Six months passed, and in that period, Allara had finally learned to balance her duties and studies with being a child. She still pushed herself to be the best at everything she did, but Alarra made sure to set time aside to play with her brother and sister. Because of that, Alarra's stress level went down. Within those six months, Alarra maintained constant communication with Brandon and Ned; however, she didn't receive as many letters from Brandon as from Ned; Alarra cherished every one of the letters. She also sometimes received correspondence from Robert as well. They were simple notes, asking how things were going with her and how her training was coming along.
Alarra would write back, asking the same thing and asking how his studies were going. Soon enough, she and Robert became friends, and their correspondence became more frequent, much to Rickard and Lyarra's delight. Rickard's idea of discussing a possible marriage between his youngest daughter and the future lord of Storm's End was becoming something that appealed to him more and more. But he would not agree to a formal betrothal contract until Alarra until Alarra flowered, but that didn't mean he couldn't discuss it with Steffon now. That would give Alarra and Robert plenty of time to establish a good friendship. And if Steffon accepted, Rickard wouldn't let Alarra marry until she was at least seven and ten-name days old.
As time went on and the twins' name day approached, Rickard began to think of what he could get his daughters for their sixth name day. Rickard believed the best thing he could get Lyanna would be a new set of training leather and a blunted sword. But for Alarra, Rickard would do something different. He had promised her they would revisit Ned, and Rickard thought taking Alarra to the Vale would be the perfect gift. The Lord of Winterfell decided to discuss it with his wife and see what she thought of his idea. After talking to Lyarra, they decided to have a feast for the twins then Rickard would take Alarra and Lyanna to the Eyrie to visit Ned.
As the twins' name day approached, many lords arrived a few days before the celebration, bringing their daughters with them, hoping that their daughters would be chosen to serve as ladies in waiting for Alarra or Lyanna. Other Lords brought their sons, hoping to find favor with Lord Rickard and betroth their sons to one of the twins; even if the girls were still too young, they could at least make a good impression on their Liege Lord.
When their name day finally arrived, Lyanna and Alarra woke up excited to start the day. On this day, they were excused from their studies and were allowed to do whatever they wanted. The first thing they would do was go to the sparring ring to practice with the girls that had arrived earlier. Since Lord Rickard decided to let his girls learn to fight, many other lords followed his example. They, too, had reasoned that their daughters should learn to defend themselves if they found themselves unprotected. So, the girls were excited to go spar with the Stark twins, especially Maege Mormont of Bear Island.
After their sparring lesson, the twins and their new friends went to bathe and change, then went to the great hall to have breakfast with Lord and Lady Stark and their guests. Later that evening, there would be a birthday feast for the twins. Once the girls were dressed, they went to the great hall, where they sat on the dais with their parents. The twins sat on either side of Benjen, and the servants brought the food.
After breakfast, Lord Rickard presented the girls with their first gifts, and he led them out to the stables, where two horses were waiting. Lyanna's horse was a brown stallion with a black mane, while Alarra's was a grey-dappled mare. The twins squealed with delight and hugged their father. He advised them that they would need extra riding lessons before they could venture out of Winterfell, and when they did, the twins would be escorted. Lyanna immediately complained, saying they were old enough to go independently, but Lord Rickon refused to budge.
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Soul of a Wolf (Kagome x Robert Baratheon)
FanficKagome's body was fading, Kikyo finally got her wish. She was able to kill Kagome and retrieve her soul, much to the delight of Inuyasha, who didn't care that without a soul, Kagome would fade into nothing. But her friends did care, and they did the...
