A/N: about my long hiatus, my PC's UPS (uninterruptible power supply) died a year ago, which is bad because the power where I'm at is garbage, I needed a UPS to keep my PC from turning buggy, but due to the fact the Game Plan for handling COVID for the entire Island of Mindanao is "CHICKING BOXES", I haven't been able to get a replacement USP.

Also, due to it being the stormy season, meaning the antiquated power grid the internet cables are piggybacking on keeps getting knocked down or severed completely, the internet goes out for days even weeks at a time, normally this would last from march to june, but since the pandemic has put the cities utilities and personnel on a bit of a strain, it's been left to the back burner, not that I could complain, I do, but that does as much help as changing the tires on an upturned car.

Lastly, I've been sick as a fuckin dog from the flue for about a month, not RONA, the flue, ive been sick before and for whatever reason it fucks me up for a month everytime, no idea why but it does. but, I'd be a fool to tell the official here, they literally put an entire family on house arrest just because one guy's elderly father showed symptoms, (later it was found out he had a cold) they only way they could test him was at a hospital, but since they were understaffed they just parked a car in front of his gate and tossed in some instant ramen, for 14 days and nights the poor guy, his wife and three kids had to hotbox with his father who may or may not have RONA. I heard the old man was so scared to inflict his son and his family that he locked himself in the bathroom and refused to come out until the quarantine was over. Of course the guy was not politically connected, so he couldn't complain to anybody. A few people I know said he was screaming from out his window about how they were treating him and his family like livestock, and only when his friends and neighbors started complaining too, Did a health worker come and test the old man on the day their quarantine was to end.

A/N: I've recently done the numbers and I realized that if Lyanna were older than Eddard she'd be married to Robert already, or to Rheagar, so for this fic to work she has to be as young as she was in the books, so if you could all disregard that little detail from my previous chapters, that be great :-D

A/N: I know its later than I commented but, shout out to Perfectcell69 for writing "Maddard Stark: the Mad Wolf" reading it kept me from going on a longer hiatus, after another grueling lockdown on account of the Delta Variant arriving in my hometown. It only took one, for all of us to pay for it.

A/N: if any of you guys could recommend a fic where Eddard is the MC, it would be much appreciated!

Westeros, Winterfell, Winter Town, 281AC.

"This place hasn't changed" I thought as the image of Wintertown greeted me and my men, the shacks and shanties that surrounded Winterfell were all hastily built and poorly planned, every summer they'd be abandon, allowing the weather and wilderness to enter, now that winter was coming they began to repair and reinforce their homes again.

During winter, isolated villages become breeding grounds for the weak and wicked alike, and the longer winter lasted the shorter the villager's lives became, there was never a way to truly predict how long a winter would last, if the gods cared it would last two years, if they were cruel it would last seven, only the gods knew what could happen in that time, so they come where there are more people. More people meant more warm bodies to huddle around and share their warmth, if they were lucky enough, the lord of the castle could hire them and then they'd be safe from danger, from the outside anyway.

I was being escorted by fourteen Heavy Infantry and six Rangers, we had landed near the northern Border of the Neck, as close as we could manage without alerting Whiteharbor, the Manderlys were one of the most loyal Houses to the Starks, for that reason they'd detain me and inform Lord Rickard in a heartbeat, so to avoid that me and my men dragged the skiffs to shore, emptied them of everything, weighed them down with big rocks and sank them into a pool near the shore.

We couldn't risk bringing horses with us on the skiffs, it was far too easy to track horses as they were heavier and their prints were distinct, especially when the ground was now hardened enough by the cold that it could retain any tracks for longer, since it's harder to erode naturally, the Manderlys frequently patrolled there borders, a habit they picked up after centuries of the Boltons, Karstarks and many other jealous lords sending men to harass and trespass on their land, they may have lived in the North for hundreds of years but they will always be the 'Andals in the North'.

So we had to buy a few horses at a time from each village we came across to hide our real numbers, the first village was Coldhorn, to insure that no one would recognized me from the last time I was here, I had ordered one of the Rangers to wear My Captain's cape and go into the village posing as the leader, I picked the youngest of them, kalin, he shared Howland's boyish looks and had the fare features of a Westerosi.

Before Kalin's return the other rangers came across a band of wildlings while scouting the area, while the rest of my men were hiding out in the forest so they may give Kalin support should he need it, seeing an opportunity, I had them surround the Wildlings and set up an ambush, the battle started when another one of the rangers named hajus, jumped into the center of the fire pit and used the Glaisimir technique to kill five men in one swing, it ended when the Heavies bolted out of the forest and chopped the other Wildlings to pieces before any of them knew what was happening, the other rangers didn't even need their bows

I had brought with me the best that the Rose could offer, each Ranger could use bow, and perform the iaijutsu (or Glaisimir as Howland had renamed it) with astonishing speed and accuracy, the ones making up my honor guard were hand picked by Howland for being the fastest of their detachment, while the Heavies were hand picked by Willis for their excellence and experience in multiple battles, as well as ferocity and familiarity in tight formation, a skill easily transitioned to the Close Quarter Combat required when guarding Me or mine in narrow passages and restrictive paths.

After Kalin returned with the horse and carts we retraced our steps and collect the loot we had brought with us, after that my party finally headed for Winterfell, while stopping at every other village we came across to buy more horses, by the time we reach my home, all of the Heavy Infantries were on horseback, while all the Rangers were on the carts keeping a lookout, one cart stored their gear and supplies and had three horses to haul it with three rangers to guard it, the other stored several treasures and trinkets that I wanted to gift my family, as is customary when returning from long journeys.

"Who goes there!" One of the three guards around the Entrance to the Eastern gate shouted at my approach and pulled me from my musing. I looked up at the man and gestured for my men to stop with an open hand and they did.

I hopped off the horse I was riding and walked to the guards with my chin held high and all the calm confidence of a noble "I am Eddard of house Stark, son of the Lord of Winterfell, let me pass" I said, as the men behind me began to dismount from their horses as well.

The guards looked at me, then they looked at the tall men standing behind me, then the guards looked at each other, "this way" one of the guards said after lacking enough evidence, or intelligence, or authority to turn me away, he and the others led me and my party within the Castle, while the people within and without looked on in confusion and fascination.

Under the stone arches, over the cold mud, and passed the murky Moat, I walked once more into my Father's Keep, from which his father and his father before, ruled the dim desolate domain of the North.

There I stood once again, beneath the walls and towers of Winterfell, it hadn't changed since I left, as all think is the North rarely ever do, the memories flood my mind of my years growing within this fortress, here in the North things were made to endure the terror and torment of time. There may be some unknown face or misplaced crate or newly rebuilt stable, but it was the same as when I was first carried here by my mother as babe, when I became acutely aware of that fact, when Ito Sanjero died and became Eddard Stark, Confusion and curiosity ruled me in those days. I had endeavored to observe and understand the world I had been born into, from the smells and smiles of the castle staff, to the moods and mannerism of my new family, the Starks of Winterfell.

Meanwhile…

the people working inside the castle slowly began to notice me standing in the middle of the eastern bailey, some were curious of me and the green cape I was wearing, others were more interested in the two carts behind me, which were filled to the brim with barrels and boxes, they would have come closer to me and asked of my business if it were not for the tall muscular men that surrounded me.

As more and more gathered around me, the people began to talk and theorize about who I was, gossip and rumor were the only means of information that existed between the common folk, actual messages and memos were only available to the nobles, as their voices grew so did their boldness, carefully they moved closer to see my face, perhaps one of them would recognize me and give credit to my claims, but as they did so, I heard my Father Lord Rickard Stark walked into the Bailey and I turned to see meet his eyes.

They were blue as mine, yet darker and deeper, like stormy skies over the sea, his brow had creases were before there were wrinkles, the people ungathered as their Lord walked up to the me, he was older now his hair was more grey than the pitch black crown I remembered him having, as was his beard, it was still clean and cropped close to his chin, but, grey peppered it generously, he was still taller than I was, he was lean not lanky, something I doubt would ever change.

"My Lord Stark" I said, bending my knee "I've come bringing gifts and-" I was cut short by the sound of approaching hoofbeats.

"NED!" I turned to the source of the familiar voice, from an unseen corner My sister Lyanna Stark rode to me, her scream cut through the calm and pulled everyone out from pensively watching their Lord and I, before anyone could stop her, Lyanna jumped off her horse and into my waiting arms, Lyanna's stunt would have knocked a lesser man on his back, but she had done this before in our youth so I easily absorbed her momentum and brought her into a loving embrace, she was still so small in my arms growing only in height and not weight, I suspected.

"NED!" another voice rang out from somewhere, the crowd turned to look and saw the heir of Winterfell charge at his brother as if to catch me, thinking I would disappear again, he engulfed both me and Lyanna into a tight suffocating hug and lifted us both a foot off the ground, I felt wetness on my cheeks and realized that he and Lyanna had started crying happy tears at finally seeing their long lost brother.

"That's enough" Rickard said and turned to walk back to the keep "come with me to my solar"

"My Lord" I spoke up from between my siblings to catch my father's attention, Rickard turned and looked at his son, "I have brought gifts from my time in Essos, may my men bring them inside the Great hall"

"Do so quickly" was all Rickard said before turning and leaving for his solar.

"Bran, could you please tell the guards to show my men where the hall is?" I whispered into my brother's ear, Brandon nodes while his face was still buried in the crook of my neck.

Brandon pulls his head away from me and says "Ronney, take them to the Great Hall"

"Aye, m'lord" the guard answered and gestured for the tall men to follow, the tall men looked at their king, I pulled my hands free from my brother and sister's embrace.

[Follow, no fight] Brandon raised his eyebrows at my hand gesture, the tall men all raised their hands in unison accepting my command, my brother, sister and all present paused at the display but kept quiet, then my guards led the horse and the carts to where the Stark guards were leading them, normally four or so men would stay behind to escort me but I instructed them earlier to be at ease, this was my home and my people after all.

"Why did you leave?" Lyanna whispered, still crying into my shoulder, she was clutching to me like a cold kitten clinging to its mother.

"I had to" was all I said, I would say far more when I was with all of my family, but that was for later for now I had to placate my Father, I kissed my sister on her forehead, I was still taller than her but still shorter than Brandon, I wonder if my absence in their live had changed them at all. The people that surrounded them began to disperse and disappear out of the baily, not wanting to intrude on the siblings' tearful reunion.

For a long while they stood there, breathing in my scent through the flehm that was barring their nostrils as if to renew and reinforce their memory of me, the two Starks calmed themselves by feeling me in their arms, then another moment passed and another, until I felt the need to remind them of Lord Rickards order.

"I need to speak to father" I said in pained voice, slowly Lyanna and Brandon laxed their grip on me, "we will speak longer later, I promise"

"If you run off again, I'll drag you back myself, even if I have to swim across the Narrow sea" Brandon threatened as I inched away from him with a smile.

"And I'll cut off your legs so you'll never run again" Lyanna tried to say without her voice hitching, wiping the tears from her eyes, I simply nodded with a smile at them both, and began my trek to my Father's solar.

Moments later…

The smell was always the first thing you remember when you come back after so long, dry moldy stone of the walls and halls, and wet muddy earth of the grounds and gardens, the scents of thousands of people living and dying within and without the walls of the castle.

"They're making lemon cakes today, hurry before Bran eats them all" I hear my Mother say in my memory, "I'm coming mother!"

Inside the fortress itself, the heat hits you like walking into a the central forge of Rose Kingdom, but it is not a burning heat rather it is a beckoning one, Winterfell was famously built on top of a hot spring, the walls were hollowed out to allow the hot water to course through them like blood through man's body, where the hot spring came from was a mystery to everyone, even Brand the builder himself could not explain its existence as there was only one active volcano in all of Westeros, Dragonstone, but it was too far south to be the reason, some claim a dragon lives beneath the castle, other say it is a blessing from the Old Gods.

"You've been reading here all day Ned, come to play with us" I hear my sister say in the back of his mind, a memory that commingled with the old.

As I walked through the corridors of the castle, servants who see me, bow and curtsy at the sight of my solemn face and splendid attire, the rumor mill in Winterfell was always turning even in winter, as it did in my youth so too will it now that I had returned, by tomorrow the whole castle would know of my arrival, along with numerous presumptions of where I had been all these years. I climbed up the stairs and down another hall, as I passed another window overlooking the Courtyard, I saw my men leading the horses to where Stark guards were escorting them to the stable.

"Keep your feet down, she'll throw you off if she bucks" my Father said to me, the first time Eddard ever rode a horse, it was Jero's first as well, they're farmers not herders, they had oxen and goats, but no horses.

I reached the Lord's solar, two guards stood on either side of the door, they looked at him and then lightly tapped on the door, "my Lord Stark, Lord Eddard has come to see you"

"Let him in" an old voice came from the room, the guards dipped their heads and opened the door. I walked in and drank on the site of my father's solar.

My father sat behind his desk which had piles of papers and parchments, Rickard sat there staring at me with cold grey eyes with his balled hands on the desk, I bowed to my father who kept his gaze and didn't return the courtesy, I then removed his green cloak and draped it over a chair in front of the desk and sat in it without Rickard's permission, rather than stretch the silence between us, I spoke first.

"When I was a boy, I asked you if you would love me forever?" I said with a pained smile on my face, when Jero was born into this world he had thought that Rickard was like the original Ned from the show, coarse yet kind, like Jero's father, Hanma Ito. "Do you still love me now father?"

"Why did you leave, Ned?" Rickard ignored Eddard's question, the original Ned reminded Jero so much of his father Hanma, a good man trying to live in a bad world, that was why he started watching the show.

"do you remember what you called me when I was still a boy?" I asked back with a sigh, I needed this conversation to go where I needed it.

"The quiet Wolf" Rickard answered while keeping his rage from reaching his face, remembering how Eddard rarely cried during his childhood.

"I wasn't quiet, you just didn't listen" I leaned back into the chair and rested my arms on its armrests, I had planned this conversation in my mind a thousand time already "when I told you Tywin Lannister was the better choice for a fostering, you didn't listen, when I told you Jaime was the better choice for Lyanna, you didn't listen"

"Don't you fucking bring that up again!" Rickard bit out and slams his hand on the table, unable to swallow his rage any longer "what do you know of Tywin Fucking Lannister boy!?"

"I didn't come here to argue the matter, I just want you to understand" I said unflinching to his father's outburst, I knew Rickard would never beat his children, which is why Brandon acts out so brazenly, and why Lyanna is so rambunctious, "I now know I have never held any sway over you, Father"

Rickard frowns and furrows his brow at my answer, "as a babe I pestered you with my 'inventions and ideas', but you would always ignore them to educate your Heir and only Daughter" reminiscence flashed over Rickard's face before he schooled it again, "so when I became older, I simply did as I wished without consulting you first".

Even outright ignoring his orders altogether, as I knew Rickard would always deny my requests, I thought, Rickard would then punish me for my disobedience, not that it did anything to stop or slow my behavior, which in turn strained our relationship even further "I wanted to be King, of my own Kingdom, father"

"A place where my will is the will of its people"

"So you are the Rose King then" Rickard said, there had only ever been rumors of the goings on in Essos, rumors of a growing army of sellswords and former slaves that even the Dothraki have begun to fear. But only those that do business there, like the Manderlys, were the only ones to hear them and it is from the Manderlys that the Lord of Winterfell would hear the rumors, that is if he could be bothered to listen.

"Yes, father" I needed Rickard to say no.

The Eddard that now sat in his solar was not the boy Rickard remembered "is that why you are here then?" Rickard asked with a tired tone, he looked at His son who returned his gaze as he sat there calmly, the words left a bitter taste in his mouth, like the residue left after vomiting out bile, "to lord your success over me and mine, to show me my faults and failings?"

"To see you all again… and to say goodbye" I answered immediately, I then stood up and walked to the window which overlooked the castle grounds and the lands beyond the walls, "the Rose army is preparing for a large scale attack against a foreign and formidable enemy"

"Whether we win or lose, they will still need me with them" I said and looked at my father, his shock was subtle, but i saw it on his face as he sat behind his desk, "this is the last time I will ever see you all again"

'He must say no' I thought, 'it all hinges on Rickards answer'

A silence fell in the room, the sounds that would have been drowned out by idle conversation could now be heard, the men working below, servants walking in the halls just behind the door, and even the birds outside, Rickard took a deep breath and asked with a sigh, "who?"

"The Dothraki of Vaes Dothrak" I answered matching my father's dower tone, "we will hit them where they live and where they cannot fight"

"How so?" Ricakard asked.

"During the next winter we will turn the lands near Vaes Dothrak into a nightmare for their horses, then when summer comes we will provoke them"

"And you have the numbers to accomplish such a feat?" Rickard asked with hidden surprise.

"One Hundred thousand men" Eddard answered with barely hidden pride "all armed, all armored, able and eager"

"So this is it then, you'll leave your kin behind?" Rickard asked, a scowl formed on his lip.

"Yes" I said as he sat back in his seat and intertwined his fingers "I will tell Mother, Bran and Lya tonight at dinner"

Rickard looked at his son, truly looked at him, he was older now, his shoulders were broader and his face had lost all the softness of childhood and gave way to the sharp serious features of adolescence, Brandon had grown the same, yet his face always held a smile or a smirk, ready to disarm you with his strength and skill or with his charm and charisma.

"Or" Rickard was pulled from his musing at the sound of my voice, "I don't attack the Dothraki and send my men elsewhere"

"Where then?" Rickard asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"Here… " I say in a soft voice, hoping he didn't hear it as a threat.

I paused letting Rickard absorb the implication, he froze at my words, his eyes narrowed and his lip thinned realising my intent, "and what would I need of a hundred thousand more mouths to feed, King Eddard?"

"You could let them pass the Neck" I hazard. "With you and me at the head"

'He must say it' I could hear my heart raise as my thoughts ran havoc in my head 'say no'

"To what end?"

"The North's independence"

Rickard looked at me with hate and humiliation, his sneer widened revealing white teeth and his brows came together in an ugly shape, he stood from his seat and propped himself up with his knuckles, "when last I looked, I, Rickard Stark was Lord of Winterfell"

"In the name of his Grace, Aerys Targaryen" I countered.

Rickard looked at me with such rage I feared he might reach over and throttle me, but he didn't, he simply closed his eyes and let out a breath he was holding, he turned away from me and said, "what do you know about being King Ned?" he looked at me with disappointment in his eyes.

"I built a Kingdom" I answered with my chin raised.

"for all the years you've spent in Essos conquering those savages, with those savages" Rickard sneered towards the window, "did it ever accrue to you that maybe you needed to actually be a king?"

a silence fell in the solar, not a calm or comforting quite, a cold quite, but it's what I wanted, Rickard had given his answer but not his word, if I wanted my eventual succession to Northern throne to be legitimate, there must be no doubt of my absence after the rebellion begins, if Rickard agreed to my offer I would be honor bound to aid him, with an army stretched thin by my campaigns and be unable to defend the city of Eddar before the completion of its defenses, nor could I properly man the Rose Kingdom if my army marched before it was time, if I didn't offer him my aid and army I would be seen as an uncaring son, unfit to rule a Kingdom that ran on Honor.

"May I be excused father" Eddard said softly hoping he'd excuse me "I would like to present myself to mother"

"You've never needed my permission" Rickard said tiredly, keeping his grey eyes on his estranged son.

Eddard slowly stood up from the chair and walked to the door, he waited for Rickard to say a parting word just before he left, as he always did when he was done scolding son, a sort of affirmation that he still cared for him, but as Eddard griped the handle and pulled the door open he heard not a word, Eddard continued without closing the door, expecting one of the guards outside to close it for him, still he heard nothing from inside his father solar, no reprimand for keeping the door closed or a an order for the guards close to bring him back, as he reached the bottom of the stairs he heard the door close and nothing else.

I needed the North to be mine, not my father's, not my brother's. mine and mine alone, even if it meant piling the bodies of my father, brother, and sister. Only in the North dose the legend of the white walkers are even remotely taken seriously, only in the North well any defense defeat our Doom, if the North fell the Sothern kingdoms and the cities of Essos themselves would be an army of corpses before they'd even thing of working together, the North is where it shall end for one side, or the others'.

Essos, Rose Kingdom, Central forge, 281AC.

The lands surrounding the Kingdom of the Rose were covered in a thin yet tough layer of white, the rains had finally stopped, now only snow fell upon the youngest Kingdom in Essos and with the snow came the cold, the once muddy roads and murky rivers had all frozen and fused into one solid slippery slab of ice, farming and fishing had all completely halted as it always had winters before, But not this winter.

'War, war never changes' Iggar thought as he and his horse were lead into the Central Forge, the gates were too big and heavy to swing outward like all the others in the Kingdom, instead they slid apart on steel wheels and hidden away into cavities on either side, when it's fully open it was wide enough to allow four ox driven carriages through with wide berths between them, for the past year they haven't been closed at all.

'we are far from the sell swords we once were, but even with better equipment education and experience, war hasn't changed, even now as the entire Kingdom's work force was being used to ramp up production, we are still under supplied, even with every child born or brought to the Kingdom was now being taught and trained, they were still green boys, even with more food and gold than we knew what to do with, the men still wanted more, with King Eddard and his friends gone, and Edmyne given command to established a stronghold in Eddar, I alone was task with maintaining the Kingdom. we may have become larger but so did our problems, but at least we had something to keep us all busy'

Iggar is pulled from his thoughts when the man riding beside him tapped his shoulder. [bring attention, greet Boss] the man gestured with his hands with an expression of inquiry.

Iggar responded by shaking his head and pressing a finger to his lip, even a moment of delay could not be spared, the man accepted the answer with a nod and singed Iggar's orders the rest of the men with them, they then dismounted after they arrived at the 'inventory' station.

Iggar silenced any who attempted to stop their work and address him properly, the inventory station is where all the shipments of materials and the men who process them are kept and catalogued, it was manned and managed by a rotating retinue of engineers, they ensure the central forge never runs out of iron and coal, after Iggar is informed on the current situation of the supplies and subordinates, he moves on to the catwalk overlooking the entire forge, he hears the blacksmiths working long before he sees them.

Iggar's mistrust over Eddard's abilities had eroded over the years, and since his coronation it had been replaced by adoration, as he is met by the site of men walking on tall wooden bridges, hauling burlap bags filled with iron sand and dumping them into hoppers that feed directly into one the ten massive forges that make up the Central Forge, below them on platforms were other men taking turns running on massive wheels that power the bellows that breath life into the fire, all worked in perfect unison doing their part and giving way for the next to do his.

But the deafening noises that were the reason they padded the walls and halls with bales of straws and bundles of sticks, were made exclusively by the blacksmiths, bladesmiths, armorers, and upholsterers, they were spread out over the beaten soil of the forge, each having their own station to hammer and hone, shape and sharpens the iron into arms and armors.

'A war was coming, a war that needed so much metal and so much men, my hands shake and my bone ache, it's coming soon, Gods help us' Iggar thought as he peers out upon his King's war machine, the site was like that of some apocalyptic hellscape, even thought the windows and hatches of the forge were all closed to keep the keep heat in, it was not dark, the light from the countless torches and furnaces burn away the shadows in every corner the forge like a forest fire, the hymn of hammers and screams of steam echo and arc in the air, from this cacophony of chaos comes lakes of leather and mail, rivers of rivet and rail, and streams of swords and spears, all combine and connect into an ocean iron that shall wash away the Dothraki sea itself.

A/N: merry Christmas you'll!