This is a story that sat in my brain for a long time. I thought the situation so perfect that it had to get down in writing eventually. This is set in the Wheel of Time universe, in the White Tower of Tar Valon. I tried to not only write it somewhat similarly to the author of the books, but also make it so that even if the context passes you by, it is still enjoyable. I just know I always wanted a tickling story set in this world to exist. So, I made one.
WARNING: Contains spoilers for Knife of Dreams and back.
“Child, that is the last time you fail to curtsy to an Aes Sedai!” Katerine said, her face turning blotchy red. “It’s off to the Mistress of Novices for you. This time, you may finally learn to address your betters properly!”
Egwene suppressed a sigh and simply turned and walked away. She would go to Silviana, of course. She had no intention of avoiding her punishment. It was becoming more of a nuisance than anything else, really. Her sigh was for the frustration that they really were not getting it. None of the Aes Sedai were. She could not be broken. It was the same, routine punishment every time: switched on her bare bottom with weaves of Air. She was given more brutal beatings than any other novice; nevertheless, her behavior did not change. She would convince the Tower that she was worthy of being the Amyrlin Seat, even if she had to do it woman by woman!
Egwene knew she had the Aiel Wise Ones to thank. They had taught her that the way to deal with pain was embrace it, not to fight it or be strong in the face of it. That was her advantage. She would prove her strength by taking the worst Elaida could dish out, screaming all the way; but in the end her resolve would not be dented in the slightest.
She walked into the Mistress’ quarters with all the cool grace of an full sister. Silviana looked up and sighed.
“Again, child? I could swear you invite these visits.”
Ewgene didn’t answer. She only walked to the edge of the table, bent at the waist, and lifted her dress and shift. If her silence was taken for sullenness or insubordination and Silviana beat her more for it, so be it.
“No no, dear, not this time.” Silviana glided over to her, a strange smile on her face. “Stand up straight and remove your clothes completely.”
Egwene lifted her head. She was not sure she had heard the woman correctly. Her mind spun in every direction. “I…”
“I can easily help you out of your dress if you find the task too difficult.” Silviana’s smile was just short of feral.
Slowly, Egwene undressed until she was as bare as her name day. What was going on? What was Silviana’s game? Egwene may have bared herself to far more Aes Sedai when she was raised Amyrlin in Salidar, but that was when she had the dignity of being named Amyrlin. She was just a novice now. She blushed crimson.
No, she reminded herself. I am no less the Amyrlin in the Tower than I was outside it. I will not act like some ill-behaved child! She did not feel her face cool, however.
Silviana pointed a firm finger. “On the table, on your back.”
This was getting more confusing by the minute, but Egwene saw no reason to argue. It was clear now that the Mistress meant to try a new punishment today, but Egwene would simply deal with it the way she always had. One pain was as the next. She flinched once at the cold surface of the table on her skin, but never again after that.
Silviana stood over her now. “Place your arms on the table above your head.” As soon as Egwene complied, she felt the One Power fill the other woman. She channeled Air to wrap firmly around each of Egwene’s wrists and ankles, and then tied off the weaves. Egwene tested the bonds; they moved no more than if they had been steel welded to the table. It frightened her more than the coming pain, but it was still not enough to make her panic.
Silviana gave a satisfied nod at the effectiveness of her weaves, then began to pace back and forth. “Egwene al’Vere. You have proven to be an…irritating…case in my quarters. I must admit, I have never seen a novice resist punishment so. You scream loudly, and yet you continue to come. I could not make heads or tails of it, and neither could Elaida. So she made some inquiries and found a trove of information in Cairhien.” Egwene’s eyes widened, and Silviana chuckled. “Surely you know every Ajah has formidable eyes-and-ears in Cairhien? Cairhien, where they play the Game of Houses in their sleep? The Red Ajah is no different. They sent spies into Wise One training sessions and discovered very interesting information.”
Spies among Wise Ones? That was impossible! Except… “Gai’shain,” Egwene whispered.
Silviana’s smile broadened. “That is correct, child. Those foolish Aiel make such a point of ignoring their captives of war that the opportunity for a spy is can hardly be ignored. Gai’shain may have to be Aiel, but in the present circumstances...many Aiel believe they have no choice but to return to those they once served.”
So the bleakness was causing some Aiel to come crawling to the Aes Sedai. Egwene scowled. She wished Rand had not broken them so in revealing their past. Perhaps it had been necessary, but she did not have to like it.
“Elaida explained in great detail,” Silviana went on. “The Aiel do not care one way or the other about pain, do they? And they trained you. Unfortunately, the Aiel have their own cultural weaknesses. I hear shame, almost without exception, is too great for Aiel to bear.”
For the first time, a tight knot appeared in Egwene’s belly. Sweat beaded on her forehead. Shame? Surely the woman was not going to...! She could not!
As though knowing her thoughts, Silviana said. “While public penance may be the perfect solution for you, it is against Tower law for novices, and a novice is what you are. Regardless, you shall feel shame, and humiliation…”
Before she knew it, Egwene had jerked her body. Something had lightly brushed up the outside of her leg. Silviana grinned. “Ahh. I feared you would not respond to the touch, but it seems you have. This is an old punishment, lost to the ages. I believe, however, that it is just what you…” The brushing started up again, this time on both legs. Egwene let out an involuntary, high-pitched sound and fidgeted. “…need.”
More brushes joined in on Egwene’s legs―her inner thighs, her outer thighs, her knees. Egwene squirmed harder and suddenly started to giggle. Surely…surely this “lost to the ages” punishment was not tickling. That could not be it. That would do nothing to break her. Yet that was what Silviana was doing. Egwene had not been tickled since she was a girl, and never had she been bound and unable to move. The soft nettles moved up to her pelvis and hips, and her giggles intensified.
“N-n-no, what―what are you hehehehe doing?” She shifted around on the table, for some reason startled that she could not stop the touches on her body. “Ssssssstop. Stahahap!”
Silviana only smiled, triumph gleaming in her eye. So soon into the torture, and the girl was already demanding that it stop. Things were going better than they ever had already. She sent Air elsewhere, to Egwene’s neck and collarbones.
The Two Rivers girl tossed her head and snorted, descending into deeper laughter. She thought wildly. This was horrible, much more horrible than she had anticipated. This wasn’t like pain. There was so much less control, and…and…it was unbearably childish. She was laughing like a fool because of some Air on her skin? What would Amys and Sorilea say?
Silviana spoke, overriding her thoughts. “I am deliberately targeting areas of your body that are not typically the most ticklish,” she explained. “I can see that you are already succumbing wonderfully to its effects. Let us now see how you respond to concentration on more…sensitive areas.”
Silviana was never the deftest with her weaves. If she had been, she would have spread the nettles across Egwene’s entire body. As it was, she had to leave Egwene’s legs, hips, and neck in order to place weaves elsewhere. Egwene only had a chance to take a few deep breaths before Silviana struck again. Even faster brushes attacked the prone girl’s stomach, the sides of her waist, and her breasts. She let out a shriek and began to legitimately fight the circles of Air that held her captive. She’d never laughed so hard in her life! Her breasts had never been tickled before, and it was awful! Her body desperately tried to ward off the maddening sensations, without a care of her thoughts of dignity. It became no easier when Air sharpened to points raked up and down her soles. No! No no no! Not her feet! Her feet had always been her worst spot. But yes indeed, her feet, and no matter how much she wiggled them, the raking seemed to follow. The same was true for her flopping upper body, too.
“The torso and soles of the feet are without fail the most vulnerable points on a woman’s body,” Silviana murmured. “Men have not been tested, as there has been no need.” She sent more of the nail-like Air weaves to Egwene’s exposed underarms and to her belly to assist the brushes there. Egwene roared with laughter. “I wonder…what effect would…” And she brought her own hands down upon Egwene’s outstanding ribs.
It was too much, all too much. Egwene screamed, kicked hard, and pulled with her arms, but nothing lessened the terrible tickling. Her feet and breasts were still the worst, but Silviana’s own sharp nails were eating away at her sanity as well, digging deep into the tender skin between her ribs and trailing up every so often to scratch her underarms. She laughed hard and loud, trying to embrace the sensations, but it was impossible! They overwhelmed her as pain never had. The shame of it all enveloped her, and she knew Silviana had won.
After a time, Egwene began to grow light-headed. It must have shown in her weakening laughter, because Silviana removed the Air weaves from Egwene’s very worst areas, the breasts and feet―the woman would be so observant―but she kept on at least five more minutes, relentlessly brushing and poking the sides of Egwene’s torso from armpits to waist while using her own hands to scratch and squeeze Egwene’s taut and quivering belly. Stretched tight like this, with her arms in no position to defend her, the assault on her ticklish upper body was all the worse. It did not take long for both of them to discover that Egwene’s stomach was, in the absence of her breasts and feet, her most ticklish area. Silviana ravaged the spot all the more for it, breaking Egwene down into tears for the last two minutes.
Before Egwene knew it, all the weaves had vanished, and she found herself taking shuddering, sobbing breaths on the table. She curled up into a ball for protection, little good that it did now.
“Now you will dress,” Silviana said coldly. “If you are sent to my office again, you will receive the same, but worse. With my new knowledge of your weaknesses, I can conduct a more…customized session in the future. Good day, child.”
Dressed again, Egwene said not a word as she left the room. She already knew she could not go through that again. Her will, which she thought so strong, was dwindling before her eyes, and after one visit to the Mistress, after a half hour of that torture. Perhaps she would have to change her tune when Siuan visited her in the dream again. Perhaps she would, after all, request…a rescue.
WARNING: Contains spoilers for Knife of Dreams and back.
“Child, that is the last time you fail to curtsy to an Aes Sedai!” Katerine said, her face turning blotchy red. “It’s off to the Mistress of Novices for you. This time, you may finally learn to address your betters properly!”
Egwene suppressed a sigh and simply turned and walked away. She would go to Silviana, of course. She had no intention of avoiding her punishment. It was becoming more of a nuisance than anything else, really. Her sigh was for the frustration that they really were not getting it. None of the Aes Sedai were. She could not be broken. It was the same, routine punishment every time: switched on her bare bottom with weaves of Air. She was given more brutal beatings than any other novice; nevertheless, her behavior did not change. She would convince the Tower that she was worthy of being the Amyrlin Seat, even if she had to do it woman by woman!
Egwene knew she had the Aiel Wise Ones to thank. They had taught her that the way to deal with pain was embrace it, not to fight it or be strong in the face of it. That was her advantage. She would prove her strength by taking the worst Elaida could dish out, screaming all the way; but in the end her resolve would not be dented in the slightest.
She walked into the Mistress’ quarters with all the cool grace of an full sister. Silviana looked up and sighed.
“Again, child? I could swear you invite these visits.”
Ewgene didn’t answer. She only walked to the edge of the table, bent at the waist, and lifted her dress and shift. If her silence was taken for sullenness or insubordination and Silviana beat her more for it, so be it.
“No no, dear, not this time.” Silviana glided over to her, a strange smile on her face. “Stand up straight and remove your clothes completely.”
Egwene lifted her head. She was not sure she had heard the woman correctly. Her mind spun in every direction. “I…”
“I can easily help you out of your dress if you find the task too difficult.” Silviana’s smile was just short of feral.
Slowly, Egwene undressed until she was as bare as her name day. What was going on? What was Silviana’s game? Egwene may have bared herself to far more Aes Sedai when she was raised Amyrlin in Salidar, but that was when she had the dignity of being named Amyrlin. She was just a novice now. She blushed crimson.
No, she reminded herself. I am no less the Amyrlin in the Tower than I was outside it. I will not act like some ill-behaved child! She did not feel her face cool, however.
Silviana pointed a firm finger. “On the table, on your back.”
This was getting more confusing by the minute, but Egwene saw no reason to argue. It was clear now that the Mistress meant to try a new punishment today, but Egwene would simply deal with it the way she always had. One pain was as the next. She flinched once at the cold surface of the table on her skin, but never again after that.
Silviana stood over her now. “Place your arms on the table above your head.” As soon as Egwene complied, she felt the One Power fill the other woman. She channeled Air to wrap firmly around each of Egwene’s wrists and ankles, and then tied off the weaves. Egwene tested the bonds; they moved no more than if they had been steel welded to the table. It frightened her more than the coming pain, but it was still not enough to make her panic.
Silviana gave a satisfied nod at the effectiveness of her weaves, then began to pace back and forth. “Egwene al’Vere. You have proven to be an…irritating…case in my quarters. I must admit, I have never seen a novice resist punishment so. You scream loudly, and yet you continue to come. I could not make heads or tails of it, and neither could Elaida. So she made some inquiries and found a trove of information in Cairhien.” Egwene’s eyes widened, and Silviana chuckled. “Surely you know every Ajah has formidable eyes-and-ears in Cairhien? Cairhien, where they play the Game of Houses in their sleep? The Red Ajah is no different. They sent spies into Wise One training sessions and discovered very interesting information.”
Spies among Wise Ones? That was impossible! Except… “Gai’shain,” Egwene whispered.
Silviana’s smile broadened. “That is correct, child. Those foolish Aiel make such a point of ignoring their captives of war that the opportunity for a spy is can hardly be ignored. Gai’shain may have to be Aiel, but in the present circumstances...many Aiel believe they have no choice but to return to those they once served.”
So the bleakness was causing some Aiel to come crawling to the Aes Sedai. Egwene scowled. She wished Rand had not broken them so in revealing their past. Perhaps it had been necessary, but she did not have to like it.
“Elaida explained in great detail,” Silviana went on. “The Aiel do not care one way or the other about pain, do they? And they trained you. Unfortunately, the Aiel have their own cultural weaknesses. I hear shame, almost without exception, is too great for Aiel to bear.”
For the first time, a tight knot appeared in Egwene’s belly. Sweat beaded on her forehead. Shame? Surely the woman was not going to...! She could not!
As though knowing her thoughts, Silviana said. “While public penance may be the perfect solution for you, it is against Tower law for novices, and a novice is what you are. Regardless, you shall feel shame, and humiliation…”
Before she knew it, Egwene had jerked her body. Something had lightly brushed up the outside of her leg. Silviana grinned. “Ahh. I feared you would not respond to the touch, but it seems you have. This is an old punishment, lost to the ages. I believe, however, that it is just what you…” The brushing started up again, this time on both legs. Egwene let out an involuntary, high-pitched sound and fidgeted. “…need.”
More brushes joined in on Egwene’s legs―her inner thighs, her outer thighs, her knees. Egwene squirmed harder and suddenly started to giggle. Surely…surely this “lost to the ages” punishment was not tickling. That could not be it. That would do nothing to break her. Yet that was what Silviana was doing. Egwene had not been tickled since she was a girl, and never had she been bound and unable to move. The soft nettles moved up to her pelvis and hips, and her giggles intensified.
“N-n-no, what―what are you hehehehe doing?” She shifted around on the table, for some reason startled that she could not stop the touches on her body. “Ssssssstop. Stahahap!”
Silviana only smiled, triumph gleaming in her eye. So soon into the torture, and the girl was already demanding that it stop. Things were going better than they ever had already. She sent Air elsewhere, to Egwene’s neck and collarbones.
The Two Rivers girl tossed her head and snorted, descending into deeper laughter. She thought wildly. This was horrible, much more horrible than she had anticipated. This wasn’t like pain. There was so much less control, and…and…it was unbearably childish. She was laughing like a fool because of some Air on her skin? What would Amys and Sorilea say?
Silviana spoke, overriding her thoughts. “I am deliberately targeting areas of your body that are not typically the most ticklish,” she explained. “I can see that you are already succumbing wonderfully to its effects. Let us now see how you respond to concentration on more…sensitive areas.”
Silviana was never the deftest with her weaves. If she had been, she would have spread the nettles across Egwene’s entire body. As it was, she had to leave Egwene’s legs, hips, and neck in order to place weaves elsewhere. Egwene only had a chance to take a few deep breaths before Silviana struck again. Even faster brushes attacked the prone girl’s stomach, the sides of her waist, and her breasts. She let out a shriek and began to legitimately fight the circles of Air that held her captive. She’d never laughed so hard in her life! Her breasts had never been tickled before, and it was awful! Her body desperately tried to ward off the maddening sensations, without a care of her thoughts of dignity. It became no easier when Air sharpened to points raked up and down her soles. No! No no no! Not her feet! Her feet had always been her worst spot. But yes indeed, her feet, and no matter how much she wiggled them, the raking seemed to follow. The same was true for her flopping upper body, too.
“The torso and soles of the feet are without fail the most vulnerable points on a woman’s body,” Silviana murmured. “Men have not been tested, as there has been no need.” She sent more of the nail-like Air weaves to Egwene’s exposed underarms and to her belly to assist the brushes there. Egwene roared with laughter. “I wonder…what effect would…” And she brought her own hands down upon Egwene’s outstanding ribs.
It was too much, all too much. Egwene screamed, kicked hard, and pulled with her arms, but nothing lessened the terrible tickling. Her feet and breasts were still the worst, but Silviana’s own sharp nails were eating away at her sanity as well, digging deep into the tender skin between her ribs and trailing up every so often to scratch her underarms. She laughed hard and loud, trying to embrace the sensations, but it was impossible! They overwhelmed her as pain never had. The shame of it all enveloped her, and she knew Silviana had won.
After a time, Egwene began to grow light-headed. It must have shown in her weakening laughter, because Silviana removed the Air weaves from Egwene’s very worst areas, the breasts and feet―the woman would be so observant―but she kept on at least five more minutes, relentlessly brushing and poking the sides of Egwene’s torso from armpits to waist while using her own hands to scratch and squeeze Egwene’s taut and quivering belly. Stretched tight like this, with her arms in no position to defend her, the assault on her ticklish upper body was all the worse. It did not take long for both of them to discover that Egwene’s stomach was, in the absence of her breasts and feet, her most ticklish area. Silviana ravaged the spot all the more for it, breaking Egwene down into tears for the last two minutes.
Before Egwene knew it, all the weaves had vanished, and she found herself taking shuddering, sobbing breaths on the table. She curled up into a ball for protection, little good that it did now.
“Now you will dress,” Silviana said coldly. “If you are sent to my office again, you will receive the same, but worse. With my new knowledge of your weaknesses, I can conduct a more…customized session in the future. Good day, child.”
Dressed again, Egwene said not a word as she left the room. She already knew she could not go through that again. Her will, which she thought so strong, was dwindling before her eyes, and after one visit to the Mistress, after a half hour of that torture. Perhaps she would have to change her tune when Siuan visited her in the dream again. Perhaps she would, after all, request…a rescue.
