Lan stood watch, while Moiraine went into the cave to look after Egwene. He didn't feel the servants of the Dark One, which meant that they were safe for the moment. But the Trollocs wouldn't give up. They would follow them, and the warder wasn't sure how long they could run away from them.

The children were young and inexperienced. They didn't know anything about being on the run. Trollocs and Myrddraals belonged to their stories. Stories the villagers of the Two Rivers had told their children to scare them when they had misbehaved. But now those monsters had become reality and they were chasing those children.

Rand was the only one, who had a weapon. Two actually, since he has the sword of his father as well. Lan was sure that the boy knew how to use the bow. But wielding a sword? He was the son of a sheepherder. He never learned how to use a real sword. He would probably kill himself by using it. `Maybe I can teach him, so he won't kill himself or the one's around him.´

Besides, he could use some help should the Trollocs attack them again. Moiraine would want him to save the children since one of them was eventually the Dragon Reborn. She would want him to leave her behind and that was something he couldn't do. He had sworn to obey her and to protect her from every danger coming her way. And in her condition, she couldn't fight the Shadowspawn. She would die in a heartbeat.

Lan's heart ached when he thought about how close he had been to losing her in the Two Rivers. If the blade had pierced her skin just a little deeper, it would have moved right through her heart, and she would have been gone. He had failed her. He hadn't protected her from this attack.

Angry, Lan cracked his knuckles. No matter how often he thought about it, he couldn't change what had happened. He had to focus on what was lying ahead of them. Suddenly, he felt Moiraine's calmness through the bond. She felt his anger and knew exactly what the reason was. That he was cursing himself.

Of course, she didn't blame him. She had told him this in the Two Rivers and whenever they had had a moment to themselves. That's why she was sending him her calm feelings, as well as her undeniable trust in him and his skills.

Lan took a deep breath, while he tried to calm himself. He needed to concentrate. No Shadowspawn would come close to his Aes Sedai tonight.

When he felt pain in his left shoulder, he dove into his bond with Moiraine. She wasn't in the cave anymore, but Lan was more interested in her condition. The one, she tried to hide from him, by pushing other feelings in his direction. Her calmness, her love for him, the joy when she suddenly embraced Saidar, and… there it was. The exhaustion, the tiredness, and the pain.

Silently, the warder left his spot and moved closer to his Aes Sedai. Surprised, he noticed that she wasn't alone. Egwene was with her, and they were using her kesiera to channel.

`Foolish woman! She needs to save her strength, but here she is showing Egwene how to use the One Power! Will she ever listen to me?!´

Cursing silently, the warder left the two women alone. There was nothing he could do now, to interrupt them. Instead, he would prepare the ointment for her wound. She was in pain, but too stubborn to say something. Well, he could be stubborn too. When she wasn't taking care of her wound, then he would make sure that she would do something.

After what felt like hours, Egwene left Moiraine to go to bed. The woman of the Blue Ajah stayed on the ground, while she was concentrating on suppressing the pain, so Lan wouldn't feel it.

"Are you done for tonight?"

Moiraine shrugged when Lan's voice appeared behind her. She had forgotten to check on the bond. Quickly, she placed a smile on her face and turned her head to him. "Egwene is strong. She could be a very powerful Aes Sedai one day."

Lan moved, then he sat down on the tree stub, which had been Egwene's place only a moment ago. In one hand, he held a bowl with the ointment in his hand, while his other hand held a water bag. Moiraine's eyes fell on the bowl and her smile faded. Her secret was no more. "I took care of it."

"When?"

"While you were distracted with planning."

"We are planning since Bel Tine. I need you to be more precise about the exact time you took care of it." There was no way that she could play this game with Lan. He knew her tricks and how she was playing with words.

"It's late. I will try to get some sleep."

"Last night? This morning?" Lan wouldn't give up that easily. He knew that she hadn't checked on the wound for a while now, since there had been no time to rest.

Carefully, Moiraine made it to her feet, while she tried to move her left shoulder as little as possible. "Good night, Lan."

She tried to leave, but her warder simply took the water bag and the bowl in one hand, grabbed her healthy arm and pulled her back to him. Moiraine stumbled and went down on her knees again. Pain shot through her shoulder because of the sudden movement, and she had to gasp for air.

Lan made sure that she was sitting between his legs with her back to him. Then he dropped the water bag in her lap and pulled her coat and her tunic of her shoulder. The small fabric, which Moiraine had placed upon the wound, was drenched with her infected blood. The Aes Sedai groaned, when he pulled it off and revealed the ugly wound.

`I have to clean it first before I can apply the ointment.´

Luckily, Lan had brought some fabric as well, hidden in his belt. He placed the bowl beside him, and while he grabbed a piece of fabric, he said: "Give me the water bag."

"I can do this on my own." Her protest was weak, while she tried to breathe through the pain. In the moonlight, Lan couldn't say if she was paler than usual, but it was obvious that she wasn't doing well.

"But you're not taking care of it, Moiraine. You are in pain, and do nothing to ease it. Now give me the water bag."

For a moment, he was certain that she would try to get up again, but then her resistance broke and she handed him the leather object with shaking hands. This was bad!

Quickly, he drenched the fabric with some water before he carefully placed her head on his right thigh to have some room. As carefully as possible, the warder cleaned the bloody wound. Moiraine hissed and her whole body stiffened, but she didn't stop him. When Lan applied the ointment, silent tears ran down her cheeks. He felt as if his shoulder had caught fire until the herbs started to work, and the pain slowly faded. The tension left Moiraine's body, when he placed a clean fabric over the wound.

"I'm done.", Lan whispered and stroked softly over her hair. Then he handed her the water bag. "Drink something."

"I'm not thirsty." Her voice sounded weak. Lan couldn't remember when she had ever sounded as weak as she did now. It worried him. How long would she be able to fight against the Trolloc poison before it would defeat her?

"You need your strength, Moiraine. Please."

The Aes Sedai swallowed, but she turned her head carefully and wet her lips with her tongue. Then she shook her head slightly. "I'm tired. The pain… it makes my head hazy."

"I'll help you." Carefully, Lan placed the water bag at her lips and tilted her head back. Satisfied, he watched how Moiraine was slowly taking a few gulps.

When she was done, he asked: "Shall I carry you back to the fire?"

"No." Sighing, she laid her head back on his thigh and closed her eyes. "Just give me a moment, and then… I will… go."

Lan smiled, when he heard her yawn. The pain had faded a little bit, and now the exhaustion had taken over. Gently, he kept stroking her hair, while he felt through the bond, how she was drifting off to sleep. It would be a short night, especially since she had to teach Egwene the use of the One Power, but Lan was glad that she would be able to get a few hours of sleep.

If he was honest, he had been afraid if she would be able to stay in Aldieb's saddle the next day. They couldn't slow down. Not with all those Trollocs following them.

`We need to find a sister, who can heal her. I know that Moiraine doesn't want to explain our travel companions, but she will die if she doesn't get help soon.´

Sighing, the warder listened at their surroundings. He heard the soft wind moving through the trees and the scream of an owl, but otherwise it was silent. No Trollocs or Myrddraals or other ugly creatures. They were safe for the moment. Lan took a gulp from the water bag, while he tried to get comfortable on the tree stub. Very soon they would be back on the road again.