DISCLAIMER: See Chapter 1 for proper disclaimer.

Cassandra was just about to head back to where Brom's hut was when she stopped and saw Eragon and his cousin, Roran, talking; Katrina was standing next to Roran. It seemed that Roran was about to leave town with Katrina; a pack was behind his back and he looked set with a determined face. She could only watch as the older boy of the two left, walking to wherever his destiny lied. Eragon, meanwhile, walked to the edge of town, closest to where Cassandra stood. The younger boy stopped upon seeing the girl and smiled.

"You seem to be down...what's the matter, Eragon?" Cassandra asked.
"It's just-I don't understand why Roran had to leave," Eragon said with a sigh.
"He did what he thought was right, Eragon. There's nothing you could have done. Trust me when I say that you will see him soon. And, I'm pretty sure that your uncle will be happy to see to that as well."
"I hope so."
"Come now, Eragon. I may look like I'm younger than you, but I am not a fool at what I see," Cassandra jested as she laughed a little.
"Right...I'll remember that," Eragon said as he started to walk away.
"And I'm sure you will."

Before Cassandra left town, she noticed Katrina's father looking for Eragon. He was about to shout out to the boy when the girl interceded.

"Oh, leave the lad alone," Cassandra said. "He didn't cause a ruckus as of late."
"Aye, but it's regarding a stone that he brought with him this morning."
"A stone? What did it look like? And, where did he find this stone?"
"It was blue and about this size," the butcher said as he showed the length by his hands. "And, he said that he found it in the Spine."

Cassandra's heart stopped for a second. A blue stone the size of an egg found in the Spine?

"Think nothing more of this, Sloan. ''Tis probably cursed, for all you know," Cassandra said as she walked away.

'Is this the very egg that I dreamt about this morning? I mean, I was lucky to not have screamed as I did the other night,' Cassandra thought to herself as she walked to the hut.

Flashback: Earlier that morning...
Cassandra was walking back to where she left Brom when she had bumped into Eragon.

"Oww," both of them said as they grasped their sore spots gently.
"I'm really sorry about that, Eragon. I wasn't really-"
"It's ok, Cassander. It's totally understandable," Eragon said as he helped Cassandra to her feet.
"You're doing it again."
"What?"
"Calling me by a boy's name..."
"I know..."
"That's really annoying, after a while," Cassandra said as she started her way back to Brom.
But it works. She heard Eragon's thought in her mind, causing her to smile to herself.

End Flashback