First touch (Attn: Libertine)

[Lih-Lyh]

Saline swirled the liquid and stared into her disturbed cup. There was one positive effect from this coming storm. The world was becoming flatter, as the people who come here brought their diverse heritages with them, like baggages of the emotions and wistful hopes that hung upon the Tower, solidifying its presence, lofty, yet earthly.

 

"I have a gift for you." Confided the Mistress of Novices. Extra wary, though quite exhilarated, Saline repeated the name assigned to her.

 

Ino. Ino Garvedian. Gaaarvedian. She adjusted herself to saying it, as she would be for the next several years.

 

Signing up to Mentor would have been an exercise in many venues for the Accepted. She watched Lillian coach her mentee Mirandha and wanted to really bond with somebody like that pair had. The last time she taught a course, intermediate saidar, she had not the energy to focus on every Novice, and feared some had struggled by their lonesomes with the pace as well as complexity of the course. Every Novice had learned slightly different levels of control from Introduction. It was better to start from the entering level.

 

She had reserved a room for them, where she liked to study. Sitting on a cushion the Accepted appraised the room with a critical eye. Overall, the colours of the room were interesting, as were the designs, seemingly random assortments of carvings, rugs, tapestries and plants that soothed with their lack of order.A roaring fireplace above the mantle where her clock dwelled gave a sense of courage, and waved bellows of heat into the opened doorway. Gentle fumes of jasmine fragrances swept by the lilacs in tall elegant vases. Saline loved flowers, and would buy the seeds with her allotted allowances come every free day. She tended the garden they had made for Vera Sedai's mentee. Those were taken from it and woven with a Keeping. The scents made her smile.

 

It was the same smile that greeted her mentee, when she came in. Saline wanted to hug her! Bending her fair head in acknowledgement of the lass in white ((how she had despised that washed out colour)), she beckoned for the Novice to sit. There were cushions all over.

 

"Hello, Ino Garvedian. My name is Saline Westrel. Please call me Saline. I am an Accepted here at the Tower. I will be teaching you.

 

Learning cannot be conducted unless the mind is calm, and if you're not here to learn, then let me be blunt, why are you here?

 

Hence I can offer you this rule: You must speak your mind to me. You lesson begins with this fact: the basis of a healthy relationship is trust. If ever you are too emotional to go on, we stop and you talk to me about the way you feel, the manner in which you are affected. And I see you brooding in my company, I'll have you talk or leave."

 

Tea was ready from the pot that bubbled, and transferring the steaming liquid into the tinkling teacups, she offered the Novice a cup, and chuckled.

 

"Do you have any questions before we start?"

[libertine]

(Last time on First Touch with Lyh-Lyh and libertine....)

 

Saline made her introductions and began teaching her mentee, Ino, the ins and outs of One Power basics. However, before she began, she sent the Tar Valon girl off to the library to acquaint herself with the consequences of misuse of the Power. After reading several records, the skeptical Ino understood the seriousness of the upcoming endeavor, and promised to attend with all due concentration.

 

The Accepted carefully guided the Novice through successfully touching saidar for the first time, then instructed Ino in the needed skill of pushing and pulling on the Power. After all, draw too much or lose control, and bad things could happen.

 

This exercise was rather tiring, so Saline sent the girl off to bed, telling her they'd meet at their usual time tomorrow.

 

 

Now...back to our thread, already in progress.

[libertine]

Ino sought her bed that evening with the intention of never rising again once her head hit the pillow. While Saline was no brutal taskmistress, she was every bit the Accepted that wanted to pull every bit of skill and potential out of her mentee.

 

If she'd thought touching saidar had been something of a trial, the lesson she'd sat that day had been worse. Not only did Ino have to prove a greater grip on the Power, she'd had to develop finer control over it. That had her sweating, it did. Holding saidar was such a euphoric feeling, she had trouble simply pushing it away as Saline instructed. Quite a few times she fumbled and lost her grasp on it completely. It took many attempts before she was able to complete the exercise correctly - once. Naturally, the Accepted had her repeat it almost immediately to make sure it was no fluke.

 

By the time Ino finished the third round of the exercise, the late hour plus general exhaustion was giving her double vision. She barely had the wherewithal to slip into her shift and into bed once she got to her room, and she slept so deeply, she had no dreams that she could remember.

 

She woke the next morning feeling somewhat tired, but accomplished. After a good breakfast in the hall, she worked her way through the rest of the day's classes and chores - and as the hours passed she found herself looking forward to that evening's session. To her credit, she did not run to Saline's chosen room; instead, she tried to stay serene and calm as she made her way down the halls. She needed to get into practice for that, anyway, if she hoped to aspire to where the Accepted was now...

 

"Saline?" she called, peeking her head in then taking her normal seat. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting long. You said we'd be talking about elements and flows today?"

[Lih-Lyh]

The early morning breeze carried to her the smell of lilacs and to her they appeared content, bobbing heads in accord with her thoughts. They positively flew from the exercises with the amazing woman who trained her, the Tower Guard Lyssa. Sedate on the outside, Saline felt quite ready to get started. Last night the class ended with a commentary on discipline being the difference between civilised.

 

"Did you sleep well?" Smiling as Ino replied, the Accepted resumed her seat on the cushion. Despite the daylight the room was well lit by fat, scented stubs of wax she had bought on her last free day.

 

"Pay close attention." Embracing the source, Saline spread both hands out slowly and dramatically. Blue for Air. Green for Water. Silver Spirit. Red Fire. Brown Earth. She twisted elements together, manuvoeuring the threads with practiced ease.

 

"How many colours do you see? Pull out - using the same pulling technique we learned last time - the different threads from the single mass I've made here. You will have problems grasping and directing the thread at first, especially at the beginning of controlling Fire and Earth, but if you work hard you it will get easier."

 

The Novice approached the staff of colours tentatively. Saline nodded in encouragement.

 

"These you may do only if threads are already separate like in this "weave". If not - well, have you read about Miss Faras on that list I handed you our first meeting?" She nodded gravely. "She was an Accepted who foolishly tried to pick apart a weave and burnt the ability out of her. Learn from the past, but keep in mind that it is the people who change, also that - though life is full of potential changes - it is the people who are agents of change."

 

It was all in the name of learning, really.

 

OOC: Suggestion. All weaves are eventually successful in Intro but their difficulty vary. Based on your character's strength with each element you can write about which Ino struggles with the most. Also, consider the angle of which you approach the mass, and any "tricks/habits" she might have (imagining. closing eyes, hand moving thread etc) that she'll have to relearn later.