A/N, This is a short scene which depicts what may have happened after the end of inheritance. It features queen Arya and her young adoptive child and friend. Please tell me what you think of it J
"Have you ever been in love?" The little elf was looking up at her with an expression of true innocence. Arya rubbed her temples wearily. She´d had a long day dealing with noblemen of all sorts in the court that day and she wanted desperately to sleep. What people didn´t seem to notice was that Arya was not as young as she´d been when she accepted the throne. Although age barely mattered to elves, Arya had recently celebrated her two hundredth birthday and she was starting to feel the weariness creeping on. Of course she would never tell anyone, or opt to lessen her duties as a queen. She wouldn´t even stop spending time with young Merethyl, the orphaned child who had been found as a baby in the forest. Now she was looking up at Arya expectantly, waiting for an answer to her question.
"I have fallen twice. The first time was with another elf. We were happy together, until the day of his death. That was almost a fifty and a hundred years ago."
"What about the second time?"
"Ah." A shadow passed over Arya´s eyes. "That time I thought I had found him. I thought he´d be the one who´d stay by my side forever. At first, I had no intention of ever getting to know him personally. And he did have an unfortunate habit of making a royal fool of himself in my presence." Arya couldn't help but smile to the many memories that came rushing up.
"But that was the time of the war and he, like I had an important part to play in it. Together we travelled and fought, side by side. The bonds of trust and companionship started to grow… I may have not been very impressed at first, but he did save my life on countless occasions. He was but an ignorant farmer's boy who´d had an astounding destiny placed upon him. In a much too short time, he managed to learn the various skills and he ended up not only as the best sword fighter and practicer of gammarye since the fall of the riders, but also as a very wise and empathetic young man. He did many things of greatness and glory, and in the end he managed to win my heart."
"He sounds like a good man. What happened next?" Merethyl´s eyes were wide, eagerly awaiting the rest of the story.
"As I said, he had an incredible task to complete, and even after it was completed, his work was not done. I had recently become queen and dragon rider while his destiny forced him to leave Alagaësia,"
"To leave forever? Merethyl burst out.
"I am afraid so. He asked me to accompany him, but I could not. My people needed me and I would not let them down. I can still see his face as we said goodbye for the last time. In the end, it was our duties which kept us apart and robbed us of all we could have had together."
The little girl moved closer to Arya and put her arms around her. Arya held the little girl close, taking comfort in warmth as a single tear slid down her cheek.