𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬 || 𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑾𝒐𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝑪𝒓𝒚 𝑶𝒖𝒕

𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑿𝑰𝑿

꧁CHAPTER XIX꧂
꧁300 AFTER CONQUEST꧂

꧁BENGET꧂

In his heart he knew he was still in the great hall, sitting at the High Table with the other officers of Castle Black. But within the construct of his mind, Ben was lost in thought, completely gone from the reality around him. The men arguing like children below seemed so distant, so far as they looked as ants to him now. From where Ben was in his head, he was in the sky.

"I shall never walk again."

"What?"

The voice near scared him, but his body remained unmoving, the bickering voices fading away, leaving Ben alone with the voice in his head.

"But I will fly...as will you."

"Fly, hm?"

He didn't respond physically, only thinking the words in his head. But the thing talking back, whether it be his own imagination or not, understood and responded.

"Fly. But not as a crow. You will fly as a dr—"

His eyes snapped open in an instant, and he groaned, shaking his head and thoughts away as he rubbed his eyes. His hand rested on his sword at his waist, lazily stroking the strip of weirwood bark still tied tight around the pommel. Ben's world came back to him, and he saw the men of his Night's Watch throwing things at each other, words, accusations, cups and chairs and more back and forth, and so he stood, slamming his fist down on the table.

"Silence!"

His voice boomed across the room, and near everything came to a hush within an instant. Only thing that made noise was one last "fuck you" being sent across the room between one brother to another, which made him crack an amused smile as chuckles filled the room before once again dying down.

"I shouldn't have to raise my voice to you like you are bratty children. Didn't your mothers and fathers whip enough discipline in you when you were young?"

"Not enough!"

A Black Brother joked, scoring laughter across the room as Ben chuckled, shaking his head as he raised his hand.

"Amusing as it would be to scold each of you, I have a terrible headache, and these deliberations have only increased it. For my sake, please don't make this worse."

"Seems the only one making things worse is you, Snow White."

The talk had been about a group of subjects, two to be specific. And the topics of discussion stood in the room as well, in corners opposite of one another, avoiding each other like a plague. Ser Alliser stood after his words, looking up to Ben from where he sat down below, cast out from the High Table which his insufferable arse had graced for a time before being promptly booted by Ben himself.

"You tell us that you struck a deal with the Iron Bank, and yet you leave us stuck still with these things that will now eat through our stores as well as our coffers!"

The knight had stuck a finger in the direction of the few men he had chosen to command different castles along the Wall. Just minutes ago when he had brought the subject up, a fight nearly broke out. Fortunately, Val had both kicked a Black Brother in his groin and headbutted Tormund, yelling at everyone as if they all were children, including himself. They hadn't dared say anything back then. But tempers still boiled and tension was still building. Ser Alliser was only adding to it now.