Snippet #2475004

Rahien

Rahien stroked the dark mane of his most reliable companion, Aldazar, before mounting and heading out with the Aes Sedai and his fellow Warder, Tuomas. He wasn't pleased with this journey at all. They were heading into one of the most dangerous situations Everinn could get involved with. The rare carefreeness he was able to grasp at the training grounds back at the tower had completely disappeared from his being, and he now was the outwardly calm, confident and relaxed, inwardly tightly wound and alert, man he always was in these situations. The constant tension was wearing, and it didn't seem that it would soon let up. He almost sighed as they stopped at the White Stag, a place he was slightly familiar with, but not with content. It would be more of a depressed or frustrated sigh, but it never left his lips to be heard.

Rain watched with a careful eye as Everinn dismounted, not a single silk of hair or flow of cloth out of place. He was probably the only one to notice the slight, almost nonexistent shake to her petite frame and her step that was a smidge less graceful than normal. That, he didn't like. Not one bit. To the common eye, they wouldn't notice a bit, but to him, who has seen and watched her everyday for years as her Warder, it was obvious that she was unsettled. As the wheels turned in his mind, he wasn't sure if he wanted to say something to assure, comfort, discourage, or annoy her. Giving up, he settled for a simple sigh, saying more to himself than to her, "We shouldn't have come." Of course, she ignored his comment, passing her reigns to the stable boy.

Everinn cut her eyes at him for a moment before turning away and striding into the inn. Rain followed suit, dismounting Aldazar as one of the stable boy reached for the reigns. He patted the horse's side. "You understand, don't you, Aldazar?" The horse grunted, stomping a foot, and Rain took that as a yes. He had a reliable companion indeed.

Following the women inside the inn along with his fellow Warder, Rain scanned the room casually, not noticing anything out of the ordinary as his eyes travelled across it and then back to the Aes Sedai. Soon, a woman came, seeming to cause Everinn to relax a bit and walked off with the Aes Sedai. He noticed Everinn give his companion, Tuomas, one of her finest glares, but didn't pay it mind as another of the Aes Sedai, Maiuri he believed, looked back at them with cold eyes before briskly turning away. A deep frown adorned his features as Everinn and the others left them here, and he heard the familiar voice of Tuomas say, "Rahien, should you wish to follow, you have ever leave. I believe I may watch from the common room."

He turned to the man as Tuomas turned away. "And if I follow they'll gang up on me for invading on 'women's business'," though he said that, he moved to a spot in the common room where he was as close as he could be to the room the women disappeared into and still have full view of the commons area, much more alert now that Everinn was out of sight.

Maiuri

Maiuri found the travelling both as a hassle and as refreshing. Not so much so a hassle because of the journey itself, but because of her companions. Always with her were Sisters whose Ajahs were none too happy with her own, and both had their own warders. Light! She was just thankful that the green had only one. On top of that, being in a place where she was surrounded by those insolent White Cloaks didn't help the situation much at all. They were the worst type of man, and all fools at that, though a dangerous lot that she wished to avoid.

Dismounting in front of the White Stag was a bit of a relief. It was strange enough to the common eye to see three ladies and two "guards" as they seemed to appear to be trotting through the streets. She supposed it to be even a bit stranger because not two of them were of the same race. She blessed the cloak she was wearing, the concealing cloth an unusual comfort, but a comfort none the less. She glanced over her companions as she handed her horse over to the stable boy, then silently followed the Blue into the inn. Glancing around, she noted it was better than most she'd been in, but not the best, not that she would complain.

A woman came soon, leading them away and introducing herself as Reane. A nice name, and easy on the tongue. Before a word could be spoken from Maiuri, the Blue felt comfortable enough to ask directly what should have been handled with care.

"Reane, how the times have changed us all... I fear we do have great need of you yet. We are coming on the word of a False Dragon, here in Amadicia. Have you heard word of this...matter, yet?"

A cold fire found itself in Maiuri's eyes. Even if this woman before them is the Blue's informant, she should have asked that particular question in a more indirect way. Though the Red Sister usually appreciated bluntness, in this situation, she believed it was inappropriate. Did this girl not have a wit about her? Brushing off her thoughts (what's done is done, after all), she decided to add to Everinn's question, "Or has word come of any other strange happenings?" in an offhanded tone and manner. Not sounding impolite, but merely cool and slightly impatient.