Addiane's head was alternating between feeling as if it had been stuffed with cotton and as if it had been set on fire. She couldn't move, and everything else ached dully as if she'd been thrown against a wall.

Every once in a while she would hear quiet conversation around her, but when she tried to focus on it the pain in her head would triple and she was forced to slide back into her cloudy silence.

The strangest part was that for three days she felt like she was floating, fully in the air and rocking back and forth.

Well, she thought it was three days anyway. It was very hard to tell time when one was in a coma, with no real sense of when days separated from one another.

Finally, after what felt like weeks of silence and darkness, Addiane got her eyes open.

There was a stone ceiling above her, and she was vaguely aware of a familiar smell. It felt as if something was constricting her head, but she was too weak to lift her hand and try to see what it was.

Not knowing what else to do, Addiane took a deep breath and began to try to heal. It took her an alarming amount of time to even reach the energy she could use for magic, and she silently wished that Naegling was somewhere nearby. After ignoring the magic in the stone for so long, she could finally use it for something and it was nowhere to be found.

She finally got ahold of it and began to whisper healing spells, trying to fix whatever she could figure out that needed to be fixed. Spell after spell, until she couldn't focus anymore, then she fell into darkness again.

When she opened her eyes once more, there were several people standing nearby and talking quietly. Addiane tried to move, but again felt as if all of her limbs had been weighted down.

For a few minutes she laid there, trying to catch anything that the group was saying.

Finally someone's voice raised, and the sound clicked in Addiane's mind.

"Murtagh?" She croaked weakly.

Her voice sounded like that of an old crone's, an old woman who had spent too much time around a campfire and breathed in too much smoke. She was surprised Murtagh could even hear her, but she heard a shuffle and then his face appeared in her field of vision.

"Hi, little sister." He smiled a little. Adidane could see dark rings around his eyes.

"Haven't been sleeping?" She chuckled weakly. For a moment she attempted to lift a hand and push back the strand of hair that was hanging in his eyes, but the effort of even getting her arm an inch off of the bed she was lying in exhausted her and she gave up.

"Eragon and I have been taking turns watching you... how are you feeling?"

"I'm exhausted and I can barely keep my eyes open... what happened?"

"Well, uh... I killed your mother." Murtagh smiled weakly.

"I did kind of see that... I mean, everything was fuzzy, but I could see that, sort of."

"You know, what you did was crazy. The amount of power it took to even keep you on your feet with what she did, I don't think I could do that."

Addiane smiled weakly, shifting her head a little as Eragon also came into view.

"I'm glad you pulled through, Addiane... we were worried. We couldn't tell what toll the blood loss had taken while you were out, and we finally had to fly you back-"

"Wait, back? To the..." She blinked a couple times, trying to figure out what the world was. "The Sanctuary?"

Eragon nodded. "Your brothers went home, but we told them that once you were well enough we'd give you leave to go visit them and the rest of your family..."

Addiane blinked again, then chuckled.

"I bet that was hard to convince them of."

Murtagh smiled. "Yeah, it was. But we got it all figured out... and they said I could come with. Something about being honorary family."

She nodded. "They're like that. Welcome to the family."

Eragon looked up as Murtagh and Addiane kept talking, and she didn't really pay attention to it until he cleared his throat, getting their attention.

"Addiane, I think you have another visitor. Come on, Murtagh, we should go, we did say we'd do a demonstration at weapons training."

Murtagh glanced over his shoulder at the visitor, then grunted and nodded. "Alright, yes, good idea. I'll be back later, okay Adds?"

Addiane smiled, wondering if he had picked that up from Kath.

The half-brothers got up and walked out of her sight. She took a deep breath and, with some effort, turned her head to see who it was that had come to see her.

Samblar's eyes were huge as he stared at her. For a minute neither of them said anything, then he took a huge, shuddery breath. Addiane realized that he'd been crying, his eyes were a little red and puffy.

"Hi Sam..."

"What did I say?" He choked out, moving over to the bed and grabbing her hand, holding it tightly. "What did I say, Firelight?"

"I did my best, Sam." Addiane said quietly.

"Eragon said you nearly died. I asked you to come back to me, and that's all I wanted."

"And I didn't know that my mad mother would be there." She shook her head a little. "Sam, I'm okay. I'm injured, yes, but I'm on the mend and I'll be okay."

"They flew you back in on a stretcher and I swear I felt my heart drop to the floor. And they wouldn't let me see you, and I didn't know what was going on, they wouldn't say anything- Murtagh is entirely unhelpful-"

Addiane interrupted him, seeing the emotion rising and not wanting to watch him cry. "Sam. I'm okay, I promise. And Murtagh was just as worried, if not more."

"He has no right-"

"He's my brother." She stopped him. Sam, please, stop. Just... how have you been while I was gone?"

Samblar took another long, shuddery breath, and smiled a little. "I learned a new spell. I'll show you once you're on your feet again."

"Sounds like fun. What does it do?"

He began to explain it, and she smiled, listening to him talk. She really had missed him a lot, but with all that had happened she didn't have much time to think about it.

Samblar stayed with her and talked for hours, even when Addiane got tired again and was barely conscious. He told her all about what had gone on while she was gone, how he and Ghola had started to get along as they bonded over how much they hated her, how he and Seirye had gotten into a legitimate fistfight over something she'd said about Addiane.

Eragon and Murtagh returned later and Samblar quietly excused himself, refusing to meet Murtagh's eyes.

"I hope you're feeling a little better." Murtagh said, brushing a strand of hair back from Addiane's eyes. She smiled at him a little.

"I am. I want to try to use some spells to try and fix some of the damage, but I don't have enough energy to do it... I just want out of this bed, I'm starting to feel sores from lying still for so long."

"We could probably put some work in, if I get the other spellcasters to provide more energy so that we can keep working the spells." Eragon suggested.

Addiane nodded. "Please."

He turned and left, and Murtagh took a deep breath.

"Samblar doesn't seem to like me."

"I think he was thinking that you had interest in me or something..." Addiane chuckled. "I set the record straight, don't worry."

"He's hardly left his quarters since we returned and Eragon told them that you were injured. Only your little dwarf friend, Ghola right?"

"Yes."

"She's the only one he's really talked to." Murtagh sighed. "They're all worried about you, so if we can get you out of bed some, I think it will be good for everyone."

"Especially me, I want to scream every time I try to move." Addiane sighed.

She heard movement and closed her eyes. "I'm so ready to be out of this bed."

Eragon chuckled, and the spellcasters all moved to stand in a circle around the bed that Addiane was in. Eragon and Murtagh began to chant healing spells, and she could feel the magic energy in the room.

It took them almost an hour of low energy spells to get Addiane to the point where she could sit up properly. Eragon finally ended the spells, shaking his head.

"I think that's all we can do today, Addiane, we don't want to overwhelm your body with magic."

"Can I get up?" She asked. "At least to walk around the compound for a little, talk to Nyriem- wait, what happened to Will?"

Murtagh thought back while the spellcasters filed out.

"When we got out of the caves, the entire thing collapsed. We took everyone back to the town and Will and Nyriem bonded for a few hours. When you didn't wake up for a week or so-"

"I was out for a week?"

"Three. But when you didn't wake up, the Skandians decided that they needed to leave. Will wasn't sure if he wanted to, but Nyriem managed another burst of accidental magic and reversed the spell. We have no clue how."

Addiane sighed, looking down at her hands. She would have liked to see them all one more time.

"They might come back." Murtagh assured her, seeing her worry easily. "Hal did say he was going to keep a record of how they had gotten there in the first place. Hopefully it won't be the last we see of them."

"I'm sure we'll be seeing them again." Eragon came back over, holding a wooden contraption of some sort. "Addiane, you can get up and move around the compound, but this will help you if you're having trouble keeping your balance or holding your whole weight. If you tuck it under your arm like so," he demonstrated, resting the pad in his armpit and leaning against it, "then you should be able to move around pretty easily. We can help you get used to it."

Addiane nodded and carefully swung her legs over the edge of the bed, reaching for it.

Eragon handed it over and she got it situated like he had done, carefully putting her weight on it as she slowly stood up.

"How does that feel? I should be able to adjust it if you feel it's too tall or short."

"No. I think it's okay." She hobbled forward a few steps. "Yes, it's fine. Thank you, Eragon."

He nodded, smiling. "Just be careful and make sure you ask for help if you need it."

Addiane grunted. "What time is it?"

"Around dinner time."

"Good, I'm starving. Can we walk down to the dining area together?"

Murtagh smiled and nodded, and the two walked with her out into the hallway.

"I think I'd be okay with staying in the Sanctuary for a while once I've gone to visit my brothers." Addiane shook her head as they walked through the corridors. "That was altogether too much adventure."

"I honestly agree with you." Eragon shook his head. "I might be sending Murtagh on the next update to the High Queen."

"I wouldn't have an issue with that." Murtagh smiled. Addiane muffled a laugh.

Of course, she knew he'd had a brief romance of sorts with the High Queen Nasuada.

Eragon let Addiane lead the way down the thinner corridors, since she was the slowest moving of the three of them. As the hall widened out, the brothers each took a side and walked with her, keeping pace.

"That smells delicious... I haven't eaten properly in a long time." Addiane shook her head, grinning. "I'm so glad that I can finally eat."

"Well you were unconscious for most of the time you didn't eat." Murtagh pointed out. "sometimes you were sort of lucid, and we fed you then, but other than that we just had to watch you very closely."

"Exactly." Addiane sighed. "I can't wait to have real food again."

Eragon went into the dining area first, turning to watch Addiane and make sure she could still keep her balance.

She felt a lot of eyes on her as soon as she walked in, then there was a flurry of movement.

Both Ghola and Samblar raced to her, throwing their arms around her and nearly knocking her off of her feet.

Addiane smiled and hugged them back, burying her head in Samblar's shoulder.

"I'm so glad to be home."