New EraMur Fic
A/N: Welcome all, to yet another concoction of my devious muses. It's AU, and based on the book, not the movie! Main pairing will be EraMur (Eragon x Murtagh) along with others, so obviously, if homosexuality, incest or anything like that isn't your cup of tea, then don't bother reading, you probably won't enjoy it.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the "Inheritance Cycle" in any way, shape or form, that's all Paolini's!
1. STRANGER IN THE NIGHT
Eragon groaned loudly in exasperation, and allowed his head to fall heavily into his hands resting by the elbow on the desk in front of him. The desk itself wasn't in a much better state than its owner, with pages strewn haphazardly everywhere on it, showing various pictures of the human anatomy, with different parts highlighted and drawn in extra detail.
He glanced up from his position at the digital clock balanced upon a pile of hardbacks on a corner of the desk and sighed degectedly when he realised it was 11:05 p.m. He should have been in bed over an hour ago, yet here he was, still struggling to draw the figures in the set exercise his art teacher had heartlessly assigned the class before the weekend.
He was about to give up for the night, when suddenly he heard the doorbell ringing downstairs, followed by the sounds of his mother, Selena, putting down a plate she'd been washing with a clang in the sink, and then hurrying to the door to see who would be calling at this hour.
There was a moment of strange silence between the opening of the door, and Selena's surprised exclamation of, "Murtagh?! What are you doing here, has something happened?!"
Eragon strained to hear the muttered reply from his listening point at the doorframe leading from the hall to the living room, where he rushed hearing his mother's surprised outcry.
Upon hearing this "Murtagh"s response, Selena ushered him in out of the sleet that had started to fall a half hour ago, fussing about colds and flus and whatnot, piquing Eragon's curiosity as to why his mother would be showing such concern to what seemed a total stranger to him.
Sensing Eragon's puzzlement, Selena flicked her gaze to Eragon and as way of anwering silently shook her head, preventing any questions for the moment, and motioned for him to take Murtagh's sleet-covered black parka before he froze to death.
Mentally shrugging to himself, Eragon went over and eased the jacket off of Murtaghs shoulders, noting immediately that Murtagh stood about an inch or two taller than him, and hung it on the coat rack which stood to the left of the door. He then went to the kitchen and began preparing some hot chocolate for the three of them, knowing that it would probably be a good idea since there could be a lot of talking to do.
He walked into the living room ten minutes later, carrying a tray with three mugs of hot chocolate, a small jug of warmed milk and a plate of mini-marshmallows, and set it down on the table situated between the two armchairs and couch that resided in their living room. He passed one mug to Selena who thanked him quietly before quickly returning her attention to Murtagh, and another to Murtagh, who seemed surprised at the gesture of generosity, as if he was unused to such actions.
Seeing that everone was settled, Eragon chose the remaining armchair, twisting slightly so as to get a better look at Murtagh who was sitting in the other one. Murtagh who had been sitting there quietly listening to Selena, turned when he felt the curious pair of eyes upon him, turning and looking right back at Eragon.
Eragon couldn't help but take the opportunity to really look at Murtagh. His eyes were a storm-grey, seemingly holding back a torrent of emotions but radiating almost total control of them. His hair was ebony black, and longer in the back than Eragons, with a loose ponytail held in place by a piece of brown leather, leaving bangs which framed Murtaghs face, contrasting nicely with his slightly-tanned skin.
And likewise, Murtagh couldn't help but admire Eragon in turn, who he thought was the very definition of "cute". His eyes were a brown that were close to chocolate, expressing a willingness to help anyone that needed it. His hair was a lighter dusty-earth brown and slightly shorter than his own, though a bit longer in the front, causing Eragon to absent-mindedly brush it away every now and then with a hand covered in skin only a shade or two lighter than his, after which he gave Murtagh a shy smirk. At this Murtagh felt himself smile uncertainly back, melting slightly at the graceful gesture and stirring feelings he'd rather ignore, considering ...
"Eragon," Selena said pointedly, causing the two to break eye contact and turn their attention to her, "I think I should explain what's going on.
Eragon nodded quickly, before he noticed Murtagh gripping the mug tightly, his knuckles turning a strained white, and then frowned to himself, forgetting what his mother said, before he shook himself out of it and paid attention to what she was saying.
"Well," she began, "remember that Morzan I was with, a long time ago?"
She paused, waiting for Eragon to nod in confirmation, as he seemed to be paying more attention to Murtaghs movements than herself.
"Okay ... well, after that ended – thank god! - Murtagh was left in his care, as the judge deemed both of us unfit to raise both of you, so I got you, and Murtagh was left with Morzan."
She glanced at Murtagh sympathetically, who was busy staring into his hot chocolate, trying, but succeeding, to contain his feelings.
"But Murtagh," she continued, "recently turned 18, so he was able to legally move out of Morzan's house. He's been wandering about from place to place, and since he has nowhere to go, he came here. Now, I don't have a problem with it, but it's your room he'll have to share, so, you don't mind, do you?"
Eragon looked surprised for a moment, having been drowning in sympathy seconds ago for Murtaghs circumstances, before eagerly nodding and replying enthusiastically with, "Yeah, of course I don't mind!"
The three then fell into a comfortable silence, sipping their chocolate. Eragon did what he usually did with hot chocolate and marshmallows; dipping them into it before sucking them dry while they melted. He glanced over at Murtgah, and started slightly at the fact that Murtagh didn't seem to be able to tear his gaze away from Eragons lips. Blushing at the sight, Eragon smirked before quickly downing the rest of the hot chocolate.
Eragon then stood up, stretching slightly after having sat umoving for so long, feeling relieved as his tense joints popped satisfyingly. Extending a hand to Murtagh, he asked, "So, wanna see where we'll be staying?"
Murtagh grinned (the first time Eragon had seen him do so) and grasped Eragons proferred hand, allowing himself to be helped up and led to Eragons bedroom upstairs. When they went in, Eragon showed him where everything was; the closet (with enough room for anything Murtagh wanted to put in), the desk (which caused Eragon to rub the back of his head embarrasingly at the mess), the en-suite bathroom and the double-bed.
Catching himself there, Eragon asked timidly, "You don't mind sharing a bed, do you?"
Looking at Eragon in mild surprise (and in -ahem!- other ways), Murtagh replied, "'Course not, 's long as you don't!"
Eragon nodded on relief at Murtagh's response, "Nah, I'm okay with it. D'you wanna take a shower while I finish up with this?" Finishing his query, he gestured at the mess of papers upon the desk.
Nodding in reply, Murtagh strode into the bathroom and Eragon heard the sound of running water before tuning it out and focussing upon the art he had left to do for the next day.
Fifteen minutes later, Murtagh emerged from the steaming bathroom, his hair frizzled from being dried with the towel. Seeing Eragon slumped over at the desk, blunt pencil still in hand, he allowed himself a small smile. Pulling on a t-shirt and boxers, he strolled over to Eragon, trying to be as quiet as he could. Deciding against waking him up, he carefully gathered Eragon in his arms and carried him over to the queen-sized bed. He laid him down and pulled back the covers, and turned to find Eragon groggily waking up.
"Wha...Wha's goin' on?" he muttered, still half-asleep.
Murtagh smirked before replying, "Time for bed, sleepy-head"
Hearing this, Eragon kicked lazily out of his jeans, leaving him in just t-shirt and boxers as well, and then crawled onto the left side of the bed, snuggling comfortably under the blankets.
By the time Murtagh got under the covers on the other side, Eragon had already fallen deep asleep again, so Murtagh saw no problem with scooching over and wrapping his arms around his younger brother, breathing in the smell of hot chocolate still present on him. Sighing contentedly, and nuzzling even closer, Murtagh fell sound asleep to the sound of Eragons level breathing beside him. Before he completely went though, one worrying thought shot through his head;
This isn't wrong, is it ... ?
