Chapter Text
Ned, Robert and Elbert were in a traveling party of Arryn guards, knights and other Lords. They had left the Erie a few days ago for the tournament at Storm’s End and only recently had they been joined by some of the Vale lords, namely the Royces.
As they traveled along the road through the Vale they were still a few days away from the Riverlands. It would take them a little over a month to reach Robert’s home. Arriving a week early for the tournament. While thinking about the travel to the tourney Ned thought about his decision to travel back to Winterfell after the tourney was all said and done. That would take him the better part two and half months.
“Hey Ned.” Elbert said to gain his attention.
“What's got you looking in an even brodier mood than normal?” Elbert asked.
“Yeah, normally you just have a perfectly calm face with observant eyes but right now your eyes look like you are trying to focus on something out on the horizon. And the only problem with that is that we’re on a road in the middle of the fucking woods!” Robert chimed in.
“Just thinking about what it’s going to be like going back home to Winterfell is all.” Ned decided to explain to his two closest friends. “Plus I’m wondering about my grandfather’s ashes that I have with me.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot we had a second Stark traveling with us. You never did explain what you were going to do with his ashes. Care to fill us in?” Elbert asked as he turned in his saddle to speak to Ned.
Adjusting the reins of his horses, Winter and Thunder, for his wagon he explained his plans. “Well my grandfather wanted to be buried or have his ashes placed with his wife, my grandmother Arya. You see they first met up on a mountain in the Mountain Clansmen territory of the North.”
“Mountain Clansmen?” Elbert asked with surprise, clearly surprised to see that Ned would be entering the Mountain Clansmen territory.
“It’s not quite what you two are thinking. The mountain clansmen in the North are more akin to normal houses with lords, they just don’t call themselves that. There are several clans, the prominent ones being Wulls, Norreys, Harclays, Burleys, Knotts, Liddles and the First Flints, which is the house my grandmother was from.” Ned checked to see if Robert and Elbert were still following along with him and saw that they were. “What you are thinking of are the wildlings beyond the Wall. They are more akin to the Mountain Clansmen in the Vale.”
“I get the climbing skill from my grandmother. First Flints are known for their climbing of the mountains.” Ned added on.
“You know, that makes sense, Ned. It would take something crazy to make you crazy enough to climb up the Eyrie every morning.” Robert spoke up. “Gods, I wish I could go to the North and see the countryside that you have told us about. There's nothing more that I would love to do than just be out there in the woods hunting and fighting.” He continued with a wistful look on his face while looking forward down the road.
Ned and Elbert shared a look. They both knew Robert did not like his role as heir to the Stormlands as much as he said he did. He had confided in the two that he didn’t know if he wanted to be Lord Paramount. He had always felt at home out fighting with his hammer and out in the wild, never in court.
Elbert decided to change the topic and focus on something less heavy for their journey. “Say, Ned?”
“Elbert?”
“I know that you have slept in your wagon every night so far on our travel but what are you going to do when we stay at an inn or in a castle? You don’t truly mean to sleep in the wagon every night, do you?” The valeman decided to ask.
“Of course I am going to sleep here every night, why wouldn’t I?” Ned answered immediately. “I have a canvas roof over my head, a sleeping pad I can lay out back there and it keeps me close to my grandfather’s chest so that nothing goes missing.” Ned finished.
“Ned, I know that it’s been a while since you got back from Essos and I may have forgotten but what are in those chests again?” Robert asked.
“I have three chests in the back there from my grandfather. One of them contains some personal items of both my grandfather and grandmother that he wanted me to give to my Aunt in the Stormlands. She belongs to House Rogers. The second chest is some of my grandmother’s possessions that are to go to my sister since my mother has passed away. And the final chest contains some gifts for my brothers, and all the rest of my grandfather’s possessions that now belong to me.” Ned had no problem telling them since he trusted both Elbert and Robert with his life. He would have to trust them with all that they have been through.
“I can understand your grandmother’s things going to your Aunt and sister but what did he give to you Ned?” Elbert asked.
Ned looked to the river to their right as he recounted what he had received. “There are a number of weapons, ranging from your typical sword and knives to the Essosie weapons like the arakh. A curved dothraki sword meant to be used from horseback. Some axes, a number of different bows and armor. Plus I could never forget Frostbite, the Valyrian steel bastard sword.”
“That sword is truly a beauty, Ned. I don’t think there is anything else your grandfather gave you that can compare.” Elbert interrupted.
“You may be right but it is all special to me.” Ned then continued on with the chests contents. “There are some books from across the seas that my grandfather collected. I may add them to the Winterfell Library. Different types of clothing and jewelry. And then just some knick knacks he picked up from his time there.”
“And what are those knick knacks Ned? Some rocks, dolls or coins?” Robert asked because he was curious what little things could be interesting from Essos.
“You know there is a coin in there, it has a hooded man on it. But there are also the flags from the two sellsword companies we were a part of. A bit of dragon bone, different types of wood with some seeds to match. A braid with bells from a dothraki. A book of spells from Asshai and a bottle of water of the Ash river, that is pretty cool, it glows at night when shaken. A Myrish lense. You guys know, just the typical knick knacks.” Ned finished the list of knick knacks.
He looked to his sides to see both of his friends giving him disbelieving looks. He just shrugged, he couldn’t help what he had.
Ned needed to ask Robert a question he had been meaning to for a while. “Robert, I know that my Aunt belongs to House Rogers now, but when we arrive at your home how am I to find her? What's their sigil?”
“Is that all? Their sigil is an odd one. If I can remember right it’s a maze in the middle surrounded by nine or ten unicorns. It's all in silver and black if that helps you.”
“It does, thank you Robert.” Ned responded.
“Oh! They are also across Shipbreaker Bay from us. They’re set up on a peninsula called Amberly right on the edge of the Rainwood.” Robert helpfully added on. He could be smart when he wanted to. Especially when it was something that had to do with his homeland.
“Robert, didn’t you have another brother born this year?” Ned asked. He stuck with the topic of the Stormlands since it seemed to make Robert happy whenever he talked about it.
“I did! Little Renley, not even a name day old yet!” Robert replied joyfully.
“You think your parents would be with him having a wooden stag?” Ned asked. He wanted something to make the journey go by faster.
…
Their party had stopped by the Gods Eye for the night to set up camp. They were on the Kingsroad in the Riverlands now. They had left the Inn at the Crossroads a few days ago, they had been joined by a number of Riverlands houses, the Mallister’s, Darry’s, Whent’s and the Moonton’s to name a few. They were all attending the tourney at Storm’s End. And soon enough they would be joined by the royal family when they would pass King’s Landing.
Ned had never met a member of the royal family. The last time a Stark had and Targaryen had met was when his father, Lord Stark, had traveled down to King’s Landing to and somehow ended up with the king wanting to build a second wall north of the Wall. And now in a short time he would meet the royal siblings.
He had finished untethered his two horses, Winter and Thunder from his wagon. Hitched them to a tree, fed them and brushed their coats down. Walking back to his wagon, Ned grabbed Frostbite, a cloth and small bottle of oil. He then made his way over to the fire where Elbert, Robert and some Arryn guards were sitting.
“About time you showed up! We thought you might have gotten lost on the way back!” Robert called to him as he saw Ned walking over to the fire.
“Come on, sit down and grab something to eat. Beric managed to snag a deer and Derrick caught a couple of rabbits and Eric got nothing. Isn’t that right Eric?” Elbert joked while looking over at Eric as he hung his head while Beric and Derrick laughed and clapped him on the back.
Ned took the offered plate of food from Derrick as he walked by and took a seat on an empty log. He set down his sword next to him so that he could eat the dinner given to him. He ate as he listened to his friend talk, joke and drink with each other. This is what he liked. People always assumed that he didn’t like people or that he liked being alone because he was always quiet. But that wasn’t true, he liked being in the presence of his friends and just being able to see and hear them be happy. He had experienced such dark things in his short life so far that seeing his friends be so care free and happy made him happy.
“Ned, your brooding again.” Elbert said to him. Elbert and Robert always called him out when he was just being quiet and watching. They called it brooding, he thought he just had one of those faces.
“I was just enjoying the moment and the view.” Ned replied. The view was of the God’s Eye, the Isle of Faces and the largest castle in Westeros, Harrenhal with its melted, twisted towers silhouetted in the fading light of the sunset.
“That creepy castle? That's what you were admiring?” Ebert asked in disbelief.
“Not quite. But could you imagine seeing that castle and stone melt in the dragon fire? It must have been quite a sight.” Ned answered his question. “But I wouldn’t expect anything else from a cursed castle.”
“What do you mean by that?” Eric the Arryn guard asked.
“Well, Harrenhal was built by Harren the Black. He was an Iron Islander who used slaves from the Riverlands to build it. So not a great start. Then, since he followed the Drowned Gods, he cut down scores of weirwood trees to use as support beams in the construction of the castle. As someone who follows the Old Gods, that is sacrilege. Weirwood is not supposed to be used that way.” Ned explained some of the history behind the castle.
“Alright I get that but then if you don’t mind me saying. How come your sword is partly made from weirwood?” Eric asked.
“Well from what I have been taught it is ok to use freely given weirwood, like in bows, spears or other things. It is not ok to chop down weirwoods.” Ned further explained. “And the weirwood used on my sword was freely given.”
“What the hell do you mean by freely given? Who is supposed to give it to you?” Robert asked, perplexed.
“The Old Gods give it. And freely given means that it falls to the ground on its own. What else would it mean?” Ned started seriously and finished with a smile on his face jokingly.
“Oh fuck off Ned” Robert huffed while throwing a stick at Ned.
“I don’t understand how you can go out and worship trees? How are you supposed to learn any lessons without anybody telling you what they are supposed to be?” Elbert asked. They had had this conversation before since Elbert was the heir to the home of the Andals. He couldn’t quite understand the Old Gods.
“The Old Gods are always with you, all you have to do is listen. They are the wind rustling the leaves in the trees. The water splashing and flowing over the rocks in the river. At least that is what my grandfather explained to me, as he had learned from his father before him.” Ned told the group what he had been told by the Wandering Wolf while in Essos.
“That makes even less sense than before! How are you supposed to get anything out of all that?” Elbert spoke up. He was always like this when this topic got brought up.
Smiling, Ned answered “Well you just know it when you hear it.”
Elbert decided to change the conversation slightly. “Well what about the Isle of Faces out there. Isn’t that supposed to be like a holy place for you? Do you ever want to travel to it?” He asked while pointing to the dark shape out on the horizon of the water.
“You are going to love this Elbert. No, I don't think I would want to travel to the isle. Supposedly that is where the Children of Forest and the First Men signed the pact to end their war with each other. And even if I wanted to go to the isle, it wouldn’t let me. It decides who it lets visit.” Ned explained about the Isle of Faces.
“You know what, I’m down with this for tonight. And let me guess your grandfather taught this to you too?” Elbert asked, exacerbated.
“You guessed it.” Ned replied. He then had an idea to try something else his grandfather had taught him that he hadn’t had a chance to do yet. “Would you like to hear something else my grandfather taught me Elbert?”
“Sure, I guess.” Elbert sighed.
“Alright, this is my first time trying it. So here it goes.” Ned told the group. Ned then brought both hands up to his mouth and cupped them. He raised his head up toward the night sky and let out a howl. “AWOOOOOOOO!!”
There was a beat or two of stunned silence before there was an answer to the call in the distance. “Awoo.” Then another joined it and then another and another until there were dozens of howling wolves echoing across the Riverlands. The group looked at one another with spooked expressions on their faces as they were surprised by what Ned had just done. They could hear the surprises from the other groups at their own fires.
“Ned, has anyone ever told you how absolutely terrifying you can be?” Elbert asked with a serious expression. “I mean I have goosebumps all over my body right now. What was that?”
“That used to be the battle cry of the Kings of Winter. It was something that was used as they were riding into battle to scare their enemies. It was passed down from father to son in ancient times so my grandfather taught it to me.” Ned explained what had just happened.
“That doesn’t explain how you got the wolves to respond, especially in such a number?” Elbert exclaimed.
“A wolf knows when another wolf is calling.” Was all Ned said in reply and as he went to oil his sword.
…
Their party of Lords and Knights for the tournament had been camped out and waiting on the Kingsroad outside of King’s landing for a day now. They were waiting for the Royal family’s party to join them since this whole tournament was happening for Prince Rhaegar. Speak of their name and they shall appear.
You could first hear and feel the sound of hoofs beating on the ground, then in the distance you could see a party of horses, wagons and people led by red and black dragon banners. Then the distinctive white Kingsguard armor with their white cloaks sitting atop a horse leading the party followed by someone with silver hair dressed in black. Then there was a wheel house followed by guards and other wagons.
Finally the royal party arrived to join the Vale and Riverlands party. The members of the party started dismounting from their horses and exiting their wheelhouses and wagons starting with Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. He was dressed in a black doublet with the red Targaryen three-headed dragon on the front, with black riding pants and boots to match the look of a Targaryen. Ned could tell that he was tall standing in comparison to Robert in height. But it was the hair and eyes that made him different from anybody else. He had the defining trait of the silver white shoulder length hair that made the Targaryens famous signifying their Valyrian ancestry. Then he had the rare violet eyes that only the Daynes and Targayrens had in Westeros. Ned had met his fair share of people in Essos with purple eyes though. And the Prince of Dragonstone’s face was what Ned could only describe as similar to his own, a contemplative one or as his friends liked to say, brooding.
Stepping out of the wheel house with the assistance from the smaller Kingsguard was Princess Shaena, the jewel of the royal family. If Ned was being honest with himself the princess was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen in his short life. Her hair shined silver in the sunlight and her face was radiant when Ned first looked up on it. Her eyes were a lighter shade of violet than her brothers. She was wearing a wonderful lavender colored dress with cream colored accents. Ned didn’t know much about dresses but he thought that it suited her perfectly.
As the Prince and Princess approached they were flanked by the Kingsguard, one with a sword and falling sword crossed and the other with three stalks of wheat, Ser Arthur Dayne and Ser Barristan Selmey. Everyone in the party dropped to one knee as was custom when meeting royalty. They were only kneeling for a very short time before Prince Rhaegar addressed them.
“You may rise my Lords and Ladies.” Rhaegar spoke in a melodic voice that reached even the furthest of their party.
Standing up and looking, Ned finally had a closer look at the Prince and Princess up close for the first time. They were honestly both beautiful. With their silver blonde hair, violet eyes, high cheek bones and graceful movement that not many could hope to match. But that was where the similarities ended. While Rhaegar had an almost sad look about him along with a slight frown and darker purple eyes, he stood a little bit below Robert in height. Princess Shaena was the opposite with a full smile and a look of wonder upon her face with lighter purple eyes, she was also only slightly shorter than Ned’s six foot frame. She was also one of the most beautiful ladies Ned had ever seen.
Introductions were being made now with Elbert taking the lead in speaking up first. “Hello your graces, I am Lord Elbert Arryn, nephew and heir to Lord Jon Arryn.” Stepping up to first shake Rhaegar’s hand and then customarily kiss the back of the princesses hand. With both of them saying their greetings back to them.
“Well met my Lord.” Rhaegar told Elbert.
Continuing on he introduced the rest of the nobles in the party. “This is Lord Robert Baratheon as you already know with him being your cousin. Next, the very tall fellow with the bronze armor is Lord Yohn Royce. Then the two similar looking men are the Mallister brothers, Jason and Jeffory.” continuing along with other Vale and Riverland houses until finally Elbert got to him.
Ned wasn't standing out much amongst their party because even after spending 7 years in the south he was still not used to the heat. He was wearing a simple short sleeved doublet with simple riding pants and brown leather boots on. He wasn’t wearing anything with his family’s sigil on it because he just didn't feel like it at the time since he was riding on a wagon to carry all of his cargo.
“And lastly the quiet one over here is Lord Eddard Stark, Lord Stark’s second son. He is also fostering in the Vale with Lord Robert and I.” Elbert finished introducing the party.
Ned stepped up to give Prince Rhaegar a handshake, noticing that he gave a good firm handshake. A murmured “ Lord Stark.” from Prince Rhaegar and a “Your Grace.” from Ned were the only words between the two.
Stepping over to the Princess, he took her hand in his and brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her hand while looking into her eyes. Princess Shaena smirked back at him. “Your Grace.” Ned greeted in the same manner as he did for the Prince.
“Lord Stark, it is nice to meet you. It's not often I have the pleasure of meeting someone from the North”. Her voice made a shiver run up Ned’s spine. It was doing things to his body that he didn’t know a voice could do.
“Well it's not often that a Stark is this far south and meets royalty”. Ned responded right back. Ned and Shaena were both starting to laugh and right when Ned was going to continue on he was interrupted.
“Mount up! Mount up everyone, we’re heading out. It’s at least a fortnight to Storm’s End, so let's get going”. Ser Aurther Dayne's commanding voice rang out as he gave orders for the party to start traveling through the Kingswood. Around them people were heading back to their horses, wagons or standing up to start the trek to Storm’s End.
Ned was starting to head back to his wagon right behind them when the Princess spoke to him. “You are riding on a wagon and not a horse, Lord Stark?”
“I am, I’m carrying some chests with me to the tournament because I have an Aunt in the Stormlands who is the Lady of house Rogers. She is going to be at the tourney and I have some things from my grandfather, her father, that belong to her.” Ned explained to her as he was climbing up into the seat of the wagon.
Princess Shaena surprised him with what she said to him next. “Lord Stark, may I ride on the wagon with you?” Before Ned could respond she continued. ”It's just that I have had enough of being in a wheelhouse and I can’t really ride a horse in this dress, I want to be able to have the wind blow through my hair and to see all around me and just be outside”. At the end of her explanation she was almost breathless and looking at him with an expression of hope.
Ned, surprising himself, decided to joke with her, keeping his face neutral. “But you’re wearing a braid, how would the wind blow through your hair?” The expression on her face was worth it in Ned’s mind.
With a blush and her mouth opening and closing she eventually said in huff. “Is that all you could think about Lord Stark?! Did you not hear the rest of what I said?”
“Oh no I heard what you said and yes I would be fine with you riding with me, but shouldn’t you check first to see if it’s ok? And I just thought it would be funny to mess with you.” By the end Ned was smiling, happy that his joke had worked on the princess.
The princess walked away to go tell her brother and the Kingsguard what she was planning to do. In the meantime Ned climbed up into his wagon. Seeing the princess walking over to him with a smile on her face he offered her a hand to pull her up onto the wagon.
After getting settled and as they started moving she asked “So why does a northman fostering in the Vale have a chest that he's delivering to his aunt in the Stormlands?”
“Its a long story.” Ned told her as he took the reins to start leaving.
“Well we have nothing but time Lord Stark.” Princess Shaena responded right back.
Ned took a moment as he looked at her and finally told her “Alright then, and please call me Ned.”
“Done! And you can call me Shae!” She said with a smile.
“Of course… Princess.” Ned told her with a serious face. He started laughing at her affronted look. Princess Shaena realized he had been joking with her and hit him on the arm teasingly.
…
The large party had traveled for 5 days now and they were camped in the Kingswood forest for the night. They had set up their tents, a fire, the meal line and a large table for the nobles in the traveling party, of which there were plenty.
Ned was sitting quietly at the table eating the stew that was served out to them. He was thinking about the past 5 days. He and Princess Shaena had hit it off and were fast friends. He had learned that one of things she was allowed to do on her own was to try breeding different horses. This had come about when she asked about his horses. His Northern Destrier named Winter and his Dothraki war horse named Thunder. She had never seen or met a Northern Destrier or a Dothraki war horse.
She had demanded how he got his hands on a Dothraki horse because from what she understood, it was extremely hard to get a Dothraki horse since they were sacred to the Dothraki. So Ned had told her. His sellsword company had a battle with a Dothraki Khalasar that they had won and in the aftermath there was a lone black horse from the Dothraki side that had come up to Ned and refused to leave him. He had named him Thunder because his footsteps sounded like a distant thunderstorm.
She had made him promise to help her purchase a Northern horse for her and in the future and to use Thunder to help her with different kinds of crossbreeding because she had never met another Dothraki horse. Ned had told her to write to his sister in Winterfell because she also loved horses and worked on breeding her own horses.
They talked about their lives. Ned told her about his life in the North, the Vale and about his time over in Essos with his grandfather. Princess Shaena told him about what it was like growing up in the Red Keep and King’s Landing. How she was constantly busy and monitored just because she was a Princess and this was one of the few times that she was able to leave the capitol.
She even discovered that he was in possession of a Valyrian Steel sword and begged to see it. She had been in love with it once she saw the distinctive smokey ripples of the steel. He had told her the story of how his grandfather discovered it and gave it to him before he passed. She had even called over her brother, the prince, to see it for himself. He was impressed with the sword because they were not seen much in Westeros anymore. Rhaegar had even shown him his dagger from the Targaryen family’s armory that was Valyrian Steel.
Ned was drawn from his thoughts when the member of the table started talking about who was going to win the tournament. You had lords from every kingdom boasting about their prowess in jousting or in the melee. If Ned was a betting man he would guess that Ser Barristan or Ser Arthur Dayne would win. They had won tourneys before and were some of the most decorated knights in the traveling party.
“Alright, alright but who do you reckon is the strongest in the Vale?” a voice down the table cut through. Ned couldn’t see who had said it but it was addressed to the Lords from the Vale.
“We have plenty of strong knights and lords, there are the Royces for example lead by Yohn, you have Lord Corbray, Lord Arryn is still formidable even in his old age. But out of us here the strongest physically is probably Robert Baratheon.” Elbert answered for the group since he was the heir to the Vale.
“I’m not disagreeing with Lord Elbert, Robert may be the strongest physically, even more so than myself.” Lord Royce interjected. “But I would have to say the strongest or deadliest would have to be Lord Stark over there.” Bronze Yohn Royce finished. As he did, Ned could see almost every head turn and size him up as if saying ‘this boy?’. But Ned just sat there stoically looking back at them.
“Really?! That green boy is who you’d pick?” Some lord down the table said.
“Ned, do you want to tell them or should I?” Yohn gave Ned the respect of asking him.
“Go ahead Yohn, you may tell them.” Ned decided to let him tell them. He didn’t like boasting about what he has done. And he really didn’t like talking about the Royce Incident Yohn was about to mention.
“First off, besides the few of us at this table that fought in the Ninepenny Kings War, that ‘green boy’ as you say had seen and fought in the most battles.” Ned could see that he was getting looks of disbelief.
“Sellsword in Essos for two years.” He explained in the only way he knew how, short and to the point. People were looking at him as if he’d explain more but he didn’t.
“Yes, the reason I choose Ned isn’t because of his time in Essos though. It is because of an incident that happened about half a year ago. My niece Alys Royce was traveling through the Vale to her relatives and as sometimes happens, they were attacked and taken by Mountain Clansman. It has happened to everybody at this table, anybody can tell you.” At this point you could see heads nodding as people remembered their own experiences with the Clansman. “They were gone without a trace by the time a riding party had checked and returned empty handed. That is usually a death sentence. But while the tourney was happening Ned took it upon himself to go out and check the site. And a day later he returned with Alys and the other girls. According to them, Ned came in the middle of the night and killed five of the Clansmen without making a sound before he made himself known. He then fought and slaughtered a dozen of them before the others ran off in fear. She said that it was like watching a wraith move amongst the Clansman dodging their blows and taking them down one by one without being touched. That’s why we call him the Quiet Wolf… and because he rarely talks.” Bronze Yohn finished with a chuckle. There was silence as the other lords were looking at him and the vale lords for confirmation with some nodding their heads.
“I did what had to be done… and they’re family.” Ned gave his reasoning. Ned thought back to that night as he snuck up on and killed those Clansman with his tomahawk on his hip. Ned had let the wolf out, he didn’t care that there were ten other men facing him, he slaughtered them like the animals they were. He would have chased after the others that ran if the women weren’t there. He had brought the people taken back to safety after it was all said and done.
“So Lord Stark, how do you think you’ll fare in the tourney?” Asked some Crownsland lord Ned couldn’t remember the name of.
“I don’t know how I will fare because I will not be participating.” Ned simply stated. He was ready for what came next because he had heard it before.
“Why ever not? Who doesn’t want to win the joust, the dragons! And crowning the queen of love and beauty!” Another person chimed in.
“I don’t play at war my lord. I don’t participate in tournaments because when I fight a man for real, I don’t want him to know what I can do.” Ned knew this answer would rile them up and make some of them not believe what was said earlier. He honestly just didn’t care what other people thought. He didn’t fight to impress people, he fought to protect those that he loved.
He could see the doubt on their faces start to creep in. He knew it was hard for lords who had hardly fought in life or death combat to hear that from a five and ten year old. It hurt their ego and their pride and made them upset but Ned had never cared what others thought of him. He supposed it was time to call in a night.
“Good night my lords. It's about time for me to catch up on my rest.” Ned got up to leave clapping Elbert and Robert on the back as he walked by as a sign of goodnight to both.
…
They were a little bit into their journey the next day. Princess Shaena was riding with Ned once again but this time she was wearing brown leather riding pants and a red tunic. Ned had put his sword by his feet to polish later on the ride and the wooden stag he needed to finish for Robert’s brother.
“Is it true?” Shaena asked him simply while giving him a contemplative look as if scrutinizing his every decision.
“Is what true?”
“What Lord Royce told the table last night. The story about you rescuing his niece.” She was looking off to the sides of the wagon, which Ned thought curious.
“Every single word of it. Everybody else was participating in the tournament and I wasn’t. I thought I would go and see what I could find. It took me a full day of hiking and climbing to find them. My grandfather taught me how to track very well and the Royces are family. My grandfather’s mother was a Royce so I felt like I owed it to him to try.” Ned explained to Shaena.
Shaena seemed to come to some internal conclusion with her nodding her head. She then turned to Ned to ask. “Will you teach me how to wield a sword, Ned?”
“Why do you want me to teach you? You have access to some of the finest knights in the realm in Ser Barristan the Bold and Ser Arthur, who is the Sword of the Morning, at your beck and call?” Ned truly couldn’t understand why she would want him to teach her the art of the sword.
“Let’s just say that the Kingsguard serve the King first, not the royal family.” The princess had a dark look on her face as she looked ahead to where the Kingsguard were riding.
“Ok Princess. I’ll teach you. But when and where would you like to start?” Ned decided to help her. He liked the princess and wanted to spend more time with her. He just didn’t know where they would be able to practice without being caught. “When would you like to start and where are we going to practice?”
“How about we start right now?” The princess turned to him with a hopeful look on her face.
“We can’t really swing a sword from the top of a wagon in full view of everyone, Princess.” Ned teased her as she blushed. Ned was chuckling at her expense.
“You know what I meant, you could start explaining it to me before we start practicing. And I was thinking we could practice at night in the Godswood at Storm’s End once we’re there. That way we won’t be discovered.” Shaena further explained after she was teased.
“It’s a deal then princess.” Ned held out his hand for her to shake, which she did. “First take the reins, I’ll start teaching you as I polish my sword.” Ned was about to start explaining the art of swordsmanship when he was interrupted.
“Oh, can I polish your sword for you Ned?” Shaene asked with an earnest expression on her face. She then realized what she had said and promptly blushed as Ned held back a laugh. “You know what I meant!”
“Princess, how forward of you, right here out in the open?” Ned teased her. He knew what she meant but he couldn’t pass up the chance. “Here, give me the reins and take the sword.” He took the reins from her hands and passed her Frostbite and an oil cloth. “First put the sword tip down and slowly run the oiled cloth slowly down the length of the blade, and be careful of edge.” Ned explained.
“First lesson, your sword is an extension of yourself and you should treat it as such. You never want your sword to fail you just as you should not want to fail it.” Ned told her the first lesson he had learned from Winterfell’s master-at-arms, Martyn Cassel.
“What do you mean by not failing your sword?” She asked with a quizzical look on her face.
“You should take care of your sword because you do not want it to fall into a state of disrepair. If you are taking care of it you will know if there is anything wrong or damaged with it.” Ned expanded on the first lesson. Getting a nod from Shaena he continued.
“The second lesson is footwork. If you have good footwork then you have a solid foundation to strike and defend so that you are not knocked off balance. Think of it like dancing in a sense, if you have excellent footwork then you are generally a good dancer.” Ned tried to relate the lesson to something that she would have done before. He could tell that she was listening with rapt attention as she slowly ran the cloth up and down the length of Frostbite.
Ned continued to explain the lessons of swordsmanship as best he could. Hopefully the princess would be able to learn them all by the time they reached Storm’s End.