Dedicated to my wonderful three reviewers so far, Herald-Mage Brianna,
Delphine Pride, and Hildi-chan. Thanks so much guys! *pounces* I'll share
my family's famous Thanksgiving Green Salad with you just for being so
awesome. *grin*
On to the story! And I realize there's no major plot yet. . . I expect it will appear in a big way in chapter five. =)
Chapter Three
Nyoka was usually a very laid-back Companion.
He loved having fun, he had a good sense of humor, and he had plenty of friends. But for the last few days before he'd gone to another world to find his Chosen, he'd been antsy, nervous, and could hardly stand still without prancing in place a bit. He'd known at the time that he needed to find his Chosen, but the pull that had always drawn him right to where he or she was in his past lives was pulling in a very strange direction in this one.
At first, it had told him to go every which way. He hadn't known north, south, east or west, because it was telling him that it was all of those and none of them. He'd had no idea what to do.
But then he began getting flashes of images in his mind of where his Chosen was. She was in a place that looked incredibly strange, spoke in a tongue he didn't recognize, and was in every way different from a Valdemaran.
But her heart was pure Herald, and he'd known that he was receiving these images because he was meant to Gate to where she was. So today he'd gone up to Gwena and told her everything. She'd quickly summoned her Chosen, a powerful Herald-Mage, as well as her Chosen's husband and son (who were also mages), and, after a bit of nervousness that they were Gating to a place unknown to them and were relying on the images that Nyoka provided, they had all made a Gate.
As Molly was out cold in the House of Healing after receiving Valdemaran from Taeo, he pranced in place a bit as he stood in Companion's Field, looking over at the building.
:Are you all right, Nyoka?: he heard a voice ask just as his ears picked up the sound of another Companion approaching. He glanced over to see that it was Iai, the Companion he'd loved for years. She was just as beautiful as always -- tiny and slender of body, and she was so graceful that she moved like a dancer. :How is your Chosen?: she asked, sounding concerned.
:I believe that she will be fine,: he said hopefully, returning his gaze to the House of Healing. :She is stronger than she looks, I think.:
:What is she like?: Iai asked him, stepping closer and reaching out to nuzzle him gently. He closed his eyes for a moment with happiness at the gesture, then responded.
:She. . . she is very kind,: he told her, trying to sort through all the information he'd received when he'd Chosen her. :She cares for others genuinely, and she is always honest. She tries to be kind to everyone and figure out what makes others happy so she can do that for them; she hates seeing others in pain and hates fighting -- she kind of shuts down when people get angry at her. She can't stand it when people don't like her and obsesses over it a bit when that happens, but she's slowly learning that not everyone will like her and she has to learn to live with it. She loves to laugh and be truly happy with others.:
He turned back to Iai and chuckled. :I think that is her basic personality. Now you know her just about as well as I do!:
Iai pranced in place with her laughter. :She sounds very nice,: she told him honestly with a sparkle in her eyes. :She must meet my Summerhawk, I think they would get along.:
He was about to respond when he felt a twitching in the back of his mind -- it was his Chosen awakening from her unconsciousness. He stretched his awareness out a bit more to feel what she was feeling, though their Bond was not yet strong enough for him to see through her eyes. He sensed her surprise, then figured out what had happened.
:Talia is with her now,: he told Iai. :She'll probably bring her out here soon.:
:I believe that is her plan,: a deep masculine voice said, and the two Companions turned to see the Grove-Born, Rolan, along with Summerhawk, approach. Rolan bowed his head slightly in a very regal manner, and the two of them returned the gesture. :I think that she likes your Chosen, Nyoka, though what happened with your Choosing is certainly. . . unordinary.: Rolan's voice was not unkind, just amused.
Nyoka chuckled in agreement, but felt a bit nervous -- he was always worried around the Grove-Born. :That it was,: he replied. :I am glad Talia likes her. It will make things much easier, and perhaps they will get along and Molly will confide in her.:
Rolan nodded solemnly. :It will not be easy for her here. I hope that she will talk to Talia as well. And they have something in common, as well -- a shared Gift.:
Nyo sighed in relief. He'd suspected it, but he hadn't been sure -- apparently Talia had picked up on the Gift sometime during their conversation and had relayed the fact that Molly had a bit of Empathy to Rolan. :So she _is_ an Empath, then? I was wondering if that was what the Gift was.:
:Talia and I believe she is an Empath, yes,: Rolan replied. :I think that once the two of them come out here then you will be able to tell what her Gifts are since you will be in close physical contact. You can probably stay together most of today while she recovers from the Gating, and she can get settled in and used to Collegium life tomorrow and classes will probably start for her the next day.:
:That sounds nice,: Nyoka told him gratefully. :I'm glad she'll have time to get used to things a bit before getting thrown right into the middle of all of this.: He looked over at the House of Healing again and was happy to see Talia and Molly leave the building and come out towards them, and with a happy whinny, he went through the break in the fence and cantered towards them.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Talia and I walked down the halls of the House of Healing and into what she told me was the Herald's Collegium. As she spoke, I marveled at the fact that it was Talia, Queen's Own Talia, that was leading me through the Collegium and telling me where and what everything was.
"That room there," she said as we walked, motioning to a door on our left-hand side, "will be your Orientation classroom, taught by Herald Dirk."
"Your husband, right?" I asked with a grin. "And he'll be teaching Jemmie, too?"
Talia laughed, then looked over at me with a slightly surprised expression. "You really do know a lot about us," she said. "How do you know all of this? What else do you know?" she asked curiously.
I chuckled. "In my world, tales about Valdemar are just books, fiction books that are written by a lady named Mercedes Lackey. There are lots of the books and I've read every single one -- it's too bad I didn't bring any to school with me today or I'd have one to show you," I said with a slight scowl at that turn of fortune. "There's a trilogy about you, one on Elspeth, one on the Mage Storms, one on Vanyel, one on the Mage Wars. . . as well as single books about Lavan Firestorm, Kerowyn, Alberich, and Skif. There's others, too, but I can't remember them all," I confessed. "I could probably write down the titles of all of the books if I had a minute and a piece of paper."
Talia looked very surprised. "You know about Vanyel? And- what do you mean, the 'Mage Wars?'"
"Two-thousand years ago," I explained, "there were two great mages fighting. One wanted to control the world and one tried to stop him, and those battles were called the Mage Wars. The deaths of those two mages resulted in the Cataclysm, which you all felt with the Mage Storms, and the creation of the Dhorisha Plains and Lake Evendim."
Talia's jaw practically dropped. "W-wow," she said, then looked thoughtful. "Would you mind telling all these things to Myste, the Herald- Chronicler? She'll want to write down as much as she can about where you're from, as well -- she's rather detail-oriented like that, I'm afraid," Talia smiled.
"I wouldn't mind at all. In fact, I'd be happy to once I get settled in," I said, beaming up at her.
"Wonderful!" We walked up to a door and Talia opened it and we stepped outside. "That's the Companion's Field," she said, pointing over to a large expanse of rolling hills and green grass and trees. I looked over at the fence surrounding it and saw three Companions and a person standing near it, and I looked at Talia hopefully. She just laughed. "Go ahead," she grinned, and I ran over to my Nyoka as fast as I could.
Nyoka saw me as well, and he went through a little opening in the fence and ran towards me, stopping as he got closer. I stepped over to him and hugged his neck. "Nyoka," I murmured, "I love you! I missed you!"
He whickered happily. :I missed you too, Chosen!: he said, stepping back to nuzzle me gently. :Did you have fun with Talia?:
"Oh yes, she's very nice," I said happily. "I'm very excited to be here. This will be wonderful! It's just like in my stories!"
I heard Talia's kindhearted chuckle as she approached. "By the way, Molly, have you met Summerhawk, Iai or Rolan yet?" she asked, and I shook my head and looked over at the other creatures I'd seen when I'd looked outside from the Collegium. Two of them were Companions -- one was a dainty, pretty little thing, and the other was tall, strong, and had a kind of heavenly look about him, like there should be choirs of angels singing, I thought with a little giggle.
The other one was a human, a human boy, to be exact. I blinked in surprise. ~He is _hot_!~ I thought with a little smile at him. His skin was fairly tanned and his hair was a dark color that was either very dark brown or black, I couldn't tell, and it was long and hung down to his shoulders and was braided with feathers and beads. He was clad in Grays, but they certainly looked different from mine and had more decorations on them. I realized with a start that this must be Summerhawk, Elspeth and Darkwind's son.
"Nice to meet you all," I said with a smile. Rolan and Iai (I assumed that was who it was, and that she must be Summerhawk's Companion) stepped forward to touch their nose to my outstretched hand gently, and Summerhawk smiled.
"Nice to meet you too, Molly. How was your first experience with Gating?" he asked with a grin. I remembered that he was one of the ones that had helped me Gate here.
:He is a Herald-Mage Trainee,: Nyo explained, :and he will be an Adept when he's fully trained. And Iai is the daughter of Rolan and Ahrodie, so she has quite a bit of power as well.: I 'felt' something like a blush when he said Iai's name, and I made a mental note to question him about that later. I chuckled mentally.
"It was made even more wonderful by the fact that I had to learn Valdemaran right afterwards!" I grinned. "At least I won't have to do either of those again anytime soon," I said thankfully, and he laughed.
"I should hope not, because then I'd be even more tired from helping build another one! Give, give, give, that's all I ever do and it's never appreciated. . ." he said jokingly, but acting hurt and innocent, and I laughed.
Talia chuckled and looked over at my Companion. "Nyoka, Molly and I were hoping you could tell us what her Gifts are," she told him, and he nodded cheerfully with more personality than I had never seen coming from a horse. ~But,~ I reminded myself, ~he's not a horse. He's a Companion.~
:Tell Talia that I would be happy to,: he told me, and I did so. :Now, let's see here. . .: he said, catching and holding my brown eyes with his bright blue ones. I may not be used to magic or the doings of Companions and Heralds, but I _know_ I felt some kind of funny feeling inside my head, and I figured that it must have been Nyo.
:I've got it now,: he told me, and I blinked once. :Goodness. It seems you have quite a few Gifts, Chosen, but none of them are very powerful.: I relayed this information to Talia. :Hmm. . . Well, your two strongest Gifts are Empathy and Animal Mindspeaking, both of which are moderate-strength. Then you have weak Mindspeech, both projective and receptive, and weak Healing, as well as just a touch of Firestarting and a bit of the Mage Gift.:
My jaw dropped. "I have _all_ of _those_?" I asked, looking at him like either he or I was crazy as the others did the same to me (since I hadn't told them what the Gifts were). "But- that's so many!"
Nyo looked like he would have shrugged if he would have been physically able to. :At least it's not as many as Vanyel had,: he said with a whicker of laughter, and I had to agree. :And you'll be fine. The teachers here are excellent, but it seems you'll have to get some training in the Healer's Collegium as well as the Herald's.:
I nodded thoughtfully. Five Gifts? I hoped I could learn to use them all without going crazy. I then realized that I hadn't told everyone else what Nyo had told me, and I quickly did so.
Both Talia's and Summerhawk's eyes widened. "Nice job, Molly!" Hawk grinned. "We'll have Gift classes together. My only two are the Mage-Gift and Mindspeech, so we'll learn how to use them together, hey?" he smiled.
"And since you have Healing as well as Empathy, you probably won't be trained by me, since all I have is Empathy," Talia told me. "And you'll get a much better training than I did -- nobody really knew how to train someone who only had Empathy and not Healing so I kind of had to muddle through it on my own," she said with a little half-smile.
I grinned. "Good news for me, I guess!"
Talia then smiled. "This will work out better than I'd hoped." She turned to Summerhawk with a curious expression on her face. "Hawk, I was hoping that you'd be Molly's mentor with the mages, since you'll both be Herald-Mage Trainees, and I was thinking Kedya for her regular mentor. Would you mind?" she asked hopefully.
"I wouldn't mind at all!" he said enthusiastically, then grinned at me. "I'll be able to get her back for making me Gate her all the way here!" Hawk said impishly.
I stuck out my tongue at him and laughed, and I happened to glance over at Talia and Rolan, both of whom were looking rather smug and proud of themselves. I wished I could raise one eyebrow at Nyo to show my curiosity, and I vowed to ask him about what they were plotting later. ~I wish I could Mindspeak him!~ I thought wistfully.
"Who is Kedya?" I asked Talia.
"She's a third-year Trainee," the Queen's Own responded, "and her Companion is the mare Aeliith. Should we go meet her?"
I nodded and hugged Nyo once more, then turned back to her.
"Mind if I tag along?" Hawk asked hopefully.
"Sure," Talia said with a kind smile, then the three of us walked back into the Herald's Collegium to meet up with my new mentor and attempt to get me settled in.
On to the story! And I realize there's no major plot yet. . . I expect it will appear in a big way in chapter five. =)
Chapter Three
Nyoka was usually a very laid-back Companion.
He loved having fun, he had a good sense of humor, and he had plenty of friends. But for the last few days before he'd gone to another world to find his Chosen, he'd been antsy, nervous, and could hardly stand still without prancing in place a bit. He'd known at the time that he needed to find his Chosen, but the pull that had always drawn him right to where he or she was in his past lives was pulling in a very strange direction in this one.
At first, it had told him to go every which way. He hadn't known north, south, east or west, because it was telling him that it was all of those and none of them. He'd had no idea what to do.
But then he began getting flashes of images in his mind of where his Chosen was. She was in a place that looked incredibly strange, spoke in a tongue he didn't recognize, and was in every way different from a Valdemaran.
But her heart was pure Herald, and he'd known that he was receiving these images because he was meant to Gate to where she was. So today he'd gone up to Gwena and told her everything. She'd quickly summoned her Chosen, a powerful Herald-Mage, as well as her Chosen's husband and son (who were also mages), and, after a bit of nervousness that they were Gating to a place unknown to them and were relying on the images that Nyoka provided, they had all made a Gate.
As Molly was out cold in the House of Healing after receiving Valdemaran from Taeo, he pranced in place a bit as he stood in Companion's Field, looking over at the building.
:Are you all right, Nyoka?: he heard a voice ask just as his ears picked up the sound of another Companion approaching. He glanced over to see that it was Iai, the Companion he'd loved for years. She was just as beautiful as always -- tiny and slender of body, and she was so graceful that she moved like a dancer. :How is your Chosen?: she asked, sounding concerned.
:I believe that she will be fine,: he said hopefully, returning his gaze to the House of Healing. :She is stronger than she looks, I think.:
:What is she like?: Iai asked him, stepping closer and reaching out to nuzzle him gently. He closed his eyes for a moment with happiness at the gesture, then responded.
:She. . . she is very kind,: he told her, trying to sort through all the information he'd received when he'd Chosen her. :She cares for others genuinely, and she is always honest. She tries to be kind to everyone and figure out what makes others happy so she can do that for them; she hates seeing others in pain and hates fighting -- she kind of shuts down when people get angry at her. She can't stand it when people don't like her and obsesses over it a bit when that happens, but she's slowly learning that not everyone will like her and she has to learn to live with it. She loves to laugh and be truly happy with others.:
He turned back to Iai and chuckled. :I think that is her basic personality. Now you know her just about as well as I do!:
Iai pranced in place with her laughter. :She sounds very nice,: she told him honestly with a sparkle in her eyes. :She must meet my Summerhawk, I think they would get along.:
He was about to respond when he felt a twitching in the back of his mind -- it was his Chosen awakening from her unconsciousness. He stretched his awareness out a bit more to feel what she was feeling, though their Bond was not yet strong enough for him to see through her eyes. He sensed her surprise, then figured out what had happened.
:Talia is with her now,: he told Iai. :She'll probably bring her out here soon.:
:I believe that is her plan,: a deep masculine voice said, and the two Companions turned to see the Grove-Born, Rolan, along with Summerhawk, approach. Rolan bowed his head slightly in a very regal manner, and the two of them returned the gesture. :I think that she likes your Chosen, Nyoka, though what happened with your Choosing is certainly. . . unordinary.: Rolan's voice was not unkind, just amused.
Nyoka chuckled in agreement, but felt a bit nervous -- he was always worried around the Grove-Born. :That it was,: he replied. :I am glad Talia likes her. It will make things much easier, and perhaps they will get along and Molly will confide in her.:
Rolan nodded solemnly. :It will not be easy for her here. I hope that she will talk to Talia as well. And they have something in common, as well -- a shared Gift.:
Nyo sighed in relief. He'd suspected it, but he hadn't been sure -- apparently Talia had picked up on the Gift sometime during their conversation and had relayed the fact that Molly had a bit of Empathy to Rolan. :So she _is_ an Empath, then? I was wondering if that was what the Gift was.:
:Talia and I believe she is an Empath, yes,: Rolan replied. :I think that once the two of them come out here then you will be able to tell what her Gifts are since you will be in close physical contact. You can probably stay together most of today while she recovers from the Gating, and she can get settled in and used to Collegium life tomorrow and classes will probably start for her the next day.:
:That sounds nice,: Nyoka told him gratefully. :I'm glad she'll have time to get used to things a bit before getting thrown right into the middle of all of this.: He looked over at the House of Healing again and was happy to see Talia and Molly leave the building and come out towards them, and with a happy whinny, he went through the break in the fence and cantered towards them.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Talia and I walked down the halls of the House of Healing and into what she told me was the Herald's Collegium. As she spoke, I marveled at the fact that it was Talia, Queen's Own Talia, that was leading me through the Collegium and telling me where and what everything was.
"That room there," she said as we walked, motioning to a door on our left-hand side, "will be your Orientation classroom, taught by Herald Dirk."
"Your husband, right?" I asked with a grin. "And he'll be teaching Jemmie, too?"
Talia laughed, then looked over at me with a slightly surprised expression. "You really do know a lot about us," she said. "How do you know all of this? What else do you know?" she asked curiously.
I chuckled. "In my world, tales about Valdemar are just books, fiction books that are written by a lady named Mercedes Lackey. There are lots of the books and I've read every single one -- it's too bad I didn't bring any to school with me today or I'd have one to show you," I said with a slight scowl at that turn of fortune. "There's a trilogy about you, one on Elspeth, one on the Mage Storms, one on Vanyel, one on the Mage Wars. . . as well as single books about Lavan Firestorm, Kerowyn, Alberich, and Skif. There's others, too, but I can't remember them all," I confessed. "I could probably write down the titles of all of the books if I had a minute and a piece of paper."
Talia looked very surprised. "You know about Vanyel? And- what do you mean, the 'Mage Wars?'"
"Two-thousand years ago," I explained, "there were two great mages fighting. One wanted to control the world and one tried to stop him, and those battles were called the Mage Wars. The deaths of those two mages resulted in the Cataclysm, which you all felt with the Mage Storms, and the creation of the Dhorisha Plains and Lake Evendim."
Talia's jaw practically dropped. "W-wow," she said, then looked thoughtful. "Would you mind telling all these things to Myste, the Herald- Chronicler? She'll want to write down as much as she can about where you're from, as well -- she's rather detail-oriented like that, I'm afraid," Talia smiled.
"I wouldn't mind at all. In fact, I'd be happy to once I get settled in," I said, beaming up at her.
"Wonderful!" We walked up to a door and Talia opened it and we stepped outside. "That's the Companion's Field," she said, pointing over to a large expanse of rolling hills and green grass and trees. I looked over at the fence surrounding it and saw three Companions and a person standing near it, and I looked at Talia hopefully. She just laughed. "Go ahead," she grinned, and I ran over to my Nyoka as fast as I could.
Nyoka saw me as well, and he went through a little opening in the fence and ran towards me, stopping as he got closer. I stepped over to him and hugged his neck. "Nyoka," I murmured, "I love you! I missed you!"
He whickered happily. :I missed you too, Chosen!: he said, stepping back to nuzzle me gently. :Did you have fun with Talia?:
"Oh yes, she's very nice," I said happily. "I'm very excited to be here. This will be wonderful! It's just like in my stories!"
I heard Talia's kindhearted chuckle as she approached. "By the way, Molly, have you met Summerhawk, Iai or Rolan yet?" she asked, and I shook my head and looked over at the other creatures I'd seen when I'd looked outside from the Collegium. Two of them were Companions -- one was a dainty, pretty little thing, and the other was tall, strong, and had a kind of heavenly look about him, like there should be choirs of angels singing, I thought with a little giggle.
The other one was a human, a human boy, to be exact. I blinked in surprise. ~He is _hot_!~ I thought with a little smile at him. His skin was fairly tanned and his hair was a dark color that was either very dark brown or black, I couldn't tell, and it was long and hung down to his shoulders and was braided with feathers and beads. He was clad in Grays, but they certainly looked different from mine and had more decorations on them. I realized with a start that this must be Summerhawk, Elspeth and Darkwind's son.
"Nice to meet you all," I said with a smile. Rolan and Iai (I assumed that was who it was, and that she must be Summerhawk's Companion) stepped forward to touch their nose to my outstretched hand gently, and Summerhawk smiled.
"Nice to meet you too, Molly. How was your first experience with Gating?" he asked with a grin. I remembered that he was one of the ones that had helped me Gate here.
:He is a Herald-Mage Trainee,: Nyo explained, :and he will be an Adept when he's fully trained. And Iai is the daughter of Rolan and Ahrodie, so she has quite a bit of power as well.: I 'felt' something like a blush when he said Iai's name, and I made a mental note to question him about that later. I chuckled mentally.
"It was made even more wonderful by the fact that I had to learn Valdemaran right afterwards!" I grinned. "At least I won't have to do either of those again anytime soon," I said thankfully, and he laughed.
"I should hope not, because then I'd be even more tired from helping build another one! Give, give, give, that's all I ever do and it's never appreciated. . ." he said jokingly, but acting hurt and innocent, and I laughed.
Talia chuckled and looked over at my Companion. "Nyoka, Molly and I were hoping you could tell us what her Gifts are," she told him, and he nodded cheerfully with more personality than I had never seen coming from a horse. ~But,~ I reminded myself, ~he's not a horse. He's a Companion.~
:Tell Talia that I would be happy to,: he told me, and I did so. :Now, let's see here. . .: he said, catching and holding my brown eyes with his bright blue ones. I may not be used to magic or the doings of Companions and Heralds, but I _know_ I felt some kind of funny feeling inside my head, and I figured that it must have been Nyo.
:I've got it now,: he told me, and I blinked once. :Goodness. It seems you have quite a few Gifts, Chosen, but none of them are very powerful.: I relayed this information to Talia. :Hmm. . . Well, your two strongest Gifts are Empathy and Animal Mindspeaking, both of which are moderate-strength. Then you have weak Mindspeech, both projective and receptive, and weak Healing, as well as just a touch of Firestarting and a bit of the Mage Gift.:
My jaw dropped. "I have _all_ of _those_?" I asked, looking at him like either he or I was crazy as the others did the same to me (since I hadn't told them what the Gifts were). "But- that's so many!"
Nyo looked like he would have shrugged if he would have been physically able to. :At least it's not as many as Vanyel had,: he said with a whicker of laughter, and I had to agree. :And you'll be fine. The teachers here are excellent, but it seems you'll have to get some training in the Healer's Collegium as well as the Herald's.:
I nodded thoughtfully. Five Gifts? I hoped I could learn to use them all without going crazy. I then realized that I hadn't told everyone else what Nyo had told me, and I quickly did so.
Both Talia's and Summerhawk's eyes widened. "Nice job, Molly!" Hawk grinned. "We'll have Gift classes together. My only two are the Mage-Gift and Mindspeech, so we'll learn how to use them together, hey?" he smiled.
"And since you have Healing as well as Empathy, you probably won't be trained by me, since all I have is Empathy," Talia told me. "And you'll get a much better training than I did -- nobody really knew how to train someone who only had Empathy and not Healing so I kind of had to muddle through it on my own," she said with a little half-smile.
I grinned. "Good news for me, I guess!"
Talia then smiled. "This will work out better than I'd hoped." She turned to Summerhawk with a curious expression on her face. "Hawk, I was hoping that you'd be Molly's mentor with the mages, since you'll both be Herald-Mage Trainees, and I was thinking Kedya for her regular mentor. Would you mind?" she asked hopefully.
"I wouldn't mind at all!" he said enthusiastically, then grinned at me. "I'll be able to get her back for making me Gate her all the way here!" Hawk said impishly.
I stuck out my tongue at him and laughed, and I happened to glance over at Talia and Rolan, both of whom were looking rather smug and proud of themselves. I wished I could raise one eyebrow at Nyo to show my curiosity, and I vowed to ask him about what they were plotting later. ~I wish I could Mindspeak him!~ I thought wistfully.
"Who is Kedya?" I asked Talia.
"She's a third-year Trainee," the Queen's Own responded, "and her Companion is the mare Aeliith. Should we go meet her?"
I nodded and hugged Nyo once more, then turned back to her.
"Mind if I tag along?" Hawk asked hopefully.
"Sure," Talia said with a kind smile, then the three of us walked back into the Herald's Collegium to meet up with my new mentor and attempt to get me settled in.