A/N This little drabble was inspired by the song Rain by Patty Griffin. Hope you like!

Eragon lay with his head on Saphira's hard chest, listening to her long, slow breathing. She was not bothered by the loss of her mate in her sleep. But even there, he felt his loss.

He couldn't stop thinking about her. She was the queen of the elves, he the leader of the Riders. They could never be together, not if the Riders were to stay neutral. But even so, his heart wouldn't listen to his head. Maybe the problem was his head. it kept telling him to move on, but at the same time he couldn't.

He heard a loud crack of thunder, and stepped out onto his terrace. He faced the direction of Alagesia, and a bolt of lightning cracked through the air. The smell of burning and salt reached his elven nose. The rain dripped down on his face, disguising his tears.

The first day it had rained, everyone was surprised at the ferocity of the rain. It seemed to pound the ground, angry at the earth, as if it was the source of all problems in the world. But now it weeps with sadness, not with anger. The rain is cooling, chilling you to the bone. But Eragon didn't mind. It was something he could understand.

She couldn't leave her kind; that was impossible to ask of anyone. His Riders needed him. He was their leader, their pillar.

Her letters, when they came, were official and distant. It was as if she was gone, replaced by a monarch. But her spirit was a restless one.

He wasn't living without her. He was existing. While working he was fine; happy, even. But the nights he was left alone with his thoughts were the hardest.

He held on, but barely. His very bones yearned for her presence.

His mind was stained with sadness, a dark indigo blue. He stood alone under the dark clouds, the Rider lost without his Queen.