Ned stared out the window.
Darkness hung over the land like a curtain, hiding countless dangers within.
Countless troubling messages and warnings weighed on his mind, leaving him exhausted. He could feel it now.
A great storm was gathering over the Seven Kingdoms.
"Winter is coming."
He whispered the words, and in that moment, he made his decision.
Ned stepped away from the window, took a seat near the fireplace, and looked at Catelyn.
"Cat, you must remain in Winterfell."
His voice struck her like an icy blade.
"No," Catelyn pleaded. "Ned, let me go with you. I don't want to be separated from you."
"You must stay."
Ned spoke with iron certainty, even firmer than when he declared Sansa's marriage.
"While I travel south to support Robert, you will rule the North in my stead.
Winterfell must always have a Stark present. Robb is fourteen. Soon he will be grown."
"I can no longer be the one to teach him to lead. Allow him into your councils. He must be prepared before the day comes when he stands alone."
Catelyn lowered her head in silence.
Ned turned toward Maester Luwin. "Maester, I trust you as I would my own blood. Guide my wife in every matter.
Teach my children what they must know."
"Remember... Winter is coming."
Maester Luwin nodded heavily. "May the gods grant your swift return, my lord."
The room fell quiet again.
Catelyn finally looked up, her voice trembling. "And the other children?"
Ned exhaled softly.
He stood and wrapped his arms around her. "Sansa will remain here. Her betrothal is newly set, and her wedding will not be far off.
You must prepare her to be a proper lady of a great house. As for the others, they will come south with me."
Catelyn's body shuddered.
"I cannot bear that."
"You must endure, Cat," Ned said gently but firmly. "Arya must learn courtly manners. In a few years, she too will be wed."
Catelyn knew he spoke the truth. Sansa was nearly of age and would soon be married. Arya needed discipline.
But Bran and Rickon were too young.
She leaned her forehead against his chest, voice breaking. "Ned, for the sake of our love, do not take Bran and Rickon. Rickon is only six."
Ned shook his head. "When my father sent me to the Eyrie, I was only eight."
He hated the thought of bringing them to King's Landing. But the world was changing. They could not ignore it.
"Ser Rodrik tells me Robb and Joffrey do not get along. That is troubling.
Bran and Rickon can serve as a bridge between our houses. Growing up beside the princes will foster friendship."
"Just as Robert and I once did. It will ensure our family's place remains safe."
Catelyn knew he was right. It did not lessen the pain.
Tears slid quietly down her cheeks.
Ned brushed them away with a gentle kiss. "I know this hurts. But it must be done."
Catelyn clung to him, saying nothing, until Maester Luwin cleared his throat. "My lord… what of Jon Snow?"
At that name, Catelyn stiffened. Ned immediately stepped back, sensing her anger.
She understood lords fathering bastards. She had lived long enough among nobles to accept that.
But to raise the boy here, under her roof, where she had to see him every day? That she could never forgive.
Her voice turned cold.
"Ned, Jon cannot stay here."
Ned tried to reason with her. "Robb and Jon are close. I see no harm if he…"
"He must not remain in Winterfell," she snapped, cutting him off. "He is your son. Not mine. I will not live beside him any longer."
Ned's expression twisted with hurt.
"You know I cannot take him to King's Landing. He would have no place there."
Catelyn refused to yield. "I have heard your dear friend Robert has bastards of his own. Yet not one lives in the Red Keep."
Ned growled in frustration.
"That Lannister queen insisted on that. Gods damn it, Cat. How can you treat him so cruelly? Jon is only a boy."
His temper was rising when Maester Luwin intervened. "I may offer a solution. Jon has grown close to Lord Galon. Perhaps he could go to Deepwood Motte."
Ned looked surprised.
"You suggest Jon become Galon's squire?"
Catelyn stayed silent. Wherever Jon went was fine, so long as he left Winterfell.
Maester Luwin nodded.
"I recall Galon's uncle has a foster son, a bastard of House Horwood. Jon would have a place of his own there."
Ned seemed to consider this. Luwin continued. "If not for Lord Galon, I would even say Jon might join the Night's Watch. Your brother Benjen spoke of this with me."
"But after tonight, he has reconsidered. And Galon agreed with him."
Catelyn's eyes brightened. A bastard wearing black meant no marriage, no heirs, no threat.
She demanded quickly:
"Why would Benjen change his mind?"
"It seems Lord Galon persuaded both him and Jon."
Galon's name made her jaw clench. Every plan she formed, the boy seemed to disrupt.
Ned thought for a moment longer, then spoke decisively. "So be it. Tomorrow, I will ask Galon if he will take Jon as his squire."
Maester Luwin bowed and left.
Catelyn's sorrow surged again, and tears fell once more. Ned lifted her into his arms, holding her close.
The rest of the night passed in quiet sorrow and fierce affection.
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