Chapter 8

Bear Island was one of the largest on the west coast of Westeros. It was second only to Arbor Island and Great Wick in size, about the size of Harlow Island, maybe a little smaller. That said, it was all owned by House Mormont. There were several noble houses on Harlow, though not as large, and they were all under the control of the house of the same name and its side branches. The island itself was shaped like a crescent moon, and had a very convenient bay with a harbor. As John had been told, there wasn't much on the island other than bears and forest.

The island's climate is harsh, with little vegetation, and its outer shore is mostly rocky, which does not prevent the constant landings of ironborn and wildlings. There are no towns on the island. But there are about two dozen villages throughout the island. The largest settlement is the ancestral castle of the Mormonts. It's not really a castle at all, just a large manor house surrounded by a wooden wall and rampart. The manor is conveniently located on a natural hill near a lake with a waterfall. Around the castle there is a village of chaotically arranged houses. The castle itself is not far from the port - the only one on the island.

The harsh and unfriendly climate, dangerous predatory animals and scarce food supplies on the island make the castle almost impregnable. In any case, it will be difficult to capture it, because the stubborn Mormonts will not give up.

The islanders' cottages looked something like those of the Solstheim people of Raven Rock. They were two stories high and divided into two parts: the outer part and the underground part, which was much more spacious. Except that the outer part also served as a room, not as a corridor in front of the entrance. Probably, the islanders had inherited not only the harsh temper from the bears.

According to Dacey, the island is not as monotonous as it may seem. There is a swamp in the southwestern part of the island and an abandoned iron mine in the eastern part. At one time metal was mined in it, until they discovered an outcropping of ore directly to the surface elsewhere. The mine was abandoned after that, and then it became cheaper to buy iron from the Glovers of Darkwood than to mine it yourself. It's a prestige issue, but House Mormont is poor, so there's no choice.

***

Mage Mormont met her and Dacey at the island's harbor. Her hair was beginning to show gray, but she was still sturdy, not much shorter than Dacey. Like her daughter, she wore a heavy spiked mace at her belt.

Dacey hugged her mother warmly, and then the girl behind her back. John came to the conclusion that it was Alisana. Unlike Dacey, her younger sister was short. Stocky and muscular, with wide hips, huge breasts and large calloused hands, Alisana looked like a barrel. The girls had outward similarities, but they were clearly inherited from their mother. This allowed one to conclude that their bears were different.

- So you are little Stark? - Mage turned to John.

- I'm not a Stark, My Lady.

- Then what are you?" the woman grumbled, clearly angered by his answer.

Mage picked Jon up and lifted him above the ground. The woman scrutinized his face, occasionally covering one eye or the other. She ran her gaze all over his face, which clearly made John feel uncomfortable.

- Milady? - He broke the silence.

- Stark hair, Stark eyes, Stark face, and Stark blood. You're taller than your father was at the same age, but I can safely say I'm a Stark," the woman lowered Jon.

- I'm a bastard, My Lady. My name is Snow," the boy's reply caused the woman to burst into a fit of hoarse laughter.

- There are no bastards on bear island. Your name may be Snow, but you are part of the island now. Now let's go feed you dinner.

...

Jon sat with Lady Mage and her children at the master's table. He'd never been allowed such liberty at Winterfell. At the next table, his father's guardsmen, whom he'd assigned to escort him, sat and ate. Tomorrow they would sail for the mainland.

The islanders' diet consisted mainly of fish and the few vegetables that could be grown in the harsh northern climate. These were carrots, cabbage, leeks. There was little space suitable for agriculture, and it was not possible to grow vegetables in sufficient quantities. Fish was salted and smoked in huge quantities. In addition there were forest berries and honey from the apiaries.

Snow had time to get acquainted with the rest of Lady Mage's daughters. Lyra was the same age as him, and Jorel was three years younger. Baby Leanna was named after his dead aunt, the girl would soon be two years old. The younger girls were shy of John at first, but he quickly found a rapport with them. After looking at them all, he was sure there were at least three bears.

John was assigned a room on the second floor of the manor, in the wing where Mage's daughters lived. The room was slightly larger than the one he had at Winterfell. Daisy's room was across the door and Lyra's room was across the hall.

Tomorrow Snow would be introduced to the weapons master and introduced to the island, but for now he needed a good night's sleep.

***

Jon stood on the dock and watched the boat sail away with his father's guardsmen aboard. They were the last people to remind him of home, and as soon as they left the shore, John felt devastated. Tom had said he could stay, Lord Stark had allowed it, Lady Mage hadn't minded. The giant clearly felt indebted, but Jon didn't dare take advantage of that. He still remembered how old Nan had cried, how she'd cradled Tom in her arms the day he'd returned. And Snow's stay on the island would last for years.

The only reminder of home was a handkerchief with a quackberry embroidered on it, a parting gift from Arya. Jon immediately guessed that the shawl was embroidered with a direwolf. It was the thing he would treasure most.

***

There was the loud sound of an axe hitting a wooden plank, then another and another. The board cracked and was tossed aside. The next one followed. Less than five minutes later, the shaft was open again.

- Why am I doing this? - Dacey asked.

- Because you missed your morning workout. A little exercise will do you good," John answered.

- It's pitch black out there, and we don't have a torch.

- That's not a problem," John used Candlelight, and now a small glowing ball of light was following him.

- I know you're a sorcerer, but I still can't help wondering...

- You'll get used to it.

- So why do you need this mine?

- It will help me in my practice. As well as improving the fortunes of House Mormont.

They walked down the tunnel and slowly descended lower and lower. Along the way they found not a single mining tool, or any of the other things that lay in abundance in Skyrim mines. Well, at least the Northerners beat the Nords in thrift. Apparently, when the mine had been closed, everything that could be useful had been taken from it, even the crates inside were gone. The mine itself was a spiral that went slowly downward. Its depth was actually small - about sixty meters. Here and there from the main tunnel there were side spirals, in the direction of the outer sides.

After about six minutes they came to the end of the shaft, which met them with a dead end. The boys turned into the nearest side tunnel. The ore veins became clearly visible, they ran along the entire corridor. The boys came to a dead end again.

- Now what?

- Now I'm gonna do a little magic.

- What am I supposed to do?

- Well, you can look," John smiled.

Snow's palm glowed green. The light flashed a little brighter for a moment, then faded again after the boy clenched his palm into a fist. John repeated this manipulation, pointing his hand toward the iron vein. That too glowed green and went out. He repeated it over and over until he had traveled the entire corridor back to the main tunnel.

Then the boys returned to the surface and had lunch. They had some jerky, cabbage, and some bread with them. John and Dacey sat and talked about all sorts of silly things, making occasional jokes. After an hour John rested and they went down into the mine again. Snow repeated the process once more.

- I'm bored, John," Dacey said indignantly.

- What am I supposed to do?

- 'Hmm, you could sing for me.

Snow began whistling a musical tune to himself. He couldn't remember in which life he'd heard it, but it was in his head and would never go away.

- A butterfly flies, a beetle sits on a stump. No respect for the law, no respect for me," John hummed.

- Where did that come from?

- Never mind," the boy smiled. - I'm done.

Daisy pulled a pickaxe from her belt and began to pound the mineral with it. The girl, untrained in ore mining, broke off a small piece. John picked it up and held it up to the light source.

- The seventh scorcher! Is that gold?

- That's exactly what it is," John smiled. - And ahead of your next question. No, the Lannisters don't have their own Jon Snow," the girl giggled.

The School of Change has a remarkable spell of magical transmutation of iron and silver ore. The magical energy is quickly absorbed into the ore, changing its structure, turning it into precious metals in minutes. At the collegium, old man Tolfdir taught Dovakin how to apply this spell directly to the ore vein. In Tamriel they said that a man who mastered the transmutation spell would never know the problems of poverty, they were right. But John only needed to work the magic on the ore, no matter what kind.

- Don't you think you should reward me for helping you? I've been dragging you around most of the day," the girl told him as they came out of the mine.

Snow gestured for his friend to bend over. As soon as she did, John left a kiss on her cheek before dodging the slap and running towards the manor.

- You little asshole," a shadow of a smile touched Dacey's lips.

***

In John's third week on the island, ships arrived in the harbor. Their sails bore a black crowned stag. Prince Stannis had kept his promise. Jon was playing in the manor courtyard with Lyra and Jorel the moment he saw the ships. The boy immediately ran to the harbor.

Lady Mage swore a lot and threatened to flog the boy seeing how many crates were being unloaded from the ships. Lord Dragonstone didn't just keep his promise, he did it at least three times, and all the obsidian was indeed dark blue. Apparently, the man just wanted to get rid of the material. In any way he could.

Snow counted sixty crates, they were simply stacked under a shed near one of the walls surrounding the homestead. The sailors left the island a couple days later, a storm raging in the Sunset Sea.

John's assumption proved correct. Ebony, or "ebonite," a rare form of volcanic glass, almost the most valuable thing in Tamriel, was just lying idle in the mines of Dragonstone. If ebonite is processed properly, it can be used to create weapons similar in quality to Valyrian steel. Or even better. Snow had no doubt that it was possible; the legendary Dawn, the ancestral sword of House Dane, was not Valyrian, but it was not inferior.

The main qualities of ebonite are its incredible strength and difficulty in processing. The substance must be forged red-hot and never alloyed with other metals. The product must be one piece. Also, the metal must be treated with extremely high temperature or magic. And it must be treated for six months.

Processing with magic allows you to create Daedric weapons, but it requires a number of magical substances, which were not at hand. You can also process it with your own magical energy, but the final product will be inferior to Daedric, although it will be much better than ebonite.

It is for this purpose that Jon is practicing magic on iron. Stannis has sent so much obsidian that he can practice on it as well. Jon's plan was to have the weapons finished by his thirteenth birthday, and since there's plenty of material, Dacie will probably get a fancy present for one of her birthdays.

As punishment for his troubles, Snow would drag his crates to the bottom floor of one of the houses and then back to the castle wall, then back again. He ended up doing it more than a dozen times.

***

A month later, Lord Jorah returned to the island from a meeting of the Lords of the North. The meeting decided to strengthen the North's position on the west coast of the mainland. Shipyards had to be laid down and new ships had to be built. Manderly's fleet was too small to meet all the needs, and moving even part of it across the mainland would weaken the east coast.

The large settlements on the west coast of the North - with access to the sea - could be counted on the fingers of one hand. They are Barrowton, Flintfinger, Spring Crossing, Darkwood, and Bear Island. All of them will have to deal with the creation of a new fleet. The Manderlys will provide their own shipbuilders, as will the Velaryons, who were "persuaded" through the king to help by Prince Stannis.

There was no way the number of ships could meet current needs, even with the trophies captured during Baelon's rebellion. Piracy would increase again within a year, not to forget the wildling raids. The Bay of Ice is the weakest point. Almost all Mormont ships are fishing vessels, and those that aren't are transportation ships. Mage was highly skeptical and grumbled. "A fleet is expensive, requiring money we don't have," she said. And she was right: even help from the other houses wouldn't do much to remedy the situation.

The new fleet was planned to be divided into two parts. The first would patrol the Shining Bay, and the second the Ice Bay. Men would be needed as well. Each lord would allocate a portion of the men to the new plan, and the freed slaves would be settled all along the west coast. All in all, the plans were grandiose, but so far only realized on paper.

***

Jorah Mormont was an excellent warrior, not the equal of the first swords of the kingdom in actual combat, but definitely one of the first swords of the North. The man was excellent with a half sword, spear, and dagger. He, like the master over weapons, had trained Jon in the military craft.

Managing one's lands usually took a lot of time and didn't allow for distraction from anything less important, but the strongest concern was sending ships out to fish in season and defending the island itself from raids. In any case, Jorah had enough time to personally train John every second or third day. The older women, Mage, Dacey, and Alisana, took care of some of the running of the island. Each, it could be said, had her own area of expertise. Convincing Mage to do anything other than fight was problematic. But that didn't mean she couldn't do it in her hour of need.

Jorah had won the tournament in Lannisport and now wished to wed the woman he declared his queen of love and beauty.

The desire to marry a Southerner was viewed very unfavorably by the female members of the family. They argued about it at length with their lord. The Mormonts could afford such a thing, but like all other northern ladies, they would not dare to clarify relations in front of witnesses, so as not to tarnish Jorah's authority and prestige.

From some point in the evenings, every day, they would meet and discuss the matter. The rumors of her windy character and her long, luxurious lifestyle in Staromest certainly didn't play to the bride's advantage. They argued at length:

- How much longer will you protest? - Jorah questioned.

- Nephew, I want you to be happy. This girl will not give you happiness.

- Why not?

- Because you won't be able to provide the lifestyle she's accustomed to here, boy! The Hightowers are one of the richest houses in the world! - Mage shouted, and under her hard stare Jorah really felt like a little boy again. He respected his aunt and wanted her approval.

- Catelyn Stark is a southern lady, she lives quietly in the north.

- Catelyn Stark is the wife of the Guardian of the North with the largest and most powerful castle. The Starks have enough money to provide for her needs. And the Tullys will be more modest than the Hightowers.

- Can't you at least give her a chance?

- You were at that tournament, weren't you, wolf boy?

- I was, Lady Mormont," John answered. He was also acting as Ser Jorah's page.

His presence here was understandable. The servants of the manor were not allowed to hear these conversations, and it would be good for the boy to hear how family disputes were resolved. Point one: not in front of strangers.

- Tell me about this girl.

- Lady Lynessa is very beautiful..." John began.

- At least you have good taste," Mage snorted, looking at her nephew.

- Her hair is shiny and gold, her skin is fair and very soft, and her breasts..." the boy hesitated.

- Go on," Mage said, and Snow shifted his gaze from her to Alisana and then to Dacey, trying to find the right words.

- 'Let's say it's not meant for feeding.

- The board! - Alisana shouted and laughed hoarsely, a laugh that sounded more like a bear's roar.

- Does that play a part? - Jorah asked.

- Will she be able to nurse your child if it is not born dead?

It was a low blow, but the answer to that question also carried weight in settling the dispute. There have been children who refused the breast milk of their nurse, it didn't play to their survival, especially in the harsh north.

- I don't know. Her father's already agreed to the marriage.

- And now he can't back down, we'd be insulting him if we broke off the engagement," Dacey reasoned. - And we don't want such a powerful lord, even a southern lord, to think badly of us. We can't back out now, either.

- Why did he agree in the first place? - Alisana asked. After laughing her ass off.

- Linessa is the fifth daughter. I think he'd be happy to put her anywhere. Maybe he just thought that denying the winner of the tournament would hurt his house's prestige. Fucking southerners," Dacey explained.

- A fifth daughter? She won't even have a dowry? - Mage was indignant.

- May I? - John asked.

- Speak.

- The engagement has not been formally announced; the lord has simply given his consent. We can stall for time by saying that Ser Jorah can't offend the northern lords, who are still being negotiated with. You were sent a proposal after Lord Glover's daughter died, weren't you?

- Yes.

- You can win about three months or more, and anything can happen in that time.

- I feel it's the right thing to do. But I love her. I want to be happy.

- Lady Mage wants your happiness too, but she doesn't think this girl can give it to you. But you could invite Lady Lynessa to stay on the island. Let her see the northern way of life. There's no need to try to replicate what she's used to, you can't. And then Lady Lynessa will decide whether or not she's ready for that kind of life. You love her, but are you prepared to make her unhappy for your own happiness?

- John, are you sure you're nine? - Jorah asked. The boy smiled and shook his head. - Does everyone agree with that idea? - The women nodded.

- Then that's what we'll do.

***

Two months later, Lady Lynessa arrived on the island for a "stay". Jorah did his best to make her as comfortable as Bear Island could with its own resources. As agreed, he did not waste money. The man still believed he could get the consent of his relatives. The woman was not that disappointed, rather sad. Even life in the relatively wealthy homes of the north was hard to compare to life in Staromest.

Bear Island was cold, harsh, and isolated. The woman grew sadder by the day, and it reflected on Jorah as well. In the second month, Lynessa sailed back to Staromest, and Jorah got very drunk.

"It's the right thing to do, my boy. You would have ruined both your life and hers. There's no telling which of you would have been more hurt in the end," his aunt kept telling him. Jorah was fully immersed in his duties of running the island and training his pup. Anything to think of his failed wife as little as possible. Six months later, he would again consider his options among the northern brides. A northerner will certainly be accustomed to life on this cold island.

***

A week before the ship from Staromest arrived, a ship from Volantis docked in the port of Bear Island. The owner of the ship was a fat merchant with Valyrian looks and a solid guard. It was quite difficult to understand what exactly he wanted.

No one could understand him at first, which made the guards nervous and grabbed the hilt of their swords. The Mormonts didn't know Valyrian, they simply didn't need to, and besides them, no one on the island could know it.

John had learned high Valyrian and could speak it. As it soon became clear, the language Snow had learned was literary rather than spoken, and every free city had its own version of Valyrian. Jon struggled to carry on a conversation, trying to explain some of the phrases on his fingers. This was made more difficult by the fact that his interlocutor was constantly gesticulating. After five minutes, the boy returned to Mormont's side.

- What does he want? - Mage asked John.

- From what I understand, he wants to buy a hide.

- A hide?

- Yes, a bear skin. The biggest, best-looking one you can get, preferably black.

- What's he want it for?

- As a gift to the Triarch, I think.

Ten minutes later, a hide was brought to John on the dock, straight from the manor house. The Mormons had more than enough of them. Dacey advised John on the range of prices: how much they would usually give up, and what price it should never be sold for. There were also nuances from size to quality that influenced the bidding. Based on the information received, any hide could be sold for anywhere from eighty to three hundred silver reindeer. Usually they agreed on a value in the neighborhood of two hundred coins.

They haggled for a long time, it seemed that the fat man did not want to give in. But whether he had been ordered to bring the skin, or whether he didn't like the local weather, they agreed on a price of one hundred and eighty-five coins. John was handed a sack of money and a couple of gems.

Snow returned to the Mormonts with a completely detached, apathetic face that expressed no emotion.

- John, is something wrong?

- Turns out he and I misunderstood each other.

- What do you mean?

- I bargained in silver reindeer and he bargained in Volantian 'crowns'," John opened the bag. In it, gold coins with a skull on one side and a crown on the other shone brightly.

...

The ship stayed in port for a couple more hours. During that time, John was able to negotiate a deal to buy the spices that the Volantians had not sold in Lannisport. Both were satisfied with the deal and even agreed to trade again. Spices are very valuable, especially in the northern region. It would keep the meat edible longer and diversify the diet. After a bit of thinking, it became clear that the sailors really had nowhere to buy bear skin. And the frenzied inhabitants of Volantis want to show off a curiosity that no one else has. The reason for the gold payment became clear. Surely the merchant even thought he had cheated the child out of the price.

John realized that something had happened to the Volantian interpreter in Lannisport. Well, if the fat merchant sailed again, they could establish a long-term spice trade with him. At the very least, we could sail to Lannisport or Old Town for them.

***

The Mormons have never had much gold. In the current time period, with Jorah and Dacey having prize money from the tournament, the Mormonts could be considered the wealthiest in the history of the House.

Jon convinces Dacey to try to make money for the house by opening a meadery. He hasn't revealed the mine to anyone yet. Dacie was already a year old by Westeros standards and could manage her own money. Mage and Alysanne laughed at the idea, but didn't interfere, letting the children burn. Jorah said he'd think about listening to the boy's ideas more often, if his idea was any good.

Another apiary was set up not far from the homestead to meet the need for honeycomb. There was also a meadery nearby, and John intended to use the experience and memories of his past life to make a new product based on black heather honey.

The secret of black heather honey was a mixture of spices that gave it a unique flavor. Special barrels also played an important role. In them some ingredients are aged to acquire the best taste and aroma. The boy borrowed some ideas from the old man Sabjorn. His honey was cheaper and more flavorful than the Black Heather honey.

Bear Island honey was sterilized by boiling and then boiling - that was the uniqueness of the recipe. There was no need to wait years for the honey to ferment in barrels. You could get a ready drink in a month.

It took about half a year to build all the infrastructure and buildings, and another month to set up the start of production. All the costs took about a hundred gold dragons.

The end result was a rather strong alcoholic beverage that was good for the head. Although it could be of almost any strength. The idea had a good chance of success. Apart from wine, almost nothing else was drunk on a large scale in Westeros. The honey was called Bear's Embrace. The first tasters were delighted.

Jon had many more plans, but it would take more than a year to realize them.

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