4 Another Dawn

It was a new day for the boy, a new purpose, new life, no longer would the boy have to suffer working as a stable hand in the harsh northern winters. He would be fed, clothed, and given larger quarters than before. All this comfort and upward mobility came with just him becoming the cup-bearer and companion of the young lord of Winterfell. Ellard's son Benjen Stark was to be the primary task handed to Dan.

Dan had already been briefed on what he had to do with the young lord, he would be given lessons just like the young lord and would be taught to fight and protect Benjen. Dan would be trained as a soldier and according to Lord Stark if he did well enough in the future he even had the chance of being knighted to become a knight of the seven kingdoms.

Dan had heard and seen about the knights, he had even seen the knights of Winterfell and was profoundly amazed by their skill as well as the respect they commanded among the smallfolk. He had also dreamt of being like them, having that respect from the people around him. He hoped that being a knight would keep him safe from the beatings that he regularly suffered at the hands of the stable master.

Today was the day he would meet Benjen and maybe then he would be able to move upward in life by being close to the Lord's son. As he entered the practice yard of Winterfell to see 4 boys constantly swinging wooden swords at straw dummies. Among them was a boy wearing fine leather with warm wool clothing, his face still flush with fat giving it a round shape, his eyes grey, and his hair cut short on the sides with a small black ponytail.

The boy seemed to be around 10 years old and was taller than Dan by at least a few inches, the children around the boy too were his age and were lordlings being fostered at Winterfell. The master-at-arms of Winterfell, Garth Leven approached Dan and stood tall above him, the man had scars on his cheeks, chin, and on his left eyebrow. His brown eyes and steadily growing white hair were indicative of his rich experience on the battlefield, he was a tall man standing at nearly six feet towering over Dan.

"So yer the new chap eh?"

"Ye...yes sir, my name is Dan." the boy stammered but still answered, he knew well enough that not answering would lead him to severe repercussions. Garth grunted and began walking toward the center of the yard gesturing for the boy to follow him. Dan slowly trotted behind him. Garth had been commanded by Lord Stark to see if the boy had potential and if he indeed did then he was to train the boy and ingratiate in him loyalty to House Stark as he was to be the bodyguard of Benjen in the future.

"Pick up the wooden sword boy and swing with all your strength at the dummy"

Dan after hearing the commands immediately grabbed the nearest wooden sword and began walking toward the dummy. As he stood before the dummy, which was a bit taller than him, he began to take a stance before his target. In his mind, he knew that he had to demonstrate his worth, if he failed to do so then all the dreams he had seen so far of making something of himself would go down the drain.

Gathering all his strength the boy swung the sword heading straight for the neck of the dummy and as soon as the blow connected the sword flew away from the boy's hand he fell down from the impact and a few straws fell out of the dummy. Everyone watched the scene with little amazement. To them this puny strength the boy displayed was nothing.

Garth however was stunned by this display of vigor, he could see that the boy had the potential to be one of the strongest warriors in the art of the sword. He could see that the boy was tactical in his approach he had aimed not for any of the body parts but right at the neck, he didn't intend to dally around and went straight for the kill. This was a rare insight found only among people who had real combat experience.

Meanwhile, the boy stood up and looked around to gauge whether he had done well or not, after sifting through the crowd with most onlookers merely giving him a smirk his eyes landed on Garth. Garth finally looked at the boy and began walking toward him.

"You pass boy this has been quite entertaining for the young lord as well. What say you young lord about a spar with this one, he was specially chosen by your father."

"I think I shall pass master Garth, he is younger than me and from what I have seen it was his first time swinging a sword as well. I do not have the time nor the energy to play with a child. He would do better as a companion to my sister.", Benjen completely rejected Dan and began to walk out of the yard. The boys that were his entourage also followed behind him with a few of them sniggering at Dan.

Dan saw all of this happening and was certainly disheartened by it. He did not expect everyone inside the castle to be so cold and unabashed in their contempt for him. He did not even have a chance to prove himself or showcase his skills before they decided on his worth.

"It would seem that you will be training on your own today boy. I want you to begin doing squats, and push-ups and run around the yard until your body completely gives up on you. You either faint doing this or get beat up by me for not doing it."

This scared the boy as he was now stuck between a rock and a hard place, no matter the answer he was bound to suffer. Then again he never really had an easy life before why would he even dream about having one now? Dan grit his teeth nodded toward Garth and began running around the yard.

It was at this point that Dan realized that the world didn't owe him anything and he would have to struggle, fight, kill and eventually build a world of his own where he would not be tormented by his circumstances any longer. With this thought in mind, Dan devoted his entire attention to the tasks he was commanded to accomplish. The feast was to be held tomorrow and he had little time to improve himself and be presentable before Lord.

The wisps around Dan's body and head began to gather more weight as he continued to work, their previously transparent shape began to become translucent. The headache that Dan began to feel also became piercing. It took him 2 hours but Dan was beginning to reach his limits with the extreme physical workout.

"No...No...No more I can't do this anymore" heaving and trying to catch his breath Dan fell into the mud of the yard as Garth came back to check upon him.