Kieran looked out of the window. Instead of the darkening sky that she usually saw after her class with Inola Sedai, the sky was still as bright as one would expect during a late summer afternoon. The lesson today had been usually brisk, the topic being the various aspects of Cairhienin culture and politics, which Kieran was most familiar with. After a visit to the comprehensive Tower Library to do research on her own people before the lesson, she had come away with quite a number of interesting facts about her people that she did not know, bolstering her knowledge of Cairhienins even more. Inola Sedai had been relatively satisfied with the results of their discussions and so had let Kieran off early.

Nearly half a year since she had been raised, Kieran Quatraine, once of Cairhien, now Accepted of the White Tower, was adapting relatively well to the less structured but equally busy life of an Accepted. Almost all her days were packed from morning to night, from supervision of novices channelling, to running more complicated errands for various Aes Sedai, to her studies and classes in saidar and other areas like the culture and politics of Andor, Cairhien, Illian, Murandy, Tear and their outlying lands, that she was taking with Inola Reioki Aes Sedai of the Grey Ajah. 'Well, since I have some time now, what should I do?' thought Kieran. Hearing the clash of swords from the Training Yards through a window, she suddenly remembered and yearned for her knives. At that moment, she immediately decided to approach Aifa Sedai regarding using her knives once again, now that she had been raised. Taking several turns, she found herself outside the Mistress of Novices' study after a few minutes of walking. She knocked on the door after a moment of hesitation and waited for a reply from within.

Aifa Dor'Kinza, Mistress of Novices, looked up from her work, wondering what trouble had landed itself on her doorstep. 'If it's another novice caught staring at the Warders-in-training when she should have been doing something else, she is going to scrub the dirtiest pots in the Kitchens for a week,' thought the Aes Sedai. "Come in." The door opened to reveal an Accepted with brown hair, who looked vaguely familiar. "Yes," she asked, "what can I do for you, child?" The Accepted, Kieran, was the very one who had brought the new novice, Karla, to her not very long ago. "Well, I have something to ask of you, Aifa Sedai. When I first entered the Tower, I asked Lacy Sedai, the Mistress of Novices then, whether I could continue to practice with my throwing knives. She agreed on the condition that the Mistress of Arms agreed to allow me to train at the Training Yards." Kieran paused and continued, "I was wondering if this offer still stands. If it does, could I request to resume my practice with my knives?"

Aifa listened intently as Kieran spoke and took time to consider the situation upon the completion of her request. She had confiscated weapons like knives or daggers from Accepted and Novices before as only Aes Sedai were allowed to carry weapons with them. 'However, requests like this had been made, though few and far between,' thought Aifa, recalling Alhanna Gaimar and Auriana LaStar as two examples of Accepted that had been allowed to train at the Training Yards, and wondering whether she should allow this request on the basis that Kieran had actually asked her. Though voices of doubt ran through her head, she glanced critically at the Accepted and decided to pose a few questions to her before making a decision on the matter.

"Do you have a set of knives with you?" "I do have a set of knives," Kieran answered but quickly continued, "but they've been buried somewhere in the Tower Gardens since I entered the Tower and I haven't seen or touched them since then." "If I were to agree to your request, who do you think should keep the knives and what rules do you think you have to follow?" "... I think that... you or perhaps the Mistress of Arms should keep it to ensure that... no one uses them to injure anyone accidentally. As for the rules, besides those applying to Accepted in general, like not wasting time staring at Warders-in-training, I believe that I have to obey the rules that apply to Warder trainees as well, like perhaps, not challenging Ashanderai to combat or fighting in the Training Yards." Kieran glanced at the Aes Sedai, trying to decipher the look on her face, and wondered whether her request would be granted.

Aifa thought for a moment, recalling past records that noted that Kieran had not been one to cause problems, although a few pranks were said to be of her doing but never verified. Though some Aes Sedai had believed her to be overconfident and arrogant, Kieran was said to be a model student in her classes by her teachers. Finally, she spoke, "Child, I will agree to this request with the same terms as proposed by Lacy Sedai. However, there are a few conditions attached. As you know, you are not to flirt, make eyes or interact with Warders-in-training inappropriately. Aside from that, you will unearth those knives tomorrow and pass them to me for safekeeping. When you need to use them for practice if you get approval, you will have to approach me or another Aes Sedai for them if I'm not around. Last but not least, you can only use the knives in the Training Yards and obey any other rules the Mistress of Arms decides to impose. Are you fine with this, child?" Kieran nodded her head, her happiness obvious on her face. 'If all is to proceed smoothly, I'll be reunited with my beloved knives soon.' "Since you agree, we will approach the Mistress of Arms now," Aifa informed her as she stood up and walked to the door, waiting for Kieran to follow her. Upon exiting the room, Aifa wove a ward around her study door to seal it and walked down the hallway, with Kieran behind her.

In a few minutes, they reached the Training Yards. The appearance of an Aes Sedai with an Accepted trailing behind her invited curious stares from some Warder trainees but they were not stopped by any of the Ashanderai. Aifa Sedai brought her to the Mistress of Arms' office and rapped sharply on the door. "Enter," came the reply from Filaree Hashan, the Mistress of Arms, one of the few women to hold the post in the history of the Tower. "Be seated, Aifa Sedai. What brings you here this afternoon?" she asked, gesturing to a chair. "One of the Accepted under my charge, Kieran, wishes to practice her skills at the Training Yards. I was wondering whether you could accommodate her practice at the archery range at the end of the Training Yards." Filaree looked at the willowy Accepted from head to toe and asked, "What exactly do you do with your knives and who's your teacher?"

Kieran's first impression of the Mistress of Arms was slightly unnerving as Mistress Hashan, dressed in her outfit of black and red, did indeed look quite fierce and reminded her a bit of Ralyse Sedai. This was one of the reasons why she did not dare approach the Mistress of Arms after talking to Lacy Sedai, as Lacy Sedai had been already frightening enough at that time. Looking confident, but feeling quite nervous inside, Kieran replied, "I learnt knife throwing from a gleeman called Darien for two years as his apprentice of sorts and performed with knives as an entertainer for another year. I'm rather out of practice now but I could juggle six knives and hit stationary targets rather accurately back then. I'm used to using short knives and throwing from a distance of approximately five metres." Filaree met Kieran's gaze and said, "First, let me have a look at your abilities with the knives. Could I trouble both of you to make a trip to the archery range with me?" Without waiting for a reply, she stood up, retrieved a set of knives from a shelf and made her way out of her office, locking it up.

By the time they reached the archery range, they had attracted a small crowd of around ten people. "Okay, I want you to stand at that tree over there and to hit that target as many times as you can," the Mistress of Arms said, pointing to the tree and target, before passing her the set of knives. Kieran removed the knives, totalling six in all, from their leather case and looked at them, enjoying the feeling of having the hilt of a knife in her hand. She threw each one up into the air and caught them, getting used to them and determining their balance. Darien had taught her all that before they parted company. Finding that they were all well-balanced, she proceeded to the tree and cleared her mind. Perhaps due to a combination of nervousness, lack of practice and a slightly longer distance than what she had been accustomed to, her first throw hit the ground a short distance before the target. Her second shot did not fare any better, hitting the board with its hilt and sliding off. Emptying her mind and concentrating, her third and fourth throws hit the rim of the target, both off-centre. Her fifth throw was a clean throw and landed in the exact centre of the target, earning her a ragged cheer from the crowd. The last shot landed close to the centre but a slight distance away from the fifth. Kieran heaved a sigh of relief at her attempt, managing to hit the centre once, and turned to look at Mistress Hashan and Aifa Sedai.

Proceeding to retrieve the knives from the target and walking back to where the two Mistresses stood, Kieran was greeted by the Mistress of Arms. "That was a reasonable attempt. After discussing with Aifa Sedai, we've decided to allow you to have your practice. Here, we don't tolerate any nonsense, so I'd expect you to follow the rules here: to respect your peers, take instructions from any Ashanderai, not to get into fights and not to speak to Warder trainees unnecessarily or distract them. You may begin as soon as you retrieve your personal set of knives. There might be Ashanderai observing your practice from time to time and I hope that you will ask for help when you need it." Turning then to address the rest of the crowd that had not dispersed, Filaree said, "That is all. Return to your training now." Kieran was overjoyed at the news and dropped a deep curtsey to both, "Thank you very much, Aifa Sedai and Mistress Hashan." "You are dismissed. I and Mistress Hashan need to speak. I hope that you remember what you need to do tomorrow," said Aifa Sedai. Kieran nodded her head and strolled off with a smile on her face.

Time passed quickly, with dinner and her saidar class with Raquelle Sedai on fire weaves. The Aes Sedai had her working hard to control her strength in fire while making her practice various fire weaves, so much that she fell into a deep sleep after her class, exhausted. The next morning, Kieran awoke, feeling a little sleepy but felt energetic once she remembered what she had to do. After slipping a note into Steyfa Cynmer's room to inform her that she would not be free for saidar practice later in the day, Kieran made her way to the Tower Gardens and picked up a shovel from the shed. Taking it with her, she walked to where the knives were buried – the third tree from the Tower gates. She had been here countless times since she entered the Tower, so as to ensure that the bag was untouched. Identifying the mental markers that determined the exact spot, she started digging at their point of intersection. Even though she did not bury the bag, she was rather sure that her brother did not bury it very deeply in his haste. She was proven right when she soon unearthed the remnants of a familiar cloth bag, and a leather case.

Kieran took out the leather case holding her knives carefully and eagerly. Unfolding the leather case to reveal her set of eight knives, she inspected them and found that they were fine apart from looking dull and slightly blunt. 'Thank the Light for waterproof leather.' Then, she gently lifted the cloth bag from its earthen prison and inspected its contents. Aside from looking dirty and slightly tarnished, the sapphire ring set in silver, the pearl necklace, Great-Grandmother's diamond necklace and various other accessories were not damaged. The Quatraine House seal, possibly the most important object in the bundle, was secure within its wooden box, undamaged. The letter, writing faded and paper yellowed, and her mother's favourite earrings were nowhere to be seen in the bag. Looking into the hole, Kieran spotted them, believing that they had dropped out when the bag disintegrated. Looking at these objects, the last reminders she had of her past, a surge of emotions suddenly rose in her throat and she found herself blinking back tears. Composing herself as she filled in the hole and picked up the letter, jewellery and knives, Kieran made her way to the Mistress of Novices' study and knocked three times on the sturdy wooden door.

Aifa Sedai paused in the midst of tidying her desk. Placing certain sensitive documents into a drawer, she said, "Enter." Having dusted off the knives and jewellery on her way to the study, Kieran opened the door and presented the leather case of knives to the Aes Sedai, resplendent in an emerald green form-fitting dress, cut in Andoran style. "Thank you, Kieran. Would you be trying them out today?" went the Aes Sedai. "No, Aes Sedai. In fact, I've another favour to ask of you. May I be given leave to go to the city to deposit these in a lending house?" Kieran replied. 'Another request again,' thought Aifa Sedai, but conceded that it was perfectly reasonable after spotting the jewellery as she would not expect an Accepted to store so much jewellery in the her room. "If you do not have classes or other appointments, you are dismissed until three." Kieran curtseyed and left the room.

Making her way to her rooms, Kieran filled a basin of water from the washrooms and borrowed some polish and a soft cloth from another Accepted. She spent some time, polishing each and every piece of jewellery, while deciding which to keep and which to deposit. Finally, deciding on three pairs of earrings and two rings that she wished to keep, Kieran placed the rest of the jewellery into a bag usually meant to keep her stationery and retrieved a substantial portion of her savings. She locked the room behind her, weaving a ward over it and stopped for a quick lunch at the Kitchens before making her way into the city of Tar Valon.

After a short time, Kieran found herself outside a lending house with signboard reading 'Messers Ashkeveron and Leshiare'. She stepped in and informed the assistant that she was seeking a private audience with Master Leshiare. A moment later, she found herself ushered into a chamber with wood panelling and offered a cup of tea. "Master Leshiare will be here in a moment. Sorry to keep you waiting, m'Lady," said the shop assistant politely.

Just after she had taken a sip of camomile tea, a middle aged man with greying hair entered the room and introduced himself as Devon Leshiare. "Glad to meet you again, Master Leshiare. Before I begin, I would like to request that the contents of this conversation be held to utmost secrecy. In addition, I would also only like you to know about the accounts that I hold. Can you agree to that?" Kieran asked. Looking absolutely unsurprised, Devon Leshiare nodded solemnly. "I am Lady Kieran Quatraine of House Quatraine and also the White Tower. I believe that your house holds the accounts pertaining to our House?" said Kieran. 'She's that girl I saw the last time at the Quatraine residence. After the incident with Lord Beleradon, everyone thought her dead. I can't believe that she's grown up and is standing in front on me now. Well, well...' he thought before replying, "Yes, we do. It hasn't been touched for quite some time, although Lord Beleradon demanded access to it. Of course, we rejected his request as he did not carry the House seal." "I would like to request for your house to freeze that account and I hope that your house has kept a record of the complete list of transactions carried out in the last fifteen years for that account. In addition, I would like to create a new account in my name and deposit these items into it," Kieran stated, emptying the bag of jewellery and coins on the table in front of them. Taking out the House seal, Kieran continued, "This account is also to be activated only when this seal is presented. Is this fine?" "Yes, Lady Quatraine. Please enjoy the tea while I arrange to have the necessary documents ready. Do you wish to view the records today?" Devon Leshiare asked as he rose to his feet. "That's fine. I'm rather busy today, perhaps a month later then. I'll make an appointment with you beforehand so you'll have some time to get the relevant records ready," Kieran replied, taking a sip of the tea. 'She's a rather sharp one,' thought the banker as he stepped out of the room and called for his assistants.

Meanwhile, Kieran took another sip of tea and smiled to herself. The cogs of her plan were beginning to turn albeit rather slowly. In time to come, she would definitely restore her House to its former glory.