The Remnant of the Pack - Book 1 - GoT

Most important part

As a child, Ylina didn't really understand why her Father spent day in and day out sitting behind a big wooden table, talking to people he didn't know, discussing matters that weren't his and trying to solve problems that wouldn't affect him. She remembered asking Robb about it once, as the two of them sat outside the castle, in the snow covered courtyard building the biggest snowman a child of eight years of age and his sister of barely six could possibly make.

"Why can't Father come play with us?" She recalled asking, looking up at Robb with big, innocent eyes.

"Father is busy, Lily." The older boy answered gently, looking around the snow to try and find some sticks.

"Busy with what?"

"He is the lord of Winterfell. He has to talk to people. Listen to them and help them."

"Why?"

Ylina remembered how Robb had chuckled at her question. She remembered how everyone she knew from her early years always told her how much of an annoying, curious little girl she had been. Not everyone could spend too much time with her at that age without snapping eventually. Jon, Theon, even her Father... They all answered a few of her questions but soon enough, they would send her off to try and find someone else to talk to. Robb, however, was a whole different story. While he did get annoyed from time to time, he never dismissed a question from Ylina, always taking his time to think about it and answer when he could. And even when he didn't have the answer, he would always tell her where to look for it.

"Why don't you ask Father tonight when he puts you to bed?" Robb had offered, finally spotting two sticks on the ground and running up to them, before placing them on the snowman to make some distorted arms for it. "There. What do you think?"

Robb watched as Ylina looked over the snowman and annalized it, from top to bottom. He smiled when she did.

"It needs a name." She decided. Robb chuckled and nodded in agreement.

"Sure does." He said, scratching his chin and making a show out of trying to think of a name as Ylina giggled at him. "How about... Lord Bubbleton?"

Smiling brightly at his sister, Robb enjoyed the loud laughter she let out, usually not being allowed more than a discreet chuckle during family gathers since it wasn't the behavior of a proper lady to draw that much attention to herself.

"Robb! Lord Bubbleton is a silly name." She had said, as her brother only smirked down at her.

"It's perfect then. A snowman with a silly name to match a boy with a silly little sister."

"Robbie! I'm not silly!"

And as soon as the pout started to form on his sister's face, Robb took off, running away with a joyful laugh as Ylina ran after him. They weren't sure why they were even running in the first place, but as they chased each other on the courtyard, throwing ocasional snowballs at each other, they couldn't care less.

Oh, what wouldn't Ylina give up to have another moment like that? What wouldn't she give to just have another moment of blissful ignorance, when everything she had to worry about was what they would be having for supper or whether or not Jon would be able to sneak her out just after sunrise to try and teach her how to ride? As she sat on the place her Father used to sit and her brother also did for a brief moment, with Maester Luwin beside her and Daria sprawled across the floor at her feet, she finally understood why both of them said that was the worst part about ruling. The problems never seemed to end and, try as they might, no ruler would ever be able to end them for good. How does one end hunger? How does one stop rapping? How does one punishes every person who stole from their neighbors?