What do you mean your not a Red?

[Jaydena]

Jaydena glanced into the hallway outside her room, the quarters outside her room filled with ornate tapestries and white tiled floors with green hilted swords. She looked out at the whispering Greens and gave them a admonishing glance, she knew they were curious about what was going on but she didn't need them standing around look like a bunch of midwives gossiping over their fences. There were rumors of what was going on inside the Red Halls, rumors that were stirring up things like a lighted stick in a bee's nest. It had begun with some very strange questions about bonding. What in the light would make Reds care anything about bonding they had all wondered. Reds didn't like men, and they certainly didn't bond them. They could understand the questions from Browns who researched all things but from the Reds. It had made no sense to them at all. It had than been followed by fairly intimate questions, like what happened when the man was intimate or when the Siser was intimate. To say it had shocked them was to put it mildly. Then the rumors had begun of strange men in the Red quarters. Many of the Reds were just as likely as anyone else to want to be with a man or woman for that matter, but these weren't your average men. They came across as barely leashed power, and there were so many of them. A gaidin or gaidar came across the same way but these men seemed to have something different and foreign from the warders she had had over the years. She stepped out of the room and walked gracefully past her Greens, her auburn hair falling down her back to the small of her back in thick curls. Her dress was a deep shape of purple, with gold embroidery across the lapel and waist. She wore a matching necklace of a curling design and no shawl.

 

Her emerald eyes were shaded with color and her freckles were actually showing on the one side of her face not covered by the mask. Her purple walking slippers flashed from under her dress as she walked towards on the Red Quarters, she was on a mission to find out what was going on over there.

She headed through the Tower and finally reached the Red Quarters, she smiled softly at the Reds standing around and acted like she belonged there. Several of the Reds looked shocked at her appearance before quickly concealing those expressions. The walls were much the same here, only the artwork and tapestries depicted things far different. Many women glowing with the power is they surrounded a single man. Men and women fighting with the One Power as Sisters brought the man to his knees and much more. It was the tradition of the Reds to gentle and save the world from the men that had the misfortune to be born with the ability to channel the male half of the source. She walked further into the Halls and looked for one of the men by himself, finally she walked up and found one. He stood there just as described, barely leashed power. She regarded him for a moment, he was about the same height as her, his hair was brown, and his eyes were closet to the same shade of green as hers. He was skinny but not in a sickly way, he just looked healthy and strong. She smiled at him and than spoke like she knew exactly why he was there, "Hello, my name is Jaydena. You look like a likely one, why are you all by yourself?"

 

Jaydena Mckathur

[Arath Faringal]

Arath tugged nervously at the plain wool coat he wore for the moment.  It chaffed him to no end that he had to forsake his standard black coat and his pins whenever he had to visit the White Tower.  He understood the need, or at least he thought he did.  Aes Sedai and their secrets … what difference did it make if the other ajah's knew about what the Red's were up to? 

 

Covai had told him to meet with Zarinen for today's meeting and discuss the number of bonds being made.  Despite the Amyrlin's agreement that the bonds would be equal in number, the Aes Sedai seemed to be holding far more bonds than the Asha'man were.  So Arath found himself in the red quarters, standing in a hallway awaiting his chance to speak with the red's ajah head.  It was thoroughly aggravating.  Even after several weeks of this arrangement, Arath found it unnerving to be here.  Every time a woman walked by him he half expected her to attack him.  Half of them still looked like they were considering it.  The other half looked at him as though they were considering a horse for purchase.  Unnerving indeed.

 

It was no surprise then when Arath jumped as a violet clad Aes Sedai approached him.  "Hello, my name is Jaydena. You look like a likely one, why are you all by yourself?"

 

“I'm simply waiting to speak with Zarinen Sedai.  Since the Amyrlin seems to have left all this in her hands ...” he shrugged.  “I'm alone because the rest of my group has already been snapped up.”  He smiled weakly.  “I guess that makes me the lucky one.”

[Jaydena]

Jaydena looked the man overly carefully, she noticed that he tugged at his collar several times while he stood there, she wondered if it was a sign of nervousness or something else. He did appear to be fairly young so perhaps that was what it was. She remembered what it was to be young and naive and not sure of yourself. Confidence was not something she had had in spades, but these days she knew exactly what she was worth or rather often wasn't worth in some cases. Shaking those thoughts away she knew what negative path that would take her down she looked at his clothing and tried to access who he was. She once against noticed that he was pretty athletic and seemed to take care of himself, much like the men she had walked past in the Green quarters on her way here. Men who were used to being outside and who were also aware of their own appeal and power. He wore a brown wool coat which was made of fairly nice wool and black pants with it.

 

She glanced back up into his eyes and smiled at him, he hadn't stumbled backwards when he had seen the mask on her face.  It wasn't like it was hard to miss, the mask covered the left side of her cheek, and part of her forehead. It was violet with flecks of gold and picked up her eye color from what she had been told. She waited silently for him to speak and when he did her eyes widened for a minute. Either the Reds were having some kind of massive party here of the carnal sort of there was something much deeper going on. Since she couldn't see any of the Reds doing anything like that she was going with the bonding option. However why would the Reds bond and who. It didn't make any sense, many of the Reds hated men and wouldn't even think of bonding them, but as she looked around her it was obvious from the stances of the men and the Reds that they were bonded, if anyone could recognize a bonded couple it was a Green and she was the Captain General of them for goodness sake. The man began to speak softly to her and she smiled at him, “I'm simply waiting to speak with Zarinen Sedai.  Since the Amyrlin seems to have left all this in her hands ...  I'm alone because the rest of my group has already been snapped up.”  He smiled weakly.  “I guess that makes me the lucky one.” She contained her excitement at his words, it appeared that the Reds may have bonded but she wanted to be sure, and began to speak, "So you haven't found anyone to bond yet, why is that do you think. You look well trained enough, what is your specialty?" She watched him carefully for his reaction, she had some ideas as to what was going on but they were to wild to be true. The Reds bonded it was just to shocking to imagine, the Tower wasn't one for going away from traditions and this was about as far as you could get without bonding a channeling man. Of course they would never do anything like that, she thought.

 

Jaydena Mckanthur

[Arath Faringal]

“I don't believe I'm one of those who will be bonded,” Arath replied carefully.  So far the Aes Sedai didn't seem to be living up to their end of the deal, as far as numbers were concerned.  Only a bare handful of Aes Sedai had been bonded by Asha'man, while a great many Asha'man had been taken as Warders.  Even a couple of Attack Leaders had been taken.  He didn't plan on adding a Storm Leader to that list.    

 

"That's what I'm here to discuss actually.  Too many of us are being bonded, without a balance to it.  Some sisters are even bonding two or three of us at a time.  Until things are more balanced, more controlled, I won't let any more officers be bonded.”

 

He paused for a moment, considering the woman in front of him.  She seemed different from the other Aes Sedai he had met here.  Inquisitive.  It wasn't that the others hadn't been full of questions, but Jaydena's questions had a subtly different feel to them.  It was puzzling.

 

“As for my specialty … I'm in charge of training.  I over see the basic training of all the Soldiers.”

 

[Jaydena]

“I don't believe I'm one of those who will be bonded, that's what I'm here to discuss actually.  Too many of us are being bonded, without a balance to it.  Some sisters are even bonding two or three of us at a time.  Until things are more balanced, more controlled, I won't let any more officers be bonded.” Jaydena watched him as he spoke, looking for hidden meanings as she had been trained to do. She didn't see any, though she could see his obvious frustration with the entire situation. What the situation was, well that was the most confusing thing of all. From what she was hearing from, he sounded like he was an Ashaman. She had been in the Hall so she knew their ranks and what had happened when the party had gone to them. However why in the Light would the Reds be bonding them, and from what this man said, they were the ones bonding, and to many of them were holding the bonds. As he finished talking she spoke quietly, "Well that's the nature of bonding often, the Aes Sedai likes to be the one in charge, though if I were to bond one of you, I wouldn't care who held the bond. It's not a huge issue to me.”

 

She smiled at him, her dimples flashing at him as she continued, "Well perhaps you should consider bonding other ajahs, maybe they wouldn't be so insistent that they hold the bonds. You do know that there are other Ajah right, I am assuming you were told how the structure here works?" She looked around the Reds who were starting to eye her as though they wanted to throw her from the quarters and continued, "So a Soldier, that's very interesting. You are in charge of training does that include weapons training only or are you using other methods with which to train your men?" Glancing around again she leaned carefully towards the man, not trying to seem threatening she waited to see if he said anything...

 

Jaydena Mckanthur

[Arath Faringal]

Arath wasn't quite sure what to make of this Aes Sedai.  She wouldn't care who held the bond?  That just seemed odd to him.  He suspected that the few reds who had been bonded by Asha'man had done so under duress.  He'd sooner expect a trolloc to pick flowers than an Aes Sedai to go willingly into the 'wrong end' of the bond as they called it.  What was this one up to?

 

At the mention of other Ajah's Arath nodded.  “I know something of it.  If the Amyrlin and your Ajah Head weren't so set on keeping this secret I would definitely consider meeting with the other ajah's.  I think many of us might be more comfortable with green sisters."  He knew that he certainly would be.  "I know several would love to speak with the yellows, and I know one man who would sell his soul to study with the browns.”  He laughed softly.  Sereth would probably sell his grandmother's soul to spend an hour in the Tower libraries.

 

It suddenly occurred to him that he had not introduced himself, and his laughter faded.  It had been intentional at first.  A way to distance himself from anyone looking for a bond.  But now it seemed rude.  “Forgive me Jaydena Sedai, I have not introduced myself.”  He bowed slightly.  “I am Storm Leader Arath Faringal.

[Elgee]

Zarinen stood riveted to the spot. Bloody man and his bloody flapping tongue! That was a term she unfortunately had been using rather too often, of late, but on this occasion it wasn’t Covai who was the object of her ire. Or maybe it was him.

 

She had told him how important it was to keep the whole matter secret. Not just the fact that they were men who could channel, but also about the Bondings. The Light alone knew how the other Ajah’s would react to this. Half would probably run screaming, and the other half were more than likely to try and gentle the men on the spot out of sheer fright! Time was needed to prepare them for the new order of things!

 

But here was Arath, introducing himself with all titles blazing, and judging from the Green’s response, not to mention what the Red who had come running to fetch her had babbled, he’d probably blared out everything about the bondings too. She wanted to slap the man silly, but that would hardly do. And of all the Ajahs he could have spilled the beans to, it would have to be a Green! Gritting her teeth, Zarinen descended on the pair.

 

“Jaydena.” A brief nod of her head would normally have been the extent of Zarinen’s acknowledgement of the existence of a Green in her presence, but young Arath had made that imprudent. “May I be of any assistance to you?”

 

 

Zarinen Rafaliva

Red Highest

[Jaydena]

Jaydena watched the young man, he hadn't been schooled in how to hide his emotions and she had been alive a long time. She could pretty much guess at the emotions someone was feeling by their body signals and the look in their eyes. It was something they were all taught as Aes Sedai, and they all got better at it as time went on. Right now Arath was confused by here and that was good, it kept him off center with her, maybe she could get him to reveal more to him that could be used in negotiations later on. “I know something of it.  If the Amyrlin and your Ajah Head weren't so set on keeping this secret I would definitely consider meeting with the other ajah's.  I think many of us might be more comfortable with green sisters.  I know several would love to speak with the yellows, and I know one man who would sell his soul to study with the browns.”  She chuckled softly at that remark, she could understand why, the Tower library was the most amazing library in the world and many came here to study in it. Suddenly she looked up as Arath began to talk again, “Forgive me Jaydena Sedai, I have not introduced myself. I am Storm Leader Arath Faringal." She blinked at him, not able to stop the shock from making it way through to the shocked blink. With a visible effort she shook herself out of it and regarded him again. He was an Asha'man, could it be right? How it the world had something like this happened. The Reds bonded to male channelers and on top of that keeping them to themselves. They would be more benefit bonded to the Greens and standing back to back in the coming Last Battle. Light it could be right could it? Refocusing herself beck on Arath she  shook herself out of her thoughts.

 

 

Jade nodded and then lowered her shoulders into a deep sign of respect. Aes Sedai didn't curtsy, even to kings and queens but from what she understood of the Black Tower which is what she understood that Storm Leader referred to, this man stood at a higher rank that she did within the White Tower. Of course that was assuming the information they had been given by the returned Sisters was in fact correct. "Well I fear it's not as secret as wanted. I have heard whispers of it in nearly every Hall, and asking questions of another ajah about bonding might not have been the wisest move. Members of that ajah are all whispering in the Hallways about what the Reds might be up to. Might have been better to come out and talk to the other ajahs about it, but then I am not the Head of this Ajah, so it's not really my business, nor to I want to question our dear Amyrlin's decision. She is after all our leader and she must know what she is doing if she ordered this to be kept quiet." Taking a stab at who the Ajah Head of the Reds was, judged by one of the leaders waiting to see her, and her own suspicions she continued, "Perhaps Zarinen should have made sure everyone was a bit more aware of the stir they were causing before they continued to ask questions, and each more intimate than the last." Smiling at him she looked up as she felt a presence near them. Zarinen Sedai stood in all her glory and regarded them with what looked like her teeth clenched tight. Jade almost giggled out loud, this womans dislike for the Greens was pretty common knowledge and she was about to dislike them more. The other woman approached them and spoke, “Jaydena. May I be of any assistance to you?” She nodded to the other Sister and began to speak, "Yes I do believe you can Zarinen, you are the Ajah Head after all aren't you?" She arched an eyebrow at the other woman and than Jaydena continued, "My dear I fear your secret is out, I heard whispers about things going on in the Red Halls in every Ajah quarters I walked through today. It would seem your Reds weren't discreet enough in their questions, and when they started asking the Greens about what it was like to be intimate with someone you were bonded too, it began to sink in very quickly. You would have been better to approach one of the Sitters to ask questions, just asking everyone willy nilly has caused issues. So since the cat is out of the bag, perhaps we can talk about, why the bonding of Asha'man or being bonded by an Asha'man wasn't offered to the Greens. If any Ajah is logical to be bonded to a Asha'man it is the Greens. After all we are the Battle Ajah and we will be fighting alongside these men to save the world. It's what we have trained for since the WT began, to fight the last battle." She turned to Arath who lounged to the side of her against the wall. "Arath to be clear, despite what you may believe I am not a Red, I am a Sitter of the Green Ajah." Turning back to Zarinen she spoke again, "So how about we talk about the knowledge I now possess of who is Ajah Head of this Ajah and how we go about opening negotiations with the Asha'man for bonding with the Greens." She turned and looked at Arath who it seemed was schooling his features very well, if he was surprised at the knowledge he didn't show it. She smiled at him, "I think the Greens would be better for these men to be bonded to but that's like crying over spilled milk. Perhaps we should continue in your office?" She turned to Arath, "It was a true pleasure to meet another Asha'man, it has indeed been some time. I hope we meet again." She smiled at him one more time and than followed the other woman towards her office...

 

Jaydena Mckanthur

CG and Sitter

 

ooc- Elgee not sure where you wanted us to meet, let me know if I took to many liberties and I will edit it.

[Elgee]

Zarinen gritted her teeth and pulled composure up from her toenails. Without a word, she turned and walked towards her office, wishing all the way that she could slap both Arath and this ... Green so hard they still saw pink ducks a week hence. Face like ice, she gestured for the Green to take a seat whilst she busied herself making tea for the both of them. This promised to be a long session, and she sorely needed to gain control of her emotions if she was going to rescue this whole matter from sure disaster. The fact that the Green was right about approaching sister willy nilly, and that Zarinen's own stupid, foolish pride had caused most of the mess, only infuriated her further. She poured tea for both of them and handed the woman a cup and silently offered her honey. Seating herself, she took a few sips of hers before speaking.

 

"So, you have figured out that I am Head of the Red Ajah." Zarinen gave the woman a razor narrow smile. "I do believe I'm not the only Ajah Head in this room, am I?" The brief flare in the woman's eyes told Zarinen that her very tenuous suspicion had not been off the mark, after all.

 

"But let us talk of other matters first, Head to Head, so to speak. You believe the Greens are the most logical choice to bond Asha'man, do you? It's only a matter of preparing for the Last Battle, then all rushing in flinging around Fire and the Light knows what else, is it? Just as if he was a normal Warder with the added bonus of also being able to Channel?" She took another sip of tea to try and calm herself, without much success, then leant forward and fairly hissed at the woman.

 

"Tell me, Green, do you have any idea what to do when he starts going mad? When you can feel his insanity through the Bond, and even worse, he's fear and shame during his more lucid moments? How will you handle the self-loathing he feels when his body starts to rot, piece by piece? When he can no longer control himself, and starts flinging Weaves around that you can't see, but which kills your friends and allies? Will you know when the moment has come that there is no saving him any more? Will you be able to take the life of your own Warder, Green? To feel what he feels when you plunge the knife into his heart?"

 

Zarinen leant back, breathing through her nose as she saw again his eyes as the life bled out of him. She felt again her heart tearing to pieces at the look of gratitude in those eyes, the feel of it in her head. She put the cup down and gripped the arms of her chairs with both hands, to stop their trembling. "Or will you dissolve the Bond first, to spare yourself? Let him die alone, with just those other voices in his head? They have an easier way of taking care of the ones beyond control, you know - just a little something in their wine. I can feel Covai's suspicion when someone offers him a glass - even me. That brief flare of fear. His discomfort when he realises I know what he's feeling and why."

 

"Of course, you could always Gentle him before things get that bad. Leave him mostly sane, and relatively healthy. He'll just die a little more slowly, of course, but at least it wouldn't have been your hand that killed him directly. Light, you could even dissolve the Bond and ask us Reds to Gentle him. We could take care of him, like we've done with all the others through the centuries, and you would never have to see him again in the short while he'll still live."

 

She passed a hand across her face, composure well and truly lost now. "Maybe you'll strike it lucky, though, and he'll remain sane and healthy till the Last Battle has come and gone. Maybe he'll be killed then, or you will. Either way, you'll be relieved of that pesky little problem, won't you?"

 

Her eyes returned to those of the woman seated across from her. "Do you still think the Greens are better suited to Bonding these men than the Reds ... Jaydena?"

 

 

 

[Jaydena]

Jaydena watched the woman's stiff back as the woman led the way to her office and got tea ready. Zarinen Sedai was angry and not doing a very good job of hiding it. Jade kept her face carefully composed as she thought about what was causing the other woman's anger. As Ajah Head it was her job to do her best to keep the Reds under some control and she had failed in that regard. No one liked to admit they had failed in something they prided themselves on being good at. Not that it didn't happen to all of them but normally it didn't get flashed in front of another Ajah Head or another Ajah. Zarinen turned to her and spoke with a smile, though that smile didn't reach her eyes by any means. "So, you have figured out that I am Head of the Red Ajah. I do believe I'm not the only Ajah Head in this room, am I?" Jaydena did her utmost best to hide the recognition in her eyes but the other woman quickly saw the action and smiled that same infuriating smile. Oh well the cats out of the bag now and that's one less bargaining chip I have against her, Jade thought. "But let us talk of other matters first, Head to Head, so to speak. You believe the Greens are the most logical choice to bond Asha'man, do you? It's only a matter of preparing for the Last Battle, then all rushing in flinging around Fire and the Light knows what else, is it? Just as if he was a normal Warder with the added bonus of also being able to Channel?" Jaydena watched the other woman with cold eyes, this woman had no idea what it was like to be bonded, to lose warders over and over again, to deal with the day to day things that involved inside of a bond. She was ignorant in the worst way when it came to these men and their bond and the sad thing was that despite the fact that Jade knew that the other woman was bonded already to one of them, she still didn't get it.

 

"Tell me, Green, do you have any idea what to do when he starts going mad? When you can feel his insanity through the Bond, and even worse, he's fear and shame during his more lucid moments? How will you handle the self-loathing he feels when his body starts to rot, piece by piece? When he can no longer control himself, and starts flinging Weaves around that you can't see, but which kills your friends and allies? Will you know when the moment has come that there is no saving him any more? Will you be able to take the life of your own Warder, Green? To feel what he feels when you plunge the knife into his heart?"

 

Jade watched as Zarinen leant back in her chair, wanting to laugh so badly, this woman was so arrogant in her supposed knowledge of what it was like to be bonded or how she would act if this situation arose, "Or will you dissolve the Bond first, to spare yourself? Let him die alone, with just those other voices in his head? They have an easier way of taking care of the ones beyond control, you know - just a little something in their wine. I can feel Covai's suspicion when someone offers him a glass - even me. That brief flare of fear. His discomfort when he realises I know what he's feeling and why. Of course, you could always Gentle him before things get that bad. Leave him mostly sane, and relatively healthy. He'll just die a little more slowly, of course, but at least it wouldn't have been your hand that killed him directly. Light, you could even dissolve the Bond and ask us Reds to Gentle him. We could take care of him, like we've done with all the others through the centuries, and you would never have to see him again in the short while he'll still live." The other woman continued to speak and Jaydena listened until she was finished, sitting quietly she regarded the other woman. "Let me ask you Red, have you ever stood over the dying body of your warder after he gave his all to save you knowing that you are helpless to save him because you can't heal to save his life and there are no Yellows around, or fought another warder who was converted to the Shadow in her sleep by a Dreadlord who happened to be her brother. Have you chased her for months trying to end her life, unable to find her, and finally given up knowing she could come back at any time to kill you. Have you stood over another warder ready to kill him because he had blocked his bond for years and has now returned to you, having lived with the Black Tower that entire time, for you are unsure if he to has turned to the shadow, or another Warder who you watched pulled down inside of a underground nightmare to be killed in a horrible way by the Trollocs and the rest, dying to protect you. Helpless to save him, yes I understand what it means to be helpless my dear. Have you lain in bed cold and aching and unable to be with a man because of your duties to the Tower while you feel your warder making love to someone else, or felt the duty of the Tower on your shoulders when you begin to fall in love with that Warder because of the care he shows you and realize that love can never be returned for he has a duty as well, and he doesn't look at you that way."

 

"Yes Red you are equipped in many ways to be bonded to an Asha'man through years of study and life experience with them, which I respect deeply, but you look at these men as things to be controlled. It's obvious in every stance of your body and the way you speak. You think we should control them and I wonder if you were one of those that years ago supported bringing those poor men here and "researching" on them. Keeping them confined like animals while they were studied. I was against that move by the Tower and I still am. They are human beings, yes they have the ability to channel, and yes there's every possibility that they will go mad, but there is also every possibility that they will be fighting back to back with the Greens and any other Sisters that join the fight in the Last Battle. Let me ask you Zarinen do you know how to deal with a strong willed man every single day, inside your head, inside of his, without turning him into a butterfly who's wings you are ripped off allowing him no freedom, or without confining him with the One Power. Let me ask you, you are bonded to one of them, do you control the bond, and did you even give him the option of controlling it. Did it even cross your mind that he's not an animal to be leashed or did you just assume that you would control the bond? Did you decide that these men are loaded weapons and that you must control them in every way possible for they are going to kill us all?" She sat back, laying her folded hands again on her lap as she continued.

 

"To answer your questions, I will stay with a bonded as long as I can, just as I have done with the others, as here is one thing you haven't realized yet I suspect. These people aren't our servants or slaves, and if you are lucky he will end up becoming one of your best friends. Knowing everything there is to know and being there for you as you will be there for him, inside your head and heart as no one has ever been and understanding your deepest heart in a way that no one can or will again. If you are lucky! If you are really lucky you will be the same with him, and you will thank the Light every single day that you were so lucky to have such an amazing man guarding your back and spending his life protecting you, and you will do the same, protect him and take care of him, so you have many years of friendship ahead. If a bonded of mine started to go insane." She laughed with no joy, "which has already happened to me, battle is a hard and brutal thing and evil is tricky. I would evaluate the situation and if need be I would kill him or her, yes I would be willing to kill my own warder. If he starts to go insane and is a danger to those around him, including himself, I think it's more humane to kill him than to release him from the bond. After all that adds the misery that occures with bond removal, that loss of connection, and friendship, and add it to the voices and everything else. You don't understand the bond at this moment and my honest hope is that all of your Ajah will quickly begin to treat these men with respect. Lack of Respect can send a man off the deep end just as quickly as going mad inside their head. If your ladies understood the bond in any way, they wouldn't be in the Green Quarters asking questions and researching in the library where everyone can see and hear them. My prayer for all of you is that instead of researching the bond you start to actually experience the ones you have entered into and start realizing that this is a lifetime thing." She sat back again in her chair, realizing that in her passion she had sat forward in it and regarded the other woman.

Jaydena Mckanthur

[Elgee]

“Listen to yourself. Warder. Guard your back. Lover! You are thinking of them as you would of any normal man. At least I presume that is how you Greens think of them! Don’t you realize that is why you are the last Ajah who should be Bonding them? Not only for their sake, but also for yours!“  Zarinen drew in a deep breath and tried to get a grip on her emotions. The last thing needed now was for her to further antagonize another Ajah Head. Why under the Light would the first … the only … other Ajah Head she managed to find be a Green, of all things? No! She had to get her prejudice under control. This was a gift, and as with all gifts that seemed too good to be true, it came at a price. But she had to be sure.

 

She pinched the bridge of her nose, then folded her hands in her lap and leaned back in her chair, trying to appear non-confrontational. Not her biggest talent, that. But she had to try.

 

“Jaydena, you have to try and understand this. They will go insane. Gibberingly, dangerously, insane. They will know that it is going to happen. Just as they know that their bodies are going to start rotting. There is no escaping that! And they know it.” The horror of what she had felt through both of her Bonds, the despair of the men, showed in her eyes.

 

“Some sisters, especially those of the Red, curse the Dragon Reborn for forming the Black Tower. For uniting these men. I don’t, Jaydena. I thank the Light every day that he did that. Do you know why? Because that makes it easier for us to find them and … deal with them. You speak about controlling them. We need to, in a way. Oh, not the way you think I mean it!” She chuckled sourly. “We need to help them focus on their only goal. The goal the Dragon Reborn has given them: survive to fight against the forces of the Dark One, for as long as they can.”

 

The look on her face was musing, almost pitying. “No matter which way the Bond goes, we need to be more like Warders to them, than Aes Sedai. But we cannot just blindly follow, as it seems Warders do. We do need to guide them, and keep them safe from themselves. We need to make the other Ajahs accept them as allies, not enemies. But we also need to feel exactly what they are feeling, so that we know when the moment has come. The moment where no form of Channeling, or tweaking of the Bond, or feminine wiles, is enough to keep the world safe from them. They only way to do the latter, is by Bonding them. Or being Bonded by them. If somehow, between all of that, we can also make their last days a bit more … bearable, that would be a bonus.” Her smile held more pain than pleasure.

 

“You say I don’t know what it feels like? You are wrong. Has no one told you why I was exiled? I would have thought that as a Green Sitter, and Head of your Ajah, you would have been privy to the details of my … well, let me tell you, then. I suppose I will have to tell you the background history, for you to understand.” Her mouth twisted at the thought of sharing her pain with this … Green. To gather her composure, she heated the teapot and poured for both of them, before continuing her story.

 

More than seventy years ago, now, I was a young noble girl living in Saldaea. I was sixteen, my best friend, Pietr, was twenty. He started channelling. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stop, nor could he control it. In the end, he had to be gentled. He lived at the Tower, and we were allowed to visit each other, but in the end, he died just short of his thirtieth year. I was determined to find a way around gentling them. Any way, just as long as they did not have to die like Pietr did. So I studied, and I researched, and decided to experiment with Bonding. About twenty years ago now, I found a likely … subject. I Bonded him.”

 

Her voice trembled, then firmed. “For four years, we roamed the world. I tried Healing. I tried preventing him from channelling, through the Bond.  I even seduced him. He loved me with all his heart and soul. It wasn’t enough. The day the madness took him so far that he tried to kill me, and only my strongest Shield prevented it, was the day I knew it had gone far enough. I could not protect myself, and everyone else around me at the same time – he had grown too Strong. Still, I hesitated. Maybe there was something else I hadn’t tried yet. He became lucid again. He realised what he had tried to do. Had almost done. He begged me to kill him. I wanted to wait till the madness took him again, but he wouldn’t allow me to.  He pleaded on his knees. He said the last thing he wanted to know, was that I loved him enough to do him this … favour. He wanted to die, sure in the knowledge that he had not hurt me any further.” Her voice was raw now. “So I thrust my knife in his heart, and held him in my arms, looking into his eyes until they filmed over.”

 

Zarinen’s eyes caught Jaydena’s. “Had I loved him as a husband, had I thought of him as my Warder, I don’t know if I could have done it. If I could have done my duty. I might have let him kill me, and run around wild. He was Strong – who knows how much damage he could have done, before the end? Now we have hundreds of them. What will happen if ten of them, or a hundred, or three hundred go insane all at the same time? We cannot afford to think of them as Warders, or lovers, or our best flaming friends, Jaydena! We must know when to stop trying to protect them, and start protecting the world. Reds have trained to do exactly that for three thousand years. Whites could probably be clinical about it. Browns could see it as an opportunity for study. The Light help the Yellows …”

 

“To answer your question … yes, I am Bonded to one of them. From the wrong side, so to speak.” Her smile was wry, a private joke at her own stupid pride, in the beginning. But, she was learning and adapting her strategy. “In fact, I was the first to be Bonded this way, of my own free will.” Her gaze became piercing, and stern.

 

“An Aes Sedai must be able to sacrifice, and do anything, in order to keep the world whole. Reds know this. Reds do this. Can Greens overcome their training and ingrained habits? To always keep in mind that they are not the Warders you are used to, always ready to defend you, but in fact potential enemies? Can you fight as the Battle Ajah should, with half your mind always wondering if now is the moment he's going to turn and attack anything in sight, including your side?

 

 

Zarinen Rafaliva

Red Highest

 

[Jaydena]

ooc- Sorry for the wait on this!

 

She watched the woman closely, listening to every word she said, and trying to take it all in. Here was another case of a Red bonding a male channeler and going against convention. She hadn't known this story and had never heard it spoken of. It was surprising for as she had heard, she was a Sitter and Ajah Head and that was something she should have known. Which told her that someone had done their best to seal the matter to the Ring. Her heart ached for the pain the other woman had endured for a moment as she watched the pain flit across Zarinen's face. Finally the other woman finished speaking and she took a drink of her tea before she responded, "What you are unable to see my dear is that we are working towards the same end here. I have heard of your general apathy towards Greens but we are your strongest allies. We both want the same thing here Zarinen. I want to see these men survive and make it to the Last Battle so that they can fight back to back with the Aes Sedai and with the Dragon defeat the Shadow. It sounds like you want nothing more than the same thing, only you want to make sure they don't destroy the world or anyone else in madness at the same time. That's a goal I can admire, in fact some of my greatest friends in this Tower have been from this Ajah. However what you need to realize is this, we understand bonding better, period. This is the first time in history that the Reds have bonded."

 

She took another sip of the tea, she glanced down at it, and resolved to ask the other woman what kind it was, it was in fact quite good. Shaking her head she spoke again, "We have been bonded in the Greens since the moment the Greens were created and the White Tower took shape. The Greens understand the process of bonding better than anyone and I know you agree, otherwise your Reds wouldn't have come snooping in the Green Halls for answers. It doesn't matter to me if the men are bonded to Blues, Reds, Greens, or anyone else. What I want to see is them not rot, and not go mad, and for them to be there, but the answer to your question is that yes I would kill a Warder if I needed to and if I saw that change in him I wouldn't take it lightly. Madness is not something that is easy to deal with, but it sounds like we have both dealt with someone we cared for and were bonded to go mad. In fact both through the Shadow's means, though in different ways. It's not an easy experience but there are things that have to be done for the greater good and we both know it. Just as we know that the reason you are bonding these men is control and also to make sure they don't go mad. I think it's admirable but I also don't think you should be as arrogant as to assume that no one in this Tower but the Reds can understand what it means to be bonded to one of these men or that other women in the Tower couldn't handle it. Honestly Zarinen considering everything I had heard about you and the direction you were taking the Reds, I am actually pleasantly surprised on your attitude and who is running the Reds."

 

Leaning her body a bit closer to the woman she spoke again, "In fact it's very nice to see the Reds loosen up a bit and find a way to adapt to the changes that are being thrown at all of it. The Reds have had to deal with quite a few blows the last little while and I am glad to see you rolling with the punches rather than fighting it. Not that my words mean much to you I am sure but let me say this, "I realize that these men should not be treated as normal Warders or Bondholders for that matter. They have the full potential to go mad, some later than others, and they should be handled as the weapons they are. They should however still be treated as humans with the rights to their own decisions and not be controlled like dogs. It sounds like you don't intend to do that and for that I am very happy. These men could be bonded to any Ajah in this Tower and I do hope that eventually that happens for I think it will foster quite a bit of good relations between our two Towers. You may understand madness but you aren't the only one. I apologize for assuming you don't know what you are talking about for it's clear that you do. I had not heard for your story but it clearly demonstrates that you know what's going on. By the way Zarinen you can love someone as a Warder and wish they could be your spouse and still choose to kill them." Pain flashed in her own eyes as she thought back to a rainy night, a bonded, and a dagger. "You know now that we know who each other are, we should perhaps work on aligning our Ajahs again and dealing with these new developments together." Sipping her tea, she  regarded the other woman over the top of her cup...

 

Jaydena Mckanthur

 

[Elgee]

Zarinen listened to Jaydena with amazement, which soon turned to a somewhat wry realization that this woman held ideas and ideals pretty close to her own. She barked an ironic laugh at the Green’s final words.

 

“Yes, I do believe you are right. We should try to put our … differences aside and work together on this.” She absent-mindedly fingered the large ruby dangling from her neck as she pondered the matter. Light, she wished it had been the Head of any other Ajah who had stumbled upon the truth! But no, that was just her own personal … antipathy speaking. The Green was the right Ajah, as Jaydena had logically pointed out.

 

“I just worry about how other Aes Sedai will react to the thought of Bonding male channellers. As you say, Greens are used to having multiple Warders, and your kind do tend to love men.” She essayed a smile to take any possible sting out of her words. She liked men, though being a Red for over seventy years had made her harden her heart a bit, out of self-defence. "My Reds are having a hard enough time with it, and they're used to dealing with men who can channel! I can only imagine how a Yellow, for instance, would balk at the idea."

 

“It’s a pity we don’t know who the other Ajah Heads are – they would be the logical people to approach about this. They would know best how to present the idea to their own sisters.” She eyed Jaydena speculatively. “I don’t suppose you have any idea who some of the others are?”

 

 

Zarinen Rafaliva

Red Highest

 

 

OOC: Jade, please read the PM before responding  ;)

 

[Jaydena]

OOC- Sorry about the wait on this

 

IC- Jade tasted the hint of mint in her tea and pondered on what the other flavor was as she waited for the Highest to reply to her question. She wondered if the other woman would take her offer or if she would back away. Her hatred of the Greens was well known throughout their quarters. Though she had no idea what had caused the hatred, she could only hope that it could be healed. They didn't need issues with the Reds, they had often been their allies in the past and they needed each other now more than ever. “Yes, I do believe you are right. We should try to put our … differences aside and work together on this.” She watched as Zarinen stroked the rather large ruby that dangled from a necklace around her neck. Jade admired the size and cut of the ruby for a moment before she focused on what the other woman had said and was still saying, “I just worry about how other Aes Sedai will react to the thought of Bonding male channellers. As you say, Greens are used to having multiple Warders, and your kind do tend to love men.” She chuckled softly at the other womans words and smiled back at her. She wasn't going to get offended at the Zarinen's words, after all they were true. The Greens liked men, but not in the way that so many thought. Instead of looking at men as stupid or foolish, they did their best to understand them on a human level and to understand that they just though different.

 

"My Reds are having a hard enough time with it, and they're used to dealing with men who can channel! I can only imagine how a Yellow, for instance, would balk at the idea. It’s a pity we don’t know who the other Ajah Heads are – they would be the logical people to approach about this. They would know best how to present the idea to their own sisters.” The other woman looked at her with a gleam in her eyes and than continued, “I don’t suppose you have any idea who some of the others are?” Jade shook her head and spoke, "Yes it's going to be interesting to see how some of the other Ajahs approach this matter. In fact it makes me want to sit back and watch with a cup of tea and chuckle." She smiled and than continued, "I agree that approaching the other Ajah Heads is the best choice but sadly I have no idea who any of the others are. I am sure if I started paying more attention I would be able to pick up on it. I think that part of being in the Tower is that we are often trained to look the other way when certain traditions are brought into the light or in our face as it would be. So I suppose our best course of action is to get together and do some walking through the Halls together, maybe see if it draws any other ajah heads out of the dark? Or maybe the combination of our experience will allow us to recognize some of them. What are your thoughts Zarinen?"

 

Jaydena Mckanthur

[Elgee]

Zarinen sighed. “I suppose it was too much to hope for that you would know any. If it hadn’t been for Arath not keeping his mouth … well, water under the bridge and fortuitously so, in the end.” She straightened her skirts irritably, though. She was going to have a word with young Master Arath, about loose lips. Well, with Covai, anyway. Her eyes flared briefly at the thought of the man who had Bonded her, and his … restrictions about giving orders to “his” men.

 

“Your idea of walking the halls seems like the best way to start. And you’re right – we’re so used to looking the other way and not prying. We’ll have to change our habits there. A pity we are at odds with the Blues – that inquisitive bunch probably know not only who the Heads are, but what they ate for their last meal!” She sniffed disparagingly, then sighed. “See? Yet another ingrained habit we’re going to have to kick. We can’t afford to let Tower politics interfere with our purpose.”

 

She looked at the clock on her mantelpiece, then rose. “Well, no time like the present, is there? We might as well start by having lunch together.” She continued talking as she collected her shawl and draped it carefully over her shoulders. “We should keep an eye out to see who defers to someone they shouldn’t obviously be deferring to – that is sure to be an indication.” A grin flashed across her face as she fingered the red fringe. “We might as well look as official as we can – should I walk with you to your quarters so you can collect yours, or would you rather meet me at the dining hall?”

 

 

Zarinen Rafaliva

Red Highest

[Elgee]

OOC Announcement:

 

Due to Jaydena leaving DM and Covai going inactive, it will henceforth be RPed that instead of Covai bonding Zarinen and Arath bonding Jaydena, Arath Bonded Zarinen and neither Covai nor Jaydena bonded anyone.