It had been an eventful night after Jasper had blatantly told the entire town that there were more than one vampire species. Most of the populace was in a uproar and were now wondering what other mythological creatures existed. When someone brought up werewolves Bella just couldn't resist. It was too easy.

"Well, I don't know about actual werewolves, but I have come across a pack of shifter wolves. Big fuckers. The tallest could easily look a six foot man in the eye standing," she said. "And they have absolutely no sense of public decency." This last bit she said with an air of scandal. Who would have thought. That again set the place in an uproar, but it did seem to intrigue Sam Merlotte. Bella guessed that he really was a shifter. Just not like her boys.

Then Bella got a front row seat to more drama in town as it seemed someone set fire to the house that housed the three new vampire residents of Bon Temp. Bella was waiting tables with Arlene and Sookie was late that morning. Bella assumed she was now not only grieving for her grandmother but also for the waste of both living and dead air that was Bill Compton. It seemed to be all that the town could talk about at the moment. The only exception was Jason. It seemed that he had found himself another distraction with a new girl. Only Bella had to give him props, this one actually had some brains about her. They came in flirting as Amy patiently explained her perception of the stuffed animals on the walls. Bella just thought they were creepy dead animals, but it seemed Amy had a more eccentric view. She was helping at the bar as the kitchen was fully staffed with Terry in, and Arlene and Sam were focusing on tables and inventory. That was when Sookie ran in.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I know I'm late," she said in a rush as she came to a stop in front of Sam.

"Sookie, listen, I heard about the fire. I'm real, real sorry. How you holding up?"

"He's alive!" she said excitedly.

"What?" It was obvious to Bella that Sam was surprised. Bella wasn't. Yeah he left with them, but he had his own place. Odds were 50-50.

"Bill. They said four bodies. I thought for sure Bill was one of 'em," she explained in her happiness.

"He wasn't?"

"No, he's fine. In fact, he's wonderful." Bella made an exaggerated gagging motion behind the bar, and Jasper chuckled as they both didn't even try to hide the fact they were listening in.

"Well, that must be quite a relief for ya," Sam said.

"Nice, save," Jasper muttered.

"You have no idea. Anyways, no need to worry about me. I'm great." Sookie then hurried over to the bar where she was met by Arlene.

"Sweetie, where you been? I'm up to my eyeballs in tickets," she said as she finished writing down half an order she memorized at the table.

"Arlene, you look so beautiful today," Sookie complimented. "I love you, even if you are a bigot sometimes." She then proceeded to glomp the redhead in a hug before flittering off.

"What's with her?" Arlene asked Sam as he came behind the bar.

"Bill's alive," he said simply.

"What? But I thought—"

"I know. So did I."

"Order up!" Terry shouted in his best drill instructor voice from the window.

"I'm comin'. Hold your horses," Sookie shouted back at him. She spent another two minutes talking to Hoyte and Rene before going to the now empty window. "I thought you said 'order up'?" she asked.

"I did, new girl took 'em," he said as he read another ticket.

"New girl?"

Bella meanwhile was watching Amy go from table to table, handing out their orders. Yup, she liked this one. But what was the catch? Bell knew there was always a catch somewhere with the good. For instance, Bella had the hots for Eric, but he was a vampire. She had been down that road once before. No way was she going to do it again as a human. Amy came up to the bar and apologized for just taking over and introduced herself. Sookie wasn't impressed but Arlene was charmed. Jason gave her a kiss on her forehead as they sat themselves at the bar.

"Heya, Bella. Can I get two bottles, please?" he asked her politely.

"Sure, Jay. Care to introduce me?" She asked as she placed the two requested beers on the bar top.

"Right. Bella this is Amy. Amy, this is Bella. She's new in town too."

"Cool beans," Amy said. "Where you from, Bella?"

"North. Had to leave my tiny town in Washington. I love the area, but it just rained way too much for my sunshine heart."

"Now come on, B. It wasn't so bad. Afterall, you met my handsome self," Jasper said. Bella shook her head.

"And look how well that turned out. If I was really as smart as people seemed to think I am, I would have dated you and not your century old virgin brother. I wonder what he would say if I told him I let one of the wolves take me when you all left. Doggy style," she said with a smirk.

Jasper threw his head back and laughed. "About as scandalized as hearing that his adoptive brother is now fuckin' a man. Boy is just too chicken shit to give it up. He and Alice have been together since we left you, and you want to know a secret? Mr. Starched Collar still hasn't popped his cherry."

Bella, Jason, and Amy were all agog. Bella because of the news. Amy and Jason because of the fact Jasper wasn't human.

"You're a vampire?" Amy asked. Jasper nodded. "How is it you can be out in the daylight. Your kind burns."

Jasper shook his head and Bella answered. "You guys are behind the times when it comes to town gossip. Jasper let slip last night about the different species of vampires. Compton is the kind that just came out of the coffin, so to speak."

"My kind is very different. Where a stake, sunlight, and silver are all weaknesses of his kind, there is only one thing that will kill me. My kind can be out in the sun, though the effect is interesting—" Bella snorted at this. "Silver is a commodity," he said, holding up his hand where the Whitlock crest rested on his right middle finger, "and while we can compel of a sort, it is more deadly than what Compton will do. Also, if you were to try to ingest any of my blood, you wouldn't get high or turn. You would burn from the inside out. As if you swallowed a bottle of Sulfuric Acid. But that's assuming you'd be able to penetrate my skin."

"Enough shocking the locals, Jazz. She said, placing a glass of Jack in front of him. He sipped it and winked at her.

"And your kind can apparently eat and drink," Amy pressed.

Jasper shook his head. "Eat, no. Drink? Depends. Has to be either blood or Alcohol," he said, downing the glass in a go to prove his point.

It was then Bud and Andy walked in. They wanted to talk to Sam about the house fire and the vampires in it. They went to his office and Bella turned to Jazz.

"Might want to beat feet, brother. Everyone saw you go toe to toe with them, and I wouldn't put it passed those two hicks to come looking for you next," Bella said in a rush. Jasper nodded.

"You may be right about that. I've got business to attend to anyway. Looking into getting a place near here. Maybe just outside of town. I don't think the locals would take to kindly to another vamp in their community."

"You may be right about that. I'll be out of town the next couple days. Visiting a friend."

Jasper looked her up and down. "This friend wouldn't happen to be 6'2" and blonde would he?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact. We're getting to know one another."

"Be careful, Isabella. You know what happened the last time you did this." Bella looked up to see pitch black eyes and her own gaze softened.

"I know, big brother. I promise, no falling for a man if we can not be equal." The Major let Jasper have control again and he nodded before leaning across the bar and giving her her own kiss on the forehead before blurring out of the bar faster than any of those that burned in the house did the night before.

o0o o0o o0o

It was going twilight. Bella hated this time of day. Reminded her too much of Forks and the drama there. But she was waiting for Eric. He said he was passing through Bon Temp on business and would pick her up after he had completed it. Since it was just getting dark, it would still be a little while. Bella sighed, and busied herself packing for her small out of town getaway. And a lot of her clothes were black just so she wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb in the bar.

Her phone pinged a message.

For a vampire, Compton is such a stick in the mud. What should I do to annoy him, hmm? -E

Bella smiled before answering.

The man is a perfectionist. Dirty something. -B

The reply came nearly immediately.

That would be a lot easier with you present, little one. -E

Bella blushed. Which got even deeper when she opened the picture he sent her. Bare chest in all his viking glory. Judging from the dingy interior, it had to be Bill's house. That told her more about him than talking to him ever would and she grieved for Sookie. She was out to get her heart broken. But the girl was so thick skulled it was the only way she would learn.

Bella's main concern at the moment however, was Eric. She didn't lie to Jasper. There would be no romantic relationship unless they could be equal, which meant Bella being a vampire. But romance and sex were two different things. Weren't they?

Careful. I'm naturally clumsy. Causing me to swoon may cause serious injury. -B

Again she got an immediate reply. Then I'll be the cause and the cure. Compton is here. Half an hour. -E

Bella let out a shaky breath at his reply and sat down with her bag next to her. The man was sin and he was tempting her in the worst way.

Bella thought the half an hour wait was a lot like when people were children, and 5 minutes felt like a lifetime. She thought they may be on to something. But then she finally heard the knock at the door. She raced to open it and there he stood in all his glory. He wore his own customary black and gave her a sexy little grin.

"Good evening, little Valkyrie. Care to let me in?" he asked as he leaned against the door frame.

Bella smiled and stepped aside. "Eric, please come in."

He stepped over the threshold and right up to her, tilting her face and looking her in the eye. Bella saw an emotion there, but he covered it too quickly for her to get a read on it.

"Are you ready, little Valkyrie?" He asked her lowly. And Bella thought, yes. Yes she was ready on so many levels. But for now she went with the obvious reason he asked the question. She stepped back to gain her bearings and grabbed her bag from the side of the couch where she had moved it while she was waiting for him.

"Ready."

The car ride was pleasant. There was a song in what she assumed Swedish playing softly in the background and Eric was humming softly to it as he drove.

"What is the song about?" she asked.

He looked at her and shook his head. "Well that was a very different reaction to it than Compton had. The way he asked about it, you would have thought I was playing death metal at a church function."

"Then that tells you how much taste the man has. Absolutely none. It's beautiful, even if I only understand half a word every seven sentences."

Eric nodded. "Languages with similar roots have that advantage. It tells the story of a maiden. A Valkyrie," he told her with a smile. Bella chuckled. She usually wasn't one for pet names, but what could she say to a millennium old vampire?

"What did you have planned this weekend? I don't suppose we are just going to sit around talking. Does it have anything to do with why you were in town?" she asked.

"It sort of did, as it turns out. Though my plans for you involve a lot less clothing, I was hoping you would bear witness to a little investigation I'm pursuing."

"And what investigation would that be?" she asked curiously.

"Recently a lot of money has gone missing from our books at Fangtasia. I came into town to see if Compton and his little dalliance, Miss. Stackhouse, would help move the process along."

"Ah," she intoned. "You want to use Sookie's telepathy. Do me a favor and try not to hurt her more than necessary. I like Sookie herself, even if she has a lot of growing up to do. When is this shake down happening?"

"Compton will be bringing her to the bar tomorrow night, so we have time to – get to know each other a little better. Without distractions."

"This coming from the king of distractions? What would you like to know?"

"That is a hard question to answer, little Valkyrie. I want to know everything about you. Right down to the type of shampoo you use."

"Well, if that isn't a little intrusive," Bella mumbled.

"The difference between myself and your little girl dalliance, is that I will simply ask, not sneak through your bedroom window and stalk you to find out," Eric explains.

"Thanks for that. I use a tea tree and aloe based shampoo, by the way. Used to be strawberries, but my so-called dalliance creeped me out so much after I was disillusioned, that I changed practically everything and found new interests. For instance, I still like literature, I just now run more towards Whitman and Thoreau rather than Austin, Bronte, and Shakespeare. Earthy scents over fruity. And Chopin instead Debussy."

"Yes, your disillusionment. I would like to hear more about this phenomenon. I didn't know there was a way for glamours to be blocked," Eric said with interest.

"There isn't. What happened to me is a mix of things, stemming from the venom in my wrist. The elders found two vital pieces of information during my depression. Confirmation that the glamour of the day walkers was fatal after long term exposure. Keep in mind, this tribe is rather isolated and insular, so they didn't have the information you've had for centuries. And that even if a little bit of venom is left in the system, even if the victim doesn't turn, it will, to an extent, trigger a gift."

"A gift? Like telepathy or flight?" Eric asked. Bella nodded.

"Just so. The elders managed to drain the venom from my system, a fact only three people on this earth know, but the gift remained. Even after they purged the rest of his pheromones from my system with gross tea, a round in a sweat lodge, and a tattoo known all over the world to keep possession at bay. Put it all into a blender, and you get me."

"Little Valkyrie indeed," was his only comment. Once they had made it to his home, Eric got Bella settled into a guest room as he took care of some business. They spoke well into the morning, as he didn't seem to have an issue holding a conversation and working at the same time. They only separated when Eric had to die for the day. Bella, strangely enough, felt awake. She decided to explore her surroundings a little. Eric's 'home' was a bit much. He had found a lovely plantation home, and unlike Compton, had put some decent money into maintaining it. She absolutely fell in love with the place when she found the most magnificent garden in the back of the property that had the perfect little alcove for her to sit and read in. And so she did just that, going back and getting her latest read from her bag. It was so peaceful, and she eventually relaxed so much, she fell asleep in the shade of the honeysuckle bushes.

o0o o0o o0o

It was Eric who woke her. She felt the gentle brush of his fingers across her face as he pushed back a lock of her hair.

"I had thought you would have preferred the bed in the guest room?" he said with a smirk. "Just as well. I may have been tempted to ravage you." Bella chuckled as she sat up. The cool evening air smelling of the wonderful flora around her.

"Beds are comfortable. But it was so still here, I couldn't resist," she said softly as she looked around. Eric gave her a moment more to enjoy her surroundings.

"It is almost time to meet up with Compton and Miss. Stackhouse. You had better move your delicious ass to freshen up if you want to join me," he tells her.

Bella turned to him and blushed when she saw the heated look he was giving her. She didn't know that to him, she was painting an almost irresistible image. Sleep messed hair he could imagine burying his hands in as he guided his cock into her small little mouth. Her voice husky from just waking. A voice he could hear screaming his name, letting his ancestors in Valhalla know he was doing them proud.

"Go, little Valkyrie. I will wait for you in the front," he growled. Using all of his 1,000 years to stay put and not plunge himself into her tight little cunt. Bella swallowed as her mouth had suddenly gone very dry, and nodded.

15 minutes later she was much more composed and met Eric by his car, where he said he would be. The bar was closed for the night, so Eric could find the thief. Inside, were Pam, who greeted Bella with a light hug and a kiss to the cheek, and another vampire Bella remembered seeing the last time she was here.

"It's good to see you again, doll," she said. Bell thought the light pink sweater she was wearing made her more tastefully beautiful than Rosalie's over the top, Alice approved, designer shit any day.

"Bella, this is Longshadow. Longshadow, introduce yourself to Bella," Eric told him. Longshadow lowered his fangs and pulled out a lighter. Bella merely nodded.

"Pleasure," she said neutrally.

"Drink?" he asked.

"Balvenie Thirty."

Longshadow perked up at her request. "Neat?"

Bella shook her head. "Not that brave. Cut it." He nodded and set about getting her drink. She had been nursing it for around 20 minutes, having a nice conversation with Pam, when Compton and Sookie finally got there. Sookie looked anything but happy to be there, but openly showed her surprise at seeing Bella.

"What are you doing here, hon?" she asked.

"Eric invited me out for a drink a couple nights ago. Didn't know you and Compton were part of the equation until last night," Bella told her. "Don't worry. They won't bite."

"Ha-Ha," Sookie intone sarcastically as Bill growled at her for her joke. Bella just leveled a look at him, and stared until he looked away. Fun fact, weaker vampires intimidate just like weak humans. Even against a human. Eric gestured to a table set for two, and Sookie sat as he went on to explain the situation, as Pam disappeared and returned with a very frightened man, forcing him to sit in the other chair.

"Pam, Longshadow, and I are partners in this club. And we recently noticed that $60,000 has gone missing from our books. And Bruce is our accountant. Perhaps you can start by listening to him." Eric said as he laid a heavy hand on Bruce's shoulder.

"He's not saying anything," Sookie said defiantly.

"Don't be coy. It's humbling enough to turn to a human for assistance. We know what you can do."

"And I know what you can do too. Why don't you just glamour him?" Sookie challenged.

"Sookie," Bella said calmly. "Think for a moment. Eric is over 1,000 years old. Pam is nearing a century, and Longshadow is smack in the middle at around 600. And they don't live that long by being stupid. They would have tried glamours first. Think of it this way, it would be a great favor for Eric."

"And then what?" Sookie asked. "What would happen to the person once I find out who did it?"

"We'll turn that person over to the police and let the authorities handle it from there," Longshadow tells her.

"Hundreds of years old and you're still a terrible liar. Come on," she said mockingly.

"Sookie! There has to be some level of trust here. Eric is showing you a great level of trust involving you. Your ability be damned! And you are doing nothing but insulting him left right and center," Bella chastises.

"Fine!" Sookie says petulantly. "Fine. I'll make you a deal. If you promise to hand over the person who did this to the police, I'll agree to help you any time you want."

Bella turned and literally bent and banged her head on the counter. She thought Sookie was so fucking stupid at that moment. There were so many holes in that offer, it was swiss cheese! What if the perpetrator was a vampire? The police had no jurisdiction over them! What if they didn't find the person who was stealing while she was digging through other people's heads? Then she would be locked into the agreement for nothing.

"All right. Why not," Eric said with a smirk. He knew he was getting the better end of the deal as well. Sookie balked, like she had just realized she had made a deal with the devil.

Then she leaned forward and took Bruce's hand, concentrating as she listened to his thoughts. You could see him start to lose it, and whatever Sookie was hearing caused her to say something.

"Bruce. It's ok. Take a deep breath. Did you steal their money?" she asked him.

"No. No, no. You gotta believe me. I didn't do it. I swear to.."

"Shhh," Sookie reassured. "Do you know who did?"

Bruce shook his head. "No. No, I wish." Sookie listened for a moment longer then sat back.

"He's telling the truth," she said to the room.

"You trust the skinny human to clear the fat one?" Longshadow asked. Bella looked at him, but he was too busy looking at Eric.

Eric sighed before answering with, "Bring the next one in."

They went through a whole list of people of various shapes, sizes, and types. Longshadow sniping every time Sookie cleared them of the crime.

Finally Pam came in with a very scantily clothed, very used up woman. "This is the last of our humans," she said.

"Mmm. Yummy," the woman said when she got a look at Sookie. Pam took the cigarette the woman was smoking and snuffed it.

"Ginger, this woman has some questions for you. Be a good girl and answer them, will you?" Eric tells her, his request a demand.

"Aye, aye, master," Ginger says. Bella looked hard at the woman, taking an instant dislike to her.

Sookie reached forward, but Ginger pulled back. "Don't you touch me."

"Hold her still," Eric commanded Pam, not taking his eyes off of Ginger. Pam forced Ginger's hands onto the table, and Sookie took one.

"Ginger, someone's been stealing money from the bar," Sookie tells her.

"Really? Huh." Ginger said suspiciously.

"She didn't do it," Sookie said. "But she knows who did."

"What? Fuck you," Ginger said, her body language ducking and becoming defensive.

"Who? Who's gonna kill you?" Sookie asked her. Didn't take a telepath to understand that line of thought. "Ginger, honey, what's his name?"

"It- It's blank. Like her memory's been erased," Sookie tells them.

"I don't know anything, I swear," Ginger tells them, looking up at Eric.

"She's been glamoured," Pam said.

"Vampire," Bella followed up. But her attention went back to Longshadow when Sookie mentioned Ginger's mind being blank. And she saw his transition from petulant bar tender to lethal predator. She saw him jump, and wrap his hands around Sookie's throat.

A/N: Good morning everyone. I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter. I wonder if y'all can see what's going to happen to Bella next. To be honest, I don't think I do. I never plan these stories. I write them for fun as I go. I never know how the chapter/story will turn out when I sit down to write. But I have an idea. Just to let those who are curious to know, I am going to make a sequal to Redeeming the Past. I have already started the first chapter. I just have to have the motivation to work on the story, and to get that motivation, I have to know how to kick off from the ending of the last "movie." I also need to find time around life. We just got a new puppy, and it is like having a toddler in the house again. But she is very cute. Did you like Eric's little fantasy moments? I am reading more "smut books" as I like to call them, and they are an inspiration of a kind. Just finished one on Thanatos. As in the Greek god of death. Spicy. With extra chillies. Anyway, I hope to post another chapter soon. Peace, Love, and Pop rocks. ~Angel