EDDARD VI

It was after the evening meal when he once again he had his children in his solar, this time Catelyn joining the proceeding. She had been loathe to accept the truth from him, but she'd entertain the idea until further proof could be obtained, and the only way to do that was to get the four youngest to speak. She held Rickon in her arms from the chair she'd chosen for herself, trying to calm the fussy toddler, whose worry for Ned had long since passed and his desire to be near the wolf having returned. The only difference from the earlier scene mirrors reflected candlelight now though as the sun was setting. He would have it all out-with them all present, excepting Jon unfortunately. Robb skulked in a corner near a window while his middle three stood before himself and Catelyn.

He got right to the point once they'd all assembled from the quiet evening meal, "Bran, Arya, why did you lie to your mother?"

Bran for his credit didn't meet either himself or Cat in the eye, and chose instead the route of silence. Of Arya the same could not be said.

"Does it truly matter now?" asked Arya

Ned growled, "You are a Stark, of course it matters! It is wrong and you both shall apologize to your mother."

Neither said anything, which shocked Ned. They truly believed they were in the right, and to this effect, Bran finally quietly added, "The only lie was about the letter, the rest is based in truth."

"From this future you believe you're from?" asked Catelyn pointedly.

"Aye, it is," answered Bran honestly.

Ned held back his anger, and countered, "And yet you did not think to come to us about this?"

"You didn't believe us before," was Bran's simple answer.

Ned heard Cat breathe deeply at the mention of this. She did not blame him from not telling her something he truly hadn't believed himself at first, but she still seemed troubled by the issue nonetheless. He couldn't begrudge her her little faults-gods knew he had them.

There was the rub of it though. They acted upon their knowledge because he had doubted. They nearly had succeeded in killing Theon-thank the gods that Maester Luwin was at his work. If the boy died now… there would be a second Greyjoy Rebellion, of that he had no doubt. Reports that the Iron Fleet had nearly been rebuilt had been whispered about from the Mormont's spies upon the Iron Isles and reached his ears. Theon needed to live, there was no way around it. There would be no hope of Lysa setting foot in the North if it were at war, and then Jon would…

And that's when Ned realized that he too was acting upon knowledge and was manipulating events. But he was doing it to save lives, not take them. And he must continue to do so.

"Sansa convinced me of the truth later." explained Ned, he then turned to his eldest daughter and asked, "did not you tell them?"

Sansa replied "To speak plainly, I…" and she paused to fleetingly catch Arya's eye, Ned noticed before finishing with "forgot."

He knew what that look meant. "Forgot or were busy with something else?" asked Ned.

She looked at him and plainly told him, "I know not what you mean, father."

"How did Theon fall ill so suddenly? Maester Luwin suspects it was something that he ate-but the cook assured me he's eaten nothing that we have not eaten ourselves, and yet we aren't sick. And if it had been the water or the ale, again we would be ill too, and yet we are not. I know from your mother and Robb that you three have taken issue with Theon-for reasons which I grant may seem justified to you-and so the answer is simple."

"He'll be dead soon, what does it matter?" asked Arya

"And what gave you that right to decide what the gods alone decide? Have you stopped to consider what will happen if Theon dies? As much as he is my ward, he is also Robert's hostage to keep Balon in check. If Theon dies on my watch, what's to stop his father from taking out his grief upon our western shores? It would be war." said Ned, hoping they weren't completely beyond reason.

His three youngest were silent, but it was Bran was the one to speak next, and he seemed to speak with a solemnity that not even Jon could match, "War would come anyway and death is a mercy compared to the future that awaits him."

Ned felt a chill run down his spine at his son's words. Just what things had his children seen and endured? Catelyn however who replied, "The future, you hide behind it as your shield and yet never speak of it. That ends now."

"Cat-" began Ned, hoping to curb her building rage.

"No! You might be frightened into belief on their dark words, but they haven't convinced me of anything. If they're going to act out based upon what knowledge they know, then we should all know."

But before any of his children could respond, Ned felt a terrible pain sweep through his body and he heard the wolf howl.