Chapter Text
The Light’s Victory Ball is in full swing. It’s the celebration of the triumph of the Light against the dark at the Last Battle. The Fourth Age is thriving.
For the first anniversary of the Last Battle, it was held in the kingdom of Malkier. The once again reclaimed kingdom proudly accepted the task in order to show the world how far they’ve come from once being overtaken by the Blight to now as one of the richest kingdoms in the world.
A lot has happened in a year. While Lan has been doing a good job as king, his relationship with Nynaeve has dwindled. Perhaps, he had always known it’s bound to end at some point. It was his birthright to sit on the throne and rule his people. Nynaeve repeatedly expressed to him that she’s not made to be in a kingdom, that her calling does not lie in barking orders and sitting comfortably on a throne. Soon enough, they grew apart. She traveled more and more while he remains in Malkier.
Then, the day came when she made her decision. She wanted to put her immense power to good use. She was a Wisdom before she became an Aes Sedai and so, she asked to be freed from him so she can travel the world, extending her help to those who need it. Lan had granted it to her, finding no reason to stop her. She had been happier outside of Malkier than she was inside. He wouldn’t subject her to a life she didn’t want.
It came as a shock to all but soon, they recovered. Lan still feels the loss of the bond—he had been feeling that before he became bonded to Nynaeve—but even more so. Instead, he turned his full attention to Malkier. He worked day and night, forging alliances, establishing livelihood for his people, welcoming foreigners. Malkier became one of the most visited cities in the Westlands.
Now, they have been chosen to host the first Light’s Victory Ball. It is truly an honor.
The palace’s grounds have been prepared for the celebration. Food and drinks were readied, and the security was in place. All of the important people in Westlands will be arriving shortly so everything must be on point.
Shortly after, gateways started opening in Malkier.
Kings and queens from various kingdoms arrived. Elayne greeted him with an embrace as her children trailed after her. Perrin and his wife Faile attended to but didn’t bring their children so they could have a great time and not worry about where they’ve gone off to. Mat arrived shortly but without his wife Tuon. Lan didn’t ask why. Seanchans are different from them and understanding their way of life gives him headache most of the time.
Another gateway opened, bigger this time. Cadsuane Sedai emerged from it followed by a flock of Aes Sedai. He nodded politely to her before he intends to turn around to tend to other guests when another presence caught his attention. A figure emerging from the same gateway as the Aes Sedai.
Moiraine.
It is her. He is certain of it. Light…it has been a year since he last saw her. No one knows where she went after the Last Battle. No one has heard of her, but it turns out that she returned to the White Tower.
She is dressed to perfection. A blue gown that hugged her figure perfectly. Her hair has grown and was done beautifully in perfect curls. Her kesiera rested on her forehead and he noted that she is still wearing her angreal on her arm. She looked so stunning, and she caught the eyes of everyone in the room.
There is something off about her, however. The emptiness in her expression. The dull look in her eyes. She seemed unimpressed with…everything. She walked towards Cadsuane and spoke something he couldn’t hear. The way she pursed her lips informed him she didn’t want to be there in the first place. After all these years, he still remembers her quirks and tells.
Cadsuane told her something and Moiraine raised a brow at her before walking away. Lan just couldn’t help it. He is like a moth to a bloody flame. Moiraine just has that hold over him even without the bond.
He followed her into the gardens where she disappeared into despite the fact he should be really at the gathering. He realized that he will always finds himself following Moiraine. When he arrived at the garden, however, he found Moiraine in there. It confused him because there are no other passages there.
“Why are you following me, Dai Shan?”
Lan quickly turned around and saw Moiraine watching him carefully. Even in the dark, her skin glows. The moonlight just illuminates her like a goddess.
“I saw you leaving. I thought…” he couldn’t even speak properly. “Why are you out here? The party is over there”, he asked.
“That’s precisely the point, isn’t it?”
She didn’t want to be there at the party. She wanted to be alone.
“There are people wanting to see you. Elayne and her children are there, Perrin and Mat too”, he offered.
Was it a way to draw her back? He’s not sure.
“Nynaeve too?” she asked with a smirk on her face.
To be honest, he does not know whether Nynaeve will show herself tonight. Last he heard, she’s somewhere in Tanchico helping to build a health center for women and children.
“No, I haven’t seen her yet”,
Moiraine huffed. “In all my efforts to get you two together, you still ended up divorced. I didn’t see that one coming”,
Lan suddenly felt that feeling of betrayal. There were times when it feels fresh like it happened yesterday. He felt the bond snapped. His brain repeating the image of Moiraine as she fell into the doorway with Lanfear. He kept remembering how it was all part of her plan. She ripped his bond so it would pass on to Myrelle who would pass it on to Nynaeve.
When Moiraine returned from her supposed death, they didn’t have the chance to talk alone. She was different when she came back. She’s colder, quieter. Her eyes were calculating and most importantly, she’s already wearing an angreal which boosted her powers tenfold.
After she fought together with Rand and Nynaeve at the Pit of Doom, she left without a word to anyone. She refused to obey her sisters’ order for her to return to the White Tower and she had let the Gleeman go. Apparently, their pairing was purely for alliance and once the Last Battle was over, they went their separate ways. For a year, no one knew where she was or what she had been doing.
“We hadn’t been able to talk, Moiraine”,
“Are you expecting me to apologize, Lan?” the way she’s looking at him, she’s never looked at him that way before. “I will not, and an Aes Sedai cannot lie”,
“I do not expect anything from you. Yes, I was angry. I was hurt but deep down, I understand why you did it. Twenty years, Moiraine…I’ve known you for twenty years. There are no limits to what you’re willing to do to protect the people you care about”,
Selfless to a fault, isn’t that what Liandrin used to say about her?
“Yes, protect…I did a good job at it, didn’t I? Rand is gone. Egwene…even Siuan…so much for protecting people. I set you up so you could have a happy life with the woman you love and here you are and Nynaeve is out there doing Light knows what”,
“It wasn’t on you. There are things you cannot control, Moiraine. We all made our choices and the Last Battle…the Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills. No one holds their deaths over your head, Moiraine. As for me and Nynaeve, it wasn’t on you either. We tried and it didn’t work out. That is also something that is out of your control”,
Moiraine shrugged. “I suppose”,
“You returned to the White Tower”,
She huffed.
“…return is a nice way to put it. Cadsuane found me and dragged me back. She found a way to lift my exile. Now I am stuck. For the rest of my years, I am stuck at the tower”,
He frowned. “What do you mean? Aren’t you free to go?”
She’s still a Blue Ajah. She is a full Aes Sedai. She can leave the tower if she wants to.
“Sitters don’t get to leave the tower unless ordered to by the Amyrlin Seat herself”,
His eyes widened. Moiraine is now a Sitter of the Blue Ajah. He knew she never wanted that. She didn’t want to sit on any throne. She could have been a Sitter years ago. Light…she could have been a queen if she truly wants to, but she refused it. She didn’t want to be confine in a room.
“Can’t you abdicate?”
“Cadsuane set some conditions”, she shook her head. “Do not fret, Dai Shan. It is none of your concerns. You have a kingdom to think about and not some Aes Sedai who treated you like a dog and passed your bond like toy”,
He bristled.
“Stop that, Moiraine. I do not blame you. I used to but not anymore. Stop punishing yourself”,
He learned a long time ago that Moiraine finds it difficult to say the words I’m sorry, but she finds it so easy to insult herself when she’s trying to apologize.
“Why are you here, Lan?” she asked.
He crossed the distance between them. He didn’t fail to notice the way she stepped back a little, apprehension dancing in her eyes. She is looking at him while assessing danger. She used to feel safe around him.
“I want to know how you are. I have not seen you for a year, Moiraine. I want to know how you’ve been this whole time”,
“You haven’t seen me because I chose not to be seen by anyone”,
“…and yet, here you are…”
She smirked. “…not of my own volition. I was ordered to be here”,
“If the crowd overwhelms you, I have an entire kingdom for you to disappear into. You do not want to be at the gathering, then, let me take you away from it”, he offered.
Moiraine raised a brow at him.
“You’re the host. You cannot abandon the ball you’re hosting”,
“Sure, I can. I am the king, remember? I can do whatever I want. As for the ball, I have people who can entertain the guests. What do you say?”
She considered it for a moment before nodding her head. “Why not?”
Lan escorted Moiraine inside the palace. Since everyone is at the ball, the palace is mostly deserted. He led the way while Moiraine trailed after him, eyeing every single thing in the corridors. She halted in front of one of the doors in the west wing.
“What is it?” he asked.
“You have built a library”, she muttered.
He does not know how she could tell without even opening the door, but she was right. He smiled at her and opened the door, revealing shelves filling up the room.
Moiraine walked in, her eyes wandering at every book in the library. Lan smiled as he watched her go through every shelf, identifying books that’s familiar to her and those she has not seen before.
“An entire shelf for poetry?” she asked at one point.
Lan chuckled. “It’s the only shelf where I let myself indulge. The rest of them are for you”,
She stilled at the moment and stared at him. Yes, he had the library built for her, hoping that one day she will come so he can show it to her.
“Do you still remember how to make proper tea, a’Lan Mandragoran?” she asked.
Oh…he never forgot how she likes to have her tea.
“Have a seat while I prepare it for you. Then, we’ll talk, yes?”
Moiraine nodded.
“…and then we’ll talk”, she agreed.