𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐒
when you lose someone, it stays with you. always reminding you of how easy it is to get hurt

AFTER REUNITING WITH both Grans and Jason, Victoria felt more at home than she ever did in Mystic Falls, especially after the wreck.

The wreck is what made everything worse. Victoria's life changed for the worse — vampires came into the equation, turning her world upside down and always putting her in danger. And, of course, because of her caring nature, she put herself in front of all the danger to keep everyone she loved safe. That's just who she is and it was never going to change, no matter how much she wanted it to.

And even though she's been in Bon Temps for only two days, Sam had already given her a job as a waitress, and she has met Sookie's boyfriend — or whatever he was to her — and he happened to be Type A vampire. It wasn't that much of a surprise seeing as falling in love with vampires happen to run in the family — first Elena and now Sookie. Plus, Sookie had told the younger girl that she couldn't read Bill's mind which must feel like heaven to the blonde.

Right now, both her and Gran walked towards a tired and frustrated Sookie who was mowing the lawn. Gran carried a glass of lemonade.

"Sookie!" The younger Gilbert shouted, interrupting her cousin who abruptly looked up at her with wide eyes, turning the mower off.

Gran let out a breath as both women stopped walking. "You're gonna faint out here in this heat, honey! It's barely 9:00 and already 80 degrees. Here. I made you some lemonade. Fresh-squeezed."

Sookie smiled and wiped the sweat on her brows before taking the glass of lemonade, sipping it. "Thanks, Gran."

"I helped," Victoria spoke up, grinning. She remembered she, Elena, and Jeremy would come here for summer break. She and Elena always used to put up a lemonade stand and sell it, granted it was terrible lemonade, but people were so sweet and bought some anyway.

Gran looked at the blonde in worry. "Goodness, what has got into you?"

Victoria looked at her cousin, tilting her head. Ever since Sookie went to Bill's house last night, she's been acting weird.

"I just need to stay busy right now, that's all," The blonde muttered, handing Victoria the half empty glass of lemonade.

"What? How long have you been--" Victoria gestured around the yard, just now noticing how much her cousin had gotten done.

Sookie glanced around with narrowed eyes. "I started uh ... when the sun came up. But I was up much earlier than that. I just stayed inside."

Gran faced her granddaughter with worry. "Are you concerned about the vampire?" When Sookie looked away, Gran grew defensive. "Sookie, has he done something untoward?"

Sookie autimatically shook her head. "No! No! Not at all. Well, I'm just thinking. . .What I'm thinking is--is stay away, but what I'm feeling--what I'm feeling. . .with my whole body is somethin' else entirely and I don't know whether to trust my--my head or..."

Gran nodded wisely as Victoria stood to the side, listening. She's never been in love with someone, so she has no idea how Sookie feels. "Heart."

Sookie nodded. "Yes."

Gran sighed. "Well, that is a dilemma. Why don't you come on inside, and let me make you something to eat? If you're gonna be out workin' like a horse, you ought to at least to have somethin' in your stomach."

Sookie shook her head. "Oh no, thanks. I'm not hungry."

Victoria whistled. "That was the wrong thing to say, Sook."

Gran narrowed her eyes. "I didn't ask if you were hungry." The older woman started to walk towards the house, taking the glass cup from Victoria's hand.

Victoria turned to her Cousin, grinning. "Oh, shush," Sookie muttered, lightly hitting the younger girl who giggled and latched their arms together, following their Gran.

GRAN WAS COOKING breakfast while both Sookie and Victoria sat at the table, waiting patiently and talking.

"Marthaville's gettin' a Starbucks," Sookie told her younger cousin, smiling, knowing how much Victoria loved coffee. She practically lived for it.

Gran grumbled, glancing down at the brunette. "I cannot for the life of me see why anybody would spend $3 on a cup of coffee with too much milk."

"Because it's good, Gran," Victoria chirped, smiling, bringing her cup of coffee to her lips.

Sookie smiled. "Arlene told me, that people are less calcium-deficient than they used to be because of all the fancy coffee they drink nowadays."

Gran paused before nodding. "You know, I never thought of that, but it does make sense." She set two plates down on the table, one for each girl before grabbing her own plate and taking a seat.

Sookie perked up. "Hey, Gran. Do you think I should continue seeing Bill?"

Victoria frowned at her cousin. She thought she loved Bill or, atleast, felt for him strongly.

Gran gave the blonde a look. "Sookie, I can't tell you that. I can tell you that I think he is a smart, handsome and very polite young man, but of course he's gonna show his best side to me so that I won't stand in the way of his courtin' you."

The blonde looked down and played with her food. "He scares me."

Victoria narrowed her eyes and grabbed the blonde's hand. "If he laid a hand on you, tell me and I'll take care of him. I don't care if he's a two hundred vampire, I've delt with worse."

Gran placed her tea mug down. "Well, it is scary... opening your heart up to somebody."

And that's why I don't do it, Victoria thought, sipping her homemade coffee.

"I think it's a little scarier... the vampire than the regular guy?"

Gran shrugged and rose both her gray eyebrows. "I suppose. Bill is the first vampire I ever met... that I know of."

Victoria grimaced and shoved a fork full of eggs into her mouth. She's seen way too many vampires in the past year and a half, though, she was lucky enough to not run into any Type A vampire's until now.

"Not scared that he would ever hurt me... scared because I don't know what he's thinking," Sookie admitted, looking ashamed.

Victoria was puzzled. "I thought that was why you liked him so much?" She was confused with her cousin. If she could read minds and find one person she couldn't do it with, she'd think it was a miracle.

Sookie stood up and took her plate to the sink.

Gran sighed and thought about something — seeming to make a decision. "You know, your grandfather used to know things."

Both Sookie and Victoria straightened up. The blonde quickly took her seat back beside her cousin. "What things?"

"If somebody was having money problems -- running around behind their wife's back -- sick ... that kind of thing. Personal things they never would have told anybody about," Gran explained, pursing her thin lips.

Sookie grew frustrated. "See, that's exactly it. If I don't stop myself from it, I hear everybody's deepest, darkest secrets. I'm sorry. That's just too much information!" She exclaimed, looking overwhelmed. Victoria reached over and rubbed her back, trying to soothe the blonde.

Gran tilted her head. "But then Earl's brother, your Great-Uncle Francis, came back from Korea in real bad shape -- all torn up from the things he'd seen. Earl knew he was thinking about killing himself. He went over there in the middle of the night one night. Francis was just about to kick the chair out from underneath him -- already had the noose around his neck. But Earl talked him out of it." She sighed and gave the blonde a look. "I just think there is a purpose for everything that God creates, whether it's a unique ability or a cup of overpriced coffee with too much milk ... or a vampire. God will reveal that purpose when the time is right."

Sookie stood up and walked over, and kissed Gran on the cheek, and then started going up the back stairs to the second floor.

Victoria faced her gran. "Wait. I thought Great-Uncle Francis did kill himself, with a shotgun."

Gran nodded. "Oh, yes, he did, but that was years later."

Victoria hummed and leaned back in her seat. She raised her cup to her mouth and took a huge gulp of her coffee.