Moiraine tries to keep her head up during the day but can't stop thinking about Siuan's announcement.

Trigger warning (I don't know if it's necessary, but in case it is): mentioning/assumption of abuse in marriage!
I hope no one feels insulted by my chapter. Luckily, I've never experienced any violence against me or know someone who had.

The hours went by, and Moiraine didn't know what she was doing. Luckily, her body remembered and simply did what she had done the last few days. Moiraine couldn't say what she had done but assumed that she brought patients their food and took care of their injuries.

Meanwhile, her thoughts were spiraling, and she always saw the scroll with the official announcement before her eyes.

Moiraine Damodred… a'Lan Mandragoran… Darkfriends… information… will be rewarded… thousand gold coins… another two thousand… White Tower… Siuan Sanche

She had imagined countless times what Siuan must have thought about Moiraine following a Forsaken instead of helping her. But announcing her as a Darkfriend? – Without talking to her first?

Apparently, Siuan's anger had spoken, and she had forgotten to use her head. Otherwise, she would've never made that announcement. But how could Moiraine explain her actions? After the events in Cairhien, Siuan was undoubtedly heavily guarded.

Their secret hut would be the only way to talk to the Tairen woman privately. Sadly, Moiraine needed the Ter'angreal from her bedroom but couldn't go there because she had been exiled from the Tower.

And would Siuan even go there? Now that she believed the Cairhien woman was a Darkfriend? Surely, she would try to avoid anything that could remind her of their time together.

But letters would also be challenging. Siuan could burn them before she even opened them to read Moiraine's words. And would she believe what Moiraine had to say? Yes, she was angry momentarily, but surely, she would see reason once she calmed down, right?

Moiraine Damodred. Darkfriend.

The Aes Sedai shivered. She still felt cold, and nothing seemed to help. Light, would she ever feel warm again?

"Alys."

Leaving an injured Siuan in Cairhien had broken her heart, but that was nothing compared to how it felt now. It was like the Tairen woman had turned it into a thousand pieces with one single word.

Darkfriend.

"Alys."

A hand on her arm rattled Moiraine from her thoughts. Quickly, she swirled around, and her arm moved to punch her attacker in the face.

Luckily, Lan had great instincts. Effortlessly, he padded her arm away, then pulled her flat against his body. "That was a good attempt, but I think we have to train your fighting skills again. Every experienced soldier could've blocked that."

Growling, the Cairhien woman pushed the man off her. "What do you want?"

The Malkieri had been sneaking around all day, just like everyone else. Moiraine had no idea how he convinced Nynaeve to let him stay instead of sending him out to rebuild houses. Usually, the young woman from the Two Rivers liked to separate them.

It was beyond her knowledge how much Egwene and Elayne knew, but even they had a watchful eye on Moiraine all day, so they had to know something.

Lan's smile faded, and he brushed a loose lock behind her ear. "It's time for a break."

"I'm not done here."

She tried to get back to her work, but Lan was quicker and caught her arm. "It's been hours since you drank or eaten anything. You can't help anyone if you collapse."

"I'm not hungry."

A sad shimmer moved over Lan's face. "I know. And I don't think you will eat much, but I hoped you would try eating something – for me."

Moiraine swallowed. The bloody man knew how to get under her skin.

"Are you alright, Alys?" The helper, who had approached Moiraine after her argument with Nynaeve yesterday, appeared behind Lan. Her eyes took in the Malkieri warily. "Do you need some help?"

Lan turned around. "She is alright. I take care of her."

"Do you want me to call the Whitecloaks, Alys? If that man is bothering you, they can-"

"I'm her husband," the Malkieri growled.

The woman from Falme – Moiraine's shocked brain couldn't remember the name – shot daggers at the man from the Borderlands. "Sometimes, it's the husband a woman needs to be protected off."

Lan's growl didn't impress the woman. Again, she turned to Moiraine. "Do you need help?"

Sighing, the Aes Sedai shook her head. She wanted to be left alone, yet everyone seemed to look out for her. "Thank you, Miasa." Right! That has been her name! "I don't need help."

"You don't have to endure him. If he treats you badly, it is no shame to leave him and seek help. You can stay with me if you-"

"She said she doesn't need help."

Lan didn't see that he was making things worse instead of better. If he didn't shut up soon, Miasa would call the Whitecloaks.

Quickly, Moiraine grabbed Lan's arm and pulled him back, placing herself between him and Miasa. Those two stood definitely too close.

"Thank you for your concern, Miasa, but I'm truly in no need of help. Andra would never hurt me. He is only concerned about my well-being."

The woman of Falme didn't look convinced but nodded finally. "Alright. Should you change your mind… come and find me. You don't have to explain anything at all."

"I'll keep it in mind."

One last time, Miasa threw an evil eye at Lan, then turned around and left. Relieved, Moiraine took a deep breath. She couldn't deal with the Whitecloaks again – at least not today. Yesterday had been more than enough.

"Are you friends?"

"What?" Tiredly, the Cairhien woman faced the Malkieri.

"Are you two friends?" Lan nodded at the leaving Miasa. "She protected you like she cares about you."

"I have no idea why she acted like that. We're not friends. She is just another helper."

Luckily, the man from the Borderlands accepted her answer. Calmly, he stepped closer. "Would you please eat and drink something?"

For a heartbeat, the Aes Sedai was tempted to decline his request. But she felt his worries through the bond. He didn't want her to collapse, and she really hadn't drunk much. So, she nodded in defeat.

"Thank the light."

Her Warder looked like a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders. He offered her his hand, and Moiraine took it after a moment of hesitation. Food and drinking, then she could return to her heavy thinking.

Lan ensured Moiraine got tea and a bowl of soup with some bread. The food made her stomach turn, so the Malkieri pushed the cup into her hands first, obviously hoping it would help to calm her upset stomach. After that, he left to get himself something to eat.

The tea actually helped. For the first time in hours, Moiraine's hands started to warm up, and it felt wonderful when the warm liquid went down her throat. It didn't last long, but it was a start.

Soon, the uncrowned king of Malkier returned with a bowl and bread for himself and a pot of tea. Then he sat beside her.

"Don't you think others would like some tea, too?"

"There is more than enough tea for everyone," Lan responded and shrugged his shoulder. "No one will notice it's missing."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Elayne appeared and took the seat opposite her aunt. "Nynaeve likes to keep an eye on everything."

The Aes Sedai sighed heavily. Of course, her niece used the opportunity to join them. Had anyone eaten before her? "Is there anything we can do for you, Elayne?"

"Actually, yes. I'd like to hear about your plan."

"What plan?"

"How to deal with… the new situation." The daughter-heir raised her eyebrows at the last three words. "Alys." Her voice indicated that she didn't like the name.

Moiraine took a sip before she answered. "I don't have a plan."

Elayne was shocked. "You can't actually plan on staying here, pretending to be a married woman called Alys."

"Why not?"

"Well, because…" The young woman turned to Lan as if she wished for him to join and knock some sense into his Aes Sedai. But the Warder had his eyes locked on his soup, eating slowly like he enjoyed every sip of it. "… the Whitecloaks won't leave any time soon. And once the White Tower hears about what has happened here, they will send a group of Sisters to investigate. Do you really think you can hide from them?"

The woman of the Blue Ajah wished she had never agreed to eat something. Now, she had to deal with Elayne's attempts to find a solution while she was still not over Siuan's announcement.

Lan pushed the bowl closer to Moiraine. Angry, the Cairhien woman looked at him. It was his fault she sat at that table. The least he could do was help her with Elayne.

Apparently, the Malkieri got the message because he faced the daughter-heir sighing. "How about you leave the planning to us? We'll inform you guys once we have a plan to leave that place."

"And how long will all that planning take? Time is not on our side with that announcement hanging everywhere."

"Longer when we have to deal with nosy children who don't stop asking questions," Lan growled.

Those words brought him an evil eye from Elayne. "I'm not nosy nor a child. And since I'm her niece…" This time, the young woman nodded in Moiraine's direction as if Lan didn't know who she was. "…I have a right to know how she intends to save herself. I don't want to see her get killed because the Amyrlin listens to the wrong people."

Darkfriends.

A shiver ran over Moiraine's spine. Would Siuan go that far? Would she kill Moiraine because she had followed a Forsaken? Would Siuan do it herself or leave it to another Sister? Liandrin maybe? Or someone else from the Red Ajah?

All of a sudden, the Cairhien woman felt cold again. Not even the tea in her hands was able to warm her.

"That's enough," Lan hissed. "How about you choose a different table to eat?"

Elayne straightened, then presented a perfect royal appearance. "No, thank you. I'm perfectly fine." Calmly, she lifted the spoon to her mouth.

The uncrowned king of Malkier wanted to protest, but the Cairhien woman stopped him by placing her hand on his arm. She knew stubborn highborn people, and her niece could be terribly stubborn.

Silence fell over the table. All three stared at their soup while eating very slowly.

It seemed like the day didn't want to end. Twice, Nynaeve tried to convince Moiraine to leave the infirmary until they had a plan for how to get her and Lan out of the city. Both times, the woman of the Blue Ajah declined the offer. She didn't admit it, but she was actually afraid to return to the little house she and Lan had rented. Her mind was already spiraling, but at least at the infirmary, she could distract herself by helping people. In the house… she didn't know what her mind would be doing once she was trapped in there.

When the sun painted the sky red, it was time to go home. Moiraine had handed her last patient – a young sailor from Falme – his tray filled with his dinner after checking on his injured leg and putting a new bandage on for the night.

The man was close to Lan's age and started flirting with the Cairhien woman. No matter how often she told him they had no future together, the sailor didn't stop. He even insisted that her husband wasn't good for her and that he would be better for her. His cute attempts actually made Moiraine smile and made her forget about her problems with Siuan for a moment. In the end, she stayed, keeping him company while he ate and listening to his stories.

"Moiraine!"

Surprised, the Aes Sedai turned her head toward the entrance of the infirmary. Lan stood there, looking pissed. Blood and ashes! She had completely lost track of time! Nerus' stories had distracted her better than she had imagined.

"I'll be there in a moment," Moiraine responded to the Malkieri while getting up. Nerus had offered her a seat on his bed. Smiling, she placed her hand on his shoulder. "Thank you for entertaining me."

"Now!"

Shocked, the Aes Sedai turned toward her Warder. What was wrong with him? It wasn't like they needed to be somewhere. A few more minutes didn't hurt anyone. And couldn't he feel that Nerus' stories had distracted her from her spiraling thoughts?

But the look on the Malkieri's face told the Cairhien woman that he wasn't amused about her. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who wasn't in a good mood today.

"Good night, Nerus."

The sailor mumbled something. He suddenly seemed highly interested in his blanket. Moiraine smiled at the sight. As brave as the young man had sounded minutes ago, he now feared Lan's wrath for flirting with his wife.

When the Aes Sedai turned around and moved over to her Warder, she noticed the anger in his eyes. Was it possible that Lan wasn't pissed because she was late but because she had spent time with Nerus? But they only acted like husband and wife. It wasn't like there were any romantic feelings between them.

Nynaeve had also appeared and looked at the Malkieri in confusion, something obviously bothering her.

Quickly, the Cairhien woman mended her pace. She didn't want to start another argument with Nynaeve. Hopefully, the young woman from the Two Rivers wouldn't make a scene and allow Moiraine to leave without interfering.

Finally, Moiraine stopped before Lan. "What is so important that I had to-?"

She was cut off when the man from the Borderlands closed the distance between them, pressing his lips on hers. Moiraine was too shocked to move. Was that actually happening right now? Or had she already lost her mind?

But Nynaeve's shocked gasp echoed in her ears, followed by her exclamation, "What in light's name?!"

The words broke Moiraine's rigidity, and she was able to take a step back. Lan didn't stop her. Instead, a mischievous gleam appeared in his eyes, and his lips turned into a satisfied smile.

"You're not Lan," the Aes Sedai whispered.

The smile grew bigger. What was going on?

"Alys?"

Again, Lan's voice appeared, but in her back this time. Slowly, Moiraine turned around. Lan stood between two beds on the other side of the room, holding two trays in his hands. Apparently, he had finished delivering dinner to other patients.

And then the Cairhien woman noticed something else, facing the man before her once again. "You called me 'Moiraine'." How had she not noticed that before? For days, Lan never called her by her real name when they were in public. And after today's announcement, he wouldn't dare put her in danger by being so careless.

"I wondered how long it would take for you to notice, but I assumed you wouldn't suspect anything when I call your name. Your mind has been far away all day. Did the announcement rattle you?"

Lan's voice became higher until it turned into the voice of a woman. After that, the imposter shook his head, and Lan's hair knot opened. The hair became longer and thicker. Every grey stray, which had appeared over the years, disappeared until it gleamed in perfect black locks.

Finally, Lan's entire figure moved, forming into the body of a beautiful woman.

"Lanfear," Moiraine breathed, taking another step back.

The daughter of the night bowed theatrically. "In the flesh. Did you miss me?"

"What do you want?"

Moiraine felt sick. She couldn't start a fight with a Forsaken in the infirmary. Those people were already injured. How could she convince the woman to go outside? Would she even listen?

But Lanfear didn't look like she was interested in fighting. She was actually grinning like she was enjoying her life while starting to walk up and down before Moiraine. What was she planning?

"Well, I thought about my next steps and what I wanted to do – now that I'm free again. I mean, the world has changed a lot since the last time I've been here, and I can't wait to explore everything." The crazy woman sounded like she was going on an exciting journey she had always dreamed about. She took another turn. "But then I was thinking – about unfinished business." Lanfear stopped before the Cairhien woman - who tried not to show her fear - with a finger tapping against her jaw like she was actually thinking about something. Could Moiraine win a fight against a Forsaken? "You see, the two of us had an awful start. All this chasing, running, and hiding. The Dragon Reborn. First, being with me, then with you when you tried to kill me and kidnapped him."

"I-" Moiraine started, but Lanfear didn't let her continue.

"So, I thought I couldn't leave without finding the proper payback for your killing attempt – which was pretty painful, by the way."

Blood and ashes! This time, Rand wasn't there to protect her. And Moiraine didn't know how to respond to that. She did try to kill Lanfear. Would she use the One Power? Or did the woman want to let Moiraine die with the same weapons she used on the Forsaken? The daughter of the night didn't have a weapon in her hand, but that didn't mean she couldn't create one with a flick of her wrist. She belonged to the Age of Legends and wasn't bound by the Three Oaths.

Light, Lan! She had bonded him again. Now, he would feel her death. Would he go mad? Could Nynaeve help him before he killed himself by trying to fight against Lanfear?

Nervously, the Cairhien woman licked her lips, then froze. That couldn't be true. She didn't… But the growing smile on Lanfear's face told Moiraine that the woman had done it. Finally, she noticed how her lips started to turn numb. Blood and ashes!

"No."

"At first, I couldn't decide on how to kill you. I mean, the possibilities are endless. So, I stuck around to gather information and presented myself to you as Miasa." Moiraine's stomach turned when she realized how close the Forsaken had been the last few days. "And that was when I noticed that you and your Warder appear as husband and wife, but that Wisdom is clearly in love with him. I guess you understand I couldn't resist using him to punish you and play a trick on the girl."

Moiraine threw a glance at Nynaeve. The young woman of the Two Rivers was clearly in shock. She hadn't moved since Lanfear had transformed into her true self.

A cold hand cupped the Aes Sedai's cheek, and a thumb moved over her numb lips. Lanfear had stepped closer with a dangerous gleam in her eyes. The woman of the Blue Ajah stumbled backward. She didn't want to be close to the Forsaken.

Lanfear laughed at her reaction. "Enjoy what's coming for you. All those possibilities what your life could've looked like if you had made a different decision. I wonder what would've happened to you if you never found the Dragon Reborn. Would you be at the White Tower? Or somewhere else?"

The poison found its way through Moiraine's veins, burning along the way, and she shivered from the cold. Light, that was bad! How much time had she left?

"Alys!"

Lanfear threw a glance at something behind Moiraine's back, but the Aes Sedai already knew that Lan was closing in on her. The bond told him something terrible had happened, even though Lanfear hadn't done anything visible to Moiraine. Was he affected by the poison? Would she be able to say goodbye?

"It was long overdue, anyway. You should've died at the Eye of the World, but Ishamael wanted to torture you instead of killing you." The daughter of the night blew a kiss at the Cairhien woman. "It was nice playing with you, Moiraine."

A portal opened behind the Forsaken. Lanfear waved one last time and stepped through, then the portal was gone, and the woman with it. How did she do that?

Suddenly, Moiraine's vision started to blur, and her knees gave way. Her whole body felt like it was on fire. The poison rushed through her veins, heating her blood until she felt like she was burning up from the inside.

"Alys!"

Lan. He sounded so far away. Where was he? She had to apologize. She had to say goodbye. He didn't deserve to watch her die before his eyes. There were so many things she still needed to tell him. Lan. Where are you, Lan?

Finally, his strong arms wrapped around her weak body, keeping her upright because she didn't have the strength to do it herself. His smell surrounded her while all her other senses got infected by the poison.

"Moiraine? Can you hear me, Moiraine?"

Her name. Not Alys. In the end, he called her by her real name. The Aes Sedai wanted to answer him – wanted to calm him, wanted to say goodbye – but the darkness closed in on her, pulling her down into the burning fire that waited for her.