The Grey Tower

Lysira Walker Gaidar Life had been...understandably tense, of late, in the Walker household.

Jerid was still the First Seeker, and Lysira was still a Gaidar. They had duties to attend to and that kept their days busy. The evenings were another story, and Lysira had felt her husband draw in on himself since Bryn's death. He took it upon himself as much as Lysira took it upon herself that she hadn't done more. If she had just listened to the feeling a moment sooner... Run faster... Cut quicker...

But Cade, even among his own sorrow at the loss of the sister he barely knew, was a bright spot in the life of both his parents. His protection was, naturally and unfortunately, stepped up. But he didn't complain. Not that he went to many places other than home and the library, which made for an easy but boring life for those watching him.

Then came upon an evening where Lysira had an idea. Something needed to happen. If just for a few minutes in time, they needed to think on something else... They needed a little joy outside of the melee of their life.

Cade had agreed to be "in" on it, and promised to stay safely in their quarters until his parents came home. His guard had been informed and would keep watch, with one promising to make sure he ate his dinner rather than read all night. Jerid was in his study--the benefits of family quarters for an Ajah Head--and Lysira made quick, quiet work in the bedroom.

She put on a dress. Yes, a dress. She rarely wore them, but she wanted something special tonight. She wanted to feel...different tonight. It was worn with boots with knives in them, of course, because she was not a fool. The hem a little higher than for most women to let her get at them more easily. But the boots had heels to afford her that appealing, feminine look.

Her thick black hair was loose and wavy, cascading over both of her shoulders and making her skin--gently tanned from life in the Yards--seem paler and the black of her eyes stand out more. Around her neck she wore the pendant Jerid had given her long ago. On her finger, she wore the ring. One more look in the mirror and she left the room.

"Mother," Cade said with surprise, his eyes widening as she crossed the space. She flashed him a smile and then reached the study door, where she knocked softly and then stepped inside. Of course, her husband was bent over the desk and didn't look up as she approached, so she walked near and got up beside him.

Her slender hand brushed over his shoulder to get his attention, waiting for him to look at her...

OOC: She's wearing this: http://images.halloweencostumes.com/pro ... ostume.jpg with a higher hem, as mentioned, and none of that silly headband. And in a nice indigo shade, just for him.

Jerid's gold-green eyes were on a map of the Westlands, specifically Cosamelle. Next to it was a strip of paper bearing an encrypted message.

It was the latest in a long line of bread crumbs his eyes and ears had produced on the Dreadlords responsible for his daughter's death.

More than a month had passed since his daughter was killed. If the Indigo Ajah had cautious of of its First Seeker before, it was walking on eggshells now.

Most avoided him unless it was absolutely important or if Jerid summoned them. Other than that he was not seen. Lysira and Cade were his entire world, the only ones whom he confided in.

Since Bryn's death, security increased around Cade. He asked a favor of the Yards to supply two Sa'Ji at any given time. They agreed to one, given all those to watched over him already.

Life continued. Except for him. He had lost a lot in his life: his son to the Seanchan, his daughter to the Fiery Serpent, and so much more.

And then there was Bryn, who died because she was his daughter. He had been a hair's breath away from stepping down as First Seeker, and letting his Ajah appoint someone else. The Creator had granted him a second chance with his family, and to know a daughter he had come to care about.

That dream deteriorated when he held his daughter's dead body in his arms.

He stood now, dressed in Asha'man black, eyeing the map. One hand brushed against the hilt of the long knife at his side; he was never without it. The green jade angreal ring around his finger, next to his wedding band, clicked in resonance, a silent reminder that he should always think like a soldier and worse … the demon so many legends spoke about.

The door opened, but he didn't lift an eye. At first he thought it merely a servant and almost ordered the tray of food that would remain uneaten to a side table.

But the bond told him something else. And he looked up.

“Lysira, I think I …”

He stopped when he saw his wife, dressed in an indigo gown, her hair down … and the pendant he had given her so many years ago.

Jerid's eyes widened slightly and his heart skipped a beat. And his mind flashed back to a moment so many years ago, at the Band of Brothers and a different dress of the same shade.

“Light, Lys, you look like the Light wept and gave birth to something beautiful,” he said.

His mind clicked. Jerid knew what was going on. He almost objected. He had work to do, had trails to track back and Black Ajah to hunt.

You still have people who love you, Walker. Your daughter might be dead, but others of your family are still very much alive.

The voice was so familiar, like almost like Trae Elien's.

His eyes went beyond Lysira for a heartbeat, barely noticeable by anyone but him. For a moment he thought he saw a flicker of the man he knew, but nothing was there.

“Lysira Walker,” he murmured, “I would be honored to join you for a night out.”

Lysira looked up into the ageless face and haunted eyes of her husband. What she would've given of herself to rush those demons from his gaze, but she knew that even her power was limited. She could only open cracks and pour her love in, hoping it brought some healing. Her onyx eyes glinting in the flickering candle light, she reached up to take his face in both of her hands. Lifting onto her toes, she pressed her lips softly to his.

For her, it existed like she was a light burning with the darkness surrounding her; waiting for its chance to crowd in on her but only coming in when she dimmed and allowed it. She knew it was different for him... His was more mottled between the two, so one may never know when you'd stumble into the darkness.

He wouldn't walk that unknown path alone, not anymore. If he wanted rid of her, he'd have to try a lot harder this time.

The only way she was leaving his side now was if she was dead...and Miahala Sedai had now proven that didn't even have to stop her.

As she pulled her lips back, she also took in her hands so she could speak. 'We shall be Jerid and Lysira tonight, for but this moment at least, as we once were. I have it all arranged. We shall spend the evening at the Band of Brothers and I would wish to dance in your arms once again. I would wish to spend the whole of the night in your arms.' She let a small but tender smile curve her lips as she held his gaze. 'If just this one night--' Who knew but she managed to make language in gestures gentle in tone. '--for this moment now, let us have this, my love.'

Jerid couldn't speak for a moment when he looked at Lysira. Light, but those dark eyes were what had drawn him to her in the first place.

Well, that and the fact that she had pulled his rear from a group of Seanchan so long ago.

The world fell away for a moment when Lysira kissed her and his arms wrapped around her small frame. He returned the kiss passionately, almost forgetting the last month.

When Lys broke away, he reluctantly let go of her. He knew when she needed to speak and that meant the use of her hands. Which meant he 'listened' more intently than others.

And her words hit home. One night alone, if only to forget the moments that had occurred over the last month.

He leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips. “I thank the Pattern for every second it re-wove you and Cade into my life,” he murmured, touching her face lightly. His gold-flecked eyes danced briefly and inclined his head.

“For this one night, if only that,” Jerid murmured. “Shall we, my love?”

She stole one more kiss as her answer, for what words were needed when such a gesture would do?

Taking his hand, she led him from the room. A man could make Asha'man black look just fine for a night out, and she found him quite handsome indeed as he was, while she had to go through the silliness of a dress. Pulling her out of his study and away from the things that would further mire him in his personal darkness, they passed by Cade as he sat on the sofa with--what else?--a book.

'Don't forget to eat your dinner,' Lys let go of her husband's hand long enough to say with a stern, motherly look. The type of look that only a mother could ever hope to achieve. 'And don't stay up too late reading, either.' Too often she had caught him in the middle of the night, candle burning its way to a nub while he'd been stuck in his book.

"I will eat and I won't stay up too late," Cade promised with a smile showing none of the young annoyance a man must feel when his mother insisted on being motherly. He smiled at her, and then at his father. "Have a good time." The note in his tone was almost pleading, like he wanted a moment of lightness for his parents as much as they did.

'Thank you, son,' she said and then took Jerid's hand again. Making sure they left their quarters before he had any sort of impulse to change his mind. Their destination: Hama Valon, and an old inn that still thrived despite a city having been raised around it.

The walk was not too long, and very familiar. Conversation was light, and she knew they did not pass through these paths unnoticed or without observant, protective watches. Even as she offered a smile and signed her half of the conversation, her own Gaidar eyes were never unaware of everything taking place around them as they entered the city and made their way to the Band of Brothers.

On their way out, Jerid's eyes landed on Cade. He knew from the second he observed his son that he had been in on whatever Lysira had planned.

He smiled softly. Cade was had good intentions and in the time since their reunion, Jerid had come to appreciate that he was turning into a fine man.

Jerid broke away from Lys only briefly to look at Cade and to kiss him on the forehead. “You're a good son, Cade, and thank you.”

Then he tapped his shoulder and added with a half-hearted grin, “Do as your mother suggests with reading.”

Then they were out the door and all too soon into the streets of Hama Valon. Jerid was quiet most of the time, other than engaging Lysira in some conversation. His eyes were on the shadows, his thoughts always half a heart beat away from grasping saidin or reaching for the knife at his side.

It was not until they reached a more quaint part of the city, one that Jerid had initially come to know as a second home apart from the Grey Tower. Elman's Creek had once supported the Grey Tower, much like the villages did around Tar Valon and that magnificent city did the White Tower.

Long before there was Hama Valon, there was this town. And it still maintained its character, its people still a proud bunch.

Even with the taverns and inns that sprang up since this city's birth, the Band of Brothers still remained a popular destination. Generations of Tower initiates had come here, some to celebrate their individual raisings, others to come as a group of friends.

An gold-eyed Accepted long ago attempted to get an unknown new Soldier to mingle with others. Needless to say, the results had been mixed.

That had been a long time ago, and that Wolfkin Aes Sedai who had been first friend at the Tower was long gone.

But then again, he had almost been assassinated here the night the Hall called him to serve as Master of Soldiers.

Lysira was the first to enter, Jerid half a step behind her. The Asha'man long ago accepted that a Warder led when it came to a channeler's safety, a lesson learned from his second 'death.'

The second they entered, it was almost a step into the past. The place was much as Jerid had remembered it, brightly lit, full of cheer and music. The Indigo smiled softly as he wrapped his arms around his wife.

For one moment, he forgot about the recent past and allowed the atmosphere to absorb them.

Everything looked...practically the same as when she had last been here. It was incredible how almost untouched by time this place was. Oh, certainly, the faces themselves were different but the place itself wasn't really. The decor and the atmosphere were all the same, and her Gaidar's eyes were able to scan the room and feel assured that all was well and safe.

Lysira turned back to Jerid just as he put his arms around her and felt at ease to relax herself into his embrace. Putting her own arms around him meant that she couldn't speak, of course, but the smile on her face ant the look in her eyes as she gazed into his eyes said more than her hands ever could.

Lifting herself onto her toes, she kissed him briefly and could almost feel like the interceding years had melted away. She felt like the music was settling into her body and it felt good... It was certainly better than she had felt for the past month. In someways, for a long while before that. She had been joyous in reuniting with Jerid, and being a family again, but this was different. Its own unique joy.

She leaned back enough to meet his eyes again and then nodded towards a table or towards the dance floor, lifting her brows at him in question: what shall we do first?

Some of the happiest times in Jerid's life had been spent in this hall, so very long ago. He remembered when Llewellyn Phyre first brought him to his first social gathering of other Learning Ranks, when he had first celebrated his raising to Dedicated.

And the time when you were almost assassinated for daring to accept the Master of Soldiers position, he thought.

That had been decades ago, before he met Lysira, before the birth of their son.

He shook the memory from his head as he took his wife's gaze in stride. It was an easy answer, in Jerid's mind. The years had been very kind to the channeler, especially for one who while still so old remained in the prime of his life.

The dance floor beckoned.

A tavern waitress came by before they took two steps, curtseyed and murmured, “Begging the Asha'man and Gaidar's pardon, but please let me take your cloaks.” Her brown eyes danced kindly as she looked at the pair. “It has been too long since the Lord Walker and Lady Mouse graced this hall, and old patrons are welcome ones.”

Jerid smiled politely and removed his cloak, handing it to the waitress before looking at Lysira.

“Dear wife, would you honor me with a dance,” he asked.

It had been a long time since Lysira had been called 'Mouse.' A long time since she had been that young, terrified girl who had to protect her "true" identity at all costs, hiding behind a nickname that perfectly described her personality and bearing at that time. She had been a mouse of girl when she showed up at the Tower, wholly unaware that it was her true origins.

Now it was just a name that brought a nostalgic smile to her face, as if she hadn't been feeling nostalgic enough being here on a night out with her husband.

As the woman walked away with their cloaks, the Gaidar's attention was drawn back to her husband. As titles went, "dear wife" was perhaps among her top favorites. It made small songs in her heart come to life. Instead of "replying," she slid her hands into his and smiled, tilting her head to the dance floor as she accepted his invitation and, on this floor where she was less the Gaidar, she let him lead.

Once on the floor, nostalgia continued to reign. She curved herself into his arms and let him glide them along the dance floor in perfect time to the music. Her onyx eyes glittered with a happiness that had been too rare in them over the recent years.

The small band playing the Band of Brothers tonight seemed more thoroughly skilled than ones in the past. Perhaps it was a good find, perhaps the inn was fortunate enough to avail itself of the musical talent coming through Hama Valon over the last few years.

However, they seemed to sense the mood and as such started a much slower, more intimate song. Jerid brought Lysira in close, one hand entwined in hers and the other on her back. If there was one thing the Indigo had not forgotten, it was how to dance.

And he knew from experience that his Warder was graceful beyond measure.

He led into the first sequence of steps, measuring Lysira's rhythm pace for pace. His gold-green eyes met her liquid dark gaze and he smiled softly.

“I remember a time so many years ago when we first did this, before anything else,” he whispered. “That first night I met you, was perhaps the best thing that happened to me in the years that went by.”