Fager Neald

Author: Meilen Gevedon

General

Fager Neald is a Murandian (WH, Ch. 1). He wears the traditional curling Murandian mustache, each side waxed to a point (ACoS, Ch. 27). He is about ten years younger than Jur Grady (ACoS, Ch. 27). Neald is described as a popinjay, always smirking at women (WH, Ch. 1). He is also described as foppish and impatient, and thinks he is more important than he actually is (CoT, Ch. 25). He is only seventeen years old (KoD, Ch. 12).

When he is first mentioned, Neald is a Soldier from the Black Tower, and later is raised to Asha'man (ACoS, Ch. 27).

Timeline

• Neald goes with Rand to Cairhien. He is only a soldier at this point (ACoS, Ch. 2).
• Neald goes with Perrin to Ghealdan to find Masema (ACoS, Ch. 27).
• Neald and Grady, along with the Aes Sedai and Wise Ones in Perrin's camp, notice the flows from the Bowl of the Winds when it is used. They are unnerved realizing that saidin must have been used, since they are both able to see the flows. Neald remarks that the flows make him think of wind (TPoD, Ch. 7).
• Neald accompanies Perrin to visit Masema in the town of Abila (TPoD, Ch. 30).
• Neald and Grady want to use Traveling to find the Shaido who took Faile captive. Perrin refuses to let them since neither one of them is skilled at tracking (WH, Ch. 2).
• Neald and Grady weave gateways to help Perrin's group to find the Shaido (CoT, Ch. 5).
• Neald weaves a gateway for Perrin and his group to enter the village of So Habor. He accompanies them to the village (CoT, Ch. 25, Ch. 26).
• After several of the Shaido are taken prisoner, Neald tells Perrin that the prisoners have given them information (CoT, Ch. 27).
• Neald captures Galina and takes her to Perrin through a Gateway (KoD, Prologue)
• Neald accompanies Perrin to Almizar (KoD, Ch. 12)
• Neald creates a fixed fog to camouflage Perrin's group from the Shaido camp (KoD, Ch. 29).
• After the battle, he is too tired to make a gateway (TGS, Ch. 9).
• Before he can fully recover, he is bitten by a snake from a Bubble of Evil and is left to weak to channel ({{tom|2]}).
• When the Wise Ones suggest a circle for Travelling, Grady suggests involving Neald as he could do with the practice (ToM, Ch. 6).
• He recovers and is able to weave a gateway using both saidin and saidar (ToM, Ch. 10).
• He goes with Perrin and Grady to ask the Whitecloaks for parley. He is well enough to channel and disrupt the ground to scare them (ToM, Ch. 26).
• He goes with Perrin to the trial (ToM, Ch. 34).
• He helps Perrin forge mah'alleinir, though does not initially remember how (ToM, Ch. 40)
• He figures out how to make blades that won't break (ToM, Ch. 44)
• He goes with Perrin to the Field of Merrilor (ToM, Ch. 53).
• With Naeff, he brings Mat news that the Seanchan are joining the battle. Mat sends him to Talmanes (AMoL, Ch. 37).
• He opens the gateways so that Talmanes can fire the Dragons (AMoL, Ch. 41).

Relationships

Perrin thinks that Neald's mustache is completely ridiculous (ACoS, Ch. 27), and that Neald is somewhat arrogant (ACoS, Ch. 27). Even though Perrin does not particularly like Neald, he trusts him because he knows that Neald has no animosity towards him (CoT, Ch. 5). Perrin notices that Neald is unusually cheerful for no apparent reason, and begins to wonder if Neald is going crazy (CoT, Ch. 27).

Neald feels the Aes Sedai and Wise Ones are more trouble than they are worth (CoT, Ch. 27).

Grady and Neald get along very well and are usually found together, since most of the rest of Perrin's camp is afraid of the Asha'man (TPoD, Ch. 9).

Strengths and Talents

• Neald is slightly weaker in the One Power than Grady (CoT, Ch. 8).
• Neald can make a gateway large enough for a cart, but not a wagon.
• Neald Heals Perrin when someone wounds him with an arrow.
• Neald has abilities with the weather (KoD, Ch. 4).
• Neald is strong enough to Travel at the time of Dumai's Wells (ACoS, Ch. 7).
• He has a talent for making weapons with the Power (ToM, Ch. 40)

Miscellaneous

• Neald is from a city and considers any town not surrounded by a stone wall to be a village (CoT, Ch. 27).
• Neald is accustomed to people fearing him since he is an Asha'man (CoT, Ch. 27).

Quotes

"Grady's weathered farmer's face made Perrin almost comfortable with him, but Fager Neald was another matter. Maybe ten years younger than Grady, he might have been a farmer too for all Perrin knew, but he affected airs and graces, and wore his pitiful mustache waxed to a semblance of points. Where Grady was one of the Dedicated, he was a Soldier, without the silver sword pinned to his collar, but that did not hold him back from speaking." Perrin, describing the two Asha'man. (A Crown of Swords, Chapter 27)

"Now Neald popped out of the gateway, stroking his ridiculous moustache and preening for anyone who might be watching as the [gateway] vanished. No one was, and he climbed onto his horse with a disgruntled expression." Perrin, speaking about Neald's gateways. (A Crown of Swords, Chapter 27)

"Grady and Neald were up, too, as always off by themselves, shadows in black coats among the trees. Perrin could not recall seeing them without those coats, always buttoned to the neck, always clean and unwrinkled come sunrise, whatever they had looked like the night before. Stepping through the forms in unison, the pair were practicing the sword as they did every morning. That was better than their evening practice, when they would sit cross-legged, hands on knees, staring at some distant nothing. They never did anything then that anyone could see, yet not a man in the camp but knew what they were about and kept as far off as possible." Perrin, speaking about the Asha'man as he walks around the camp. (The Path of Daggers, Chapter 9)

"The Asha'man was a popinjay, always stroking his curled mustaches, strutting and smirking at women, but he stood on the balls of his feet now, wary as a cat." Perrin, describing Neald while they are in Abila. (Winter's Heart, Chapter 1)

"Neald grinned too much since the Shaido were found; maybe he was eager to come to grips with them" Perrin, describing Neald's strange cheerfulness. (Crossroads of Twilight, Chapter 25)

I can feel saidar. It’s like I’m more complete now" (Towers of Midnight, Chapter 10)