Chapter 42 - Arriving at Harrenhal.
Chapter 42 - Arriving at Harrenhal.
[Chapter Size: 2700 Words.]
---------------------------------------
Third Person POV
North, 101 AC.
---------------------------------------
The Manderly, Ryswell, Locke, Dustin, Reed, and all the other entourages, as expected, met up along the road while the main one advanced from Winterfell.
One day after another, they came across the different camps of those houses until they were all traveling together.
The North had united at that moment as a single political force to face the South during the discussions about who should be the next king.
Obviously, they were all focused on Viserys, with the so-called Great Council being a political move to make all the houses kneel and swear allegiance before the new heir, erasing any doubt about their support for the Velaryons.
The days passed by. Soon, days turned into weeks, and an entire moon had passed since they left Winterfell, alternating between traveling during the day and camping at night.
Meanwhile, Jon took part in various activities alongside Rickon. When he was not listening to Lyarra or accompanying Lord Stark on horseback rides, he also spent time with Lyra, who frequently left her wheelhouse with her mother and the other ladies to ride with Jon and his brother. Together, they would go see Ghost, who had become something of an attraction for everyone, running across the fields before settling beside Jon and the other Starks he had grown accustomed to. It was normal for Ghost to receive a pat from Lord Stark or Lady Lyarra whenever he approached them with his tongue hanging out.
The direwolf lived in a constant state of exhaustion, always running from one place to another, exploring the new landscapes as they continued southward.
Jon was also fascinated by the gradual change in scenery day after day. Like any ten-name-day-old child, he watched the landscape transform and felt the weather growing increasingly warmer. Even though it was summer, the difference between the North and the South was unmistakable.
Then, they finally arrived in the Riverlands.
The first major landmark of the journey was the Twins. The Lord of the Crossing had clearly already gone to Harrenhal along with the nobles of the riverlands, but it was impressive to see the towers from that distance.
"So that's the home of House Frey!" Rickon said excitedly. "Jon, can you imagine how we could besiege that castle and successfully conquer it?" he asked while staring at the towers.
"If you want to lay siege to the Twins, you'd better prepare plenty of men and supplies, because you'll need them and still have no guarantee of success. The Twins are practically two impregnable fortresses..." Lord Stark commented, riding up beside them after overhearing his son.
Lord Mormont, who was riding alongside his sister, began to laugh. "Give up trying to instill some reason into your heir, Lord Stark. I'm certain he inherited his mother's blood and will be just as wild as she is," he replied.
That earned him a smack on the head from his own sister, with Lyarra riding beside him and not appreciating her brother's words.
"Watch how you speak about me to my grandchildren, brother," she said, drawing a few laughs from those nearby.
"Well, your father is right this time," Jon could not help but comment, still observing the Twins alongside Rickon.
That would not be an easy fortress to conquer. It was extremely difficult.
Jon even found himself wondering whether it would be possible to bring down those defenses. The towers were gigantic and possessed thick walls. What kind of power could break them?
There was only one answer that came to his mind.
"We could do it if we had dragons!" Rickon replied, voicing the answer Jon had been thinking of while mocking his great-uncle.
"If I were a warrior from the Age of Heroes, I'd also have only one rule: zero defeats. No one beats me in war or in a duel," Jon declared jokingly.
"Well, you're already good. Maybe you'll earn a title like that in the future," Rickon replied to Jon, not understanding why he was saying that...
Jon shook his head. "That's not the point. I'm talking about probabilities. You're saying, 'If we had a dragon.' There are many 'What Ifs' for many things, but they don't reflect reality... We shouldn't depend on something we don't have. A dragon certainly isn't something we can simply call and make appear. I'm talking about real resources." As he said that, he continued observing the Twins.
The fortification had been built to withstand every kind of siege. After all, it was the main passage into the Riverlands.
"Jon is right... but we'd better go. There's no reason to waste time here. We aren't heading to the Twins," Lord Stark said.
"Alright, I think I understand your point, Jon..." Rickon said, scratching his head. He had been daydreaming with somewhat childish ideas, like any child imagining having a dragon, but reality was very different.
Then they began taking another route. They did not need to enter directly into the heart of the Riverlands. They could follow the Kingsroad and cross directly toward Harrenhal instead of continuing through the Crownlands.
And so they did.
Weeks passed as they traveled through a landscape completely different from the North. They continued marching through the Riverlands, passing towns and roadside inns.
Jon even managed to get a few rooms together with the Stark family, but that was rare. Most of the accommodations whenever they stopped at inns or towns were occupied by the ladies and lords, since many wives were also accompanying their husbands to the Great Council. Preference was given to keeping them comfortable, traveling in wheelhouses and sleeping in comfortable places whenever possible.
"They say this is the most important event since the Conquest," Lyra commented.
She was sitting in front of Jon on his horse. At that moment, she had asked him to take her riding, and Jon was a boy of ten namedays while Lyra was six. There was nothing inappropriate about seeing two children, even of the opposite sex, riding together.
"Well, that's not a lie," Jon agreed.
"Lady Manderly said there's going to be a tournament. The Heir's Tournament, or something like that," Lyra said excitedly. "Do you plan on participating?"
She looked at Jon while he merely shook his head. "Even if I could win, I don't intend to participate."
Jon shrugged. The question was somewhat absurd. How could a child of ten namedays simply participate in a tournament? And he was not even a noble.
"But everyone says you're the best rider in Winterfell."
That was not a lie. Jon had a natural gift for riding.
"Being a good rider doesn't mean you're ready for jousting. Even if I were old enough to enter a competition, I still wouldn't have the experience. And that could be fatal or humiliating. People would call me Jon the bumpkin... And not to mention that I'm not a knight either..." Jon explained.
Lyra laughed and nodded. It made sense.
"Hey, Jon! How about a race?" The Manderly twins approached. It was Orys Manderly who spoke, a friend of Jon's.
Jon smiled when he saw them. Yara was also with her brother, rolling her eyes.
"Not this time." Jon gave his answer.
He was with Lyra and, obviously, would not do anything dangerous. Even so, it would not be the first time they had wagered races against each other, something that had already earned them a few lectures from the adults after they wandered too far away and nearly crashed into a tree or a wagon along the road.
"Ah, you're no fun. Where's Rickon?" Orys asked.
"He must be farther back. He's with your older brother and some of the other heirs," Jon explained.
"Alright, I'll go there." Orys pulled on his horse's reins. "Do you want to come, sister?" he asked his twin sister.
"I'll stay with Jon and Lyra. You can go," Yara replied.
Orys had no interest in staying there any longer and galloped off to find the others. Jon did not join him because he had heard Lyra's request for them to ride alone.
Yara then turned to the two of them. "So, how about listening to some stories I learned in White Harbor?" she asked with a smile.
"Of course, of course! Please!" Lyra immediately seemed excited.
One night, Jon had an unusual but familiar dream. He dreamed that he was inside a cave, being a gigantic monster. He could not control the thing, but he felt everything it was experiencing.
It was hungry, but it wanted to hunt something else, a dragon... Jon saw the black dragon begin to follow a silver dragon... When he watched it hunt that night, flying out of one of the caves, the black dragon took flight and followed after it.
The silver dragon, much smaller than the black dragon, noticed and quickly became nervous, while the black dragon continued pursuing it.
'No!' Jon exclaimed.
ROOAAARRRR
His voice, or will, irritated the black dragon. It roared in fury.
'Don't hunt it!' Jon thought it was wrong and shouted within the creature's mind.
He could feel the black dragon's rage. It began spewing green fire in front of itself to bathe in it, as if trying to rid itself of a virus. Nevertheless, it obeyed Jon's will and abandoned the hunt...
That night, Jon woke up completely drenched in sweat inside his tent, having to leave for the camp filled with campfires and people standing watch to get some air. He settled beside one of the fires, ignoring the questioning looks directed at him, while Ghost approached with a concerned look in his two ruby-red eyes.
Jon merely sighed and stared into the fire, thinking about what he had actually dreamed... He did not understand.
In any case, they continued their journey the following morning without Jon sharing his dream. About a week later, they finally began to catch sight of the enormous towers of Harrenhal, or at least part of them.
Even centuries after its construction, they were still impressive.
Jon remembered the stories. Aegon the Conqueror had flown there with Balerion, the Black Dread, when Harren Hoare refused to bend the knee. The dragon had arrived only to melt the five great towers like wax beneath the flames of the largest dragon ever recorded in the history of Westeros.
"It's so far away, but we can still see it from here," Rickon commented beside him, impressed.
As they advanced, they could see more and more people approaching the location. There were peasants, common townsfolk, merchants, and even lords and knights from every corner of the Seven Kingdoms, all heading in the same direction as the North.
However, no delegation was as united as that of the North.
Dozens of banners traveled together, accompanied by thousands of people. This was the perfect moment to present families, heirs, and allies. Formal and informal conversations took place everywhere, while new alliances and even rivalries could emerge among the great houses of the Seven Kingdoms in the coming days.
They continued onward until they finally reached the vast area surrounding the castle. The entire expanse was covered with tents.
"By the gods..." Jon murmured. There were thousands of people; he could not even begin to count them.
It was one thing to dream about crowds, another to see something like this in person... He had never experienced anything like it...
From a distance, the tents looked like small specks scattered across the landscape, but as they drew closer, they found a true temporary city.
Shops, merchants, and craftsmen were taking advantage of the opportunity to profit. Men trained beside their camps while banners fluttered everywhere.
The banners of House Targaryen and House Strong could be seen atop the walls and towers of Harrenhal.
Jon, Rickon, Lyra, and the others could not hide their fascination at the sight.
"Where are the dragons?!" Rickon wanted to see them, but there was nothing in the sky.
"They're probably roosting somewhere hidden to avoid curious eyes. And heavily guarded, at that..." Jon said.
"I hope we get to see some soon. We've never seen dragons before. They say they're the size of castles..." Rickon was enthusiastic about the idea.
"Soon enough, my friend." Jon said, though he also hoped to see them. He wanted to see a real dragon. His dreams inside the dragon were far too enigmatic, its eyes always seemed a little stranger than usual, so that did not count. And the dreams as Jon Arctic and those dragons he had there should not count either. He wanted to see one with his own eyes!
"I've never seen so many people in one place!" Lyra exclaimed, once again riding on Jon's horse.
"Great. Now you'd better get back to your mother before she comes looking for you," Jon replied with a smile. "It won't be long now that we're so close."
Lyra sighed, but nodded. Jon guided the horse toward the wagons where Lady Alys and the other ladies were traveling.
Meanwhile, the lords stopped to observe the surroundings and discuss where they would establish their camp.
They did not have to wait long. One of the king's knights quickly approached.
Knowing that the entire Northern delegation was gathered together, he had come to guide them to the area reserved for them. Lord Stark had previously informed them that the North would arrive united at the council, so an appropriate space had been prepared on the outskirts of Harrenhal.
After explaining the situation, the knight invited everyone to continue marching. They did not head toward the center of the crowd, but instead followed a side path.
Soon they arrived at a huge open field. The place was large enough to accommodate thousands of people.
As they advanced, the knight began removing any tents that had been set up there without authorization. There were some complaints and arguments, but no one dared directly challenge a royal order, since the area had been reserved for the North.
Little by little, the occupants moved out. The North quickly began organizing itself. Tents sprang up everywhere.
Men unloaded wagons, secured horses, and erected structures. Jon also helped where he could, watching the camp grow larger and larger around him.
"Hey, let's go to the city!" said Edric Tallhart, the Tallhart heir, approaching him and Rickon with a smile. He was an older man, but he had known Jon and Rickon for many years.
"Can we?" Rickon asked his father, who was not far away.
Lord Stark looked toward Alaric Tallhart, who nodded, signaling that his heir would keep the children safe.
"I'll take care of the children, Lord Stark. Don't worry." Edric spoke as well.
"Very well. Go, but you must return before nightfall... And take at least a dozen guards with you," Lord Stark instructed, as he still needed to remain at the camp organizing everything alongside the other Northern lords.
In any case, Jon followed Walton, Rickon, Lyra, Edric, and the other noble children to explore Harrenhal and the attractions created by the merchants and common folk. There was everything imaginable: food stalls, toys, clothes, and all sorts of goods, as well as bards, debates, performances, theater, and even knights or mercenaries fighting to earn a few coins...
The guards followed closely behind, keeping a watchful eye on the group.
Jon also could not help but stare at the castle. The gigantic towers completely dominated the landscape.
Even damaged by dragonfire, they still seemed larger than any other fortress he had ever seen.
He could not help but wonder if the royal family was already inside.
What were the Targaryens like? Did they really look that different from other people? Did they ride dragons every day?
While these questions passed through his mind, the group continued advancing through the enormous city of tents that had sprung up around the castle. 1
At the same time, inside Harrenhal, the old King Jaehaerys lay in his chambers. Age weighed heavily upon him, and he knew he would die soon...
He was not alone. His counselors and family occupied the room at that moment, and a man approached the king, announcing the arrival of the North...
"The North has finally arrived, Your Grace," the man announced.
The old king's eyes slowly opened. "The North..." he murmured. There was something about that information that stirred his interest far more than any other report.
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
🦝 Raccoon here: 🦝
I deeply appreciate your support since the beginning of this exciting journey!
🌟 RaccoonLeague | Patreon🌟
Visit our Patreon for more: https://www.patreon.com/RaccoonLeague
Extra Content Already Available:
🏴☠️ One Piece - I Am a Different Luffy!: 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: The Legend of Jon Arctic!: 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: DragonBorn! 30 extra chapters! [100%]
👑 HOTD: Jon Arctic! 30 extra chapters!
🌀 Naruto - Minato Namikaze SI!: 30 extra chapters!
🗡️ The Witcher - As Uchiha Madara! 30 extra chapters!
⚡HP - Jon Arctic as Severus Snape! 30 extra chapters!
⚡ Harry Potter - Shadow Monarch! Finished! [100%]
⚡Danmachi – The Alchemist! [Coming Soon.]
Visit our Patreon for more!!
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆