Checking on Mama; An RP to Morelle in Cairhein

[Bree]

Ubriel ran as fast as she could to the stables. The message she had sent ahead of her while she was still packing her bags should have accomplished getting Peach saddled before she arrived and she was please to find the horse ready to go when she came through the stable door. The news had reached her less than an hour ago and she had sprung into action. Her hometown of Morelle had been attacked. The Shaido Aiel had crossed the Spine of the World again and the bandit horde who had swarmed down onto her hometown had wreaked havoc. The reports of the loss of lives and property were horrific, and Ubriel was having trouble with her emotions flipping from angry to worried and sad. She began to tear up, on the verge of crying when she saw Rory and Zacharyn walk into the stable and around the corner. Two grooms led three more horses up to them and they all walked out into the stable yard.

Ubriel finished tying her bags to the back of Peach's saddle and asked, "Are you ready, Asha'man?"

"It is somewhat unorthodox for one to weave a Gateway from the stable yard but..." Rory looked around at the lengthening shadows of the stable yard and the lack of people this late in the day. "I don't think there will be any harm in it. Especially given there is no one in sight to tell on us." The old asha'man walked out in front of the group of horses and people and lifted his chin slightly, squinted and began to weave the flows for a Gateway. The skimming platform that he created was large and made to resemble the ground in the stable yard. Walking their horses out onto the platform, Ubriel found her mind so preoccupied with worry and fear that she barely noticed the strange way that the light at the edges of their platform faded away, leaving an impression that the edges were shadowed. Rory took the lead and let the Gateway close behind him.

They mounted their horses and Zacharyn took up the rear, with the pack horse lead rope tied to his own saddle. Rory led them forward toward the shadowed forward edge that always seemed to retreat before them. A slow and maddening pace, Ubriel followed and knew that what seemed like a protracted amble was actually taking them leagues with every step. Finally, the forward shadows stopped retreating and the edge of the yard-platform presented itself. Rory took that posture once more and a silvery slash of light turned to expand into a gateway tall enough for them to ride out of. The rolling hills and tall grasses that greeted them carried the sweet scents of her childhood home mixed with the acrid smell of old fires. The dim light of the late evening, with almost no sun and a bare half moon in that late sky did not provide the vantage needed to locate the source of the acrid scent. But it was more than enough light for Ubriel to find her bearings and point them toward her mother's home.

Lying low on Peach's neck and forgetting her companions, Ubriel and Peach sped over the low rise and across a broad prairie. She flew like an arrow straight into the yard of her family farm and leapt from Peach's back almost before the animal had begun to slow. Peach, also remembering exactly where she was, trotted around a few times in the yard as Ubriel dismounted and then led herself into the barn, nosed open a grain bin and helped herself to some dinner. That is precisely where Rory and Zacharyn found her when they arrived in the barn. Rory grinned and chuckled at the practical nature of the horse and then dismissed Zacharyn to locate and offer support to Ubriel while the asha'man took care of getting Peach and the other horses tucked in to the small barn.

Zacharyn found Ubriel ensconced with her mother at their kitchen table and surrounded by children of various ages, sizes and states of cleanliness. One boy, just about shoulder height on himself, was twirling a dagger back and forth across the back of his fingers with great concentration and small but unmistakable pride that Ubriel was watching so closely.

[Zack]

It was Zacharyn’s first time traveling outside of the tower since he had become a Dedicated. He understood that the reason for the trip was rather grim, and he was appropriately disgruntled by the idea of the Shaido Aiel attacking Cairhien again. He especially didn’t care for them having cut through Morelle in the process. He had particularly strong feelings for Ubriel, and therefore her mother as well. Upon Ubriel asking him to accompany her and Rory-Asha’man, he agreed very quickly and ran to gather supplies for their journey immediately. Not an hour later they were standing in the stables of the Grey Tower, readying their horses (ponies) and pack mule.

Zacharyn listened as Ubriel prodded Rory-Asha’man to open his gateway and he became somewhat excited. He hadn’t been this close to a gateway! It happened very quickly, but Zacharyn was able to watch as Rory seemed to rip a hole in the pattern with his weaving of a gateway. He went over in his mind how Spirit had been used as a sort of scalpel to make an incision in space, and watched as Rory twined Fire, Spirit, and Air, into a braided cable that seemed to grow wider and spun almost like a giant post-drill forcing other bits of the pattern aside. Tucking his newfound information away, Zacharyn followed Ubriel and Rory-Asha’man into the gateway and assumed his position at the rear of their tiny formation. Rory-Asha’man in lead, followed by Ubriel atop her majestical battle Peach, and he himself, took up the rear with the smelly packmule.

The gateway closed behind them, and there they stood, single-file and silent they rode on the platform destined for Morelle. Nothing could be heard aside from the snapping of the packmule’s teeth as it nipped at Zacharyn’s horse’s flank. Twenty, perhaps thirty minutes passed with Zacharyn trying to work up the nerve to speak to Ubriel, and not knowing what to say. He was worried about her mother. He was worried about her home and friends she had. The best he could do for now was wait and hope he could help if and when the time arrived.

A short time later, their platform stopped and a new gateway formed. The drill like weave halted and a new air scalpel penetrated the pattern and dim sunlight shone on them as they stepped out into a field near Ubriel’s home. It was near dark and crickets were chirping in the tall grass around them. She ducked down tight against Peach and darted off quickly pushing a path into the grasses that rolled around them. Rory and Zacharyn set pace to catch up to her before complete dark had fallen. In the distance, Zacharyn watched as Ubriel dismounted Peach and ran into a moderately sized dwelling. He had to take the time to giggle as he and Rory arrived. It appeared Peach had made herself right at home with their grain bin. Rory-Asha’man shooed Zacharyn inside, saying that he would handle their horses and lead them away into the barn nearby.

Swallowing hard, Zacharyn stepped inside the home where he quickly heard Ubriel’s usually unflappable (hah chicken joke) voice speaking in quick almost jittery tones with her mother. Zacharyn stepped over the threshold into the kitchen and bowed when he made eye-contact with Ubriel’s mother, but remained silent and observant of what was occurring. He made a mental note to ask Ubriel if the uniform of a Dedicated made him frightening or unsettling to look at as he raised from his bow. Gazing about the room, Zacharyn took special notice of a young man who was nearly as tall as he preening under Ubriel’s gaze when she would give it, and watched as he flipped a small dagger very carefully through his fingers.

[Coga]

On a night, quiet in the coming dark, I was in the kitchen with the rest of the orphans and Mistress Bryne, spinning my dagger through my fingers. I had heard a distinct sound of the front door flying open and to my surprise I saw young woman in battle armor come sprinting into the kitchen yelling. She had a face of pure panic and distress as she walked into the kitchen. I noticed that she walked like she had been doing nothing but riding her horse for the last hour. As I watched them, I recognized the woman from when she used to babysit me. She was Mistress Bryne’s daughter, Ubriel. Then without me realizing, which is a very strange thing to have happened, a man walked into the kitchen and bowed deep when he saw Mistress Bryne. Even though there were maybe six kids in the kitchen at the time, he then looked straight at me. Then the realization that he was looking not at me but at my hand which had been spinning my knife the whole time made me suddenly mess up and give myself a small cut directly on my knuckles. Even though I was in a large amount of pain from the cut I then realized that the young lady was hugging Mistress Bryne.

[Bree]

Ubriel was overwhelmed with relief to see her mother calmly passing out sweets to a swarm of children. Some of those children, Ubriel had known in the past. Most of them, she was sure she had never seen before. The look on her mother's face was blissful as she looked around at the little ones. The look that overcame her when she lifted her head and her eyes met Ubriel's was rapture. "Ubriel!"

It was a short moment later when they were sitting together at the table. Some of the little ones still came darting in and out. One young boy, twirling daggers on his hands, was standing to one side. Ubriel recognized him as one of the children she had minded when his mother and father were busy elsewhere. Coga was his name. He was getting pretty good with those daggers. Her mother was asking her about where she had been and what she had been doing. "What made you come all this way?"

Ubriel sipped the hot tea her mother had made for her. It had lemon grass in it and Ubriel knew her mother had made the addition to remedy any saddle soreness and tiredness from her journey. She did not understand about Gateways and Healing. She had not yet been introduced to Rory or Zacharyn. All in good time. "I heard about the Shaido and how they came rampaging through the country. A messenger for someone in the Tower told me about the destruction in Morelle. I had to come see you."

Her mother reached across the table and patted Ubriel's wrist. "The mess didn't get out this close to Haddon Mirk. Most of it was on the other side of town." The fond smile she directed at Coga was full of sympathy. "It was only a trick of the Pattern that had me in town that day, visiting the Mame." Ubriel's mother was a good healer and was especially gifted with teas. The Mame was a woman so old that no one even claimed to have known her ever having been younger. She was skilled with poultices and teas, stitching cuts and setting bones. She could deliver babies and ease the pain from the dying. She had even arrived too late for one young woman who was giving birth. Delivered the stillborn child and then revived them both. She would have been eyed sidelong for that had she not been so revered already. And Ubriel's mother visited her often. Most times it was simply to deliver this herb or that when she had picked extra and she would often sit and have a cup of tea and share a story or two before leaving.

"That day, the Mame and I were sharing a simple berry tea and she was telling me about a time that she delivered twins to a woman too small to deliver even one. She stopped sudden and stood straight up. There is no bend to that woman's back and she must be old enough to have carried a mountain of worry in her life." Ubriel's mother clucked at the wonder of it and continued, "She said she could feel an evil in the air and told me to run and gather the children from the berry bushes. So I did. A woman old enough to be an Ogier tells you to do a thing and you run. I found Coga and about ten more all pulling berries from bushes that ran all down the hills and out into the fields from the edge of the village. I sent them running back here and then went scurrying through town looking for others. The ones you see here now are all I found. I went back for the Mame on my way back here with three babes in my arms and two more being carried by the Hensey girls."

Ubriel's mother grinned largely and sipped her tea. "That woman had found a horse and torn off into the fray. She was throwing some vile concoction that emitted a cloud so noxious I swear I think you could see it glowing green. A couple of those Shaido ran through it but most didn't and the ones who came through turned back soon enough. We all came out here to the house and stayed through the worst of it. Some of the kids went home when it was over. Some of them went but came back. Coga did." The look she offered to the boy was full of sympathy and pride and all covered in possessive compassion. He was one of hers now and she was glad he was there.

Ubriel looked around and realized that she now had more siblings than she could ever have dreamed of having when she was young and wishing for a little sister or older brother. She saw the joyful and soft look on her mother's face and was full of gratitude that these children seemed to return the fondness. "I am so glad you are okay. I can not stay for very long but I can take a few days and try to help you build or clean up if you need it."

At that moment, Zacharyn came bumbling in and made one of his odd bows to her mother. "Mother, this is Zacharyn Mael'Din. He is a Dedicated at the Grey Tower. Zacharyn, this is my mother, Nari Bryne." Ubriel's mother stood then and curtsied in a way Ubriel was not aware her mother was capable.

[Zack]

"Mistress Bryne, I am more than pleased to make your acquaintance. It's an honor to meet the woman from whom Ubriel has gotten her natural beauty." Zacharyn gave her his best winning smile and got no small amount of pleasure at the sharp look that Ubriel passed him when he finished with his flattery. "Mistress, I'm sure you were already explaining to Ubriel, but I hope all is well with you since the incident with the Shaido. If there is anything about that I can do to help your hearth and home, I humbly offer my services as a craftsman to you. So long as it does not interfere with what my superior, Rory-Ashaman, has in store for me while we are here I'll be glad to do what I can to aid you.

[Bree]

Nari Bryne stood and curtsied to the young man in the black coat and said, "How lovely. I hope that you don't mind sleeping in the barn shed. There is absolutely no room in this house."

Ubriel stood and took her cup to the stove to refill it. She listened as her mother oh so skillfully complained of too little room and then suggested having more would be helpful. "Sometimes I wish I could just wave my hand and have three more rooms off to one side. Actually, if I could put more room anywhere, it would be off of the back wall of the house. One room downstairs and another above it. You look like a strong lad. What did you do before you joined the Tower? Oh that is fascinating, blacksmithing. Swinging a hammer at molten metals, I suppose that is much harder than swinging a hammer at a tiny nail. Oh of course it is. Why yes I do believe you could handle framing up and finishing out an extra room or two all by yourself. Oh isn't it wonderful that you have no less than five helpers here to assist you. Oh this will be a marvelous opportunity for the girls to learn to sew as we will definitely need curtains."

In no time at all, Zacharyn had been taken up on his offer to use his services as a craftsman to aid her. Ubriel was almost in titters listening to it as it engulfed Zacharyn and he had little choice outside of being rude but to accept. Just near the end, in time to hear Nari express the good fortune of all the helpers, Rory came shuffling inside. A grand image in his Asha'man Blacks and his lapel pins, Rory presented himself before Ubriel's mother, made a sweeping bow unhindered by his arthritic hip and leg, and said, "I am Rory, Asha'man of the Grey Tower. I think a good addition on this warm home would be an excellent opportunity for Zacharyn to get some practice in with his skills. But first, a night's rest."

At one look at Rory's aged face, Nari reached out and said, "I have just the space. Cabe and Coga have been sleeping in the large storage cupboard here behind the kitchen and it is warm and dry and filled to bursting with blankets. I am sure they wouldn't mind moving out into the barn shed with Zacharyn to give you a nice soft bed."

[Zack]

Zacharyn was somewhat astounded by Mistress Bryne’s forward ‘acceptance’ of his offer and of being so quickly directed to do what she wished. It all seemed to happen very quickly and he now had to deal with a child that was a bit on the..angsty side. Zacharyn had to hand it to him; he had suffered a terrible loss, and Zacharyn resolved to be kind to him, even knowing as he thought of it that it was going to be hard.

As soon as Rory Asha’man had entered, Zacharyn noticed the look of respect and appreciation on Mistress Bryne’s face and the one of relief on Ubriel’s. She apparently didn’t care for Zacharyn being in her mother’s attentions. Rory looked at Zacharyn with a small half smile that he just knew would mean that he was in for a fair bit of difficult training using the One Power for the add-on to the Bryne house. Zacharyn was standing in a position the Tower liked for the lower ranks to use when in a formal situation and in the presence of an authoritative figure; he stood with his feet shoulder width apart, hands clasped behind his back. Zacharyn waited to be dismissed so that he may prepare his things for the evening, or just so he could get away from Ubriel’s cruel looking smirk. Sometimes his abdomen still ached from that stupid hammer.

[Coga]

At this point Coga was feeling anger starting to grow. but it quickly started to die when he remembered all that she had done for him. As he was listening to the conversation he began to dislike Rory more and more although he thought Zacharyn was being just as disrespected as he was. Suddenly he saw Cabe at the far end of the room trying to make out what they were saying. When Coga had heard them say that he and Cabe were going to have to move out he saw a big change in Cabe’s face; a look of pure sorrow. Suddenly Coga realized that Cabe was going to need help moving all of his stuff. Coga was his roommate and he felt that he should be there to carry some of his stuff.

Cabe was a six year old boy. He was a very small kid with shaggy black hair, maybe four feet tall. Although he was pretty mature around Coga, he acted like he was still a very young kid around most everyone else, even Mistress Byrne. He didn’t usually open up to any one very much, however, about once a week if neither of them were able to get to sleep, he would talk a little bit. He didn’t wet the bed at night or anything really bad, but he would often wake up early in the morning from bad nightmares. He was usually a pretty loud kid when he was playing or eating supper but he would breakdown crying every now and then. Coga would have to usher him back to the room and calm him down.

When Coga noticed Cabe looking down he calmly sheathed his dagger and walked over to Cabe and told him that he needed to go back to the cupboard with him and talk. Once they got back to the cupboard Coga explained, “We are going to have to move out and stay in the barn while an old guy sleeps here.” As they packed coga had the idea to put flour in the pillow and sand under the sheets so that the old man would get all sandy and, when he put his head down, flour would go everywhere. But he thought better of it realizing it would just make more work for Mistress Bryne.

[Bree]

Ubriel watched Coga hustle the younger boy, Cabe, out of the room and then asked her mother, "Where should I sleep, Mother?" Ubriel absolutely expected the answer to involve the room she grew up sleeping in and had already turned her body in that direction. Her shock and dismay were almost palpable as her mother disabused her of that notion.

"You will have to sleep in the barn as well, dear. There are six girls all crammed into your old room and there is simply no way I can ask those little ones to sleep out there. But there are plenty of blankets."

She was disappointed but understood. "I will go into town in the morning and get supplies for the house. I know it must be hard for you to get into town and get much done with this many children to see to."

Ubriel carried her things and four soft blankets into the barn shed and climbed the ladder to the hay loft. Kicking loose a bale of hay and spreading it around, she lay out her blankets at the front of the loft directly under the loft door. Late as it was she lay there a while staring up through the open loft door and watching the stars twinkle. She heard Coga and Cade setting up their things and Zacharyn stood in the shadowy darkness as hay and blankets arranged themselves, under his gaze, into a bed near hers. She watched him but did not speak as he made his place. He is very handsome. Strong. Tall and broad shouldered. Oh why does he have to make me feel this way? Why can't I ignore him and not care? She stifled a sigh and rolled away so she did not have to see him, even in shadow. It made her arms ache to watch him and she didn't want to have to think about why.

[Zack]

Zacharyn was still amazed at the forward actions of Mistress Bryne as he climbed into the loft of the large barn near the house. Shaking his head a bit at the daunting task for tomorrow, he leaned against the exterior wall of the barn. At least doing the building with the One Power will move everything along a fair bit faster. Zacharyn thought to himself.

Zacharyn shook his head exaggeratedly to free himself from his thoughts, and began to observe his home for the trip. There wasn’t much to it, it wasn’t a pole-barn, so he didn’t have to worry about falling through the floor at least. Sheaves of hay lay in large piles that were pushed tight against the wall in most places. He was standing in a section of the loft where hay had been removed for the horses, so there was more room for him to stand and pace back and forth if he wanted. There were walkways between the large stacks of hay with an area cleared directly in front of the loft door/window. A noise grabbed Zacharyn’s attention; when he turned, he found Ubriel coming up the stairs to the loft. He watched as she made herself a pallet in the floor with hay and blankets and decided to do the same.

Zacharyn grabbed hold of Saidin and let weaves of air arrange hay and blankets into a faux bed near Ubriel. He noticed that Ubriel had turned to look out at the moon and sat down on his bed. “Your mother is very sweet, but I really didn’t expect to be asked to add to the house.” Zacharyn said with a laugh as he looked out of the loft doors. “I’ll need to go into town to get supplies for the build. Would you like to come with me?” he asked.

Ubriel squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth, “I will be leaving with the supply cart at dawn. Be in it or find your own way.” With that she closed her eyes and proceeded to sleep.