Disclaimer: I own nothing related to True Blood.
Despite being tired, hungry, and in dire need of a shower, about twenty minutes later Paige found herself in the car with Bill, Sookie, and Jason headed for Godric's home. It had originally been her plan to go back to the hotel, clean herself up, then put in a call to headquarters to let the higher-ups know what had happened with the Fellowship, but then Bill had told her there would be a gathering taking place at Godric's to celebrate his safe return and that it might be wise for her to attend and represent the C.A.V.D. So instead of heading back to the hotel with the rest of her team, Paige had agreed to go to Godric's. Her shower, unfortunately, would have to wait.
Paige sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly while Sookie and Jason chatted away, catching up on lost time. She realized she was still wearing her uniform gloves and slowly began pulling them off, stretching and cracking her fingers once they were free. When she looked up, she noticed that Bill was watching her in the review mirror with an indecipherable expression on his face. He said nothing, though, and when Paige raised her eyebrows in silent question he turned his eyes back to the road, a thoughtful look on his face now.
"Do you think they'll have clothes for me to change into?" Sookie asked, plucking at the dress that she had on with a grossed out look – clearly she was feeling a little grungy too.
"I sure hope so. A shower would be nice as well." Paige chipped in. She noticed that Jason was watching her from the corner of her eye so she turned to look at him – when their gazes met, he smirked widely and then wagged his eyebrows suggestively. Paige just snorted and shook her head. "Head out of the gutter, Stackhouse." She drawled dryly.
"Oh, just ignore him." Sookie said with a roll of her eyes and wave of her hand. "He'll hump anything that moves an' has breasts."
"Hey!" Jason immediately said, leaning forward so he could narrow his eyes at his sister and point a threatening finger. "I take offense to that."
"It's true." Sookie shot back at him.
Jason opened his mouth to retort, but Bill beat him to the punch. "We've arrived." He said loudly, bringing the impending brother-sister argument to a screeching halt. Paige sighed in relief as Bill pulled into the driveway of a large, fancy-looking house and then parked, cutting the engine.
The four of them climbed out of the car nearly in unison. "Bill, is this the car we'll be taking back to the hotel?" Paige asked him.
"Yes." Bill said with a nod as he shut the driver's side door closed.
Paige nodded and tossed her gloves into the backseat before removing the gun holsters from her thighs and throwing them in as well, knowing she'd be able to collect them later. While she undid the buckle of her utility belt, Bill told Sookie and Jason to go on inside and that they would be along shortly. Paige was rather surprised by Bill's decision to linger behind – as the two siblings headed for the front door, she turned a questioning look on the stern, dark-haired vampire. He had that same curious expression on his face.
"Something on your mind, Bill?" She finally asked as she dropped her utility belt onto the seat and then finally shut the door.
Bill clicked a button to lock all the doors and set the alarm, eyes continuously studying her – she suddenly felt like an insect underneath a magnifying glass. "I am merely interested to know more about the only human I've ever known Eric to genuinely care for." He said, not bothering to beat around the bush. Then he smile gently. "Well, one of the few." When Paige furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, he explained himself. "Not so very long ago I was beginning to suspect Eric of having interest in Sookie." He said, making her spine stiffen. "But since you've arrived, he's only had eyes for you. I have known Eric for a very long time, but never have I seen him be so protective of someone, especially a human."
She should have taken Bill's observations as a good sign and even felt a flutter of excitement at the fact that Eric was behaving more like his old self, but she was too busy feeling jealous at the mention if his possible interest in Sookie. What if he was attracted to her new friend? She would certainly understand why if he was – Sookie was sweet, pretty, and could read minds. As far as Paige was concerned, that was some pretty stiff competition.
Bill was waiting for her to say something back, so she did her best to shove the green-eyed monster away and offered a nonchalant shrug. "Well, having a vampire like Eric Northman on my side can't a bad thing, right?" She asked evasively, not wanting to go too in depth about her relationship with the Viking vampire – the idea of talking about her love life with Bill Compton was a little weird to her.
He seemed to sense that she was holding back, because he smiled politely and nodded his head. "I suppose not." Bill said with a small smile.
They headed for the front door after that, Bill chivalrously opening it for her once they reached it. Paige smiled gratefully when he motioned for her to pass through first and then stepped inside, eyes surveying the crowd once she'd crossed the threshold. Almost immediately Paige felt awkward and underdressed – there were vampires and humans alike lounging around Godric's house and each of them was squeaky clean and dressed in chic clothing. Paige was painfully aware of the fact that she still had remnants of camouflage paint on her face and that her boots were probably tracking in mud. She blushed with embarrassment, but the paint on her cheeks hid it from the vampires looking her up and down with odd expressions.
Paige's eyes suddenly shifted to Eric as though they had been magnetized to him. He was standing against the far wall, towering over the crowd and not speaking to anyone. It only took him a nanosecond to realize that she was present, and the second his gaze locked with hers he straightened up, looking more alert now. When he noticed that she was with Bill, however, his eyes shifted back and forth between the two of them, one of his eyebrows slowly inching up.
"Paige." A female vampire said as she suddenly popped into her line of sight, blocking Eric from her view and forcing Paige to pay attention to what she was saying. "Godric wished me to tell you that there is a bathroom available if you wish to clean up some." She told her, smiling all the while. "We can also find a spare change of clothing if you wish it."
Paige wanted to jump for joy. "That'd be incredible, thank you."
The female nodded and then motioned Paige to follow her. "Come with me."
Paige nodded and said goodbye to Bill before following the female vampire through the crowd. It didn't take long to notice that she was being led toward a door only a few feet away from where Eric stood – as they approached he pushed himself away from the wall and took a few steps in her direction, eyes never leaving her once. Paige paused to talk with him while the female vampire continued on, sensing she should give them a moment.
"I wasn't sure if I would see you here." Eric told her, his face an impassive, unreadable mask. "I thought you would want to go back to the hotel." He then added, eyeing her camouflage clothes.
"I did, but there was a change of plans." Paige explained. "Godric's letting me clean up in the bathroom." She then added, nodding toward the door that the female vampire was now standing next to.
Eric immediately smirked. "Shall I stand guard?" He asked with raised eyebrows. "Make sure no one gets any ideas?"
Paige cracked a small smile. "I think I'll be okay." Paige said before continuing on and rejoining the female vampire. She felt Eric's eyes on her back the entire way.
She was shown into what appeared to be a guest bedroom, which had a bathroom connected to it. The female vampire left her to her business and went to find some clothes for her to change into, so Paige walked over to the sink to scrub her face clean and then freshen up as much as she could – at some point the female returned with a white sundress and a pair of shoes, then left her to her own devices again. Paige eyed the shower with longing as she washed up, wishing she could just hop in there and soak under a stream of steaming hot water, but thought she would be imposing too much by doing so. With a resigned sigh and one last longing glance, Paige finished washing up in the sink, promising herself that she'd take a scalding hot shower the second she was back at the hotel.
Once she'd gotten out of her dirty clothes and changed into the dress and shoes, she felt worlds better. There were bags under her eyes, she didn't have on a stich of make-up, and her hair was still dirty, but she was at least somewhat cleaner. She supposed she looked decent enough, too – Paige quickly took her hair down and shook it out before quickly braiding it to make herself look a little bit more presentable. She gave herself a satisfied nod in the mirror, but still found herself wondering if Eric would think she looked pretty…or if he would think she was prettier than Sookie.
Paige immediately rolled her eyes at her own train of thought, thinking she sounded like a jealous teenager. Bill had said that Eric only had eyes for her, not Sookie. And judging by the way Eric had been acting around her recently, she'd say their rocky relationship was finally starting to take a turn for the better. Being jealous and fretful would accomplish nothing.
Feeling ready to face the crowd again, Paige rounded up her belongings and left the guest bedroom. Someone came to collect her dirty clothes and boots and went to take them to the car for her before she could get a word in edgewise – Eric, unsurprisingly, was standing just beside the door and had clearly been waiting for her to make a reappearance. He straightened up again as she took a step in his direction, his eyes trailing over her form more than once. Paige tried not to blush and fiddled with the material of the dress nervously.
"You look tired." Eric finally said, gaze locked with hers now.
"I am tired." Paige admitted. "It's been a long couple of days."
"It has." Eric agreed with a nod.
Paige was starting to feel a little fidgety under his intense stare so she turned her eyes away to glance around the room. She noticed that there was a line of both humans and vampires alike and that it lead toward Godric himself, who was sitting in a chair looking only somewhat interested in the well-wishes he was receiving. "I should probably get in that line." She told Eric, glancing up at him. "I'd like to speak to Godric."
She was about to head that way when Jason suddenly came into view – he'd been at the front of the line speaking with Godric and was now walking toward them. He paused when he spotted her and looked at her in confusion, as though trying to figure out why she looked familiar to him. Paige smirked when it finally clicked and realization dawned in his brown eyes.
"Well, well, well G.I. Jane." Jason said upon arrival, making her roll her eyes good-naturedly. "I barely recognized ya without all that stuff on your face – I must say that you clean up very nicely." He complimented, giving her a blatant once over.
Paige was about to laugh and tell him to kindly stop perving on her when Eric decided to take that moment to remind the man that he was still present and still not happy with him. "Well, well, well Stackhouse." He echoed tauntingly, his smirk dangerous and intimidating. "It seems you aren't very good when it comes to following directions." Jason's eyes widened and filled with nervousness. "Did I not tell you that you would regret it if you did not get Paige to safety?"
"I-I seem to recall hearin' somethin' like 'at." Jason agreed, his Adam's apple bobbing as he gulped. "Hey, man, I tried!" He suddenly blurted out, holding his hands up in defense. "She pulled a gun on me! And when someone is pointing a gun at you, ya listen." He said with a nod, looking to Paige for help. Eric quirked an eyebrow at her and she shrugged at him with a nod.
"It's true – I pulled a gun on him." She confirmed with a shrug. Eric seemed surprised to hear it. "So don't hold it against him, yeah?" With that settled, Paige glanced toward the line to see how many people were left – only a few people were still waiting to welcome Godric back. "I'm gonna go talk to Godric now. You two play nice." She said before heading towards the dissipating line. When she glanced back to see what happened in her absence, Eric was staring down at Jason in a very intimidating way and looked to be telling him something very serious.
Paige got in line and waited patiently for her turn, wondering just what in the world she was supposed to say to Godric – welcome back? Nice to meet you? Glad you didn't get roasted alive by a bunch of religious lunatics? To tell the truth, she was nervous as hell to finally be meeting Eric's maker. In a weird way it almost felt like she was meeting his father, and Paige wanted very much to make a good impression on him, hoping that if Godric liked her that it would make it easier for Eric to forgive her.
When she finally stepped forward, Godric, who had looked rather bored the entire time, finally had an interested expression on his face. She smiled and actually did a small curtsey of some sort, instantly feeling ridiculous for doing it when Godric seemed amused. "It's nice to meet you Godric. And it's even nicer to see you here unharmed." Paige said with a small smile, proud of herself when she got the words out without stumbling over them. "Thank you for the fresh clothes and for letting me wash up. It was very kind."
"It is nice to meet you as well, Paige Collins, and you are most welcome." He said in return. She was surprised that he knew her by name. He then proceeded to motion the vampire standing behind him to move in close and quietly said something in his ear – the vampire nodded, straightened up, then began shooing away anyone standing in the near vicinity to give she and Godric some privacy. "Pease sit." Godric said, motioning to a chair near him. She did so slowly and he smiled before turning to face her better. "I have heard much about you, Ms. Collins."
Paige blinked in surprise and felt her cheeks flush. "Mostly good things, I hope." She said, though if he had heard about her from Eric, she doubted much of any of it had been good. Godric just gave a small smile in answer, making it hard to decide whether she was correct or not. "I've heard quite a bit about you as well. I'd like to say on behalf of the C.A.V.D. that I'm very happy to see you safe and unharmed…even if the plan did go a bit awry at the end." She admitted with a sheepish smile.
Godric inclined his head to her respectfully. "The help your organization provided is very much appreciated. Please let your superiors know that I am grateful and that I commend them and the entire organization on their continued awareness and determination when it comes to the safety and rights of my kind."
"I will." She assured him with a nod.
Godric smiled again, then tilted his head inquisitively. "You are very brave, do you know this?" He asked, changing the subject and catching her a bit by surprise. "I speak of you confronting Reverend Newlin to save Eric's life, of course."
Paige flushed again. "I'm not sure whether that should be called bravery or stupidity." She admitted humbly, finding his penetrating stare a little unnerving. She felt as though the old vampire was staring directly into her soul and knew all her deepest, darkest secrets. "Either way, Eric was in danger. I couldn't stand by and do nothing."
If she wasn't mistaken, she thought Godric looked a little impressed. "One might be surprised to learn just how far they are willing to go to protect the ones they love." He mused aloud, making her immediately press her lips together. "You do still love him, yes?"
The blunt question made Paige blink in surprise. "Wow, you're very…direct."
Godric smiled gently. "Thousands of years of existence has taught me that there is no use in dancing around the truth – it always comes out sooner or later, anyway."
Paige nodded and then chanced a glance in Eric's direction. He was in the living room watching them speak with a gleam of interest in his blue eyes, clearly curious to know what Paige and Godric were speaking about and why they needed such privacy to do so. When she turned back to face Godric, he was patiently waiting for her to answer his question. "If I may ask, how much do you know about me and Eric?" She asked quietly.
"Quite a bit." Godric outright admitted, though if the knowing look on his face was anything to judge by, she'd wager he probably knew everything. It made her blink in surprise, unsure how to feel about the fact that Eric had obviously confided in him about their relationship. "Eric and I may not have seen each other in a very long time, but that does not mean we do not speak," the vampire explained. "Especially when he finds himself in need of words of advice during difficult and trying times."
Paige nodded and fiddled with the hem of her dress. "Then that means you must know all about the breakup." She said, cringing when he nodded once in confirmation. Paige sucked in a deep breath and then released it as a sigh. "Believe me, that isn't something I'm proud of." She insisted quietly, the familiar feeling of shame started to overtake her. "But at the time I didn't feel I had any other choice. To make a long story short, there were some…complications that forced me to do the things I did. I'd do it all differently if I could."
Godric held a hand up and shook his head. "You don't need to explain yourself to me." He reassured her. "We all make mistakes." True, but Paige just so happened to have a knack for make a lot of mistakes – mistakes that usually had very bad consequences. "But you still haven't answered my question."
Paige gnawed on her lip for a moment before slowly nodding her head. "Yes, I still love Eric." She admitted, seeing no point in beating around the bush since Godric already seemed to know that she did. "I never stopped." She admitted. "Never will stop."
Godric smiled and shifted his gaze from hers so he could peer in Eric's direction. If she dare say it, he almost looked pleased with her answer. "Eric loves you." Godric revealed as he turned his eyes back to hers. Paige's heart skipped a beat, then went into overdrive and began pounding against her ribs. Was Godric right? Was it true? Was it possible Eric could still love her? "He may try to hide it, but I know him well – better than he knows himself. He loves you still." He reiterated matter-of-factly.
Paige forgot how to speak for a moment, her mind reeling with what Godric had just told her. "But…he basically told me he needed time, that he wouldn't be able to forgive and forget overnight." Paige said, trying to make sense of everything in her mind.
"I dare say he has forgiven you already." Godric stated before leaning forward and dropping his voice. "I saw how he reacted to you in the church, Paige, saw the concern he showed when he thought Steve Newlin might harm you, even though he himself was in a great deal of pain. He protected you, was ready to murder for you." Godric said matter-of-factly. "There is much loyalty between Eric and I, and a great deal of respect…but even I must admit that he is not the most selfless creature to have ever lived. There are very few individuals in this world that he would put before himself, that he would die for if need be – and those few individuals are sitting right here." He explaining, gesturing between the two of them.
Paige gulped, not sure what to say in response to that. She knew that she should trust what Godric was telling her since he undoubtedly knew Eric better than anyone else, but what if he was wrong? What if Eric had only protected her out of habit? What if the damage that she had done to their relationship was irreparable and Eric ran as far away from her as he could the first chance he got? If Eric still loved her like Godric claimed he did, then she wanted to hear it from Eric – Paige needed to hear the words and be assured that they could put the past behind them and start fresh.
"What should I do?" She finally asked.
"You said he asked for time – give it to him." Godric instructed. "When he is ready, he will come to you."
He leaned away from her and relaxed in his seat again, leaving Paige with the distinct impression that he had said what he wanted to and that their conversation was now over. Paige nodded and stood slowly, smoothing out the wrinkles in her dress as she did. "Thank you for the advice." She told him gratefully.
Godric inclined his head to her. "You are welcome here whenever you want – you will always have friends here." He assured her.
Paige smiled. "I'll keep that in mind."
"Goodbye, Paige Collins."
"Goodbye, Godric." And this time she didn't curtsy him.
Paige turned to make her way back into the living, thoughts racing a hundred miles an hour as she mulled over everything Godric had just told her. Her eyes, once again, were magnetized to where Eric was standing and she found her feet unconsciously carrying her toward him – she wondered if he had used his acute vampire hearing to his advantage and been listening in on their conversation. If he hadn't, she then wondered if he would ask her. Before Paige could make it over to him and find out, Jason suddenly stepped in her path and forced her to a halt.
"How'd it go?" He asked, motioning towards Godric.
Paige shrugged and pursed her lips. "Fine." She answered vaguely. "I could ask you the same." She then said, nodding towards where Eric was standing.
Jason pulled a face and scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Well, I'm alive…though he did threaten to 'remove my hands and other extremities' should I be unable'ta keep 'em away from you." Jason quoted before snorting unattractively. "Bagged yourself a real sweetheart in that one." He said sarcastically as he picked up a black cowboy hat that had been abandoned and tried it on, eyeing it with interest.
Paige, who had actually kind of missed the jealous, overprotective side of Eric and was a little happy to hear that he at least cared enough to threaten Jason, was just about to say something when suddenly Isabel hurried past them, holding Hugo by the back of his neck as she led him towards Godric. Paige and Jason shared a look before trailing after her, curious to see what was going on. They weren't the only ones either – soon most of the vampires and humans in the room had drifted over to see what the commotion was about.
"Here is the one who betrayed us." She announced as she kicked out Hugo's legs and forced him to kneel before Godric.
Silence fell over the crowd as they waited to see how Godric would react. Instead of getting angry, however, the old vampire merely stared at Hugo for a long moment, his expression unreadable. "Hugo…" He said with a slight huff before looking up at Isabel. "He is your human, is he not?"
Isabel nodded slowly, a sad expression on her face. "Yes, he is."
Godric continued to look up at her. "Do you love him?"
Paige waited for Isabel's response, watching the conflicted emotions pass over the vampire's face. Finally, she said, "I…I thought I did," even though the words were a struggle for her to say. It was easy to see that she was hurt and betrayed to learn that her lover had been the one to betray Godric, even a little angry, but it was also easy to see just by the way she acted that Isabel most definitely still loved him. Sure enough, it was only a few more seconds before Isabel began to cry, streaks of red blood sliding from the corners of her eyes and trailing down her cheeks – Paige wasn't sure why, but the situation had her thinking back to the day she had broken up with Eric and caused a similar look of hurt and betrayal to appear on his face. Paige looked down to her own shoes, guilt eating away at her, wanting nothing more than to find Eric, hug him, kiss him, and apologize a thousand times over until he finally forgave her. She vowed right then and there that she would never do anything to put a look like that on Eric's face for as long as she lived.
Suddenly, as though he'd heard her thoughts, Eric was pushing through the crowd and standing next to her. Paige turned her head to meet his gaze, almost positive that he too was remembering that horrid day. She wanted to say something – anything – but couldn't find the words, so instead, she looked down to his hand before slowly, cautiously moving her hand to grasp his, giving him all the opportunity in the world to pull away if he wanted to. But he didn't – as she slipped her hand into his much larger one and gave it a squeeze, trying with that one small movement to express everything she was feeling within, his gaze flickered downward. Then, to her surprise, he closed his hand around hers, enclosing it within his strong grasp.
"You are free to go." The sound of Godric's voice brought her back to the present. She had been so distracted that she had missed part of the conversation, so she wasn't really sure what had made the vampire decide not to take action against Hugo. He had chosen to let him go, though, and both Isabel and Hugo looked rather stunned with the decision, as did many of those in the crowd around her. Stan, who was only a few feet away from Paige, suddenly looked outraged as he pushed himself away from the wall he'd been leaning against and took a few menacing steps forward.
"What?" He growled disbelievingly.
"The human is free to go." Godric repeated. "But do not return." He directed towards Hugo, glancing pointedly back at Stan. "I fear it is not safe for you here."
"This is a travesty." Stan spat.
"It is my verdict," Godric swiftly countered. Then he looked over towards where she, Eric, and Jason were standing. "Eric." He beckoned. Eric glanced down at her for a second before releasing her hand and moving forward, attention solely on Godric now as he awaited his orders. "Escort them out. Make sure he leaves unharmed."
"Yes, Godric." Eric agreed before walking over and grabbing Hugo by the shirt. Everyone watched as he led Hugo out – Isabel expressed her gratitude to Godric before quickly following them. Once the vampires and human were gone, everyone dispersed and went back to their business.
Paige turned to Jason and they shared a look. "That was intense." Jason said.
Paige nodded but it was with half-hearted interest, too distracted by her own thoughts to hear whatever Jason said after that. Her hand still felt a little tingly in light of holding Eric's hand for the first time in nearly a year and half and she couldn't help but feel encouraged. It might not seem like much to anyone else, but the fact that he hadn't pulled away or rejected her definitely seemed like a step forward.
Eventually Jason wandered off, claiming he needed to have a conversation with Bill, so Paige went to find Sookie and together they slowly started making the rounds, introducing themselves to anyone that seemed interested in talking to the two of them. After a while Eric and Isabel both returned but he didn't come looking for her. Instead he went to sit with Godric and talk with him in private for a while – though she wanted very much to speak to Eric and just be by his side again, she stuck firmly to Sookie's side. Godric had told her that Eric still loved her, yes, but he had also said to give him his space. And that was exactly what she intended to do.
"Crazy past few days, huh?" Sookie asked as they took a break from socializing to refresh their drinks. Paige nodded and took a sip of her drink, eyes turning over to Eric for what was probably the hundredth time – he had finally left Godric to his thoughts and was watching she and Sookie interact from across the room. "Bill and Jason are still talking?" Sookie then asked in exasperation, watching the two talk outside through the large living room windows. "Wonder what they're tallkin' about – they've never gotten along. Ever."
"Maybe they're hashing out their differences." Paige suggested with a shrug, also watching Bill and Jason through the window. When Jason suddenly threw his arms around the vampire and gave him a long, awkward looking hug, Paige's eyebrows shot up and she shared a look with Sookie. "Weird." Paige commented.
"Very." Sookie agreed. They turned away from the scene and went to stand by the fireplace, deciding not to infringe on Bill and Jason's moment. "So…" Sookie said to change the subject. "You were talking to Godric for a long time earlier…what did ya'll talk about?" She pried smoothly. Paige smirked and then shook her head, knowing exactly what the woman was up to. No way was she going to discuss what had been said while Eric and dozens of more vampires were lurking nearby. Sookie immediately frowned at her. "C'mon, Paige, you can tell me. We're friends and I'm good at keeping secrets." She insisted.
Paige shook her head again. "Not here. We'll talk about it at the hotel, alright?" She suggested. Sookie grumbled under her breath but agreed nonetheless, which Paige thanked her for.
She was just taking a sip from her drink when her blonde haired friend suddenly nudged her in the ribs. Paige turned a questioning look on Sookie, who then proceeded to nod at something over her shoulder – when she turned to see what the woman was pointing out to her, Paige realized that Eric was making his way towards them. Paige's stomach immediately filled with butterflies and she turned to shoot a look at Sookie. The blonde merely excused herself and then walked away, but not before giving her a discreet thumbs up.
"Paige." Eric said in greeting when he finally reached her.
"Eric." She said in return, trying not to sound as nervous as she felt.
He glanced around for a second, then gazed down at her intently. "May we speak in private?" He asked in a low voice. Paige nodded slowly and then let him start to lead her away from the thick of the party, heart nearly leaping into her throat when he placed a hand on her back to gently guide her – several vampires noticed the two of them as they passed and peered at her curiously, but none had any comments about the fact that she and Eric were together. Paige wasn't sure what he wanted to talk about but it seemed serious. She immediately had to wonder if Godric had told him about their conversation earlier and then provided him with some wise words of advice as well.
They'd nearly made it to the guest bedroom she'd changed in earlier when the front door opened and a new vampire walked in. Paige peered at her curiously, noticing that she looked like a vampire on a mission, and frowned – she had no idea who the female was, but something about her rubbed Paige the wrong way. "Who is that?" Paige asked Eric as she halted for a second, making him stop and glance towards the doorway.
His frown was immediate. "Her name is Lorena, and I have a feeling she didn't come for the party favors." He said before glancing over at Sookie as the vampire in question made a beeline for the unsuspecting blonde.
Because they were on the other side of the room it was impossible for her to hear their conversation, but what seemed like a fairly casual chat at first soon started to look more like the beginning of a cat fight. Eric heaved, crossing his arms over his broad chest as he watched them, while Paige looked on with curiosity. Suddenly Bill reappeared and went rushing up to the two females, obviously trying to diffuse whatever was on the verge of breaking out between the two.
"What's that all about?" She asked Eric quietly.
"A jealous ex-lover with a serious grudge." Eric answered before quirking an eyebrow at her. "Need I say more?"
"Nope, I think that covers it." When things suddenly looked as though they were about to get physical Paige took an unconscious step forward, feeling as though she should defend her new friend if things got out of hand. Eric, however, grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her back to his side.
"That is one argument you do not want to get in the middle of." He warned her.
Sure enough, the situation quickly escalated until Sookie was yelling profanities at the vampire named Lorena and glaring daggers, looking very much like she wanted to grab her by the hair and toss her around. Lorena wasn't intimidated though and bared her fangs, pushing Bill out of the way before going in for the attack on Sookie.
Suddenly Godric was there and grabbing Lorena by the throat just as she was about to sink her fangs into Sookie's neck. The party went deathly quiet for the second time that night as every eye in the room turned in the direction of the commotion. Paige felt Eric's hand leave her back and she looked up curiously just as he started to move past her. "Stay here." He instructed, not giving her time to argue with him on the matter before he was casually striding over to stand on guard behind Godric, ready to jump to his maker's defense should Lorena anything.
Now that it was so quiet in the room, she was finally able to hear the conversation taking place. "I neither know, nor care, who you are." Godric was saying to Lorena, his voice cold and detached. "But in this area – and certainly in this nest – I am the authority. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Sheriff." Lorena reluctantly answered, looking rather frightened.
Godric finally released her a moment later and looked down at the vampire condescendingly. "This human has proven herself to be a courageous and loyal friend to our kind. And yet you treat her like a child does a dragon fly, pulling off wings for sport. No wonder they hate us." He said slowly, his tone filled with complete and utter disgust for the creature in front of him. Lorena looked like she wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole, and honestly, Paige didn't blame her. She'd probably want the same thing if she was on the receiving end of Godric's loathing stare.
"She provoked me." She attempted to defend herself weakly.
"And you provoked me. Disrupted the peace in my own home." Godric shot back, an angry edge to his words. "I could snap you like a twig, and yet, I haven't. Why is that?"
Lorena thought the question over, obviously trying to choose her words carefully. "It's your choice." She finally said.
"Indeed it is." Godric confirmed. "You're an old vampire, I can tell. You've had hundreds of years to better yourself and yet you haven't. You're still a savage and I fear for all of us, humans and vampires, if this behavior persists." With Lorena now firmly put in her place, Godric turned his attention to Bill. "You – you seem to know her?"
"Yes, Sheriff." Bill confirmed slowly, looking shamed for what had happened in the much older, much stronger vampire's home.
"Escort her from the nest." Godric instructed him.
Bill looked to Sookie in silent question for a moment until Sookie nodded and urged him to go. "Go ahead. I'm fine."
Bill nodded and finally moved to collect Lorena. "I wish you out of my area by dawn." Were Godric's last word to Lorena, leaving no room for argument. Bill motioned for Lorena to follow him after that, and together the two walked away from Godric and then out of the house altogether.
Just like earlier, now that the trouble had been dealt with the party resumed as normal. Eric said a few words to Godric, who still looked rather annoyed, and then started making his way back over to Paige. Paige herself frowned with concern as Sookie dropped into a nearby seat, looking a little dazed – by the time Eric had rejoined her, she was contemplating going over to check on her and make sure the blonde was alright.
"Now do you see why you should never get involved with quarrels like that?" Eric asked her with a smirk.
Paige nodded at once, eyebrows raised as she looked up at him. "That could have gotten very messy very fast." She agreed. Then she gave a slight shudder, remember how infuriated the female vampire had looked. "That took 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned' to a whole new level." Eric's smirk widened. If she didn't know any better, she'd think he'd found her comment amusing. "Let me go check on Sookie real quick, then we can go talk, alright?"
Eric nodded and then watched in silence as she turned to start weaving her way through the crowd – when Paige glanced back at him, his eyes were trained unwaveringly on her.
Sookie had her face in her hands when Paige approached but looked up when the redhead placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. Sookie seemed troubled but still managed to offer a half-hearted smile. "You alright?" Paige asked with concerned eyes.
Sookie sucked in a deep breath and slowly nodded. "Yeah, I'm alright. Just frustrated…and confused. I mean, what the hell were she and Bill up to the whole time I was in the Fellowship? And why would she show up here?" She pondered over this a bit longer before shaking her head. "Sorry, I don't need'ta burden you with this." Sookie said, flashing her an apologetic look. "I'll be fine, I just need to talk to Bill about everything is all."
Paige nodded her agreement and then glanced back at Eric. "Well, if you need me you know where to find me. Don't hesitate, okay?" Sookie nodded in understanding, smiling gratefully now. Paige squeezed her shoulder one last time before releasing her and then turned to rejoin Eric, leaving Sookie to her thoughts.
"She alright?" Eric asked when Paige returned.
"Yeah, she's okay." Paige confirmed with a nod. Eric mimicked the gesture and nodded his understanding before looking to her with expectant eyes. "Let's go talk now before something else interrupts." She suggested with a small smile.
But Paige had spoken too soon. Because just as Eric placed a hand on her back again to lead her toward a private area to talk, a male voice suddenly rose above the noise of the crowd. "Excuse me everyone." Paige and Eric both came to a quick halt, as did everyone else in the room. While the majority of the crowd looked to the man with confusion, unsure who he was or why he was commanding the attention of the room, Paige narrowed her eyes and studied him harder, positive she had seen him somewhere before. "If I could have your attention."
As though a light bulb had been clicked on in her head, she suddenly remembered exactly where she had seen him before. He had been the man helping Jason build the platform and cross back at the church.
Paige immediately grabbed Eric's arm, making him look down at her with furrowed brows. "I've seen him before." She whispered, causing a mild look of alarm to flash through his eyes. "He was at the church."
"My name is Luke McDonald. I'm a member of the Fellowship of the Sun…and I have a message for you all from Steve Newlin." The newcomer said before ripping his jacket open, revealing that he had an explosive device strapped across his chest along with a significant amount of silver.
What happened next seemed to happen in slow motion.
Luke McDonald moved his thumb to the bomb's trigger and pressed down before anyone in the room had time to react. Eric's eyes widened and he started to move like he was going to push Paige behind him, wanting to shield her from the blast. But Paige, knowing that the silver about to go flying every which way would do serious damage to any vampire in range, was already jumping in front of him, using what little time she had to place herself between him and the Fellowship member in the hope of blocking him from any incoming silver. There was a small fraction of time where Paige's eyes locked with Eric's and she saw the horror within the blue depths as he realized what she was doing – then the bomb exploded and they were both blasted off their feet before they went flying to the ground.
For a long few moments, Paige wasn't sure where she was or what was happening around her. Her ears were ringing so loudly that she couldn't hear anything and her vision had momentarily gone black. As she finally started to become aware of her surroundings again, though, she began to hear cries of pain and fright and her vision finally started to return – everything was skewed and distorted though, making it hard to focus on anything without seeing double. It was dizzying, so she let her already heavy eyelids fall shut.
"Paige? Paige?!" A panicked voice rose up above the rest of the noise, echoing loudly in her ears. She realized then that she had landed on someone and that that someone was frantically calling her name in an attempt to get her to respond. "Paige, answer me!"
When the person underneath her suddenly tried to move her, the pain that seared through her body made the world come back into focus with sharp clarity – Paige couldn't have contained her loud cry of pain if she'd tried. The person trying to move her froze instantly and cursed before seemingly coming to a quick decision and gently shifting her down to the floor, making her cry out with anguish again as the pain multiplied tenfold. It was as though a thousand little knives were digging into her back at the same time, making white hot pain flood through every inch of her body – distantly she heard the sound of fabric being torn and felt air whoosh over the skin of her back as someone ripped her shirt away to see the damage that had been done. That was when she finally remembered that she had jumped in front of Eric to protect him from the blast and that it was him who she had landed on and was tending to her now.
"Eric..." She managed out, hands reaching blindly for him. "Are you...alright?"
One of his hands finally found hers and closed around it in a vice grip. "Damnit Paige, I'm fine, you irrational, unpredictable woman." He said, his voice sounding a little thick as he tightened the hold he had on her hand.
"What's wrong with her? Is she okay?" Another voice suddenly sounded nearby – it was hard to be sure in her increasingly delirious state, but it sounded like Jason. "Jesus, she's got silver all in her back!" Jason exclaimed a moment later, sounding horrified.
"I realize this! I have eyes, human, and they see better than yours!" Eric roared at him, making the man fall silent.
Paige hissed and clutched to Eric when she felt pressure on one of the wounds in her back, wishing desperately that the pain would go away. She was beginning to find that breathing was a little more difficult, that it was harder to suck in air with each passing second. She knew then that the damage had to be worse than she'd thought. "Eric…" Paige choked out.
"That's way too deep to get out, man." Jason said slowly and unsurely. "She needs a hospital now."
"There's no time." Eric snapped back. Then he was leaning close and speaking directly in her face. "Paige, you must drink from me." Eric instructed her. She felt his wrist against her lips a moment later and shook her head, trying to turn her head away. "Paige, please." Eric pleaded, pushing his wrist closer.
"No...gross..." Paige managed out, finally managing to force her eyes open again and get a look around. She realizing she was on her side with Eric kneeling over her, his wrist bleeding and hovering directly in front of her mouth. There was rubble and debris all around her and she couldn't help but take in the scene with curious eyes – when she felt Eric's free hand on her cheek, however, it drew her attention back to him. As her eyes connected with his, Paige was shocked to see that trails of bloody tears were streaking down his cheeks. "Eric...you're crying." She said in wonderment, her voice soft and weak.
He ignored her statement and pushed his wrist even closer to her mouth. "If you do not drink from me, you might die. The silver is too deep. I cannot get it out without causing more damage." He explained now that she was somewhat coherent. "My blood will heal you, Paige. Please – drink." He begged her.
Paige looked up at him for a moment, saw the genuine fear in his blue eyes, then finally nodded. Eric didn't waste a moment to press his wrist against her lips and she slowly began sucking on the open wound, drinking in his blood.
Almost at once she could feel her body beginning to heal and she was surprised to discover that his blood was more pleasurable than she had anticipated. It was the first time she had ever tasted his blood, the thought of sharing blood with one another having always grossed her out in the past. Now she sucked almost greedily, taking whatever he would give her until Eric gently pushed her face away. She sighed and let her eyes droop shut again, darkness beginning to seize her as he slid an arm under knees and another under her neck and started to gently lift her up. Another pair of hands were suddenly on her, trying to help him move her.
"Here, let me help you." Jason offered.
"Get your filthy hands off of her." Eric growled at him dangerously before lifting her up and cradling her in his arms – Jason unhanded her immediately and took a step backward. "It's going to be alright, Paige." Eric whispered in her ear. "You will be fine."
That was the last thing she heard before everything went dark.
A/N: Review!