Every eye in the room locked on Jon Snow.
His chest rose and fell. He felt the weight of those stares—hope, scrutiny, desperation, confusion.
He looked first at Lord Commander Jeor Mormont. The old man's face was lined with exhaustion.
Then at the traditionalists, arms crossed, eyes cold as northern wind.
Finally, his gaze settled on Lynn.
Lynn wasn't looking at him. Just standing there, calm, as if none of this mattered.
But Jon knew better.
Lynn was waiting.
Waiting for him to make the choice a Stark would make.
Jon Snow raised his hand.
Slow. Steady.
"I agree."
The room erupted.
"Jon! Have you lost your mind?"
A steward's voice cracked with disbelief.
Jon ignored him. He met every stare in the room and spoke clearly.
"I'm a ranger too."
"I've seen the burned villages in the Haunted Forest. I've seen corpses frozen solid as ice."
"I've fought wildlings. They're fierce. But they're only trying to survive."
His voice echoed in the silent hall.
"My father, Ned Stark, taught me that the Night's Watch defends the realm. That we're the shield against the darkness."
"Well, the darkness is here."
"Our real enemy isn't the free folk—people who bleed and laugh and cry just like us."
"It's the things lurking in the Lands of Always Winter. Waiting to devour every living soul."
He looked at each man in turn.
Those grey eyes burned with the same fire as Lynn's.
"Letting go of hatred is hard."
"But if we cling to it, we all die."
"I choose to fight for the living."
"I choose to trust Lynn."
Silence.
Ygritte stared at this young "crow" who spoke like Lynn.
Fight for the living.
Those words pierced through the hatred and cold wrapped around her heart like a blade of light.
Maybe there were good men south of the Wall after all.
Jeor Mormont exhaled slowly, as if a thousand-pound weight had lifted from his shoulders.
"Twenty-six in favor. Twenty-five against."
"The motion passes."
"From this moment, negotiating with the King-Beyond-the-Wall is the Night's Watch's highest priority."
"Anyone who defies this order will be treated as a traitor."
The opposition's faces twisted with fury. But they said nothing.
The decision was made.
The meeting ended. Men dispersed.
Only Lynn, Jon, Benjen, and Mormont remained in the Lord Commander's Tower.
And Ygritte, still standing there like an outsider.
"So how do we get there?" Benjen broke the silence.
"Fly over on... that thing?"
He glanced out the window.
Winter was napping in the courtyard, three massive heads resting on her forelegs. One head hadn't gotten a leg to pillow on and was using a haystack instead.
Her breath melted the snow around her.
"No."
Lynn's answer was immediate.
"Why not?" Jon frowned. "If we ride Winter, Mance will take us seriously. It'll make negotiations easier."
"The dragon's our trump card. But not yet."
Lynn's eyes darkened.
"You're forgetting. There's not just one king beyond the Wall."
"There's another."
The Night King.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
"I have a feeling," Lynn said slowly, "that thing is watching us."
"Waiting for an opportunity."
"A living dragon is irresistible bait."
"If Winter flies beyond the Wall, we're handing the Night King the juiciest piece of meat he's ever seen."
"I won't risk it."
Silence.
They'd all seen what the White Walkers could do.
But imagining a dragon turned into one of the dead—
That was a nightmare beyond words.
"Then we..."
"We walk."
Lynn's tone was iron.
"Me and Jon. A few elite rangers."
His gaze shifted to Ygritte.
"She'll guide us."
"What?" Ygritte blinked. "You've got a monster that can fly, and you're going to walk?"
"Are all you southerners insane?"
She couldn't understand.
To her, Lynn with his dragon was like a god.
Why would a god descend to walk among mortals?
"You don't need to understand. Just follow orders."
Lynn didn't explain further. He turned to Mormont.
"Lord Commander, I need you to prepare some things."
"The best leather armor. And as many dragonglass weapons as you can spare."
That night.
Castle Black's forge blazed red-hot.
Shirtless smiths hammered glowing steel on anvils.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Sparks flew.
Jon and Lynn stood nearby, watching in silence.
Jon watched the smiths' powerful, fluid motions. Watched raw iron transform under their hammers into sharp, deadly blades.
"You've changed a lot," Jon said quietly.
"So have you." Lynn didn't look up. "You're not that sulking bastard hiding in corners anymore."
Jon smiled bitterly.
"I just... want to do the right thing."
He hesitated. Worry crept into his voice.
"Lynn, are you sure about this?"
"Mance Rayder's an oathbreaker. He won't be easy to deal with."
"I'm not sure."
The smith finally stopped hammering. He plunged the finished blade into water. It hissed and steamed.
"But someone has to try."
Lynn turned to face Jon's worried expression.
"Remember this, Jon."
"We're not going to beg for peace. We're going to give peace."
"We're the strong ones. The ones with power."
"Stand tall. Show them what House Stark is made of."
"We're not negotiating with wildlings. We're recruiting them."
"If they refuse, we fight."
"And my dragon will burn anyone who challenges us."
Jon's eyes changed.
Right. They had a dragon.
They had overwhelming power.
They were offering the wildlings a way to survive.
That shift in mindset eased Jon's anxiety.
The next morning.
A small group assembled at the tunnel entrance leading beyond the Wall.
Lynn. Jon. Three elite rangers handpicked by Benjen.
And Ygritte, sandwiched in the middle, wearing black leather armor.
Her elm bow was strapped to her back. Her quiver bristled with arrows.
She was still a prisoner, technically. But her hands were free now. No ropes.
"Take these."
Lynn distributed dragonglass-tipped weapons forged overnight.
"These can kill those things. Guard them carefully. Don't lose them."
The men secured their weapons solemnly.
"Lynn!"
A clear voice called from behind.
Myrcella ran up, Mormont trailing behind her with a complicated expression.
"Where are you going?"
She looked up at him, green eyes full of worry.
Winter sensed the farewell. She rose from the courtyard.
Her massive body blocked the morning sun. All three heads leaned in, rumbling uneasily.
"Just taking care of something. I'll be back soon."
Lynn ruffled Myrcella's hair.
He patted Winter's largest head, speaking in Valyrian to soothe her.
"Take care of Princess Myrcella."
"And listen to Lord Commander Mormont. No more breaking buildings."
Winter whimpered sadly. She nuzzled Lynn's chest as if making a promise.
"Move out."
Lynn turned and led them into the deep, dark tunnel.
The tunnel cut straight through the Wall. Every step echoed.
Ygritte walked in the middle of the group.
She glanced back.
In the sunlight, the ice-blue dragon watched them leave with something almost like sorrow in her eyes.
What kind of man is he?
The heavy iron gate groaned shut behind them with a final, thunderous boom.
The world became nothing but endless white and silence.
Freezing wind whipped snow into their faces. Ahead stretched the Haunted Forest—vast, pale, infinite.
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