[Chapter Size: 2409 Words.]
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**Blacksmith Rut POV**
**Kingdom of the North, City of FrostRoar, Lands of the Glovers, 289 A.C., minutes later.**
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He had been in a bad mood for many hours; the memory of a boy under 10 namedays saying that this blacksmith had a small mind still haunted him every few minutes, especially the riddle made by the hooded brat; he still didn't understand those words of the "poor" child. His thoughts were interrupted when he began to see a commotion starting to happen around him; people were shouting about something that happened to the eldest son of Lord Carlen Frotniid and about a child they believed to be the little Jon from that stupid song his grandson used to sing.
Noticing that many people were running here and there, especially the crowd that was happening in the main streets, Rut let his curiosity take over at this moment; so he grabbed a girl running in front of his shop by the arm.
"Wait, girl! Can you tell me what's happening in the city right now?" he asked calmly while examining the child's face.
The girl looked at him suspiciously, and Rut just sighed.
Then he took a bronze coin from his pocket and tossed it to the girl, who smiled happily and began to speak.
"Little Jon is in the city! The boy from the legend is real; a Bard in the square said that he handed a golden dragon to him after hearing his own song by the bard! They say the musician even showed the coin and said it wouldn't be used to stay as a keepsake!" The girl exclaimed in childish enthusiasm and continued, "People are now saying that he fought against Lord Frotniid's son, who is known to be evil, and challenged little Jon to a duel; I heard that the wicked son of the lord didn't even have a chance and lost a hand in two moves by little Jon!"
She continued to speak dreamily like a knight's fantasy as Southerners tell, but this story seemed much bloodier in Rut's opinion.
The blacksmith immediately thought that this wasn't something a girl should say so happily, but he didn't have time to say anything because he was interrupted by the little girl at this moment.
"They are also saying that the boy is 3 meters tall and that he is the son of the North's protector, Lord Stark; little Jon sent a raven to Winterfell in front of the mayor's son before they fought!" She said still with the same enthusiasm.
The blacksmith didn't know what to think about it; he found it hard to believe that a child is 3 meters tall, the same goes for being the son of the North's protector. What the hell would a Stark's son be doing in the North?
With the girl saying this on one of the main streets and heading towards the west gate after buying several carts, Rut wanted to see this alleged 3-meter-tall boy.
After letting the girl go to one of the streets where Jon would pass, he returned to his shop and closed it temporarily; then he hurried to the main street, which was now surrounded by a crowd of curious people; he finally saw the carts and the boy on one of them, nothing like what they said about the size, he looked like a normal boy hiding his face.
This would be his thought a few hours ago before remembering this same boy in his shop a few hours ago. This kid came to his shop, and he initially thought he was a boy asking to be his apprentice; then he found out that this boy wanted to buy large quantities of materials and tools, which he found a joke, as what he asked for was worth gold dragons, and he treated the young man with disdain.
In turn, the young man got angry with Rut and insulted him in front of him; Rut would usually try to slap him on the head for being cheeky, but the boy's words put the blacksmith in an unsolvable riddle, making him lose sight of the boy.
But now he saw that the boy was not what he imagined, and a certain regret crept into his heart; everyone pointed to the carts that did not need a driver as they followed the boy's lead as some kind of magic. Now, Rut, although he had never read a book in his life, understood what the boy meant when he called him small-minded. He had judged the brat without giving him a chance. He may have lost gold selling his things, but he gained a life lesson that day, perhaps thinking that he could be more tolerant from now on. He even saw his supposed rival in the second cart, carrying a part of his workshop in it. Little did he know that after his death, two decades after this day, his name would be recorded in the city as a passage thanks to that phrase, about how you can't judge a book by its cover, in a passage about Northern men after he began to tell the phrase and its meaning in the following years. ["Never judge a book by its cover; you might regret it one day." Blacksmith Rut, from FrostRoar, Kingdom of the North.] – Passage from the book, Northern Men XIII.
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**Jon Snow POV**
**Kingdom of the North, City of FrostRoar, Lands of the Glovers, 289 A.C., at this very moment.**
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"Finally..." Jon said to himself as he looked at the gate they were passing through. William and Ducken were worried, especially Ducken, who had his eyes glued to the city gate guards. However, for some reason, their group was not attacked during our exit, something that surprised them. If Jon had to bet, he believed that Lord Frotniid did not retaliate against them precisely because of the letter he sent to Winterfell. This reminded him of the important things he wrote on those papers, hoping that his father would understand his message and try to investigate some things he reported, even if the Lord of Winterfell was skeptical. He had taken advantage of that paper and written another small message, addressed to Arya and Bran, because besides his father, he missed both of them.
"I miss, especially my little wolf and her mischief." Jon lamented quietly. Now with the carts out of the city, Jon went to the north of that path, not wanting to be too obvious with the whole city watching him enter the Wolfwoods directly through the west gate; this would bring countless curious people to search in the forest, so he had to somehow deceive his pursuers, even though there are no soldiers on his trail at the moment, but he knew that this could change. It was strange that he could still hear people shouting his name; he ignored it with quite a bit of embarrassment as he passed through the city streets, never in his life, did he imagine having attention with thousands of people paying attention to him at the same time. Soon, shouts seeking answers from him disappeared because he was too far from the city, and it didn't take long for the city to be far enough away to disappear from the horizon.
"Well, that was quite strange; I didn't imagine that after you left, you would attract the attention of the whole city." Said William, who went beside Jon while driving his cart.
"That's true; I believe your idea of using the hood was to be discreet, but you ended up leaving the city like some kind of hero. Unusual for a day in FrostRoar. Haha." Coming from the other side, Ducken couldn't help but comment. Looking at his group, he was sure he made the best choice in leaving his entire life in that city to follow this child, who was supposedly a legend told from a recent fantasy, but seeing the incredible things the boy could do, who wouldn't believe in the ballad of little Jon since then.
"You're right." Jon admitted with a sigh and continued speaking. "But that's my fault; I couldn't help but show my emotions when I saw that little sadistic lord. And I didn't take off my hood the whole time because of it." Jon raised his hands and took off his cloak from his head, looking at the two men. William, who had not seen it yet, was stunned by Jon's appearance.
"Those eyes, so it's true! You're that boy from the song! Although I never paid attention, I heard a few times while my little cousin sang." Admitted William with admiration. Even Ducken, who had already noticed the boy's gaze, was quite surprised; the boy was indeed a young Ned Stark, and those eyes stood out a lot on the boy.
"So, with all that shouting, I heard many questions about you being Lord Stark's son, tell me that's a lie..." Said William with quite some curiosity.
Jon sighed and said, "It's true, but I'm a Snow. My real name is Jon Snow." The boy admitted while driving the carts, making William release a surprised whistle while Ducken, this time, was not at all surprised. *Whistle*
"That's quite unexpected; I hate nobles, but my aunt Lara sings praises about the Stark family." Said William.
"My father is an honorable man; he would never let something like what happened to your family happen in his domain. Even other lords wouldn't let something like that pass; that's the way of the North." Jon said, expressing his belief if Ducken's family situation were to happen in this kingdom.
"I see..." William lamented, but soon Ducken wanted to change the subject.
"But then, what's your plan? I left with you without knowing anything. I know you're a quite impressive kid, but your father is after you, as is the whole North." Ducken spoke.
Jon looked at him surprised; he didn't know the situation, although he had figured that his father would look for him.
"He is? Good thing I sent that letter. That would explain a lot and inform that I'll be fine." Jon admitted.
"Anyway, I'll be secluded for a while, learning alchemy and forging some things. As you heard, I have giant wolves, and I need to take care of one of them before heading north." William and Ducken felt their hairs stand on end at the mention of giant wolves, but they didn't comment on the fear of seeing these legendary creatures.
"My camp is in the WolfWoods, but I plan to go north. I don't think Lord Frotniid will let us live after what I did to his son. Not after I know what he's capable of. He didn't attack us in the city because that would cause too many problems for him, but I doubt he won't try anything outside the city." Jon reasoned.
"You're right, and we're in danger. I doubt the three of us can handle a group of guards pretending to be bandits." Ducken said, and this frightened William quite a bit.
"Wait a minute, my aunt's family will be fine, right?" William was a bit scared about the safety of his aunt and her family since he was seen leaving with the boy in front of the entire city.
"Don't worry. First, I have 4 giant wolves to attack any group that pursues us; second, I'll monitor your family with the birds I got from that shop. I have faith that my father won't stand idly by when he reads my message." Jon said confidently.
"I understand; I'll trust you, Jon. That would ease me a bit." William sighed.
"Another thing, there's a question in my mind since you returned to my workshop. Can you explain to me why you can control all these horses, those birds seem very calm in your presence, like that bird in the sky that has been following us since we left the city, and even those damn wolves!?" William spoke again, but this time he seemed hysterical, trying to understand how his view of the world was changing. Ducken beside him, while the 3 carts lined up as they passed through the northern fields on a small road, leaned in to better hear Jon's answer because he had the same doubts.
"Have you ever heard of a Warg?" Jon asked back.
"Just legends for children." Admitted Ducken; William was lost and didn't respond, as he was raised in the Vale, he was more inclined to hear legends of the Andals than the legends of the Northern savages.
"Actually, they exist, and I believe most of them are beyond the Wall." Jon stated his suspicions; he had seen through the memories of the wolves when they encountered some humans while in the colder lands, witnessing some skin-changing as old Nan used to describe.
"That's incredible; I can see how this could be useful..." Admitted Ducken.
"However, they are not more powerful than me. They usually lose control of the original body. I am different, I have..." Jon hesitated for a moment, but in the end, he told these men some of his secrets; he wasn't normal, so he had to admit some things.
"I have blessings from the gods that allow me to command and have more eyes without needing to be unconscious, something that turns me into something completely different from anything that has ever existed in legends." Jon admitted. He knew he was different, and his powers would make even men known as Warg kings look like little wolf pups, while he would be a giant adult wolf compared to their gifts. 'Maybe I'll become a dragon as I further develop my powers, as I grow,' ironically, Jon admitted in his mind.
"Tell me one thing, is it true that you make crops grow in any land?" William asked curiously; his world logic couldn't be applied in front of this boy.
"It's true; I can accelerate the visible growth of plants and trees from the ground." Jon admitted; these men would be with him, so it's not something he could hide.
"That's amazing..." Ducken let out next to him.
"Well, anyway, let's continue our little journey. I have a plan to deal with any pursuers in the coming days." Jon said, and they all focused on heading north with some casual talk during this journey.
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