The Eye of the World/Ravens

==Summary==
:
Egwene al'Vere is using a bucket to fetch water from the Winespring Water for the first time. She sees other children also gathering water and grown men washing sheep to prepare them to be sheared. Overhead, she notices a raven watching the men. It is said that ravens are the Dark One's eyes, but she dismisses the thought. Why would the Dark One be interested in the Two Rivers, where nothing ever happens?
Egwene brings the filled bucket back to Widow Aynal's Meadow where the entire village of Emond's Field has gathered for the annual sheep shearing event. There are more sheep than people. Boys of the village are assigned to watch the sheep as well as herd them around as the sheep are washed and then sheared. She makes her way through the crowd, giving water to people who ask. She sees Perrin Aybara with his family speaking to Master Luhhan. Master Luhhan tells Perrin's parents that he'll take Perrin as his apprentice. Egwene looks up and sees many ravens watching the villagefolk. 
Egwene sees her youngest sister Loise, six years her elder, argue with Dag Coplin over wool. Master Coplin is trying to get his wool valued more highly, but Loise will not be bullied and he storms off. She continues and sees the Wisdom Doral Barran and her apprentice, Nynaeve al'Maera. Nynaeve is bandaging Bili Congar's leg after he hurt it trying to shear wool after drinking ale. The Wisdom inspects the bandaging, pulling it off to peek at the injury under it. She seems a bit disappointed for some reason. Nynaeve can sense Egwene nearby even without looking at her. An entire flock of ravens has descended on the meadow, watching everybody.
She sees another of her sisters, Elisa, working with some of the wool. Elisa is worried over being denied a braid as the Women's Council does not consider her mature enough to be counted as a grown woman. Egwene tries to comfort her, pointing out that Calle Coplin is almost twenty and still unbraided. Elisa tells her to go away and Egwene continues on, looking for Mat Cauthon and Perrin. She meant to follow Perrin earlier but got distracted by his sister Adora.
She finally finds Mat and Perrin with Rand al'Thor and a few other boys. They are boasting to each other, with Rand saying that he would like to be a king, which is better than Mat wanting to run off and not do any work. Mat says he'll have adventures, like rescuing an Aes Sedai. Egwene is trying to learn more about Rand who everyone says she'll marry. Dannil Lewin comes over and summons the boys to the Mayor who is Egwene's father. Mat fervently denies that he did anything but reluctantly goes.
Egwene follows the boys as they walk over to the men of the village. Bran al'Vere offers to tell them a story in reward for their work, and the boys immediately demand a grand tale with adventures, Trollocs and maybe even a False Dragon. Bran does not know any stories like that, but Tam al'Thor begins to tell them about the real Dragon, Lews Therin Telamon. Tam speaks of the Age of Legends, when people lived in great cities and had no hunger or war, until the Dark One touched the world. This began the War of the Shadow, where the forces of the Light fought Myrddraal, Trollocs, Darkfriends and even Aes Sedai who became the Forsaken. The world was devastated, entire cities destroyed and the Light was on the verge of total defeat until the Dragon gathered the Hundred Companions and sealed the Bore on the Dark One's prison. Egwene is confused, as she had heard that the Dragon was the man who destroyed the world during the Breaking. Surely he had fought for the Shadow?
The children are all quiet after the story, looking at each other thoughtfully before Bran tells them all to get back to work. Suddenly Egwene hears all the ravens taking flight, flying west towards the Mountains of Mist. She looks up to see one final raven staring right at her, before it too leaves and goes west.
In the following years Egwene tries hard to be the best at whatever task is given to her, and sets a personal goal of being the youngest ever to be granted a braid. She stops wanting to hear stories as she grows older and the boys do the same. Nothing ever changes in the Two Rivers, so what do the stories matter?
==Notes==
Ravens was added as an additional prologue in the young adult literature paperback From the Two Rivers, a re-released first half of Eye of the World. In Ravens, we see Emond's Field during the childhoods of Egwene al'Vere, Rand al'Thor, Perrin Aybara, Matrim Cauthon, and Nynaeve al'Meara.
==Characters==
*Egwene al'Vere
*Kenley Ahan
*Corin Ayellin
*Perrin Aybara
*Joslyn Aybara
*Con Aybara
*Paetram Aybara
*Deselle Aybara
*Adora Aybara
*Haral Luhhan
*Cilia Cole
*Dag Coplin
*Loise al'Vere
*Doral Barran
*Nynaeve al'Meara
*Bili Congar
*Elisa al'Vere
*Calle Coplin
*Wil al'Seen
*Matrim Cauthon
*Dav Ayellin
*Lem Thane
*Bandry Crawe
*Elam Dowtry
*Rand al'Thor
*Brandelwyn al'Vere
*Natti Cauthon
*Bodewhin Cauthon
*Eldrin Cauthon
*Tamlin al'Thor
*Master Cole
*Cenn Buie
*Master al'Dai
===Referenced ===
*Dark One
*Marin al'Vere
*Alene al'Vere
*Jain Farstrider
*Berowyn al'Vere
*Paet al'Caar
*Jac al'Caar
*Bili al'Dai
*Artur Hawkwing
*Ewin Finngar
*Lews Therin Telamon
==Groups==
*Hundred Companions
*Aes Sedai
*Forsaken
==Places==
*Widow Aynal's Meadow
*Two Rivers
===Referenced===
*Shayol Ghul
==Events==
===Referenced===
*War of the Shadow
==Concepts==
*Shadow
===One Power===
*Aes Sedai (Age of Legends)