The training yard in Winterfell was packed. The news that Jon Snow and Robb Stark were about to duel had spread like wildfire throughout the castle. Everyone who could spare the time had arrived to witness the duel.
"Ned," Catelyn said. "I do not think whatever is happening is a good thing. You should put an end to it. This should not happen."
Lord Stark and Lady Stark were standing on the balcony of Winterfell. Ned too had somewhat similar thoughts. But he knew that he could not, and should not, interfere in a duel between two men.
Even if he did stop the duel before it even began, Robb's pride would be hurt. It was Robb who was the weaker opponent here.
The world would see it as a father trying to save his son. It would be a humiliation for Robb. Ned knew that his son could take a defeat, even a humiliating one. But his son could not take a humiliation emanating from cowardice.
"There is nothing to worry about, Catelyn," Ned responded. "It is just a duel. And if anything goes wrong, I am here."
Though his own voice lacked conviction. Catelyn did not say anything further.
In the training yard, Robb Stark and Jon Snow stood facing each other. While an amused expression was plastered on Jon's face, Robb was intense and serious. From all the tales of bravery and skill he had heard about Jon, Robb knew that he had a very slim, or probably non-existent, chance to defeat him. But this did not mean he lacked conviction. He was willing to give it his all.
"Huh!" Robb let out a grunt and charged straight at Jon. He had his sword raised high and his posture was great. For a man of his age, he was doing brilliantly. But his opponent was levels above being brilliant.
Just as Robb closed the distance, bringing his sword diagonally towards Jon's neck, Jon ducked. It was a very simple movement but completely effective. The sword passed harmlessly above his head. And before Robb could pull back his momentum, he felt a prickly sensation against his stomach. It was Jon's sword. Even while ducking, Jon had made his move.
Robb had lost. It did not take Jon more than a single move to defeat Robb. The spectators in the yard, though they had expected this outcome, were shocked. They rubbed their eyes in disbelief. No one was able to process how quickly everything had happened.
"You lose, Robb," Jon remarked softly. "While everything you did was good. Your posture was great. Your movement was measured. But you left a lot of openings for me to strike. It might have worked on an opponent who was on the same level as you. But against a far superior opponent, it is bound to fail."
Robb gritted his teeth in frustration, but he did not lose motivation. He pulled back and faced Jon once again.
"Once more," he bellowed and charged straight at Jon.
This time, though he was aggressive again, Robb was cautious. He was not overcharging and was paying attention to his own openings. But the result did not change. It again took one move from Jon, and Robb found Jon's sword sticking at his neck. He had lost.
Jon once again remarked on the mistakes that Robb was making. Robb improved and attacked again. And he lost once again.
And this continued. For a long time. Robb was defeated more than a dozen times. In the same fashion.
If people had considered his first defeat in one move to be bad luck, then through the next rounds they witnessed the gulf between Robb and Jon.
And yet no one insulted or mocked Robb, not even inwardly. Because they knew and could tell that Robb was a fine warrior. It was just that Jon Snow was on a whole different level. They knew that if it had been then duelling Jon Snow, they would have been humiliated even worse.
.
.
.
Robb was frustrated. He was livid with himself. But he could still not fathom how the gulf between him and Jon could be so wide. After losing in multiple rounds, they had stopped the duel. Though Robb had wanted to try more, he knew that even if he dueled Jon hundreds of times, the outcome was not going to change. He had no option but to accept the truth.
After the duel got over, everyone dispersed. Robb, not in the mood to talk to anyone or hear useless words of advice or motivation from anyone, had come straight to the Godswood. He was not a very big devotee of the Gods, old or new, but the Godswood was a place where he found solace. And solace and calmness were all that he needed now.
He was sitting against one of the roots of the weirwood tree with the images of his duel with Jon constantly flashing in his mind when the sound of footsteps snapped his attention. It was Jon. Robb's eyes widened a bit in surprise. Jon was the last person Robb expected to come looking for him.
"Robb," Jon said with a smile as he approached closer.
"Jon," Robb replied gruffly and awkwardly.
"What do you feel?" Jon questioned. "Sad? Angry? Demotivated?"
Robb remained silent for a few moments.
"I do not know," he shrugged. "But surely not demotivated."
Jon also plopped himself against one of the roots directly facing Robb. The duo remained in silence for a few moments. It was broken by Robb.
"Jon," Robb questioned. "Do you dislike me?"
Jon was caught slightly off guard by this question. He sure had come here to gauze Robb feelings towards him but he had not been expecting a question like this.
"Why would I dislike you?" Jon questioned back.
"Maybe because I did not take a stand for you when I needed to. Maybe because I am partly responsible for you leaving Winterfell," Robb said. "I very vividly remember the incident that changed everything. When Theon had insulted your mother."
"I know even before that event it was not that we were iron brothers or something like that, but we were surely closer. We talked. We played. We pranked. We shared things," he continued. "But after my father passed the verdict where Theon was only made to apologise for his deed, everything changed."
"We grew distant," he continued. "It was as if we stopped talking. Our relationship froze."
"And I did not care. At that time, I was too young to realize my mistake. I thought that being with Theon was cooler or something like that. I believed or was made to believe that Theon as heir to the Iron Island was equal to me in status. And you were not."
"He was older. He knew things which I as a child did not know. He showed me tricks and pranks. He taught me how to abuse," Robb said with a chuckle. "And I found all this fascinating. Intriguing."
"I did not realise that getting away from you was a mistake I was making," Robb said. "I realised everything only after you were gone."
"The day I learned that you had run away from Winterfell, something hollow settled in my heart. It was as if fate had snatched a brother from me. I just knew it somehow."
"Maybe if I had taken a stand for you, you would not have run away," he remarked. "Maybe we would have grown together."
"There are a lot of maybes you speak Robb," Jon sighed heavily. "A lot of maybes."
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