'Nother suttle POV switch. Should I stop doing 'em? Also, I broke another grammar rule and made "cartire" a word, because honestly, I think it works better without the pause from the space between the two words.
I wanna say I'm starting to make Eragon grow up because Arya never loved Eragon from Carvahall, but honestly, he started growing up when Garrow died.
[Arya & Izlanadí]
Izlanadí caught her daughter's fleeting form in the parking lot. She allowed her hopefulness to enter her voice. "Arya?"
She whirled about, inwardly cursing. She did not want to converse with her mother. "Yes, Miss Dröttning?" she responded. She addressed her formally in spite, a feat worthy of bards.
"I was hoping we could talk like we used to," Izlandí drawled, twinging the words with disappointment to fill her daughter with guilt.
It didn't work.
"'Used to'? 'Used to'?! What, when I was three?"
"I know things 'aven't been th'same since Evandar died—"
"You forget, Izlanadí, that while I may barely remember Dad, I remember enough t'know that he w's moruva dad th'n you've been a mother," Arya spat.
Izlanadí's pleading tone was sincere now, but she's faked it too much for Arya to recognize. "Please… You're my daughter..."
"Like hell I am. You've never been a mom t'me."
"I just want you t'love me," Izlanadí croaked.
"You can't force love! Didya even get that with Dad?"
"I—"
"You didn't! He already loved you, 'nd you manipulated 'im! Jus' like me." She needed to leave. Her emotions were bleeding. She mounted her motorcycle, and not even stopping to put on her helmet, she sped out of the lot.
[Eragon]
He didn't mean to eavesdrop. Well, he did, but he didn't plan to. When Izlanadí had turned to him, he panicked. Not as much as her, however.
"How much did you see?"
"Not all'f it. Jus—yeah. Pretty much all'f it."
"I didn't want anyone t'hafta see that," Arya's mother apologized.
"Didge 'ou really do that t'her?" Eragon demanded. "Be honest."
"Evandar was always th'better parent."
The prospect of such a manipulative relationship nauseated him. "Y're a bitch t'her, y'know that?"
"Young man, you should treatch y'r superi'rs with respect!" she scorned.
"If ya can't treat Arya with respect, why should I treatch you with it?"
This seem to appall her further, however. "I could 'ave you fired!"
"I'm not technic'ly hired, r'member? Just like you didn't technic'ly be a mom t'Arya."
Her twitch satisfied his rage. The woman filled her lung capacity, then drained it. Eragon prepared to improvise a retort to whatever scolding he would receive, but instead of bickering, Izlanadí uttered, "You really do love 'er, don' you?"
She turned, opened the white door of her white Toyota Prius and pulled it closed.
He pondered the statement. He didn't actually love Arya, did he?
I mean, I 'ave a thing f'r her, 'cause she is pretty hot, but, love her?
He shook his head. No, he had a crush on her. He would, after all, have done the same thing for anybody else; such was his nature.
He never considered the consequences of what he'd just done.
[Arya]
"What the fucking hell were ya tryna do?"
"Arya?" Eragon jumped, whirled around and blinked at her twice.
"Well?"
"What—"
"Calling my mother a bitch?" Inwardly, she prided his confidence, but at the same time, his disrespect may have doomed the Varden. They needed officials from government agencies to support funding—badly.
"Oh, that. I was kinda hoping you wouldn' find out…"
She growled/sighed. "Damnit! Do you 'ave any clue what you've done?"
"Well," he paused, followed by a grin. "I s'pose I jus' stood up t'y'r mother."
"No, dipshit," Brom growled behind him. "You stood up half'r funding."
"Brom, lemme talk t'my mother. I'll bring this idiot," she said, pointing to Eragon, "with me to apologize."
Eragon flushed.
Now he's embarassed?
"Eragon, y're eighteen, right?"
"Yeah, why?" he drawled.
"Good." She slapped his cheek.
"Arya, what the hell?"
"You deserved it," Saphira pointed out.
"Sa-aph!"
"Oh, and Saphira? I'll need someone t'babysit when we get there. Might as well catch up on s'me things."
"You didn' needa give me permission, Arya."
"Yeah, but you'll need Fírnen's," Arya countered, pointing to him.
"Who says I do?"
"Saph!" Fírnen protested.
"What? I don't!" she insisted.
"I give 'er permission to do whatever shenanigans she's gonna do," Fírnen spoke, earning a nudge from his mate. He grinned when Saphira glared at him.
"So how long will we be gone?" Saphira half-shouted.
"Couple weeks, maybe," Arya suggested.
"Wha—I didn' agreeda that!"
"You did," Saphira declared.
Arya turned towards the hallway, leaving them to bicker. She needed to retrieve her things from her office, as the contractors would be repainting today.
[Not Specified]
Saphira, who had proved more stubborn than Arya, currently drove Fírnen's car. She had borrowed from him after prolonged banter, much to Eragon's annoyance. However, it turned out that Saphira surpassed Arya in driving despite not having a license. Of course, Saphira had ensured Arya's ignorance to such a fact, lest she make a reasonable argument to drive in her stead.
In fact, both Eragon and Arya marveled at the girl's mastered driving technique, but also at her road rage.
Saphira, possessing the self-worth that she did, honked at any car that switched without signal or curtesy. She currently drove sixty miles per hour (~97 kph), five units above the speed limit, tailgated but a bronze Chevy truck.
"Fucktard!" she shouted. "I can't go any faster!"
"Saph, Y'know they can't hear you, right?" Eragon checked.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, but c'mon! It's not my fault th'guy's an idiot."
Eragon failed at stifling a smile to Arya, whose lip twitched.
"If 'e thinks I'm slow, I s'pose we'll jus' correct'm," Saphira foreshadowed.
"Saphira, what're you gonna—"
"I do what I wan', little one!" she snapped.
Arya smirked, an action she hid by hunching over her phone. She stopped at Fäolin's name again, desiring to read the message. But she didn't, for if she accepted his death, would it not mean that she didn't care? If she moved on, then did she ever love him? She locked the Android, forcing it into her back pocket, and adjusted the the air current of her passenger-side vent.
The vehicle lurched, slowing to twenty miles per hour (~32 kph), and the tailgating cartires screeched in friction, accompanied by a chorus of honks.
Much to the trio's relief, the rushing driver (a woman, Eragon saw) bypassed their vehicle and sped forward to pressure the next vehicle.
Saphira resumed her earlier pace.
"Wow," Eragon whistled. "'Nd I thought Arya was a rude driver."
"Hey!" the girls snapped.
"Sorry?" Eragon croaked.
"Y'know," Saphira offered. "If ya don' like my driving, we c'd always leave you on the highway. Or we c'd strap you t'th'roof. Ooh! Or we c'd—"
"Saphira, I think 'e gets it," Arya observed. Looking at the rear-view mirror, Saphira snickered her agreement; he appeared ready to jump out the door mid-traffic. Then she realized something.
"Arya, you've never been this human! What gives?"
Arya tensed. No, I'm not opening up. "I'm a'ways like this," she denied.
"Arya, you smiled," Eragon emphasized.
"I c'n smile, can't I?"
"Apparently," Saphira snorted.
"I've smiled b'fore!" Arya protested. "Just ask Fírnen."
"Arya, I'm sleeping with 'im, 'nd 'e's never mentioned you showin' emotion. Ev-er."
"Saph, do you two even talk about Arya when—y'know..."
"Eragon," Arya sighed. "We're adults here. You can say th'word 'sex.'" It appeared she had remained the only passenger without a hint of pink on her face.
In attempt to reroute the humiliation, Saphira coughed. "So, if we as'ed Fírnen right now, he'd tell us y're a flamboyant, joyful person who smiles ev'ryday?"
"It's been awhile," Arya admitted.
"How long is 'awhile?'" Eragon persisted.
She frowned. "I think it was right b'fore—" Fäolin died. The words had crashed on the journey from her brain to her mouth. She trembled in reminiscence.
"Babe! C'mon!" Fäolin pleaded.
"It's freezing out there!"
"I'll keep ya warm in my arms. Besides, it'll only take a minute."
"I guess I could..." She attempted to sound hesitant, but her expression countered the intended effect.
"So y're comin'?"
"I could be persuaded," she replied.
Sighing, Fäolin jogged up the steps to the entrance of the apartment complex, embraced her and pecked her forehead. "Have I ever toldge 'ou how cute you are?"
Arya bore into his eyes, leaning in closer. "No, I have not," she recited despite being told every day.
Fäolin rested his chin on her hair. "You are th'most adorable person t'ever walk the earth. Y're the single most beautiful woman on this planet."
Arya nuzzled his nose with her own. "And?"
"And I love you," he whispered.
She cut the distance between their lips, but she ended the contact after a second. "I guess I c'n come. But may I ask what this's about?"
"It's a su'prise," Fäolin informed her.
"Please?"
He sighed. "Fine. Remember howya said ya liked those flowers?"
"Mhmmm."
"Well—"
"Arya!" Saphira and Eragon shouted.
She started, and Eragon flinched when her scalp hit the ceiling. "What was that?"
"What was what?"
"You spaced out," Saphira clarified.
"I'm fine," Arya rasped.
Eragon refused to accept it. "Arya—"
"I'm fine!" she yelled.
Saphira's eyes slid towards Eragon's and back.
What's up with Arya? the partners wondered.
What's up indeed? Well, I'm going to explain some stuff next paragraph, but first I'll tell you that I remember seeing a similar interaction somewhere to the memory, but I don't remember where. Don't sue me.
Now let's talk about Arya. Well, she's who we know her to be due to her trauma from Durza. Because she the psychological warfare established Durza's superiority, she hid all emotions by instinct to prevent a show of weakness. She was in an environment where the strong preyed upon the weak, and so she hid her weaknesses. The problem is that she hasn't recovered from all the trauma, so she still hides whatever she feels.
So why the sudden breakthrough? Arya forced her psyche to process the loss of Fäolin, which was a significant thing. Why? Well, she's been hollow for so long that she forget how to feel. Now that Eragon has forced her to do so again, it's all going to flood.
It's also why she was so informal in Pendulum. She accepted her feelings at the end of Inheritance, and it's caused her to struggle with a broken shell. She no longer feels safe. She doesn't think she's secure. Feeling for her, be it being happy or in love, is bad. Her psyche has deemed it too dangerous, because while she isn't in that situation anymore, the brain doesn't quite wake up unless you force it to.
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