Chapter 54 - One Week Later. 

[Chapter Size: 2400 Words.] 

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Third Person POV 

Harrenhal, 101 AC. 

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Jon had left the castle of Harrenhal when it was time to go. The king also needed his rest, and seeing the entire family gathered there certainly weighed on him a little. 

For Jon, it was still strange to think that he had been trapped in a room with practically the entire royal family, the claimants to the Iron Throne, among them the possible next King of Westeros, and besides them, only the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. He was, by far, the most ordinary person in that place. 

In any case, he ended up talking a lot with Laena. He was very happy to be able to speak with the most beautiful girl he had ever met in his entire life. He had never imagined that, after only seeing her at the previous day's feast, he would be talking with her like that. 

Laena seemed quite excited listening to stories about his life in the North. She also asked about his eyes, saying that she found them very beautiful, which left Jon quite embarrassed by such a sudden compliment. 

In any case, Jon returned to the Northern camp to serve the punishment for what he and Rickon had done the previous night. The two of them spent their days helping around the camp however they could and lost some privileges during that time. 

Even so, Lord Stark ended up accepting Lord Tarly's request for them to return to the Reach camp. Many other boys from the North, sons of lords, also took part in that excursion. The Reach was incredibly welcoming to them. 

They got to know the Reach camp better, which was far livelier than anywhere in the North, full of attractions, games, and festivities. They also attended some celebrations held at the Stormlands camp. 

The days went by. More feasts among the great lords took place, although Jon did not attend all of them. He did not think it was quite right to be present at so many gatherings of the nobility. 

Even so, the king kept sending letters inviting him to the following feasts, and Jon had to attend the next banquets. 

His visits to Harrenhal were not limited to that first meeting either. On several occasions, he was invited to speak with the king, who received him alone this time, accompanied only by the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. 

Jon still felt somewhat uncomfortable about it, but he never brought up the matter of his grandmother being the king's daughter. He did not think it would be wise to do so, despite the doubts that constantly lingered in his thoughts. 

In any case, Jon was surprised to realize that Jaehaerys was genuinely interested in listening to him, hearing his stories and learning about his life. 

The two of them spent hours talking, while the old king asked all sorts of questions, making it clear that he believed the boy knew far more than he appeared to. 

Even Jon found himself surprised when the two of them ended up discussing politics. The king frequently praised him, saying that he possessed an understanding of many subjects that not even the majority of lords usually had.It was hard to believe that a boy who had only borne his name for ten days could perceive so many things. Jon not only said who he believed would win the struggle for the Iron Throne, but also explained the political intentions behind every move, exactly as he had once done before Lord Stark. 

Jon also heard the king ask him to sing. Jaehaerys commented that he had already heard many praises about his voice. 

Jon then began singing a few songs for the elderly man. 

At other times, it became a common sight for the Lord Commander to remain in the room beside the two of them and Ghost, while the old king rested one hand upon the enormous white direwolf, closed his eyes, and listened as Jon sang shyly, yet with a very pleasant voice. 

Many times, the king would fall asleep before the final word of the song. 

By then, practically everyone was already talking about the meetings between the king and the boy from the North. Ghost also began drawing even more attention. 

The direwolf was extremely gentle. The ladies of the Reach and the Stormlands could pet him whenever Jon visited those camps, as could the princes and princesses of the royal family, who had also begun spending time with Ghost and quickly lost any fear of touching the enormous animal. 

That, however, also caused some fools to act as they pleased. On the fourth day, Jon had returned from a feast when he found a group of young men from the Iron Islands houses trying to enter the Northern camp just to see the giant wolf. 

That ended up causing quite a commotion. The news quickly reached the king's ears. 

To the young men's frustration, Jaehaerys became deeply angered and nearly banished their families from both the tournament and Harrenhal. Their fathers immediately reprimanded their sons for their thoughtless behavior, and two of those young men ended up being sent back home. 

Jon was quite surprised by that. But also worried. 

Men like them were behaving that way solely because of the interest the king had shown in him. But Jaehaerys made a point of assuring him that no harm would come to Ghost. 

The wolf continued behaving as usual, playing with Lyra, wandering through the Northern camp, and following Jon wherever he went. 

Even so, Jon knew the looks had changed. People no longer looked at him as just an ordinary boy from a humble family. 

Now... Their gazes were calculating. And he still did not like that one bit. 

Several men approached him with polite smiles, but Jon could tell there were hidden intentions behind every conversation. 

When he told Lyarra about it, the woman did not seem pleased at all. In fact, she became quite worried. 

Because of that, Jon even began leaving the camp less often. He hated doing that, especially because he had met some people he genuinely liked. 

Lord Tarly had proven to be an extremely entertaining and friendly man. Not once had he mocked Jon's humble origins. 

From the very beginning, he showed great interest in Ghost, but it was a genuine interest, much like the curiosity Jon had about dragons. 

And speaking of them... There was good news as well. 

When he mentioned to the king that he wished to see the dragons up close, Jaehaerys granted him special permission to visit the place where they were kept behind Harrenhal, an area that almost no one was authorized to enter. 

Viserys himself arranged the visit together with his brother, Daemon. Both of them were also interested in earning Lord Stark's goodwill and considered it wise to extend the invitation to the Stark family. 

Jon, Lyra, and Rickon had the privilege of getting much closer to the dragons than most people would ever be able to. 

For Jon, it was not even the first time he had visited that place. They approached as close as the dragonkeepers themselves were allowed. 

Caraxes and Meleys were being fed while Daemon stroked the neck of the enormous red dragon. 

Caraxes' roar echoed throughout the area. 

It was a unique roar. It did not sound like the other dragons. It was almost metallic, something Jon greatly enjoyed hearing. 

Since Daemon loved flying over Harrenhal on his dragon almost every day, showing him off, that sound had already become familiar to everyone attending the tournament. 

Viserys also told Lord Stark and the children several stories about the dragons. He explained that he had ridden Balerion only once, during a brief journey before the dragon's death. 

Many interpreted that flight as Balerion's farewell, granting the prince the honor of his final flight and showing the Seven Kingdoms that he was worthy of the Conqueror's blood. 

Meanwhile, Corlys Velaryon's supporters did everything they could to spread the idea that Balerion's death was a bad omen for the realm. 

Jon did not like that way of doing politics at all. 

The supporters of each side always found a way to turn any event into an advantage for their own cause. 

Lord Stark discussed these matters extensively during dinners with the Northern lords whenever they did not have to attend Harrenhal. 

Even so, the answer seemed quite obvious to Jon. If they had to choose a successor today... They would choose Viserys. 

In any case, Jon also told Lord Stark about the wager he had made with the boy from House Westerling. 

That also became a topic of discussion among several lords, mainly because Jon had become a frequent subject ever since his regular meetings with the king. 

It was easy to tell from the expressions of the men of the Westerlands that they were far from pleased about it. 

At one point, even Lord Lannister met with Lord Stark. Jon had no idea what they had talked about. Perhaps they had not even mentioned the matter. 

In any case, nothing changed. Jon was able to register for the competition without any problems. 

Thus, the story of the boy who had killed a giant bear, been mocked by an older youth, and challenged for two hundred gold dragons in an archery competition quickly spread throughout Harrenhal. 

That ended up drawing far more attention to the archery tournament than it normally received. 

It was usually a competition that attracted little interest. 

The melee also did not draw as many people as the joust, but it still received far more attention than the archery contest. 

"So... are you ready?" Lord Stark asked. 

Jon nodded. That day, the tournament would finally begin. It had been a week since everyone had arrived at Harrenhal, and Jon had a special dream last night... Perhaps it was fate, but Jon hoped to win this competition. 

The great lords, knights, and their retinues had already settled in completely. Even men from Dorne had arrived. 

Although no Dornish banners had been raised, rumors spread that a Prince of House Martell was hiding somewhere, watching everything from the shadows. 

Even so, some sons of Dornish lords would be competing. Among them were participants in both the melee and the archery contest. 

Jon had just finished getting ready, taking up his bow, crafted from a heart tree branch with an ordinary bowstring. 

He knew that using an Ice Sand thread would be far more impressive. In his dreams, he had seen that material increase a bow's power two or even threefold. 

But there was no way for him to obtain something like that. 

Clothing woven from Ice Sand fabric was also vastly superior. Besides being lightweight, it was five times stronger than steel itself and allowed magnificent armor and garments to be made. 

It was a shame that he could not cultivate Ice Sand as he did in his dreams, where those garments had come to dominate practically the entire known market. 

In any case, he pushed those strange thoughts aside. He also found himself thinking about his other dreams again. 

On the night he saw the dragons, he had once again dreamed that he was inside a dragon. The same black dragon whose miniature form he had bought, though in the dream it appeared as a dragon black as night with green eyes—Cannibal—which he always kept beside his bed in the tent. 

It was strange. Whenever he was inside that dragon, he felt that it was very much like himself and, at the same time, far too wild. 

Especially since the day he had forced it not to hunt the smaller dragon as it had in that dream... It hated Jon... Jon could not explain why, but he had the impression that, from time to time, the dragon stared fixedly in a single direction. 

And he had the strange feeling that the direction it was staring was exactly where they were at that very moment. 

That worried him. He felt that nothing good would come of that situation. 

But there was absolutely nothing he could do. Nor did he have the courage to tell anyone that, during his dreams, he seemed to be inside the mind of a dragon belonging to House Targaryen... 

Not even the king. He knew the consequences could be devastating, especially since he himself did not truly understand what was happening. 

In any case, he put those thoughts aside. Lord Stark simply nodded to him, and the two of them headed toward the tournament grounds along with the rest of the retinue. 

The tournament had drawn far more people than anyone had expected. A good portion of that crowd was there precisely because of the contest involving Jon. 

It was relatively common to see boys of ten or twelve namedays taking part in the competition. 

But a boy of only ten... That was something new. Jon was also surprised to see the king seated among the spectators. 

Jaehaerys did not usually watch this competition, but he had told the boy that he intended to see him compete. 

That made Jon even more nervous. Even so, he simply took a deep breath and accepted his fate. 

More than two hundred contestants were preparing to compete. 

In truth, it was actually a small number, considering that practically every lord from the kingdoms north of Dorne was present. 

The archery tournament had never been a particularly popular event. Besides the nobles, many seasoned soldiers and professional archers also took part. 

"So, you're here, boy." Jon turned in surprise when he heard that voice. 

It was the heir to House Tully. The Tullys were known throughout the realm for their exceptional skill with the bow. 

"Hello, Lord Tully..." Jon greeted him. 

The young Tully simply nodded. The two had met several times over the past week. Even so, there were almost always other young lords around the heir to House Tully, and Jon could not help but notice the disdainful looks many of them cast in his direction. 

The closeness Jon had developed with the king seemed to have made that situation even worse. 

"I heard about your contest. I'm competing too, but I'm rooting for you, boy," said the Tully heir before walking to his position. 

Jon simply smiled. It was a sincere compliment. Around him, the other young lords of the North were also preparing to take part in the competition. 

They did not have to wait long. Soon afterward, one of the organizers stepped into the arena and raised his voice for the entire crowd to hear. 

"My lords! Prepare yourselves!" The archery tournament was about to begin. 

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