SPOV

"So you were with Eric yesterday?"

"Yes, he knows the plan, he's not a fan because he doesn't have much to do with it but he's accepted it."

"Okay, good, I guess. But you still haven't told us the plan. So get on with it already." Niall's eyes scrunch in displeasure of my tone, he is not fond of being told what to do. Well too bad, he's just going to have to get used to it, he's the one who decided to play with everyone's life and make these decisions that change everything for people other than him. From what I can see, nothing has changed for him, he just gets to keep living the life he's always lived while he treats us like his puppets.

"We are going to go in there and take him."

"I knew force was the quickest way to get it done," Karin says and I force myself not to roll my eyes.

"I said nothing of force," Niall interjects.

"Seriously Gramps, stop beating around the bush and just tell us the plan already. He's already been there too long."

"The first step is for you to take your rightful crown as the princess of the sky fae."

I have alarm bells going off in my head, I don't like the sound of that. It seems like it's just another move on his chessboard to get what he wants. He knows I want no part of the crown, I don't want to live in the faery, and even though this prince is my great-grandfather, I'm no royalty. I'm just a small-town girl that happens to have a little quirk. So what if I got my quirk from that side of the family? "And what would that include for me? You know I'm not going to live in the faery, those ten minutes I spent there were more than enough for one lifetime."

"Did I say you would have to live in the faery?"

"You're not saying much at all, Niall." Pam cuts in, I can tell she's at the end of her rope too. Why is he making this so difficult? At this point, I'm ready to go with Karin's 'kill them all' plan.

"You will not have to live in the faery though you will have to travel there every once in a while. Sometimes for voting and sometimes to drink from the fountain to strengthen you. Do you know the light that you can make? It is nowhere as strong as it should be, by drinking from the fountain, you will become stronger and more in control of your powers."

"No way, the last time I was offered something to consume in the fairy it was an attempt to have me trapped there forever. Not going to do it. And how am I going to make votes about a place I know nothing about? It makes no sense and is borderline negligent. Oh wait, I get it, you just want to tell me when to come and what to vote for, isn't that right?"

"Well you said it yourself, you have no clue what's happening in the faerie, how can you make informed decisions about things? People's lives will be affected by those votes."

The disgusted scoff I've been trying to hold in comes out. "That's rich coming from you."

"And what does that mean?"

"It means, what do you think you've been doing? You've been toying with my life making decisions that affect me which suit you. And with this little stipulation to your plan, I still feel like you're only helping me because it helps you." I'm beyond angry at this point.

"Sookie, you will not speak to me with such disrespect."

"Oh yeah? And what are you going to do about it?"

As if it was planned, Pam and Karin drop their fangs and hiss at Niall, it's good to know they have my back, though I don't think it's necessary in this situation. "I am your great grandfather, I am a royal king, people have been beheaded for less. Though since you are kin and new to this realm I shall forgive you. I understand your feelings, I really do. This must be a lot for you, you've lost years of your life and you were thrust into a situation that you had nothing to do with. You're worried for your loved one, and you don't know what to do. You're allowed some leeway in the matter. Though my good will won't last forever. Now, if we all could put our fangs away, I can finish laying out my plan and then you can tell me your problems with it, agreed?"

I begrudgingly nod my head and the vampires put their fangs away. "Good, now as I was saying, you'll have to take your rightful place as a princess of the sky fae. Once that is done you'll hold much more sway in the higher-ups of the supernatural world. You already have some important people who look on you favorably, the other Sookie took care of that with her actions over the last few years. I heard you speaking of a plan when I entered, one where you'd say you never broke your marriage in the fae way, rendering his marriage with the queen void, yes? You are on the right track, that is what we shall do, and that is why you must take your crown, that is the only way your words will hold any weight in the supernatural hierarchy. It will not be as simple as walking in, stating the validity of your marriage, and taking him out though. No, the queen will not give him up so easily, he is important to her keeping her throne, and from what I understand, she has developed some sort of feelings for him even though he has made it clear he does not return them. I'm sure she feels that given enough time, he will get over you and give her the chance she feels she deserves. So, as I said, she will not just hand him over, she will call a meeting of the council and that's where the friends you have made are needed. There will most likely be a vote and depending on which way that vote goes, he would be free."

Wow, that's a lot. I'm not sure how I feel about this. Yes, I thought going through political means was the best way to get him back but what if I don't have enough votes? What will happen to him then? I decide to ask just that. "What if we lose the vote?"

"Then according to the leaders of the supernatural world, your marriage is no longer binding. There are 7 on the council. The good news is I'm one of them, so you only need three more votes to get the majority and win. Another vote you most likely have on your side is the Ancient Pythoness, as you know, she has visions of the future, in fact, she is the one that brought our future to my attention. It would not make sense for her to vote against you when she knows what lies in the balance."

"Do I have any more 'friends' on this council?"

"Russell Edgington. I am the fae representative, and Russell is one of the vampire, Resmend Uberlley, he's the Weres, he seems like one to play by the rules, he follows them no matter what, even to the detriment of himself and his kind. There's a witch representative called Patricia Sibbley, she is new to the council so I do not know much about her. There is another vampire, who might not be as easy to get on your side, Phoebe Golden the queen of Iowa, she is said to be on friendly terms with Freyda, I think they were lovers in the past, or maybe still are, it matters not, what's important is she will most likely vote against you no matter what. There is also the Ancient Pythoness."

"That's only six," Pam says and after a quick count, I realize she's right.

"Yeah, and why are there so many vampires on the council when it's meant to be for all supernaturals?"

"The vampires technically only have two for them, since they are the biggest population in this realm. The AP is not for vampires, she's the seer and also the de facto head of the council. Now for the seventh, that's a little difficult to say, there isn't one now but they're getting voted in by their kind as we speak. I won't know more information for a few days."

"What type of supernatural is it?" I ask.

"It's a group of supernaturals that are notoriously against the merging of species, Demon."

"Really? Mr C seemed fine with it."

"Desmond Cataliades is unique, he has acceptance, he was friends with my son, your grandfather growing up. Our families have been friends for a long time. Most other demons do not feel the same way about these things as Desmond and his family. The good news is that as a species, they're abundantly fair. You marrying Eric first and him not having much of a choice in his marriage to Freyda might be enough for them to look passed the cross-species relationship. Their vote will be up in the air and depending on who is voted in I suspect."

"Well, we only need to worry about one vote really, right? I have you, AP, and Russell. Just one more and I'd have the majority."

"Don't get overly confident, are you positive Russell will vote in your favor? You must get in touch with him first to make sure, yes?"

"Uh yeah, I guess you're right, I'm really not looking forward to that conversation, my Russell was a lot different than this one."

"You must do this, Sookie," Niall says.

"I know, I know, I'm just saying I'm not looking forward to it. Okay, so let's say we get Russell's vote, that means we have three, who else should we try to get on our side?"

"Niall is correct, it's not even worth contemplating Phoebe, she will not be of any help to us. She and Freyda have been friends for a long time, in fact, though I don't know for certain, I'm almost positive that they share the same maker. I learned that when I was doing all the research for Eric while he was still trying to get out of the marriage, back when you still had the cluviel dor, and well, you know the rest."

"Yeah…" I say sadly, I know it wasn't me who hurt Eric that way but it was a version of me who did.

"I suggest you work on all of the council members, yes you only need four but there is always a chance one of the four you have might change their mind. Start with the Were, you seem to have a way with them, then move on to the witch, and finally whatever demon is chosen." Karin suggests in a tone that sounds much more like an order.

"Yeah, that's a good point but who knows how long that will take. I don't want Eric to be there any longer than necessary."

"The good news is that once we present the queen the proof that you two are wed, Eric will have the choice to stay where he wants leading up to the council meeting."

"Okay, yeah, that's good at least. Okay, well we might as well get started, Pam can you help me get in touch with Russell?"

"Yes, you can come back with me to Fangtasia, I have his contact information there."

"Okay, good. So how long do you think this will take? How soon can Eric come home? Even if it is to await the meeting?"

"Taking your crown is as simple as accepting it when I hand it to you, getting those votes on your side is another story."

"Okay but is there any way we can get him and worry about the votes after? Like can we set up the meeting for like a month from now?"

"Usually yes, I suppose it depends on how confident Freyda is on her votes, if she thinks she'll win she can push for an earlier meeting."

"She can't be confident, right? She knows of my connections to you and Russell…" I trail off because I realize that's not nearly enough for her to think I stand a chance at winning.

"You are correct, Sookie, she will most likely want a chance to secure her votes as well. Plus with you taking your crown, she'll know you have more sway than she originally thought." Niall says.

"Good, okay, well then let's do this, right? Let's go get Eric." I look at Pam and Karin, they're involved with this too, and I want them to agree with the plan. Karin looks as if she's ready to move at a moment's notice while Pam looks as if she's not so sure.

"Sookie, I want him back as much as you do, but that doesn't mean we should rush. What's the point of getting him back if he's just going to have to leave again? No, we have to be sure that when we let the queen know that we're going to fight her for him, we already know we're going to win. We have the element of surprise right now and I'd like to keep it that way. I want it so that by the time she finds out she has anyone to fight, the battle is already over."

Fuck, I know she's right but that doesn't mean I'm happy about it. "Fuck, okay I know you're right, I hate it but I know you're right. Let's go to Fangtasia so I can call Russell and get this underway, once I get his vote and one other we'll get Eric, I'll keep working to get more once we have him. Hell, for all we know, he might know some of these people to get them on our side."

Pam nods, "Yes, that is true, Eric has a lot of contacts, some of which I don't even know."

I nod and get up to go, the faster we get started, the faster Eric will get home, I look at Niall, "Are you going to see him again soon? Can you let him know we'll be coming for him soon, and tell him why we're not coming right this second?"

"I can but I will not see him for at least another week, it's too dangerous to go there too often. I'm hoping by then there will be no point for me to make the extra trip as we'll be going to get him through the proper channels."

I get what he's saying and know he's probably right but I don't want Eric to think we're not coming for him. I don't want him to worry that I'm going to act like Lucky Sookie and ignore what he's going through. "You told him your plan when you saw him yesterday, right? So he knows it might take a little time?"

"Yes, dear girl. Fear not, he knows we're coming as soon as we're able."

I sigh, I guess that's the best we can do. "Okay, thanks, Niall. I'll call you when I have the votes we need. Actually, wait, maybe you can help us get more. Why don't you just tell everyone what the outcome of the dimension will be if Eric and I can't be together? I'm sure everyone would rather survive than vote for whoever they like better."

"I cannot."

"What, why?"

"It was part of my promise to get the information about the way the dimension is going.. The Ancient Pythoness does not often give information for free, this time the cost was my word and silence. I cannot break that. Although it doesn't seem this way, I'm sure she has a good reason for keeping the information quiet. Possibly because she saw something would change to our detriment if word got out. So it's best to keep the information quiet for now."

"Okay, I get that but you can still help me gain votes, right? I'm sure you have at least some sway with the other council members, can't you talk to them?"

"I can and I will but I can only advocate for you so much, it is against the rules, we don't want your claim to become disqualified. We know Freyda will be trying to do the same, but the eyes will be on you since you are the one making the claim for Eric."

"Okay, I get it. Thanks, Niall, I appreciate it. Call me to let me know if you get anyone swayed to our side, and I'll let you know when I have Russell on our side. I might need your help to get the contact information for the Were, Karin is right, Weres seems to like me, or at least they liked Lucky Sookie. I'll ask Alcede to see if he knows him first though."

I cringe because I again called her Lucky Sookie in front of someone, Niall quirks his eyebrow but he doesn't ask me any questions thankfully. I will see you soon, dear Sookie. You know how to get in contact with me if you need to."

He opens his arms to me and at this point, it's almost habit to walk into them and hug him. I don't let it last as long as I'd like because I'm a woman on a mission, I don't have time for my own comforts, and I have to focus on Eric's right now. "Okay, well we're going to go, I'll see you soon."

I step back and start walking to the door where Pam and Karin are already waiting when I stop because Niall clears his throat, I turn to look at him and he's looking at me like he's the one waiting for me to speak. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Uh maybe? I didn't think so but by your tone, I'm thinking yes."

He pulls a crown out of seemingly nowhere and holds it out to me. It's beautiful, dainty, and classy but you can still tell it costs a fortune, even with the money I got from Claudine, I'd never be able to afford such a thing. I walk over and look at it. I guess I'm looking too long because he shakes his hand that's holding the crown once. Oh right, I'm supposed to take it. I slowly grab it, I don't like having something this expensive in my hand, if I broke it I'd be in debt for the rest of my life. I look at him, "So that's it? I've accepted my role as princess or whatever?"

"Put it on." He says shortly like I should have already known that.

I do and when it's placed on my head I feel something go through me, like a pulse and all of a sudden I feel like this crown is mine. I know now that accepting the role of a princess is more than saying a few words, we've just done an official ceremony, as understated as it was compared to others, I assume. I really hope he hasn't just tricked me, and that I don't have to do anything more than vote every once in a while. It doesn't matter, I can't worry about that right now, I'll deal with it after Eric is home. I take it off and hold it out to hand it back to Niall. "Okay, I'm officially a fairy princess, when will I have to go back to the Faery and drink from the whatever?"

"It'd be smart to go before leaving for Oklahoma, it wouldn't hurt to be stronger and have better control of your powers in case she doesn't let Eric leave as easily as she should according to the rules."

"Yeah, that makes sense. Wait, no, even if it only takes five minutes to get to the well and drink it, that's still 6 months here, I can't make Eric wait that long."

"Sookie, that is not how it works in this realm, the time difference between the faery and here is negligible, you needn't fear."

"Okay, we'll see." I'm still trying to figure out if I can trust him, I already have bad memories of the faery, and I don't really want to go there at all, let alone with someone I don't trust enough to believe will bring me back. Although I do trust him to help me get Eric so I guess it wouldn't make sense for him to try to keep me there.

He nods his head and pops away. I look where he was just standing for a second or two before looking down at the crown that is still in my hand.

"Bastard!"

I'm surprised by Pam's laugh, I turn my dirty look to her. "What? I've never seen anyone have a reaction like that to getting expensive beautiful jewelry before."

I huff and then stomp up the stairs to hide the crown. I grab my purse, go downstairs, and follow them to the car. The car ride is quick and uneventful. Well, other than the constant fear for my life, I hate driving in cars with vampires, they drive like they have nine lives, which I guess they do, and they can heal from almost everything. I asked Eric why he drove like that with me, because I can't survive a bad accident and he said his reaction times would make it so there would never be an accident but that doesn't make much sense to me. Yeah, vampires have great eyesight and can move really fast and their reaction times are phenomenal but a car is still just a car, it can only turn or stop so fast. Stepping on your break a few milliseconds before a human would be able to stop the car from crashing doesn't make much difference if you still have to stop going 100 miles in 20 feet instead of 18.

As always the bar is packed. It feels wrong to be here, I haven't come here other than one time since Eric left, I prefer to have Pam come to me because it's hard being here, seeing this place without Eric. I follow her to the office and stop myself from gasping at the changes she's made to it. It's definitely Pam's office now, there are lots of pink and pastel colors. I try to just think of this as a completely different space than the place I spent so much time with Eric, it might as well actually be a different place because of how different it looks. She goes over to her desk and types something on her computer before writing something down on a piece of paper and handing it to me.

"That's Russell's personal number, no need to go through calling his compound and speaking to a hundred different people before getting told he'll call you back when he's free."

"Thanks, Pam, I appreciate it, all of it, everything you've been doing for me since Eric left."

"I enjoy your company Sookie, you are one of my first friends in centuries, maybe ever but you must know I'm doing this for Eric, yes? My maker wasn't able to leave without knowing you'd be safe and cared for."

"Thanks all the same, Pam. I'll call Russell and Alcede when I get home tonight, I'll let you know how it goes."

"Leaving already? Why not stay and have a drink, let Karin feed, then she'll accompany you home."

"Sure, I don't want her to be hungry."

I head out to the bar and sit on a stool, I've only seen this bartender once, she was new to the job right around the time I stopped coming around, "Hi, can I have a gin and tonic?"

"Of course, I'll get that for you right away." She vamps down the bar a little, makes my drink, hands it to me, tells me it's on the house, and then vamps over to another customer on the opposite side of the bar as me.

"Wow, I've never seen her be so nice, what did you do to make her like you?" A man who's sitting next to me asks.

"Like me? No, she's terrified of me."

"What, are you like a Were or something?"

"No, I used to date the owner and I've been blamed for some of the previous bartenders losing their jobs." That's a nice way to put it. Pam sure likes to let the new bartenders know how many of their predecessors perished, word of the day, because of me. I point to a picture that's hanging up behind the bar, it's a picture of me that says 'Beware: Bartender Killer.'

The man laughs, "Wow, it must have happened a lot if it was enough to get you your own sign."

I chuckle but don't respond otherwise, I'm not here to meet anyone, I just want to get home to make these phone calls, it's too loud to do it here. Maybe I should just go out front? No, I can just imagine the look on Eric's face and him saying something along the lines of "Fuck Sookie, are you trying to get yourself killed? You're outside by yourself in front of a vampire bar smelling like fucking heaven to vampires, you have no self-preservation, wait for Karin or Pam", plus Karin has to be done soon. In fact, I look around and see Karin going into the room that used to be Pam's office with a human so I know it won't be much longer.

"What's wrong? Why are you being quiet all of a sudden?" The man sitting next to me asks.

"Huh? Oh, no reason, just a lot on my mind and I'm ready to get out of here."

"Oh? Do you need a ride?"

"I'm okay, thanks for asking. I'm actually waiting for my ride now, she should be done any moment."

"That's too bad, I was hoping to get to know you better."

"Oh um, I'm sorry, I'm not really looking for anything romantic right now."

"Ahh, still not over your ex? That's too bad for me."

"We didn't break up for reasons that had anything to do with not wanting to be with each other. And those reasons won't be a problem for too much longer."

"I see. I hope that he's waiting for you like you're waiting for him." He says with something sad in his voice like he's gone through the same thing before, which is insane and just not possible. I have a feeling Eric and I's situation is a once-in-a-lifetime thing.

"I'm not worried," I say simply, that someone who gave up so much of his life and freedom isn't going to get over the person they gave it up for so soon.

"Mistress, it's been a while. I hope this means good things and Eric will be back soon." Thalia says from behind me. I cringe at the name.

"Thalia, you know I didn't like that 'mistress stuff even when Eric and I were together. Now that we're not, seems kinda silly, right?"

"It's a title of respect, though you are not one of us, you've earned your spot. Take it for what it is. You did not answer my question."

"You didn't ask one." I quirk a brow at her, laugh lightly, then continue. "We're working on it. Actually, maybe you can help. Can you…"

Thalia cuts me off, "Maybe this is not the best place to speak of such things." She says, pointedly eyeing the guy next to me who's staring blatantly.

I listen into his thoughts 'What the fuck are they talking about? When she said break up I thought that he had to leave the area for work or something, what the hell is going on here?'

Well at least I know he's not working for another vampire like DeCastro or Freyda but still, she's right. "Do you want to drive me home? I came with Pam and Karin, Karin was supposed to bring me back but she's taking her good ole' time."

"Sure, I am off duty for the night and have already fed and fucked."

I cringe at her crassness but Thalia is nothing if not brutally honest… and terrifying. So I just shake my head and get up. She holds her hand out to stop me. "Wait, I must let Pam know, you should have seen them the last time they lost track of you. It was humorous how much they worried, I laughed."

Wow, Thalia laughed? She must have found their panic really funny. I have never even seen her crack a smile, let alone laugh, and not just because this is technically the first time I've met her, Lucky Sookie never saw her smile either. I just nod my head and sit back down. I take another sip of my drink, there's no point in letting it go to waste.

"Are—Are you their prisoner?"

That surprises a laugh out of me, "What? No! Why would you think that?" I ask the guy, whose name I still don't know.

"It's not an unreasonable assumption!" He defends, "You can't leave without them, they panic if they don't know where you are, you're a human," He leans in and whispers, "I heard they have mind control abilities, even if you think you're free to make your own choices, you're probably not."

"I appreciate the worry but I'm fine, I promise."

"If you're really free to do what you want, let me drive you home."

"No, you're not driving me home not because I'm not allowed to take a ride from you but because I don't know you and I'm smart enough not to get in a confined place with a man I don't know. Again, I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine and it'd be much appreciated if you got that crazy idea outta your head."

"Is everything okay here, mistress?"

This time the title barely registers, I stare at the guy for one more long second before looking back at Thalia, "Yeah, I'm fine, let's go."

Thalia just nods and starts to make her way to the door. As I get up the man grabs my arm. "At least tell me your name so I can check and make sure you haven't gone missing in the next few days."

I sigh, there's no harm in giving my name, "I'm Sookie, Sookie Stackhouse." I know it's rude as all get out of me but I don't ask him for his name, I just rip my arm away and make my way outside to Thalia.

~~~~~

EPOV

I sit here through another night of the same bullshit. Although now I have a throne next to Freyda, I am still only meant to be quiet until she asks a question of me. Which tonight isn't much at all, she is angry with me since I am not as eager as she is to exchange blood. It works out well for me, truthfully. I am much too distracted by my thoughts to be of any help to her.

I cannot get my conversation with Niall yesterday out of my mind. I am not sure how to feel about it, my Sookie is gone, she's the reason I gave up so much of my freedom, I'd do anything to make sure she's safe and happy, and I suppose she is, I had still somewhere deep down hoped that happiness would come from being with me, then again, I suppose she is. It doesn't make the pain any less real for me though, it's almost as if I'm grieving even though I know she's not really dead.

Then there's this new Sookie, or some close approximation of her, and she wants to help me get home, according to Niall, she wants to fight for me. Can that be enough for me though? She's a Sookie, a Sookie who wants to be with me. Fuck, I feel pathetic, desperate. This isn't me, I don't brood over a human, a human that didn't want me. Would it be like starting over with her? How different are they? I'm just thinking in circles, I've been thinking these thoughts over and over again since the moment Niall left. There's nothing to do but wait and see what happens when I meet this Sookie, for all I know, what pulled me to my Sookie won't be there with this one. Truthfully, I hope that is the case. I could just thank her for her help, offer her my help if she ever needs it as repayment, and go far away. I've been in one place for far too long already and it's not as if I have any obligations in Shreveport anymore.

"Eric, your mind seems far away tonight. Maybe we should retire early, if you're going to be distracted anyway, might as well be because we're both lost in pleasure." She says with a sultry smile.

"If that is your wish, my queen." I see her face lose the smile, flash disappointment, maybe even hurt, then rage crosses her face before a blank mask covers it. Good, I am not in this to please her, I don't give a fuck about her feelings.

"Yes, we shall. I do hope you're hungry."

"Yes, my queen." I see her tense for a second before she loosens her shoulders and gets up off her throne. I follow behind her, another night of fucking her while trying to avoid a blood exchange. At least this won't last too much longer.