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.
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Ella was pulled from the comfort of the library one afternoon in order to attend a meeting with the northern ladies and lords, as well as the wildlings. Ella sat to the left of Jon at the high table, who sat next to Sansa and Ser Davos. Jon rose from his seat and began to elaborate on his plan for the upcoming war.
"I want every northern maester to scour their records for any mention of dragonglass. Dragonglass kills white walkers. It is more valuable to us now than gold. We need to find it. We need to mine it, and we need to make weapons out of it. Everyone, ages ten to sixty, will drill daily with spears, pikes, bows, and arrows."
"It's about time we taught these boys of summer how to fight," Lord Glover chuckled, earning scattered cheers from his fellow northern men.
"Not just the boys," Jon stated. Cheers from across the room subsided, and all eyes were on him. "We can't defend the North if only half the population is fighting."
Lord Glover glared at Jon, standing from his seat as he felt personally attacked about the request from the King in the North. "You expect me to put a sword in my granddaughter's hand?"
Little Lyanna was the first to jump to her feet as Lord Glover finished his sentence. The young cub was annoyed at his notion of girls not being able to fight. "I don't plan on knitting by the fire while men fight for me. I might be small, Lord Glover, and I might be a girl, but I am every bit as much a northerner as you are."
"Indeed you are, my Lady. No one has questioned-"
"And I don't need your permission to defend the North. Lady Ella fought proudly alongside northern men against Ramsay Bolton. Surely she didn't need permission to fight," Lyanna continued, projecting her voice for everyone to hear. Ella caught the attention of the young bear, sending her a smile and urging her to continue. "We'll begin training every man, woman, boy, and girl on Bear Island."
Men pounded the table and cheered at the words of Lady Lyanna. Lord Glover nodded in her direction, showing that he respected the lady's decision. The both took their seat once more, and Jon spoke again.
"While we are preparing for attack, we need to shore up our defenses. The only thing standing between us and the Night King is the Wall, and it hasn't been manned properly in centuries." Jon turned his attention to Tormund and spoke directly to him. "I'm not the king of the free folk, but if we're going to survive this war together."
Tormund grunted and rose from his spot. "You want us to man the castles for you?"
"Aye. Last time we saw the Night King was at Hardhome. The closest castle to Hardhome is Eastwatch by the Sea." Jon stated to his wild haired friend.
"Then that's where I'll go. Looks like we're the Night's Watch now." Tormund boasted at the northern lords. Ella sensed the uneasiness among the northerners, the thought of wildlings being the only thing to protect them when the time comes. The lone wolf sighed, knowing her wildling friend would be sent away. Ella spent so much time with Tormund over the past few years, and she was unsure what her life would be like without the wildling man teasing her and fighting with her every day.
"If they breach the Wall," Jon began, "the first two castles in their path are Last Hearth and Karhold."
"The Umbers and the Karstarks betrayed the North!" Lord Royce reminded Jon as he rose from the bench. "Their castles should be torn down with not a stone left standing."
"The castles themselves committed no crimes," Ella stated.
"My sister is right," Sansa said. "We need every fortress we have for the war to come. We should give the Last Hearth and Karhold to new families, those who were loyal to us and supported us against Ramsay."
"Aye," the lords of the North chanted at Sansa's speech.
"The Umbers and the Karstarks have fought beside the Starks for centuries. They've kept faith generation after generation," Jon mentioned.
"And then they broke faith," Sansa muttered. Jon glared at the red headed beauty as she glared back.
"Smalljon Umber nearly strangled me during the battle, Jon," Ella spoke up, defending her sister. "Or do you not remember? He nearly killed your best friend."
"Aye, I remember. But, I'm not going to strip these families of their ancestral homes because of the crimes of a few reckless sons," Jon snarled towards the young girl.
"So," Sansa stood from her seat, "you do not punish those who committed treason, and don't reward those for loyalty?" The entire hall fell silent, all anyone could hear is the crackling of the fireplace.
"The punishment for treason is death," Jon stated. "Smalljon Umber died on the field of battle. Harold Karstark died on the field of battle."
"They died fighting for Ramsay," Sansa said. Jon shook his head to stare at his sister in disbelief. "Give the castles to the families of the men who died fighting for you."
The lords of the North banged their mugs on the tables, agreeing with Sansa's bargain. Ella didn't disagreed with her sister. The families loyal to the Starks needed to be rewarded in some way.
"When I was Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, I executed men who betrayed me. I executed men who refused to follow orders. My father always said 'The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword.' I have tried to live by those words. And I will not take punish a son for his father's sins, and I will not take away a home that as belonged to a family for centuries. That is my decision, and my decision is final," Jon's voice echoed through the Great Hall.
Ella and Sansa glanced to each other, knowing that they couldn't convince Jon otherwise. Jon Snow was as stubborn as they come, and there was no way to change his mind.
The lone wolf turned her attention to her brother as he called forth two young children, Ned Umber and Alys Karstark. The newly appointed lord and lady of their houses. The two children stood side by side in the middle of the room, waiting for Jon to speak to them.
"For centuries, our families fought side by side on the battlefield" Jon began, "and I'm asking you to pledge your loyalty to House Stark once again. To serve as our bannermen and come to our aid whenever called upon."
The red headed girl pulled her sword from the sheath, driving the tip into the stone floor as she knelt before the King in the North. Little Ned Umber mimicked her actions, kneeling before Jon as well.
The room fell silent, only the crackling of the fireplace could be heard. Jon instructed the children to rise as he looked them in the eyes. "Yesterday's wars do not matter. The North needs to band together. All the living north. Will you stand beside me, Ned and Alyse, now and always?"
"Now and always," the children said in unison.
The men around the room smiled and cheered for the new alliances Jon formed. The North was united and ready to fight the Night King.
