The lines that have single apostrophes 'like this' are things that aren't said, but thought.

I do not own any of these characters within...they are strictly the property of Cowlip and HBO...No infringement on copyright intended.

Chapter Thirteen:

The Beginning of the End

_Justin's P.O.V_

I walked out of Debbie's house, suitcase in hand when I saw Debbie pull up to the curb in her car. She got out and spotted me, standing at the bottom stair. It didn't take her long to put two and two together and gather that I was leaving. Her expression was  that of anger and disbelief.

"Justin? What the *fuck* is going on? Are you leaving?" She screeched while she placed her hands on her hips. I was about to answer her when I heard the tell-tale tone of one Michael Novotny behind me.

"Yeah, ma...This ungrateful little shit was just going to leave without so much as a thank you." He said, his voice dripping with hatred. I could almost picture the look he was giving his mother. That 'See-ma-I-told-you-he's-good-for-nothing' look that he gave me when I moved in. Debbie's face almost a picture of the same disbelieving look. She walked up to me and raised her eyebrows.

"Is that true Justin? That you were just going to leave without so much as a goodbye?" She asked, her voice was twinged with a hint of hurt. I could only stand there and look a bit sorry, but on the inside...I was ready to leave. Don't get me wrong, I love Debbie to death and I love Emmett just as much. But Michael...he was a different story all together. He hated me since I came to live with his mom, in his old room. I thought that maybe as time wore on, he would warm up to me...but boy was I wrong.

"Yeah Justin...tell her how you were gonna leave a note for her. That you didn't want to face her and tell her yourself...like the little coward you are." I heard from Michael behind me. He was really fucking up this whole leaving dance. Debbie popped her gum and shrugged her shoulders.

"Well...I guess you can leave. I mean, I still love you kid...but that's kind of a shitty way to treat someone who helped you out in a time of need. Now isn't it." She said as I looked over my shoulder and glared at Michael. At this point, I really didn't care. Debbie would still love me and I didn't want to tell her goodbye in the presence of the Asshole Michael, but it looked like this was the way it would end.

"Look, Debbie. It's not like I wanted to run off and leave without telling you goodbye, I feel like shit about that. It's just...it's time for me to move on, you know? To start a new chapter in my life and..." I was cut off by Michael rushing past me and standing next to his mother.

"And what? Go stay with Brian? I bet he wants you around to be his little call-boy. Well, that's what you are isn't it." He snarled as he placed his hand on his hip, looking eerily similar to his mother.

This was bullshit...and I wasn't taking it.

"Fuck you Michael. You don't know anything. Yes, Brian asked me to move in with him and I said yes. And I'm not his fucking call-boy or whatever-the-fuck. He loves me and I love him and...Fuck this. I don't have to explain anything to you! Goodbye Debbie, I love you like a mother. And Michael, I feel sorry for Ben...for anyone who would have to put up with your shit." And with that, I went around them and made my way to the loft.

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When I got to the loft, it was around 4:30pm. I opened the door to find the window shades drawn and the doors to Brian's bedroom completely sealed shut. I shut the loft door and decided to unpack my things and find new homes for them. Once I had done just that, I sat on the couch and turned the television on.

_Brian's P.O.V_

I awoke to the soft sound of the television. I glanced at the clock, 7pm. Stretching my arms over my head, I got out of bed and opened the doors of my bedroom and peered out into the living room. A serene sleeping Justin was curled up on the couch, one of my ruby red blankets draped over him. I couldn't help but smile at his almost innocent look as he slept.

But I had matters to discuss with him.

I regrettably went over to the couch and woke his beautiful sleeping form. He opened his eyes and blinked a few times before he gazed up at me with a contented smile on his face.

"Hi..." He said shyly as he rubbed his eyes with the blanket.

"Hi yourself Sunshine." I whispered sweetly. He sat up on the couch so that I could sit next to him. As soon as I sat down, he scooted closer to me and laid his head on my shoulder. Alright...time to get the ball rolling on Operation Get-Sunshine-Safe.

"Justin...we need to talk." I said into his silky hair. He immediately leaned his head back, showing his angelic face. A worried expression crossed his features.

"Do you regret asking me to live with you already?" He asked with almost a child-like innocence to his tone. I chuckled and shook my head. He let out a breath and gave me a small smile in relief.

"No, but you can't stay here right now. Eric called me and told me that Reichen is coming here and I can't risk you being here when he does. Is there any way that you can go and stay with Debbie? Or any other human's house?" He laughed and shook his head.

"Well, after what happened with Debbie this afternoon...I don't want to be over there for a while. And the only other person that I know well would be Emmett. But he kind of likes me and I have a feeling that you've got a little green-eyed monster in you." He said jokingly as he brought his mouth to my jaw and kissed the connection between my jawline and my ear. He's got that right. But I can't be distracted by sex right now...I never thought I'd ever say that.

"Well, then there's really only one other option." I said as he raised his eyebrows at me in a plaintiff expression. "Sunshine...I hope you have mosquito repellent."

The look on his face was priceless.

_Justin's P.O.V_

Well...a plane trip later and I'm standing at the front door of a huge, yellow plantation style house in Bon Temps, Louisiana. Brian wasn't kidding about the mosquito repellent either...I was being eaten alive. Brian knocked on the door of Sookie's house. I had to admit, this place had a wonderful southern charm. The door swung open and I was expecting to see Sookie's smiling face and her dessert-themed outfits, but I was pleasantly surprised to see another blond. He was about six feet tall, blond hair, brown eyes, and ripped muscles. Brian and I exchanged a look of approval.

"Are y'all Brian and Justin? Sook's friends?" The blond asked in a thick southern accent. Brian nodded and I just stood there with a stupid-ass grin on my face. This guy was fucking gorgeous.

"Yes, you must be Sookie's brother...am I correct?" Brian asked in a polite tone. Even I had to say, polite didn't suit Brian...neither did nice. The blond nodded and smiled.

"Yep, Jason Stackhouse. Pleasure to meet you both, come on in." Jason moved to the side and let us inside. "Sookie'll be down in a minute. Make yourselves at home, either one of y'all wanna beer?"

"He'll have one. I'm fine." Brian answered for me. By now, I had gotten over the initial attraction to Jason and my attention was firmly on Brian. I moved over toward him so that our thighs were touching, the contact making both of our bodies react. I leaned over and kissed the corner of his mouth, sending even more electric chills through my body. His cool skin reacting similarly. I could tell by the look in his eyes that if I didn't lay off, we'd be fucking in the middle of Sookie's living room. No matter who was watching.

I heard Jason coming and leaned away from Brian a little. He handed me the beer and sat down in the chair across from the couch. Just as soon as he sat down, there was another knock at the door. Brian stood up from the couch when Jason went to answer the door. I watched as Brian's serious expression took on a more relaxed one when he spotted Eric.

Eric made his way toward Brian and took his hand.

"I didn't think you'd be here until around midnight my friend." Eric said in a surprised manor as he shook Brian's hand firmly. I too was surprised that Brian had decided to come early, considering that it was two hours before midnight. "Usually, you're the last person to be anywhere." Eric continued with a joking tone. Brian smiled at his jibes and they took a seat on the sofa next to me.

"It's always a pleasure to see you Eric." Brian said as Jason joined us again, sitting in the chair across from us. He bore a slightly confused look as Eric and Brian continued to chat aimlessly.

"You two know each other?" He asked, drawing attention back to himself. Eric nodded and Brian took the chance to enlighten Jason.

"Yeah, we go *way* back." He said as Eric chuckled. "We've known each other...how long now Eric?"

"About 250 years...give or take." Eric enjoyed the look of surprise on Jason's face when he learned that Brian was a creature of the night.

"Are there any human's left? I mean, not to be offensive or anything." Jason said shyly. I smiled at him.

"Well, if it helps...I'm human." I piped up. He smiled and started to speak when we heard a voice from the foyer.

"Oh, shut up Jason...you know you've been in a relationship with a certain red-headed vampire for four months now." Sookie teased as she came down the stairs. Eric stood up and they kissed briefly. And as I predicted, she looked like a dessert...this time it was some blueberry thing.

"Well, Jessica's special Sook...you know that." Jason retorted, playing as if he were offended. Sookie rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Jason...be nice. Justin's gonna be stayin' with us for a few days and his boyfriend's a vampire." Sookie said as Jason realized that Brian and I were together. He smiled at us in apology and I couldn't help but giggle.

"Well, I'm sorry to crash this little party but I have to be getting back." Brian spoke up as he looked at the clock. I wasn't sure how to feel about Brian leaving me here. I mean, Sookie and Eric were nice but I had no idea how the rest of the people here were. Somehow, Brian sensed my skepticism and grabbed my hand. He intertwined our fingers as we walked to the door.

"Eric has vampires here that will watch over you. Just try and stay with Sookie or Eric at all times, okay?" Brian said as he cupped my cheek with his hand. I looked up into his beautiful eyes and smiled.

"Okay." Brian turned toward the door when I reached out and took his hand. He turned around to look at me. "Just be safe...I love you."

His hand found the back of neck as he brought our lips together. What was meant to be a brief kiss turned into a searing battle of tongues as we stood in front of the door. From behind, I heard the clearing of throats as Brian and I broke our kiss and took in the sight of the people staring at us. I blushed a deep red and Brian crooked an eyebrow at my shyness. He turned back to me and kissed my lips briefly.

"Later..." He said as he made his way out of the house.

"Later." I said mostly to myself as I turned and faced my friends. Sookie was the one to break the awkward silence that the kiss had draped over the room.

"Well...that was hot, huh?" She said with a grin. I couldn't help but smile as we walked up the stairs to my new sleeping quarters.

_Brian's P.O.V_

I left Eric and Sookie's house with the peace of mind that Justin would be safe. I walked away from the safe-house and made my way to road. I pulled out my cell phone and called a cab to take me to the airport. I thought back on the scorching kiss that I had left Justin with, as well as myself. But as I waited for the cab to arrive, I was suddenly taken aback by a familiar feeling that I hadn't felt since the night of the Blood Ball...

Panic overtook me and I began searching for the source of my unsettlement. I was only met with shadows and darkness. I tried to focus harder so I began walking back toward the house. Trying not to make a sound, I walked with a feather lightness as to not give away my position. I walked past two large maple trees and used them to my advantage. I peeked around the trunk and was again met with quiet darkness. Even though I could see nor hear anything, the feeling that was there screamed massive volumes. Something was definitely here and whatever it was, wasn't safe. I swiftly moved around the two trees and found myself engulfed in the shadow of the house. I knew that I was getting close because the feeling of dread, if that's what it was, kept growing louder and stronger. It was screaming at me at this point.

At that moment, I turned the corner toward the back of the house and saw what was spurning the feeling of dread...I saw the face of what I now assume to be he Devil himself. 

"Ahh, Brian. I knew you'd feel me. I guess that's just the power a maker has over his children." The voice that I had now known to be worse than a screeching cat or nails on a chalkboard was speaking to me in the smug righteousness that was Reichen Supay. I felt everything in my body screaming at me to rip his fucking head off...but not yet.

"How the FUCK did you get here Reichen?" I demanded as I inched closer to him. He didn't move an inch as I came nearly nose to nose with him. His smug smile made my blood boil.

"See...this is your fault dear Brian." His words were sharp and dripping with pity. "If you hadn't brought that little feisty sex kitten with you to Alaska, we wouldn't be doing this right now. But you just had to flaunt a tasty little morsel like that didn't you. That's always been your way hasn't it. You find a little fuckable twink and flaunt him in front of me. Well...this time I just happened to take the bait."

"I did NOT flaunt him for YOU!" I couldn't help but yell as I reached up and took him by the throat. "And I KNOW this is my fault...that's why I'm fixing it...ONCE and for all. I hear that hell is nice this time of year Reichen. A perfect place for the Devil, huh?" I tightened my grip on his throat.

Then I heard footsteps and smelled the familiar scent of Justin and Sookie. I glanced up and saw everyone standing in front of me as I pinned Reichen to the house.

_Justin's P.O.V_

---a few moments earlier---

I walked into the guest room that Sookie had prepared for me. It definitely wasn't Brian's loft but it would have to do until everything was safe  again. I walked toward the country style bed with the flowery blue comforter and sat down. Sookie followed me and sat down as well.

'God, I hope Brian knows what he's doing.' I thought as I glanced away from Sookie.

'Justin, Brian and Eric are two of a kind...and I know that Eric would do anything to protect me. And I know Brian would do the same for you.' I looked back at her. 'It's in his eyes Justin...he loves you.'

I felt the moisture in my eyes before I felt the tears fall from them. That's when I heard the loud thud sound coming from just under my window. Sookie and I exchanged looks and darted toward the window. When we saw the source of the sound, I blew out a breath of air that I was holding and ran to the side of the bed.

"I'm sorry Sookie." I said quickly as I inspected the nightstand by the bed.

"For what?" She said with a much haste.

"For this!" I said as I lifted the nightstand from the floor and bashed it back down, smashing it into large bits of wood. I found one of the splintered legs and grabbed her hand. We ran down the stairs and nearly knocked Eric down.

"Jesus! What the fuck is going on here?" He asked as he caught a falling Sookie. I held up the makeshift stake and looked directly into his eyes. I opened my mouth and spoke with more calm than I felt.

"Reichen..." With one word, we were all barreling through the door, down the porch steps, and toward Brian and Reichen.

We ran around the house and found Reichen being pinned to the house by Brian. I watched as Brian looked up from Reichen directly into my eyes. At that moment, I saw the predatory animal that Brian let out to protect me. I watched as Brian's hand tightened around Reichen's neck. But I was broken from my trance by the sound of Reichen laughing. This caught Brian's attention most of all, his attention was immediately brought back to his maker.

"You stupid shit...You really think that I'd come here alone?" As he finished his sentence, five vampires cascaded from the roof of the house and grabbed each of us. I was grabbed by a burly vampire who was much taller than I was. He pinned me to him so that my arms were by my side and I couldn't move.

"Reichen! Tell that fucker to let him go...Right...now." Brian punctuated each word with a tightening of his hand. But what Brian didn't see was the vampire standing behind him with a crossbow. The telltale click of the arrow being drawn caught his attention.

"No Brian...You're going to let me go or you'll die along with your little twink lover." Reichen's voice was calm.

_Brian's P.O.V_

I wanted nothing more than to snap his fucking neck and rip his goddamn head off right then and there. But I couldn't. I looked up at Justin and saw the stake that had been squeezed from his grip and I just couldn't. For his sake. I shut my eyes tight and set my jaw as I loosened my grip on hsi throat and stepped back. He replaced my hand with his own and massaged the area that I had sieged moments earlier.

"Thank you Brian, that was very...stupid of you. Kind...but stupid." Reichen said as his fellow vampire placed the crossbow at my back. I watched as Reichen picked up the stake that Justin had dropped and roll it around in his hands. "Your little boyfriend thinks he's brave doesn't he?"

I opened my mouth to retort his comment when I saw him take a firm grip on the stake. I shut my mouth and watched as he took a step toward me, now equally between Justin and I. I flared my nostrils, set my jaw, and prepared myself for the inevitable. I was about to be staked.

"When it's over Reichen...you have to leave Justin alone. Forever. Do we have a deal?" I asked as he seemed to mull it over in his twisted mind. He looked from me to Justin and back again. I watched as a smug smile stretched across his face.

"I've got a better idea." He said with a dark calm. I furrowed my brows as I thought about what exactly he meant. The realization dawned on me when it was too late. He gripped the stake firmly and swung behind him, plunging the stake directly into Justin's chest. I saw the expression on Justin's face as his fate was realized.

He was going to die.