Prince Bran Stark
Prince Brandon Stark / Elendil Telcontar
Prince Brandon Stark, known commonly as Bran and in the elven tongue as Prince Elendil Telcontar. The fourth child and second son of King Eddard and Queen Catelyn, born and raised at Kaer Invaerne. He has an older brother Robb, a younger brother Rickon, two older sisters Sansa and Arya, an older half brother Jon and a foster brother Theon.
Bran was named for Ned's elder brother, Brandon, who was brutally killed in battle and postumously beheaded by the pale orc Azog at the climax of the first battle in the war of Azog's Uprising. He is only called "Brandon" by his mother when he has done something wrong. The name Brandon carried much more weight on the boy's shoulders than just his uncle's legacy, it was also the name of many Dúnedain kings of the house of Stark dating back to King Brandon the first, known commonly as Bran Bulider. Bran's elven name also holds a strong history, being Elendil, the name of the first Númenórean king to set foot in Westeros and establish the kingdom of Gondor and the name of the Gondorian King who fought alongside the Starks in the war of the Long Night and grandfather to King Brandon's wife, Princess Reniriel, merging the bloodlines. The names of Brandon and Elendil are names that date back to the foundation of Brandon's bloodline and way heavily on what he will do for his line in his lifetime.
Growing up in Kaer Invaerne, Bran was tutored with his siblings by Luwin the court druid who they refered to by his druid name Mousesack. They were also trained in martial practices by the castle's master-at-arms, Rodrick Cassel.
Brandon's older sister Arya was permitted by their father to join her brothers in martial training and horseback riding and always showed off her own skills being better than Bran, better at riding, archery and other such practices, though Bran was still very good but never quite as good as Arya. The only skill Bran excelled in that Arya could not match was climbing the walls of Kaer Invaerne. Since he was very litte, his favorite hobby had been climbing the walls of Kaer Invaerne, using its old rooftops and passageways to get around, scaring Catelyn to death. Once, she pleaded for him to stop, and extracted a promise for him to do so, which he kept for barely a fortnight. When Bran, wracked with guilt, confessed this to Eddard, he ordered his son to the godswood courtyard on the higher slopes of the mountain to cleanse himself, where Bran was eventually found asleep in the tallest tree. Ned then accepted his climbing, but told him to try to not let his Queen mother see him.
When Bran was eight, he went to the woodland realm of King Thranduil where he went into the wolfswood as all Starks did and found an orphaned direwolf pup whom he took in as his own and named Summer.
As a child, Bran idolised Gandalf, revering the grey wizard as the most amazing and mystical being he'd ever known and once asked the wandering wizard if Bran could be his apprentice but Gandalf laughed and told the boy he expected Bran would go on to be something much greater than a mere wizard which only furthered Bran's delight of Gandalf.
At a young age, Bran began having prophetic dreams and seeing the world through the eyes of his wolf summer while he slept, Mousesack assessed these abilities and concluded Bran was capable of Skinwalking and greenseeing, skills taught to the first men and the Númenóreans by the Dryads and suggested Bran begin training with Mousesack to control his abilities. Bran often went with Mousesack to the various Druid sanctuaries around Arnor where he met many Dryads and also crossed paths a few times with Gandalf's peer, the wizard Radagast the Brown. While Bran had great respect and understanding for the druids, he did not wish to become one himself as was his right to choose his own path, but Bran did continue to study with the Dryads and Druids to control his gifts and made life long friends among their circles.
Mousesack, Theon and Bran even visited Skellige together once where they met with the druids and stayed at Theon's family castle where his uncle Victarion ruled in his stead.
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