EPOV

When I rise I am disappointed to not have my Sookie next to me. It is becoming more than just a want to me, it's almost a nagging need at this point so when she's not here with me, it's the first thing I notice. I am alarmed to feel that not only is she not next to me, she's not in the house at all. From the distance in the bond, I'd venture a guess that she's in Bon Temps. Last night she told me that she would probably go there today to bring Jason home, to let Adele offer her sympathy to her gossip-loving, grieving, best friend, and to grab a few things at the house but I did not think they'd still be there. Maybe they got a late start? She does not feel worried in the bond or in danger but she does feel sad, and a little angry too but she's mostly centered on caregiving right now. They may still be with the best friend but that does not account for the anger.

She must have felt me awaken because she sends me a rush of love and a decent-sized portion of lust. I let a lewd smile cross my face. My lover is having fun learning the ins and outs of our bond. I send as much lust as I can muster back at her. I can imagine her squeezing her legs together and doing one of the sexy little shivers she does when she gets so turned on she doesn't know what to do with herself. I chuckle when she sends annoyance at me now, the lust she's feeling probably isn't too conducive to what she's currently trying to accomplish. I send her my amusement at her annoyance then distance myself from her a little in the bond. I'll give her the space she needs to help Adele. I should probably check to see how Godric is settling in any way. I again feel relief because Godric decided to come with us back to Louisiana.

I get out of bed and quickly shower, it is no fun without my lover with me. Though with all the lust we were sending back and forth I have a hard-on that isn't going to go away until someone handles it. Unfortunately, Sookie isn't here so I quickly take myself in hand and pump myself to orgasm. I feel Sookie's jealousy and anger. I hope she does not think that there is someone else here with me. I send her calm and love and she calms down. I hope she does not doubt my devotion to her. If she does there's going to have to be a talk in our future. I am not a fan of that idea though, there are much more entertaining things I like to do with Sookie when we're alone.

I must be too lost in my thoughts and the bond because I have to work hard not to let my surprise show when I hear Godric behind me. "You seem to be having a lot of fun in here all by yourself, childe. I wonder what you are doing?"

"Sookie is having fun testing out the bond from a distance, I am just reaping the benefits of it."

Godric chuckles. "Ahh, I see. I remember what that's like."

I feel Godric's sadness in the maker/child bond we share. He always gets this way when he thinks about Shawna. He had bonded to a human once too, and he loved it while it lasted but she didn't want to be turned so he had to watch her age and die. He has never been the same since then. I blame that bond for what started the changes in him. It happened right after we separated during the Second World War because he did not agree with my need for vengeance. Since I met Sookie, I do not like thinking about Shawna either because I know a situation like that could be in my future as well if Sookie decides that she does not want to one day be my progeny. We've never spoken of that yet but I am hopeful that she will. I'm also hopeful that a steady supply of my blood and the fairy blood she already has in her will be enough to keep her alive, breathing, warm, and with me for a long time, perhaps centuries.

"Do not fret, I have a feeling your bond with your Sookie will end much differently than how mine did with Shawna."

He can always read me so well. I do not want to turn this into something about me though, he doesn't speak of Shawna often so he obviously has something he wishes to say, something he wants to get off his chest. So I stay quiet and wait patiently.

"I almost let myself meet the sun the morning after Shawna died. The only reason I didn't was because I couldn't leave you with no notice at all. I haven't been myself in a long time."

I turn to him so we're looking eye to eye. I want him to know that I'm listening to what he's saying. "For the first time in my existence, I understand that urge. I don't know what I'd do if I lost Sookie."

"Yes, I know. I feel it in you. It's more intense than even I felt with Shawna. It's why I knew I had to come here. It's how I knew I was still needed on this earth. I will do everything in my power to keep her safe. I do not trust your queen, nor that Compton fellow."

"Neither do I. I called Rasul and he said that if the queen has something planned then she is keeping whatever her plans are close to the vest. When she first sent Compton she was bragging to everyone that would listen and every dignitary that would visit that she was getting a telepath. Now she isn't saying anything about it. It makes me worry, she is not one to quit, but she's also not one to keep her plans quiet. So I'm not sure what is happening. It's hard to believe that she had just given up her suit of Sookie."

"Yes, I agree, whatever the queen's plans are, she's not done. That means we must stay on guard and be ready for anything."

"I was thinking that I should get more guards but those ladies don't make it easy for me to protect them. They balk at anything they consider too much and guards are one of those things. While we were in Dallas I had guards watch them from a distance while they were sightseeing during the day but that's the best I could do right now."

"Adele seems like she's able to think logically about things like this, is she not?"

"She is, mostly because she doesn't want Sookie to be in danger, it's the money aspect that the guards will bring. Neither of them wants me to spend money on them, that's what they'll fight with me about."

"Ahh, I see. Let me talk to Adele, I think I can get her to see things our way."

I just nod, when Godric gets something into his mind, there's no talking him out of it, it's not my place to anyway. Plus, if it helps me keep my Sookie safe, all the better. I head out of the bedroom and go to the kitchen so I can warm up some donor blood. Because of our bond, I've known that Pam has been in the kitchen since she entered about ten minutes ago, though I am surprised she's here because when I left for Dallas, she was mad at me and having one of her tantrums. Godric follows me down and when Pam sees him, she gives him one of her rare real smiles and gets up to give him a hug and a faux kiss on his cheeks.

"Grandpa, I'm so happy to see you, it's been too long. Are you taking a vacation from the trivialities of being a sheriff?"

Godric looks at me with a quirked brow and I just shrug. I haven't been keeping her up to date because it's been busy and the two times I called her while I was in Dallas she just gave me an attitude. I know how to handle Pam, she'll get mad at me for whatever reason, then she'll be a bitch for a week or two and then she'll finally tell me what's wrong. If I try to get her to talk before she's ready, it just makes the bitchy period last longer and no one wants to deal with a more bitchy Pam than normal.

"No, I've officially retired and have relocated to be closer to my family."

Pam and I chuckle at how human that sounds. But Pam's smile gets bigger "That's great to hear, Godric. Eric can use some of your guidance. He's been spending all his time chasing around a human in a short dress. I was starting to worry that he'd never get off his new obsession. I was quite pleased to see that she was not here today, you must already be kicking him into shape."

"Pamela," I say in a tone she knows well, she knows not to test my patients when I speak to her with it.

"Well, it's true, Eric. You haven't been to Fangtasia to feed and fuck since you met her. The fang bangers are scared you're never coming back. You've been too preoccupied with her. I'm glad she's gone and things can get back to normal. What backward bumfuck kind of name is Snookie anyway "

My fangs drop and I growl at her. "You will not speak about her in such a way. Sookie is your new mistress and she is now my bonded. She is not going anywhere, so you better get used to her."

"Godric, you must talk some sense into him, do you hear this insanity? First the obsession but to tie your unlife to her so irrevocably, what are you going to do when you get bored of her in a few weeks? I'll admit, she's held your attention for longer than any of the others but you have to know you'll bore of her sooner or later."

"Pam, what is the real issue here? Are you not pleased to see your maker happy?" Godric asks a lot calmer than I could right now.

"He's not happy, what he is, is distracted from what's important, and blinded by a cunt that smells like heaven. There's nothing special about her. I'm not even positive that she's not a witch that has him under a spell."

It takes everything I have in me not to vamp over to her and lift her up by the throat. If it were anyone else speaking of Sookie like that, they'd be nothing but blood on my boots. But I made a promise to myself a long time ago not to use my strength against my progeny unless it was necessary. Right now it feels pretty fucking necessary but I'm almost positive that's just my anger talking.

"Pamela, what is your problem? None of my work has fallen behind, nor have I been giving you extra work to make up for my time spent with Sookie. There is no reason for you to think I'm too distracted or that I'm ignoring my duties."

"She is upset that you are spending all your free time with Sookie. She feels neglected." Godric says calmly and confidently like it's the most obvious thing in the world. Which, now that he said it, it does seem pretty obvious.

I look at Pam. "Is that what the problem is?"

"What? No, I don't give a fuck what you do in your free time, I care about your safety because your safety is closely related to mine."

I feel her lying in the bond and even though I'm angry at her and how she has acted recently, I partly blame myself. I have spent almost the last two centuries spoiling her and making it so she was my only female companion. Things have changed a lot recently and I guess it is not fair of me to expect her to be okay with things changing so drastically so quickly. However, that does not mean that I will change how I'm doing things. With Sookie as my bonded she must come first for me now, though my children will always be high on my priority list as well. I have to figure out how to make Pam feel welcomed into this new family dynamic that has been made since the Stackhouses entered my life.

I also have to figure out a way to spend some quality time, just Pam and me. The only problem is, I have to find a new way to do that since I cannot indulge her like I used to. Before, I'd set up a vacation in some foreign land that she wanted to visit then spend a month there where I'd set up an orgy or two for us to partake in and spend the rest of the time exploring, spending time together, and finding the most beautiful women we can while seeing who could get them naked the fastest. Along with a bunch of shopping trips sprinkled in, on my dime, of course. Obviously, we can't do that anymore. I cannot be away from Sookie that long, especially with the bond being so new and I've promised myself to only her, that I am not one to break my word to someone that I care about. I have the urge to sigh but I hold it in. I walk over to her and cup her cheek.

"I'm sorry if you've been feeling neglected dotter, I shall find a way to make it up to you. Things are different now that you have a mistress but you are still my progeny and one of the most important beings in my life. You never have to second guess that. I know I haven't been around lately, before I went to Dallas I was preoccupied making sure Sookie was safe, and then I was gone for a while but now that I'm back, I want you to get to know her. I'm positive you'll like her. I think you'll like Adele too, I haven't seen anyone who's met her yet, not enjoy her company."

Pam opens her mouth to speak but Sookie, Adele, and Jason walk in through the garage door, I chastise myself for being so preoccupied that I did not hear that car pull in. Sookie has a big smile on her face but for some reason, her smile turns into a frown when she sees me. What is that about? I send curiosity through the bond but get nothing in return. I decide I'll speak to her alone in a minute.

"Adele, I don't think you've been properly introduced to my progeny, this is Pam. Pam, this is Adele, Sookie's grandmother."

"Mighty nice to meet you, Pam," Adele says as she walks over to Pam with her genial smile and holds her hand out.

Pam looks at the hand uncomfortably but then looks at me and sees my quirked eyebrow so she looks back at Adele and shakes her hand. I know that must have been hard for Pam and it's not even just because vampires do not like shaking hands, she doesn't like touching anyone that she's not feeding off of, fucking, or fighting. The three f's that all vampires need to partake in often to be able to keep a calm head.

"Nice to meet you too, Adele, Eric has told me a lot about you."

"Oh, don't listen to him, I'm sure they're all exaggerations, he thinks way too kindly of me."

Pam couldn't help but laugh. "I'm not sure if I ever heard the words Eric and kind in the same sentence before."

"Oh yes, I've heard that too but I'm sure you being Eric's child means you know he's really just a big softy hidden behind that hard outer shell, at least to people he cares about."

Pam looks at me with a quirked brow but I am only paying her half a mind, most of me is focused on Sookie who is leaning against the kitchen counter and looks sad. I do not know what happened to her, yes, she was feeling grief and sadness all day but this is different. While she was grieving, she still felt an underlying happiness, I assume because of how things are going between us but that's gone now.

I look back at Pam, "I can be nice."

She scoffs, "I know that. This is just the only other person in the world who has said such a thing to me about you, it's surprising."

"Haha, very funny," I say still distracted.

I notice Jason staring at Pam like he's a dog in heat, I get it, my progeny is very attractive and has that effect on a lot of men but she's been more interested in women for a long time now. That's not to say that she's not been known to take them for a ride occasionally.

Jason walks up to her with his goofy smile, and I have to admit, I'm interested to see how this plays out. Jason is always good for some entertainment, and I can tell he's trying to make up for how shitty he has been to his family. It'll take a long time in my opinion to do it but if he keeps trying, he'll be okay in my book.

"Hey there, beautiful, I'm Jason, Sookie's brother. From the looks of things, we're going to be spendin' a lot of time together being that your uh dad and my sis are vampire married now. Maybe we should take some time to get to know each other better."

"Well, aren't you a cute one?" Pam says looking him over from head to toe with a leer in her eyes.

His back stood up straighter at the perceived compliment, though knowing Pam as I do, she was mostly commenting on the fact that he's clearly a half-wit. "Thanks, you aren't too bad yourself. What do ya say we get a drink and get to know each other a little better?"

I notice Adele roll her eyes and I have to hold back a chuckle. I feel Sookie burning a hole into the side of my face because she's staring at me so hard, I just don't know what she's trying to figure out.

Pam lets her fangs drop. "What, are you offering? I've been told it feels great for the humans."

Jason pales slightly and takes a step back. I think he forgot the only type of drinking vampires do is blood-related. I can tell that Pam is messing with him but she's also interested. He might not smell as good as Sookie does but he's a handsome man, and he still smells delicious. He might not have inherited any powers from the fairies but he does have the allure and the fairy blood running through him.

"Pam." That is all I have to say as a warning to her, I don't care if she has her fun but he's not to be hurt.

Jason ignores me and goes back to flirting with Pam. He laughs a little awkwardly and puts his hand behind his back. "Well, maybe not a drink then, do vampires like movies?"

I decide that though this is entertaining, Sookie is still upset and my bonded's well-being must come first. "Sookie, we must speak."

She looks at me stubbornly and I have a feeling she'd fight me on the matter but I don't give her the option, I just grab her hand and walk up the stairs to our room. Godric has even better hearing than I do but my room is soundproofed, so that is the only place we'll be able to speak completely privately. Once I close the door I turn to her and look her over. She looks equally sad, stubborn, and angry. I still do not know what's wrong and I do not like seeing my lover like this so I pull her into my arms, hoping to calm her down. Unfortunately, even though she welcomes the hug, the feelings in the bond do not lessen.

"What is wrong, min stjärna?"

"Nothing, Eric. I'm fine."

"You and I both know that is a lie. Everything seemed fine with you earlier, what changed? Did something happen in Bon Temps?"

"Yeah a few things happened that I wanted to tell you about but that's not why I was upset."

"Okay, are you going to tell me?" I might love the woman but I am starting to get annoyed, this is like pulling teeth, I've never cared about someone enough to ask why they were upset. Pam and Karin did not have emotional problems like this other than right after the change and I did not have to ask what was wrong with them at that point because I already knew.

She must feel the annoyance in the bond because when she looks at me, all the sadness is gone, all I see is the fire in her eyes that drew me to her in the first place. "How can you not know? We've only been bonded for a few days and you already cheated on me!"

What? I have no idea what she's speaking of, I did no such thing. "What?"

"Don't play dumb, I feel what you feel, remember? I felt how turned on you were then I felt you cheating on me, and I thought I must have been making it up but when I come home I see you touching Pam so intimately. I know she and you have a bond that I'll never understand and she's important to you and I know you've been sexually involved before but I thought you were passed that. I thought when you said you'd only be with me that you meant everyone, I didn't know your progeny were an exception."

She's crying now and I want to comfort her but I'm also angry that she'd think so little of me and my word, I do not give it lightly, so when I do, I mean it. I take a step back to try to think a little clearer and not let my anger overtake me. What did she mean I was touching Pam intimately? I think back and realize I was cupping her cheek. I guess I could see how that would look intimate, and it is, but not sexually.

I take an unneeded deep breath hoping to calm myself down though it does not work. As calmly as I can, I ask, "Do you really think so little of me?"

"There's no think about it, I felt it, Eric, you can't deny it."

"No Sookie, what you felt was me pleasuring myself because you turned me on and weren't here to take care of it yourself. Pam wasn't even here yet. What you saw was a reconciliation between Pam and me because she's been angry at me because of how much time and attention I am spending on you and not our work or her." I realize I'm raising my voice now but I'm too angry to care. I feel and see the doubt and regret enter her but it is too late. I turn around and walk to the door. "I've devoted myself to you, Sookie. I've never done that before in my thousand years. I do not take that lightly, I do not appreciate you doubting me when I've given you no reason to do so."

I try to hold onto the anger, and I do but the hurt is creeping in too. I open the door and leave her to go back downstairs. I have not been to Fangtasia in a while, Pam is right about that. I have to put my face time in with the vermin or they'll stop giving us their money. When I get downstairs I look at Pam.

"I'll handle Fangtasia tonight, you take the night off to catch up with Godric and to get to know Adele, or maybe you can enjoy your evening off at the movies," I say with a smirk then open the door and leave before anyone can comment.

I feel the confusion and worry in my bond with Godric and I ignore the sadness and regret in my bond with Sookie. I have no want to deal with it right now. In fact, I shut off my side of the bond completely. I'm sure she didn't know I could do that but I can. Being the vampire of the bond I have control over it. Now that she knows I can shut her out, she probably feels even worse because of her accusations. If I were to hurt Sookie in that way, I'd not make her feel my pleasure while I was doing it. I don't want to scare her though so I leave it just open enough that she knows I'm alive and well. I fly instead of driving because flying usually helps me clear my mind. I cannot let go of the anger I feel for Sookie right now though, and although I'll only admit this to myself, I am almost positive the reason I cannot let go of it is because if I do, I'll just be left with the hurt I feel by my bonded not trusting me.

That thought makes the anger come back anew and stronger because when did I turn into this person? I have never cared what others thought of me, other than Godric, of course. Why did I allow this to happen? Why did I let myself get so close to a human? A human that clearly has trust issues. I've not given her any reason to distrust me but she does anyway.

When I make it to Fangtasia I make sure to land right at the front entrance to make a show for all the vermin. I smell the arousal, the lust, and the depression that reeks of the people out front, it is the normal smell of my customers. No one comes to Fangtasia that's happy with their lives, they come because they want something different and they hope vampires will give it to them. Normally, when they get what they're looking for, they regret it but that's not my problem. As long as they keep on coming back and paying for my overpriced watered-down drinks, I do not care what they do or what happens to them.

I walk right in and right to the throne to sit down. I proceed to look bored and watch as all of them dance and try to present themselves to me, hoping that I'll choose one of them for the night. The thought is disgusting to me now, I don't know how I was content with my life before I met Sookie because all I can see when I look at them is the desperation in them. I hold back my urge to sigh and get angry at myself again. Why am I doing this? I'm Eric fucking Northman, I don't spend my time brooding over a woman who's upset with me. It's ridiculous and below me. What I should do is grab one of these fang bangers and fuck them until they lose their voice and I lose this bad feeling I have in my chest. It's what Sookie thinks I'm doing anyway so why the fuck not?

I look around the room with new eyes, the eyes of a predator looking for my prey. I hone in on one that's exactly my type, tall, brunette, breasts big enough that I can bite over and over again without overlapping the scars, an ass I could enjoy fucking, and someone who would enjoy being hurt. I use my finger to beckon her over, so she sways over to me, showing off her ample assets.

"You summoned me, master?"

I don't speak to her I just stand and make my way to the back. Instead of going to my office, I go down to the playroom. I have a lot of frustration to work out and the thought of bringing some nameless fang banger to a place where I've had Sookie makes me uncomfortable for a reason I can't name, or don't want to, anyway. I smell her arousal growing with every step we take and the more it grows the less I want her. She does not smell right, not of sunshine, day, and vanilla. No, she smells like sweat, alcohol, and her cherry blossom perfume. The wrongness of her scent is making me angry and by the time we're in the room I'm furious, and I don't even know at who. I spin around fast with my fangs down push her neck to the side and bite her hard. I know I'm not bringing her any pleasure with the bite but I don't give a fuck. The violence is making me hard again which is good because a few seconds ago, I wouldn't have been able to fuck her.

I pull back to look at her because I enjoy looking at a woman's face when I enter them but I freeze when it isn't Sookie. Am I going to do this? Yes, I'm angry at Sookie but I still love her. I've fed off someone else but I haven't cheated on Sookie. We're both completely dressed and I haven't even touched her other than my fangs in her neck. She's looking at me eagerly, even desperately, begging me with her eyes to fuck her.

I take a step back. "Leave."

"What? Did I do something wrong, master? I promise I can please you."

If I were human, I'm positive I'd throw up right now with how disgusted she's making me. I growl at her with my fangs showing which most likely still have her blood on them. "I said leave!" I almost roar.

I can smell the fear coming off of her as she turns and stumbles up the stairs as fast as she can with her 7-inch stiletto heels. I'm still furious, I stomp up the stairs, into my office, and pace back and forth for a few minutes. When I finally calm myself down enough, I sit down and try to get some work done. I've felt my phone vibrating in my pocket almost since I left the house but I've been ignoring it, assuming it's Sookie. I continue to do so and look at the mail and papers on my desk that have been piling up while I was in Texas. The first few are normal business-related things but when I get to the folder I feel an evil smile take over my face. Yes, this is just what I need to calm down.

I look at the address before walking out of the door and taking to the air. When I land, the house looks exactly like I'd expect it to, old, decrepit, depressing. Exactly what this man deserves. I knock on the door and hear the old man trek his way to answer it. As soon as the door opens I glamour the man to my will.

"You want to invite me in, don't you, Bartlet?"

"Yes, please, come in."

I know the evil smile is back on my face as I cross the threshold.

"Sit down." He does as he's told and I sit down across from him. "You know, I'm going to have a lot of fun with you," I say with my fangs down and I see the fear enter his eyes.

Though with my glamour I am making him stay still, I'm allowing him to speak. I want to hear his fear in his last minutes on this earth. "F-fun? Fun doing what?"

"Why, killing you, of course."

"What did I ever do to you?"

"Me? Nothing. Someone that is mine? Well, that's a completely different situation. Tell me, when was the last time you heard from your sister?"

"Adele? Not for many years. Why, does she want to talk to me?" He sounds hopeful.

I scoff, "No, in fact, I'm sure that if you two were the last beings on earth, she'd rather go crazy from the isolation than speak to you."

"Is this about those lies that Sookie used to tell? Is she still lying about all that?"

"No, Bartlet, they aren't lies are they?" I use my will to force the truth out of him.

"No, they aren't lies, everything she said about me was true. I know it's wrong, she and Hadley are family and you shouldn't want family that way but I couldn't help myself."

I feel the anger growing strong again, it's like an already white-hot flame igniting into an explosion. "That's not the only reason it was wrong, was it, Bartlet?"

Tears are streaming down his face now, I think the anger I'm feeling is showing clearly on my face and it's frightening him, good. "No, th-they were children. They didn't deserve what I did to them. I couldn't help myself, I'm a sick sick man!" He's fully crying at this point, like a child and it's disgusting.

"Are you sorry for what you did to them? What damage you did do that still affects them today? Did you know Hadley is nothing more than something a vampire uses to cum. That's all she thinks she's worth and I have a feeling a lot of her lack of self-worth comes from her time with you."

I can tell he's trying to fight answering this question but of course, my glamour is stronger than he is. "N-no, I'm not sorry. They were mine to do with what I pleased. I'm the man of the family, the women are just there to do what the man wants."

He's not even the least bit sorry for the pain and damage he's caused my Sookie. Before I know what's happened, his broken neck and limp form are in my hands. Damn, I was planning on taking my time with him. At least I feel a little better. Now to take care of the body and get back home to Sookie, I think I'm calm enough to talk to her now.