Chapter 2: The Mother

…

Q/A

Ragnarshadow: The use of planswalking can damage the planeswalker? You said because they need rest or something?

Lore wise, it didn't concretely state how much it damages planeswalker. WotC decided to intentionally keep it vague. A rule of thumb is that planeswalking requires focus, the more focus the more accurate your destination be. Thus, the first planeswalk will lead you to a random location, given that most planeswalkers has no knowledge of the multiverse before they become one.

I took some liberty to translate this into repeat use in short time frame can cause damage to the planeswalker. There must be a reason for planeswalkers fight with their signature brand of magic, instead of teleport all over the place like in Dragonball.

Pnguyen18: Yes dude yes, is his dragon father Bolas? Please let him be Bolas that will let Jon fuck everybody up in Westeros.

I intend to explore more about the emotions and reaction to changes the people of Westeros didn't fully understand, more than a power fantasy though. So, Bolas is unlikely. Perhaps an Extra-chapter about what-if scenario. Let's face it, Westeros and Essos are too insignificant for Bolas anyway.

Konda020946: This has potential. Is this pre or post eldritch moon or pre-post war of the spark.

First of all, thank you.

This will be pre-Eldritch moon by a long while. I plan to have Jon growing up and experience life as a planeswalker. Hence, Avacyn is yet to be liberated from the Hellvault.

If the timeline does not match, I blame Sarkhan messing up time on Takir. 😊

I plan to do both War of the Spark and the Battle of Winterfell. I believe it allows me to show a great contrast of the power scales, without going a full power fantasy route.

The way I see it, Long Night is just normal cold days on Innistrad.

…

Previously

"Mother?" He asks her as he stares longing into her eyes. His eyes gleamed purple with power.

Well. Shit. She is going to need a long of assistance in raising this pup.

…

"Mother? Is that you? Am I dreaming?" asked Jon Snow. He stands up and tried to walk toward her but suddenly found himself unable to walk properly. The precise control of his limbs is suddenly become so hard, as his arms and legs start flailing around without any pattern, making him fall flat. Lucky for him, his 'Mother' is there to stop him from breaking his face.

"Easy now child. Easy." She said as she hugged him. "You are not yet used to your new strength."

Strength? What is she talking about? Jon thought to himself."I …." He wants to ask her everything, but he is interrupted.

"Are you hungry? Little pup?" Asked his 'Mother'. "I hope you wouldn't mind some rabbit and pheasant. Or do you like me to make you a stew? You need to wait a little bit though."

Jon looks at the meat she brought, and his mind goes blank. He reaches for the meat as best he can, which is a hilarious sight to behold by itself and tries to devour it as if he was a starved beast in the presence of food. His arms are not that functional as he would like it to be, so instead of snatching the meat out of his 'Mother' hand, he fumbles around like a paraplegic octopus under an epileptic seizure. It takes him about 5 minutes before he can finally get the meat into his mouth.

"Slow down, little pup. You don't want to choke, do you?"

"HUMMPH MHHPMH …" He tries to talk with his mouth full. An action that earns a chuckle from the older woman. "…. Hrrrrrk" And what do you know? He chokes almost instantly.

Lucky for him, she knows how to do a Heimlich maneuver. She moves fast too. Sooner than Jon realized, his 'Mother' somehow embraces him from behind. She holds her hands and places just below his ribcage, and yanks inward so hard it forces all the air from his lung out and the clocked meat with it. She does it again, and again, and again, just to make sure that he is fine.

"Eat. Slowly." She said once again. This time slower and more demanding. "Then we talk, okay?"

Great, the first moment I meet mother, I mess up so hard she scolds me. Thought Jon. He feels weird just to fight the urge to do something so savage. He notices that his self-control is almost non-existent, and he feels bad about it. Hopefully, his 'Mother' will explain everything.

…

That's it. The ritual last night was a bad idea. Perhaps this is why there is no werewolf child. Thought the older planeswalker. It's amusing none the less.

In front of her, the boy tries hard to keep control of himself and fails miserably. The failure is so adorable, she needs all the strength she had to stop her from hugging him and rubbing her face over his.

To her surprise, the boy devoured 5 rabbits and 3 pheasants, which is an impressive feat considering his size. Wolf spirt react differently to him. I should be careful.

"Getting full yet boy?" She asks as the boy in front of her starts licking his fingers. "Of course, you are."

…

"So. What's your name?" asked Jon. This is a bizarre experience for him. Finally, he found his mother and he is spending time with her. Yet, he doesn't even know her name. What kind of son am I? He internally sighs.

"My name is Arlinn Kord. What's yours?" is her reply.

Strange, he has never heard of house Kord before. She has a northerner looks, yet he feels that something is not quite right. Worsening yet, how does she doesn't know his name. Does his lord father take him away and cut all contact with her? That's unlikely. Even though his lord father refuses to even talk about her, he could always see that lord Stark loves his mother, maybe even more so than he loves lady Catelyn.

Then why does she doesn't know my name? Is she the one who wants nothing to do with me in the first place? Then why does she save my life and look at me with loving eyes? Nothing makes sense.

As his thought is in a turmoil, Jon disappointingly answers "Jon. Jon Snow."

"Snow?" She curiously repeats.

"Yes. Snow. All bastard of the north is named Snow, mother." Jon is confused. How could she don't know this?

"North is quite a relative term for the likes of us, little pup. Anyway, I'm not your mother."

"….." Jon wants to scream but nothing come out. His wistful eyes dimmed instantly. His heart stops as his blood run cold. "Oh." Oh, indeed. Having a perceive reality collapse right in front of him is too much for an eight years old child to bear.

"I am so sorry, Lady Kord. I mistake you for someone else." Said Jon, as his eyes water and his voice shaken. The change from his cheerful demeanor just a moment ago is clear as day. "I need to return to Winterfell. Lord Stark must be worried."

…

That's it. Arlinn finally confirms that she has no idea about how to comfort a child. All her studies under the church at Avabuck was bullshit. Church of Avacyn encourages its follower to tell the truth to stay off Innistrad's darkness. This is not the church's first lie she realized, and she is sure it would not be the last.

Then why does the pup is so devastated by the truth? And why does it bother me so much that he does?

"Jon." She calls his name. "Calm down and listen to me. Please." She sits on the stone bed Jon used to lie on and pats the space beside her, beckoned the boy to sit beside her.

"Milady, I …."

"SIT!" She demanded like an angry mother. The boy obeys the order as best he could, considering his limbs still not fully functional. Whether it is because he still sees her as his mother or because she is the alpha of their pack, she doesn't know.

She could only hope it is the former.

"Jon." She calls his name again. She moves her hand and places it on his shoulder. "There is something you need to understand."

The boy looks at her with a blank stare and says nothing.

"Do you know where this place is?"

…

Jon Snow is at loss. The question that Arlinn had asked him is … strange. Why does she ask him about where he is? Is she also lost?

"Some woods near Winterfell? Wolfswood perhaps." He answers. Not sure whether it is correct or not since he only heard about the stories or see it written in books. He is still deemed too young to tag along with the hunting party.

She laughs at his answer. It is not a sarcastic laugh either, it is very genuine. Something that lady Catelyn never did before. "By Avacyn's grace, no. You are no longer in Winterfell anymore, Jon. This place …" She pauses and picks up a stick to write something on the dirt. "This forest is called Ulvenwald. A great ancient forest of Innistrad."

Jon gives out a confusing look. "I'm sorry milady. I have never heard of either Ulvenwald or Innistrad, before. Pray tell, milady, wherein Westeros is this place exactly?"

He feels that she squeezes his shoulder even tighter. It feels … nice? "Little pup. I'm afraid you are not in Westeros anymore." She said. "I know it would be hard for you to believe, but please listen to my explanation."

She turns him toward her. His now purple gleamed eyes now met with her browns. "You and I, we belong to a special group of beings called planeswalkers."

"Planeswalker?"

"Yes. Jon. Planeswalker. But to understand about being a planeswalker, one must understand to concept of the multiverse …."

She starts to explain it all to him while using the stick to draw figures on the ground. Well, maybe not all of it, for she doesn't know the whole truth herself. But, at least, she teaches him all she understood about the multiverse.

…

Time passed. Seconds turn to minutes and minutes turn to hours.

"…. Each plane is different, Jon. Here, the dead do not rest, and dangers lurk everywhere. Ravnica is just one large city that covers the entire plane. On Theros, Gods are real, and their action dictates the life of its people. Tarkir is a land of a constant war…"

Arlinn story goes on and on. Meanwhile, Jon carefully listens to her every word.

…

"… I myself don't know much about other planeswalkers. The Lord of Innistrad, Sorin Markov, is one. However, I would prefer you to stay away from him as much as possible. There is one on Takir but he is a mad man. I once met one who claims she hails from Kamigawa, but I have never been to that plane. There is also a boy who is a bit older than you, traveling with his dog …"

The story is mesmerizing, Jon must admit. It also seems so farfetched, but he wants to believe it's true. Arlinn tells him even more stories that take even more time. Soon, he finds himself listening to her until sundown.

…

"…. And that's all I understand about being a planeswalker. It's not much, I have to admit. Your harsh fever must have triggered your spark to ignite and sent you here. I'm glad that I found you when I have. Innistrad is no safe place for a child, a planeswalker or no." She reaches for his hair and playfully scratches his head.

"Any question so far, Jon?"

After all that he still fascinated by her stories and couldn't believe how amazing it is. He wants to know more, to learn more. But there is one question he wants to ask more than any others. The question he wants to ask since he no she was not his mother.

"Why are you so nice to me, Lady Kord?" he asked. The question must be good in some way because it earns Arlinn's chuckles.

"Oh, poor Jon. Why would anyone want to be mean to an adorable pup like you, hmm?" Answered Arlinn while she gently strokes his hair.

"Many would, milady. Lady Stark wants to send me away, even my lord father constantly disagrees. I think she hates me for what I am." He looks downed. Every time he thinks about how he is a bastard, and how everyone treats him, it makes him feels sad.

Things went silent. The patting that Lady Arlinn gave his head also stopped. He looks up and finds that her face has frowned.

Damn it, Jon. Why do you need to bring that up? Now Lady Arlinn going to hate you for being born out of wedlock too. He internally screamed.

"She hates you for what you are. Why?" Arlinn innocently asked. It makes Jon even more confused.

"I am a bastard, milady. I was born out of wedlock. The septa told me that I'm a product of sin and a stain on my father's family." He hates to admit it. Hate it. Hate it. Hate it.

"None sense." Arlinn interrupted. "If they hate you for the reason out of your control, then they are fools. You should better not listen to fools, hmm?"

She stands up and kneels in front of him. Her hands hold his.

"You have never known your mother, do you?" She asked. Jon replies with a nod.

"Do you want one now?"

…

Seeing that Jon is stunned just make her day, even that entire day was spent telling him stories about her adventure throughout the multiverse.

Well, Arlinn. Remembers what they say. Your reckless mouth going to be the end of you.

Before Jon could reply, she continues.

"Due to my bound to the wolf spirit, I cannot have a child of my own. We may not be related by blood, but you are now of my pack. I am willing to be your mother … if you would have me, little Snow."

As if the forest knows, everything goes silent. No winds. No birds chirping. No leaves fall. Nothing. It is so silent that Arlinn's enchanted hearing could hear two heartbeats, hers and little Jon Snow in front of her. Jon also hears it, of course, but his reaction is much worse. Granted, this experience is new to him.

She can see tears leaking from his eyes. His breathing becomes erratic. His amethyst eyes shine even brighter. She also notices the change in the beating pattern of his heart.

Great job, Arlinn. Now you have done it. You have broken the boy. A thought crawled her mind.

She sees Jon in tears as he tries to wipe it off, only to make it flows even stronger. He lifts his head and looks straight at her. He tries to speak but no words come out.

Silent falls again, and this time the tension couldn't be higher.

Her heart drops when she sees Jon standing up, or at least tries to stand up. His legs are shaken, and he is struggling to find his balance. Oh. Poor boy.

"Mother!" Jon cries. He rushes in and hugs her waists. His action stops her from thinking anything further. She pats him on the head and strokes his hair.

She is glad, of course, but she doesn't know why. Perhaps she always wants a child of her own since she fully flowered. Perhaps the fact that she could never have children drive her to love a child without a mother. Perhaps it is because she would know how Jon life will be as she is a planeswalker herself. Or perhaps the binding of the wolf spirit she invoked last night is stronger than she expected.

The only things that Arlinn Kord knows at the moment are that she could raise this child as her own, she will teach him all she knows and much more. She will call in all the favor from other planeswalkers to make sure he is ready to face all the horror of the multiverse. For whatever reasons she love him, genuine or not, it doesn't matter.

It also doesn't matter that she had no idea how to interact with children. All the time that she spent with the church of Avacyn, apart from the basic education, was to prepare her to become an archmage of Goldnight. She is sure that channeling rays of holy light to smite devils are not an integral part of raising a child.

"My little adorable puppy."

…

The hug lasts longer than it should, but he doesn't care. He is no longer just Nedd Stark's bastard. He now has a mother. Not just a mother that his lord father refuses to mention, not just a mother of his other siblings that hate him, He now has a mother that loves him. Blood-related or not, she is his mother. Even more than that, he knows that she is the best one he will ever get.

"Now. Now." His mother taps at the back of his head. "The sun about to go down. Are you hungry, little wolf?"

Oh yes, he is hungry. It is strange though; he doesn't do much but listen to Arlinn's story after he swallowed an equivalent of a small feast by himself. It gnaws at him for the entire day. To answer his mother, he nodded.

"Of course, you are. But before that, I need to tell you something else." Arlinn places her hands on his shoulders. "When you arrive here, you are in great danger. Many predators hunt this forest: Beasts, Horrors, and much more. In order to keep you safe, I bind the wolf spirit to you. I'm sorry Jon, but I have no other way to keep you alive."

Jon listens to his mother and nods along the way. He doesn't know what's a big deal about the wolf spirit is, or why does his mother doesn't want to do it to him. Anyway, he knows that his mother is worried about him, so he needs to cheer her up.

"It is fine, mother. The wolf is a symbol of House Stark anyway. This just means that I'm more wolf than any of them. I am happy with that." Jon smiles. He sees that Arlinn frown is lessened but not by much.

"Jon." Said his mother. "The wolf spirit is not a thing to be toyed with. Many who did had lost their mind and become nothing more than a rabid beast. But I had overcome its challenge and promise that I will see to it that you do as well."

She hugs him and pulls him close before she continues. "The spirit hungers and it will not be easy to satiate. However, it also grants us a boon. We are stronger, faster, more perceptive, and do not tire easily. More importantly, we can call upon its power to transform."

Jon's eyes sparkle when he heard about what he could do. "Trans … form?" He repeats.

"Yes, Jon. Transform. It will grant us even more power than what we had now. But it will be very taxing of your mind and I prefer that you are older when you tried it. The transformation can only be done on Innistrad, which is good for the likes of us. So, until you can master the wolf spirit, promise me that you will not do anything reckless."

Jon happily nods, which earns his mother smile. "Yes, mother."

"Good child." She pats his head. "To transform is not only to embrace your wolf spirit but to fully merge with it. I will show you." She pauses to observe his reaction. The eight years old Jon is more than excited. "I warn you; you might not want to see me turn into half-wolf-half-woman, but you need to see nonetheless."

…

Alright, Arlinn. The last challenge of the day. If he can make peace with you and him being a lycanthrope, then you will finally have a family. O' Avacyn, please make it true.

To Jon surprise, she starts stripping her clothes off save for her leather pauldron. Well, she likes her clothes and would like to see it intact after the transformations. This, however, caused Jon to be nervous. A reaction that she seems to miss entirely.

By the way, her naked body is in tip-top shape for a woman her age. A well-defined muscle as if it was sculpted by a fine artisan, and, by the texture alone, she looks barely older than nine-and-ten. Quite an accomplishment for a forty-years-or-so woman. Of course, she had her wolf spirit to thanks for that.

She gives her final prayer to the great angel before awakening wolf-blood within her veins. Her eyes turned bright orange, a status of an apex predator of Ulvenwald. Her muscle expands, making her almost twice her original size. Her hairs become thick charcoal grey coat which gets darker toward the ridge. Her face turns into that of a wolf, yet it retains its beautiful feminine allure. She also gains white long tails.

Fully transformed, she focuses her vision on her 'son' and finds that he is stunned by her looks. He looks happy, but also nervous at the same time. She has no idea why. Sure, Jon reacts to the on the notion of the wolf spirits much better than she thought, but where does the nervousness come from?

If only she knows that the action of stripping right in front an eight-name-day-old boy of her own will give him mental scars for the rest of his life. Something could not be un-see.

In her wolf-form, she gestures him to wait for her in the den. Jon takes the clue well enough to stay still in the bed. Seeing that her 'child' is safe, she starts her hunt of the night. She must be quick, for Jon is hungry, and so does her.

Arlinn ran for about a mile before she caught a scent of prey. Deer, she realizes. No. Two deer. That is good enough. She will teach him how to hunt tomorrow.

…

Custom Card of the Chapter

Card Name: Arlinn, Overprotective Mother

Manacost: 3G

Types: Legendary Creature – Human Warrior Werewolf

Card Text:

Flash, Vigilance

When Arlinn, Overprotective Mother enters the battlefield, all damage that would be dealt to creature name Jon Snow, Bastard Pup you control is dealt to Arlinn, Overprotective Mother instead.

When creature name Jon Snow, Bastard Pup you control dies, transform Arlinn, Overprotective Mother.

Flavor Text: "I only know Jon for a few moons but if anything were to happen to him, I am going to kill everyone in this room."

P/T: 4/5

Rarity: Mythic Rare

Card Name: Arlinn, Vengeful Mother

Types: Legendary Creature – Werewolf

Card Text:

Trample, Menace, Intimidate, Double Strike

R, Arlinn, Vengeful Matriach gets +1/+0 until the end of turn.

At the beginning of your end step, if you control creature name Jon Snow, Bastard Pup, transform Arlinn, Vengeful Mother.

Flavor Text: "REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

P/T: 6/5

Rarity: Mythic Rare