? Can I see her?"

"Of course. This way." I led her through the security doors which I had deliberately left unlocked. She would not see me enter any of my codes. She could apparate out of my lower quarters, but could not apparate in. It was a nice security feature I had to remember to add to the other house. We finally entered the bedroom, where I could see that Dina was shivering even though she had the covers over her.

"Turn up the heat Vampire! Humans need warmth!" the Doctor ordered me. I wanted to object to her tone but seeing my Dina shivering like that was too much. I simply complied, turning the heat up from 65° to 72°. I hoped this was enough.

I walked to Dina and gently shook her shoulder. She didn't respond. I sat next to her and rolled her onto her back. She was consistently hard to wake so I was used to this. I leaned down and kissed her lips. Then she woke up. "Dina, Love, Dr. Ludwig is here to see you."

Dina sat up in bed and the edge of the blanket fell from her chest. Her face turned bright red and she pulled it back up, holding it to cover herself. "I don't have anything on!" she said to me, softly, between clenched teeth. Louder, she said, "Doctor! Thanks for coming! I think Eric's overreacted though. The headache is pretty much gone."

"Mostly?" Dr. Ludwig inquired. "He gave you his blood, right?" Dina nodded. "It should be completely gone. Can you sit up on your own?" Dr. Ludwig asked. Dina nodded again. The doctor patted the foot of the bed and Dina looked at me with an expression that said 'do I have to?'

I reached for her then, firmly grasping your shoulders. "Come, Dina! No need to be shy here. We have both seen every inch of you." What I had intended as an encouragement had the opposite effect.

"Ugh! I'm fine. I just need to sleep this off!" She fell back on the bed, pulled up the blankets, rolled to her side, and then put the other pillow over her head.

So it was left to me to deal with her childish outburst. "Dina!" I growled. "Dr. Ludwig has come a long way in the middle of the night. You will let her examine you, now!" I hated having to use my rough Dominant's voice to get her to comply, but there was no other choice. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but stopped herself just in time. I gave very serious thought to turning her over my knee as soon as she felt better.

"Now, Dina!" I repeated when she still didn't move. She looked at me as if I'd betrayed her, then she slowly and carefully set her feet on the floor at the side of the bed. She almost fell when she stood up, and I caught her. I lifted her and placed her where Dr. Ludwig had indicated.

The doctor did the usual exam of looking in Dina's nose, mouth, and ears. She tested her reflexes, took her blood pressure, and listened to her heart and lungs. As she had done before, she asked my permission to draw blood. I consented, and she drew one vial while I watched carefully. She pulled out another tube from her bag and it had what looked like a mini circuit board inside of it, on the other side of the circuit board was an area of padding with several circles indented in it. She used another needle to fill the second tube from the first and set it down to wait for it to give her whatever she was looking for from it. Then, she opened the remaining vial as she had done the previous time, stuck her finger in it, and tasted it. This caused me to hiss menacingly at her. She calmly recapped the bottle and handed it to me. I took it back almost viciously, and slipped it in my pocket. Then she looked at the test she'd completed. I now saw that there were three circles. The first one had a yellow horizontal line. The second one had a blue + sign, and the third had a red vertical line. She put it in her bag.

"All of this is fine," she said, patting Dina reassuringly on the knee. Dina gaped at her and then looked at me questioningly when the doctor turned around to get something from her bag. "Here," she said, presenting two bottles of pills and a bottle of liquid to Dina, who immediately gave them to me. I kissed the top of her head. "Take two of the pink pills now, and one of the white ones," she ordered. I opened the bottles and gave Dina the three pills, and then went to the night stand for Dina's vitamin water.

"What are these for?" I asked.

The doctor sighed as though she was talking to an imbecile. "The white pill is to ease her pain and the other is an iron supplement. It's a high dose. That's why you're taking two now," she directed that comment at Dina, then turned her attention back to me. "The bottle is for her menstrual cycle, which if I'm not mistaken should begin today or tomorrow?" She smiled at Dina, who turned red again and nodded. "Those bottles have everfull charms on them. You should never run out."

"Thank you Doctor," I said again, sensing that there was a bigger picture than this that the doctor wanted to discuss with me, alone.

"The liquid should be taken three times a day. It will work for the cramping, the irritability and other PMS symptoms, the bloating, and the fatigue. It will keep you from getting anemic along with the iron pill, the pink one. You are to take two pink pills before your largest meal of the day, for the next seven days. After that, you can drop the dose to one each day. The white pain pills are on an as-needed basis but you should take no more than four daily. The spell on the bottle will alert me if you start over-indulging in those pills. They can give a human a very pleasant feeling for a while. Be careful. Okay?" She was speaking to Dina again but looked pointedly at me when she spoke of overindulging in the white pills.

"Thanks so much Doctor!" Dina enthused. "You don't know how tired I've been."

"Yes I do, sweetpea!" Dr. Ludwig said and winked at Dina. This was so out of character for her that I nearly fell on the floor from surprise. "Northman, a word?" I nodded and headed for the bedroom door. "Call me if you need anything." She patted Dina's knee again, gathered up her bag, and followed me out. We walked up the stairs and I pulled all the security doors shut this time.

When we reached the living room near the front door, she stopped and sat down.

"What do you need to tell me?" I asked nervously. I didn't want my Dina to be sick or to fade away on me. Humans has a terrible habit of dying.

"Her menstrual period. Are you planning to consume it?"

I was floored! This was a very personal question. "Yes," I answered emphatically. "Why do you ask?"

She pulled the little blood test back out of her bag. "You see the yellow line there?" I nodded. "That tells me she's got a chemical imbalance. When I tasted her blood, I could tell that she didn't have enough iron in her diet. See to it that she never forgets to take those iron supplements. She is going to lose iron when he bleeds already. You have to stay on top of her iron levels so she doesn't get sick. Now, I know how old you are and that you don't need much to keep you going." She meant the amount of blood I needed to stay alive and strong. I nodded. She continued. "Even with a heavy flow a woman's bleeding doesn't put out copious amounts of blood. It is safe for you to feed while she bleeds, every other day. I know you're spoiled now but you can handle that. You're a big boy." My fangs popped and I glared at her. She laughed, knowing I would not hurt her. "You don't have to hurt her by going to a surrogate for blood. I assume you know the way women are when they menstruate, especially if they are prone to migraines and other complications right beforehand." I nodded although I had no idea what she was talking about. I would hit the internet as soon as I had a free moment away from Dina.

"What do these other symbols mean?" I asked

"The red line indicates that she'll start her bleeding in less than five days," the doctor explained.

"And the blue +?"

"That one tests her blood sugar. I am looking for any symptoms the disease 'diabetes' in her or signs that she hasn't been eating healthy. The blue + sign tells us that her blood sugar is fine."

I nodded, happy to hear that she was healthy, but I had another question. "Why didn't my blood stop the headache?"

Dr. Ludwig nodded. "How bad was this headache? In terms of how much it hurt her?"

I considered the question carefully. Dina had told me that she was in extreme pain and I had felt great unhappiness in the bond. We had never sat down together and tested our bond to see exactly what we felt about distress in each other. Maybe we should. "She complained of extreme pain and nausea that she felt would not make her vomit. She squeezed her eyes tightly shut against the light and even seemed to have trouble with a very dim bedside lamp. Movement and noises were also hurtful for her. She felt very unhappy in our bond."

She nodded again. "What you describe is a very bad migraine, to put it in simple terms. How much blood did she have from you?"

"I don't know exactly," I replied, perplexed. "I bit my wrist and gave it to her. She consumed everything that came out until the wound closed."

"It appears that her iron levels were too low for her to feel completely well," the doctor said. "Your blood will not replenish iron that should be consumed and stored over time. Between her history of migraines, her iron, and her period coming, she took a bad wipe out. She probably would have gone to the ER if she was on her own." I knew that Merlotte didn't supply health insurance to his employees so Dina likely would not have gone to a hospital. I was again very glad that I'd brought her home to live with me.

At my look of shock she continued. "A migraine is a very serious thing in a human. It isn't like a regular headache. One of the known causes of migraines in women is hormonal changes. A woman has something called estrogen in her body. When a woman's menstrual period is imminent, they will have a major drop in the amount of estrogen in their bodies. You mentioned that she's had headaches like this before. Ask her if they have occurred before and during her period. I believe these things were the cause of tonight's migraine." She paused, looking at me closely as if trying to determine whether the information she gave me was being absorbed.

"If I understand you correctly, her migraine tonight was probably because this estrogen level in her blood dropped dramatically, she will bleed soon, and needs more iron?" I asked.

"Yes, I think so," Dr. Ludwig replied.

"So my blood won't be enough if she needs iron?"

"That is correct." She nodded for the third time.

"I will have to monitor her diet better. I hope I'm not taking too much blood from her. I'd like you to help me with this." I had come to a decision. "But you did not call me out of her room to discuss this. What else do you have to tell me?"

"Firstly to get you to correct the imbalances in her body. I believe that you are working with Leila Nasrin?"

It was my turn to nod.

"Give this prescription to her," I watched as a folded piece of paper materialized in her hand. "She will know what to give to your Dina." She smiled again as she handed me the prescription. I opened it. On it were written many symbols that looked like runes of some kind. Leila practiced witchcraft and I knew Dr. Ludwig had made witchcraft part of her medical practice. I wasn't going to doubt them.

"Why did you ask me about consuming Dina's menstrual discharge?" I was curious about this.

"The chemical imbalance in her body is bad for you," she explained. "But with your advanced age and great power you will not be physically affected. There is something that will definitely happen, though."

"Go on," I said warily, becoming suspicious now.

"As you consume what comes out of her body, you know it is more than just blood, right?" At my baffled look, she continued. "Each month her body produces an egg and the things that a newly fertilized egg would need as far as safety and nutrition in her body. If the egg and preparatory tissue are not fertilized, in other words if she does not become pregnant, the egg and preparatory tissue will be expelled during her menstrual period. Then her body will do the exact same thing – the cycle repeats every 28 days."

"Okay, but why do I need this information?"

"I'm just keeping you informed," the doctor chuckled. "But the part that is important for you to know is that when you consume her menstrual discharge, your bond with her will become stronger. This will affect your bond more than if you had exchanged blood several times. You may have dreams about her – yes dreams – instead of the opposite. This tissue she is expelling is very powerful for your bond and it will fill your body with her essence. It is literally some of her genetic material. I could almost describe it as you having part of her being in you."

I was flabbergasted and my mouth must have hung open, because she laughed. "You should see your face right now!"

"Are you joking with me?" I snapped, suddenly on the verge of anger. My fangs popped out again and I stood up, towering over the tiny woman. She stood up as well, announcing that she had to take her leave for another appointment.

"Consuming the menstrual blood will do you good!" she told me. "It will bring you closer than you ever thought possible!"

I stood there trying to figure out her words. Was our bond complete? Could it grow? Regrettably such things as vampire/human blood bonds were not a science. It varied by the couple. There was more to bonding with Dina than I could have ever realized that night when I'd practically forced her to drink my blood. I felt very tender and protective of her in that moment. Her own body was doing things to her that I wouldn't expect her worst enemy to do. How could I fight what I could not see? I was taken from these thoughts by a rather impatient little doctor.

"I really do want to leave sometime before next week, what is your concern about caffeine?"

"Yes, I'm concerned about Dina. She consumes it regularly and I believe…she might have a problem." I said softer. I couldn't fathom her being an addict. But sometimes people could be addicted without anyone knowing. I think they were called 'functional'.

She sighed.

"I'll be honest with you Mr. Northman, caffeine addiction is serious. It leads to aggression, increased stress, decreases the body's ability to absorb calcium… It's highly under-reported because its legal and the person is not only functional, but feels that they accomplish more with it."

"I won't see her put in some…hospital ward for addicted humans. I want her treated and cured at home."

"Vampire, there is no treatment and cure. She needs to wean off of it or… Let her stay on it, if it's not harming her. How many more years does she really have?"

And with that she popped out of the room and left me there fairly stunned.

What should have been a normal evening began with my Bonded shrieking at me since I accidentally fed while she was still asleep. Then I couldn't even take joy in my impending treat because apparently she can get ill before her bleeding occurs. And something else would happen with her while she bled, according to the doctor! So after worrying about her and feeling so helpless as even my blood couldn't aid her, I learned she might be an addict.

I had to deal with these issues one at a time. I figured the best course of action was to look up things about this 'caffeine.' I did a basic Google search and had a better understanding of the basic components of this stimulant and why humans liked it. What I still didn't understand was its effects.

Did it actually dehydrate her despite it being in liquid?

Would it make her lose weight or gain it? Conversely, would she gain or lose weight if she stopped taking this drug?

Would she be less stressed without it? Or more stressed if I took it away? And why would they call taking some away 'cold turkey'?

Each article seemed to contradict another one. Were these humans so stupid that they made a dangerous drug readily available and didn't even know what specific damage it did? Gods, I was lucky Dina was still alive!

I finally gave up and began to look up how to deal with addicts. I had found some better tactics to confront her. I was glad she had submitted to me – she could not leave the 'intervention' (that was what this type of situation was called) when she disliked it. I knew even as her Master I couldn't break her physical dependency with a command alone, but I could certainly keep her from 'relapsing' once we began to work on her 'recovery'. I didn't know if I would do a traditional 12 step model. If I did, I knew I'd replace the references to God with references about me. I would be her 'higher power', 'her strength', and I'd save her from herself. My Dina was not only an addict, she was in denial.

I finally pulled myself together. I couldn't confront her now. I needed to prepare my words and possibly gather some information and aid from people in our lives. Surely someone – at least one person – had to have noticed her addiction before I did.

I also didn't want to do anything while she had a period; it could wait. This was a time for her to rest, me to feast, and us to bond. The doctor had told me she was in no immediate danger, even if she continued to indulge in her stimulant.

We'd address her addiction later. In this moment, I knew I had to check on the health of my bonded and if I was lucky, we would get to spend some time partaking in our favorite activity.

I turned my attention to the bedroom downstairs and heard Dina's slow, steady heartbeat and the tiny snore she made when she was deeply asleep. I had time for one more thing. I did another Google search to find out what the doctor had meant by "how women get when they menstruate." What I found didn't please me in the least! There was something called "PMS;" Dr. Ludwig had mentioned it to Dina, as a matter of fact. A human woman could become vicious toward their husband or lover while it lasted, or she could do crazy things! I was directed to YouTube to watch a clip of a heavy woman named "Roseanne" screaming, overeating, and acting very badly toward everyone around her. Then she proceeded to be very sweet and loving, almost immediately afterward. This woman wasn't simply mercurial, she was bordering on insane and being emotionally unwell. This was all because her monthly! Gods, would my Dina get like that? What could I do to prevent it?

Another search turned up my best resource. There were medications, and the doctor had given her something. Beyond that, all I could do was be patient, caring, and try not to antagonize her. I had already planned to pamper her and bond with her while she bled. There were several things we needed to discuss as well. I would treat each night as it came and pull back on our training or discussions as needed. If I needed to simply hold her in my arms and watch movies, so be it. I wanted this time with her, and I wanted my treat! I listened to Dina become restless downstairs. I turned off the computer and went back down to be with her when she woke. I was still worried.

Dina POV

"How do you feel now, Dina? Did Dr. Ludwig's medication take effect?" Eric asked me, his voice gentle, his eyes full of concern. I had just awakened from yet another nap, this one induced by the medication the doctor had given me. But my head and body were completely pain free! "You haven't slept long, but you slept hard."

"I feel so much better Eric!" I smiled at him. "Thank you for calling the doc." Then I remembered what I had done. "Oh God!" I moaned burying my head in Eric's side. He was holding me curled up against him, my head on his shoulder. "I'm so sorry! I must've really embarrassed you!"

He lifted my chin with his fingers, looking deeply into my eyes with… amusement? The corners of his mouth turned upward and he chuckled. "Dr. Ludwig is quite taken with you, Lover." At my look of absolute disbelief, he held one hand up in the air. "Swear to the Gods!" he said, shaking his head. "She understood. You've had a hard time putting up with demands I am making on you, both physically and emotionally, plus you've got a problem with your… estrogen?" he quirked his head to the side looking for confirmation. My Eric, my Vampire Sheriff, was talking to me about estrogen? This was one for the record books! At my nod, he continued. "Your estrogen dropped low and combined with a few other problems it gave you the headache. You also badly need iron and my blood doesn't have any, so my blood didn't completely heal you. But don't worry!" He straightened his shoulders. "I will take care of everything, although…" His eyes became serious and his voice changed to the one I would never disobey. "If you pull a stunt like that again, I will take you over my knee and you will feel the sting of my paddle!" He stared me down until I lowered my eyes.

"Yes Eric," I said softly, showing him my remorse. I did really feel bad.

"This time I am treating you gently because of all of the things you are coming to terms with – this new life and the demands I've made, your impending bleeding, your health and the imbalances in your body, and the migraine. You have taken on much and, except for that one incident, I am proud of you."

I stared at him with what must have looked like shock because he pulled me up on his chest – which was becoming one of his favorite things to do – and pulled my face down for a kiss. As he kissed me, making my body turn into boneless jelly, he flipped us over so that he was on top. Even if he wasn't mad at me, I could feel a certain part of him insistently moving against my hip, that was obviously feeling a bit neglected. He smiled at me warmly.

"I'm fine Eric!" I tried to convince him. "There's nothing to take care of!"

He raised his head and looked me square in the eye as though he was trying to figure something out. He was silent for a moment and started to make me squirm uncomfortably. Before I could ask him what he was thinking about, he started kissing me again. "I won't let anything happen to you!" he whispered in between kisses. Honestly, I wasn't paying much attention to his words. I was engrossed in the other thing his lips were doing (besides talking).

I reached for his cock and found that I could only grasp the head. That was all I needed. I thoroughly wet my fingers and palm with the precum leaking from the tip and began to massage the head with a firm touch, just the way he liked it. He didn't like to be treated like he might break, and I knew he wouldn't. My fingers and palm worked him and he hissed and moaned, all the while pumping his hips forward and back. Finally he put a staying hand on mine and turned his head back to me. He was so beautiful! His eyes glowed softly and held a sense of wildness, danger in them. His fangs were fully extended, his eyes narrowing as he looked at me like he wanted to devour me. He did, in a way. I reached up to cut my tongue on one of his fangs, drawing a tiny bit of blood that I left on his lips as I kissed him lightly. It was natural for me to part my legs for him, and he settled comfortably between them. He kissed me with a fevered, blood-induced passion as both of our hands guided him to my entrance. He raised his head, that soft glow still in his eyes, but this time an expression of gentle affection. He slid smoothly into me and I arched my back. For some reason I was extra sensitive. Eric put his hands under my back and held me to him, finally moving his hands up to cup my shoulders from behind and pull my breasts to him. He wasted no time in licking, suckling, biting, and arousing them to hard little peaks. His teeth bit them softly, giving me a mix of pleasure-pain that he knew I loved. I moaned and couldn't get close enough to him, wrapping my arms around his biceps and throwing my head back. He came forward slowly and licked the salty skin of my throat, a low growl finally emanating from deep in his chest. His hips got down to business then, and he slid slowly out of me, and just as slowly back in, going extra deep in a firm but gentle stroke. His fangs scraped my throat and his tongue followed where he had drawn the blood.

"Yes, Eric," I moaned breathlessly. "I'm yours Eric!" I felt his lips smile against my throat where he was kissing me, and then, just as his lower half was pushing deeply into me again, his fangs gently pierced my skin. I cried out, the exquisite feeling of his lips and tongue taking the blood he drew from me driving me wild. Another pleasure pain sensation, as the sharp pain of his bite sent tendrils of fire directly to my center. I moaned and bucked against him, meeting him thrust for thrust in this slow, ancient dance.

After only a few pulls of my blood he withdrew his fangs and healed me, always caring for me. He lay me gently back on the bed and moved his arms out from underneath me, now supporting himself on his elbows. His movements never stopped making slow, gentle love to me as he kissed me, biting his own tongue so that we shared blood. With our kiss we took in all the blood and then his hands moved to either side of my head, staring into my eyes and commanding my gaze. I could not look away. I moaned and writhed beneath him, crying out with the exquisite feelings moving back and forth in our bond. It was intense, the bond, sharing each other's sexual pleasure and making us practically one. His thrusts began to get harder, and longer, and deeper. I could feel his excitement building as well as my own. We found a rhythm with our hips as our eyes held each other. The muscles in my pelvis tightened as I squeezed and released him inside of me. He growled every time I squeezed him anew but it was always followed by a sigh and a moan. The tension built and built between us and for once we were silent. No Eric ordering me not to cum without his permission. He only held my face and my eyes, and all at once the building pressure inside of us burst! His head raised and he said something in another language while I screamed out his name, "Eriiiiiiiiiiic!" over and over. Together our worlds exploded into a cacophony of light and sound, which only too late I realized was the hammering of my heart. Eric's gaze came back to mine, and this time he wore a smile, a triumphant smile that said he knew that only he could make me feel that way.

But Eric, I have a secret too. I know that only I can make you feel that way.

Our worlds were one as he moved gently now, only thrusting to help the aftershocks that continued to hold us enthralled for I-don't-know-how-long.

"My Dina," he finally whispered, taking my lips in a passionate kiss.

"I love you!" I responded. The bond told me what he didn't say.

Sometime later we sat in bed together, me between his outstretched, long, long legs, and him with his arms around my waist. We had turned on the TV and were watching a movie. Every once in a while Eric became fascinated with my breasts and played with my nipples. He would roll them between his fingers and squeeze, enjoying the fact that I pushed my breasts into his hands whenever he touched them. He flicked them with his fingernails, wet his fingertips and gently rotated them around the hard part of my nipples making me sigh with pleasure. Every once in a while he would move his hands south and slip his long fingers inside to arouse my g-spot, which he had found almost immediately when our relationship became intimate. I couldn't tell you how many orgasms I had sitting there with Eric. He was relentless in his determination to pleasure me. I felt the most impatient and needy part of him rubbing against my ass and lower back, so I scooted as close to him as I could get to make it easier for him to feel his pleasure. I had the feeling I'd be spending some time on my knees before he would let me go to sleep.

Sure enough, just as that thought went through my head, Eric reached over to his night stand and pulled out those beautiful, soft little cuffs that I'd worn the last time he'd tied me to the bed. It was the same night I'd told him how much I hated his metal handcuffs. I put my hands behind my back for him and, instead of putting the cuffs on, he had a question.

"You know I don't have to, but because you were ill earlier tonight, I'm going to ask if you feel up to doing this." He held my wrists behind me but didn't do anything with them.

"Eric?" I tried to turn around to see his face but he stubbornly held my wrists and kept me from rotating my body. "I'm confused."

He continued to hold on to my wrists and kissed my neck tenderly. "Don't get used to this," he whispered in my ear. "It probably won't happen again. Now, will you, or won't you?"

My jaw probably bounced off the bed covers. I was shocked, and amazed at his level of caring for me. Asking for what he wanted instead of taking it? "Ummm," I said softly. "Let me just make sure we are both talking about the same 'this.'" Then I got embarrassed and my face turned red, but I managed to say it. "You want to tie my hands behind my back so I can give you a blow job. Is that right?"

"Well, yes!" He said it a little harshly, defensively. But honestly I felt absolutely fine. There were no lingering cluster headaches or bouts of nausea. I would have to thank the doctor for that stuff. I was sure that Eric must be paying an exorbitant amount of money to her for house calls and prescriptions with everfull charms on them.

I leaned back and let my head fall back onto his shoulder; this time he allowed my movements although he continued to hold my wrists. No words were needed to tell me that this was still HIS game and he would decide what did or didn't happen. I turned my head and kissed his neck, then I licked it, and I nuzzled him. "Can I bite you Eric?" I asked suddenly.

"Bite me?" he sounded aroused. "Where?" he whispered deviously into my ear, nipping at my earlobe with his teeth.

"Right here!" I told him mischievously, and I licked his neck. In answer, he leaned his head away to give me the access I wanted. I smiled, kissed his neck again, and then set out to make the biggest hickey I could. I knew it would only last a few minutes at the most; a few seconds was more likely. As I bit and sucked and licked and bit and sucked some more, I did manage to make a pretty nice spot that didn't go away in five seconds. Eric, who had been silent throughout the whole hickey-making process, raised his head and looked into my eyes. There he was again, my Vampire. His fangs were fully extended, his eyes glowed with a soft bluish light, and his eyelids were half closed.

"Lover, you can feel free to bite me any time!" he said in his deep, husky sexy voice. He snapped his fangs at me. "Now, as to the other matter…" He hadn't let go of my wrists the entire time I'd been working on his hickey. And I had to admit, I wanted him. I wanted to taste him, to feel him in my throat, to swallow his seed. I loved the power I had over him even though I was the one bound and on my knees.

"Yes Eric!" I tried to use my sexiest voice and hoped I didn't sound ridiculous. He gave a smile that looked like joy and proceeded to lock my wrists into the soft cuffs. But he wasn't finished there. He pulled out some of the blue rope and proceeded to wrap it around my arms up to my elbows, which he pulled together firmly. He added another rope to the soft cuffs, pulling it around my waist and tying it firmly. When all was said and done, I could not move my arms except to sway them back and forth a little bit.

"Lover, stop it!" Eric ordered in his Master voice, putting his hands on my elbows and holding them still. "What did I tell you about fighting your bindings?"

"I wasn't fighting them, Eric! I was testing to see how far I could move is all!" Now it was my turn to be defensive.

"'Testing them' and 'fighting them' are the same to me, Lover," he said, but he didn't sound displeased any more. He began to rub my shoulders, my neck, my back, my upper arms. It felt good and I kind of melted into him. He turned me around, so that I was kneeling on the bed, to face him, so I did the only thing I could do. I leaned forward to kiss him He growled at me again and began to maneuver me to the edge of the bed. He put his feet on the floor and threw a pillow down between his feet, then he stood me on my feet and lowered me gently to my knees. I forgot to keep my legs apart, but he reminded me by nudging them a little bit with his feet. He held on to me until I was fully balanced and displayed to his satisfaction.

I took a moment to admire him. Eric was truly a marvelous specimen of a man. I could feel his pride and pleasure as I appreciated his finer male attributes. I hesitated for a moment. He was sitting there, giving me no direction. Not with his hands or verbally. It was still a bit awkward not having use of my hands, but I admit it was helping me focus more on my mouth – my tongue and deep-throating (okay taking in more of him, but no where near true deep-throating) skills. I considered how to begin and came up with an idea.

"May I?" I inclined my head toward his erection and hoped I sounded submissive and sexy, instead of silly and stupid.

For the first time since he lowered me down, I received a physical response. He smiled and at the surprise (and hopefully thrill) of my words and his hips bucked forward ever so slightly.

He reached out and ran his hand over my hair. "You may." I leaned into his hand, enjoying the touch that told me how cherished I was.

I leaned forward and began with my tongue. I didn't kiss him. I wanted to 'dive right in' so to speak. He didn't seem to mind. I sucked his head and listened to him moan. Then I decided to surprise him and took in a few inches very fast and then went back to his head. I threw in a few of these quick grabs and got a response almost every time.

I noticed he was giving me almost total control and gripping the bedcovers, instead of my hair. I began to wonder if it was because of me being sick or because I was getting my period. The concept of Eric spoiling me, instead of dominating and training me was very interesting. I wanted to see where this was going to go.

It was time to stop playing with him. He was being so good to me; I wanted him to feel good. I tried to never have a technique. I knew any man, especially Eric, would tire of the same old song and dance routine. I had learned what Eric liked and tried my best to give it to him. I pressed my tongue against his frenulum and worked to lick him each time he slid out of my mouth. I loved his taste and even if his length was still too much for my mouth, I appreciated getting to worship every inch I could. I didn't try to take too much in and overexert myself. Once again Eric didn't object or seek to guide me. I was still pleasing him and he was quite noisy about that fact. Soon, I felt the tremors in his body that came before his orgasm. I readied myself to swallow every drop and caught his eye. Eric loved to stare into my eyes when he came in my mouth.

His hands didn't make contact with me until I finished swallowing. He sat back and enjoyed the aftershocks while playing with my hair.

"So Good, Dina," He whispered. I smiled and got lost in the peacefulness I felt. It was nice to no longer have a throbbing, crippling pain in my head. I even closed my eyes and leaned on him while his fingers began to massage circles on my scalp.

What pulled me from my thoughts was the sound of Eric's fangs clicking into place. I looked up and he stared down at me, almost waiting for me to answer a question that hadn't been posed. His eyes had suddenly turned wild, feral, predatory.

"What?" I said confused.

"I smell blood," he practically snarled at me. He was in full Vampire mode.

"You smell…" I stopped. I was wet. But of course I was! I always got wet when I went down on Eric. I wiggled my hips and felt a drop slid down my leg. "Shit."

Ready or not, here we go. Eric pulled me by the shoulders up on to the bed before I could think of anything else.