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The ba soon began. This one, however, was different from the one held o birthday. The wele ba for the king ecially anized in the great hall, despite the rge number of people present.
elia finally had the opportunity to meet King Robert Baratheon, Queen Cersei Lannister, and Prince Joffrey Baratheon, whom Sansa fell in love with at first sight.
After meeting Joffrey, elia's heart, which had been fused and slightly shaken by Sansa's emotions, instantly regais crity. She was absolutely certain that, even without knowing the details of the ongoing plot, she could never like Joffrey.
During her childhood, elia had spent her days alongside Robb, Jon, and even the adorably sweet Bran. That upbringing had made her more dising when it came to appearand character.
Thus, she found herself frustrated at her inability to uand Sansa's thoughts!
However, Sansa was firmly determio marry Joffrey. Shortly after the ba began, she approached Catelyn and the queen, who were seated at the head of the table, engaged in versation.
elia desperately wao prevent Sansa and Joffrey’s e, but she khat decision was not hers to make. A king, a father, and a mother were involved. Even if she could vince her father, if the king insisted on moving forward with the pn, what could she do? Could she persuade everyoo defy royal orders?
It wouldn’t take long to uand the risk: a si of treason would be enough to hasten the downfall of the entire family. Perhaps the king, out of kindness, would not punish them directly, but what about the queen? Someone as cruel and calg as her would certainly not ighe disdain they showed for her son. Did elia really think she would let them go so easily?
Besides, Sansa herself was eager to run into Joffrey’s arms, pletely blinded by the desire to marry him!
Thinking about this, elia let out a deep sigh as a feeling of helplessook over her heart. She picked up her goblet of wine and drank it all in one go. However, she suddenly realized that she hadn’t seen Jon anywhere. Refleg on it, she quickly figured out the reason: her mother had likely forbidden him from attending an occasion like this.
Watg Bran pying happily with Ri, elia thought that Bran would hardly leave to climb the city walls on his own at a time like this. So, she grabbed her staff and stood up to look for Jon. She felt uneasy and, at the same time, wao take the opportunity to step outside and rex for a bit.
She didn’t want to stay there any lohat feast seemed to stantly remind her of her own inpetend impulsiveness.
When she finally found Jon, she saw his uncle Benjen patting his shoulder before leaving. As a member of the Night’s Watch, Benjen was rarely allowed to leave the Wall, except for special missions.
This time, however, ark had sent a raven requesting Benjen’s return to Winterfell to greet the king. Because of the distand timing, Benjen had only mao arrive now.
“So your uncle is a Ranger of the Night’s Watch!” she remarked as she watched Benjen walk away. She was about to approach Jon when she heard an unfamiliar male voiearby.
Turning around, she spotted a short man holding a bottle of wine as he stepped out through the Moon Door. She reized him instantly: that could only be the "imp" Arya had been so intrigued by—Tyrion Lanhe dwarf of House Lannister.
Tyrion was the son of Lord Tywin Lanhe powerful Lord of Casterly Rock. Lord Tywin had three children: Jaime Lanhe eldest; Cersei Lannister, his twin daughter, now queen; and the you, Tyrion Lannister, who suffered from dwarfism and was seen as a disgrace by his family.
It was ironic, elia thought. Lord Tywin had pced all his hopes on Jaime, raising him with strict disciplio bee a great heir. Yet Jaime had joihe Kingsguard, which meant he could never marry or have children. Without a legitimate heir, Casterly Rock—
Meanwhile, Tyrion, the you and most despised son, seemed to carry the weight of a curse or punishment—at least in his father’s eyes.
“What are you doing here?” Jon asked, approag cautiously. His gaze fell upon the short man, and he quickly deduced who he was.
“I came to attend your wele ba! I’ve also wao see the great Wall for some time now!” Tyrion said, stepping to the side and leaning against a wooden post as he took a sip of wine.
“You are Tyrion Lanhe queen’s brother?” Jon asked. Though his words carried the tone of a question, there was an underlyiainty in them.
“That is my greatest achievement!” Tyrion replied with a slight, ironic smile. “And you… you’re ark’s bastard son, aren’t you?”
Tyrion’s words made Jon frowarted to move away, clearly unwilling to prolong the versation.
“Did I offend you? My apologies! But you are, indeed, a bastard!” Tyrion shrugged, as if trying to soften the weight of his words.
Before Jon could respond, elia intervened, her expression firm:
“If you realize you were rude, you should learn to speak better! Jon is my brother! Our father is ark! We are family!”
Despite her harsh words, elia didn’t feel true hatred for Tyrion Lano be ho, she saw him as a fair person—something rare in a Lannister. Even so, Tyrion’s remark had been painful, both for Jon and for herself. elia’s frustration was evident.
Tyrion, however, remained unfazed.
“But Lady Stark is not his mother, is she? So, he is a bastard!” Tyrion said, elia with i.
elia was grippiaff as she walked with firm, determieps. Tyrion couldn’t help but take notice of her. She was strikingly beautiful, the kind of presehat could leave anyone dazed at first sight. However, he also observed something else: her eyes were dull, devoid of light.
“A shame,” Tyrion thought. “If those eyes were filled with energy, she would be even more remarkable.” Even so, he quickly deduced who she was. She could only be elia Stark, the blind-born daughter of ark. In many ways, she reminded him of himself—a reminder of the struggles he had faced. Yet, Tyrion had a feeling the girl would be luckier than he had been.
elia, oher hand, couldn’t immediately refute Tyrion’s words. She wao say that Jon’s status as a bastard didn’t matter, but she khat wasn’t true. Catelyn cared. Jon cared. And, to some extent, she herself cared.
That was when Tyrion spoke again, his voice taking on a more serious, almost somber tone:
“Bastard brother, listen to me! Never fet who you are, because the world surely won’t. Use it as your armor, and it ever be used to hurt you!” His words carried a weight of hiddeions. After finishing, he turned and started walking away.
“You don’t uand what it means to be a bastard!” Jon said with a frown, clearly irritated by Tyrion’s arrogant too him, Tyrion was merely speaking like someone who had ruly felt the real burden of the pain he described.
"All dwarfs are bastards in their fathers' eyes," Tyrion replied with a sarcastic smile. However, his words carried a tone of bitterness, and elia, watg Tyrion disappear into the darkness, felt an inexplicable sadness in his figure.
Tyrion turned a without looking back, leaving Jon standing in the same pce, stunned by the dwarf's words. It was only after a long moment that he began to uand the strange sympathy hidden within Tyrion's statement. After all, bastards and dwarfs might share something in on.
Jon reflected on this and couldn't decide which of them bore the greater burden of unhappiness.
"Jon, I'm sorry!" said elia, taking a step forward. She looked at Jon, standing in the middle of the night, with an expression of pain a. She khat years of cold treatment from Catelyn had deeply hurt her brother.
"You don’t o apologize. Lady Stark reated me badly," Jon replied, rec from his thoughts as he walked toward elia. His voice was firm but alsned. He khat, although Catelyn had never openly mistreated him, the pt she felt for him was evident. In a way, Jon uood her feelings. But that didn’t make things any easier.
elia hesitated for a moment before asking:
"Do you still want to go to the Wall? When I returned from there three years ago, I told you the Night’s Watch is not what it used to be. But you still want to go?"
As she spoke, elia turned her head to gaze at the distant night. In her mind, she thought of Uncle Benjen, who had just departed.
Three years earlier, when elia had returned from the Wall, Jon had pressed her to tell him everything she knew about the Night’s Watd the men who served there. She had hidden nothing, telling him about the dee of the order, something that had been happening for a long time. Despite this, Jon seemed to have no iion of giving up on his dream.
"No matter what has happeo the Night’s Watch, it is still the most important line of defense in the Seven Kingdoms," Jon replied with vi. "And the deserter who was executed said he saw a White Walker. I... don’t think he was lying."
elia sighed at her brother’s words. She knew how much this dream meant to him. And Jon, in turn, was aware of how much effort elia had put into easing the flict between him and Lady Catelyhe years.
Three years ago, elia had tried several times to vince him to abandon the idea of joining the Night’s Watch, but Jon remained determihis dream had been his anchor for so long. How could he give it up so easily?
Perhaps, Jon thought, joining the Night’s Watch was the only way to free himself from the identity of a bastard. There, he could swear to leave the past behind, start anew, and finally find a greater purpose.
"Is that so? Fet it! I 't stop you anyway! This is your choice!" elia said, holding her breath as she struggled against her own feelings. She turned her face away, avoiding Jon’s gaze, but her tone was heavy with distent.
However, the moment she turned her head, she couldn’t stop a siear from slipping down her face. Deep down, elia knew she wasn’t angry at Jon, but at herself.
elia was not like other children. From the moment she was born, she had memories and awareness of her past life. She had already lived up to twenty years in her previous existence. Even though many of those memories had faded over time, she ruly felt like a child. Because of this, she rarely cried. In fact, she had never shed tears out of emotion sining into this world; her tears only came from physiologieeds.
But at that moment, something ged. She couldn’t tain what she felt. Inexplicable tears began to well up, apanied by an overwhelming sense of emptiness. She bitterly felt that her existence here seemed to ck purpose.
The frustration and helplesshat had built up over so many days filled every er of her heart. Fear, panic, sadness, and a deep sense of despair invaded her thoughts like an uing wave.
"I’m sorry, Lia," Jon said hesitantly, notig elia’s dissatisfa. However, the darkness of the night prevented him from seeing the glimmer of tears on her face as he walked away. He was a little embarrassed, but his determination had not ged. He was set on following Uncle Beo the Wall, even if it meant leaving everything behind.
Hearing Jon’s words, elia quickly suppressed her turbulent thoughts. She took a deep breath, calming the whirlwind of emotions in her chest. Wheurned back to face him, her eyes were pletely dry, with no trace of tears. She looked at him in silence for a long time before taking a step forward.
"Jon, if you must go to the Wall, remember to take care of yourself. We will always be waiting for you in Winterfell. This will always be your home," she said, her voice soft but filled with emotion.
At that moment, elia realized that separation was iable. Everyone followed different paths. These few days might be the st they spent together. She had no choice but to accept reality, no matter how painful it was.
"I do this, and so you," elia thought, trying to vince herself that she was strong enough to handle what y ahead.
Jon smiled gently and raised his hand, giving elia a reassuring pat on the shoulder. His gesture was f, but for her, it only deepehe sadness she felt at that moment. It was as if an invisible weight was settling in her heart.
However, Jon could never have imagihat after this separation, everything would ge when they met again.
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