LPOV
I woke up extra early, before Sookie or Tara got out of bed, and went up to Rachel's room. I knocked on her door hesitantly. There was a groan and a mumbled voice that said something that could have been "go away" but I wasn't positive. "Rach?" I called.
There was a pause. "Come in." I opened the door and poked my head in to see a very sleepy looking Rachel barely sitting up in bed.
"Can we talk?" I asked.
"What do we have to talk about at 5 o'clock in the morning?" She asked.
"You know."
"It's 5 o'clock in the morning. I honestly don't remember," she said unhappily. "Are you going to waste my time just standing there or are you going to say something?"
"The Eric thing," I reminded her.
"Oh. That."
"Yes, that."
"It isn't a big deal," She said waving me away. She started to lay back down.
"I hooked up with your boyfriend who had lost him memory due to crazy witches, the same witches that also kidnapped you. What part of that isn't a big deal?" I asked skeptically.
"Look, Eric and I are done. We should've been done months ago but I was stupid and I made a mistake. Talking to Ileana really helped me see that. She knew more about me than I did, if that makes any sense. She helped me figure out I needed to stop running away from what I want and start owning up to my mistakes."
"You have a right to be mad at me. You know that right?" I asked.
"Of course I do. I'm just choosing not to be. You're my sister, I could never be mad at you for very long." I stared at her blankly ready for her to laugh and say "Just kidding bitch, I want you out of my life forever." She sighed loudly. "I want you to be happy. If Eric makes you happy then I want you to be with Eric. Ok?"
"Ok?" I said uncertainly.
"I'm serious. I want you to go over to Bill's at sundown and tell Eric that the two of you have my blessing or whatever."
"If you're sure?"
"I'm positive! Now go away so I can get some sleep ok?"
"Ok." I walked towards the door. I looked over my shoulder. "Rach?"
"What else?"
"Nothing. Just, thanks."
"No problem." She said with a sleepy smile.
RPOV
When I walked down stairs a few hours later Sookie, Lily and Tara were sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee. I poured myself a cup and sat down grabbing the sugar and milk jug. "What are we fucking magnets for trouble or something?" Tara asked.
"Oh god! Please don't say that!" Lily groaned. Sookie and Tara laughed.
"Someday I see myself growing old and sitting on the front porch with my grandbabies in my lap," Sookie said.
"I've always wanted that too." I said nodding.
"You aren't going to get that dating a vampire," Lily said. She didn't say it rudely but she looked surprised with herself afterwards like she hadn't expected the words to come out of her mouth, she was still walking on egg shells around me.
"I know," I said quietly.
"You know I've never wanted kids. It's not that I don't like them; it's just that I only like other people's kids, plus I'd be a terrible mother I missed out on that nurturing gene. But I'd love to be sitting on that porch with you guys," Lily said.
"I hope you are," I said smiling at her reassuringly.
OoOoO
A few hours later I went at Merlotte's with Sookie and Lily for our afternoon shift. The three of us walked into Sam's office. "Lily, Rachel! Thank god the two of you are back! Rachel you can cook right?" Sam asked, ambushing us as soon as we walked in the room.
"Why?" I asked careful not to agree to anything too quickly, I'd ended up roped into garbage duty many a time just by answering the wrong question the right way.
"Lafayette's gone MIA and we could use someone in the back."
"Yeah, I can do that," I said.
"And Lily can you cover section 3 and yours? We're a bit short on waitresses right now," Sam said.
"Yeah sure," Lily said.
"Oh, before you go." He reached into a box and handed me and Lily each a pair of kitty ears and Sookie a pair of bunny ears.
"Ooh!" I said happily and pulled pink lipstick and black eyeliner out of my purse.
"I don't like that sound," Lily said. I shushed her and rubbed a bit of lipstick on her nose then drew whiskers with the eye liner.
"Here, now do me." I waited as she drew on my makeup and smiled at my reflection in the mirror.
"Purrrfect," she said laughing. I laughed and the two of us left the office together.
LPOV
I was behind the bar when Alcide walked in. "Hey," I said carefully.
"Hey," he said taking a seat across the bar from me
"I thought you were mad at me," I told him crossing my arms.
"It's pretty hard to stay mad at you, especially with the cute little pink nose." He laughed.
I rolled my eyes. "Rachel's idea, clearly." I walked around the bar and sat next to him. "I'm sorry about the other day; I shouldn't have gotten mad at you. You did save my life after all."
"It was my fault; I shouldn't have yelled at you, I was just worried."
"I understand. So where's Debbie? I thought she pretty much had you under lock and key these days." He sighed and shook his head. "What happened?" I asked.
"You were right about her. Some people never change."
I sighed. "I really am sorry."
"Is Rachel here?" He asked.
"Yeah, she's in the back. I'll go get her." I walked towards the back hallway where Rachel was peering around the corner. "Hey creeper, he wants to talk to you," I said.
"To me?" She squeaked out sounding uncharacteristically insecure.
I sighed again. "Yes."
"How do I look?" She asked.
"You look amazing," I assured her. She nodded before walking past me and around the corner her confident self once more.
RPOV
"Hey," I said walking up.
"It's been a while," he said.
"Yeah it has. Witches, you know? Real pain in the ass." He laughed and the ice was broken just like that. "I'm really glad you wanted to see me. How's Janice?" I asked.
"She reopened her salon."
"Oh that's great!"
"How's Sookie?" He asked.
"Oh she's good. How's work?" I asked.
"It's coming in. You're working at Merlotte's again, I guess?"
"Yeah." There was a silence and I let down my guard so I could peer into his head, I just needed to know if he still hated me. Of course he was thinking about when I walked out. "I'm sorry," I said quickly. He jumped when he realized I had been reading his mind. "Every time I close my eyes I remember that night," I said.
"Me too," he said sounding a little bitter.
"I wish I could've seen how good my life was then. It took that witch getting inside my head to make me realize I screwed up, majorly. If I could go back and change it I would. It's like this reoccurring dream where I try to fix it but never can." I paused but he didn't say anything, he was just watching me. I sighed before continuing. "I miss everything about you. You were the first person I ever felt totally comfortable with and you made me feel safe. Maybe– maybe I'm being totally stupid but if you gave me a second chance, well, I can't promise that I'd be perfect. I know I'll screw up all the time but I swear that no matter what happens I'll never stop loving you." I stopped and he didn't say anything. I just nodded and starting to walk back to the kitchen before I started crying in the middle of Merlotte's dining room, but his voice stopped me.
"Do you remember at the beginning of summer when the two of us would just get in the car and drive with nowhere to go? Every time you expected me to have a plan and every time you got upset when I told you I didn't know where we would end up. You always did like to know the end of things. Guess that comes from the clairvoyance." He laughed quietly. "I know exactly when you started having second thoughts; maybe even before you knew it yourself. You started slipping away into some world of your own until finally you actually left." I nodded and turned around to face him. "Remember when you told me that if you knew what was best for you, you would've fallen in love with someone like me?" He asked.
"That was a long time ago. But yeah I remember."
"We know what the right thing is and maybe it's time we stopped resisting. Debbie is out of my life, for good this time. I should never have let you go, I should have fought you when you told me you were leaving. Instead I tried to force myself to move on, clearly that didn't work." Then his phone rang. He answered it and talked to the person on the other end for a second before hanging up. "I have to go," he said sounding a little worried.
"Is there anything I can do?" I asked concerned.
"You could come with me," he said.
I smiled. "I'd love to."
LPOV
That night I was finishing my shift off at Merlotte's and was getting ready to head over to Bill's to talk to Eric who had stayed there. I grabbed my cell out of my pocket and called Bill to make sure it was ok if I came over. I almost wanted him to say that I couldn't so I wouldn't have to deal with Eric today. The phone rang a few times before going straight to voice mail, Bill always answered his phone. I didn't think much about it though and figured I'd just head over anyway, whether I wanted to or not. Tara ran in and grabbed me. She pulled me outside where Sookie and Holly were standing talking while Sookie lit all the pumpkins. "Tara what's going on?" I asked. Sookie and Holly looked up.
"She's back, Marnie's back!" Tara said.
"How is that even possible?" Sookie asked.
"We all saw her die," Holly said.
"I think she's in Lafayette," Tara said.
"We've got to get to Bill's right now!" I said. "I called him a few minutes and he didn't pick up. If Marnie is back that would be the first place she'd go."
OoOoO
Ten minutes later we were pulling up outside Bill's house. I called Rachel on the way but got no answer. She had left in the middle of her shift so I assumed she must have left with Alcide. Bill and Eric were tied up in the middle of the front yard. Sookie, Tara, Holly and I ran towards them but Marnie as Lafayette stepped in front of us. "Marnie, please don't do this!" I pleaded.
"After all they've done to you, you protect them?"
"Killing them won't solve your problems," Tara said.
"Killing people makes you no better than what you want to destroy," I said.
"They aren't people!" Marnie yelled.
"Casey was a person wasn't she? And all those people at the rally. They died because you refuse to give up! You'll never find peace if you stay in this world. Cross over with Antonia and Ileana."
"There can't be peace until there is justice." As Marnie turned her back to us Holly started making a circle with salt. Bill saw her and looked over at me. I motioned for him to keep Marnie talking.
"Marnie what will this serve? There are more of us being made every night!" Bill said.
"He's right; you'll never be able to kill every vampire. The population growth is exponential! For every one vampire that you kill there are ten more created."
"Thanks to all of you I have nothing left to lose!" Marnie said. She raised her hands and flames flared up around Eric and Bill. Sookie shocked Marnie and she fell to the ground outside the circle. Holly finished the circle and pulled us inside. "Grab hands. Quickly!" She began chanting and we joined her. I could hear Eric and Bill screaming and I chanted louder hoping it would make the spell work quicker. When I looked up, people filled the graveyard. In the front of the crowd were Antonia and Ileana. Ileana smiled at me before motioning towards the fire putting it out.
"All creatures are put on this Earth for a reason, Marnie," Ileana said.
"Even vampires," Antonia said. She sounded a bit reluctant to admit it.
"How can you say that? They killed both of you!" Marnie yelled.
"Even that served its purpose, it brought the three of us together," Antonia said.
"The third Gavilán sister," Ileana said.
"I'm not done yet!"
"Yes you are!" An old lady yelled. I recognized her from a photo in Sookie's living room.
"Gran?" Sookie asked weakly. Adele Stackhouse walked up to Marnie and pulled her right out of Lafayette.
"I don't want to go!" Marnie said.
"Antonia and I were trapped between worlds for 400 years. I was lost and she was driven mad by the rage and bitterness she kept stored up. We don't want either of those fates to happen to you," Ileana said.
"Don't you understand Marnie? Life is full of pain and suffering. If you come with me you will be free. Leave these vampires here; they'll be trapped in this world of suffering forever. That is their punishment," Antonia said.
"You're right," Marnie said before screaming and bursting into tears. Antonia and Ileana took Marnie's arm and led her away, Sookie walked towards her Gran and I went and started trying to untie Eric and Bill.
OoOoO
When I finally managed to get Eric and Bill down I realized Sookie, Tara, Holly and Lafayette had gone home. I was the only one left to give blood. Not that I minded as much anymore, I trusted both of them enough not to drink me dry, but fucking Sookie! It really makes you dizzy when you lose enough blood to fully heal two burnt vampires. I pulled my arms back. "Ok, I think that's enough." They rubbed some of their blood on my wrists to heal me.
"You saved our lives," Bill said.
"Yeah, well, it's about time that I was the one to do the saving. I seem to get into a lot of bad situations where I'm the one that needs to be saved," I said. I looked at Bill. "Do you think you could give us a minute?"
"Of course." Once Bill was gone I turned back to Eric.
"Thank you," he said.
"You don't have to thank me. Like I've told you I can't imagine a world without you in it."
He smiled. "Did you talk to Rachel?"
"I did." I paused. "She said that she just wants me to be happy and if you make me happy then I should be with you. I have a feeling she went off with Alcide today, I hope the two of them work things out."
"I do too." I lay against him and he wrapped his arms around me.
"Do you think you'll ever want to be turned?" He asked.
"I don't know, what Antonia said about life being suffering and that being the vampire's punishment was a pretty convincing argument against it," I said like I was really considering what she had said even though her words didn't have an effect on me. I sighed. "I don't know. I just want to see how things go."
"Just tell me when you make up your mind. And for the record I love being a vampire, I don't mind being stuck here forever." I laughed and turned around to kiss him.
"I love you," I told him.
"I love you too."
RPOV
Alcide and I pulled up at a parking garage that his company had built. He'd gotten a call from one of his workers while we were sitting in Merlotte's about a hole in the ground. "When did this happen?" Alcide asked the construction guy.
"Last night, the night before, I don't remember," he said.
"You don't remember?" I asked. Alcide and I shared a look.
"I'm sorry boss, it's like someone hit the delete button in my brain."
"Look at me," I told him. I recognized the blank look, the same one that Ginger had.
"Fuck, you've been glamoured," Alcide said.
"Why would a vamper want to glamour me? Or dig a hole in a parking garage?" Alcide and I walked up to the hole and looked in. Alcide leaned down and picked up something. He handed it to me. "Silver," he said.
I looked at it for a second confused before remembering last year when Eric had showed up covered in sticky concrete after Bill had tried to kill him. If I remembered correctly they said they had killed Russell that night. "Holy shit."
LPOV
Nan had just burst in all high and mighty yelling about how she quit her job and how she wanted to revolt against the AVL and the Authority. I was sitting in one of the chairs listening to her rant. "My last duty was supposed to be delivering the true death to both of you; of course I realized I'd be next. I've been alive for 816 years; I refuse to be retired like a fat first wife!"
"Let me get this straight. You're mutinying against the AVL and the Authority?" Eric asked.
"And you expect us to join you?" Bill asked.
"We won't be alone; there are others that don't agree with the current regime. Sheriff Northman knows what I'm talking about," Nan said. I raised an eyebrow at him and he shrugged.
"What's in it for us?" Eric asked.
"Besides surviving the night? How about those three little faeries you love so much?" She motioned to me. I looked at Bill who was staring at her shocked. "Oh come on! Mind reading, microwave fingers, physic abilities? There are a few thousand vampires that would do anything to get a taste of their blood." She looked at me. "I think you'd rather not be eaten, am I correct?"
"It would be preferable," I said curtly. She glared at me. "But Rachel has her werewolf and I could always get one of these two to change me. Something tells me we could fend for ourselves."
"You think you're so smart-" Before the end of her sentence Bill and Eric had killed both her and her guards.
"What a bitch," Eric said.
I stood up and stepped around the bodies. "Ew."