Elva now sat on the floor of Nasuada's quarters, eating. Nasuada was nearby, pacing back and forth. She was telling Farica, her servant, about the council meeting. Elva was barely listening.
"I am sure, my Lady, that Arya is more than capable of rescuing the Dragon Rider," Farica was saying. "The council made an excellent choice–"
Just then there was a pounding on the door, and a guard called in, "Trianna is here to see you, my Lady."
"Let her in," called Nasuada.
They heard the door open, then a moment later Trianna entered the room. The sorceress bowed in the dwarvish fashion, and said, "Lady, Elessari sent me to speak with you." She looked very displeased with the fact that a sorceress of her caliber, leader of Du Vrangr Gata, was being used as a mere messenger.
"I see," said Nasuada. "And what does Elessari wish to tell me?"
"Elessari thinks that the girl Elva should accompany Arya to Helgrind," replied Trianna.
Elva felt a terrible lurch in her stomach.
Nasuada merely looked at the sorceress for a moment or so. Then she said, quite coldly, "That is not possible."
"Very well," said Trianna, bowing again, "but Elessari thought that it might be–"
"Elva cannot travel to Helgrind," Nasuada cut across her. "She is just a child, and you and Elessari know of her curse, Trianna! How could Elva survive such an adventure?"
Elva suddenly felt a rush of affection for Nasuada as she defended her.
"Besides," Nasuada continued, "I need Elva here with me."
Of course, thought Elva, I am nothing but a tool.
Trianna drew herself up to her full height. "Of course you need Elva here with you; if another attempt was made on your life, and the girl was not here to warn you or protect you, you would run the risk of actually getting killed! But you must consider; Elva could be a crucial assistance to Arya, she could help Arya find Eragon and help her avoid injury while rescuing the Rider. You have all of these guards here, protecting you, ready to die for you, not to mention me, and you don't feel secure unless you have this little girl!"
"Elva isn't just any little girl, and you know it," Nasuada retaliated, and Elva could hear the hotness in her voice; Trianna's words had stung her; there might just be a grain of truth in them.
"What of Arya's safety? Consider Eragon, your vassal! Arya is capable of protecting Elva if she requires protection, and with Elva's abilities, Arya will know how to avoid danger!" Trianna argued.
Nasuada's eyes flashed. She simply stood there for a while, and Elva realized with a jolt that Nasuada was now actually considering sending her to Helgrind.
"Farica," said Nasuada, "go fetch Angela."
"Yes, my Lady," said Farica, curtsying. Then she left her mistress's quarters as quickly as she could.
Trianna and Nasuada waited. Trianna smirked. "Perhaps you're seeing the light, then, Lady?" she asked.
Nasuada didn't reply.
After a little while Farica returned, Angela and the werecat, Solembum, in his human form, in tow.
"My Lady," said Farica, curtsying.
"Thank you, Farica," said Nasuada, then she turned to Angela. "Trianna has told me that Elessari thinks it would be wise for Elva to accompany Arya to Helgrind on her rescue mission. I have opposed this idea."
"Well, good!" said Angela, her eyes widening. "That would almost surely be suicide for poor Elva!" She turned to Trianna. "Do you agree with Elessari, or are you just her messenger?"
"I do support her idea," said Trianna, apparently not wanting to call herself a mere messenger.
"Well, how can you and Elessari possibly think that Elva can handle this?" cried Angela. "The girl lives inside so that she does not run the risk of Eragon's spell forcing her to do something terribly harmful to herself! She would not even be alive now if she had ventured outside during the Battle of the Burning Plains!"
Trianna frowned. "But this rescue mission is not like the Battle of the Burning Plains. At the Burning Plains, there were many soldiers, hundreds, thousands of men, all fighting each other. This is just one elf infiltrating a mountain to rescue a couple of men, a woman, and a dragon."
Angela's dark curls danced as she shook her head at the sorceress. "You think that battle will not ensue? Eragon's original plan was to kill the Ra'zac when he and his cousin got inside Helgrind. You think he is going to just give that up after Arya sets him free?"
"But what if Arya is captured?" retaliated the sorceress. "If the Ra'zac managed to capture a Rider and his dragon, do you not think it is possible for them to capture an elf as well? Arya has been captured before! She could avoid getting herself captured again if she had Elva in tow to tell her if an enemy was approaching and what that enemy was about to do!"
"What if Arya is not able to act against that enemy quickly enough?" cried Angela. "Eragon's spell could force Elva to prevent Arya from hurting an enemy if Arya didn't react immediately!"
The two women stood there, sorceress and witch, glaring hotly at each other.
Solembum caught Elva's eye and grinned, baring his sharp teeth.
Elva began to consider Trianna's words. It was very true that Elva could be a great asset to Arya. She also took into consideration that the sooner she met Eragon again, the sooner she could try once more to get him to remove the curse he had placed on her.
The women had begun arguing again, Angela and Nasuada against Trianna, and Elva cleared her throat to gain their attention.
"I shall accompany the elf Arya to Helgrind," Elva said delicately.
The women stared at her for a moment. A small smile curved Trianna's lips.
"You can't–" Angela began, but Elva cut across her.
"Can't I?" said Elva coldly. "The sorceress Trianna has made several good points. I could be quite useful to Arya in rescuing Eragon, and I could help her to avoid capture. And–"
Elva stopped, deciding that perhaps it wasn't the best time to mention the removal of her curse. But judging by the way Angela looked at her, the witch knew what she had been about to say.
"Please," said Elva, "just give me this chance."
The next morning, Arya and Elva left for Helgrind. Nasuada had eventually agreed to send the child with the elf. A pack had been rigged up magically by Trianna; Arya was going to carry Elva on her back.
"Are you alright?" the elf asked the girl.
"Oh, yes," replied Elva dryly. "Just tell me...did you pack enough food? I'm hungry."
"But we haven't even been gone an hour–"
"I require lots and lots of food," said Elva sternly. The elf sighed and produced a loaf of bread and handed it to the girl.
"Thank you," said Elva, and devoured the bread in only a few bites.
A/N: Yep, I updated again...hope you like this chapter, please review! Thanks!