Brandon Stark, commonly known as Bran, is the second son and fourth child of Catelyn and Eddard Stark. He is seven years old at the start of A Game of Thrones.
Appearance and Character
Bran has his mother's coloring, with the thick auburn hair and deep blue eyes associated with House Tully.
Bran is a pleasant young boy, regarded fondly by the people of Winterfell. Before he was crippled, he had a significant fascination with climbing and exploring the castle walls and ramparts. Lady Catelyn often said that Bran could climb before he could walk, which Bran supposed was true. After his fall, Bran's rapidly worsening situation forced him to become far more solemn and apprehensive than the cheerful child he had once been.
Biography
A Game of Thrones
Bran is riding with his brothers and father to witness his father execute a deserter from the Night's Watch. On the return trip to Winterfell, he and his father discuss the execution and how someday Bran will be Robb's bannerman. They are interrupted by Jon and Robb, who have just discovered a direwolf mother lying dead in the snow. The direwolf left six live pups, one for each of the Stark siblings to adopt. Bran's pup is grey with golden eyes, but he cannot decide on a name for him for a long while.
During King Robert Baratheon's visit, Bran is in a state of excitement to leave for King's Landing. He dreams of someday becoming a knight of the Kingsguard, and is thrilled at the prospect of travelling the Kingsroad by horse. On the day before his departure, Bran is saddened, and attempts to find a way to bid goodbye to his home. He decides to go climbing, scaling an abandoned tower. He is surprised to hear voices, and discovers Ser Jaime Lannister and Queen Cersei engaged in a sexual act. With a single shove, Jaime pushes Bran from the window with the intent to protect his secret by killing the boy. Bran survives, but in an unstable and crippled state.
While Bran is in a comatose state, an unknown assassin sets fire to a wing of the castle as a diversion, and tries to kill Bran with a Valyrian steel knife. Lady Catelyn rises to Bran's defense, fighting off Bran's would-be assailant. The man protests, asserting that Catelyn should not be there and that killing Bran would be merciful. The then-unnamed Summer intervenes, preventing further attack from the assassin by ripping out his throat.
Bran lay in his coma, dreaming falling and a mysterious three-eyed crow who tells him to open his eye and fly. Struggling internally, Bran finally manages to awaken, to announce that Summer shall be the name of his direwolf. But all is not well, as Bran will be crippled for life and will never walk again. He has no recollection of the events leading up to his fall.
In a later visit, Tyrion Lannister gives Bran a design for a saddle which will allow him to ride despite his new limitations. But on his first ride outside Winterfell's walls, Bran is captured by a group of wildlings that want to steal his horse and ransom him back to Winterfell. However, Bran is rescued by Robb, Theon, and the direwolves before he can come to further injury by the wildlings, who are promptly killed. Osha, a spearwife, is kept alive. She and Bran speak in the Godswood and become friends.
Bran falling from the tower and dreaming of the three eyed crow
A Clash of Kings
When Theon Greyjoy invades Winterfell Bran surrenders the Keep to him to protect the people of Winterfell, but not wishing to be a hostage, he plans an escape with Osha, Hodor, Rickon, and the two Reed children. Bran heads north to the wall, where his visions are guiding him. The Wildling woman Osha takes his brother Rickon and his direwolf, Shaggydog a different way, because a dying Maester Luwin tells them they need to separate so one will make it through if something happens to the other. Bran travels with Hodor and the brother and sister duo Meera and Jojen Reed. Jojen is gifted with "green dreams" and uses clues given in his dreams to guide the party North.
Bran, along with the rest of the Stark children, is a warg. Throughout the series he inhabits the body of his own direwolf as well as Hodor. In a dream Bran is promised the ability to fly by a three eyed crow. Jojen, using his green dreams, promises to help take Bran to meet the three eyed crow and become a trained warg.
Bran and party have a close encounter with Jon and Ghost but by the end Jon only saw Bran's wolf and continues to believe him dead. Bran's group comes into contact with Samwell Tarly and Gilly just after arriving at one of the castles at the Wall. He shows them a tunnel passing through the wall. They force Sam into keeping their survival of Theon's invasion a secret from Jon Snow.
By the end of A Dance with Dragons Bran, Jojen, Meera and Hodor come into contact with the Children of the Forest and one such woman leads them to the fabled Three Eyed Crow. The "crow" is actually an old warg whose body has merged with a godswood tree. This warg begins teaching Bran how to see through the eyes of the godswood and Bran sees several scenes in the godswood in Winterfell, including one of his father asking for the strength to deal with Catelyn Stark's hatred of the bastard, Jon Snow. He sees his father as a child playing with a young Lyanna who looks like Arya.
