An Unexpected Visitor (ATTN: Sherper)

[Silver Neccho]

As Kastyana followed the newly met Accepted Penelia, she couldn’t help but feel intimidated by the young woman. She didn’t appear to be much older than her but the air of composure she exhibited was a bit overwhelming. She chose not to speak. What would I talk about? She only followed, quiet but observant as she was led down one winding corridor to the next.

 

You could fit one of my mother’s wagons down these halls. It feels more like a covered city street than a hallway.

 

She continued to follow as Penelia broke the silence every now and then to comment on a specific feature.

 

“This hall will lead you to the kitchens. Most novices spend quite a bit of time in there. From eating to washing the pots, know it well. It would do you good to never get lost when you are sent in that direction.”

 

Kastyana merely nodded and continued down the lead path. After several more turns she began to notice the air cool slightly, for what reason she could not decipher.

Stepping out into a large circular section of the tower Penelia stopped and stood aside as if presenting a great wonder.

 

“This is the Novice Court. Every door you see is an individual apartment.”

 

Kastyana took in the architecture, the multiple tiers visible from the center chamber that rose high into the air.

 

“Forgive me but there are dozens of doors! How many novices live here?”

 

“We have many vacant rooms these days. Our capacity for new novices is great but at the moment we have fewer than you might think.” The Accepted stepped over to a door not but a few paces from where she was standing. “This is to be your room,” opening the door revealed a small but cozy chamber. ”And it would appear that you already have a guest.”

 

Stepping around the Accepted, Kastyana saw a rather disgruntled woman in a white dress sitting on her bed.

 

“This is to be your mentor for your first few months in the Tower. Ellisha, this is Kastyana. I’m sure you’re more than capable of guiding our newest initiate.”

 

Penelia then turned and exited the room but not without a trailing comment.

 

“Whatever you do, don’t take her advice on how to act like a lady.”

 

And with that, Kastyana found herself alone with her new mentor.

 

“Hello, my name is Kastyana but you can call me Kasty!”

[Sherper]

Ellisha scowled at Peneilia as the woman quickly shut the door behind her. That little chit, she thought, silently grinding her teeth together as she shot daggers at where the other Accepted had stood with her eyes. She had never liked that woman – or any woman in the Tower – for that matter. Everyone in this place was just so… her thought trailed off as she noticed the one other person in the room.

 

“Hello, my name is Kastyana but you can call me Kasty!” the girl called, her voice high like those of her age. She looked to be somewhere around fifteen or sixteen… A cheerful one? That won’t last. Ellisha eyed the person up and down, taking in the notable features.
She was tall, much taller than what Ellisha had been when she entered the Tower. How long had that been now?... Thirteen years ago?
She cleared her throat, standing up from the bed where she had been seated.
  “As Peneilia has already told you, I’m Ellisha. Just, Ellisha mind you.” She said, taking a few steps so she was pacing the room as she spoke.
  “I’ve been assigned as your mentor, and what that means is, you listen to what I tell you.”

 

The pair of light blue eyes trailed her as Ellisha paced the length of the room, which in retrospect wasn’t all that big. She assumed it was part of the job description in being a Novice to have all comforts taken away from you upon arrival. How had she ever lived in a space so small? “There are a lot of things you will need to know if you ever hope to survive in this place.” She continued, keeping her eyes mostly staring at the wall in front of her, though she did occasionally shoot sideways glances at the girl.

 

She paused, not exactly sure what to say next, or where to begin. She really wasn’t made for this. Ellisha had suspicions the Mistress of Novices had something to do with this assignment. You always lose in the end  against that woman, even if she can’t prove you did something wrong, doesn’t mean she won't punish you for it anyway.
  “So yes, rules…” she continued on to state the various different rules of the Tower, some being standard protocol, other being … less formalised. As she spoke, and thus having stopped pacing the room, she took a greater amount of time in studying the girl. One thing that struck out at her immediately was the way the woman peered up at her. Ellisha had always been a keen observer, and thus she knew well when she herself was being weighed, judged, and considered by another. The girl hid the act well, but Ellisha could tell the cogs working at the back of her mind. Ellisha kept her face consistent, camouflaging her own counter-evaluation of the girl as she continued to talk. After a few more minutes of facts, rules and protocol, she finished with:
  “Right. Any questions? and oh," she remembered and hastily added. "also, I don’t want any questions unless I say there are to be questions. Got it?”

 

~Ellisha Falwein
Accepted of the White Tower

Edited February 20, 2014 by Sherper

[Silver Neccho]

Kastyana stood quietly as Ellisha went over the rules and expectations of the Tower. She watched her “helper” intently during the introduction. She obviously had spite for the Accepted who had just left the quarters. She found herself analyzing the mannerisms of the women instructing her. She seems very irritated and she projects her irritation as if expecting response, or pity. Instead of reacting, Kasty merely adopted her most attentive pose.

 

“There are a lot of things you will need to know if you ever hope to survive in this place.”

 

Kastyana barely managed to keep a grin off of her face at that remark. Touching the scar on her hand light she was reminded of the trials that stupidity had brought her when she was younger. Women of Far Madding seem iron-hard and composed compared to many of the initiates her. She wasn’t so arrogant as to forget that in the eyes of her assigned mentor, and in the eyes of anyone who had spent even a moment more in the Tower than she, she was but a girl.

 

“So yes, rules…” Ellisha stopped pacing the tiny little room. The majority of the rules seemed a bit excessive but some had a kernel of common sense imbedded deeply at their cores. It took Kastyana a bit but she soon realized a change in Ellisha’s stance, her projected emotions, or lack of such. She wasn’t clear as to what the seemingly volatile young woman was thinking but she knew that it didn’t involve the words coming from her mouth.

 

“Right. Any questions? And oh, also, I don’t want any questions unless I say there are to be questions. Got it?”

 

Kastyana smiled as Ellisha finished speaking. She smiled with inner delight as her mentor finished with enough haste to scare an Ogier.

 

“Thank you for sparing your time, Ellisha, unwilling as it may be. Any woman unkind enough to insult someone in passing is not worthy to teach anyone. I have a feeling Penelia would have been a boring old cow if she had been chosen to tutor me.”

Kastyana began to set out a few of her things on a clearly old and weathered table opposite the bed.

 

“I really only have one question, how long until real training begins?” She allowed impatience to cloud her face. “Valeri Sedai told me ten years as a novice, ten years!”

 

With a grunt she sat down on a nearby stool.

 

“Forgive me… Ellisha, but I didn’t exactly plan to stay at the Tower for so long." Kastyana let out a sigh. "And on another topic, how in the Light did you refrain from punching that rude girl?”

 

OOC: I thought you were retro’ing your character as a novice? I feel like she is represented more as an accepted than a novice. But so far I really feel I am going to enjoy RPing with her.

[Sherper]

Ellisha found her lips curl into a smile as the girl spoke her question and mind. “Don’t intend to stay that long do we? Well…” her eyes took on a dangerous gleam. “You might want to rethink that assessment. As the old saying goes, The Tower always gets what it wants in the end.” She took a step back and leaned her bottom against the room’s single table top. The girl sat patiently as always; studying her, analysing, waiting…
Ellisha had a good feeling about this one, though in truth, she didn’t know why. Perhaps it was the mannerism of this other woman; so like her own, yet different enough to be her own independent entity. By her complexion, Ellisha would’ve guessed the child to be from Far Medding, which would explain some of that hardness around the girl’s eyes. Yes… Ellisha mused quietly to herself. This one’s going to be a tough one for them to crack.

 

“To answer your first question,” she said, her hand rubbing absentmindedly on the rough wooden table top as she sat down, allowing both her legs to dangle from the edge. The desk was absolutely ancient, and had countless different scrawls scratched upon its surface. The White Tower never saw anything go to waste – If something still worked, it will continue to be used. This single table had probably seen a dozen generations of Novice acolytes pass it, and it appears, each one of them had signed their own signatures upon its surface.
  “Novice training usually lasts up to ten years, but I’ve seen it go on for longer.” She shot the girl a sideways look and continued. “I won’t sugar coat it for you – the Tower is not your friend. How well you do here depends completely on how much you put in and learn.”
  The comment, though made to unsettle the girl, seemed to have the opposite effect on her. The new Novice seemed almost excited by the prospect of having to go up against her fellow colleges and teachers. Ellisha mentally shook her head. Eagerness was fine and all, but too much eagerness would definitely draw unwanted attention. She was beginning to see why Valeri probably wanted her to watch this girl in the first place. She could get herself in trouble if she’s not too careful. Ellisha thought, and recalled back to her first few years at the Tower as a social outcast.

 

“As to how I stop myself from punching that woman," she said. "It is really quite simple ... You see, I know that Penelia will be escorting you to me today, and I know she’ll probably make a classless comment like that, just to tick me off. So instead of giving her what she wants, I get to wait till tomorrow morning and enjoy seeing her swollen tongue from drinking the specially prepared Ice Pepper tea I put inside her room.” She grinned, though it was not made to be a pleasant expression. Sardonic would’ve been the more appropriate term to describe her look. “That’s one thing you have to learn quickly here; never give other people what they want, if you can help it.”

 

She hopped down from the table top and peered down at the other woman. “Don’t tell The Mistress I told you that though. She’ll definitely have my hide if she gets to hear half the things I’m probably going to be teaching you in the next few days.” She walked over to the door, and rested one hand on the door knob. "If that's all the questions, we'll get started by showing you all the facilities here in the Tower."

 

~Ellisha Falwein
Accepted of the White Tower

Edited February 24, 2014 by Sherper