Some much needed time

Kiara sighed as she parked the car at the mansion. The sun had JUST gone down and she'd barely managed to take a shower at work before returning home. She was getting tired of the guards following her around but they were under orders from Bill. Well if they wanted to follow her around they were in for a surprise.

She was feeling rebellious. Maybe it was because she'd been working and not spending time with Bill. Maybe it was because Bill was being such a grouch that he just sucked out all the fun from the air. He was being a fun vampire...and not the kind of fun she liked.

After showering she'd put on a pair of daisy dukes and her favorite tie up denim jacket. It was still hot at this hour so she used that as justification, but clearly the looks the guards were giving her said otherwise.



She entered the mansion, the guards scattering finally. There were still guards at Jessica's room. She felt bad for the young girl, Bill wasn't giving her any slack even though she was ill. She'd brought over a few donors for her. More refined humans so she had at least something tasty to snack on.

She walked right pass Bill's office, assuming he was busy...again and headed for the kitchen. She figured some dinner, or something sweet would do her good.

Bill had risen a lot earlier than he would normally have done, but his mind had been clouded in a dark serious of thought and wild actions as he had contemplated on his next move re-guarding what he would do concerning Jason Stackhouse. As Jessica's Maker he had the right to violate his promise that he had made him in a moment of weakness as her pleas to speak with the Stackhouse boy concerning his moment of 'madness'. But something made Bill remember the trust that she had given him concerning his jolt into a 'Lilith' fueled haze that he was willing to keep his end of the deal.

Jessica would now be staying here at his home where he could keep an eye oh her whilst she continued to heal from her attack. She was not pleased with the new arrangements but Bill could not be be cautious with the threats out there that wanted to hurt him in ways that he did not want to even think about.

As Bill sat at his desk, his mind unable to process anything but just to sit there and remain silent as he mentally scanned through everything that had been weighing him down both mentally and physically. He could hear Kiara moving around outside his office, he had been neglecting her for a while now, but he had matters that needed his urgent attendance. And since he was still not able to trace the Tiger and had heard no word from his scouting team that he had been found only added to his list of ever growing problems.

He remained sat at his desk, twiddling with a biro pen between his fingers, as they danced between each finger on his left hand. He was not sure how to proceed with Kiara, he had been neglecting her and was not sure of her emotions right now as his own clouded all others at present time. But there was no other time than the present, he pushed back his chair and stood, straightening out his black jacket from the creases. He exited his office and could hear her in the kitchen as he headed to the door and leaned against the door frame and watched her fix something to eat, without saying a word.

Kiara had the large, double door refrigerator open, bent over inside, scouring it's contents for something suitable. She regretted not having any more chocolate cake but as she dug deeper she found herself a bottle of wine, some leftover pasta from two nights ago and...

"Bingo" she said as she pulled out, aside from the wine a pie plate with some cherry pie still in it. Doing a quick little dance she set the wine down, pulled out the pasta as well and began to nuke the food in the microwave, however the pie she dug into instantly. Grabbing a fork she removed the plastic foil from the plate and ate.

"mmmmmm" the pie was good. Nice and chilled, the cherries were sweet and it made her forget for a while just how crummy the past few days had been.

Bill had not said a word but had remained silent and watched from the subtle-ness of the entrance to the kitchen and watched transfixed as Kiara searched through the large fridge that only contained human foods and refreshments for staff members and Kiara. His only personal stock was stashed away in another compartment that held all various types of bloods that were acquired to his own personal tastes. He had noticed that Kiara had lost a lot of weight since they had joined in a courtship.

He knew that he had been the reason that she had lost weight due to the change in her sleeping patterns as he was only able to rise for the evening and called back to the darkness as the sun almost hypnotized his body and mind into a sleep that his kind required, a requirement of what he had become, something that he had been accustomed to over the many years.

He could smell all the heavy thick scents of the human foods that Kiara enjoyed. some that he had never heard of due to his lack of ability to consume humans products of any sorts.

"Comfort eating?" he said, breaking the silence.

Kiara turned, fork in her mouth just a the microwave dinged. There he was, grouchy king of Louisiana William "Bill" Compton. He seemed serene, just watching, or perhaps studying her.

She shrugged "I'm not sure you can call it comfort.. I was hungry" she said casually, setting the pie plate down. She went to fetch her food from the microwave, stirring the alfredo pasta around in the dish. She took a bite and smiled. Food was what her body craved, the pie was just her rebellious side wanting something innately bad for her, like he cravings for Bill. It was all bad for her health but she just couldn't seem to help herself.

"Hows work going?" she asked, leaning against the counter to eat.

Bill chuckled a little as he moved and walked towards the kitchen island and sat down on a bar stool across from her. Since being with Sookie had been been accustomed to watching her eat and his ability to block out the human food scents had been a part of being with a non-vampire.

"Work is....Work. Nothing new, nothing old" he spoke half heartily.

Watching as she slowly ingested her food slowly, it had been quite some time since they had both sat down and enjoyed each other's company; well he was. But he knew that he had been very unattainable for the last few days since he had his mind full on other things that heavily plagued his mind.

"You were gone a long time" he whispered.

She nodded, taking a moment to eat and sip some of the wine, straight out of the bottle. Manners were not in her to do list tonight, not to mention she didn't think she'd leave any wine left after her hunger was sated tonight.

"Work is work like you said Bill. I have clients to meet, product to inspect and business relationships to maintain... during the day hours" she said casually. It wasn't often she left Bill's side during the day and she preferred getting as much done as possible so her nights were free, not that lately she had much to do at night, but at least staying in the mansion meant Bill wasn't freaking out over her well being.

Bill had not meant that he could feel that she was gone from his physically, but it weren't deeper than that. The connection that had spent so much time building up, he could slowly feel it crumbling like a brick wall, chipping away piece by piece. He realized then it was his fault as he had been distancing himself as his mouth had become dark. He continued to watch her eat slowly and consume the alcoholic beverage that she called wine.

"I..I realize that I have not been very forthcoming these past few nights. I have had a lot on my mind and i realize that it may seem that i have not been the adequate companion that you wish for me to be. I have been withdrawing myself to keep my...my darkness that haunts me out of your life. But it seems that i have done the complete opposite of what i intended to do. And for that I apologize"

He finished as he did not know how to complete his last part of what was on his mind.

"I can feel...the connection fading between us, I can no longer feel my blood in you" he finished.

She chuckled warmly, setting down the wine. "Well.. the last time I drank your blood was quite some time ago" she said as she looked at him.

"Relax Bill... I'm not a little girl. I knew dating you would present it's challenges. Ruined plans and vampires coming and going is just part of the package" she said casually.

She placed her elbows on the counter, resting her chin in her cupped hands. "If you wanted to renew our bond all you had to do was ask. But you've been busy and I've done my best to respect your time and duties"

"Kiara, i do not wish to renew the blood bond because you think its what I want. It does not work that way. You have to want to renew it. And as for being King, it does come with responsibilities that i cannot push aside. I swore upon the blood and the Authority that I would uphold my duty as King. And although there may not be any members of the Authority alive due to them meeting the True Death at my own hand. But this would be our third sharing of blood. There will be no going back from this, there is only one way to end the bond and that is death Kiara"

He quickly swooped in and stole her utensil from her hand and began picking at her food that she was eating and placed a few piece of her food onto her fork and held it in the air.

"Open" he commanded.

She chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Bill... hasn't living with me taught you that no one tells me what to do?" she asked leaning in and instead of eating the food she nipped at his knuckles holding the fork.

"But for you... I'll oblige... although the last man who tried to feed me food ended up with pea soup all over his face" she added as a comical afterthought before she opened her mouth and ate the food presented by him.

She chewed for a moment before licking her lips. "Besides.. you're making this blood bond sound almost evil...'only death can turn it back' sounds almost like a marriage vow..."

Bill smirked as she nipped at his knuckles as she consumed the piece of human food on her fork.

"The sacred blood bond between two people is far more sacred that a marriage vow. Vampires only marry to further themselves in wealth or political position which is what the Queen of Oklahoma wishes achieve as her state had been frolicking away in wealth as she has become very much like Sophie Ann. Her ability to posses the finer items in life. Although I have my doubts on her ability as a Queen, i do have ways and means to escape my predicament about our impending joining. It will take time, but with the backing of several allies the Queen may be joining Sophie Ann sooner rather than later"

Bill played around with another piece of her food and held it to her lips as her teeth glided across the fork and she groaned at the taste.

She grinned, her eyes flashing orange for a second. "mmm... death plots, vampires... arranged marriages. It's like watching a soap opera except I'm sleeping with the male lead" she whispered. She hated to admit it, but plotting the death of someone made her inner wolf stand up and pant for more. Maybe she was too hungry, or maybe she was just bloodthirsty by nature.

"I will say this... for love or not, you vampires sure know how to throw a wedding. The few that I've catered have paid me enough I could honestly retire and never want for anything again"

Bill laughed, it was true that Vampires like to go above and beyond when it came to weddings. It was well known that that they liked to compete with the biggest events around and liked to showcase it throughout the Vampire community that they could compete with the best around.

"Vampires like to show that whom they are marrying for political reasons to gain wealth. Not for love, not because they care for one another. If i marry it will be for love and none other"

She grinned. "What makes you so different then Bill? You're a vampire.. you're in a position of power. Marrying for love gains you nothing but an intangible emotion...a human one at that"

She studied his face. "Even for us mortals marriage for love is a rare thing... we marry because we're lonely, or we want something we can't obtain alone... money, possessions, kids... then we suck it up and stay with the person unless they turn abusive, or we divorce the bastards, take half the money and live on an island somewhere" she chuckled.

She laughed again, shaking her head. "Gods...I just made us warm blooded people sound like total bastards"

"Trust me, I have come across my fair share of humans that want to marry a Vampire, merely for the money that they have obtained or for their blood nothing more than physical possessions. But i have come across a select few who marry for other reasons" he finished as he placed the fork onto the island and stood from his stool and walked around to a hidden fridge in a cupboard and pulled out a cold bottle of True Blood and walked towards the microwave and began heating it up.

"You haven't said anything about yourself sweetheart...What would you marry for?" he asked curiously.

She shrugged, moving to sit on a nearby barstool. "I've never thought of marriage to be honest. Sure when I was little...I pictured my father walking me down the aisle, but after he died I just... it wasn't a dream of mine anymore" she said honestly.

"I suppose marriage for love would be nice, but it isn't something I lose sleep over. With my pack wanting me to marry an alpha wolf, no real relatives and me dating you... well marriage seems quite complicated and messy to even contemplate"

That was not what he wanted to hear, but after hearing about how she envisioned herself walking down the isle with her father beside her. It was not something that he was able to do. After the microwave beeped signalling that his True Blood was warmed, he took it out and gave it a shake and took a much larger mouthful that he intended too. He dropped his hand into his pocket and his hand wrapped around a small box.

"So I guess now wouldn't be a good time?"

She chuckled. "Bill...I don't know if anytime would be good or bad. Marriage... like sex...it just...happens" she said as she spun around on the bar stool.

"Some people wish it, some people can't seem to avoid it.. and me? I just don't know. I will say this though... " she reached for the bottle of wine. "...I'd feel bad for the poor sucker who had to marry me. Gods imagine being tied down to a real bitch for the rest of your life?" she took a long drink. "I sure hope he wears a cup often... or invests in some cake company to appease my ever swinging moods"

She smirked. "Although I suppose sex with me can't be all THAT bad... "

"Well then...I guess you will have to feel sorry for me i guess" he smirked as he placed his bottle of True Blood on the marble island.

He straightened himself out as he stood in front of her and pulled out the small black box that was in his pocket and opened it.



And turned the box to show her as he slowly dropped to one knee, one hand extending the box to her and the other resting on his lap.

"Kiara Griffen. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife" he said, his southern accent showing heavily.

She blinked. She didn't get his comment as for her feeling sorry for him, not until he got on one knee.

"Kiara Griffen. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife"

The words echoed in her head and for a second she looked at the wine bottle. Ok she hadn't had THAT much to drink, the wine wasn't spoiled, and neither was the food. She wasn't on drugs and last she checked this wasn't one of her weird, food coma induced dreams so the only logical conclusion....

Holy shit this is real! screamed her inner voice.
But this CAN'T be real! Why would Bill want to marry you? He gains nothing! argued her pessimistic side.
Well clearly he does wanna marry you girl said her optimistic side
I'm still hungry argued the wolf side. She ignored that side, going back to the original argument. What did one do in such a situation?
Girl you say yes! said her optimistic side.
No you ask whats the catch said her pessimistic side.
She gave her head a mental shake. All this talking was confusing her and Bill was looking like he expected her to say no. So when in doubt....ah fuck it! she'd never been one to do things the traditional way.

She jumped off the bar stool and tackled Bill to the ground, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him for all she was worth.

"I wasn't kidding about the cake thing" was her answer.

Bill waited patiently for an answer as he could see the looks upon her face, maybe this was too sudden. Maybe he should have waited for a better moment to ask, but he had been debating this for a while now. Maybe he should have waited. He had just started to put the box away into his pocket as he was knocked to the floor unexpectedly as Kiara had pounced on him. Her lips attacking his own as his hands wrapped around her waist as he held her up so that she was straddling his waist.

"I wasn't kidding about the cake thing"

"I gathered that you weren't" as he held up the box again "Say you'll become my wife" he asked again.

She nodded, looking at the ring, which of course was flawless...typical Bill.

"Yes..." she whispered, kissing him again, a bit more patiently this time. It felt like a strange weight had been lifted from her. The past few days with his distance and just everything that happened seemed to fade away into nothingness.

Bill's smile danced with glee as she said 'YES', he slowly took the ring from the box and held up her hand and slowly slid it onto her finger, it looked like a perfect match to be upon her finger.

"A perfect fit" he grinned.

He had been expecting her to say no, especially after what had happened between them in the last few days.

She chuckled. "I wouldn't be surprised if you had my finger measured beforehand" she whispered as she slowly sat up. Still straddling his hips she inspected the ring in the light.

The diamond sparkled in its simple setting but knowing Bill, that rock was worth a pretty penny and perhaps some more.