Elayne, High Seat of House Trakand and Queen of Andor swept gracefully through the halls of the royal palace, which was located in Caemlyn. She had just finished a meeting with a Carhienen embassy about her claim to the Sun Throne of Carhien and was about ready for a nice lunch. However, due to her current state (Rand al'Thor's fault, burn the man) she would not be getting it. In fact, she thought sourly, she would be lucky to get anything with any flavour whatsoever.
Her thoughts continued along this line as her feet continued along the corridor. Occasionally, she paused to exchange queenly pleasantries with some of the nobles she passed. Elayne stopped suddenly, then backtracked four paces. She carefully scrutinized the wall in front of her. What was wrong with...oh no!
"Quickly, someone!" she squeaked, mortified. Looking around, she spotted the Kinswoman cum novice, Zarya, hastening down the hallway. She was presumably on some acceptably novice-like errand for someone or other. "Zarya, go find a goldsmith and tell him to bring as much gilt as possible!" The novice/Kinswoman looked confused, but scarpered off with a curtsey and a murmured "Yes, Aes Sedai."
Elayne dove over to the stand lamp that had caught her eye as soon as Zarya had turned the corner (after all, a true Aes Sedai was never seen as anything but calm). She examined every edge and crevice carefully, but the horrible and probably blasphemous thing that had caught her eye was the truth. The stand lamp in front of her was not gilded. She tried to embrace saidar, but it slipped out of her grasp just as the Wise Ones had warned her it would continue to do until her babes were born. The Queen swore fluently (words learned listening to stablemen, her Warder, Birgitte Silverbow, and that boy, Matrim Cauthin) and her chin began to rise in the traditional and approved manner practiced by Andoran queens for eons. In fact, she was so intent on making sure her chin reached the correct height and degree suitable for one of her stature, she didn't even notice one of her two Warders nearing until the Warder in question rounded the corner into the section of hallway Elayne currently occupied.
"Elayne!" she called reproachfully. "You know you aren't supposed to be running around without your guard! Honestly, sometimes you have less sense than a sheepherder in the Blight!"
The Aes Sedai blinked and ran over that last sentence in her head again. It had actually made logical sense. What was this madness? Stand lamps without gilt, her Warder speaking without needing a translator? She cast a cautious eye over her Warder. "Birgitte? Should I get one of the Kin to look at you? I actually understood that last simile..."
Birgitte beamed. "I know! Aviendha has been teaching me the speech of this Age." Mentally, Elayne winced. Sometimes, Aviendha's speech was equally as odd as her Birgitte's. Elayne tapped her fingers impatiently, sending quick, nervous glances in the direction of the stand lamp. She smoothed her skirts and fidgeted a little more. Finally, after a long and awkward silence, Zarya came dashing up, skidding to a halt and making a winded curtsy.
"I'm sorry, Aes Sedai," she said, trying not to pant. "But the goldsmith said he was all out of gilt. He said he might have some tomorrow."
Flushing with rage, Elayne gripped her skirt in her fists. "Zarya, please go fetch me my guard. They should be in the stables with the other guardsmen. Drinking, if I'm any judge." She sniffed in disapproval and Zarya took the opportunity to run off again.
Birgitte frowned at her Aes Sedai. "What's all this fuss about gilt?" she asked. "Sometimes I believe you are getting as..." her face contorted in thought "picky as a Stone Dog sitting on segauda spines." The queen had no idea what that meant except that perhaps her first-sister should stop teaching her Warder about similes.
She decided to just answer the question. "See that stand lamp?"
"Which one?" Birgitte asked dryly.
"That one!"
"This one?"
"NO! The one on the LEFT!"
Birgitte peered at the lamp in question. "What about it?"
A group of women rounded the corner, bright and gaudy as the parrots sold by the Seafolk. They all carried swords save one, who carried a truncheon. They stared at Elayne in disapproving silence and took their guarding positions. Zarya was nowhere to be seen.
"What do you mean what about it?" bawled Elayne in one of her infamous mood swings. "There is no gilding! It is a blasphemy unto the Light!"
Birgitte handed Elayne a handkerchief with the initials "Ra'T" on it. She dabbed her eyes. "Shall I postpone your audiences, Elayne? You do overwork so." the older woman stopped as she watched her Aes Sedai's chin rise like a sho-wing on a windy day.
"No. You obviously do not properly follow the Light, though. You must be a Darkfriend!" The Royal Guard was exchanging looks of strained amusement and exasperation. "Guards, take her away!" All too willingly, three of her guard grabbed Birgitte and marched her off towards the prison block, where all four of them sat and had quite a few drinks with the gaoler while exchanging complaints about having such a moody queen.
When the three did not return, Elayne sent one of her guard, the woman with the truncheon, to go fetch the commander of the rest of the palace guard to her chambers. The woman did as she was told, then disappeared off to the prison block to get drunk with the rest.
The queen was miffed when the guard did not return, but put that aside when the guard caption appeared. He knelt with one hand on his sword, the other fisted to his heart. "Go forth captain," she bid him "with four score of your men, to every goldsmith in the city until you find enough gilt for a stand lamp. Then bring it forth with great haste. You are on a mission of the Light." Elayne beamed at him as he hastened away, wondering if his queen had gone mad. Her personal guard were looking nervously at each other as well, and were all too pleased to escort Elayne to her chambers, where a bland lunch of broth and weak tea awaited.