I easily found an out of the way spot and equipped my uniform, then I walked back into the godswood of Winterfell. A few people saw me and looked surprised at what I was wearing. I ignored them and went to the heart tree, knelt briefly, and walked around it to the teleportation circle and used it to jump to the one I had made on the main land mass of the Iron Islands.

It was a spot I had picked because it was out of the way and was easy to ward against anyone else finding it. I walked out of there and down the main road of the capitol. A whole bunch of women saw me and most let out shouts of thanks, a few waved, and one brave woman with medium length wavy red hair walked over to me and held out her hand.

I remembered her being one of the women on the first fishing boat to come into the harbour. She had gathered everyone I had saved in the closest village she had been held in and she encouraged them to go to Lady Mormont.

“You don't want me to greet you like a lady, do you?” I asked with a smile.

“Only if you want me to slap you.” She said with a laugh.

I took her hand and shook it. “You know you don't have to thank me.”

“I know.” She said and smirked, then stepped close and pulled me in to press her chest to my face as she hugged me. “You're a good boy, Jon.” She said and one of her hands pet my hair, then sighed. “I just wish you didn't see what happened to us.”

“I've seen worse, Maeve.” I said and startled her by knowing her name. “I'm both sorry and glad that I arrived when I did, otherwise Lady Mormont wouldn't be who she is right now.”

Maeve let me go and looked into my eyes. “You... would have done it anyway... even if my lady hadn't been taken.”

“No, I was going to do it anyway, no matter what.” I said. “It was just luck that I found her here when I went to take Balon's head.”

Maeve sucked in a sharp breath. “YOU would have become Lord of the Iron Islands!”

I smiled and saluted her, then walked towards the proper keep being built around the kind of pathetic place Balon had considered a proper home for a lord to live. It was nice to see Lady Mormont putting her riches to good use.

No one else stopped me as I approached the worksite. Two of the women wearing a mix of finery and armor that guarded the entrance gave me searching looks. They didn't stop me, either. I nodded to them and went inside through the door and went to where I felt the small gathering of people. The room was small and was quite full of women and a couple of men around a table of poorly drawn maps.

I knocked on the doorframe and all talking stopped as everyone turned to look at me. “I hope I'm not interrupting anything important.”

Lady Mormont smiled, her second daughter named Alysane gave me a very intense scrutiny, her third daughter Lyra looked very happy to see me again, and her fourth daughter Jorelle had a blank face, probably because she was only five namedays old and had no opinion of me. The baby basket at the side of the room showed me her youngest Lyanna, who was barely two, was also present.

The two men were Robett and Galbart Glover, of House Glover from Deepwood Motte, the closest port town to Bear Island, and the boy with them was Larence Snow fostering under Galbart. All three of them gave me very sharp looks and I had the distinct feeling they didn't like having me there.

It wasn't until I touched their minds that I found out it was because the Mormont ladies were too focused on me and my achievements and they completely ignored the other men and their advances. The boy copied their example and didn't like that Lyra only talked about me and nothing else.

“Boy.” Lady Mormont said and walked over to me. She didn't try to hug me or anything, though. “We were just discussing how to set up proper defenses for the Iron Islands to stop any more raiders from preying on us.”

“That's easy. Have shacks built that look abandoned overlooking the best approaches to the harbours and station a small group of archers inside. Rotate them on a schedule to keep watch and sleep, so there is always one person ready and on guard. If they see anything, they wake the rest and the entire group can handle any small raiding party with normal arrows or flaming ones to take out their boats from under them.”

Everyone in the room stared at me, especially Lady Mormont. The desire was clear on her face and her second daughter's face started to look the same way. She was twelve and was stocky enough to live up to her mother's nickname of She-bear.

“If you don't have the people to do that right away, you can sink a wreck in the most likely approaches that only you and the people you trust will know about. Any boat going through will hit the masts and scrape their bottom on them, making a huge amount of noise and will ruin their raid before it even starts.” I added.

Now Lyra was giving me a similar look and her sister's blank expression changed to a smile. The two men on the other hand, looked shocked. The boy didn't understand the significance of my words and kept glaring at me.

Lady Mormont slid a hand over my shoulders and pulled me over to the small table. “Why don't you show us the best places for those great ideas?”

I took out a writing instrument and started fixing the badly drawn map. “If we start here in the main harbour, this is the best spot for the fake shack...” I started talking and they all watched as I made a much more accurate map of the surrounding area and pointed out the best spots that a ship could sneak in and be ambushed, instead of the other way around.

For the next hour, I educated them in shipboard tactics and proper land defenses. At one point, Lady Mormont had even nursed her youngest and didn't ask for me to stop and ignored the protesting sounds from the men and the other boy. Of course, I ignored her bare breast, because it was a natural thing to feed a baby when it was hungry.

The looks of approval from all the females in the room grew to the point that they were all smiling warmly at me. When it was time for supper, I finished the lesson and the maps on the table were almost library quality. I copied them for myself, too. We left the small room and went out into the courtyard and they copied the same seating setup I had done for the refugees and we were served food first.

The talk was nearly the same as it was in Winterfell's Great Hall, with the smallfolk talking about their day and how well things were now, with so much more room and better resources. It was thanks to Lady Mormont sharing the wealth with her people instead of hoarding it like the previous Lord Mormont had and everyone was grateful to her for it.

Whe the meal was over, Lady Mormont handed the baby to her second daughter and stood. “Jon, walk with me.”

I stood and bowed slightly to the rest of her family, nodded at the Glover men and they frowned in return, and I followed the woman as she walked away and over towards the harbour. I was not surprised when she led me to one of the spots I had chosen to set up an overlook station and she stood there and looked out over the harbour. It was a great view, too.

“You're going to refuse to foster under me, aren't you?” Lady Mormont said instead of beating around the bush.

“What makes you say that?” I asked, just to humor her.

Lady Mormont huffed and turned to look at me. “You just taught everyone in that room more information than any of us ever knew about defending ourselves from shipboard attacks.” She said and glared at me, only there was no heat in it. “There's nothing I could teach you that you don't already know.”

I shook my head. “I won't say that I'd be wasting my time if I stayed here.”

“I can see that now.” Lady Mormont said and turned back to look out over the water. “Now say what you want to say.”

“I would be wasting my talents if the only thing I did was foster under you.” I said and she nodded. “I can help so many people with the setup I have now back in the Shield Islands, including you.”

“How?” Lady Mormont asked and waved back at one of the women on the closest fishing boats when they waved first.

“I've built sturdy glasshouses that can survive the harshest winters, even on Bear Island.” I said and she caught her breath. “I used the seeds of the food you made me take to start growing them. Since a glasshouse can be set up as a copy of the place the things grew...”

“...you're giving me the plans to make my own?” Lady Mormont asked.

“I could if you wanted them.” I said and she turned away from the harbour to give me a pointed look. “It'll be faster if you tell me where you want them and I'll have them done by the end of the week here in the capitol. The rest of the islands will take a lot more time and eventually you won't have to have food and other things shipped in.”

“Animals?” She asked.

“I have several mated pairs, so I'll have more by the time I have yours built. It might be easier to order them from the locals, assuming they don't screw you over. If they do, kill them for betraying you and take all their animals as compensation.”

Lady Mormont blinked her eyes in surprise at me. “That's a harsh response, and I know how ironic that is, coming from me.”

I smiled. “It's their fault for poking a mother bear trying to take care of her cubs.”

Lady Mormont barked a laugh. “You've got guts to call me a bear to my face.”

I reached out and pet her bear blanket cloak. “I did give you that, didn't I?”

“Yes, you did.” Lady Mormont said and stepped close. “I want one of my daughters to claim you.”

I tilted my head slightly. “You don't mean for her to marry me when I'm of age, do you?”

“No, just having your blood in my future grandchildren is enough.” She admitted.

“They'll all be bastards.” I reminded her.

Lady Mormont scoffed. “I don't hold to all that bastard nonsense. My daughters are my daughters, no matter who their fathers were.”

It was my turn to blink my eyes in surprise at that revelation.

Lady Mormont laughed at my expression. “My husband died a long time ago, boy.” She said and gave me a sexy look. “I didn't, and a woman has needs.”

All I could do was nod. What else would I do? She just told me she didn't care if I was Ned's bastard and that was pretty rare from someone from the North.

“Then, when its time, I'll stop by and see who is available.” I promised.

She gave me a pointed look. “You better stop by a lot more than that. Even if we don't need a full commitment, we still want to spend time with you.”

Since I couldn't argue against that, I nodded.

“Good!” Lady Mormont said and clapped me on the shoulder. “I'll have my second eldest give you a hug and maybe a kiss if you can come up with a song for us.”

I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed as her arm draped over my shoulders and she led me back towards the keep.

“You've done it for House Stark of the North and House Tyrell in The Reach. Why wouldn't I ask you to do it for House Mormont of the Iron Islands?” Lady Mormont asked me.

Again, since I couldn't argue against it, I nodded.

“I can't wait to hear whatever you come up with.” Lady Mormont said and we talked about the best places for glasshouses to be placed, both to catch the most sun and for people to reach.

*

As many people as possible had gathered together in the capitol of the Iron Islands. When Lady Mormont sends a message and politely asks you to attend to an important meeting, it didn't take long for nearly everyone in the entire population of the Iron Islands, to show up.

The surprising thing was the stage set up, a group of three women, one with aharm, one with a hand drum, and the last between them holding the music sheets. There was something like a sideways cabinet with white keys on it near them, too. No one knew what it was, only that their savior was sitting in front of it with his own sheet music.

Lady Mormont announced that like the Song of the North, and the Song of the Reach, Jon Snow had composed a Song of the Mormont Islands. Everyone cheered and celebrated for several minutes at the renaming of their home. When they calmed down, she motioned to the group and sat down with her daughters to hug and hold them.

The odd and shockingly mellow notes of the 'piano' echoed from the nearby buildings and everyone could easily hear it, as well as their savior when he started to sing.

“I know your pain.” Jon softly sang.

“I know your pain.” The three young women echoed even softer.

“Why were you locked away up in those chains?” “Those chains.”

Everyone felt their previous bindings and shivered, even Lady Mormont.

“No one can change your life, except for you. Don't ever let any-one step all over you.” Jon softly sang. “Just open your heart, and your mind. Mmm hmm. Is it really fair to feel, this way inside?”

“Whoa.” The three women breathed.

“Someday somebody's gonna make you wanna turn around and say goodbye.” Jon sang faster. “Until then, baby, are you gonna let them hold you down and make you cry? Don't you know?”

“Don't you know? Things can change. Things can go your way.” The four of them sang.

“If you hoooold oooon, for one more day. Can you hooold oooon for one more day? Things will go your way... hold on for one more day.” Jon sang alone and played the piano as the three young women strummed the harp, tapped the hand drum, and the third hummed.

“You could sustain.” Jon sang softly.

“You could sustain.” The three women echoed softly. “Mmm.”

“Or are you comfortable with the pain?” Jon asked. “You've got no one to blame for your unhappiness...”

“No, baby!” The three women breathed.

“...now that you've been saved from that whole mess.” Jon sang with satisfaction.

“Ooooo!” They added.

“Let your worries pass you by...”

“Let your worries pass you by.” The three echoed.

“Don't you think it's worth your time, to change your mind?” Jon sang.

“No-oh, no-oo.”

“Someday somebody's gonna make you wanna turn around and say goodbye.” Jon sang faster. “Until then, baby, are you gonna let them hold you down and make you cry? Don't you know?”

“Don't you know? Things can change. Things can go your way.” The four of them sang. “If you hoooold oooon, for one more day. Can you hooold oooon for one more day? Things will go your way...”

“...things will go your way...” The woman without an instrument sang softly.

“Hold on for one more day.” Jon sang and turned his head from the piano to look right at the audience as he kept playing, shocking them. “I know that there is pain, but you... hold on for one more day, and you... break free from the chains.”

The entire audience felt like he was speaking to each of them.

“Yeah, I know that there is pain, but you... hold on for one more day, and you... break free! Right from the chains!” Jon sang.

They all felt their mental bindings break free and their feelings of being captured and trapped fell away and disappeared.

“Someday somebody's gonna make you wanna turn around and say goodbye.” Jon belted out loudly.

“Say goodbye!” The three women sang loudly as well.

“Until then, baby, are you gonna let them hold you down and make you cry? Don't you know?”

“Don't you know?” “Know!” “Things can change.” “Know!” “Things can go your way.” The four of them sang. “If you hoooold oooon, for one more day.” “Yeah!” “Can you hooold ooooooooon?”

“Don't you know? Things can change. Things can go your way.” The four of them sang softly, as if winding down, their energy spent. “If you hoooold oooon, for one more day. Can you hooold oooon. Can you hold on...”

The piano sounds trailed off and silence fell. It was deathly quiet for a moment, then another.

Someone stood up and it was Maeve with tears in her eyes and a determined look on her face. “Three cheers for Lady Mormont's gift!”

“Hurray!” “Hurray!” “Hurray!” Everyone's voices echoed.

Lady Mormont stood and her eyes locked onto Jon Snow's. “We've all been given a gift today.”

Everyone cheered and Maege waved them to be quiet and took a deep breath and let it out. Her second daughter reached over and wiped at her damp face with a cloth. She hadn't felt herself crying and didn't question it, because she felt emotionally lighter than she had ever felt before in her life.

“Just like the last gift of freedom we were given, this is also one we can never repay.” Lady Mormont stated.

“Lady Mormont.” Jon stood and gave her a deep bow. “Gifts should never have to be repaid.”

Lady Mormont knew what he meant and she nodded. He would only give her what she needed and not what she wanted. After what he had just done for her, inspiring her people to fight on for as long as they could, she fully accepted his decision.