Zerry

"Zerry has very light fingers...After all, he has lived by thieving ever since he could walk."

- Bess.

Zerry is a young thief boy from the town of Rithmere and a former member of the Masked Ones.

Early life
Zerry was born in Rithmere. It is unknown whether he ever knew his parents, as he was an orphan when King Lief, Captain Barda and Jasmine encountered him. He grew up to be a thief. At some point the Masked Ones and he crossed paths and they adopted the young boy into their troupe. Plug, the frog-masked inner circle member in charge of the orphans was given the task of looking after him.

Shadowgate
Zerry was among the Masked Ones who witnessed the capture of Lief, Captain Barda and Jasmine, who were using false identities so as not to alert the troupe of their true nature. The following morning, as the troupe was preparing to depart for Happy Vale, Zerry crashed into Lief and dropped his armful of sticks. This incident earned him a scolding from Plug.

Lief spotted Zerry again later that night by the fire, assisting a man with a lizard mask. While the companions were dinning with Bess, Rust complained about Zerry's tendency for theft. Bess praised Zerry's ability, claiming that they will make him a fine magician one day.

After stopping in Happy Vale, Zerry was approached by the seamstress Fern, who told Zerry that Lief — going under the name Lewin — had been given a special Belt by Bess. She encouraged Zerry to steal the Belt and give it to a man by the Riverdale signpost, and handed him a slip of paper to give to the man. Since Zerry could not read, he did not realise the paper said to have him killed.

That night, after feasting on some stolen honey, Zerry bumped into Lief, who was under the influence of Bede's mask of adulthood, and stole the Belt of Deltora. In the chaos following Bess' failed attempt to poison Barda, Zerry snuck out of the camp and arrived at the Riverdale signpost, where Laughing Jack was waiting. He captured Zerry and stuffed him and the Belt of Deltora inside a red sack before heading towards The Funnel to dispose of them.

Before Laughing Jack could throw the sack into The Funnel, he was approached by Steven, who had met up with Lief, Barda, and Jasmine to help them track down the missing Belt. Steven distracted Laughing Jack by pretending to make a deal with him while Lief and Jasmine searched Jack's wagon. When they discovered Fern's note, they believed Zerry and the Belt were lost and tried to inform Steven. He interpreted their signals to mean that they had found the Belt and so prepared to attack Laughing Jack, but the money lender caught wind of what was happening and escaped, kicking the sack with Zerry inside towards The Funnel.

Lief realised that Zerry and the Belt were inside the sack and dived to save it. With Steven and Jasmine's help, he was able to pull the bag from the water and retrieve the Belt while Steven restrained Zerry. The presence of the Belt awakened the Lapis Lazuli dragon, Fortuna, who cheerfully threatened to dispose of Zerry for touching the Belt. Terrified, he explained to the companions that Fern told him to steal it as a way of getting away from Plug.

Zerry remained with Steven when the companions flew north to Shadowgate.

The Sister of the South
Zerry came with Steven to Del during the outbreak of the Toran Plague. When Lief believed the plague to be poison, he tasked Steven and Zerry with collecting food from the people of Del so it could be tested for poison.

After the Battle in the Pit, Zerry attended the victory feast and tried to help Captain Barda with his puzzle box. He later attended the wedding of Lief and Jasmine, having since gotten a job as a stable boy, and made sure the horses — Honey, Bella, and Swift — were able to witness the events as well.

Physical appearance
When Lief first met Zerry, he was small, thin, and ragged, with small black eyes full of a cunning that made Lief instantly distrust him. However, he grew much taller during his time with Steven.

When staying with the Masked Ones, Zerry wore a Polypan mask, which reflected his thieving nature.

Personality
Zerry is selfish, tricky, and arrogant. Whatever he wants, he simply takes. He puts on a false bravado, sneering at those around him, but when threatened, his bravery disappears. Zerry is rarely, if ever apologetic, and will cast the blame on everyone and anyone but himself. This attitude caused him to butt heads with other members of the Masked Ones, particularly Plug.

Zerry is also shown to harbour grudges very easily. After bumping into Lief and spilling his collected sticks, Zerry developed a vendetta against him and was willing to do anything to get back at and undermine his success. This behaviour could also be seen in his relationship with Plug; Zerry refused to listen to Plug and actively skipped her reading and writing lessons to cause trouble around the camp because of her strict punishments.

Zerry has a fondness for horses that is often noted by those around him. Several members of the Masked Ones caught him sneaking off to see the horses that pulled their wagons. By the time of Lief and Jasmine's wedding, Zerry had gotten a job working as a stable boy.

After spending some time with Steven, Zerry appeared more mature and less likely to steal from others — however, his arrogance remains rather unchanged.

Abilities
Zerry has very slight fingers, making him an excellent thief.

Deltora Quest 3

 * Shadowgate
 * The Sister of the South