Chapter One of Forever. (Open)

[Kevin]

Taylin waited for the Aes Sedai, and upon the door opening, that duck walk she had avoided, seemed a thing of the past. The woman who answered the door was serenity made solid. and Taylin had the distinct impression she did not want to be flippant with this particular woman. So she smiled and gave her best curtsy.

"Yes, Mistress." She used Conor's title for the woman. She was nervous to be here, and didn't feel that the Aes Sedai before her had much patients with new people.She was suddenly very unsure about this place. She was of an age she could walk away if she wished, but she doubted the Tower would just let her walk out.

"Yes, I am Taylin... and you must be Illyria Sedai, I have heard talk you are the head of the Accpeted and Novices.I must admit when Conor offered me to bring him to his Mistresses office, I had thought a different scenario taking place."

Taylin was not lacking any formality, she was being polite and aware she spoke to someone of authority. However this did not diminish that fact the girl treated herself like a grown woman. After leaving home she had realized she was grown now, no longer on her mother skirts, and headed toward a life her friends back home could never understand or experience. She was alone, and it was up to her to survive here.


Taylin was aware of some extent of why she was here, and after a moment, asked the Aes Sedai if it were okay that she take a seat so they could get her signed in. "I suppose you need a few answers from me?"

The girl was detached. Whether she'd drawn in on herself to protect from the bombardment of new things, or she was truly that quick to find adjustment on her own terms.

[Stasia]

"Yes," Illyria said, weighing the child on well-practiced scales, "I will need a little information from you, and you will need quite a bit from me." She smiled thinly, drawing her lips towards her cheekbones, and did not expend the effort to make it seem delighted nor friendly. Praise would be given once Taylin had done something to deserve it. She had curtseyed, and did a much better job of balancing her weight on bent knees than most new novices, but there was no point in rewarding her for a manditory task.

She led the child back to her massive desk, took her seat behind it, and offered the seat before it to her. "Nation of origin?" The question was asked in a precise, clipped voice - her attention was turned to her tea cabinet, and once Taylin proivded her with an answer, she sought out the little bottle that held the correct blend. Far Madding tea was a strong brew, slightly spiced, and best taken with cream. She set about preparing the tea, and asked questions as she went: as her ceramic kettle was filled with a weave of water and fire, resulting in instanteanous boiling, she asked Taylin if she had the spark or if she had the ability to learn. She could sense the truth herself; Illyria was much more interested in knowing if the child had payed attention to what Renai had told her.

Tea leaves were carefully poured into the sieve that sat in the lip of her tea pot, the water poured over the sieve, and left it to steep for five minutes. Illyria settled into her seat, regarded Taylin over steepled fingers, and then began the generic lecture that signified the beginning of her new life.

"You are aware, I'm sure, of the dangers of becoming Aes Sedai?" The question hung uncomfortably in the air for a short moment, and the leaden sensation did not disappate as she continued. "Very few girls who join us will make it to the shawl. It takes discipline, resolve, and above all, the ability to adapt. The next years of your life will be some of the most difficult you will ever know. For some," she continued, slightly softened with regret, "the pressure is too much to bear. Here, you will break. Whether or not you rebuild, child, is up to you." Illyria Malkom did not envy the girl. Despite the Aiel's opinion on Tower training, becoming Aes Sedai was not a journey for the faint of heart.

She poured Taylin's tea precisely, and offered her sugar and cream silently.

"You have three options. We can sever you from the True Source, and send you back to Far Madding, and your life will continue as if this had never passed. We can train you until you are no longer a liability to yourself or the people around you, and you may leave with enough silver to keep you for a year. Or, you may sign the novice book, and you will be bound to the Tower - bound until you fail, or should you succeed and become Aes Sedai, bound until you die." The words were harsh, but it was a necessary evil - it would be a disservice to the girl to sugar coat the reality of the situation. Her expression softened, and as she prepared her own tea, she offered Taylin what little assistance and comfort she could. "I understand that this is a difficult decision. You may think on it for three days, should you wish, and are welcome to ask me any questions you have about the life of a novice."

[Kevin]

The woman before her within the office, reminded her her of her own mother, only with that ageless face, it was like looking at a younger version of her. A strange chill ran down her spine. Taylin would have a face like that one day, long after her sister had wrinkled and aged and her mother dead. It was heartbreaking, but a small selfish part of her was glad. No one wanted to die, least of all sooner than they had to.

"Far Madding, is where I am from."

Taylin took the offered seat with thanks, smoothing her dress first before crossing ankles and placing hand in her lap. She sat straight, but was in no way trying to challenge the other woman, simply show proper manners.

"Renai Sedai made very clear the danger I would be in unaided. I do not doubt you lose some to this training, as is life. I am not afraid though, Miss, to work hard. When I want something I do it. And though I do not want to be here, the shame would be far greater to return to my mother and tell her I quit."

Taylin took the tea, delighted to find it something familiar, something from home. She added cream, until her cup looked milky.

"The idea of being unable to ever chose to come back should I wish to use the Power would be gone. So you see, Aes Sedai, I have no choice here. But just because this is my best and perhaps only choice, doesn't mean I will not give it my all. You say few attain the shawl? I say I am up for that challenge, with all due respect ma'am."

Taylin bowed her head in respect, but had meant every word. She sipped her tea, and gave a smile of gratefulness.