Corrin and Kiera flew with their four elders, since Arya hadn't expressly ordered them to go back to studying. He and Kiera shared a constant stream of thoughts and impressions as they observed the two new strangers. Kiera was mostly focused on Thorn, only the second dragon she had ever seen in her lifetime, offering commentary on his flight patterns and his appearance. Corrin was far more focused on Murtagh, the first human Rider he had ever met, and the friendly but fragile camaraderie that he seemed to share with Arya.

Word traveled faster than the dragons at the pace they had chosen, so by the time all three Shur'tugal landed in the clearing before Tialdarí Hall, the elves had set up a table large enough to host elves, humans, and dragons alike and were beginning to set the table with tableware and food. Corrin dismounted and went to stand with Arya and Murtagh, who were standing between their two dragons as Arya pointed out something near the roof of the hall.

The feast lasted a long, long time. It could not have been past noon when the Riders left for Tialdarí, but elven revelry tended to meddle with a person's sense of time, and it was nearly evening before the conversation turned to more serious topics. At that point, the vast majority of the elves had drifted off to enjoy other pursuits of the city, and most of the remaining were crowded around the three dragons to lavish attention on them.

Arya, swirling faelnirv around and around her wood-grain cup, turned her head slightly to check that no one was in earshot. Corrin, the only one within said area, glanced up and met her gaze for a moment. Her catlike green eyes paused on his face, the moved on. "So, Murtagh," she began, "perhaps you can explain now why you are here?"

"Is it so hard to believe I simply wished to gift you my company?" Murtagh joked. Under Arya's trademark raised eyebrow, he relented, sipping his drink before he answered. "I want to go east and join Eragon." At that, Corrin sat up a little straighter in surprise, but Arya simply nodded as though this confirmed something for her. "More specifically," Murtagh continued, "Thorn is, I think, getting tired of the nomadic lifestyle, and he rather desperately wants to be around more of his own kind: he's never had extended contact with any dragon other than Galbatorix's Shruikan. We were hoping that you could give us directions to get to Eragon, since he's decided to maroon himself in some forsaken eastern roost instead of staying in the land he's protecting."

"I see," said Arya, placing her goblet down. "It seems to me as though we have a happy coincidence. Corrin here," she gestured towards the young Rider, "and his dragon were intended to fly to Eragon in about a week's time, but I've been apprehensive about sending him on such a long journey alone. I would be happy to tell you how to find Eragon, if you and Thorn would agree to escort Kiera and Corrin along the way."

Murtagh leaned his chair back so that he could look over to where Thorn was, then leaned forwards until all four chair legs had hit the ground again. "Thorn and I would be delighted," he murmured, winking at Corrin, who had started grinning without realizing it.

"Wonderful!" Arya smiled brightly. "My people will provision you, of course, and I can travel with you myself until Hedarth."

Wonderful, echoed Firnen, from his seat at the edge of the trees.

*dragons*dragons*dragons*

After that excitement, the days seemed to slip between Corrin's fingers, each passing faster than the one before in a haze of studying. He saw surprisingly little of Murtagh and Thorn in that time; Kiera finally got out of Firnen that a few of the older members of the elven race had requested to speak with them, so he was being introduced to the more important elven families by Arya. Their mentor herself seemed to be everywhere: one moment quizzing him on his language, the next conferring with Firnen on Kiera's progress, the next dashing back to Ellesméra.

Corrin and Kiera passed their respective tests on the ancient language the last day before they were to leave, and Arya gave both of them the rest of the day free. Corrin spent the first hour of this sitting on the edge of the cliff behind Oromis's hut, with Kiera's ochre-scaled head resting on the grass beside him. They had spent the last two weeks frantically preparing for their journey; only now did it truly come to them that they were about to leave everything they had ever known behind.

I feel as though I've only just grown used to Ellesméra, Corrin mentioned at length, and now we're going into the unknown even more than when we left Surda.

I know, his dragon replied. But we are Shur'tugal. We belong there, with the others like us. No one but another Rider or dragon can understand the bond we share or the trials we will face in our lifetimes. Kiera shifted her head forwards until he could look down into her red eye.

Corrin sighed and looked out at the sky again. But… he hesitated, trying to put words to what he felt. But I love Alagaësia. I love Surda, sand and heat and all. I love the Empire, the grasslands and cities. I have even come to love Ellesméra. How can I, or you for that matter, leave all of that behind, when our home might need us?

Kiera was silent for a while before she answered him. I am home, she whispered, as long as I am with you. And as for needing us; Alagaësia doesn't. Or at least, it doesn't need an untrained Rider and dragon. It needs the Shur'tugal that we can only become by going east. When we have been given the knowledge that we need to do good in the world, then we will come back. This is not goodbye forever.

They sat like that, Rider and dragon, for a long time. Thank you, Kiera, he sighed.

Of course, she replied.