The Dargon Cub

Chapter 13

Jaime

Jaime looked down as Jon took in the cheers from the crowd, he had won, he had actually won. As much as he hoped he would, believed he would, when he saw the Royce lad fight Jaime had thought it would be a step to far for Jon at this time. He had been surprised during the duels that Jon was wielding a normal tourney sword, he had thought it odd, as he knew Jon was much better with the thinner blade.

But as he watched Jon beat his opponents he had come to the conclusion that maybe he wasn't comfortable enough with the thin blade just yet, how wrong he was. Jon had been playing them all along and Jaime felt an enormous amount of pride that the lessons he had with the boy had yielded such incredible results. When he brought the thin blade out to face Royce, Jaime had been confused though, if he wasn't comfortable then what was he doing with it now he had thought, he didn't have long to wait for the answer.

Jon had been magnificent, his speed, his movement all of it had been enhanced using the thinner, lighter blade and the Royce boy didn't know what hit him. It was over so quickly that even Jaime wasn't sure he'd seen what he had, the move Jon had used was one he hadn't taught him, but he had seen it before and he smiled and wondered if the gods were watching.

"Did you see that?" he heard a voice to his left say.

"I've never seen anything like that before." another voice said.

"How was he so quick." yet another.

Jaime smiled as he heard the voices speak about his king, how they praised the boy and compared him to other great swordsman, Arthur Dayne reborn, he's another Barristan the Bold, you can see he's been trained by Lord Jaime, all variations on the same theme, Jon had done what he wanted him to do, he'd made a name for himself here today.

Ser Wylis.

Wylis really looked forward to the duels, they were something he'd never seen done before and for him that gave him a reason to watch them, the fact his squire and his liege lords son were both competing just added to his interest. Jon Snow was not like he'd expected him to be, he had met the boy a few times, when he and his father had made their visits to Winterfell.

There the boy was quiet and carried himself as if he thought that at any minute someone would object to his presence, something his father Wyman had commented on and while they were there had insisted on the boy being placed at the high table, as any son of a Stark should be. Wylis admired his father for that, there were those who looked down on bastards but not his father, his father treated everyone the same.

"A good man is a good man Wylis, regardless which side of the sheets they were born on and mark my words that lad will grow up to be a good man." his father had said when he asked him about the young Jon Snow.

But here Jon Snow didn't carry himself like that scared boy he'd met at Winterfell, he strolled around, easy to smile and not afraid to point out where he thought you were making a mistake, he'd shamed him at the meeting and had done it because it was right and he had been acting a fool. The deal he'd agreed, which he knew his father would be happy with, would make House Manderly a lot of coin and in the end he had Jon Snow to thank for it.

As the duels took place, he almost wished he was a boy again, he'd have loved to take part in a competition like this one, he saw Jorah was as enraptured as he was, Artos was no match for Jon Snow but then neither was anyone else, as soon became clear and as the young lad beat all his opponents he felt a sense of pride in his lieges son, he was representing the north and showing these southerners what everyone in the north already knew, a wolf was not to be taken lightly.