CATELYN STARK
Family, Duty, Honor, these are the words of House Tully and they hold true for Catelyn Stark Lady of Winterfell. Originally Catelyn was supposed to marry Brandon Stark, but the wedding was delayed because of the rumors of Lyanna Stark's abduction. Brandon had gone with his father to King's Landing and died at the hands of the Mad King. To keep the mutually beneficial alliance with House Stark Catelyn had to marry Eddard Stark.
Their first night together bought forth a son that was born while Ned as Cat liked to call him was away at war. She named him Robb per her husband's request. As time went on Eddard and Catelyn fell deeply in love and she gave him four more children after Robb. Now one lay ill on his bed in a coma. Brandon was climber and from the day he could walk the boy would climb furniture, trees, gates, and eventually buildings.
Catelyn often forbade him to do so, but he rarely obeyed that command. Old Nan found him lying on the ground unconscious. His Direwolf Summer was by his side whimpering. "His pelvis and lower spin are fractured…He may never walk again…" Those words spoken by Maester Luwin tore her apart. Catelyn remains at Bran's bedside praying to the gods old and new that he awaken. Before her husband left his fever broke. "He could awaken at any time…Comas vary from person to person…There is record of a man who fell into the deep sleep and did not awaken until many years later…" Maester Luwin told her.
So Catelyn sits and waits at his side keeping her watch. She did not even go to see her husband off. "Do you wish to know how much the King's visit cost us?" Maester Luwin asks.
A week had passed since Eddard left with the King. "No…" She sadly replies.
"Some key positions will have to be made in the household staff…"
She get's angry, "I don't care about costs, ledgers, or appointments…Leave me to my son!"
"Forgive me my lady, but this is not healthy…"
"I will take care of the appointments…" Robb says entering the room.
"My Lord…"
She ignores the two and keeps her eyes on Bran for the slightest change, "Mother…" She looks at Robb. "You need to eat…Bathe…You need to rest this is not healthy…"
"I can't leave his side…"
"You have another son…Rickon needs his mother…and there is only so much I can do as his brother." She ignores Robb until he says, "There's a fire…" Catelyn gets up and walks over to the window, "Stay here…"
Catelyn watches from the window as the smoke rises. When she turns she gasps, because there is a man in the doorway to Bran's room. "Who are you? Where did you come from?"
"No one is supposed to be in here…" He draws a dagger and looks at Bran, "It's a mercy…He's dead already…"
"No!" Catelyn goes into a blind rage to protect her son and attacks the man. He strikes her across the face and grabs her from behind placing the dagger to her throat. Catelyn grabs the weapon by the blade with her hands. They wrestle and she slams him into the large clothes cabinet. Then she bites his hand as they fight. The man howls in pain and throws Cat to the floor. Before he can attack again Bran's Direwolf Summer bursts into the room and tackles the man.
Catelyn watches in amazement as the wolf rips the man's throat out and kills him. Then he climbs onto the bed sniffs around and lies down. "Mother!" Robb screams entering the room as Maester Luwin wraps her hands. "Are you alright?"
"Getting better all the time…"
"I can't believe this happened…"
"That fire was a distraction…" Maester Luwin says.
Robb picks up the dagger, "This is Valyrian steel…"
"Aye."
"Where would a man like him get a Valyrian steel dagger from…"
Catelyn looks at her son, "Robb…I want a guard placed at Bran's door at all times from now on…"
"He'll have four guards…"
After Maester Luwin tends to Catelyn she takes a bath and eats. As she eats her mind keeps going back to Bran. She goes to the Broken Tower and stares up at it, "Nan!" She calls the old women over.
"Yes m'lady…"
"When you found my son did you see any lose bricks by him…"
"Not that I remember m'lady…No there were no bricks by his body…"
Catelyn opens the door to the tower with a key, Lord Stark had it locked the day Bran fell. She goes up the steps and into the top room. There is grass growing on the floor of the tower room and vines crawling across the window, Catelyn goes to the window and looks out. She sighs and turns to leave, as she is leaving she spots a hair on the floor. She bends down and picks it up.
She summons, Robb, Maester Luwin, and Ser Rodrick to the godswood. "I found this in the broken tower…"
Maester Luwin takes it and examines it, "This is hair…a woman's hair…There are no women in the North with this color hair…"
"No but one with that color did visit Winterfell…"
"The Queen!" Robb, Ser Rodrick, and Maester Luwin say at the same time.
"I think Bran was pushed from the Tower…" Catelyn says.
"But why?" Robb asks.
"He may have seen something the Queen wants to keep secret…"
"First the Lannisters kill Jon Arryn...and now this…"
"Lord Stark must be warned…We cannot send a Raven the wrong person may read it…"
"I will go!" Robb announces.
"You are the heir of Winterfell and the acting Lord of the North…No I will go…"
Maester Luwin sighs, "Your Lady mother is right…my Lord and there is that Whitehill situation that must be dealt with…"
"I will go with you my lady…" Ser Rodrick says.
At night when most of the castle is asleep Catelyn and Rodrick Cassel leave with four men. They ride all night and all day the next. They stop after six miles to relieve themselves. "Are you my lady?"
She stretches, "I'm fine…It's been a while since I have ridden this long…"
On they go down the King's Road and stop in a small village to rest. Catelyn keeps her identity a secret. The next morning they ride hard all day and make camp off the road at sunset. They stop at Moat Cailin when they reach the fortress that guards the entrance to the neck. The men there are instructed not to send Lord stark any messages about Catelyn. After restocking the two supply horses they move on. "With the pace we are making we should reach the Capitol a week after your Lord husband…" Rodrick says.
"I wish he would have never accepted that position as Hand of the King…"
"Aye My Lady…but a King takes what he wants…"
They pause as they here a voice echoing towards them singing the Dornishman's wife. There is man sitting by a fire, "Hello friends…"
They stop their horses, "and who might you be?" Ser Rodrick asks.
"Bronn is my name…Sell'n my sword is my game…Perchance you fine people be looking for a sword to buy?"
"No we have enough swords…"
"Oh well I am at the last of me coin…I was given this fine meal by the Crannogmen appeared out of nowhere they did…"
"This be the edge of their lands just before you enter the Riverlands…"
"Well I have a fire going you are welcome to join me…"
Rodrick looks at Cat and she nods giving her consent. So they sit around Bronn's fire listening as he sings. "You have a nice voice…You should consider becoming a bard…"
Bronn smiles, "Much obliged m'lady…but I like to fight and stick people with my sword too much…"
Catelyn reaches into her money pouch, "For the lovely song then…And another before sleep takes me…"
"You know any Northern songs…" One of Cat's men asks.
"I know the last snowflake of Winter…"
The next day Bronn follows them south and they part company at the Cross Roads Inn. When they are a mile past Hayford Castle they are met by Jorey Cassel and ten men. "Ser Jorey…What are doing here?" Catelyn asks in surprise.
"Lord Stark sent us to meet you My Lady…His instructions are to bring you directly to him…"
Catelyn looks at Rodrick wondering how her husband knew they were coming. "If Lord Stark knows we are coming then others may know as well…"
They gallop the rest of the way to King's Landing and enter the city through the Gate of the Seven. Catelyn keeps her hood down as not to be recognized by anyone. Soon they reach the courtyard of the Hand. "Ned!" She runs into his arms and they hug.
"Thank you for watching over my wife all those miles Ser Rodrick…"
"It was my pleasure My Lord…"
"Leave us I must speak with Catelyn alone…" He locks the door, then they fall into one another's arms and kiss. "I know why you have come…"
"How?"
"I will explain, but first word came by Raven…Bran has awakened…"
She sighs, "I should have been there…"
He takes her hands and leads her to his desk, "As I said I know why you are here…There are things I need to tell you, but first you must swear to never reveal this to another living soul unless I give you permission or it is absolutely necessary…"
"I swear…"
He hands her a blood stained letter, "Here read this and we shall go from there…"
Catelyn takes the letter from Eddard, she unfolds it and starts reading. She gasps placing her left hand to her mouth and reads it a second time. She slowly sits down, "All that bloodshed…over a lie!"
Eddard kneels down in front of her, "Cat…I met him…Lyanna's son…He is here in King's Landing for the Tourney…Princess Elia convinced Lyanna to allow her to raise the child…Julian Romyn convinced her to let him take the child and raise him…He looks so much like Lyanna…"
"I don't believe this…What does this mean for you…For our House?"
He sighs, "He wants the Iron Throne…He wants me to convince Robert to step down…"
"What are going to do?"
"I am still considering it…Do you have the dagger…"
She pulls it out, "How did you know I was coming?"
"Lord Julian told me…He has a spy network that spans across Westeros…Now I have other things to tell you…I ask that you remain calm…"
"I will try…"
"When Bran climbed the Tower…He saw the Queen and her brother together…"
When he says no more, Catelyn figures out the rest, "I found a gold strand of hair…It belonged to a woman…That witch pushed our son…"
"No that was Jaime Lannister…He pushed our son…"
"I'll kill that golden haired bastard!"
"Get in line…"
"Brandon saw them as man wife should be…Jaime Lannister pushes my son and then they hire an assassin to finish him off…"
"The assassin was hired by Prince Joffrey…"
"What!" she covers her mouth after shouting, "What! Why?"
"Revenge against Robb for humiliating him in the practice yard…The Romyns believe he is touched in the head…"
"We can't let Sansa marry him…"
"No we can't…Especially since he is not even Robert's son…None of Cersei's children were fathered by Robert…They are bastards…"
"How did you know…"
"Cat I spent a lot of time with Robb when he was younger…Joffrey is nothing like him…None of Cersei's children are like Robert…All Baratheons are blue of eyes and black of hair…Jon's last words were the seed is strong…There is no way Joffrey, Myrcella and Tommen were fathered by the King…"
Catelyn remembers Lysa's letter, "Then Lysa was right…Jon Arryn learned the truth and the Lannisters killed him…"
"The Lannisters have a lot to answer for, but not this…Lysa was lying…"
"But why?"
He takes her hands, "Do you know anything about an incident at Riverrun with Baelish and your sister…"
Catelyn frowns remembering what she heard the servants say and her Uncle Brynden telling her after she begged him to tell her the truth. "Petyr took Lysa's maidenhood…She was always in love with him…Edmure even begged father to allow them to marry…He would not have it. My father forced to drink Moon Tea…Petyr fled for his life…My father tried to hide this but eventually I found out…But what does this have to do with Jon Arryn…"
"Cat…I am so sorry, but your sister conspired with Petyr Baelish to kill Jon Arryn…"
Cat shakes her head as tears start to fall down her cheeks, "No it cannot be true…It can't…But why?"
"Baelish is an ambitious man…It was Lysa who convinced Jon to make Baelish Master of Coin…He used her and I think he is using her now to become Lord of the Vale…"
"My sister…I can't believe it…" She looks at Eddard, "Ned you must come home with me now…It is not safe here for you or our daughters…"
He sighs, "Cat I can't abandon my friend…"
She jumps up, "And what about your family?"
He stands up as well, "Cat please…You will take the girls home after the tourney…"
"Why not now?"
"It will raise too many questions…"
Catelyn thought about it; Eddard is right, she didn't like it, but they needed to wait as not to draw to much unwanted attention. "Fine, but immediately after the tourney…Where are the girls…"
Before he could answer Jorey knocks on the door, "Forgive me My Lord, but Lord Baelish requests an audience with you…"
"If I see I him I may throttle him…"
"Wait in the next room…"
Catelyn waits in the next room while Eddard deals with Petyr Baelish. Soon he returns, "What did he want?"
"He wanted to see you…I told him that you were tired from your journey and wanted to rest…I also showed him the dagger…"
"And what did he say about that?"
"He claims he lost the dagger betting against Tyrion Lannister during the Tourney to celebrate Prince Tommen's birth…"
She shakes her head, "I should have let your brother kill him…"
Catelyn is not pleased when Eddard tells her about the incident on the King's Road. Neither is she pleased to learn that Arya is learning to use a sword. Eventually Eddard is able to convince of the need for Arya to learn how to defend herself. "Sansa needs to learn that lesson as well…" Eddard takes Catelyn to meet Syrio Ferrel. Then they go before the King to let him know that Catelyn had come to see the Tourney. A lie to keep suspicions down.
"MOTHER!" Sansa screams when she sees Catelyn. For hours they talk about Joffrey, life, love, politics, and other things. After another week Tyrion Lannister returns to King's Landing with the Sell Sword Bronn. Just in time for the Tourney of the Hand.
"All the arrangements have been made…You and the girls will leave at midnight after the feast.
"What about you?"
"Cat we talked about this…But if it makes you feel better I sent word to Lord Manderly…He is preparing ships to transport two thousand men to the Capitol…"
"What will you do?"
"What I must…"