Part 25:

Ned Umber always felt like he was out of place in the great hall. He was well aware that he was a boy in a man's world. At only ten namedays he was the last of his house, he had failed to defend Last Hearth, his family home, and lost most of his people. He felt like a failure. He followed Lady Mormont's advice and made sure that he was always one of the first to the hall and always stood where he could be seen, but it didn't change how he felt. Lady Mormont had been kind to him, she only had twelve namedays under her belt herself but she was a strong leader and he had come to admire her.

He suspected that the reason she often went out of her way to make time for him was because she understood what it was like to suddenly be forced into a leadership position at such a young age. Unlike him however, Lyanna Mormont was born to lead. She was stern and fierce, if she had any insecurities she kept them to herself.

He entered the great hall and found that he had arrived before her for once, it had started to become something of a competition, however the sense of victory was suddenly lessened when he saw that she was talking with Lady Arya Stark as she entered. He hadn't beaten her, she had been delayed. He watched Lyanna in awe as she walked beside a member of house Stark and was treated like an equal.

Lady Arya was a legend in her own right, and a Stark of the line of the Kings of Winter. There was more power in her than she knew. Ned Umber remembered when his ragged group of thirty men had found her army of cooks and lumberjacks. He had been such a fool, he had looked down on the people that Lady Arya had surrounded herself with, had even looked down on the men from Bear Island, but every one of them had fought bravely. He had watched her inspire them and realised that he could only dream of being such a leader.

He had lost more men, as had she, but he had seen wonders. She had stood within reach of a White Walker and howled in their face, she had called an army of direwolves and lead them to a sanctuary of the old gods, a place clearly hidden by magic. By the time they had reached the Weirwood he only had 19 men left, he had a bad wound but nothing was more wounded than his pride. He remembered with shame how poorly he had reacted when she had tended his injury, an act of bravado from a frightened little boy, yet she had taken no offence. 19 had dwindled to 12 by the time the battle at Winterfell was done.

He was the leader of a dead house, who's keep had fallen, he'd failed all that depended on him, yet for some reason those 12 men remained true and he was determined not to let them down. Despite his feelings of insignificance and unworthiness he squared his shoulders and reminded himself who he was. Ned Umber, first of his name, last of the house of Umber. He gave a nod of respect in the direction of both ladies. They seemed deep in conversation yet both ladies paused to acknowledge him before taking their places. It was a courtesy greater than he deserved, and one that he was very thankful for, most of the lords simply ignored him. Again Ned Umber wondered why he was here and what he really had to offer, but he had nowhere else to go.

The meeting started off as so many before it had done, with minor business and grumbling from some of the Lords, then the conversation turned more serious, the conversation moving towards Cersei and the Iron Throne. Ned could do nothing but listen and watch helplessly, even if he pledged every last one of his 12 swords, and himself, it would make no difference. His gaze moved from Lord Snow to Queen Daenerys and he suddenly had a feeling that something bad was about to happen. Daenerys's features were guarded, like she was bracing herself for something. Slowly she stood, forcing the whole room to go quiet, her eyes fixed on Lyanna Mormont.

"Lady Mormont, come forward."

Lady Mormont stiffened, as if bracing herself, then slowly approached. "Yes, your grace." She replied.

"Do you remember the conversation that we had the first day we met?" Daenerys asked. Lyanna nodded. "Jorah Mormont has fought bravely against the armies of the dead and the Night King, he has past his trial by combat. Will you keep your word?"

Jon Snow suddenly rose to his feet. "Lady Mormont has proven herself as a strong leader, I ask you not to do this."

Ned didn't understand what was going on but he knew this wasn't good. Daenerys turned to reproach Jon but Lyanna spoke first. "Lord Snow, you choose Daenerys Targaryen as our queen, you bent the knee, you convinced me that my cousin, Jorah, deserved another chance. You convinced me that he was a good fighter and a good man. Are you now saying that you were wrong?"

Lord Snow looked from Lyanna to his Queen. "No," he answered slowly. "I am not saying that I was wrong, Bear Island has held faith with House Stark for over a thousand years, when our home was in ruins, and occupied by a traitor, you were the first to raise your banner in our defence, you are a strong leader and your men respect you. I believe our Queen has good intent, but I believe that if she knew you better she would realise, as I do, what an asset you are."

"Jorah is also of House Mormont." Daenerys replied. "And he is proven in battle. I am sure Lyanna Mormont is capable, but this is war, Jon." Daenerys turned to Lyanna. "You are brave, Lady Mormont, but you are young. When we go to war for the Iron throne I need to know that the men of Bear Island are being led into battle by the best leader possible. It is time for you to forgive your cousin and hand the leadership of Bear Island to him."

The room was filled with gasps and cries of outrage, Lyanna Mormont however, apparently had already known this was coming. Ned's gaze moved to Lady Arya, but she was as unreadable as ever.

It was Lyanna that silenced the hall. "Enough! I want what is best for my people, and I will do whatever I must to meet their needs." She returned her gaze to Queen Daenerys. "You ask me to step down as the leader of Bear Island, that my cousin may lead our people into battle, then I will no longer be the Lady of Bear Island." She turned to Jorah Mormont. "Bear Island is yours, every stick, every stone, every tree, I have but one request."

"And what is that, cousin?" Jorah asked carefully.

"That I may choose my own husband." She replied calmly.

Jorah nodded thoughtfully. "Of course, when the time comes -"

"I've already chosen, if he will have me." Lyanna cut him off. To Ned's surprise she then turned around and started walking towards him. "Lord Umber, you have an interesting challenge and a unique opportunity ahead of you. I would like to be a part of it. It will take a lot to rebuild Last Hearth, but do it right, and it will become your legacy."

Ned looked at her in shock. "Lady Mormont, my house is in ruins, I have nothing to offer you."

Lyanna gave him a gentle smile. "You must plough a field before you can sow seeds, do things right, show strong leadership, and you will be surprised who will follow you. Let me help you, let us learn and grow together. I believe in what you can accomplish and I want to be a part of it. I know I am not a great beauty, but what I lack in looks I make up for in practicality. We are not a rich house, I cannot offer you a great dowry, but I can offer you this."

Ned was still in shock but he found himself nodding. She would make a far better wife than he could ever have hoped to obtain. He tried to find the words to express that to her. "I do not think I could find a purer, or more honest, marriage proposal if I searched the seven kingdoms." He replied. "If you are sure that this is what you want then I would be a fool not to accept."

"And are you a fool, Lord Umber?" Lyanna asked.

He shook his head. "I do not believe so, I would be honoured to be betrothed to you, Lady Mormont." Was this really happening? Was the young bear really asking to be his betrothed?

"Good, then it is done." Daenerys stated.

"One last thing." Lyanna replied. "Now that I am officially a part of House Umber, I feel obliged to make a request on my future husband's behalf."

Daenerys' eyes narrowed . "And what is your request."

"One blacksmith, one mason, one builder, one cook and permission to head immediately to Last Hearth and start rebuilding our home, we have but 12 men, we cannot spare them."

Jon replied before Daenerys could. "I believe that is a very reasonable request, but I would ask that you wait till morning that more supplies may be gathered to send off with you. I would suggest you talk with Arya and look at taking a few skilled orphans with you, a couple of fletchers at least."

A few of the finer details were finalised and the meeting continued. Ned was still in shock at what had happened but, as Lyanna slipped into the space beside him, he was suddenly hopeful for the first time a long while. He didn't have to do it alone anymore, it was a relief to have Lyanna Mormont's support. The rest of the meeting was lost to him, he vaguely heard Jorah requesting to return to Bear Island and gather more men, he half listened as other Lords made plans or swore troops, but none of it mattered. He kept stealing sideways looks at Lyanna Mormont, the fourth time he did so she slipped her hand into his and gave it a gentle squeeze before pulling her hand back. Maybe his house wasn't doomed after all?

~~/~~

Jorah couldn't quite believe that he was finally going home. He stood near the bow of the ship and watched as Bear Island came into sight. All of his men had been rather quiet, but they would come around in time. As they came closer he noticed how quiet Bear Island looked, he had expected to see more people. He reminded himself that he couldn't really expect people to be waiting at the docks to greet him, most of the fishing boats seemed to be out and many of the women would be busy inside. It was late in the afternoon when the ship docked, but he was surprised to realise that he didn't see the smoke of many cooking fires. He dismissed the thought as they made their way to the Keep.

Home. He hadn't quite realised just how much he had missed it. There were less servants than he had expected, but then he had taken on more servants than he could truly afford trying to keep his ex-wife happy. A reasonable meal was put on and the wine was good. All of the men, his men now, had returned with him, and they ate and drank with him in the hall. As the wine flowed they started raising toasts to him as the Lord of Bear Island and he realised that they were coming around.

He drank too much, and when a rather pretty maid offered to show him to his bed chambers he made a pass at her. She laughed and grabbed some wine to take with them, he didn't complain. He must have drunk more than he thought, the maid undressed him but he was struggling to undress her. Groggily he stumbled towards the bed but landed in the floor. It was only as he was about to pass out that it occurred to him that he might have been drugged.

He woke up in an empty room, no bed, no furniture at all, no clothes. This must be some prank, it did fit with the Bear Island sense of humour. Naked, he walked from room to room, but every room was empty, even the curtains were gone. He had no weapons and no clothes. Amusement moved to anger, and then to fear as he searched the entire Keep. Everything was gone, very person was gone. He finally found the kitchens, a place he had never been, but they were empty as well. No food, no pots, no people.

Eventually desperation drew him outside. Every house was wide open and empty. Anything not nailed down was gone. Every boat, every fishing rod or net was gone. Even the bucket from the well had been taken. Eventually he reached the gate by the forest. A dead bear was tied to it, and across the sign of house Mormont the following words were written in the bear's blood. "Every stick, every stone, every tree is yours."

He realised with disappear that Lyanna Mormont had kept her word and nothing more.

~~/~~