The Grey Tower

Ekaitza dragged her half-full sack behind her as she continued to walk. She'd seen plenty of the world traveling with the wagons, yet still, the Tuatha'an novice wasn't sure she'd ever seen so many trees as this place held. Leaves continued to tumble down from them, scattering over the spots that had just been raked. She glared at one of them, then caught herself and took a breath before carefully using her rake to shove the newly fallen leaves into her sack.

While she worked, she listened to Dai, though she wasn't sure what to say to him. The explanation of his place in his family made little sense to Ekaitza, who had never experienced that sort of distance with hers. She was quiet for a while, thinking about it, while she continued to work at gathering the leaves. Her mind wandered to all the times she'd spent apart from her family, fighting to contain her emotions. Even then, she hadn't really been separate from them, not in the way Dai spoke of his. "I...think it makes sense," the novice said with more than a little hesitation. "I don't know if I can really understand; I've always been close to my family, and if Saralin hadn't channeled, I would never have considered leaving them."

Leaves crunched under Ekaitza's feet as she trod on some that remained in the middle of the path. This earned the novice a disapproving look from a nearby Accepted, and the Tuatha'an woman had to stop and take a deep breath to force down her annoyance before adding the leaves to those already contained in her sack. She turned to look at Dai, shrugged, and said, "In a way, it was not nearly so hard for me. Coming to Hama Valon with Saralin was my own choice, but she had none." Her decision had been easy, but witnessing her cousin's distress during their journey had been far from that.

The novice moved slowly, trying not to think too hard on her memories of that last trip. The vivid memories of huddling in her bed with Saralin, trying in vain to comfort her, caused emotions that Ekaitza knew she could not allow within herself. Frustration, resentment, even true anger at their family...she felt all of these, and her grip on the rake tightened. To bring Saralin here as if she'd never meant anything to them.....it was cruel and it was wrong! She sighed, disappointed in herself for even thinking something so awful.

Closing her eyes, she made herself hold the rake more carefully, then opened them again to look at Dai. "I don't know what you've heard of the Way of the Leaf, which my people live by, but the easiest explanation of it is that we do not do any violence to anyone, for any reason. It is thought that it is impossible for a channeler to keep to it." Ekaitza's voice dropped to a whisper. "So, no....neither of us can ever return. It does not matter if we learn to control it. I'm not sure they even believe that is possible."

Looking down at the ground, the novice blinked. She had wanted to see how others lived, but knowing that she would never again be welcome among her people still hurt. "And for myself....well, you've channeled already, haven't you?" If he had, Dai ought to understand what she was about to admit. She gave some nearby leaves a halfhearted swipe with her rake as she explained. "I've only just started learning, and already I'm not sure I would want to stop, even to return home."

By now, Ekaitza was tired enough that she was practically dragging the rake and her sack behind her, barely using either for its intended purpose. Dai's question made her stop walking entirely. She stepped off the path, looking at the Soldier, then shook her head. "No, of course not," she agreed. The novice glanced at the rake in her hand, considering how it, too, could be used in violence, and wished that she could drop it as the thought occurred to her.

"Growing up in the wagons, most children learn to follow the Way of the Leaf simply by imitating the rest of the band. It's not just that we do not permit violent behavior...most of my people cannot even imagine doing so. It's all we know." A flush stained Ekaitza's cheeks as she attempted to explain what she'd been taught since she was a small child, and the novice looked at the ground. Even at her age, with her strict control of her behavior, she had never managed to eliminate even the thought of violence from her mind.

She looked back at Dai when the flash of irritation with herself faded, not sure what he thought of her poor attempt to explain something that was rarely put into words. "Do Soldiers gossip among themselves much?" she asked him as she raked a couple of leaves on the ground. "Some of the novices, well, they hardly seem to stop, and some of the stories they tell about people who are born with the ability to channel are frightening. I can't be sure what is true, but I've heard of girls setting houses on fire, causing lightning to strike....even some whose channeling has killed another person." This last comment was whispered, and made Ekaitza shiver to even think it.

"So, if any member of a Tuatha'an band committed such an act when first channeling, even without intending it....that person would never be allowed to stay." She had, of course, witnessed this herself when Saralin had channeled, and even to herself, the words sounded bitter. That she would not admit; speaking of what Saralin had done would hurt her cousin deeply, so Dai was just going to have to accept the examples she could offer.

Ekaitza was relieved when the bells finally rang, freeing her from any further attempt to keep working. She smiled at Dai and said, "If you don't mind, yes, please. If you're getting the bags, I could take our rakes?" she suggested. Whether he agreed or not, the novice busied herself gathering what she could, somehow finding one last burst of energy for it. She turned to Dai as they loaded the supplies back into the wagon. "It was nice meeting you," Ekaitza said, then hurried off towards the Tower and the next class on her schedule.