The King in the North Rises

Sequel to The North Will Rise Again. You do not have to read my previous story, but it might help ...

Summary: After the death of his older brother, Bran Stark becomes King in the North. With the aid of his family, he has to face up to the challenges of such position: reorganize a war-torn Kingdom, mend relationships with the Kingdom of the South, repel an invasion attempt by Stannis Baratheon, tackle a dark threat from beyond the wall, and deal with his inner demons. Will a boy of barely ten years of age be up to the challenge?

Warning: mention of past abuse. It is not described but it there is reference to the fact that Catelyn was severely mistreated while being held captive at the Twins.

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Recap: The North Will Rise Again:

Previously ...

Tywin Lannister did not plan the Red Wedding and he did not aid the Freys in their betrayal of the Northern Army. The Freys were supposed to hold the King in the North so an end to the war could be negotiated, not butcher them. Angry at the Freys, the Lannisters spied on the Twins and intercepted a package being sent to the Boltons at the Dreadfort.

Inadvertently, Tywin and Tyrion Lannister ended up rescuing Catelyn Stark, who had been spared at the massacre at the wedding but had been kept captive at the Twins, where she had suffered greatly. While recuperating at Tywin Lannister's camp she was reunited with her daughter Sansa, who had escaped King's Landing with Tyrion after being accused of killing King Joffrey at his own wedding. The Lannisters and Catelyn Stark contacted the Tullys at Riverrun for a meeting to discuss peace terms. There, Catelyn was reunited with her other daughter, Arya. It was decided the land would be divided in two separate Kingdoms: The South ruled by King Tommen Baratheon, who succeeded Joffrey; and The North ruled by King Brandon Stark who, along with his brother Rickon and a wildling woman called Osha, had been hiding in Last Hearth under the protection of the Umbers.

After agreeing to these terms, the newly regrouped northern army marched on to Winterfell to reclaim it from the Boltons, aided by a large contingent of Tully men led by The Blackfish, some men from the Eyre supplied by Lysa Arryn, and some of Tyrion's mountain clansmen led by Bronn the Sellsword, who had befriended Catelyn Stark and decided to remain in the North. Upon arrival they found out Ramsay Bolton had fled to the Dreadfort and retaking Winterfell was a walk in the park. All the men from the Eyre, the Riverlands and the mountain clansmen returned to their lands while the Stark ladies remained in Winterfell together with the some Northern Lords, Catelyn's uncle and Bronn, who had been knighted and become Catelyn's personal guard.

It was the dawn of a new era: The North would rise again under a new King in the North.

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1) The King in the North Rises.

Brynden Tully, dressed in his red and blue Tully colours but wearing his black trout sigil, acting in his capacity as Hand of the King, had just officially named Bran Stark King in the North.

"It is my greatest pleasure to introduce you to your King, Brandon Stark," he addressed the excited crowd gathered in Winterfell's Main Hall. After so many moons of wars, invasions, sacking and starvation, the people of the North were pleased to see all the suffering coming to an end. Brandon Stark, eldest surviving son of Lord Eddard Stark was being crowned King in the North to the roaring clap and loud cheering of his subjects.

Bran knew these people were his father's followers and he had to gain their trust with good leadership and a steady hand. He was a child of barely ten years of age, but fortunately, he was not alone.

His mother's uncle, Brynden "The Blackfish" Tully, a seasoned veteran of many wars and previous advisor to Lysa Arryn at the Eyre had been named Hand of the King. His own mother, Catelyn Stark, would be Queen Regent until he came of age. She was a very organized and pragmatic woman who had become Lady of Riverrun at a very early age when her mother had passed and then had been a great support to Lord Eddard Stark when they married and she became Lady of Winterfell. This war had taken a toll on her and had caused her many grievous losses (namely her husband and her eldest son) and she had suffered greatly at the hands of the Freys during her captivity, but she had come out of her ordeal a stronger and more cautious woman.

He also had the support of all the Northern Lords, most of whom were present at his coronation: the Umbers, the Karstarks, the Maderlys, the Mormonts, the Dustins (their long lasting feud with the Starks apparently forgotten and forgiven), the Hornwoods, the Flints, the Reeds, etc. Many people from these Houses had fought and died alongside his brother, the previous King in the North, Robb Stark. Many of them had been prisoners of war and had just been released from dungeons at the Twins and King's Landing and were now cheering proudly for their new King.

Conspicuously absent were the Boltons, who had betrayed Robb and played a huge and decisive role in the Red Wedding and the murder of the previous King. Also, Roose Bolton's bastard son, Ramsey Snow, had taken Winterfell from the Ironborn and had ruled with an iron fist, putting many of its inhabitants to the sword. The Boltons had not been punished for their crimes yet, but Bran knew this was an issue he would have to address soon.

He had been apprehensive when he first arrived at Winterfell after spending so many moons hiding in Last Hearth. Together with Osha and Hodor, both Bran and Rickon had made their escape from Winterfell when Theon had attacked. Hodor, the sweet but soft minded stable boy had carried him all the way to Last Hearth and Osha had taken care of them all the while. He was not so young as not to remember his family and his life before the war, but he did feel bad that his younger brother Rickon had little recollection of their lives before their family fell apart. His brother had fonder memories of Osha than he did of his mother and his sisters. Bran had been so consumed by his own misery at not being able to walk and being so dependant on others due to his disability, that he had forsaken his younger brother and not kept the memory of their family alive for him. He could see the pain in his mother's face when Rickon would run to Osha instead of her, or when his mother would talk about Robb or his father and Rickon would show no recognition, or when his sisters tried to approach him and he would just turn away. I should have told him more of our parents and our siblings, Bran thought to himself.

Being a cripple was something that he had reluctantly come to terms with. He was afraid, however, others would not be so acceptant. He feared people would question his ability as King just because he couldn't use his legs. Yet his fears were quickly quenched. He had the contraption engineered by Tyrion Lannister to help him ride. He had Hodor to carry him around, but he also had a special chair to which wheels had been attached so he could move within the castle. The new Maester, Maester Nokes, had devised a way for him to get up and down the stairs using a small wooden platform attached to the railing which he could pull with a set of ropes. His legs had remained tiny and useless, but his arms had grown stronger as a result. He wished he could still walk, run and climb like he used to, but it was being unable to do the little everyday actions that frustrated him the most. Fortunately his mother was very supportive and he also had his sisters. He missed running around the castle and playing hide and seek with Arya - and occasionally Sansa - but he knew he could count on them for whatever he needed.

Having a divided Kingdom implied relying on correspondence with his counterpart in the South. He had made a special bond with King Tommen Baratheon of the South when his father King Robert had visited Winterfell in what seemed like ages ago. He had bittersweet memories of that time. On the one hand he had thoroughly enjoyed meeting the Royal family: King Robert and his Queen Cersei; their children: Prince Joffrey who had been betrothed to Sansa, Princess Myrcella and Prince Tommen; and the Queen's brothers: living legend Jamie Lannister, reputed to be the best swordsman in the continent, and the mysterious Imp. But on the other hand, this visit marked the beginning of the downfall of his own family. He had fallen from a tower suffering a crippling accident. His father had gone south with the King taking his two sisters along, war had erupted between the two families resulting in the loss of his father and older brother Robb. For a while it seemed he had lost everybody but Rickon. But the Gods had favoured him and brought him and his family out of the darkness.

This ill-fated visit to Winterfell had, incidentally, also marked the downfall of Tommen's family. His father, King Robert had died shortly afterwards. Rumours of incest and adultery had negatively affected his family's reputation and had ultimately led to the war of the Five Kings. His brother Joffrey had been crowned only to be killed at his own wedding under mysterious circumstances. Cersei, who had been Queen Regent to Joffrey, was now also Queen Regent to Tommen. But her power was only superficial as most of the ruling was done by the King's wife, Queen Margaery Tyrell, Joffrey's widow whom Tommen had married after Joffrey's death. King Tommen was also being advised by his grandfather Tywin Lannister, who had been named Hand of the King and to whom credit for the peaceful division of the Kingdom and the end of the bloody war had been awarded, and a Small Council made up of his uncle Tyrion Lannister, Margaery's father Mace Tyrell, and Petyr Baelish. Out of all these people, it was only the latter whom the North did not trust. He was considered by many as the main culprit for starting the war. It was Petyr Baelish who had betrayed Bran's father and, ultimately, led to his execution. He had also lied to his mother and propelled her to kidnap Tyrion Lannister in the hopes of finding justice for her son's assassination attempt. It was also suggested, though never proven, that he had orchestrated Jon Arryn's death and Joffrey's murder.

After so many years of war, finally the South and the North were getting along. They were both ruled by young boys who were surrounded by sound advisors whose aim was, first and foremost, to maintain the peace between the newly-formed Kingdoms. Most importantly, both Kings had a profound respect for each other – some might even call it friendship.

King Tommen already had his Queen, but Bran did not, and that had driven many Lords and High born ladies in the North to a competition Bran was not particularly fond of. He had received, and rejected, countless proposals for marriage. You are too young, his mother kept saying remembering all too well what had transpired the last time she had allowed for one of her children to be betrothed at a young age. And he was more than happy to oblige, he had no wish to marry any time soon. The same thing was happening to both his sisters. Sansa's marriage to Tyrion Lannister had been annulled as it had never been consummated, thus freeing her from any impediments to marry again. Both Arya and Sansa were receiving constant proposals now that they were Princesses, all of which had been turned down by the girls themselves. His mother had not escaped this either, as she was also bombarded with marriage proposals by some of the older Northern Lords who would love to get their hands on the title King Regent. The only one who appeared not to be marriage material yet was the young Rickon. However, the Stark family was not ready to be separated again, so none of the marriage proposals were accepted.

Brandon Stark knew being King would not be an easy task, but he had the utmost confidence in himself and the people who surrounded him. He would become the King the North deserved.

TBC