‧ [Chapter 3] ‧
"Very well. Let him in." Said a grave voice.
The guard stepped aside, leaving the way clear for Harry to enter. He shot a warning look to the young wizard before returning to his statue position. Followed closely by Hedwig, Harry entered the Lord's solar.
The solar was brightly lit by the two big windows in the back of it. A desk with two comfortable chairs was sitting in the back corner. A massive fireplace with a raging fire and beautifully crafted tapestries hung on the wall and a wolf sigil was engraved on the wall itself. Beside it, was Lord Rickard Stark.
Lord Stark was a tall man, a little bit more than six feet tall with broad shoulders. He had his hands behind his back and was staring at the fire. A man not to mess with.
"Lad, you are in the presence of Lord Rickard Stark, Lord of Winterfell, and Warden of the North," said the male servant before taking his leave.
The silence between the two was almost deafening. The only sound they could hear was the cracking of the fireplace.
"Harry Potter," finally said Rickard. "and his pup direwolf. We meet at last."
"How…how do you know our names?" asked Harry.
"In a dream lad. The Old Gods granted me a vision in a dream years ago about you both. That I would find you in the heart of the mightiest storm the North as seen in recent memory. It is a hard Winter, but the Maesters are saying that it is at an end." explained Lord Stark.
"What else these, Old Gods, have told you?
"You doubt our Gods?" asked more firmly the Lord of Winterfell.
"Lord Stark, forgive me if I gave offense, but please understand, I am not from this land. I do not know any of your customs and I even less about the religion of Westeros." apologized Harry.
"I understand lad. My gods have spoken of a grave threat to the North. I do not know where exactly the menace is coming from, nor when, but I do know that you both will have a role to play. Harry Potter of the Winterstorm and Hedwig the direwolf. The Old Gods have asked me to train you in the way of the warrior."
"Lord Stark, may I ask what a direwolf is? I thought she was a dog of a wolf." Asked Harry.
"The direwolf is a mythical creature here in the North. While the species is not supposed to be south of the Wall, it was more so long ago. It is the symbol of the House of Stark." Said Lord Rickard, pointing at the signal carved into the stone above the fireplace.
"While direwolf may indeed look a lot like a dog of a wolf when they are young like you said, they are extremely more lethal. An adult direwolf can easily be the size of a horse and like a normal wolf, it only takes them a year to do so. They can be as fierce as they can be loyal. You are very fortunate to have one for a companion."
"I like this two-legged, he knows how to see greatness." Said Hedwig while she puffed her chest in pride at Lord Stark's comment.
"The direwolf is what became the House of Stark sigil millennia ago." Continued Rickard. "We were said to be able to control them like no other and even be able to ride them into battle."
Harry imagined himself riding a massive Hedwig dressed in armor. His childish dream of becoming a knight was now a possibility. Even his direwolf, judging was her tail wagging, was excited at this prospect. Lord Stark wasn't finished.
"I kept both your names secret to my men. I would advise you to forgo the name 'Potter', as the House of the Potter exists within the Reach. No need to put too many eyes for no reason on you any more than it needs to be. You will train with my son Brandon as the Old Gods wishes."
Harry didn't understand any of the last part. It was going way too fast. This man, the supposedly very powerful Lord, was giving him so much without even an explanation from him.
"Lord Stark, if I may?" asked the young man.
Rickard simply nodded his head, indicating to Harry that he could continue.
"Thank you. What have you told them when you left Winterfell to find me? I am not your son, nor important to this world. People are going to start asking questions"
Lord Stark let out a hearty laugh at the comment, contrasting with his cold demeanor.
"Let them. I simply went on patrol with my men and said to them that I heard your cries with the storm. Hedwig here, in the Old Gods way to show that you are touched by them. I do not wish, however, to give you the stain of bastardy, even if in the North, it is less of a problem than in the South. Henceforth, you shall be known as Harry of the Winterstorm, member of the House of Stark household." Finished Lord Rickard.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Harry Winterstorm was walking through the corridor of Winterfell with confidence. His newly given name gave him more courage than ever. Never has he felt like this. With his aunt and uncle, he felt like the freak in the family. Now, it wasn't his family, but at the very least, he did not sleep in a small cupboard with only spiders for company.
Right after the meeting with Lord Stark, Harry was presented to the entire family. The oldest was Brandon. He was maybe only a year older than himself. The young wizard was convinced that when Rickard's son was going to be an adult, he would be just as big as his father. Already, in the training ground outside, Harry could easily see that Brandon was a natural with a sword and shield. He could also see that he had a very wild temper, he would have to be careful around him.
The second son, Eddard Stark, wasn't even in Winterfell, being fostered at the Eyrie in the Vale with Lord Jon Arryn. From what Brandon said about his younger brother, he was the most quiet of the family to the point of being cold toward people. However, his family knew his real self.
The third child was the little girl Harry saw earlier this morning, Lyanna Stark. She was by far the most energetic child Harry as ever seen. Always on the move, it was almost impossible to keep her in place. She always had the biggest grin possible while she was riding her horse, which was every day.
The youngest was Benjen Stark. He was a little shy for now but Harry promised to himself to win him over. He was maybe a year younger than Lyanna, who was around seven or eight. As the third son of a powerful Lord, the youngest of Rickard wanted to find honor on the battlefield or with the Night's Watch.
The last member of the Lord's family was his wife Lyarra Stark. From what Harry could see, she was a stern woman but loved her children very much. She was feeling rather sick at the moment, having caught a cold due to the storm.
With Lord Stark, they decide on a convert story. He was the son of a farming family killed in a wildling raid not too long ago. The word spread out and everyone quickly accepted it due to his direwolf, seeing it as a sign of the Old Gods themselves.
As the storm was still too strong for any training outside, Harry and the Stark children were given extra lessons with Maester Walys. It was the first lesson on Westeros the young wizard attended so he wanted to put in extra effort, wanting to learn all of the family names. Beside him,
"What's wrong with you, Hedwig? I know it is kind of boring for you but please stay still. I don't want them to send you to the kennels." Said mentally Harry.
"It's this man Master Harry. I don't trust him. My instinct en telling me something is wrong with him. He is not to be trusted."
"What do you mean girl? He's the one who saved me" protested Harry.
"I know Master. I can't explain why though, it's like every fiber of my being is telling me to bite this two-legged shit." She almost growled.
Her reaction caught the attention of everyone in the room. Benjen was a little bit scared so as the big brother that he was, Brandon acted rashly.
"What is the meaning of this!? Why does your wolf growled at my brother like this?" He demanded.
"She's bored, I apologized to Heir Stark. It won't happen again, I'll talk to her." Said Harry immediately. "You need to control yourself, Hedwig. If I have a training to do, you certainly have one now!" he ordered her.
"Yes, master." She whined against Benjen's hand, wanting to apologize. The child started to laugh, happy with the way the direwolf was acting.
"You aren't so bad huh, Lady Hedwig?" he said with a laugh.
With that comment, Hedwig's ears straighten almost immediately. She put her front paws on the boy's shoulder and started licking his face making him laugh even more.
"A Lady? I like this human, Master Harry! These Starks all seem like great people to be around!"
"Well… I guess if she acts like this…" started Brandon before Hedwig switched her attention to him.
"Children!" said a stern voice. "This is highly inappropriate behavior while you are supposed to be studying the Great Houses of Westeros."
All of the eyes in the room looked immediately at the source of the noise. Master Walys looked affronted by what he was seeing.
"I'll be talking to Lord Rickard about your unacceptable behavior. This… beast needs to leave. I refuse to be in its presence any longer!"
Master Walys left abruptly, leaving the children stunned.
"Good fucking riddance I say," said Brandon.
"Brandon! Watch your language or Mother will punish you again." Exclaimed his younger brother.
"What? Is this true?" Asked the older brother, more careful with his word. "He never speaks of the North in a good way. The only reason he is here is because of the High Septon in the South and Father not wanting to provoke the Faith or the Targaryen."
"That's not true," said Lyanna, "Father listened to him all the time, and it's you who don't like Maester Walys, Bran."
"Whatever! I already know all of this. I should be outside, practicing with my sword. Ser Rodrik has promised to finally spar with me!" he said with great excitement. He very often speaks of training and fighting. He was almost harassing his father about letting him hunt some bandits on the kingsroad.
"What about me?" whined Lyanna. "I want to learn the sword but Father refuses. He says he wants to marry to some fancy southern Lord."
Benjen was immediately with his sister, giving his support. Lyanna had tears in her eyes. Clearly, she did not want this future for her. From what Harry knew of her, she was more the kind of girl to ride her horse and go on the hunt than being a stay-at-home lady.
"I'm sure Father will not do that sister," said her young brother. "He wants the best for us! And the best for us is to stay together. Like Ned said before he left, the lone wolf dies, but the pack survives."
:-[T.A.B]-:
"It is unacceptable! I refuse to work beside this beast! By the Grace of the Seven my Lord, you should skin this animal without a second thought." Ranted the Maester in his Lord solar.
Lord Rickard Stark was a man that many would consider calm, if not cold. However, when he heard the comment about the white direwolf, he saw red. His fist was so quick that Walys did not even react. Rickard punched the man right in the face. The man fell to the floor, completely shocked by the hit.
"You will shut up, Master. You are here because I wanted it. I can make you leave this instant if I wish. You will never, and I repeat, never insult the direwolf named Hedwig ever again. If so, I will banish you to the wall with a second thought, do you hear me?" raged Rickard.
The man was so scared of Lord Stark that all he could do was nodding frantically.
"I will not have you insult the very sigils of my House ever again either. The House of Stark has stood proud than any other family on Planetos, do not forget this, Master." He finished.
"Ser Rodrik." Said Rickard.
As soon as called, Rodrik Cassel entered the solar.
"Yes, my lord." He said without any glance at the terrified man on the ground.
"Bring Maester Walys to his room, so that he can rest and think about our conversation."
"Yes, my lord." Was the repeated answer.
Ser Rodrik, with his free arm, helped the old man to his feet before almost shoving him on the way. Lord Rickard sighed, holding the hand he hit Walys with.
:-[T.A.B]-: