Chapter 28: Prophecy Sucks
Harry was woken by a knock. "Come out, Jeod's butler made breakfast," Eragon called through his door. The wizard cricked his neck and stared balefully up at Jeod's ceiling through his skylight. That was not what he envisioned when he added a skylight.
Stretching, he quietly performed his morning ablutions and dressed in peasant clothing, something he had nearly forgotten through sheer force of will how miserable it was. Harry shook his head. How the hell had Eragon managed to wear this his whole life? Pulling on boots, Harry trudged out his room, out his tent, and out his room again.
At least Eragon woke him for a legitimate reason. The smells wafting from the dining room were heavenly. Harry pushed open the door and made his way to an empty seat around the oblong table. Jeod sat at the head next to Helen. Brom was down there with them. Arya was nearly opposite them and Eragon sat between the parties awkwardly, looking rather lost. Harry dropped into a chair next to Arya who was carefully eating the vegetarian options on her plate and pointedly ignoring strips of bacon and ham.
"'Morning," he yawned widely, showing off his molars.
Helen shot him a look that more or less said 'barbarian,' but Harry cheerfully ignored him and purposely degraded his table manners to annoy her. The table was silent except for the obnoxious chewing of the wizard.
Brom broke first. "Jeod and I will catch up today, the rest of the day is yours to do with as you wish," he tossed them small pouches of money. "Try to avoid getting us kicked out before we finish what we came here for."
The old man nearly dragged Jeod out of the room. Helen stiffly exited. "Well, I got what I came here for," Harry grinned with a shrug. "I've got something to deliver to the herbalist, either of you want to come?"
Arya looked like she wanted to refuse, but when Eragon leapt up like a lost puppy, she followed with a put upon expression. They made their way down the hall and out the front door. The walk was about three seconds directly across the street into the cheery herbalist's shop. A bell tinkled above the door when Harry pushed it open.
"Welcome back, Harry!" Angela greeted him brightly. She was tending to a pair of pewter cauldrons over small fires near the back of the shop. The flames were brighter than the sun back in the shaded shop and cast an orangish tinge on the woman's cheery face.
She did a double take when Arya followed him in the door and laughed out loud when Eragon entered. Glancing around, Angela cast a privacy spell. "Dull the ears of those listening." Arya was instantly set on guard at the blatant use of magic, but the herbalist ignored her expression. "A human, a rider, and an elf walk into an herbalist's shop–why this sounds like the start of an interesting joke," she said cheerily. "I've filled your order–" she switched to Urgal "Mountain Midget," Angela laughed.
Harry glared. "If I hear one single Urgal call me that, I know exactly who to blame." He withdrew a case like the one the herbalist had shown her yesterday. He turned it towards her and pulled open the latches.
Eragon had frozen like a deer at the pronouncement that he was a rider and Arya looked a bit annoyed, but Harry saw the spark of recognition in her eyes. "You know Angela?" he asked quietly as the short woman opened the case. The elf nodded.
Harry heard a soft gasp. He turned to see Angela running her hands across the beautiful weapon, an expression of awe on her face. Her mouth hung open as she traced the golden decals with her finger, ending up at the two large diamonds beneath the base of each blade. Picking up the two halves, Angela screwed them together with a practiced motion and twirled it experimentally. "I haven't seen any of your other pieces," she admitted, "but if they're anything like this, I'm sure I know a few people who would love to meet you."
The wizard frowned in thought. "Who-?"
"She was the only one besides me to drag Rhunon out of her forge in the past century," Arya murmured. Harry grinned.
"Jealous?" he challenged impudently. Arya glared at him.
"Yes." she admitted.
They heard a shocked yelp from Eragon and turned to watch him. The rider was lying on the ground with a death grip on a wooden rod. The red-eyed creature had padded over with its tail held high. The light revealed a shaggy cat with menacing claws and fangs. After a moment of silence, Eragon dropped the rod like it was on fire, yanking his hand away.
Angela stuffed a fist in her mouth to stifle a laugh. "It shocks whoever touches it, and will shock them again if they keep hold of it," she explained. The herbalist silently communicated with someone for a moment before turning to Eragon. "Solembum spoke to you, how interesting."
The younger man reddened and clambered to his feet. "You can speak to him?" he asked.
"Anyone can, the real question is if he will respond. So, young rider, why have you come to my shop?"
"I was just following Harry out of boredom," he said sourly, shaking his shocked hand limply.
"Not interested in useless love potions like the fool ladies? Perhaps a fortunetelling for the fool lords?" she challenged. A stack of tarot cards flew between her hands in a practiced shuffling gesture. A sharp intake of breath drew their attention.
Harry was glaring at the cards sourly. "Only the foolish or insignificant wish to know what the future holds," he warned. "Once you know, there is no going back."
Angela regarded him carefully. "How would you know?" she murmured. "You have the mark of destiny–but faded. And yet before yesterday I had never heard of you." She brightened. "You're more than you seem, midget. I think when you leave Teirm, it will be time for me to move on as well."
She turned to Eragon. "The choice is yours." She withdrew a leather pouch and poured it on the counter next to the assembled huthvir laid atop its case. Bleached white bones the length of a finger and the width of a thumb clattered onto the wooden surface. Each one had glyphs and runes on every side. "These," she gestured to the bones, "are dragon knucklebones. Don't ask me how I got them–it's a secret I'll not reveal–but they are the most reliable way to tell the future. Crystal ball gazing, tarot cards, palmistry, all pale in comparison to the compass needle of fate. It's something I offer if Solembum chooses to speak to a customer: a true fortunetelling."
Arya watched the byplay intensely, examining the bones carefully from where she stood. Harry realized something and snapped his fingers. "You're quite a bit older than you look," he remarked. "The real question is, are those from the Fall, or Du Fyrn Skulblaka?"
He heard a cackle and watched Angela throw her curly hair back laughing. "How observant of you, Harry." She blatantly dodged the question and turned to Eragon. "What will it be? I will tell you this much, only two others have I done this for: a blind beggar and a young woman named Selena. Neither of them heard overly pleasant things."
"Think carefully," Harry warned the young rider. "The powers that be do not violate free will, unless you ask for it. This-" he gestured to the bones, "-is asking for it. There is no taking this back."
Eragon looked pensive for a moment. "Selena, you say?" he asked. Harry sighed. There was no stopping this now. Angela nodded. He squared his shoulders. "Do it."
The herbalist gathered up the knucklebones. The pressure of fate bore down on them, stifling the damp and dim room even more. Angela's face became gaunt and an unseen wind rustled through the closed shop. "Manin! Wyrda! Hugin!" she tossed the bones high in the air. They seemed to hang in the air at their apex for an unnatural length, carefully spinning and tumbling like a group of temporal compasses aligning themselves with the currents of fate.
A clattering sound rang out when the knuckles landed. No one dared speak or even breathe while Angela studied the bones with an intense look. Minutes passed in silence, the only sound was the shallow breathing of the five beings in the store.
Finally, Angela straightened up and withdrew a wineskin from below the counter, drinking deeply. She offered it around, but no one seemed inclined to take her up. "This," she said wiping her mouth, "is the hardest reading I've ever done. Your future is nigh impossible to read. I've never known someone's fate to be so tangled and clouded. However, there are always answers for those who know how to look."
Solembum leapt onto the counter in a smooth motion and settled there, watching them all carefully. "Do you wish for your companions to hear this?" she asked seriously. Eragon paused and was about to answer affirmatively, but Harry knew the rider would be humoring them.
"Come on," he tugged Arya out of the shop and down towards a nearby tavern to wait. "We'll be at the Chestnut," Harry called back to Eragon. "Come see us when you're done."
He kicked the door open and crossed confidently to the barkeep, sliding a crown on the countertop. "I need a lot of alcohol for me, my companion, and one other who'll be along later." The beefy scarred man behind the bar nodded, looking at the coin greedily. A calloused hand shot out and swept the golden circle off the bar and into his apron.
Arya and Harry settled at a rounded table towards the back, shrouded in shadow. A barmaid deposited three mugs of amber beer atop their table and winked at Harry flirtatiously. The elf's expression did not change nor did she voice her disapproval, but it was as clear as day she was unhappy with the barmaid. Harry tore his eyes from the busty wench with some effort and gripped his mug.
"What? A man can look and not touch," he complained. "Besides, even I wouldn't be able to cure the venereal diseases I'd get." He scrutinized her face. "Why, jealous?" he teased.
Arya's cheeks reddened ever so slightly, but she glared. "Oof!" Harry grunted and jumped a bit in his chair. The elf lowered her extended leg with satisfaction and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear.
Harry rolled his eyes and drained the mug. It was pretty terrible. The beer tasted nothing like butterbeer and the only other alcohol Harry had ever had was firewhiskey, a beverage with startling similarity to gasoline in both taste and flammability. He'd considered siphoning some off to use a refill charm on for later, but the piss wasn't even worth the effort.
"Why are you drinking to excess?" Arya asked curiously. Harry had a rather miserable look on his face already and was wasting no time in getting shitfaced.
"Trussst me," he slurred. "Erragon'ss going to come here do th'saame." She actually looked concerned at the state of him. Sweat matted his black hair to his forehead. It was warm in the bar, but hardly stifling. The barmaid put another mug in front of Harry with a sympathetic glance. Arya was about to push it out of his reach when the door opened again.
Eragon entered the bar. He had a devastated expression and scarcely breathed as he snatched Harry's mug of beer from him, chugging it down "That bad, huh?" Harry commiserated drunkenly. The rider nodded.
"Yeah, my life's set to fall apart soon. I'll fall madly in love with someone who's heart belongs to another, experience the loss of someone dear to me, and be betrayed by family."
Arya surreptitiously whispered privacy spells. Some of the other patrons had glanced at them interestedly. It would have been funny if it wasn't so tragic. Eragon and Harry were guzzling down alcohol, but they both had terrible tolerance and staggered about like they were on a ship in a storm. "I d-d-di'nt ha-have anny fammily t'bet-trayy me," Harry slurred. "They all d-d-di-died when I wuz a b-aby" he hiccuped. "Bet-trayal, y'know? Stu-s-stupid P-P-Peter P-P-Pettigrew, heh heh, P-P-Peter P-P-Pettigrew," he giggled, popping the 'P's obnoxiously.
She watched in growing concern. Eragon leaned over and whispered extremely loudly. "I bet my heart's gonnna be broken by hurrr~" he trailed off, pointing a limp finger at Arya. She hid her surprise. "A-Arya's the m-most beau-beautifl girl I've ev-ver seen," he confided in Harry. "But she al- (hic) -ready lo-loves you."
"Nawwwww," Harry dismissed with a poorly coordinated dismissive hand gesture. "She can't staaand me. I've only see-(hic)-seen her smile when I g-get hurt somehow." He looked at her in surprise. "H-Hey Er-(hic)-agon, Arya's right here. Y-you shoul-should tell her how you feel."
Eragon looked up. "When did youuuu get here?" he slurred. Arya stayed silent. He bobbed his head drunkenly. "Thaat's the chatty Arya we're used to," he elbowed Harry. The wizard elbowed him back and soon they were shoving each other back and forth with their elbows. Harry–who had already been drunk when Eragon arrived and as such was nearly blacked out already–fell from his chair first, thumping off the side.
The young rider fell over seconds later thudding against the rough floorboards. He rolled to face Harry on the floor. "D'you think my father's disappointed in me?" he asked after a moment.
Harry rolled and turned his head. "I think your fa-(hic)-father's proud. I'd be," he reassured him. "He'd probably think you're stupid for crushing on Arya, but I know he practically floated with excitement when we first saw Saphira hatch for you."
Eragon grinned like a loon. "Sa-Saphira's great," he agreed. "She's in ma' head right now," he confided, knocking on his skull with a finger. "Sa-says I'll re-(hic)-regret drinking to-tomorrow." He leaned closer with a serious expression. "I th-think shee's just jealous we're drinking and sheee'znot." He rolled back a bit, laying on his back and staring at the stained and rather dirty ceiling of the bar.
"You saw Saphira hatch?"
"Y-y-(hic)-yeah, we were s-s" Harry dissolved in a fit of giggles. "Arya was spyyying on youuu in your b-bedrooom," he snitched. "Sh-she mu-must've liiked what she saaaww~" he slurred. "When Brom pulled he-her from the window, she had a huu~uuge smile on her face," Harry grinned like a loon, tracing his lips with his finger up to his ears.
Arya glared down at them in outrage, her pointed ears burning red. She could only hope that neither of the idiots remembered anything of the night–well, day actually. It was barely noon and they were both blackout drunk. She was about to kick them to get up when she heard snoring. Great.
She heaved them both up rather easily and stopped feeding the privacy ward. It collapsed soundlessly. Arya glanced around in disgust as the patrons leered at her while she dragged the two out. Mercifully, Jeod's house was very close by. The elf heaved the ragdolls up the steps and opened the door, rather maliciously letting their boneless legs scrape against the rough stone step and dropping them heavily in the entrance hall. The butler came to collect them without reacting, something she was rather thankful for.
"I guess I'm not surprised," a voice came from behind her. Angela had a sad look on her face and was carrying a large cloth sack which rustled when she moved. "May I?" she gestured towards Jeod's house. Arya gave no answer but walked into the hall. The herbalist followed sedately. They turned off into a guest room which Arya quickly made private.
"Well?"
Angela sighed. "I'm sorry for what he saw, but not even I can deny fate her due. Runs in the family, I suppose," she smiled wryly. "Selena bore her rather tragic fate with all the poise of a noblewoman. And Brom–well, I was not the one to cast the bones, but fortune tellers talk. His fate was something of a joke among us; to be doomed to fail at all tasks but one."
"I shall not even ask how you know," Arya said stiffly. "'Twas a carefully kept secret, one which Brom extracted oaths from many powerful figures to secure."
She glanced at the doorway. "He takes very much after his mother, you know." she confided. "And his eyes are the very same as his father–filled with determination and stubbornness. How in the world you've managed to herd three mules and a dragon is beyond me," Angela admitted.
Arya looked surprised. "You knew Selena?" she asked. Angela nodded.
"Back in Morzan's time. Gil'ead was the interesting place to be then. The things whispered about her-" the herbalist grimaced. "I was very glad to see Brom seduce her from that monster."
She walked to the doorway and made to leave. "Fair winds, Arya Drottingu."
"Fair winds."
AN: Someone mentioned that Inheritance magic is OP. You're absolutely correct. There are plenty of army-killer spells which magicians can use, the reason why both sides need magicians. If you don't understand it, go read canon. People were complaining about me rehashing exposition, but it's kinda necessary if the readers aren't very familiar with canon.
Also regarding the several chapters yesterday: I have several more written. I posted them all because I was writing faster than I was posting and I didn't want to pull too far away from how much I had written