Fanfic:Meeting a Mentor
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Garren leaned easily agianst the wall of the Learning Ranks. He was awaiting the arrival of his new mentee Kailitha. He had sent a note to her informing her to meet him here this morn at dawn. As she had been told, Whisper sat easily beside him. The brow hair wolfkin and the grey furred half-wolf seemed to take on the same stance as they waited. This was something that made those that didn't know them uneasy and those that did know them laugh. Garren and Whisper could be amazingly (and amusingly) alike sometimes. Garren impatiently glanced out the window checking the time. The new Drin had ten minutes until she was late. He truly hoped this one would be on time.
Kailitha heard the bell begin to chime and knew it was going to happen again. She just couldn't find her way around the Tower at all. She had to meet her mentor. A Garren Brighteyes
they told me he was a wolfkin. i don't even know what that means exactly.
She ran into which she hoped was the right hallway. She skidded to a stop as she saw a brown haired main leaning against the wall with a VERY big dog sitting next to him.
Garren sighed to himself as he checked the window agian. Kalitha was going to be late.
Are they always late? He wondered to himself irratably. His last Mentee had been as well. Of course HE had had a good reason. But I guess they always do.
This put Garren in a bit of a spot. He was, by nature, a joly man, wary but jolly. In the letter he had sent the drin he had mentioned not to be late. He had hoped that by doing this he wouldn't have to get onto the girl about it. Now though he knew that he would have to.
He heard a noise and turned his head as the girl skidded to a stop, staring at him and then Whisper. Whisper had also turn to regard the young woman. The half-wolf's stance was tense as he watched the girl, he wasn't fond of new people.
Garren made sure that he frowned at the girl as he pushed graceful away from the wall. As he walked towards her Whisper followed. The wolf-kin as well as the wolf seemed to walk with the same gliding, stalking step. Garren stopped only a few steps before Kailitha and looked down at her. Crossing his arms as he had seen the Giadin do from time to time he spoke.
"You late."
Kailitha looked up at the man that would be her mentor. And then down at the half wolf. She gripped her quarterstaff tight to her chest. She forced herself to breathe.
Oh now I'm in for it! He told me not be late. Now he going to sick both his wolf friend and the Master of Arms at me. Though I think I prefer the wolf.
She bowed deeply and said without looking up, "Garren Brighteyes Ji'Alantin. My deepest apologies for being late. Though getting lost is no excuse when you told me not to be late. Again with my sincerest apologies." She kept her head down waiting for the rebuke that she surely deserved. "I have no sense of direction and this place is very large," she added hoping again to explain her tardiness.
Garren looked down at his new mentee and felt a stab of pity in his heart. Many new recruits had lost they're way in these winding halls. Garren never had but that had been do soley to his keen nose. He had smelled out the warder-in-trianing's barracks. Still.... he couldn't go easy on the girl.... He wrestled with himself for a moment, trying to decide how to proceed. Finally he sighed. Though, to his credit, he was able to make it seem as if it was at least slightly an annoyed sigh.
"You wouldn't be the first one to get lost in these halls, Drin'Far'Ji." He said allowing her that comfort. Then his voice steadied, "However, many think to rise early, knowing that they may become lost. It trust that it won't happen agian" He looked down at her as he added. "Right? I don't want it become a habit."
Then his voice steadied, "However, many think to rise early, knowing that they may become lost. It trust that it won't happen again" He looked down at her as he added. "Right? I don't want it become a habit."
Kailitha kept her head down. "Yes Garren Ji'Alantin. I thought that I had raised early enough in case I did get lost. But I kept going round in circles. And then I remembered that the windows facing the garden were on the other side of the Warder Hall."
It didn't help that I kept finding my way back to the Dorms. It was like I didn't want to leave that particular area.
"I suppose that saying that this is only my second day wouldn't lessen my punishment...?" She asked a note of hope in her voice.
Garren was rather suprised by the bravado of the Drin before him and felt the frown upon his lips try to lift into a smile. Even as he began to battle it he knew he would loose.
Finally he gave up and allowed the old grin to spread across his face. Chuckling to himself he stepped back. "Alright, girl, but just this once. One thing your gonna have to learn here is dicsipline and the Master of Arms will have my hide if I'm to soft on ya.
Dropping down to crouch by Whisper, who was currently inspecting her shoes, Garren scratched the half-wolf's back and asked. "So, what do you wanna know?"
Kalitha noticed that now he was in front her eyes kneeling down.
"Well I guess my first question is how do you find your way around this place?" But then she looked at the large animal by his side.
"On second thought, he probably helped you," she said finally letting go of her staff to lift her hand toward Whisper. In what she hoped was a non-threatening way.
He's so big that if he decided to attack me I would be lunch before I could get my quarterstaff up
Whisper turned his head to look over at Garren before his moved towards the Drin. Garren didn't seem to move at all but silently to the half-wolf he said Go ahead, Whisper, make friends.
Whisper turned back to the Drin and carefully proceeded to sniff her hand. Once he was aquintanced to her scent he sat back agian. To Garren he said disdainfuly She's afriad. Garren nodded, understanding Whisper's disdained, fear was a horrible scent. Aloud he said, "I know she's afraid Whisper, to her view she has good reason to be. As far as she knows she is alone with one someone that is a higher rank than her, she was late, and, to add to it all, there is now a rather large wild animal in front of her."
Standing agian and not bothering to dust the dirt from his pant legs Garren addressed Kailitha. "And make no mistake, Drin'Far'Ji, Whisper is wild, unlike some of these... these dogsthat you will see around here. I would never allow any brother of mine to become... tame."
He now smiled kindly at her. "But that doesn't mean that he will hurt you, so put your fear aside. Whisper understands that I often come around people that he doesn't know. It's part of our life now. He won't hurt you. In fact, once he gets to know you, he'll be rather friendly, he is half dog himself after all."
Looking around a bit Garren gestured for them to walk a bit around the grounds. If they stayed there for much longer the servants would begin to harp at Garren for having an animal in the halls, they never had gotten used to Whisper.
"As for how I found my way around the Tower when I first got here... your sort of right. I did find my way around because of scent, but I did not have Whisper do it. I did it myself. I'm what everyone calls a wolfkin, this means several things but one thing it means is that many of my senses are just as sharp and trained as my wolven brother Whisper here."
As they wandered the halls, she still couldn't figure out where they were.
"So when you said that stuff aloud it was for both our benefit, right? I mean you don't need to speak aloud to have Whisper hear you but it sounded like you were answering his question. Am i right?"
That must be very convenient that she thought as she crouched in front of Whisper so that he could get her scent better.
"I like dogs but too many a dog has knocked over my flower pots in pursuit of cat or rat," she said as she began to rough up his mane.
As Kailitha ruffed Whisper's man Whisper appeared to be in heaven. Panting happily he peered up at the Drin with almost loving like abandon.
Garren chuckled at the sight. Whisper was always a sucked for pettings of almost any kind.
"Sorta" he responded to her question. "While it is for the benifit of others near me, most of the time I don't even realize I've spoken aloud." His smile grew wider. "That is, until people start to look at me funny."
He stopped in front of a door. Pointing he informed her. "This is the door that will lead you to the sparring arena as well as the trianing yards. From here you can reach almost anything that is important to the Warders. It would be best if you used this as a reminder of where you are and navigate the halls from there."
Kailitha laughed when he told her that he talks to Whisper out loud.
I bet that causes all sorts of mischief They stopped in front of a door and she was forced to stop petting Whisper to look at it.
"This is the door that will lead you to the sparring arena as well as the trianing yards. From here you can reach almost anything that is important to the Warders. It would be best if you used this as a reminder of where you are and navigate the halls from there," he said as he pointed to it.
So this should be my starting point if I ever get lost? Right. she thought as she absentmindly returned to petting Whisper.
Garren watches the Drin pet Whisper, whom for the moment seems to be in heaven. Amused he begins to chuckle.
"It seems that he like you." he gestures to the way Whisper has begun to lean heavily against her arm, as if falling asleep. "My brave protector. This is the one that scares the trainees so." He mock-scolds. "But then again, he was always a sucker for a good ear scrath or belly rub."
He opens the door and gestures for the girl to follow. "Come on, I'll show you the trianing grounds and the sparring arena."
Kailitha laughed as he scolded Whisper.
"Like I said I like dogs, I had one when I was younger. But the dumb thing ran away when I was eight."
Mama never liked Floppy anyway
They walked the Yards and she continued to pet him. "You say Whisper is part dog. Do you know what kind of dog that that what was?"
It would have to be a large breed. I think it would hilarious if it was a wolf hound.
Garren looked at the girl for a moment, rather amused that this would be a courisosity. "No, I don't. I've truly never even thought about it. Neither of us think it very important. Dogs are barely even worth thinking about anyway."
As he spoke he watched Kailitha and Whisper. Whisper had become completely won over, and Garren had to admit, he liked this spunky young lady.
Your horrible with females, you know that right? Garren thought to himself.
Kailitha smiled. She was really starting to like her mentor. He kind of reminded her of her dad.
Dad you would have like it here. You would have liked these two as well.
"It's no matter, huh Whisper?" She roughed his mane again.
"I guess I should ask questions about the Tower and stuff but the problem is, is that after getting lost I was found by another Drin'far'ji and he answered whatever questions I may have had.
Truth be told, I bombarded him with questions.
Garren nodded as she spoke. "Alright then, if you really don't have any questions, I guess you should begin to find you teachers and learn the times that they expect you to be there, as well as what you need to bring."
He gestured to the door he had stopped in front of earlier. "Just go through there, you shouldn't get lost. Just go straight."
He thought for a few moments more before adding, "And if you have any other questions, just ask around for me. Don't be shy, I'm sure we'll see each other agian."
Kailitha turned and flashed her brightest smile.
"I didn't know that I would be getting a mentor till he mentioned it. I got lost. Again. As is the bane of my existence here at the Tower. But you are my mentor. I will come to you first above all others. Just cause I don't have any questions now doesn't mean that I won't after my first class."
Kailitha blushed. "Besides... I hear you're the best at unarmed combat and wilderness lore. Two things we Drin need to become Ji'alantin."
She really didn't want to leave yet. She was just starting to get to know him and Whisper. She wanted to be friends with these two. People had been nice to her so far. Well...almost...But she knew that that could change with a drop of cap.
The wolfkin grinned at the young lady as she spoke. "You wanna start learning some unarmed huh? I'm sure I could help with that. I haven't actually trained anyone like that before though. I might not be to good... Still..." He thought about it for a short moment, teaching others was required to become a Warder. "If you want, I will."
"The wilderness trianing, on the other hand, how about you wait until your a little more used to the Tower. Then, come to me, I have taught this one and would enjoy doing so agian." He smiled encouragingly at the Drin.
Kailitha smiled softly as he spoke.
He's right you know. If you tried wilderness survival now you would probably mess up whatever chance the Master gave you yesterday. She really had no desire to get lost in the woods. Though she knew with these she would be easily found again, it wasn't something that appealed to her.
"I would love to learn unarmed from you. Cause that means I get to spend more time with Whisper." She said as scratched the half-wolf behind the ear.
"Right boy?" she asked him as she went down his neck and under his chin. She turned to her mentor and said, "When do we start?" Determination etched in her face like stone.
"Actually," Garren had to admit to this eager young woman. "Whisper isn't allowed to the classes. Not the ones I take, and not usually the ones I give. At least until my pupils and focused enough to avoid slacking off."
He thought for a few moments longer. "Tell you what, though. One the days that you do well, I tell Whisper to come over and let you see him. It would probably be a good excersize in patients for both of you." He smiled to take the sting out of his words.
He turned and pointed through a window beside the door. ""Meet me in two days after your break fast. I'll be in the Training Yards, meet me there. In case you get lost, it is located on the East side of the Warder Yards. Do not be late. I mean it." Whisper whinned, reminding her that if she was she wouldn't be able to see him.
"Now, go. I'm giving you an assingment today, since I'm gonna be your teacher." He walked back to the door and held it open for her. "Your assingment is to learn the Warder Yards, travel them, keep in mind where you are at all times. If any one stops you, tell them you are doing this for punishment for being late today."
Kailitha smile up at her teacher "The Warder Yards on east side, I won't be late I promise. The Training Yards are big place I'm sure I couldn't miss them."
She scratched Whisper's ear one last time. "I'll see you around okay?"
"It will be a pleasure to learn from you, Garren Ji'Aalntin. I promise that though I might not learn quickly, I'm diligent till I do." She said as she flashed him her smile one more time before going through the door he held open for her. Her staff in hand she almost ran for her room.
When she got there she put up her staff and grabbed the stuff she would need for her classes. She smiled up at the window.
Dad...I'm going to make here after all!
