After the Giants and Children of the Forest agreed to bend the knee, things proceeded smoothly. The Giants and the Singers of the Earth, as the Children told Hadrian they preferred to be called, followed Hadrian back to the Weirwood to bend the knee and swear their vows with little trouble.
They came up one by one, bent the knee and swore to serve House Stark and follow them faithfully. Hadrian in turn swore that he would defend them against those that would do them harm, as he would for all of his people. He would help them flourish, as he would for all of his people.
It was a long, tedious process. But it was needed.
The only real problem happened with some of the Giants grumbling about being forced to kneel. Hadrian solved this quickly by telling them that they don't have to kneel, they just won't be welcome in his kingdom unless they do. There weren't any problems after that.
Once that was done, Hadrian informed everyone that there would be a gathering in Winterfell in a few moons, where the leader of the Giants and Singers could give their oaths in front of all of The Lords of the North. Where they can speak to those Lords and learn more about The North and her people.
Harry knew he would never be able to hide the fact that the Singers and the Giants were real for long. No matter what he does, rumours would start. Those would make their way south quickly. More fanatics would immediately join the Faith Militant in response to the rumours. Tales of Giants and Children of the Forest are only going to pour gasoline on the flames of the Faith uprising. The movement would start gaining power quickly unless it is squashed now.
Hadrian doubts either Jon Arryn or Robert Baratheon will act decisively enough to end things before they get significantly worse.
According to Lord Manderly, the South isn't prospering nearly as much as the North. Some of his merchants said Kingslanding was in a worse state now than when Aerys ruled. With the city getting worse every year. The more desperate and angry people become, the more likely they are to lash out. Unfortunately the North makes a perfect scapegoat for their anger and the Faith Militant the perfect place for them to gather.
All the smallfolk in the South will see is that the North is starting to prosper and their lives are getting worse. Any skilled speaker can make it seem like the Norths fault instead of the incompetence of the King or their ruling lords. Hadrian can see that the Faith Militant will only explode in numbers in the future from the desperate and angry.
So if he was going to be dealing with prejudice from the Faith towards the North anyways, he might as well try and control the narrative for his benefit as much as he could.
Hadrian decided he would try and get the newcomers integrated into the North as fast as he could. The sooner they manage to show their worth to the Northern lords, the more the lords will see them as assets to be protected. The more the lords would be willing to fight for them if the need ever arises.
So the first obstacle was to get them introduced to the Northern lords and to start getting them all to mingle among themselves and integrate. The next would be to have them start contribute towards the North and its prosperity. Hadrian knows it won't be an easy or quick prospect but there are certain things that can be done to speed the process up.
He will have to buy as much time as he can before the South finds out about this though. At least the whole South. He will, of course, need to inform the King. He will try and do so in a way that the King hopefully takes it as a joke and not as serious news. With any luck, Robert will dismiss his words about Giants and Children and pay more attention to the rest of the letter, as long as it's filled with reasonably important news that he will be more interested in. Harry will need to think more about that on his journey to Winterfell.
The first step to controlling the narrative will be in the purge of spies in Winterfell and the rest of the North. Doing so in Winterfell and Wintertown will be easy, by now he knows of every spy in the castle. He has spent years skinchanging looking for spies and his Huntsmen have done the same. The rest of the North is a different matter though. He knows about a lot of spies but he highly doubts he can get them all. At the very least, he should be able to take care of some of the more obvious spies. Such as that Lannister Maester at White Harbour.
With any luck that should prevent solid confirmation of giants from reaching most Southern courts for a few moons at least. Even then, hopefully the news is dismissed by most who can't get a solid confirmation by a trusted source. After all, Maesters have been teaching nobles that Giants and the Children of the Forest are extinct for generations. Who would easily believe otherwise?
Just to muddy the waters a bit more, Hadrian decided he could spread some of his own propaganda. Write a couple of plays about some important histories of Giants and the Children of the Forest and spread the plays as far and wide as he can. Get some good costumes for some of the actors and then send them south to play in a few moons. Maybe some of the nobles will believe that's what all the talk of giants was about?
He doubts it will work on all of them. Or even most of them. But it should cast some more doubt and hopefully slow down the inevitable realisation that the North has the most powerful military tools in Westeros now. That should hopefully give him at least a year to get the North ready for any type of backlash that is sure to come from that realisation.
He will need to heavily expand upon his spy network so he can start keeping a closer eye on things. Both in the North and the South. Hopefully some of the Children can fill in the gaps until he gets more Huntsmen.
After the kneeling ceremony, Hadrian immediately started heading back South, followed by his expanded party.
Getting past The Wall wasn't an issue. Hadrian and the Lords that accompanied him left most of their men at Castle Black. So the men of the Nights Watch had no choice but to let him back through The Wall even accompanied by creatures straight out of legend.
For to try and stop him from crossing back into his own Kingdom would not only see many, if not all of them killed today, but it would bring the wrath on the North down on the order should they somehow manage to defeat Hadrians men. Which he highly doubted, as all of his guards were well trained and had good weapons and armour. While the men of the Nights Watch were not close to their level, no matter how much his gold has improved their situation.
So, no. Getting past The Wall wasn't an issue. That isn't to say everyone was happy with his choices either.
He saw many men of the Nights Watch shoot him looks of anger and hatred in between their looks of fear. Most of those men were from the South. The ones from the North were generally in too much awe or disbelief at the sight of the Giants and Singers to really pay Hadrian much attention. Beyond the occasional curious glances and awe filled whispers of some of the younger members.
Hadrian decided for everyone's comfort to not stay at The Wall for more than a few minutes and started bringing everyone back to Winterfell immediately.
It wasn't until the next day that the Lords finally decided to question him. He was travelling at a sedate pace in the middle of the column next to lord Umber and Lord Karstark. Lord Manderly was sitting on the back of the cart in front of them, that was covered in blankets and had a lot of different food laying available for the Lord to eat at his leisure. Leaf was riding bareback on a spare horse that was gifted to her on Hadrians other side. The horse wasn't muzzled, nor did it have reigns of any kind. Despite that, Leaf was guiding it better than any rider Hadrian had ever seen.
Most of their journey so far, they have spoken to Leaf about some of the histories of their people and of Westeros. The Lords were suitably interested in what the Singer had to say. She spoke to them about when men first came to Westeros and how their peoples warred with each other. She spoke of a few battles and a few sights she's seen. She spoke about how their races eventually came to a truce that was honoured for thousands of years, until the Andals came.
Most of what she spoke about were stories that the Lords already knew but she had been alive during some of these events or knew others that were, this added an interesting perspective to them.
It wasn't until a few hours past midday that Lord Umber finally brought up the question that Hadrian was sure was plaguing their minds for a while now.
"How did you do it?" He asked.
"Do what my lord?" Hadrian smirked.
Lord Umber huffed. "Don't play the idiot boy. It doesn't suit you. How did you arrange all of this? When did you meet the Children or the Giants and convince them to bend the knee?"
Harry smiled and gestured towards Leaf. "Perhaps you would like to explain?" It was probably time for some truths to be known to some of his most trusted Lords anyway. They need to get more used to his magic for the world he is trying to build.
She tilted her head at Hadrian slightly in curiosity but nodded her consent. "Hadrian Stark is a powerful greenseer. When one gets to that level, they are able to navigate the Weirwoods and speak with another greenseer from great distances. We met when Hadrian was practicing his gifts and stumbled across us. We had a conversation and Hadrian offered my people a deal. After some thought, we accepted. We were the ones who set out to find the Giants and propose that same deal to them on the Starks request." He noticed she left some details out, but he didn't really want to talk about the Three –Eyed Raven either.
The lords were looking suitably awed at her words.
Lord Umber was definitely staring at Hadrian very intensely now. Lord Karstark was silent but the expression of disbelief on his face was funny to see. Lord Manderly, always the most curious of the bunch, was the first to ask. "What exactly is greenseeing and what can it do? I've read myths about it. But they are never clear. "
Leaf hummed. "Greenseeing is a difficult thing to explain. Especially to those that lack the gift. Essentially, at its most basic, it allows one to see visions through the Weirwood trees. Those can be of the past, present or even glimpses of the possible future. It is an incredibly rare and powerful gift."
Wymans eyebrows rose to the top of his forehead. "So you are able to do these things my lord?" He asked.
Hadrian hummed slightly. "It is a lot more complicated than it sounds. Essentially what is seen is random, unless you are skilled at directing where you want your visions to go. I am starting to become skilled, but it is still nearly impossible to find a specific thing in the visions unless you know exactly where it is. The Weirwoods have seen countless things through countless ages. Finding something specific is almost impossible unless I know exactly where and when to look. It is like navigating a maze that branches out infinitely with no clear right or wrong direction. Just different directions that go on forever. If one is not careful they can become lost."
Lord Manderly looked even more interested now. If that were possible.
"How is this possible?" He asked.
Harry laughed. "Magic."
Lord Manderly tried to look incredulous at his answer but instead he appeared resigned. He let out a sigh. "All the Maesters agreed magic was dead. Then again, they said the same about the Giants and the Children of the Forest."
Lord Umber spat on the floor. "Bah! What do those Southern cunts know?! I always knew they were a useless lot!"
After a moment, Lord Umber looked at Hadrian again. "So those stories about you being a skinchanger are true? Did you really destroy the Ironborn army at Moat Cailin with snakes?"
Harry hesitated. "You don't seem very surprised?"
Umber barked a laugh. "Boy, my House is the closest one to the Wall. I've seen some strange things. Heard some strange tales too. My uncle Mors is a skinchanger himself. He treats that squirrel of his like…" He trailed off and shuddered. "Nevermind that. I believed the tales the first time I heard of them. I just want you to confirm it for these two. " He slapped Lord Karstark on the back and pointed at Lord Manderly.
Harry smiled wryly. "Yes. I am a skinchanger. All greenseers are. Greenseeing is the rarer ability."
Lord Umber grinned and laughed loudly. "Hah! A Stark blessed by the Gods! Giants! Children of the Forest!" With another laugh he slapped the Hadrian on the back. He held back a wince. "Things are going to get interesting in the next few years!" With that the lord absolutely started roaring in laughter.
Lord Karstark meanwhile was more focused on the opportunities this revelation brought. "If others could learn this skill, it could revolutionise our army. Our navy. The Norths strength would be greatly increased."
Harry frowned. "Unfortunately, either you are born with the ability to learn or you aren't. Both of my uncles have the ability, but I doubt they will ever be great at it. It is easier for children to learn than it is for adults and will always be dangerous if one is not careful. The instincts of the animal can bleed into the person making them unstable. Besides, I don't want the ability to spread too far, too quickly. It is useful if it is under our control but if others used this against us, it would make life a lot harder. Even bandits could become much more dangerous if they abused this skill. So it will be a number of years before I consider expanding into the military. There are things that must be thought about first. That's not to say I haven't already started putting plans in place though." He smirked.
Hadrian is planning on building a Kingdom that accepts magic users. That means, inevitably, there will be many more magic users and not all of them will be law abiding citizens. Magic has been slowly growing stronger all his life and will probably only continue to do. After saving the Giants and the Children, Hadrian doubts that magic is in danger of dying anytime soon as long as he can keep them safe. That means there will definitely be more skinchangers in a few generations. There will be more Giants and hopefully more Children of the Forest. There will also be a rise in the power of other magic, as Harry doesn't believe he knows even a fraction of what is possible in this new world, and with it the rise of dark magic users is all but guaranteed.
So Harry has to think about laws to make now and how to set up his Huntsmen for future generations to include taking care of any possible Dark Wizards that might appear. He needs to probably create another organisation like the Aurors to look over the general population, while his Huntsmen remain the elite who are commanded by The Stark of Winterfell.
Lord Karstark looked satisfied. Hells, the lord was probably over the moon with the revelation of this skill and the fact it might soon be introduced on certain levels in the military. With skinchanging, Giants and Children of the Forest, the North is well on its way to having the greatest military in the world. Just a few more years and a few more changes and the Norths military will be the greatest in the world. Even if it won't be very large yet.
Lord Umber laughed. "This will give us a big advantage over those southern cunts!" Lord Karstark let out a few small laughs at Lord Umbers boisterousness.
"Are the Gods real?" Lord Manderlys question instantly brought silence to all everyone. Hadrian noticed that Lord Manderly wasn't looking towards him for an answer, but rather towards Leaf. Everyone looked toward the Singer in expectation. Even Hadrian.
He never really believed in Gods in his last life, but after he became Master of Death and was reborn, he finds the idea much more plausible.
After all, it seems as if death was a real entity.
Leafs face had gone deadly serious at the question. It took her a few moments before she began to speak. "My kind has long since worshipped the Gods of the trees and forests. Of the rivers and lakes. Our oldest stories sing that the first of our kind was born from the earth itself, in front of a Weirwood tree. Born from the will of those gods to care for and protect their domain. Born to look over the world and try to keep a balance with nature. To try and understand it. To listen for the voices of the gods of the forest and rivers and Sing their will for the world to hear." There was a slightly bitter tinge to her tongue. She looked heartbroken and sad and longing. Maybe at the thought they perverted that balance by creating the Others. Or at the silence of the gods. Or for a completely different reason. He didn't know and didn't think it right to ask.
"Once long ago, the gods were more active in the world. If one listened to the Song of the World well enough, they could hear their will. They spoke often enough for us to not doubt that they exist. There were many of them. The gods of trees and forests weren't the only gods. There was the Mother Rhoyne. She was very real but is sleeping now. The Drowned God and the Storm God were both real too. Whether they are sleeping or faded, I cannot say. There were many other gods over time, whom followed the same path and interacted with mortals throughout history before fading into slumber. Some have some power over the world still. Like Rhollor. The Gods of the trees and forests used to speak just as much, if not more than them. They have been slumbering for thousands of years now, but they are still watching. Still listening and still influencing the world when they desire." She finished, her words trailing off as she stared at Hadrian at the last part.
He wondered if she thought the reason for his existence was the will of the Old Gods.
He wondered, if in some small part, it might have been.
Now she was back to looking neutral. "Although they do not speak as often as they once did. Do not doubt the power of our Gods. For they are still there. They are still watching and they are still guiding us."
All the Lords had deeply enthralled looks on their faces. Lord Umber soon broke out laughing. "Ha ha ha I knew the gods were real! But to have proof…" he broke off into a reverent whisper.
"And the Seven?" Lord Manderly interrupted.
Leaf frowned at him. "I have never seen proof of their existence. I did investigate a little when the Faith first landed on Westeros. In every instance I found, men who have claimed to speak for The Seven, their septons, were lying about hearing their voices. Either they were blindly following a scripture written by other men born long before them in hopes of finding salvation, or they were doing it for the power it gave them over other men. Whether the Seven themselves are real I cannot truly say for certain. I do not know what the original scripture was or how the Faith came about. But I have never personally seen proof of their existence as I have other gods. I have never heard their song or their voice as I have with other gods. And I have never heard of anyone who has genuinely done so either."
Lord Manderly had a strange look on his face. It was a mixture between disappointed, sad and Hadrian even thought he might have looked a little relieved. The Lord let out a sigh and looked away. The look on his face showed he just wanted to think.
The next few days of the journey were relatively pleasant. Lord Manderly was pretty silent and deep in thought but Lord Umber and Karstark made up for that. Both of the Lords seemed to be in good moods. Laughing, joking and even singing at one stage.
They passed Last Hearth without any trouble and didn't stay longer than a night before they were back on the road again. Harry was eager to get to Winterfell and so were his Lords. Even Lord Umber didn't make a fuss about leaving his castle again so soon. Luckily he managed to avoid most attention as they arrived at the castle after the sun had set and he had the Giants and Children spend the night in the woods and had the lords keep quiet about them. A few people still stumbled across them, but Hadrians men generally handled those occasions and did all they could to keep the smallfolk quiet and calm, even if it meant giving away some gold.
They were only four days ride South of Last Hearth when things changed.
Harry was in the middle of listening to one of Lord Umbers amusing tall tales. It was close to midday and the sun was shining down from the clear sky bringing a level of warmth that was uncommon this far into the North.
"….size of three men she was! But she still couldn't handle my enormous strength! With a cry I tackled that bear and-"
"My Lord!" Lord Umber was interrupted by one of the two Huntsmen that Hadrian took with him on his journey, riding as close to Hadrians horse as he could before he was stopped by the guards.
Harry hardly needed any time to think and told the guard to let him pass once he recognised who it was. "Ven." He greeted the man with a nod. " What's the matter?" He asked.
Ven was a younger man just a little over sixteen years in age. Jod, Hadrians First Huntsman, found him a year ago living on the Western shores near Sea Dragon Point with his mother and little sister. His father was dead and Ven used to hunt to keep his family fed. Jod found out that he skinchanged into a falcon and decided to train him with Harrys permission. His family moved into Wintertown and now, Ven was one of his better skinchangers.
He bowed on his saddle. "My Lord. I was scouting with…" He glanced at the other lords and at Hadrian. At Harrys nod he continued. "my falcon, Sharpclaw, and I saw an army to the south-west of us. They are less than a day away and marching to meet us on our journey. "
The first thought to go through Hadrians mind was 'The mandatory lessons I force each of my huntsmen to undergo is working wonders on their vocabulary.' His second thought was 'It looks like I will get to see the Giants and Singers in action a lot sooner than I expected. '
Harry let out a sigh and voiced his third thought while the lords were now a lot more focused. "How many men and what banners do they carry?"
He hesitated. " I counted at least a thousand men, but I believe there are more. There were a lot of men within the treeline."
The lords around him broke into mutters. A thousand men meant they were already outnumbered almost two to one. If there are a lot more, there might be some serious problems. Harry ignored the mutters and gestured for the man to continue.
He did so without hesitation. "They were a mixed bunch my lord. Many of them looked as if they were wearing decent armour and looked like they were well armed. They actually looked like soldiers. They even had cavalry. There were many others though who looked like they were common peasants. Some of them were wearing the seven pointed star. A lot of them were dressed in simple furs and some were even carrying tools as weapons. I didn't see any banners though my lord."
Harry frowned. He suspects the Whitehills are probably involved if there are signs of the Faith present. He doubts Lord Manderly had anything to do with this. The Dreadfort was to the South. He doubts an army could march across Boltons lands without him knowing, so Bolton was probably involved as well.
How he wished he had more Huntsmen so events like this wouldn't surprise him.
How he wished he sent Huntsmen to watch the Boltons like he meant to, instead of sending one to Kingslanding to keep an eye on the crown. But it needed to be done. He needed to know what was happening.
Harry sighed slightly. There was no point in useless regrets.
He took a deep breath and hardened himself. "Lord Umber." He said interrupting the lords rant about traitorous cunts.
When the lord quietened down and turned to face him, Hadrian spoke. "You know these lands. Is there any good places to meet them in battle we can reach quickly? Preferably somewhere we will have high ground." Harry rubbed his chin. "And if there is a forest nearby for some of our forces to hide in, that would be even better."
Lord Umber grinned. It was not a very nice one.
To read ahead: Pat_ (slash) TheLifeandTimes19