Blocked, Part Seven: Forged in Fire

[Amarea]

Summary:
After finishing her eventful lesson with Catisune Sedai, Amarea unexpectedly comes across Accepted Elmitsu in the warders' practice yard. Another wilder like herself, Elmitsu confides in Amarea her own personal experiences that she thinks led to the development of her own block. Amarea questions Elmitsu about what it means to become Accepted and to face one's fears, and questions whether she has the courage to do so herself.

POV: Amarea
Main characters: Amarea, Elmitsu

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The Warders' Practice Yard
A large expanse of bare ground at least fifty paces across and nearly twice
as long stretches forth, its earth beaten hard. At intervals around it
under the trees stand wooden stands holding quarterstaffs and practice
swords made of strips of wood bound loosely together, and a few real swords
and axes and spears. A large gray stone building lies to the east, home to
the warder students and those warders who are not sharing quarters with
their Aes Sedai in the main Tower structure itself.

A sign hangs on the wall.
[ obvious exits: N E S W ]
An iron lantern hangs from the wall above the gate.
A weapon rack stands on the ground here, ready to store weapons.
Some elaborate figurines spew fresh water into a broad basin here.
Elmitsu the Journey Accepted is standing here.
A gray palfrey prances skittishly nearby.
A warder's student stands here catching his breath.
A warder's student stands here catching his breath.
A grim storyteller reads from a journal.
A warder's student stands here catching his breath.
A warder's student stands here catching his breath.
Coulin the Master of Arms is here teaching his students.
A gray haired weaponsmaster stands nearby.

Amarea says 'Oh!'

Amarea curtseys before Elmitsu.

Amarea says 'Beggin' your pardon, Accepted, I didn't see you come through.'

Elmitsu smiles sweetly at Amarea.

Elmitsu says 'I'm easy to miss.'

Amarea giggles.

Amarea says 'I actually was just talking about you with Catisune Sedai!'

Amarea says 'And hoping I might have a chance to meet with you.'

Elmitsu winces at mention of the Aes Sedai's name.

Elmitsu says 'She is a battleaxe. You better not get me in trouble!'

Amarea blushes furiously.

Amarea says 'Oh no, nothing like that!'

Elmitsu continues, "I -just- finished my penance from Aelrena Sedai."

Amarea adotps a quizzical look. 'I'm sorry, I didn't know anything about that. She was just talking to me about my block, and asked if I knew any wilders who had one, and I mentioned you because you said you had experience with one.'

Elmitsu looks around the practice yard, "Oh, yeah. I remember what that was like."

Amarea presses, 'If you have a few minutes, could we talk about it a little bit? I could really use your advice.'

Elmitsu says 'Well, I am kind of an expert.'

Amarea says 'I'm also curious about becoming an Accepted. I only just got promoted last night, but I haven't had much of a chance to speak with many Accepted yet besides Aleera once or twice.'

Elmitsu clears her throat, "You must be very good if you want to be Accepted."

Amarea blushes furiously.

Elmitsu cups her hands around her mouth to say this next as a stage whisper, "So you have to be -really- careful if you want to have any fun."

Amarea chuckles politely.

Amarea says 'I think all of us would want to work hard to some day reach the shawl, don't we?'

Elmitsu studies Amarea with a critical eye, likely auditioning a new co-conspirator.

Elmitsu says 'Yes. Work hard, play hard!'

Amarea grins playfully.

Amarea says 'Could you tell me a little bit about your block, Elmitsu?'

Amarea says 'And why you think you had it?'

Elmitsu paces around the edge of the Practice Yard, occasionally stealing glimpses of the young men training there.

Elmitsu says 'I guess I could.'

Amarea sits down by the fountain, studying Elmitsu with rapt attention.

Elmitsu launches into the story without much preamble, "When I first got here, I could only channel while holding a boy's hand."

Elmitsu continues, "Have you seen Rolfe? Very few of these warder wannabes handle their swords with as much skill as Rolfe."

Amarea grins playfully.

Amarea says 'No, I don't think I've had a chance to meet him yet.'

A dreamy sort of sigh escapes Elmitsu as she unwinds her yarn ( Elmitsu )

Amarea giggles.

Elmitsu says 'Where was I? Oh, yes. Rolfe.'

Elmitsu says 'Rolfe thought I was really cute. He was more than happy to help me with my block.'

Amarea says 'I'm from Lugard, Accepted, I've definitely seen my fair share of a handsome boy.'

Elmitsu says 'So I got to hold his hand a lot. He even came to some lessons with me.'

Elmitsu smiles slyly.

Amarea says 'Light, that must have been a bit distracting.'

Elmitsu says 'Maybe that's why the Aes Sedai took such a strong interest in breaking it.'

Amarea smirks.

Elmitsu says 'Well, eventually they tricked me--made me think I was holding Rolfe's hand when it was actually one of theirs in a gauntlet!'

Amarea blinks her eyes innocently.

Amarea says 'So tricking you made it work?'

Amarea says 'How, exactly, did that work? Can you explain it more?'

Amarea leans forward, eyes lighting up with curiosity.

Elmitsu says 'I was embracing the source, holding Rolfe's hand.'

Elmitsu says 'I opened my eyes--but I was still touching the Source.'

Amarea nods thoughtfully.

Elmitsu says 'And after that, well, it didn't seem to matter anymore.'

Amarea says 'This matches a lot of the accounts in the book that Aelrena Sedai loaned me.'

Amarea stops using a tooled leather book.

Amarea says 'This one is about blocks, and accounts of people who've had them and how they broke them, if it's known.'

Elmitsu says 'Well, what are you scared of, Amarea?'

Amarea says 'It seems like if you can kind of trick someone into channeling around the block, then --'

Amarea cuts off, biting her lip.

Elmitsu says 'I think blocks are about fear.'

Elmitsu says 'But this.'

Elmitsu manages to encompass both the Practice Yard and the Tower at-large in the gesture of her arm.

Elmitsu says 'This is where we learn to take our power.'

Amarea says quietly, 'I don't like to talk about it.'

Amarea says 'I will, if it might help. I just don't like it.'

Elmitsu says 'Everybody thinks the story of my block is funny.'

Amarea says 'What do you think about it, though?'

Elmitsu beckons Amarea to follow her.

Amarea is already standing.

Amarea now follows Elmitsu.

Elmitsu leaves north. ^^
Amarea follows Elmitsu.


(The Accepted and novice move just outside of the practice yard for more privacy, especially from a particularly talkative storyteller.)


Bend in the Graveled Path
The gravel covering the path is some sort of white stone with a translucent
quality that makes the path seem to glow. The trees growing in the parkland
surrounding the path are diverse, with leafy trees mingled with evergreens.
Along the edge of the path, small decorative trees, including olive, oak,
beech and conifers grow in wide pots of patterned terracotta.
[ obvious exits: S W ]
Elmitsu the Journey Accepted is standing here.
A spindly oak sapling struggles to grow.

Elmitsu says 'Everybody thinks it's so funny: Oh, Elmitsu! She's boy crazy! She set Myrtle on fire.'

Amarea blinks and startles at that, but lets Elmitsu continue.

Elmitsu says 'But I don't really talk about what happened before I came here.'

Amarea looks down at the ground, a sad look on her face. 'I won't make you, if you don't want to, Accepted. I understand what that might be like.'

Elmitsu blinks her saucer-sized eyes slowly, like a doll, "I will tell you, but only because I think you know what it's like to be scared too."

Amarea nods slowly, listening attentively and silently.

Elmitsu says 'The first time I ever channeled, I was in the hayloft with my brother's friend Pietyr.'

Elmitsu has lost some of her usual bravado as she continues, "I didn't mean to channel. It happens that way for a lot of girls, I think."

Amarea nods vigorously. 'Yes, it does.'

Elmitsu says 'My family was used to Trolloc raids . . . when you leave near the Blightborder, you grow up fast.'

Elmitsu circles the story like a bird.

Amarea reaches out and holds Elmitsu's hand, a sad but hopefully comforting look on her face.

Elmitsu says 'So. But . . . I . . . I was scared. I was with Pietyr.'

Elmitsu says 'I burned down the barn. I think I . . .'

Elmitsu says 'No one is really certain what happened, what the trollocs took, what they destroyed.'

Elmitsu looks whiter than the ribbon in her hair, "My family . . . they died. No one ever found Pietyr."

Amarea pales and squeezes Elmitsu's hand a little tighter, her eyes watering as she listens.

Elmitsu clears her throat, and audibly, as if she were trying to clear something else too, "Anyway, I was scared to channel when I got here. I didn't want to hurt anyone."

Amarea nods thoughtfully.

Elmitsu says 'Maybe you're scared too?'

Amarea says 'Oh, Elmitsu, I'm so sorry. I can't imagine what that must have been like. My story is similar in some ways, and really different in others.'

Elmitsu juts out her chin, "Don't worry about me."

Amarea says 'My ma and da own the Lugard Bakery. Our home was in an apartment above it. I have six little brothers and sisters.'

Amarea says 'The first time I think I must have channeled, I was baking some bread, and went to put it in the oven. Only, something went wrong, and the fires got out of control.'

Amarea pales, pausing for a minute, and subconsciously scratches at her forearm where some light scarring might be visible through her sleeve.

Elmitsu's eyes flicker with the flames from Amarea's story. She steps closer to the Novice.

Amarea continues in a whisper, 'The whole place went up like a wildfire. I had to rush and get my baby brother and sister out of there. Their breathin' was worse for months afterwards, on account of how little they were and the smoke.'

Amarea says 'I didn't lose anyone that day, but I lost my home, and our family's business. My parents had to take out another loan just to get it running again. Money has been...really tight for five years.''

Amarea blushes furiously.

Elmitsu tries to offer a conciliatory gesture of affection, though the arm she threads behind Amarea's shoulders is certainly awkward.

Amarea sniffles and accepts the embrace. She wipes some tears off her face and tries to smile.

Elmitsu coos, "It's ok. Someday, you'll be a rich and powerful Aes Sedai and be able to give them more money than they know what to do with."


Amarea snorts in spite of herself, then sighs. 'I've seen more gold here just from selling random equipment I've found in the forest than I think my family has seen in years, at least in terms of profit. I helped with the ledgers before I came here, as well as the baking.'

Amarea says 'Alison Sedai said she thinks she might be able to do something, but I don't know what that would be.'

Elmitsu says 'Well, Aes Sedai can't lie, so maybe she's right.'

Amarea smiles hopefully.

Elmitsu confides, a touch conspiratorially, "But sometimes what they say is not what they mean, so remember to be careful."

Amarea shares a sly smile and nods. 'Yes, Accepted.'

Amarea pauses and asks gingerly, 'Elmitsu...I know I'm not supposed to ask about the Arches, but I know next to nothing about it, except that it's a ter'angreal, or a set of them. The Aes Sedai say it helps you face your fears. What can you tell me about it?'

Elmitsu says gravely, "You will face your fears there."

Elmitsu grabs Amarea's forearm and inspects some of the scarring she finds there.

Elmitsu says 'I bet there will be fire.'

Elmitsu says 'I--'

Amarea winces, not from pain but from the memory of it.

Elmitsu clamps her mouth shut, the clack of her teeth nearly audible.

Elmitsu says 'I don't want to scare you.'

Elmitsu says, curiously, "I don't think I asked you what your block is. Aleera said something about water."

Amarea grits her teeth and juts her chin out. 'I need to face this fear, not just for the Arches, but so I can see Fire weaves without losing grasp of the Source every time. If I want to be Aes Sedai, I have to learn how to be afraid but not let it get in my way.'

Amarea says 'I have to be within three paces of water of sufficiently large volume to put out a small campfire.'

Amarea shows a wooden bucket to Elmitsu.

Amarea says 'Anything less than a bucket full, and it slips right out of my grasp.'

Amarea says 'But if I see actual fire, especially harmful weaves of Fire, or open flames, then I need a lot more water.'

Elmitsu says 'What if I pushed you in the river?'

Elmitsu smiles hopefully at Amarea.

Amarea giggles.

Amarea says 'Well, that would be enough water.'

Elmitsu says 'It's funny. Some of my teachers like to compare the One Power to a river.'

Amarea says 'Catisune Sedai already dumped a bucket of water on me today, though, so maybe we could try it another day.'

Amarea smirks.

Elmitsu says 'She WHAT?'

Elmitsu rewards this juicy nugget of gossip with a rather uproarious reaction.

Amarea says 'She dumped my water bucket on me!'

Elmitsu says 'I always miss all the good stuff.'

Amarea harumphs.

Elmitsu says 'But think about it. If the One Power is a river to which we must surrender, you've pretty much -always- got water with you.'


(The meeting ends fairly abruptly, as Finan Gaidin and others injured in combat with Shadowspawn arrive in the warders' practice yard and cry out for aid. Elmitsu and Amarea rush off to offer what Healing they can.)

[Evaine]

Amarea: 2 qps
Elmitsu: 2 qps

I really enjoyed reading this log and seeing both participants adding creativity to their backstories. Blocks can be difficult to RP and I am excited to see how Amarea's block continues to contribute to the Tower's RP.

Please pick up your Offline RPQPS.