Two Sides of the Coin [attn; Bruce]

[Sunny]

The flood of angry words began, and did not end for some time, accompanied by physical expressions of anger that surprised the much smaller Altaran. While Jaryd did not know as much about the Aiel as he would have liked, he had spent many years studying law and culture when he had thought he would be joining the Grey Ajah, and the Aiel had been a part of his curriculum. His memories of that, plus what he had observed of those few who had come to the Grey Tower, had indicated that the Aiel people prefered to keep their emotions hidden.

Jaryd listened without showing his reaction, however, dark eyes focused on the path ahead as he sorted information into a semblance of order. He had little reason to believe that Herarn would lie about what happened, but there were two sides to every coin, and anger bred misconception at unheard of rates. As bondmates to the same woman, and with the Shienaran’s protective tendencies, he and Ravak had spent a considerable amount of time in close proximity to one another over the last few weeks. The Gaidin had not shown himself prone to such outbursts; what had happened? Kaia’s state of mind certainly made sense, now. Why Ravak Darrow had lost his temper could be addressed at another time.

For the present, the fuming Herarn had to remain Jaryd’s priority. The Keeper remained silent for long moments after the Dedicated had finished speaking, as he considered where to start. “Thank you for describing what happened in such detail,” he said finally, without a trace of irony. He stopped short and faced the man, arms crossed over his chest and ageless face impassive. “It seems to me that there are several issues of relevance to you that need to be addressed.”

His voice gained a steely quality. “You are a Dedicated of the Grey Tower, and with that title comes specific expectations and guidelines for behavior. It is your duty to be familiar with those rules, to follow them, and to set an example for those below you at all times. It is not your duty or your right to be question order given by someone of higher authority than yourself, particularly in front of those of lesser rank.” One spidery finger rose in the air to forestall Herarn’s objects; to Jaryd’s silent relief, the younger man closed his mouth. “It is especially not your right to be insubordinate to the Master of Training, whose absolute authority over all our learning ranks is equal to that of Asha’man Soti and Mirin Sedai.” That did not sit well with the Aielman, Jaryd suspected, though of course he had no way of knowing for sure. He moved on.

“While your response to Ravak Gaidin’s behavior is of concern, more troubling to me is how quickly you lost sight of propriety and gave in to your temper- over nothing but words.” The Keeper’s voice was tinted with disappointment. “You are well along the path to become an Asha’man, and as such you are expected to maintain composure in the face of far worse than what you just encountered. You may some day lead men and women into battle -to dance the spears, I think you called it?- and if you allow anger to control your insight and thought, your followers’ inevitable deaths will lie heavy on your soul.” He fell quiet for a breath, allowing that to sink in.

“I do not entirely understand this “toh” that your people speak of, but I do see there are gaps in your knowledge of Tower policy and the expectations of a Dedicated. As your penance for both stepping out of line with those novices and for losing your temper at the Master of Training, you are to report to my office for an hour after lunch each day, where you will sit opposite me at my desk and copy the volume of Tower Law that governs the learning ranks- rules, expectations, desired outcomes, and the like.”

He smiled grimly. “I will speak to Asha’man Soti and Ravak Gaidin on your behalf- there will be no need to trouble either with this matter any further. If I hear you have chosen to go around my back to do so anyway, you will also be copying the laws regarding the consequences of insubordination in addition to whatever penance the Master of Soldiers sets you.”

Tilting his curly-haired head to the side, the Asha’man looked up at the Aielman with sharp black eyes. “Do you have questions?”

[Bruce]

Herarn wanted to object about the first point, he stopped. He was completely enveloped in the Void and it was easier to be objective. Though the second point struck too close to home. The fact that he had gotten so damnably angry was something he was still trying to figure out.

Though when the penance was levied against him, he couldn't help but wonder if he would have just been better off cooling off completely in the gardens before going to Soti Asha'man's office directly without the explosive release of anger. The thought of all that time with quill, ink, and parchment.... it would be bad. He was simply glad that it was only pertaining to the rules, expectations, desired outcomes, and the like of the learning ranks. Copying the entire Tower Law would have been abusive.

Bowing he simply said, “I understand. Though I have a class that I'm in the middle of teaching Wards II: Combat Applications tomorrow and I have to debate my stance on the Aiel War the day after it's the final assignment for me to get credit for Current History of the Tower. Should I find a replacement or come to your office beginning the third day hence?”

Suddenly, Herarn's skin tingled and he looked up sharply towards the northeast. Something was coming, but he wasn't sure that it was rain. Rain always felt like a cool breeze across his skin. This felt like being whipped by desert sand. His eyes got a far off look as he tried to focus on the sensation while it lasted, “There is a storm coming.... but not rain or hail... A sandstorm."

[Sunny]

Jaryd titled his head to the side, looking up at the Aielman with considering black eyes. "You may come to do your penance during your free hour for the next two days," he said calmly. "And then after that, at the regularly scheduled time. "As for sand storms- it is difficult to have a sand storm without any sand, but stranger things have happened."

With a small smile, the Asha'man dismissed the Dedicated and made his way back to the Tower. It was time to speak to Ravak and Kaia.

---

OOC: I apologize for the abysmally short post, but I am absolutely swamped and simply trying to tie up loose ends. Penance should be a minimum of a thousand words. I want to read it before it goes public, because Jaryd's character is very particular. Please send to greytower1@gmail.com.