ASOIAF: The Red Lion and the Crazy Child

A small boat approached the shore, Gwayne was on his left oar and Freya on the other, on the bow was Astrid sitting with her hand on her chin humming. He looked back out to sea and saw Wulf and Brianna looking at him from the stern of a great longship, the famous Maiden's Lament. Their eldest daughter stood to the side with her red hair dancing in the wind.

— A smaller copy of Lady Brianna. — he thought. Beloved, Hilda.

Kwenthirith stood on the other side with her usual bold face, arms closed, and her night-black hair tied over a golden tiara. Her eyes looked sad. He watched.

She was the first to interact with him when he was still in StrongPride castle. He would miss her.

Gwayne called her Thiri. Arne and Harald were at her side waving the ax in their hands. they were Wulf's youngest sons. Sven was with them, but he just waved his hand. Gunnar was in the bow of the Dracar. Where he couldn't see his departure.

Gwayne waved to them one last time.

— What Gwayne the Bold. — Freya began. — will do it in a castle. — She said, spitting over the waves.

— He got tired of killing infidels. — Said Astrid Scowling.

Astrid, like Freya, had a fierce and sharp face, long blonde hair with one side cut off, and blue eyes. What differentiated one from the other was the side of the hair, Freya didn't cut it, keeping her head completely golden.

— I was supposed to stay two years and I stayed four. — He said briefly. — You are my family and I will not forget you. —

Then he looked to the side, at the emptiness of the ocean. — I defeated Leif in single combat. — Gwayne said, with firmness in his voice and a half smile on his face.

— I've learned enough.

After hearing that, Astrid pulls out her ax and throws it with all her strength at him, who uses the shield to stop him at the last moment.

Gwayne rips the ax from the shell of his shield and looks at her through the hole.

— You're an idiot, Astrid! — said Freya, her face red with anger.

— You never beat me! — Astrid said loudly, to Gwayne who was looking frowning.

— He never beat us. — completed Freya.

— I remember one night when I beat them both together. — He said, with a smile on his face. Freya blushed and patted his shoulder. Astrid couldn't keep her face angry, she laughed and everyone followed her.

- Damn you! — Astrid said, laughing. — Leif is an old man. — Freya said.

— Leif is your father's brother, a giant like him. — he replied.

Gwayne defeated him after an attack in the lands beyond Volantis, in Valysar. after that he realized that he had already learned enough.

— Leif is a great Warrior. - He said. — You two would never beat him, not even Gunnar could. Astrid snorted.

Gwayne handed the ax to Freya.

— Put that away, she has no sense. Freya laughed and Astrid said nothing.

- It's time. — she said, turning her face away.

He gets up and kisses Freya on the forehead, puts his shield on his back and jumps out of the boat. the water was up to his knees.

— Astrid. — he called.

She looked at him with tears in her eyes, walked over and kissed him on the lips and hugged him warmly. Freya joined after a few seconds. Gwayne wipes the tears from her face with his fingers and says softly.

— Take care, we'll see you again.

Then he walked off toward the shore, where he turned to see them one last time. Astrid took the left oar and Freya waved at it. He waved one last time and entered the woods.

He walked through the trees until he found the road that ran through the woods from one side to the other.

— Sea road. —he murmured.

He walked until he reached the fork that led to the freezing lake, when he got there, he sat down on the rock he had trouble using to lie in the sun, after a long bath in the lake. he stayed for a few minutes, thinking about the memories he had with Daeron and Cerella in that place. So he got back on the road and hurried to get there quickly and find his family. As he approached the gate of the village of Golden Forest, he heard a horn ring and the gate began to open.

— He's bigger than me. — Said Ser Leo, the knight of the gate, approaching with an excited voice.

Ser Leo was around thirty years old, with short hair, gray eyes and a thin beard.

— I have become a man, Ser. — Gwayne said, laughing.

He saw what must have been Lady Cerella running through the castle gate.

— she forgot the manners of a Lady. — he thought, he was completely happy.

Ser Lymond appeared behind her soon after. Gwayne waved at him, then she arrived and jumped at him. He hugged her and spun her around in the air.

— Look at you. — She said breathlessly. — It's huge, it's strong... And beautiful!

— she finished, and they both laughed.

He was wearing boiled leather clothing, a coat of mail underneath, a shield on his back and a sword at his waist. Damp coppery blonde hair swirled around his head and a braid that slid to the left side.

— You've grown up, Lady. — he said, making her spin around. — she is as beautiful as a princess.

— I am. — she said, with a proud smile on her face. Then, she touched his cheek, running her hand over a battle scar.

He did the math, she must have been thirteen now and already looked so beautiful. - He thought. She had light brown hair, a long face like his, fine features and blue eyes as clear as the sea.

They were talking when Daeron slowly approached. He was a little shy after four years. Then Gwayne saw him and said.

— Who is this lovely lady? — He said asking Cerella, with a mocking smile on his face. Daeron laughed and lost his shyness at the same moment.

— still idiot. — he said, hugging Gwayne.

— You're still small, a little girl! — He said laughing to Daeron.

— And you're huge... When you left you were just a little bigger than me. — Daeron said in disbelief.

— I'm glad you came back in one piece. —Cerella completed.

— Now I am battle-hardened, cousin. Then she wrapped her arms around them both. — I was forged and reborn.

— don't tell me they drowned you? — Daeron said quickly.

— no, not that! — then they started laughing. — The Gudrunn no longer do drownings.

He released them when he saw his grandfather arriving. Ser Lymond greeted him like a man, with a serious face. Then he hugged him like the little boy he would always be in his grandfather's eyes.

— I knew you could do it. — He said happily. — now let's go to the castle, you must be tired.

Gwayne entered the castle hugging his cousin. — This place hasn't changed at all, I dreamed a lot about the day I would return. And well, I need a night's rest without feeling the waves shaking me.

The number of soldiers in the village increased, he noted. The castle may not have changed much, but the village has expanded to the sides. When he left the village had around six hundred peasants and now with all the new houses he saw, there must be more than a thousand. Not to mention the number of soldiers that passed them on the way, or those he saw on the village walls. Before there were three hundred and twenty soldiers, I wonder how many there would be now. — How many people came to live here, Lord? - he said.

— Now we have twelve hundred people living here. — Ser Lymond said. — fear made people migrate in search of a safer place.

—How many soldiers? — Gwayne asked. — I saw many of them on the battlements.

— Let's talk about this later, tomorrow maybe. said Ser Lymond.

— I'll let you rest, there must be a lot of things for you to talk about and I need to resolve some issues. Gwayne nodded.

And he left for his old room with Cerella and Daeron. They talked until dusk, when he began to fall asleep, they both left and let him rest.

He got up early the next day, took off the worn clothes he was wearing and once again put on the clothes of a nobleman. He went downstairs and went to the kitchen as he loved to do in the past, smelling the bread and cakes that had just come out of the oven, the servants in their daily conversations. He loved taking a loaf of bread and looking through the kitchen windows, which overlooked the flower garden at the back of the castle, the rays of sunlight that came through the window made his skin and the maids' faces shine like gold. Then he walked to the main door, where he saw Ser Lymond inspecting some men who carried an oak log on their arm to the gate. Gwayne nodded to Ser Lymond and then he approached. They talked for a while and then went inside. He told some important things about the time he was away, then he asked about the soldiers again.

Grandfather took a deep breath and said.

—Six hundred men, not counting the knights. — he laughed. — but we can increase this number to a thousand if we need to, there is no shortage of young people in the village.

— It's impressive, grandfather. —Gwayne said. — but do we need this much?

— There are strange things happening in King's Landing, my grandson. Very strange things.— said the grandfather. —Lord Jon Arryn, Hand of the King. He sighed. He died, and the King departed north at least two turns of the moon away. It is said that he intends to give the position of hand to Lord Eddard of house Stark. He is a good man, Lord Stark, I met him in the Greyjoi Rebellion. A good man is going to the den of snakes and lions.

— Like the whore queen. — said the grandfather.

Gwayne didn't understand his grandfather's hatred for the Lannisters, it was something he didn't usually mention. And of the Lannisters, Gwayne only knew that the Queen's beauty was famous, and that his brother, the Kingslayer, was a great swordsman.

— It was a big but necessary investment. — continued the grandfather.

— The soldiers are still well equipped. —Gwayne said.

He could see the soldiers in standardized clothing, divided in half between red and white, with the white Lion on one side and the red Boar's head on the other. The symbol of the Vikary. he thought. Many of them with chain mail underneath and full armor, he could see several types of helmets.

— It cost me a fortune, of course, and you better be thinking about it, one day you will be Lord here and you must be ready.

— Of course, Ser. — Gwayne said, nodding his head.

— After what happened that fateful day, I haven't stopped thinking, Gwayne. — He said, placing his hand on his grandson's shoulder. — I haven't stopped thinking that if you had died, the Vikary house would have disappeared... but what's done is done. And I have no regrets about it. Also, we found new gold mines north of the Woods, so our coffers are fine.

— I'm glad you did, Sir. — Gwayne said in a respectful tone. But you would still have Cerella if I had died.

— Of course, I haven't forgotten my beloved granddaughter. If we were a lordly house, she could certainly take over and keep our lineage alive, but we are a knightly house and a Lady cannot lead a house of knights.