Chapter 158

LORD EDDARD STARK POV

Ned Stark was having breakfast with his family in yet another normal day in Winterfell.

Arya, his playful daughter was teasing Sansa about something. Sansa, despite her usual ladylike demeanor was throwing harsh barbs at her sister, Robb was ignoring all of this and was finishing his food as quickly as possible so that he could get back to his lessons and learn more things so that he could become a lord as capable as Lord Bolton one day, Bran was playing with his food and Rickon, his youngest son was pushing away any food that Cat was trying to feed him with a persistent frown and Jon… Jon was sitting among the guards in the lower tables like everyday.

Yes, just a normal day in Winterfell.

A normal day which stopped being normal when a giant eagle flew through the door of the Great Hall and landed in their table.

By this point, they had all gotten used to the giant eagle and knew who the sender was.

"A letter from Sansa's betrothed." Arya shouted with glee as she reached for the letter but eagle moved it's claw at the last moment, getting out of Arya's reach and looking at him with the claw raised in his direction.

A letter personally for him then.

He took the letter from the eagle's leg and it gave a nod before flying away.

With how much intelligence the eagle was showing, he had to wonder if it was just a normal eagle and not a warged bird instead.

He put the thought off his mind and opened the letter, reading through it quickly with a frown forming on his face the more he read.

"What does it say?" his daughter Sansa asked eagerly and even his son Robb slowly moved toward him, trying to be inconspicuous and doing a bad job of it.

He gave the letter another go to make sure that he had read everything correctly and let out a sigh "Lord Bolton is going North of the wall in another expedition with 1000 men. He is asking for permission."

Arya squealed in glee, being a most fervent fan of Lord Bolton and his heroic activities. Sansa gasped in fear for the foolish risk her betrothed was taking by going North of the Wall and Robb… he didn't like the resolute look on Robb's face.

"That's so cool." Arya said, jumping in her seat in excitement "What do you think he'll bring from the North this time father. Maybe he'll go to the Lands of Always Winter and bring an Ice dragon from there."

"Arya. Stop speaking like that. Do you know how dangerous the land North of the Wall is." Sansa said.

"Father. I want to go with Lord Bolton in this expedition as well." Robb said with the determination that only a young boy who has never seen a true battle could show.

"Me too me too. Father please…." Arya said.

"Absolutely not." Cat said, silencing the whole table and he let out a sigh.

This was going to be a long day.