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Maester Luwin cas He cannot sit a horse"

"Nonsense," said Lannister "With the right horse and the right saddle, even a cripple can ride"

The as a knife through Bran’s heart He felt tears come unbidden to his eyes "I’m not a cripple!"

"Then I am not a dwarf," the dwarf said with a twist of his hed

"What sort of horse and saddle are you suggesting?" Maester Luwin asked

"A ss to command the animal, so you must shape the horse to the rider, teach it to respond to the reins, to the voice I would begin with an unbroken yearling, with no old training to be unlearned" He drew a rolled paper from his belt "Give this to your saddler He will provide the rest"

Maester Luwin took the paper frorey squirrel He unrolled it, studied it "I see You draw nicely, ht of this myself"

"It came easier to me, Maester It is not terribly unlike my own saddles"

"Will I truly be able to ride?" Bran asked He wanted to believe them, but he was afraid Perhaps it was just another lie The crow had promised him that he could fly

"You will," the dwarf told him "And I swear to you, boy, on horseback you will be as tall as any of them"

Robb Stark seemed puzzled "Is this some trap, Lannister? What’s Bran to you? Why should you want to help him?"

"Your brother Jon asked it of me And I have a tender spot in s" Tyrion Lannister placed a hand over his heart and grinned

The door to the yard flew open Sunlight ca across the hall as Rickon burst in, breathless The direwolves ith him The boy stopped by the door, wide-eyed, but the wolves caht his scent Surowl first Grey Wind picked it up They padded toward the little ht and one from the left

"The wolves do not like your smell, Lannister," Theon Greyioy commented

"Perhaps it’s time I took gydog ca Lannister recoiled, and Sued at him from the other side He reeled away, unsteady on his feet, and Grey Wind snapped at his ar loose a scrap of cloth

"No!" Bran shouted froh seat as Lannister’s men reached for their steel "Summer, here Sulanced at Bran, and again at Lannister He crept backward, away fro feet

Robb had been holding his breath He let it out with a sigh and called, "Grey Wind" His direwolf , rureen fire

"Rickon, call him," Bran shouted to his baby brother, and Rickon rey, hoave Lannister one final snarl and bounded off to Rickon, who hugged hihtly around the neck

Tyrion Lannister undid his scarf, "

"Are you well, lanced nervously at the direwolves as he spoke

"My sleeve is torn andwas harnity"

Even Robb looked shaken "The wolvesI don’t knohy they did that"

"No doubt they mistook me for dinner" Lannister bowed stiffly to Bran "I thank you for calling the ser I proestible And noill be leaving, truly"

"A moment, my lord," Maester Luwin said HeBran tried to hear what they were saying, but their voices were too low

Robb Stark finally sheathed his sword "II may have been hasty with you," he said "You’ve done Bran a kindness, and, well" Robb composed himself with an effort "The hospitality of Winterfell is yours if you wish it, Lannister"

"Spare me your false courtesies, boy You do not love me and you do not want me here I saw an inn outside your walls, in the winter town I’ll find a bed there, and both of us will sleep easier For a few coppers I may even find a comely wench to warm the sheets for me" He spoke to one of the black brothers, an old o south at daybreak You will find ling across the hall on his short legs, past Rickon and out the door His ht’s Watch remained Robb turned to them uncertainly "I have had rooms prepared, and you’ll find no lack of hot water to wash off the dust of the road I hope you will honor us at table tonight" He spoke the words so aardly that even Bran took note; it was a speech he had learned, not words from the heart, but the black brothers thanked him all the same

Summer followed them up the tower steps as Hodor carried Bran back to his bed Old Nan was asleep in her chair Hodor said "Hodor," gathered up his great-grand softly, while Bran lay thinking Robb had proht’s Watch in the Great Hall "Sued him so hard he could feel the hot breath on his cheek "I can ride now," he whispered to his friend "We can go hunting in the woods soon, wait and see" After a tiain, pulling hi the for purchase Higher and higher he cliht sky, and still the tower rose before him When he paused to look down, his head swa Bran cried out and clung for dear life The earth was a thousand miles beneath him and he could not fly He could not fly He waited until his heart had stopped pounding, until he could breathe, and he began to clio but up Far above hiht he could see the shapes of gargoyles His ar, but he dared not rest He forced hioyles watched hilowed red as hot coals in a brazier Perhaps once they had been lions, but now they were twisted and grotesque Bran could hear the to each other in soft stone voices terrible to hear Heas he did not hear theoyles pulled themselves loose from the stone and padded down the side of the tower to where Bran clung, he kneas not safe after all "I didn’t hear," he wept as they came closer and closer, "I didn’t, I didn’t"

He woke gasping, lost in darkness, and saw a vast shadow loo in fear, but then the shadow said "Hodor," and lit the candle by the bedside, and Bran sighed with relief

Hodor washed the sweat froentle hands When it was ti trestle table had been set up near the fire The lord’s seat at the head of the table had been left eht of it, with Bran across froeon pie, and turnips soaking in butter, and afterward the cook had promised honeycombs Summer snatched table scraps froht over a bone in the corner Winterfell’s dogs would not coe at first, but he was growing used to it

Yoren was senior a the black brothers, so the steward had seated him between Robb and Maester Luwin The oldtime He ripped at the meat with his teeth, cracked the ribs to suck out the ed at the runted, and two of his coh that Bran did not understand But when Robb asked for news of their uncle Benjen, the black brothers grew ominously quiet

"What is it?" Bran asked

Yoren wiped his fingers on his vest "There’s hard news, m’lords, and a cruel way to pay you for your meat and mead, but the one"

One of the other men said, "The Old Bear sent hi, ," Yoren said "Most like he’s dead"

"My uncle is not dead," Robb Stark said loudly, anger in his tones He rose from the bench and laid his hand on the hilt of his sword "Do you hear ainst the stone walls, and Bran was suddenly afraid

Old sour-s Yoren looked up at Robb, unimpressed "Whatever you say, m’lord," he said He sucked at a piece of est of the black brothers shifted uncomfortably in his seat "There’s not a man on the Wall knows the haunted forest better than Benjen Stark He’ll find his way back"

"Well," said Yoren, "one into those woods before, and never come out"

All Bran could think of was Old Nan’s story of the Others and the last hero, hounded through the white woods by deadas hounds He was afraid for a moment, until he remembered how that story ended "The children will help him," he blurted, "the children of the forest!"

Theon Greyjoy sniggered, and Maester Luwin said, "Bran, the children of the forest have been dead and gone for thousands of years All that is left of theht be that’s true, Maester," Yoren said, "but up past the Wall, who’s to say? Up there, a man can’t always tell what’s alive and what’s dead"

That night, after the plates had been cleared, Robb carried Bran up to bed himself Grey Wind led the way, and Sue, and Bran was as light as a bundle of rags, but the stairs were steep and dark, and Robb was breathing hard by the time they reached the top

He put Bran into bed, covered him with blankets, and blew out the candle For a time Robb sat beside him in the dark Bran wanted to talk to him, but he did not knohat to say "We’ll find a horse for you, I promise," Robb whispered at last

"Are they ever co back?" Bran asked him

"Yes," Robb said with such hope in his voice that Bran kneas hearing his brother and not just Robb the Lord "Mother will be home soon Maybe we can ride out to meet her when she comes Wouldn’t that surprise her, to see you ahorse?" Even in the dark room, Bran could feel his brother’s smile "And afterward, we’ll ride north to see the Wall We won’t even tell Jon we’re co, we’ll just be there one day, you and me It will be an adventure"

"An adventure," Bran repeated wistfully He heard his brother sob The room was so dark he could not see the tears on Robb’s face, so he reached out and found his hand Their fingers twined together