Eila watched as Lyda disappeared into Arya's room and a worried expression haunted her face. Däthedr decided that he couldn't stay due to a meeting he was supposed to attend, and Arya was understanding when he left.

"She'll be okay." Eylörís said as she nuzzled up against her Rider's shoulder. "She's strong."

"It's not her I'm worried about. Well, I'm worried about her but not as much as the other things that are on my mind." She admitted in a quiet tone. "I'm worried Lyda is going to tell her about my outburst. I shouldn't have… reacted that way. I don't know what's gotten into me."

Eylörís nuzzled her way up next to her Rider and sat. She was getting big: practically twice her size since when they had first met Arya and Fírnen.

"A new place can bring out old memories. Things change, things fade. When you're brought to a new place, it's normal to think about the past. Perhaps that's what caused it?"

"Maybe…" Eila responded noncommittally, then remained silent.

Eylörís watched her Rider's gaze shift to Elva and her mentor, Angela. They were caring for the eggs and Shruikan, wiping them down with cleaning rags to remove any dirt or dust that had been acquired in their travels.

"Tell me what happened when you two went off to look for Lyda." The white and blue dragon asked, changing the subject.

"We talked and made up. We're friends now." She said quietly as she turned to Eylörís.

"What else happened?"

"Nothing." Eila shrugged and went to the saddle that was still laying in a pile on the deck. From it she produced a brush, then walked back over to Eylörís and began running the bristles over her scales as she would a horse. It made sense to her to do this, despite dragons not having fur or feathers.

"She's wearing your necklace."

Eila's cheeks pinkened and her eyes faded into her mind. "It's what friends do."

"Liar."

Eila's shocked gaze snapped to her dragon who stared at her smugly. "I'm not lying." she stressed, cocking her head to the side slightly.

"There's always a meaning to everything you do and 'it's what friends do' is not what your true intention was behind giving her that necklace, now was it?"

Eila's eyes fell away to the ground and she chewed on her bottom lip. "No." She admitted quietly. "But that doesn't mean I was lying to you."

"Fair enough, but you weren't telling the entire truth."

"There's a difference between telling a lie and not telling the entire truth, Eylörís."

"And yet you kept the crucial pieces from me."

Eila huffed. "Fine, I'm sorry, okay? I'm… confused and angry." she switched to mental conversation midway through talking to prevent Elva from overhearing.

"Why?" Eylörís looked at her pointedly. "The whole truth, please."

With pursed lips, her Rider rolled her eyes. "I've never been physically attracted to anyone before. I didn't have the time or the capability to entertain those thoughts while I was still under Father's thumb. Now that I'm free and no longer hyper-focused on survival… I've had the chance to… look at people, and… and I suddenly find Elva highly attractive." She looked away, sneaking a glance over at the young woman who had a light smile on her features as she cradled a purple egg in her lap. "It bothers me that she's… that she's really only three and yet she looks and talks as though she and I are the same age. Is it wrong to look at her like this?"

"To dragons, age is in both ways subjective and objective so long as both consent and the levels of maturity match. I see nothing wrong with you and Elva being together."

"But is it acceptable to the Elves?" Eila stressed, then sighed and leaned her forehead against Eylörís' back.

"Perhaps talk to Arya about it and see what she says, or better yet, have a conversation with Elva and see how she feels about it."

Eila almost leapt back. "No to both of those things, I feel like I'm already on thin ice because I yelled at Healer Lyda and that would be embarrassing to just… confront her about it out of nowhere. We barely know each other!"

"Everything alright?" Angela called and Eila's cheeks reddened.

"Yes ma'am." She called back.

"Or, perhaps, ask me." Fírnen's voice caused Eila to freeze, her heart felt like it was going to leap from her chest, sprout legs, and run away. The Green dragon shifted, and she was surprised by how well he matched his surroundings. He was hiding in plain sight.

"Forgive me, Ebrithil…" Eila responded quickly.

"Why are you apologizing for the matters of the heart? You're like Arya in that regard." he said casually.

"Because I find it inappropriate for my position as a Rider." She said, bowing to him, but her shoulders drooped in defeat.

"And yet Arya is still quite new in her position as a Rider, just like you, and she is pregnant." He settled, laying his massive head on the cool wood of the porch. "I do not agree with the old ways. Riders should be allowed to have relationships so long as they can balance their duties along with it. It was unnecessary unhappiness." he blew a smoke ring at them and Eila watched it with apprehension.

"Regarding Elva's age, that is for you to decide. While she has only been on this plane for three years, her curse says otherwise. I am almost a year old and yet I can offer wisdom beyond my physical age. Elva has the mind of a dragon; her blood is that of a dragon. Take that as you will, though know that it is not frowned upon by me. It would be wise to talk to Arya about it, as her opinions may differ." He hummed in what sounded like a chuckle. "To put it in perspective, she is a hundred and four. Eragon, the father of her child, is… I believe he is either seventeen or eighteen. She would be a hypocrite to frown upon you having a relationship with Elva."

Eila straightened despite her shock at how broad the age gap was between Arya and Eragon, the first Rider in over a hundred years. She wasn't even aware that he was the father of her cousin's child.

"Please take care to guard your mind better, Eila, as private thoughts and conversations may reach the wrong people, though I understand today has been… complicated and stressful." He blew another smoke ring. "That is no excuse, however. Your mind should always be guarded, even when around your friends."

"Yes, Ebrithil. Thank you." She couldn't help the small smile that drifted over her features.

Everyone froze and turned when a soft yet familiar cracking sound came from Angela and Elva's direction, and Eila instantly found herself in motion, her long legs taking her easily over the objects scattered about due to their unpacking adventures.

Her eyes scanned the area and her eyebrows rose in surprise when the violet egg that used to be in Elva's lap was partially cracked. It was now sitting in front of Elva so it had room to move around if needed.

She stayed back several feet to watch and to give the privacy Elva was due.

The shell split and two irregular halves fell away from the small dragon that shook itself and stretched its wings. It's head moved about as it blinked rapidly to clear its vision. It tried to stand, walked a few paces, then sat. A shudder ran down its back when it yawned with a soft whimper before turning back.

Eila saw Elva straighten when the dragon locked eyes with her.

"Reach your hand out." Eila advised in the calmest voice possible.

With a slight nod, Elva listened and reached out with her palm facing the sky. The little dragon looked down at her hand, then up at her, then down at her hand again before deciding to further approach her.

"Breathe." Eila reminded with a soft smile and Elva nodded.

The dragon pressed it's snout and jaw into her hand and she gasped, then yelped. The Gedwëy Ignasia mark started to form on her hand, but it changed and spread. Silvery tendrils traveled up her forearm, wispy lines that crawled like vines laced their way into her skin. She tried pulling away but was horrified to find that she was stuck in place. She couldn't even think straight enough to try breaking free.

With a bang only she could hear, Elva was sent backwards due to her own strength while she tried to pull away. She scrambled into a sitting position and stared at the dragon, then down at her hand. Her gaze flickered as sudden and powerful exhaustion drained her consciousness.

When she fell, concern lit Eila's eyes and she started to approach Elva's prone form when the newborn dragon growled darkly at her.

"I'm not going to hurt her." Eila said. "I'm a Rider too, see?" She held out her right hand and pulled her glove off, then pointed to the bright mark on her heavily scared palm. It was the only patch of smooth skin in the area. She knelt and the small dragon shakily reached out to sniff at her. It's pupils dilated, still determining if she was a threat.

The violet dragon turned to Elva, then nestled up beside her. It rested its head on her abdomen and Eila could see how thin she was. Her heart ached.

Kneeling by Elva's head Eila pressed a hand to her cheek, her eyes softening. Her fingers slid to Elva's neck to check for a pulse and relief spread through her when she found it.

"What happened?" Angela asked.

"I don't know…" Eila responded. "I think she's okay…" she mumbled as her fingers slid to Elva's chest, and to the necklace rope that had been pulled by the pendant which now hung from the back of her neck. Gravity pulls everything down.

"Eila, control yourself." Eylörís reminded and her Rider frowned.

"I'm not doing anything."

"Her hand." Angela said gently as she looked Elva up and down.

Eila tore her gaze away to find Elva's left hand- her marked hand- and she pulled away to pick it up.

"Please wake up." She said softly as she observed the marks that flowed like water across her pale skin. They pulsed with light long with her heart rate, though the glow was soft and barely noticeable in the midday light.

"She needs rest, I think. Is there a place we can take her? When Lyda is done with Arya's appointment, I think she needs to be looked at as well." Eila looked over at the dragon whose violet eyes were closed. She watched it for a second and was glad to see it was still breathing.

"Fírnen? Eylörís? Do either of you know what's happened?" Angela asked.

"I have a hypothesis, but before I mention anything, I would like Lyda to take a look at both of them and I would like for Elva to wake up first as well." Fírnen said, but Eylörís remained silent.

"Eila, there are plenty of rooms here in the Loft. Come on, let me carry someone." Angela offered as she made her way over and knelt on the over side of Elva.

"I… um… I'll take her." Eila volunteered in a soft voice.

"Elva, you mean?" Angela asked and a nod was her immediate response.

"I don't know if the dragon is male or female." Eila kept her volume low.

"Neither do I." Angela said as she reached out and ran her fingers down the little dragon's spine. It shifted its wings, then groaned when she picked it up.

Eila turned back to look at the young woman who lay before her, then set her hand down and instead scooped her up, one arm under her knees, another to support her back, and pulled up into her lap, holding her close.

"This way." Angela nodded and led them into the cluster of treehouses connected by bridges made of branches.

In silence, Eila followed, focusing on the rhythm of Elva's slow, deep breathing. It was worrisome to her how light Elva was. There was a drive deep within her chest that made her want to help.

"In here." Angela said, pushing the door open to an empty room that hugged a tree. Eila entered shortly after and let herself be guided into the bedroom.

The dragon was laid on the bed first, and the little thing curled itself up into a comfortable ball without walking up.

Eila hesitated when it came to putting Elva down and Angela noticed. "You can stay with her if you want."

"W-what? N-no, that's okay." She croaked, then quickly set the young woman down, made sure she was comfortable, fixed her necklace, then straightened.

"You're fond of her and those feelings are… recent, are they not?"

The half-Elf could only stare while she tried to process the question. She nodded eventually and swallowed thickly.

"And you're still trying to figure out if you are legitimately interested?"

Once more Eila nodded, cheeks aflame.

"I thought so. Sit, kneel, lay next to her, I don't care, just… keep your distance." She held her hands flat out and parallel to one another, then widened and narrowed the gap between her inwardly facing palms.

"I promise." Eila said quietly.

"Good. I'm going to go check on Arya to make sure she's alright. Let us know if something odd happens."

Eila nodded again. "Y-yes ma'am."

Angela smiled and chuckled softly. "Now relax. You're in a safe place."

"I'll do my best." She responded quietly.

"Alright, I'll be back. Keep an eye on these two." Angela leaned over and patted her on the shoulder before turning and leaving. She closed the door but left it ajar.

Once alone, Eila looked down at Elva's prone form. With a soft sigh, she bent over and pulled her shoes off, then climbed up onto the bed. She situated herself about a foot away and carefully laced her fingers through Elva's left hand and squeezed lightly.

"I hope you're okay…" she whispered into the silence and sighed when no response came.

"I hope you're both okay. "

A/N: Hey you guys! I have another chapter! Pretty cool, pretty cool. I don't have much else to say like I usually do. Oh! Arya is sixteen weeks along. That's all!

I hope you all liked this chapter :)

-Lady Arlo