Thom Merrilin

Thom Merrilin arrives in Emond's Field for the Festival, one more stop on a gleeman's wandering circuit. On the Green he juggles and tumbles for the villagers, showing skill well beyond what a country crowd is used to, and among his listeners are Rand al'Thor, Mat Cauthon, Perrin Aybara, and Egwene al'Vere. His good humor slips only around Moiraine and Lan; he is noticeably wary of the lady and her hard-eyed companion, and he lets it be known that he was once a court bard before he took up the patched cloak.

Festival never comes. Trollocs attack the village that night, leaving parts of Emond's Field burned and Tam al'Thor feverish from a wound no herb can touch. Thom stays through the aftermath while Moiraine, now known to be Aes Sedai, works to heal Tam at the Winespring Inn. Thom looks in on the sickroom during the vigil, grumbles that he cannot smoke there, and takes himself out again.

For all his complaints and his showman's patter, Thom keeps company with the Emond's Field folk as the crisis unfolds, present at the inn when Moiraine and Lan tell Rand that the Trollocs came hunting him, Mat, and Perrin specifically, and that the three must leave for Tar Valon. His wariness of Aes Sedai sits oddly beside his willingness to stay close to one, and his past as a court bard sits oddly beside a life of village greens and festival crowds.