Bill Compton

William Thomas "Bill" Compton, born April 9, 1840, is a vampire in "The Southern Vampire Mysteries", a series of books by New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris. He is introduced in the first novel in the series, Dead Until Dark, and has appeared in every novel since. He is sometimes referred to as "Vampire Bill" by locals in Bon Temps.
== First appearances ==
*Novel: Dead Until Dark
*Television: Strange Love, portrayed by British actor Stephen Moyer
== Work and position within vampire hierarchy ==
At the end of the first novel, Dead Until Dark, Bill is concerned about the power of Area Five sheriff, Eric Northman, over Bill and Sookie Stackhouse. He decides to apply for that area's investigator position and he gets it. Bill works for queen Sophie-Anne Leclerq and she has sent him to Bon Temps to investigate Sookie Stackhouse's telepathic abilities.
Bill is also the creator of a valuable database in which all the vampires in North America are listed along with their significant information. Vampires from other areas of the world, such as Peru, have also provided information for this database. The database itself has been controversial because of potential security issues and is only available for purchase to other vampires. After the events in Dead Ever After, Bill began creating and producing violent vampire-themed video games, which made him very wealthy.
== Abilities and powers ==
As he is a vampire, Bill has superhuman strength speed and senses. He is able to glamour humans, as all vampires can, but he does not have any special gifts, however in the first book he did show Sookie that he could levitate but he never showed that he could take on full flight. However, he has proven himself to be adept at computers and currently manages and distributes a vampire database.
== Relationships ==
=== Sookie Stackhouse ===
In the first book, Dead Until Dark, Bill has returned to his ancestral home in Bon Temps. It is separated from the Stackhouse home by the Bon Temps Cemetery. After briefly meeting Sookie (which was premeditated) while she's working at Merlotte's bar, Sookie saves Bill from being drained by the Rattrays, a husband and wife who sell vampire blood for profit. They subsequently embark on Sookie's first serious romantic relationship. Sookie has to endure a fair amount of animosity from the Bon Temps locals, who dislike Bill because he is a vampire.
Sookie and Bill's relationship falls apart when Bill is entrapped in Mississippi after answering the call of his Maker, Lorena. Lorena wants the project, a database of vampire identities, which Bill is working for Queen Sophie-Anne. She threatens to kill his girlfiend and tortures him repeatedly. However, Bill will neither give the location of the database nor will he reveal his girlfriend's name. Meanwhile, Sookie aids Eric in attempting to rescue Bill. In the process, Sookie is staked, but then rescued by Eric. She takes Eric's blood in order to survive so she can continue trying to rescue Bill during the daylight. Sookie manages to save Bill after killing Lorena in self-defense. Further damage to the relationshp occurs when Eric makes Bill come clean that under Sophie Anne's orders, he deliberately sought Sookie out. Bill has always said that he loves Sookie, and he continued to do what he could to save her life.
=== Lorena ===
In the third book, Club Dead, Lorena is introduced as Bill's Maker and sire. They had been lovers in the early years after Bill became a vampire. They broke up eighty years ago, but Bill is required to answer her summons in Club Dead. She was obsessed with Bill on sight and lured him from his home to turn him after stalking him for many nights. When Bill wants to leave their dysfunctional relationship, Lorena turns Judith, a woman who looks and acts like Bill's human wife, to keep him with her longer.
=== Eric Northman ===
Eric's position as Sheriff of Area 5 makes him far superior to Bill. He is older than Bill, which makes him a stronger vampire than Bill. Because of the age difference, vampire custom, and Eric's political position, Bill has to do as Eric wishes. Bill and Eric feud a lot, mainly over Sookie. He loathes Eric and "some nights wishes he would die" because Sookie falls in love with the Viking. 
=== Jessica Hamby===
Jessica is Bill's perpetually-teenage fledgling (or progeny). In the HBO original series True Blood, Bill was forced into turning Jessica as punishment for staking Long Shadow - an action he took to save Sookie's life. She does not exist in the books, as Long Shadow was killed by Eric. She seems to be a series replacement for Bubba.
=== Selah Pumpfrey ===
Following his broken relationship with Sookie, Bill briefly dated a real estate agent named Selah Pumfrey. Selah is a notorious "fangbanger" and wanted to be with Bill because of what he was, not who he was. She continually tried to needle Sookie, who she sees as inferior to her. She leaves after finding another job out of state.
== History ==
In the book series, Bill was born in April 9, 1840. He lived in Bon Temps, Louisiana, and fought for the South during the Civil War. He was a married farmer with three children. (There is inconsistency in the storyline; Bill tells Sookie that he had five living children with his wife in Dead Until Dark). 
In 1870, he was made a vampire by Lorena. Over the years, they had a long and stormy relationship. 
Bill later discovers that he is related to the Bellefleurs, another old family in Bon Temps, and anonymously provides them with funds to aid in the repair of their ancestral home. The younger Bellefleur siblings, Andy Bellefleur and Portia Bellefleur dislike him, though he briefly assisted Portia during her murder investigation in Living Dead in Dallas.
In the television series, Bill was born in 1835 and his children were born before the Civil War. He was turned by Lorena as he returned from the War, fighting under Colonel Henry Gray. He only briefly sees his human wife and old home from a distance before Lorena leads him away permanently.
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