Lafayette has a visit.....

Lafayette did not like being a medium, but he had to admit, he always felt weird about stuff, especially about the dead. Sometimes it was like he heard his name being called and he would turn around and no one was there. But sometimes, it was like he felt there was something or someone there and he would turn around and he would not see anyone.

This was one of those days. He felt sort of jumpy and expectant. He wrote it off as being sad about Jesus, who had died. Jesus had been to see him a couple of times and in a way it was a comfort. After all, he was the one who opened him up to that ability.

He was standing in his neat little garish kitchen. Nothing in Lafayette's life was simple. He washed up his dishes and set them aside in the drainer to dry and he went into his living room and cleaned this up and threw away his candles. He would get more but he didn't want to use the candles Marnie used when she hijacked his ass and used his body to kill his one true love. As he threw the candles in the garbage bag, he heard his name called.

"Lafayette????" it said, almost like a purr.
"Oh hell no...You guys gotta quit fuckin' with me...I ain't ready for this shit!!!" said Lafayette.
"He doesn't want to talk to us," said the voice.
"He will, keep bothering him," said the other voice.
"Lafayette...you may as well talk to us, we won't go until you talk to us," said the voice.
"What's a hookah gotta do to have some peace?" swore the medium.
"Jesus and Aolani and Aslinn sent us," said the voice. Lafayette recognized the names of the two witches from the True Blood Council. Oh man, what did those bitches want now?
"Don't call our mommies bitches," said the voice.
"What, you telepathic too?" asked Lafayette.
"Of course, the dead talk to you in many ways and we hear you in many ways," said the voice.

Lafayette sat down on his couch. "Okay, so where are you?"

Slipping around the door way of the kitchen came a yellowish orange tabby cat. Coming from around the side of a chair was a huge midnight black cat....Lafayette stood up on the couch, his feet sinking into the cushions. "What the fuck???? Cats can't fuckin' talk."
"We can," said the tabby. "My name is Honey, and my mommy is Aolani."
"And I am Ishee and my mommy is Aslinn," said the black cat.
"Nice to meet you guys...so what, you all were their helpers?" asked Lafayette. "You know, witches and cats."
"Get him, Ishee....Familiars...well, we helped but no, I wasn't a familiar," said Honey.
"No, I don't think I was mommy's familiar either, but I loved being around magik...so maybe I was an accidental familiar," said Ishee.
"So what is it you want?" asked Lafayette.
"Well, if you will sit down and relax, we will tell you. As it is, you make us nervous," said Ishee.
"I make you nervous? Bitch, you could be a panther," said Lafayette to the black cat.
"Who are you calling a bitch? Honey, he needs to get a better vocabulary," said Ishee.
"Maybe Sookie can get him a word a day calendar," said Honey.
"You two know Sookie?" he asked.
"Of course we know Sookie," said Honey. "Because we know Sookie's Great Grandfather."
"Her great grandfather?" asked Lafayette.
"He is a faery and I was staying with him till Honey came and he sent us to you," said Ishee.
"So you guys are faery cats now?" asked Lafayette, settling finally on the couch, but he kept his feet up. Ishee came and sniffed his brown toenail polished feet.
"No, we were just staying there with him til we met Jesus," said Honey.
"You saw Jesus? In faery?" asked Lafayette.
"No, Jesus came to faery when he went to the Summerland during Samhain," said Ishee. "And by the way, the word is pronounced Sow-in."
"Thanks for clearing that up....So why did Jesus send you to me?" asked Lafayette.
"He said you need a spirit guide, but no one else wanted to deal with your shit," said Honey. "But we decided, you were just the kind of person we would like."
"Yeah, evidently, you are a two cat job," said Ishee. Honey and Ishee snickered at that.
"So, what, you two are gonna like haunt me?" asked Lafayette.
"Haunt is such an ugly word," said Honey. "We prefer visit."
"But, yes, long and short of it, we will be haunting you," said Ishee.
"Shit!!!! So what I gotta do, get a litter box and some cat chow up in here...." said Lafayette.
"Listen to him, like we are all alive and all that....No, Lafayette, we will just hang around, come and go, but we will be here if you need us," said Honey.
"And you will need us," said Ishee.
"Because we can carry messages and we talk to the dead we think that will be helpful and we can protect you from bad spirits, and we can teach you things," said Honey.
"And you need to pay attention to us and learn what we teach you," said Ishee.

And suddenly they were gone.....

"Well, that is unusually fucked up... Even for me..." said Lafayette looking around his house.


A note from Aslinn:

From time to time, Ishee and Honey will be interacting with Lafayette....so just keep your eyes open for further adventures...

These little stories are in memory of Ishee and Honey and the mommies who miss them....

Spooky Tooth was in the kitchen, stirring the chicken chowder, checking on her corn bread. We had seen a lot in the adventure I had given the epi deeper thought. I was still a little mad at the Viking, but I was trying to take a little of my own medicine. And that was to stop judging. It was what Sookie did and I never want to be accused of doing what she does.

Aolani was right, Eric was confused and angry and hurt, though I think he would rather meet the sun then admit it. For a proud man like Eric to go from being lost, experiencing all that and then to remember everything, and I mean everything, must have been a shock to the system, especially when he had been soooo over humans for so long. I knew I would not get a chance to speak to him privately, at least not until after the meeting and maybe not even then. But it was a talk I craved to have with the Viking.

I had not spoken to Bill either. I was confused about my feelings for Bill. I did like the fact he had more responsibility, but I did not like the fact it created distance between us. I loved Bill, and I loved Eric. But I knew Sookie had changed the game and the game was going to be a dangerous one for both the Vampires in our lives.

"So, do you think Alcide will come tonight?" asked Westexan.
"I think so," said Renee. "That whole thing with Debbie, that must have been hard. You know, once your pack turns their back on you, there is nothing you can do to make it up them. They just turn you loose in the world and for the two natured, alone is a terrible thing to be."
"So, does this mean Alcide is the new pack master of Shreveport?" asked Barrister. I shrugged. I had to admit, I did not know as much about Werewolf politics as I did Vampire.
"I can see where that will happen," said Aolani. "Whether Alcide wants it or not.

"Do you think Pam will be here tonight?" asked Linzy.
"I don't know," said Violet. "I really felt sorry for her. She was so desperate."
"Do you think Pam was looking to kill Sookie?" asked Westexan. "I mean, she is not that happy with her at the moment."
I laughed. Barrister smiled at Westexan. "What gave it away?" he asked.
"Gash in a sundress?" she said, a bit taken aback with the vulgarity.
"That might do it," I said.

"But man, wasn't Jason great though," said Renee.
"He was," said Linzy.
"Yeah, taking on more responsibility has really changed Jason," said Aolani. "Everyone has changed this year."

There was the sound of the door knob turning and in walked Alcide. "Am I still welcome?" he asked.
"Sure you are," I said. "Come in, supper is about ready."

The big were came in and ambled over to Spooky Tooth who was cooking her pot of chowder. He sniffed the smell and tasted it in his own enhanced way. "Smells good," he said.
"Well sit down over there," she said. Alcide went and took a seat at the big table.

As we were eating, the four Vampires walked in. Spooky Tooth looked up and smiled. "Well, if it isn't the Vlad Squad." Jessica laughed, a delighted sound. She walked over to Barrister and gave him a kiss. Eric sat down in the parlor. He was not a happy camper and Pam looked uncustomarily sad. I hate sad Vampires. A sad Vampire is a confused Vampire and just as dangerous as an angry Vampire. So here we were, with two of them on opposite ends of the room, not speaking to one another, both of them trying their best to ignore one another. I sighed..This Team Vampire thing sort of blows. Because I thought for moment that Team Vampire was all about Bill and Eric and only about those two boys, but if you are going to be team Vampire, you have to include all the Vampires...and that included Pam and Jessica.

I finished my supper and scraped my plate and poured another glass of wine and helped Violet warm up bottles of Tru:Blood. Fairy sort of rushed in, breathless with the effort. "I am so sorry I am late, I had to finish at school and drop things off at the house and run some errands and boy am I tired." She sat down next to the Viking and he palmed her head gently and kissed her on the temple. She put her hand up to his cool face and he closed his eyes for a second to savor it.

Vi brought Jessica and Bill their bloods and I brought Eric a blood and handed Pam hers and sat down by her. She looked a little uncomfortable but I patted her hand briefly. Pam did not like to be coddled.

"Can we get on with it please?" she asked, sadly. I could tell the Vampire was unhappy to be in the same room as her maker.
"Alcide, you have abjured Debbie?" asked Bill.
"Yes," he said.
"So what happens next?" asked Violet. "Are you the Pack Master?"
"I am not sure of that," he said. "I may have a problem with the other pack members."
"Do you want to be a pack master?" asked Renee.
"I never have," he said. "I always went my own way."

"Of course you know this places Sookie is a precarious situation," said Linzy. "Debbie may be after her. She sees Sookie as the root of her troubles, whether that is true or not."
"I will keep an eye on Sookie," said Eric. He looked at Bill.

"How deep in the shit are you guys gonna be with this little thing with Nan Flanagan?" asked Renee. "I mean, she wants the true death for the both of you. That was what you were talking about you and Eric."
"Something like that," said Bill.
"Are you in big trouble?" I asked. Eric looked at me and nodded. Pam said nothing. I admired her ability to keep still...and then it dawned on me Eric may be ordering her to keep still.

"Now, Lafayette," said Aolani. "Lafayette and Jesus are still in trouble."
"Yeah, this is bad. Why doesn't Jesus do some sort of protective spell?" asked Fairy.
"That would be sort of like locking the fox in the chicken house," said Barrister.
"True enough and I think Lafayette will have a hard time with this experience, I think it will hurt his relationship with Jesus," said Barrister.

"And then Andy...what is that all about?" asked Renee. "Are the fae trying to create an entrance into this world by mating with Andy?"
"I think it is possible," said Aolani. "If they can create a relationship on earth, they have a bond, a doorway. They had that with Sookie, but now...Claudine is gone."

Eric had nothing to say about this. He really could care less. But Bill was only a little concerned.I sighed.

"Okay guys, we have talked about everything of importance except you guys...We have been tip toeing around it and now we can't go anywhere else but forward," said Linzy. "We have to talk about this shit that has happened."

Bill and Jessica sat up a little straighter and Pam looked down and Eric was staring straight ahead. "Eric?" said Fairy. "You have to participate in this."
"Eric, what are you feeling?" asked Aolani.
"I don't want to talk about my feelings," said Eric.
"We have to," said Barrister. "We can't have you and Pam at odds. We can't have you feeling uncertain. And this has only a little to do with Sookie."
"It has everything to do with Sookie," said Eric.
"Eric, it has to do with you," I said.
"You are mad at me, why are you speaking to me?" he said.
"I may be mad at you Eric, but I still care about you," I said.
"Me too Eric," said Renee.
"Just like you care about Pam but you are angry with her right now," said Aolani. Pam looked a trifle uncomfortable.
"Don't," he said.

"Eric, you have to," said Linzy. "Talk to us lover."
"I have nothing to say," he said.
"Okay, so let us say them and you will have to be the one to correct us. If you don't, then everything we say is true," said Aolani. "We can either put words in your mouth or you can speak for yourself."

We waited, willing him to speak to us.
"I can't imagine what it was like for you to be yourself one minute and the next being a blank slate and you lost everything you were in the twinkling of an eye and you were cold and lost and alone. You didn't even remember us," said Aolani.
"And of course you were so different, so gentle you didn't want to come back," said Westexan.
"Then you had the shock of remembering everything, not just about the way you were before but the way you were with Sookie and I think it was a tremendous shock," said Barrister.
"But, I think quite possibly, you have always been that way, gentle and innocent, but you had to tamp it down to survive as a Vampire, you have to be strong and loving someone is a weakness in your world," said Violet.
"Seeing Sookie confused didn't help you any either," said Linzy. "The fact she is confused aggravates you because you are so sure of what you feel and she isn't, because she is human and she loved having you a little not yourself because then she could sort of pretend you weren't a Vampire, that you were just this strong, gentle man who loved her. But now, she is reminded you are Vampire and she is disappointed."
"That is because she can't accept the fact you and Bill are Vampires and though she knows in her heart that Bill is every bit as violent and savage as you, she has never seen him do anything like that, and she has seen you do it and it is sooo different from what she has come to know of you and to see that part of you in all its honesty and brutality, it is hard for her to accept and say...That's the truth of it, he isn't human, he is Vampire, and he does what he does because that is in his nature to do," I said.
"And that hurts you too," said Renee."Because you want her to accept you, every part of you. You pledged yourself to her, and that meant every part of you, the light and dark, the gentle and the savage, and I don't know if she can really accept that."
"And you love Sookie, and anything threatening her or endangering her scares you, and when Pam shot that RPG at the building, you simply reacted to her, and when Pam tried to apologize, you were angry with her, and maybe you would have hurt her in a fit of rage and so you sent her away from you and said you would kill her because you wanted her to go away but I know you still love her," said Barrister.
"I think you should apologize to Pam, Eric, and I think I owe you an apology, I spoke before I thought about things, and I just...I took Pam's side. This does not mean I am not on Pam's side now, because I am, but I am on your side too, because I know that you are having trouble and I should have been more empathetic to you," I said.
"And could you guys not offer to kill one another the next time?"asked Aolani. "Cuz, a world with you guys, well...let's just say a bit of glamour would be gone from our lives."
"Amen," said Jessica.

What's the Matter with You?

I was sitting in the parlor alone on Monday, doing some householdy chores in the parlor. I hadn't paid attention to the fact there was a Vampire in the box, sort of a Halloweeny morbid toy. When Eric sat up and smoothed back his hair, I nearly screamed. "Damn it all to hell Eric, can't you at least announce you are here and about to get up?"
"I like to scare you, Aslinn, it makes your heart pound," he said. He stood up and let the coffin quilt fall to the floor of the wicker casket and he stepped out and let the lid fall. He came over and stood over me, which I hate. I pushed him back a little because he let me and I walked over to the sink.
"Want a Tru:Blood?" I asked.
"No," he said. He was at my back, looming again.

"Back the truck up buddy or you are going to get a fork in the nads," I said, elbowing him away. He laughed. He leaned against the counter of the bar and watched me wash up the few dishes.
"Bill is right, you wash dishes when you are upset," he said lazily. "So why are you mad at me?"
"What's the matter with you?" I said, turning to him, drying my hands.
"What are you referring to?" he asked, totally uninterested.
"Wanna look at me while I am speaking to you?" I said. He looked at me. "Why did you do that to Pam?"
"Do not get into this with me, Aslinn," he said. "What happens between a maker and his child is sacrosanct."
"Bull shit," I said."Pam loves you."

Eric looked away. "And I don't mean just that maker child thing, I mean the I love you thing, and you have effectively told her she don't count because of fucking Sookie."
"Don't talk about Sookie like that," he said tersely.
"I will talk about her as I like," I said. "What you gonna do about it? Make a juice box out my heart. So nice of you to do in front of Sookie...talk about loveable."

Eric looked at me, his hard evil look. I stared back though I wanted to cringe a little. Then he softened. "You are right Aslinn," he said.
"Pam loves you more anything on earth. The whole world could disappear and so long as she had you, she would be happy. Whatever it takes, make it up to her."
"And Sookie?" he said.
"Sookie is yours and Bill's misfortune," I said. "I am not afraid to tell you, but I hate Sookie sometimes. She will never love all of you and she will never understand you."
"Do you understand me Aslinn?" he asked. Had he smiled that smart ass smile I would have shown him my fave finger.
"Probably better than I like to admit," I said.

The Future's Uncertain and the End is always Near.

I was so late getting to the meeting everyone was already there. I was shocked and delighted to see the Lead Counselor, our Eric, back to his right mind and in charge again though I didn't like the strained look on Bill's face. The return of Eric to his former self was going to be a test for him and Sookie and all of us really.

"So nice of you to decide to amble in," said Eric. Oh yeah, he was back.
"Sorry, I was making rather merry," I said. I sat down beside my Barrister. I noticed Jess was looking at him with renewed interest. Poor Jess...she was wondering where all the cowboys had gone? Would she settle for a Brit Billy? I think she will...

Pam was back to her non-fragrant self and I was happy to see her cured and smell her old comfy Vampire smell. I love the smell of Vampires in the evening...when they aren't rotting or being burned in the sun or collapsed like balloons filled with viscera. Which by the way could be happening to them in the future.To quote Jim Morrison: The future's uncertain and the end is always near....At least with Vampires.

"I can tell you I doesn't seem right to be suiting up for battle without our council behind us," said Bill. We would be there in spirit, there was nothing we could do about what was about to happen.
"Wished we could be there with you guys," said Violet.
"Yeah," said Fairy. "I don't want anything to happen to you." Eric leaned over and kissed Fairy on the head. I could imagine they had already had their little reunion and Eric was planning to reunite with all the other Eric sister wives. I sighed a little.

"Where is Alcide?" asked Sugar. Alcide was in a spot of bother. He was choosing to help Sam against the evil were who had killed Sam's brother. I had mixed feelings about the shifter. The fact he did such heinous things and then turned around and was so noble, it confused my perceptions about him. I wanted him to leave Sam alone and at the same time, I wanted him to die...but then when it happened, I was cut to the bone.
"I imagine he is trying to decide where he is supposed to be in all of this," said Aolani. "But Debbie, that is one she-wolf who had better be on her guard."

"That thing with Jesus," said Minnie. "What is that all about?"
"I don't know," said Aolani. "It may be Jesus is himself guarded by a possessing spirit which only comes out when he is needed. Sort of djinn or familiar spirit."
"And Lafayette saw it first because of the V or because he is a medium?" asked Westexan.
"Both, the V opened Lafayette up to his medium talents and he saw it," said Aolani. "Shamans have been known to use small amounts of narcotics to explore the spirit world because it opens up all those inhibitions and frees the mind."
"While this is interesting," interjected Eric."What will that do for us?"
"Well, Lafayette and Jesus and Tara are in there now, they may be able to help you from the inside," I said to the Viking.

"So this Antonia, she is not the one who is the head of this deal?" asked Kellie, AKA the Kid.
"No, which surprises me," said Fairy."I mean, Antonia is the stronger witch."
"But she is the weaker personality," said Renee. "She is actually quite easy to manipulate."
"And Marnie, she pushes Antonia's spirit forward," said Minnie.
"Yeah, because this throws everyone off. She is so obviously different from Marnie that she becomes rather imposing," I said. "Even you guys, the Vampires are taken a bit aback."

"So, Eric, how are you feeling?" asked Minnie. "You feeling okay?"
"I am fine, no worse the wear for having my memories stripped, being silvered for two days, being shot with a silver bullet," he said, looking at Bill.
"But otherwise, you are fine?" I asked.
"I am fine," said Eric.

I wondered really how fine he was actually feeling. After all he remembered everything, and I mean everything, from the time he spent with Sookie. Now Sookie was wrestling with loving feelings for both the Vampires in her life and I sort of understood. I looked at Eric and then at Bill and sighed.

"What are you thinking, Aslinn?" asked Bill.
"Nothing, just that sometimes, the future is uncertain and the end is always near," I said...

One of the things I missed about Eric was playing poker with him. Of course he won most of the time, but still, it was fun to peer over my cards and see his baby whatever the hell color they are staring at me over his own hand. Right now, our fearless leader was in trouble and we had decided to congregate at Merlotte’s to chat about it. We were down our Vampires except for Jessica and Pam, who was beautiful but odiferous, and while Sam generally did not oppose the Vampires in his bar, he did not want Pam in there smelling the place up to high heaven, so he made our little group comfy in the outdoor party area. You could tell that Arlene was not happy to have to serve us out there, but Sam was helping her so that was okay.

Pam was not in the bee keeper inspired ensemble but I suppose to match her foul mood, she was in Vampire black. She was not happy with Eric’s situation and she swore about Nan Flanagan and her ineptitude. There should have been more Vampires in Pam’s estimation. She was told stay home since she was a little rank, and honestly, not the most pro-human Vampire in Eric’s bailiwick. The events at the Rally had enraged her and she hummed like a live wire. Thankfully she was downwind of us, so we could enjoy our chicken strips and French fries and cold beer in relative comfort.

Minnie was very upset. One of the things that troubled her was Marnie/Antonia’s influence over her beloved Viking. Lina was mad about that too. Hell, we all were.

“It just seems like there should be some way to do something about this mess!” she said.
“There is, just give it a minute,” said Aolani. “We are waiting for someone to join us.”
“Is Alcide joining us?” asked Sugar. She had a thing for the werewolf and she liked having him at our meetings.
“Oh no,” I said. “I called him and he said he no more desire to be around the fangers.”
“But what about us?” she asked.
“I am sure he will get in touch with you,” I said.

Besides, I thought the werewolf had more troubles than he knew right now. Debbie was doing something I was not sure of the reasons for, but I did know it was pretty suspicious and with her on V again, I knew nothing good would come of it. For some reason, both had jumped the gun on one another, Alcide being mad at Sookie and joining the pack to satisfy Debbie and Debbie apparently trying to take a page out of the Helpful Herveaux Vampire Wrangling Book and trying look at least like she was trying to help Sookie but I was not convinced. Even if she was sincere, I think Debbie and Alcide would be operating at cross purposes...Neither will be very happy and neither very successful.

I wondered too at another fucked up beyond all recognition situation with Tommy. What was that kid trying to do? He was squirrelier than most Vampire logic. He goes all skin walker and fires Sookie, shags Luna, then he masquerades as Hoyt's momma and steals about 5800 dollars off her and then does the Tommy/Sam thing and tries to head off trouble for his brother who was camping at the time. Everyone wondered why Alcide did not recognize the person at the door was Sam: That is easy...Alcide had never met Sam. He would not know the difference...

About that time, a battered truck drove up and out jumped Jesus and Lafayette. Lafayette looked none too pleased. Renee and I had been to his house and the experience he had with the ghost of Mavis was too much. But seeing Jesus exorcise the sad ghost from our fave short order cook was a revelation, something we suspected from the beginning but now knew for sure. “Hey guys, come on in.” Lafayette hesitated for a moment. He saw Pam standing there and he was about to backpedal.

“Ignore her Lafayette,” said Renee, soothingly. “She is willing to hear what we have to say to you.” Lafayette and Jesus sat down between Fairy and Violet.

“So, what can we do for you?” asked Jesus cautiously.
“Jesus, we need you and Lafayette to be willing to help the Vampires and your fellow witches. Marnie has allowed herself to become possessed by Antonia and you can get her out and maybe make her even release Eric and Pam from their curses,” said Aolani. “I think it would go a long way to helping your situation with Pam and Eric.”
“I want that as a guarantee…We help you and nothing happens to us, to any of us,” said Jesus. “Not Tara or Holly or any of the other witches.”
“This is no good!!!!” said Pam, full of anger.

“Pam, if you don’t cooperate and give a little on this, you are pretty much screwed,” said Barrister, evenly. The Vampire said nothing in return. She just looked impatient. Jessica sighed. She had finally hooked up with Stackhouse and she was upset with the fact Jason was feeling a little guilty over it.
“I can’t guarantee I can do anything with Antonia,” said Jesus. “She is a very powerful Witch.”
“Well, Antonia is a powerful witch but not Marnie,” said Aolani. “If you can bind Marnie, you can bind Antonia.”
“So how does Lafayette enter into this?” he asked.
“You have to send Lafayette in as your link,” said Aolani. “He is the medium, he has to take her on.”
“Oh hell no, you bitches is crazy,” said Lafayette.
“You do as they say or I will make you my last meal,” said Pam through gritted fangs. “Even if I don’t survive, I want you to save Eric.”
“Pam, calm down,” said Westexan. “We aren’t going let anyone get hurt.”
“We need time to think this over, consult others,” said Jesus.
“Well, we need to know something really soon,” said Aolani. “You don’t have a whole lot of time, and neither do they.”
We watched the two men walk away and get in the truck and head out.

“Do you think they will help us?” asked Lina.
“They don’t have any choice,” said Aolani. “They want out of their predicament with Eric and Pam, we want our Vampires back, it’s that simple.”
“So…this thing with Sookie having Bill’s blood…again…” said Lina. “Does that mean she really loves them both? Or is it the blood?”
“I think it is both. She still loves Bill, even if she madder than fire at him, else why is she all about saving Bill. She said she didn’t want people she loved hurt. And of course she loves this new version of Eric,” said Renee.
“But in the dream, that was not Amnesia Eric, that was the real Eric,” said Sugar.
“True, but she sort of loves that version of Eric too,” I said. “She had his blood before he became Amnesia Eric, so of course she is attracted to both. She might be enjoying the Amnesia Eric right now because his sweetness makes it easier for her, but I think she loved the ruthless part of Eric as well.”
“Do you think he will retain some of that sweetness after he gets his memories back?” asked The Kid. The Kid had been away taking care of things for Eric before he got amnesia and faithfully kept working on it til she was finished with it.

“I think he will. If we think about the source, and what she says, she says that he eventually not just knows about the time he spent with Sookie from Sookie, but he actually remembers as well, which is totally cool,” I said. “So I think now it will even be more sudden. It might be a little shocking to him, but I think he will be okay with it.”

“Will you people give me a small break,” said Pam, angrily. “Why would you want Eric to be different from the way he is now?”
“Not different,” said Jen. “Just more open.” Jen had just walked in to the meeting. It had been a while she came to a meeting but I was glad to see her.
“Well, either way, when Eric is uncursed, he will not be the same as he was,” said Aolani. “No one will.”
“That’s right,” said Violet. “No one ever is, once they get through one of those adventures.”
“I miss Eric,” said Fairy, finally.
“I do too,” I said. “I miss all of them.”

“Are we on? Do you see and hear us?” I asked. Barrister and I were sitting together in front of the mini-cam on my computer.
“We see and hear you Aslinn,” said Body Guard. “How are things in Spain?”
“Hot,” I said. “Have our Vampires arrived yet?” I asked.
“Soon,” he said. “Of course Eric…”
“Yeah,” I said. Eric was under the sway of the Witch Antonia. How he would be I had no clue, and felt he would be unpredictable. I had some things to share with the group, but I didn’t think it would do much good. After leaving the bruja’s hacienda, we went to the witch caves to see where they supposedly did their deed.

Fairy and Sugar Mags and Sweet and Wild came in with their arms full of goodies. I wished I were there, getting ready to chomp down on some lovely Minnie brownies. Lina and Linzy were there. They were whispering about something and I wondered about those two. The last time I had been around them, they were all hyped up for some reason. I had known them a while, but just lately, I had the feeling they weren’t telling us something. Same thing with Fairy. There just seemed to be times when she looked as though she was listening to something in her own head. When she caught me looking at her, she would turn her attention to something else and seem to almost banish gaze from her. Violet came in with Renee and Westexan and Aolani. Alcide stopped by the computer screen and said hello and sat down by Sugar Mags who was tickled to death. Finally three Vampires came into the room. Bill, Pam and Jessica. I watched Butter light a stick of incense. Pam may be looking pretty but she must be a little tangy to the olfactory. The nose knows, ya know?

Jessica sat down near the computer where Barrister and I were playing Max Headroom. (Let’s take The 1980’s please Mr. Trebek). “Hey guys are you ready?” asked Jessica into the computer.
“Ready when you are Jess,” I said.
“Eric is under Antonia’s sway,” said Bill.
“What does that mean?” asked Fairy.
“That remains to be seen,” said Bill carefully. “We don’t know what her plan may be.”
“Could they use Eric as a weapon?” asked Renee.
“She could,” said Pam. “Just as Antonia was using Luis to try to kill Bill, she could use Eric.”
“Eric was already damaged by the first spell,” said Aolani. “When a witch casts a spell, the spell becomes a door of influence between the witch the subject of the spell.”

“That is what we suspected,” said Bill, nodding. “Aslinn, have you learned anything else?”
“I learned a lot, but none of it seems relevant to this case except for this one thing. There may be someone who can heal both our Vampires if he will do it,” I said.
“Who?” asked Butter.
“Lafayette,” I said. “He already has a link to Eric through his blood and he and he is a medium. The bruja said the witch Antonia has to be exorcized and then bound by a brujo, someone who is a master at healing magik.”
“Lafayette isn’t a brujo,” said Westexan.
“No, no he isn’t, but Tio Luca is,” I said. “He can drive Antonia out and heal Eric and Pam.”
“I knew there was a reason I had not killed Lafayette yet,” said Pam.
“But isn’t Lafayette gonna be crowded with that woman already inside him?” asked Lina.
“She is just borrowing Lafayette as a vehicle,” said Aolani. “She may not be inside him all the time.”
“What is her story anyway?” asked Linzy.
“She thinks the baby is hers, she is using the doll as a tracking device,” said Aolani. “She is haunting the doll, that is why it kept coming home when Jessica and Hoyt kept throwing it away.”
“Was she the one who wrote on the wall?” asked Minnie.
“She was. The message has nothing to do with the fact that Terry is not the baby’s father, it has more to do with the fact the baby is not theirs, as far as she is concerned. That baby is hers.”
“Wow,” said Westexan. “So what is her story?”
“Whoever the man was who killed the baby, the baby’s father, that is the clue,” said Body Guard. “If the woman was hooked up with an influential family, then it may tell us more about the ghost and why she is interested in the baby.”
“Well, she seemed to know her way around the Bellefleur house,” said Renee.

Barrister had been looking at Jessica through the computer screen. “Jessica my dear, how are you doing?”
“Oh, I’m okay,” she said. “When will you be home?”
“Saturday,” he said. Jessica smiled at him.
“Jessica, what are you going to do about Jason and Hoyt?” asked Fairy.
“I don’t know, I am so confused. Nothing happened the way I thought it would be,” she said.
“That’s obvious, I thought it was pretty shitty of both men,” said Sweet and Wild.
“I don’t know, I think I kind of deserve it,” said Jessica.
“Well, if it is any consolation, human relationships are not smooth running either,” said Linzy
“Yeah, I get it,” said Jessica.

“Alcide, what is going to happen with you and the pack?” asked Sugar. “You disobeyed the packmaster and got involved with Sookie’s mess.”
“I don’t care,” said Alcide. Minnie, Sugar and Sweet and Renee all looked at each other. “What?”
“It’s just that I think you have too much on your plate as it is,” said Violet.
“I can handle it,” said the werewolf.

“Do you think Tara will go through an attitude adjustment since you saved her Bill?” asked Fairy.
“I hope so. One of the problems of our kind is there are Vampires who have no ethics or limits. I admit I was that way myself when I was with my maker, but once I became my own Vampire, I resolved to recapture some of my humanity. I of course owed something to Tara because I could not save her when she was in Russell Edgington’s house,” said Bill.
“You didn’t have any options then Bill,” said Renee.
“But aren’t you doing this to get into Sookie’s good graces again?” asked Lina.
“Perhaps. It would not be beyond possibility that I did. But, I don’t think I am necessarily out of her good graces. She did come to me, she and Eric, to stand by me. She didn’t have to, in fact I would have preferred Eric and Sookie stay where they were,” said Bill evenly. “But any other ulterior motives I have does not negate my desire to make up to Tara my inability to help her. I do not wish to harm her.” Lina just looked at Bill, still skeptical.

“Sam needs to do something with Tommy,” said Aolani.
“If anyone deserves to be euthanized, it is Tommy,” said Butter.
“He’s gonna make one bad step and that will be all that pup wrote,” said Minnie. “I just hope nothing happens to Sam.”
“Me too, but Sam is in trouble with Marcus, your pack master,” said Renee.
“I will try to keep an eye out for Marcus,” said Alcide.
“Well, we will just have to see what we shall see,” I said.

Logrono, Spain

My eyes adjusted to the sunlight and the bright day. Barrister and I flew there to learn more about the witch hunts there as any tid bit could be important and to help us move on from the hard few days we had been experiencing. My Spanish was terrible but I had hired an interpreter.

I had already done some research on the witch hunts and made notes of it for the council. Since we were on that side of the world anyhow, I figured we could dig around. You just never know what might help. Aolani had sent me the name of an old Bruja, someone who was considered a living fund of witchcraft knowledge and we were eager to get to her.

Our translator Jorge also acted as our driver and I handed him the piece of paper with the address and he nodded. "We take you to the hotel first and then we take you to see the bruja, she will tell you everything," I certainly hoped so.

The hotel was nice and clean and faced the Pyrenees. Barrister dumped our bags on the luggage bench and I went to my bag and grabbed a fresh note pad and my little voice recorder and a couple of pens and my camera. I did not know what I might find, but I was going to document it fully.

I changed clothes and we headed out where our guide was waiting. It was not a long drive and we were at the bruja's house in no time. It was hot and there were only a few trees in area til we came to the casa where our witch lived. The house was classic Spanish construction. There were trees all around it and a low rock wall around the perimeter. the yard had no grass to speak of but it was packed earth and flat stones all around and there was an herb garden in the front, growing vibrantly in the unforgiving soil, like all herbs tend to do. I could smell the lemon verbena and the sage and heather in the hot wind. Somehow, it was refreshing and I filled my lungs with it.

Children where playing in the courtyard and there were hearty plants in clay planters adding a jewel-like green against the yellow clay brick of the house. A slender motley colored cat came mewing up to us, it's tail up and it's eyes expectant. We were led into an inner courtyard that was a bit more formal. There was a boy there cleaning fish and a woman making tortillas on a flat piece of metal laying over a braisure of coals. The fragrance of the corn wafted up to me. Another woman was cooking peppers and their pungent capsasin was filling the courtyard with the promise of spicy savories to come. We were greeted by another man, who might have been in his sixties. He was dark and the lines of his face seemed soft, almost beautiful. His hair was long and tied back and he had a shapeless felt hat on his head that would shade him from the most ferocious of sun. He said something to our guide and he nodded...

"We are to go with him and eat and then the bruja will see us," he said. I nodded.

We were led into the dining room. It was a lovely big room with worn braided rugs and red tiles and a battered but much scrubbed table. Plates were set before us and a big jug of spring cooled red wine, made right there at the house was brought to us. The older man poured us glasses and we tasted it. It was very sweet with a black berry undertaste that gave it a tang that was refreshing. Several women and men came and sat down with us. If having strangers here was uncomfortable to them, you would never know. The women who had been cooking the peppers and the tortillas came in and brought in the work of their hands. Another woman came in brought in a platter of beef and rice and a young man brought in a large pot of soup. Bowls were ladled out to us and tortillas passed to us. The old man made the sign of the cross and prayed over the food. After prayers we began to eat. As we ate, more food was brought to us, the fish the young man was cleaning, some rabbit, some chicken, and we took a little of everything and ate and drank til we were full. There was no talking and as soon as the meal was over, the men and women who joined us stood and took off, back to work, I supposed.

We were given strong coffee and thick cream to add to it. Another bottle of wine was brought. We sat quietly, waiting to see her, the bruja we had come to speak to.

Bill had told me about the situation with the witches and what had happened. I was hoping we would find a way to help them, or at least give them a heads up. I worried about Eric. He was under her sway now...

Finally, the older man stood and we followed suit. I was amazed by her. She might have been four feet tall. She was maybe 80 years old but carried herself erect. She was wearing a bright skirt and a white blouse and her eyes were dark as a Vampire's dawn. She had her hair braided and wore silver earrings. She sat down and we followed suit. The guide introduced us and she smiled at us. Of course everything she said to us was in Spanish, and our words were translated for her.

"Welcome," she said. A woman brought the old woman some soup and the soft fish. She tore a tortilla apart and dipped it in the savory gravy and began to eat. We sat there and let her eat in silence. Once finished, she called for the whiskey bottle and took a dram and smacked her lips. She was toothless, giving her an apple doll look. "What I can do for you?"

"We have a problem, and we need your help," I said. I told her with all honesty about the Vampires and Antonia and the trouble we were having with her. I told her what I knew, and confessed we thought she would know more. She nodded and stood again and motioned for us to follow her. We stood up and went with her. We went into yet another court yard, this one was private. It was her power place, where she brought people to work for them. There was a lovely little sheltered altar dominated by a statue of the blessed virgin in her bright red and blue robes, but I knew the old woman was using her to represent Mari...the basque mother goddess, the one the Logrono witches prayed to. She indicated we should sit with her in the garden.

"Vampires are not immortal," she began. I nodded. This I knew. They may live a long time and be hard to kill but they can die. "And not all witches are good, like us." I nodded at that too. I had gotten my witch learning from books and other witches but this woman was born a witch and had learned the Craft at her mother's knee.

"Mother, tell me about the witches who died in Zummagara?" I asked.
"Those witches were at odds with the Vampires. They did more than curse them into the sun...They were raising Vampires," she said. I listened to the interpreter telling me her words. I looked at her.
"Mother, you surely are mistaken, only another Vampire can make a Vampire," I said.
"I didn't say she was making them...she was raising them, from the dead. Even Vampires know that once you are dead, the true death, you should never resurrect them. The humans who become Vampire are never truly and completely dead. As you know, they are near death, but the Vampire's blood transforms them and makes them not human anymore, the human part them that grows old and fades with age and disease and sickness is dead, but they do not die, they are made Vampire."

I thought about that a moment. It was a strange way to look at it. "So what were they raising? Vampires...they don't leave much of a corpse behind?"
"What they leave behind is enough. But this Antonia was raising the undead and this is an anathema to Vampires. Had she been an ordinary bruja and stayed to herself and others like her, then she would have been safe, and all the women of her coven with her. But Antonia was a necromancer, she spoke to the dead and raised them up. She became their master and she ordered them to kill other Vampires."
"The Vampire priests and nuns... she was after them. Why?" I asked.
"She fell in love with a Vampire. He threw her away when he was tired of her and took another lover. So she began to delve into the land of the spirits and she divined a way to bring back the undead. This made her their maker and they did as she bid them," she explained. "But she also learned to take over the bodies of Vampires and bend their will. Your Vampire friend, he is in her sway?"
"Oh yeah, he is in a lot of trouble," I said, thinking of Eric.
"You have to force her to remove the spell and this will not be easy," she said.
"Damn," I said. "Do you know what we might be able to do to help?"
"He has to be saved by someone who loves him," said the Bruja. "And it is dangerous for that person to try. She will have to fight for him."

I could think of all the sister wives Eric had but I could imagine only one who right now could have that power and that was the blond bon bon of Bon Temps, Miss Sookie Stackhouse.

"Thank you mother, for telling us what you know. I will keep it in mind," I said.
"Take this, it may help you," she said. She slipped something in my hand. "Do not open it til the time is right and only you will know."
"Okay," I said.

So much to ponder...

I make a wish on the first star

August 10, 2011

The rooms of the council were dimmed somehow as the members wandered aimlessly stopping occasionally to nibble some of the food that loving hands had prepared for them while they sat and watched and waited. Spooky Tooth had sent a huge pot of her famous soup beans with a message admonishing them to eat. Once a mother, always a mother.

Aolani, Fairy, and Renee stood watching as the sun began it’s slow descent in the skyline heralding the beginning of the night.

“I wonder if they will come tonight,” Fairy said as her worried eyes scanned the ever darkening skies.

“I think they will,” Aolani said quietly.

Renee took one last look, took a deep breath and walked back into the chambers where she began to rummage amongst small boxes and pulling out drawers, rifling the contents. She finally threw up her hands and cursed pithily.

“What are you looking for?” Minnie asked quietly.

“The damn cigarettes!” Renee snapped “I can’t find those damn cigarettes!”

“Renee,” Butter said, a faint laugh in her voice “you don’t smoke.”

“I do now,” she said, then looking around the room somewhat shamefacedly added “I’m sorry guys, I just need to do something with my hands.”

“Come help me,” Westexan said “I’ll wash and you dry.” Renee smiled gratefully and went to help with the simple task.

The quiet of the room resumed as the group settled back into their stance of watchful waiting. Shortly, their patience was rewarded when Bill walked in, followed by Eric. Anxious eyes looked behind the two and their disappointment was evident when neither Jessica or Pam appeared.

“Bill?” Violet asked softly, a wealth of questions weighing upon his name.

Bill shook his head sadly, “I have no idea, I cannot feel her.” His eyes searched the faces of the people and came to rest upon a beautiful ornately carved table that’s surface was covered with an eclectic assortment of candles all lit, their flames causing the eye to imagine it was looking upon sunlight dancing upon a cool deep dark pool. His eyes closed and he moaned softly as a single bloody tear trickled down his cheek, “It’s true then?” he whispered.

Violet went to him and gently embracing him, passed him some tissues while the others in the group nodded sadly.

“Where is Aslinn?” Eric asked looking around the gathering for the woman that he accredited with the leadership of this group.

Sugar went quickly to his side and whispered to him while Aolani said sadly “She’s been called away Eric.”

Fairy cleared her throat and said “Let’s begin, we have so many things to speak of tonight.”

The group settled into their normal places, Fairy and Aolani flanking Eric while Renee and Violet sat close to Bill, each touching him, both drawing and giving strength with the contact.

“Bill,” Linzy asked “you really can’t feel Jessica?”

“No,” he said, pain drenching his voice “I cannot, I fear she has met the true death at the hands of that witch.”

“I won’t count her gone just yet,” Scarlett said “remember, she is a young vampire and it takes longer for them to burn, you didn’t Bill when you tried to save Sookie from Rene and we can’t forget that Jason is there.”

“No,” said Lina “we can’t give up hope until there is none to cling to.”

The mood in the room lightened somewhat as the group considered this possibility.

“Did anyone else feel sorry for Tara?” Violet asked “she’s sacrificed her love to keep her lover safe.”

“That’s true,” Renee agreed “but really, so much of the pain Tara has endured lately has been the result of her own bad choices. I think she has such an angry soul that she can’t choose a quiet path and I’m afraid that this is leading her to her own destruction.”

“Lafayette a medium?” SweetAndWild questioned “That explains so much of what happened to him last year.”

“Aolani and Aslinn are right,” Linzy said “he’s powerful and others can use his power. That’s scary.”

“What about Marnie?” Minnie asked “is she in there at all? Has Antonia completely overshadowed her?”

“I’m sure there are remnants of her remaining,” Aolani answered “but she welcomed her possession and willingly shed her own blood,” here, Aolani’s voice filled with disgust at the foolish actions taken by the weak willed medium “and Antonia is extremely powerful, you don’t invite that in without taking serious precautions. Whatever happens, Marnie brought this on herself.”

“I just wish she hadn’t involved our vampires,” Butter said “it’s so hard to watch Eric struggle with who he is now and to not want to remember his past” she looked at Eric sadly as she continued “I get why you don’t want to remember Eric but to us, your memories are a part of who you are and we love you….whatever you did.”

Eric’s eyes widened as he looked into the faces of the women surrounding him, their acceptance washing over him like a soothing balm although he made no comment.

“Ok,” Renee said breaking the sudden silence “who else was happier than a puppy with two peters to see Dr. Ludwig?”

“Oh hell yes!” Tiff Tiff said a chuckle in her voice “she sure gives as good as she gets but I have to admit her bedside manner might need some work.” The group chuckled at the memory of the acerbic doctor’s treatment of Pam while Tiff continued “at least she can help slow that curse until it can be lifted.”

“Yeah,” said Linzy “and what about Ginger? Now that girl is one devoted fangbanger. Pam is darn lucky to have her help and that coffin……….it is so Pam.”

“So,” said Fairy as the laughter died “what are we going to do about damn coven?”

“Well,” Aolani replied “I have to travel over the next few days and thankfully there are some shamen and other witches that I’m going to consult with. I have great hope that someone among them will have some extra knowledge that will help us.”

“I sure hope so,” said Sugar.

“I know one thing,” said Fairy “binding yourselves in silver was a smart move on your part Bill. I know you suffered dreadfully but that was a stroke of brilliance.”

Bill nodded at her praise but said sadly, “I still failed, I failed Jessica and now she may be gone.”

“That’s a possibility Bill,” said Violet “but, as we said earlier, don’t count her as gone yet and even if she is gone you have to remember that, whatever you felt about being forced to be her maker, she had more happiness in her time as a vampire than she ever had in her human life. That counts for something.”

“It counts for a great deal,” Renee whispered as she laid her head on Bill’s shoulder and snuggled closer.

“Ok,” said Aolani “I have to get on the road soon so perhaps we can call it an evening.”

The group agreed and rose en mass, human and vampire alike and left the chambers to step into the enveloping darkness of the night. They looked up and gasped as what is known generally as the northern lights shimmered with brilliant colors across the night sky while the stars shone like diamonds. While they stood gazing upon the night’s gift, a huge shooting star shot through the velvety blackness and the dancing colors.

Renee whispered

Star light, star bright
The first star I see tonight
I wish I may
I wish I might
Have this wish
I wish tonight………

Shine eternally in our hearts little star.

I remember.....

Bill was not going to be at the meeting and neither was Pam. Jessica was bringing the Viking to the meeting. We were excited because now that Bill knew we knew he was hiding at Sookie's we could try and help Eric a little. He had fallen into a general malaise and while we could not really do anything to help him get his memory, maybe we could reassure him about something else. The something else was that he was not a bad Vampire and while we could not vouch for what he did before we knew him, we knew he was not a bad person, not really.

So we hurried and ate and cleaned up. Fairy of course was nervous and Westexan and Butter brought the tea cups. They did this on the principle that if Eric saw the boys didn't think he was bad, he would understand we were not just blowing smoke up his hole, that he was really a nice guy.

Linzy and Lina and Fairy were especially excited. Minnie had made brownies and Renee had made her bakeapple tarts, which Eric loved though he could eat them. He loved the smell of them. Violet had come in early to help me spritz the parlor and Michael and Body Guard and Alcide were all there to help us if he got upset and we needed someone a little stronger to sort of help us. Not that we thought he would be violent, but maybe just to reassure him. Sometimes it helps an emotional male to be around other males who can sort of stand their ground with him.

Aolani was doing a peace spell over the parlor and burning some lavender incense in the room for calm. We needed Eric to be calm. Aolani, Renee and Fairy and I explained that we should not just rush up to him, but just welcome him in and have him sit down and try to relax. Minnie brought her photo album. She had taken pictures of all our adventures and she wanted to share them with him to see if he could see how he was with us because often he was smiling and laughing and being embraced and cuddled and treated like an ordinary person...Okay, well he wasn't an ordinary person, he was 1000 years old and a Viking Vampire god (spelled with a little "g" so he would not get a big head), but to us he was Eric Northman, our friend and lover and leader of all our adventures.

Finally, Jessica arrived. She poked her beautiful red head in the door. "Hey, are you guys ready?"
"Come on in," said Fairy.

Eric was finally decently clad. He had on blue jeans and tennis shoes and a Fangtasia tee shirt. He came in carefully and looked around. He recognized me and Aolani and Fairy and Renee from our visit and he looked expectantly at the others.

"Come on in Eric," I said. "Would you like a Tru:Blood?"
"Yes, thank you," he said. He came into the room and stood by the fireplace. "This is a nice place."
"It should be," said Michael. "You built it. It's the headquarters of the True Blood Council."
"I built this?" he asked. "For you guys?"
"You sure did," said Westexan. "Go have a seat, make yourself comfy." The Big Viking went and sat down at one of the chairs. Kaiser was toddling around and he came right to Eric and lifted his hands to the Viking.
"Is this your baby?" he asked me, as I brought him the blood.
"No, this is Westexan's baby," I said. "He is our first teacup human."
"First?" he asked.
"Yeah, the first baby born to the Council," said Westexan."You can pick him up if you want."
"He would be afraid," said Eric.
"No he wouldn't," she said.
"You might not really want me to," he said.
"I know you don't remember but when I was pregnant, you squatted down in front me and put your head on my belly to listen to him in the womb," said Westexan.
"I did?" he said.
"Sure," said West. She picked up the baby and put him in Eric's lap. The Kaiser looked at Eric and he smiled. Eric smiled back. "Bare your fangs at him."
"No," he said, his smile disappearing, trying to hand him back.
"No, hold him, but show him your fangs," said Westexan. "I want you to see something." He looked at Westexan and Fairy and me. I nodded. Eric looked at Kaiser and snicked out his fangs. Kaiser squealed with delight and put his fingers on the long deadly fangs and was not at all concerned. Eric was surprised.
"He isn't afraid of me," he said.
"Of course not," said Aolani. "It's because you aren't a bad Vampire Eric. If you were a bad person before, do you think we would put a baby in your lap and do you think he would reach out and put his fingers on your mouth like that?"
"You don't know me," he said. West could tell Eric was getting uncomfortable, he lifted the baby to her and she took him.

"True, we don't know how you were when you were traveling with Pam, but we have knows you for a very long time, and we have trusted you with our lives and the lives of those we love," said Michael. "I'm Michael, by the way, Aslinn's human spouse."
"You have a human spouse?" he asked me.
"Yes, I do," I said.
"And you belong to King Bill?" he asked.
"Yeah," I said.
"And you defied him and didn't tell him where I was?" he asked.
"None of us did," I said. "You are our friend too, and we love all of you and you guys have a truce with us."

He thought about it for a while. Finally, he sipped the blood and looked at us. "What do you know about me?" he asked.
"Well, your dad's name is Ulfrick and your mom's name is Astrid and you had a sister. You were married and you had six living children and your wife was named Aude and she was your older brother's widow," said Fairy.
"I had children? What were their names?" he asked.
"We don't know that," said Violet.
"What became of them?" he asked.
"We don't know that either," said Fairy.
"How did I meet Godric, my maker?" he asked.
"Godric found you dying, lying on your funeral pyre and he made you a Vampire," I said. "You were with him for a very long time, and he loved you a lot."
"Did you meet Godric?" he asked, looking at all of us.
"A couple of times," said Minnie. "He was wonderful."
"Remember when he visited and I made bakeapple tarts and Godric and Eric both were overjoyed to smell them?" asked Renee to the room.
"Yeah, they ran for them and sniffed them, I thought they were going to sniff them up their noses," said Butter. Renee got up and came back with a napkin and a tart in her hand. Eric picked it up and sniffed it.
"It's lovely, but I don't remember why," he said.
"It's okay, though, because you will remember," I said.
"I don't want to," he said. "Pam said I was terrible, that she and I did terrible things and I hurt people."
"Eric, we have known you for close to three years now," said Linzy. "If something happened and you never got your memories back, well, we would just do the best we could do with that and help you remember what we could but if you get your memories back, that is fine too, because whatever you were before we met you, it made you the person we love."

He looked uncomfortable. He looked around and a reddish tear traveled down his pale skin. Violet, keeper of all things kleenex, gave him a handful and he wiped the blood away. "Sorry," he said.
"It's okay," said Renee.

We sort of relaxed a while, some of us going to make coffee and grab some of Minnie's special brownies. Eric moved over to the couch and Fairy got Minnie's photo album and showed him the pictures. There were pictures of us at the Halloween party, pictures of us at Fangtasia, pictures of us in England and Ireland and Sweden, pictures of our trip to the Myrtles and how he was happy and surrounded by friends and lovers and children. There was a picture of him with Hunter and a picture of Eric lying on his back with the Bun on his chest.

I didn't know what would happen next. As we know, the second world is a world where we had no control but at this moment, I think we could all agree, Eric felt a little more calm now with us, than he had in a long while because we had evidence of something. We had evidence of Eric's humanity, even before he lost his memory and somehow, it gave him hope.

July 28, 2011

I was late coming into the parlor and by the time I got there, Bill was already there. Pam was not there. This worried me because the proud Vampire was in pretty bad trouble and I had hoped to see her. None of the Vampires were doing particularly well.

I went and made myself a cup of coffee and sat down with the group. Bill looked at me. We had all deceived Bill about Eric's whereabouts. Eric was about to get into hot water when Bill finally caught up to him and knowing he was at Sookie's was a mixed bag for Bill.

Bill looked at me and I looked back at him. I felt sort of sorry for Bill.

Bill was in a catch 22 situation, a real tail in the crack sort of thing. On one hand he was the king of Louisiana and all full of power and authority and I personally thought at times he let go straight to his pointy head, but on the other hand, he really had limited authority. The Authority was the one who told his majesty to jump and how high. So I don't think he was autonomous as we imagined he was. He could run the day to day minutia but the big stuff was at the will and pleasure of the Authority and I think everyone forgot that. It was too easy to judge him and blame him for everything from the Lindberg baby kidnapping to Eric's predicament. Hell, I didn't think the witches could just snafu Eric's memory like that. Who knew a witch could overpower a 1000 year old Vampire.

At any rate, we had even more fish to fry....

"So, what are we going to do about the witches?" asked Damien.
"We have to make her undo the spell and to do that, the witch who cast the spell has to be brought forward through Marnie to force her to undo it," said Aolani. We knew this was what we had to do. There was no getting around it. The witch's spell was something personal and had it's own intentions and subtleties. "Even if we knew the reversal spell, there would be a chance that Eric would not be cured. It may even kill him."
"So he might be like this forever?" asked Fairy. Aolani nodded.

"So, Jesus dad," began Westexan. "Do you think he will be a help?"
"I don't know," said Aolani. "I still think Lafayette is a conduit for the spirit inside of Marnie to come forth. Some how or another, Lafayette empowers Marnie to allow the spirit to do what it has to do."
"I think, if anything, Lafayette will find out he was the powerful conduit for Marnie's alter ego to come out," I said. "But I think this man, is a man you have to keep both eyes on at all times."
"I agree," said Renee. "Now, Jessica and Jason?"

"Jessica and Jason will be a really touchy thing," said Linzy. "But sort of funny too."
"Yeah, that whole blood thing," said Minnie. "It could get get really confusing. But you would think Jason would know that."
"I think he does, but he has this conflict too with Hoyt being his friend," said Lina. "Bill, did I see a little smile on your face when you glamoured Portia?"
"Perhaps," he said, gracing Lina with his closed lipped smile.
"He was definitely smiling when Pam came in all covered in crepe," said Violet.
"He was, but it was sort of funny," said Tiff.

"Then of course there was Sam and Tommy," said Sugar. "That was a little brilliant thinking on Tommy's part."
"But not so brilliant of Sam to tell him about his past," said Butter. "What was he thinking?"
"Well, if he thought sharing his 'I murdered two people too' story with baby brother was going to bond them, he was mistaken," said Sweet. "So, what will happen to Tommy now? I mean....is he like the skin walker now?"

We all sat back and Body Guard began to speak.

"For all intents and purposes he will be," said Body Guard. "But my question is, will he act on it and actually turn into something other than an animal and if he does, what will he do with it? I mean, he could do anything, be anyone. Like, will he turn into Maxine and sell her property right out from under her and take her natural gas rights? Or something else?"
"Like?" asked Fairy.
"It would be really easy to frame Sam for something," said Body Guard.
"Oh man," said Damien.
"Yeah...." said Body Guard. "So Sam better watch his ass."

"Okay, so this witch from centuries ago..." said Lina. "She made Vampires step out into the light. Why? What beef does she have with Vampires?"
"You have to understand, Vampires have always had close to no use for other supernatural beings," he said. "So whatever happened to her under the Inquisition may have been the catalyst for her anger towards Vampires. She has been holding a grudge from beyond the grave."
"So what can they do to make sure she doesn't just go away to return in someone else, like Lafayette?" asked Minnie.
"She has to be sent into the light," said Aolani. "She has be sent on so she can't come back."

Easier said than done.....

All Roads Lead You Here, Despite your Destination

July 13, 2011

And it's something quite peculiar
Something Shimmering and white
Leads you here, despite your destination
Under the Milky Way tonight

The Church…Under the Milky Way Tonight

Aolani, Fairy and Renee and Body Guard and I were busy in the parlor. I don’t know if the NY public library or the Library of Congress had the books we had, but we had an array before us. We were trying to understand the spell Marnie used on Eric. If we could understand the basic components, perhaps we would understand the reasons Eric simply was not Eric anymore.

I personally did not know was worse, having to deal with an inept necromancer who may have conjured an old and vengeful ghost of a witch, or dealing with a rabid werepanther. I shuttered at the thought of what happened to Jason. Poor fellah. You never think you would see an exception to the rule about ‘raping the willing’ but there it was. Can anyone say traumatic? I know you can.

But back to Eric’s dilemma. Having our fearless leader noncompos mentum was a true dilemma indeed. We were at the big table, going through the books, turning pages and scribbling on pads of paper and the hum of Aolani’s lap top was a familiar sound in the parlor. May as well call it the Vampire Science Reading Room.

“I think I found something,” said Body Guard, looking at a tiny, ancient book and a piece of paper with the partial translation on it. I went and looked over his shoulder. The book was ancient, leather bound and the pages were thin, like the wings of a dragon fly. The gold leaf on the edges were worn by the thumbing fingers of many hands and there were several silk ribbons of different colors in it, all sort of fadey and twisted from use.

“Where did you get that?” I asked, squinting a little at the tiny book and leaning forward a little more.
“Had it in our family for years. We kept it because it was obviously very old,” said Body Guard. He lifted the book up to me and I put my finger on the page Body Guard was looking at and I examined the cover. It was stamped the word Malificaria on the cover and I opened the cover and saw the Imperatur, the stamp that said the material within was free of errors of the Catholic Church. I turned the page. In English there was a stamp, printed in England 1822 and a foreward. It was a prayer book for the Jesuit Order to fight the powers of darkness. Well…What was a witch doing reciting a Jesuit Prayer? I gave the book back to Body Guard.

“The prayer goes back to the 1500’s,” said Body Guard. “So it falls in line with the time of the Inquisition.” There you are, I thought. “So here it is: Now I command and charge you, O evil spirit! that you immediately bring to me all that money, and then depart from the circle, abstaining from all noise, terror, tumult, and stench, and if you refuse I will damn you both in body and soul. And abstain from harming any creature or thing, and depart immediately to the place which God’s justice has appointed for you. Depart from my sight and flee from here. This I command in the name and virtue, potency and power, of the most Holy Trinity, the Father +, and the Son +, and the Holy Spirit +. Behold the cross of the Lord! Fly away to other parts!”

“Yeah, but where did all those Christian bits go when Marnie cast the spell?” asked Renee.
“Well, the source doesn’t matter,” said Aolani. “It’s the intent.”
“Besides, the Church was sort of notorious about the use of magik and hiding the source by using Christian reference. So, what have we got Aolani, would it work?” I asked.
“Well, it looks like a warding spell and a binding spell. ‘And abstain from harming any creature or thing, and depart immediately to the place which God’s justice has appointed for you. Depart from my sight and flee from here.’ And then it looks like a justice spell, not just about God’s Justice but personal gain for the sender of the spell, see, Eric said, let’s make a deal…Marnie said what is in it for me…Eric said there is nothing in it for you except you get to live…You can’t offer to make a deal and then not negotiate the terms with give and take,” said Aolani.

“So Eric was making the Faustian deal? Your soul for temporary comfort, that comfort being I won’t eat you today, but keep pissing me off and I will have you for dinner,” I said.
“Right. And since it would be considered a Faustian deal, a deal with the devil so to speak, the witch that used this specific curse would have heard before,” said Aolani.
“When would she have heard it?” asked Fairy.
“When it was used against her,” said Aolani.

“So how do we lift the curse?” asked Renee.
“We don’t,” I said. “The witch who cast it has to.”
“And that witch may not be Marnie,” said Renee.
“Right,” said Aolani. “But casting a spell is more than the use of words, it is all about intent. That is why we see Eric so altered and the spell said nothing about wiping his memory. This witch has real grudge.”

“So what do we do?” asked Fairy. Seeing Eric was disconcerting. He was sweet, sort of innocent, but creepy too, not in a bad way, just a 13 o’clock sort of way when the world seems to be off center and to the left and light not as brightly lit.
“Well, we might be able to protect Eric but unless we break the spell, we may never get him back,” said Aolani.
“Bill…” I said. “This is bad with him. Do you think he knew what he was doing when he sent Eric to the witches?”
“I doubt it,” said Aolani. “Though I would not put it past him to use it to his advantage.” I nodded. That sucked but it was a simple fact, there was no love lost between Bill Compton and Eric Northman and if he thought, as he always thought in his misguided attempts to protect Sookie he could kill Eric and protect her, he would do it. I didn’t like it, because I like Eric, but there it was. Our boys would never hold hands, take long walks together on the beach, look longingly in one another’s eyes or friend one another on Face your Space or whatever social networks they belonged to…

We sat down and wrote up the main things we thought about the spell/prayer and how we thought it would work. I sat down at the computer and emailed Pam:

Hey Pam,

Worked on that spell…got what we think it is, but boy do we need this witch to do her thing…Be careful dealing with her though. By the way, it isn’t Marnie you have to worry about, but the thing living inside her. SO DO NOT KILL HER!!!!! Keep Marnie alive or we will lose that ghost living in her body… See you at the meeting…Come early if you can…

Aslinn

And she did. She came as soon as the sun was down and she was mad!!!! She was impatient with us and even hissed at Aolani…

“Back the truck up Pam,” she said, nonplussed. Aolani had a foul tempered cat so fangs and spitting didn’t impress her much. Besides we were used to them getting all fangy and snarly. “This is the best we have.”
“But it doesn’t say how to cure him,” she said.
“Well, we can’t cure him,” said Aolani. “Marnie has to.”
“Fuck a zombie!!!” swore Pam. Barrister came over to pat her and she shrugged him away. He went and sat down, a little miffed. Then Jessica came in and we knew Bill was on his way. “Do not say anything to Bill about what you told me.”
“Pam…” said Renee, and then shut up.

Bill came into the room and his spidey senses told him something was going on. He sat down and Violet brought him a Tru:Blood and I went over and kissed him. “Have you discovered anything?” he asked.

“We are collating,” I said. Bill looked at me with strange hooded eyes. He knew me, he knew we were further ahead. He said nothing and looked away..Oh let’s play ‘Who’s mad at Aslinn?”…Bet King Bill would win.

We all sat down, taking our place. I sat next to Barrister and he put his arm around me. Butter and Lina and Linzy and Fairy and Raki and Aolani were there, Violet and Minnie and Body Guard and Renee and Westexan were there. Sugar and Sweet came in but was disappointed when they did not see Alcide.

“So what do we think?” asked Jessica, finally seeing Pam was not going to say anything.
“Well, I think Marnie is playing with shit she has no conception of,” I said. “She is lost in her desire for power and she does not know what she is fucking around with.”

“That thing with the mirror? Was that her?” asked Westexan.
“Yeah,” I said. “People believed mirrors were portals between worlds, the world of the living and dead, man and fae, heaven and hell. So this other witch, she was there, and I think she made the knife turn in Marnie’s hand. See, Marnie thinks she will get this power, but she won’t…This spirit will use her up and discard her. We just have to get to her before she kills this witch and gets away from us.”

“And Jason…is Sookie ever going to realize he is missing and in trouble?” asked Violet.
“Sookie has her head so far up her hind end…” said Fairy. Bill gave Fairy a look because despite everything he did love her and he did not like to hear bad things about her. I shrugged and sat back closer to Barrister. I agreed with Fairy.

“What about that doll Jessica?” asked Minnie.
“I don’t know. What the hell is the deal with that thing? Hoyt dumped it at the dump, I threw it in the lake and it came back..It’s like fucking Chucky!!!” said Jessica.
“The next time it comes back, bring it here,” said Aolani.
“I will,” she said.
“And don’t glamour Hoyt anymore,” said Bill, shaking his finger at her. I got up. I had a private bone to pick with Bill Compton. The other girls might over look the whole thing with Portia, but dammit, she was not dinner and that pissed me off.
I went to the sink and began to wash our few plates.

Bill came over. “Leave me alone,” I said.
“Will you talk to me, I have been trying to talk to you since Sunday,” he said.
“Got nothing to say to you. Watch out Bill Compton, that thing between your legs is gonna get you in a whole world of shit,” I said. “Might even embarrass you.”
“How do you mean?” he asked.
“You heard me your majesty,” I said.
“Where is Eric Northman?” he asked.
“You don’t know?” I asked.
“You know I don’t,” he said.
“Too damned bad,” I said. “Go sit down, you are on my last nerve.” He pulled me around and I looked at him. “You gonna glamour it out of me?” He stepped back and let me go and walked away. I loved Bill, but he was standing on my last fucking nerve. I hoped he got demoted soon. I was sort of pleased and excited but now I wasn’t. All I wanted was for him to be back to the way he was and be plain old Bill and be my southern sweety again. Instead I was arguing with him and it made me mad.

This was because I was not willing to see Bill connive to hurt Eric. Like I said, they were never gonna be besties, but we friends with all of them, even if they didn’t like each other.

“So, are you gonna work with Lafayette?” I heard Butter ask.
“I will work with him so long he gets me my maker back,” said Pam.
“You know, Lafayette can’t do anything, even Hey Soos. Being mad at them does not help your situation,” I said, drying my hands. “Though if you get in arms reach of an unarmed Tara, please help yourself to all you can hold because this girl is getting on my nerves as much as Sookie.” Bill looked at me. “Yes, fucking Snookeh, they both act like you guys ought to just drop everything and take care of her and taste the back of her hand for all the trouble.”

“And why is Alcide with her?” asked Sugar. “Is he really falling for Debbie’s shit?” There was a collective groan. The Vampires got a glazed over disinterested look.
“Well, she’s a bad penny,” said Body Guard. “They always turn up.”
“Is there nothing, absolutely nothing you can do for Jason?” asked Barrister to Bill.
“Not much, and I would if I could,” said Bill. “But maybe I can look into it.”
“Snookeh will appreciate that, I am sure,” I said.

I called the Witch Doctors....July 11, 2011

“Sookie, we can’t promise you we can do anything,” said Aolani as we walked up on the porch. Sookie had called the Council for our help and we were anxious of course to see Eric, but we didn’t understand the content of the spell nor the true caster of the spell because we seriously suspected Marnie was being possessed by someone or something else.

“Just do what you can,” said Sookie, a little tired a frazzled looking.

“We will, we said we would,” I said to her. I looked back at Renee and we both looked at Fairy. We debated about bringing our Fairy with us, because she is even more fae than Sookie but I had my velvet covered silver pads to use on him if he got a little over excited with her. I didn’t want to hurt him, because hell, I knew he was like the big friendly abominable snow man in the Bugs Bunny cartoons, but he was a thousand years old and he was a Vampire. Eric, you are going to owe me big time.

We came in carefully to Sookie’s house. But it looked great after it was cleaned up and painted. We looked around and there was Eric. He looked different to us, somehow unsure and not frightened precisely but…anxious.
“Eric, these are some of your friends, they wanted to come look at you and see how you are,” said Sookie.
“These are my friends?” he asked. Fairy moved past me faster than I could grab her. She sat down by Eric. She was crying. “Why are you crying?”
“I have just been so worried about you,” she said. She impulsively threw her arms around Eric who patted her on the shoulder.
“You smell so good,” he said, and then his fangs popped out. He looked embarrassed again, and pressed his hand over his mouth to stifle himself. “What are you?”
“I am your friend,” she said. “And it’s okay when your fangs pop out, you don’t have to hide them from us.”
“I smell my blood inside you,” he said, He snuggled into Fairy’s neck and sniffed hard. Had Fairy been a daisy, her petals would have gone all up inside his nose he sniffed so hard. “Are you mine?”
“Yes,” she said. “I am yours.” Eric looked at me and Aolani and Renee.
“Are you mine?” he asked.
“I am Eric,” said Aolani. “But Aslinn and Renee belong to another Vampire.”
“Eric, we are here to see if we can help you,” I said. “Is that okay?” I didn’t want to do anything against his will, anything that would alarm him or upset him. Losing your memory may not seem like a very big deal, but really it is. Especially with someone who is like Eric who has had a thousand years of life behind him and no memories of it besides a walk on the beach and a woman’s cold soulless eyes.

“How can you help me?” he asked.
“We are good witches Eric and we can’t harm you or do anything against your will. In fact we have to have your permission to take a look at you and see if we can help you,” said Aolani.
“You are witches?” he said, pulling away a little from Fairy, that sad, scared look in his eye.
“Good witches Eric, we can’t hurt you or help you without your permission,” I said.
“How come they were able to hurt him?” asked Sookie.
“Well, witches work on nature’s laws. All nature defends itself. When he attacked Marnie, he gave her permission to defend herself from him,” I said. “Can we just take a look?”
“Will it hurt?” he asked, like a child.
“No, we wouldn’t hurt you big fellah. I know you don’t remember this, but you and me are friends and you beat me at poker at our weekly poker games,” I said.
“But not last week, someone needed a new pair of shoes,” he said.
“That’s right, Renee here won the pot and she bought the very glamorous shoes she is wearing now,” I said, and Renee modeled her new kicks.
“Those are great pumps,” he said, looking at them.

“So can we give you a look?” I asked. Eric nodded. “Take your shirt off there big fellah and let’s see if they marked you anywhere, then you can go in with Fairy and Aolani and they can look you over on the rest of you.”
“You want me to take my clothes off for you?” he said, a funny little smile on his face.
“See, now that is a familiar look, “I said. “Renee and I want to look at the public bits, since Aolani and Fairy are yours, they can look at the other bits.” He took the shirt off and we crowded around him, looking at his skin. There were no marks. Sometimes a curse will leave an impression on the bearer of the curse, a hex mark if you will. “Raise your arms Eric.” Having Eric obey orders was strange because he is usually impatient with any examination. Again, I don’t know if it the man part of him or the Vampire in him.

“I don’t see anything,” said Aolani. “Look up at me hun.” Eric raised his face. “Open your eyes really wide.” He did as he was told. “His eyes aren’t empty so his soul is still in there.”
“I have a soul?” he asked.
“Of course you do,” said Renee.
“They do?” asked Sookie. I personally thought Eric had it right the first time when he called her Snooki.
“Yes, Sookie, he has a soul,” said Aolani, irritated. Fairy gave her a hard look. “Okay Eric, go in the dining room and strip off to your underwear and we will be in there in a second.”
“I’m not wearing any,” he said, a little embarrassed look on his face.
“That’s okay, don’t be embarrassed,” said Fairy. He nodded and went into the dining room.
“What are you all looking for besides just all of him?” asked Sookie.
“We are looking for any marks or tokens of the spell,” said Aolani. “Some spells leave a mark.”
Aolani and Fairy went in to the dining room and Renee and I sat down on the couch. “What are you guys gonna do next?”

“Well, Aolani and I are Empaths. We should have brought Raki with us too, because she is an Empath too, but she is helping Pam with something,” I said.
“Can you guys take him and hide him?” said Sookie. “I really am not equipped to deal with this.”
“We can’t, I am sorry,” I said. The two girls came back in with Eric, decently clad. He even had his shirt on.
“Come here and sit on the couch with us,” said Aolani. Renee stood up and I turned to look at Eric.
“What is going to happen now?” he asked.
“Well, you and I are going to hold hands and Aolani is going to hug you and we are going to read your emotions,” I said.
“You are going to read my mind?” he asked.
“No, big fellah, we can’t do that, but we can feel what you are feeling, we can feel things that maybe you don’t know you are feeling,” I said. He looked impatient. “I know this is getting to be a pain for you, but just be patient, we’ll be done in no time. Renee, come and put your hands on my shoulders.” Renee put her hands on my shoulders and I took Eric’s hands in mine. Aolani put her arms around Eric’s waist and laid her head between his shoulder blades and Fairy put her hands on Aolani’s shoulders. We were borrowing energy.

I could feel his confusion and pushed that away, I knew he was feeling that. I could feel his fear, so I delved into that a bit. Aolani was feeling the same thing because her hands were patting Eric’s chest. I looked into his storm colored eyes.

Yeah there was fear there and a feeling of something else. Guilt perhaps? A sense of loneliness? I totally got that. Then there was something old and I wanted to let go immediately because I did not like it. It was angry about something being denied. I got a sense of betrayal and the taste of vengeance and blood. Eric sensed it and held my hands tighter. He looked at me with a beseeching look of ‘help me’ so I sighed and pushed that away too, to look at later. Then there was something pure Eric. Regret, but this seemed like a new, fresh feeling. Godric maybe. We did this for 15 minutes, just sort of fishing around in Eric’s mind, feeling his emotions. By the time we were through, we had tears in our eyes.

“Why are you both crying?” he said, a little alarmed.
“You have a lot of emotions there buddy, and they are really strong, even if you don’t know how to feel them,” I said.
“Can you tell us how you feel?” asked Aolani.
“I feel confused and very angry and I feel desire, I want her,” he said, nodding toward Sookie. “But I know she doesn’t want me, she has been trying to get rid of me because she is a little scared of me and I don’t understand why.”
“Okay,” said Aolani. “How about your anger?”
“I am angry because I can’t remember what happened to me and I don’t know who I am and what I am supposed to be doing,” he said. “And I am scared, because I don’t know what will happen to me.”
“Well, just be on guard, mind Sookie, she does care about you, even though she is a little confused about what to do for you, and she is a little upset with you…”
“A little????” she asked and Eric looked as though she had slapped him.
“Sookie is a little upset with you but it is nothing that can’t be fixed when you get your memory back. So do as Sookie tells you and be careful. You are a strong Vampire, but that does not mean you can’t be hurt or even killed,” said Aolani. She looked at Sookie while she said this.
“You know me? Am I a good person? Do I hurt people?” he asked.
“Eric, you are a very good Vampire and you are a powerful one and you have responsibilities, but I don’t think you hurt people just because you can. You usually have a reason. So you are a good person in your own way,” I said.
“I hurt people,” he said, looking sad about that.
“Only if they hurt you,” said Renee. “If you were a bad person, I would not be here to help you.”
“None of us would be,” said Fairy, stroking back his hair.
“We have to go,” said Aolani.
“Why?” asked Eric.
“We have stuff to do so we can help you,” said Aolani. “But we will back.” She walked past Sookie and gave her a look like follow me. We all went outside with the blond waitress. When we were some ways away from the house, Aolani turned Sookie around and looked into her eyes.

*Sookie Stackhouse, I know you can hear me,* said Aolani. Sookie nodded. *He needs you, you put your selfish pettiness aside and get off your ass and help him instead of treating him like something nasty on the bottom of your shoe.*
“Me? Treating Eric like trash…” she began. Aolani looked at her.
*Will you shut up?* she thought. *Yes you, let your anger go for now and help Eric. He needs your help right now, and being petty and vindictive is not helping him. It could get you killed as well.* Sookie nodded. *Talk to him Sookie, Eric is still in there, just talk to him, tell him things and get him to thinking about who he is. That will help him a lot.*
“So you can’t break the spell?” she asked.
“No, Marnie has to do that,” said Aolani aloud. “And even then, I suspect it is not enough to just have Marnie.”
“The whole coven?” asked Sookie.
“No, the ghost of the witch inhabiting her,” said Aolani. “She has to have the witch inside her who really cast the spell. Marnie is a piss poor witch without this spirit. She has opened herself up by delving with the dead. She has let her out and did not put her back. It is a mistake necromancers often make.”
“We have to go Sookie,” I said. “But we will be back.”


_________________

July 6, 2011

The Louisiana sun was hot and it was only 10:30 in the morning. Vampires had been asleep for hours and Aolani and I were doing reconnaissance at the Moon Goddess Emporium. Going to a witch shoppe was standard operating procedure for a couple of witches like us but King Bill had sent us to go and scope it out on his behalf. As Aolani and I were empaths (though she had a better handle on it than me) we were there to sniff around and see what was going on. Besides, we needed some black candles and asofetida.

Eric was already in trouble, his memories swept away like you would sweep a floor with a broom. We didn't know the extent of his memory loss yet, but we knew he was in trouble, the poor thing. He looked so confused and sweet, sort of like a fluffy lamb with fangs. But this could get him into more trouble, and in more than one way. I hated to think what Bill was thinking about our Viking...But Vampires are pretty treacherous with one another and neither were likely to be besties. Sometimes I was of the opinion I should get out of this sort of fandom, get into Hollie Hobby or Carebears, or those smart assed rabbits that look cute but say I hate you.

We walked in together and the little bell over the door signaled our entrance into the shoppe. I grabbed a basket and began to stroll around the store. The first think I noticed was the statue of St. Death. Now, this is primarily a Mexican thing and has connections with Aztec religion and was even called Catrina. This image was wearing gold cloth so the witch in question was trying to lure money.

The proprietor was nervous little witch. She looked more like a large rabbit than a person, all was needed was the long ears pinned back, and the twitchy nose and whiskers. "Good morning sisters," she said in her soft moany voice. "Is there something I can do for you today?" Aolani smiled at her, but I knew she was "scanning" her emotional self. It must have been a doozy because Aolani sort of psychically shivered. I turned and looked at her and got a sense that the crowded house that was Marnie Stonebrook was about to get even more crowded.

All that took far longer to tell than it actually was because Aolani immediately answered, "We are just looking around, we needed some candles and decided to stop here instead of going all the way to Shreveport." Marnie looked at me and I looked back and then went on to loading my basket with a dozen six inch black pillar candles and about a dozen red ones and then to the herb rack where I examined bags of herbs. I began to pick a few more than the asofetida I had originally planned to get. We were gonna need them.

"Do you sisters have a circle, a coven?" she asked nervously. Don't let that humble nervous sort of look fool you, this lady was dangerous.
"We are not from here," said Aolani. "We just do business here from time to time and needed a few things."
"Well, if you ever are in town and you want to be a part of the circle, you are more than welcome," she said. I walked up to the counter and sat my basket down and she began to tally things up. The total came to $75 and I put down the c-note Bill had given me. "How about you sister, you looking for a circle?"
"Nope, just candles," I said, looking at her. "Thanks."

Aolani and I thought it was odd she would just invite two random witches to join her circle. But then, look at the collection of people she had in her circle. The weak links of course were Lafayette and Holly. Holly was respectful and obviously awed but she was a little scared of her too, because she was pushing them into stuff they had not studied and into darker things that were dangerous. Lafayette was a victim of circumstance and I didn't trust Hey Soos because of it. He was obviously someone who was looking for answers and he wasn't gonna get them here, all he was gonna get was more questions, like: How in the Hell did I get here? Why did I let it get so far? How do I get out of this now? Good luck with those questions Hey Soos.

No, attending a coven is fairly serious matter and you make your decisions carefully and you sit on the fringes out of the way so you can get the vibe...If the vibe ain't right, you get the hell away...The vibe is sorts of effed up in here. Because as I walked around I felt a lot of things: I felt anger, hatred, fear, and confusion and most of all, I felt a woman and a man. The woman I didn't know, the man was easy. He was that smart assed Vampire Renee beat at poker. The one who better break out his hip waders because he was in some serious shit.

Aolani and I talked about the shoppe as we made our way back to the parlor. When we came in, Fairy was already there, VNN on the TV and she was pacing. "What are you doing? You should be home resting?" said Aolani.
"I can't rest, what did you find out at the shoppe?" asked Fairy.
"Sit down, let me make you some camomile tea," said Aolani.
"Why can't I feel him!!!!" said Fairy.
"Because he is not himself," said Aolani. "He can feel us, but we can't feel him. But he is okay, at least, he is gonna be." Aolani went to work making a kettle and I was unloading the black and red candles and the herbs and put them away in a cabinet we used to store our herbs and the like and then I began to unload the groceries. I was making Veal Parmesan and angel hair pasta.

"Aslinn, aren't you worried?" asked Fairy.
"I am," I said. "We aren't going to let anything happen to Eric."
"Bill would," she said. "This is a set up to get rid of Eric because of Sookie."
"No, Fairy, he would not send Eric out to get cursed. If she can curse someone like Eric, as old as he is, she could curse a baby Vampire like Bill." It sounds funny to call Bill a baby Vampire, but compared to Eric, he was. "Just try to relax."
"Is Bill going to bring him tonight?" she asked.
"No, he said he would bring him next time, so we can look at him, all the witches. Maybe see what she has done to him," I said. "But you have to be calm. Eric needs your calm more than anything."
"This isn't fair!!!" said Fairy.
"Fairy, he is fine," said Aolani. "Here, drink some of this tea and stretch out on the couch." Fairy sat down and Aolani gave her the cup and Fairy fluffed her pillows up. I knew what would calm her down. I went to the wicker coffin and grabbed the coffin quilt. Minnie made it for our Vampires to use but Eric was the one who slept there more often and the blanket smelled of Viking. I unfolded it and spread it over her and she sipped her tea. Soon though she was quiet and I looked over and she was curled up under the blanket, smelling her Vampire, asleep.

I cooked and had everything ready by the time the others came in. Minnie and Violet and Renee and Shannon and Westexan, Lelama and Barrister and Body Guard and Damien, Lina and Linzy, Sweet and Wild and Sugar Mags and Raki and Butter and Barrister came into the parlor. The last one was Alcide. Alcide was always in time for supper, but that was the way it was for werewolves.

The Vampires came in after we'd eaten and we were cleaning up, putting the dishes in the dish washer. Pam was dressed for work in her Fangtasia clothes and Jessica looked miserable and Bill looked worried. I was still not over my mad spell with him, despite the two visits I had had with him, once at my house and once at his. He came over and pecked my cheek. "How was your trip?" he asked.
"Well, we have a few things to tell you guys, but we should call the meeting to order," I said. "How is the big fellah?"
"He is fine thus far, though it remains to be seen what he is going to be like," said Bill.
"Well, be nice, Fairy is very upset," I said. "She can't feel him in the bond."
"It is probably better she doesn't if Eric is inhabited by something dangerous," he said.
"Well, keep that under your hat as well, I don't want her to know my suspicions, they are just suspicions after all," I said.

The meeting was called to order. We were all settled in the parlor. Bill addressed us.

"Let's leave Eric for the final discussion, I know we have a lot of questions and a lot of concerns, but let's get through the other details so we don't have to move on from him to cover another topic," said Bill.
"What other topics could there be that are more important, Bill?" asked Fairy.
"Please, Fairy, let's deal with the smaller things so we can devote more time and energy to the problem with Eric," he said. Fairy settled but I could tell she was not happy, and you didn't have to be an empath to feel that. You could see it on her face. Raki was rubbing her forehead. Yeah, that empath thing, til you get a handle on it, really sucks.

"Okay, Jason," said Body Guard. "Do you think they are really going to make him a panther. And will he be a full blooded panther or will he be a panther man?"
"I don't know," I said. "I mean the old stories said you changed into a man-beast if you were bitten, but you guys were born weres." I looked at Alcide and Body Guard. "And even if he does go panther, a man-beast, would he be able to procreate another panther?"
"I have no idea," said Alcide. "It has never been tried before, and panthers and other large weres are becoming really rare."
"They may just be desperate," said Lina.
"Could be," said Violet. "All I know is, that bunch of shifters Sam is involved with, I think he should be careful."
"Yes, particularly if there is a Skin Walker among them," said Body Guard. Body Guard had given me scads of information, explaining the difference between a shifter and Skin Walker.
"Do you think she might have anything to do with Marnie?" asked Shannon. "I mean, if she is a Skin Walker, she would be a witch too."
"I don't know," said Aolani. "Why would a Skin Walker be interested in a witch?"
"Well, she said her mother had died, and she got to be her, maybe she wants to resurrect her? Maybe, she thinks this Marnie can do it," said Shannon.
"We have not seen a connection yet," said Renee. "But anything is possible."
"All I know is, I don't trust Hey Soos and I am worried about Lafayette," said Minnie. "Bill, can you and Pam protect Lafayette. I mean you can see he is reluctant. He only joined in on the spell to protect Tara."
"Or Toni, whatever the hell her name is," said Lina.
"Yeah, and he did it and look what happened to Eric," said Linzy.
"Okay, let's stay on track now," said Pam. "We said we would discuss Eric last."

"Do you guys think Arlene's baby is the devil?" asked Butter.
"You know, I just don't think so," said Barrister. "I think that whatever it is, she is doing this to herself and blaming it on the baby because she is so scared. Couldn't Sookie and Bill go into her mind like they did Tara?"
"Do you think Arlene would hold still and let Sookie and Bill get in her head like that? She hates Vampires and she doesn't trust Sookie much either," said Sugar.

"I tell you who else I don;t trust is that Tommy," said Sweet and Wild. "I think he is up to no effing good."
"I concur," said Renee. "That boy isn't right."
"Yeah, he just didn't have the right upbringing," said Raki.
"But I think we should wait before we really judge him," said Minnie. "If Sam gets in trouble with this group of shifters, especially Luna, he may actually be able to save him."
"I don't know what it is, but I can't get Luna out of my head," said Shannon. "You know, when Marnie was cursing Eric, she kept turning into something else, someone else, don't you think she looked a little bit like Luna?"
"And they do call it Moon Goddess, isn't that what Luna means? Moon?" said Fairy.
"And if she is a skin walker, she is a witch as well," said Jessica.

I looked at Aolani...."It's something to think about," she said.
"So, Bill, you screwing the help around your place?" said Barrister, non-chalantly. I rolled my eyes.
"Ignore him Bill, he don't know the difference between love and food," I said. Barrister had taken upon himself to be angry on my behalf because Bill was giving the head of his security a little debriefing though I knew I and my other sister wives were totally unconcerned with Bill's dining habits, just as Eric's sister wives were totally unconcerned with Eric's little snacks in his basement. Bill looked at me apologetically and I shook my head and smiled a little ruefully.

"Could we please talk about Eric now?" asked Fairy. "Do any of you all feel him?"
"No," said Raki. "The moment his memory got zapped, I stopped feeling him."
"Is the blood bond gone, Bill?" asked Minnie.
"No, no it isn't. He can still feel you, though he may not understand it," said Bill. "Pam and I are trying to decide whether we should bring him here next meeting."
"He would not hurt us would he, Bill?" asked Violet.
"I don't know," said Bill. "I don't think he would, voluntarily." Fairy began to cry.
"Don't cry Fairy," said Jessica. "You will make me cry and you know how I hate to do that." She reached over and patted Fairy on the shoulder.
"This is just so hard," said Fairy. "Not knowing, not feeling him."

Damn, this was going to be harder than I thought.....