The Grey Tower

Avyra

The gardens were, in every sense of the word, quiet. Oh, there were people out there, from all sides of the Tower. But nobody was talking, or at least, not being loud. Avyra had a different idea. Seeing as this never bothered anyone before, she decided to have a run at it today. The day was beautiful, sunny but not hot, with no breeze. She was under the shade of her tree, sitting in the grass below it. It was a flute player's dream. Slowly, she closed her eyes, lifting the wooden instrument to her face. It was an odd flute, one held to the side and not forward, but it was hers. With the idea of a melody in her head, she began her tune. It wasn't anything special. It wasn't anything old or classic. It was something all her own. Her motions were natural; she hardly thought. There was no thought needed for music. There were only feelings. And the silence of the gardens made for a beautiful, blank canvas for her to paint her music across. She let her fingers flow like a river, keeping her eyes closed through her melody. It was a slow, lyrical melody, like something she usually played. Starting soft and building, growing and then falling before climbing back. Music was, in its rawest form, emotion, and Avyra let her tone carry all the emotion she had been feeling, momentarily leaving behind everything she had been feeling. For the moment, everything was perfect. All her disappointment at not being a good channeler at Earth, gone. All her inner anger she felt about Ravak's treatment of her, gone. All the love, the laughter she and Seonin had shared the other night, gone. All the passion she felt for Danos, gone. Her friendly love for Terric, gone. Everything left her, for the moment, filling the air around her in sound. It was how it felt to be truly at peace. She let her tone diminish, finally coming to her conclusion. She continued the long tone until the breath was gone from her lungs just like everything else she had once felt. But even after playing, she did not put her instrument down. She couldn't bear to move, not to ruin the silence. She only thing she could hear was the beating of her heart. Slowly, she put her flute down, opening her eyes.

Jhanic had run laps around the Grey Tower early in the morning to keep in shape in the beginning. Now, he ran laps at any time of day, when he had free time, to think. It was never planned, and it was not something that he made himself do. It had replaced his spears, in some ways. The rhythmic movements that spurred his body forth kept him focused on his problems. He had been doing this very frequently recently. He had asked for his spears for years now. And for years, he had been denied. They were property that he entered the Tower with, in the strictest sense. The Asha'man who held them even flippantly offered to let him test his abilities on his sword. He balked at the idea. He didn't care how good he was at Aligning the Matrix. He would never touch a sword. He had the feeling that his days as a soldier were coming to an end, though. Perhaps he could regain them if he became a Dedicated and was allowed to channel without supervision.

As he rounded a corner from the stables toward the Gardens, he heard something that brought him out of his cloud of frustration. A flute. The player was rather skillful in it, and it was not a song that he had heard, even after coming to the wetlands. It was unusual that something could pull him out of these moods, but perhaps it was time that something did just that. He slowed down to a trot as he neared the Gardens. There were others walking around, going about their business, but he spotted the person who was playing the flute after scanning the perimeter. A small, dark-haired novice stood in her own world, surrounded by the world that she no longer saw, no longer felt. Jhanic could relate.

He slowed down and walked into the Gardens, the other members of the Grey Tower moving away from him. He had been running for a while, and when he ran, he did not wear his black coat, so he could understand why they would edge away from a tall, sweaty man in his shirt sleeves. He casually walked up to the novice, and she seemed not to notice, so he sat across from her and enjoyed the music as she continued. He did not stare at her as she played, but rather enjoyed the greenery around him. Plants and the like sprouting everywhere didn't bother him as much as they had when he first arrived. It was rather calming. Perhaps he had focused too long on one thing. Perhaps he would have to study other things to move forward.

He looked up when the novice finished and opened her eyes. He did not have his spears and shields to make his appreciation known, so he clapped. "I see you, Novice," he said with a placid smile on his face. "That was very good. I enjoyed it."

Jhanic kept his smile as the novice spoke. She seemed a bit startled by his presence. Some of his fellow soldiers remarked at how quiet he was normally. It wasn't that he tried to be quiet, it was just that this was his nature. He found it amusing, their meeting. The last time he had been startled by a novice, and now it seemed like he had startled the novice himself. "Well met, Novice Avyra. May you find water and shade. I did not mean to interrupt," he said gently. He had heard the tension in her voice. He wondered if she had met another Aiel, by the way she responded to him. Perhaps it was his size and his scar that had bothered her.

"But I am glad that I heard your performance," he added. "It seemed just the thing to help realign my thoughts. I can't seem to concentrate on one thing without jumping to another." Jhanic laughed at himself. "Perhaps I should listen to music more often, if that is the case," he concluded with a shrug.

Jhanic blinked when he realized he hadn't introduced himself to this novice. He had likely been thinking too hard about things, as he usually did. Standing up, he brushed any leaves or grass from his trousers and his shirt. "I apologize for forgetting to introduce myself," he said. "I am Jhanic of the Serai sept of the Tomanelle Aiel. And, yes, you did answer that correctly." He offered his hand to shake tentatively. It was still a strange thing to do, and he did not do it often, but he hoped it made up for startling her. He also didn't explain his sept and clan to every person he met, but it seemed this girl had met one of the People before.

"Hmm...requests..." He did not suppose she knew songs that his people would know, but he did know a few songs from this side of the Dragon Wall from spending so many years here. "Do you know 'The Wind That Shakes the Willows?'" he asked. That seemed to be the most common song, and it was also one that he liked.

Jhanic noticed that Avyra stepped back a bit when she stood with him, but she did not appear afraid of him. She was quite a bit smaller than he, however. It must have been just for perspective, to keep him in sight as they spoke. She agreed to play the song that he had requested. He wasn't sure if he was the right person to teach another a song, but he had not sung "Wash the Spears" in what seemed like years. Jhanic nodded his head and tapped his foot in appreciation of the song. It was meant to be a rather sad song, as he had come to learn, but a well-played song was always appreciated. He had heard the song sung, and heard it played on instruments other than the flute before. It was a nice experience, listening to the somber tones through a flute.

He clapped again in appreciation. "You are quite talented, novice Avyra."

Listening as she spoke about possibly giving a class, he felt that she was wrongly discouraged from teaching others. "I would rather appreciate your others' music than try to make my own," he said with a smile. "Singing was an important part of my life before coming to the Grey Tower, and it was something that I did with my spear brothers as a whole. I don't feel as though I would take very well to the flute." The soldier laughed at himself for a moment before moving on. "But, do not feel discouraged from teaching, Avyra. Perhaps Mirin Sedai is waiting for the right time for you to teach, or perhaps she is waiting for you to become an Accepted first."

Jhanic studied the young woman in front of him. She was well-versed in the flute, and had a good ear for music, yet her confidence faltered at the thought of becoming an Aes Sedai. He could see where a change needed to happen in her, in order for her to move forward. He had met another young woman who felt held back, but she knew what her faults were, and she had mastered them wonderfully. Elia was Aes Sedai now, after all.

"Any training is meant to mould you into what you are meant to be, Avyra," he said calmly. "And you have time yet. We both do. Perhaps a day will come when I no longer feel the need to run laps in order to straighten my focus. And, perhaps a day will come when you can see yourself becoming the Aes Sedai that you will become, even if little by little. But, until then, you must trust that Mirin Sedai is strict with you for a purpose. I know that the Wise Ones in the Three-Fold Land are harder on those that they feel have potential, and they are much stricter than the Aes Sedai here."