A WINTER ROSE ⊳ g. of thrones [1]

CHAPTER ONE | Winter Is Coming

ELLENA LAUGHED. Chuckling along with her brothers, Jon and Robb, she watched as Bran attempted to fire an arrow into the target, at the least. Her little brother sighed, turning to look up at his father. "Come on, Bran," she urged. "Try again. You must keep practicing."

Bran turned to the target once more, but this time his arrow flew completely over the hedge. She, nor her brothers could help it, and burst into fits of laughter, Ellena and Jon clinging to each other as they cried. "And which one of you was a marksman at ten?" Her father called disapprovingly from above, though he too, couldn't help the smile on his face. He gave a sympathetic look to his son, and urged him to keep practicing.

"Go on."

"Don't think too much, Bran." Jon said, as he bent beside the smaller boy. Ellena bent down on his other side. "He's right Bran. Focus on the target, but don't think too harshly about it.  Let the arrow fly through your fingers," she urged with a soft smile.

"Relax your bow arm." Robb commanded, arms crossed as he watched curiously. Just as Bran was about to release the arrow, another came flying past their ears. All the Stark children's heads whipped around, only to see their sister Arya, had released the arrow.

The eldest children looked on with impressment and pride as the young girl curtsied, but Bran raced after her in anger. The small girl ran with a laugh, and the brothers and their sister laughed as well, yelling to Bran to run faster to catch her.

As her brothers watched, Ellena heard a voice from the rafters crying for their father. Rodrik Cassel marched up to her father, lightly bowing his head, Theon Greyjoy behind him. The boy — one whom she had known since she was a little girl — looked down at her and gave her a cheeky grin. She gave the Stark ward a sickly-sweet smile, before throwing up the bird, something both her parents would have discouraged and probably punished her for, if they had been watching.

She and Theon has always had.. a complicated relationship. The two fought like an old married couple, but still.. something else lingered there. It was as if he had an eye for her. She however, did not.

It was nothing personal against Theon, gods no. He was like a brother to her. And that was it, simply put.

And though he fucked whores day and night, there were one or two occasions after she flowered when he.. got excessively drunk, and tried to at the least get her to kiss him. Perhaps he fondled her breasts, but she would never remind him of that, save him the embarrassment.

But Ellena always denied him, she had to keep herself chaste. She had already bled, but as many suitors there had been to ask for her hand, just as many were turned away. It annoyed her mother to the Seven Hell's ends, and amused her father, but there was no telling to why she couldn't find a suitable suitor. None, well... suited her. Nor her father, she would always later come to find out.

With what she could hear, there had been a deserter from the Night's Watch, which meant that her father was to take care of the deserter, and punish him for his leave. And Eddard Stark wanted Bran to go with them. Looking down at her attire, trousers and a thick tunic for the cold Northern weather, she decided it would be good enough. Running to her chambers, she passed by Sansa who looked thoroughly annoyed. "Where are you going and why are you running?"