Winter has come Chapter one
All characters belong to their respective owners,
Jon had hardly believed his ears when he heard that the king had called the banners, let alone that they were to be fighting Others. None had been seen for centuries and he had thought that they existed only in Nan's tales. Yet Fergus was riding south to the Wall on the morrow by order of king Renly himself and taking all the strength of Highever with him. Barring himself of course, the bastard would never be permitted to wear the mabari sigil of the Couslands or ride with the great "Hounds of Highever". He had had to excuse himself from his fathers court to go take his anger out on the training dummies lest his bastard fist break a nose above his station to wipe.
About an hour (and several target dummies) later Ghost nudged him gently to remind him that he still had duties to perform. At least they couldn't take Ghost away from him: the albino mabari stood a yard tall at the shoulder and was half again as long. Anyone who tried to separate a mabari from his master was likely to end up lacking the hand (or arm in Ghost's case) they tried with. While the furball was always dragging him into trouble, people found it harder to call him bastard with the Cousland sigil looking them in the eye. Ghost nudged him again, drawing his attention back to the matter at hand and Jon promptly set off to the great hall. Father had requested his presence and the Teryn was best not kept waiting.
While Bryce had mentioned that the "pup" lacked tact Duncan hadn't expected the boy to come in in his training leathers and fill the air with questions about his father's guest. Duncan had seen the boy once before, though it was a lifetime ago. It was the beginning of the end of the Orlesian occupation and Jon was but a boy in his mothers arm's...
Bryce must have noticed Duncan's thoughtful gaze because no sooner had Jon left to arrange for Duncan's lodgings then he said in a voice so soft as to be almost mournful, " I promised her that I would keep him safe" his friends eyes not leaving the place where the boy had stood
"If this battle is lost…" Duncan gravely intoned.
Anger filled Bryce's voice as he turned on the Warden Commander "I know the cold ones march once more: the north remembers. Bards still sing of the long night and in the crypts lay many a Cousland warden. You will have the Hounds at your back; must you take my sons as well?
Images flashed in Duncan's mind of his bear of a son, marching south to war even as his wife grows large with child in Redcliff. The Warden's teeth clenched involuntarily as he replied, "We do what we must in order to bring the dawn, even the children of summer must prepare for the coming frost".
Author commentary: aaaannd here's Jon, more coming shortly, this just seemed like a good stopping point.
If anyone can guess who duncan's son is I will give them a credit in the next chapter.
Enjoy!