The below analysis was posted as a comment, now deleted, on another forum. Contextually, we were discussing the series and I had mentioned Verin’s hunting Fain in the Two Rivers. We were discussing notes and theories and connecting dots. This is copy/pasted over from the old forum so if it seems like I’m responding to something you didn’t read, I am. Feel free to ask for clarification.

Thanks! So sorry this took me a bit to get back to. I want to give you a good breakdown so I needed to find an opportunity where I had time and the right headspace to ramble about WOT. Good news, that’s now! The secret ingredient is ADHD. I’m gonna ramble a little but partly cause I feel like you might appreciate the personal story I want to share.

For me I didn’t get into the series until just before The Gathering Storm was released. My roommate at the time convinced me to read it by mentioning that a new author was going to ghostwrite the ending - I didn’t want to start an unfinished series. So my first read through started maybe a month before TGS. But I had so many opinions lol especially about Verin. I didn’t have a folder, but my roommate used to mock some of my theories about the old classics like “who killed Asmodean” and my insistence that Verin is Black Ajah.

Ok so Verin. I love Verin. From my very first read, when Verin lied in The Great Hunt, I was on to her. I was like “she’s Black.” When I mentioned this theory to my roommate he was like “no way” and argued with me. My entire first read, I’m pointing at Verin going “she can fucking lie, and she’s not even subtle about being dishonest!”

So many of my theories didn’t go where I expected though. Like Taim being a good guy, Mesaana being Tarna Feir.

I finished The Gathering Storm about a week after Towers of Midnight released and it was fucking hilarious because my roommate - who reads insanely faster than I do - refused to say a word to me about it. He finished it the day after it came out. I took like 2 months, I’m a pretty slow reader - audiobooks are a life changer to me.

At any rate, I cackled. Shouted down the hall, “That dress you’re wearing is green” and my roommate shouts back “fuck you”

Which is a lot of exposition for why on my very second read I hyperfixated on Verin. I just finished what I called my Turning Reread, Lucky 13, and every time I read the series I pick a few plot threads to focus on and follow through the series. I’ll go back and reread sections, or rewind my audiobook to hear something again. Stop and pay extra attention and make a mental note when something lines up. For my first read the focus was Verin, Thom & Moiraine, and Ishamael. I build on that every go and I’ve started finding cross-sections.

Like Ishamael and Verin.

To bring this back on point, Verin worked for Ishamael. This is something that’s extrapolated. Ishamael controlled the Black Ajah, up until his death - at which point Mesaana and Aran’gar split control between the rebel and tower factions.

Some other assets of Ishamael’s were Padan Fain and Isam.

When Padan Fain went rogue, he sent Isam to hunt him down. That’s the reason he’s in the Two Rivers. Even though Ishamael had died by the time everything went down, they were still following orders he issued before dying, and before anyone “picked them up” so to speak. The Trolloc army in the Two Rivers belonged to Fain, and that’s why Luc sided with Perrin, and why the Trollocs shouted “ISAM!” over and over as they attacked. They were calling for Isam, not rallying by his name.

And Verin recognized that. Which means Verin knows who Isam is.

Now, what we know about Verin and can look back and see: she’s Black Ajah, and she implies she was in the Two Rivers on Black Ajah business (or at least that the reason she’s there isn’t what Perrin thinks). At one point she even all but says “sure we’ll go with that” when Perrin says they’re in the Two Rivers to tie themselves to ta’veren. I forget the exact quote off the top of my head but she’s basically like “oh is that what you think we’re doing ok”

What is the Black Ajah business? I think she was there to provide support for Isam. I think she knew who Isam was because she was working with him to track and hunt Fain. I think this was a task that was seen as “bitch work” and passed off on Verin because Verin was seen as unremarkable and too politically detached to be useful. I think it was also something specific and vague if that makes sense, like “meet my agent in the two rivers and support him”

I don’t think this was like a direct order from Ishamael to Verin kind of situation, but rather he commanded a black sister should be sent to aid Isam and it wound up being Verin. Ishamael took Fain’s rebellion seriously and devoted considerable energy and resources to having him hunted down while he dealt with Rand.

I need to pay attention to this section on my next read because I’m wondering if she warns Perrin about Luc. I feel like she may have reinforced Perrin’s dislike of him. She also summoned a storm to provide cover for him when Perrin asked her to do the same and she was basically like “already did it for another reason but bonus!”

And in other happy news this prompted me to make that meme and now imma go post it on wetlanderhumor lol. Thanks for reading through all this. A lot of it is just lining up other things we discover and how they correlate, I’ve done a lot of “we know this” without citation so if you would like me to explain a point let me know.