The Grey Tower

Kiellan thought for a second. What would he name the flower? "Perhaps you could name it after something it reminds you of? For example, the flower reminds me of Amaresu. Do you know her story? Her weapon was the Sword of the Sun, which also seemed to glow by itself. That's how the flower looks as well. But you might have your own association. You're its creator."

Kiellan chuckled. He wasn't exactly sure how to answer her question. "I survived. Mostly thanks to my mother. She was a Wise Woman, a healer, and people respected her. So people usually didn't dare bother me. When they did, I fought them. I'm good at that, always have been. Whenever I had the chance, I sneaked off to the main part, the richer, less violent part, of Ebou Dar. Those were the best days. I would listen to the merchants and travelers, and their stories of faraway lands. I promised myself that one day, I would see what they were talking about with my own eyes, that I would get out of Ebou Dar. I don't really think I believed myself, though. Yet here I am."

His cheeks reddened. He had just blurted out his life story, and why would Betrys care about that. "Sorry, I don't always know when to stop talking. I didn't mean to bore you. What about you? If you've never seen a city before, where are you from, than?"

"The Amaresu Lily." He smiled. That was a name for a flower, not something ridiculous like 'orchid'. "Perfect. But yes, I understand what you mean. You know, I couldn't even read before I came here. Never saw why it was necessary. Not that I had a teacher available, either. These Asha'man and Aes Sedai, they act like nobles, so completely different from what I was used to. I've grown to like reading, but stories can be so much more informing at times."

He wondered what it had been like, growing up in a tiny village in Andor, a good distance away from any large city. He didn't think he would've been able to do it, a life in such a small town. Working on the farm all day, no strangers coming by to tell of their amazing travels, the same few people every day. Life in the Rahad wasn't easy, but it also wasn't boring, and that had always been something Kiellan appreciated. The vibrant city always brought something new, something different.

The mention of brewers gave him another idea. "Do you think we could use our Talent for that as well? Making our own ale and wine. I bet we'd be able to make the best drinks ever. A merchant once explained to me the process of making wine. I don't remember all of it, but it should be enough. I might try that."

Kiellan smiled at Betrys. "That would be amazing! I know it's made from grapes. They supposedly grow abundantly in the Altaran countryside, but we didn't have a lot of them in Ebou Dar. Luckily, I know they have them here. There's a part of the Gardens that's filled with all kinds of fruits and vegetables, even some I've never even seen before. I once tried one, a strange, round thing that kind of looked like an apple, only redder. But the inside was squishy and mostly liquid. It was horrible." He laughed. He loved it that the Tower still had so many new things for him to try, even after all those years.

He was also still searching for the limit to his Talent. He had already managed to accomplish so many different things without any help, except for his books. He had learned how to fight with it, how to grow, how to wither, how to break rocks and mend them again. It would be interesting to see if Betrys had pushed her creativity in the same way. "I wanted to propose something," Kiellan said, smiling, although a bit more nervously than before. he wasn't sure how Betrys would feel about his plan. "You've been a tremendous help to me with Earth Singing, and I have been thinking of a way to thank you for that. Perhaps it would be interesting if both of us would give the other something -but not just anything. It has to be created using Earth Singing. Except for that, it can be anything you want. Doesn't have to be anything too complicated, just a few simple weaves. What do you say?"

Kiellan smiled. His idea had been impulsive, and he was glad Betrys agreed. He quickly wondered what he could do. He had managed to do some sculpturing before. He had enjoyed that. It seemed he had always been better at destroying things than creating them, but this was one thing that he was actually good at. Possibly because it was as much destroying as it was creating. But perhaps, he could find something better for Betrys, specifically.

He knew it was about time to go for him. He had his next lesson in twenty minutes, and he didn't want to be late. Only a year ago, he wouldn't have cared, but the Tower apparently had influenced some change in him. How could it not? Still, as much as he had enjoyed this conversation, it was time to wrap it up.

"I'm not proposing a harsh deadline. We both know how busy life as a Dedicated, or Accepted, can be. I'm not really sure when I'll have time to do this, but when I do, I'll let you know. Of course, there's no pressure to be done by then. This is just for fun, and shouldn't interfere with any classes or other tasks." Kiellan smiled apologetically. "But listen, I've got to go now. My next class is coming up, and this talk has been longer than I'd expected. But again, thank you so much. Especially for a girl, you've been amazing."