She was shaken from her thoughts as she laughed, watching on from the side-lines as Bran prepared to shoot an arrow, but Arya beat him to it, and made the perfect shot. Keaira sometimes worried about the youngest Stark girl. She was bullied and laughed at by most of the noble children, and it was clear that Ned and his lady wife had begun to recognise this. Arya was still so young, so Keaira thought it was silly to be already worrying about marriage proposals, though that didn't seem to stop Catelyn. Bran angrily ran after his older sister, annoyed that she had stolen his limelight. Although Keaira was not as close to Bran she still cared deeply for him, feeling protective over the child, even though they shared no blood link. Keaira joined the other boys as they began clearing away the arrows from the courtyard. She ruffled little Rickon's hair as he passed her a group of arrows, a proud smile on his face. She thought to herself that he was the only six-year-old who's company she would ever enjoy. When she looked behind her, ready to put the arrows away, she saw Lady Catelyn staring down at Jon with her usual look of disgust and went up to his side. Ned gave Keaira a curt nod, which she returned. He was good to her and always had been.
"Ignore her, she's only jealous of your hair" Keaira insisted, tangling her hands into his hair for good measure.
"Get off" He laughed, nudging her away.
"C'mon, I want you to teach me to shoot an arrow" Keaira announced.
"You've never been interested before" Jon stated, raising an eyebrow.
"Well I can't let you boys have all the fun, can I? I'm just following in Arya's footsteps" Keaira shrugged, taking up a bow.
She picked up a nearby arrow and placed it against the bow, and slowly started to pull back.
"Gods, I never realised how hard it was to use these things" Keaira panted under the strain.
"You don't need to pull it that far back" Jon advised her, taking her hand and pulling it back a little way.
"Now level the arrow with your eyes and relax your bow arm" Jon told her, as she took the shot.
She let out an embarrassed snort as she fired to arrow off behind the nearby wall and could hear Robb laughing from behind her. They both enjoyed teasing each other, knowing exactly how to irritate the other.
"Ignore him. C'mon, you're just thinking too much" Jon insisted.
A little while later and she was still no closer to even touching her target haystack.
"Well at least you're resilient" Robb observed, after coming to watch the spectacle.
In an attempt to help, Jon came up beside Keaira and placed one hand on her left shoulder and his other on her right arm. He pulled her arm back, and held her steady.
"Now" He whispered, as she took the shot.
She raised her arms up in victory as the arrow pierced the haystack, even though it was still nowhere near the target.
"I did it!" She squealed, deciding that hitting the haystack was enough for her.
Without thinking, she placed a hand on the back of Jon's head and brought a quick kiss onto his cheek, as thanks and went off to find Arya, to tell her off her victory. She didn't see the intense blush that had risen on Jon's face as she did so, but Robb had.
"You have it bad, Snow" Robb stated, patting him on his shoulder.
"Don't start" Jon said, rolling his eyes.
Ned was soon called upon to kill a man who had abandoned his post at the Night's Watch. Keaira knew she wouldn't be allowed to go, as she was a girl, but was surprised when she found Bran was told to go. He was only ten, surely he was too young to have to see something so grisly, but it wasn't her place to say. She waited at the gates of Winterfell for them to come back, and was growing worried when they finally did, as it was so late. She knew something must have happened. She was shocked when Bran came rushing towards her, two animals in his arms, that were already too big to be dogs.
"Are those direwolves?" Keaira asked, her eyes widening.
"Yes, there's one for each of us! Even Jon has one" Bran told her, excitedly.
"And which one is to be yours?" Keaira inquired.
"This one. I think I'll call him Summer" Bran informed her.
"That's a rather odd name" Keaira stated.
"He is different. He deserves a different name" Bran shrugged, rushing off to give the other pup to one of his sisters.
Keaira watched him go with a smile, as the rest of the party arrived, with Jon the last of them.
"I see you've also picked up a stray" Keaira announced, as he approached.
"The runt of the litter" Jon exclaimed, holding up the white pup.
"I'd call him a survivor" Keaira replied, stroking the wolf's fur, lightly.
"What will you call him?" She queried, a moment later.
"He is as white as a ghost. It seems right to call him that" Jon explained, as Ghost barked.
"I think he likes that too" Keaira giggled.
A month later, they were expecting the King's arrival at Winterfell. There were rumours that King Robert was going to ask Ned to be his new hand, as his previous one had recently died. They were called to meet at the gates, with the Stark's in the front row, and the others such as herself, Jon and Theon in the second row. She still didn't like Theon very much, but she recognised that he had a hard childhood, which was probably why he acted the way he did. She couldn't help but laugh when she saw Jon had his beard shaved off and his hair cut down, he looked absolutely miserable.
"I prefer the beard too" She whispered to him, as he gave her a small smile.
Arya rushed towards them, a large helmet on her head, which her father took off with a sigh. They all had a fond smile on their faces as she pushed her way in between Sansa and Bran. Keaira looked on in awe as rows after rows of armed guards came from the gates on horseback. Prince Joffrey was one of the first to approach, as he and Sansa shared a look. She blushed lightly, as he gave her a smug smirk, perhaps being told to do this by his mother. Keaira noticed the stern glare Robb gave the young boy, as his protective instinct started to kick in. She too felt the same instinct, she recognised the red heads naivety, and felt that it was only right to look after such a gentle soul. Even though Joffrey was a year older than her, he didn't look like it. His blonde hair gave him a girlish look, accompanied by his small face. She certainly did not feel any attraction towards him. A large carriage drew up beside them, as King Robert followed. They all bowed as he approached. It took a long while for him to get off his horse. Keaira was surprised to see he was such a large man, as Ned had always insisted that he was a great warrior. Robert walked towards them, stopping in front of Ned, and gestured for him to rise.
"Your Grace" Ned bowed to him, as Robert looked him up and down.
"You got fat" Robert stated, as Ned raised his eyebrows, gesturing that Robert was actually the one who had gained weight.
There was a tense moment, where no one seemed to be sure what was to happen. All of a sudden, Robert let out a throaty chuckle, as Ned joined in. They embraced warmly, grinning from ear to ear.
"Cat!" Robert exclaimed, pulling Lady Catelyn into a quick hug.
He ruffled Rickon's hair, before going back to stand in front of Ned.
"Nine years. Why haven't I seen you? Where the hell have you been?" Robert asked, with a slightly accusing tone.
"Guarding the North for you, Your Grace. Winterfell is yours" Ned explained.
Meanwhile, Cersei Lannister, Robert's wife, excited the carriage, a sour look on her face. It was still clear even with this expression that she was one of the most beautiful women in the land. She didn't seem to think very much of Winterfell from the look on his face, but it was to be expected. She was the Queen, afterall.
"Where's the Imp?" Arya inquired.
"Shut up" Sansa hissed at her.
"Who have we here? You must be Robb" Robert said, giving Robb a firm handshake.
"My, you're a pretty one" Robert told Sansa, who smiled.
"Your name is?" Robert asked, with a dismissive tone.
"Arya" She replied, as Robert nodded.
"Ooh. Show us your muscles. You'll be a soldier" Robert told him, as Bran grinned at him.
"And you must be this famous girl I have heard so much about" Robert exclaimed, surprising Keaira.
She hadn't expected him to address her, and wasn't quite sure how to react.
"Your Grace" She bowed.
"You must show us your talents at the feast tonight. I don't believe many men get to see such a feat of nature" Robert went on, as she nodded.
They looked on, as a man with golden hair removed his helmet. She could hear a few sharp inhales from behind her, as many of the women in the courtyard stared at the man in front of her. There was no denying that he was one of the most handsome men she had ever seen.
"That's Jaime Lannister. The queen's twin brother" Arya whispered.
"Would you please shut up" Sansa insisted.
Keaira was shocked when instead of looking to his King, or Ned, Jaime Lannister's eyes seemed drawn to hers. She had never particularly liked those with blonde hair, but there was something about his face that was inherently attractive. She looked away for a moment as the Queen approached Ned, giving him her hand to kiss. Keaira looked back to the famous Kingslayer to see he was still staring at her, his head slightly tilted. She could see from the corner of her eye, both Robb and Jon were glaring at him, obviously not liking his interest in her. She wasn't sure if she liked it either. She had heard many stories of the Lannister's and knew they were dangerous. However, she quite liked the fact that Jon was being protective of her, maybe even jealous.