Mistborn Trilogy - Brandon Sanderson [490]
Most people, even noblemen, misunderstood Soothing. They thought of it as some kind of mind control, and even those who knew more presumed that Soothing was an invasive, terrible thing.
Breeze had never seen it that way. Soothing wasn’t invasive. If it was, then ordinary interaction with another person was comparably invasive. Soothing, when done right, was no more a violation of another person than it was for a woman to wear a low-cut gown or speak in a commanding voice. All three produced common, understandable, and—most important—natural reactions in people.
Take Sazed, for example. Was it “invasive” to make the man less fatigued, so he could better go about his ministrations? Was it wrong to Soothe away his pain—just a bit—thereby making him better able to cope with the suffering?
Tindwyl was an even better example. Perhaps some would call Breeze a meddler for Soothing her sense of responsibility, and her disappointment, when she saw Sazed. But, Breeze had not created the emotions that the disappointment had been overshadowing. Emotions like curiosity. Respect. Love.
No, if Soothing were simple “mind control,” Tindwyl would have turned away from Sazed as soon as the two left Breeze’s area of influence. But Breeze knew that she wouldn’t. A crucial decision had been made, and Breeze had not made that decision for her. The moment had been building for weeks; it would have occurred with or without Breeze.
He had just helped it happen sooner.
Smiling to himself, Breeze checked his pocket watch. He still had a few more minutes, and he settled back in his chair, sending out a general Soothing wave, lessening people’s grief and pain. Focusing on so many at once, he couldn’t be very specific; some would find themselves made a little emotionally numb as he Pushed too strongly against them. But, it would be good for the group as a whole.
He didn’t read his book; in truth, he couldn’t understand how Elend and the rest spent so much time with them. Dreadfully boring things. Breeze could only see himself reading if there were no people around. Instead, he went back to what he’d been doing before Sazed had drawn his attention. He studied the refugees, trying to decide what each one was feeling.
This was the other great misunderstanding about Soothing. Allomancy wasn’t nearly as important as observational talent. True, having a subtle touch certainly helped. However, Soothing didn’t give an Allomancer the ability to know someone’s feelings. Those, Breeze had to guess on his own.
It all came back to what was natural. Even the most inexperienced skaa would realize they were being Soothed if unexpected emotions began bouncing around inside of them. True subtlety in Soothing was about encouraging natural emotions, all done by carefully making the right other emotions less powerful. People were a patchwork of feelings; usually, what they thought they were “feeling” at the moment only related to which emotions were currently most dominant within them.
The careful Soother saw what was beneath the surface. He understood what a man was feeling, even when that man himself didn’t understand—or acknowledge—those emotions. Such was the case with Sazed and Tindwyl.
Odd pair, that one, Breeze thought to himself, idly Soothing one of the skaa to make him more relaxed as he tried to sleep. The rest of the crew is convinced that those two are enemies. But, hatred rarely creates that measure of bitterness and frustration. No, those two emotions come from an entirely different set of problems.
Of course, isn’t Sazed supposed to be a eunuch? I wonder how this all came about….
His speculations trailed off as the warehouse doors opened. Elend walked in—Ham, unfortunately, accompanying him. Elend was wearing one of his white uniforms, complete with white gloves and a sword. The white was an important symbol; with all of the ash and soot in the city, a man in white was quite striking. Elend’s uniforms had to been crafted of special fabrics designed to be resistant to ash, and they still had to be scrubbed every