Fanfic:Jerid's Return (Dedicated)
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Jerid opened his eyes, then closed them again as he winced at the light flooding his vision. No need to go blind, he thought. After all that had happened in the past few weeks, there was no need for that.
After what seemed like an Age, the Dedicated opened his eyes again, this time letting his vision adjust to the light. Sighing, he drew in a sharp breath and threw the blankets off of his body. The chilly air ran across his body, the result of the open window on the other side of the room. Jerid shivered slightly before shrugging off the sensation that hit his bare chest.
The former thief was dressed in only undershorts, exposing his body to the chilled environment of his quarters. Despite ignoring the sensations, it caused goose bumps to rise across his skin, over the faint scars that marked his back and chest, a reminder of past actions that would never fade from memory. His gold-green eyes caught the light that filtered in through the window, flashed with a tired look of someone just awaken from a deep slumber.
Fighting off a yawn, Jerid stretched and then grabbed the leather breeches that lay next to his bed. Putting them on, he stood and looked around the room. It was the size of any Dedicated or Accepted, and looked as if it had been inhabited for some time. For Jerid, it was the same as if he had never left; it was still filled with a great many of his belongings, the ones he had left behind when he had left the Tower years ago. He could walk in the door and swear it had only been yesterday that he had left.
That feeling is because you are home, Jerid thought. That small bit evoked a small chuckle from the Dedicated. Home. Was that what that feeling was? For the thief, home had been Whitebrook, a town in the Caralain Grass for over ten years, a place where he had watched his daughter grow into a young woman and marry.
Only, he had never felt like it was home. Not since he had left the Tower.
Aye and what a fine mess that was. You felt that this place was no longer fit, that you could no longer serve their cause. Rubbing his arms to get some warmth into his body, the Dedicated walked over to the window, looked out.
It had been true, that he had left the Tower because it was no longer a place he felt welcome in. He had left with his daughter Angel for the Caralain Grass, where his blood kin had lived for generations. Indeed, Jerid's only link had been his son Beric, Angel's twin. When Beric started channeling, it was decided that he would stay as a Soldier; there was no other place he could have learned to control his ability.
And now you are back, and feel more rooted to this place than before. That brought a bit of smile to his otherwise expressionless face. Ironic, but still a smile nonetheless. He hadn't actually planned to come back, at least not in the manor that he had.
It had only been a few weeks ago, but the thief had arrived in a rather unconventional way. He had been near death, inflicted by weapon wounds. The Yellow Ajah had tended to his physical conditions, but that hadn't kept him from suffering mentally. It was only in the last week or so that he was able to function normally; prior to that he had still had long bouts of unconsciousness and gaps in his memory as to what had happened to him in the last few days prior to the homecoming. However, the Healers had decided he was well enough to be kicked out of the Infirmary, with strict instructions to keep his activities limited. Jerid was in no big hurry to argue with any one of them.
What had happened to him was still largely unknown to him, only that the last thing he remembered was that he was visiting his daughter and grandson in Caemlyn, where they had moved when his son-in-law, a soldier in Andor's Queen's Guard, had been relocated. But after that, it had been a blur, and a while there were bits and pieces that floated to his mind's surface, it was still very much beyond his grasp.
The smile faded from Jerid's lips. There were other reasons why he had not come back. While he had been away, the Seanchan had decided to lay siege to the Tower, a siege that Jerid had not been there to help fend off. But that wasn't the reason why Jerid had some reservations about returning, at least not directly.
His son had been among the casualties the Tower suffered during the siege. Jerid had not been informed until much later, after he had heard of the siege. To say that he had been saddened was one thing; that he had been infuriated to find out about his son's death long after it had occurred was another thing. It had taken a great effort to restrain himself from storming into the M'Hael's office, whoever that had been at the time. It wouldn't have been wise to do, especially given his state of mind at the time.
That had been years ago, and the funeral had long since passed. There had been no body to bury, as none had been found, but there had been a service. Time passed, and Angel had given birth to children of her own.
Jerid shook his head, returning to the present. He was here now, and that was what mattered. And the last few weeks or so had given him time to think, and reflect. The last year or so had seen him dwell on returning, but he had never seriously entertained the thought. He was content to live his life far away from the Tower. Or so he had wanted to believe.
And then there were concerns over what had happened to him. It wasn't as if he were in any big hurry to remember that awful event, but it frustrated that there was something beyond his reach to recall. Not to mention a blow to his pride, having been inflicted so. There was little sign of how he managed to arrive at the Tower, and there was no sign of who had attacked him.
Of course he had not been forthcoming with everything, at least that as he recalled. He had been visiting Caemlyn on his way to a Portal Stone located near the city. Despite the years of keeping relatively quiet about the fact that he could channel, he still had continued some of his studies; he was too much an initiate of the Tower to completely give that up. Whatever became of that was hidden, though, from his memory, along with whatever nearly killed him.
A breeze slipped through the window and Jerid snapped from his thoughts. There was a long day ahead, especially with figuring out what came next. He was home now, and that meant he was committed to resuming his life as a Dedicated.
