Fortified Minds, An Inheritance Ff

Chapter Thirteen

It’s been three weeks since I left Murtagh, it still hurts. Every time I close my eyes I’m back in our bedroom, listening to his soft snores as I cuddle against his chest, but then I realise the snores aren’t soft, they’re heavy and what I’m cuddling against is a leather jerkin and not his chest.

My stomach churned unpleasantly, I’d been feeling queasy for the last few days must be some bug I’d picked up, there are so many people here I bet it spreads like wildfire. I should get it checked before I infect people.

“Are you alright?” Eragon’s voice called through the material wall, “Aénor?”

“Sorry.” I groaned sitting up and feeling movement, I bolted past him and as far from the other tents as I could before last night’s dinner made a reappearance. “I think I’ve caught a stomach bug, I’ll get some medicine for it tomorrow and put myself in quarantine.” I groaned as he caught up with me and pulled my hair back from my face.

He kept quiet as we walked back through the camps. “How come you’re not married to Murtagh, I would have thought it would be the first thing you would have done.”

“I don’t know, he took me from Galbatorix’s castle so I wouldn’t be a servant and we just fell into a pattern of like friendship, then he bought me new dresses and everything changed.”  I shrugged, “I didn’t think of what I was doing I just knew that it was right and it’s not like anyone saw us, our house is pretty private.”

“Oh I see.” He said slowly and I laughed, he had an idea, but he really didn’t see.

“So brother.” I grinned swinging an arm around his waist as we walked back towards the tent, “As a sister I’m sure I should tease you constantly and ask after your women.”

“Aénor.” He groaned putting an arm over my shoulder.

“Come now, have you ever had a girlfriend, have you ever been kissed?” I grinned pinching his side.

“I’m not discussing this with you Aénor. It’s private!”

“That’s a no then.” I smirked and he scowled. “Why won’t you discuss it with me, is it a secret?”

“No.” He frowned and then looked as if he wanted to say something, so I stopped and sat on a low wall not too far away until he caught his nerve. “Angela told me my fortune, and she said I’d have an epic romance with a beautiful woman from noble heritage, but Arya won’t have me.”

“Ohh, well she is most definitely beautiful. But she at least likes you, what about the noble heritage who else could that be?”

“Nersuada?” he suggested and I smirked. “What?”

“I just don’t see the two of you together, now I could be wrong.” I laughed shaking my head. “I’m related to nobility actually.”

“Really?” he asked falling to the wall next to me. “Have any sisters, cousins?”

“Nope, sorry.” I laughed, “My grandfather was a chieftain of a small tribe who lived on boats, they were nomadic, my mother was born on the ocean and always knew when the weather would change. But when the riders fell he was killed and my grandmother fled and moved us to Uru’baen to live beneath his nose.”

“Is it better to know who your father is than to find out after his death?” he asked kicking a stone.

“Well, if your father is Durza then the latter.” I shrugged and turned to look at him, “You knew him, maybe not as you wanted but you enjoyed his company.”

“True.” He grunted, “What about a mother?”

“You can’t have mine.” I teased and he just rubbed his eyes.

“I don’t know what it’s like; Roran’s mother was the best replacement I could have asked for. But she died young and then it was just Garrow.”

I watched as he just broke down all the little annoyances and grinds that gnawed every day. I wrapped an arm around him as he stopped and just shook with all the emotion that had built up and then had been released.

---

I felt embarrassed as I stopped talking and just hid my face in my hands; Aénor wrapped an arm around my waist and rested her head on my back. “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, you’ll feel better.” She said quietly. “Want to see a memory of my mother?”

“Really?” I asked and she nodded, I did I wanted to know what it felt like being loved, wanted the joy.

I watched as she lifted my hands and placed them on my temples as she did the same to me, she flashed me a grin. “I’ll show you the time Murtagh and I broke my mother’s table.”

“Nore what are you doing?!” a young dark haired boy hissed walking into the room to see the young Aénor climbing the book case. “Get down before you hurt yourself.”

“Momma’s left some cake up here; she thinks I didn’t see her.” Aénor stated as Murtagh wrapped his thin arms around her waist, trying to pull her down. “I’ll share it with you, stop pulling!” she whined.

“No, Gallia looks after me. I’m not going to help you be naughty!” he said straining to pull her off of the book case. “Stop being a bad girl!”

“Fine.” Aénor stated letting go of the book case completely and letting them crash to the ground. “I’m sorry!” she screamed turning back to see his face completely covered in blood. “Murtagh, are you alive?”

“Of course I’m alive you’re such a stupid little girl!” he shouted cupping his nose to catch the blood. “Go get your mum to help me.”

“I can fix it, I do it all the time.” She stated pushing his hands down before flinching, he looked at her uneasily and she simply shrugged and waved her hands about before focusing her energy on fixing his nose.

“Thank you Aénor, but really it’s your fault in the first place so I shouldn’t even thank you.” he grunted, “Did you say special cake that she doesn’t make very often.”

“Yess!” she sighed dramatically, “Now let me try with magic.”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

“It’s really heavy!” she exclaimed straining as she focused on lifting it into the air so it would come off the book case without crashing into anything.

“Aénor! What the hell do you think you’re doing!?” an angry woman’s voice called in from behind them.

Both children span around flinching in fear as they faced the old woman with bright blue eyes like Aénor’s. A crash shook the house as the table fell back to the ground, smashing into hundreds of pieces, “That table has been in this family for hundreds of years and you manage to break it!”

“Sorry momma, Murtagh tried to stop me.” she sighed bowing her head to look at her toes.

“Is no one hurt?”

The children shook their heads and the woman hissed out a sigh, “It was just a table, Murtagh would you like to stay for dinner?” she smiled looking at him as if he were her own child.

“Yes please Gallia.” He smiled shyly before shooting a glare at Aénor who just grinned at him. “Come on, we’ll go play in the garden.”

 “You’ve got her eyes.” I said as she pulled away smiling sadly.

“She always did love Murtagh more than Me.” she sighed dramatically.

“No idea why, it’s not like you destroyed the house or anything.” I laughed and she looked a little sheepish, “Did you?!”

“Yes but she never found out, I fixed it before she came home.” She whispered and I laughed. “I’m glad you’re my brother, couldn’t ask for a better one really.”

“Really?” I asked smiling a little feeling my heart swell as she stood up again and pulled me to my feet, she nodded grinning. “Having a sister might not be too bad, and I don’t even have to worry about you. That’s his job.”