Ila

Book

TV show

A similar entry appears in the Wheel of Time Companion confirming the information available in the main story arc.

Author: Joinyce al'Torani

General

Ila is a Tuatha'an who is always dressed in colors that sting the eye.

She is a plump older woman, with gray hair, but she has not begun to show any wrinkles in her face. Although she is taller than her husband, she still appears to be a motherly woman. Her kindness is genuine and she follows the Way of the Leaf strictly (TEotW, Ch. 25; TSR, Ch. 41).

Timeline

• Ila is the wife of Raen, who acts as the Seeker within his group of Tuatha'an. She meets Perrin and Egwene when Elyas brings them over to the camp to spend a night or two there. Even though she treats Perrin and Egwene like long lost children, she is wary of Elyas because of his ability to talk to the wolves. Ila introduces her grandson, Aram, to Perrin, Elyas, and Egwene and offers them all dinner, but ends up only feeding Elyas and Perrin. She tries to convert Perrin to the Way of the Leaf (TEotW, Ch. 25).

• Ila sees Perrin sitting out in the cold, so she comes out and covers him with a brightly colored cloak. While she is with him she stares at his axe with a frown on her face. She wishes he did not carry it. She gives Perrin, Egwene, and Elyas a formal goodbye, but is most regretful to see Egwene leaving. She had been hoping that she, too, would find the Way of the Leaf (TEotW, Ch. 27).

• In the Two Rivers, Perrin looks to the Tinkers for cover after a battle with Trollocs where he is badly wounded, and ends up meeting Ila again. She cannot extract the arrow from him, but she makes all the efforts she can to keep him comfortable until an Aes Sedai in Emond's Field can Heal him. All the while, she is glaring at the Warder Ihvon's sword. Ila makes a few quick comments about how she only sees Perrin with pretty girls, which doesn't sit well with Faile (TSR, Ch. 41).

• Moving the wagons closer to Emond's Field to drop the men off, she says her goodbyes to Perrin, Faile, and the rest of the Two Rivers men. Perrin tries to convince the Tinkers to come into Emond's Field for protecting against the Trollocs, but Ila and Raen resist (TSR, Ch. 42).

• After the Tinkers are attacked by Trollocs, the make their way to Emond's Field but do not enter right away. Ila gives Faile a warm hug, but is still hesitating because of seeing all the men in armor and the stakes in the ground. After going to the Winespring Inn she gets Healed by Alanna Sedai. While coming down the stairs from the Healing, she sees Aram with a sword in his hand. Crying out frantically, she begs him to put the sword down, trying to remind him of the Way of the Leaf. Because Aram won't listen, and Perrin defends him, Ila turns her back on her grandson and Perrin (TSR, Ch. 45).

• Ila continues to see Aram about in Emond's Field but refuses to speak with him because of her disgust at him having a sword in his hands (TSR, Ch. 53).

• As Perrin rides off to speak with the Whitecloaks, Ila turns away, refusing to acknowledge that he even exists. During the Trolloc attack, she carries a baby on her back to protect it since she will not join the Two Rivers women in fighting to protect the children (TSR, Ch. 56).

• During the Last Battle, she helps by looking for survivors (AMoL, Ch. 37).

Relationships

Ila is the wife of Raen, and is Aram's grandmother, although she says that Aram is Lost after he picks up a sword. She likes Egwene and wishes that she would find the Way of the Leaf, acting as if she were her own granddaughter (TEotW, Ch. 25; Ch. 27; TSR, Ch. 45).

She dislikes Elyas to the point of almost hating the man because he can speak with wolves. In her mind, he leads a life of unforgivable violence, and he can never turn to the Way of the Leaf (TEotW, Ch. 25).

At first Ila likes Perrin, thinking he is a gentle boy who could find his way without the axe, but after meeting up with him in the Two Rivers her opinion changes. He now has yellow eyes, just like Elyas. She regrets to see him living a life of violence. After Perrin allows Aram to pick up a sword, she becomes disgusted with him and turns her back on Perrin all together. She says Perrin is the reason Aram is Lost (The Shadow Rising (TSR, Ch. 41; Ch. 45).

Ila gets along well with all the Two Rivers folk, and gets along great with Faile, thinking that she is pretty (TSR, Ch. 41). She is wary of all the people with swords and armor, but is willing to accept it for a short time.

She thinks that losing Aram hurts more than losing his mother to Trollocs (AMoL, Ch. 37).

Quotes

"Will you teach them your way, to kill or die? Will you lead them to the fate you seek for yourself, dying alone with only the ravens and your...your friends to squabble over your body?"(Ila to Elyas; The Eye of the World, Chapter 25).

"The Way of the Leaf is not only to do no violence, but to accept what comes." (Ila to Perrin; The Shadow Rising, Chapter 42).

"The Trollocs took my daughter," she sobbed, her entire body shaking, "and all my grandchildren but one, and now you take him. He is Lost, because of you, Perrin Aybara. You have become a wolf in your heart, and now you will make him one, too." (Ila to Perrin about Aram; The Shadow Rising, Chapter 45).