Choosing to Heal (Attn: Astarte)

[Leala]

Betrys's measured tone made Torianin relax as she went on. She nodded as she spoke about using herbs, and what one might use the class for. She needed to have an open and focused mind for this. There was no reason to worry, now that she had made it this far into the lesson. She was confused, at first when Betrys Sedai said that Healing was not about solving the problem of the patient, but she kept her mind open. She must have meant something more specific in her theory. Her question made Torianin think back to her days in Seanchan, though.

"Before Saidin was cleansed," she began, "I encountered one or two men who could channel while I was still in the collar. In one case, the man surrendered himself us, in hopes that he would..." she paused, trying to make this sound less brutal than it had been. "...Be stopped before he hurt anyone. In the others, it took a team of damane to subdue the men, who usually seemed like they were in their own world, rather than in reality." One of the men behaved as though he were the Emperor and they his servants, which just enraged the der'sul'dam. Now that the collar was gone, she was glad that she had not been the one to have killed any of them. Had she felt that emotion while wearing the a'dam, she would have been punished severely. "They did not behave under the law or obey commands to stop. I know there would have been other ways to have helped them, but the Seanchan likely still do not believe that they have the right to receive aid." It was a sad topic. She wondered if any of the men could channel now with Saidin free of the taint were able to escape.

[Astarte]

Betrys had heard about that time, but her village had been small and isolated, so all she'd really had were stories and that was it. Which had made coming to the Grey Tower something of a challenge. She had believed that male channellers were still dangerous but thankfully that opinion and belief had changed, not that Betrys had needed to be terribly worried about it all given that she had meant and made good friends from among their number but it was a sound point to make.

"I never met a man before the taint was removed but yes, illness like I spoke of in reference tae the mind can be like that. Though it be nothing of the Dark One...well nae usually" she was not about to get into a debate about the possible reasons behind such things, that would be pointless and generally long-winded. She was not of an Ajah gave themselves over to such debates and considerations but instead sought to solve the issue as it stood in the moment "When the taint afflicted the male half it was then that some of the Sisters would gentle those men in order to protect them and the world from the madness...it is no longer necessary that this should be done" she admitted warmly allowing a smile to cross her lips "There are those who suffer ailments in their thinking and such which create...madness for lack of a better term. There are ways of helping them but they are complex but nothing admittedly on the scale of the taint..." thankfully, those who were mad tended not to be possessed of the One Power - at least none she'd met.

She hoped she wasn't overwhelming the other woman "Please ask questions, I dinna want to make yer head spin..." she admitted and waited to see how she'd respond.

[Leala]

Torianin had heard of "gentling" before. She had not been in the Grey Tower for very long, but it was something that she had been taught about in her history classes. She had to take a lot of those. History here was very much different from the history that was taught in Seanchan. Gentling and stilling were a new concept, though. She had never thought of ways to cut one off from the True Source, besides using shields. Now that she was out of the collar, she struggled to find crueler punishment than that. She was glad that there were ways to help with illness of the mind, though. The One Power was truly wasted on the narrow-minded Empire that used it mainly as a tool for battle.

She smiled at her teacher and shook her head. "No, no, I find this fascinating! I've learned so much since coming here. I never knew the One Power could be used for all these things. And part of my 'healing' after I came here had to do with you. I think that if someone else had taught me when I first came here, I may not have been able to be raised as quickly. I think that first lesson helped more than I originally thought it did." She paused, trying to think of more questions. "Let me get back on track, though. Um... is it true that Healing doesn't leave scars?" she asked. She had heard rumors of the pristine condition that Healing usually left the body, but they were just rumors.

[Astarte]

Taking on the role of a teacher had been a strange sort of achievement, she was proud of it but more than new enough that she occasionally had her moments of doubt about the whole matter "I'm pleased to have such a patient and willing student, that assists in any lesson and the means of teaching what should be learned" Betrys smiled briefly "Well..." she paused and turned slightly as she considered the best means for answering the query "Yes, Healing can accomplish much. We know that more was once possible but a grew deal was lost, not just for the matters of assisting others but the rest of the One Power and what could be done - some of that was due to the loss of the male half of the Power for so long and of course the chaos..." she stopped and chuckled briefly.

"I apologise that was rather a tangent but the library here is full of such tantalising pieces of information about such things and you'll swiftly find that experimentation and research are often as important as learning your lessons - although I stress that for the moment, you should restrict yourself to lessons and not trying something new" the last thing Betrys wanted to see was a woman hurt as the result of trying to over-reach beyond her present limits and capabilities.

Continuing with her previous point "In short, Healing does leave no physical scar if you complete the action but we often do not go all the way...remember you are using the patients own body to Heal and an excess to leave them unblemished might well not be in order" she explained "You'll find sometimes the best way is to begin and treat what is beyond herbs and natural time and then see how it goes. Remembering that often more than one patient is likely to be in need over the course of the day" she explained.

[Leala]

Torianin nodded as Betrys Sedai explained the importance of herbs and looking outside the One Power for Healing. The patient would need a full recovery. "I should start researching in the Library, then," she concluded. "I'm glad to know that I have the basics of the weave down, though. "And I will most definitely take the class on herbs." If the weave relied on the strength of the patient, extra help would be needed, especially in cases where the patient was gravely ill or harmed. "That should give me some good groundwork, I think." She nodded again, this time to herself.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, blinking. "I can't believe I forgot about Delving," she said with a small laugh. "It would certainly help if I could see what was wrong with the patient before trying anything. It may even catch something that the patient does not know is there. Can we practice the weave for that, or should I wait a bit?" she asked, hoping she wasn't pushing herself too hard. She wanted to get a good framework for her studies first, though. She hoped she didn't sound too over eager. Betrys was so patient and understanding, and sometimes Torianin's nerves took over when she was unsure of something.

[Astarte]

She had never been one to offer a chiding approach, although as a new teacher to the younger members that might be something that needed to change and the sooner the better...perhaps. Betrys knew she had still much to grow into but that didn't mean she was so terribly worried about any of it.

That would create only an added burden where none was needed or necessary. It would certainly not help the teaching of the lessons she had to share with others.

"The library as a resource is something that I can only recommend" it was a suggestion which amused her no end, given her own beginnings but this girl was vastly different from the one she had been and Betrys was pleased that she'd thought of it on her own "I can show you the Weave, but another time. It is more complex than the other and you should not overstretch" that was the softest of chastisements and a reminder that they had already worked hard on the matter without needing to worry about another new lesson and Weave.

Betrys paused a heartbeat of time "You should practise the Weave I showed you, the confidence will need to be there for there will be little time to think about it when the need for it is there" she remarked, aware of the demands of the injured and also the fact in battle it would be that much more difficult.

In becoming of the Yellow it was more than simply offer a tonic to soothe a chill but also being ready to offer aid at the worst of times. The last Battle would be upon them soon and everyone needed to be as prepared for that as possible. So triage and training had to be encouraged as much as possible, even if it was a poor substitute for the real thing.

[Leala]

Torianin nodded as Betrys explained that Delving would be for another lesson. She was eager, but her nerves were likely getting to her as well. She wanted to impress the Aes Sedai with how willing she was to take on the mantle of healer, but perhaps that was silly. She had a lot to learn about healing, but this was a good start. She made a note to visit the Library before she learned about Delving, and she would certainly look into herbs as well. For now, she would keep all she had learned in mind and practice her weave.

Embracing Saidar, she decided to do just that. Slowly and methodically, she wove a flow of Air. Then, even more methodically, she wove a thread of Water in, under, and through the weave of Air. After this, she added the Spirit, letting it flow over the weave before her. She examined it, and started again. Air, Water under and through, and Spirit added over the weave. As she practiced, it began to become easier for her, even though Spirit was not the easiest of the Five Powers for her to manipulate. She liked this. Torianin felt like, for the first time, she could be able to help someone with the One Power. She knew that she would have been able to do this with other weaves, but this weave was specifically made to help others who needed it.