A troubled Mom (Shera's intro RP, attention MoN)

[Opera]

Shera had decided to go to the White Tower on her 16th birthday.

But before that, she had long debated with her mother as to her future following the Aes Sedai's visit to the Elwin family.

Lilia had suffered her whole life because she had to hide her channeling ability. She wasn't very skilled at it but the spark had brought her much grief and she was relieved to hear that her daughter could be taught but had no spark. She had always been wondering if she had passed on that lifelong burden, the natural ability to channel the One Power to Shera.

But the Aes Sedai had insisted on her daughter going to the White Tower and it seemed Shera wanted that for herself as well. At first Lilia had objected, but as she saw her daughter so adamant (besides, no one can say no to an Aes Sedai), she could only yield to her request. It was up to Shera to decide how her life would go, yet Lilia had managed to make her think it would be better to wait a little more until she was 16. That way, she got to spend more days pampering her baby girl, before she was hers no longer.

 

And that day finally came when Shera left home, her heart heavy with excitment, apprehension and sadness.

The way to Tar Valon seemed endless as days after days spent on the road didn't seem to make the town any closer and many incidents happened : she had been stolen most of her coinage during a previous halt into town ; a sudden storm had left her soaking wet miles away from any town, farm or forest ; she had then been mistaken for a beggar and prostitute, which led to very awkward circumstances, but the stranger was gentleman enough not to lay a hand on her after she had cleared the situation, and he even gave her food to keep on her journey..

Nevertheless she was indeed getting closer to Tar Valon and the magnificent White Tower was at last in sight. She hurried up, excitment making her heart beat faster.

 

She made her way at the foot of the huge building, looking in awe at the many people busy with training in the yards using weapons of all sorts, some she had never seen before and some she had already seen being wielded. She entered the building itself and asked her way around. She ended in front of a heavy wooden door where she was told she would find the Mistress of Novices, an Aes Sedai from the Red Ajah named Larindhra Reyne. Suddenly Shera felt very self-conscious, she had dirt all over her clothes from the long trip and she hadn't taken a bath in days. She backed away, hoping not to have been heard from inside the room and was decided to make a run for the closest inn... when the door opened, revealing in the frame a pale olive skinned woman, with dark hair and eyes and the agelessness features typical of the Aes Sedai.

 

Shera didn't know if she should act as if the door hadn't open and still make her way to the closest inn to wash her skirt and shirt which once bright colours were now dull under a sick layer of dust from the road and blotted with dark brown stains of dirt all over. She didn't even want to think about what her face and strawberry blond hair looked like. How could she have presented herself to the Mistress of Novices in such a getup ? She inwardly cursed herself for getting too excited to notice such important details.

But it was already too late to put any act on as she had frozen still when the door had opened. And the now arched eyebrows of the Aes Sedai she assumed to be Larindhra Reyne spoke volumes about what she thought of Shera's appearance. Shera tried to get some composure before addressing the woman that would be above her the whole time of her novicehood and probably even longer after that. She curtsied before saying : "May the Light shine on you Larindhra Sedai. I would like to become a novice in the White Tower, and I have been told I should begin by coming to your office."

She had said that in a breath and she bit her lips as she was reminded of her mother's warning : when you speak quickly, your heavy accent make you hard to understand. You should always take the time to make yourself clear.

Helpless, Shera tried to smile for a change, hoping that it would make up for both her speach and appearance, and not disgrace herself in front of the Mistress of Novices.

 

 

[Elgee]

Larindhra shoved her paperwork aside irritably. What she needed was a walk in some fresh air. Rising, she took her shawl from the back of her chair and shook the wrinkles from it. An hour would not make much difference to records that would probably never be looked at again. Settling the shawl on her shoulders, she strode across the office, opened the door and … was brought up short by one of the scruffiest looking girls she had seen in a long time.

 

Her eyebrows rose of their own accord, but she had a hard time suppressing the grin that threatened to break loose. The girl mumbled something at her, but Larindhra struggled to figure out what, between the speed with which the words tumbled from her lips and her heavy accent. Saldean, she thought. She caught the word novice, though. At least the girl seemed eager, obviously not even having taken the time to get cleaned up before presenting herself.

 

“You want to become a novice, child?” A bashful nod confirmed her guess. “Well, come on into my office and sit down. Oh, don’t worry about your clothes, child – I can clean the chair with no problem, should it be needed.” She gave the girl a reassuring smile and waited until she had gingerly seated herself before settling behind her desk. So much for a stroll in the gardens, she thought ruefully. “Now tell me, have you been tested, or did you just decide to come here by yourself? And what is your name? And did you come all the way here by yourself??”

 

 

Larindhra Reyne

Mistress of Novices

 

[Opera]

Shera entered the office when she was bidded to, blushing at the mention that the chair would need cleaning after her stay. She sat nevertheless and tried to arrange her skirts to be more comfortable but noticed that patting the linen cloth would produce a faint cloud of brown dust in the air. She immediatelly stopped and just rested her hands on her lap.

Her glance wandered in the room, taking note of the furniture, the piles of reports on the desk, the various books... etc and paused on the Aes Sedai's shawl. It was fringed with red. Shera retrieved from her memory what little she knew about the Aes Sedai from the Red Ajah : they were entitled to prevent men using the saidin from rampaging the world in their madness, but more generally were supposedly not very friendly toward any kind of man. And that was all. The girl realized she, as a country bumpkin, had in fact very little knowledge about the White Tower and its different people. But maybe it was the Aes Sedai themselves that wanted it so.

 

Shera tried to answer the Mistress of Trainees' various questions, and she took her time to speak clearly. It was frustrating but inside the Tower, not many people would be able to understand her usual flow of words mixed with some saldaean lingo, and it seemed she was doomed to stick to the conventions of speech.

 

"My name is Shera Elwin, Larindhra Sedai. I have already been tested back in my homeland Saldaea and it appears that I can be taught how to channel. I have forgotten the name of the Aes Sedai who announced this to me." She kept unsaid the fact that her mother was a channeler, and that it was thanks to her that Shera came to be tested at all by that passing-by Aes Sedai who had sensed the One Power in Lilia (Shera's mother).

"But I doubt she even gave it, because she seemed to be avoiding unnecessary attention." She added as she remembered the Aes Sedai's secrecy. Shera had never seen an Aes Sedai before meeting her, but Lilia had identified her immediately and it was only when the girl was listening to their long conversation that she understood who it was that was seating in their common room.

Now, she could also distinguish an Aes Sedai when she saw one : they all gave this peculiar impression that they were both young and old at the same time.

 

"I don't know the extent of my potential, though. I haven't been told about that. This Aes Sedai seemed to be in a hurry and she didn't stay long." That was a lie. And Shera was bad at lying. Her mother had told her that she would shift on her feet when she was standing or suddenly move hands she usually kept still, that she would divert her stare from the person she was talking to whenever she was lying. Lilia used to make fun of her because she could never hide a thing from her parents. But Shera thought it wouldn't bother her in becoming an Aes Sedai as Aes Sedai don't lie.

Actually, that Aes Sedai did seem on a hurry but still spent an entire evening in their little house, speaking with Lilia until late in the night. But it was true that she had taken little time in testing Shera, though.

 

The girl kept on more firmly as she was speaking the truth again, hoping a stranger wouldn't recognise her previous lying. "But she still strongly adviced my coming here before she left. And here I am..."

Shera realized no one would pop in the White Tower simply because they were told to, so she tried to think about her purpose in coming here. She couldn't tell Larindhra Reyne about her mother's condition... Or could she ? Could she inform yet another Aes Sedai about her channeling mother ?

 

Lilia had lead her whole life as a fugitive because she had the spark : being constantly on the run, fearing the Whitecloaks and their informators, or being always doubtful of everyone, even close friends... And even when she finally settled the farthest away possible from the Fortress of Light, she was never at peace.

And Shera refused to live in the shadow of her mother's fear. She wanted to show her mother what it meant to be able to call upon the True Source without being constantly on her guard for she would have the whole White Tower to back her up. That was the reason she listened to the Aes Sedai and came to Tar Valon : for her mother's sake...

 

Silence issued while Shera spent some time debating whether she would make her mother's story public to the Tower. She would rather not, but she did not want to lie to the Mistress of Novices either. In the midst of her reflexions she glanced toward the Red sister to see if she requested further explanations at all.

 

 

 

[Elgee]

Larindhra arched an eyebrow. Not remember an Aes Sedai’s name? The girl would have to make an effort not to repeat that mistake in future. More worrying was the fact that the girl was lying to her about this mysterious Aes Sedai. Larindhra wasn’t sure exactly why, but she wasn’t about to pry – that would skirt too close to interfering with another Sister’s business. She would train the lying part out of the child soon enough.

 

“Well, Shera, you must have at least enough potential to be raised to the Shawl one day, or your … nameless Aes Sedai would not have insisted that you come here to train. No need to worry about that now, though – we will find out soon enough what it is, and where your strengths lie.” She pulled the Novice Book towards her and dipped her quill into the ink. “Now exactly where in Saldea were you born?” Larindhra entered Shera’s details in the book, then left it open for the ink to dry whilst she rose and walked to the storeroom leading off from her office.

 

“Come here, child – I need to measure you for new clothes.” She took a novice dress off a shelf and held it up against Shera. Too large. The next set seemed to fit better. “Take off everything you are wearing, then put these on.” She handed Shera a complete set of clothing, down to white slippers and a white belt pouch. “Bring all the clothes you were wearing with you when you’re done. I will store everything else you won’t be needing.” She went back into her office to give the girl some privacy.

 

When Shera was done, Larindhra looked her up and down. “The seamstresses will get your exact measurements later, and adjust another set of whites for you. For now, come with me.” She led the way out of her office.

 

 

Larindhra Reyne

Mistress of Novices

 

[Opera]

Shera cringed when Larindhra Sedai paused to emphasize that Shera should have known the name of the Aes Sedai. But the girl really could not remember this Aes Sedai ever presenting herself. Maybe she did in front of Lilia when Shera was absent. Shera could describe her and say that she had a Warder but could a mere description help to pick among the Aes Sedai that existed ? Shera was pretty sure their number was countless.

 

She then gave every information that was asked of her while the Mistress of Novices was writing it down. She tried to be as detailed as possible to show that had she known the Aes Sedai's name, she would have given it as well ! More than once, Larindhra Sedai glanced up from the book to glare at her and make her understand she was being too descriptive, or she interrupted with a scathing reply. Therefore Shera soon answered with much summarization.

 

As she tried the white set of clothing that was handed to every Novice, she was quite proud that the colour fitted her blond hair nicely, it was rather tight though and Shera was relieved to hear that she would have clothes made on her measurements later.

 

After she had folded her previous set of (dirty) clothes, she brought them along with the leather bag that accompanied her on her journey from Saldaea. And before she followed the Mistress of Novices out of her office, she asked softly :"I'm not allowed to keep anything ? Even small objects ?" She was thinking about the good luck charm Llewelyn, her childhood friend, had made specially for her before she left her village to wish her luck during her apprenticehood in the White Tower, and that she had kept with her at all time until now. She had even grown pretty attached to the little fury rabbit foot she kept in her pocket. Everytime she felt down on her way here, she would put her hand in her pocket and hold the soft tiny object, which renewed her cheerfulness.

 

[Elgee]

 

Larindhra paused at the door. “You may keep everything except the clothes you were wearing, child. I do not want to see you wearing anything other than novice whites until the day you are raised to Accepted. Do I make myself clear?” The slight smile she gave Shera, along with the emphasis on the word see hopefully made her meaning clear. “Now come along, girl.”

 

Silently she led the way down to a secluded courtyard, where she ordered the new novice to place her clothes in a bundle in the middle. “What I am about to do is a symbolic gesture of the end of your old life. Once this is done, you enter a new life, breaking all bonds with the past. The White Tower is your life, your future.” Her face solemn, Larindhra looked Shera in the eye as she spoke. Embracing the Source, she channelled a Weave of Fire at the clothes, setting them alight. Quietly they watched until everything was burned to ashes.

 

Larindhra placed her hand on the girl’s shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Welcome to the Tower. Welcome to your new life.” She waited a few moments more for the child to regain her composure. “Come, let’s get you settled into your room.” Larindhra continued as they walked along the passages and winding ramps leading to the novice quarters. “There are many rules and customs you need to learn before it will be safe for you to venture out, but your mentor will explain the most urgently needed to you.” She eyed the rather shy looking girl speculatively. “Selene will do well for you – she’s an Accepted and she has warm heart. Well, here we are at your room. Remember that you are to keep it, and yourself, clean at all time. I will see you tomorrow morning in my office to assign you to classes. Good day, child.”

 

 

Larindhra Reyne

Mistress of Novices

 

[Opera]

Shera felt relieved at Larindhra Sedai's answer, except from her clothes she could she could keep all of her possessions, which she retrieved in the leather bag she had brought with her.

She energetically nodded when asked if she understood she was not to wear anything else other than her... whites as the uniform seemed to be called, then followed the Mistress of Novices outside her office. Shera couldn't help from diverting her eyes from the Aes Sedai's back to let her look all over the place in awe, nearly losing her guide out of sight from time to time. Each time, she tried to run as silently as possible to close the gap and was thankful the floor was covered with rugs that muffled her steps. But this probably couldn't fool anybody and the girl was pretty sure the Aes Sedai was well aware of her lack of focus.

 

When they reached a secluded courtyard, Larindhra Sedai burnt Shera's clothes (probably by channeling as the fire came from nowhere) and explained what the gesture symbolized. The girl felt the importance and the solemnity of the symbol and kept silent during the whole process. She thought that probably many novices had cried while their clothes burnt along with their past lives, leaving only ashes scattered by the wind. Shera did not for she was here to start a new life in the White Tower as the Mistress of Novices had put it. And many other novices had probably felt the same. Larindhra Sedai must have witnessed all kind of attitude as she had welcomed those different novices.

 

“Welcome to the Tower. Welcome to your new life.” she said as she gently squeezed Shera's shoulder. The girl answered with a warm smile but stared deep in thought at the remaining ashes of her past life a little longer before leaving the courtyard after the Aes Sedai.

 

Shera didn't wander off this time, most of her curiosity and enthousiasm had faded off after the previous ceremony, but she already knew it wouldn't be too long before she regained those. Besides, Larindhra Sedai was speaking to her and it would have been very rude if Shera wasn't listening to observe the ceiling's marble... Thus she learned she was assigned a mentor, a warmhearted Accepted whose name was Selene. She was already growing impatient to meet her.

 

Shera had already forgotten which way they had gone before they arrived at what she would consider her new hearth. It would be difficult to find her way back to Larindhra Sedai's office in the morning, so she would have to wander a bit after setting her things in the room and maybe she'll bring some paper and charcoal to draw a map... She wasn't sure if she was allowed to though. Would it be better to meet with Mistress Selene to learn about rules and customs before wandering in the alleys to draw her map at the risk of getting totally lost ? Shera frowned at the dilemna. She glanced at Larindhra Sedai who was ready to go back to her office and asked if she was authorized to do what she was planing.