Allerria touched Rayanne's shoulder as the two Aes Sedai glided along the corridor, "Those teeth marks look very painful. Allow me to Heal you."
"It is not necessary," Rayanne brushed her off, "the child was simply frightened of something new."
"Tying off the shield on the child may cause trouble if the Amyrlin discovers what you have done," Allerria reminded testily. Her icy tone implied many deeper misgivings on the matter, "We are to be 'putting the girl in touch with her power' if I recall the proper wording."
Rayanne nodded, "Of that I am aware. I have two reasons for blocking her. First, we really cannot risk the poor girl channeling here in the Tower with so many Novices and Accepted about. We do not need any of them thinking about strength with the power. Second, the shield might prove a valuable tool for reaching the child."
"Are you up to this challenge, Rayanne?" Allerria asked. "This is not a teenage farmgirl who has contemplated throwing herself onto a pitchfork one time too often. Even a fool would wonder if this child is not already lost and as dangerous as a chained leopard."
"You continue to think she should be Stilled?" Rayanne gasped in outrage.
Allerria grunted, "What cannot be fixed may cause endless harm to everyone around her. Is the child ill, or is she a plague set to soon emerge? Are you prepared to face such a possibility?"
"I am Rayanne Charrad, Aes Sedai of the Yellow Ajah; Healing is my Life." Rayanne told her in no uncertain terms. "Illness of the mind may not be solved so easily by channeling as illness of the body, but there must be someone who tries to repair it. She is just a child and she deserves someone to care."
"It may be years before this girl is ready to find her name written in the novice book," Allerria warned, "maybe never. But the Tower cannot let her free before she has adequate training to render her safe, both to herself and to others. Before all is finished, you may even face the choice of her life or yours. By giving you this task, we are asking a labor more than any set to you previously."
"I am Aes Sedai just like you," Rayanne answered coolly, prominently adjusting her serpent ring, "I refuse to fail."
"If the wheel wills, you may not have a choice."
