In front of a bakery on the Street of Flour, a fight broke out. A boy of merely ten years thrashed in the grip of the baker who dragged him by the scruff of his neck, muttering angry curses all the while. The boy wrestled with the baker, trying to hold back tears as he begged to be let go. He shouted apologies as he was dragged before Lord Janos Slynt, the commander of the city watch.

The baker let out a huff as he explained himself. "Caught this little creature in the back of my stores. By the time I grabbed him, he already had his hands on a loaf of bread and two lemon cakes."

Lord Janos eyed the boy with a kind of sadistic joy. He smiled faintly at the baker. "I think you've caught the vermin that's been causing problems in the city," he said. "You'll be rewarded for this. Go on, then, while I give him his punishment."

The baker nodded, releasing the boy, who suddenly spun, tripping over his own feet as he attempted to run. Janos caught his arm, pulling him harshly back. "How old are you?" he demanded.

A faint smile crept onto the boy's face. Any time a noble caught him, he could get out of punishment easily with his young age. "Ten, m'lord," he said.

"Ten?" Janos asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, m'lord."

"Do you know the punishment for stealing?"

The boy shook his head. "No, m'lord."

Janos nodded faintly. "The punishment for stealing is to lose a hand," he said. "Unless you'd rather join the Night's Watch. I'm sure they could do with a sneaky thing like you."

The boy's blue eyes widened. "Make your choice," Janos instructed. "And it will be carried out."

The boy knew that the Night's Watch was a death sentence. He would die cold and alone with tears frozen to his pale cheeks. "Hand," he said quickly, in a voice that was weak and strained with tears. "Take my hand."

Lord Janos nodded once more, and he drew forth a sword from his scabbard. "Do you use your right hand or your left?" he asked.

"Right," the boy replied.

Janos pulled him toward a table at the corner of the room, and he stretched the boy's right arm across the wood. The boy felt his entire body tense, and he closed his blue eyes tightly. He begged himself not to cry.

Lord Janos raised his blade high. When he swung it down, the boy could hear the rush of air and the sudden sound of metal cleaving its way through bone. He opened his mouth and from his lips came forth a horrible sound.

He was only a boy, though he now knew the suffering of men three times his age.