Chapter 5

Syemon Whitewood POV

House Whitewood was formed by a bastard son of House Greenwood after the Greenwoods were displaced from the Wolfswood. They were once vassals to House Greenwood before the Woolfords conquered the eastern coast just shy of Ramsgate. House Whitewood rules from their seat of Stonetree. It is located about halfway between White Harbor and Greentree along the Greene road. The castle itself is more of a small fort with some villages they rule close to their keep. Stonetree is a small wooden fort with a wooden palisade and a small keep on a hill overlooking the Greene road. The Whitewoods are tasked with keeping the Greene road and surrounding areas free of bandit activity.

A light snow soon descended upon the stones of the Greene road. It's dark worn stones were soon covered in a light dusting of snow. The mix of white and dark gray distracted the Lord of Stonetree as he waited atop his warhorse. The famous "Rsywells Reds" were a breed of warhorse that was well known throughout the North. The Rsywells of the Rills breed these destriers for war when called upon by the Winter Kings of old. The horses had a distinctive auburn coat which was reserved for mainly the Rsywells themselves, but Syemon had gotten lucky with the purchase of this one. His destrier stood around fourteen to fifteen hands high and was the pride of his house's horses.

Syemon Whitewood was a man born for the saddle as his family used to put it. He was a smaller man with auburn hair which some would say he was kissed by fire. It came down to his neck in waves even if it had streaks of gray in it now. He was a man who had seen forty years of summer and winter go by. He was smaller than the average Northern standing around five feet eight inches. His body was slim and toned through years of strenuous exercise and having lived more in the saddle than walking on land. He was square chined and had a rough auburn beard forming after many moons without having a decent shave. His attentive green eyes looked upon the Greene road from the direction of Greentree waiting to meet his Lord's heir and spare.

Next to him atop a dusty brown destrier was his own heir Hadrian Whitewood. While they shared many a familiar look his son took more after his Umber mother. Hadrian was of height one would usually see on an Umber as they had giants blood flowing through their veins. His heir stood at almost seven feet tall and was built with thick corded muscle throughout his body. One would think that Hadrian was fat if not for his heavily stocky build and giant frame. His own auburn hair was cropped close to his head while he did not have a beard. Hadrian was born around twenty and one years ago to him and his wife Karlys Umber. His son's own green eyes met his as they continued to wait for news of the Greystark's advance to Stonetree from his other son Brandon.

As they waited for the Greystark's Syemons voice broke the silence between father and son, "Have you finished mustering the men and horses Hadrian? We need to depart at once as the Greentrees and Woolfords will soon finish mustering as well".

"Aye we have Father though our footmen will take longer to make it to White Harbor than our calvary", said Hadrian stoically as his green eyes never left the road.

"Good and we may leave some of the men here. We still must perform our duty of patrolling the Greene road. In war there will always be a rise in bandits. Those thieving curs will smell an opportunity to strike the merchants with us gone", stated Syemon tiredly. The duty of clearing the road of these rats was indeed never-ending. Where one nest of bandits was extinguished another two more would pop up.

"Father, must I join you in this campaign? I have recently been wedded and Brandon is more than capable of leading our forces alongside you", said Hadrian in an even-tone. While his brother may relish battle, he preferred the life of running a keep. 'It is quieter and more peaceful to run a keep than face hardship in battle', thought Hadrian. While Hadrian was not craven and would do his duty he still preferred to be with his wife as he had grown to love her.

Hadrian had recently married Ygritte Liddle and was growing to love her with every passing day. 'The thought of her peach colored lips upon mine will forever be etched into my mind. I yearn for her almost as much as Brandon does for battle', thought Hadrian as his mood lighted up at the thought of his lovely new wife.

Syemon smiled slightly as he looked at his smitten son, "Once the war is over you can get back to your lass. Hahah I still cannot understand how little Ygritte wrapped you around her finger. I remember you defiantly said to me that you would never marry. Now your only thoughts are to return to her", laughed out Syemon.

Hadrian's cheeks blushed a light pink as Syemon said that out in front of their men. The men that made up the retinue soon joined in his father raucous laughter. His cheeks soon turned a burning red at his current embarrassment. His embarrassment soon turned into intrigue as he could see the movement coming over the hill that the Greene road ran through facing towards the route east to Greentree. He could soon make out the banners of the Greystarks and his house as the incoming party was going at a fast pace towards them. The banner of the black bowing direwolf and that of a white raven grasping an arrow atop a black horse was hard to miss. The raucous laughter that rang out between them soon turned to stony silence as they waited for the incoming party to meet them.

At the head of the incoming party was Syemon's second son Brandon. While he had Umber blood in him, he was not as large as his brother Hadrian. Brandon was around an even six feet tall and looked even larger atop his own destrier which stood at 17 hands high. The fast pace of Brandon's horse caused his already wild shoulder length red hair to make it look like his head was aflame. He had the square chinned face of his family along with the gleaming green eyes, but he had a wild beard full of red hair. Some would say that if he ever decided to groom it, he would look less like a wilding. He had just turned nine and ten and looked years older than his true age. Brandon craved battle as he had been forged in skirmishes and battles with bandits for almost half a decade. He was the sword of House Whitewood while his brother was the sheath.

The party of the Whitewood and Greystark forces came to a slow canter and then a full stop as they faced Lord Syemon and Hadrian. Syemon could see the worried faces of both Edwyle and Arthur as they rode alongside his son Brandon. They soon stopped a ways from him as he moved to greet his future overlord.

"House Whitewood welcomes you Greystarks. We have prepared bread and salt for you", said Syemon passionately as he gazed upon the dire wolves.

"House Greystark accepts your hospitality my Lord but wouldn't this have been done in the keep", said Edwyle as his steely, grey eyes looked upon his future vassal.

"My Lord we have mustered our full strength and seek to answer Lord Brandon's call to arms. We are prepared to leave here at once if need be", said Syemon as he wished to make the journey as soon as possible.

"Father may haps it is better to have the Greystarks rest since they must have made haste from Greentree", said Hadrian.

"Aye we are exhausted we have ridden many miles to get here Lord Syemon. We all want to answer our Father's call, but we cannot do that without rest. We are not some undead wights", joked Arthur.

"Very well the hospitality of Stonetree will be at your beck and call. Never will a Whitewood leave a Greystark wanting", stated Syemon as he bent his head in a genuflecting manner towards the Greystarks.

"Thank you, Lord Whitewood we will accept the bread and salt here, as we tire from the long journey to your lands", said Edwyle tiredly even as his eyes began to droop.

Both Edwyle and Arthur maneuver their horses closer to the servant who holds both bowls of bread and salt in each hand. As one both Greystark's hands each grasp a piece of bread and slowly dip the pieces in the salt. The pieces of bread soon enter the mouths of both brothers as they taste the salt upon the bread and swallow the guest right down their throats.

"I apologize if we seem to be in a hurry Lord Whitewood. We have made a long journey in a scant few days to reach here before departing for White Harbor. The need to get there has been at the forefront of my mind", said Brandon tiredly.

"Aye there is nothing to apologize for lad. We have received word of what has occurred in Kings Landing by raven. We will avenge your kin with bronze and iron. For there is no one as reviled as King Aerys is", said Lord Syemon scornfully.

"We will tear his guts out and string them to a weirwood tree my lord. We will sunder their house root and stem", stated Brandon Whitewood as his gaze burned with the hatred of a thousand men.

"Brother, please calm yourself. We all feel the same as you, but you must control your outrage", warned Hadrian as he gazed at his brother in displeasure. 'Aye the thought of what the dragons have done makes my blood hot. But must you act like a wildling in front of our lieges', thought Hadrian gloomily.

"Calm down my friends, we will have enough dragons to tear apart as soon as we depart White Harbor. Now we must feast and rest. What kind of ale do you have in Stonetree? We had some good ale back with the Greenwoods", said Arthur as he tried to lighten the mood.

"Hmm we have better ale than our kinsmen. While they have grown wealthy from trade their sense of good ale has slipped. We have the better ale my lords let there be no doubt", laughed out Syemon as he joked about his kinsmen.

"Ha Lord Bennard said the same thing. I wonder who speaks true and who speaks false", joked Edwyle as his eyes turned a tad mirthful.

At the mention of ale and his kin did Brandon's mood turn gleeful, "How were those dusty old ravens?".

"They were good though Bennard seemed a bit distant when we talked of the upcoming war. We did not have the pleasure of seeing Jon though", said Edwyle.

"Jon must have been out at sea again that ole seadog. Every time I want to drink with him, he's either balls deep in some whore or out at sea", laughed out Arthur as he reminisced about his boyhood friend.

"Aye he must have been at sea trying to get one last grasp at freedom. He is to marry Jocelyn Woolford before we leave White Harbor. It is probably going to be a quick ceremony before we depart for war. I know ole Bennard wants a grandchild before he leaves this earth. He must be getting caught up in some old memories if he's pushing it this quickly", said Syemon thoughtfully to everyone in the party.

"What do you mean by that Lord Syemon", asked Edwyle curiously. Edwyle could remember the Lord of Greentree being somewhat distant but a very pleasant man as they toured his land.

"Ole Bennard lost a lot in the War of the Ninepenny Kings Edwyle. He lost both his brothers to those damn Essoi. I may have been too long to be in the war, but I remember hearing that both his brothers died in his arms", said Syemon sadly. "I heard one twin died in the other's arms as Bennard tried making it to them. Jon was the youngest; he died in Thorren's arms. Bennard once told me he tried rushing to him before an arrow killed Thorren. Horrible business war is boys don't forget that", said Syemon as he grew worried for his boys.

As soon as he said those foreboding words, the party reached the wooden gates on Stonetree. Stonetree itself is more of a small fort with some villages rule close to their keep. Stonetree is a small wooden fort with a wooden palisade and a small keep on a hill overlooking the Greene road. The settlement is a very basic Motte and bailey style of castle. The wooden walls of the settlement are around fifteen feet high and only 4 feet thick. While the castle overlooking on the hill is of a smaller make though it is comparable in size to any small castles that are scattered throughout the North.

The party of nobles and soldiers passed through the gates and into the Castletown itself. There was a scattering of buildings including housing, blacksmiths, barracks, small stores, and even a granary.

"My lords, we ride to the keep and hopefully have a feast before we depart for war", said Syemon as he smiled hoping to lift the somber and tense mood of the party.

"Aye I hope you have enough ale for us all. Riding has made my thirst starve more than a bear during winter", said Arthur.

The men soon laughed at the jest as they made their way up the dirt path that was lightly covered in snow to the keep. The roar of their merriment seemed to brighten up the mood of the people of Stonetree as they continued on their way.

Timetheus Woolford POV

His house had once ruled the whole area of the White Knife and even stretched to the domains of both the Greenwoods and Whitewoods. They had once been Kings in all but name till the Starks started their campaigns of conquest in the North. The thought of his ancestors always brought Timetheus some degree of annoyance at their folly. They were always rebellious like the Boltons when they were bannermen of the Starks. That was till the Bolton-Woolford Rebellion. Around 800 years ago the Houses of Bolton and Woolford sought to challenge the authority of the Starks and rebelled with dreams of independence and being Kings once more.

His ancestors had foolishly rebelled against the Starks and had lost their war. They had lost their overlordship of the White Knife and even lost the loyalty of their former vassals. Though Timetheus could not fault them since his ancestors were needlessly cruel. 'No wonder they were the only House to get along with the Boltons. I would never understand how they could get along with those pale-skinned devils', thought Timetheus disgustedly.

House Woolford had lost much in their rebellion and became subservient to the Greystarks who were raised as High Lords of White Harbor and the White Knife. Timetheus personally was not against House Greystark as this generation had seen to grant them more land and had seen to strengthen the Woolfords which the previous Lords of White Harbor had seen to drive to poverty. With a heavy sigh he gazed upon his own reflection in the mirror of his solar. His light gray hair had seen better days. He was closer and closer to growing completely bald with what wisps of hair he still had hanging on. His face was weathered with age and stress. Timetheus was smaller than an average Northman, being only around five foot two inches tall. His height was comparable to most crannogmen. He had seen better days as he walks with a hunch now compared to his earlier years.

His brown eyes had grown dull with age as he was tired. His wife had passed, and his children were already grown though he did worry about the future. His heir Kenderick was strong and hale. He would be a good Lord for their people and would stay loyal to the Greystarks. Though his thoughts then turned to his second son Thorkell. 'Where did I go wrong with that boy? I should never have sent him to foster with the Boltons. Am I half mad to think it would've been good to have him with the Leech Lord. God Freya, why did I send him to your brother?', thought Timetheus sadly at the thought of his son and his dead wife.

The thoughts of his sons only ever seemed to bring him stress as they were as different as night and day. Kenderick was fair-skinned, tall, and very enthusiastic. He was around five feet eight inches and with corded muscles as he worked in the yard most days. He was very caring and compassionate to their smallfolk and respected the Greystarks greatly. Timetheus would always feel lighter at the thought of his first-born. 'I feel safe leaving matters into his hands. He will help the Greystarks greatly in the wars to come'. Then his thoughts soon turned to his cruel second son.

'Oh, Thorkell where have I gone wrong with you? You are as foolish and cruel as our ancestors', thought Timetheus sadly. Thorkell Woolford was pale of skin and shared his father's short stature. At five feet and four inches Thorkell was mostly overlooked but seemed to have a cruel streak as long as the Wall. Timetheus could still remember the cruel smirk Thorkell wore the day he rode into Snowford after his fostering. His brown eyes, which once displayed compassion, were turned into cruel gleaming brown orbs of misery.

Timetheus could only sigh again at how he went wrong with everything. His gaze soon turned away from the mirror to the window overlooking Snowford. The town and castle of Snowford is located next to the White Knife before it splits into its tributary rivers. Snowford is a standard Motte and Bailey castle with its high wooden walls though the keep has seen some renovation as the keep has been replaced with stone. They currently rule over a few hamlets and villages surrounding the mouth of the White Knife. The castle town of Snowford itself has a population of nearly 2000 souls.

There was a knocking on the solar's oak door as his attention drew away from the window. "You may enter", stated Timetheus tiredly.

The person who entered was his son and heir Kenderick, "Father I have fully mobilized our troops and they are ready to depart for White Harbor ''.

"Good how many men have we mustered and what kind of troops have we deployed", said Timetheus.

"We have around 400 archers and the accompanying levies though they only total around 200 men. I have made sure you keep the workers here and, in their villages, to not impede any projects we have going on and to not affect our trade. We will need as many men back here in Snowford to continue the expansion of the town itself", stated Kenderick in a tired tone.

"What makes you sound so exhausted, Kenderick. Is it about the war or your brother?", asked Timetheus worriedly.

"It is Thorkell, his conduct only grows worse each day can't we just send him to the Wall? We all know what he does in his free time we can send him on the morrow", said Kenderick manically as he begged his father to send away his brother.

"I will not send my boy to that penal colony. Have your senses left you Kenderick", screamed Timetheus. His eyes grew dangerous at the mention of that life sentence. He would rather burn the world before he sent his son there. "How could you say that? He is your brother Kenderick".

"I say so because I worry for my wife and babe. Why do you cling to the hope he can change? He is a danger to us all. They Greystarks will catch on sooner or later till his actions are exposed", screamed out Kenderick.

"We will not speak of this again. How dare you even bring this up boy. I may be one foot in the grave, but I am still the lord of this keep. Till I die you will leave your brother be", said Timetheus stonily as his eyes bored into the equally furious gaze of Kenderick.

"Now leave and go to your wife and child. I will have none of this anymore. Your sister Jocelyn is to marry the Greenwood lad. You will accompany her and the men to White Harbor. You will be the representative of House Woolford in this war", said Timetheus with a tone of finality.

"As you wish my lord but mark my words Thorkell will bring you low. He is not the boy he once was. My brother died the day you sent him to the Boltons. All there is now is a monster in sheep's clothing", raged Kenderick as his thunderous rage-filled stomps left his father raging just as much.

Kenderick Woolford POV

His rage never left him even after he left his father. 'How can that fool be so blind regarding that monster? He will ruin all that we have built up after all our follies', thought Kenderick angrily. Though he started to cool down when he got closer to his sister Jocelyn's chambers. He soon tried to take calming breaths before he stood at her door. The thought of his innocent and caring sister eased the worry he felt about his monstrous brother.

He slowly knocked thrice upon the thick oaken door of her chambers. Even through the door he could hear his sister's angelic singing voice through the door. Hoping to surprise her, Kenderick slowly opened the door hoping she would not hear it creaking. He could not hear her singing stopping so he slowly crept into the room. Her back was what he walked into as she continued to sing. The song she sang was a favorite of their mothers when she lived. The contratlos tone of her voice continued on as he slowly made his way towards her. The sound of her voice while dark and foreboding eased the worries he felt.

High in the halls of the kings who are gone

Jenny would dance with her ghosts

The ones she had lost and the ones she had found

And the ones who had loved her the most

The ones who'd been gone for so very long

She couldn't remember their names

They spun her around on the damp old stones

Spun away all her sorrow and pain

And she never wanted to leave, never wanted to leave

Never wanted to leave, never wanted to leave

They danced through the day

And into the night through the snow that swept through the hall

From winter to summer then winter again

'Til the walls did crumble and fall

And she never wanted to leave, never wanted to leave

Never wanted to leave, never wanted to leave

And she never wanted to leave, never wanted to leave

Never wanted to leave, never wanted to leave

High in the halls of the kings who are gone

Jenny would dance with her ghosts

The ones she had lost and the ones she had found

And the ones

Who had loved her the most

Jocelyn's song soon ended even if Kenderick wished to hear more of the somber song. He slowly stood up behind her with a grin upon his face as he tapped her pale-skinned shoulder. She spun around with a face full of fright before her cheeks turned red with anger.

"How dare you scare me like that Kenderick. You have always been an arse whenever I want to be alone", she raged at him. Her fists soon clenched and struck him in the chest as laughs soon left his lips as a smile graced them.

He could only gaze on in pride and love at his little sister. Many had said she looked like their mother but to him he could tell the differences. Her pale skin while the same as their late mother, was a touch darker. Jocelyn stood at a small five feet and seemed to be very light-footed as she dodged his hug. Her rage-filled brown eyes gazed upon his mirthful ones. Her heart-shaped face slowly turned into a grin as she burst into laughter as well and soon ran into the embrace of her elder brother.

"I am sorry Jocelyn you just seemed like you could use a good scare hahaha", laughed out Kenderick in joy. He felt a lot better amongst his sister or wife than with his brother or father. "I have come with good news you will be marrying Jon Greenwood and will be accompanying me to White Harbor".

Jocelyn could only sigh before speaking up, "Could you not have told me before you scared the life out of me". Her lips slowly turned into a smile as she thought of her upcoming marriage. She turned to her brother and joked, "May haps I will be the one to tame the Sea Raven".

"Aye with how you are, I bet he will be wrapped around your finger", said Kenderick.

"When do we leave? I am ready to depart but I would like to see father before we set off", said Jocelyn.

"We may leave after you see father though he is in a furious mood", said Kenderick sadly.

"I will see what I can do to ease his mood. You must make peace with Thorkell. You cannot always be enemies, you are kin", she said as she gazed at her brother.

"I will not make peace with that monster. Please do not bring this up again Jocelyn. I do not want to be in a bad mood on the journey to White Harbor", begged Kenderick.

"Fine but you must deal with your fears before they get out of control Kenderick", said Jocelyn as she seemed to glide out of her chambers.

Kendericks gaze soon lowered to the floor after she left. 'You may hope he will change as does father but both of you are blind to what has become Thorkell. The seven hells will freeze before he returns to who he was', he thought sadly as he remembered the kind boy Thorkell was. He soon left his sister's chamber as he made his way down the halls of the keep. He had men and supplies to get ready for the march ahead to war.

Thorren Stark POV

Thorren's hands shook with rage as his back was turned away from the Free City of Bravos. His grey eyes burned with a horrendous amount of hatred at the Targaryens. They had killed his older brother and nephew in cold blood. He wanted to strangle Aerys himself with his own hands as Aerys would gaze upon his own family's cool corpses. He had never been one for bloodlust but all he yearned for was for the full extinction of House Targaryen. His thunderous steps soon returned him back to his command tent. He would do the one thing the Company of the Rose vowed to never do unless there was a King in the North.

Thorren soon called out to a newer recruit, one who was born from a former slave and Northmen that followed him from the North. "Lad gathers everyone to my tent. I must speak with the whole company at once", said Torrhen in a grime tone. The recruit ran off spreading news of the captain's summons to everyone. Soon more people began to shout out the command as men gathered in droves to Thorren's tent.

Soon the full might of just over 2000 mercenaries looked upon Thorrens raged filled face. His long face soon gave way to a furious snarl as he all but howled out to his men. "The blasted Targaryens have murdered my kin. They have had my brother burned by wildfire and my nephew strangled as he sought to free his father. You are descendants of the North and have Northern blood in your veins. The Company was founded by those who sought not to kneel while a Stark was not King. I cannot ask you to forsake that vow lightly, but they have murdered Starks. I am filled with a thunderous storm of rage and revenge has caused my blood to go cold. I beg your aid to help my remaining kin to slaughter these monsters that call themselves Targaryen. We must kill the dragon with tooth, claw, and steel to answer this atrocity. I beg you men join me in my quest for vengeance", roared Torrhen passionately as he spoke to his men.

There was only silence at first that met his impassioned speech, but it soon gave way to an uproar of cheers. All the men could only gaze upon Thorren and answer his speech with a resounding roar of their own. His men soon parted as he left his tent and started giving orders. The Company of the Rose would raise a navy and travel to a continent they vowed not to return too. They would shake off this vow only to answer the rage-filled plea of their Captain. The Targaryens would face all Wolves both grey and black as they marched seeking the throat of the dragon.

Author's Note: Wow this is the longest chapter I have written for this story yet woohoo. I never would have thought I would write over 5000 words for a chapter, and I have to say over 4000 views on the asoiaf and over 2000 views for Game of Thrones sections on here is awesome. I never thought this story would get this much traction. I just want to thank KingOfSummer for all the help regarding the sources for the battles I will use and all the ideas for the story. The next chapter I will finally get to them as I wanted to go into more depth about the Greystarks and their vassals. And thank you Blackhaw43 for helping me with the tips for character dialogue and some interesting thoughts on the story. I felt really inspired to try and finish the build up to the first battle of the story. I know it's a lot of build up for the main parts of the story which will first take place during Robert's Rebellion. Next chapter will be Eddard's POV and the departure of the Greystark forces from White Harbor to the Three Sisters as they seek to meet the new Warden of the North. Torrhen Stark will also get more action in the story though not till he gets back to Westeros with the Company of the Rose. I hope the interaction between the elder Woolford and Jocelyn was amusing. I thought it'd be interesting to write about a sibling interaction that wasn't between brothers. I also had to include Jenny of Old Stones since it is my favorite song from the series. Please leave a review for the story as hearing back from you guys has really motivated me and it helps me iron out the direction of the story.