of A Dance with Dragons (2011): Description Bran is seven years old at the beginning of A Game of Thrones (1996). He is the fourth child and second son of Lord Eddard "Ned" Stark of Winterfell, Hand of the King, and his wife Lady Catelyn, and has five siblings: an older brother Robb, two older sisters Sansa and Arya, a younger brother Rickon, and an older illegitimate half-brother Jon Snow. Bran is constantly accompanied by his direwolf Summer, the intellectually disabled stableboy Hodor (who carries him around after his crippling), and the Reed siblings Meera and Jojen. Martin describes Bran as favoring his mother in appearance, having the thick auburn hair and deep blue eyes of the Tullys. According to Martin, Bran is strong willed, but a sweet and thoughtful boy, well-loved by everyone at Winterfell. Before his fall he enjoyed climbing and exploring the walls and ramparts of the castle. He grew up wanting to be a knight for the kings guard, but those dreams were quickly brought to an end when Bran had to face the fact that he will never walk again.; He is also dutiful and tough-minded. With his dreams of being a knight dashed by the crippling attempt on his life in A Game of Thrones, duty forces Bran to overcome his new limitations and embrace his new abilities. Although he doesn't realize his newfound powers at first, he grows to discover what he can accomplish. His gradual acceptance of his seemingly-prophetic visions (called the "greensight") and his ability to psychically inhabit his direwolf Summer (which marks him as a type of skinchanger known as a warg) show his growing maturity and his worth beyond the loss of his legs. He also manages to enter Hodor's mind, and later skinchanges into crows and even weirwood trees under the mentorship of the Three-Eyed Crow. Storylines A Game of Thrones In A Game of Thrones (1996), Bran accidentally sees Queen Cersei Lannister and her twin brother Ser Jaime having sex; whereupon he is pushed from the window by Jaime to keep the incest a secret, but he survives in a coma. Although it is speculated by some characters that Jamie and Cersei pushed Bran, there were no public accusations made against the crown. While Bran remains unconscious, a fire is set at an opposite tower as a distraction while an attempt is made on his life. Catelyn,