Title: A Meeting of the Minds
Disclaimer: I do not own Eragon, that's all Paolini. I'm just twisting its universe for my brief amusement.
Summary: Eragon and Trianna find themselves in their 'own mental bond' after a mishap. With Eragon staying a few days more before leaving to go with Roran the two (Trianna and Eragon) get into rows and find themselves in interesting situations.
A/N (sorta): Sorry, but folks… I must admit I have a bit of a short attention span! And sometimes forget a story or just get bored. But, I'll try to stick this short ficlet out. I intend for this to be 3-5 chapters. (Probably 4 then.)
CREDIT: I got a bit of this idea from a very talented writer (and felt the urge to convert it to Eragon world. I feel bad about doing this… but I always find plot lines that fit another fandom so well! I will have to whip it out of me!) Screen name Blue lady! At portkey. (I can't do links or everything will turn underlined.)
And hers is better done. So go check it out!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part 1
The songs of the dead are the lamentations of the living.
Eragon was forced to think of this, yet again. Last year the thought had come up when everyone was rebuilding from the battle at Farthen Dur. Now this battle (the battle of the burning plains of course) had been bigger and caused more damage. He walked through the wreckage and tried to help bury the dead. He was surprised to see how much worry he had caused when he returned from his duel with Murtagh on the plateau. Casually noting that they missed him for who he was rather then what he could do. It was a week past the battle but the camps were still covered in rubbish and torn up rather badly. Roran grew impatient with each day. He sat in his tent studying and planning his revenge on the raz'acs.
King Orrin, the Surda ruler, had been wildly predicting the weather patterns. Angela and Solembum listened eagerly (except for Solembum who would rather not hear these lectures). The two seemed to have more in common then Eragon would have imagined… but they both were a bit eccentric so it made sense. They hauled up all day and discussed theories whether it was toads of physics.
Nasuada acted just like her father as she was handling the situation with poise and dignity and with Trianna and Arya at her side. To Eragon's surprise, Arya and Nasuada would not stop bickering. To him, they were very alike in how they saw things- so he didn't understand why they fought.
Orik was grieving over the loss of Hrothgar. Talking to his clan members and reminiscing in all the things they loved about their leader. Poor Orik was not much in the mood for talking.
Mothers lost children, siblings lost siblings and the dead were hauled into trenches and covered without much of a ceremony, perhaps just a few words and stray flowers. It seemed to drain on everyone- and the chance that Galbatorix would attack heightened their misery and fear. Everyone was lost in thought, and eyes would glaze over and look off in the distance expecting a disaster to hit again.
Eragon snuck into the bright red tent that protected his belongings. Roran was hauled up on a cot staring at a book Arya had loaned him about raz'acs. His brows were furrowed in deep concentration.
"Have you left this tent?" asked Eragon with concern.
Roran looked up with a tense determination in his eyes; Eragon could tell what his answer would be.
"No. What's to see?" he continued bitterly, "A bunch of dead bodies?"
Then back to his book. Eragon let out a sad sigh, and sought out his connection with Saphira to see what she was doing. The sight of the plateau etched itself into his thoughts. The sense of flying with very strong winds. She must have been hunting for food where he and Murtagh had fought. The flight was a bit unsteady, less balanced. Her tail had not completely healed and she staggered when her feet landed onto the soil.
The camp members had tried to bandage the tail up and Angela tried one of her remedies… but the bandage fell off when Saphira flew and the remedy wasn't very effective. Solembum and Saphira spent lots of time together in the Varden camp over the past week, both discussing their view of the war.
Eragon found a dark blue tent where all the Du Vrangr Gata lived. It had magic produced fireworks coming out from above it in celebration of the win, and lots of singing and dancing.
He saw Trianna and one of the magic-users named Fido practicing on the side of the tent. Attention intrigued, he walked over and listened to the spell.
"Gath manin!" chanted Trianna.
"Wait!" exclaimed Eragon, he ran over and saw a flash of silver- it looked like a little burst of fireworks and disappeared quickly. Trianna and the magic-user had jumped up in surprise, looking disheveled.
The shade slayer felt silly for scaring them, "I was going to say… use more words."
A flash of annoyance came from Trianna who was down right sick of all his interfering.
"Sorry,"
"Don't do that again! You threw me off!" Trianna warned.
"Yes- but you can't use such a little amount of words… you'll lose too much energy."
The Du Vrangr Gata leader rolled her eyes, and turned back to her friend to discuss the properties of the spell. Eragon left but his trained dragon hearing heard the last wisps of the conversation.
"That was a memory spell. Useful for jogging your memory."
Eragon bumped into Arya and Nasuada, who were locked in a heated discussion about Galbatorix and the forsworn. He considered joining but felt it'd be better to leave it to those two. A loud gust of wind rolled through the air- followed by a grumble of thunder. He looked above to see Saphira retreating from the stormy weather and landing in a safe spot without harming anyone.
In her jaws was a little fish, she tossed the food and let out a little spray of fire before catching it and swallowing. With her snort came a little puff of smoke.
Eragon grinned happily and joined his friend.
"How was the hunt?"
Good, but I fear King Orrin may just be right about the storm.
The rider examined the skies and saw large blotches of grey cloud and blacked sky. If a storm did appear, the grounds would be in fret. Dead bodies still needed proper sendoff and the tents would be blown away with all the important possessions. The last thing they needed!
"Are you worried for Roran?"
Saphira seemed to give it consideration. The large dragon scales seemed to illuminate in the dark, or when a flash of lightening appeared. Eragon watched as the Varden ducked under tents and took cover. From a light rain shower that started to come.
A little. She admitted.
"I don't have the heart to tell him how dangerous-" Eragon was interrupted by Orik running past with his favorite bow locked under his arm. Saphira paused too, as the little dwarf skidded on the mud and puddles. The rain started to pour down harder and thicker. Thunder and lightening escorting it.
We need to go inside!
"But what about you?" asked Eragon, who lifted his arms above his head to protect himself from the down pour.
There was a little cave I found…
"I want you here so I can know your safe!"
Don't worry little one, I'll be fine.
"What about you're tail?"
Pttf. Saphira gave him her strange little dragon smile, before taking flight again. Once he was assured that she was headed towards the plateau- and wouldn't be blown over by the storm, Eragon ran to help Orik up.
"Thanks mate."
"No problem, here- this is close."
Eragon and Orik ducked into a dark blue tent without realizing it was the Vrangr Du Gata tent. They noticed the magic-users huddled on blue patterned seats holding their belongings with care. Orik and Eragon gave respectful hellos before finding a mat on the ground to sit on.
"How's Saphira?" asked Orik, "I saw her leave."
Again? Ack!
Eragon paused, the voice didn't sound like Saphira's. Orik looked at him waiting for a response.
"Oh! Well, she's…" Ow! This hurts! "Eh…"
The voice distracted him again. Eragon looked around the tent but everyone was talking in muffled whispers.
"Bloody hell! I was worried I mighta left this behind!" exclaimed a magician showing off a strange rock.
"I'm glad I put those spells around this tent. We should be safe from the wind," replied a woman with a happy smile.
"Eragon!"
"Sorry! She's fine, off in a cave. I think she's fine- I'm not sure. A little distracted."
Orik nodded but looked confounded by his friend's eccentric behavior. Eragon rubbed his head with his fingers and wondered if that voice was Saphira. He dug deep into their connection and felt a warm cozy fire, and a little pain.
Are you okay Saphira?
Yes, I just started a fire to try and warm up. And my tail got cuffed by a tree on the way here.
Have you been… sending messages?
Not till now. Why?
Never mind.
Then he realized- Roran! Eragon turned to Orik quickly and asked, "Do you know where Roran is? He refused to leave the tent… and… I just- I hope he's okay!"
"No, sorry, Agretlam. I have not."
Eragon grabbed a hood from inside the blue tent and pulled it on over his clothes then ran through the awful storm to the bright red tent. The mud drenching his pants but he didn't notice till later. His dragon eyesight noticed a distressed dark silhouette.
"Hey!" he called out.
The figure stayed on the ground and he wondered if it was a lost Varden member, an intruder from Galbatorix- maybe a spy. Or another possibility, a corpse.
Eragon opened the red tent and peeked in.
"Roran!" he called out.
His brother was hauling things together in frenzy.
"I'd been wondering where you were!" he retorted. Eragon smiled, happy to know Roran was okay. Eragon rose to help him pack things and then led him outside, stopping to loop his arm around the figure's arm and the three stumbled lopsidedly through the mud and rain to the blue tent. He recognized the silhouette as Trianna half-way there, her leg was bleeding as she limped along. He whispered for Roran to slow down, so that she wouldn't break anything.
Roran sighed in relief as he entered the tent. Trianna drew her hood back and limped out from Eragon's grasp, almost toppling over- but the Du Vrangr Gata members helped their leader to her cot. Eragon let out a tired breath, before seeing Orik carving something in a spare piece of wood. Roran took a seat next to Orik. His brother must have vaguely recognized him as a friend.
"Are you okay Tri-neeny," asked Fido.
Eragon smirked at the awful nickname.
"Yes… I'm fine. Just got knicked by some rubbish is all. Thanks guys."
Orik continued to carve his clan's logo into the wood, his knife moving along with precision. The lines seemed so exact, and Roran- who'd taken the raz'ac book with him turned through the pages looking for more ways to help Katrina escape.
Eragon nodded to his friends before joining the Du Vrangr Gata whom were tending to Trianna's leg. Using a few healing charms.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Nothing magic can't fix," she replied with contempt.
How could she be angry at him? Didn't he just help her!
"Makes me wonder why you didn't use it when you were outside in the middle of a storm then!" he retorted bitterly.
She matched bitter for bitter, "A bit occupied at the time, wasn't I?"
"Well! If you want to be a Du Vrangr Gata you have to do better then that!"
"WHAT?" exclaimed the Du Vrangr Gata members, whom adored their leader and took immediate offense. Eragon wondered where that had come from- but then he remembered. Trianna was a condescending nuisance!
"Oh excuse me, great Agretlam, but I believe I'm the leader!" she yelled.
Orik and Roran perked their heads to watch the heated discussion.
"Under my authority!"
Trianna grit her teeth, "Good thing that authority is gone most of the time."
Outraged… Eragon replied, "It's a better one for it!"
"So your authority is better then mine? You vanish for months at a time- and- and-"
They both paused their fight when they noticed everyone watching. Fierce blushes filled their cheeks, and both pretended like nothing had happened. Eragon turning to sit by his friends and Trianna continuing to talk to the Du Vrangr Gata.
Saphira fell into a comfy slumber. Eragon then too was overwhelmed with exhaustion- an effect of their connection. So he borrowed a pillow and blanket from a very reluctant Du Vrangr Gata member then went to sleep with Roran reading and Orik keeping watch.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N: There will be more about the 'mental connection' and the mishap. This was just leading into the fun!
And please. No flaming!