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For once Nynaeve was not peering at the surrounding countryside trying to find Lan He and Birgitte would not be gone long anyway, not here Instead she strode briskly a people tothe servants with the pack ani some of the Kinswomen who had no horses that any child could walk fiveat a slender Altaran noblewo a bundle nearly as big as herself that if she had been fool enough to bring all of her dresses then she could carry theathered the Atha’an Miere around her and was instructing them on how to mount a horse For a wonder, they actually appeared to be paying attention Nynaeve glanced her way and see in one spot Until Alise so on hat she was doing

For an instant Nynaeve stood stockstill, staring at the worass to Elayne Reaching up to her hat with both hands, she hesitated, glowering up at it her through her lashes before giving it a twitch straight "I’ll just let her take care of everything this time," she said in a suspiciously reasonable tone "We’ll just see hoell she does with those Sea Folk Yes, ill" Too reasonable a tone by half Abruptly she frowned at the stillopen gateway "Why are you holding it? Let go" Aviendha was frowning, too

Elayne drew a deep breath She had thought about this, and there was no other way, but Nynaeve would try to argue her out of it, and there no tiateway, the farhtened away by the hubbub, yet how long before it filled up again? She studied her weave, ly that only a few threads remained distinct She could see every flow, of course, but except for those few, they appeared inseparably combined "Take everyone to the manor house, Nynaeve," she said The sun did not have very ht remained "Master Hornill be surprised at so uests of the girl who cried over the redbird with the broken wing; he’ll re as soon as I can"

"Elayne," Aviendha began in a surprisingly anxious voice, and at the same time, Nynaeve said sharply, "Just what do you think you’re -- "

There was only one way to stop it Elayne plucked one of the discernible threads free of the weave; it wavered and flailed like a living tentacle; it fuzzed and spluttered, tiny fluffs of saidar breaking off and fading away She had not noticed that when Aviendha unmade her weave, but she had only seen the tail of that, really "Go on," she told Nynaeve "I’ll wait for the rest until you are all out of sight" Nynaeve stared out, her jaw hanging "It has to be done," Elayne sighed "The Seanchan will be at the farm in hours, for sure Even if they wait until tomorrohat if one of the daive Traveling to the Seanchan I won’t!"

Nynaeve growled so under her breath about the Seanchan thatby her tone "Well, I won’t let you burn yourself out!" she said aloud "Now, put that back! Before the whole thing explodes the way Vandene said You could kill all of us!"

"It cannot be put back," Aviendha said, laying a hand on Nynaeve’s arun, and now she must finish You must do as she says, Nynaeve"

Nynaeve’s brows dren "Must" was a word she did not like hearing one bit, not applied to her She was not a fool, though, so after a bit of glaring -- at Elayne, at the gateway, at Aviendha, at the world in general -- she flung her ar that made her ribs creak

"You be careful, you hear et yourself killed, I swear I’ll skin you alive!" In spite of everything, Elayne burst out laughing Nynaeve snorted, pushing her out to arrumbled "And don’t think I don’t mean it, because I do! I do," she added in a softer voice "You take care"

It took Nynaeve agloves tight There seeh that could not have been; Nynaeve made other people cry, she did not cry herself "Well, then," she said loudly "Alise, if you don’t have everyone ready yet -- " Turning, she cut off with a strangled croak

Those ere supposed to be athered around the other sisters; Lan and Birgitte had returned, and Birgitte watched Elayne worriedly The servants had the pack ani patiently,Circle A nu were loaded with sacks of food and bundles of belongings Woht more than Alise allowed -- none of them Kin -- carried their bundles on their own backs The slender noble with the scar was bent at an aard angle beneath hers, and glaring at anyone but Alise Every woateway And every woers watched that one whipping filament as she would have a red adder

It was Alise herself who brought Nynaeve her horse And straightened the blueplumed hat as Nynaeve put a foot in the stirrup Nynaeve turned the plu Mandarb at her side and a look of utter mortification on her face Why she did not just set Alise down, Elayne did not understand To hear Nynaeve tell it, she had been putting women older than herself in their place since she was little irl And she was Aes Sedai, now, after all; that should carry an to wend its way toward the hills, Elayne looked at Aviendha and Birgitte Aviendha simply stood there with her arms folded beneath her breasts; she had the rappedinherownhair angreal clutched in one hand Birgitte took Lioness’s reins fro them to those of her own horse and Aviendha’s, then walked over to a small boulder twenty paces away and sat down

"You two hed when Aviendha’s eyebrows shot up in surprise Sending Aviendha out of danger was iether "I want you to go with the others," she told Birgitte "And take Lioness Aviendha and I can take turns riding her gelding I’d like a w