The Wheel of Kin: A Daughter's Journey

You'll never be alone, I'll be with you from dusk till dawn

As the evening sun dipped below the towers of Tar Valon, casting a warm glow over the city, Moiraine found herself in the quiet embrace of her chamber. The room, adorned with a large mirror, witnessed her shedding the weight of the day. Her fingers delicately removed each piece of jewelry, and her long hair, once neatly bound, cascaded down her back. The casual white dress she wore spoke of a brief respite from the formality that often accompanied life in the Tower.

Seated on a bench nearby, Elara engaged her mother in conversation, weaving tales of the day and the trials her friends from the Two Rivers had faced on their journey to the White Tower. The room echoed with the camaraderie between mother and daughter, a respite from the weighty responsibilities that both carried.

The calm ambiance shifted as Lan entered the room, his demeanor noticeably serious. Elara, perceptive as ever, excused herself, citing a forgotten dinner appointment with Alanna. A quick kiss on Moiraine's cheek, a fleeting smile at Lan, and she vanished through the door.

Once alone, Lan confronted Moiraine with a concern that had lingered in the shadows. "You masked our bond," he observed, his voice carrying a mixture of reproach and genuine worry.

Moiraine, in the process of undoing the intricate braids in her hair, met his gaze in the mirror. "It's been at least two years. I thought you'd welcome the break."

"This place isn't as safe as it once was. Everyone's watching you. You and Elara are not safe here, Moiraine. And I can't protect you if I can't feel you," Lan warned, his protective instincts surfacing.

"You're right," Moiraine conceded, acknowledging the validity of his concern.

"Well, that's a first," Lan remarked dryly, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Our enemies are everywhere. Your priority has to be protecting Elara and our friends from the Two Rivers. Now that we finally have them back" Moiraine instructed, the weight of responsibility settling back on her shoulders. "Good night, Lan"

"Be back before dawn," Lan ordered, his stoic demeanor softening just a fraction.

Moiraine couldn't resist a playful tone, "Is that an order?"

Lan's response was a resigned sigh. "Did it sound like a suggestion?"

A gentle chuckle escaped Moiraine's lips. "I'll stand watch until you return. Give her my love," Lan added.

Moiraine walks up to the painting on her wall and embracing the source, she began to weave a delicate pattern into the frame. A radiant light enveloped her, and with purposeful steps, she stepped through. As the light receded, revealing a new scene, Siuan Sanche came into view, seated in her nightgown, meticulously weaving a net.

The atmosphere in the room crackled with tension as Siuan, without looking up from her task, immediately addressed Moiraine's recent actions in the Hall. "What were you two thinking?" Her words carried a weight that bespoke the precariousness of their situation. "I'm on a knife's edge here, and that... that display Elara forced me to put on has made everything we're trying to do much harder."
Moiraine smirks at siuans's comments.

"Don't smile. Skin me and salt me if you don't take idiotic risks." says Siuan.

Moiraine, standing tall but with a hint of contrition in her expression, sought forgiveness with a touch of humor. "Am I forgiven, Mother?"

Siuan, her features hardening at the term of endearment, retorted, "I hate it when you call me that. So much for the Amyrlin Seat remaining neutral without favorites. No life. No love of one's own. Nothing but the Seat."

Moiraine, ever unapologetic for their deviations from tradition, responded with a rhetorical question. "When have we ever followed the rules?"

Their eyes locked in a silent understanding, a shared history etched into their gaze.