Chapter 8: The Quiet Wolf's Plan

Bran Stark loved to climb more than anything in the world. He often found himself climbing the walls onto the tallest towers of Winterfell to stare out at the vast scenery beyond his home. Today was no different, although after being up on the walls for some time, he noticed a group of four riders racing towards Wintertown from the Kingsroad and grinned when he saw the banners.

As he had done half a thousand times, Bran climbed down from the tower until he was back on solid ground. Getting his bearings, he saw Robb laughing with Jon as they watched some of the maids walk past. "Robb! Jon! Torrhen's back!"

Robb looked over at him and shook his head while grinning. "What have you been told about climbing, little brother?"

"Not to do it." Bran said sullenly, before perking up again. "But he's back! I saw him!"

Robb ruffled Bran's hair. "Go and get Mother and Father, tell them that Torrhen will be here soon. I'll grab the girls."

Bran grinned and ran away again to do as he was bid, and about 10 minutes later the entire family were waiting in the courtyard for Torrhen to return back to Winterfell.

Cat and Ned were both silent, as Bran had noticed they had been for over a week. Too excited however, he was bouncing on the balls of his feet for his brother to come riding through the gates. He did soon enough, looking taller on his black destrier.

Torrhen dismounted, and immediately made his way over to Ned and bent his knee. "My Lord." He said formally.

"Get up." Ned rolled his eyes amusedly. "How was your journey?"

Torrhen thought for the right word for a moment. "Enlightening." He answered.

Ned nodded his head. "We'll speak later."

Torrhen then turned to Cat. "Mother." He said happily. Cat didn't stand to formality but moved forwards and swept her boy up in a tight embrace.

"Welcome home." She whispered. They broke apart, and Torrhen reached into his satchel.

"I have letters for you." He told Cat. "Apparently I'm more reliable than a raven."

"Whoever told you that lie?" Robb grinned, as the two brothers embraced. "I don't suppose our spars will be much of a challenge now, if you've not been training for weeks?"

Torrhen grinned. "I had a few lessons with Uncle Brynden."

Robb was jealous. "Teach me everything." He said, in slight awe.

Torrhen then greeted Sansa fiercely, ruffled Arya's hair and moved to Bran and Rickon who were at the end of the line. "Do you want to see something amazing?" He asked the two younger boys. They both nodded. Torrhen looked over to Ned for a moment before moving his cloak out of the way to reveal a brand new sword. Bran stared at the hilt, his mouth open in awe. The handle was many lines of black and silver, snaking around the handle. The cross guard was a simple black closest to the middle, but the edges resembled two black Direwolves snarling. The pommel was also a wolf, but a calmer one, with ruby red eyes.

"Did you get that at Riverrun?" Bran asked.

Torrhen though, shook his head. "No brother, I got it at the Isle of Faces." He unsheathed the blade and fell to a knee, resting the flat edge on his knee as his hands balanced either side.

"Valyrian Steel." Ned said, surprised.

"Winter's Bite." Torrhen told him, and both Ned and Catelyn gasped.

"Impossible…" Cat whispered.

Torrhen looked at Ned suspiciously, ant the Stark Lord just mouthed. 'Later'.

"You must be tired from the riding, we only received your raven that you were at Riverrun a few days ago." Cat said. "Go to Gage, get him to cook you something fresh."

Torrhen nodded, his belly rumbling. As the other young Starks began to tell him stories of things he missed, Torrhen just looked around Winterfell and smiled, glad to be back home.

After he had been fed and changed into some different clothes, Torrhen made his way into Ned's solar, surprised at how tidy it had become since his absence. A large map of Westeros had been placed on the main table, and Ned was pondering over it.

"Come in, lock the door." Ned said carefully. Torrhen did as he was asked. "Your Mother knows about what happened to you."

That caught him off guard. "How?"

"Sit. Drink." Ned gestured to the chair the other side of the table and pushed a small tankard of ale before Torrhen. "I've been arranging betrothals. I'm not saying anything until they're agreed, but that includes you."

Torrhen bristled. "Father…"

"Don't worry." Ned held his hand up to stop Torrhen. "We need ironwood for a fleet, and for another couple of ideas that will happen. I'm going to approach Gregor about a betrothal with Mira for you."

That really did surprise Torrhen, but he couldn't keep the grin off of his face. "Really?"

"Really." Ned confirmed. "But your Mother was sceptical, so I had to explain it all."

"It all… you told her about Jon too?" Torrhen asked, dreading the answer.

Ned nodded, drinking a heavier tankard of ale. "It… didn't go well. We haven't spoken since."

Torrhen expected that. "I can speak with her… I had to the last time."

Ned sighed, but nodded. "I fear you may have to."

Torrhen smiled sadly. "She came around. I worry that that was because she believed most of us dead, but she accepted it. She will do here."

Ned smiled at his son's efforts to cheer him up. "Go, I'll need you back here later though. I want to run everything by my counsel, and gods forgive me, that includes you now more than ever." Torrhen nodded at that. He went up to leave, but Ned's voice called him back. "The sword. It's yours from the other time, isn't it?"

Torrhen unsheathed Winter's Bite and placed it on the map. "The Green Man pulled it and Riversteel from the stump of a Weirwood. I don't know how, but I've kept all my fingers and he claimed Brightroar is still in Valyria along with Blackfyre, so we have more Valyrian Steel swords in the world."

"And three in Winterfell." Ned sighed, recognising that Torrhen would have given the Tully's the other sword. "Very well, place it in the armoury though, if Robb cannot carry live steel, neither can you."

Torrhen grimaced at that but nodded his agreement. "I'll take it there after speaking with Mother."

And so the 11-year-old boy moved to his Mother's chambers, where Cat was sat at a desk furiously scribbling at some parchment, with a handful of rejects scrunched up on the floor. He knocked on the door and caught her attention. "Oh, Torrhen."

"Can I come in?" He asked. "We need to talk…"

Cat sighed and nodded, gesturing to the bed. They sat on the ends, staring at the fireplace for the longest time until Torrhen gained the courage to speak. "This is strange, for me this isn't the first time that we've spoken about Father keeping this secret."

Cat tensed up. "And what happened in the other time…" She said, struggling to believe she was actually saying the words.

"We were in Meereen, would you believe it." Torrhen chuckled. "I didn't know if I was going to make it out of Valyria, so I gave you the key to show yourself the evidence. You read Father's letter for three days straight. The problem you had wasn't with the truth, it was that as soon as you knew it, you believed it."

"Of course I believe it." Cat threw her hands up in exasperation. "How could I not? Ned would never talk about the boy's mother, nor would he about Lyanna. His mannerisms, they are supposedly like Rhaegar's used to be. It's obvious."

"Not when you're not looking for it." Torrhen sighed. He chuckled at a memory. "You said you wanted to strangle Father."

Cat shrugged, thinking about it. "I'm not mad at him, not really." She admitted to herself. "I'm mad at myself for how I've acted. For how I've been brought up to behave around bastards."

"The North is different, you should know that." Torrhen smiled. "We've rarely had a bastard of House Stark turn against his family. The ancestors of a cadet branch have admittedly, but we look after our own. Jon was never a threat, all he needed was a mother."

Cat nodded her understanding. "But then I look at Ned and I get so angry that he's lied to me, that he's let me get away with treating Jon like a monster…"

"No." Torrhen insisted. "You haven't been a monster, mother. You've been a mother that cared more for her children than anything else. Yes it can come away as cruel sometimes, but you're never a monster."

Cat chuckled, sniffing as a tear fell. "When did you get so wise?" She brought him in for a cuddle.

Torrhen's smile fell. "When my family was ripped apart." He whispered, leaning into his mother's embrace.

Torrhen was late to the gathering after spending a little time with Sansa, and so as he rushed into the War Council room, a surprising enough meeting place for Ned to gather his advisors, the eyes of multiple people were quickly on him. Robb, Cat, Maester Luwin, Vayon Poole, Ser Rodrik and Jory Cassell were all around the centre table, where a map of the North had been carefully placed.

"You're late." Ned remarked.

"Apologies, Father." Torrhen said honestly.

"Come, I was just about to begin." Ned said. Torrhen took his place beside Robb and waited for Ned to begin. "We have been lax, ever since the Greyjoy Rebellion we have allowed the world to pass us by with little interference. We know not of what goes on in many of our own castles, let alone the South. House Stark has retreated into itself, and I refuse to let that go along any longer."

"You are too harsh on yourself Lord Stark." Maester Luwin said, as calm as always.

Ned shook his head. He looked at Torrhen. "Something has come to light in the past months that have caused me to look at things differently, Maester. And as such, I'm calling all the Lords of the North to Winterfell to discuss the things I am about to tell you all now."

"All of them?" Robb asked.

"Aye, all of them." Ned nodded. He turned to Luwin. "We have the ravens do we not?" Luwin nodded. "Good." He had a small pointing stick and slapped it down on Sea Dragon Point. "This land has been empty and barren for a hundred generations, and we are sorely lacking any form of power on our west coast. I want both a castle and a port town raised here, that will hopefully rival White Harbour one day."

"That will cost a lot of money, My Lord." Vayon Poole, the steward, explained. "Money we don't have."

"We will have ample funds, I assure you." Ned told the man. "But there's more." He pointed to the New Gift. "This land has been empty for decades as the Night's Watch has declined, and if rumours from the North are true, we may just need more Northern defences. A castle will be raised in the Gift, a project which will be aided by House Karstark."

"Forgive me for asking, but why would they part with coin for a castle they have no interest in?" Ser Rodrik asked.

"Because we plan to offer a betrothal between Rickon and Alys Karstark." Cat explained. "Rickon shall take it as his seat when he comes of age."

Ned nodded, before moving downwards, tapping on the Dreadfort. "House Bolton." The room tensed. "Ambitious, devious, and at the heart of a strong alliance with House Ryswell in the Rills, and Barbrey Dustin in the Barrowlands." He tapped each castle.

"Roose Bolton has never displayed any sense of disloyalty to you, Lord Stark." Luwin told him.

"Yet." Torrhen grumbled. Ned nodded.

"Aye, yet. What happens when that changes? House Bolton were the last to fall under Stark rule, they would be the first to break from it." Ned told them. "To counter that, I will suggest a betrothal between Roose's heir Domeric and Sansa."

Torrhen sucked in a breath, but Sansa had just told him about it so his outrage had already been tempered. Robb wasn't so silent. "You'd give Sansa to the Dreadfort?" He cried out.

"I would bind them too us." Ned explained. "No doubt Roose will see it as a way into Winterfell, but I have four, healthy sons before Sansa in the succession, two of which are in this room and know my feelings on the Bolton's." The two sons both nodded. "Plus, they have House Karstark to the North of them, us to the west, and House Manderly on the east."

"And that's where I come in?" Robb asked, which surprised Torrhen.

"Aye, your betrothal to Lady Wylla will squeeze the Bolton's in between strong allies, if they ever grew above their station." Ned explained.

"You're betrothing Robb to Wylla?" Torrhen asked before he could stop himself. Ned and Cat were the only two that understood the outcry. "I… I've heard wonderful things, you'll be happy." Torrhen said to stop himself from saying anything else.

"And with House Manderly marrying my heir, we can get them to aid us in building the other castles and the town, as well as building a fleet." Ned explained.

"My Lord, this will all cost far too much." Poole told them.

Ned smiled wryly. "I'm getting there, Vayon." Poole nodded, and so Ned continued. "Lastly in the North, I will rebuild Moat Cailin completely. It shall be a stronghold to keep the South away or keep the South safe from whatever is in the North that is scaring the Night's Watch so much. That will be your seat, Torrhen. I would name you the Lord of the Causeway."

Torrhen bowed his head. "I am honoured, Father."

"And to build all of this, we need good, quality ironwood." Ned explained. "So Torrhen shall be put forward as a match for Lord Gregor's eldest daughter."

Robb sniggered, and Torrhen elbowed him in the ribs. "Boys." Cat warned.

"Sorry Mother." They both said at the same time.

Ser Rodrik leant on the table. "This all seems… proactive."

"That's because it is." Ned told him. "War is coming, from both directions. That is why we need these projects completed as quickly as we can. Starting with Moat Cailin and the Fleet."

"How will we finance it?" Vayon asked.

Torrhen jumped in then. "By beating House Lannister in the coming war."

A grim silence fell over them all. Ned stood tall. "This is not to go anywhere else. You cannot tell your wives, your siblings, your friends. None of what I am about to say goes anywhere other than this room, am I understood?" The occupants all agreed. "Torrhen is no Greenseer, he has been blessed by the Old Gods in a time we would think of as the future."

"I died in the year 307 after Aegon's Conquest." Torrhen explained. "I fell defeating the White Walker's and the Army of the Dead. Many of us fell in a war prior to that, against House Lannister. The King's children are bastards born of incest between the Kingslayer and the Queen."

Ned nodded. "Torrhen has proven these claims to be true by telling me information only I could possibly know."

"And I can show you all now." Torrhen told them. He held out his hands for Robb and Cat to take, Cat did so, but Robb was unsure. "Trust me, everyone hold hands, and I will show you everything."

Reluctantly, they all did so. Torrhen focused by staring at the drawn Winterfell on the map before throwing his head back, and his eyes went a ghostly white.

"Robb! Robb!" Torrhen called out, but the heir to Winterfell was in no mood to talk to anybody. As soon as he had seen the Night King stab his brother and they had all returned back to their own bodies, Robb had shot out from the room and ran towards the Godswood. Torrhen had chased after him it seems. "Robb!"

"I'm a failure!" Robb cried as he got into the sanctity of the Godswood, tears stinging his eyes. "I failed you, I failed Mother, I failed the entire fucking North!"

Torrhen slapped him. "Don't you dare." He whispered. "You were betrayed in the worst way."

"I led us all to ruin." He was hyperventilating now. "I trusted Theon… I betrayed my oaths…"

"You did your best!" Torrhen exclaimed. "Aye, you made mistakes. So did I, so did Jon. So did Dany and Jaime Lannister and every fucker who's ever walked the ground! What matters now is how we deal with them. We have another chance, and we can't fuck that up, you hear me?"

Robb nodded, calming down as he stared into the eyes of the Weirwood tree face. "I made your life hell…"

"No." Torrhen shook his head. "That Roose Bolton did, as did that Ramsay, that Joffrey, that Tywin. Nobody here has done anything."

Another thought popped into Robb's head. "You married Wylla Manderly…"

"A different Wylla." Torrhen said quickly. "But aye, that was strange when I heard."

Robb shook his head, and then he laughed. The situation was that insane that he laughed. "That's going to be so strange at the wedding…"

"I don't think she's dyed her hair yet, so it's a different woman all together." Torrhen shrugged. "I'll get over it."

"She gave you a son…" Robb reminded him.

"And I'll always mourn not knowing him." Torrhen told his brother. "But as I said, this is a new chance for us all. Father won't be executed by the Lannisters, you won't be murdered by the Bolton's, and I won't be King in the North. We're already changing things, Robb. That life I had once, that's gone."

Robb sighed and nodded. "I couldn't have done what you did." He admitted. "Going to Meereen, coming back and winning back the North… I couldn't…"

"I couldn't have done any of that without your leadership beforehand." Torrhen told his elder brother. "Without you, the North wouldn't have been as united as it was, it wouldn't have cried out for vengeance as it did. I only followed on from your actions."

Robb smiled sadly. "It was really fucked up, wasn't it?"

Torrhen chuckled. "I don't know what was worse, Hizdahr zo Lorak or the Night King himself."

Robb laughed at that too. "At least I know now." He sighed. "I know what I mustn't do. I know not to trust Theon, I know to keep my oaths…"

"Robb… that was a different you. You will be faced with all sorts of different challenges." Torrhen explained. "All you can do is what you feel is right. Yes, things ended badly there, but those were desperate times where the slightest decision could affect thousands of people. Here, we have Father guiding us, you have me at your side, we have Jon…"

"Jon." Robb scoffed. "Or Aegon."

"He can't know yet." Torrhen said insistently.

Robb looked incredulous. "We have to tell him! He's been wondering who his mother is since he could talk!"

"It's not our secret to tell." Torrhen sighed. "I'd love to, believe me I would, but that's Father's tale."

Robb looked reluctant, but eventually he nodded his agreement. "I won't tell him." He sighed. "King of Westeros though?"

Torrhen laughed. "I know."

"He won't want it."

"He didn't then." Torrhen shrugged. "Fate is fickle though. It has a way of coming around no matter what."

Robb nodded, and sat there in silence for a while. The pair talked long into the night about Torrhen's other life, and afterwards both of them came away from the Godswood knowing that their bond would never be broken.

While Robb rushed out, closely followed by Torrhen. The others slowly filed out of the War Room under instructions once again to not speak a word about what they had just witnessed to anybody. Cat and Ned remained however, and the pair were as awkward around each other as they were on their wedding night. Ned sighed audibly and said. "My Lady…"

"Let me, Ned." She said, using his shortened name. "I was rash… I apologise for my harsh words."

Ned smiled softly. "You have nothing to apologise for My Lady. It was a lot to take in, and I appreciate that I put you in a tough position."

Cat nodded. "I was taken back to the day I arrived at Winterfell. We'd won the war, I was excited to show you your son and heir, and then there was that woman and the baby… it took me so long to forgive and trust you then."

"I didn't want to lie." Ned told her. "But Robert had called Jon's siblings 'dragon spawn' and he is my sister's son, my own blood. I couldn't allow Robert to know, and back then, forgive me for saying so, but I couldn't trust you to be silent."

That stung Cat, but she understood. "I would have likely written to Lysa." She told him. "I just wish you had told me sooner… I would have understood, and I could have treated him better."

Ned scoffed amusedly. "My Lady, you detesting the boy made the lie easier to believe. Everyone knows of the 'Bastard of Winterfell' and the scorn you had. I apologise for using you both in such a way, I am truly sorry, but I have to keep him protected."

Cat nodded. "I wish I could have been better, I even vowed to myself to love him as my own when he fell ill, I just never could. We were taught by my Septa that all bastards are dastardly and devious, presumably to stop us from having them."

Ned smirked at that. "If Septa Mordane is the standard then I can see why." He joked.

"But he looked more like you than Robb did, and that sealed my hatred." Cat said, ashamed. "I will be better to the boy, I swear it."

"And I swear that I will always be honest with you." Ned told her, taking both of her hands in his own. "You know all my secrets now, Cat. Every one."

She did, she knew all about Ashara and Brandon, she knew about Lyanna and Jon… She looked up into his eyes and saw pure honesty in them. Leaning up, she kissed her husband for the first time in well over a week, the taste bringing a smile to her face. Ned pulled away though and looked at her pleadingly. "But I need you to swear to me that you will tell nobody. Robert will still kill Jon for his blood, and then all of us with him. Swear to me, not only for yourself, but for your Father, brother and uncle."

Cat nodded. "I swear." Ned kissed her again, putting more force behind it as he kissed her passionately. Cat melted into it, longing to feel her husband in the way that only she could. They soon fell to the floor and lost themselves in one another, not caring who heard.

The next morning Arya was up bright and early as she always was. Torrhen hadn't appeared yet, but it was his first night back in Winterfell so she would forgive him. She raised her bow and fired an arrow, grinning at it bedding itself into the edge of the target.

She went to go and retrieve the arrow when a lot of squawking could be heard from the Maester's tower. Looking up, arrow in one hand and bow in the other she noticed that dozens upon dozens of ravens were being released, flying in all different directions. Somehow she knew that whatever news her Father was sending out, it wouldn't be good.