Signing Your Name

Miranna Aedori, Written by Jackson
Posted on Sun, Aug 29, 2010 00:14 am

The door that Miranna knocked on was plain and unadorned, she found it almost disappointing for the entrance into the office of the Mistress of Novices. From everything that Koralyn Sedai had said to her, this woman was the be all and end all of the White Tower – shouldn’t she deserve a door that depicted as much?

Upon hearing the voice commanding – because that what it was: the tone was commanding and possessed an authority not even Koralyn Sedai had – that they come in, Miranna, offering another smile of reassurance to Zerese, twisted the handle of the door and pushed it open, slowly moving in. She walked in hesitantly, checking over her shoulder to see that Zerese was following her. It annoyed her that she was so unsure of herself when confronting this Aes Sedai – what was the White Tower doing to her?

The office that they walked into was a large one, dominated by a large dark desk that sat opposite the door, and an old mirror that was hung on the wall. Miranna’s sight was caught by that for a moment as she wondered at its purpose; its large, golden frame was spotted and faded, and the glass that formed the mirror was beginning to shadow slightly with age. Everything in the office seemed to be old, but not necessarily in bad condition. Miranna was not sure why she would say it was old, because everything still seemed to be holding together fine, there was just an…antique air about this office that didn’t seem to come from the Mistress of Novices.

Candance Sedai was seated behind the large desk, quietly watching them as they moved into the office. Her features reminded Miranna slightly of the girl who was walking in behind her; the ageless face of an Aes Sedai was obvious and apparent, but Miranna also noticed the bold nose (although not as bold as Zerese’s) as well as the upturned eyes. The Mistress of Novices was the first Aes Sedai that Miranna had seen with grey in her hair; streaks of grey worked their way through the faded red, all of which was collected and pulled back into a tight bun. Her green eyes were silently studying them, until they fell on Eleria Sedai.

She seems a harsh woman, Miranna thought as the two Aes Sedai exchanged pleasantries. She met Zerese’s eye and both shared a small smile as they stood their silently, waiting for the Aes Sedai to come back to them.

“And you’ve returned with two girls for the novice books?”

At the mention of her and Zerese, Miranna drew her gaze back to the two Aes Sedai, neither of who were looking at them. Unbelievable! she thought angrily, they’re talking about us as if we aren’t even here! Light!

“I can only claim one of them, the other literally ran straight into us on our way here, obviously eager to have her name written down in the book and to have her life in the whites begin.”

Miranna felt her temper flair as Eleria Sedai pointed at Zerese and dismissed her so casually. Light, who did the woman think she was? Putting a hand to her cheek, Miranna was horrified to find that she was blushing at Eleria Sedai’s words, and quickly moved her hands back from her face to her waist, clenching them together tightly until her knuckles turned white, so that she could hold onto her anger.

“Who found you, child?”

“Koralyn Sedai.”

Miranna’s reply was short and she made a point of not adding on any honorific title that Koralyn Sedai had begun to train her two. The Aes Sedai could not speak so about her – especially in front of her – then expect her to follow her orders like a little girl! Light, she wasn’t on her mother’s apron strings anymore.

“You are to be a novice, child, and when you address an Aes Sedai who will address her with her name and the honorific ‘Sedai’ or simply as ‘Aes Sedai’. It would do you well to learn this rule quickly, my daughter, lest you spent more time in this office than you would be comfortable with.”

The Mistress of Novice’s upbraiding was sharp and expected, although Miranna had half been expecting to be bent over the desk as Koralyn Sedai had often said that she would be. She kept her eyes down and did not look the woman in the eyes – she would become more angry at that, Miranna was sure – and just continued to stand there, surprised that she wasn’t being beaten. Maybe the Mistress of Novices was not as bad as she had been told.

“Well, let’s start with you,” the Mistress of Novices said, pointing at Zerese, “I’ll need your name, age and where you’re from. I’ll be able to write this all down in the novice book and then we can get you enrolled.”

After the girl was finished, Candance looked up at Miranna and then motioned her forward. Miranna moved forward and sat down across the desk from the Mistress of Novices, now eyeing the woman warily as she pulled a book across the desk, picking up her quill to begin writing in it.

“Your name, child?” the Aes Sedai asked, looking up at her with a questioning look on his face.

“I…I could write it….” Miranna said, a raised eyebrow from Candance Sedai making her quickly add, “Candance Sedai.”

“Well I know that you can write, child – your name at least – but I prefer not to let girls messy up my book with their illegible scrawl. Now, your name.”

“Miranna Aedori, Aes Sedai,” she replied, meekly.

“And how old are you?”

“Fifteen summers, Aes Sedai.”

“Fiery for fifteen,” Eleria Sedai muttered dryly.

“And where were you born?”

“Shol Arbela, Aes Sedai.” Miranna settled herself for repetition, feeling that it was as close to rebellion as she dared.

“And now I need you to sign your mark here.”

Miranna quickly did so with a flourish, and then handed the book back to the Mistress of Novices.

“Wonderful, thank you child.”

In reply to Into the Novice Book[show]/[hide]

Zerese could not help a smile as the other girl accepted her offer. It would be good to face the Mistress of Novices with someone else by her side. Well, someone other than Eleria, of course; she had grown quite fond of the Aes Sedai during their many months of travel, but that was more as a pupil is fond of her teacher. It was simply inappropriate for an Aes Sedai to befriend a Novice, or even an Accepted, for that matter. There were strict hierarchies in place, and that was something that Zerese at least passingly understood from the start; Eleria had never even had to explain it to her.

Of course, that wasn’t to say she couldn’t become a little closer with Liam. Even that was a little too inappropriate for Eleria’s rather conservative tastes, but it isn’t as though the Warder had become Zerese’s best friend during their travels. It was nice to have someone to talk to about things other than the Power, as excited as she was to begin learning about it. She supposed even that would have to end now, though; her only friends would be the other Novices now, and even that only until her eventual raising to Accepted. That would forge new bonds and break others... as would attaining the shawl. Light, but the path of an Aes Sedai seemed complicated! Would she ever truly have another friend again?

There was no more time for thinking of it, though. They had knocked on the door, and moments later, a deep voice beckoned them inside. Zerese and Miranna looked at each other; bells jingled in the other girl’s hair as they both nodded, and each pushed aside one door as they moved into the room. Eleria flowed along behind, her movements fit for a queen advancing on her throne, despite the obvious wear of travel about her.

Her first look at the Mistress of Novice’s office told her that she was a woman of efficiency. There was nothing of flash here. Dark and sturdy were the clear orders for whoever had furnished this room. Cairhienin, perhaps, from the look of it; Zerese never did have much of an eye for such things, but she had heard they were rather plain and reserved folk in every respect. At least, where other eyes could see, they were.

It came as something of a surprise, then, when Zerese noted that the ageless woman sitting across the efficiently-carved desk of dark wood looked almost Saldaean! Gray had begun to pepper her hair, true, but it was fiery, and with those tilted green eyes and that sharp nose, what else could she be? Zerese supposed that should make her feel more comfortable, and yet she could not forget that she was standing before the Mistress of Novices, no matter how she tried. This was the woman who would upbraid her for not following the rules, set her extra chores in the kitchens for being late for class, switch her for showing disrespect to an Aes Sedai. Oh, Light send not that! Zerese had always been known for letting her temper get the better of her, but the Light send anything but that!

The girl turned halfway over her shoulder to look at Eleria as Candance addressed her. She supposed it was to be expected that they knew each other. Why was Eleria smiling, though? She must just have been glad to be back at home in the White Tower, Zerese decided. She was glad to be here too, after all. There were times when she had been certain she would never see it.

The Mistress of Novices turned her attentions to Miranna first, and Zerese nearly flinched at her response. She came from a family where Aes Sedai were very well known and respected—her grandmother’s aunt was an Aes Sedai of the Green Ajah, at that—and certain conventions were second nature. True, bobbing curtseys for every Aes Sedai that passed by would become quite difficult to get used to—she was, after all, the daughter of a noble family, if a somewhat minor one—but the proper way of addressing an Aes Sedai was worked into her bones.

Zerese practiced very hard at being invisible while Candance lectured Miranna. She did not want to add to the girl’s embarrassment by responding in any way, and the best way to help her stomach the situation would be to simply stop existing. Borderlanders were proud, and Zerese knew that she hated being upbraided at all, let alone in front of someone else!

But when Candance spoke again, Zerese nearly jumped when she realized that the woman was looking at her! She was proud that she had not actually jumped, though. That would have been too embarrassing to stomach. Instinctively, she dropped into a curtsey and introduced herself.

“My name is Zerese Demenia, Candance Sedai.” Thank the Light Eleria had mentioned the woman’s name earlier! She would have hated to fumble for it only to have to resort to a simple ‘Aes Sedai.’ “I am from Maradon, and I am just turned seventeen.” Well, she had just turned seventeen when she left Maradon. How long ago had that been? She found that she could not recall. It would be good to get her bearings in order again!

Phew! And just like that, it was done. Candance jotted down the information, and Zerese felt, somehow, like something had changed within her. Her name would be in the Novice Book now. That was almost as permanent as carving it in stone. She could practically feel the white around her. It was a difficult feeling to describe. Awe and trepidation all bundled up into one, mixed with bone-weariness. Hesitantly, she glanced at Miranna, offering a nervous smile of encouragement. It was her turn, now. They would become Novices together!

If only she had known that it was something only one of them actually wanted.

Login to post!


Replies to Signing Your Name

  • Living Quarters — Miranna Aedori, Mon, Aug 30, 2010 04:45 am