Popularity War

Chapter 15

Eragon tip-toed out of his room and down the hall towards Eva's bedroom, careful not to step on any creaky floor boards. Unfortunately, his foot landed on one and the sound carried across the hall much too loud for his liking. He stood still and listened to his surroundings, but no noise came from any of the bedrooms, so he ventured forward once more. He opened Eva's door as quietly as possible and paced over to her bed.

She looked so serene fast asleep in her bed and Eragon almost gave up on his mission to wake her. However, the thought of the creature in his bedroom kept him from leaving. Leaning forward, he gently shook Eva's arm and whispered into her ear. A soft moan escaped her lips. She was in a deep sleep and the gentle approach was not working very well. Using a little more force and a louder whisper, he was finally able to wake her.

Disoriented, it took her a few seconds to realize what was going on. "Eragon?" Her hoarse voice was loud in the still room.

"Shh. I need you to come with me." Eragon prompted. He tried to make his tone as cheerful as possible to not worry her, at least not until she saw why he had woken her.

"Why? What time is it?"

"I have to show you something. It's rather important."

"Now?" She was very tired and wanted to go back to sleep, but Eragon would not let her.

"Yes, please come. It shouldn't take too much of your time."

With a groan, Eva managed to sit up. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Fine." She followed Eragon back to his room and froze. The shock had heightened her senses making her feel more awake. "I'm not dreaming am I? That's a baby dragon standing in the middle of your room."

Eragon felt foolish for not realizing sooner that the creature was a dragon, but he never let on to Eva that he was ignorant of that fact. "Ah yes, yes it is. That stone I found in the Spine was actually an egg, and well, it hatched."

"Obviously. What are you going to do? This is…" she trailed off, speechless.

"I'm not sure. That's why I woke you. I need your help."

"How can I help? I'm leaving tomorrow morning?!"

"Shh. Keep your voice down." Eragon whispered.

"Sorry," she replied. "Well, the first step is getting it out of the house and away from the farm. The best place would be in the woods." Eva suggested.

"I think you're right. However, since it is winter, I may have to build him a shelter." Eragon did not want the creature to freeze, nor did he want it to be a target for other animals. The dragon was still very young and he was unsure how strong it was. Until he had proof that the creature can defend itself, he would keep the dragon in a wooden shelter off the ground.

"That's not a bad idea either," Eva agreed.

"Good, then that's settled."

"Aye, but now we have the question of food and then the chore of you raising him on your own. Will you even tell Garrow once my uncle and I leave?"

Eragon shrugged. "I'm not sure yet."

"I think you should. A magic stone was bad enough, but this…this is a dragon. Someone has to be looking for him. I fear you may be in danger."

"Perhaps. That's why I feel that keeping quiet is the best option."

Eva was skeptical, but was too tired to argue with him. "Let's just get him outside."

"Sure. Why don't you grab some meat from the kitchen and I'll carry him out."

"That sounds good." Before she exited the room, she asked, "By the way, how do we know what gender it is?"

"I have no idea. Until we do, we'll just stick to 'him'." Eragon said.

"Fine by me." With that, Eva headed towards the kitchen. She grabbed a sack and stuffed some jerky into it. She also grabbed a small raw piece of meat and was about to walk back to Eragon's room when the sounds of footsteps made her pause. At first she thought Eragon was on his way to join her, but then she saw her uncle. His eyes were looking at the ground, which allowed Eva to quickly place the sack behind the counter. "Good morning uncle."

Startled, Richard jumped. "Oh, it's you. I didn't know anyone was awake. Are you usually up this early as well?"

"Umm…no. I just had a bit of trouble sleeping. Anxious about leaving you know." Her excuse was very plausible, keeping her uncle from becoming suspicious. "What about you?"

"Sometimes. I like mornings. Waking up early allows me to get more tasks done in a day. Though, I must say, I didn't expect to wake up this early after traveling so far."

Neither did Eva. Now She would have to help Eragon come up with another plan to get the dragon out of the house. "Well, I've got some morning chores, so I guess I'll get a get a head start on them." She grabbed the sack started out of the room.

"Of course." Richard smiled and let her go on her way, never questioning the sack in her hand. He just assumed she needed it for her tasks.

Eva put on her coat, boots, hat, and gloves and walked out into the frigid morning air. She walked towards the barn and placed the sack of meat inside before exiting. This time, she made her ways towards Eragon's window. She was careful not to make too many new tracks in the snow. After playing in the snow, Eragon and Eva had made many snow trails in the yard around the house, so she did her best to step into pre-made holes. She did not want their uncles to wonder why she walked to Eragon's window.

At his window, she knocked. Eragon opened it and handed her a bundle, which was the dragon wrapped in a blanket. "I'll take him to the barn for now. We'll stay there and wait for you."

"Alright. Hurry up and try not to be seen."

"I will." Eragon closed his window as Eva turned to leave with the dragon. Immediately after, he started to squirm. "No, please behave. I'm taking you to safety and it's difficult as it is, so please stop." As if the creature could understand, he stopped squirming at looked at her. "Thank you, that's a good dragon. Eragon will join us soon, so don't worry."

Eragon left his room and put on his winter gear. From his room, he had heard someone walk down the hall, so he waited until Eva returned for a different plan. He had to admit that her window idea was quite good. In the kitchen, he saw Richard.

"Ah, you're up as well? A bunch of early birds live here," he joked.

Eragon smiled to hide his nervousness. "Well, I do live on a farm. There's a lot to be done around here each day. Might as well wake up early and get it done."

"Exactly how I feel. Want a cup of tea? I took the liberty and made myself some."

"Not right now. I like to tend to the animals first and then I eat breakfast." Eragon lied.

"Ah, I see. I saw Eva head that way only a few minutes ago. I never pictured her helping out on a farm. How has she fared?" Richard inquired.

"Eh, it was rough at first, but we found some simpler chores for her to complete. Now if you'll excuse me I should be going." Eragon was eager to leave and get the dragon situated.

"Oh yes, of course. My apologies." Richard stopped talking and allowed Eragon to leave.

Outside, Eragon could breathe. Once he was inside the barn, Eva disclosed some news. "Eragon, we can't hide him in the woods yet."

"What do you mean?"

"The snow. There are no tracks leading out that way. If we head out there now, your uncle may wonder why you went out there this early in the morning. It's too risky." Eva said.

"Then what do you propose we do?" Eragon asked, a bit harshly.

"Don't get attitude with me. You got us into this mess." She snapped back.

"Alright, I'm sorry. I just want him out of sight."

"Me too, which is why I am now thinking about the shed. It's hardly used right now and it will make a nice temporary hiding place. This afternoon, you and I can take a walk and that is when we grab the dragon and head towards the woods. Our uncles will not suspect a thing because we tell them we want to some quality time together before I leave." Eva finished, hoping Eragon liked her new plan. On the ground, the small dragon began to wander, but Eva gave him a look that sent him back to his blanket.

"That's impressive…" Eragon praised.

"Really?"

"Yes. He just hatched and now he's obeying your commands."

"I guess that is pretty impressive." She smiled.

" Right. Now, let's implement your plan before my uncle wakes up." Eragon peered out of the barn to make sure no one else was outside. He saw no one. After, he picked up the dragon and ran towards the shed, Eva behind him with the sack of meat.

The shed proved to be a decent place for the dragon to hide until the afternoon. Eragon's concern were the tools, but Eva said he should be fine for a few hours. "He will be glad to be in the woods after being cooped up in here." She added.

"I agree." He kneeled down after to pet the dragon. The painful sensation never came back as he stroked the dragon. "By the way, I never showed you this." He stood up to show Eva the mark on his right palm.

"How did this happen?" She had never seen a marking like that. Anyone who saw it would know it was not natural. Tattoo's did not look like that and neither did scars.

"When I first touched the dragon, a sharp pain coursed through my body. I passed out for a while and when I awoke, I saw this. I'm not sure what it means." Eragon said.

"I don't know either. I just know that you will have to hide it from people. Had I not been so occupied with hiding the dragon, I probably would have seen it sooner."

"I know. I think smudging it with dirt might help. If not, I will need to wear gloves. Outside I can hide it easier, but inside, I could run into some trouble, but I'll find out later." He shrugged.

"Be careful, Eragon. Dragons are mystical creatures and you need to take that seriously. I'll be gone for a few months and I want to leave knowing that you are safe as well." She embraced Eragon. The dragon snarled, making Eva take a step back and look down. "What?"

"Looks like someone's jealous." Eragon laughed.

"Very funny." Eva approached Eragon again. The dragon snarled, but this time Eva did not flinch. She hugged him and then kissed him before saying goodbye to the creature.

Thankfully, Garrow did not think twice about their early morning venture. They completed their chores and continued on with their day without raising any suspicion. When afternoon came, Eragon informed the uncles that he was going to take a walk with Eva. They dismissed them and soon the couple made it to the woods with the dragon. The creature had scratched the inside of the shed and even left some droppings, so they had to clean that up before making their way towards the woods. Eva even successfully snuck out more meat to feed the dragon again.

She cherished her time with Eragon and the dragon wishing she did not have to leave the next day. Eva watched Eragon build a wooden shelter for the dragon and set it in a tree. For a farm boy, he had some decent building skills. They played with the dragon for several hours before trekking back to the house. Eva had done some good convincing to keep the dragon from following them, pleasing Eragon. He knew he would have to acquire her skill to have the dragon listen to him.

That evening, Eragon helped Eva pack her meager belongings while Garrow cooked dinner. That was another aspect he would have to endure with Eva gone. She had done the cooking for a few months while she stayed there, and now he would have to go back to very basic meals. Not appetizing at all. Nothing exciting happened that evening. A couple of hours after dinner, they all headed to bed. Eva and Eragon were exceptionally tired and welcomed the much needed sleep.

In the morning, Eva faced her second hardest ordeal: saying goodbye to Eragon. She tried to keep her composure, but failed as tears streamed down her face. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"Me too," Eragon replied, trying to keep his tears back as he hugged her. "I love you."

"I love you too." They kissed and then she turned to leave.

The trip out of Carvahall was slow. Richard only had his one horse, so he had Eva ride him while he walked the horse through the snow. They barely made it to Therinsford by nightfall. Eva thought about Roran and wondered what he was doing at that moment. She mentioned him to her uncle and he offered to stop at the mill so she can say goodbye, bur Eva refused saying how one goodbye was hard enough.

Bright and early the next day, they set off again. Their course would lead them past Yazuac and Daret, the last major village before open wilderness. Her uncle hoped to purchase another horse from one of the villages before reaching the plains. Unfortunately, there were no good mountain passes, so they travelled south along the Spine using main roads. Eventually they would meet up with the Toark River that would lead them west into a valley. They would follow the river until they arrived at the gates of Teirm. The Toark travelled into the sea just outside of the city, so the route was convenient.

All in all, the trip should take them about a month, maybe less if the weather stayed pleasant enough. It took then less then a week to travel past Daret, where Eva'suncle did find a horse for her to ride. She named him Whikim, after her father. As they ascended the last hill before the flatlands, Eva turned to look over her shoulder. There, lying behind her was her entire world. She could see the mountains surrounding Palancar Valley in which Carvahall lie. In a small farmhouse ten miles from the quaint village, Eragon sat waiting for her.

Eva took a deep breath before nudging her horse forward. She turned her eyes back to the front and descended the hill, never looking back. She knew that this was not the end, but the beginning of another journey, and one day her path would cross with Eragon's and all will be well again.

End of Book One.