"Jon, why are you acting like you're in a competition?" Robb looked at the five men standing cautiously across from him.
From the way they performed earlier, Robb could tell they were all amateurs, far worse than Jon.
Jon's face turned a little red, unsure how to explain that he had actually become the sword-fighting instructor for Lord Jason's guards.
If he told Robb that, Robb would laugh his head off!
Seeing Jon's embarrassment, Jason Liu quickly explained, "Robb, you know I'm new here in Westeros. I hired these five men as guards but haven't found anyone to teach them swordsmanship yet."
"I ran into Jon today, and he seemed skilled with the sword, so I asked him to teach my guards some basic moves."
Jason then glanced at the five men, all battered from their training. He chuckled, "Looks like they've had quite the session!"
Jon, seeing the tired and dirty group he'd been training, couldn't help but laugh too.
"Jon, it seems you and Lord Jason get along well. He actually trusts you to train his guards! Haha..." Robb laughed, though he thought Jason must be a little crazy to have Jon, who wasn't exactly an expert, teaching them swordsmanship.
Jon felt uncomfortable with Robb's teasing, and the smile on his face started to fade.
Arya, however, was excited. She moved closer to Jon and said, "Jon, let me join in! Find me a wooden sword, and I'll train with you!"
Jon looked at Arya, the Stark sister he was closest to, and lovingly ruffled her black hair. He smiled, "Not a chance. Unless you want Septa Mordane to catch you and lock you in your room, you better go practice embroidery with Sansa."
"I hate embroidery..." Arya groaned. "The needle's too thin, and I'm terrible at it. Sansa and Jenny laugh at me! Please teach me to fight with swords, Jon!"
"Stop it, Arya," Robb said firmly, giving her a big brotherly glare. "You know Mother would never let you train with a sword. Come on, it's time to go back."
Arya pouted but couldn't defy Robb, so she unhappily followed him.
"Lord Jason, we'll be leaving now," Robb said politely, then turned to Jon, "Are you coming with us?"
Jon shook his head, "I'll catch up later. You go ahead."
Robb nodded, not thinking much of it, and led his siblings back to Winterfell.
Bran had already grown bored of climbing walls, towers, and sitting on rooftops watching the wilderness. When Robb said it was time to go, he quickly followed, carrying a bag of bear-shaped biscuits from Jason to give to Rickon.
As they left, Jason looked at the five exhausted guards and called an end to the morning's training. He told them to fetch water, clean up, change into fresh clothes, and return for training in the afternoon.
Then, Jason invited Jon to stay for lunch.
Jon, feeling a bit shy, was about to decline, but Jason insisted, "Don't say no, Jon!" Jason wanted Jon to stay. Compared to the other inexperienced men he'd hired, Jon had real potential. He was thinking long-term, maybe even giving Jon a title someday. Anything would be better than Jon ending up in the Night's Watch.
Jason hoped his presence in Westeros would change Jon's fate for the better.
Jon was touched that Jason didn't seem to care about his status as an illegitimate child. He felt respected by him, something he hadn't experienced before.
Though Jon wasn't good at expressing his feelings, he silently vowed to teach everything he knew about swordsmanship to Jason's guards, as a way to repay Jason's kindness and respect.
For lunch, Jason asked Lena to prepare a feast. The table was filled with toasted bread, roasted venison from the market, roasted chicken, onions, carrot soup, fried pork, fried chicken, venison, eggs, apple pie, and more.
Jason sat at the head of the long table, with Jon to his left, followed by McCann, Dicken, and the Barlow brothers. On his right was Lena, followed by the women: Martha, Michal, Susan, Venissa, and Bella.
It felt like a big family dinner.
Old Rhodes and the other Barlow brothers were busy cooking for the workers in the tavern, so they ate with them.
Jason formally introduced Jon to the group, giving him the respect of a true friend. Jon was a little nervous but excited, thankful for the respect Jason had shown him, something he had rarely felt in his life.
Lena and the others, noticing how much Jason valued Jon, greeted him warmly as well.
Jon didn't realize that Jason was thinking of making him more than just a teacher for his guards—he wanted Jon by his side, as a loyal brother-in-arms. Jon just thought of him as a kind and generous lord.
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