The room was still when Bran Stark opened his eyes.
No pain.
No crushing weight on his chest.
No numbness in his legs.
Just… warmth.
He breathed deeply, blinking at the sunlight peeking through the window.
And then he felt something he thought he'd never feel again:
His toes moved.
Bran gasped.
He sat up — slowly, shakily, but unaided.
His heart pounded. His eyes widened.
"I… I can move."
Ned was already there, slumped in a chair, exhaustion still clinging to his face. But when he heard the voice — strong, alert, alive — he shot upright.
"Bran?"
Bran turned his head.
And smiled.
"Father."
Ned didn't speak.
He simply fell to his knees and pulled his son into his arms.
Bran's First Question
Ned was still holding his son when Bran frowned, confused.
"Father… why am I here? Did I fall?"
Ned stiffened.
Maester Luwin stepped forward cautiously.
"You… remember nothing, Bran?"
Bran blinked.
"I remember climbing the courtyard wall… and then… I was going to climb the broken tower—"
Ned stopped him with a firm hand on his shoulder.
"Bran. You must not climb again."
Bran's eyes dropped. "Yes, Father."
And then he asked the question that made Ned freeze.
"Father… who was the man with the metal arm in my dream?"
Ned held his breath.
Luwin stared.
Rodrik went silent.
A servant nearly dropped a basin.
Bran continued softly:
"He held me… and said I would walk again. Was it a dream?"
Ned swallowed.
"Something like that, Bran."
He glanced at Leo — who stood unseen in the corner shadows — and they shared a silent, unbreakable secret.
Jaime Lannister's Investigation
Winterfell's Great Hall
Jaime Lannister had returned from the North's roads only three days earlier. He expected boredom.
Instead, he returned to chaos.
First, Bran Stark survived a fall that should have killed him.
Then, rumors spread:
"The crippled boy can walk again."
Jaime had heard enough lies in King's Landing to recognize when the truth was dangerous.
When the King asked him about the sword rumor, Jaime lied smoothly… but his mind raced.
So he investigated.
He questioned guards. Stableboys. Servants. Arya Stark until she spat at his boots. Even Theon Greyjoy, though it disgusted him.
And one rumor was louder than the rest:
"The Shadow healed him."
A man with a metal arm.
A man no one could catch.
A man who appeared where he was not supposed to exist.
Jaime's blood ran cold.
Someone knows.
Someone was there.
Someone might have seen him and Cersei.
And as Bran improved, the Kingslayer's paranoia sharpened like a blade.
JAIME FINDS THE BROKEN TOWER
It was sunset when Jaime slipped from the feast and made his way back to the old tower. The place still smelled faintly of dust and secrecy.
He scanned the ground.
And found tracks.
Large boot prints.
One heavier than the other.
As if made by a man with a metal arm.
His breath quickened.
"So… you were here."
Then he heard a voice behind him:
"Looking for someone, Kingslayer?"
Jaime froze.
He turned.
And there he saw him —
cloaked, face half-shadowed, vibranium arm glinting under the moonlight.
Leo Pendragon.
The Shadow of Winterfell.
Jaime reached instinctively for his sword.
Leo didn't move.
"You don't want to draw that," Leo said.
Jaime's eyes narrowed. "You healed the boy."
Leo didn't deny it.
"I saved a child's life," he said calmly. "Nothing more."
Jaime stepped closer.
"A child who saw things he shouldn't have."
Leo's gaze hardened.
"But he no longer remembers."
Jaime froze.
Leo spoke slowly, dangerously:
"Do you understand what that means, Jaime Lannister?"
Jaime swallowed.
If Bran remembered nothing…
then someone else did.
Someone who could have seen everything.
Someone who could destroy him.
"Are you my enemy?" Jaime asked.
Leo stepped forward until they were nearly face to face.
"No," Leo said quietly. "Unless you make me."
Jaime's hand clenched around his sword hilt.
And Leo added, voice ice-cold:
"I will not heal Bran again. That power is gone forever. You understand?"
Jaime did.
And for the first time in years,
Jaime Lannister felt fear.
ENDING BEAT
As Jaime walked away, trying to steady his breath, Leo leaned against the tower wall.
The system inside him whispered:
[WARNING]
Healing Module permanently exhausted
Any further use risks permanent host death
Ability locked
Leo exhaled, his chest heavy.
He'd saved Bran.
But at a high cost.
Winterfell slept.
The future had changed.
And the war for kings…
for dragons…
for the realm…
had already begun.
nation.