Never Forget

Whispers, the lord's Council Chamber.

Lord Gryn, Ser Pell, Ser Mason, Maester Al, steward Herschel, and Amparo sat together, discussing the Eastward Expansion plan to reclaim their lost lands.

A large map of eastern Crackclaw Point lay spread across the middle of the table.

They had nearly finished discussing the entire plan. Gryn pondered for a moment, then spoke. "Reclaiming our lost lands is an expedition, so securing supplies is our top priority. At regular intervals... we'll establish a camp protected by a wooden palisade. Each interval should be half a day's march at a normal pace. We'll advance step by step."

"Everyone, House Crabb hasn't fought a long campaign beyond its lands in over a decade. Our battles have always taken place near home, where food is easy to replenish and wounded soldiers can receive timely treatment."

"Once you leave home, things are different. You'll be surrounded by enemies you may have to face at any moment. If our supplies aren't secured, we could collapse before the fighting even begins. We'll have lost before the war has started. As commanders, you must always put securing supplies first. The commanders of House Crabb must never forget this."

Everyone replied solemnly, "Yes, my lord!"

"Pell, your Survey Corps needs to set out ahead of us to scout the route. The Survey Corps must choose sites for our camps in advance. When selecting a site, you need to weigh all the factors, including the terrain and water sources. I'll lead the main force out in three days."

Gryn rose to his feet, and the others followed suit.

Gryn slowly looked into each person's eyes. "Reclaiming our lost lands—together we stand!"

"Yes! Reclaiming our lost lands—together we stand!"

"Reclaiming our lost lands—together we stand!!"

"Reclaiming our lost lands—together we stand!!!"

As soon as the war council ended, everyone else left the chamber. Only Steward Herschel remained to report on the other affairs of the lordship.

There were so many matters to attend to that Steward Herschel could only report them one by one.

Gryn was listening intently when the door to the chamber suddenly swung open, and Surana's tall figure appeared in the doorway.

Surana bowed. "Forgive the interruption, my lord. I thought the meeting was over."

Gryn's calm gaze shifted to Surana. "Surana, is something urgent?"

"Your cousin, Lady Lyanna Crabb..."

Before Surana could finish, another tall figure appeared in the doorway.

The newcomer was slender and bore a striking resemblance to Gryn, sharing six or seven of his features. She was none other than Lyanna Crabb, the cousin Surana had mentioned.

Gryn had just risen from his chair when Lyanna Crabb, travel-worn and dusty, threw herself into his arms and sobbed, her cries full of hurt.

Gryn tried to guess what had happened, but said nothing. He simply rested one hand on Lyanna's back and gently patted it, silently soothing her.

After a long while, Surana came over and offered a few quiet words of comfort, then helped Lyanna Crabb into a nearby chair. She picked up a wineglass and poured Lyanna some red wine.

Gryn waited quietly until Lyanna had taken a few gulps and finished the large glass. Then he said, "Lyanna, tell me why you're so upset. I'm here."

Lyanna's eyes glistened with tears. "Ursur wants to divorce me. Sob..."

Ursur's full name was Ursur Meka, a merchant from Gulltown in the Vale. About four years earlier, Lyanna Crabb had married Ursur Meka of Gulltown, at Gryn's mother's arrangement.

How could Lyanna, a noblewoman, have married a merchant?

After the Usurper's War, the Hand of the King, Jon Arryn, Duke of the Vale, had never eased his pressure on the loyalists of the Dragon House in Crackclaw Point. The Vale's other powers naturally followed his lead.

Gryn's mother struggled to keep House Crabb afloat under the pressure. After ten years of holding out, Gryn's weary mother chose a dignified compromise and married off Lyanna Crabb, who had only just begun menstruating, to a Vale noble family.

The Vale nobles looked down on the half-Wildling nobility of Crackclaw Point. With no better option, Gryn's mother had to settle for Ursur Meka, a merchant who was said to have maintained good relations with the nobles of Gulltown.

Strictly speaking, this marriage was an insult from the Vale nobles to House Crabb.

The Vale nobles had spent nearly ten years blockading and suppressing the nobles of Crackclaw Point. Their initial enthusiasm had long since faded. After a decade of blockade and suppression, this added humiliation was more than enough to demonstrate their loyalty to Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King, and they could afford to ease their grip.

House Crabb had indeed been stripped of its noble dignity, but the marriage had also eased relations with the Vale. The blockade against House Crabb was lifted, and itinerant merchants began trickling into its lands, bringing a variety of desperately needed supplies. House Crabb's leather goods could once again be sold at normal prices to merchants from all over.

The respite House Crabb had gained at the cost of Lyanna Crabb's marriage came after years of hardship, and the whole affair had planted the seeds of deep hatred.

But House Crabb had been too weak back then for anyone to care.

"Cousin, why does he want to divorce you?"

"Boohoo, I only found out later. A noblewoman from Runestone took a fancy to Ursur! That widow has no children, so if he divorces me and marries her, their legitimate son could inherit her title."

At her answer, Gryn's long fingers tightened around his knee.

Lyanna continued, "People in the Vale already mocked me for our marriage. If he divorces me, how could I go on living...? Of course I refused. Then he laid hands on me. I got so frightened that I secretly took my maid and ran back while he was out. Sob!"

Gryn's eyes narrowed slightly. "It seems the people of the Vale really don't take us seriously."

Surana's heart ached for Lyanna, and she spoke furiously. "Damn the Vale men! They all deserve to have their throats bitten out by White Walkers! That little worm Ursur thinks that if he divorces Lady Lyanna and marries that shameless noblewoman, he'll become one of the Vale nobility, and House Crabb won't dare retaliate. He thinks we'll just have to swallow the insult."

Lyanna nodded sadly. Yes, that was exactly what the bastard thought.

Gryn rubbed his brow and looked Lyanna straight in the eye. "Cousin Lyanna, no one in Whispers has ever forgotten what you've done for us—not for a single day. You're my family. Ever since you married, your room has been kept just as it was, with someone assigned to clean it, as if you'd never left home."

With that, Gryn, as lord, made his position clear. Lyanna's eyes immediately filled with tears. "Gryn..."

Lyanna had been very uneasy throughout the journey. When she married, Gryn had been only eleven, shy and scrawny.

Gryn's mother had died, and her memories of him had grown hazy. He had inherited the lordship, and Lyanna hadn't dared to assume he would still welcome her after hearing what had happened.

Lyanna felt she had brought shame on her family and had no face to meet Gryn. But in the end, she realized there was nowhere else she could go.

Only the thought of Whispers, mocked by outsiders as a backwater of Wildlings, could make Lyanna feel safe.

So Lyanna had come without a second thought!

The cousin she hadn't seen in four years had grown up, and his steady presence put her at ease.

Gryn gently took Lyanna's slender, icy-cold hand. "Lyanna, this will always be your home."

"I want to ask you: would it make you feel better if I sent you Ursur's head?"