Okay, I'm REALLY REALLY SORRY for taking this long to update. I had a huge case of writers block, then I suffered at the hands of some Eragon-fan-bashers, which made me not want to have anything to do with the series for about a month. (NEVER go to the Neopets neoboards and say you like Eragon or Eldest) But now, all is well, and I hope to have at least two chapters up soon, including this one. Maybe more.

Oh, and make sure you read my edited version of Chapter 2.


3

Mother Knows Best

As the week wore on, nothing changed as Kari had hoped. She was increasingly overwhelmed by a sense of hopelessness as time passed. Part of her wished she could still be in denial, still too shocked to comprehend what was going on. She wanted to be unconvinced that anything was happening, but she knew that time was running out. Her stalling had done her no good. It was over.

Jadis tried desperately to keep their hopes up, but as the week wore on, she could tell that even he was beginning to doubt his own words.

And so she sat, thinking, as day turned to night turned to day, wishing she could turn back time, but the other part reminding her coldly that it didn't matter. That at the end of the week, she would just be another servant of His Majesty, King Galbatorix.


Two days before Galbatorix was due to return, Kari was granted permission to visit her family. Two surly guards led her down endless stone hallways, lined with tapestries and suits of armor.

As she walked, she fingered a silvery patch that had appeared on her right palm the day she had been captured. Murtagh had one too, as so, she had heard by eavesdropping on the guards outside her door, did Galbatorix himself. It troubled her. Was it some way that the King tracked or controlled important people? There would be no point in running away if it was. Assuming, of course, that she could find a way to get herself, a ten-foot dragon and her family out of this place.

Her mind slowly drifted to thoughts of her family. What did they think happened? She doubted that it would be anywhere near the truth. Who would have thought that she, a common-born, tomboyish girl could become a Dragon Rider? Maybe there were tales or epics about female Riders, but she had never heard of any.

A gruff voice brought her to her senses.

"Right through there," one of the guards growled, pointing at a heavy, wooden door.

Well, there at least was something that hadn't changed. Even though she was a Rider, she was still treated with contempt by soldiers and plenty of the castle's servants. Not one person had even given her the polite title of "miss."

"Are you goin t' go in er what?" The other guard whined when she didn't move right away. She shot him a nasty glare. Then she turned slowly back to the door, wiping her suddenly sweaty palms.

She pushed the door wide.

Three individual gasps sounded at the same time, and a tiny voice exclaimed gleefully, "Kari!" A small shadow barreled towards her.

"Lee!" Kari cried, picking up her sister and swinging her around before hugging her tightly.

"Kari," her mother said, her face breaking into a painful smile. Relief and joy showed on her face, knowing that her eldest daughter was safe.

"Kari," Leiasa told her unhappily, "Bad men came the day after you ran away-"

"What?" Kari yelped, looking at her sister. "Ran away!"

"Well that's what father said you did," Leiasa persisted, "He said you went runnin' off with some boy, because you didn't want to marry."

"I said she probably ran off," Kari's father corrected coolly.

Gently, before Kari could utter an angry retort, Kari's mother broke in. "Tell Kari what happened next, Leiasa."

"Well, they came and they said that we had to come with them, and then one of them grabbed Mommy, and Father tried to stop them." Kari's father looked away. "They hit him with a sword and he fell asleep. Then another soldier grabbed me and tied me up. They tied up Mommy too. They put all of us in a wagon and took us here."

Kari looked at her family guiltily. It was her fault they were here.

As if he had read her mind, Kari's father suddenly spoke. "What happened to you then, Kari?" His eyes drifted over her, taking in her healthy appearance, abeit her haunted expression, and her finely-made clothes. "You look like you've been doing well since we've seen you last." His tone was almost accusatory.

Kari almost blanched. To give herself thinking time, she looked around the room they were in. It was well-lit, but it still seemed dark and cold. To her surprise, this was not the only room her family had to live in. There were two doorways, one to the left and one to the right. The right led to a kind of bedroom. The left led to a privy. In the room they were in, there was a rough, wooden table with wooden chairs, and near the back, a threadbare rug. The walls were made of stone and were bare of any ornament, except for an old, fraying tapestry on the left wall.

"Well?" her father prodded, glaring at her, breaking into her thoughts.

Kari looked at them. Even Leiasa was staring at her expectantly. She froze, blinking dumbfoundedly. She had to tell them, but wouldn't they hate her? Wouldn't they blame her for all of this.

She was trembling. Every instinct was telling her to flee, to go back to Jadis and tell him what happened, but she couldn't get herself to move. One fact was holding her in place: They had a right to know.

She met her mother's eyes. Suddenly, her mother stood up.

"Shara…" Kari's father began.

"No," Kari's mother said firmly. Gently, she walked over, and pulled Leiasa out of Kari's hold. "Go play with your father," she told her, "I need to talk to Kari alone for a moment." Leiasa obeyed.

Kari's mother led her to the bedroom and they both sat down on the bed. Kari looked down, ashamed to speak. A gentle hand gripped her chin and brought it up until their eyes met. "What happened?" Kari's mother whispered softly.

Kari crumpled. She sobbed into her mother's shoulder, the first real cry she had had since she had come to this place, since she had found Jadis, since her life had been turned upside down.

Finally, when she had finally run out of tears, she said, hiccupping, what had happened.

When she had finished, she finally dared to look at her mother again. Instead of the harsh, accusatory look she had expected, she only saw sympathy.

"Oh, darling," her mother breathed, and she hugged Kari tightly.

When she spoke next, her mother said, "I can't give you much advice, Kari, but all I can say is do what you think is right."

Kari stared at her. "But what if you're killed?"

Kari's mother shook her head. "Dying for what you believe in isn't that uncommon, Kari."

Kari nodded, still unconvinced.

Kari's mother looked her straight in the eye. "Promise me. Promise me you do what you think is right."

Shara gripped her eldest daughter's hand tightly. "Promise me," she whispered.

"I promise, Mom."


Next chapter, the action's going to go KABOOM! Hope you liked this chapter, and I promise I won't take as much time to update the next one!