Dreadfort.
In the castle's throne room, the candle flames flickered gently, making the shadows in the room move.
''There have been rumors about Harry Stark. They say he's a wizard. Tell me, is that true?'' Roose Bolton asked, looking at his son.
''They're saying that?'' Domeric said with a surprised expression as he felt his heart skip a beat.
Roose didn't respond and only looked at him in silence.
''I've never seen such a thing. Although it can't be ruled out, the things he does seem too extraordinary,'' Domeric said, shaking his head with a calm expression.
Even so, his heart was beating fast. He had never lied to his father.
''I see...'' Roose murmured with a contemplative expression before looking at his son and subtly shaking his head.
He liked everything about his heir, except that he was too loyal and honorable.
They were qualities that would normally be worthy of praise, but Roose saw them as a weakness.
''Come see me when you're about to leave,'' Roose said with a nod before looking away.
Domeric looked at his father before bowing slightly and leaving, understanding that he was dismissing him. He couldn't help letting out a sad sigh.
Not only because he had to lie to him, but because his words seemed to say that they wouldn't see each other again until then.
He only seemed to be his heir, not his son.
Shaking his head, he left, walking out of the castle toward the stables. He had another matter to take care of.
Looking around, he saw him: a middle-aged man tending to the horses.
Approaching without hesitation, he didn't bother with greetings and asked him what he needed to know.
''Are you sure about what you told me?'' Domeric said, looking at him seriously.
''Of course, my young lord,'' the man said, quickly nodding with a bow.
''Good, take me to the place,'' Domeric said, mounting his horse.
The man quickly mounted another horse before leaving the castle, followed by Domeric and his guards.
They rode for half an hour until they reached a village.
Domeric's gaze swept over the surroundings as they continued through the village until they reached a large farm.
''He lives here,'' the man said briefly, not daring to say too much.
''Wait for me here, you two come with me,'' Domeric said, looking at two of his guards as he walked toward the farm.
Just as he was about to knock on the door of the house, he suddenly heard noises behind it. Hesitating for a moment, he moved away from the door and quietly slipped around the house.
Peeking out to look, he saw him: a chubby young man, with slumped shoulders, a broad nose, and long hair.
But what caught his attention were his gray eyes, very similar to his father's and his own.
Domeric felt his heart speed up. It was true.
Taking a step back, Domeric turned around with his men, ready to return to the castle.
For an instant he felt the impulse to approach and speak to him, but he restrained himself.
Now that he was sure he had a brother, Domeric felt excited, but before meeting him he wanted to know his origins.
His mother, his tastes, what he had learned, whether he was a bastard or not—he wanted to know everything.
He hoped his father would willingly answer his questions.
....
Two days later.
Harry and Val were sitting on top of the Wall with their feet dangling over the edge.
Harry looked at her with a half-smile. She seemed more frightened than she would like to admit.
Her hand gripped his clothes tightly as the freezing breeze stirred their hair.
''It's cold,'' Val said suddenly.
''Don't worry, I'll warm your clothes,'' Harry said with a smile as he enchanted her clothes.
Val remained silent as she looked at him.
''I-I'm hungry,'' Val said with a stiff smile.
Suddenly, a steaming meat skewer appeared in her hand.
Val took the skewer with a blank expression.
''The view is really good,'' Harry said, looking down. Small points of light could be seen here and there.
They were the campfires of the new group sent by Mance. At a glance, Harry could estimate that there were around forty thousand people there.
Even so, he couldn't help thinking that Mance had rushed too much. He didn't know what criteria he had used to send them, but he was sure he would have to filter out many people.
Letting out a sigh, he looked at the silent Val. He had thought her mouth would have to be sewn shut to keep her quiet, but it seemed heights worked too.
Suddenly, a curious look appeared in his eyes. He pulled Val into his embrace, his hand slipping beneath her coat.
Val's eyes immediately fixed on his, even so, she didn't give him her usual mischievous look.
''Is something wrong?'' Harry asked as he kissed her cheek.
''I'll throw you off the Wall,'' Val said with flushed cheeks, only she knew whether it was from the cold.
''Want to bet on whether I'd survive?'' Harry said as he leaned out over the edge.
A look of panic appeared on Val's face as she quickly pulled him back, no longer daring to let her feet hang over the edge.
''Let's go down... now,'' Val said, looking at him.
''It's good to know there's something in this world that scares you,'' Harry said with a laugh as he stood up and took her hand.
Val refused to comment as they used the elevator to go down.
Harry looked at her beautiful profile before holding back his laughter and looking away.
With a small jolt, they reached the ground.
''Come on, it's time to work,'' Harry said, looking at her.
Just like before, a large desk was placed near the entrance to the tunnel.
Harry sat in the middle as he watched the line.
First came a family of four.
Ignoring the two children, he looked into the couple's eyes. What he found immediately made him frown.
Harry remained silent for a few seconds before looking at the man.
''You can't pass,'' Harry said calmly.
The man's expression immediately changed.
''What do you mean?'' the man said, frowning.
''Your wife and children can pass, but you must stay and serve on the Wall,'' Harry said calmly.
''That wasn't the deal,'' the man said, raising his voice.
Some murmurs began to be heard from the line.
Harry briefly shifted his gaze to the woman who clung to her children and watched the situation nervously.
''I'm not forcing you to cross. It's just that you haven't proven yourself fit to live in my lands, or have you forgotten what you did two years ago?'' Harry said, looking the man in the eyes.
The man trembled upon hearing Harry's words. His face turned pale as he muttered to himself.
''Let's go,'' the man said suddenly, looking at his wife. Without waiting for her answer, he pulled her away.
Harry only shook his head, it really was a bad start.
The next people passed with nervous expressions. This time they were lucky, and after giving their names, they were allowed through.
Looking at the next group, Harry prepared himself to spend many days sitting there.
The following days began to blur together. Faces, names, and thoughts started to blend together in Harry's mind as families passed before him from dawn until late into the night.
His mind was a mess, to the point that he had to stop for a day to rest.
He slept all day until he was finally able to put his mind in order.
Harry spent more than three weeks at the Wall. During that time, more than 43 thousand people crossed the Wall and formed a camp alongside Dalla's group.
Having almost 60 thousand people camped there was too much.
The need to feed so many people already had the situation on the verge of getting out of control, so with no other choice, Harry had the entire group head south.
Their final destination would be Sea Dragon Point, which by then had already been completely evacuated. The few villages in the area were quite happy to be relocated near Winterfell, where they had been given their own land to farm.
With the idea of avoiding any possible conflict, Harry prepared to travel with the group.
The first night, Harry set up his own camp while lazily lying on a log beside the campfire.
''I'll go see my sister, I'll be back soon,'' Val said, quickly kissing Harry on the lips before climbing onto Ater.
He turned his head and only looked at her in silence.
''Come on, don't be like that, let's go,'' Val said, pulling on his mane.
Ater snorted before reluctantly starting to move.
Val laughed as she urged Ater to go faster, making her way through the camp until she reached Dalla's tent.
''Don't run off or I'll give you brambles instead of hay,'' Val said, looking at Ater. She wouldn't be surprised if he abandoned her and made her walk back.
Ater simply ignored her as he snorted in annoyance.
Val nodded with a smile before entering her sister's tent.
''Hello,'' Val said, greeting her.
Dalla looked at her sister before smiling as she patted the bed made of furs.
Val smiled before lying down and resting her head on her sister's lap.
Almost out of habit, Dalla moved her hands to Val's blonde hair, her fingers moving skillfully as she made several small braids.
''Lately everything seems to happen so fast,'' Dalla said softly.
''Hm, it feels like it was only yesterday that I crossed the Wall and went to Winterfell,'' Val said with a smile as she looked at her sister.
''You seem happier,'' Dalla said with a smile.
''I am,'' Val said firmly.
"I heard about the tornado of fire. Was it as incredible as they say?" Dalla said, suddenly changing the subject.
"It was. You have no idea. My heart was beating incredibly fast," Val said, sitting up and looking at her excitedly.
''Mance was really scared,'' Val said with a mocking look.
''And you weren't?'' Dalla said, looking at her younger sister.
''I was too. I held onto Harry with all my strength. The fire was moving wildly around us,'' Val said, admitting it.
''Aren't you afraid of him?'' Dalla asked after a moment of hesitation, she didn't specify what she meant, but Val understood immediately.
''No,'' Val said firmly.
''The whole camp won't stop talking about it,'' Dalla said, still unable to believe the rumors.
''Forget it. And tell me, we haven't had a chance to talk properly. What's the castle like? What's it like living with Harry? Does he have more women?'' Dalla said with a string of questions.
''The castle is really huge, probably as big as the entire camp,'' Val said, to Dalla's amazement.
''Living with Harry is a lot of fun. I feel like we really get along. I'm glad I went out on patrol that day,'' Val said with a sweet smile.
''I hope you don't take that as an example to stop listening to me,'' Dalla said, rolling her eyes.
''There's another woman,'' Val said suddenly, making Dalla fall silent.
''I like her. She's from Bear Island, the heir. We fight, laugh, eat, we even bathe together sometimes,'' Val said, laughing as she shook her head, still somewhat incredulous about the situation.
''And does it bother you that there's another one?'' Dalla asked carefully.
''I can't complain, I'm the one who got into their relationship,'' Val said with a soft laugh.
Dalla could only look at her sister speechlessly.
''By the way, look,'' Val said as she took off her coat before removing her leather shirt, leaving only a linen garment.
Grabbing it from the bottom, she pulled it over her head, leaving herself only in her underwear.
''Isn't it pretty? Harry gave it to me. It's a type of underwear,'' Val said with a smug smile.
Dalla didn't have time to say anything before her sister was already almost naked.
Seeing a kind of decorated band around her chest, she couldn't help being surprised.
''And what is it for?'' Dalla asked, reaching out her hand and feeling its soft texture.
''It's comfortable for fighting, and it looks good. Harry likes it a lot,'' Val said with a laugh.
''Do you have more?'' Dalla asked curiously.
''Maybe I can give you some,'' Val said, giving her a half-smile.
''Do you think you don't have to listen to your older sister anymore because you don't live with me?'' Dalla said, giving her a look before knocking her down onto the bed.
Val let out a giggle as she quickly overpowered her.
The tent filled with laughter as the two sisters caught up with each other.
….
The full moon was at its zenith, dimly illuminating the small camp.
Harry was still leaning against a log as he looked toward the sky as if searching for something. It was then that he saw a small white ball silently descending until it landed on his chest.
Hedwig made a hooting sound as she rubbed her head against Harry's face.
''Good job,'' Harry said, stroking her head. She had been carrying messages back and forth.
Taking the message from her leg, he casually read it before putting it away. It was nothing important.
At that moment, Ater's heavy footsteps sounded against the ground. Turning his head, Harry saw Val, who gave him a smile when she noticed his gaze.
Jumping off Ater, she gently rubbed his face while murmuring a thank you.
Val approached Harry and dropped down beside him as she rested her head on his shoulder.
''How did it go?'' Harry asked casually as he stroked Hedwig's feathers.
''Good, my sister and I caught up,'' Val said casually as she reached her hand toward the white ball.
''Girl, you're really chubby,'' Val said with a laugh when she saw how big and round she looked, her hand kneading her belly through her fluffy plumage.
Hedwig seemed to screech indignantly as she pecked at Val.
Harry smiled slightly before looking toward the sky. The moon was particularly bright.
Yawning, he felt really relaxed. Perhaps still with some lingering effects from his overuse of Legilimency, he felt a little sleepy.
''Come on, don't fall asleep here, you're too heavy for me to carry you inside,'' Val said, looking at his half-asleep face.
''Am I too heavy or are you too weak?'' Harry said, laughing quietly.
''Get your ass into the tent,'' Val said, rolling her eyes as she stood up and pulled on his arm.
The two curled up together in the tent as they gradually fell asleep.
....
The next day.
With the sunrise, the entire camp came back to life.
With how late they had gone to sleep, Harry and Val got up rather sleepily.
''Use your magic and make some food,'' Val said, yawning as she gently pushed Harry.
''Forget it, we'll eat dried meat,'' Harry said as he quickly warmed it with magic.
The camp began packing itself away until everything was completely packed.
Val grumpily chewed her dried meat as Harry helped her onto Ater.
The camp had already started marching and they were still there, so Harry climbed onto Ater before following them.
The days seemed to pass faster, the sun and moon coming and going in the sky.
The people who lived beyond the Wall were really strong. Harry was more impressed the more time he spent around them.
Although the people of the North had strong bodies and great endurance, these qualities seemed even more pronounced in them.
He supposed it had something to do with natural selection; living beyond the Wall for generations had surely favored the more resilient.
Thanks to their endurance, they maintained a good pace, and in only a month of marching they reached Steam Town.
Once in the city, the supply problem eased considerably, since they could use the train to bring food from the south.
It was also time to say goodbye. They both said goodbye to Dalla, with Val promising her that she would visit her soon.
Since Dalla was in charge of the entire group, Harry could leave, confident that she would keep things under control.
They still had a long journey ahead of them to Sea Dragon Point.
So Harry made sure to encourage them by telling them about the land they were heading to, rich in marine resources, with salmon, otters, seals, and lush forests.
The news spread quite quickly throughout the camp. Although many seemed happy, there were still those who thought everything was too good to be true.
Ignoring them, he spoke with Philip for a while about the state of their plans and asked him to keep an eye on the group.
Sending a few soldiers to guide them and prevent conflicts with the villages they encountered along the way would be enough.
With everything ready, Harry left for Winterfell with Val. After being away from home for almost two months, he was quite eager to return.
----
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