Bran called his direwolf back to him and fed it a biscuit from a plate on the table.
The small, gray-colored direwolf named Summer sniffed the biscuit in Bran's hand, then quickly grabbed it with a flick of his tongue.
Bran happily patted Summer's soft fur.
Jason was left speechless. Could direwolves eat anything? Weren't they supposed to only like meat?
"This is my wolf. His name is Summer!" Bran said proudly when he noticed Jason Liu staring at his pet. "Summer is very smart. He can understand my commands and listens to whatever I tell him to do. He's very obedient!"
Jason looked at the little direwolf sitting obediently next to Bran. Without thinking, he blurted out, "Can you make him act cute?"
"Huh?" Bran blinked, confused. "Cute? What do you mean?"
Little Summer also tilted his head curiously, his pale green eyes staring at Jason.
"Cough... cough cough... nothing. I was just saying it randomly," Jason said quickly, feeling a bit awkward.
He realized it wasn't very respectful to expect a fierce creature like a direwolf to behave like a silly puppy. What if Summer actually understood him and decided to bite? Better not risk it.
Quickly changing the topic, Jason asked, "Weren't you sneaking out with Arya? Where's she?"
Bran didn't seem to mind Jason's strange comment earlier. He simply fed Summer another biscuit—something that made Jason twitch a little. Feeding cookies to a direwolf? Was that even normal?
"I don't know where she is," Bran said casually. "We sneaked out of Winterfell together, but Arya knew I was coming to find you. She ran off somewhere. Maybe she's playing with the kids in town. She likes playing with the boys a lot."
Jason sighed helplessly.
Arya Stark, the daughter of the most powerful lord in the North, preferred to run wild with the dirty town children instead of behaving like a noble lady.
She ran around, got into fights, and often came back covered in dirt, looking more like a mud monster than a proper girl.
Jason couldn't understand how Eddard and Catelyn Stark were raising their children. Arya was so wild!
Just look at Sansa, her older sister. Sansa dressed beautifully every day and spoke and acted exactly like a highborn lady should.
Jason was sure that Arya must give Lord Eddard and Lady Catelyn plenty of headaches.
"Bran, listen to me carefully," Jason said seriously. "You and Arya shouldn't sneak out like this again. It's dangerous outside Winterfell. You're still young. If anything bad happens to you, your father and mother would be heartbroken—and it could cause big trouble for the whole town."
He continued, "If you want to go out, you should tell Lord Eddard or Lady Catelyn first. They can send guards to watch over you. That way, everyone will feel safer. Understand?"
Jason truly cared about the children, even though he tried to hide it behind a serious tone.
"But what if father and mother don't let us go out?" Bran asked, tilting his head.
Before Jason could reply, Bran's little face lit up with an idea. "Master Jason, why don't you go and talk to my father and mother? Tell them that when we have free time, we can come play with you! Okay?"
No way! Absolutely not!
Jason almost shouted out loud. The last thing he needed was two mischievous Stark children running wild around him.
He wasn't their babysitter!
"I really don't have anything fun here for you, Bran," Jason said, shaking his head. "Wouldn't it be better for you to play with your little brother Rickon?"
"Rickon is so stupid!" Bran pouted. "He broke all my toys. When I scolded him, he just cried and cried. I don't want to play with him anymore!"
Bran spoke like a little adult, which made Jason chuckle inside, though he kept a straight face on the outside.
He thought to himself: If you ignored the fact that Bran could one day grow up and become very dangerous, right now he was just too adorable.
Jason had to remind himself not to treat Bran like a house pet, no matter how cute he was.
Suddenly, Bran's eyes lit up even more as he remembered something.
"Master Jason! You said you would bring me snacks and new toys from your hometown! When will you bring them? I've been waiting forever!" Bran cried, full of hope.
I didn't say that! Jason wanted to deny it so badly.
But when he thought about it, he remembered that not long ago, Bran had been climbing high places on Winterfell's walls, and Jason, worried that the boy might fall, had promised him snacks and toys just to make him behave.
Bran even reminded his mother about it right before Jason left, and at that point, there was no way Jason could go back on his word.
Was that the real reason Bran had come to find him today?
Jason glanced at the boy suspiciously, but when Bran smiled at him with those big bright eyes, Jason's heart melted.
He admitted to himself that even he, a man who prided himself on being cool-headed, couldn't resist Bran's cuteness.
A strange thought crossed Jason's mind: If he ever had children one day, he hoped they would be this adorable.
He thought about Lin for a moment. If they married in the future, would their children be this cute?
"Master Jason? What are you thinking about?" Bran asked, snapping Jason out of his daydream. "When will you give me my snacks and toys?"
Annoyed that the boy had interrupted his fantasy, Jason said irritably, "Don't worry! I'll keep my promise. I'll send someone to bring the snacks and toys to Winterfell in a few days. Just wait a little longer!"
"Really? That's great! Thank you, Master Jason!" Bran beamed with happiness.
Meanwhile, little Lillian, who had been quietly nibbling on cookies in Jason's arms, looked up at him.
But compared to Bran, who was eagerly waiting for gifts, Lillian still thought the cookie in her hand was far more interesting.
Not long after, the boy Michal, who also had trouble sitting still for long periods, wandered off on his own.
Before Jason could chat much longer with Bran, some guards from Winterfell rushed in.
"Master Bran! Thank the gods you are here!" one of them said in relief. "Please come back to the castle with us. Lady Catelyn has sent us to bring you home!"
The guards were clearly relieved to find the young lord safe and sound at Jason's place.
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