Chapter Nineteen

Kairin sipped her still steaming tea, enjoying the fact that she could swallow the boiling liquid without scalding herself. She was sitting upright in her bed, and Eragon was in one of the wooden chairs, telling her all about the Agaeti Blodhren, or the Blood Oath Celebration.

"There were some elves there that could have passed for wildcats, wolves... Some even took the likeness of Dragons! All the while they sang this music... Something about the tune exhilarated me. Oromis told me that it was because I was human; the magic in it had a higher effect on me."

"Who's Oromis?" Kairin asked. Eragon stopped for a moment.

"He was... Just a friend of mine." He said. It wasn't a satisfactory answer, but she decided that some things about the elves – her kin! – had to be kept a secret.

"So, Kairin-vodhr," Eragon began, using the formalelf-name for her.Hesatback and took a drink of his own tea. "You know nothing of your parents?"

"Only what Leaire told me, and she knew very little at that. Apparently my mother raised me in The Spine."

"The Spine? I lived there! You must have lived deep inside, because I often hunted there." Kairin reached deep into her memories, trying to remember if she had ever seen a solitary hunter roaming The Spine. For a moment, she was back in her tiny house with the stones on the shelves, and feathers hanging from the ceiling. The memory brought a smile to her lips. Another memory soon overpowered the rest.

Kairin was sitting on the dirty wooden floor, gazing up at a beautiful woman sitting in the bed sewing a tunic out of deerskin, singing a strange, familiar melody.

Kairin sat up in her bed. She didn't recognize this memory. It seemed so familiar, but somehow it was completely new to her. She tried to keep it in her mind, but the more the tried to smooth out the details the more the memory slipped away. Perplexed, she clapped a hand to her forehead.

"Is something wrong?" Eragon asked, getting ready to stand up.

"No... I just... I think I may have hallucinated." Quickly she established a bond with Faeria.

"Did you see that?"

"Kairin! When you fainted, I lost connection with you, I was worried. I thought you might have died."

"I'm fine, I'm fine. But did you see that?"

"Something flashed across my mind, yes."

"What was it?"

"I do not know, Kairin, and if I did I wouldn't tell you. You need to find this out by yourself." She broke the connection.

"Kairin... Are you talking to Faeria?"

"I was. Maybe I'm still a little ill..."

"I'll leave you to rest then. I'll see you later, Kairin." He got up, bowed slightly and excused himself. Kairin could see from the snatch of sky she caught sight of through the tent flap that the sun was raising. She settled back down into her bed and soon fell into a trancelike state.

Kairin, a little girl of six, was being rocked in her mother's arms. The woman spoke words to her, but Kairin couldn't understand. The pair got up, linked arms, and walked into the forest, singing and laughing together. They walked for quite awhile until they reached a clearing with a large rock in it. Kairin climbed up the rock and sat down, swinging her legs. Her mother kneeled before her. She could see that the woman had tears in her eyes. She stroked the little girl's black curls, and ran a finger over the streak of silver, identical to the one in the woman's own hair. The woman stood and laid her hands on Kairin's head, crying harder than ever. She laid a kiss on her daughter's forehead, swallowed her tears and spoke a few words aloud. Light seeped from the mother's hands, engulfing the child. Kairin's memory went blank.

"Faeria!" Kairin woke from her dream state with a flash, leapt from the bed, and ran out into the tent yard. It was late morning. Faeria lay curled up in front of the tent. Kairin ran over to her and picked up her snakelike head in both hands.

"Wake up, Faeria! I saw my mother! I remembered her!" The dragon opened one silver eye, then the other. With a great rustling of scales, she rose, stretched her wings, and gave a great, dragonish yawn that sounded like a trumpet.

"You did what, Little One?"

"My mother, I dreamt her. It was real! It's only a memory, but I know it's real."

"What do you plan to do?"

"I... I don't know. There's nothing I can do, not until I have seen more."

Faeria and Kairin decided to walk through the entire camp that day. People of the Varden couldn't seem to keep from staring at the two of them as they walked past. Some even walked quickly in the opposite direction, badly disguising their fear. Kairin understood that this was the life for her now, but it tired her.

"You do know I would rather have you than the acceptance of all these people?"

"I know."

They came across a man leaning into the gaping mouth of a well. He tugged on the rope only to pull up a bucket that was smashed into splinters.

"Damn irresponsible, no-good..." He was muttering to himself. Kairin noticed a jar near his feet that was bone dry.

"Sir..." she approached him. He turned around and stumbled backwards when he caught sight of Faeria.

"Sir, can I help you with your water?"

"I don't need any help from you!" he cried before she had finished speaking. "I can manage, thank you. Move along, eh?"

Kairin ignored his stubbornness. She strode over to the well and with a few words of the ancient language cobbled together; her gedway ignasia began to glow. From the depths of the well, a sphere of water rose out and settled in Kairin's hand. Amazed by the renewed strength for magic she had since her spell was broken, she whispered more words to the water, and it morphed into a thin stream that wound itself into the man's jar. He stood looking at his water, amazed.

"There. Now, if you still wish to refuse my help feel free to pour your water back into the well and find another way. Have a good day, sir." She walked away without another word.

"These people are pathetic. They'd rather try to pull water out of a well with a bottomless bucket than accept help from someone who's different from them."

"Easy, Little One, keep your temper."

"Pah."

They began to loop back towards their tent, Kairin still fuming about the man at the well. They had nearly reached their own when they heard raised voices coming from a tent nearby.

"How dare you! How dare you just push me aside like that!"

"Control yourself. I'm bound to Nasuada, I'm bound to this! You don't understand!"

"I don't understand! Ha! You're nothing but a coward, Eragon, that's what I understand."

"Don't you say that. You have no idea, Roran. You have no idea what I did, for you."

"For me? You did this... for me? Don't fool yourself, Eragon. This was all about you. Our homeland lies burned and destroyed because of this. People died. You have one chance to help me, and you refuse it! That doesn't sound like you're doing this out of love for me."

"Roran... You cannot begin to comprehend what I have gone through so stop pretending that you do! Garrow's death was my fault. Yes, that's true. Caravahall's destruction wouldn't have happened if not for me, I know. But if I could have done anything... anything, I would have done it."

"This isn't the issue. She is the issue."

"Roran... I can't. I swear to you if this oath did not bind me I would be by your side."

"You have ways around the oath, do you not?"

"...I would prefer not to use them until the need it extremely dire."

"The need is dire!"

"Roran, I'm sorry."

Kairin heard Roran swear loudly, a thudding noise, and stomping footsteps. Hurriedly, Kairin turned around, trying to make it seem like she couldn't hear the shouting. Roran burst from the tent and paused, glaring. Kairin stole a quick glance at them and their eyes met for a minute. Kairin could see that he didn't look as angry as he looked heartbroken, truly, truly sad. After a moment he turned on his heel and strode off. There was silence inside the tent.

"Not eavesdropping, are you, hatchlings?" An amused voice popped into Kairin's head.

"Saphira! I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself."

"I understand shur'tugal." The great dragon came into view from around a corner, her scaly lips pulled into a half-smile.

"Do they often fight so, Saphira?" Faeria asked, projecting her thoughts so that all three could hear.

"Faeria! Manners." Kairin said aloud.

"It's all right, Kairin. But I won't answer that question; Eragon needs to tell his own secrets, no?" She winked at the two of them and pushed her way into the tent, which was bug enough to house the both of them.

"Come on, nosyscales. Let's go back to our tent."

Their tent was on the very edge of camp, where the tents were more scattered. This was so Faeria could sleep more comfortably. The area seemed to be abandoned when they drew near, and Kairin summoned a handful of silver flame to light the way through the thickening darkness. Kairin was just opening her tent flap when she heard a faint noise.

Following her sensitive ears, she searched out the noise. It sounded sort of like heavy breathing. She passed a couple of abandoned tents before she came upon a figure sitting on a crate, slouched over. When Kairin came across the corner with the light, the figure looked up at her. It was Roran.

His face was streaked with tears, and his eyes were red. Shocked, Kairin was frozen for a moment. She took a few steps backward.

"Oh, I'm... I'm so sorry, I thought someone was..."

"Its fine," he said tonelessly, standing up and starting to walk past her.

"I'm sorry, Roran," she said, really meaning it, although she didn't know why. He wiped his eye with the heel of his hand and turned his lips up, in a fake smile.

"It's fine. Really," he sighed, and walked off again, disappearing into the dark. Kairin and Faeria stood silently for a moment.

"He doesn't seem like the emotional type, did he?"

"What's wrong with him?"

Kairin and Faeria's conversation was cut short by the sound of hurried footsteps behind them. The pair turned around to see a familiar, short, cloaked figure shuffling towards them, breathing heavily. She drew near, saw that they were alone, and sighed, pulling her hood down to expose her violet eyes.

"You got to him before I could," she said, sounding exasperated.

"Excuse me?"

"Roran. He was in a lot of pain. I needed to help him."

"I think he wants to be left alone."

"It's not for me to decide."

"What?" Elva looked up at her, piercing her with her stare.

"I am what Eragon made me. When I see someone in distress, I need to help them. Resisting causes me terrible pain."

"How could he have done something like that to you?" Kairin was amazed. Eragon had done this to a person, and so carelessly? She was overcome with unexpected anger. Elva, however, gave a malicious smile.

"He intended to bless me. He used a spell too powerful before he knew what he was doing. You can see what happened." The girl suddenly seized up, bent over and retched onto the ground Kairin was overwhelmed with pity.

"Couldn't he do something? Couldn't he reverse it?"

"He intends to. Eventually. He swears he won't do anymore careless magic." Kairin was hardly listening. She was still burning with anger.

"What a foolish boy he must be. He must know nothing! How empty-headed of him."

Before falling into her dream state, Kairin overlooked all of the new things she had learned today. It felt like she was in some sort of show, like the traveling merchants sometimes put on for Caravahall back home.

"So, Faeria. You still think the Varden is a waste of time?"

A/N- Alright then. Pretty long chapter. I have plans for future adventures for Kairin, but I still need a way for those to come about, so forgive any slight delays.

Slight.

For real this time.

Not like 497693 months like last time.