Hidden in Empty Air [Attn: Jenn]

[Jenny]

Adrian worked among the bushes of the garden. Weeds, unwanted growth… the work was never ending. He was tired. Very tired. Initiates of the Tower were kept running from sunrise to sunset. Adrian was no stranger to a strict schedule or hard work – but each night, as soon as his head hit the pillow, it felt like his eyes barely closed before it was morning again.

The worst part was being called “child,” even by young Dedicated or Accepted who appeared to be in their teens. It was frustrating. He was twenty-eight and a battle-hardened, full-grown man. Yet, he knew that he was but a child in the eyes of his teachers. It reminded him of his lessons as a young boy with a quarterstaff. He had thought himself to be so skilled, then, especially after he had won the junior championship with his staff. It had taken him years later to learn how wrong he was.

It was the same way with the One Power, he thought. He needed to keep his head down, work hard, and slowly move his way through the ranks. He needed to keep his frustrations in check. Only then could he become an Asha’man.

He was nearly finished with this path. He lifted his head to wipe the sweat from his forehead. At the end of the row, he saw a woman dressed in novice white. She was tall, and her figure was slender and quite pleasing to his eye. She seemed to be staring at thin air.

Adrian rolled his eyes and continued his work. A novice, daydreaming into thin air, he thought. She’d soon be caught and sent off to work. But when he reached the end of the path, the woman – a girl, really – was still there.

She was still staring at the empty air. He wondered if something had gone wrong in her mind. He approached her back.

His voice was low, gravelly, and cautious. “What are you looking at?”

[Jenn]

“Your book, Aes Sedai.”

Katrie refused to be cowed by the icy stare the Aes Sedai deigned to grace her with as she rose from her curtsey. She kept her shoulders straight, her chin high, unfazed. She had done as she was commanded to, playing the role of an errand girl, and she had done it promptly. That didn't stop the haughty Green from going on about the importance of showing proper deference and... something about studiousness... Katrie stopped listening. That book must've been critical to the Last Battle itself. Or, the pretty Cairhienin thought with no small amount of vicious glee, maybe it's her favourite romance novel.

“Yes, Aes Sedai,” she replied levelly as the woman finally stopped speaking, dipping gracefully into yet another curtsey as she was dismissed. Thank the Light.

It was a funny thing, how she always seemed to find herself in the gardens. Soon, her irritation faded however, replaced instead by fascination. There were saidar residues scattered about and Katrie made it a game to see how many she could spot. Added bonus if she could actually recognize what the weave had done.

She didn't have to be holding the Source in order to see the residues anymore, which pleased her. However, the drawback was that it made getting anywhere difficult, as she was in a constant state of distraction. Oddly enough, she had never once been singled out or sent to penance for it. She couldn't go near the Channeling Yards either – the sheer number of residues she tried to pick out and follow made her eyes cross and gave her a terrible headache.

Accepted Mirin had promised to keep Katrie's Talent a secret, but others were starting to notice. Maybe not her fellow Novices, but some of the Accepted certainly. She was also sure that there were more than a handful of Aes Sedai that suspected. Katrie never needed to be shown a weave more than once, and their eyes stared out from their ageless faces, weighing and calculating, as she focused intently off into open air. She was beginning to realize that she was a weak channeler overall, but she would be one of the most dexterous. And she could see what very few others could.

She gingerly stepped over a strange residue that was laid out over the ground of the path in front of her, but it was barely more than a shimmer. A ward, maybe? But for what purpose? To alert someone deeper in the gardens of someone else approaching? She couldn't help but grin a little. Maybe there were others like her here in the Grey Tower that weren't so straitlaced all the blighted time.

A flash of colour caught her attention and without realizing it, Katrie's steps slowed until she was standing in the middle of the path. What did that weave do? She had never seen one of that size or complexity. Her fingers twitched and she reached for... her journal in which she kept track of the residues she saw. She cursed silently, forgetting that she had rushed out without it. There was no way she was going to be able to commit this to memory, but her mulish pride said otherwise. Her eyes traced over every bend and angle. All five powers were involved... She blew out a breath of frustration. But what did it do?!

“What are you looking at?”

She started a little as a voice rolled over her. Low. Male. Gravelly. Not unpleasant. It came from behind her.

When her heart rate returned to normal, she answered without turning around, dark eyes glaring at the faint, opalescent lines. “I'm looking at an imprint of saidar.” It was truth enough while still vague. If he didn't know of her specific Talent, that was. “I can't figure out what it does.”

Katrie turned then. The first thing she noticed was his height. He was somewhat taller than she was, and she had to tilt her face upwards a little so she could look him in the eyes. They were a fascinating shade that she couldn't quite pinpoint... she thought she saw both grey and green. He was nice to gaze at, and he had approached her first. She smiled, arching upwards a little so he didn't miss her meaning. “What did you think I was looking at?”

[Jenny]

When the novice turned, Adrian's heart skipped a beat. She was very attractive, with smooth coppery skin and dark, luminous eyes - eyes that promised and teased and hinted at more. When she smiled, the expression lit up her face, and Adrian couldn't help but to smile back at her.

He set down his bag of weeds, suddenly self-conscious of the sweat and dirt that he had accumulated. Light, if only he had met her during a festival! He would have danced his way to her heart. How did the saying go? Dance well with a woman, and she's halfway yours. In his experience, he had found those words to be reasonably true.

A small voice spoke in the back of his mind. You're too old for her.

Shut up, he replied. But he knew the voice was right. He was twenty-eight, fast approaching his thirties, and this woman - this girl, really - was surely not past twenty. If he had been ten years younger, then he would have pursued this girl with all the fire of youth and young love. Not that he would turn her down, now, if she made the first move...

Somehow, he maintained the presence of mind to avoid her question. That question could lead to... dangerous territory. He stuck his gloves in his pockets and grinned, mirroring her playful demeanor. "An imprint of saidar? What does that mean? I am new here, you see. My name is Adrian Danethor. Pleasure to meet you. Could you explain?"

[Jenn]

Without conscious thought, Katrie found herself studying him, this Adrian Danethor as he'd introduced himself. He was fair-skinned, with dark brown hair. She noted the set and breadth of his shoulders, letting her eyes follow up the lines of his chest to the curve of neck and jawline. He wasn't the most handsome man she'd ever laid eyes upon, but there was something about him that made her want to lean in.

“Welcome to the Grey Tower, Adrian.” Her smile grew dazzling and she shifted ever-so-slightly so that she could look up at him through long curling lashes, taking full advantage of the effect. “My name is Aikaterine Riatin but please, call me Katrie. It's a pleasure to meet you as well.”

His smile never wavered. If anything, it grew wider. Adrian kept staring into her eyes. The way he gazed back at her made her stand a little straighter. He looked... older. The barest hint of red stained her cheeks beneath the coppery hue of her skin. Katrie had always liked older.

“I... hmm...” The sound that her voice trailed off into was very nearly a purr. She tapped her fingertip against her mouth deliberately as she thought, the very tip of her tongue darting out to wet pink lips as she forgot momentarily about flirting. She had no idea how to actually explain what Reading Residues was like. Accepted Mirin had known almost immediately what Katrie meant. Would he...? The pretty Cairhienin took a second look at what Adrian was wearing. He had been pulling up weeds, if the gloves he'd pushed into his pockets and the bag sitting at his feet were any indication. She'd done her fair share of 'gardening' and thoroughly despised it.

“You're a Soldier?” That was more a statement than a question, but he still nodded. She made a small sound of satisfaction, deciding to tell him the truth, more or less. She was curious to see what he'd do with it. “When someone releases a weave, it disappears.” Katrie spoke carefully... she had personally never experienced that, but it was what every other Novice complained about. “It's the same with saidar, only I can see the residues from the weaves – the imprints as I call them, after the weave has been released. My mentor calls this Reading Residues. The more complex the weave, the longer the imprint stays around.”

She fell silent for a moment, her look inquisitive. Adrian hadn't looked away, not even once. Katrie didn't know what to make of it, but she knew that she liked it. “As you can imagine, it makes going anywhere here” – her small gesture encompassed the Grey Tower – “kind of difficult. Does that make sense?”

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((OOC: I hope I played Adrian correctly. If anything needs changed, let me know and I will ASAP. )

[Jenny]

Adrian had no idea what she was talking about. Disappearing weaves? Imprints? Reading residues? He had been here less than a week, and was still struggling to control saidin, much less weave it into anything useful. But he enjoyed watching her talk. The way those lips moved, the way her eyes sparkled... he liked looking at her. He liked it very much.

Who knew that the Grey Tower had such beautiful women within its walls? He had never thought of Aes Sedai as anything but mystical creatures. The stories spoke of dangerous witches who could summon lightning from the skies and cure any ills, whose words were full of wisdom and never meant what you expected. But now that he was here, within the Grey Tower, he was learning that Aes Sedai were merely women. Powerful women, but still human, with fears and loves and needs just like everyone else. They lived and breathed and ate and slept. They were no longer legends and stories - they had become real.

And the girl standing in front of him, speaking of whatever talent or ability she had, was certainly very, very real. He let the sound of her voice wash over him. That accent... was she Cairhienin? A novice, and a Cairhienin at that, with the seductive manner of a Domani and the face of a goddess. Dangerous and distracting... in the best possible way. It would be stupid to fall into her trap, but at the moment, dazzled by her beauty and blinded by lust, he didn't care.

"Mmhm," he answered absently. "Makes perfect sense. What is your name?"

[Jenn]

Dark eyes blinked as he asked for her name. She had given it already... hadn't he been listening? She clasped her hands behind her back, giving her head a little toss. Adrian's light eyes followed every motion she made, every breath, every subtle shift. Her excitement took on wings, fluttering around in her stomach.

Katrie leaned in closer, tilting her face even farther upwards towards him. She couldn't decide whether she was delighted he was so obviously taken with her, or annoyed that he was so taken with her that he wasn't paying any attention to what she was saying. Why couldn't she be both?

“I've already told you my name,” she said conspiratorially, her voice smokey and low, dark eyes simmering with heat. The pretty Cairhienin then gave a perfectly timed smile, a glimpse of white teeth flashing into view before disappearing behind slightly pursed pink lips. Her tone was light, her words spoken with matching casualness. “But I don't think you were listening.”

Maybe he wasn't even listening now.

She straightened, pulling back away from him just a little bit. Katrie let her eyes linger on his face, his lips, before sliding her gaze down to the hollow of his throat. “If you can convince me too, maybe I'll tell it to you again.” That was said with a playful wink as she glanced back up to his eyes, her mild irritation fading. “Are you new? How long have you been here?”

[Jenny]

Oops. He hadn't been paying attention. What was her name? His mind whirred as he tried to recall her words. He had been too caught up in watching her. Usually Adrian thought himself to be observant; but this clearly didn't hold true around attractive women.

He tried to recover from his mistake and said, smoothly, "How do you like to be convinced? Come, walk with me. I need to get rid of this." Adrian gestured to his rucksack of weeds. He led her toward the shed at the very back edge of the gardens, tucked away in an obscure corner, and spoke as they walked. "Do you like horseback riding? Or dancing? I've been told that my singing is rather poor, but if you like music then I could try that as well. Or perhaps - " he brushed her arm, " - perhaps you like reading poetry, somewhere private, while bathed in moonlight? I'm afraid that my poetry is disturbingly bad, but it could still be... entertaining."

He leaned closer to whisper that last word in her ear. Her height made it easy, and he found herself liking it. And if he was reading her body language correctly, then she liked him too. Then Adrian remembered her question.

"Oh, yes, I'm very new," he said. "Been here less than a week. I've made a few friends. Fen Garlan is my roommate. He's a strange fellow, but so far we get along alright. I also met to practice swords with two men. Prewtez and... the other was named Ravak, I think. And now I've met you."

There was a large wagon by the shed. He lifted a leg, testing his balance, and then leapt up on the edge of the wagon. With a heave, he dumped the contents of his bag along with the rest already there. When the bag was empty, he jumped off.

"Whew! Finally done," he said. "I wish that we could channel to do chores. We would probably learn faster that way. That's how they do it at the Black Tower." His mouth turned to a frown. "Although that is dangerous too." He saw her questioning glance and waved a hand. "A story for later. Let's find some shade. Enough about me. I want to know you better." He guided her to a bench. A recent memory flashed into his mind and he smiled. "Ah, yes, you said that something made going anywhere difficult. Care to explain that? I promise that I'll follow along this time."

[Jenn]

Entertaining.

Yes, this most certainly was entertaining. Katrie allowed herself to be lead by Adrian, her gaze lingering on the back of his neck. She sat down next to him, smoothing the white folds of her pristine white dress and tucking the excess fabric beneath her legs.

She had unconsciously perked up at the mention of Rav's name, a little private smile curving at the corners of her mouth. “I enjoy horseback riding and dancing, though I haven't had the chance to indulge in either for a long while. As for disturbingly bad poetry bathed in moonlight,” Katrie smiled teasingly, “I'm afraid I don't know what that's like, as... entertaining as that might be.”

She glanced up at him through long, curling lashes, pretending to consider his offer. She was sorely tempted to ask him more about practicing swords with Rav - what was that like?! How had he done? - but somehow, she didn't think that asking about the Shienaran Drin would be prudent. Katrie only just managed to curb her curiosity and refocused her attention on the man in front of her, her mind slowly turning over as she thought of the simplest way to explain what she had meant from earlier.

“Mmm, well. Anytime a channeler channels, a residue is left behind by their weaves even after they've released the Source. It hangs around in the air, sometimes hours, sometimes days. And I can see them... if it's saidar, at any rate. The more Power that's used, the longer the residue is visible.” Katrie smiled becomingly. “It's become something of a hobby of mine to try and keep track of what I see. It's not bad here in the gardens, though I do stumble across one every now and again. That's what I was looking at when you approached. The Channeling Yards, for obvious reasons, is the worst and if I actively avoid going there at all if I can help it.”

She sat back, resting most of her weight on the strategic way she placed her hands behind her. “Does that make things clearer?” Her look became innocent. “Or shall I repeat it again?”