A/N: This won't be like my normal True Blood fics, only about three or four chapters but i couldn't get this little plot bunny out of my head! It's mostly just a True Blood fic but it felt wrong not to label it SVM too, it takes place about three years post cannon but a few months before that last Thanksgiving scene where Sookie was pregnant and surrounded by her friends, family, and the new faceless man in her life. Please let me know what you think, comments are like food for my muse!

Sookie was doing the dishes, it wasn't an unusual task to complete. In fact, it was quite normal, especially considering all the people she just had over. What was she supposed to do let the dishes sit until morning? Yeah right, she wouldn't be who she was if she did things like that. She just had a get-together with all her closest friends and it was a great time, she loved seeing all her friends and how happy they were, how far they'd all come. Normal was good, it was what she fought so hard for so long to get, so why couldn't she just be happy? Why was she so bored?

'Why doesn't she love me like I love her?'

Though she knew that her fiance felt like that, that didn't mean hearing that thought didn't hurt, especially because she knew what he was thinking was true. She quickly shook the thought off, she knew what it'd be like to get in a relationship with a human and this was just one of the consequences. So she did what she always did, pretended she didn't hear the thought. "Hey, baby."

"Hey. I had fun tonight, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I really did. Thanks for not having a problem with entertaining my friends."

"Of course, I like your friends. Well, most of them anyway, Lafayette gets on my nerves from time to time."

"What, why?" She felt indignant on her best friend's behalf.

"No don't look at me like that, it's nothing like that, I just don't like that he's asking my fiance to carry a baby for him and his vampiric homosexual lover without speaking to me first."

"Speaking to you first? What does that even mean? It's not the 1800s and I don't have to ask for your permission to do something I want to, to help my best friend,"

"You're right, I'm sorry Sookie, I just want you to be happy, I don't want to come in the middle of it if it involves birthing a child for your friends. I just don't understand why you're willing to do it for your friends but you can't do it for me and our future."

"Rich, what are you saying? You know I want to have a baby, a baby with you, just not yet. I'm willing to do this for Lafayette because it wouldn't be mine, after I give birth to it I get to hand it over and not have to worry about it again until a birthday comes up or they need a babysitter. I wouldn't be responsible for raising that child."

Sookie didn't understand why they were having this conversation again, they'd talked about it over a hundred times and she didn't see the need to go over it for a hundred and first. She felt bad for even thinking it but again she regretted dating Rich, let alone agreeing to marry him. She hated herself for running away from the supernatural after Bill died, she'd known for a long time that she was in love with Eric but she let her fear and social expectations sway her. All her friends thought she'd be better without Eric and she'd lived those years in the supernatural world fighting to get out so she felt like she had no choice but to run from it, from him when she had the chance. She regretted it now but there was nothing she could do. It'd been three years since she told him to stay away and he did, there was no reason to think he'd been pining and waiting for her in that time. So she decided she might as well be happy with the life she chose, what was the point otherwise?

"You're right, Rick, sorry I've been such a trouble, it's just my fear that's holding me back."

"So you'll do it? We can get married and try for a baby like I've been wanting with you for the past year?"

"Yeah, starting tomorrow we'll try, and next week we can go down to the courthouse and I'll become Mrs. Williams."

Though she agreed to marry him and even try for a baby she couldn't push away the feeling that she was making a mistake. She didn't love him enough for all that, she did love him, don't get her wrong, but she wasn't in love with him. She loved him like you loved a close friend and her senses were screaming at her to shut this down, to stop her from tying herself to someone she'd regret, that she was hurting both of them more than they deserved by agreeing to something she knew in her heart was wrong and not what she wanted but what other choice did she have? What was the point in pushing him and his wants off? It wasn't like she had any intentions of looking for someone else. He was a good guy, he loved her, and he always did everything he could to make her happy, she'd have a good life with him and she knew it. So she'd make herself be happy with the choices she'd made, this man would be her husband and the father of her children and there was absolutely nothing wrong with that or him.

She put her dish rag down and turned to him with a smile she worked hard to look sincere on her face and she worked twice as hard to hold back her cringe when she saw the delight and happiness on her fiance's face. "Oh Sookie, you won't regret this, I'll do everything in my power to make sure that you and our children are happy."

She didn't have to listen in to his thoughts to know he was telling the truth, she knew that much about him well enough, so she smiled at him and even though she felt a twinge of regret when he opened his arms to her she took a step forward to walk into them. She didn't have a chance though because after the first step, she had a tall worried searching blonde Viking vampire in front of her holding her by the shoulders and looking her over. And even though she was surprised because she hadn't seen him in three years and she was upset because he just burst into her home without even a knock she couldn't get mad at him because she saw how scared and worried he was while he was looking her over.

"Eric? What's wrong?"

"This is Eric?" Rich asked incredulously.

"You're alright?" He asked seemingly ignoring all the questions thrown at him.

"Yes, I'm fine, what are you doing here?" She answered as she worked hard not to react to his fingers swiping through her hair and running down her head to cup her face. She was sure she'd never seen him this upset, this worried.

Eric opened his mouth to respond but he didn't have a chance because there was a scoff behind him, as he was still cupping her face so tenderly. She flicked her eyes past him just quick enough to see Pam standing by the door with her arms crossed and looking incredulous. "How did I know this is where you'd be?"

"Where else would I go after a curse like that?" He asked still cupping her face and looking her over. He stroked her hair one more time before blinking, stepping back, and looking away.

"Oh, I don't know, for a second I thought I was in danger but that was my mistake I suppose."

Eric finally took his eyes off Sookie to look at Pam. He walked over to her and rested his hands on her shoulders. "Do not try to lie to yourself or me, you know how I feel for you, my progeny and you also know that you never had any need to fear after the curse because of the wording."

Pam scoffed but couldn't deny the truth in her maker's words. "Yeah well, that doesn't mean I'm too fond of the implications of you flying right here." Eric started to lift his shoulders in a shrug but didn't have a chance to complete it before Sookie chimed in.

"Okay, seriously, what are you two doing here?"

"I've been asking myself the same thing," Pam grumbled but stopped at her own personal pity party because of the look her maker was giving her. "Believe me, if I could be anywhere else, I would. But right now we're here for your safety so maybe just shut up and be graceful about accepting our help."

"Now you listen here, I don't want to be graceful about accepting anything from you because I don't need it, I've been completely fine without your help over the last three years and I don't need it now. Now tell me what the hell you're doing here right now or I'll revoke your invitation faster than a fly goes to shit."

Pam scoffed again, "You think you've been doing fine without our help over the last few years but that's a childish and naive way to think. Do you really think people just lost interest in your ability? No, on Eric's word, we've been keeping them away, if it wasn't for me you'd be kidnapped at least ten times over by now."

"W-what?"

"Yup, It's because of me and Eric that you're living your 'normal' human life. Believe me, I'm just as annoyed by that fact as you are. When Eric sent me out here to watch over you the first time, believe you me that I had some words for him but in the end, he won that argument, just like he always does, princess."

"You're lying! There's no way I wouldn't have felt your voids out there if you've been looking after me, I've been around you two enough to know your voids by heart."

"I wish I was, you don't really think we haven't figured out how much of a range your telepathy has by now?" Pam stayed quiet waiting for a response and when she didn't get one she scoffed again. "Do you think I wanted to spend 5 out of my 7 nights a week out here in bumfuck Louisiana just to make sure you're safe? Of course not…."

"Pamela, enough!" Eric interrupted. Sookie couldn't stop the look of question and even hope over to him but felt her heart drop when he didn't even look her way.

"Okay, I'm going to have to stop this right here, I might not know you and it was different when you were last here but I am the man of this house now. My fiance and I don't appreciate the interruption and we definitely don't appreciate whatever this is," He said motioning vaguely to the two vampires, "So I'm going to need you two to leave. Whatever trouble is coming Sookie's way will be handled by me and her friends, we don't want or need help from you people."

Sookie gasped, she wasn't quite sure why, Rich had never given off the sense or thought that he was racist before, or speciesist? She didn't know the right term but either way, it was clear he felt some type of way about people that were different than him and that didn't sit quite well with Sookie. "Rich, please, I know they wouldn't have come here if it wasn't important so let's just hear them out."

Pam scoffed, "Important depending on who you ask, me, I don't think it's important at all, in fact, I think it would make my life a whole lot easier if this curse wasn't interrupted. Eric on the other hand…"

She was cut off by a snarl from Eric with his fangs down, stepping towards Pam aggressively, "Pamela!"

"Hey, I'm just stating my opinion. I'm with this blood bag here, we should just leave. I've been much happier these last three years without the magical fairy vagina in our lives."

"Then leave, I didn't tell you to follow me here. Frankly, as of now, I'm sure you're more harm than help."

"Eric!" Pam said sounding hurt. "I'm not going to leave you in your time of need, you should know me better than that by now."

"Then stop making this harder than it has to be. If you want to help me then help, don't criticize my actions and…. emotions." The word 'emotions' sounded like it was ripped from his cold dead mouth, like he did not enjoy the fact that he had them and would do anything to get rid of them but alas, there was nothing he could do to change them.

"Emotions?" Sookie couldn't help but ask. Has he been missing me and pining for me this whole time just like I've been missing him? The thought sounded insane to her, there's no way a man like Eric Northman had missed her, loved her, pined for her in the same way she had been over the last three years, that thought was just insane, unfathomable.

Her question was ignored, passed over because the others were too deep in conversation to take in her quiet question. "Okay, okay I know you're right, I'm… sorry, and …here for you," Pam said as if she was trying to stop herself from throwing up because of the words that were exiting her mouth.

Eric looked at her with a small quirk on his lips and simply nodded. "Good." He turned his attention back to Sookie, "So you are well?"

She took a deep breath and tried to act as unaffected as possible, "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

Pam scoffed again, "Uh, because of the curse?"

"What could a curse on you guys possibly have to do with me?"

Pam scoffed again and crossed her arms while looking away. She'd never admit it to Sookie but she'd been thinking the exact same thing as her. Somehow though, she'd known the exact place to go after the words left the witch's mouth and Eric vamped away. So she mumbled, "Your guess is as good as mine."

Eric didn't have to verbally reprimand her this time, a look did the trick. Even though he released her years ago and she was angry about it and at him at the time, she knew better than to fight against that look. Plus, she respected him (Normally anyway, whenever Sookie 'the fairy princess snatch' Stackhouse wasn't involved anyway) so she didn't fight him when he gave her an order mostly because he didn't do it often and she knew well enough that she couldn't win against a 1000-year-old Viking vampire in a battle of wills or brawns.

Eric didn't look away from Pam until she moved her head to the side to show her neck to him in submission, only then did he look back at Sookie and his face was notably softer, "Worry not, dear Sookie, all is well now. If something were going to happen I suspect it would have by now."

"I wouldn't bet on that Eric, the witch didn't say when she'd enact the curse, just that she would."

"Oh lord, Eric, don't tell me you've pissed off another witch, we all remember what happened last time, you were stuck here for over a week without your memories and, well, you know what happened."

"What happened?" Rich asked, speaking up for the first time in a while.

"Ahh yes, how could I forget, you did what was once thought could not be done, you broke the heart of the 1000-year-old playboy vampire."

"Pamela!"

"What? What does she mean Sookie?" Rich demanded.

"She doesn't mean anything, she's just exaggerating to be dramatic."

Pam scoffed for what felt like the hundredth time, "Oh yeah, fairy princess, don't kid yourself, I wish I was just being dramatic, but you weren't the one that had to deal with the aftermath. No, you were too busy falling back into bed with Bill even though he was the only vampire to scheme against you and screw you over. No, you took all Bill's shortcomings and placed them squarely on Eric's shoulders because that's what Bill and his blood told you to do because you were a fucking idiot, jokes on me for thinking you were smarter than that. That's my fault for thinking a blood bag could be anything more than a source of nutrients for us. I wonder if you feel any different now that Bill is dead and buried and can't control you with his obnoxious amount of blood in your system."

Sookie was shocked, she didn't know what to say. Could everything that Pam is saying be true? She had a hard time denying it because it's true, her feelings and realizations when it came to Eric became a lot more clear after Bill died. In fact, she felt like an idiot for missing the opportunity to be with Eric because she was blinded by Bill. All this time she thought it was because she finally had the time to think clearly, she wasn't blinded by her love for Bill anymore, but maybe she was wrong, maybe Bill really had been manipulating her the entire time. She felt her heart break a little at the thought, but not as bad as it would have been three years ago. After he died she had the chance to think over their relationship and realize it wasn't at all what she made it out to be, it was unhealthy and manipulative, it took time but she got past it, and she realized she'd always have love for him but it wasn't anywhere near as deep and everlasting as she thought it was when he was alive. But now, she couldn't help but wonder if that was all because he was using his blood in her to make her feel that way and that thought hurt, even if she'd gotten passed their love.

Sookie turned her eyes to Eric, she wanted to see even an inch of the emotion Pam said he had for her in his eyes but he had his normal perfected blank mask on. No, wait, she looked deeper and saw, what was that? Worry? She wasn't positive but she thought it was worry and maybe even longing, the worry at least made sense, if he wasn't still worried about her he wouldn't have bothered coming all the way out here. "Eric?"

"Sookie, what are you doing? Tell them to leave and let's go to bed."

Sookie didn't miss the almost invisible flinch from Eric at Rich's words, so he did care about her still. She didn't know what to think about that, she loved him, she was in love with him and if he'd been pining for her, loving her this entire time she felt like an idiot for wasting all this time with someone else, with trying her damndest to be normal because that was what Bill wanted her to be, what everyone wanted her to be. Fuck, she got engaged to some normal human because Bill sacrificed himself so she'd have the opportunity. However now she realized that thought was ridiculous as if she could not control herself around him and make her own life and decisions around Bill, as if she'd not be able to have a happy life if Bill was still living. She had to stop herself from rolling her eyes, how had she not noticed In the past that what Bill said to her, asked of her was manipulative down to its bones? She remembered it wasn't just her and Eric in the room when Rich cleared his throat, she blinked, it was far too easy for her to get lost in his eyes.

"No Rich, I'm not going to kick them out. They obviously came here for a reason, why don't you head to bed, I'll figure this out and join you in a little bit." She stated it like a suggestion but it was more of a demand.

"But Sookie…"

"I'm fine Rich, they won't hurt me and I have a feeling this will go faster without any outside parties." Though she was talking to Rich her eyes hadn't left Eric's the whole time and he was staring right back at her.

Sookie didn't realize how bad that would sound until the words left her mouth but by then it was too late, the damage was done. She finally blinked and looked away when she heard a defeated sigh from her fiance, she turned to apologize but when she did he was already walking up the stairs to their shared room.

She didn't have time to worry about that though, she turned her attention back to Eric when he in a commanding voice said, "Pam."

"Eric, no."

"Pamela, now."

She sighed, apparently just as exasperated as Rich, and before Sookie had a chance to ask what was wrong she vamped out of the house leaving Eric and Sookie alone. All of a sudden the room felt so charged, it wasn't quite awkward but she was sure she'd be able to cut the tension with a knife and she was also sure Eric could hear how loud and fast her heart started to beat. In fact, she was sure she was breathing so fast now that it could almost be called panting. In that moment she hated Eric a little bit for being able to seem so unaffected, at least she hoped he only seemed that way and that their being alone affected him as much as it did her.

"Eric…"

"Sookie…" They both started at the same time. She took a deep breath, took a step back, and waved her hand giving him the opportunity to speak first. She was thankful for it actually, she wasn't sure what she was even planning to say.

He quickly took a step forward, closing the distance she'd just put between them, and then took another step after that so they were in each other's personal space. "You're sure you're alright?"

"Yes Eric, I'm fine. I still don't know why you think I wouldn't be. All I've been able to gather so far is that a witch wants to curse you in a way that will somehow affect me. I would have thought you'd learned your lesson by now about pissing off witches." She managed to joke because she wasn't sure what else to do, or how else to navigate the situation.

"As did I. Unfortunately I did not have much option in this. It was either sign over all my properties in the state and my stakes in New Blood or piss her off." He said with a self-deprecating smirk.

Sookie got angry on his behalf. "She was trying to steal from you? Steal what you worked for?" Sookie was honestly surprised about how angry she got, she hadn't lost control of her fairy light in a long time so when her hands lit up she looked at them surprised and worried until she took a few deep breaths and was able to calm herself down. After her hands were under control she looked at him with a brow quirked high enough to rival his own, "I'm not sure how much fairy magic I have left in me but I have no problem using what I have to, to teach that witch a thing or two, just point me in the right direction."

Eric surprised her by laughing, and not one of his sardonic or fake ones, a loud genuine laugh. "Oh Sookie, how I've missed you and that fire that is innate to only you."

Sookie felt her cheek heat up from a blush at his compliment and tried to turn away so that he wouldn't see. She was surprised when she felt a finger on each side of her chin turning her head back to him. She gasped in a deep breath of air when she saw the penetrating look in his eyes, the look that made her feel like she was the only one in the world or at least the only one that mattered to him anyway. She knew such thoughts were ridiculous but she couldn't quite push it away before it had time to solidify in her mind.

"Eric…"

"Sookie…" He mimicked.

"You still haven't told me why you think I'd be in danger from this witch. I mean, come on, we haven't seen each other in years, I'm just a distant memory for you, right?"

"As if you could ever be anything so mundane. No Sookie, I don't think you'd be that easily forgotten by anyone."

Sookie scoffed, "You're not just anyone, Eric."

He quirked an eyebrow at Sookie and she blushed realizing that her words might have revealed more than she meant to, "Don't look at me like that Eric Northman, you still haven't answered my question. Now I haven't seen you in years and you just show up out of the blue and say I'm in danger, this whole situation is starting to remind me a lot of my past before I got away from all this supernatural bullshit."

That seemed to piss Eric off and he took a step away from her, "Sookie, I'm sorry but as I've already stated, this wasn't by choice, you told me you needed away from that life and I've stayed away, I wouldn't be here unless I had no other choice."

She hated that his words could still affect her so much but they could and these words hurt her. She wasn't sure why, it wasn't like his feelings weren't absolutely clear by him staying away from her all this time but that didn't mean that it didn't hurt hearing the man she loved saying he wouldn't be here around her if he had other options. She was a pro by now at turning her pain into anger though, "Yeah, that's right, I did tell you to stay away and yet here you are. Now I won't ask again Eric, what are you doing here?"

That seemed to piss him off even more, "I've already told you Sookie, a few times if I'm remembering things correctly, and I always am, a witch is going to curse you somehow, someway. I'm not sure when or how but it's coming, I'm here to make sure you're okay."

Her anger calmed a little, he had to at least care about her a little bit if he was here to make sure she was safe. So when she spoke next it was softer and after this time it was her that took the steps forward to close the distance. She didn't speak until her hands were resting firmly on his chest and she didn't miss the fact that he leaned into her ever so slightly. "Why do you think she'd curse me though? How does she even know I exist? And why would she think hurting me would affect you at all?"

He let out an uncharacteristic sigh, "She doesn't know you exist exactly but she's going to come after you nonetheless."

"Eric…" She said becoming exasperated now, she wasn't a fan of him beating around the bush like this. She also knew it wasn't usually his style so there had to be a big reason for him to act like this. "Just tell me," a little softer she added, "Please."

"Okay, she's not going to curse you specifically, she's going to curse me if I don't give her what she wants"

"Again, I still don't see what this has to do with me."

"She said the curse is going to destroy what I love the most."