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The trouble had started last night, at a place called Bellon, on a randly named the Gaean River, some twenty er than the first, and Mistress Alfara, the innkeeper, offered the Lady Morelin a private dining room, which Elayne could not very well refuse Mistress Alfara had been sure that only the Lady Morelin’s maid, Nana, would kno to serve her properly; ladies did require everything just so, the woirls were simply not used to ladies Nana would know exactly how the Lady Morelin wanted her bed turned down, and would prepare her a nice bath after a hot day of travel The list of things that Nana would do exactly right for her mistress had been endless

Elayne was not sure whether Arnadician nobility expected such or Mistress Alfara was just getting work out of an outlander’s servant She had tried to spare Nynaeve, but the woman had been as full of "as you wish" and "my Lady is most particular" as the innkeeper She would have see to avoid attracting undue attention

As long as they had been in Bellon, Nynaeve had acted the perfect lady’s maid in public In private was another matter Elayne wished the wo her with a lady’s ies had been nored I will not apologize again, she thought for the fiftieth ti, Nynaeve" Gripping a hanging strap, she felt like the ball in the children’s game called Bounce in Andor, where you tried to keep a colorful wooden bail bouncing up and down on a paddle She would not ask for the coach to be slowed, though She could stand it as long as Nynaeve did The woman was so stubborn! "I want to reach Tar Valon and find out what is going on, but--"

"My Lady has been thinking? My Lady must have a headache from all that effort I will ue root and red daisy as soon as--"

"Be quiet, Nana," Elayne said, calmly but firmly; it was her very best imitation of her mother Nynaeve’s jaw dropped "If you pull that braid at e" Nynaevecame out Quite satisfactory "Sometimes you see like a child I did not ask you to wash my back, but I would have had to wrestle to stop you I did offer to scrub yours in turn, remember And I offered to sleep in the trundle bed But you cli If you like, I will be the maid at the next inn" It would probably be a disaster Nynaeve would shout at Tho for a little peace "We can stop right now and change in the trees"

"We chose the gowns to fit you," the other woain, she shouted, "Slon! Are you trying to kill us? Fool men!"

There was dead silence fro ered the two htened her hair as best she could without ablack tresses when she did look in one The green silk was going to need a thorough brushing itself

"What was it you were thinking, Elayne?" Nynaeve asked Criht, but backing doas very likely as ive

"We are rushing back to Tar Valon, but do we really have any idea what awaits us in the Tower? If the Aive those orders I do not really believe it, and I cannot understand it, but I do not intend to walk into the Tower until I do ’A fool puts her hand into a hollow tree without finding out what’s inside first’"

"A oman, Lini," Nynaeve said "We ing upside down, but until then I think we should behave as though the Black Ajah itself has control of the Tower"

"Mistress Macura will have sent off another pigeon to Narenwin by now With descriptions of this coach, and the dresses we took, and most likely Thom and Juilin, too"

"It cannot be helped This would not have happened if we hadn’t dawdled across Tarabon We should have taken ship" Elayne gaped at her accusatory tone, and Nynaeve had the grace to blush again "Well, done is done Moiraine knows Siuan Sanche Perhaps Egwene can ask her if --"

Abruptly the coach lurched to a halt, throwing Elayne forward on top of Nynaeve She could hear horses screaled herself, Nynaeve pushing her off as well

E saidar, she put her head out of the-- and released it again in relief Here was soh Caeerie was ca by the side of the road A great, blacke that took up the entire back of a wagon, while his two consorts paced in the confines of another A third cage stood open; in front of it a wo two black bears hite faces balance thee held what appeared to be a large, hairy boar, except that its snout was too pointed and it had toes with claws; that came froes held other anierie she had ever seen, this one traveled with hu ribbontwined hoops between the on one another’s shoulders in a tall colus that walked on their hind legs and did backflips for her In the background, so up two tall poles; she had no idea what they were for

None of that hat had the horses rearing in their harness and rolling their eyes, though, despite all that Thom could do with the reins She could sray aniazed, wildeyed Tere as tall as the coach, with big ears and great curving tusks beside a long nose that dangled to the ground The third, shorter than the horses if likely as heavy, had no tusks A baby, she supposed A wo that one behind the ear with a heavy, hooked goad Elayne had seen creatures like this before, too And had never e