AN: Long overdue, but the wait is over!

Askura: Thanx! I laugh at my own stories sometimes too. Now you don't have to wait.

Vulpix4Life: Hm, I didn't think about how she would know. Elves are more perceptive, she may have been able to tell. When she said she would kill Saphira, she was speaking the truth. She could've accidentally killed her. You have to understand, Aiedail has about as much control over the necklace as a spider does over whether I kill it. It's unpredictable. She could say one thing but it could do something entirely different.

daydreamin' angel: I am really glad you like it, I've had people e-mail me trashing it and saying how I suck at having good plotlines. To tell you the truth, I get ideas from everything. This one I got when I was reading the translation section in the back of the book, and I saw Aiedail (The Morning Star) and it just sorta flashed in my mind. I got the idea for my book from a commercial, for some other fanfics I got it in my dreams. Ideas are everywhere if you are open to them. I wanted Aiedail to seem more human. It's a nice change from the noble, brave Arya to her sarcastic, self-concious sister.

Ok, story time!

Chapter 5

Wiol Ono

The next morning came slowly. There was a dense fog had rolled into Ellesmera over night, shrouding everything in a grey silhouette. Eragon awoke after only an hour's sleep. He would have to avoid Arya all day as best he could. He knew she was deeply upset by what he had said last night; he had been too, at first. He pulled on some clothes for the day and headed to the kitchen. He stood in front of the door, begging Arya was not behind it, before turning the knob.

Eragon was relieved to find that the room was empty. He didn't want to face her anytime soon.

You're going to have to talk to her sooner or later, Eragon. You can't just ignore her for the rest of your life. Saphira's voice chimed in his mind.

I'm not going to ignore her. I'm just going to wait until tomorrow before confronting her. If you would have seen how hurt she was when I said I loved Aiedail, you would be avoiding her too.

I did see her, through you. You'll have to face her eventually, and it would be better if not by surprise.

Yeah, yeah. I know. He broke the contact. Saphira was right. It would be better for him to be prepared when facing Arya than to bump into her by surprise.

Eragon took a piece of bread from a plate and left the house. He had gotten used to all those stairs now, and it only took him 15 minutes to get up and down. He ran down, taking a bite from the Elvin bread every few minutes. He practically sprinted to the infirmary, pausing only when a dreadful cramp in his side made him stop, and then it was only for a minute.

He ran through the long halls of the infirmary, bumping into healers and patients alike, not bothering to say sorry. Eragon slowed down when he saw Aiedail's door. He smoothed out his clothes, and then opened the door. To his surprise, Aiedail was not in the bed. In fact, she was not even in the room. He rushed back out the door and found a healer.

"Do you know where Aiedail is?" His words were frantic.

"Yes, she was released into the Queen's care earlier this morning." The healer smiled sweetly.

"Thank you." He sighed with relief. He had thought the worst when he saw an empty bed.

Eragon was just on his way to the palace when he heard someone shouting behind him. It was Ira, one of his many teachers.

"Shur'tugal Eragon! Come! We must begin your lesson!"

Oh yeah, that. He thought curtly.

"Can't it wait?" He pleaded to the lean elf.

"No. If you plan on upholding the Riders' honor, you will come back with me."

Eragon sighed. He wanted to see Aiedail so badly, but he supposed it would have to wait until later that evening.

Ira was an excellent swordsman, who was skilled even beyond Arya, who had bested Eragon too many times than he could count. He could not have asked for a better teacher, and he was truly grateful to whoever had recommended him. They had just had a particularly tiring bout, and Eragon's dark hair was plastered to his brow. After sitting down, he looked up at his teacher, who was equally tired but not nearly as sweaty.

The elf pushed a loose strand of long blonde hair behind a pointed ear and sheathed his sword. His light blue eyes, which matched Aiedail's, stared back at Eragon.

"How did I do?" Eragon was quite curious to find out whether he had actually done well in Ira's eyes.

"Very well. Never have I seen a mortal move with such agility. I am surprised you managed to fend me off for that long, but you still have much to learn. That was but a small portion of what I can do, and the easy portion too. If I were to go full-swing, I doubt you would be able to hold me off for a few seconds." Ira was panting, but mainly because of how much he had jolted around, trying to find vulnerability in Eragon's defenses. "If you don't mind me asking, did your father teach you anything in swordsmanship, or did you learn it all from Brom?"

"I never knew my father, not even a name. My mother refused to tell anyone who the father was. Then she ran off right after my birth. Her name was Selena."

Ira's eyes widened and then he turned away, in deep thought. His eyes flashed from side to side, as if he was debating repeatedly a concept that seemed too impossible to believe. He finally pulled his wits about him, and then turned back to Eragon.

"And how long ago exactly did this happen?"

"About eighteen years ago, why? Did you know my mother?" Eragon was curious now.

"I knew your mother, but she ran away a little over eighteen years ago. I didn't know she was with child though." He continued to dwell upon his thoughts, seeming lost in a million possibilities.

Ira's POV

Could he….? No, it is preposterous. Why would she leave if that were the case? But the dates fit, nearly perfectly. No, it cannot be. She would have told me.

Back to normal

"Did you know my father?" Eragon was now even more curious. Maybe Ira knew who his father was, or better yet, whetherhe was still alive!

"No, she must have gotten pregnant after she left. When she left us, she was not with child." Noticing his disappointed look, Ira patted him comfortingly on the back. "I'm sorry; I know what it is like to not know your family. In fact, Selena was the closest thing I had to family, before she left." His voice trailed off as he was trying to choke back the tears in his blue eyes.

Eragon wanted to know what Ira's relationship with his mother had been, but he knew better than to ask the grieving man. Obviously, the disappearance of his Selena had caused the elf much strife. He would inquire about it later.

A/N: ALERT! Yes, Ira is a boy. It is a unisex name and I don't want to hear anything about him. I personally am very fond of him. For those of you that have seen Constantine, I liked Gabrielle too. Another chapter when I get 3 more reviews. THANK YOU!