19. Jon : Life at Castle Black

-
Location: Castle Black
Characters: Jon, Alliser Thorne, Tyrion

The Watch had built nineteen great strongholds along the wall, but only three were still occupied. The Eastwatch, the Shadow Tower and between them Castle Black.
Jon was training with swords at Castle Black under the supervision of master of arms, Ser Alliser Thorne. Alliser Thorne was a compact man of fifty years, spare and hard, with grey in his black hair and eyes like chips of onyx. He called Jon as Lord Snow as a mockery which everyone picked up.
Jon had defeated everyone at practice yet Thorne served him only derision and hated him. He hated the other boys even worse.
Jon trained with a group of twenty boys and none he could call a friend. The more time Jon spent with them , more Jon despised them.
No one had told him the hard truth about the Night's Watch except Tyrion Lannister. Jon wondered if his father had known what it was like and it hurt it even more. Even Benjen Stark had left for a ranging. Jon requested him to take him but Benjen refused. On the Wall, a man gets only what he earns. Unless Ser Alliser says Jon is fit to be a man of the Night's Watch, he cannot go on rangings with Benjen. Stark blood will not win him easy favors.
Benjen had gone looking for Ser Waymer Royce. A good many rangers had vanished for late.

Jon saw Benjen Stark lying dead, his blood red on the snow. Jon shuddered at the thought. 
He missed his brothers Rickon, Robb and Bran and even Sansa and Arya. Sansa always called Jon as her half brother. Jon loved Arya the most.
In the armoury, Donal Noye explains to Jon that the Watch has need of every man it can get. Jon would not win any honors by killing his companions. Donal Noye had been an armourer for Stannis Baratheon. He had forged Robert Baratheon's war hammer which he used to defeat Rhaegar Targaryan at the Trident. He took black after he lost an arm at the seige of Storm's End. He tells Jon that the road Jon is walking, on of his black brothers will slit his throat one night. Jon is making enemies with his black brothers. Jon thinks that they hate him because he is better than them. Donal Noye tells him that they hate him because he acts like he is better than them. Its not training with Jon. By defeating them, Jon leaves them nothing - only shame. Most of the boys were sons of farmers or smiths and never had picked up a sword. What meaning did Jon's victories had against these boys?
Jon felt ashamed and guilty.
Jon tried to be good to his black brothers from then on.

Meanwhile a bird arrived from Winterfell about Bran's news which makes Jon jump with joy.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

4. Eddard : The Crypts

-
Location : Crypts of Winterfell Characters : Eddard Stark, Robert Baratheon   The King has finally arrived in Winterfell. He is accompanied by Queen Cersie, and her brothers. Ned had last seen the king nine years before during Balon Greyjoy's rebellion where the stag and the direwolf had jointly fought against the self-proclaimed King of the Iron Islands. Robert had accepted the rebel lord's surrender and Ned had taken his son Theon as hostage and ward. What was the rebellion about? Robert was a man of huge appetites, a man who knew how to take his pleasures. That was not the charge anyone could lay at the door of Eddard Stark. This implies Eddard Stark was too honorable. The Stark kings were buried in crypts at Winterfell. The king proceeded to pay his respects to the dead much to the dismay of the queen. Robert was betrothed to Lyanna, Ned's sister who died. ( Thats why queen was unhappy with Robert going to the crypts ) Ned recalls about Lyanna: &qu
Read more

Prologue

-
Location : The Haunted Forest south of the Wall Main Characters : Gared, Will, Ser Waymer Royce, The Others Referenced Characters : Old Bear Mormont, Mallisters, Maester Aemon, Robert, Wildlings About the characters: Gared was an old man past fifty. He had spend forty years in the Night's Watch What is Night's Watch? Will had been four years on the Wall. He had been a poacher before he joined the Night's Watch. Mallister freeriders caught him poaching on their bucks and it had been a choice of putting on the black or losing a hand. Looks like Will joined the Night's Watch as a punishment. Why is Night's Watch a punishment? What is putting on the black mean? No one could move through the woods as silent as Will and it had not taken the black brothers long to discover his talent. Black Brothers - Are they other members of the Night's Watch? Ser Waymer Royce was their commander. He was the youngest son of an ancient house with too
Read more

2. Catelyn : Death of Jon Arryn

-
Location : Winterfell's Godswood Characters : Catelyn Stark, Ned Stark Referenced Characters: Ben Stark, Robert Barathean, Jon Arryn, Catelyn was born a Tulley of Riverrun. She is married to Eddard Stark and mother to Bran, Robb and 3 other stark children. She remembers the godswood in Riverrun as : "The godswood there, was a garden, bright and airy, where tall redwoods spread dappled shadows across tinkling streams, birds sang from hidden nests, and the air was spicy with the scent of flowers." whereas the godswood in Winterfell are: "It was a dark primal place, three acres of old forest untouched for ten thousand years as the gloomy castle rose around it. It smelled of moist earth and decay. No redwoods grew here. This was a wood of stubborn sentinel trees armored in grey-green needles..." Catelyn was anointed with the seven oils and named in the rainbow of light that filled the sept of Riverrun. Her gods had names and faces and were worshiped usin
Read more