[Chapter Size: 3300 Words.]

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Third Person POV

Winterfell, 298 AC.

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The day began with a large crowd gathering in Winterfell’s courtyard, as an execution platform was being set up on the site, as Lord Stark had requested, for it would be used for that morning’s event.

Lord Stark was leaving the castle at that moment alongside his eldest son and some guards, having to rely on Jory once more, at least for the early hours of the day, before giving him a definitive break after putting him on duty through the previous day and night.

They walked into the crowd that had gathered, which quickly parted to let them through. Upon reaching the front of the platform, they saw the king sitting in the high chair, also positioned in front of the structure near the platform.

Seated, Robert looked at Ned, still showing a small smile.

“You are here, Ned. Finally.”

“Are you sure you want to end it like this, your majesty? I believe we should investigate further before executing them.” Ned said, looking at the king with some caution.

“There is nothing left to see. The man won’t say another word and we can’t support the accusation against my wife… It’s better to execute them than start receiving letters from the south demanding they be judged in King’s Landing, which won’t bring justice to you or your daughter. After all, you won’t be there to execute them, will you?” Robert said, though he growled that last part with a certain anger.

Ned merely hardened his expression. Although his friend was angry with him, he was right. But still… the queen must be guilty in some way, everything pointed to her being involved and he didn’t like how she’d acted since her arrival.

‘I know she’s behind this,’ he thought. He was angry, but at the same time he knew he couldn’t demand much.

Dealing with the queen now would also be a big problem and would certainly lead to a war with the Lannisters. He would just have to commit to keeping his family safe. He would then have to accept that and keep Winterfell at peace until they left.

Lord Stark ignored the crowd and even the king, as his eyes went straight to the royal children, seeing them with their mother on the castle balcony. He couldn’t help but frown. ‘They were bastards…’ How could he tell Robert this now?

He saw the two youngest children being led inside by a servant; clearly their mother didn’t want them to see the execution, while Prince Joffrey remained beside her.

Arya had said it wouldn’t be a good idea to confront the people involved with the truth without stronger evidence. Robert was already angry over his refusal to accept being the Hand of the King and for compromising Sansa. The latter didn’t even know that yet, she believed she would marry the prince from the moment she saw him, which is why she kept following him like a puppy.

He would have to tell the truth at some point.

An accusation against the queen would only lead him to think they were trying to set something up to punish her — and it wouldn’t be easy at all to convince the king with just words to accept that his children were not his, but bastards. Obviously, Robert would deny it. That would only cause even more problems right now.

Ned wanted to do what he believed was right: simply go and speak. But that would put Robert, the Lannisters, and all the Seven Kingdoms against the North. Something not even Arya wanted at this moment — not with the war between Arctic and the dead. They should wait for a future clash between Arctic and the Seven Kingdoms, when the North could side with Jon, being the rightful heir to the throne. So it couldn’t happen now. Not while they were alone.

Jon was committed to his own war and couldn’t turn his eyes south at the moment.

“Ned, I’m talking to you!” the king suddenly roared with dissatisfaction, as Ned shook his head, realizing he had been thinking too much, and turned to the king, nodding at him.

“Of course, Your Majesty. I got a bit distracted. Anyway, let’s get this done then. I accept your suggestion.” With no choice, he turned to his son.

“Will you fetch Ice for me?” he asked.

“Alright, Father.” Robb said, quickly heading back to the castle, determined to fulfill his father’s task.

His gaze turned to Jory. “Have someone bring the prisoners.” He spoke finally, and saw Arya approaching with her royal guards and her handmaiden.

“Good morning, Father.” She came closer, ignoring the king, speaking to her royal guard.

“Good morning, my daughter. How are you?” he asked, looking at her with a slight smile.

“I’m fine, Father. I don’t know if the king is eager to execute all the prisoners, but I agree there’s nothing to be done.” Arya said, while her father looked quite imposing, with nothing else he could do.

He couldn’t help but look at her with some doubt, wondering if she knew what had happened between him and Cassandra the night before, but if she did, she didn’t seem to show any sign of it.

But she understood the current situation. It wouldn’t be easy to antagonize the queen like this now, so she would have to do something discreet — something she had already planned.

“Alright, daughter. Even so, I still feel quite responsible.” Ned said, and Arya stepped forward to embrace him.

“It’s okay, Father. You don’t need to worry anymore.” She said finally, and he nodded, as they watched Stark guards bringing the same three men who had been at the trial.

While they looked frustrated, they also seemed satisfied — they wanted to die, in a way.

Arya turned her eyes to the queen, beside the crown prince, while the woman had been staring at her the whole time.

‘Let’s see how long you keep that up…’ Arya mocked internally, as the queen gave her a triumphant look in that moment.

She thought she was in control, believing everything was going her way, and Arya mocked that — but said nothing. She looked back at the men being brought to the platform, while two of them stared at her intensely, and the other seemed somewhat afraid of dying.

Robb arrived shortly after, bringing the sword to his father, who took the hilt of the weapon and began drawing it while Robb still held the scabbard. Once the blade rang free, Lord Stark held it with both hands raised as he walked toward the platform, with the Stark guards keeping the prisoners still.

He ascended, and even Robert stopped talking, for he wanted to see his old friend execute the men who had tried to kill his daughter.

It was no surprise to anyone that everyone had gathered there. All the southern nobles had quickly taken interest in the trial. Willas and Garlan Tyrell were also in the crowd along with other Tyrell guards.

Cassandra looked more intensely than usual at Lord Stark, while a dark expression hung over her without her noticing.

In a corner nearby, she stood beside Sansa, with Catelyn seeming to look at Cassandra with more hatred than ever.

The three prisoners were placed on their knees on the platform, while Lord Stark positioned the sword downward, resting upon it, standing upright, looking at the crowd.

Everyone fell silent in an instant. Even the king kept his gaze fixed with interest.

“We are here today to deliver sentence to the three men, after their trial for the attempt to assassinate Arya Stark, princess of the kingdom of Arctic and, more importantly, my daughter. In the Wolfwood.” He began, as the guards pulled the first man to the center of the platform beside Lord Stark, positioning his neck.

This was the same leader who had caused an uproar at the trial, and he seemed determined to die.

Lord Stark didn’t take his eyes off him for a moment, his gaze filled with anger and hatred. This man had threatened them… family is more important than anything. And anyone who threatens it fills me with rage and hatred. Deep down, the honorable Lord Stark even found it satisfying to see his blade strike down this man.

“Anything you wish to say, Your Majesty?” Lord Stark still asked the king.

“No. He is guilty. I sentence him to death.” The king said, as Lord Stark turned back to the man.

“You have the right to your final words.” Lord Stark said, while the man still looked over the crowd, until he found Arya, focusing on her.

“I am not afraid to die. I serve the Seven, and they will reward me and care for my soul on the other side. While those who defy them will meet their fate in the Seven Hells. For the Seven may be merciful, but they will not forgive you, heretics and heathens. Especially you, witch!” The man snarled at Arya, while she kept a calm gaze, ignoring the provocation.

Her royal guards, curious, remained alert behind her. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t already called her that publicly, as he did during the trial. The rumors among the people stirred in whispers.

With disgust in his mouth, Lord Stark took his position and raised the sword high.

“I, Lord Stark, Lord of Winterfell, Warden of the North, sentence you to death.”

With those words, his blade came down, delivering a clean cut through the man’s neck, as his head fell severed and the body lost all energy.

The guards removed the body and began bringing the second man, who looked just as determined as the first.

“Last words?” Lord Stark asked, as the man shrugged.

“I did nothing the Seven Gods would disapprove of, so I don’t care about dying.” With that, the blade came down and took off another head.

The third stepped forward a bit more terrified, looking around in fear.

“Your last words?” Lord Stark asked.

Aside from a faint sob, he said nothing, and Stark soon simply cut through his neck.

“We’re done here. I want my sword cleaned and the platform taken down.” Lord Stark requested and began leaving the area as his men moved. He joined his children.

“Will Arya be alright, Father? I don’t like those men saying such things about her.” Robb couldn’t help but comment, as his father handed the Valyrian steel sword to one of the other men.

“She’s fine. I’m sure she won’t be leaving Winterfell in the next few days. She’ll stay here until Arctic’s ships arrive.” Lord Stark said, looking at Arya, who nodded in agreement. Just a few days remained, and she had to serve her punishment. She had no choice but to head straight to Maester Luwin’s chambers after this — unless…

Everything seemed calm. The king was about to leave in search of a drink when a sound above the courtyard caught everyone’s attention. They saw a large gray bird descending at high speed, drawing all eyes toward where it was heading.

It was a full-grown eagle.

Meanwhile, on the balcony, the queen’s eyes widened in shock as she saw the eagle flying toward her, triggering memories of certain things that happened in King’s Landing, when that bastard had threatened her.

“Mother, what is that?” Joffrey screamed, terrified, trying to run as the eagle was already upon them, and not even Uncle Jaime nearby managed to react in time before it reached Joffrey’s mother.

Everything seemed to happen so fast that Joffrey could barely keep up, the whole world spinning.

He simply staggered backward, frightened, as he saw the bird on top of his mother, who fell as well. He caught a glimpse of blood before his uncle’s blade killed the eagle with a single slash, securing her safety.

“The queen has been attacked!”

It didn’t take long for the entire courtyard to erupt into chaos, all eyes turning toward the balcony. Lord Stark quickly issued orders, while the king stood stunned, seeing his wife collapsed up there on the balcony.

“Quick! Protect the queen!” Robert finally snapped out of it and shouted, as the royal guards — except for Barristan Selmy — rushed to give the queen protection, while Lannister men also ran to her aid. Lord Stark moved in as well.

“Stay there! I’ll check it out! Watch the sky! Grab bows!” He didn’t stop shouting at the men. If he could hear another attack coming, anything advancing, it had to be dealt with.

He didn’t know where the attack had come from. It could have been Jon or Arya, but he also couldn’t just let this happen again.

Everyone seemed shaken, running into the castle immediately, afraid another bird might attack them too. It didn’t take long for everyone to surround the queen, with her brother staring at her in horror, while Joffrey tried to get up, looking at his mother with blood streaming down her face.

“Jaime! It hurts!” she whimpered, starting to cry in fear. “It hurts so much! Tell me it didn’t hurt my face!” she said, as the blood came from her forehead, covering one of her eyes. She saw everything red on one side as she touched the blood with trembling fingers and realized her face was wounded.

Jaime stared in terror at the large gash on her face, blood still gushing uncontrollably.

“We must take her to Maester Luwin!” quickly shouted one of the nearby Stark men, and Jaime immediately agreed.

“No… no…” The queen seemed unable to believe what was happening. Her face had been slashed, and she was beginning to feel the pain intensify even more.

“This can’t be happening…” she muttered, trembling. “No!”

But more men were already holding her by then, and she began to be carried away.

The queen looked down to the courtyard, where many people still stood, staring at her in shock, and her gaze fell upon Arya, as her hatred grew stronger than the pain and her tears.

“It was her! The witch! She tried to kill me!” She still believed it with all her strength, staring directly at Arya. She felt fear, but the hatred now surpassed everything — she had never hated Arya this much before.

Many people stared at Arya in astonishment. No one knew whether she was involved or not. Rumors said she could control animals, but had that eagle really attacked the queen? She was standing there speaking with her father when it happened… It seemed unlikely.

“Out of my way!” the king roared, pushing through the guards, seeing his wife being carried on an improvised board. He looked at her, shocked, while she wept with eyes full of hatred toward the courtyard. Her entire face was covered in blood.

“By the gods…” he murmured, stunned, as his wife turned to him with just as much hatred as before.

“Robert! She attacked me! She tried to kill me!” the queen exclaimed, shouting and gritting her teeth on the floor. Everyone there felt uncomfortable. Her hatred was so intense it even seemed to surpass the pain.

“Go to the maester first and get your face seen to. We’ll deal with this later.” Robert said firmly.

“Quickly, take her to the maester!” he shouted, and they began to carry the queen away.

“Arya, don’t tell me you…” Robb approached Arya in the middle of all the chaos, with men still running back and forth in the courtyard, while over thirty Stark men stood with bows in hand, watching the sky. He looked at her with an unreadable expression.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, brother.” she said calmly, while her brother made a face, clearly not believing her.

‘Well… that’s my answer. The queen knows she tried to kill me and is vain enough to try to impose herself by staying in Winterfell… well, here’s the result.’ Arya mocked internally.

If Cersei were smart, she would recognize the danger. If she were wise, she would have left Winterfell the moment she had the chance. But no. She was too proud to accept retreat.

Arya knew she had to show there were consequences for actions. And if she laid a finger on any member of her family, she would die. Arya would make sure of it.

Joffrey was terrified as he ran after his mother. Arya only felt pity for Myrcella and Tommen, who were surely frightened and crying for their mother.

Even her eagle, which she had secretly bonded with over the past moons during her journey through the North when she found it — she hadn’t expected it to be killed so easily. But she couldn’t expect less from a man like Jaime Lannister. He might not be Arctican, but he was one of the best swordsmen in the Seven Kingdoms.

It could be said that there was no more normal moment in Winterfell after the incident. Everyone was terrified. Some accused Arya. And all the Unsullied were brought inside Winterfell at that moment, ready to fight.

Arya’s mother and sister were frightened by the situation. Even the servants, Stark men, and Unsullied seemed to hurry, fearing a bloody battle with the Lannisters and the royal guards, while Lancel shouted at another advisor, demanding justice, saying Arya had been the one to attack.

The king seemed unsure of what to do. On one hand, he had evidence the girl could control animals; on the other, he couldn’t just accuse her. After all, just as he had to be careful about judging Cersei — no matter how much anger he held — he also had to be cautious about condemning Arya, knowing full well that Arctic would react immediately. He also didn’t want to harm the girl without understanding if she had truly controlled that bird to attack the queen.

Obviously, the trial was set to begin the next day, but something that very day would interrupt them, when a group of people coming from the West approached with some guards and also Stark men who had been sent to investigate the situation in that western region of the North, after the flames had burned down half an entire forest.

Lord Stark left as soon as he heard word that they had found something fallen in that region.

“What do we have here?” Lord Stark asked with suspicion, as the men pointed to the cart.

“Something you should see, my lord. It was lying in the middle of the burned land.” one of them said, as Lord Stark approached the cart, where a cloth covered an object.

He couldn’t help but be stunned as he pulled the cloth away.

Because there it was… a Valyrian steel shield, gleaming immediately in the late afternoon sun.

After hours trying to deal with the queen’s situation — now being treated by Maester Luwin, who applied ointments and bandages across her entire face — she was far from pleased with it. She spat curses and insults toward the girl, and even at the whole family, claiming they would be killed by her father. That he would avenge her for being harmed.

He had spent the whole day sighing, but now… Ned couldn’t stop staring, stunned. Not just because the shield was entirely made of the rarest metal in the world, but because of the symbol in the center — a bluish snowflake.

There was no doubt.

It was Jon’s shield.

The question was: how had it ended up there? And what did Jon have to do with the incident?

Since the letter explaining Jon’s fight with Cannibal had been sent only to Arya, and she still hadn’t shared any of it with her father, Lord Stark was left in the dark, not knowing exactly what had happened… or how Jon was involved in the fire. And even more — how he had left behind a shield worth more than even Valyrian steel swords.

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