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analyzing eric's feelings for sookie, what would a viking do?
i think, as the books go on, it is about more than just her blood or her innocence for eric. i think, as it is with humans, it's about everything that she is. every time sookie does something brave or violent, eric seems incredulous and pleased. it seems like he likes her more and more.
***spoilers****
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when sookie kills lorena, eric is (at first) like "sookie killed a vampire??"... and then as more facts come to light about how it went down, eric is like "sookie killed a vampire in a *fair fight*??" (he may have said "lorena", but the basic idea is the same). the thrill of battle has always been exhilarating for eric, which makes sense bc of course he's a viking. i imagine that any guy who is that excited about battle would probably be enthralled with a woman who can and will kill a creature that is much more powerful than she is. i mean, compared to eric and the vamps and the other supernatural beings, sookie is just a little puppy. the odds that she will prevail against a lot of these strong beings are stacked against her, yet she keeps coming out on top. it's like.... if you had a puppy that kept taking down burglars... at first you would think it was luck and you'd be grateful that your puppy made it out alive. the second time, you might think "man, puppy, you're on a roll. thanks for saving me again", but you'd probably be worried that the puppy's luck would run out. if that puppy keeps taking down armed burglars, you start to think it's got to be more than just luck, because it keeps happening... but you still have no idea how the puppy does it... bc, you know, it's just a puppy. so that wondering about how sookie keeps coming out on top has got to translate into intense intrigue for eric. i mean, he's a very curious character. at his best, he's driven by curiosity (and with sookie, as time goes on, he can also be driven by honor). at his worst, of course, eric can be very manipulative and cruel.
...and that's what sookie does. she just keeps going into the fray. sometimes, she barely even blinks an eye before taking up arms. there have been times when she was supposed to leave before the battle began, but she always hung around anyway and ended up contributing positively to the cause of her allies. she's rescued eric in different ways multiple times, without even thinking. every time she does, eric seems totally incredulous- like he can't believe she did it, and he can't quite figure out why she did it. so, his interest is piqued- constantly. to such an old vampire who has grown so tired of boring, predictable human antics, that has got to be refreshing. in one way, some vamps seem to have honor and seem to respect honor (and sookie is teeming with honor), in another way, vamps will do whatever they can for themselves, and it probably seems very noble that sookie just does what is right because it is right. she doesn't seem to need any other reasons- very noble.
on top of the fact that sookie is pretty tough and extremely brave, she's also very innocent in a lot of ways. even as her character progresses and she gets more jaded, she's still very pure. her jadedness never comes across as bitterness, really. it's hard for me to put into words, but it seems like she's some kind of adorable animal that has grown world-wise. you know, like she's wary of people in her life and her surroundings and such, but she stills finds joy in living. she doesn't let her negative experiences make her generally bitter. she's got a lust for life, which eric also has. i'm a big bill fan, but i have to say that bill is a lot gloomier and i think eric and sookie are more alike because of their passions for life.
so, if you combine the fairy blood + "otherness" attraction, the blood bond attraction, and sookie's physical appearance (i bet eric likes a girl who looks like him bc he's kind of enamored with himself. of course, sookie is obviously much smaller than he is, thus more feminine...which should theoretically make her more attractive to men.) with her bravery and purity- you end up with a girl that eric can't resist. if you apply her traits to what i would imagine would be ideal traits for a viking, i think the two are pretty well matched. i mean, a beautiful, strange creature that is very brave and very pure (and very blond lol).... sounds like a valkyrie. only, i think the fact that sookie really is delicate and small (and human) only adds to the attraction, because i think he finds her smallness (i mean small in size, power, *and* naivete) adorable. there are many times in the books where eric is sort of smirking at how small, weak, or naive sookie is... not smirking in a mean way, but in a way that shows that he thinks her smallness is cute.
eric, as a viking, may also still see a connection between love and battle, from his viking days. the goddess freyja, queen of the valkyries, is the goddess of battle and the related death *and* love. seems like a weird combination, but it's got to be embedded in eric's psyche. you know, like we probably equate pink or red with love because of our culture, but another culture might equate another color with love. so, with regard to sookie, eric's intrigue about sookie's bravery (which would probably earn her a spot in valhalla) may automatically be tied to love, through the image of a very important god to vikings. also, the fact that sookie is so delicate and small only adds to her bravery- because she is more likely to lose, yet she faces battle anyway.
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Originally Posted by jessica
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