"The Way of Knowing"

Arya never thought she would live to see the day that an elf would speak to a dragon with such disrespect. Even more astounding was the fact that Blödhgarm had been the one to do it. However, the idea of having Glaedr back revitalized her with newfound hope. It would also greatly benefit the Varden if Eragon were to improve his swordsmanship. Admittedly, having Glaedr watch her own swordsmanship was slightly unnerving.

The slight tilting of Eragon's head told her that he was speaking to Glaedr privately. However, she felt the dragon reach out to her and suddenly she was hearing everything they were saying.

[From Inheritance "Look at her, Eragon. Look at her well. She sees you for who you are, but do you see her in return? Do you see her clearly enough to defeat her in battle?]

Do I see him for who he is?

As an opponent, it was easy for her to guess what he was going to do, see tendencies, bad habits, even gauge his mood. As a person, she wasn't totally sure. In the past, she could see that he was a boy who had too much responsibility thrust on his shoulders. Then he was a broken young man who chased after her with lust. Now, he was considerably more mature and different. She, on the other hand, hadn't changed since Gil'ead. He hasn't truly seen her yet, but she was worried that he was getting close.

When he finally looked into her eyes, she met his stare with as much confidence as she could muster. Walking through life alone has made her feel a greater need to keep herself distant. Part of that was staying neutral and not allowing too much of herself to show.

If Eragon wants to beat me, I'm certainly not going to make it easy. If Eragon wishes to court me, well, he should stick with sparring.

He seemed to have finished analyzing her, as he started shuffling diagonally. He seemed to be repeating something he tried before. A sudden catching of his boot on a pebble drove her to take the opening and lunge for him. After he blocked her two attacks, she went for his head. She realised too late that he somehow could tell she was going to do that. Luckily, she inadvertently blocked his blow to her chest and dispatched him swiftly.

After a long pause, he got back up again and readied himself. There was anger and frustration in his glare. He limped with the residual bruises and welts from their previous bouts. She decided to goad him with a smile full of teeth and a careless toss of her hair.

He had learned from before though, not to fall for her charms. He also looked extremely focused and driven. He began to sprint to her with his sword out to the side. She immediately saw the opening and went for a slashing blow. When he dodged it she was slightly caught off guard. Her battle instincts kicked in though and allowed her to fend off his attack with her shield. He was down for a couple of moments, then they began circling again.

Despite how much they had sparred already, she felt rejuvenated somehow. Energy was coursing through her veins. His sudden leap towards her told her he felt the same. Their blades became invisible from the speed and vigour of their fight. Still though, she noticed that his eyes were locked on hers. Surprisingly, the intensity of his gaze didn't make her feel uncomfortable anymore. She still wasn't ready to lose. Her reverse pommel strike caught him off guard and took him out.

He paused again, in the midst of another lesson from Glaedr.

When he opened his eyes again, she felt like something changed in him. He looked resigned, still ready to win, but not that desperate anymore. The constant growth of Eragon intrigued her more than she'd like to admit.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Ready."

They began circling again. This time she didn't go for a smile, she kept herself more neutral. When he smiled at her, it didn't faze her at all. She sprang on him, ready to tackle him down. He dodged as expected. She stopped then and traced her sword on the ground. Suddenly, she felt this animalistic instinct inside of her to growl. She wanted to unsettle him but, she honestly hadn't planned that.

In turn , she bounded after him, her emotions were slipping. Despite the fact that Eragon was non-resistant, she just kept on fighting. The final blow. She realised too late that he was able to sidestep it, with her sword in the ground, all she could do was keep him in sight. It wasn't him that she was looking at though. The sun was truly blinding, black spots still danced across her vision as she felt Brisingr stab her in the ribs. She stared at Eragon, he had truly defeated her this time.

He was different again, he had managed to change so many times in this one sparring session. She knew the way that she felt towards him had definitely changed, but in what way, she still wasn't sure. This sparring session was helping her figure things out for herself as well.

Is Eragon willing to commit, to the Varden, to the war, to me?

She began to lose track of the sparring matches they had, but Eragon had made great progress. He managed to beat her again, afterwards though, they came to more of a standstill. Coupled with the fact that they were both tiring, they had become more evenly matched in the course of this session. She could see that he was past the point of exhaustion, but he was ready to do whatever it took. To get Glaedr's approval? To get hers?

She saw an opening and lunged for him, she still couldn't seem to gain the upper hand, neither could he. They both seemed to be in tune with each others fighting style. As their swords locked together in an unyielding embrace, she figured out more about him then, than in any conversation they had. Then he said what she most feared and subconsciously wanted.

[From Inheritance Eragon said in a low, fierce voice, "I...see...you."

A bright spark appeared in Arya's eyes, then vanished just as quickly.]

For she knew that he truly did see her as she saw him, but she knew that nothing could ever come of it. She could not allow anything to come of it and now that he has seen her, he should know why. Her sense of duty has always reigned over all of her actions in her life. She could never distract Eragon from his duty, he is a rider, he is their only hope. He was the one who changed in the sparring, not her. Right then, she felt old, much older than the young man in front of her. She even wondered if she was still capable of change.

Kind of a short chapter, but it was time to wrap up the "sparring" arc as I dub it. Thank you for reading, shout out to my reviewers. Also based on the poll, I will write the next arc on Arya's journey to Helgrind in Brisingr. Sorry for the long wait.