HotD – Jon Arctic!

Oops, it seems I made a mistake. I apologize for not mentioning it earlier—I just realized I hadn't done that.

I didn't name Benjen's mother Lyanna so it wouldn't be the same name as Jon's paternal great-grandmother, who was involved with Jaehaerys and is also named Lyanna.

So the Lady of Winterfell was changed from Lyanna to Lyarra!

[Chapter Size: 3200 Words.]

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Third Person POV

Winterfell, 100 AC.

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The Manderly family passed through the gates of Winterfell, approaching the Stark family gathered in the courtyard. They were being led by Rodrik Stark, Benjen's older brother, who had gone to meet the lord of White Harbor to accompany him to Winterfell.

Lord Manderly was a robust, middle-aged man, and he was older than Lord Stark, from what Jon could tell. He stood off to one side, yet still among the Stark family, who introduced him without hesitation.

Lord Manderly dismounted from his horse, while a young man came right behind him. He must have been Walton's age—about fifteen namedays—and he was the heir of White Harbor and House Manderly.

Jon knew how important this family was. It was the richest house in the North, due to the trade they maintained with Braavos and many regions of Westeros, and they had a certain partnership with House Velaryon, who traded heavily with them and liked to boast about being the richest house in all the Seven Kingdoms.

The carriage behind them brought a woman with two children. They were the twins of White Harbor, known as the second and third sons of Lord Manderly in the main line. Lord Manderly had three sons just like Lord Stark, while White Harbor had been left to the lord's younger brother.

They approached as the man displayed a smile. "Lord Stark, you look as robust as ever."

"I could say the same about you, my friend," Lord Stark replied, his tone firm, but with a trace of enthusiasm.

Jon had always admired Lord Stark for being a friend to all the lords. Despite his firm and stern demeanor, he was always well regarded by the other lords of the North.

After a firm forearm clasp, Jon could notice the difference in posture when he moved on to the next person, the elder Stark!

Lord Stark had respect, but Lord Manderly's demeanor in the presence of Lyarra Stark was even warmer. Something quite common, since all the lords of the North held mutual respect for Lyarra.

Jon was not surprised to see Lord Manderly bowing to kiss Lyarra's hand. "Lady Stark," he said in a friendly and respectful tone.

After that, he greeted Alys, also a lady of Winterfell, then moved on to the heir, then Bennard, and next Lyra, continuing to the younger brother and Lord Stark, until he stopped at Jon.

But he looked at him, displaying a smile that widened quickly after studying the boy. "Boy, it's hard to say you've changed when I only see those eyes," he said in a friendly manner.

Jon simply lowered his head formally. "It has been some time, Lord Manderly..."

"Since the Harvest Feast, I know, I know," Lord Manderly interrupted. "No need to be so formal, boy." He laughed.

"Benjen, you could be less rigid with the boy," he commented, laughing, as Benjen shrugged.

"Jon likes to behave. He's an exemplary boy when he needs to be," Lord Stark replied.

After that, the Starks continued greeting the heir, the wife, and the children of Lord Manderly, who were the same age as Rickon and Jon.

Jon couldn't help but look at Lyra, watching her lift the edges of her dress slightly and make a polite gesture.

Lyra greeted Manderly's two youngest children, feeling Jon's gaze. Her gray eyes met his green ones with a somewhat piercing look.

She looked completely different, wearing a navy-blue dress, while her hair had been carefully styled. She had even skipped breakfast so her mother could finish getting her ready.

Jon had also greeted Lord Manderly's heir, who merely nodded without exchanging words with him. The same could be said of the wife.

Jon could notice this in many people. Some northern lords, especially from the south, treated him well, but others simply ignored him as if he were the wind. After all, he had no blood connection to the Starks that made him important. Despite being a ward, and many respecting him, there were always those who saw no value in someone like him—perhaps just a servant with certain privileges who had some luck to be in his position.

And lords often treated servants like the wind.

He was basically a bastard… or worse, someone from the common folk. And although bastards held a relatively better position in the North—to the point of not being treated inhumanely—many still saw them as inferior, even if they did not show it openly.

Jon, however, did not care much about that.

Now, two children stopped in front of him after their mother, and they couldn't stop looking at him with curiosity.

"Hi, nice to meet you," one of the sons said.

"You're the twins from White Harbor, right?" Jon asked.

"Yes!" the girl replied with a friendly smile.

"See? I told you he would remember us," said the boy.

"Stop that!" the girl snapped, embarrassed.

"She's a bit embarrassed. She said the whole trip she wanted to see a boy with pretty eyes from Winterfell!" That made the girl turn completely red.

"Shut up, Orys!" she shouted.

"Yara, behave!" their mother ended up scolding them.

The girl shrank a little under Lady Manderly's piercing gaze, something that reminded Jon a lot of Lyra with her own mother.

Jon just gave a small smile at that.

"I'll take Lord Manderly to the solar. Mother, can you take care of the rest?" Lord Stark asked, and she nodded with a small smile.

Lyarra then looked at the group that remained. "Rickon, Jon, how about you take the twins for a walk and show them Winterfell? I'm sure they're eager to see the castle again," she said, and Rickon nodded.

"Can I go too, Mother?" Lyra asked immediately.

Alys looked at her and nodded. Since there was another girl, it would be better for Lyra to go along.

"Very well. Jon, see that you keep everyone in line," Alys said.

"Of course, Lady Stark. I will do my best," Jon replied, offering a smile.

"I can keep Lyra in line, Mother!" Rickon complained.

"Of course you can't!" Lyra laughed at her brother.

And so, the four children moved forward. Bennard ended up accompanying the uncles and the grandmother, as the heir of Winterfell, since he was used to it. He always sought connections and even scolded Rickon for playing with Jon instead of dealing with his future vassals.

Jon, Rickon, Lyra, Orys, and Yara walked through the courtyard.

"Let's go see the direwolf again, please! Last time, we only looked from afar!" Yara asked immediately.

"I'd like to see it too," said Orys. "But why are you limping, Rickon?"

Rickon let out a small laugh. "Ask Jon. He's the one who hit me."

Jon blushed a little. "It wasn't like that. We were sparring. The way you say it makes it sound like I was unfair," Jon muttered.

"Rickon, stop whining. He's better than you in the yard. You just need to improve more if you don't want to get beaten," Lyra exclaimed.

Jon and Rickon looked at her, shocked.

Orys started laughing at that.

"Sister, you don't say that when speaking to someone older. Show more manners," Rickon said, imitating a formal tone, while she stuck her tongue out in response.

Rickon turned to Jon with a suspicious look. "Who do you think she's learning these things from?"

"Certainly not from me," Jon muttered.

"She spends more time with you than with anyone else. Father is going to end up blaming you," Rickon said.

Jon shrugged, looking defeated.

In any case, they continued through the courtyard, while the servants and Lord Manderly's retinue began organizing their lodgings within the castle.

Meanwhile, in the solar, Lord Stark took a bottle of wine and poured it into two cups. It was something common: he usually drank during important meetings with his vassals.

Perhaps, in the future, some Lord Stark of the coming generations would see this as a bad custom and avoid drinking wine during meetings in his solar, but those would be other times, and each Lord Stark governed Winterfell as he believed best.

"So, it's true?" Lord Stark asked carefully.

Lord Manderly sighed. "The rumors have reached White Harbor, Lord Stark, as we have already been discussing in our letters. And it's true..."

"And how are things in your region?"

"Not well, Lord Stark… not well," said Lord Manderly.

"Let me guess. The Velaryons are still trying to have Rhaenys, the heir, recognized as Jaehaerys's official heir?" Lord Stark said.

"They are trying. Some spies have appeared, trying to find allies. He placed some of them in White Harbor. I wouldn't doubt there are some of them here in Wintertown as well," said Lord Manderly.

"The South doesn't leave us in peace, does it?" Lord Stark commented, drinking.

"Unfortunately… but this matter is also of our interest."

"I know, it is in the North's interest who sits on the throne, or each heir who dies or is replaced has no direct impact here," Lord Stark said. He knew that very well, but still did not stop lamenting it. He hated the politics of the South.

"In two or three days, the letters about the queen's death will arrive."

"Then there is a reason for us to celebrate," said Lord Stark, showing a small smile.

"You certainly have incurable resentment toward her, don't you?" Lord Manderly asked with a humorless smile.

"What should we expect from our good queen? Who in the North wouldn't be angry at her?" Lord Stark retorted. "That woman simply sold the North to the South. The Gift has never been the same. Even the Night's Watch has noticed it—it's weakening with each year. I hope that woman saw what she did… if she didn't do it on purpose."

He knew those words were dangerous, but they were alone in the solar.

Lord Manderly merely sighed. Because of the Gift of the Night's Watch, he now had to rely much more on the South.

Meanwhile, Lord Stark had seen the hatred in his grandfather and his father for the Targaryens—especially for Alysanne, who made them bend.

Benjen also carried part of that resentment and did not fail to pass it on to his children and to his ward.

"Well, I will leave the celebration of Alysanne's death for when the official letter arrives," he said, pausing. "And about the throne… well, Baelon will be king. Jaehaerys had already decided that a long time ago. There's no changing it. Even if the Velaryons keep shouting..." Lord Stark paused before changing the subject.

"Now let's talk business. Winter is coming. For a forecast of lasting six months, we'll need a bit more grain, preferably from Braavos..." Lord Stark began.

Meanwhile, the children were being supervised by Borok, the kennel master of Winterfell, who crossed his arms as he watched the five children circling the wolf the size of a horse, sitting on the ground with its tongue out, even while being harassed by small hands.

Ghost had not grown much beyond that. He was, at most, around two meters and ten, still larger than a courser and much bigger than a common horse. Although he was not an animal meant to be ridden, Jon constantly rode him, and even at ten namedays, it didn't seem to be a problem for the wolf to carry him as they ran almost every day outside the walls of Winterfell.

The wolf had ended up becoming something of an attraction in Winterfell over the past two years. Everyone had grown used to him, as long as they did not bother him. The wolf was extremely calm. Borok himself fed him when Jon couldn't.

The children often played with him, even when Jon wasn't around. The wolf showed no hostility to the touch of the other Starks, and even servants and soldiers could touch him as long as they didn't bother him. It was common to see some maid touching his head when it seemed like no one was watching.

However, the wolf obeyed no one except Jon.

Thus, seeing him lying down while the children surrounded him, talking and petting him, was something more common than one might imagine.

In the open upper part of the castle, they could see Lyarra and Lady Manderly watching. Lady Manderly certainly showed concern at seeing her children so close to such a large beast, while Alys Stark reassured her, saying everything was fine, that the wolf was not dangerous. In two years there, he had never attacked anyone and was an excellent hunter when Lord Stark took Jon and his children hunting in the wolfswood.

The children stayed with Ghost for a while, then went to the godswood, with the wolf following them. They remained there until late afternoon, before a servant came to call them. Their parents were asking them to prepare for the gathering in the hall that night, where there would be a banquet with music.

Jon found himself once again in the middle of a hall, with music playing, while people enjoyed themselves and danced together. He was seated at one end of the main table—even if it was a corner, he was there as an official ward, taken in by House Stark—while the Manderlys were on the other side of the table, talking with the Starks.

"Jon, Jon! Let's dance!" Yara said, approaching with a tone full of excitement.

Jon smiled, but looked as if he were about to refuse. She should be dancing with the heir of Winterfell, not with him.

"No nonsense!" Rickon immediately told him. "You're going to dance with her."

"Hey!" Jon protested, looking at the boy he considered a brother. "Damn, you're only saying that so that Glover girl won't get jealous and think you're a womanizer."

Rickon turned red but started laughing nervously. "I don't know what you're talking about..."

Jon just shook his head before standing up. "Very well, my lady. Let's go to the dance floor," Jon said, as he followed the young Manderly girl to dance among where the servants were gathered.

Lord Glover was speaking with Lord Stark when his attention was drawn to his daughter in the middle of the floor. "So, how is the boy?" he asked.

He did not seem to feel any displeasure at seeing his daughter dancing with a boy from the common folk. Even so, his wife beside him seemed to be making an effort to look the other way. She knew her husband did not mind two ten-year-olds dancing.

"He is an extraordinary boy, as he should be," Lord Stark said, watching Jon laugh and dance with the other girl.

Lyra seemed to be in a bad mood the moment they went to the floor beside her mother, who kept her in line.

"You say extraordinary when… the child who was born beneath a heart tree, or the only one with a giant wolf south of the Wall, and who has Stark blood in him, even though he was born among the common folk? Or those eyes and that appearance more beautiful than most women of the North, perhaps?" Lord Manderly said with a somewhat sarcastic tone.

"That and other things," Lord Stark huffed.

Well, the stories about Jon had already spread throughout the North during his short life of ten namedays. Making him a ward of Winterfell only increased the curiosity even more. The rumors intensified.

Everyone wanted to know who the strange boy was who lived among the Starks in the castle, brought from the common folk to learn with the lords.

Many of the northern lords came to Winterfell to see and meet him, although some treated him with a certain disdain. Many asked questions about him. Some observed his performance in training. Still, being realistic, it was impossible to know if a child would become a great warrior before eleven or twelve namedays, no matter how much he seemed like a prodigy.

"Seriously, my friend… could you share a few more details about how your ward is doing?" Lord Manderly insisted.

Lord Stark watched Jon dancing, making his friend's daughter spin as she laughed loudly, before Jon accidentally bumped into a dancing servant and apologized.

"He, as I said, is extraordinary. The maester says he has already read a large portion of the library in two years. That is around two thousand books. He spends half the afternoon and evening in the library before dinner, reading at a frightening speed." He paused.

"And he memorizes everything. The maester's lessons are far too easy for him. He learns much faster than my children—he is already ahead even of my brothers... The maester insists on taking him to the Citadel, saying the boy could be a revolutionary mind."

"His martial skill can also be described as the embodiment of his talent. He can defeat squires of fifteen years who end up coming to Winterfell, although we do not receive many knights from the South. He is above some guards in training, even older ones. He seems far stronger than a boy of ten should be."

"That is something I am grateful for… my children do not want to fall behind their adopted brother. Rickon is striving all the time to catch up to Jon. I wish Bennard were like that as well," Lord Stark murmured with a sigh.

"Then the boy will make a name for himself in the future," Lord Manderly said, calculating a few things as he looked at Jon.

"Yes, there is no doubt he will become famous in the Seven Kingdoms. No matter his origin, the boy proclaims the opposite: his appearance, his intellect, and his martial abilities… not to mention the mystical things that surround this boy."

Lord Stark thought, but did not have the courage to say such things, but the boy, from time to time, speaks of dreams… he says he sees through animals coming to him—crows, owls, eagles—just like that eagle and the owl that follow him all the time. He always manages to find animals easily when they go hunting...

"Well, to be born beneath a heart tree in the middle of a storm… or to bear a giant wolf… is something that draws attention even from the South." That sounded more like a confirmation of deeper thoughts.

Lord Stark looked at him with questioning eyes after hearing what Lord Manderly had just said. "Something tells me it's more than that. What do you mean?" Lord Stark asked.

Lord Manderly seemed thoughtful, as if weighing how to proceed.

"I have some information we gathered in White Harbor. The boy has been mentioned in the king's council for at least three years. There are references to him."

That made Lord Stark's eyes widen. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"It is a direct request from His Majesty, Jaehaerys. From what I've heard, they are rumors, but Jaehaerys has been interested in the boy and his wolf for some time. We only learned about this recently. After all, some things from the small council never stay secret forever."

"In some way, the king is trying to obtain information about the boy." Lord Manderly added, and that left Lord Stark stunned.

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