Kieran stretched as she climbed out of her bed. She brushed her teeth and washed away the felling of sleepiness. After brushing out her hair, she embraced the Source easily and ran through the Hundred Weaves once before she had her way down to the Kitchens for breakfast. Finishing her bread and honey, Kieran looked for Ylyna Sedai to retrieve her knives for practice. Proceeding to the Training Yards, the Accepted practiced her knife throwing under the watchful eye of Winia Ashanderei, who was now training her to aim accurately at specific points on moving targets. Since she had started training shortly after being raised to the ring, she had progressed far from her initial skills and had been complimented for 'doing well as a non-Warder trainee'.

Dismissed after a few hours of gruelling practice, Kieran made her way to Ylyna Sedai's study to return the knives but was intercepted halfway by Aifa Sedai. Curtseying to the Mistress of Novices, a look of surprise crossed Kieran's face when the Aes Sedai started speaking. "Kieran Quatraine, you are summoned to be tested for the shawl of an Aes Sedai. The Light keep you whole and see you safe." Aifa Sedai, wearing her green-fringed shawl over an emerald green dress, then started walking down the hallway, expecting Kieran to follow. Tired after her practice, Kieran followed the Green sister in absolute silence. A hint had been dropped to her that she would be raised soon but she had not expected it to come so soon.

Aifa Sedai led her into the depths of the Tower, passing through empty hallways lined with locked storerooms, footsteps echoing through the silence. Kieran mentally ran through the weaves that she had been practicing over the past three years. The Hundred Weaves were said to have been created specially for the testing and though Kieran had fumbled with them at first, she was reasonably confident of her chances, especially with her dedicated practice throughout the past three years with Aes Sedai and fellow Accepted. Descending to what Kieran presumed was the bedrock of the island, Aifa Sedai stopped before an enormous pair of doors, polished to glistening. 'Even the doors to the chamber for the testing to become Accepted weren't as large as this,' Kieran thought as the Green sister channelled, opening the doors with flows of Air to reveal a large, domed chamber.

Calming herself, Kieran followed Aifa Sedai into the bright chamber, lighted by stand lamps. Her attention was immediately captured by the object in the centre of the room. The ter'angreal for her testing was a large oval ring, narrow at top and bottom, with a rounded rim. As the lamp light shone on it, it glittered, first silver then combinations of colours, much like a Warder's cloak. The most intriguing thing about the ring was that it stood unsupported, which seemed impossible. However, before Kieran could wonder any further, Aifa Sedai intoned, "Attend." As the seven Aes Sedai gathered around the ring walked over, Kieran realised that they had all taught her before, Griselda from the Red, Kristal of the Blue, Raquelle the Green, Eeliana the Yellow, Alainn of the Brown, Ferla the Grey and Myria from the White. After the shawlled sisters, faces a cool, calm mask, formed a circle around them, Aifa Sedai intoned, "You come in ignorance, Kieran Quatraine. How would you depart?"

"In knowledge of myself," Kieran replied calmly.

"For what reason have you been summoned here?"

"To be tried."

"For what reason should you be tried?"

"So that I may learn whether I am worthy."

"For what would you be found worthy?"

"To wear the shawl," Kieran uttered, speaking the last of the phrases she had been instructed in.

As part of the testing, Kieran began undressing, first removing the hairpin that held her hair in its bun. The Mistress of Novices continued, "Therefore I will instruct you. You will see this sign upon the ground." She channelled and a fiery six-pointed star, comprising two overlapping triangles, appeared in midair. Kieran felt one of the sisters behind her embrace saidar and a weave touched the back of her head. "Remember what must be remembered," Kristal, her mentor, murmured, Kieran recognising her voice.

Though she had not learnt of this, Kieran listened carefully as she unbuttoned her banded dress. She had to remain calm and serene through the entire testing and this was no exception. Aifa Sedai spoke, "When you see that sign, you will go to it immediately at a steady pace, neither hurrying nor hanging back, and only then may you embrace the Power. The weaving required must being immediately and you may not leave that sign until it is completed."

"Remember what must be remembered," murmured the Blue sister.

"When the weave is completed, you will see that sign again, marking the way you must go again at a steady pace, with hesitation," intoned the Green sister.

"Remember what must be remembered."

"One hundred times, you will weave, in the order you have been given and in perfect composure," said Aifa.

"Remember what must be remembered," Kristal murmured for a final time, and the weave settled into Kieran.

All the sisters except Aifa moved to the ring ter'angreal and knelt down in a circle around it on the stone floor. Embracing the One Power, they channelled and the colours of the ring flashed, changing more and more rapidly, until the oval ring became a blur of colour, each colour melding into the next. Kieran removed her shift and stood in the Light, observing the complicated weaves of the Aes Sedai as they wove all the five Powers. The cold from the stone floor seeped into her feet as Kieran stood before the ter'angreal waiting. Soon after, the air in the opening of the ring turned a pure white suddenly; a white whiter than anything she had ever seen. Slowly, the tall oval ring began to rotate on its base and Kieran knew it was time. In perfect composure, she walked towards and into the whiteness, and...

...found herself in a small cottage. A single flame from a candle lighted the room. Spotting a shift on a table, Kieran over calmly and put it on. The cold she had felt just now, though she could not remember where, had gotten worse. Opening the cottage door, Kieran was greeted by a gloomy, white landscape. Taking the candle with her, she walked out into the snow, bare-footed. Neither hurrying nor hanging back, she walked ahead, searching for the six-pointed star. Spotting it crudely drawn in the snow with a stick, Kieran walked over, placed the candle on the ground and embraced saidar. Suddenly the wind rose and Kieran found herself in the midst of a snowstorm.

With the candle extinguished, Kieran could hardly see beyond her reach. Hoping that there would not be beasts wandering around, Kieran channelled Air and began weaving. Trembling as she weaved quickly, the weave forming from flows of Air under experienced hands, Kieran maintained her icy cool expression throughout to the best of her abilities. The cold permeated every fibre of her being, leaving her with numb hands and feet as she completed the weave in record time. Inexplicably, the snowstorm subsided when she had obtained the small ball of Air. Deciding not to worry about what she could not control, Kieran lit the candle with a small thread of Fire and walked on, looking for the second star. The cold was more bearable without the storm and in the flickering candlelight, Kieran saw the star engraved above the doorway of an imposing, stern tower. She walked towards it without hesitation, opened the door with caution and stepped into the darkness beyond that candlelight could not penetrate.

The bright sunlight hurt her eyes as she stepped into a small garden. Where in the Light was she and why was she only in a shift? Kieran did not know. She only knew that she had completed the first of a hundred weaves and had another ninety-nine more to go. The small rectangular garden was surrounded by walls on all four sides with two archways, one that she had just pass through and one on the opposite end of the garden. Looking rather like a garden that could be found in Cairhien, with neatly trimmed hedges and blossoming rose bushes, a brightly coloured mosaic lay in the centre of it, where a fountain might have been. Contrasting sharply with the brown stone pavement, the six-pointed star was the motif in the mosaic, laid out in bright red and blue.

Walking at a steady pace to the star, Kieran suddenly saw a Myrddraal enter the garden from the opposite archway as she was halfway to the star. Increasing her pace slightly as it spotted her and drew its sword, she reached the star before it reached it. Embracing saidar instantaneously, Kieran began on the second weave and wove a fireball at the same time, throwing it at the Myrddraal. It exploded upon contact and Kieran watched as the fireball blew it to pieces. She continued weaving, extracting Fire, Spirit, then Earth. Her skill with Earth had improved somewhat after her endless practice, yet it was still a limiting factor in her weaving, preventing her from going as quickly as she might have without it.

Senses heightened by holding saidar, Kieran thought she heard the bark of a dog in the distance as she wove. Splitting threads of Fire and Spirit, Kieran started on a second weave as she worked with the first weave she had to be doing for reasons unknown to her, only that she knew she had to weave it. The second weave slowly took shape as she added Air and Earth and soon she had woven an Illusion to create a fountain to conceal where she was standing. It was just in time for her as another Myrddraal entered the garden accompanied by several darkhounds as soon as the Illusion was completed. Though the Illusion was completed, Kieran was still worried. Darkhounds were said to be able to sniff out channellers and the Illusion weave would not help hide her scent. Weaving as fast as she could, the weave neared completion as the darkhounds approached her hiding place cautiously. Kieran readied two fireballs as she wove and observed. Just as one of the darkhounds inched its nose into the illusion and started barking, Kieran threw both fireballs at the darkhounds. She had wanted to weave rain instead, knowing that the darkhounds were afraid of water but the weave was complicated and needed time to complete, so she had just stuck to the simple fireball. With the element of surprise in her favour, the fireballs killed the darkhounds but missed the Myrddraal. Quickly weaving another fireball, she threw it at the Myrddraal, which dodged but failed.

Quickly returning to her weave, which was beginning to collapse, Kieran rapidly completed it and almost heaved a sigh of relief when she was done. Like most of the Hundred Weaves, this one had no actual purpose and was liable to collapse if left on its own for too long. Still holding saidar in case more Shadowspawn appeared, Kieran looked for the second star and found it on the archway the Shadowspawn had come from, though she could have sworn it had not been there previously. In perfect composure, she walked towards it and passed through it...

...only to find herself unclothed, arms and legs shackled, a prisoner in a cage drawn by a horse. "She's a pretty specimen, isn't she?" said one of the Whitecloaks to the other. Blushing heavily, Kieran tried to cover herself with her arms as the men ogled at her. 'You... you bastards!' she thought, anger rising as she found herself unable to do anything to escape. Controlling her temper, Kieran looked around for the star and found it painted in red on the cobblestones outside and inn. 'Since I can't weave to free myself, how in the Light do I get to the star?' she wondered. Her question was answered when the Whitecloaks directed the horse to the inn and stopped her cage right above the six-pointed star.

Looking through the gaps between the wooden planks of her cage to confirm that she was indeed above the star, Kieran embraced the One Power immediately and heard one of the Whitecloaks say, "...pick up a parcel. I won't be long." 'Oh no! I can't leave the star until I've finished weaving. How in the Light am I supposed to make them leave me here long enough?" Kieran thought before an idea flashed into her mind. Weaving the third of the Hundred Weaves, Kieran extracted flows of Fire and Water at the same time, forming a thick layer of ice around the wheels of her cage, an attempt to stop the Whitecloaks from moving her cage before she finished. Thankfully, the other Whitecloak who was supposed to be observing her was distracted by something in the distance and did not notice the ice forming on the wheels. As she continued weaving the web of all the five powers as quickly as she could, Kieran also used another flow of Air to bind the legs of the horse pulling her cage together, as an added safeguard.

Before she had finished two-thirds of the required weave, the Whitecloaks returned. Ogling at her again, they started to set off but could not. Suppressing the urge to laugh, Kieran concentrated on weaving faster, not remembering why she had to finish weaving this useless bundle of flows, but knowing that she must. The weave took shape as the Whitecloaks hammered at the ice, borrowing picks from the inn. As the last piece of ice fell off the wheel, Kieran completed the weave, faster than any of her previous attempts. She cut the weave of Air that bound the horse's legs and waited to see where the Whitecloaks would bring her, keeping a lookout for the second star. Resisting the urge to make the Whitecloaks fall off their horses, Kieran spotted the six-pointed star on the gate that led out of town, which the Whitecloaks escorted her through in the cage.

Ninety-nine times she wove. From deserts to swamps to crowded cities to beaches, Kieran had found the six-pointed star everywhere, with each place posing a different sort of challenge. She had killed many insects and reptiles, some poisonous, others carnivorous. Men had ogled at her, women had mocked her and mobs had carried away. Sometimes she was clothed, other times she found clothes to wear or remained unclothed. Her chest hurt, one of her arms had been scratched, and one leg had bite marks while there were a number of different stings all over her body. Tired, Kieran stepped through a doorway with the star hung above it, only knowing that she had one last weave to go.

The scene that greeted her was familiar. Dressed in a shift, Kieran founded herself in the Warder Training Yards. She found the star easily but the person next to the star posed a problem. As she approached the star steadily, he turned towards her and her heart skipped a beat when she looked into his eyes. Dressed only in breeches, the person who looked exactly like Krion al'Cair smiled at her. Krion was for Kieran, a benchmark that she used to measure possible bondmates against. With his good looks, almost impeccable manners and well-honed skills, he had the qualities that any warder she might have, had to have. Though she was not 'desperate for men' like some of the other Accepted, she had seriously considered the issue several times and Krion was always on her list of possible bondmates.

Kieran reached the star and stepped into the circle containing the star without hesitation. Embracing the Source, she began the last weave carefully. However, her concentration was immediately broken when the Krion look-alike leaned forward and planted a kiss on her lips. He was so close to her that she was breathing in his scent and could feel his body heat. The blush on her face deepened as she struggled to maintain her composure and concentration. Kieran closed her eyes and focused on the fire blazing in her mind. She wove steadily and soon completed the weave though her concentration was broken twice more. As the specks of glitter caught the sunlight and flickered in the air, Kieran gently pushed the handsome guy away and walked towards the nearby doorway, which had the second six-pointed star above it. Kieran wove a thread of Air to trip him as he came running after her, knowing that the real Krion probably would not have tried anything like that, though something in her heart told her she had enjoyed the kiss. She blushed as the thought crossed her mind and gracefully but tiredly, Kieran entered the doorway...

...and found herself walking into a round, white chamber. As she took a step towards her clothes on the nearby table, her experiences within the ter'angreal came back to her in a surge. Dazed as images detailing her every move, every weave, every injury flooded her mind, Kieran managed the few steps needed to reach the table with her belongings and leaned on it, mind over-stimulated and exhausted from her trial.

"It is done," Aifa spoke calmly, clapping her hands together. "Let no one ever speak of what has passed here. It is for us to share in silence with she who experienced it. It is done." She clapped again, the sound echoing through the domed chamber. "Kieran Quatraine, you will spend tonight in prayer and contemplation of the burdens you will take up on the morrow, when you don the shawl of an Aes Sedai. It is done." She clapped her hands together for a third time as the various Aes Sedai stood up and came towards Kieran.

"May I offer you Healing?" asked Eeliana. Exhausted, Kieran managed a nod as the Yellow sister began weaving. When she was done, Kieran felt as if she had returned to that place of snow and passed through another snowstorm, but all her cuts and other injuries were gone. She murmured a word of thanks and slowly put on her clothes, as Eeliana spoke, "You did well in there. Your injuries are relatively minor compared to some of the others I have seen pass through." Kieran nodded her head and managed a faint smile in response. She was weary and starving and could not wait to return to her rooms to rest and perhaps eat later... and reflect about her doings and future.

However, there was something weird that Kieran noticed. Kristal seemed to be preoccupied by other matters and did not say anything to her, whether about the Krion look-alike or about her testing. Kieran was rather sure that Kristal was not responsible for the last scene but she wondered which sister had observed it and used it against her, albeit rather unsuccessfully. She wondered if Griselda was responsible, knowing that she disapproved strongly of her practice in the Yards and had previously punished her for her over-confidence several times, but decided eventually that since it was over, she would just leave matters be. 'After all, I passed', Kieran thought.

Escorted by Ferla and Raquelle back above ground, Kieran immediately made her way back to her rooms. Moments later, there was a knock on her door and a servant dressed in Tower livery brought up a tray of food, which was exactly what Kieran had been thinking about, and started a fire in her fireplace. The food on the tray was the best she had ever eaten in the Tower and after she was done with it, she felt full and satisfied. Leaving the tray on her desk, Kieran sat down on her bed and began reflecting on the past ten years she had spent at the Tower. Throughout the years, she had grown and developed under the guidance of various teachers. Thinking, she reflected on the pranks she had done and the lessons she had learnt from various Aes Sedai, Accepted, Novices, Warders and all the other people she had interacted with. Her thoughts shifted to her future as an Aes Sedai. She had decided on her choice of Ajah not long ago and had wondered about the cause she would be expected to take up. She was part of Nefertariamun's cause but what exactly she would take up as her personal cause was one of the thoughts that ran through her mind and refused to leave.

Time passed as she pondered and contemplated. After she was done, she packed up her belongings, placing two folders of notes, her case of knives that she did not have to return ever again, and her small jewellery box on her bed. She glanced around her room for what was probably the last time as there came a knock on her door. Kieran arranged the items on her bed, which were to be shifted to her new rooms, as the knock came twice more. As ritual commanded, she then opened the door and left the room. Escorted by seven shawlled sisters, one from each Ajah, the eight of them made their way to the chamber where she had been tested, past silent hallways, as the morning had not broken yet and the Tower not awoken.

Reaching the chamber, with doors open wide, Kieran and the seven sisters stopped in the corridor. From within the chamber came Jendaia's voice, "Who comes here?"

Kieran replied calmly, "Kieran Quatraine."

"For what reason do you come?" the Amyrlin Seat continued.

"To swear the Three Oaths and thereby claim the shawl of an Aes Sedai."

"By what right do you claim this burden?"

"By right of having made the passage, submitting myself to the will of the White Tower."

"Then enter, if you dare, and bind yourself to the White Tower," said the Amyrlin.

Dressed in green silks with the seven striped stole around her neck, Jendaia Rhiannon m'Haran stood framed by the tall oval ter'angreal, with the Keeper of the Seals, Brevalin Danya, in dark blue by her side, holding a black velvet cushion in both hands. Along the circular wall of the chamber stood the shawl-draped Sitters in the Hall of the Tower, grouped by Ajah, with another shawlled sister of the Ajah in front of them, having another shawl folded over one arm.

Gracefully, Kieran walked up to the many-coloured oval ring, stepped through it and knelt before the Amyrlin Seat. Holding both hands out, Kieran waited as Jendaia picked up the Oath Rod, an ivory cylinder a foot long, from the cushion and placed it in her hands. Embracing saidar, the Amyrlin touched the Oath Rod with a thin flow of Spirit before Kieran's hands closed around it.

"Under the Light and by my hope of salvation and rebirth, I vow that I will speak no word that is not true," intoned Kieran. The Oath settled upon her tightly as she continued onto the second. "Under the Light and by my hope of salvation and rebirth, I vow that I will make no weapon for one man to kill another." The pressure on her skin tightened but Kieran maintained her composure and recited the third and last oath. She knew the Oaths by heart, their purposes and also knew some of the ways which they could be circumvented, but the physical experience that she had to go through was something she did not appreciate. "Under the Light and by my hope of salvation and rebirth, I vow that I will never use the One Power as a weapon except against Shadowspawn, or in the last extreme of defending my life or that of my Warder or another sister." The pressure clamped down on her very tightly like putting a dress three sizes too small, and Kieran strove to maintain perfect composure as the Amyrlin spoke, "It is half done and the White Tower is graven on your bones." Jendaia replaced the Oath Rod on the cushion and continued, "Rise now, Aes Sedai, and choose your Ajah, and all will be done that may be done under the Light."

Kieran rose stiffly and dropped a deep curtsey to the Amyrlin before bending to kiss her Great Serpent ring. Steadily and without hesitation, Kieran then walked towards the Blue sisters with a faint smile on her face. The sisters from the other Ajahs left as soon as she had made her direction clear, with the Amyrlin the last to leave. Brevalin stayed behind to watch as Sofya, a pale Andoran, laid the blue-fringed shawl on Kieran's shoulders. As the greetings from the Blue Sitters, Zairina, Sarahna and Nefertariamun, commenced, Kieran smiled. She had made it. After all she had endured in the past ten years, she was finally Aes Sedai, Kieran Quatraine Aes Sedai of the Blue Ajah.