The Truth About Lies (An Inheritance Cycle Fanfiction)

Departure

"So soon, Eragon?" The words came out of my mouth in a breathless whisper, and my heart began to race in my chest. I thought I'd have more time. We stood on the balcony off my room, which overlooked a section of the gardens. When he'd come to my chambers, asking to speak to me, I hadn't imagined what he had in mind. I knew he and Saphira did not wish to linger too long in Alagaësia, but I never dreamed they would want to leave in the next few weeks.

"We have been idling for too long," he explained calmly, placing his hand overtop of mine. "It does us no good to put off the inevitable any longer. I worry about the dragons inside their eggs; they have been there for too long already."

I chewed on my bottom lip nervously, wrapped in my own thoughts. In all the time I'd known that Eragon and Saphira were planning to leave, I had never actually prepared myself for this eventuality. "Have you told Roran and Katrina?" I asked.

"I will today." I gave him an admonishing look. He shouldn't have waited so long, but I understand why he did. "Roran will be the hardest one to convince that I'm doing the right thing," he said, chuckling slightly and fiddling with a loose piece of wood on the railing. "Do you think I'm doing the right thing, Tabatha?" This last part he whispered, and when I looked over at him I saw his brow knitted together, and the doubt written all over his face.

"Eragon," I said softly, drawing his dark eyes up to mine. "How long have we been friends?"

He smirked slightly, the corners of his eyes crinkling up. "As long as I can remember. I had wandered into the common pasture; I couldn't have been more than five years old. And you pulled me out of the way of getting trampled by a bull. We were inseparable from that day on, weren't we?"

"Much to my aunt's chagrin," I said, laughing softly. "She wanted me to grow up to be a lady, and now look at me. But here is my point, Eragon: in the nearly thirteen years we have known one another, have you ever known me to keep my opinions to myself?"

He had to laugh at that. "You know that's never been an issue," he replied.

"So don't you think I would tell you if I thought you were being a dolt?" I arched my eyebrow at him, and he responded with a sheepish grin. I reached over and put a hand on his cheek, angling his face so that he would look at me. "Regardless of whether I thought you were making the wrong decision, this was a choice you had to make on your own. You're the Elder Rider now, Eragon. The only person whose counsel you must seek now is Saphira's. Until the Riders are rebuilt, you cannot afford to doubt yourselves. I do not mean to sound coarse, I only wish for you to understand."

"I understand," he said quietly. Then I noticed he was hesitating in whatever else he was about to say. "Tabby, there is something I must tell you." His tone had grown serious, so I drew my hand away from him.

"What is it?" I dreaded to hear whatever it was. What more could happen to me in such a short amount of time? I'd already lost the man I love, and now I'm losing my best friends for who knows how long.

"Do you remember when we went to Teirm with Brom so long ago?" he began. I couldn't imagine what he was getting after, but I nodded my head all the same. "Well, I met Angela there for the first time. She told my fortune after Solembum spoke to me. And... she foretold that I would leave Alagaësia... and never return." I sucked in my breath quickly, feeling my eyes go wide in shock.

"Why did you never tell me this, Eragon?" I hissed quietly, probably more unkindly than I ought to have been.

"I never wanted to believe that it was true," he explained apologetically. "But there are other things that have come to pass that she also predicted, and now I'm inclined to believe she was telling the truth."