[Chapter Size: 3000 Words.]
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Third Person POV
Winterfell, 298 AC.
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Bran had a strange feeling as he listened to everything Arya had said over the past few hours.
Even his gaze drifted toward his older brother, who seemed restless.
Arya spoke about the importance of creating a bond with an animal, and that for him it would be easy, since they had already passed that first stage when they received their wolves. Which was perfect for developing this even more special connection.
Bran's eyes went to Summer, curled up at his feet, just like Robb with Grey Wind, and even Rickon, although he seemed more interested in playing with Shaggydog than focusing on what Arya had said.
Bran looked at his little direwolf and couldn't help but stare into his eyes as soon as he stood up to him.
In fact, memories started to swirl in his mind as he recalled having strange images upon waking up some mornings. He could feel that he had entered the pup's mind once as it circled his room at night, but since they were fleeting images, he believed it was just a dream.
But upon hearing Arya, he couldn't help but wonder if it was actually real. If he could be connected, as Arya had asked of them all.
"So we can get into their heads? That sounds bizarre," Robb couldn't help but mutter, looking skeptical, while holding Grey Wind in his arms, the animal watching him intently.
Arya just smiled.
"Of course. Pay attention," Arya said, and suddenly her eyes turned white, none of them expecting something like that, since she had never shown it before.
That scared Rickon the most, who took steps back. But no one said anything.
It didn't take long for the gate to open, guarded by Arctican guards — and the reason, Bran knew, was quite simple, to maintain their privacy there. The gate opened from a distance as an adult direwolf approached, none other than Nymeria, with whom all the Stark siblings — except for Sansa — were familiar, as Arya had made sure to keep in contact with Nymeria every day and helped them get used to her presence.
The grey wolf passed by them, walking calmly to Arya's side, turning her body toward them and sitting down, which made everyone understand immediately.
"Arya...? Is that you?" Robb asked, his voice nearly faltering, while the wolf simply moved her head up and down, confirming.
Bran's mouth was hanging open — a raven could've flown in — when he saw the look in Nymeria's eyes, expressing the weirdness of Robb's question. His gaze went to Arya, who stood there frozen, as if her consciousness was no longer there, even though she was upright.
The she-wolf simply opened her mouth and looked at them with her tongue hanging out.
Arya returned a moment later, her grey eyes appearing once more, while Nymeria even shifted a bit, but with a touch from Arya, remained in place.
"Incredible! That was incredible, Arya!" Bran exclaimed.
"Can we do that with our wolves too?" Robb couldn't help but ask, with a gleam in his eyes and a hint of envy.
"I want to do the same thing she just did," Rickon exclaimed.
"Well, now what I ask of you is to start focusing on your dreams over the next two days, as if you could enter the minds of your direwolves. On the third day, I'll give you a potion that everyone uses in Arctican. It will help unlock this power," Arya explained.
"So we just have to concentrate and try to maintain control in our dreams?" Robb murmured.
"I doubt you'll manage that now, but try. Use magic, try to connect with your animals in a way that you become one. They can understand everything you say to them, if the bond is strong enough."
"As an example, I want to ask Nymeria to do something. I simply enter her mind and give the instructions. Before I return, taking only a few seconds, she already knows everything she has to do. It's the same thing: she hears my voice, understands my intentions. Not necessarily my language — the human tongue — but she knows what I mean with each of my words. That is our bond."
"I heard Jon can control several animals. When he was a child..." Bran asked.
"Yes, Jon can do much more than any other warg who ever existed. They even call him the Warg King in Arctican, due to the power of controlling thousands of animals. He could have an army of them and simply send them to destroy his enemies. That has already happened in some cities, as you already know," Arya commented.
"Like what happened in Oldtown? That he manipulated dogs, birds, and other city animals, and they attacked all the guards? I can't imagine someone being able to do that," Robb said, surprised and thoughtful about the incident.
"His abilities are greater than anyone's. Either way, he's a case apart. You all have the potential to become as skilled as I am... except you, Bran."
At that moment, Bran immediately panicked. It couldn't be that he wasn't like her and their brothers, even though she had said a few words about it yesterday, about him having great potential.
"I'm talking about you, Bran, because you can be greater than us. I know it seems early, but Jon said the same thing to me, when he saw you here in Winterfell over seven years ago. He said you had latent abilities. He even believes you might be like Brynden Rivers, also known as the Three-Eyed Raven. A powerful greenseer."
"Jon said that?" Bran was immediately embarrassed and flattered at the same time.
"Wait a second... Brynden Rivers isn't the one who fought in the Blackfyre Rebellion alongside his brother?" He was a bit confused about it.
"Yes, that's right. I don't think that part is so relevant, but he's alive and lives in Arctican, along with Jon. But I'd like that information to stay within these walls. Just because of the connection," Arya informed, while Robb, despite being surprised, nodded.
"Okay... wait. What is a greenseer?" Bran couldn't help but ask.
"A greenseer is a very powerful warg. And very rare too," she said, while her brothers didn't seem satisfied with just that.
"Well, let's see," Arya continued. "For every thousand people who share the blood of the First Men, one is born a warg. And for every thousand wargs, one greenseer is born."
"That... wait, are you saying that for every 1 million people, one of them is born?" Robb was shocked. "That means each kingdom only has a handful of them? You could count them on your fingers!"
"But only the North has descendants of the First Men," Rickon's childish voice rang out, as Arya looked at him.
"That's right, little brother. You're correct. Only in the North — and some houses in the South — share the blood of the First Men. Which means very few greenseers are being born out there, making it even rarer."
"Incredible! So Bran is special!" Rickon spoke again, clapping his hands and also with a childish look of envy.
"But you still haven't said what exactly a greenseer does... You said it was a powerful warg... Is he truly a seer?" Bran asked, curious, and Arya nodded.
"Yes. A greenseer is someone who can glimpse the future, have visions. There's only one alive today south of the Wall that I know of, and he's a son of Lord Reed."
"Jojen is a greenseer?" Robb murmured, thinking it might be, since he was the one who passed along some information about the faceless assassin, but his tone was more of a confirmation than a question, as he fell into thought.
"Yes. You know it was he who predicted the faceless assassination. Bran is like him, only you haven't developed your abilities yet," Arya explained.
"Well, that's quite useful," Robb commented, laughing.
"So I can predict the future?" Bran didn't know whether to be afraid or thrilled by it.
"Yes. It's a very special gift, but it can also be a curse. Not everyone believes that seeing the future is something beneficial. I would agree that this kind of ability... but I'm not everyone," Arya said, and everyone agreed. After all, it was thanks to Jojen that the assassination was said to be coming.
"And what is a Three-Eyed Raven, that you mentioned earlier?" Bran asked curiously.
"I believe that for every thousand greenseers, one Three-Eyed Raven is born," she said, leaving everyone stunned. "It's an even greater rarity."
"One in a billion people with the blood of the First Men? That's madness..." Robb murmured, doing a quick calculation.
"Yes. That's why when we least expect it, one shows up," she said, shrugging. She didn't believe her brother was a Three-Eyed Raven — everything indicated he seemed to be a common greenseer.
"Either way, the Three-Eyed Raven has even more power. They say he can have a thousand and one eyes through animals, and can also unravel the past through the sacred trees of the Old Gods. He can access it. And Jon learned a lot that way..."
"...No wonder he built a kingdom and knew how to implement a good culture in it, because he spent years seeing what were the best ways to develop a nation, maintain customs, create strategies, build an army, explore, among many other things," she said, while her brothers remained silent, quite surprised by it.
It explained a lot.
"Anyway, I'm going to send a letter to Lord Reed requesting Jojen's presence again. It would be good for him to explain. Maybe he can say whether you're a greenseer or not, and he can guide you," Arya said, while Bran nodded.
"Can I see Meera? Will she come, maybe?" Bran perked up.
"You're already thinking about a girl, Bran?" Arya asked in an accusatory tone as her brother seemed to panic at hearing that.
"That's not true!" he exclaimed, completely embarrassed.
Robb changed the subject the next moment. "So we just need to worry about trying to dream of our animals? Is there any rule we can't break?" Robb asked, while Grey Wind was by his side.
"Yes. Obviously, you can't eat human flesh while you're inside an animal. And you also can't mate as one. That will drive you insane. It's a very useful ability, but also very dangerous. So you need to be very careful about that," Arya said, and they nodded.
"Anyway, the lesson ends here. Now let's go outside," Arya said, taking the first step, with Nymeria following right behind. Her brothers came along as well.
"It's already getting dark... I think I'm going to change," Bran said, running toward the castle as soon as he passed the gate.
"Hey, Bran!" Mearin appeared at that moment, stopping him from continuing, while he looked a bit surprised and eyed her warily.
"Yes?" he murmured, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"You seem excited," she said, looking at him, as she saw him holding his direwolf in his arms.
"Yes... Arya taught me a lot of things," he murmured, as Mearin teased him, giving him a kiss on the cheek and making him blush. Bran couldn't say anything else and just ran into the castle.
Mearin walked away, laughing, and returned to Arya, joining her and her brothers.
"Stop teasing him," she murmured.
"He's cute," Mearin couldn't help but say, while Arya rolled her eyes.
"I'll meet you at the dinner table," was all Robb said, as he led Rickon inside the castle.
"So, are you going to that place? I wouldn't recommend you do that," Mearin asked, her tone concerned.
"I've already placed guards in every possible spot," Arya began. "There's no way to hide this from me. That woman isn't that crazy, knowing it could get her killed, now that she could be attacked."
...
...
"I want her dead!"
Meanwhile, the queen screamed, rising at the start of the evening in a fit, while someone next to her jumped in surprise.
Her green eyes opened wide, scanning the room as she saw the unfamiliar ceiling, but didn't recognize where she was. She seemed to be having a dream... interspersed with revelations, as she touched her face and began to see it completely bandaged.
And that alone made her tremble instantly.
"How can this be happening? This isn't possible," she murmured, hands shaking. "No... it can't be possible," she kept repeating.
"It's very possible, dear sister," a voice beside her made her turn her face and see the brother she hated the most standing there.
The dwarf.
Her eyes filled with panic — and even that took Tyrion by surprise.
"What are you doing here?" she screamed at him, as the door immediately opened, a royal guard entering and bowing his head to see what was going on, with the queen screaming a second time at the sight of Tyrion sitting beside her on a stool perfectly suited to his size.
"It's all right, ser. My sister just woke up under a great deal of stress, as you can see," Tyrion said calmly, while Cersei said nothing, only stared at him with a mix of hatred and even shame, as Tyrion had noticed.
"Very well," was all the white cloak said before closing the door again.
Tyrion turned back to his sister. "Let's sigh..."
"What am I doing here, dear brother?" she mocked.
"Strangely enough, I'm taking care of you," he replied.
"What do you mean, taking care of me?" she questioned, not believing a word he said.
"Let's see... Jaime needed to sleep a bit, since he had the night shift and didn't leave your side all day. Your son was too tired, as were the others, Tommen and Myrcella... And it's not like your husband — well — is around. He's off drinking with some whore," he said, while Cersei showed a look of disgust.
"I'm the only member of your family here taking care of you, and here I am. As you can see, I'm quite the helpful brother sometimes, even if you're trying to kill me," Tyrion said poetically.
"Was I really attacked by a bird? My face is destroyed, isn't it?" she began to ask, her voice weak and fragile.
"Yes, all signs point to that," Tyrion merely murmured, still surprised to see his sister so defeated.
"How is this possible? It was her! Tell me she's been arrested! I want her dead!" Cersei began to scream, while Tyrion simply shook his head.
"I think you shouldn't speak about this so loudly. I've heard they surrounded the castle with those Unsullied. They're waiting for any retaliation from us, and honestly, I don't want to be part of that conflict. So, whether it was her or not, you'd better keep your mouth shut," Tyrion advised.
"She tried to kill me! I'm the queen! My face! I swear if there's even a single mark left when these wounds heal, I swear I'll kill her! I'll do everything, wipe her and her family out... cursed mangy wolves ruling the North!" Cersei shouted, her voice echoing throughout the room.
Tyrion just shook his head. "We're still in their home, and if you keep talking like that, you won't need to worry about just one bird. We're outnumbered, my dear sister. Do you want to end up dead here along with your children? I know you don't have much love for me, but I'm sure you care about Jaime. We'll all be killed," Tyrion said.
"Frankly, you should've accepted the suggestion to leave Winterfell," he went on. "Why do you have to be so proud?" Tyrion couldn't help but mock her a bit.
"She wanted to humiliate me!" the queen screamed, her cheeks turning red from all the expressions she began to make, forcing her wounds to reopen slightly again.
"After you tried to kill her in the forest, I'd say it's quite reasonable. And you paid for it," Tyrion said, as he took a sip of his wine.
"You can't be serious! You're on her side?" Cersei roared, with even more hatred, surprising even Tyrion, who wondered if she was capable of feeling any more of that emotion toward him.
"I'm on our side. Your actions put us in this position, sister, whether you like it or not," Tyrion said, sounding a little tired.
"Our father won't let this go on for much longer. He'll kill the Starks!" she declared.
"The situation is a bit more complicated than you might imagine, sister. You know the North might be protected by Arctican, and our dear father desires a few things that are in Arctican. It won't be that easy. But I'm sure he won't let this slide either, if that brings you any comfort," Tyrion said, as he drank and looked at her.
Cersei stared at him with yet another ounce of hatred before turning her face toward the ceiling.
"Call Jaime," she simply said, while he stopped drinking and looked a bit confused.
"What?" he asked, not quite hearing her.
"I said call Jaime!" she repeated, and seeing that Tyrion still hadn't responded, her voice rose. "Call Jaime now!" she screamed a third time.
Tyrion merely shrugged and stepped off his stool, leaving the wine behind.
"Very well, I'll talk to him," was all he said as he began to walk out. He could certainly point out that their brother was resting, but she'd demand it anyway, so there was no use arguing.
Tyrion simply knocked on the door, while the guards opened it for him. He wouldn't lower himself to reach for the doorknob in front of his sister, and headed out, going straight to Jaime's room.
His lover needed him when he was nearby, obviously. Because she must've been lying with other Lannisters out there — Tyrion just wasn't on that list.
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