A/N: Last chapter! Yes, I know there are unanswered questions; it's quite deliberate, and leaves room for further stories in this arc if, at any point, I decide to continue. However, we're well past Christmas by now, and so this is where this story ends.

I felt like crying, but at the same time, I was angry that Niall had tricked me into believing him, tricked me into tricking Eric. "Why did you do this?" I whispered, feeling betrayed. "I trusted you. I believed you."

"Never trust a fairy," said Eric coldly. Something inside me seemed to shatter. We'd been so happy – what was happening, why had Niall done this?

"You misunderstand," said Niall. "Whose apples they are is irrelevant. No matter if they're Iduna's or Pomona's or apples from Avalon; the point was the magic held within them. Giving them a name was only a way of helping you to understand the magic."

I stared at him. He really didn't see that he'd done anything wrong.

"And what is this magic?" asked Eric harshly. "No doubt it will further your own ends."

Niall looked genuinely hurt. "Viking, I care for my great-granddaughter more than you can imagine; there is nothing I wouldn't do to protect her and assure her happiness. This was done for her sake, not mine. It is true that I benefit in some ways, but it was not my objective."

"Then what was it?" he demanded furiously.

Niall sighed. "You are angry; I do not understand why. I have given you both a great gift."

Eric's eyes were glittering with anger; he was barely controlling it. I huddled into a ball, and whimpered; his eyes flashed towards me, and he turned back to Niall. "If you explained," he snarled, "perhaps we would understand."

Niall blinked. "Of course. I said I would explain." He took a moment to gather his thoughts. "The first apple you shared, on Christmas Day, was imbued with the essence of the Fae, and it began to charge Sookie's essential spark. The visits she received from Claude and Claudine aided that process, as did her bonding with you; your blood was also charged with fairy magic, so it fed the spark as well."

"And did this lead to her accepting the bond? Initiating the second bond, wanting the third?" I was glad Eric had asked that; I didn't dare, but was terrified that it might all have been an illusion, something forced on me.

Niall looked surprised. "No, of course not. She bonded with you because she loves you. The apples have no effect on that."

"Why did Claudine push me towards the bonding, then?" I whispered.

He shrugged. "Claudine wanted you to be happy. I told her she must not, on any account, let it be known that she was there to make sure your essential spark was being charged, so perhaps she thought to use it as an excuse. She was also there to make sure none of Breandan's supporters reached you and harmed you."

"Why would they have wanted to harm her?" asked Eric. His voice was a little softer, but I dared not look at him.

"Because I love her, and he was my enemy," he sighed. "Also, Breandan wanted to 'cleanse' the world of all those who are only partially fairy. As such, she was in danger."

"You might have endangered her more by charging her essential spark," Eric pointed out silkily.

"That was why Claudine was forbidden to mention it; the less that was known about it, the better."

Eric drummed his fingers on his desk. "Carry on," he said softly.

Niall frowned; I guess he didn't like being ordered around. "As I said at your wedding," he said stiffly, "the second apple stabilised Sookie's essential spark, as it had had time to be fully charged, thanks to Claudine's visits, and your own blood. Each mouthful of her blood that you have taken has recharged the fairy magic within you, also; it formed an endless cycle of renewal."

"Yes," said Eric, his voice and face giving nothing away. "I remember you said this. And what of the third apple?"

Niall sat silently for a moment. "The third is not so much for Sookie, Viking, but for you. Though my intention was that it should be for her benefit as well."

"What do you mean?" he demanded.

"You carry fairy magic within you, now," he said. "There are things possible to you that were not possible before. Things you had not thought to hope for. The second apple was not enough to stabilise Sookie's spark and give you all those things; therefore you needed the third."

"And what are these things?" he asked softly, dangerously.

"As with all things, great gifts must come in threes," smiled Niall. "First of all, I have given you the most precious thing to me in all the world." He sent a tender look in my direction. "I gave you my great-granddaughter's hand in marriage, without demur, though I could have forbidden it. But her heart was yours, and I allowed it."

I scowled. Excuse me? Forbidden it? I'd marry who I damn well chose, thank you very much.

"Secondly, I give you the gift of the sky fae, to walk unharmed by the sun." Eric's head shot up, his eyes wide with surprise. I gasped; for a vampire to walk in the sun… Niall wasn't kidding when he said it was a great gift.

"I am honoured," said Eric stiffly. Nobody likes to be proved wrong, especially someone as proud as Eric.

"Lastly," said Niall, smiling, "and I admit, this is as much for Sookie as for yourself, I give you the gift that the apples themselves are said to bring." We both looked at him, puzzled. "They were ever the fruits of fertility," he said softly. "For each seed of the apple you have swallowed between you, there is a chance for a child to be born. Assuming five pips per apple, that's a possibility of fifteen children." He gave a happy smile. "I hope one day to hold my great-great-grandchildren in my arms."

Eric's mouth snapped shut.

"Fifteen?" I said weakly.

Niall looked surprised. "You have the lifespan of the fae, now, my dear," he said. "You have centuries in which to bear children, and you will never age. You will be young and beautiful forever."

"Yes, but fifteen?" I spluttered.

"Only taken as an average," Niall assured me. "There may have been more or fewer. Though it is not uncommon for the fae to bear twins, even triplets, so there could easily be more than fifteen."

To my surprise, irritation, and relief, Eric was trying to suppress a chuckle. "There are no other secrets to tell?" he asked Niall.

"No, no; that is all as regards the apples," he said. I noticed that he didn't mention anything about Appius and Oklahoma; perhaps it would be best not to mention them, given Eric's already dangerous mood. Niall gave a puckish smile. "Am I forgiven?"

Eric glared at him, but with less animosity than previously. "In light of your gifts," he said, "I suppose it would be ungracious of me not to forgive your manipulation of my wife, that wounded her so deeply – if she also forgives it."

I blinked, surprised by Eric's words. "I forgive you," I said. My great-grandfather kissed my forehead, and nodded to Eric, before taking his leave.

I turned to Eric once Niall had gone. "I didn't realise," I said awkwardly.

"I know," he said, pulling me into his arms. "That's why I was so angry with him; he took advantage of your trust in him, your love for him, and manipulated you, betrayed your trust."

I laughed shakily. "I thought you were angry with me for tricking you."

He looked appalled. "No, lover," he said, holding me tightly, "I knew this was not your doing, that Niall had tricked you, and you had acted in good faith." He smiled. "Perhaps I was a little angry with myself for falling for it, for not questioning more deeply; I should have known that the Apples of Iduna were not lightly bought or given." He kissed me. "I didn't blame you for a moment," he reassured me. "You had no way of knowing these things. I only worried that you'd been wounded by it, would feel your great-grandfather had used you to achieve his own ends."

"I guess I'm a bit upset about that," I said, "though I can't deny I like the outcome. But I'm mad with him for tricking me into tricking you. I wouldn't have…"

"Hush," he murmured. "I know you didn't mean to."

I snuggled into his arms. "There's just one thing, though."

"What's that?"

"If there's a chance of us having fifteen or so children, we are so going to have to talk about family planning."

He threw back his head and laughed.