The Scent of Parchment & Squid Ink (Kalyan / Ali)

[Lou]

Dianlinn watched as Kalyan seemed to stand up a little straighter at her invite to for him to join her, and she gave him the smallest of smiles. Even though most people would think that nothing, to Dianlinn here, it meant a lit. She hardly ever smiled like that to anyone. Kalyan had earned that from her, he had been kind to her from the start when many had not. And she would never forget that. When he told her that he would like to study with her, Dianlinn nodded her head to him as she looked over to the table where his books were waiting for him. She was yet to choose her book yet, but now she had someone she would be keeping waiting, she would not want to make Kalyan wait for her.

When he suggested they could go out into the gardens to read, she looked out the window and saw it was a nice clear summer evening. And when he said he could make a light to see by she looked at him and nodded her head with another little smile. "That does indeed sound a fine plan, Kalyan." She told him, not realising that she was not using only his first name now. Somewhere in her mind she felt she had kind of familiarity with him. "I shall choose my book quickly then, and come to join you, if you wish to go and find somewhere for us to sit." She paused and looked to the large stack of books he had been carrying. "If you would like to leave those, I can bring them out for you." He had looked to be struggling, and while she was not saying that he could not take them, but he was going to be focused on finding somewhere for them to sit. She simply saw it as a distribution of labour.

[Alianora]

Dedicated Kalyan

Kalyan blinked, wondering to himself if it was really fair to let Dianlinn bring out all the books. He wasn't sure it was, but when he considered walking around the gardens, lugging the pile the whole way, Kalyan decided it wasn't such a bad idea. He smiled and nodded. "If you really don't mind carrying all of them, I'd appreciate your help," he told her. Leaving the books on the table, Kalyan hurried out of the library and out towards the gardens.

At this hour, with the sun going down, they weren't a terribly busy place, not that Kalyan minded. He took his time wandering the paths and considering a few more isolated benches, then noticed a particularly tall, wide tree and stopped there. To Kalyan, it seemed like the perfect place to pass an evening of studying. He sat down with his back against the tree and his legs straight out in front of him, looking towards the door Dianlinn was most likely to emerge from.

For a short time, he watched the door, but then Kalyan got bored with staring at it. Seizing saidin, he used Fire and Air to create a light for himself. It hovered over his head, allowing him to see better in the dusk, and when Dianlinn arrived, he would make one for her. After that, Kalyan entertained himself by using Earth to make some nearby wildflowers grow. They were tiny little blossoms that speckled the grass with white, purple and yellow dots, making the small area he was working with appear to be a garden of its own, set within the larger one of the Grey Tower. He wondered if Dianlinn would notice the difference, and hoped she'd arrive soon. It wasn't just that he wanted to spend time with her, though that was true; he was also eager to get started on his reading, and his friend had all the books.

[Lou]

Dianlinn did not mind carrying the books, it made sense as she was stronger than Kalyan. She did not mean it as an insult, and if he took it as one, he gave no sign, but she worked her muscles every day, becoming stronger with it. It was be easy for her to carry them, an take them to wherever he had chosen for them to sit outside. Dinalnn knew he usually picked the nicer spots, the ones where flowers grew, not that she looked for such things, but she could appreciate them nonetheless. Well, when they were pointed out, she would not make a point of noticing, even when she did. She was no foolish Wetlander girl to stare at flowers all moon-eyed day.

Dianlinn ended up picking a book called The Realms of the Blight by Yenanda Sedai for her book to read, after a trip to the front desk and checking the book out for herself, she laid it on top of Kalyans stack, and then headed out into the Gardens. It did not take long to find where the Dedicated had chosen to sit, and she made her way over to him, putting the books down carefully, as if they were the most precious of things (which to her they were) before moving to sit on the soft grass, her legs folded under her.

"You have picked a nice place to sit, Kalyan." She told him, her hand going to the soft grass under her, though there she noticed the small little buds of flowers that was in the green, and she looked down at them even more intently before back to Kalyan. "It is pretty." She said to him, "I am surprised that this space was free." She told him, taking her book from the top of the stack, and leaving him to sort through his own.

[Alianora]

Kalyan Rihera

When he saw Dianlinn walking towards him, Kalyan rushed to get finished with the flower he'd been working on. By the time he was done and tying off the weave, she had settled down beside him, laying the books on the grass between them. He turned towards her with a smile. " Thanks for bringing these," he told her. "It is pretty out here, but a lot of people don't like to study outside. They either stay holed up in their rooms or work in the library." The Dedicated shrugged. "Don't know why, but it means we have a nice place to study until curfew."

He wanted to get started right then, but there was one thing he had to do first. Kalyan had not let go of saidin yet, and as he had for himself, he wove a ball of light for Dianlinn. When that was done, he extended the ball on a thread of Air towards her. "Where do you want your light?" Kalyan asked. He would move it wherever she wished, and after that, they would have time for studying.

Once Dianlinn's light was in place, Kalyan let go of saidin and reached for the first book in his pile. Variations on Healing Weaves, it was called. He was about halfway through it, and it was a lot of theory, much of which seemed to be just beyond his comprehension. Reading it was a slow, sometimes frustrating process, but Kalyan didn't mind taking his time in trying to learn what he could. He pulled his legs up, propped the book open on his bent knees, and lowered his head over it, losing himself in its pages.

[Lou]

Dianlinn nodded her head to Kalyan as she joined him on the grass, after placing the books down carefully. There was little more precious as books in the Three-Fold Land, except maybe water. The smile that Kalyan gave her made her smile back, and she felt quite self-conscious doing so. She was not someone who smiled easily, usually as her Sister of the Spear would call her cute and mock her for her cute looks and her shorter stature. She listened as he spoke of liking to study out there, and how not many people did. "It is nice out here," she started, and she looked around at the grass. "But I would worry of ruining the books. But I will trust in your judgement that the books will be well." Dianlinn would not endure the wrath of the Brown Ajah if any of their books were damaged.

When he made himself a ball of light to read by, she looked in awe, and then ducked a little as he made one for her. She was not used to the One Power being used so close to her, or in such a way, and she wanted to say that he need not waste his power, but he knew it was something she would need to get used to. He asked her where she would like the light, and she licked her lower lip and pointed to just over her right shoulder so the light would not obscure her view of him. "Here please." She knew they were there to study, but also she had not seen him in some time, and part of her wanted to make sure she was open to talk to him if she wished too.

She watched as he picked his first book up, opening it and starting to read. She watched him for a moment longer than she probably should, before picking up The Realms of the Blight by Yenanda Sedai and laying the book in her lap on her crossed legs below her. She began to read, focusing on the forward by the Aes Sedai who claimed to have spent much of her life up on the Blight Borders, and studying the twisted creatures that were there. Dianlinn was glad that the woman used both the Westland name and the names the Aiel used for those same creatures. She focused hard which gave her a small crease between her brows and her mouth in a tight line, and as she light faded from the sky, she brought up her crossed knees higher so she could rest the book on them to be close to the light, not wanting to disturb Kalyan in his own study.

[Alianora]

Dedicated Kalyan

Kalyan lifted a hand and rubbed the back of his neck. The book in his lap demanded his total concentration, and the Dedicated rather suspected he wouldn't really understand any of it until he could put the theories it contained into practice. That time was rapidly approaching, and Kalyan intended to be as prepared for it as he could be. Still, he frowned at the pages, knowing he would not remember everything he read and trying to decide what was most important. I may need to read it over again once I'm done, and take notes, he observed to himself. Having made that decision, the Dedicated continued to turn the pages, raising his head when he arrived at the end of a chapter.

He turned to look at Dianlinn, the light he'd woven for himself bobbing in the air behind him. If she was aware of him, Kalyan couldn't tell, but he didn't think she was. She appeared to him to be entirely absorbed in her own reading, and the sight made Kalyan smile. The Gaidin and their students were not often seen within the library, and he admired that Dianlinn was one of the few who took her studies as seriously as he did his own. He didn't look at her for very long, since he was still far from the end of his book, and Kalyan was quick to bend his head back over the pages.

The Dedicated did not look up again until he noticed that the sky was growing darker as the sun began to sink below the horizon. The light hovering behind him allowed him to see just as well as he had earlier in the evening, but Kalyan knew that their curfew was swiftly approaching. He sighed, wishing they didn't have to go inside so soon. Being out here to read, with a friend nearby, was so much better than reading at the small desk in his room. When he finished the chapter he was reading, he closed the book quietly and stretched his legs out in front of him. After that, Kalyan turned towards Dianlinn again. She knew as well as he did when curfew was, and he didn't want to distract her by reminding her of it, so instead of doing so, Kalyan simply waited for her.

[Lou]

Dianlinn had not expected them to sit there and talk, she had wanted to read, and so had Kalyan. She knew he was a studious person, it was one of the things she liked about him. And it was not such a surprise that she did really like him, he was one of the bright spots of her life here in the Tower. If it was not for him, she thought she may have cracked and taken her frustration out on those who liked to torment her. But Kalyan had always taken the time to explain things to her without making her feel like she was foolish or feeble minded. She appreciated that more than he may ever know.

As the sky grew darker, their light seemed to increase, but she knew it had gotten to just before curfew by watching the others around them begin to head to their dorms. She pointed this out to him, and they began to collect up their belongings, and Kaylan extinguished their floating orb of light. She could not carry his books up to his room in the mens section, so she bid him to sleep well and wake, and then headed off to her own dorm room.

She still had her book, and she began to read in bed, using a small lamp that she was permitted.

[End]