Chapter 4: Green

After finding Aberon to be a rather boring city, Link made his way back to the castle. It was about lunchtime when he was doing so. He could feel many eyes staring after him, but he paid them no heed and continued on.

What Link was thinking about most was what Nasuada had said about Hyrule. We know about your exploits in Hyrule… it was definitely disturbing. He couldn't understand how they knew of what he had done there when he had no idea of Alagaësia's existence until the previous day.

He shook those unpleasant thoughts away just in time. A very odd looking girl jumped in front of his horse, causing her to back up on her hind legs. Link steadied Epona enough so that she wouldn't fall down and crush the girl. When Epona finally settled down, Link felt as if he was the one who needed to be settled.

The girl in front of him was ghastly. Her appearance was almost normal, but there was something about her that made him want to scream with fear. She had a strange mark on her forehead, extremely pale skin, and violet eyes. She looked to be about five or six.

"Hello, Link," she said. Link recoiled. Her voice was an adult's. It repulsed him. He shied away from her gaze. "Be not afraid, Link," she said. How did she know his name?

"What are you?" Link asked.

"I am what Eragon made me. I am Elva," she said. Link was now interested at the mention of the legendary hero whom he had yet to meet.

"What Eragon made you?" Link repeated, puzzled. "Why did you jump in front of my horse?"

"She was about to step into this pothole," said Elva, gesturing to a deep depression in the road. Link noticed a bloody scrape on her pale elbow from where she had dived in front of him. Link looked at where she pointed. It could have caused Epona to trip and break a leg.

"Oh… thank you," said Link. Elva did not speak, but only walked away. Almost grateful she was gone, Link galloped away, making sure he would not step in the pothole.

Link arrived at the castle just in time for lunch to be served. There was chicken, corn, and potatoes. Link ate hungrily; his hunger still hadn't fully worn off from his adventure in the Lost Woods—or rather, Du Weldenvarden. It had never occurred to him that the Lost Woods could lead to two different lands—Alagaësia and Termina.

Link finished eating his lunch and retreated to his quarters. As soon as he did, he took off his tunic and threw it in the provided wardrobe. He was about to close the door when something inside caught his eye. Curious, he looked inside. When the wardrobe was fully open, Link was astonished to see the green stone—egg—next to his weapons. Why hadn't he noticed it before?

Link encountered the same desire to reach out and grab it as he had back in Hyrule with Princess Zelda. Making sure no one was watching, Link slowly reached out toward the egg and picked it up in his hands and stared into its mystical surface. It was strange to think that it contained a sentient being… something that was breathing.

The egg vibrated. Link was startled. He wanted to put it down, but the vibration did not occur again, so he kept staring at it.

It shook. This time, Link placed it on a shelf, slightly frightened. The egg shook repeatedly, rocking back and forth. Link stared at it as it began to shake violently. He saw small cracks appear on its surface. Link got closer. A small chip flew off, sticky membrane stuck to it.

Suddenly, the egg burst, pieces flying all over the room. Link instinctively shielded his eyes. When he was sure it was done, he peeked.

On the shelf was a tiny green dragon, rolling back and forth on its back. Link cocked his head, intrigued.

The dragon noticed Link was looking at him and turned to face him. It chirped happily.

"Hey little fella," said Link with a small smile. It moved toward him. It was going to fall off the shelf! Impulsively, Link dove to catch it. As soon as his hand made contact with the dragon, a shock jolted up his right arm and into his head. Link cried out and was knocked to the floor, dazed. The dragon hit the ground unharmed. His body burned; pain surged through him. It was a while before he could feel anything, and then he sat up. His right palm tingled. He looked down at his palm just in time to see a shimmering silver oval appear.

Link watched the dragon hatchling with amazement as it crawled under Link's tunic. At first it was curious, but then it was annoyed that it couldn't see. It shook its head repeatedly to get the tunic from off its eyes, but it couldn't manage to get from under it. Link laughed. Finally, the little green dragon reached up with a claw and pushed the tunic off its face.

Then, Link felt something brush his consciousness. He ignored it to watch the dragon play around, but it was standing stock still, radiant green eyes boring into his own blue ones.

The feeling grew stronger, and Link apprehensively let it into his mind. He felt a rapacious hunger, not coming from himself, but from the dragon. Link understood now. It was telling him it was hungry!

Link hurried and threw his tunic back on before exiting his room and running into the kitchen. Lunch was still being served to some. Link saw a plate with a large slab of chicken on it. Making sure he wasn't being watched, Link snatched it off the plate and ran back to his room, slamming the door after him. He saw the little green dragon bounding around the room, peeping happily. Link couldn't help but notice how cute it was.

"Hey little guy," said Link. The dragon looked up at him and saw the chicken. It bounced up and down excitedly. Link dropped the chicken and the dragon padded over to it and ate it quickly. It seemed large enough; the dragon sat on its haunches tiredly, and Link noticed a slight bulge in its stomach. The dragon gave a soft yawn and curled into a small ball. After he was sure it was asleep, Link rushed out of the room and went to the room where he had eaten breakfast with Nasuada. Once he heard voices inside, Link burst in without knocking. The entire Council was sitting around the table, looking annoyed at Link's sudden outburst. Link didn't feel comfortable telling anyone but Jörmundur.

"Jörmundur," said Link. Jörmundur raised his eyebrows. "Can I speak with you please?"

A little puzzled, Jörmundur stood and came to the door, which Link closed after them.

"What is it, Link?" Jörmundur asked.

"You know the green dragon egg?" Link asked. Jörmundur nodded. "I found it in my wardrobe. Did you put it there when you emptied my travel bag?"

"No," said Jörmundur, mystified. "I took it to Nasuada. Why?"

Link looked around. "It hatched," he said. Jörmundur's eyes widened.

"It hatched?" Jörmundur cried. Link put a hand over his mouth to silence him.

"I don't want anyone thinking I'm a Rider!" Link whispered.

"But you are now!" said Jörmundur. "A dragon will only hatch for one person, and that's the person that's destined to be its Rider!"

Worry gripped Link. He wasn't supposed to be a Rider; he was the Hero of Time. His place was in Hyrule.

"I must tell Nasuada," said Jörmundur.

"No!" said Link. "I don't want anyone else knowing!"

"I won't tell the Council, I promise. Just Nasuada," he said. Link thought for a moment. Nasuada seemed nice enough.

"Okay, but onlyNasuada!"

Jörmundur nodded and opened the door, poking his head in. "Nasuada, can you come out here for a moment?" Link heard her footsteps coming to the door and saw her come out.

Jörmundur and Nasuada stood next to Link while Jörmundur related to her what Link had said.

"The green egg hatched for you?" said Nasuada, bewildered. Link nodded. Nasuada paced for a moment.

"Have you told anyone else about this besides Jörmundur and I?" she asked. Link shook his head.

"No. I don't trust the Council," he said.

"And for good reason," said Nasuada. "They will try everything in their power to corrupt you into being the Varden's guard-dog. Don't let that happen. We would benefit a lot from your assistance, but try not to let your life revolve around us."

"Don't worry," said Link. "The Varden are the last thing I'm concerned about. All I want is to get back home."

"But don't leave until Galbatorix has been dethroned," said Nasuada. "Please."

"But that could take years!" Link protested.

"You don't have much of a choice right now," she said. "Especially since that dragon just hatched for you."

"Okay, fair enough," said Link.

"Now, we need to find somewhere to keep your dragon while he grows. Then you can train with him when he's old enough to communicate with you," said Nasuada.

"Wait, communicate?" Link asked, confused.

"Yes. Did you not know that dragons were intelligent beings? They are as intelligent as your or I, perhaps more so," Nasuada explained. This came as a shock to Link. From all he had (or hadn't) heard about dragons, he thought them to be mere beasts.

"Take me and Jörmundur to your quarters, and we will discreetly transport your dragon to somewhere safe. I know the perfect place," she said. Link nodded and led them to his quarters.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

A/N: Again, let me know what you think. This was a slightly shorter chapter than before. Read and review!