Chapter 135: The Conditions of Marriage

In the courtyard of Barrow Hall, the marriage between Lady Barbrey and Fellan was met with firm opposition from Roderick Ryswell, Lord of the Rills.

The Lord of the Rills glared at Barbrey, "You are a daughter of the Rills, and now the head of House Dustin; you should respect your status. How can you marry a horse thief like Fellan?"

Fellan leaned forward, "Lord Roderick, I am very willing to compensate for the loss of the warhorse I stole all those years ago, and I ask for your forgiveness."

"Forgiveness?" Fire rose in the eyes of the Lord of the Rills, "In the Rills, a horse thief is more detestable than a poacher. You petty thief, do you think you can gain forgiveness by paying a few coins? You should have a hand cut off, or be exiled to The Wall to guard it alongside those bandits and thieves."

Lady Barbrey suppressed her anger, "Father, when Fellan was a stable boy in the Rills as a child, he was a horse thief, but he has long since turned over a new leaf. He is a hero of the North personally appointed by Lord Eddard."

Fellan wore a purple velvet coat and a sable cloak, with a Dragonbone Longbow hanging at his waist—a gift bestowed upon him by Eddard. Even among a group of nobles, he appeared exceptionally resplendent.

Eddard told the people of House Dustin and House Ryswell, "Everyone, Fellan is a nobleman now too. In what way is he unworthy of Barbrey?"

"Fellan is nothing but a piece of human scum that emerged from the war." Barbrey's younger brother, the Heir of the Rills, Haurson Ryswell, looked at Fellan with contempt, "He wears velvet and uses a Dragonbone Longbow, but that cannot change his base origins."

Barbrey's second younger brother, Rill Ryswell, chimed in, "Exactly. Some grooms in our Rills stables recognize Fellan; he was just a stable boy, a household slave of my Rills. For a household slave to want to marry my sister is like a donkey pursuing a warhorse. How could this be possible?"

Jason Dustin raised his fist, "Horse thief, get out of Barrow Hall!"

The people of the Dustin House of Barrowton and the Ryswell House of the Rills shouted crudely, and the sounds of "Get out!" and "Death to the horse thief!" echoed in the courtyard of Barrow Hall.

"Enough!" Eddard's voice was like a whip cracking through the air, and everyone immediately fell silent.

Eddard turned to the people of House Dustin; Jason, Steve, Delong, and Paul stood before Eddard. They all wore gray wool coats, with the crossed battle-axes and rusted crown sigil of House Dustin on their chests.

"You people of House Dustin are merely worried that if Fellan marries Lady Barbrey, the future children of Lady Barbrey and Fellan will contest the succession of House Dustin. You may rest assured on this point: the children of Lady Barbrey and Fellan will inherit Fellan's lands in Winterfell in the future, which has nothing to do with the Barrowlands."

At this, the stone hanging in the hearts of the Dustin House members fell to the ground. Paul, Jason, Steve, and Delong exchanged joyful glances.

Regarding the future heir of the Dustin House of the Barrowlands, Eddard had already discussed it with Barbrey while in Winterfell, and Barbrey herself was very clear that after she married Fellan, any children she had later would find it difficult to inherit the Barrowlands.

Fellan had no ambition for Barrowton, and Lady Barbrey was deeply loved by the people in the Barrowlands, but all of this was built upon the support of House Dustin for her.

Lady Barbrey's right to rule in Barrowton came from her late husband, William Dustin. Once she remarried Fellan, the children of Barbrey and Fellan would have no blood relation to House Dustin.

The ancient and proud House Dustin would never allow a situation where their own widow married an outsider and the resulting children seized the family inheritance. Eddard simply made it clear to the people of House Dustin to dispel their misgivings.

Steve Dustin smoothed his long hair, "The succession of the Barrowlands can only come from within House Dustin. Since Lady Barbrey's children have no right of succession to the Barrowlands and cannot touch the assets of House Dustin, I naturally will not interfere with Lady Barbrey's right to pursue marital happiness."

Having resolved the issue with the Dustin House of Barrowton, next was Barbrey's maternal family, the Ryswell House of the Rills.

Eddard turned to the Lord of the Rills, "Lord Roderick, your Ryswell House has always been prosperous. Years ago, when Barbrey was still a young girl, you wanted to marry her to my brother Brandon; after that failed, you married her to William Dustin. You and I both know this was a political marriage."

"As a daughter of the Rills, Barbrey fulfilled her duties. Now, she is over thirty, her youth is gone, and she has spent all these years sleeping alone in the lonely halls of Barrow Hall. Before meeting Fellan, she once thought she would spend the rest of her life as a widow."

"Now that Barbrey has found her own happiness and found love, and is about to step into the halls of marriage, you, as her father, should be happy for your daughter. Why must you obstruct it?"

The people of the Rills, Winterfell, and Barrow Hall all looked in unison at the Lord of the Rills. Roderick Ryswell felt the weight of everyone's gaze. He pondered for a long while and said slowly, "I certainly care about Barbrey's happiness, it is just that Barbrey should find a marriage of equal status."

"Such as whom?" Eddard smiled lightly, "In previous years, I heard you intended to marry Barbrey to the widowed Lord Walder Frey, or to the Greatjon Umber's uncles, 'Hother Whoresbane' and 'Mors Crowfood'. These are all old men. Where are there so many marriages of equal status?"

"Lord Roderick, back then you married Barbrey to William Dustin and Bethany to Roose Bolton; you certainly obtained marriages of equal status. Is equal status truly important? Now, William Dustin, Brandon, and Bethany are all dead. If Barbrey misses out on Fellan, she may never be able to marry again in her life."

The Heir of the Dreadfort, Domeric, took the hand of the Lord of the Rills, "Grandfather, Aunt's happiness is the priority. You must support her."

The Lord of the Rills looked at his grandson, thought of Bethany, and then looked at his daughter Barbrey and Fellan. He said gruffly, "Horse-stealing boy, you must treat Barbrey well, otherwise, we of the Ryswell House will not let you off."

Sansa, Arya, Helen Pyke, and Catelyn surrounded Barbrey to offer their blessings. The guards Dawson, Syrio Forel, Jon, Domeric, and Robb patted Fellan on the shoulder to congratulate him.

Eddard facilitated this marriage. With Lady Barbrey marrying the Winterfell household knight Fellan, Barrowton and the Rills would respond more actively to Winterfell's policies and calls in the future. The resistance to Eddard's reforms in the North would be greatly reduced, and the North would become more united.

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(End of chapter)