House Runningwind of the Burrow- As told by Luwin Runningwind
Many people in Westeros believe that strength rules. Those who have the strongest armies, the strongest steel, or the strongest claim, are the ones who get what they want. They are not wrong, for thinking this way, but sometimes it's not how strong you are, but how quick you are, in both mind and body, that allows you to survive. House Runningwind knows this lesson well, for it is how we came to be.
Unlike many houses in the Reach, we do not claim descent from the legendary Gardner Kings of old. In fact, I would say they was no love between us and House Gardner in those days. While the Gardners ruled over their fertile lands, my ancestors actually lived off of them. We were trackers, traveling throughout the Reach, selling our skills as hunters, and lining our pockets whenever we could. Sneer if you will, but when you are always on the move, you take any advantage you can get, and my ancestors made sure that we took only took that what would not be easily missed. Unlike many others, we have seen the price of greed unchecked, it is not one that we wish to pay.
Unfortunately, like all things, nothing lasts forever. Our nomadic lifestyle came to an end when our founder, Rickon Runningwind, was captured by soldiers of House Tarly, and brought to the Highgarden to answer for his crimes. When he arrived, however, he found King Mern Gardner…distracted. For news had come that Aegon Targaryen, having dominated over the Ironborn and conquered both the Riverlands and the Stormlands, had now set his sights on the Reach. In response, King Mern had reached out to King Loren Lannister of the Westerlands, and the two kings had pledged to combine their forces to repel the invaders. You would think that, compared to the threat of enemies with dragons, a simple outlaw would be given a simple sentence, or even, simply overlooked, but King Mern and King Loren had other ideas. Instead of going to the dungeons, or simply being executed on the spot, Rickon found himself conscripted as a soldier into the newly combined armies of the Reach and the Rock. If the two kings thought that Rickon would be grateful for their judgement, they did not know Rickon at all, who silently cursed both of their names with every step he was forced to take. He was a hunter, not a soldier, and this was still a death sentence in his eyes, just a slower, and more painful one. Rickon resolved to live.
As the armies of the two kings finally engaged the Targaryens in battle, Rickon saw his chance. When Aegon and his sisters took to the sky on their dragons, Rickon dropped his sword and shed his armor. As the Dragons unleashed their fire upon the soldiers, Rickon did what he always did when faced with such a threat, he started to run. Rickon had always been fast for his age, it was said he could even match a horse at full gallop for short distances. Rickon had honed his quickness by chasing rabbits as a boy, never realizing these hunting games he played would one day save his life. Using his speed and agility, Rickon was able to move through the fires with such skill and swiftness, that the flames never touched him and Rickon was able to escape from the Field of Fire unscathed, but not out of danger. Blinded by the fire and smoke, Rickon failed to realize that he had run the wrong way, and now found himself face-to-face with all three Targaryens and their dragons. Aegon and Visenya were ready to have Rickon burned alive, but their sister, Rhaenys, stopped them. She claimed to have seen Rickon dodging the flames from the sky, and was impressed by the man's athletic skill. At least, that's what she said.
Sensing an advantage, Rickon told the Targaryens of how he had been forced to fight, and offered his services as a hunter and tracker in exchange for them sparing his life. Aegon agreed, and barely a fortnight later, Rickon repaid the Dragon's kindness by leading him to a weary, and slightly charred, King Loren Lannister. Unable to run any longer, Loren had no choice but to surrender, and so Rickon was able to repay his debt to the former kings of both the Reach and the Rock. As thanks for aiding in Loren's capture, and possibly for...other services provided as well, Rickon was granted lands, and a keep of his own. Knowing that he wasn't the only man that had been forced to fight that day, Rickon opened his new keep, and the services it provided, to many of the injured survivors of the battle from both sides, thus earning him the admiration of many of these battle-hardened warriors, and the respect of both House Targaryen and House Tyrell, their newly-named Wardens of the South.
Thus, House Runningwind was born, and we took the rabbit as our sigil, for it was by following the rabbit's movements, that our founder was able to escape the fury of, not just the Targaryens, but the Gardners and Lannisters as well. Even our words, 'Faster than Fire', serve to remind Westeros that our ancestor was one of the few who openly faced the Dragon, and emerged unscathed, because he was just as quick with his words, as he was with his feet.
Even today, we Runningwinds have always preferred speed over strength. Our soldiers fight with a style that is more in common with Bravosi Water Dancing, than with the swordplay you see elsewhere in Westeros. Because we say, why waste time blocking an attack, when you can simply stay out of your opponent's reach? Many people in Westeros call us foolish, or even cowardly, for embracing such a belief. To these people, we simply say: 'One cannot claim, what one cannot catch'.
And Cut!
Honestly, I didn't expect to get to the Reach until later on, but this lore just wrote itself one day, and I decided to roll with it. Let me know what you think!
One thing I'm trying to highlight in each of the houses I create is something I've noticed in a lot of House Lore videos I've seen, that many families pride themselves on specific traits or skills that set them apart. For the Lannisters, it's their golden hair and their regal nature. For the Tarlys, its their admiration of strength and obligation to tradition. Each of my houses has a unique skill that they take pride in. Can you see what they are?
Another thing that I like about the Lore videos, especially the House Lores, is that there are sometimes hidden messages that you can barely detect in the speaker's words. With that in mind, see if you can find the other reason why Rickon Runningwind was able to survive the Field of Fire. That's all I'm gonna say on that.
Glad to hear that people are enjoying these. I know I'm certainly enjoying writing them!
Until Next Time!