Chapter Thirty-One

by TheStrongOne

Beta'ed by ilovemysteries

Erikson P.O.V.

"Damn…" Peter teased slipping inside my room a week after our return from Oklahoma. I glared at his wide set smile. "You've grown even more!"

I rolled my shoulders and shrugged. "Twelve looks good on me." I smirked lazily, I couldn't help but be proud of the extra nine and half inches I had put on since my healing a few months back. "so… how did you get past the warden?"

"Which one?" Peter chirped, booting up my computer.

"My mother obviously, because we both know if Pam was here, you wouldn't be." I grouched. I stared stonily at my bedroom wall. I was serving time for my risky move at the hotel. Dad had been pleased but irritated at how close I had called it, but mom and Pam were infuriated. That's what I get for having a telepath as a mother and Peter and Ralph practically pushing the play by play into her mind.

"I told, Mrs. Northman that I'm here to finish our history project." Peter said setting his black folder on the desk with a soft thud.

"It's already finished," I said pointing to the bedroom wall, were I had the large presentation board leaning.

Peter laughed, "What the heck man, are you going for shock and awe."

"Nah, well maybe, I was bored." I explained. Part of my problem was I couldn't stand our History teacher, who in turn couldn't stand me. Even though I provided A work, I was averaging a B in her class.

"Holy Heck this is the A I needed, brother." Peter chuckled.

"You did most of the research." I stated, sweeping my eyes over the visual display.

"That's because you already knew a lot of it," he teased. "You and your obsessions with wars."

"I wouldn't be so optimistic about you're A." I warned with a frown.

Peter nodded frowning, "That's true, Mrs. Otter can't stand you. What are these holes for?"

"iPad, I found these awesome World War 2 clips that actually show what we're talking about." I explained, and showed him how one of us would move down the board, holding up my iPad to show the clips, in there assigned cut-out slots.

"Soo… how much longer are you on lockdown?" Peter asked.

"If mom and Pam get their way, until I'm an old ass man." I scowled, my grounding wasn't leaving me in the best or happiest of moods. "I'm serious, stop laughing. I am on permanent until further notice lockdown. What I did, was reckless, foolish, and dangerous, and they can't see past the risk to see the reward. I am one more bad decision away from Boarding School or so Mom says."

"At least it isn't Military School." Peter chuckled and I cursed his optimism.

"Worse off, Pam used my action to prove that I'm not mature or old enough to know anything." I sighed dropping back onto my bed. "I know, what we did was a once and a lifetime thing but now they won't tell me anything because they've got Eric convinced that I'm going to go off and do something bloody stupid."

Peter nodded, "You do have a tendency do stupid things, and they're right to believe that your luck isn't going to hold out forever."

"I know," I huffed. "Now it's all, go play a video game, study that new tome your Dad brought you. Dad has made it clear that I won't be doing anything interesting in the Supernatural world until I finish my training, by his estimate that won't be until I'm seventeen to twenty, depending on how hard I work."

"That blows, but it ain't so bad." Peter said carefully and I nodded conceding. "So when do you get to mingle with your friends?"

"Next weekend." I said, rolling my skateboard across the room.

Peter wiggled his eyebrow and leaned forward and whispered, "so, what do you know?"

"I know that fifteen to possibly eighteen states are considered problem states, with Oklahoma in the center backed strongly by Kansas, the Dakotas and Colorado. The bugs, have been brilliant at getting us Intel we wouldn't have otherwise. I know that the human Government is watching everything with cautious eyes. Dad has been up to his eyeballs in meetings with both Government officials and possible allies. I've been doing everything I can to help but it isn't much."

"What have you done?" Peter asked, shaking his head with a quiet laughter.

"You know how, I can feel and manipulate you're emotions a little. Like when you were extremely pissed at Mr. Davis in Math and about popped off and I forced you to calm down, so you wouldn't get expelled." Peter nodded knowingly. I continued. "I've been, with Dad's allies I've been strengthening their loyalty to him. I can't create anything, like if someone don't trust him, I can't make them trust him, ya know, but those little seeds in them of their trust, loyalty, respect, I help them take root."

"Oh damn," Peter breathed, "that should be really creepy, but why do I find it soo cool?" he laughed, chunking a pillow at me. "You better not get caught either, because it will be Hello Wilton Academy." He teased and I nodded soberly.

"Erikson," Pam snapped from my doorway and I rolled my eyes at Peter and he shook his head, convinced I had a death wish.

"Yes, Pammy?" I sing-songed, spinning to face her with a forced smile.

"You're not supposed to have guests, until the twenty-first." Pam said drily.

"We're just working on our project." I defended stonily.

She smirked, "it looks finished to me."

Peter picked up his backpack. "I'll see you later, man." He said breaking the tension between me and Pam. I laughed as he moved around Pam and high tailed it down the stairs.

I turned away from Pam, and moved toward my computer. "You can leave now Pamela." I scoffed.

"Still angry I see," She remarked. I rolled my eyes. "Still behaving like a child."

"I am a child." I shot back smugly.

"When are you going to drop the attitude Erikson?" She asked coolly, tinkering with one of my baseball bobble-heads.

I smirked and snarked, "how about when you stop being a hypocrite."

I smiled condescendingly as she snarled at me. "What makes me a hypocrite?"

"The fact that you walk around punishing me for something that you would have done the same damn way." I huffed and tossed myself down in my bean bag chair.

"What you did was…" I cut her off.

And continued with an elaborate eye roll, "it was dangerous, reckless and I could have been caught and everything would of been for not. I've heard the speech before, but you're forgetting that I have my own gifts, and had you been there and I told you you would have made it, you would have done it too. Heck you would have done it without my 'insight', you would have risked it too, stop pretending otherwise. I had Ralph, Ryan, Peter and Justin watching my back." I stopped my rant and froze, overwhelmed by a dark feeling. I snapped my head towards Pam. "Did you bring someone with you?"

She smiled, "my date but she's waiting in the living room."

"She's not as into you as you think she is, there's something bad about her," I muttered darkly, my skin crawling, I was feeling violated in my own home. "She's up to no good down there." I warned moodily following her out of my room. The woman is beautiful, tall, brunette, and had green as grass eyes as she whirls around and flashes Pam a bright grin.

I scowled, "Ah-ha sweetheart, sit down you're not going anywhere," I lazily glamoured. I started searching the room, and with-in seconds Pam follows my lead, sure enough, in the entertainment drawer is a listening bug in a fake mint container.

"So where are my parents?" I asked Pam, as I cuffed Aubrey's right wrist to the oak chair in the corner of Dad's office.

"Sookie needed some groceries and you know those two hardly go anywhere without the other anymore." Pam scoffed with a little smile. I nodded, I did know indeed. Dad was taking to more, and more meetings at home with his allies as Fangtasia was too easily infiltrated. "They should be back soon enough. It's why I checked in on you."

I nodded as Pam gently taped Aubrey's mouth shut. We left her there, scared and alone in my Dad's office as we made our way back to the living room were we stood together awkwardly. I glanced at Pam a few times, opening and closing my mouth. I shrugged and turned to leave, I really didn't want to start another row.

"Erikson," Pam called after me, stopping me from retreating back to my bedroom. I turned ready to get back to our disagreement, but she surprised me. "Thank you and you're right, I would have done the same thing, in Oklahoma." She steps closely and cups my cheek. "But everything else, I'm looking out for you, too much too fast. You're amazing mini-me, so much Eric and Sookie in you, and that's a dangerous-potent mix. One day, with proper tutelage and guidance you're going to be extraordinary, I have no doubt you'll change the world."

I hugged her tightly, forgiving her, even conceding to her point. "I see you two have worked out your issues." Eric stated.

"Pam's girlfriend is tied up in your office," I announced and Pam coughed into her hand, hiding her amusements.

"Sounds positively kinky," Dad drawled, I flushed crimson. Pam laughed as Mom chastised Dad sweetly.

"She's not my girlfriend." Pam clarified and I wiggled my eyebrow at her.

"Fine her lover…" I teasingly drawled out.

"Erikson…" Mom scowled and I flushed.

"Sorry, inappropriate." I muttered and my mother grinned, all is forgiven until Dad opened his mouth.

"Why is it inappropriate if it's accurate?" Eric questioned, Mom narrowed her eyes at him. I turned and looked at her curiously.

"Because Eric, he's twelve." I refrained from rolling my eyes. I don't need to add any more time to my sentencing. Eric sighed and shrugged. Just like that Mom wins again with the classic, age card. I faked a gag as Dad pulled Mom into his arms and kissed her gently.

"Can we get back on topic please…" I whined, before adding seriously, "So Pam's not Girlfriend, umm Aubrey tried to bug our living room."

"Erikson said she felt, bad, so we came downstairs and he started searching the room. I followed his lead and found the bug in the remote drawer of the entertainment center." Pam explained. "I knew you wouldn't want us to interrogate her without cleaning the house completely. Markus and Justin are on their way out."

"Very good." Eric praised, towards both of us. "Sookie and I will handle the woman, find out what she knows, who she works for. You're still free to your personal night, Pam."

"I still have my reservation at Davos Pizzeria," Pam said, eyeing me with a quirk of a grin. "You hungry, Mini-me?"

"Like a horse," I laughed, feeling the taste of freedom on my finger tips and Davos pizza is the best. My Mom narrowed her eyes but Dad whispered something in her ear and her eyes brightened and her frown turned upside down into a small smile.

"You're not ungrounded Mister, but you can go with Pam, tonight only," Mom said, giving her permission. I fist pumped the air and barely held back an excited squeal.

"Go change and it's a date," Pam ordered and I laughed and raced out of the room.