The bed was warm and soft, Ivren rolled onto his stomach and groaned. A strand of hair was determined to get into his mouth. He grumbled, rubbed over his eyes and stood up. Dew sparkled in the morning sun. Ellesmera was a beautiful place. Ivren yawned and stretched. But should he stay? Surely, the elves would ask him for more details on his adventure and that could end bad. Nainar would rather have him leave soon or himself would leave Ivren.

Squeak! A rustle, another call and – a tiny green snout peeked into his room. Oh no. Ivren took a step back. The egg hatched? Over night? What if – The little dragon touched his mind. Vague green-tinted pictures and hunger were shoved at him. He sighed in relief. He had already marked his bonded. Good. "Nainar!"

Ivren knelt on the floor, offering a hand to him. With a squeak and a stumbling walk, like a newborn doe or in this case dragonling, he crashed into his body. A bundle of love and safety swirled around his mind, as well as gratitude. Oh!

"Hello, little one. Yes, I am Ivren." He chuckled at the dragonlings big eyes. They could melt even the coldest hearts. "Let's get you back to Arya, ne?"

Hunger was projected at him. "Yes, yes. Here." He searched his bags for meat. Ivren only found some dried fish. "You like this?"

Nainar nudged his mind from far away, too far to be seen by even far-sighted elves. Ivren shoved his view at him. Excitement and affection bubbled over their faint bond.

After gobbling up the fish, the dragonling jumped on his shoulder, nearly got entangled in his hair and chirped at him. "Alright." The Dragonling licked his cheek and then attempted to nibble on his hair "I am moving, I am moving – not the hair!"

Arya waited for him. Her eyes lightened up when the dragon scrambled off his shoulder and chirped at her. A soft smile, barely more than a tilt to her lips, broke through her stony facade. They exchanged greetings and she thanked him for feeding her bonded.

"He remembers you." Her brows wrinkled as she listened to the hatchling "Safety and warmth, the promise of a lifetime."

"I had no idea dragons could remember their time in the eggs so well." It was the truth. Ivren knew that dragons could sense safety and danger, their parents or their future rider, but not that they understood whisper of their shell.

"Without you he would have never found me. He might never have hatched. I – You have my gratitude, and his."

The hatchling turned around in her arms, his big eyes turned to Ivren. "Food?" Ivren chuckled at him. "You are a fast learner. May I give him some?"

Arya blinked. "Yes, sure. Thank you. We elves do not hunt -"

"Will you?" She hesitated for a moment, clearly deep in thought. An intensity came over her face that surprised Ivren. "If I have to." Arya admitted, "I would do anything."

"Good." Ivren feed him another piece of fish. "It took him long to hatch."

"It did? I don't – He only felt safe once I felt safe."

Ivren nodded and they walked together down the winding stairs. "You may stay in Du Weldenvarden for as long as you desire and do not break our laws. Queen Islanzadi has invited you to take part in a special – event as reward for your service."

Ivren bowed his head. "I am grateful for your hospitality."

They were led towards the edge of Elllesmera until houses and paths faded away, only the rustle of the leaves was their company.

"Before any of you take another step, you have to swear an oath in the Ancient Language that you will not reveal what you see soon, to anyone at all, until either me, my daughter or my envoy give you permission."

Interesting. Ivren swore the oath. What was the worst that could happen?

On the highest point of the hill, the trees spread into a lush clover field until they met a ragged cliff face. It was a beautiful sight. His fingers itched to draw. Suddenly, the tell-tale sound of dragon wings filled the air. Ivren swallowed. So, this was the secret. Understandable. A massive golden dragon came into sight, a rider on his back. Ivren looked at Eragon, the boy looked back, smiling.

Damn, was he huge! Bigger than Saphira by far and even bigger than Nainar, though it reassured him that Eous was bigger. Only – Eous was not here. Ivren felt suddenly so tiny as an ant. Eragon looked ready to cry. For all Ivren might have told him about the continued existence of dragons, it seemed like he had not quite understood it in his heart or perhaps he had decided that they would not fight for his cause? Either way, the boy was on his knees, overwhelmed with emotion.

The rider was an elf, beautiful as any of them, with a deep sadness in his soul. Ivren felt a strange sense of kinship and wanted to tell him of the dragons, wild and free beyond the ocean. His hair was silver, a colour Ivren had always been fond of. Partially due to Steorra.

Ivren stayed silent during the conversations. The great golden dragon moved his just as great head towards the little hatching and appeared to be overcome with feelings. Arya chose this moment to introduce him. Ivren swallowed and stepped forwards, he performed the greeting and added: "It is an honour to meet you, skulblaka un shur'tugal"

"The honour is ours. You have brought us what we have thought lost. We thank you." The dragon, Glaedr, repeated his words. Ivren bowed his head. The hatchling took that as chance to stumble towards him again. "Chirp?"

Abruptly he had an arm full dragon. "Mmprh!" He groaned. Adorable. "Yes, I like you, too."

Those grey eyes turned towards him again, his sorrowful gaze softened. Ivren held eye-contact and spoke barely above a whisper. "If possible, I would like to speak to you later."

Oromis agreed to his request. Ivren sighed as the two dragons and their riders took off. A strange tightness was in his chest at the beautiful sight. It made his heart yearn for the stars and the sky and the sea and – he shook out of it.

It was midnight when he could reach Nainar again. His friend listened to his request and pondered over it. So did Ivren. Should they reveal themselves? Should they not? Nainar loathed the thought of joining the Vardens or bowing to any authority but his own. To give up the freedom to go where they wished to – anathema to their very being! But to not help their distant kin, to not hunt the Betrayer – no. They could not do it.

Ivren rarely saw Eragon or Saphira, the two too busy with their training. The little dragonling, now named Fírnen, often accompanied them or Arya. Nonetheless he found Ivren again and again, begging for food or cuddles. It put a smile on his lips every time.

One late evening Eragon pulled him aside and asked him if he knew any way to cure his injury. Ivren thought long and hard about it. "The greatest power in the world are dragons," Ivren removed his gloves and pulled up his clothing. "And a dragon can heal even the worst wounds, yet never of their own will." Pale scars adorned his body, a web of silver and pain, the same colour as the gedwëy ignasia. Eragon stared at the sight. "What happened to you?"

"Many men have dark hearts and dark desires." He rubbed over a particularly nasty acid burn. "Seithr oil. Quite unpleasant."

It had taken three day until Nainar made his decision. He wanted to stay hidden. Ivren accepted it. He could still share some of his past, but not the dragons. If no one knew about them, no one could hunt them.

The petal shivered in the wind, separated from the flower and danced to the ground. Ivren chewed on his lips. His paint dip wobbled perilous as he dipped the brush into it. With a sigh he shifted and grabbed it properly. Ivren squeezed the excess paint out against the rim, added another stroke to his work and placed the brush back into the holder. Before he continued it had to dry.

Soft footsteps pulled him out of his work. "Most magicians would make a fairth instead." noted Oromis.

Ivren looked up. The elf towered over him like this. Ivren swallowed. He was rather tall compared to him, huh? "If I wanted to preserve a sight for the future, then yes. But it is not preservation but creation – art."

Oromis sat down on the ground between roots and leant against the tree trunk. "Why this flower?"

He looked at the sky for a moment, then turned towards Oromis. "It has the same colour as my brother's eye."

"Not preservation, but creation. An expression of emotion." He mused "Do you always paint for your -" Oromis hesitated "- loved ones?"

Ivren smiled. "Not always. I tend to draw and paint whatever my whims find for me." he laughed and then added: "It's how I found the entrance to the Ra'zac's lair."

"I have done you a disservice by letting you wait for so long."

"I don't mind. You have much to teach them."

"You have asked for nothing but a conversation with me. Many would have asked for greater reward. It would not be considered greedy to do so."

"I didn't rescue Fírnen for a reward – Had no that he was hidden there." Ivren inspect the ant crawling over his hand with great care. "A conversation with you is reward enough."

He watched him, his gaze heavy on Ivren's back. Oromis stayed quiet, content to let the moment be.

The ant crawled off Ivren's hand. He reached towards his pack and pulled out an scroll. Ivren unfurled it and stroked over the edge once. It was a painting based on what he sketched at the Helgrind. A single flower, not blooming, clinging to live on black granite. A single beam of moonlight fell through the invisible wand onto it.

"I found a patch of flower, growing in death-bound place. A reflection where none should be was the only error in the illusion." He licked his lips. "I hunt Ra'zac and so did I. A chamber so strongly warded – I wondered what Ra'zac could want to protect so much they hired an outsider to do spellwork for them? I cracked the enchantment and found Fírnen's egg."

"Galbatorix's protections are powerful. Your skill is impressive."

Ivren thanked him. Neither of them said a word for a while. Instead they watched a sparrow and a tit fight over a single seed, a butterfly visit the pale flowers and afterwards a bumblebee. Du Weldenvarden was alight with sound and life. It was wonderful.

Eventually Oromis broke the silence. "You hunt Ra'zac. Why?" He leant forward, his silver hair followed the motion. A falling star. Ivren blinked. What?

"A rare question. I did not expect it from a dragonrider, though, your kind hunted Ra'zac long before I was ever born. So – Why? Well. The obvious answer would be the innate danger of man-eaters. Ra'zac hunt mankind, so we hunt them as well The second answer would be another version of the first: They actively harmed people."

"Yes. We thought to have hunted them all." A bitterness came over him. Oromis shook it off with a sigh. "The existence of a first and second answer implies more answer."

"Curious, aren't you?" Ivren smiled. "I am more than happy to answer you. My third answer would be: It is my profession, my duty. The fourth is: It is a personal vendetta. Does this satisfy you?"

"It does satisfy me. An rare profession you have. May I know why?"

Ivren's first impulse was to answer; yes. On a second thought however, he wondered how to tell the story without Nainar.

"My hunger for revenge grew into something . . purer over time. I had the capability to protect people from Ra'zac and so I did. Reward played a role, of course, but people are good to their saviours. I had no need for anything. I could travel where my whims took me and feel good about it."

"A good purpose it is, to protect people. I feel Eragon could learn much from your story. But I wonder: Where did you find Ra'zac?"

"Do I hear permission to teach him? Me, an outsider, human, not even a Varden?" Ivren raised an eyebrow. "I found two Ra'zac, two Lethrblaka and an egg in the Helgrind. I have seen place you could never dream of. More I cannot say. Not for me, but for my wards."

"You have done us a great service." repeated Oromis. "And only a fool would ignore your power. Beyond it, you have sworn freely before us all. You choose your words with care, not to be misleading but to be clear. A rarity, that is what you are."

"I thank you."