Channeling unsupervised equals a trip to the MoN's office

[Marit]

Walking through the Tower from the Library and back to her room, Kitty was very thankful to Suu for giving her some landmarks to follow. She managed to find her way without getting lost even once, and she couldn't help feeling a little smug when she found the right door. But it wasn't her room she was heading for now. Looking down the hallway, she tried to recall back to that morning, and started backtracking her steps to the office of the Mistress of Novices.

Her smugness faded as she managed to get lost a couple of times on the short way, but soon she stood outside the same room that she'd been in only earlier that day. She hadn't really thought she'd be back here this soon, not for such a reason anyway.

Kitty drew a deep breath as she stood outside the door. She fished out a piece of paper from her pocket, neatly folded, and unfolded it to reveal the text written on it. The handwriting was a little more rumpled than usual, as she'd written it while walking. She scanned the note again quickly.

[kitty]Mistress of Novices.

I am to inform you that I channeled unsupervised in the Library today. It is a habit I learned at the Black Tower, where they encourage the use of the One Power for menial tasks as a way to learn faster and get stronger more quickly. I had forgotten that this is not allowed here, and I apologize for breaking the rule. I submit myself to your punishment.

Novice Ci'tanni Shannaran[/kitty]
Folding the note neatly together again, she lifted her hand and knocked on the door, waiting patiently for permission to enter. Once that came, she would enter the room, curtsy deeply to the Mistress of Novices and hand her the note.

[Stasia]

Illyria Malkom The Mistress of Novices had become accustomed to listening for timid knocks over the course of her time in office - they were not nearly so loud as the knocks of Aes Sedai nor Asha'man; most novices were adequately frightened of her. Illyria thought that she was not as severe as the women that had held the office before her - she was nothing like Zaephra nor Laela, but she was a great deal sterner than Celene. The Yellow had been much like a loving mother. However, Illyria supposed that her own reputation arose from the fact that she was excellent at emotional distance and the pseudo-manipulation that was required for dealing with disobedient children.

Though truly, most of the women in white are rightfully adults... The Tower tradition of stripping channelers of their status of maturity was a useful one, though. Rank and respect was not something that could be earned only through time spent breathing, here. The Great Serpent ring and later the shawl could only be earned through obedience and hard work. And so, when Ci'tanni curtsied low upon entering her office, her head bowed meekly with respect, and deposited a slightly crumpled note upon her desk, Illyria watched her body language carefully. Tongues could lie, but posture could not.

She scanned the parchment with a cool gaze, reading quickly. Ci'tanni had been enrolled at the Black Tower as a Soldier before arriving here (although the idea of the Black Tower accepting women among their ranks was entirely backwards to her, Ci'tanni possessed enough control of saidar to make her story credible, and the clothing that Illyria had burned herself upon Ci'tanni's arrival had been very masculine and very black.) The girl was a conundrum. She was clearly advanced enough in her ability with saidar to keep from harming herself, but the rules were not simply something that could be ignored because she believed that they did not apply to her - nor could Illyria insinuate that Ci'tanni had any special privileges. Raising her to Accepted directly after admonishing her so that she would have free reign over her power would not do either; Ci'tanni was as much a Novice as any other girl here, and had to learn that rules applied to her as well.

Illyria cleared her throat, glancing up at Ci'tanni from the wrinkled parchment and wondered how to proceed. The Mistress of Novices did not doubt the authenticity of her claim - she was far too relaxed to be lying - and yet, punishment would need to be doled out in spite of her sincerity.

"Novice Ci'tanni," she began quietly, "It is quite clear that you have been well-trained at the Black Tower, and that you are aware of the dangers of using saidar can pose if one is not careful. And yet, I will have to punish you. It gives me no pleasure, but mistakes come with consequences that are as real as true disobedience, even if they do not come in the same form." She folded her hands on her heavy, ancient desk, and stared directly at the child, and spoke coldly and clearly.

"What do you imagine would be a suitable punishment for this transgression? Do not attempt to diminish the severity of your misstep by attempting to ease your penance. I will know if you try, and should you do this, I will select a punishment that is ten-fold unpleasant for you." She had become accustomed to harshness - though she detested it, it was the only way to ensure their safety and progression to Aes Sedai. She found that forcing the novices to select their own punishment had a dual purpose: she was not forced to come up with an unpleasant experience of her own volition, and she found that the wise girls chose tasks they hated the most - meaning that the lesson stuck.

She pulled a sheet of parchment off of a small stack she kept near paperwork for notetaking and handed the child a quill and an inkpot. She settled back into her chair, prepared to give Ci'tanni as long as she needed to select an appropriate penance.

[Marit]

Kitty nodded meekly as the Mistress of Novices spoke quietly, and hid the smile that wanted to reach her lips. It was nice to hear the woman acknowledge her training and her skill. And yet she knew that fact wouldn't make it easier for her. She listened as the Aes Sedai spoke on, and a slight surprise spread in her face as the woman stated her punishment.

She would have to choose her own punishment? That was quite new, and surprising indeed. That would never have happened at the Black Tower. And yet she did not doubt the woman when she warned her not to diminish the severity, or she could select a punishment ten-fold. She was still trying to process the new situation when the Mistress of Novices pushed a sheet of paper and ink and quill in her direction, and settled back in her chair, clearly giving Kitty the time to think.

And think she did, or try to. Her mind went back to the Black Tower, and what kind of punishment she would've gotten there for such a thing. In truth, she wouldn't have gotten any punishment for channeling as she had; they encouraged it after all. And some of the other punishments they handed out, she doubted the Grey Tower would even think about, much less actually execute. She shuddered as her mind touched the Traitor's Tree, and she tried to push the memory from her mind, but succeeded only in increasing it as she thought of it while trying to forget.

Stay on the task, she told herself firmly, speaking "aloud" as well, her hands flicking irritatedly. Yes, the task. What kind of punishment did she deserve for channeling without promise? And on her first day even? Maybe if she was banned from channeling at all for a week? But that would also limit her learning for that time. And it would be horrible to refrain from that sweet touch for so long, she could barely stand thinking it, much less suggest it. And yet, it was a severe punishment for her transgression.

She reached out for the paper, hesitating slightly as she tried to think of something better, or not as horrible for herself. Could she even do it? Could she refrain for a week, when she couldn't even refrain for a day? Maybe she could suggest a few days instead of a week. A week was a long time. A hand of days would be better. Yes, much better.

Kitty pulled the paper closer, and grabbed the quill, dipping it in the inkpot. It was a different quill than the one she usually used, the one she carried in her belt, and it lay differently in her hand. Strange what the mind focuses on.

[kitty]I believe a suitable punishment would be to withhold any channeling classes for a hand of days, and double that time if I touch saidar within that period. Also to revoke my free periods for a week, spending those in physical punishment, like mucking the stables, or in assisting the Aes Sedai.[/kitty]
She couldn't think of any specific assistance jobs that would fit, or be needed, but if the Mistress of Novices chose that for her, she was sure the woman would know and appoint her a suitable boring one. Biting her lip slightly, she handed the woman the sheet, and waited.

[Stasia]

Illyria Malkom

Illyria waited patiently, and after a few minutes, turned back to her paperwork; there would be no sense in wasting time while Ci’tanni did her soul searching, and no good would come from pressuring the girl. In fact, the Mistress of Novices appreciated her slow, creeping thought process. It meant that she was clever enough to care.

After some time, a soft sound disrupted her scribbling at Accepteds’ self-defined progress reports, and Illyria glanced up to see that Ci’tanni had passed her another note. She took the paper and read quickly, pleased to see that the smudged writing she had been presented with earlier was not consistent; the girl wrote in a neat, clean hand - pretty enough for anyone who had received proper training in the art of letter-writing. That will do her good once she’s reached the shawl, she thought, And is one less lesson she will have to take as a novice.

“Five days without saidar,” she repeated to the child, “And a week’s worth of chores. Very well, Ci’tanni. I believe that your punishment is suitable.” She took another sheet of paper, and recorded Ci’tanni’s digression and punishment, ready to copy into the heavy record book of novices’ and their lives for later reference. She would have to select whether the girl did hard labor or served a sister or brother for the week, but that was an easy decision; Ci’tanni was used to hard labor. Unlike most of the girls, mucking stalls or endless chores would not be as great a deterrent to her. It would be better to do something Ci’tanni was less accustomed to.

“You will…” She paused, reaching back to her own days as a novice, and attempting to recall what had been the most boring task. It would have to be something with nothing to do with the One Power. “You will help Cara do’Lamri - an Accepted, aspiring Brown - in the Library. I believe she’s working on categorizing Old Tongue essays.” Illyria did not bother to mention that Cara was entirely unpleasant and off-putting, nor mention that Cara was about as far as ready for the Great Stairs as an Accepted could possibly be, despite the years it had been since she faced the Arches. It would be an exercise in patience for the both of them.

No doubt, Cara needs it more than Ci’tanni… But hopefully, Ci’tanni will learn her lesson.

“Please have her sign a sheet of paper at the end of each session that you spend with her, and bring the sheet to me at the end of the week. You are excused, Ci’tanni.” She gave the girl a thin smile in parting, and hoped that her lesson would stick.

OOC: Have fun! =D I'm not sure if the NPC page is up yet, but here's a copy of Cara's stats, just in case.

Accepted Cara do'Lamri
Origin: Tear
Ajah/OP Strength/Talents: Brown/3/Warding(4)
Weapons/Abilities: Unarmed(2)/Pattern Reading(2)
Description: The youngest daughter of an unpopular House, she compensates for her lack of noble status with sheer personality. Snobbish and unfriendly to those who do not meet her personal criteria for association, she can be difficult to ask anything of. Particularly so if one needs to find a tome in an obscure corner of the Library. Yet, those who manage gain her confidence are rewarded with arcane knowledge.