Pre Edit Count – 2,590 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Clarity by Zedd (Feat. Foxes)

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He shakes himself and looks down at her. “I did what I could to save us both, while getting revenge for my family from the man who had murdered them over a thousand years before.  Then when it came down to it, I chose you.  I chose for you to live.  But to my surprise, you came outside and saved me.  Then gave me your blood.”

He sighs. “Since then, I have worked exclusively to have you by my side, but only by your choice.  There is plenty of stuff up in the air, but I wish to know one thing.  I love you, Sookie.  I believe with all my soul that you are my other half, my soul mate.  Are you willing to give me a chance to make you mine?”

Her answer shocks him.  “No.”

Now:

He blinks.  “No?”

She nods, then proceeds to explain her reasoning to him.  “No, I am not willing to give you a chance.  I learned my heart and mind in that forever instant.  I was allowed to ask the questions that I had, and I came home knowing that I would be begging you for a chance.  So no, I will not give you a chance to gain what you already have.  I will, however, give you my heart and hope you will not abuse it any further.”  She stares into his impossibly blue eyes, hoping that he will give her the same chance that he had asked of her.

He crushes her to him.  “Tack min kärlek, tack för detta. Du kommer aldrig att ångra detta.” (Thank you my love, thank you for this. You will never regret this.)

She laughs and pushes away from him.  “I take it you are accepting?” She cups his face with her hands as she holds her breath.

He kisses her. “Yes, many times, yes.” In between each chaste kiss, he tells her his answer.

She grins at him, then her smile fades. “But what about Bill?  If what you told me is true, he can take me from you.” Fear rises as she remembers what he had told her.

Eric’s eyes glow as he growls out, “Over my finally dead body.  You are now mine, and I will not allow anyone to take you from me.” His mind is busy whirling through plans.  He is not kidding; now that she is his, no other will ever touch her…not even his progeny.  Sookie is his.  Finally.

She cups his face again, and she can see the determination in his eyes.  She thinks over what he told her earlier. “The Soul Bond?” She had not been told much about it except that the first time will be extremely painful for her, and that it is the answer to most of their problems, now and in the future.

His eyes snap to hers. “I do not want it to be started or have anything to do with Compton.  It is sacred, and nothing will change that.  I want it to be the ceremony it truly is.” Nothing will ruin this.  He wants his Sookie to know how much he loves her.  He never wants her to doubt him, and he feels that if this ceremony is done correctly, she will see this.  He knows she has matured in the time she has been gone, but he cannot think that all her human ideals and insecurities are gone.

She stares into his eyes. “Eric, I was told that I would need to Soul Bond with my soul mate as soon as possible.  I was told that once it happens, we will be safer.  I will not be easy to kill, and all other’s blood will be rejected out of me.  Our lives will be bound to each other’s.  Basically, if we are not killed, neither one of us will die.  While I understand why you want to wait, why are we waiting knowing all this?” She is curious; did he not have the same information that she had on it, or did he think she was not here to be his, or is there another reason?

He looks at her.  “I will not need to turn you, you can stay human?” He knows this is something she wishes.  And if this is true, then it will thrill him.  He loves her sun kissed skin, her love of the daytime.  She is his other half and it is only fitting that she can have the sun as he has his beloved stars.

She gets a wry look on her face as she answers, “Well, as human as I could have been.  I am told that my spark has now ignited, that I am now Fae.  Our Bond will only solidify it, but I will gain your strengths, and you mine.  Normally for the Fae, this would make them even.”

“But since you are mating with me, you have my freedom from Lemons and Iron.”

“And you have my freedom from Silver and Wood.  Basically unless we are beheaded, we will heal from anything else.”

His mind is busy turning it all over in his head.  “Are you sure about this?” He had heard rumors, but Godric had ensured that he would know all about mating as he didn’t want him to believe some of the myths.  But as time passed, he had started to dismiss the idea of a Soul Bond being that powerful.

She nods.  “I was given the information, it was somehow awakened in my mind…some type of genetic memory that the Fae have.  Once we Bond, you will have the same, plus all my strengths.” And the memories.  He would have more, if what her grandaddies thought was right, he would have not only Sookie’s genetic memories, but any from his Maker and so on.  She will need to remember to tell him this so he will be ready for them.  Niall thought they may be like the Fae’s, bubbling up to the surface as they are needed, since he will be gaining this from them.   But Earl had told her to warn her vampire.

His voice is soft as he continued, “None of the weaknesses.  Why has this not been done before?” The implications of a Fae and a Vampire, as opposite of the species line as can be, will make for a powerful vampire.  Then he remembers Sophie Anne’s and Russell’s preoccupation with her and pieces start to fall into place in his head.

She smiles. “Because only soul mates can do it.  Just like it is the reason your few drops of blood have lasted in me when I have literally had them in me for years.  Bill’s blood is still in me because, as close as we can figure, he ended up giving me so much that half my blood was vampire blood.  It has weakened, but not enough.  The sheer volume is unbelievable and is the reason I cannot have a witch take the blood out.  I spent a long time being taught, and we discussed every route.”  She shrugs, “What can I say, I am stubborn.  But I was told it was the strength of the other’s blood in me that was fighting against me learning anything it deems harmful to it.  That is how I determined that you were the one, how I determined you are the one.  Your blood encouraged my learning, his fought it.  I was taught not just how to grow up, but many other things.  I am Fae.” And she admits for the first time in this world.  She is not human.  She needs to leave human thoughts behind, and she hopes that Eric understands that she will be trying so very hard to do that.  But she knows she will probably backslide.

He kisses her, his mouth slanted over hers, his love and devotion to her flowing through.  He let her mouth go to allow her to breathe, since she had no warning.

He looks at her, “Mine.  My Fae.  My Sookie.  My Heart.  My Love.”

She nods, and tells him, “Yours.  So yours.  And you, my Viking, are mine.”

He laughs, kissing her again. “And gladly.  Finally.”

They laugh as they enjoy the moment between them, knowing it is the beginning.

They talk some more, each sharing information that they felt the other should know. Eric had grown quiet when she told him of the chance of the memories.  He would be thrilled to have more memories of Godric, but not of his Maker.  Godric’s Maker had been a monster.  He hopes that Sookie will not get any of those memories.

They continued talking about the other things she had learned, and Eric told her what had happened while she was gone.  However, when Sookie yawned, Eric had gotten more businesslike.  He turned her around on his lap and pulled out the paperwork.

He hands the papers to her.  “Sign, Min Karlek.  I need you to be safe, and until you sign these, the protective wards will not go up.”

She lifts an eyebrow and grabs the paperwork to start reading.

Eric asks her in a hurt voice, “Do you not trust me?”

She snorts. “Of course I do.  But I know you.  You would try to sneak in things if you think you could.  So I am making sure.” Plus that had been one thing that had been hammered into her brain – read everything.

He laughs, kissing the back of her neck.  As she reads, he loves on her.  Nuzzling, rubbing his scent into her, kissing her, memorizing the flavor of her.  She teases him at one point that he is acting like a big cat.  He then purrs for her. “You have no idea, my lover.  My own research shows we act more like big cats than anything else.  But for mating.  If we find the other half we are like wolves and swans.  We mate for life as you already know.  But if you think of those cats, you would be close.”

She laughs as she signs the last page. “So I need to buy you catnip? Or is that what I am to you?”

He laughs, then, feeling the pull, he tells her, “Ask me in, Sookie.”

She looks at him as she suddenly feels the couch start to slide. “Please come in, Eric Northman.”  Suddenly the couch stops and Eric relaxes again. He looks at her ruefully.  “I had forgotten about that.  With the wards now active, it enforces that whole invite thing as even the inherent magic doesn’t.”

She lifts an eyebrow, encouraging him to elaborate.

He kisses it. “The magic of the vampire invitation into the house is actually involved.  The magic knows if the invitation has been tendered with or without the vampire hearing, or even knowing.  It also registers intent.  If you needed me out of the house, it would expel me so fast that there would be no chance of me stopping it.  If you only did it for some other reason, my removal would be as fast as your intention.  Of course, the magic doesn’t stop us from grabbing, say, the owner of the house, or if we tear down the house to make the house no longer a home.”

She shudders.  Another example that magic has its flaws.

He kisses her shoulder. “But that is why I added the spells.  They are not as smart as the inherent magic, it would take a year to get that involved, and I didn’t want that.  I wanted anyone with intent to harm you or yours to be ejected.  The side effect is that while I do NOT have any intent to harm you, the spells mixed and could only think that, since you hadn’t invited me when you took over ownership, you must not want me in here, while the inherent magic said you allowed me in the house, sensing that you really did want me here.”

She nods. “Hence the slow removal.”

He smiles. “Hence the slow removal.  There shouldn’t be any other issues with that.” He kisses her nose.  “Now that we have that taken care of, what now?”

Sookie settles into her Viking.  “Soul Bonds, and to figure out what the hell are we going to do now.”

He sighs as he pulls her closer. “It is up to you.  If you were told that it was imperative that we Soul Bond as soon as possible, then we will do so.  But know I will end up doing things ass backward.  I want to take you out on dates, woo you properly.  You deserve it far more than any other person on this earth.  As for what are we going to do, well, it is all up to you.” He will follow what she says.  While he is the more powerful of the two, and in public will need to act it, she is the one who he follows.  He will make sure she will never think of any reason to repudiate him.

Snuggling into his arms, she tells him, “From what I gather, our first Bond is going to be nasty.  Somehow anything that does not belong in me will be forced out, and not in a good way.  So I am warning you, be ready for some pain.” She didn’t care.  It will hurt, but the benefits would be no more of Bill’s blood in her, and she will be Eric’s.

Eric’s eyes go gray with worry, but before he can say anything, she tells him, “There is no other way.  But it should help with your whole courting thing.  I can safely say no sex for the first exchange.” She giggles.

Eric soon has her seated on the couch as he paces, thinking.  He looks at her. “So you will literally expel the blood?  And how much is left in you?”  This is not in the past, and he wants to take no chance with her.  Nowadays they have the technology to make sure she will be ok through this.

Sookie sighs. “We couldn’t be sure.  The blood self-replicates if the vampire in questions wishes it to.  There is suspicion that Bill is in cahoots with the Queen of Fairies.  The timing was just too good.”

Eric snorts.  He blurs, coming to a rest in front of her on his knees. “Bill is up to something.  I am normally here every night.  I think it is odd that he had me at Fangtasia the night you returned.  I am not even sure how that would be arranged since time does not flow the same between the two worlds.  But it is unusual, and I do not trust Compton.” He stares into her eyes, making sure she knows he is not holding back and that this is not a jealousy thing.  In some ways there will always be a jealousy issue that Compton took what is his to take, but not this.  This is because he thinks Compton is going to make problems for them, the kind of problems that can get you finally dead.

Sookie nods.  “So you can see why I am a little anxious. No one really knows I’m home yet.  They will tomorrow, but if this knocks me out, then…”

He stares at her, then grabs his phone and quickly dials. “Yes,  I need a favor.  Can you and your boyfriend come to Sookie’s house?   Yes.   Thanks.”

She lifts an eyebrow at him.

He tells her softly, “The only other person who never gave you up.  Lafayette.”

She stares at him, shocked, as her eyes fill.  “He didn’t,” she whispers.

Eric nods.  “He helped me look for you, and he was the one that came in here and helped us know what meant something to you.  He was the one that, when it came time to finish the house, I delegated to be the one who would best know your tastes.  But I did warn him that if I saw one leopard print or anything that clashed, I would let you know it was all his fault.”  He smiles at the last part.  He had looked, but the man had known his Sookie, and he had helped make sure that everything would be to her liking.

She just stares at him.  She finally whispers, “I thought no one cared.  I…I…” Then she crumples and he catches her as she does.

She sobs against him, and he holds her tenderly to him.  He can understand feeling as though no one cares.  He leans down and tells her, “You are never going to be alone.  Even after everyone you know passes, we will still be together.  I am always going to be here.  Once we have the bond, you will feel me with you.  It will be bad at first, especially since you will be around them, but my lover, I will never leave you.” He tells her this and how much he cares for her.  He doesn’t want to use the word “love” again, not until she is ready to hear it.  And right now, he doesn’t know.

He listens for when Lafayette arrives with his boyfriend.  He smiles as he hears Lafayette telling Jesus that he didn’t know what they needed the two of them for, but if Eric “be calling his ass at this time of night, especially when Sookie is supposed to back in town, it ain’t for fun”.

He tells her softly, “Invite them in, min alskare.  They are here.”

She sniffs, and lifting an eyebrow at him, “Please come in Lafayette and..”

“Jesus.”

“Jesus.  Will that do it?”

He nods, then when he hears them on the porch, he tells Lafayette, “Come on in.”

Lafayette walks in, and his face lights up when he sees Sookie in Eric’s arms. “Hooka, you be driving this here chunk of fine ass candy to distractions.  Please tell me you doin’ the right thing.”

She laughs and hiccups.  She can’t say anything, and Eric soon has her in the chair with him, and he tells Lafayette, “She is.  She learned some information while she was gone.  We need to do a Soul Bond.”

Jesus leans forward. “Need to?  Not want?”

Sookie shakes her head, “No, we both want it, very much so, but I was told I need to choose the right one, and Soul Bond.  Otherwise a lot of shit is going to happen.  But I love him, and I know he is the one.  But, there is a problem.”

Jesus nods, “Good, because if it was needed and not wanted, it wouldn’t work.  And it truly should only work for true mates.”

Eric nods. “We know, and that’s not the problem.  The problem is that another vampire has given her blood, quite a bit of it, actually.”  The look on his face shows his disgust for that.  Nothing of another should be in her body.  Especially if she does not want it, nor ever did.

The two on the couch trade glances.  “How much is a lot?”

Sookie bites her lip then, scrunching her face, answers, “Per my Great Granddaddy, who is Fae, half of my blood.”

Jesus and Lafayette stare at her in shock. “Shit!”

Jesus stands up, “Do you know what blood type you are?”

Lafayette is staring at her in horror. “Bitch ain’t got one.”  He clearly remembers that problem in the hospital after Bill had drained her and the panic that they had all felt in not being able to do a damn thing to help her.

Eric stills, then looks down at his love, “You don’t?”

She shakes her head. “Too much Fae.”

Thinking, Eric turns to Jesus, “You were going to get blood for her?”

When he nods, Eric tells him, “No need.  I will supply the blood for her.  I will need that blood however.” Donor blood will allow him to keep up with what Sookie may need.  True Blood wouldn’t work the same way.

They soon talk, and Lafayette asks her, “You be sure of this, Sooks?”

She looks at him and nods. “More sure than anything.”

He nods, grabbing Jesus.  “We will be back soon.  While we’s gone, get that cubby of yours ready.  Put something down so if she expels it through her cells, there’s something to catch it.  When we get back, you need to start.  I don’t know if you can stay awake after dawn, or if your blood will move once you die.  But if you says it gotta be tonight, then we gots to be movin.”

Eric nods.  “I will prepare here, and we will see you soon.” With that he has Sookie gone and Lafayette can hear them upstairs.  He grabs Jesus’s arm, “Let’s go.”

As they walk out the door, Jesus looks back. “Think this will work as they hope?”

Lafayette smirks. “Oh, I be sure it’ll work. Those two is made for each other.  Just took them awhile to know it.”  And with that he takes off in his Corvette, heading to the hospital for Jesus to get what he needs.

Final count, 3,523 words.

Fairfarren~Wendy