I do not own any part of the Harry Potter or Eragon universes.

I just wanted to give a big thank you to everyone. I never thought that so many people would be interested in something I write.

Edit 11-03-25: This Chapter was edited by TheDarkRanger1160, big thank you!

Any mistakes that remain are my own.

Harry held the elf steady with one hand while holding onto the saddle with the other.

He looked back and saw something flying towards them. He turned with the elf in his arms in time and the arrow whizzed past his ears.

"That was close," Harry exclaimed, wide-eyed as dozens of arrows flew at them from the Gil'ead soldiers.

Before he could draw his wand, Artemis turned left and tried to dodge any arrows that came flying at them.

Suddenly, Harry felt an intense pain in his right arm. He looked down at his arm but to his surprise he found nothing. His eyes wandered to Artemis' right wing, from which an arrow was sticking out.

Artemis soon drifted down to a clearing and landed on a hill surrounded by a small row of trees that would give them good shelter for the moment. They were several miles from Gil'ead.

He dismounted from Artemis, and he nearly collapsed to the ground, his muscles were exhausted from the flight with the elf in his arms.

He wiped his brow free from sweat as he carefully laid the elf on the ground and moved concerned towards his partner.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, before mentally facepalming, of course she wasn't alright.

"An arrow struck my wing," Artemis winced in pain.

He looked at the elf, who was breathing heavily, but Artemis took precedence.

They would need more miles between Gil'ead and themselves before he could begin to heal her.

They had waited for the night to arrive so that they could have extra protection from the night when they escaped. He doubted anyone would, or could track a dragon in the night, but they had to be sure.

"Lumos."

A small orb of light shown from his wand and broke through the darkness, and Harry could finally see the injury.

The arrow was embedded in one of the large muscles of her wings. The arrowhead poked through the other side with warm blood dropping from it.

"This will hurt a bit," he warned Artemis, who braced herself for it.

He took his wand out and touched the arrow with his wand. The arrow vanished into nothingness, Artemis whimpered in pain, as blood poured out of the wound. He immediately began focusing on healing the wound.

Harry tried to shield her from the pain, but she guarded her mind from him. She was just as stubborn as he was when it came to taking someone's pain away from each other if they had the strength to do it.

"It tickles," Artemis grunted and lifted her wing up and down, after Harry sealed the wound.

He looked at her in amusement. "It will only last for a moment. Then it should stop tickling, you big mighty dragon."

She glared at him, but her focus shifted to anger when she bent over the elf. "Can you heal her?" She asked.

Harry nodded slowly. "I think so. I don't know much about the magic of the ancient language, or that of a shade... I'll do my best, but that will have to wait. I want to put a few more miles between us and Gil'ead."

Artemis nodded determinedly. "Then we shouldn't waste any time."

Harry looked into her eyes with concern. "Are you strong enough to carry both of us?"

Artemis growled at him. "An arrow won't kill me, Harry. Besides, you healed the wound."

She licked him across the face. "Thank you for rescuing her. If you had not rescued her, I would have stormed the prison myself."

"And I would have joined you," Harry answered and wiped his face with his sleeve. "I hate it when you do that."

She snorted, and this time Harry had the time to strap the elf in and sat behind her in the saddle to make sure she wouldn't fall off.

With powerful flaps of her wings, they began to fly over the trees and rivers. It was only moments before they could no longer see Gil'ead. The lights of the city were swallowed by the shadows of the night.

As they flew, Harry looked at the elf's back and thought about what he remembered about the elves.

Brom had told Eragon and him that they only spoke the ancient language. After the Rider's fall, the elves had retreated into seclusion, and none of them had been seen in the Empire since then.

It would surprise him if it was pure coincidence that Durza was able to catch the elf. Something must have happened, that she would get caught.

"What do you think happened to the soldier that helped you?" Artemis asked him as they continued to fly high above the clouds over small villages.

Harry rubbed his tired eyes. He was far from awake, but he couldn't afford to close his eyes, yet. Not if the elf was still unconscious.

"He mentioned that he wanted to leave Gil'ead. If he managed to escape, he will probably travel towards Teirm and then to Surda." He ran a hand through his wind tousled hair. "Maybe we will see him again."

"You can't help everyone, Harry," Artemis said.

"I know that."

The two of them were silent for a few moments.

"Could you not have broken into his mind when you met him? I trust your instinct, but I would have preferred to make sure that he was not lying to us."

"I will not do that," he frowned at her. "Besides, I am bloody useless at Legilimency."

He'd never managed to train in Legilimency. Beside Voldemort, the only people he knew that were capable of Legilimency were either Dumbledore or Snape.

With Dumbledore refusing to teach him any Legilimency and with the lack of training he received in Occlumency with Snape, Harry never attempted to learn it.

Artemis sensed his discontent and remained silent. She focused on her flight from Gil'ead as quickly as possible.

They flew for hours without stopping. Only when the first rays of the sun broke through the clouds and announced the new dawn, did they look for a place to rest.

Artemis found a small stream at the foot of a cliff. Harry dismounted and carefully helped the elf out of the saddle.

"It's been hours since we fled Gil'ead. Shouldn't she have woken up long ago?" Artemis looked worried at the elf.

"Not necessarily. She was very exhausted and who knows what they have done to her," Harry reminded her.

"What are you doing?" Artemis asked curiously, when Harry enlarged the trunk, that he took out of the mokeskin pouch, from around his neck.

"Do you see the injuries on her arm?"

Harry's eyes traced the injuries on the elf's arm, which were covered in a layer of bruises and cuts. He carefully touched her injuries. The skin felt tight and dry.

He waved his wand and a comfy blanket appeared on the ground. He carried the elf in his arms and carefully placed the elf on the blanket and pulled her sleeves higher up.

The injuries continued to her shoulder, and even to her neck. Artemis took a step back and lashed the floor with her tail in anger as Harry untied the back of her shirt.

"I will kill them," Artemis promised in rage.

The elf's back was strong and muscled, but it was covered with scabs that made her skin look like dry, cracked mud.

She had been whipped mercilessly and branded with hot irons in the shape of claws. Where her skin was still intact, it was purple and black from numerous beatings.

On her left shoulder was a tattoo inscribed with indigo ink. Harry had seen it somewhere before, but he could not remember where he'd seen it.

"Heal her." Artemis demanded. She knew of his abilities, and she was sure he could help the elf.

Harry nodded slowly. "Yes, but it will take some time. Time, we don't have if the king's soldiers are still chasing us."

Artemis leaned her head onto Harry's. "We flew all night. There is no horse as fast as a dragon. They would need hours to catch up to us."

"You are right," Harry said warmly.

He moved and pushed her head away from him. "You are getting way too heavy for this."

Artemis growled at him when he was smiling.

He put his hands up. "Alright, I am sorry."

With a smug grin, Artemis lay down a little further away to rest. She watched intently as Harry pulled out dozens of items from his pouch, which Hagrid had gifted him.

She eyed the potions that Harry was lining up. They were all placed in small glass jars, and Harry carefully placed them on the uneven ground.

"What are you doing?"

"With the injuries she already has, I wouldn't be surprised if she was also poisoned."

Harry held one of the potions against the sunlight. A lucid potion was inside the vial.

"This is used to determine whether someone has been poisoned. It's a good thing Hermione put a durability charm on all the potions back then, when we were on the run."

Harry summoned a knife and cut the elf's finger. He held the potion bottle under the injury and dropped three drops of her blood into the potion.

The potion itself was transparent, should someone be poisoned it would turn dark. The stronger the poison, the darker the colour turned.

It took only a few seconds for the potion to react. The colour in the potion changed into midnight black.

Harry cursed under his breath and began frantically searching in his trunk for something.

"That is not a lot," Artemis observed.

Harry opened a vial which contained Pearly Tears.

"These are phoenix tears. Fawkes gifted them to me after Dumbledore was buried. I haven't seen him since then. They're the only cure for basilisk venom, and I highly doubt what poisoned the elf could have been worse."

"And if it is?" Artemis looked worried.

Harry paused, looking over the elf in concern. "I am not sure. The magic is so different in this land than from the magic of my world that it might not even work. I don't even know what they poisoned her to begin with, and I have nothing else that I could do."

He eyed the vial in his hand. "We can do nothing but hope that it will work."

"Was it the same phoenix from your memories?" Artemis questioned.

Harry nodded and slipped his arm behind the elf's head and lifted her up slightly. He placed the vial against her mouth and watched the last of the phoenix tears disappear from behind her lips.

"It is working!" Artemis remarked happily.

The breathing of the elf calmed down and her body relaxed into the blanket.

Harry sighed in relief. "Then I can start healing her arms and back."

He took an empty granite stone from his pouch and carved the rune of Freyr into the stone, the god of the Vanir. Harry placed his hand on the Rune and let his magic flow through it. It lit up and gave off a warmth that reminded of sunlight.

He placed the Rune on the injured skin of the elf and whispered, "Fehu!"

ᚠ

The Rune glowed in a warm light and Harry slowly traced the injuries. It was a strenuous and slow process, but the result was impressive. The burns were slowly receding, and cuts were starting to heal completely.

Harry spent the next few hours healing the elf from her injuries.

After everything the elf must have been through, he would never forgive himself if she didn't survive.

He drew his wand and with a quick circular motion, he called out "Auxilium!"

He could feel his magic tugging at his power and forming a connection with the woman in front of him. His energy transferred over to her, and Harry only broke the connection when he had to lean exhausted against Artemis, who was behind him.

The spell was one of the most difficult Madame Pomfrey had ever taught him. It caused whoever cast the spell to transfer their physical energy to someone else.

Artemis nudged him with her snout. "Are you alright?" she asked, worried.

Harry wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I'm fine, I'm just tired."

"Then sleep before we travel further. You can barely stand on your feet. I will stand watch and wake you if something happens," Artemis demanded.

Harry gave her a tired smile. He glanced at the woman one last time and leaned back against Artemis, who immediately wrapped her tail around him.

Due to the exhaustion and the pleasant body warmth of Artemis, it didn't take long before he had to close his eyes.

Her hand reached for the familiar wood she had felt beneath her all those weeks in captivity.

Instead of the splintered wood she always felt, she could feel warm soil between her fingers. She moved her hand and gasped. She felt a light breeze as it blew across her skin.

Arya took a deep breath. She opened her eyes and blinked for a moment when bright dots appeared. The midday sun was shining down on her, and her eyes needed a moment to adjust to the brightness.

She sat up slowly, and she could feel the after-effects of the poison. Her stomach ached from hunger and her throat was parched. Since her captivity, she had received only the bare minimum of food and water.

Arya took slow, deep breaths to calm herself. She had not felt this good and energized for months. She immediately strengthened her mental barrier.

Arya looked around and immediately realized that she was no longer in her prison. Faint memories of a Dragon Rider freeing her, talking to her while he healed her, came to the forefront in her mind.

She shook her head to clear herself of her thoughts. It must have been a dream.

In the corner of her eyes, she saw the remains of a campfire, and she stood up immediately. She was still weak, but she was still stronger and faster than any human could be.

A knife lay on the ground beside her. She bent and picked it up. It was kept simple and had a wooden handle that had seen better days. The edge had been made by a human. She ran a finger over the blade, and her skin tingled.

Arya frowned as she suddenly heard something. She turned her head and saw a man in front of her.

He had his eyes closed and was leaning against a tree stump. He was obviously asleep.

She looked around and expanded her senses but could sense no one else except for the presence of the man in front of her.

With brisk steps, she moved towards the man.

Her arm was pressed against the man's neck, and she held the knife under his chin. The man woke, startled, and Arya looked into emerald, green eyes. They were shaped similar to her own, but his eyes were a shade darker green. It reminded her of the trees in Ellesméra.

"Who are you? Where is the shade?" she demanded of him. She could feel the man beneath her trying to move, but she kept the knife pressed against his neck.

"Don't move and answer my questions," she hissed.

The man obviously realized the situation he was in. Arya would only need a quick movement of her hand, and the knife would cut his throat before he could even raise his arm.

Harry gulped. This wasn't how he had imagined it when the elf awakened.

"Please, let me explain. I swear I won't hurt you," Harry said cautiously.

Arya nodded slowly but didn't loosen her grip on him.

"Tell me where we are."

"We're several hours from Gil'ead. Durza-" he felt her press closer when he mentioned the name of the shade.

"The shade is not here. The last time we saw him, he was in Gil'ead."

"Ah… so it was Gil'ead." Arya paused for a moment. She had not known where she was held.

"Would you let me go? I would prefer not to join the Headless Hunt any time soon," Harry asked warily.

Her eyes snapped to him, and she shook her head. "I do not trust you. This could be just another trap set by Durza to find out where the elves or Varden are hiding. Durza will have to kill me to find out where to find them."

Harry's eyes glanced around looking for Artemis, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"Artemis, where are you?" Harry asked frantically through their bond.

"I'm flying above you," she replied. "Do you need help?"

"Doesn't it look like it?!"

"I would hope that my Rider can win a fight with a tired elf, but I will come anyway."

"Answer my questions," Arya demanded. She tightened her hold on him.

"Then give me maybe the chance to actually answer them" Harry snarled back.

She didn't seem to expect the answer and moved her hand slightly backwards. Harry immediately took advantage of the moment and threw himself forward, knocking the knife out of her hand.

The elf quickly recovered, and she attacked him like a snake would attack its prey, and pinned him with her legs to the ground.

"Ouch," Harry groaned, lying face down in the dirt.

"Did you really think that was going to work?" She asked him sarcastically.

"Not really, but it was worth a try," Harry said dryly, spitting some dirt out of his mouth.

"Now would be a good time to help me," Harry called to Artemis.

"I am coming," she replied with a frown.

"I was looking if any soldiers were following us, but the only thing I saw was a single deer. She did taste great, though."

"Artemis!" Harry growled.

"Fine, I'm coming."

Arya shivered as a loud gust of wind rolled over her. She looked up and her eyes widened. Ahead of her landed a female dragon with white scales like the finest marble.

She let go of Harry and staggered backwards. Arya took in every detail of the dragon.

"She's beautiful," she whispered. Her eyes welling up with emotion.

Arya's words were carried on the wind, and she had to stifle a laugh as the dragon struck a pose, so Arya could see her scales better.

"Please don't compliment her. She's already got an annoyingly big head," Harry muttered, having to duck as Artemis whipped her tail at him.

"It feels good to have someone acknowledge my scales. Not like a certain Rider," Artemis snorted.

Harry glared at his partner.

"If you make me wait like that again, I'll never scratch you between your eyes again," Harry grunted.

"You don't dare." Artemis recoiled with wide eyes.

Harry narrowed his eyes at her. "Do you want to bet on that?"

Artemis let out a puff of smoke from her nostrils. "Fine."

Harry crossed his arms and averted his eyes. "Fine."

He sighed and turned towards the elf. Harry raised his arms to placate her and to show that he had no other knives with him.

"Can you please let me explain? I swear we mean you no harm," Harry hoped she would listen this time.

Arya narrowed her eyes at him.

"I want your word in the ancient language that you will not deceive me in some manner and that you intend no harm to the elves, dwarves, Varden or the race of the dragons," she demanded of him.

Harry sighed, but in the end, he swore the oath in the ancient language. The words weighed heavily on him.

For the first time, Arya allowed herself to relax. The tension in her shoulders eased, and she slowly walked towards the white dragon.

She couldn't believe a dragon was in front of her. For decades, they had hoped that a new Dragon Rider would appear, and at last someone did.

The dragon studied her with interest, and her blue eyes sparkled in the sunlight. Arya sensed the dragon's presence and let her in through her mental barrier.

"I am Artemis." Arya's eyes lit up when she heard her voice in her mind.

She reached out and touched the spot between Artemis' eyes.

"Skulblaka, eka celöbra ono un mulabra ono un onr Shur'tugal né haina. Atra nosu waíse Fricai."

Artemis straightened up and Harry could feel how pleased she was.

Arya steeled herself and turned towards Harry. She was momentarily taken aback at the warm smile on his face.

"Eka aí Fricai un Shur'tugal!"

Harry hoped that she would trust him a little by using the language, in which no one could technically lie in, he could of course still twist his words to say one thing but mean another, hopefully this would be enough to keep her calm.

Arya tilted her head to one side. Now that she was looking at him a little longer, she noticed the resemblance, he already had to her people. She remembered a conversation she had with her grandmother. She had told her that it took years for a human Rider to begin to take on the appearance of an elf.

Except for his hair and eyes, she thought. The hair resembled more of a bird's nest and the eyes were round enough to still remind her that he was human.

Even if they were unnaturally green.

She looked towards the dragon and judging by her size, she could only have been a few months old.

"My name is Arya. What is your name?" She asked him in the ancient language. Harry could feel Artemis' curiosity through their bond.

"My name is Harry, and this is Artemis," Harry introduced themselves slowly. He wasn't good enough yet in using the ancient language. Brom had only taught them single words and a few sentences.

Arya nodded but was confused on the inside. She knew that the colour of the eggs matched the dragon's scales.

"There were no other eggs, besides the blue one…" She whispered to herself, but stopped suddenly, when she realized that they heard everything.

"So, you know of the egg? Were you the one to send it to Carvahall?" Harry asked in a hopeful tone. Maybe they would finally learn how Artemis' and Saphira's eggs appeared in Carvahall.

Her voice was quiet, before asking, "Yes… what happened to the blue egg, and how do you know about it? Artemis is obviously still young. Where have you found her egg?" Arya's eyes narrowed at him, and Harry felt a shiver run down his spine.

Artemis nudged him with her head, and he quickly replied. "We do not know where Artemis' egg came from. Her egg appeared in front of my hut a few months ago and hatched only days before Saphira broke out of her own egg that Eragon found while hunting in the Spine," he explained in the common tongue.

The conversation became far too difficult for him to continue in the ancient language.

Hope blossomed in Arya. Was it possible that other eggs could have survived the Fall? But how did Artemis' egg appear then?

There were too many questions she didn't know the answer to.

"Harry is my Rider and was the one who got you out of your prison in Gil'ead, Arya. You can trust him," Artemis voiced in a gentle voice.

Arya brushed her hair away from her face as a strong gust of wind came from the side.

"I apologize, Skulblaka. It was not my intention to doubt your Rider." She turned her green eyes towards him.

"If you speak the truth and the other egg hatched, do you know where its Rider is?" She questioned him.

Harry ran a hand through his hair thoughtfully. "I do not know where they currently are. We were forced to split off, after we fought Morzan in Teirm. We travelled to Gil'ead immediately, to find someone who could help us to reach the Varden, while hopefully Eragon and Brom are heading there as well."

Harry didn't have time to explain further because Arya immediately cut him off.

"You know Brom? He travelled with you?" Arya asked him and Harry motioned her to sit down.

"I think it's best, if I tell you everything that happened, after we left Carvahall."

She agreed with him. "Yes, please do."

After Harry had told Arya everything that had happened to them so far, he began to prepare dinner.

"I owe you a debt that must be repaid. You saved my life, that can never be forgotten." Her voice was accented and exotic.

"Exotic?" Artemis snorted.

Harry ignored her. He was still miffed with her.

"I said I was sorry."

Harry eyed her and then sighed. He accepted her apology and scratched her favourite place. "I am sorry as well. I shouldn't be angry with you."

Arya watched as the two interacted with each other.

"You are very close, are you not?" She asked, as Harry handed her a bowl filled with mashed potatoes.

"Yes, we are. Artemis is the best thing that ever happened to me," Harry said truthfully.

"I love you as well, my Rider."

Harry saw Arya picking at her food absently.

"I'm sorry, but I do not have any meat with me right now," Harry said and looked away in the distance. "I usually made sure I had enough with me, that it would last until the next town but with everything that happened the last few days…"

Artemis snorted beside him. "While I have to hunt for my food myself."

"And I ended up with a lazy dragon," Harry muttered under his breath, while Artemis shoved him with her head.

"Oi! Don't make me waste my food!" He just barely managed to hold the bowl in his hands.

Arya smiled slightly at their actions. She looked up and sighed. "It's not the meat. The Elves in particular do not eat meat at all."

Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "Oh, I didn't know. Brom never told much about elves or that he even knew them," he said, irritated.

Arya raised an eyebrow at his remark but said nothing.

She slowly began to eat, and her eyes widened slightly at the taste.

Arya had eaten nothing but stale bread, if anything, for months.

Harry did not see it, because he was busy looking at the bits of food left in Artemis' mouth.

"Do you know what the king plans to do with the Urgals?" Harry asked Arya when he finally finished cleaning Artemis' teeth.

Artemis let out a contented grumble. Arya finished her bowl and placed it in front of her.

"Where did you see them, exactly?" She asked him. "Besides Yazuac and Gil'ead."

"I have spoken with several people in Teirm. All of them mentioned that Urgals were leaving the area. In which direction, they couldn't tell… On our flight to Gil'ead we also saw a few groups of Urgals heading south."

Arya furrowed her brows together as she concentrated.

"In my captivity, I've also seen Urgals, meaning they work with the shade...and ultimately with the king."

Harry slowly considered what she was saying. "Do you think… Galbatorix ordered the attack on Yazuac?"

Arya closed her eyes. "I hope not. Galbatorix is the reason an entire race nearly went extinct. I'm just wondering what his motive is behind this. Yazuac was just a small, nondescript village, there shouldn't be any reason to burn it down." With her finger, she absently started to draw a dragon in the ground.

Harry nodded sadly. What happened in Yazuac was nothing more than the slaughter of the villagers. He could not understand what the king's purpose was in this.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Harry.

He stood and gathered all of his items and placed them in Artemis' side pockets.

"What are you thinking?" Artemis asked as she lifted her head.

"We have to find the Varden, and as quickly as possible," Harry called.

"Why?" Artemis asked, confused.

"Do you not remember Teirm, Artemis? Jeod spoke to Brom about spies within the Varden... Around the same time, Urgals are seen leaving their domains everywhere. That cannot be a coincidence."

"What's your point?" Artemis asked impatiently.

Arya had wide eyes and answered for him. Artemis had relayed everything Harry had thought on to her, Harry had said.

"The king knows where the Varden are hiding and intends to attack them with the Urgals. That is why they are heading south. That is where the Varden are hiding, and the king knows where."

Harry nodded towards Arya. "Exactly. He wants to attack them with a single force. The only thing I do not understand is, how he motivates the Urgals to fight together."

He shook his head when he remembered everything, he knew about them. "Brom mentioned to me that Urgals often fight among themselves. There is no reason for them grouping up in a large force such as this. Yazuac was probably the victim of a large group. They lay on their way, and the Urgals know nothing but violence and have overwhelmed them with their sheer size. Yazuac was the victim because they were in the wrong place."

"It is concerning why the Urgals started to align themselves with the king, but it does not matter for now. We must warn the Varden, else all is lost," Arya said, determined.

It wasn't long, and they readied themselves in Artemis saddle. Harry had enlarged it the night before they freed Arya to fit two people.

"These are yours, right?" He took out the sword and bow that he found in Gil'ead, from Artemis' bags. The sheath shone brightly in the sun's light.

Arya nodded, wide-eyed and gratefully accepted both weapons. She sheathed the sword at her hip and swung the bow on her back.

"Thank you," she whispered softly.

He looked back. Arya was sitting behind him. She was still very pale, but he could see in her eyes how strong-willed she was.

"Don't worry about it. Have you ever flown before?" He shifted in the saddle to turn towards her. She had a hopeful look on her face. Her midnight black hair was framing her beautiful face.

"I have never flown before," Arya admitted to him, but she was excited to try it.

Harry gave her a bright smile. "I'm sure you will love it."

Ancient Language:

Skulblaka, eka celöbra ono un mulabra ono un onr Shur'tugal né haina. Atra nosu waíse Fricai – Dragon, I honour you and mean you and your Rider no harm. Let us be friends.

Eka aí Fricai un Shur'tugal! – I am a Rider and a friend!