The Bastards of Winterfell (A Game of Thrones Fanfic)

Chapter Sixteen

A/N

While typing this I realized that I have been misspelling "Rodrik" (I've been spelling it Roderick). I'm not going to go back and fix it, nor do I think I'll actually remember to start spelling it correctly. Let's just forget all about this, okay?

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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No One's POV

Ned and Benjen were sitting in the Lord's solar talking, catching up, and reminiscing about old times. There was a knock on the door, "Enter." Ned commanded. Sir Roderick walks into the room, Ned smiles at the elder knight, "Sir Roderick," he acknowledges "what did my children do this time?" he asks, causing Benjen to chuckle.

"I fear it is a more serious matter, my lord." he states grimly.

"What has happened?"

"A hunting party returned with a young man they had found running through the woods. He's a deserter, my lord." Benjen's face hardens 

Ned sighs, knowing what he must do, an idea forming in his mind. "Tell the boys to saddle their horses. It's about time they see this."

Roderick nods, "Just Robb, Jon, and Theon then, my lord?"

"Aye, just the three." 

Roderick goes to leave the room, "Hold on, sir." He turns to his brother, "Ned, what of Raven?"

"What of her?"

"Shouldn't she go along?"

"You expect me to allow my daughter to see such a grizzly sight? You're mad!"

"Ned, she'll have to be exposed to this eventually," Benjen states trying to reason.

"She is just a girl, Ben."

"Aye, she is, but she is far from the lady Sansa will be. If she is not to be a lady, then what shall she be?"

Ned sighs, scratching the back of his head, "I've never thought about that."

"I say you expose her to this. She may just make that decision for herself if you do."

Ned sighs once again, knowing Benjen to be right, "Fine. Roderick, tell Raven to saddle up as well."

The old knight nods, "Yes, my lord." He leaves the room

Ned turns to his younger brother, "How do you talk me into such things?"

Benjen smirks, "It's a gift, brother."

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 In the courtyard...

All the older children were in the midst of a heated competition. Theon had bet the younger three that he could outshoot all of them without problem. In order to wipe that cocky smirk off the iron islander's face, they took that challenge head-on. Currently, Theon and Robb were tied, with Jon and Raven not too far behind them. Robb had just hit another bullseye, putting him in the lead, just one point ahead of the elder boy. The twins high fived each other and clapped Robb on the back, as Greyjoy pouted a bit.

Sir Roderick came up behind them, clearing his throat, he addresses them, "Clean up, then saddle up, children." he commands 

Without question, they begin to clean up the area, pulling the arrows from the targets and placing all the equipment back where they had gotten them. "What's going on, Sir Roderick?" Jon asks.

"We've received word, there's been a deserter from the Night's Watch."

Robb speaks up, "Father's allowing us to ride along?"

"Aye."

"All of us?" Raven looks up at him hopefully.

"Yes, all of you. Now, go saddle your horses."

The young girl cheers quietly to herself as they walk to the stables. "Don't be so happy about this, Raven." Theon warns, "We're about to witness a man's death."

"He deserted his post. He knew what would happen when he did." Jon states. Nothing else was said during the short walk into the stables, each making their way to their respective horses. Raven walked up to her horse, a beautiful black mare she had gotten for her eleventh nameday, getting the saddle up and over the back with some help from one of the stables. Before any of them knew it, it was time to head out. The four galloped behind the adults, each of them feeling a mixture of excited and terrified. 

The party arrived at the grassy clearing, finding to guards holding a young man, he couldn't have been more than twenty-five, by each of his arms. A large log with a divet sat in front of the men. The riders all dismounted their horses a ways away from the log.  Lord Stark walks up to the man, "You've anything to say for yourself?"

"I know I broke my oath, my lord, but you've never been forced to live up there. I had to get out, no matter the cost."

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 Raven's POV

After the man speaks I look to Jon, he has been talking about joinging the Night's Watch for a while now. No matter what I say, he refuses to listen to me. I start to think to my self "Maybe this will put him right."

Father nods to the guards holding the deserter, they force him to kneel across the log. Father turns to his squire, taking the Stark ancestral sword, Ice, from its wolf skin sheath. He points it to ground, placing his chin on the pommel. "In the name of Robert of the House Baratheon, the first of his name. King of the Andals and the first men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and protector of the realm. I Eddard of the House Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, sentence you to die." He lifts Ice above his head and one swift movement the man's head comes from his shoulders. 

I barely had time to flinch, it happened so fast. Jory takes one last look, then ushering the four of us back to our horses. I look over to Theon, he looks a little green, "You feeling okay, Greyjoy?" before he can answer he turns away and pukes, "I'll take that as a no."

Jory tries to clean Theon up a bit as Father walks over to us. "You all understand why I did that?"

We nod, Robb speaks up, "He was a deserter."

"Aye, but that is not why I had to carry it out. The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword." We nod again and start to mount our horses. "Raven, a moment please." Father pulls me aside, "I'm sorry you had to see that. I shouldn't have let your uncle talk me into bringing you."

"There is no need to apologize, father. This was something I had to see."

He kneels to meet my eye, "If you say so." He pats my shoulder, walking off to his horse. I can tell this is something that still bothers him, but he will just have to deal with the fact that his little girl is growing and not the way society would have it. 

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A/N

You guys have no idea how long this took to finish. This chapter sat on my computer for just about a month because I couldn't think of how to end it. It's only done now because I'm sitting in a room with two of my writer friends.