Unsuspecting Victim [Aithne]

[Guest Arie Ronshor]

It was rare that she would enter the older corridors of the Accepted Halls. The Novice Quarters were closed down and were swept clean by the Mistress of Novices throught out the ages, removing anything that was not to be in the possession of a Novice. However, the Accepted halls always had delightful surprises. Usually forgotten Journals, even the odd book that had gone missing from the Library. It was Rare, but it did happen. But it wasn't books that Maegan was looking for, but small pieces to different puzzles that were lost over time about different Aes Sedai that had grown old and forgetful of where they had come from. Too much pride. Despite being channelers, they were human too, with human emotions.

 

Surveying a series of locked rooms, she pulled out her key and unlocked five doors. It had been a while since she had assigned a novice or accepted to organize these rooms. If she remembered correctly, the last one was Estel, now a prominant Blue Sister. Returning to the Novice halls, she decided that only one Novice need to tackle the 5 rooms. She will give the next to anouther novice.

 

Shaking out the last of the dust from her deep purple cairhien styled dress, she looked through her specticles and spotted her prey. An older novice, perfect.

 

 

"Child, have you a chore or lessons to attend?" The Child shook her head, surprised Maega had even bothered to ask. "Good, you will be working on a small project for me today. Follow me." Maegan lead the way back to the rooms in the closed of Accepted Dormitories.

 

"I need you to go throught he three unlocked rooms, clean them up and make an account of everything that is in these rooms." She handed the Child a small clip board and a small bucket of dry rags. "I will send anouther novice this way with food, and you may leave for tea and anyhign else you may need as long as these rooms are complete by the end of the day. If not, than you will just continue on tomorrow, but no later. I have had two novices do it in 4 hours, so i expect that a full day for one will be quite enough." She smiled. "If you need anything, My name is Maegan Sedai and you may find my in the Red Ajah Halls."

 

Confirming the girl know how to find her, she left her to complete the chore.

 

 

 

 

Maegan Ryanne

Highest

[Bastet]

Aithne stood outside her room, gently consoling a new Novice. Adjusting to life at the Tower was never easy, but each girl had her own sorrows to suffer. For Aithne, it had been other girls. Her meekness made her an easy target for pranks and bullying. It never stopped, but lessened over the years. She now had a small circle of friends who defended her, but also helped her gain a backbone.

 

Her gentle nature made her a magnet for the younger Novices. She did not know the name of this Novice, but she knew the name of her entire family and pets. Aithne felt a slight pang of jealousy. She never missed her family, and her family never missed her. She gave the young girl a reassuring hug, and headed down the hallway. She was free for the day and planned to spend it doing absolutely nothing. That was her plan, however a Sister in the hallway thought otherwise.

 

She curtsied respectfully. "Child, have you a chore or lessons to attend?" Aithne shook her head, her heart dropping. "Good, you will be working on a small project for me today. Follow me."

 

Aithne did as told and couldn't help to become curious when they entered an empty wing of the Accepted Quarters. Meagan Sedai of the Red Ajah (which greatly pleased Aithne to learn) gave her orders and quickly left her to her own devices.

 

She entered the first room and was immediately pelted by sneezes. The room was covered with years of dust. She wanted to be done quickly, so she went straight to her task. She pulled the blanket off of the bed and was consumed by a cloud of dust. After her sneezed subsided, she was appalled to find that her white dress was now gray. She sighed as she folded the blanked and placed it in the hallway.

 

She got on her knees and peered underneath the bed. Against the wall was a small object that Aithne could not discern. She had to crawl on her belly to reach it, and pulled out a small silver locket. It contained a tiny drawing of an unfamiliar woman. Was it one of the Aes Sedai as a young girl? Her mother? She marked it on the clipboard and pushed it from her mind. There was still lots to be done.

 

Several hours later another Novice brought her lunch. Aithne smiled gratefully and took her time with the meal. She was working quickly and should be done by the end of the day. There was a large pile of blankets and pillows in the hallway, but most interesting was the smaller pile of random objects that she had found. Most were small, jewelry that had fallen into nooks and shadowed places. She imagined the poor girl who thought she had lost a treasured keepsake forever. They were not allowed many belongings at the Tower, so the precious few that had were important. Did loving fathers bestow such gifts on their daughters? Probably, but Aithne would never know.

 

The pile also contained a journal and a few books. Most of the books looked to be from the library, but there was one that she knew would never be in the library. She resisted the urge to keep it for herself. Aithne made meticulous notes of the objects and the rooms they came from. She hoped that some of those small treasures would find their way back to their rightful owners.

 

She finished her meal and started on the fourth room. If she continued at this pace, she would be done well before bedtime. She might even have a few hours of free time left.

 

The sun was just beginning to set as she carried a small basket of treasures into the Red halls. A servant had already taken away the linens, so she was freed up to personally deliver the items to Meagan Sedai. While she had not told anyone, she knew that these halls would possibly be her home someday. There were still many years before that, and anything could change, but she knew in her heart where she belonged.

 

She curtsied before a Sister and asked for directions to Meagan's chambers. She politely thanked her and continued down the hallway. She reached the door and timidly knocked. The Sister opened the door and looked kindly at her. "Meagan Sedai," she curtsied. "The linens are being washed, but I thought you might like these," she nodded to the basket in her hand. "Your clipboard with my notes are also in there. I hope you find the rooms satisfactory."