Maria Mormont
Lady of Bear Island, Right Hand of the Queen Maria Mormont (a.k.a. Mother Bear)
Personality
Maria wears ringmail under her furs, boiled leather under that, and sheepskin under the leather, turned inside out for warmth, even while sleeping. The only time she deviates from that is when she travels too far south, and even then she only forgoes the furs. This alone can tell you much about her as a person. She is dedicated to the old gods, and exceedingly loyal to House Stark. She is considered kind, trustworthy, and honorable but is also stubborn, short-tempered, and willful at times when she feels a slight to her family or to the North.History
Maria was orphaned at a young age and forced to take control of the house when her parents died fighting the Ironborn in 407 AC. At the age of only 13 she inherited the title of Lady of Bear Island, and like her ancestor Lyanna Mormont she took to the role without question or complaint, quickly growing into leadership and becoming wise beyond her years as she eventually reached adulthood. She often calls her parents stupid for charging into battle since it got themselves killed, but she still respects them for defending the north from those that sought to rape and pillage. She believes that their hearts were in the right place, they just let themselves make too many mistakes. Her parents tried to fight the Ironborn on the seas while heavily outnumbered and with ships that individually just could not compare to the islanders' ships. In the early years of her rule Maria did what her parents could not by bringing together many woodworkers and coastal settlements and keeps along the western shores with the collective goal of defending against Ironborn raids. By 418 AC, at age 24, she had built a considerable fleet to match the ships of the Iron Fleet and fend them off before they could ever reach the northern coasts if they dared to make another attack. And she always partially hoped they would attack once they felt confident in their newfound naval strength, hoping they would give her the chance at revenge. But, as it would turn out, they never did. In 420 AC, Maria led the naval push against Ræva Ryswell when her slaughter was made known, originally intending to serve as a blockade to prevent a counter attack further north while other forces marched on the enemy's seat of power, but was forced to face the majority of the rebelling forces when Ræva personally led them in a charge against the well established blockade. Their sheer numbers meant it would not be an easy victory, but they were more suited to fighting on land and had little chance of winning regardless. Even though no one knows who struck the actual killing blow, having to essentially kill the daughter of someone she greatly respected was something she was not prepared for, and it was compounded by the weight of her new role as Hand of the Queen in the following weeks. War with the Vale, the conflict between the Free Folk and House Costayne, the building tensions with the South.. Maria spent much of her early life dealing with crisis after crisis. And yet, through that crisis she would find the one thing she never thought to pursue. Maria, while not necessarily ugly or unattractive, was not conventionally beautiful for much of her life, as is common for women of Bear Island. Most from the isle grow up strong from the tough conditions, but bulking up like that has a way of changing their development when it comes to appearance. Combined with her personality, Maria was not exactly swimming in suitors, and with all the responsibility she shouldered she didn't pay that fact much thought. Many thought House Mormont would go extinct at any moment, for if she were to die before having children, there would be no heir beyond her uncle, Jorah, who likewise was thought to never have children again after his first family died years ago. But fate would have other plans. The very crisis that commanded the most of her attention, Ræva's Revolt, would be the thing that changed her life for the better. Ræva's bastard son, Rævor Snow, would be delivered to Lyanna Stark by Alexander Bracken as a sign of good will between their two Kingdoms, and the young boy would ultimately be made Maria's ward and placed into her care. Ser Larkin, a knight in the service of Alexander at the time, had grown fond of the boy and wanted to ensure his wellbeing. Having never met Maria, she came off as cold and harsh at first, and he feared that she might mistreat Rævor for one reason or another. Having no way to stop the boy from falling into the northerners hands, Ser Larkin took drastic action and swore his sword in service to the young Rævor Snow, pledging to remain by his side and ensure these people never hurt him. Maria saw Larkin as a nuisance at first. A naive and idealistic knight who probably didn't know the first thing about how the world truly worked; Someone that was only there to make things harder for her. But as time would go on, both of their first impressions would prove to be faulty. Slowly, over the course of a few years, they began to see through the surface of each other's personality, and eventually they came to understand that they were two sides of the same coin. They shared many values, and even those topics where there was a difference of opinion they at least agreed on many individual points. What started as a relationship of circumstance and mutual distrust inevitably blossomed into a love story for the ages between two people who were thought to never marry, much less to marry each other... and yet, that's exactly what happened. Maria now spends half her time continuing to fulfill her duties as Right Hand, and the other half of her time finding opportunities to be with her newfound family. But even when unable to be at home, the people of Bear Island are quick to rally behind Ser Larkin and assist with taking care of the 4 young Mormonts, so she is able to rest easy knowing that she can focus on her tasks at hand without worry.Family Ties
Immediate Family
- Uncle: Jorah Mormont
Year of Birth
394 AC
35 Years old
Children
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