Pre Edit Count – 2,581 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Madness by Muse

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He cannot stop his grin when she laughs. When she leaves his arms, his eyes follow her up the stairs, Brandon right behind her. “I hate to see you leave, but I love to watch you go.” He only grins as he hears his Son laugh beside him.

It is a great feeling to be Eric Mäninorr.  Finally.

Now:

When Sookie makes it to the top of the stairs and they hear her and Brandon in her room, Haldor turns to clasp his Fader’s arm in the age-old way of men. Grabbing his other arm, Eric grins at him. “Thank you for being here.” His eyes flick upstairs before they meet his Son’s gaze.

Watching him, Haldor shakes his head. He needs to say this first before anything else. “I am sorry I had to leave when you needed me the most. I had no idea that everything could go to Hell in such a short period of time, but I was needed to find out some information for Frey.” He feels awful and sends his apologies and shame to his Fader. Leaving him alone almost lost them the one they all adore.

Dismissing the apology, Eric just laughs. “Get used to it. My life in the last two years has been more exciting than at any time before, and it is all because of Sookie.” With that word, he again looks upstairs. He hates when she is out of his sight. His whole being is trying to go to her even though he knows she is safe right now. He is so intensely watching their Bond that he doesn’t notice when the twinge happens again.

Pleased with what he is seeing, Haldor smiles. “Well then, I don’t think any of us will be bored with her being part of the family now.” He is loving this. He can feel her somewhat in the shared Bond, and the love they both have for each other is amazing. He also loves the fact they won’t be bored anymore. It may make the family stay home longer.

His eyes jerking to his son’s, Eric just laughs. He will regret that comment before long, Eric had felt the same way, and now he would give anything to be able to have some peace and quiet with his Fairy.

Before he can say anything else, Bill growls out, “Northman, I demand that you tell me where you are taking my Sookie!” He is getting beyond mad – how could everything go to hell so fast? He has worked hard on this plan and acted on it for over a year. Fucking Sookie!

All the males growl at Bill as Eric states, “MY Sookie. She has made that clear tonight in the presence of my men and you. And she is going to be my Queen. What are you willing to do for her? Drink her blood? Use her telepathy?” He knows exactly what Bill would do with her – he would use her as a concubine. No, he will not tolerate that. Even if she hadn’t accepted him, he would have done anything to make sure she was happy, even killing Bill so that she would never have to endure that disgrace. His Sookie hates to be a kept woman – how badly would it hurt her to be made a whore, basically?

Having been pushed down again, Bill surges back to his feet, ignoring the men around him. “Sookie is MINE!” He will not, cannot, allow her to leave! He has plans!

Sighing, Eric looks at his Son. “See what I’ve had to deal with? He is an idiot, and a poor playmate. Never wants to share.” He shrugs his shoulders as if to say, ‘what was he to do’.

They both chuckle and ignore the posturing King on the porch. Eric asks Haldor in their language, “Är allt klart?” (Is everything ready?) He needs to get back in control. It is what will keep the two of them alive and free.

“Ja, Fader.” Haldor’s body snaps to attention, his whole bearing ready to do what is needed. There is a very good reason that he is in charge of security. Each one of his Sons does what they do best, and more importantly, what they most enjoy doing. The ones who are not sure,are given time to play and do whatever they wish.

Pleased, Eric smirks. “Kan du ta hand om situationen med den galningen? Jag vill att tas om hand innan jag lämnar landet. Jag litar på någon annan att inte knulla upp detta, särskilt AVL eller inkompetent kung.” (Can you please take care of the situation with the madman? I want that taken care of before I leave the country. I trust no other not to fuck this up, especially the AVL or the incompetent king.) He raises his eyebrow, making sure his Son realizes that he is entrusting him with the last of the revenge for their clan’s almost demise. It was pure luck that Eric had been a manwhore – it had allowed their line to survive when it should have been wiped out many times in the past.

Haldor cannot help the laughter. “Ja, Fader. Jag återigen be om ursäkt för att inte vara här när du behövde mig. Att veta att du tog på galningen som hade slaktat så många av våra anhöriga utan att någon av oss här för att hjälpa dig är en oroande ämne.” (Yes, Father. I again apologize for not being here when you needed me. To know you took on the madman who had slaughtered so many of our kin without any of us here to help you is a worrisome subject.) He looks serious when he finishes speaking, and stares at his Fader. He hopes he understands how much they regret not being here to keep him safe. Revenge was important, yes, but so was Eric’s life to them.

Sighing, Eric runs his hand through his hair as he replies. “Det fanns ingen tid. Det var rätt att jag var det verktyg för hämnd för min familj, eftersom det påverkade mig direkt. Men jag är så att du kan göra det dödande slaget. Med dig kan jag lita på att det kommer att ske på rätt sätt.”(There was no time. It was right that I was the instrument of vengeance for my family since it affected me directly. But I am allowing you to make the killing blow. With you, I can trust that it will be done correctly.) He hates to think of that time, to think of how he used his Beloved. Even though it was to keep her safe, he still hates that the first time he had to bite her was then.

Feeling his emotions through their Bond, Haldor nods. “It will be done.” He turns and heads outside to signal some of the vamps in the guard to follow him when Eric calls out to him, “Haldor.” When his Son turns to him, he advises, “Be careful. If there is anything wrong, I want you out of there. Understand?” Haldor nods, and soon they are all gone.

Eric is left standing there with the Weres, the humans, and the remainder of the vamp guard, and unfortunately, also with the incompetent King. Shaking his head, he looks up to where his Mate is again, and upon hearing her moving around in her room, he turns to Bill. “Is there something you needed or are you just wanting to hang out on Sookie’s porch?” He wants him gone. He is tired of the posturing when there is nothing to posture about; Sookie is his, as he is hers – the end.

Bill shakes his head. “I have no idea what game you are up to, Eric, but this is not the end. I will send my grievances to the AVL and they will find that you are a fraud!” He is not giving up! He can’t – too much time, too much everything, has been spent to only to have it all crashing down around him…

Rolling his eyes at the idiot, Eric asks, “Bill, tell me, do you have any basis for your rejection of who I am? Or are you just hoping that denying it will make it all go away?” He smirks, knowing full well what is going on with the incompetent younger vampire.

Bill hisses at him. Hoping to scare him, he advises, “The King of the Northern Cap is one of the most respected vampires in the world. He is known to be ruthless when the case calls for it, or humane. He is the head of a powerful family. He is nothing like you! You have one child, and you have been here too long to be a King in the Old World!” He is trembling; he needs to stop this from happening. He can’t get his blood or whatever is needed into Sookie if she is out of his reach.

Not able to stop his chuckle, Eric raises an eyebrow as he asks, “And how long is too long, Bill? Tell me oh wise King, what are the rules of being a King in the Old World? Surely you must know all about the rules since you are disputing them.” He is having fun with this. He had expected Bill to deny it at first, but to keep on denying it shows just how stupid he is. Eric suddenly gets a vision of Bill with his head in the ground like an ostrich.

Shaking his head, Bill informs him, “There is no way a King of the Old World would abandon his Kingdom for so long. How could he trust that his Kingdom would be there when he returned?   No, there is no way any King or Queen would leave his realm that long. And you are not old enough to be the King of the Northern Cap. He has held the kingdom from when he was Human!” Bill has been in enough Kingdoms here in the States to know this very well. He has not had time to travel outside the States, but one King is the same as another, the only difference being age.

One of the vampires in the guard shakes his head, then, after taking off his helmet to reveal himself, asks Eric, “Sir, please allow me to kill him. He is giving Vampires a bad name.” He is young, and his appearance and attitude give the appearance of him being even younger, but he is still older than Bill.   He grins at his Fader.

Laughter trickles down the stairs behind the Fairy as she descends to stand beside Eric. “I like him!” She puts her arm through Eric’s and hugs his arm close as he gazes down at her with an amused and loving look on his face.

He shakes his head and simply says, “Carter,” thereby both informing her of the man’s name as well as warning his next-to-youngest Son to behave.

The vampire looks up and grins at Fader. “Hi, Pappa.” He cannot help his boyish look of glee in being able to be here to meet their new Mother.

Sookie lifts an eyebrow. “Another one?” She is amused, and curious as she wonders, when all is said and done, just how many vampires Eric has made.

Taking in a deep breath of her heavenly scent, Eric explains, “He is one of the youngest-turned of my offspring. He is supposed to be home playing on his computers like he likes to do. I have no idea what he is doing here.” He looks up and gives him a look, wanting answers.

Carter just chuckles. “I missed you, Pappa!” He looks over their new Mother. Everything that he has heard tonight, along with her making Pappa so happy, makes him believe that he will be happy with her, too.

Sookie laughs. “Carter, would you please come in?” She cannot believe that this vampire – who has to be over a hundred – is so like a teenager, although she senses that, unlike her own brother, this one is highly intelligent. When it comes to doing what is needed, she does not doubt that she will see another side of him. That Eric allows this from him tells her a lot about her Mate as well.

Grinning boyishly at his Pappa, Carter enters the house. Taking Sookie’s hand in his, he bows over and kisses it. “Mother, it is a joy to meet you, finally. You have no idea how much work it took for me to be here after we heard a rumor about you from Haldor and Brandon.” He looks up at her, and Eric’s eyes look back at her with the same playfulness she has seen the last day very evident.

Holding his hands up as he stands behind Sookie, Brandon shakes his head. “Uh-uh. No throwing me under the bus, Brother. If I remember correctly, I was speaking to Frey and Arathorn – not you.” He gives his older brother-to-be a look. But no one can stand up to Carter’s boyish charms. He groans, and begins to defend himself, knowing what is to come.

Sookie laughs as the two start defending themselves, and looks at Eric with bright eyes. He grins at her, pleased that his brood is making his Mate happy. He likes these emotions coming across the Bonds they share.

He moves her closer to his side and murmurs, “Wait for the rest. Carter is the youngest, but we try to keep him and Gainor separated for the sake of not wanting to kill them every five minutes.” He nuzzles his Mate, but when he hears silence, he looks up at his Children to see them grinning at the two of them. “Yes?” He lifts an eyebrow thinking that if they are going to be like this at home, he will be setting a few rules.

Happy for his Pappa and wanting to make sure there is no chance of his new Mother being hurt, Carter asks, “Pappa, can I help guard Mother until we get home? I find myself needing the guidance of a Mother.” He grins at the end, then arranges his face to look innocent.

Sookie cannot help but laugh. “Find yourself needing the guidance? Who do you think you are fooling?” She is enjoying herself, and from what she is getting from Eric, he is enjoying this, too. The young-looking vampire in front of her is enough to make anyone smile. Well, except his brother…

Carter turns his baby blue eyes on her, and she just laughs. She looks up at her Mate and says, “He is a lot like you. In fact all the ones I have met, even your grandson, are like you.” She can hear the laughter from Brandon and Carter, along with some of the men outside.

Eric cannot help the pride that infuses him. “Good genes always win out.” He is standing tall, but he is watching his Mate with love in his eyes. This little woman is everything to him. For her to be happy with his Children, well, it is very pleasing to him.

Before Sookie could laugh, Bill throws a fit. He actually stomps his foot and growls out, “Sookeh! You will not leave with Eric. I forbid it as your King!” Desperation grips him. He needs her for her blood, and he was going to enjoy limited day walking as well as farming out her ability to make him more money. He also planned to breed her, to make sure she was still around for later, and if not, then he would have her children.

Sighing, Sookie just asks Eric, “Can we leave? Can someone pick up anything else I want from here if I want it later?” She is tired. She felt better after getting so much off her chest, but frankly, the immature vampire on her porch is part of her past. She doesn’t care about him anymore, and his actions today have destroyed any feelings she might have had.

Eric smiles indulgently at his Mate. “Of course. Carter will call the castle, and we will head to the airfield.” He pulls her closer to him, encouraging her to lean on him, to use him as she needs. He looks up at Carter, expecting him to do as he asks.

Hanging up his phone, Carter nods. “Everything is waiting for you, and the jet is ready for you to board. You may want to warn Mother about the jet.” He is looking around, getting a feel for the house as per his instructions. Their clan is wanting to make her comfortable, however, they all know her tastes might have changed.

Nodding, Eric informs her, “The jet only has a couple windows. Since this is our jet, the windows are not there for seeing out of or any other use, however for the sake of our humans’ comfort, we left a few, and replaced them with special glass that blocks all UV rays during the day. There are other things I will need to show you, but we can head on out and wait for Haldor there.” He knows that the window thing has unnerved humans in the past since they needed to be able to see out. There were other things about their jet, but knowing that his Sookie has not flown often, he doesn’t think she will really know the difference.

Before any of them can move from their places, Bill’s fangs drop. “You will NOT be taking her out of this house,” he orders. Desperation is the least of what he is feeling now.

At that point, the guards have had enough and step forward, clicking on their laser targets. Bill’s eyes widen as he sees the red light that had spelled Sophie Anne’s death only a year ago. He cannot move as the ones behind him have stepped up to completely surround him.

Watching him, Carter is serious as he shakes his head. “You are an idiot. You may be a King, but you sure don’t act even remotely like one.” He has been in and out of the courts of Human and Supe Kingdoms since he was human. The way this vampire acts is worse than a 10 year child throwing a fit. Sad because even at that age, even at these times, was too old to be doing that shit.

Eric just chuckles then lays his hand on his Son’s shoulder to calm him down. Once Carter settles, he advises him, “Let me make a call, and while I do that, get him out of here. I want to get Sookie to the plane as soon as we can.” He watches Carter’s face, and the Bond with him, and as always, when there is something needing to be done, Carter takes care of it.

When Carter nods, Eric pulls out his phone. He informs his Mate that he is calling Lafayette so that she is aware of what he’s doing. “I will make the request of Lafayette. Make sure you have everything you would like to have. I will leave some guards here for Pam and to guard this house. If you would, please extend an invitation to Pamela. I would like to have her resting area guarded well. And if she needs to get away, she can come here.” He is listening to the phone ringing, worried that he may have exhausted Lafayette.

Sookie nods, and is issuing the invitation when Lafayette answers his phone, “’ello?” His voice is sleepy and it is obvious he was woken up by the call.

“Well good morning sweetheart. I expected you here by now.” Eric grins, enjoying himself.

Lafayette voice is groggy when he replies, “I was not able to sleep, motherfucker. Now what do you want?” Then you could almost hear the actual click when his brain turns over. “Is it Sookie? Is there anything wrong with her?” He sits straight up, trying to see where his clothes are in case he needs to be over there like now.

Eric cannot help the smile on his face from knowing that there is another who cares for his Mate as he does, as her brother should. “Sookie is fine. I am calling to tell you we are leaving. I need to go back to my Kingdom, and Sookie wanted to know if you would like to come.” He pauses then divulges to Lafayette, “I will pay you. And I would wish you to cook for her.” He knows it will be hard for her, and Lafayette is already part of the Supe world along with Jesus. They will fit into the court. And, If they wish it, he will either turn them, or have another do it.

Lafayette wakes up and, sitting up in bed, asks, “Jesus?” There will be no deals made without his other half.

“More than welcome.”

Frowning, he asks, “Where is this Kingdom of yours?” Why does he want this? What is the catch?

Chuckling, Eric fires back in answer, “It is what is called Sweden now, along with Finland and a couple more.” He truly enjoys the flamboyant black man; he has been impressed with him since their first meeting.

Lafayette rubs his eyes as he retorts, “Fuck! That shits going to be cold! Why would you want to be there?” Wouldn’t he freeze not being warm? Hell!

He grins even bigger as he looks out into the kitchen of Sookie’s house. “It’s where I grew up, and it was my Kingdom when I was human. I just took over the other side of it. So are you in?”

Rubbing his face, Lafayette looks up, squinting at the clock as he tries to think of what all will need to be done. “I’ll need to talk to Jesus. When you need the answer by?” He reaches over and lights up a joint as he leans back in bed.

Eric turns and watches his Mate as he answers him. “I will wait until my Son arrives, then we will leave. But whenever you wish to come, I will set up tickets for you. Don’t worry about bringing anything except for what you really want. Your clothes won’t be warm enough. I will pay you both double what you are earning now on all your jobs, and will have you set up with benefits. Your mother will be taken care of. I will also pay for your room and board. You just have to cook for Sookie and keep her company.” And Eric will still be getting a deal. Keeping her happy and helping her settle into her new place is what he is working to do.

Lafayette whistles, knowing that Eric is fully aware of how much both Jesus and he make together. “I’ll let you know soon’s I speaks to Jesus. If I don’t get back to you before you leaves, tell Sookie that I said good for her!” He grins, happy that the woman he considers family is getting everything she deserves.

Eric laughs. “I look forward to you joining us, Lafayette.” He hangs up, satisfied that he has done what he can to make sure his Mate has company.

He turns around, and upon seeing that Bill has been removed, lifts an eyebrow at Carter.

Carter smiles at his Pappa. “I didn’t want to listen to him complain and whine about you not being who you are. I sent five of our vamps to assist him in finding his home. They will remain there until we leave. I figured they would be part of the guard who protects little sis.” He shrugs. But Carter is aware that, since Haldor is gone, Security defaults to him, and he has every incentive to make sure they are safe.

Nodding his head as Eric thinks about it, he says, “That will do. Gather everyone, and we will head to the airfield. I am finding myself anxious to get my Mate to safety.” He will call Pam on the way to give her the choice. However, she had better not treat Sookie as badly as she has been acting out on him.

Carter nods, still grinning. “Mother is perfect.” He looks down at her, proud that this woman will be theirs. She will add even more honor to the clan.

With a glance at his Son, Eric moves to stand beside his Mate, and looks down at her. “Lafayette will call us once he can talk to Jesus. I expect that they will be on their way shortly. I wish to leave this country as soon as we can.” He stands there, waiting for her to answer him.

Sookie nods and grabs her purse. “I grabbed my passport. Gran had me get one, and it was only a few months before she…” She stops, raising a hand to her mouth as she gathers herself.

Eric pulls her to him, remembering the bloodstain they had found in the kitchen under the tiles. Nuzzling her, he says, “It will be good. Although you didn’t need one. But if you are ready, lover?” He asks her softly, rubbing her back and giving her strength.

She nods, and with a last fond look around the house, she moves from the door toward the limo. Eric is beside her with Carter and Brandon guarding them on the way. The rest of the guards are waiting until their lieges are in the car before they all move to their own vehicles. As they leave, Sookie looks back one last time at her home.

When a tear falls down her cheek, Eric pulls her to him and holds her as she cries. He tells her softly, “It will be here whenever you wish to come back.” He promises her…and himself.

Haldor and his guards arrive at the place where Eric had buried the murderer of their clan, only to stop short.

There is a team gathered around the hole, and floodlights illuminate the area. A woman is standing there watching as the team is digs. His team quickly moves and is hidden within seconds.

Haldor curses, then turns his phone on and waits for the call to connect. “There is a team excavating him. What do you want me to do?” He asks as he watches the group excavate the madman.

He listens to the information, then nods. Hanging up the phone, he orders them, “Watch. Fader thinks this is a way for the AVL to make up to him for not helping. But we are not to interfere, and wait to see what happens.” He hates it, but knowing that Fader had almost died to get the madman in the ground makes him see reason in not attacking.

So he does exactly that, he watches and waits. When Russell is brought out and given blood, Haldor curses and growls out, “Why the fuck would anyone want that madman free?” The rest of the team is uneasy, hating the man as they do.

He walks away with his men and calls Eric. “Fader, they unearthed him, but they fed him blood.” He listens, and then asks him, “You want me to grab Pamela?” When the voice tells him that she will be given a choice, he nods. The voice then tells him what he wishes to be done, and Haldor hangs up the phone, his face hard as he watches the movement in the garage.

With a deep breath, he turns to look at the men who had come with him. “We are to head to the airfield. Fader will talk with the Chancellor and find out what is going on.” He chuckles. “It is nice to have him back.” The rest of the group laughs, then they head back to go home for the first time in a very long time.

Final count:  4,678 words.

Fairfarren