But Egwene could have started screaming for help and someone to come and heal Verin. For all Verin knew there was a chance someone outside could have helped. Or someone could have arrived to save her. I cannot believe the possibility/hope was not in Verin's mind all this time and it did not stop her.

With confessing to Cadsuane/Rand, the possibility would just have been a bit stronger. Sure, it might have required a bit more mental gymnastics from Verin, but with 70 years to prepare herself for that moment, I believe she could have done it had she wanted to.




I don't really see how that works. The oath said that she would not betray the DO and that she would keep her secrets until the hour of her death.

Now if we assume from that, that it is forbidden to do anything that would set events in motion to allow a betrayal of the DO in the future, then I simply do not understand how Verin could have drank that tea. I don't even understand how she could have acquired the poison.

At the time Verin got the poison, poisoned her tea and drank the tea, she knew full well that she was doing so for sole purpose of releasing herself from the oath which in turn would allow her to betray the DO. But she had not been poisoned at any of those times so it was _not yet_ the hour of her death. The oath was still in full effect. And yet she was able to act to set events in motion that she knew WOULD release her and WOULD let her betray the DO.

I simply do not see the difference between this and arranging her own stilling. The fact that she was able to acquire the poison and drink it suggests that the oaths would not have stopped her from doing something that would end up with her stilled. Perhaps she could not have admitted it openly and asked for stilling, but there are a lots of more subtle ways to reach that goal. Especially for someone as brilliant as Verin.



How? If that were true, no black sister would ever be able to lie because there was always a chance that they would be caught and exposed.

It has been repeated to us over and over that the oaths are not a perfect solution and that they are full of holes. I don't see this oath being any different. Someone as clever as Verin should have found a way. The fact that she did not just screams to me that this whole scene was contrived and poorly planned. Verin had to confess to Egwene in particular and then die. Whether this made any logical sense was irrelevant. A poor end to a great character.



If the oath would prevent that then how was she able to acquire the poison and drink it when she knew it was an act of deliberately releasing herself and betraying the BA. She had not yet drank the poison so it was not yet the hour of her death so the oath was still in full effect. It did not stop Verin there, it would not have stopped her from getting herself stilled.


You know. It just occurred to me (somewhat separate here). If the oath is taken literally, Verin should never have been able to tell anyone anything. I mean the oath says to keep her secrets. Not just BA/DO secrets but just secrets. Does that not mean that she should never have been able to reveal anything to anyone that was not common knowledge? The stuff about the dream ter'angreal was a secret known only to her for example, how could she have revealed that secret to Egwene. Another example of how weak/bizarre the oath was.

Another example is the fact that the BA hunters were able to release the sisters from the oaths. Given that being released requires an active participation, should this oath not have prevented the BA sisters from releasing themselves, knowing that it would result in them betraying the DO/BA.

The more I think about it, the more it becomes obvious that the whole scene with Verin poisoning herself was just plain stupid. How sad.