Rickon was even worse with the absence of his father and sisters. Between the constant hair pulling and refusing to go anywhere unless Jacqueline carried him, the boy had started to ask when his family would return to Winterfell. None of her answers satisfied him and he kept claiming that she was lying. And now even Robb was not spared Rickon's despair. The boy would now sneak out of bed at odd hours of the night and wake his brother up and ask about his father. Even Rickon's direwolf had become a bit more aggressive towards everyone and never seemed to cease howling.
Winterfell was still quiet days after the king left. Even with the wolves' howls, it was much quieter than King's Landing, an aspect which Jacqueline greatly appreciated. She missed sleeping in her own bed and the cold was still too much for her but she was comfortable in the silence. Jacqueline was so unlike Robert in that sense. The king was never one for quiet or stillness and he actively threw out any remains of such things from his presence. He was noisy and always talking, talking to anyone who would listen, friend or stranger.
Jacqueline did not like conversing with strangers all that much and almost everyone was a stranger to her since she did not really have any friends outside of her family. Part of that was Robert's fault, she believed. His refusal to make her a ward of some other great House meant she was never far away from her family. Jacqueline had spent the largest portion of her life in the capitol with Robert. Renly grew up at Storm's End, only taking a seat on the Small Council when he came of age and Stannis constantly traveled between Dragonstone and the capitol. When someone mentioned that Robert send her to Sunspear or Highgarden, Jacqueline remembered her brother's face turning red before he threw his cup of wine against the wall. She doubted that Robert would ever forgive the Martells and Tyrells for remaining loyal to the Mad King during his rebellion. So, she remained in King's Landing, which many thought was out of Robert's desire not to be completely surrounded by Lannisters.
Not that Jacqueline particularly minded. Even when Stannis and Robert went to war with the Greyjoys, Renly had visited the capitol. Why would she need friends when her family was right there? Everyone else in King's Landing, from the lords on the Small Council to her own handmaidens were simply acquaintances. The Lannisters were her family by marriage, but she never considered them her friends. The only person outside her family who she considered to be her friend was Ser Antario Belmore, her sworn shield, who had remained behind in the capitol with his pregnant wife. If she had known she would be left behind in Winterfell, she would have forced Ser Antario to join the trip north.
Night had already fallen as Jacqueline carried a sleepy Rickon out of the godswood and into the castle. The boy had spent most of the day running from her and chasing his direwolf and by the time Jacqueline caught up and announced it was time for bed, he was too tired to object. After putting Rickon to bed, she climbed the stairs to Bran's room. Jacqueline had taken to sitting beside the injured boy's bed with Lady Catelyn for a few minutes each night. Lady Catelyn never spoke to her, and half the time she doubted that the poor woman even knew she was there, but not did she send the girl away, so Jacqueline felt her presence was somewhat welcome.
Her footsteps were the only sound present in the castle, though the howls of the direwolves could be heard through the stone walls, as she made her way down the long hallway to Bran's room. She ran a hand through her hair in an attempt to fix the damage caused by Rickon's little hands. Her stomach rumbled quietly and Jacqueline wondered if it was too late to get a snack before bed. But all thoughts of a late night visit to the kitchens disappeared when a hand grabbed her hair roughly by the roots. Before she could scream, her head was pushed sharply forward and when it connected with the stone wall a loud crack echoed in Jacqueline's ears before her world fell into darkness.
Jacqueline opened her eyes but immediately shut them again. Why is it so bright? She thought before the voices interrupted her. There was more than one, each telling her wake up. She was lying down on a bed and a smooth pillow was placed under her head. The soft fur blankets brushed against her hands. When she finally opened her eyes again, she could make three faces that looked down at her in the dimness, but they were not the faces she wanted to see. I'm still in Winterfell. She thought sadly. "I…why…," It took her a moment to find the correct words. "What happened?" A cold breeze blew in from the open window which framed the night sky. A number of lit candles were scattered across the room to combat the darkness. They did not produce much light but she blinked against the brightness nonetheless. Jacqueline moved to push herself up into a sitting position but when she did a wave of bile swirled in her stomach and she had a hard time keeping herself from vomiting.
"You shouldn't move, my lady." Maester Luwin said as Jacqueline ignored him and the nausea and sat up. The effort exhausted her and she found herself wanting return to sleep. Robb and Theon were there with the maester and all three were looking at her. Her head ached, she felt dizzy and her stomach continued to twist, but their stares bothered her the most. She repeated her question.
"A man attacked you." Robb said, beginning the story of how Jacqueline had come to wake up with a head wound. Before making his way into the castle, and meeting her in the hallway, the man had set the library tower afire. The man must have thought the fire would bring everyone outside, leaving Bran alone. But it did not turn out that way. The man had easily knocked Jacqueline unconscious but he found more trouble once he was in Bran's room. When the man brandished a knife, Lady Catelyn tried to defend her injured son, getting herself injured in the process. In the end, Bran's direwolf ripped the man's throat out before he could kill anyone.
Before Jacqueline could ask why someone would want to kill Bran, Maester Luwin insisted that she needed more rest. The three men bid her a good sleep and walked out of the room, closing the door firmly behind them. She thought of ignoring the maester and crawling out of the fur covered bed and resume her planned trip to the kitchens. Curious, she raised a hand to her head and the spot where it had hit the wall. A small knot was present under her hair and a sharp pain erupted when she touched it. The pain did not go away and Jacqueline eventually conceded, rolling over in the bed and closing her eyes.