Does this look like a face that would cause trouble? - Attn Evanen

[Arath Faringal]

Rochel slowly made her way though the novices quarters, carefully listening for anyone nearby.  It wouldn't do at all for anyone to walk in on her while she was ... busy.  She had finished her chores as quickly as possible in hopes that she would be done before anyone else and have at least a little while to practice channeling on her own.  It couldn't be as dangerous as the Aes Sedai let them believe, and she hadn't had any problems at all the last several times she had done this.

 

Holding her breath as she heard a sound behind her, Rochel spun around quickly, excuses ready to fly.  Fortunately, it was only a servant, bustling down the hallway with an armful of towels.  She sighed in relief, drawing a bemused look from the servant.  She might not say anything, but she knew when a novice was up to something she shouldn't be.  At least Rochel hoped she wouldn't say anything.

 

Quickly, Rochel scurried the short distance to her room and slipped inside.  She had barely closed the door behind her when she embraced Saidar, letting the exhilarating feeling wash over her.  Pulling out the now familiar threads of air and fire, she created a small ball of light as she crossed the room to sit on her bed.  As she began to weave a second ball, her breathe caught.  Someone was laying an one of the other beds.  Forcing herself to remain calm, she continued weaving as though she had a perfect right to do what she was doing.  "Hello Evanen.  What are you doing here?"

[TaiDashan]

It was late and Evanen was laying on her bed thinking of home. Memories of Romarlata drifted through her mind. Would her grandmother be proud of her decisions? Would she even approve? Thoughts of her led to thoughts of her sisters. Sadinen and Cisalen both had shunned her as if she had the highly contagious Swamp Fever. Thoughts of home brought a tear, streaking past her ear to land in her hair.

 

Suddenly the door opened and someone embraced Saidir, causing Evanen to sit bolt upright. A small ball of light illuminated Rochel's face and Evanen sighed in relief. She wasn't sure what she thought was going to happen, but having someone catching her in her tears was as unexpected as someone embracing Saidir.

 

"Hello Evanen.  What are you doing here?" Evanen took a moment to consider the question. It was silly of course, it was her room. Rochel was obviously unsure whether or not Evanen would tell on her for channeling unsupervised. They were warned repeatedly against doing so and thus far Evanen hadn't had the guts to break the rules despite her misgivings about their warnings. Her friend's courage emboldened her to try it however.

 

"Oh just laying here." She said softly. "Don't worry about me telling on you by the way. I think it is silly they tell us not to channel unless we have someone watching. It can't hurt as long as we are careful. Besides, how will we ever learn anything if we don't try?" She motioned to the ball Rochel was balancing. Grinning like a stone-fool, she looked at Rochel. Breaking the rules this way was exhilarating!

[Arath Faringal]

It took a great deal of effort for Rochel to not sigh in relief.  With a slight smile, she crossed the small room and sat on her bed facing Evanen.  "Thank you."  Maybe the girl wasn't so bad.  Maybe she ought to give Evanen a little more credit. 

 

Returning her attention to her weaves for a moment, Rochel added a small green ball of light next to the first, blue one.  Holding two weaves at once was straining, and the little globes flickered a little, but they held.  With a glance at the other girl, Rochel began to pass the lights back and forth, in a basic twirling pattern.  It was a lot harder than it looked, especially when the weaves touched and passed through each other.  Until she got into the rythme of things the ball of light would vanish more often than not.  Fortunately, it was one of the few exercises that Rochel saw a point to.  This one would obviously help build up dexterity with weaving ... wouldn't it?

 

"So, what are you doing here?  I had to rush through my evening chores as quickly as possible to get here this early.  How did you get here so fast?"  She stifled a curse as her concentration slipped and the blue ball vanished.  Swiftly re-weaving the glowing light, she waited for Evanen's reply.  She really was curious.  What had worked to get Evanen away from her chores early might well work for Rochel too.  "You didn't just forget to go did you?"

[TaiDashan]

Watching as Rochel added a green ball of light next to her blue one, Evanen's admiration rose. She had gotten in trouble before for not seeing the weaves spoken of in her classes. Some of her teachers had thought her doing so on purpose to be difficult. She felt like a failure, she could do the relaxation exercises and sense the Source, but that was the extent.

 

"So, what are you doing here?" Rochel asked, explaining her speed in getting things done.

 

"Well... The Mistress of Novices had me studying with Deanne again." She sighed tragically. She was sure the Accepted had made it her personal mission, to torture Evanen with her lack of knowledge and make it absolutely clear that she was inferior. She had spoken to Rochel at great length about the unfortunate mentor and the girl sighed in commiseration.

 

"The price of learning about Saidir right?" She asked with a weak smile.

[Arath Faringal]

Rochel bit back a grimace as she heard Evanen's reasons for being back early.  The other novice had told her about her lessons with this Deanne.  It sounded miserable.  Just listening to Evanen unloading after a session was unbearable.  Actually going through it herself would have put Rochel over the edge.

 

"I suppose so.  Though I still don't see why it should be like that.  It's bad enough that the Aes Sedai order us around worse than servants, but for some prissy accepted with a burr in her dress to do the same is just ... just ... urgh."  Rochel had experience with a few miserable Accepted, and she swore to not do the same when she reached that point.  If she reached that point.  Those same miserable Accepted seemed bent on making her miserable as well.  Another reason why she rushed to finish her chores and escape to her room. 

 

With a shake of her head she tried to push thoughts of any of her 'betters' out of her head and concentrated on her weaving.  She was getting better ever since she started doing this.  Holding Saidar came easier, and holding and controlling weaves was ... a little less difficult.  She was certainly better at it than she had been a couple months ago.  She continued the juggling pattern with the other novice for a time, concentrating hard on keeping the weaves steady, not letting the globes flicker. 

 

A sudden whim of curiousity struck her then.  A desire to experiment.  She had been told that experimentation was dangerous, but surely nothing could come of this.  She considered the two balls of light that floated in front of her.  Changing the color had not been difficult.  Just a touch of another element to give it a new hue.  Could she make them brighter?  Releasing one of the weaves to give herself better control, Rochel brought the blue ball up in front of her and began to feed more fire into it.  Just as she suspected, the globe grew brighter.  Wondering how far she could push it, she continued to feed more and more, until the ball shined brilliantly.  Caution urged her to stop there, but Rochel couldn't help but push it just a tiny bit more.

 

With a yelp, she jumped backwards as the globe of blue light burst into a small ball of flame.  She hastily released the weave, and it winked out in a small puff of smoke.  A fireball?  Breathing heavily and trying to push her heart out of her throat, she turned to look at a startled Evanen.  "Well that was interesting.  Guess I won't be trying that one again."  Sitting down on her bed, Rochel glanced at the spot where the ball had hovered.  What if it had exploded or something?  Maybe the Aes Sedai actually were correct.  She still felt the desire to continue on her own, but she finally understood some of the need for caution.

[minisamus]

Even now, as Lillian encountered a rough bit, she dabbed at the stone and it responded under her careful touch.

 

“You loved her, didn’t you?”

 

“Of course I did. Now stop asking about it.”

 

Not crying over her losses was more in keeping with the credo of the Aes Sedai, yet it made Saline very curious to know Kasi wore the face of someone Lillian loved. Lillian would not speak of Taei but, even without the White’s reputation preceding her, Saline could feel her affection for the young woman who looked like Taei.

 

Taking her fixed necklace from the White Sister after bading the other a pleasant evening, she acted on her sympathy for Lillian’s suffering by stopping over the corner where Kasi and Devrion’s rooms were joint. As a matter of principle she would not have interfered with the novices’ space but there was her interest in keeping Kasi safe given Lillian’s current troubled state. On the one hand Lillian wanted to be protective but knew her emotions to be illogical, her attachments selective. The White always acted on what was right, and must now still be wondering if leaving the child alone was better. Well, Saline had no such reservations to give Kasi her space. She was not about to let her friend be hurt more, even if she would act almost obsessive regarding her protection of Kasi.

 

When Saidar reached her senses Saline flinched. Devrion had promised Saline she would not channel without permission again. The novice seemed to wither like a wilted plant the only time Saline had expressed her anger with Devrion. And if something untoward happened to Kasi . . .

 

The door to Kasi’s room only took a thread of air to wrench from its hinge and a moment later saw Saline peering through the thin haze of smoke at the cramp interior and novices within. She knew them to be Kasi’s roommates, one of which was a Domani by her looks. Like Lillian.

 

The name alone fueled her fear, relief, and fury at the two who had been channelling in secret, practicing the weaves. If Rory were here she could have read the residues, but Saline knew the off-colored result of a fireball when she smelt one. She didn’t even have to wonder if she should be permitted to deal with the novices when she valued Kasi over their individual safety.

 

It was some time before she was ready to speak, as more than a handful of choice words came to mind.

 

“I suggest“ Saline said, not unkindly “whatever you were practicing just now, you wake Larindhra Sedai about it.” Whatever the Mistress of Novices delivered would be less harsh than Saline’s recommendation.

 

Saline crossed the room all too soon, and there she sat to await Kasi. It would be after-hours for the novices’ curfew in a few minutes, although it would be a while before Kasi’s roommates return.

 

Saline Wastrel

Aes Sedai of the Red Ajah

 

[TaiDashan]

The globe of light grew brighter as Rochel funneled more into it. When it grew brighter still, Evanen felt a thrill of danger. The look on Rochel's face didn't look like she meant to stop. The ball suddenly burst into flame and Evanen was suddenly glad she had not drunk a large amount of water recently. Light her eyes must be as big as plates! Gulping a deep breath she realized she had been holding her breath. The acrid smell left by the fireball hung in the air with a small amount of smoke.

 

Her eyes almost popped off of her face as the door to their room was wrenched from its hinge and an Aes Sedai with a thunderhead for a face walked in. Her heart hurt from the sudden strain of trying to burst from her body and flee the room running. Despite herself a quite undignified squeak escaped her lips before the woman spoke.

 

"I suggest, whatever you were practicing just now, you wake Larindhra Sedai about it." Evanen bounded to her feet and dropped into a curtsy before thought had a chance to take hold. She slipped past the Sedai and hurried down the hall, feeling a stab of guilt before she realized that Rochel was not far behind. She may not have been channeling but she was guilty by association. Reaching out in the dark hallway her hand found Rochel's. Squeezing briefly she let go, hoping the woman knew how she felt. Resolving herself she made her way to Larindhra's study. If Rochel had to endure a dose of the slipper, at least she would have a friend to do so with...

[Arath Faringal]

Rochel tried in vain to suppress a frightened squeak as the door banged open and an Aes Sedai came barging in.  She hastily hid her hands behind her, a habit she had acquired as a child whenever she had been caught doing something she shouldn't have.  She had thought that she'd broken that habit years ago, since it inevitably made you look guilty.  Some habits just died hard it seemed..

 

Surprisingly, the Aes Sedai didn't say anything for a while, she simply stared at them, eyes flicking back and forth between the girls, and the smoky spot where the fireball had been.  When she finally did speak, it was in the coldest voice Rochel had ever heard.  And in the White Tower, that was saying quite a lot.

 

“I suggest, whatever you were practicing just now, you wake Larindhra Sedai about it.” 

 

Somehow, Rochel thought she had just gotten off far easier than this Sister wanted, and she wasted no time in taking advantage of that.  Making a horrible curtsy that normally would have earned her a punishment anyway, Rochel made an undignified rush for the door.  As fast as she was, Evanen made it out before her, and in a flash they were racing down the halls.  Rochel vaguely wondered why Evanen was going too since she hadn't even embraced Saidar, let alone channeled, but she was glad of the company.  She even smiled a little when Evanen reached out to squeeze her hand.  It was nice to have a friend who wouldn't throw her under the wagon in a bad moment.

[TaiDashan]

Larindhra Sedai looked at Evanen  quizzically when the pair entered her office and explained what had happened. Perhaps it was because she was there despite her not channeling. Perhaps it was because she wondered why she had not been. Most surely it was the previous, but it did not matter. 

 

Patiently she waited outside while Rochel howled under the slipper, audible even through the thick, heavy oak door. She admired the girl, and she was sure she herself would not take it as well as Rochel was currently. The fact that she had not been able to channel as of yet was a puzzle to Evanen, one that bothered her deeply. She could sense the source, so it was definite that she should be able to channel. It was just that she could never embrace the Source like everyone else explained that she should. She had heard whispers by now that she had what was called a block. She had also been called a Wilder, scorn investing the word with quite a sting.

 

Soon enough, she was brought out of her reverie when the door swung open and Rochel stepped out wiping her eyes. She shared a brief glance with the girl and hurried inside. Her punishment was no less than Rochel's and as expectred she howled louder than her friend had. Once done she composed herself as much as possible with her shift burning like fire across her bottom, and stepped out of the room. It was a pleasant surprise to find that Rochel had waited for her. She would not have to walk back to her room alone.

 

It was nice to know, that no matter what problems she would encounter here in the Tower, Rochel would stick by her. At least she desperately hoped as much.