It had been a couple of hours since Jon's arrival. He had been shown to his accommodations and had been resting since then. His convoy too had been shown to their accommodations and most of them were still holed up in their rooms.
Ned Stark was standing in his usual position on the balcony of Winterfell's castle. Below him, Robb and Theon were trying to teach Bran the art of archery. And he had not been able to hit even one on the target.
Ned did not want to say it, but it did look like Bran was not going to be a great archer. Maybe a swordsman, but not an archer.
And he missed another target. Robb and Theon burst out laughing.
"Which one of you was a marksman at his age?" Ned questioned.
"Go on, Bran," he motivated his son. "Keep practicing."
Bran loaded his bow with another arrow, pulled the string, but even before he could release it, an arrow came whistling from behind and hit almost in the dead centre of the target.
Everyone craned their necks behind Bran to see Arya holding a bow in her hands. She gave a performative bow. This irritated Bran, and he ran after her. A chuckle escaped Ned's lips as he enjoyed the silliness of his children.
They returned back to the yard after a few moments gasping for their breath. Bran had not managed to catch her and had ultimately given up.
"Father," Arya called out from the yard.
"Where is Jon?" She questioned with a frustrated expression. "He is holed up in his room. I did not hear any stories from him."
"He is tired, Arya," he replied. "He has traveled a very long distance. He would have cleaned himself and would be giving his body a much needed rest."
Arya shrugged and ran off inside the castle.
"Ned," a voice came from behind him. It was Catelyn.
"Catelyn," he responded.
She approached the edge of the balcony and stood by his side. They remained in silence for a few moments.
"Accommodating Dothraki herdsmen in the castle is not a wise move, Ned," she remarked.
Ned sighed. He had known about the Dothraki accompanying Jon only after he had received the letter from Wyman Manderly. And he had known that Catelyn would not take it well. And he had not told her.
"They are savages," she continued. "They have no sense of honor or any respect for the law. They are brutal men full of bloodlust. And you have innocent people, your children, your daughter roaming around the castle. This is not a wise move."
"They are under the command of Jon," Ned replied.
"They are," Catelyn remarked. "I do not deny this. But what guarantee is there that they will listen to every word of his? They are savages, Ned."
Ned was about to reply when another voice cut in. "They will listen to every word I speak, Lady Stark."
Ned and Catelyn turned to see Jon approaching them.
"My apologies," Jon continued. "I did not mean to overhear you."
"Jon," Ned sighed awkwardly. "She did not mean it that way."
"It does not matter. Her worries are not unfounded," he replied. "Any sane and reasonable man or woman would be worried about a group of Dothraki living inside their walls. Their reputation and fame is obviously not for being law-abiding or honorable, but for savageness."
"But the Dothraki inside the castle of Winterfell will heed my command," he said. "You can rest assured."
Ned did not know why, but he developed an inexplicable sense of trust in Jon's words. He knew that the Dothraki would really follow him. It was just as Wyman Manderly had said. There was really something special about him. And no matter how unwilling, even Catelyn felt a sense of assurance from Jon's words. It was as if her worries and anxiety disappeared merely because of them.
Before the silence between the three of them could turn more awkward, Ser Rodrik Cassel approached with Theon in tow behind him.
"Lord Stark," he said. "A deserter from the Night's Watch has been caught."
Ned sighed. The unease he had been feeling for the last few days suddenly returned.
Meanwhile, Jon's eyes landed on Theon. He had seen the Greyjoy even when he arrived. But he had no feelings about it. They had shared an incident, and Jon had beaten Theon enough to let out his frustration on the eve of his departure. For now, Jon had no feelings about the Greyjoy heir. Even Theon was maintaining a neutral expression on his face, and his eyes did not even wander towards Jon. What was actually going on in Theon's mind, Jon did not know.
"Get the lads to saddle their horses," Ned said. "And tell Bran he is coming too."
"But he is too young to see these things," Catelyn interjected.
"He will not be a boy forever," Ned replied. "And Winter is coming."
Catelyn did not argue further.
Ned looked towards Jon almost with a questioning glance.
"I too will accompany," he said.
Ned smiled and nodded in return.
.
.
.
A party departed from Winterfell for the hills, with Ned Stark leading the way. Robb, Bran, and Theon Greyjoy rode among them. True to his word, Jon accompanied them as well, and Melisandre had joined the group, riding side by side with him. There were others like Rodrik Cassel and a dozen House Stark bannerman.
"You are thinking about something, Lord Aeos," Melisandre remarked. "What is it?"
"Nothing," he said.
Melisandre shook her head, but she did not press any further. She could tell that he was lost in his own thoughts about something.
Jon, meanwhile, was lost in his own thoughts. Thoughts about Ghost. Or rather, the direwolf he was fated to name Ghost.
If the timeline was holding true, Ghost should have already been born. Jon could have tried to find his direwolf companion using his warging powers, but he did not. He suppressed his impatience and waited for fate to reveal what it held for the future. Would things unfold exactly as they were supposed to? Or would there be changes? He did not know. But now that the moment was so close, he could not suppress his excitement.
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