Ella Snow and her twin brother are outsiders in the house of their father, Lord Eddard Stark. Ella has no one else in the world, except her brother Jon. Join Ella on her journey as she uncovers truths that could destroy her and those she loves.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Tormund was brought to the Lord Commander's office, by way of Jon. Ella sat next to her brother as the wildling prisoner sat across from them. Ella's heart sank seeing Tormund in this state. It reminded her of the time her father made her chain up Asena, per Lady Catelyn's request. Seeing anything in chains or locked away for no apparent reason never sat right with Ella.
"Where are the Free Folk now?" Jon asked the wildling giant. "Where have they gone?"
Tormund shifted in his seat, refusing to speak. "Who leads them?" Jon asked.
Ella kept a focused gaze on Tormund as his eyes shifted to her. Ella nodded, convincing her wildling friend to speak. "They followed Mance. They won't follow anyone else."
"And what about you?" Jon spoke, his eyes not leaving Tormund.
"Hard to lead when you're in chains," Tormund remarked, extending his shackled wrists.
"What if my brother unchained you?" Ella asked softly.
"Why would he do that, girl?" Tormund huffed.
"We've been through this, Tormund. You and the Free Folk are not the enemies here, and we are not yours." Ella stated.
"Well, your brother and his crows sure seemed like my enemy when he killed my friends."
"For 8,000 years, the Night's Watch has sworn an oath that guards the realms of men. And for 8,000 years, we've fallen short of that oath. You belong to the realms of men. All of you. My apologies for not seeing this sooner. Ella has spent much time convincing me that this is true, and she is right. Being born on the other side of the Wall does not make you a criminal." Jon explained. Ella was proud to see Jon following Maester Aemon's advice. He definitely was shedding his childhood skin, and becoming the man she knew he was destined to be.
"And now everything is going to change?" Tormund asked, clearly skeptical of Jon.
"We hope it is," Ella gave Tormund a small smile.
Tormund looked between the twins, trying to find any indication of a lie. "Why now?"
"Because now," Jon said, leaning forward in his seat, "I am Lord Commander of the Night's Watch."
"What would you have me do, Lord Commander?" Tormund exaggerated his words. Ella chuckled at his foolishness, but quickly gathered herself.
Ella remained seated as Jon stood up, "I'd have you go North of the Wall," Jon informed the wildling man. He walked to the other side, next to Tormund. "Gather the remaining Free Folk, wherever they are, and bring them back here. I"ll open the gates for them and let them through. I'll find them lands to settle South of the Wall."
"They won't kneel for you, and neither will I," Tormund hissed.
"I don't want them to kneel for me," Jon stated, furrowing his eyebrows. "I want them to fight with us, when the time comes."
"The day I ask my people to fight with the crows is the day my people cut my guts from my belly and make me eat them," Tormund stated.
Ella found Tormund's remarks entertaining, but she pushed them aside and rose from her seat. Both Jon and Tormund stared at her, but her focus was on Tormund. "And how many of your people can't fight, Tormund? You told me there's about 100,000 Free Folk out there. How many of that 100,000 are women? And the children? Your two daughters, might I add. And what of the old? And the sick? What happens to them, Tormund? You'd let your little girls die because you don't want to side with the Night's Watch?"Ella knew she was questioning him too hard. She saw the concern and anger etched into his harsh lines on his face. But Tormund never spoke. He soaked in every word spoken by Ella Snow, knowing she was right.
"You're condemning those who cannot save themselves to death," Ella said boldly. "Worse than death, actually. You're too proud to make peace with the people of this realm, and you would rather see your people die than save them."
Ella strolled to the his left side, opposite of Jon. She kept her eyes fixated on Tormund as he shifted in his seat to face her. She bent over to be at his height. "Maybe you aren't proud. Maybe you're just a coward," she whispered. Her words were soft-spoken, but they held so much meaning. And calling a man like Tormund a coward was the biggest insult to his pride.
He abruptly stood up, towering over the small girl dressed in black. His blue eyes filled with fury as he glared at her. "Easy thing to say to a man in chains," he growled in a low voice.
Ella knew she set him off, but she had to. To prove to him that she was not a small child. To prove she was not afraid.
Without breaking her gaze, Ella reached for the key to Tormund's chains. She grabbed his right wrist and unlocked the first chain, then repeated the process on his other hand. She dropped the chains to the ground with a loud thud. Ella's pale eyes remained on Tormund as he rubbed his wrists that had been bound for months.
"The Free Folk need a leader, Tormund," she told the ginger man. "They need to get South of the Wall before it's too late. The walkers are coming, and they'll hit the Free Folk first."
"Ella's right," Jon chimed in, causing Ella and Tormund to look at him. "We don't have much time, and they have less. Look, we're not asking you to make peace to save your skin. Make peace to save your people."
Tormund thought long and hard about their words. He knew the Snow twins were right, but he just did not want to give in to the baby crow and his beautiful sister, no matter how he felt for the lady crow. "Most of them are at Hardhome," Tormund answered after several minutes. "You know where that is?"
"Up on Storrold's point," Jon said.
"It's the tip of the peninsula that jets out into the Shivering Sea," Ella stated. Tormund looked at the girl with a puzzled look, but she waved him off. "It's the part that meets the water." Tormund remained confused, but nodded.
"I can spare you ten horses and nine other men. You can get there in a week," He informed the wildling leader.
"We'll need ships," Tormund told the eager Lord Commander.
"We'll have to talk to King Stannis about lending you his fleet," Jon said, remembering Ella's plan a fortnight ago.
"All right then," Tormund agreed. "But you and the lady crow are coming with me. You're the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. They need to hear it from you two. She's the one who convinced me to side with the crows, and she will be useful in gaining the trust of the other Free Folk. She showed Mance mercy, and the Free Folk will respect her. They need to hear this from the both of you. They need to know the ships they are boarding won't be torched in the middle of the sea. You two come with me, or I don't go."
Ella and Jon glanced at each other. They knew Tormund was right. The Free Folk won't board the ships of their enemy unless Ella and Jon explained everything. The Snow twins were the only hope of saving the Free Folk, and they owed it to the Free Folk after everything the Westerosi people have put them through for 8,000 years.
"We'll do it," the twins said in unison.
"You two better bundle up then," Tormund chuckled. "It's cold in the North, and the Free Folk won't help you if you freeze your balls off."
