Bran

On the day of the tourney, Bran was woken before the sun had even risen.

He was excited, for today he would get to see a proper tourney, and better yet be a squire in one. Often he'd seen Jon and Robb or one of the old white knights or some other men at arms in the castle who would joust, but today was the first time it would be done in a grand event, not just a small bout in the yard.

Bran was squiring for Lord Caron, who he helped armor that morning. His lordship wore a splendid suit of black plate armor, while on his shield were the arms of House Caron, black nightingales upon a yellow field.

His horse was a chestnut warhorse named Sweetsong, who Bran quickly became quite fond of.

The only way this could have been any better for Bran was if he had been allowed to bring Summer, though both his father and Lord Caron had agreed that it would not be fit to bring Summer who scared many of the horses.

Yet Bran looked on with wonderment as the herald called forth those who were competing in the lists today.

He watched as many knights were called forth, Ser Jaime Lannister, the Kingslayer, dressed in golden armor with his white cloak flowing behind him. There were four other knights of the Kingsguard who were competing as well, Ser Preston Greenfield, Ser Boros Blount, Ser Meryn Trant and Ser Mandon Moore, though not all seven would be competing. Ser Arys Oakheart was still at Winterfell, serving as a sworn shield to Robb's wife, Princess Myrcella, while the Lord Commander, Ser Richard, was on Dragonstone with Lord Stannis.

Most had expected Lord Stannis to return to King's Landing for the tourney, or even send some of his sons who had won some renown in the list, yet they had not come, though Bran didn't think it too important to dwell on those absent. The Queen's own brother, the Imp, had not made it to the Tourney in time, afterall.

Lord Jason Mallister who had been one of the few to answer his mother's father's call during the Rebellion, and his son and heir, Patrek. There was Ser Balon Swann of Stonehelm, and Lord Beric Dondarrion of Blackhaven, who like Lord Bryce hailed from the Marches. The Master at Arms in the Red Keep, Ser Aron Santigar was there as well, Bran saw.

He watched as the Master of Laws, Lord Renly was called forth, followed by Ser Robar Royce, whose father Bran remembered had visited Winterfell some time past. There were the Redwyne Twins, as well who were called forth, followed by the Freys in attendance. One of them was to be Lord Bryce's first foe, Bran remembered, though he couldn't say which one.

When the men from Winterfell came, Ser Mark, Ethan Glover, Alyn, Martyn Cassel and Harwin, Bran thought they looked quite poor compared to the competition, though not so poor as some. Only Ser Mark Ryswell looked like he truly belonged among the competition there, though.

The was Ser Gregor Clegane, the Mountain, who was the largest man Bran had ever laid eyes upon, and his brother, the Hound, who was not as large, but still imposing.

None looked so splendid though as Ser Loras Tyrell, who were a beautiful suit of blue armor, and rode atop a white mare.

At one point, his lordship was introduced to the crowd, which Bran watched, as he rode forth and waved to the joyous crowd, before he eventually returned to the pavilion.

Bran also did not fail to note those in the audience. He saw his mother, who wore a blue dress in the colors of House Tully, while Sansa wore a green gown that brought out the auburn of her hair. Arya was absent though, as was father.

He spotted the royal box, where the king sat, along with the queen. Princes Joffrey and Tommen as well as Princess Lanna were there too, and many more high lords and ladies were scattered throughout the stands.

Bran watched as the first round of tilts began to unfold. Few of the matches were truly worth noting, as most were between fine knights and the lesser competition. The matches with men from Winterfell were the ones he had taken most interest in. He saw Ser Mark go against Ser Horas Redwyne though, who he managed to unseat, while Martyn Cassel unseated a squire that he went up against in his first match. Ethan Glover had drawn poorly though and went up against the Knight of Flowers in his first match, and lost quickly. And Alyn fell to Ser Merwyn Trant, while Harwin still awaited his first tilt.

Soon it was time for Lord Bryce's first joust, though. Bran felt his heart pounding as he helped place Lord Bryce's shield on his arm, before he gave him a lance, and backed away. He was going against Ser Danwell Frey, Lord Walder Frey's eight son, he heard the herald say. His arms were that of the twin towers of Frey, quartered with the boar of Crakehall, and he wore blue-grey armor mounted upon a black warhorse.

The trumpet was blown, and the two were off. Bran stood back as they got closer and closer, the two horses picking up more speed as they rode forward. They passed by one another, and Bran heard a splintering noise he knew to be the breaking of a lance, though he didn't know quite yet whose had broken. Both had held their saddle though, and rode to the other end. He saw that Ser Danwell still held his lance, unbroken, which meant it had been Lord Bryce whose lance had broken.

Someone else was there on the other side to give his Lordship a new lance though, and after they had both taken some time to recompose themselves, the two men made another pass.

This time, when the two rushed towards each other, Bran got a better look. Both Lord Bryce and Ser Danwell were able to strike blows against each other, with a snapping of the lances breaking, but he also heard a crash, as he saw Ser Danwell fall from his mount.

The Marcher Lord rode past Bran on the end, and made another pass around the lists, to the cheers of the crowd, while some men were aiding Ser Danwell back to his feet, and leading him off.

Bran himself was overjoyed to see his lord's triumph, as Lord Bryce returned to his side of the lists, and dismounted. He helped lead Sweetsong back to the pavilion.

The pavilion was emptier than most, Bran realized when they returned. He was the only squire, and there were only a handful of servants there to attend their lord, while others had more servants and some kin with them at least.

"Where is your kin, my lord?" Bran asked quietly when they returned, after having remained mostly silent save the occasional cheer earlier.

He saw a confused look flash upon the face of Lord Bryce, and Bran thought he had earned himself a clout on the ear, that father told him was standard when squires did something wrong.

But he only sighed. "I suppose you should have some right to know. My bastard brother remains at Night Song as Castellan."

"I have a bastard brother too… And a bastard sister..." Bran replied quickly. He wondered where Jon was now, having gone North to swear his vows as a brother of the Night's Watch. Perhaps he was walking the Wall even now, Bran thought, or doing battle with wildlings north of the Wall. And Jeyne had been married to Lord Blackwood's heir too, though the Blackwoods had not come to the tourney.

The Stormlord nodded at that. "My older sister wed a son of Lord Gulian Swann many years ago, with whom she has two daughters and a son. She resides with her husband at Stonehelm I suppose. My wife, Bethany, remains at Nightsong with our sons, Robert and Alaric. I suppose you and Robert would get along well, since you aren't dissimilar in age."

"And the rest?" Bran asked curiously, as the trumpet blew again, marking the beginning of a new tilt, this between a hedge knight from the Vale, Ser Luthor Brune, and another hedge knight from the Westerlands whose name Bran forgot.

"Near ten years past, my father and mother were carried off by a chill." Lord Bryce replied a bit sadly. "Not long after I met Beth while visiting Parchments, and within the fortnight we had wed. My sister Shella, married Lord Arstan Selmy, and gave him two sons in two years, before she died birthing twin daughters for him the next year, Laena and Myrielle. Arlan wed the then Maid of Tarth a few years past, and managed to get two children by her, though how remains a mystery to me." He shook his head, "How doesn't matter I suppose. Tell me of yourself."

Bran looked down for a moment. He didn't know what was worth telling, or not. So he told him everything, speaking of mother and father, Jon and Jeyne who were on their own adventures, Sansa and Arya, Robb and Rickon, who'd been left behind at Winterfell, and it all came spilling forth.

When he had finished, Lord Bryce simply nodded.

"Why do you wish to be a Kingsguard? To defend your sister's honor and guard her with her life, as Prince Aemon the Dragonknight once did? To earn glory like Ser Ryam Redwyne?" He asked.

Bran bit his lip. He'd always wanted to be a knight of the Kingsguard, he'd known, but when asked, he couldn't quite say why. It certainly wasn't to protect Sansa, he thought quickly, he was going to be a knight of the Kingsguard before that. He had grown up with some of the knights of the Mad King's Kingsguard too, but that wasn't it either, he decided.

"Robb is to be Lord of Winterfell, married to a Princess, and to rule the North…" He began to say. "Sansa is going to marry the Prince, and become a queen. Arya will marry some high lord one day."

"Yes…" The marcher lord urged.

"But what does that leave for me?" Bran finished.

Lord Bryce's face seemed to be knowing. Bran sensed that the lord understood why he wanted to be a knight of the Kingsguard better than he did. "So you wish to make your way in the world by becoming one of the famed Knight's of the Kingsguard?"

Bran nodded. "Yes… Yes my lord," he said.

"Good," the lord said, before they looked back towards the lists, where the second round of jousts had begun. The next match was between Ser Gregor Clegane and Ser Hugh, who was a knight from the Vale.

As the two men began to ride, Bran felt certain that it would be the Mountain who won this bout, and within a few moments, Bran was proved right as the young knight was knocked from his horse.

Bran heard the crowd gasp though, and he quickly saw what had happened, with the Mountain having hit Ser Hugh in the neck, where part of the tourney lance had splintered off and was killing the man.

The knight took several more breaths before his breathing seized. It reminded him of the Night's Watch deserter he had watched his father execute, even though father had taken his head cleanly, and allowed the man to speak his final words.

The jousts continued for the rest of the day. Lord Bryce defeated two more foes in the lists, before he fell to the Kingslayer, who had beaten everyone else he had faced as well, and his remaining foes today, leaving him as one of the four to move on to the second day of competing on the morrow, with the infamous Clegane brothers, and Ser Loras Tyrell.

At the feast afterwards, Sansa had told Bran all about how the Knight of Flowers had given her a red rose, rather than one of the white roses that he had given all the other ladies, and seemed half in love with him, while Bran simply ate, feeling satisfied with his first adventure.

Author Notes:

Hey it's another chapter…

Next chapter likely won't be coming for another few days (it's not done yet).

As you probably picked up from this chapter, House Caron is larger, as in canon we know that Lord Bryce's siblings, mother and father all died of sickness around the time of the Greyjoy Rebellion, but in this fic they survived, and so what became of them is outlined here in this chapter.

Thanks for reading guys, and as always I welcome your reviews, follows and favorites.

I do not own the rights to ASOIAF and never will.