When they arrived back at the dragon hold, Eragon unsaddled them once more.
"I think I'm going to grow lazy with you around to saddle and unsaddle Firnen," Arya said.
Firnen hummed with agreement.
"It used to take her ages to do it," he said with his deep rumbling voice. "This is much faster, and it doesn't squeeze me when I fly."
"You can thank me for that," Saphira said with a blend of pride and amusement. "He almost squeezed me to death when he tried using magic to tighten the straps the first time."
Her assertion was accompanied by the memory of that day, and Firnen's rumbling laughter at the image of her discomfort was deafening. His laughter was contagious. Arya began to giggle at the absurdity of the mental image Firnen had depicted of Saphira being squeezed to death by her saddle, and Eragon and Saphira soon joined in.
After a few minutes this way, Eragon took a deep breath and said, "Alright i don't think I can laugh anymore." His cheeks were hurting at this point. "Let's head down and grab some food from the kitchens. I'm famished."
Arya was still catching her own breath, so she just nodded her assent. They passed Alec on their way out, and he informed them that Haroldun was also heading to the kitchens for a late dinner.
"Excellent," Arya said. "We still haven't had a chance to speak with him with all that has been going on."
"Yes," Alec replied. "He seems quite nervous about it. Do put him out of his misery already."
Arya smirked at Alec's joke, and tugged on Eragon's hand to hasten him down the neverending staircase.
"We should take the slide," said Eragon. "It'll be faster."
Arya's thoughts were pulled into a memory at his words. He saw Islanzadi instructing her on proper ettiquette as a child.
"Remember Arya," Islanzadi said. "Rulers must maintain a certain unshakable image. We can't be seen as emotional in any way, or others will question our decisions. Whatever you appear to enjoy can be used against you. Whatever you appear to hate can be used against you. The way you walk, talk, and present yourself at every moment could determine the fate of the Elven kingdom. It's important that they never know what you are thinking. It's even more important that you reign in any impulses of what you want."
Another memory flashed of her mother as she visited Tronjheim as a child. She had wanted to take the slide as soon as she saw it.
"A Queen never slides." Islanzadi had stated without Arya saying a word. "And you need to maintain control of your emotions. I knew you wanted to by the look on your face."
It seemed like such a silly rule to her now, but it was one she had always held to. In all her subsequent visits to Tronjheim, she had never taken the slide.
"Well," said Eragon. "While you're technically still queen, I'd say the announcement of your resignation is enough to allow you the freedom."
His grin was massive, and Arya could tell from the tone of his mind that he thought the entire rule absolutely absurd. In truth, so did she, but her mother's guidance was something she clung to in the years after her death. She had spent the past fifteen years trying to fill her mother's shoes. Could she simply do whatever she wanted now? The thought was almost foreign. She had never done whatever she wanted. Now, at least in this, she wanted to try.
"You never allowed me to tell you what you could and couldn't do as a woman," he said then, baiting her. "Why would you let anyone tell you what you can and can't do as a Queen?"
That seemed to push her over the edge.
"Fine," Arya said. "We'll slide." And with her mind made up, she walked to the opening, checked that the chute was clear, and pushed herself over the edge of the near vertical drop. Eragon wasn't too far behind her, and he could hear her shouting with excitement ahead of him. After what seemed like an eternity, Eragon finally popped out at the bottom of the staircase to find Arya grinning broadly and Haroldun watching them both with curiosity and amusment. Eragon returned her grin and let her help him off his feet.
"That was fun!" Arya said. "I'm never taking the stairs again." At that, both Eragon and Haroldun began to laugh.
"I'd be careful of the slide," Haroldun barked out between chuckles. "I once took a boot to the arse as I tried to get off. I was bruised for a week."
Arya's laughter spilled over once more, and they shared their mirth openly. It was getting to the point that others had begun to see what was so funny.
"Haroldun!" Eragon said, trying to get them all to come to their senses. "It's good to see you. We've wanted to find a moment to speak with you. Would you dine with us, so we can discuss your training and journey to Arngor?"
"Of course ebrithil," Haroldun said with a final chuckle. "It would be mine honor."
"There's need to call me ebrithil unless we're in the middle of a lesson Haroldun," Eragon said. "Please. Call me Eragon."
"Of course Eragon," Haroldun acquiesced. " Would you mind if we dine with my family as well? They fear for my safety and future now that I am a bonded rider, and I think meeting you both may put them at ease."
"We'd love to meet them," Arya said. "Lead the way. "
He led them through the massive hall into the kitchens. Everyone grabbed themselves some food, and Eragon and Arya followed Haroldun to a long wooden table already half-filled with around twenty dwarves.
As they approached, many shouts of "cousin," "brother," and nephew greeted Haroldun.
"Your family is large," said Eragon.
"Aye!" said Haroldun. "Try being the youngest of the bunch."
"Time is relative though," Arya said. "You're twenty years older than Eragon, and you'll likely outlive most of your descendants now that you're a rider."
"You speak true Queen Arya," Haroldun said. "Although it pains me to think such things. "
Arya nodded in understanding. She had often pondered how it would feel to have sudden longevity. It was one of the great pitfalls of relative immortality. Those who you can relate to most were fated to slowly disappear while you continue on. Those who replace them can never understand your perspective because they don't know what came before their time. It wasn't quite the same for elves or even for dwarves to a certain extent. They still had relative longevity compare to humans and urgals.
Haroldun greeted his family then and introduced Eragon and Arya, not that they needed to be introduced. They were introduced to his six of his cousins, three of his aunts, five uncles, two sisters, a brother, and his parents. Eragon only managed to remember Haroldun's parents names after all the introductions going around. Dellun and Gisa were clearly very protective of their family, and Haroldun was no exception. Arya and Eragon spent the meal explaining to them all the journey Haroldun would make to Arngor, general descriptions of his training regimen, and the principles and concepts that he would learn as a Rider.
"The only decision we need from you today is this," Arya said. "Would you like to begin your training in Arngor with Yaela after The Games are over? Or would you like to accompany us to Ellesmera, Carvahall, and eventually Ilirea before returning to Arngor?"
"You... You're letting me choose?" Haroldun said confused. "Why?"
"Choices define us." Eragon said. "I have long been a proponent of allowing my students a say in how they are educated. I could simply order you wherever I want you to go, but how would you then know to make the right choices when I'm not around? If you take an active part in the decisions regarding your training, you're more likely to stay commited to your path."
"If you were me," Haroldun said. "Which would you choose?"
"Ah," said Eragon. "But I'm not you. If it were me, I would go to Ellesmera because that's where Arya is going. Your reasons aren't mine though. What reason do you have to go to each?"
"I've always wanted to see the elven forest," Haroldun said. "But I've also wanted to see Arngor and the dragons since I heard of its existence."
"You need not decide today," Arya chimed in between a bite of her apple. "The games won't be over for a while. Think on it. You'll see the whole of Alagaesia eventually anyways. We'll see to it you get the most out of whichever path you choose."
Author's Note: Hey guys. This is all the content I've written so far. I don't have any more chapters hidden away, so If you've made it this far, thanks for reading! If you would give reviews, ideas for central conflict, etc. I'm going to spend the next month or so banging out some chapters. All ideas and critiques welcome.