Ch 58 A song of ice and fire 1 (ASOIF)

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[A Song of Ice and Fire

You are now going to the World of A Song of Ice and Fire. This world is not too dissimilar from the history of your own. There are Heroes, Villains, Wars, Religion, and a great deal of Politics.

Magic is rare but powerful. You will begin in Westeros, Essos, or perhaps even the wilder parts of the Known World.

You will spend the next 10 years in this world.]

"Okay, so what do I know about this world, other than a few memes?" Carl asked himself aloud. "Everyone that seems like a decent person dies, mostly due to the machinations of their enemies that they didn't even know were actively plotting against them."

"Joffrey is a little shit. Cersei, or whatever her name is, is crazy. The dragon chick walks around naked. Jon needs to get laid more so he can loosen up. And ice zombies are coming from The North." Carl was rubbing his chin. "Yeah, I got practically nothing here."

"So, with the 1050 cp I've got banked, I've got 2050 cp to spend or bank. Let's see what is available to see if I'll spend any cp, or save it up for later." Carl started reading over the document.

"I can spend 50 cp to choose a location to start in, or roll a 10 sided dice for free. Since I don't really know a whole lot, and I've heard the whole land is full of assholes, it doesn't matter where I go. So, I'll roll for location." The table appeared before Carl as usual, and he rolled a 2.

The Riverlands: The Riverlands are situated to the immediate south of the North. The climate is generally fair and the lands are fertile, rich, and prosperous. It has no natural boundaries and as such has been contested throughout the centuries and has frequently been a battleground. It is dominated by large rivers. It is not considered one of the traditional Seven Kingdoms.

"Not one of the Seven Kingdoms, huh? From what the rest of the region choices are, it looks like the Seven Kingdoms are The North, The Vale, The Westerlands, The Iron Islands, The Reach, The Stormlands, and Dorne." Carl mused.

"The North is just above my starting zone, and it's cold as a witch's tit, apparently. Bogs on the southern part of The North, and then there is The Wall and the Night's Watch on the northern part of The North. I find it funny that the kingdom is called 'The North'. It can lead to such silly sentences as 'We're headed south-east to The North'."

"Okay, to the east of my starter zone is the Vale. Surrounded by mountains and extremely fertile, but troubled by mountain clans." Carl nodded, cementing what little knowledge he was getting from reading the Jump Document in his head, not that he could forget it anyway.

"The Westerlands are to the…west…of my land. Seriously? The West lands? Whatever. A very rich region with gold and silver mines. Hah! I've got a philosopher's stone, let's see who has more gold at the end of the day!" Carl joked around. "Okay, west lands, you've also got some defenses and crops that make you a decent land to hold."

"Next is the Iron Islands, west of me and north of the Westerlands. Small, rocky, and barren, and filled with a bunch of pirates apparently." Carl scoffed. "What, the Iron Islands gets to be one of the Kingdoms, but my Riverlands don't? What use is the Iron Islands if they are just full of reavers who don't do anything useful?"

"Okay, next is the Reach. Yeah, the author was really rea- you know what, never mind. I'm not gonna make fun of his naming sense, considering my own poor attempts. So the Reach is south of me, located in the center and south west of Westeros. Fertile, populous, and rich. Home of chivalry? Sounds like a bunch of arrogant berks roaming around playing at being Knights because they have leisure time. Lots of food and wine, though."

"Next is the Stormlands. I bet they have plenty of rain and lightning. Yup, it's on the coast with bad storms. It lies east of the Reach and is one of the smaller kingdoms covered by stony shores, harsh mountains, and large verdant forests."

"Dorne is a hot desert region south of the Reach and the Stormlands. Water is more precious than gold. Well, I've got the Aguamenti spell, so I'm automatically rich." Carl chuckled.

"And the Free Cities are off to the east on its own continent. So…this world is some kind of analog to Europe or something? Whatever. I'm sure I'll learn more about it, later."

Timeline: You may choose any point in time to arrive in this world. The default is 298 AC (the beginning of A Game of Thrones). Some dates of interest include: 2 BC-1 AC (Aegon's Conquest), 195-196 AC (The Blackfyre Rebellion), 282-283 AC (Robert's Rebellion), 298-300 AC (War of the Five Kings).

"Well, now. That's interesting. I can choose to pick some random 10 year span and just chill, never having to deal with ice zombies." Carl thought for a bit. "For some reason I feel like jumping in right at the end of Robert's Rebellion. Even though I don't really know a lot about the story line, I've picked up enough random bits about which people are such absolute wastes of space, I wouldn't mind cutting them from the story early." Carl mused, selecting the date 282 AC. "Might as well get in on the action at the beginning of the Rebellion."

"And now to pick an identity. Not going to spend CP to change genders, thanks. Free pick for my age? I'll go for 18 years old, thanks. And now I get to choose between Drop In, Smallfolk, Sworn Sword, or Noble. Okay, that one's a no brainer. In a medieval society like this, only the Nobles really have freedom and decision making powers. Not that I couldn't just take over things anyway. But it'll be easier to start as a noble."

Noble 100 cp: You are a member of the nobility in your area, perhaps a landed knight or member of some lesser house. You have a reasonable amount of coin and influence on a local level. You may choose specific parents (if appropriately aged) as your own and, along with them, a specific house to belong to. No Great Houses.

+ Formal and martial education, some wealth and influence.

- Sheltered upbringing

Next Carl looked over the perks available. He first added the free perks based on his identity.

Weapon Proficiency 0 cp: You are capable with most common weaponry found in this world and truly exceptional with one specific type. Alternatively you may be extremely good at needlework and other womanly pursuits.

Even though Carl was already an expert with swords from training, he chose to add swords as his one choice to continue adding to and deepening his skill. When he went to select swords though, he found that the drop down menu had a selection of different weapons. After looking through the choices, eventually Carl chose Bastard Swords to specialize in. Carl decided to choose that sword in order to blend in with the warriors and nobles that he would no doubt be interacting with.

Mine By Right 0 cp: You are generally given more consideration than others. People consider your rights and desires as generally more important than those of other people.

"Yup, that's what I was saying. As a Noble you can get away with things that most people can't." Carl nodded to himself in affirmation. "Hmm, there are a couple of perks that are interesting, but I'll come back to them in a bit after picking up all the free stuff I get from beinga Noble."

Carl then moved on to the gear section, picking up the free ones as a matter of course.

Heraldry and Words 0 cp: The heraldry and words of your design. They are inextricably associated with you and give the impression and feeling you'd like to get across with them (within reason). Nobles begin with a cape and standard of the finest quality displaying their arms and motto, everyone else starts with their emblem and words crudely painted on a bedsheet.

"Hmm, how about a flame red Phoenix in flight over a blue river for my Heraldry." Carl used the indicated space on the jump document to draw out his Heraldry. "And as for my motto, how about: Fire or Flood. A warning to enemies of what will come to them if they mess with me or mine. Die by the fire, or drown in the water. And it goes well with the fire bird and river on my Heraldry."

Castle Forged Steel 0 cp: A well made set of steel plate and chain as well as a single, finely made, steel weapon of choice.

(Sworn Sword's free armor is slightly rusted and dinted.)

Since it was free, Carl selected it. It didn't say anything about adding his preexisting weapons or armor to it, and there was no other option.

"Well, I guess it is going to end up being a display item, once I pull out my profound armor and weapon." Carl commented. "But still, I won't pass on free stuff."

Pouch of Gold 0 cp: A pouch of golden coins. Around 100 Golden Dragons worth.

Carl had no idea just how much 100 golden dragons could buy him in the world. But with his properties from Monopoly, let alone his Farms, and Philosophers stone, he was sure he wouldn't have to worry overly much about his budget.

Fine Clothes 0 cp: A very fine and ornate set of clothing. The equivalent of the finest you could expect to get in your starting region.

Carl shrugged at getting a fine set of clothes. He hadn't been bothered too much about basics like food or clothes for a while now, but free was free. He did somewhat wonder if the outfit would change based on the world he was going to be in. That would make the outfit worth something if it did indeed change based on where he went.

Land Deed 0 cp: A deed to an area of land close by in your chosen region. It will be accepted by all authorities as rightfully yours. This updates each jump but is generally not a particularly large plot of land elsewhere.

Even though it said it wasn't a lot of land, Carl particularly liked getting more land and resources that followed him from world to world. Like adding the sword skills of this world to his own, every little bit counted, no matter how miniscule.

Carl decided while looking at the gear to purchase a discounted item.

Valyrian Steel Weapon 100 cp: An excellent weapon of your choice made of Valyrian steel. Light and exceptionally sharp. Serves as a symbol of status. Gives an impression of great strength and brings dread to your enemies.

Carl added his the Blue Orchid to the Valyrian Steel Bastard Sword to gain those properties for his sword. He decided on adding the Valyrian Steel Weapon's properties to his sword pretty much solely for the symbol of status that Valyrian Steel was. He knew from various talk on the internet that Valyrian Steel was one of the few things that could kill the ice zombies, but he wasn't too worried about them. He had access to Fiendfyre as well as the Golden Crow flames. Besides which, the Winter Apocalypse wasn't even scheduled until long after he left the world.

As Carl scanned down the page, he read through the various quests, questioning himself as to whether he wanted to choose one or not.

You may choose a single optional Quest. This removes the 10 years limit and replaces it with a victory condition that must be completed in order for you to succeed. Quests have requirements that must be filled in order to be chosen.

Note: Boons from Quests are awarded immediately on selecting the Quest.

After looking over the quests, Carl wasn't too impressed with many of the quest rewards.

You become incredibly lucky when trying to take anything that rightfully belongs to you.

"I can't see anyone taking my stuff." Carl chuckled at the idea of anyone truly stealing from him. "And if someone was able to take something from me, I'd just make myself stronger,more clever, or more skilled until I could take it back."

You become almost inhumanly beautiful and a truly brilliant warrior.

"I already have great looks with my Metamorphmagus skill, if I so desired, and I'm already beyond brilliant as a warrior. So the quest that would require me to go be a Targaryen bastard in 182 AC I'll pass on."

You know how to cut the faces from dead bodies and replace your own with them. You also know how to store them hygienically and without them decaying.

"Damn, but that's morbid. And gruesome. Hard pass. If I want to look like anyone else, I've got the means with magic. No need to go all serial killer."

Enhanced lifespan, night vision, preternatural skill at hiding and quicker reflexes.

"Maybe if I was a baseline human those would be nice. But I've already got better. Besides, that would require me to be one of those little Children of the Forest dudes. I'll pass."

You are 14 feet tall and inhumanly strong and durable and can withstand extremely cold temperatures and hostile environments.

"I've already got all that except for being 8 feet taller than I already am. Besides, the victory condition would be to bring the Giant's population level up from a few hundred to 5,000. Seeing as I would be one of those giants, that would mean I'd have to join in with having lots of kids, and I've already made a promise not to have kids before the reunion. So I'll pass on that, thanks."

You attain an uncanny ability for accumulating wealth and trading and mercenaries under your command tend to be unusually loyal.

"Might have been more interested about nine worlds back. But I've got money and loyalty perks already. So that boon doesn't really interest me as much as it would have before, considering I'd have to gain control over the 9 Free Cities. I mean, controlling them with force would be easy enough, but doing that would be a pain in the ass."

You are immune to all poisons and can slightly control the direction of fire.

Carl laughed for a good long time at the suggestion that slightly controlling fire was something he would waste his time on at this point. Spending time converting 50% of the people of the world to worshipping R'hllor in order to very slightly improve his already perfect fire control? Hard pass.

No, there was only one boon from quests that Carl was interested in.

Best Dynasty Ever

Requirements: None

Boon: The gods smile on your family. Anyone directly related to you tends to be blessed with peace, plenty, and a happy life.

Whether noble or not you certainly intend to be, you cannot stand the idea of anyone being above you and covet the throne of this land for you and yours.

Victory Condition: Take the Iron Throne for your house and hold it within your family for 300 years.

Note: Should you die of old age in any of these Quests you will take the place of your eldest legitimate heir should you have one.

Carl paced in front of the kiosk, rubbing his chin as he thought about whether or not he wanted to take the quest.

"On the plus side, that is a nice guarantee that anyone I'm related to has a nice life. Which I want for my loved ones." Carl was talking out loud while gesturing in the air with his hands.

"On the other hand, that is a long time to invest into making that boon permanent. And it said 'directly related to'. So does that not include spouses or girlfriends? Besides, aren't I working to get strong enough to guarantee my loved ones have decent lives anyway?"

After thinking about it for some time, Carl decided not to take the quest. While he liked the idea of the boon, he didn't feel like the amount of time and effort that would be required to sink into it was completely worth it.

But while Carl was thinking of the quest and what he would need to do to fulfill it, he realized he wanted to purchase at least two more perks.

Great House 50 cp: You may choose any house or family to belong to from your starting region and any appropriately aged parents.

Carl decided that it wasn't enough to just be a random noble, he was going to be a member of the Family that ruled the Riverlands. He didn't plan to go Empire building in this world like he had in the Stargate world. In the Stargate world his big goal was to get the advanced technology. But then he'd gotten tired with the blind bumbling of the main cast and decided to take charge of the affairs of the galaxy.

Not that the people involved weren't doing the best they could with what they had and knew at the time. But since he had such advanced technology, he'd wanted to just fix it. So he had gotten a little out of control, conquering galaxies and building empires. It had been good times.

But here in this world he planned to just sit back and administer his lands and make sure to enjoy the ten years. And to make it easier on him, there was one more perk to get.

A Quiet People 100 cp: You find that the people under your authority are remarkably unlikely to cause you trouble. While not necessarily truly loyal they are exceptionally unlikely to rebel.

How was Carl supposed to enjoy his time in the world if his people are always fighting and rebelling against him?

"I'm sure it wouldn't stop the people from rebelling if their lord got bad enough. But at least small mistakes I make aren't likely to cause issues." Carl muttered as he checked over his selections. "Huh, that's interesting."

Carl just noticed that with the purchase of the Great House perk, since he picked the ruling family of the Riverlands, his Heraldry and Words were automatically changed. The Heraldry was now a silver trout leaping on a striped field of blue and mud red. And his house words was "Family, Duty, Honor".

"Yeah, I can live with that. Not as intimidating as threatening to burn or drown your enemies, but it shows what my new family finds important. And I find myself resonating with it." Carl nodded in approval.

"Now, let's check over the Drawbacks and see if I can get any free points."

"Okay, I want to be the ruler, so I'm not picking up Bastard." Carl snorted. "Being a bastard isn't some shame that the children should have to suffer under, but let's be realistic here. We're talking about a medieval society that has nobility and underhanded fighting for the succession rights. So if I don't want to end up fighting with my half siblings, which would directly go against our house words, it's best to avoid issues of illegitimacy."

"Stalwart Shield would make me a loyal supporter and ally of someone. That wouldn't necessarily be that bad if I could choose a decent person who I could trust, even though it only gives 100 cp. Too bad I don't know any one appropriate. Besides which, the idea of having my loyalty and choices forced, even if only for 10 years, is repellant. I'll pass on that."

"Honourable for only 100 cp would make me stupid with morals. I'll pass. Now, it says that Ned Stark epitomizes this trait, so I could possibly set up Ned as the target of Stalwart Shield, but then I would probably be just as dumb as Ned because I'd be forced to support him. Any drawbacks that modify my behavior and that I can't fight against with occlumency I'm gonna avoid the hell out of, especially when it gives a measly 100 cp. So miserly." Carl curled his lips in disgust at the very idea of not being in control of his decision making for such a pitiful amount of cp. "Which means that a lot of these drawbacks are right out."

Cruel +200 cp: You are naturally cruel and known as such. You will not be able to suppress the urge to torture people from time to time.

Paranoid +200 cp: You are rather paranoid, particularly politically. You will naturally suspect people are plotting against you and will not rest easily. This will likely cause mistakes on your part.

The Unworthy +200 cp: Your sexual appetites are astounding and you will sire many a bastard (and you probably already have). This will take up a reasonable amount of your time and your bastards are or will be an extremely troublesome lot.

Craven +200 cp: You are naturally afraid and no amount of willpower will help. Whether it's fighting or meeting new people you will be consistently terrified and show it.

"Yeah, there's absolutely no chance I will take any of those. As amusing as family drama would be, I made that promise to Serena not to have children until everyone is reunited. I never knew just how difficult that promise would be to keep. That was a difficult sell to Caiyi, but the promise to have children as soon as I returned finally won out in the end." Carl sighed at the difficulty of ensuring he didn't have children. "Not that Alice and Tera were happy about it either, what with all that time spent in Time Dilation."

Carl carefully didn't think about just how easy it would have been to "slip up" and just go ahead and have a family in one of these jumps. As much as he wanted to have a family, he knew that leaving behind kids as well as lovers would just make it harder for him to go forward.

"Based on the Honorable drawback, and how it mentions Ned Stark, I think it's likely that I'll be meeting some people who epitomize these drawback traits. I've definitely gotta keep my eye out for the dude that epitomizes the Cruel drawback. If I catch him in the act, he'll be out of luck. Of course that's assuming it's only a single person who epitomizes the trait." Carl shook his head and sighed at the realization that there were probably many people who had the various traits.

Carl finished reading the other drawbacks with a sigh of disappointment. "I don't want to touch any of these drawbacks. Eunuch removes little Carl root and stem, 'can barely even urinate'. No thanks. Even if I can heal it after the fact, that's just a prohibited area for dudes. And some of the other drawbacks I've seen specify that the effects can't be healed while in the world, so I'll pass on the possibility of being a Eunuch for 10 years." Carl shuddered in dread at the thought.

"With Greyscale I'll get some weird disease five years into the jump that within four years after getting the disease, it will make me violent and insane. And it says it's incurable, so I'll pass. Who knows how much damage I would do over the course of that one year of being insane. An insane cultivator in a land where no other murder hobos are there to stop him? There probably wouldn't be anyone left at the end. And it's not like it would be the amusing kind of insanity that would make me think I was Santa Claus' cousin and start handing out gifts. No, it has to ensure I'm violent." Carl was pretty sure that the insanity wouldn't stop him from remembering any atrocity he would inflict on the world. He definitely didn't need that on his conscience.

Imp +300 cp: You are a very ugly dwarf. Your legs are stunted and sore and you cannot move quickly on them. You may not change form for the duration of your time here.

"Imp will make me a very ugly dwarf for the 10 year duration, and it wouldn't even let me change my form. Being an ugly imp wouldn't really be an impediment for me being a noble or ruler, once I woke up my memories and abilities, even if I couldn't cure it. But my relationships with people and their impressions on me would be affected before I woke up my memories, which would seriously affect the memories and relationships that I would have with people." Carl thought about it for a bit. "It all comes down to my desire for CP battling my pride. What would I put up with for cp? Flip a coin it is, I'll leave it up to chance. Heads I go for it, tails I'll pass."

Carl pulled out a quarter and flipped the coin, letting it land on the floor so he wouldn't be tempted to manipulate it. The coin flew into the air, shining as it spun. As it hit the ground it bounced around, hitting the kiosk base before coming to a halt. Tails. "No cp for you, Carl."

"And the final drawback, A Long Night, will basically have unending swarms of ice zombies for 10 years. I'll pass on the Zombie apocalypse."

"Well, I guess that's that. No drawbacks, and just enough perks to enhance my leadership while I'm here." Carl took a deep breath and pressed the complete button. The world dissolved into darkness around him.

A tall and sturdy man was pacing back and forth in his solar, nervous about what was happening in a nearby room. His brown hair and beard took on a vague tint of red in the candle light. His blue eyes were flashing with worry over his wife, who was currently in labor.

Hoster Tully had not been especially lucky with having children so far. His wife, Minisa Tully nee Whent had always been on the frail side. She had successfully given birth to two sons for him, who had grown sick and died before they had even reached a year old.

Hoster was now the Lord of Riverrun and the Lord Paramount of the Trident since his father had died only a few months ago. So it was even more important than ever that he have an heir. The deaths of his previous two sons increased the weight of worry on Hoster over his duties as the Lord Paramount.

It was a difficult position that House Tully was in as the leader. They didn't have the numbers of military men that the other houses in the Riverlands did. They weren't very wealthy so it was difficult to attract more knights to their service. And they weren't the family with the most history in the Riverlands, thus their prestige wasn't quite as high as others.

As a result, it was incredibly difficult to do anything or even rule properly in the Riverlands. He had seen how much those worries and difficulties had weighed on his father. And now that his father was gone, that weight fell on him to carry.

But if he didn't carry those worries, it would likely spell the end of his family as their rivals would have no compunction not to cast them down and destroy his house if they ever managed to do so.

Family, Duty, Honor.

They weren't just empty words for House Tully. They were the most precious guidance that had kept House Tully alive in the midst of jealous enemies and rivals. Protect the family. Do his duty to family and kingdom. And preserve their family's honor as the Lord of the Riverlands so no one could legitimately challenge them, seeking to destroy them.

There were already talks about him not being worthy of the title Lord of the Trident, there were worries about the succession since his previous two boy didn't make it past their first year.

A knock on the door interrupted his worried thoughts. He glared at the door for a moment, before bidding them to enter. One of the servants entered and bowed, well aware of the volatile temper that his lord was under at the moment.

"Lady Tully has given birth to healthy twins my lord. A boy and a girl." The servant reported.

Hoster laughed in joy. "Good!" He exclaimed as he made his way out of the solar and moved to the birthing room just down the hallway.

Brushing past all the servants gathered in the halls, Hoster entered the room to find Minisa looking wiped out, but smiling lovingly down at the two bundles in her arms. She looked up at Hoster, her red hair still sweat streaked and smiled at her husband.

"A boy and a girl for you, milord." She softly said.

Hoster gently pressed a hand on her shoulder before peering down at the two bundles. His children. Hopefully they would survive. He wasn't sure he could handle the whispers of the nobles he was in charge of if his children didn't.

"What did you want to name them?" Minisa asked.

Hoster looked at his son and daughter. They both looked the same, wrinkly red. One of the babies was struggling to get free of the swaddling clothes, not content with simply lying there.

"Your son is a restless one already." Minisa offered with a smile when she saw Hoster looking at their boy.

"Aye, like I was growing up. Since he seems to want to be a free man already, let's name him Carl." Hoster then looked at the beautiful face of his daughter. "And for your daughter, Minisa?"

Minisa looked down at her girl who was sleeping so peacefully. "She looks so sweet and pure. We'll name her Catelyn."

"A good name." Hoster nodded approvingly. "Rest now, dear." Minisa smiled at her husband and let her eyes shut as she fell into slumber.

Hoster looked down at his son that was unusually active just after birth. He had a good feeling about this active and healthy son. He felt like the boy was going to grow up strong.

Carl Tully, much more than his twin sister Catelyn, soon proved to be a handful to care for. He wasn't a particularly loud child, no more than his sister. But he was awake and active much more than his sister. Even before he grew strong enough to crawl, he loved to roll everywhere.

The servants had to be especially careful where they placed him, since he would have rolled off a bed on more than one occasion if they weren't watchful. And that carelessness in protecting their Lord's heir would have been worth their life.

Catelyn, in comparison with her brother, was a calm child. She wasn't truly a calm baby, not more so than any other baby, really. But when compared to her brother she seemed positively serene and content to be still.

When the Tully Twins were several months old, Carl finally learned to crawl, which made him a double handful of trouble. After only a few days of seeing how Carl could get around and find the most unusual and dangerous of places to crawl to, his parents assigned three servants specifically to keep a 24 hour watch on the young heir.

The servants took to jokingly referring to their duty as being one of the corral guards, since it was a full time job, and was a play on the young heir's name, Carl.

But despite the young active boy's proclivity for exploring, he also seemed to love spending time with his sister and mother, when he could. While Carl's twin sister wasn't as active as he was, she too liked to be around her twin brother.

Hoster found that after long days of dealing with conflicts between his people, politics and fights between his knights and lords, he enjoyed coming back to their rooms and sitting with his wife, his daughter content to sit in his arms playing with his beard, while his son played with blocks or some other toys while his wife told him tales of what kind of mischief his son had gotten into that day. It was a balm on his soul after dealing with stubborn idiots all day long.

Soon enough Minisa was pregnant again, and two years after giving birth to her twins, gave birth to another daughter in 266 AC. They named their small girl Lysa. Carl and Catelyn were too young to really interact with their newborn sister, but when they were shown their sister they babbled excitedly at her, seeming to immediately bond with her.

Life continued on for some time in their normal routine. Hoster dealt with all the various issues that cropped up from time to time. Natural disasters among the common folk that he was Lord over and had to help them with recover from. Arguments between his landowners over boundary disputes. Thieves stealing livestock or destroying crops. The other nobles testing him while seeking advantages for themselves.

Minisa managed the household and the ladies, spending her time in needlework or managing the household food and item supply, watching over their children.

And Carl learned to walk and soon run, which made the job of the Corral Guards that much more difficult. Catelyn on the other hand was seen as a sedate and ladylike young girl, even though she too got up to mischief like all children do.

When Carl was four name days old in 268 AC, his brother Edmure was born to Hoster and Minisa. Carl, Catelyn, and Lysa all seemed excited for the new addition to their family.

Nothing much changed for the family until two years later, when Minisa passed away in childbirth. The young baby boy didn't survive either. A pall of sadness and grief seemed to descend on the castle and the family for quite some time.

Edmure was still too young at two name days old to properly remember their mother, or understand that she was gone. Lysa and Catelyn though especially missed the presence of their loving mother. While Carl was also greatly affected, as a young man of six name days of age he knew it was his job to toughen up and be there for his siblings.

Despite Carl's best attempts at being there for his siblings, there wasn't much he could do to soften the blow of never again having their mother there for them.

Hoster especially took the loss of his wife badly, and threw himself into his Lordly duties to stop thinking about his grief so much. He still occasionally made time for his children, but he was a busy lord with many duties. And their days had normally been filled with time spent with their mother, so the children especially felt the absence of their mother.

But despite the sad loss, life went on. Carl and Catelyn were started on the lessons with the maesters needed for children of their station. They learned to read and write, history, simple maths, and most importantly they learned the duties of their station.

Carl had additional lessons in the martial yard, starting him on the exercises that would turn him into a knight capable of protecting his lands.

Carl took to all his lessons like a fish to water. He was an unusually smart child, able to remember whatever he read or heard. The maester of the castle constantly said how well Carl would do in the Order of Maesters. Thankfully for all involved, Hoster put his foot down firmly. Carl was his oldest and would be inheriting his lordship. He certainly wasn't going to allow Carl to give up his family name and joining the Order of Maesters just because he was smart.

Besides, Carl was a very active boy that would have absolutely hated being stuck in the sedentary lifestyle of the Maesters. Despite having a talent for learning, the young boy much preferred the active lifestyle of a knight.

Over the next four years the Tullys settled into their new routines and life. Their father's brother, Brynden Tully started showing up more and more to help his brother with looking after the children.

Despite the addition of their uncle in their lives, Carl made sure to look after his siblings, since he was the oldest he knew it was his responsibility. As such, Carl scaled back on the amount of mischief, exploration, and fun that he had enjoyed before. While still of a cheerful nature, he grew to be more duty minded as he looked after his siblings, making sure they were safe, looked after, and had fun.

He kept in mind their family's words to guide him.

Family, Duty, Honor.

His intelligence and physical abilities were far above that of a normal child of his age, and it had all his teachers praising him, and throwing more advanced materials his way. He soon began learning swordsmanship, taking to it as if he had already learned it, and was simply remembering the moves. His uncle Brynden was a knight of some renown. He had been in many battles, and when he saw that Carl was a natural at the blade, he made sure to spend time tutoring Carl in the martial endeavors of knights, especially sword fighting.

And throughout the time he grew, Carl continued to find that he had exceptional talents in many things. He couldn't explain just how he had gotten those skills, they were just there.

When one day his younger brother Edmure had gotten lost and the servants couldn't find them, Carl found that he had a natural skill in tracking as he followed his brother's trail until he found Edmure, lost in a copse of trees some distance away. He brought four year old Edmure back to the castle on his back, refusing to let the servants carry him.

At nine years old he was the first to jump in front of a scared and startled seven name day old Lysa when a dog went mad and almost attacked her. The practice sword he had flew fast and true, breaking the dogs jaw and legs, leaving it helpless for the servants to gather up and put the mad thing down while he hugged his scared sister to comfort her. He was never sure afterwards just how he had known that the dog was going to attack, but it had allowed him to get in front of his sister in time to protect her, so he wasn't going to question it too much.

It wasn't until he was nearly ten name days old before he finally realized that not everyone can see in the dark as well as if it was midday. Or see the wings on a fly from a hundred yards away. He always knew his senses were better than others, but since he grew up with them, he never thought about just how much better they were than normal.

Shortly after Carl and Catelyn celebrated their 10th nameday, his father Hoster Tully brought a six nameday old boy into their house to foster. During Hoster's time fighting in the War of the Ninpenny Kings, Hoster had made friends with Lord Stephan Baelish of the Vale.

Lord Baelish was the first of his family to be considered a noble from birth. Lord Baelish's grandfather had been born in Braavos and came to the Vale as a sellsword employed by House Corbray. Lord Baelish's father had started life as a landless hedge knight before gaining a small piece of land in the Fingers, which was a peninsula in the north-east of The Vale. He established House Baelish there.

Lord Baelish had prevailed on Lord Tully's friendship to foster his son. Carl himself assumed that Lord Baelish wanted his son to make connections and increase their House's prestige and influence.

But the arrival of six name days old Petyr Baelish was what let Carl know of another innate skill he had. Despite the pleasant face and innocent act of Petyr, Carl found that he didn't like the boy at all. He felt deep inside that the boy was a sneak and would do anything to benefit himself.

And Carl really didn't like the way that Petyr eyed Carl's sisters. Carl vowed that he would keep an eye on the boy, since telling his father not to trust a six name day old boy would have been an exercise in frustration and pointlessness.

Since Carl was on guard against Petyr, he saw the things no one else did. When several hounds got loose and made a mess in the kitchen, he saw the smirk of triumph on the boy's face, especially when the servant in charge of the dogs got punished. There wasn't any evidence that Petyr was the one who did it, but Carl knew.

Some time later while Carl was in the training yard, he saw Petyr and his two sisters sneaking out of the castle. The sneaking and surreptitious nature of their movements caught Carl's eye, and so he ended his training session early and followed them.

Without the three seeing him, Carl followed them into the Godswood grove just outside the castle. The boy had a smug attitude to him that immediately made Carl want to beat him.

It was only when the three started exchanging kisses that Carl knew just what Petyr had been up to. Enraged at the boy taking advantage of his sisters, he stepped inside the clearing and grabbed the boy in a head lock, tearing him away from his younger sister Lysa.

"Just what do you think you're doing, you little sneak?" Carl growled as he punched the boy a couple times in the ribs. "Taking advantage of my sisters after we took you in?"

"Carl stop!" His sisters pleaded with him, trying to pull him off the boy. "Why are you beating him? It was our idea!" Catelyn cried out.

Carl stopped, furious that his sisters would take the side of the sneaky and underhanded boy over him, their brother. He dropped Petyr out of the head lock and kicked him aside, furious at the boy and at his sisters. "You get away from here. And if I see you trying to take advantage of my sisters again, I'm going to do much worse to you."

Carl smiled in satisfaction as he saw the fear in the boy's eyes over his threat as he cowered away. Carl then turned to his sisters.

"How dare you!" Catelyn suddenly slapped Carl while Lysa also glared at him.

A feeling of betrayal shot through Carl at the slap. He glared at his sisters like he had never done before. The two girls quailed a bit at the glare, suddenly realizing that maybe they had gone a bit too far.

"You would take his side over your own brother? You would take the side of that underhanded and sneaky rat over me?" Carl growled, hurt that his sisters would dare betray him like that.

"Petyr isn't like that!" Carl's eleven name day old twin declared. "Besides, it was all a bit off innocent play." She declared.

"I like Petyr, he's funny. He wasn't hurting us." Lysa joined in.

"I see he has you fooled too." Carl bitterly spat. "He's an underhanded sneak, is what he is. I've seen him play foul tricks on people and get others blamed for it. And he's been fooling you two with his jokes and wit. He just wants to use you two to advance himself. And I won't have it. I won't allow him to take advantage of you two."

"I think you're jealous and a fool if you think that of Petyr!" Catelyn declared. "I like the boy and I'll continue to associate with him if I want!"

Carl looked back and forth between the two girls. "You both really think that?" He was furious at the whole situation. His sisters were betraying him for an outsider, for some not-family runt that was smart enough to fool nearly everyone. They didn't trust him enough to believe him over the honeyed words of an outsider. Didn't they know that the first word in their Family Words was Family? Why would they abandon that?

When Lysa nodded in agreement with Catelyn, who she was always the closest with, Carl's anger suddenly went completely cold. Arctic cold. The change of his expression caused an uneasy feeling to develop in Catelyn's stomach, but she pushed the feeling aside and continued to glare at her twin who was being so unreasonable. Who she associated with was her business. How dare he try to dictate to her!

"Fine." Carl coldly declared. "If you would rather betray your family for some underhanded outsider, then there's not much I can do, now can I?"

Carl turned around and marched off, leaving his sisters in tears at his hurtful words. Catelyn wondered what she had done, but she was too proud to go apologize when she felt she hadn't done anything wrong. And Lysa followed Catelyn's lead, so she too continued to be friends with Petyr.

The following year was the most uncomfortable in the Tully household due to the rift between siblings. Carl refused to talk to the girls until they had come to their senses, even though he continued to watch out for them and make sure they didn't get taken advantage of or hurt.

Carl continued to exercise and play with Edmure, but refused to train with him if Edmure brought Petyr along. It infuriated Carl that the little bastard was winning over his own family away from him.

Petyr all the while was full of smug looks and smiles, seeing as how he had convinced the girls to his side, away from their own brother. He was so proud of himself.

Carl vowed that he had to do something soon to change the situation.