One curious thing the treekin discovered in their area was the presence of weirwood trees. These trees were thousands of years old, and they spoke to the treekin in mysterious ways. They would see visions of the past and of the future when near them. The trees spoke to them about the First Children, and of the times when they were the only creatures in Westeros. The treekin knew of the First Children because they had been driven out of the west long, long ago. They were driven out because of their devotion to the dark arts and sacrifice. Their magic was careless of the lives around it, including their own. The weirwoods knew the difference between treekin and First Children, and they were happy that the treekin had come. They offered whatever help they could with magic and plant growth. The few elders of the treekin that were left spent as much time as they could in contact with these sentient trees. The elders shared what had happened on the western continent and how they were driven from their homeland there. When they were told how the Zon burned the forests of the treekin homeland, the trees seemed angry. The treekin spoke of all the saplings of their trees that they had brought with them and planted in a grove. The weirwood trees represented the old gods, who took no form and instead were the embodiment of nature, plants, creeks, and rivers. They promised the elders they would aid the young groves as they grew, and they welcomed the new trees' fellowship. They also warned the elders that a ferocious winter storm was coming. There were three larger weirwood trees in a semi-circle, in a small secluded cove of rocks. The three trees had faces carved into them, and it was clear that, at one time, a small temple had been set up here. This was where the elders spent most of their communication time with the trees. The telepath at the treekin compounded, alerting all others to the incoming storm.
In Brandon's Rest, the skies opened up and dumped snow. Four feet of new snow fell in eight hours. The city had developed teams for snow removal. They shoveled the snow into stone sewers, and fire casters melted it. The water then ran off. But mostly, people used the underground passageways to avoid waist-high snow while walking from building to building.
In the intelligence hall, Ming was talking to his prisoner. The man's name was Tse Tuo, and Ming had known him since childhood. They had gone to school together, and Ming was asking him about his childhood friends. The two had both graduated from an intelligence school at the same time and had lost contact with each other. Ming asked Tse if he was hungry, and the man replied that he was. Ming unlocked the cell and gave Tse a coat, saying, "Come on, I know Bart is making fish and grain for dinner tonight. I remember you used to like that." As they passed the front door, Ming opened it so Tse could see just how deep the snow was. He laughed and said, "Good thing we don't have to go out in this." They entered a stairwell and into a mostly lit passageway underneath the ground. They passed several other stairways and some other people, then made a left turn and came to another larger stairway. The smell of food wafted down from above, and they went up into the Great Hall. The place was packed, a veritable cacophony of dishes clinking, laughter, and conversations all at once. Bart dished out food, and they went and found an empty spot at a table. Arya nodded at them as they walked by Gendry, and Thomas and Gendry were laughing and arguing about some pointless point. Tse sat and looked around, saying, "Aren't you afraid I will run?" Ming countered, "Where would you go with five feet of snow on the ground? It's the dead of winter in a harsh northern climate. If you truly wish to die, tell me, and I will cut your throat." They ate in peace, and Bart surprised them with a small plate of tarts and hot mugs of spiced ale afterwards. Ming said, "Bart, meet my old childhood friend Tse." Bart nodded at the man and moved on. Tormund came and sat across from them, looking at Ming, and saying, "Fraternizing with the enemy, are we, Ming?" Ming smiled and introduced Tse to him. Tse asked Ming in Zonian why this man wore wild skins. Tormund answered in Zonian, "Because I am a Wildling. And this is how we dress. We come from much farther north of here, where this weather is nothing. We live beyond the Wall in the deep frozen north." Tse looked at Tormund, "Do you all speak Zonian here as well? And what is this wall?" Tormund answered him in Thrainian, "The Wall is 1/4 mile thick ice wall 1000 meters tall." Tse spat his mulled ale out in disbelief. Tormund laughed, "Don't believe me, do you? We can see the Wall from here. Want to look?" Tse nodded, still not sure if he was being pranked or not. He looked at Ming, and Ming said, "I haven't seen it, let's go look."
Up the tower they went, landing after landing. Tse thought his legs would give out, but they made it into the small watch room at the top. Thick glass kept the winds out, but it was still cold in the room. The moon was out, and Tse could see the ships in the bay below, and the snow swirling in the air over the town. Tormund motioned to the window on the north side. Tse could see something like a great shadow far in the distance. Tormund said, "Try this," and handed him a spyeye, showing him how to use it. Tse put the device to his eye and looked where Tormund pointed. It took him a moment to adjust the focus, and then, through the snow, he saw mountains come into view, and beyond them, a giant wall, lit by the moon, came into focus.