Aquamarine ➳ Theon Greyjoy

➳ 3 // Things Lovers Do

:A N A S T A R K:

Fun never lasts for too long, I should know about that better than anyone else.

When you're born on a noble house and are expected to do things, fun is surely one part of life that you have to grow out off at a young age. Instead of playing around like most kids would do, scrapping knees on the river or dreaming about being knights, our fun would have to be found while studying and getting a proper education that would go side by side with proper manners. I knew the names of castles and their lords better than I knew names of people I considered friends, in all honesty I don't even think I had friends outside of my family but I had made my peace with it a long time ago.

Everyone noticed that father was not present before we even walked inside the hall to name the wolves, but once he showed up the fun started and it seemed like it could last as laughter echoed on the halls, but as soon as father stood up from the table, his eyes looking down at all of us it was clear that something troubling was on his mind.

"Your mother has informed me that a raven came from King's Landing" he spoke "king Robert and his family are coming to Winterfell because the Hand of the King has passed away"

Then silence.

Looks were shared amongst us as each of us pondered on dad's words. I knew Rickon couldn't understand, Bran and Arya probably could, Sansa had her own mind set at the words of nobility coming to visit but me and Robb had a different look on our faces.

Jon Arryn had been the Hand of the King since Robert's Rebellion was won and not only that but I knew that father saw this man as his own father.

To explain all of this some history lessons would be needed but to try and cut it short: the Targaryen had been the Kings and Queens of Westeros since they managed to conquer it long ago and it was all going rather nicely for the dragon blooded people until Aerys Targaryen came to have the Iron Throne. We had heard many tales about him and his madness and how everyone was falling in poor leadership but what caused the North to rebel was when my aunt Lyanna Stark was kidnaped by the prince Rhaegar Targaryen.

I sat a lot of times in the crypts looking at the stone statue of aunt Lyanna, never having the chance to know her but feeling like I did. She was told to be as free and wild as the wolf, her northern spirit unlike any other and maybe that was what attracted the young and already married Targaryen prince. Lyanna was promised to the now king Robert Baratheon and he did not enjoy the news about his beloved being taken away, and the Stark family did not fall behind in those matters of rage. Brandon Stark, dad's older brother, marched to King's Landing to try his best to get his sister back to safety and demanded that the prince would be punished for his crimes but the mad king accused him of treason and called my grandfather, Rickard Stark, to go to the Red Keep to answer for his son's 'crimes'.

It was a terrible day for house Stark as both Rickard and Brandon suffered a terrible death that was unimaginable to any other person. Father didn't tell us this story, we knew it because it was the rebellion that had put Robert on the throne and it was considered of quite importance for us to remember.

After all, the North Remembers.

My father was then a moving target for the mad king who was afraid he would do something in revenge for his lost brother and father. The king was right to be scared. Father and Robert united and with the help of Jon Arryn and my mother's house, house Tully, the rebellion began leading to battles and the almost extermination of house Targaryen.

So we knew from knowing all of this that the only reason king Robert would march so far north was because of father, he would want to replace his old hand, the one he considered his own father as well, for the hand of whom he considered his brother. And we all know that being Hand of the King is not the best of jobs due to how unsafe it can be.