The Grey Tower

Elia smoothed her skirts self-consciously as she followed the raven-haired Accepted through the Indigo Ajah's halls. For all of the bold audacity she had communicating with her peers, she had an equal reserve of dutifulness and servility for those above her. Accepted made her cognisant of every word and action she took; with Aes Sedai it was more than doubly so.

They arrived at a door that seemed as unremarkable as all of the others, but the Accepted knocked twice. Upon hearing a muffled "Enter", the other woman pushed open the door to admit herself and Elia.

Elia's breath still caught a little as she peered upon the ageless face of the Indigo Sister. She often wondered how her own features would change when, if she was raised to the shawl. The Aes Sedai was wearing her shawl, evidently proud of her Ajah. Not that Elia had any right to judge - she had no idea what Ajah she may choose when that time came. Focus on the now, girl! She chided her foolish fancies.

"Child, would you be so kind as to pour both of us a cup of tea?" The Aes Sedai's voice was clearly Andoran, and that made Elia's skin prickle a little. Her father was Andoran, and hearing that accent somehow reminded her of home. Elia caught sight of a side table, with a steaming teapot and two cups upon it. Her heart sunk a little. If the water was cold, she may have been asked to channel to warm it, and that meant saidar. She could sense the wonder of the True Source, but as dictated by the rules of the Tower, she could not channel without permission.

"Nothing in it for myself," the Indigo Sister continued, "but help yourself to the cream or honey if you so desire. And then you can tell me what it is you wish you could accomplish." Carefully Elia poured the two cups of tea. She would have went without tea herself - the last thing I want are tea stains in my dress - but the Aes Sedai had stated she would have a cup. She put in some cream and a drop of honey for herself, stirring it briskly as to not keep the woman waiting.

Elia moved with exactness, keeping both cups steady as she made her way to the Aes Sedai. As soon as the Aes Sedai took her cup, Elia offered a curtsey. "Thank you, Aes Sedai." She took a slight sip of tea to clear her throat, then proceeded hesitantly. "I- I wish to learn more about ter'angreal if that is allowed." Blue-green eyes watched impassively, so the novice continued. "I have been allowed to handle a ter'angreal, and I was able to sense... what it did, in a fashion. I can't put it into words very easily, but I..." She trailed off as she thought about whether it was wise to say any more. Light, if she doesn't ask about the other ter'angreal, or even if she does, it doesn't mean... Her thoughts trailed off under that cool stare.

"I was able to feel out what the ter'angreal did with saidar, with flows of Air and Spirit. I thought, possibly, I may have some inclination when it came to ter'angreal. Everyone seems to have their own capabilities, Aes Sedai. I thought, possibly, mine may be with ter'angreal." With the words finally out, she resumed sipping on the tea, watching gingerly for any reaction in the Indigo.

Inwardly, Elia grimaced. She had wanted to avoid, as best as possible, mentioning Ravak's ter'angreal. That was perhaps a foolish notion, but there was no getting around speaking about how she had come to recognise this ability without referencing the cause.

"The ter'angreal was in two parts; a quill and an inkwell. When I channelled a flow of Spirit into it" - there was no getting around admitting she had embraced saidar either - "I felt a resonance between the two, as if they were drawn towards one another. That's how I knew they were part of a singular whole, instead of two separate ter'angreal working in conjunction."

The novice supped from the teacup before continuing. "With Air, I was able to detect a flow of... something between the quill and the inkwell. I know that the quill drew ink straight from the well without the need to refill the nib." Voicing that out loud in front of the Indigo sister, Elia felt a bit stupid. Of all of the wondrous things that ter'angreal could do, such as the Oath Rod or the multitude of objects that allowed anyone to enter Tel'aran'rhiod, she had divined the mysteries of a self-filling pen.

She smoothed her skirts with one hand, the other unsteadily holding the teacup." I'm sorry, Aes Sedai. Maybe I thought too much of myself. I suppose it's quite a trivial thing, when the base objects themselves so clearly indicated their purpose. What else would a quill and inkwell do, but write?" Cheeks turning red, she finished the rest of her tea in a single mouthful. No wonder I'm still in white. Still got a block. Can't see beyond my foolish fancies. If she wasn't holding onto the cup, she would likely be dry washing her hands like a child awaiting punishment.

Elia avoided answering the question about Ravak's ter'angreal. It could be argued it was with an authority, albeit probably not the proper authority. That was about as close to an Aes Sedai answer as she could think of, but she knew the Indigo would see past the evasion.

The Shienaran turned her focus onto the silver ring with the crystal inset, and to the sister's words. "You will embrace saidar, and we will see how acute your Talent is..." Elia closed her eyes as she reached out to the Source. She saw the flower bud, the glowing light, the unfolding petals... Saidar infused her, filled her with warmth and joy and- She forced her attention back onto the ter'angreal, trying to ignore the glow that surrounded the Indigo.

Elia reached out towards the ring with a fine thread of silvery Spirit, carefully not to channel into the ter'angreal, only to probe it. There was no resonance like she had felt with Ravak's quill, no pull towards another object in the room. She wanted to reach out and touch the ring, to ensure it was as the Aes Sedai had said. Or maybe it was a fluke.

Filigrees of Air replaced the flow of Spirit. A loose web of the Power surrounded the ring, seeking out a disturbance. She felt something push against those weaves, nudging them slightly into a different shape. Moving the net, she edged delicately towards the force, a considering sound rising in her throat. The net settled around a loose form that could have been a little statuette.

She let the net dissolved, replacing her examinations with a flow of Water. Again, she felt a presence above the crystal, but this time it drew the One Power into a well. Much in the same way she could feel the flow of Water through a sensation of weightlessness, she could feel other sensations from this well. Familiar feelings and voices tickled at the edge of her awareness. She squinted despite herself. She just had to concentrate on the form made from Air and the sensations from this pool of Water...

Elia heard her voice as if it came from another source, as if she was floating somewhere above her own body. "The ring forms an image of a person." The pool was in much the same shape as the net. It produced a mimicry of someone's appearance. "Andor." The voices that she strained to hear, that strained to be heard were clearly Andoran, even if she couldn't make out a single word. Something in the inflections of certain sounds made that clear. "An image of an Andoran." Nothing else came to her, and with reluctance she let the Water dissipate.

Malachite green eyes glanced at the Aes Sedai, hoping for approval in that ageless visage.