He became aware of voices as he stood there. They came not from the windows above, nor the Yard around the corner, but instead from the trees to the north. He arched an eyebrow, but did not move. No business of his what people got up to in the forest, after all. He pulled his flask from his belt and took a swig, the fiery liquid burning its way down his throat. As he replaced the lid, he realized that one of the voices he heard was female.
Still not my problem.
And yet, somehow the Tairen’s feet carried him north, rather than west, creeping slowly forward until he could see a small clearing where two men in light gray faced a woman in white. By color and height she could only be Aiel, yet the novice held a wooden practice sword in her hands. Stranger things have happened, I suppose, than an Aielwoman with a sword. He couldn’t think of many.
“Come on you said you wanted to learn to fight,” one of the men said, his tone mocking. “What, are you afraid you might get hurt?”
“I’m not afraid,” the girl spat, shifting her stance a little.
“Just hit me, you bloody savage!” The second walked forward, tapping her sword with his. “It’ll be fun, come on.” As Dax watched, the two continued to walk a fine line between teasing and bullying as they coaxed the white-clad woman to strike at them with the sword. It quickly became apparent that they had no interest in teaching her anything at all.
“This is boring,” the taller man said eventually, “I’ve better things to do with my time.” He turned as if to walk away, and came up short against Dax’s chest. “Oh. It’s just you.” He sneered a little as he spoke.
The Tairen lifted his hands over his head and stretched lazily, then brought them back to his sides without breaking his gaze from the Drin’s face. “Indeed. It’s me. I believe there are stable stalls waiting for your ministrations. If I don’t hear from the head stableman that you spent the next week covered in muck, you will spend a month running around the Tower Grounds every morning with 'just' me. I will personally make certain of it.”
The two men dropped their practice swords and scattered with muffled oaths. Once they had gone, Dax turned his gaze back to the girl. She had lowered the wooden blade, but otherwise hadn’t moved. “Have you ever held a sword before?” The Gaidin asked. "Why start now?"