The light disconcerted her. It was so bring and hit her eyes at an uncomfortable angle, so that she couldn't see anything at all. She squinted her eyes to try and distinguish something, and slowly she could make out silhouettes around her. They moved in what seemed an agitated manner, but she could not quite understand what they were saying.

Squeezing her eyes shut again, she concentrated on their voices, and then she began to understand. Someone was calling her name. It was a voice she knew, but couldn't quite place it. It spoke urgently, but Nasuada also noticed a hint of relief in it… who was this man? Who was this…?

"My lady! Can you hear me? Are you alright?" he kept asking. "Oh, please, say something!"

"Jörmundur…" she recognized him at last. "What…?"

"Are you feeling alright?" The big man actually took her hand in his, a gesture he had never done, but which showed Nasuada just how worried he had been. "Are you in pain at all?"

"No… I'm alright, I think. Just… exhausted."

"You slept for a very long time."

"Did I?"

"Three days."

"Three days?" she sat up quickly, then lied back down as dizziness hit her. "Ow..." Taking deep breaths, she looked at Jörmundur again. "What happened? I thought… I thought I'd died."

"We thought so, too." Jörmundur helped her sit up. "Elva told us something had penetrated your mind so deeply that you had lost control. And then something else had come to fight it off for you. Does that sound right?"

"It does…" she looked down, feeling guilty.

"What I don't understand, is how it happened. Not exactly, at least. You are a strong woman, and your mind is well protected. This shouldn't have happened."

"It was my own fault…" She looked at him, expecting to see disbelief or outrage, but Jörmundur remained as impassive as ever. "I let it happen."

"Why?" he asked, calmly.

"I thought… I thought the presence was someone I knew. I thought…" She was angry with herself, now that she knew she had been fooled, she felt horrible. She had been weak and naïve, and she had almost paid dearly for it. Hadn't it been for… whoever had saved her… could it really have been Thorn? Did she really feel… "Murtagh…"

"He was here."

"What?" she sat up straight, looking at him now with fire in her eyes. "When?"

"A day after it happened."

"He was here…? Tell me everything, Jörmundur…! Tell me, please!"

"It was a bit sudden…"

x-x-x-x

"No change?" Elva had asked one day after Nasuada had collapsed. She herself was looking better, although her skin retained some of the clammy appearance it had held for the past few days.

"None," Jörmundur had replied. "I don't know what to do. I'm not even sure whether I should say something… She seems fine, physically, but she won't wake up. I don't understand… even Trianna has woken up, although she cannot put two words together that make sense…"

"I cannot sense any grief from her, though, so I don't know what's going on either. Maybe she'll wake up?"

"I hope so. All I've done is write to Queen Arya, asking for advice, but that letter will take a while."

"I suppose it will."

They had kept the attack a secret from everyone, and even had commanded the new guard shift to remain outside, as Nasuada was not feeling well. Jörmundur had kept appearances, and Elva had helped in any way she could (and as much as her own illness allowed her). It was important to keep the impression that things were okay, to avoid any potential unrest in Alagaësia, and to avoid word leaking out to King Orrin, who, despite it all, might have taken advantage of the situation.

"She needs to wake up, soon," Jörmundur said. "Otherwise…"

"Otherwise we'd be in big trouble."

"Indeed. There is no heir to the throne, and I don't see anyone taking over so easily."

"Not even yourself?" Elva had asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Especially not myself."

"Fair enough."

They had been for a while after that, but their silence was suddenly disturbed by a scuffle in the courtyard of the citadel. Soldiers screamed, and people seemed to be running around. Rushing to the window, Jörmundur saw the reason to the commotion at once, as Thorn hovered just above the citadel, with Murtagh on his back.

"Stay here!" he ordered Elva and ran out of the room. He took the grand staircase down three at a time, and rushed past confused personnel in his way to the courtyard. When he finally reached it, he found his soldiers firing upon the Rider, but their arrows did not reach him, his protective charms keeping both him and his dragon safe. "Hold your fire!"

Soldiers looked from Murtagh to Jörmundur as he stepped out and walked to the middle of the courtyard, confused as to what he was doing. This was a man they had known as an enemy, and their first instinct was, of course, to shoot him down.

"Murtagh!" Jörmundur called. "You may come down!"

Amid surprised gasps from the solders, and a flap of wings from Thorn, the dragon slowly alighted on the stone floor, and Murtagh slid down fluidly, making a straight line to Jörmundur. He was serious and decisive in his manner, and Jörmundur had no doubt Murtagh could have taken him down with a flick of his hand. But he meant business, too. And for Nasuada, he was willing to fight even such a powerful Rider.

"Was it you?" Jörmundur asked, pushing Murtagh at the shoulders. "Was it you?"

"No," Murtagh replied, his voice cold. "It was not me. Is she…?"

A look between them made an understanding possible, and Murtagh asked no more, but followed Jörmundur as he walked towards the door. The elder man stopped at the door, and looked at his soldiers:

"Keep an eye on the dragon, but do not harm him unless he causes you to."

"Yes, sir!"

"Thorn will not harm them," Murtagh said, testily.

The rest of the way up to Nasuada's chamber was spent in silence, as Jörmundur did not even turn to look at Murtagh, and Murtagh, in turn, did not speak to him at all. It was only when they were in the ante-chamber, past the guards, that Jörmundur turned to him again.

"She has not awakened since the attack," he said, opening the door and letting him inside.

Elva's eyes widened as she saw him, and was quite surprised when she saw him walking first to her, and not to Nasuada. She kept her eyes on him as he looked her over. She had no fight with him, but she was fairly certain that one of the presences she had felt had belonged to Thorn, so she considered it best to be cautions.

"That's some nasty piece of magic they did on you," he commented. "I'm surprised you did not die."

"What do you mean?" Jörmundur asked.

"The people who attacked Nasuada attacked Elva first. Not directly, but still effectively."

"What did they do to me?" Elva asked, realizing his words made sense.

"As far as I can tell, they tried poisoning you from the inside, but to do that, someone on the inside needed access to you."

"That would have been Trianna," Jörmundur said.

"Yes. I realize I'm partly responsible for her current state, but her mind wasn't hers anymore. She had been slowly consumed."

"By what?"

"A group of magicians from Gil'ead."

"But how…?" Jörmundur was on his feet at once. "I must launch a counter-attack at once."

Murtagh raised his arm to stop him, and as Jörmundur looked at him, he could see that Murtagh meant business, and that launching an attack would be completely unnecessary. Whatever had to be done, Murtagh would do it.

"So, what happened to Nasuada?" the man asked, letting his anger wash away.

"They used Trianna to try and mimic a dragon, fool Nasuada into thinking it was actually Thorn that was touching her mind. They kept at it, discreetly and non-violently, until Nasuada lowered her guard, thinking it was indeed Thorn. Then they attacked for real."

"That's when I felt it," Elva said.

"Yes, and that's when I felt it, too, because Nasuada called out our names with her mind. We recognized that someone was impersonating Thorn, and so he did intervene. His presence was too much for the attacker, and Trianna collapsed. Just before she did, though, I felt the presence of the real attackers. I came as fast as I could, so I could see her."

"Will she be alright?"

"She's not injured, as far as I can feel, and her mind seems to be sound."

So engrossed in the story had Jörmundur and Elva been, that they hardly realized Murtagh had moved closer to the bed, and was caressing Nasuada's cheek softly. The look in his eyes was still decisive, but there was a certain amount of feeling that hadn't been there before.

He looked back at Jörmundur.

"I'll take care of this."

And as quickly as he had appeared, he had vanished, flying on Thorn into the distance.

x-x-x

"And he hasn't been back?" Nasuada asked.

"No. We have not heard from him since. Gil'ead is quite far, too, if you think about it, so I do expect he'll take his time."

"Do you think he'll come back?" There was a longing in her voice that Jörmundur could not mistake.

"I cannot say, my lady."

One of the first things Nasuada did when she finally left her room was to go see Elva. She found the girl sitting on a chair in one of the inner gardens, just looking at the trees, her hair dancing in the afternoon breeze. She turned to look at Nasuada the moment her shadow appeared.

"You are up," she said, then looked at the trees again.

"Yes. I hear you are improving yourself."

"I am. I feel almost normal again."

"I apologize to you, Elva."

"Why?"

"Because of me you were targeted. They probably wanted to get you out of the way, so you couldn't warn me danger was imminent."

"I still could not do it. I arrived too late."

"But you tried."

"In the end, it was him who saved you. If he comes back, make sure you thank him."

"I hope he does," Nasuada said gravely, "so that I can."

But he did not. As the days turned into weeks, there still was no sign of Murtagh. That he had avenged her attack was certain, for three weeks after her attack, a contingency of soldiers entered Iliera escorting a group of five former magicians, whom they claimed had been stripped of their powers by the sudden appearance of a Rider in a red mighty dragon. The magicians had admitted to enslaving Trianna during a routine check up on magicians in Gil'ead a few months earlier, as they remained loyal to Galbatorix, and refused to accept orders from a woman from the Wandering Tribes.

They had fed Trianna information, and through the months she had clouded Nasuada's mind, playing on the fact that she had no life companion. The fact that Nasuada had someone she cared about but could not have had just been plain bad luck for her, and as soon as Trianna had got wind of it, she had given her the mantra that would only depress her further, making her ultimately more vulnerable to the attack.

At least Jörmundur felt at ease with this information, for he had been clearly disturbed by the openly pessimistic attitude Nasuada had taken over the last few months. It explained how she had gone from being a completely independent and strong person, to one who moped about when she thought no one was looking. To Nasuada, though, all this information only reinforced the guilt she felt at having been so foolish.

At least one thing had changed. She accepted the fact that Murtagh had not returned, because, what counted, was that he had come to her aid. He cared for her still, he thought about her in his solitude, and that was encouragement enough for her. Although it tasted bitterly of déjà-vu, she was more accepting of the situation, and returned to doing full time what she was supposed to be doing: ruling Alagaësia fairly.

Epilogue

The night was cold and damp, but Nasuada had left her window open as she went to bed. She had felt suffocated after a long week of conferencing with her fellow rulers. They had all left that afternoon, and while Nasuada had been happy to see Arya, Orik, Nar Garzhvog, and even Orrin, who was still as obnoxious as ever, she was glad to finally get some peace. She was so exhausted, that she fell asleep quickly, welcoming the well deserved rest she had ignored for the past week.

Just how soon the mind games started, she did not know, but one moment she was dreaming of flying sheep, and the next she was making love to Murtagh's unmistakable mind. He was there with her, she could feel him, and while she was now wide awake, she kept her eyes closed, just enjoying the closeness of his mind to hers, of the burning feelings that passed from one to another, of the comfort of being whole again. Who needed rest when there was this? She could have stayed like this…

'Where are you going?' her mind cried desperately as she felt him retreating.

'Open your eyes,' he said. The exact same words he had spoken to her six months earlier.

'Won't you disappear?'

He chuckled. "You tell me."

Her eyes shot open as she heard his voice, and she quickly sat on the bed. Even in the dark, she could discern him sitting at the window, his back against the wall, one leg hanging inside, the other bent with an elbow resting on it.

"Murtagh!"

She ran out of bed at once and met him just as he jumped down from the windowsill, trapping her in his arms. She hugged him strongly, not really believing he was there, but feeling his warmth, his smell, his presence… everything that was him, now in front of her.

"Murtagh!"

"You really should protect your mind better," he said, hugging her back equally strongly.

"You think I would not recognize the real you? I had never felt Thorn before, so I couldn't be sure. But you? My mind could be completely destroyed, and I still would recognize you."

"I suppose that's what I was counting on." She heard the smile in his voice.

"I'm so happy to see you," she said, sighing contentedly.

"I'm happy to see you, too. I apologize, it took me a while."

"What kept you?"

"I suppose I wasn't ready to face the world yet. I only showed up six months ago because you were in danger. Otherwise, I don't think I would have moved from the spot."

"Do you feel ready now?"

"To face the world? Not really, no. But I might start slowly, facing you."

"That sounds about right. Just… where is Thorn?"

"Ah, he's flying overhead, waiting for permission to land. And get fed. He's starving."

"I'm sure I can see to that," she said, looking at him. "A large steak might please him."

"We'll be forever grateful."

Nasuada smiled at him and loosened the embrace. She had not taken two steps towards the door when she felt Murtagh take her by the wrist, spinning her quickly, and holding her against him, pressing his lips against hers.

And the world disappeared. It disappeared because, at that moment, all that mattered was that he was there, with her. Whatever else life threw at them, they'd have this moment together. They'd…

Thorn's mind suddenly invaded theirs, and Murtagh had to chuckle at the strong feelings coming from it. This was a dragon on a mission…

'That steak going to be ready anytime soon?' he asked.

… a mission to be fed.

Laughing, Nasuada went to see to the proper arrangements, and personally made sure that Thorn was looked after, providing him with a large dragon den above her chambers, so he could retire when he wished to. The dragon was indeed grateful, assured her that they had no intention of leaving soon, if she wished them there. She assured him that she did. With that taken care of, she returned to her chambers, only to find Murtagh asleep on her bed.

'He is tired, too,' she thought, and smiled to herself. 'I suppose facing the world will have to wait a little longer.'

Without much ado, she closed the window and lied down next to Murtagh, who curled closer to her in his sleep. How well it felt, to be together, how well it felt to think that, from tomorrow onwards, even if it took some time, they'd be facing the world together.

'No more mind games,' she thought just before sleep claimed her. 'From now on, it's for real.'

Notes:

And that's it! :D I hope this was as enjoyable for you to read as it was for me to write I do believe they have a future ahead of them, and I'm rooting for them! Murtagh has always been one of my favourite characters, and ever since the beginning I had the feeling that they belonged together. When I read the whole 'You know why' part in Inheritance, I was done for. For me, that fulfilled ALL my romantic expectations from the book, as it was so touching and meaningful.

I tried, many years ago, to write other fanfictions with these two, but it never worked until now I suppose I just didn't have enough information to do it.

Thank you so much to all my readers and reviewers. You really helped me develop this story, asking the right questions and inspiring me to find answers. Keep up the good work, keep reading, keep imagining, and, above all, keep enjoying that which you love :D

xx Mikha