I Who Should Not Be
Chapter 5
Onika yawned and opened her eyes when she heard the door click quietly shut. Carefully sniffing the air, she sorted through the scents she already knew and tried to figure out the ones she did not. It was prudent to know what one's den smelled like, after all. What if there were to be an intruder waiting for them when they returned from the day's outings?
:Leader Male?:
"Mmrfg? Whahaapen? What?"
Onika chuckled and sat up, looking down at Murtagh as the man's arm dropped into her lap. The dark haired Rider groaned and rubbed his eyes before rolling off the bed and stretching.
"Do you feel better?"
Onika nodded and smiled at him, standing and bending backwards until her fingertips touched the wooden floor. When she straightened up again, she saw that Murtagh had laid back down and went right back to sleep.
Actually, Onika felt much better than she had when they had arrived. She felt positively like a pup again, although her stomach still seemed to be reluctant to settle. She walked over to the low table and picked up the teacup and sniffed it carefully. Ginger, chamomile, lemon and rosehip. Hm. She lifted the cup to her lips and took a slow sip. Almost immediately her churning stomach began to slow it's pace, and after draining the whole cup, had almost entirely quieted.
She turned slowly back to where Murtagh was sleeping, an evil grin spreading over her face as she edged closer. She stood silently and watched him for a moment while she waited for an opportune moment. Murtagh yawned and flung an arm over his head and snorted in his sleep, and Onika sprang into the air and landed hard on the sleeping Rider. He wheezed as she quickly got off and sat on the mattress looking at him.
"What was that for?!"
:Leader Male need to wake up. Should I go wake Pack Male?:
:Yes.: "Can I watch?"
:Of course. Follow me.:
She and Murtagh wandered out into the hall and stood for a moment while she got her bearings and she found Eragon's scent. Finally she nodded and began walking down the hall, motioning for the dark haired man to follow her as she sniffed carefully at the air. When they arrived at the door that she identified as Eragon's, they ran into the tiniest of snags. The door was locked, and the only magic that Onika commanded was the wild magic of her people, which was not appropriate for use in the city. Murtagh quickly remedied the situation and muttered a spell under his breath and the door swung open silently. They slipped in and shut the door, Onika walking to the edge of the bed and stooping to a near crouching position with her eyes trained on Eragon.
Suddenly she leapt into the air and landed on the younger Rider, drawing a yelp from him as she growled playfully and poked him in the belly.
"Eeh?! Onika, get off!"
The Wolfborn cackled and tackled him again, then yelped when Murtagh slammed into them, sending all three to the hard wooden floor. The three struggled to get up, each finding their legs tangled in the blanket and Onika finding that both men had pinned her hair under their elbows.
"What's going on in there? Everything alright?"
Balin cracked the door and listened as the two men explained that Onika had grown impatient with waiting for the men to wake up, and had taken things into her own hands, then had extended the wake-up call to her 'brother-in-law'. The old dwarf laughed and shook his head, then asked if Onika was feeling better.
"She's feeling much better, thank you Balin."
"There's a message for you and Eragon from Nasuada downstairs. You can pick it up when you come down."
"Thank you Balin. We'll be down soon."
The three finally stood and brushed themselves off, still smiling as they left the room. Murtagh sent Eragon to get the message for them and stood near the door with Onika, keeping an eye of the woman to make sure she didn't get sick again from the smells of the city.
Eragon unfolded a small piece of paper, first breaking a plain grey seal with a small bird on it. As he walked to his fellow Riders, he read.
'Eragon Shadeslayer and Murtagh Argetlam,
Please come to the Varden's palace quarters tonight toward sundown. I will alert our guards that you will be coming. Please bring your dragons, as they need to hear what I have to see as well, and I would like to hear what wisdom they may impart on our plans for the defense of Farthen Dur. My best to you both.
Nasuada'
Eragon relayed the news to the others, who sighed. Murtagh didn't like most of the Varden because of the fact that even after his multiple efforts, they did not trust him. However, he did want to see Nasuada again. It had been a long time since he had seen the leader of the Varden, and he was fond of her. Onika chewed her lip with worry, but she wasn't sure why she was nervous. As the three walked, she tried to sign a question to the others asking what Nasuada was like.
Eragon was the one who caught on first, much to Murtagh's chagrin.
"She's about your height, with dark skin and hair. She's very smart and she's strong. Other than that though, there really isn't that much to say."
Murtagh snorted.
"You only don't see it because you're too busy mooning over your elfwoman. She's beautiful. She's a good leader and she has kept the Varden out of a lot of trouble and has kept up relations with the dwarves, elves, and the people that are against Galbatorix. She's amazing."
When she heard this praise, Onika felt a growl start low in her chest. Through her sheer willpower she was able to keep it down, but Eragon noticed the Wolfborn's sudden turn of moods. She had left the inn smiling happily, holding Murtagh's hand and playfully swatting at Eragon's shoulders. Now her smile was strained and she kept pulling her hand away from Murtagh's, drawing a confused look from the dark Rider.
At one of the herbalist's stores, while a blushing Onika was being plied with tea and being taught what herbs are good for fertility by the mistress of the store while the old woman's toothless husband collected a small bag of candies for the 'pretty little darling', Murtagh pulled his younger brother aside.
"What's wrong with Onika? She's acting funny… Does she look like she's getting sick again?"
Eragon looked to the newest Rider as the woman popped a piece of the striped candy into her mouth and accepted a bag of free herbs that the old shopkeeper pressed into her hands with a wink.
"I think maybe she's just worried about meeting the Varden and more to the point, Nasuada. They aren't 'pack' after all. Saphira says that she read in one of Oromis' old scrolls that Wolfborn function in groups similar to a wolf pack. Maybe she's worried that her birth will make things difficult for her."
Murtagh thought on it, then nodded.
"Yeah, I bet that's it. We'll talk to her about it more when we go back for our dragon's. Or maybe they should just fly here. Saphira has gotten really attached to Onika's dragon, so we know she won't let anything bad happen to it. Hell, she won't even let Thorn get close to the little terror sometimes. I swear she thinks the little guy is hers…"
Eragon chuckled as Onika walked toward them, the old couple refusing any payment and extracting a promise that they would visit when they had their first baby. Both Murtagh and Onika turned dark red and Eragon laughed loudly and pushed them out the door, reminding them that there were still more supplies to be purchaced. Healing herbs and food procured, they moved on to buying clothes.
Murtagh bought more traveling clothes mostly in his customary blacks and greys, but he bought a green vest at Onika's behest. Eragon grabbed his usual clothes and a new belt for himself. Onika tried to buy things like the two men had gotten, but hadn't gotten farther than two pairs of breeches and a new shirt when Eragon 'let it slip' to the three tailors that the two had just recently been married. So, not only were their clothes bought at an extreme discount, but Onika was also gifted with three silk sleeping robes, a pretty olive green dress that reached her ankles and two new pairs of stockings, also made of silk.
"It's getting late, and we need to be going if we're going to go to Nasuada. We'll drop these off and then be off. I'll tell Saphira to bring… you know, that dragon needs a name."
They were walking up the stairs to their rooms when Eragon brought up the subject of a name for Onika's dragon. In the room where Murtagh and Onika were going to be sleeping, Onika was finally able to speak and Murtagh would translate for his younger brother.
:What should I name her? We don't have names in my language…:
"Hm. I don't know. Saphira is named after my first teacher's dragon. Thorn is… Thorn…"
Murtagh rolled his eyes and waited for Onika to reply.
:What about if I named my dragon after somebody important to us? Or to me?:
"That would be good."
:My Father Male's father had a name with the nomads of the desert. They called him… Bull Chaser. But that isn't a good name for a dragon…:
She looked down at the floor and tipped her head. Eragon cleared his throat carefully.
"Is your dragon male or female?"
:Female.:
Eragon thought for a long moment before he remembered the beautiful golden lilies that grew in Arya's mother's garden. The shape of the golden dragon's facial frills had reminded him of the blooms that were said to bring peace to the soul.
"What about Lily?:
Murtagh snorted.
"Lily? You're kidding right? What about Galaen?"
Onika tipped her head again and smiled slightly.
:I like them both. I will think on them both.:
They walked in silence to King Orin's palace, each thinking very different thoughts as they went. Eragon and Murtagh wanted to get there and get the information that would hopefully help them out in the fight for Farthen Dur. Onika felt a gnawing pain on her stomach that she was sure was a combination of fear and anger.
I'm being stupid. It isn't like he is my Mate, so why on earth are you mate-guarding?! Snap out of it!! He might even be her Mate! Urgh…
She shook her head and pushed her hair back with an irritated sigh. No, she would meet this 'Nasuada' and see if she was even remotely worthy of being a part of this pack. If either Murtagh or Eragon tried to stop her, they were in for a rude surprise.
………….
Nasuada looked up as the Riders were shown in. She smiled her most charming smile and took a step toward Murtagh as the dark haired man walked into the room with his younger brother.
He's still the handsome Murtagh who left. Eh?
Her attention was pulled away by the appearance of a tawny haired woman with strange ears in wild clothes. Without blinking, the newcomer lowered her head slightly and the room was filled with a low growl, Murtagh gave a bark and the woman backed down, but not before Nasuada saw the challenge in her eyes.
"What is this, some dog you picked up on the way?"
Eragon narrowed his eyes and Murtagh replied in a low growling voice.
"This is Onika, the Wolfborn Rider."