Chapter 32
Yawning, Alex blinked rapidly, grunting as bright light entered his vision. However, it was replaced by a big mass of blue. Even if his head was still half-asleep, he instinctively smiled. When his eyes regained focus, he understood he was facing Saphira's upper torso, stuck between her front legs and the rest of her body coiling around him.
«Adorable. Too bad I can't be the big spoon but heh, I won't complain. Better than nothing. » He appreciated their sleeping position and the warmth she was radiating for a few more minutes before Saphira's breathing accelerated, indicating she was waking up. The dragoness raised her head, shaking it a few times to remove the last traces of sleep, followed by a quick scan of how she was placed in her dais, then a coo when she spotted her human.
The latter looked up at her, his eyes meeting hers.
«Morning love. » She purred, her voice as soft as silk and her voice almost a whisper.
He kissed the side of her left leg, followed by a caress on it. «Morning to you too beautiful, slept well? »
«Never better now that you're at my side. »
«Hush you, you really want to see me blush that soon in the day? »
She couldn't help but smirk. «Maybe~. What about you? »
«One of the best nights I had, despite your scales, you're very comfortable. »
«Flatterer. »
«Nothing less than the truth. » This time, it was his turn to smile widely. However, before they could continue, the duo was interrupted by Eragon's alarm which quickly stopped ringing. Alex grunted, taking refuge deeper against his lover. The blue lizard shared his sentiment about this but gently nudged his head with her nose.
«I'd love nothing more than to stay the whole morning here with you but we have a long day ahead of us. »
«I know. » Reluctantly and with a huff, he broke off from her embrace, standing up then did a few stretches. She licked her lips as she saw the view in front of her. «Saphira like. »
«But Saphira will not see more of it if she don't stand up herself. »
«Fine, fine. You win this one. »
He snorted, walking to his clothes and putting his socks first. He then turned his head to his friend.
"Hi Eragon." «Hello little one! »
The other man growled in answer, not quite awake, as he walked in the bathroom to freshen up. When he walked out of it, the light brown haired man had barely finished strapping his blade while Saphira was silently waiting. Then, the two young adults sat at the table, beginning to dig in the breakfast an elf brought a little earlier.
They were still in a little shock after their discovery a few hours ago, even if Alex and Saphira had acclimated to it quite fast. The swordsman was now able to feel the presence of other minds around him but they were very faint, as if they were kilometers away despite being right at his side and was also visible to them. What was stranger was that he could hear both of his companions clearly and loudly. Even if he was a little frightened by the news, Saphira, on her side, was happy because they could now talk freely without anyone else aware of it, and she showed it by smothering him with affections like rubbing her snout against his shoulder, kissing his cheeks, his head or even very lightly nipping in the gap of his neck. It didn't bother him that much, even in the middle of the meal. Yet, when she surprised him with the last one, he inhaled sharply and shuddered, a chill went down from the back of his neck to his lower back followed by a strong blush on his cheekbones, his facial temperature raising quickly. He put his right hand where she nibbled, leaned a little to the side and looked at her in a mix of embarrassment and fake anger.
«A little sensible here, aren't you? » she teased, grinning at this little bit of information. «That's good to know. »
«You little minx! Just you wait until I find where you're ticklish, I'll make you pay. » The only answer he got was a wink followed by pulling out her tongue, as if she was daring him to concretize what he just said.
Eragon observed the whole interaction without a word, while finishing a bunch of grapes, amused at how they acted. A snort escaped his lips, he immediately put a hand in front of his mouth, hoping they didn't heard him. His hopes were short-lived as the two lovers moved their heads at the same time to look at him.
«What? » "What?"
"It's just… the way you act with each other. I don't know what you're talking about and that's a shame because you look like you're into a friendly bickering."
His almond eyed friend bit into an apple, crossing his arms over his chest. "My dear, you'll learn that all couples are like that, during the first months/years at least, to build or strengthen complicity. For how long this kind of behavior stay depend from one relationship to another. The most important, in my opinion," He swallowed it and took a second one. "is to have gestures like theses all along, so the relation stay fresh. I speak from experience."
"You sounds like you went out with a few people."
"I've got my share." An index was raised in the air. "However, rule number one: never speak of your past experiences… or share the bare minimum so the other person know what he/she has to deal with, especially if you were hurt by it and still need some time to heal."
The Rider nodded. "I see, I'll keep that in mind." He then followed. "On the topic of your new capacity, we should speak to Oromis about it."
"Right but it'll have to wait after you daily duel." The Rider grunted.
"Don't remind me…"
"He's still bothering you?"
"It depend on the day. But he calmed down a little after your fight."
"I hope." Alex snickered. "Because I don't think I'll be able to do another feat like that one. Once is more than enough." At the same time, the stood up and finished preparing themselves. They then sat on Saphira's back, the dragoness taking the air once the duo was comfortably seated. Not long after, they arrived on the sparring fields, Eragon's rival was patiently waiting for him. Even when he saw the ambassador, Vanir managed to keep his composure but barely.
The latter lightly inclined his head when the trio approached. "Ambassador Alex."
"Vanir."
The exchange was cold, barely formal at best. Everyone with enough common sense could see the underlying tension between them.
"It looks like you recovered well from your injuries."
Putting his hands in his pockets, the swordsman smirked. "I'm not the kind of man who stay down for long." The dragon and the human stayed on the side, observing without a word the match.
A usual, the duels ended the same way as before but the elf kept his provocations to the bare minimum, knowing the fighter who bested him wouldn't hesitate to intervene if he deemed it necessary. When it was over, the two humans and the dragoness departed quickly to arrive in time for the activity that would occupy them for the rest of the day. The Rider of old time expressed his surprise at Alex's presence by raising an eyebrow, calmly waiting for an explanation.
"My mind is now visible to everyone and I can communicate telepathically. It happened last night, as I said goodnight to Eragon and Saphira. However, I can find and scry minds around me but even if they're a few feet apart, it feels like they're distant. Like a light dot at the end of a tunnel."
Exhaling slowly, Oromis nodded, knowing what had to be done. "Fine, I'll instruct you on how to mediate like we do since it's no secret at all. This will help you develop your power. Once you've done it here for an hour, I want you to practice it in a place a little away from the city. However, I preconize you work for longer sessions than Eragon since you have to catch up with everyone else."
"It will be done."
"Perfect."
Just before Saphira went on her way with her master, she kissed her lover on the cheek, then winked. In answer, he blushed lightly. Oromis crossed his arms, looking at the scene with an impassive expression on his face. "Glaedr told me yesterday but we didn't thought it would happen so fast."
Raising his arm to scratch the back of his head, the young man chuckled awkwardly. "I made the first move, we talked about what we felt, our respective futures and duties. We don't have any illusions about this relationship, it's crystal clear between us."
"And I'm glad it's the case, Saphira's training is more important than anything else. However, some elves will be reticent to your feelings for each other. There were humans and elves that were together but a man and a dragoness? That's unheard of."
"I'm aware but it's my life, my choice, no theirs."
As Eragon walked in a specific direction and the two dragons flew away for today's lesson, the elven Rider indicated Alex to follow him in the forest. Not long after, the two of them reached a little place with a stream and stopped. "Now, sit."
The swordsman complied, taking his mediating stance, his back straight, his legs crossed and his hands on his kneecaps. He then closed his eyes. He heard the elven Rider whisper in his left ear.
"Open you mind and listen the world around you, hear the thoughts of all living things in this clearing, from ants running on trees to the worms buried in the earth. Listen until you can know everything about them, when you'll hear nothing more, come tell me what you learned."
Having a total trust in Oromis, he relaxed and opened his consciousness to his environment, extending it as far as he was able. A bird entered his range but he barely spotted it, the light it emitted microscopic, rending it impossible to know what if felt or was thinking, before it flew away. This small failure barely bothered him, knowing it would take a lot of training to be able to pass the exercise. During the whole hour, Alex didn't felt anything else around him. When the time was up, he trekked back to the hut, the old Rider and his pupil were inside, the latter writing on a parchment. He approached them and cleared his throat to make himself known.
"Tell me, what did you hear?"
Even if he didn't want to be discouraged, the man with almond eyes couldn't help but have deception laced in his voice when he spoke. "Almost nothing, I detected a bird at the beginning but it disappeared too quickly before I could do anything. After this, I was totally in the dark."
The ghost of a sad smile threatened to appear on his lips. "That's what I feared. Continue meditating even if you don't see any result, it will pay off sooner or later. When you'll be able to feel all life around you, come seek me."
"Yes, Oromis-elda."
He saluted the two men and went on his way, slowly going back to Ellesméra on feet. In the meantime, Alex let his mind open to everything, confirming the fact he was only able to spot the biggest animals but nothing under the scale of a squirrel. At least, it was better than nothing. The long walk made him appreciate the nature surrounding him and the sun on his back. It felt so much better than staying stuck in his room moping. When he reached his destination, he went back to the training ground to meet with his group and practice the Rimgar, learning at the same time new positions, followed by trying to spot a good place for his future meditations, a bath and a raid to the library, deepening his knowledge on the Liduen Kvaedhi.
A normal day for him.
The swordsman walked out of the building not long after the sun was down, his head hurting him a little for staying concentrated on something for so long. The trail back to his room made him pass near the Menoa Tree. Curious, he stopped himself and marched to it, putting a hand on its bark. He then felt the consciousness of the tree, in awe by its gigantism, its presence far bigger than everything else he felt until this morning, and this despite the fact it felt distant. Seeing this as his best occasion, Alex took note of what the tree was feeling, thinking of, its thoughts were measured, having its own pace, slow. The massive plant didn't remark him, or anyone else, only concentrated on everything that was growing around him. This thing was intelligent!
Then, happy with his discovery, he walked back to his room. After having a quick dinner, he jumped on his bed, not even bothering to undress and fell asleep soon after, but no before hearing a familiar voice in his head. «Sweet dreams, love. »
It was enough to make him smile for the whole night.