AN: I am SO sorry this chapter's taken so long. In my defence, I've been disgustingly busy for the last six months, winning at life and graduating from University. You know, just regular stuff. I am now no longer Punch Buggy Red. I am now Punch Buggy Red Msc (Hons)...which is how I shall be signing ALL of my Christmas cards this year. Ah...everyone's going to hate me.
Don't even care.
I had just finished dressing when Eragon burst into the tree-house that was to be my lodgings for the duration of our stay in Ellesmera.
"You know," I said, pulling on one of my boots, "common decency usually requires a man to knock before entering a girl's sleeping-quarters."
Eragon blushed and grinned, rubbing the back of his head, sheepishly.
"Ah, sorry, Kate, I forgot myself for a moment. I'm just excited! Aren't you excited for your first day in Ellesmera? Your first training session with Master Oromis?" He gushed.
I smiled, shaking my head fondly at his enthusiasm.
"I might be when I wake up." I replied, yawning pointedly. "It's a beautiful morning, at least. I'm still sore from the flight, though, I don't know how much use I'll be with a blade when it hurts to stand up."
"My heart bleeds." He retorted, good-naturedly. "Worry not, Dauth Ebrithil, you won't have to lift a blade today. It will be your mind and your will that are tested."
I shot him a quick warning glance at his use of the name Dauth Ebrithil, reasoning that it was too early in the morning to kick him in the head, and raised my eyebrows in question, but he just smiled and I shrugged, indifferently.
"Yes, well...it still stands. I doubt Master Oromis is going to be very impressed with my performance this morning, physical or otherwise. But still...I'll be interested to learn what Oromis has to teach me."
"Yeah..." He agreed, looking away from me to gaze out of the window. I followed his gaze but there was nothing to be seen except the foliage of the tree we were standing in. I looked back at him and noticed he was frowning. "Katharean, I've been thinking..."
"Ah, that explains it." I replied.
"Explains what?"
"I was just about to ask if you were feeling okay, you looked a bit peaky." I grinned and he rolled his eyes.
"Hilarious. No, I was thinking...yesterday, in the clearing, I was just about to tell Oromis about your visions...and you stopped me. Why?"
He shifted, crossing his arms, and a shaft of sunlight shone through the open doorway behind him, momentarily blinding me. I squinted up at his grim expression and sighed, looking away and shaking my head.
"Honestly? I don't know, Eragon. I just felt like...I'm not sure. It is difficult to explain."
"Try." He replied, shortly. I racked my brain. Why did I stop him from telling Oromis about my visions? I had told myself that it was because I didn't trust the elf enough to impart that kind of information on him, but I knew in heart that it wasn't true. He was an ancient Dragon Rider, an ally of the Varden and a friend of Eragon's. I knew the reason was far more irrational than a lack of trust.
"These visions...they're...well, as we've established, they're all of Murtagh. And, as you know, I had...feelings for him. So, I guess they just feel kind of...personal. Embarrassing, almost. Do you know what I mean?" I looked up at him, and his expression had darkened further.
"You had feelings for Murtagh? Or you still do?" He asked in a quiet, dangerous voice.
I looked away, unable to hold his gaze any longer.
"It's not that simple, Eragon."
He let out a low, mirthless chuckle, shaking his head.
"Well then, I have my answer. Unbelievable. You know who he is, Kate. You know the things he has done. Do you know how many good people have lost their lives to him? How many more will? He is a puppet, and the puppeteer is the very evil we are fighting to destroy."
He was shouting now, and although I knew that everything he was saying was right, it is not in my nature to sit quietly while men shout at me. I rose to my feet and turned to face him, nose-to-nose or, in our case, forehead-to-nose.
"Do you think I have not thought about this, Eragon? Do you think me some vapid school-girl who has taken a shine to the Miller's son? I know who he is, and I know who I am. I know there is no future for us. But that does not simply erase our past. And I am sorry that I'm not carved out of wood, but I am trying to do what is best. I am trying to feel what I know I am supposed to feel. And it would be a lot easier to forget about him if I did not keep having visions of him every five minutes, so when I say it's not that simple, that is exactly what I mean and I do not need my best friend screaming in my face to make me see what an idiot I'm being because I already know!"
We stood in tense silence, glaring at each other. I could not remember seeing him look so hostile and angry before, and it scared me a little, but I stood my ground.
And breathe. Obsidian's voice grumbled in my mind.
This is not how I wanted to begin our first morning in Ellesmera. I replied, darkly.
He means well. He insisted, and I shook my head infinitesimally: not in denial, but in acceptance. I sighed, rubbing my forehead. I had known that it was only a matter of time before we had to have this conversation, and it was a testament to Eragon's patience and consideration for me that it had taken this long.
"Eragon, I'm sorry. I did not mean to snap, I just...I know you are right. Of course you are. This thing with Murtagh...whatever it is...it's insane. It's insane, and it's stupid and dangerous and...and wonderful." I laughed, realizing how crazy I sounded. "I don't know how to explain it, not even to myself." I glanced up at him, and underneath the mask of anger I saw a hint of confusion in his eyes. I looked away, struggling to articulate what I felt. At the other side of the room, I saw my bow resting against the wall and on an impulse, I strode past him and took it in my hand. He was watching me, curiously, and I sighed, returning to stand in front of him. "It's like...the first time I ever held a bow."
He put his hands on his hips and nodded, frowning.
"Yeah..." He said slowly, and I could tell by his expression that he thought I had lost my senses. "I don't get it, Kate."
"Let me explain." I insisted.
Where are you going with this? Obsidian asked, sounding almost amused.
When I know, you'll know. I promised, still not quite sure I could make either of them understand.
"Look...I'm not like you, Eragon. Hunting was a part of your life before...fencing and archery were necessary survival skills. I, on the other hand, was the daughter of a nobleman. The only reason for my archery lessons was so that my father could show off my talents at the Nobles galas and fairs. But the first time I held my bow in my hands, I knew that I was an archer. It just felt right, like it was made for me, and I was made for it. It didn't make any sense, did not fit into any part of my life, but I knew. Just like the first time I ever rode Obsidian. I had been so certain that it was a mistake, that I had no business being a Dragon Rider. But the first time we flew together, I knew that it was meant to be. And that's how I feel about Murtagh. It may not make sense, even to me, but that does not mean that it is wrong."
For a moment, Eragon appeared unable to argue, and I thought that perhaps I had won, but he shook his head, looking away from me.
"It's not the same, Katharean. Murtagh is dangerous."
"And bows and dragons are not?" I rebutted, raising an eyebrow. He stepped towards me, placing his hands on my shoulders.
"Only in the wrong hands." He replied, with more wisdom than I had thought him capable of. Perhaps it was the unexpected gravity of his words that rendered me speechless, or perhaps it was the great sadness that shone from his brown eyes, but I felt my words catch in my throat. "And Murtagh is in the worst hands imaginable. I wish it were not so, you know that I do. If there was any chance that things could be different, I would not hesitate to leap for it. But this is the hand that life has dealt us, and we must do what we can with what we have been given. I have already lost a brother to the evil of Galbatorix...I will not lose a sister."
I looked up into his eyes and saw that his anger had evaporated. His voice was soft, but determined, and I knew that I could not argue with him any more. I nodded, sadly.
"Okay. Okay. You're right, I'm sorry." I held out a hand, with a small smile. "Friends?"
He sighed and took me into his arms, stroking my hair, and I clung onto him, fighting tears.
"You are my sister, Katharean Athem. Nothing will ever change that."
"Eragon, I..." I gasped as a pain shot through my temples and I staggered backwards out of his embrace, cradling my head in my hands.
"Kate!" Eragon reached for me, but I put a hand up to signal that I was okay. The pain was gone as suddenly as it had come but looking up into his worried face, I realised that the edges of my vision were blurred. I blinked a few times and shook my head, trying to clear my mind. "What happened?"
"I don't know, I just..." Blinding agony shot through my head once more, a thousand times worse than before and I cried out, falling to my knees on the hard floor. I was vaguely aware of Eragon's hands on my arms and his voice in my ear: he sounded scared, but it did not matter. The only thing that mattered was the searing pain in my head. Suddenly, I was plunged into darkness and silence, and the pain dulled but did not disappear. I tried to open my eyes, but I did not know how. And then the visions came: not like before, where I found myself a voiceless ghost in Murtagh's world, where I could think and feel and listen. These were fast and violent; bright and loud; a string of broken visions and emotions flashing through my mind, an assault on all of my senses and somewhere, far away, someone was screaming...and then everything, the lights, the sounds, the pain, just stopped, and only one thing remained.
Hljodr adurna...they thirst and fall.
A sense of fear and puzzlement that did not belong to me skirted around the edges of my mind and I reached frantically for the safety and comfort of Obsidian's thoughts.
And then the blackness took me and I knew no more.
AN: I know, I know, it's a let down after the MASSIVE wait, but the next one will almost definitely...probably...be worth the wait. This chapter's very talky-talky, lots of dialogue but I felt like they should address the whole "Hey-I'm-in-love-with-your-brother-you-know-the-one-who-works-for-Galbatorix-and-tried-to-kill-you-yeah-that-one-soz-lol" issue. And it's not very long, but I'm going straight onto the next one right this very minute, so don't worry. I have plans. Big plans. First I'm going to eat a sandwich, and then I'm going to forge ahead with the next chapter, as a gift and apology to everyone who's stuck with this even though I suck so hard at updating regularly! Give me another chance! A girl can change! Probably.
Please review! It does so motivate me to keep writing. Not that I'm trying to black-mail you or anything...ho-hum...
#fail #iknowthisisnttwitterbutbacko ffimhavingabadday #idontreallyknowhowhashtagswo rk #unicorn