Following the mysterious death of the Hand of the King, Jon Arryn, the Northern castle of Winterfell make preparations for the arrival of King Robert Baratheon and Queen Cersei Lannister. The Great Hall is being dressed up for a large feast to welcome the king of the Seven Kingdoms and his party. The Lady of Winterfell, Catelyn Stark, catches her young son Bran Stark climbing on the rooftops of the castle, just as the royal party comes into view. He promises to stop, but his mother knows he is lying. When the Baratheon entourage enter the courtyard, a simple-minded stableboy named Hodor stands alongside the rest of House Stark’s retainers. Bran witnesses his father Lord Eddard Stark’s reunion with his old friend King Robert. Robert’s warm greetings are in stark contrast to his wife, Queen Cersei. After introductions, Robert then requests Eddard to join him in the Stark family crypts before the evening feast, so he can pay his respects to his deceased former lover, Lyanna Stark, who was Bran’s aunt. Some days later, as Bran climbs upon a nearby tower, he discovers Queen Cersei and her twin brother, Ser Jaime Lannister, engaging in sexual intercourse. Bran tries to escape, sensing danger, however, Ser Jaime grabs the boy by the shirt and pushes him off of the tower. Bran plummets to the ground, which renders him paralyzed from the waist down and without any memory of the incident.

Days later, a sleeping Bran dreams that he is practicing his archery in Winterfell's courtyard when a raven flies into the yard. Curious, Bran follows it, as it flies into the entrance to the family crypts beneath the castle. Bran then notices that the raven has three eyes before waking up in his bed, startled. Eddard’s ward, Theon Greyjoy, then arrives to summon Bran to the Great Hall as they have visitors. Bran doesn't want to see anyone, but Theon insists that his older brother, Robb Stark, has commanded it, as the acting Lord of Winterfell following Eddard’s departure to King’s Landing to act as the new Hand of the King. Theon then summons Hodor into Bran’s room in order to carry the boy down to the hall. Once inside, Bran is greeted by Tyrion Lannister, the youngest of the Lannister siblings, who is paying a visit as he heads back down to the capital. Tyrion asks Bran if he remembers anything about being pushed as Maester Luwin confirms that he cannot remember anything. Tyrion then asks Bran if he likes to ride. Bran confirms, but notes that he will not ride again due to his injury. Tyrion assures him that with the right saddle even a cripple can ride. He then hands Bran a design for a saddle. Tyrion informs that with it he can ride as well as any boy. Robb asks Tyrion why he is doing his brother a kindness as Tyrion replies that he has a weakness for “cripples, bastards and broken things.” Robb then offers Tyrion the hospitality of Winterfell, but Tyrion refuses it, saying he’d rather take his ease in the brothel in the outlying village of Winter Town.

Some weeks later, word has reached Winterfell that King Robert has died after being injured by a boar during a hunt. Bran’s father Eddard then challenged the legitimacy of Robert's heir, Prince Joffrey Baratheon, with the recently-discovered evidence of Queen Cersei’s incestuous infidelity. However, Lord Eddard is then arrested in the capital for treason and the young Prince Joffrey is coronated as the new king, which results in Robb Stark assembling the Northern bannermen to unite their armies in fighting the Lannisters. Upon Robb and Lady Catelyn’s departure, Bran and his younger brother, Rickon Stark, alone represent House Stark at Winterfell. The following day, Bran prays by the heart tree in the Godswood when he is approached by a wildling servant named Osha who tells him the Old Gods of the Forest are listening to his prayers. They are interrupted by the sudden appearance of Hodor, who was bathing and has forgotten to put his clothes back on. In seeing Hodor’s appendage, Osha remarks that he must have giant’s blood in him. Bran reminds Hodor to get dressed. Curiously, Bran then asks Osha if giants live beyond the Wall. She affirms that they do, and many other beings, though not all of them are friendly.

Weeks later, Hodor slowly trails behind in the castle courtyards, as Bran rides on Osha’s shoulders. Bran informs Osha of the recurring dream he’s been experiencing that feature a three-eyed raven. He also states that he saw his father in the crypts. Osha, however, is skeptical. Bran taunts her about her fear of the catacombs and eventually she agrees to take him down to the family crypts underneath Winterfell. Once underground, Bran recites the names of his deceased relatives as they pass by their statues. They approach the place where Lord Eddard appeared in Bran’s dream. There, they are then startled by his younger brother Rickon and his direwolf Shaggydog. Rickon eerily informs that he’s also dreamt of their father in that exact spot, to Bran’s disbelief. Bran and Osha then depart to return to the courtyard, as Osha attempts to soothe Bran’s worries about his father. As they exit the crypts, they cross paths in the courtyard with a distraught Maester Luwin, who bears bad news. Bran is then informed that Lord Eddard Stark has been executed in the capital for treason when denying the claim of King Joffrey Baratheon. This leaves the future of House Stark in danger, now with Robb and Catelyn at war with the Lannisters, and Bran’s sisters, Sansa and Arya Stark, held captive in King’s Landing.

Several months later, Bran dreams that he is his direwolf Summer and can see the world through the wolf’s eyes, as he stalks through the Godswood and looks up at a red comet. He goes to the pool next to the heart tree and looks down at his reflection, staring into the eyes of his wolf. As result of his curiosity towards the dream, the following day Bran has Hodor carry him out to the godswood. The wildling Osha accompanies them and finds a plant that can be used to make a pain-relieving tea, pointedly informing Bran of their healing properties. Bran curtly informs Osha that he does not feel any pain as she then retorts in saying that he is lucky this is the case. She asks Bran if he has had more strange dreams, though he lies when claiming that he does not dream at all. He changes the subject to the comet, saying that he has heard men say it is an omen favoring his brother Robb in the war against the Lannister. Osha informs that she has heard people say the comet is Lannister red and favors their enemies. She then adds that she also heard a stable boy say the comet was blood red and marked the death of Lord Eddard. Hodor then kneels by the pool as Osha helps Bran to the ground by its edge, affectionately stroking his hair. She tells him that stars do not fall for men and that a red comet signifies dragons. Bran stares at his reflection in the water and asserts that dragons are extinct, unaware that in recent months the sole House Targaryen heir, Daenerys, has brought three dragons into the world.

Later on, Bran experiences another strange dream at Winterfell. This time he sees the castle through Summer's eyes. Meanwhile, Maester Luwin sends Hodor to rouse Bran. Summer follows Hodor to Bran's chamber and sits on his bed. Bran continues to see himself through the wolf's eyes as he awakens. Afterwards, during his lessons, Bran informs Luwin about his wolf dreams. He relates them to stories of people known as wargs that can live inside animals that he once heard from Old Nan. Luwin, however, tries to reassure Bran that they are only dreams. Bran insists that his dreams are different, reminding the maester that he and Rickon both shared the same dream of their father Eddard’s death the night before learning of his brutal demise. Luwin then shows Bran the Valyrian steel link on his maester's chain, explaining that it represents the study of the higher mysteries and asserts that, despite his studies, he never found true magic. Luwin adds that perhaps it was once a mighty force in the world but it is no longer. He then helps Bran to bed and tells him that the dragons are gone, the giants are dead and the Children of the Forest are long-forgotten.

Some weeks later, in the Great Hall, Hodor stands in the back as Bran holds court for his people. After coming to an agreement with a local shepherd, Ser Rodrik Cassel then enters to reports that Torrhen’s Square is under siege. Osha listens intently as she lights candles at the back of the room, as Bran insists that they must help their bannermen. Ser Rodrik nods in agreement and asserts that even with most of their forces fighting for Robb he can still gather two-hundred men. Luwin wonders if Rodrik needs to take so many as Bran cautions that they must protect their bannermen if they expect the bannermen to protect them. Rodrik smiles at the boy’s wisdom and Bran orders him to leave as soon as he has his men. Rodrik confidently declares that it will not take long as southerners do not do well in their territory. Afterwards, Hodor carries Bran across to the stables as Bran questions Osha about the significance of his dreams. Hodor and Osha then help Bran into his saddle that Lord Tyrion designed for him. Osha then presses him about the dreams, as Bran reports dreaming that the sea had flooded Winterfell and drowned his people, including Ser Rodrik. Osha reassures him that the sea is hundreds of miles away as she hurries to take her basket of potatoes to the kitchens. Bran then asks her what they say about a three eyed raven north of the Wall. She refuses to answer, saying only that people say all kinds of crazy things beyond the Wall.

Days later at Winterfell, Maester Luwin comes racing through a door, quickly locking it behind him. Outside he can hear cries, crashes and raised voices while he frantically sends off a messenger-raven. A band of raiders from House Greyjoy, led by Lord Eddard’s former ward, Theon Greyjoy, are seizing the undefended castle. Bran, awakened from his sleep by Theon, reminds the Greyjoy prince that he left Winterfell to fight for his brother Robb. Theon informs Bran that Robb sent him back to his home of Pyke in order to seek an alliance, however, this is not what his father Balon Greyjoy wanted and saw an opportunity knowing that Winterfell was unprotected. Theon then organized luring the remaining castle’s defenders away with a feint at Torrhen's Square. Theon then demands for Bran to surrender the castle in order to save his people. In the courtyard, Hodor stands beside Osha and Luwin as Bran submits in front of his assembled people. Ser Rodrik Cassel is captured by Theon's men, as his first mate Dagmer Cleftjaw insists that Rodrik is killed, or lose face in front of his Ironborn raiders. Theon initially botches the beheading of Ser Rodrik, requiring several hacks and a kick, horrifying the people of Winterfell. Later that evening, Osha then seduces Theon into bed, so that she can later sneak the Stark heirs out of Winterfell without him noticing. In the process of escaping with Bran, Rickon, Hodor and their direwolves, she kills one of Theon's guards in the process.

The following morning, as Theon and his men search the areas outside of Winterfell for the escapees, Summer and Shaggydog roam ahead of Hodor, Bran, Rickon and Osha along the banks of a stream. Osha regrets not bringing more food with them, but Bran asserts that it was too risky to approach the kitchens. Osha argues that the people of Winterfell love the Starks and would have done anything for them as Bran responds that he was not willing to endanger the lives of his people by exposing them to Theon’s wrath. Osha insists that young Rickon cannot survive on walnuts alone, but Rickon assures that he is fine. Hodor then cracks a walnut for him in the palms of his hands. Osha frets that they have been walking for hours, declaring that even Hodor will tire eventually. Hodor responds in his usual fashion, by repeating his name aloud, as Osha affectionately calls him a sweet giant. The party then crest a hill, and Bran asks them to wait, recognizing a distant farm. He says that it belongs to the shepherd who he recently assigned two orphan boys to. Rickon remembers the boys and adds that they will help them. Bran is dubious about risking their safety, however, Osha warns that Theon will be tracking them with hounds and that they cannot outrun the Ironborn men forever.

Some time later, after Theon cannot locate the escapees whereabouts, he fakes the deaths of both Bran and Rickon using the bodies of the two young boys he captured from the nearby farm. The boys are burned so badly that they are unrecognizable and are hung outside in the courtyard for the people of Winterfell to see, believing them to be Bran and Rickon. Later, however, a distraught Maester Luwin crosses the courtyard and notices a starving Osha sneaking into the catacombs with loaves of bread. Luwin stares thoughtfully at the charred bodies, especially the leg muscle of the larger one, realizing that Theon has only faked their deaths. He then visits Osha down in the crypts, who lights a candle and explains that they went as far as the farm, but then evaded capture by doubling back. She asserts her hope in the fact that the catacombs will be the last place that Theon would think to search for the boys. Luwin insists that she’s been right thus far. Osha then asks about the bodies at the gates as Luwin relates his suspicion that they were the farmers boys. Osha is horrified that Theon killed and burned innocent children for his ruse, and passed them off as Bran and Rickon. Luwin warns her not to say anything to the Stark boys because Bran would blame himself. She promises to say nothing, agreeing that the Starks have suffered enough. However, Bran is awake and listening to every word as he is sat around the corner from them, while Hodor and Rickon are fast asleep.

Some days later, Osha leads Bran, Rickon and Hodor out of the catacombs. They find Winterfell in a smoky haze with dead smallfolk littering the courtyard. It is unclear who is responsible for the sack of Winterfell, as Theon Greyjoy wanted to seize the castle, not destroy it. However, the Ironborn are gone and the gates hang wide open. When they reach the Godswood they find a fatally-wounded Maester Luwin leaning against the heart tree. Bran tells him that everything has been burned down, as Luwin asserts that not everything is lost, taking comfort in the boys being alive. He warns that those responsible might return, urging them to travel to the Wall where Bran’s half-brother Jon Snow will look after them. Osha argues that they should head south to their mother and brother, but Luwin informs that they don’t know their whereabouts and have too many enemies in the south. Bran says that he does not want to leave Luwin, as the maester then grips his hand, telling him that he feels the same way and adds that he considers himself very lucky to have known them. Osha stays behind as Luwin succumbs to his wounds. Shortly after, as Winterfell pours black smoke into the sky behind, Osha and Rickon trail after the wolves. Hodor follows them while pushing Bran in a small cart laden with supplies as they embark on the journey ahead.

Some time after escaping the ruins of Winterfell, Bran dreams that he is walking and hunting in the woods when he sees the mysterious three-eyed raven again. As he aims his bow at the raven, he relives his memories of when he was practicing archery with his brothers Robb and Jon in Winterfell’s courtyard, and hears the voice of his father Lord Eddard commenting on his brothers asking: “Which one of you was a marksman at ten?” Bran attempts at shooting the raven but misses. A young stranger then appears and the boy informs Bran that he cannot shoot the raven, because he is the raven. Bran awakens suddenly, worrying Hodor for a moment, but he insists to the group that he is fine. Osha asserts they have enough problems without his dark dreams. Hodor, Osha, Bran, Rickon and their two direwolves continue to head north from  Winterfell towards the Wall to seek out Jon Snow. Later on, the same boy from the dream approaches their camp in the woods unarmed. Summer snarls at him initially but then sniffs his hand and turns away. Osha comes up behind the boy with a sharpened wooden spear, only for the boy's sister to surprise Osha and put a knife to her throat. The boy introduces himself as Jojen Reed, and his sister as Meera Reed. House Reed are loyal bannermen of House Stark, and they have been searching for Bran and Rickon so that they can protect him in his journey.

When they are on the move again, Jojen and Bran discuss his wolf-dreams. Jojen explains that Bran himself is a warg, as Bran recalls a conversation he had with the late Maester Luwin about people with the ability to live inside and control their animals. Jojen declares that warging starts out as vivid dreams seeing the world through their animal’s eyes, but assures that with practice Bran will be able to consciously enter the mind of his wolf and control its actions. Bran asks if prophetic dreams are part of being a warg, but Jojen explains that's a different yet related ability. Greensight allows those who possess it to see events that haven't happened yet, or events that happened long before they were born. Jojen adds that the ability could allow one to see events happening now but thousands of miles away. Jojen then confirms that Bran's dream of his father Eddard the day he died was an example of greensight, and that Jojen himself had a similar dream the very same day. He asserts that when he told his father, Lord Howland Reed, of the dream, Howland openly wept, for he correctly realized that his son's dream signified that his friend Eddard was dead. Jojen insists that Howland doesn't like to talk about the war much and then confirms that Bran wasn't simply experiencing a vision of Jojen in his earlier dream, but that he himself reached out with his mind to contact Bran in his dream. He adds that he remembers seeing the raven as well.

Some time later, as they continue their journey towards the Wall, tensions rise when they stop for camp before sunset. Osha tries to instruct Meera Reed on how to skin a rabbit correctly. When Meera replies that she knows how to skin a rabbit, however, Osha insists that she does not, adding that when you grow up in the North you learn the proper way to handle game. Meera then suggests without her bow there wouldn’t be any game to skin and questions why they don’t teach people in the North to say thank you for catching their food. When an increasingly-annoyed Bran has had enough of their argument, he diffuses the situation by shouting at them, asserting that they have both been at each other since meeting. He insists that they make peace or they will never make it to the Wall. They then begrudgingly compliment each other in front of Bran to appease him. The awkward conversation is interrupted as Jojen Reed starts experiencing a seizure while sleeping. Meera explains they are caused by his visions and that they take a toll on his body. When Jojen wakes he then tells Bran that in his vision he saw his half-brother Jon Snow at Castle Black. When Bran questions what he saw Jojen asserts that Jon is on wrong side of the Wall and surrounded by enemies, meaning the wildlings.

One afternoon, later into their journey, Bran’s party makes camp, as Osha grows increasingly more tiresome of the Reeds. She rhetorically questions aloud to Hodor why Jojen gets to sit and talk with Bran all day while everyone else has to do all of the work. As Osha remains distrustful, she interrupts Jojen speaking with Bran to ask what he is telling him, adding that he is filling Bran’s head with black magic. She then reacts with horror when Jojen mentions that they intend to go beyond the Wall instead of Castle Black. Jojen insists that through his vision he has seen that Bran’s brother Jon is no longer at the Wall and their intended expedition is to now find the three-eyed raven. Bran further explains that with the loss of his legs the raven is all he has now, adding that maybe he fell from the tower for a reason. Osha bluntly refuses to go beyond the Wall, as she rages that none of them understand what lies there. She painfully recounts her past to Bran and the Reeds, informing them that her husband disappeared one night and everyone was convinced that he simply left her. However, Osha knew this was not the actions of her husband. She continues to explain that he indeed came back one night, but he was not her husband any longer. He was a dead man walking, who then attacked her until she stabbed him and burned her hut down with him inside. Osha declares that there is nothing left for men beyond the Wall and asserts that she promised Luwin to take them no further than Castle Black.

Weeks later, Hodor and the group have passed far enough north that they have left the Seven Kingdoms and entered into the Gift: a stretch of land south of the Wall which was gifted to the Night's Watch thousands of years ago by Brandon the Builder. The Reeds are puzzled, because the Gift possesses good arable land but the countryside is empty. Bran explains, to Osha's discomfort, that wildling attacks coming over or around the Wall had caused most of the  smallfolk to flee the Gift over the centuries. Meanwhile, the Night’s Watch and their diminishing numbers mean they don't really need that much support from the Gift anymore, explaining why they haven't encountered any brothers of the Watch working the lands either. Bran's group takes shelter in an abandoned mill to avoid an impending thunderstorm. Meanwhile, as Jojen’s vision proves correct, Bran’s half-brother, Jon Snow, has joined the wildlings and he, as well as a small party, have also entered the Gift at the same time as Bran. Jon and the wildlings encounter an old farmer who they plan on attacking in order to steal his horses and gold, but Jon insists that the old man is no threat to the wildlings. The wildlings ignore Jon’s insistence, however, when they run towards the farmstead, Jon hits a rock with his sword, alerting the old man who then flees on horseback. Meanwhile, inside the abandoned mill of Queenscrown, as the storm continues thrashing through the countryside, Bran and Jojen discuss how they plan to cross the Wall before Meera spots the old farmer riding nearby from the window. She also witnesses the wildling party in pursuit of the old man. As the thunder begins to strike louder, Hodor grows increasingly frustrated and continues to shout from inside the mill, with Bran and the rest attempting to keep him quiet to evade them having to deal with their own wildling attack. Bran unintentionally uses his warg powers to render Hodor unconscious, silencing him. Outside of the mill, after the old man is captured, the wildlings demand Jon Snow to kill him to prove his loyalty. Jon is ultimately unable to kill the innocent man, proving that he is still loyal to the Night's Watch, which then spurs on an aggressive fight with a warg named Orell. At the urging of Jojen, Bran then enters the mind of his direwolf in order to aid Jon. Summer, accompanied by Rickon’s wolf Shaggydog, kill two wildlings who threaten Jon. After an evenly-matched melee with Orell, Jon gets the upper-hand and is able to kill him with a sword through the chest, but not before the warg’s eagle attacks Jon, scratching his face with its claws. Jon then jumps onto a nearby horse and narrowly escapes the remaining wildlings, also leaving a possible reunion with his brother for another day, as Bran remains hidden inside the mill.

Later that evening, inside the mill, Bran informs Jojen that he was correct about his gifts and now has learned through his experience with warging that he can go into Summer’s mind at any time. Bran then tells Rickon that under the control of his direwolf he saw Jon outside fighting against the wildlings, but assures Rickon that Jon got away safely. Osha asserts that Jon will now be heading to Castle Black and they should as well. However, Bran insists again to Osha that he must go beyond the Wall to find the three-eyed raven, as this is his new mission. However, as Bran is concerned for Rickon’s safety, he commands Osha to take his brother with her to the Last Hearth, a nearby castle and holdfast of Greatjon Umber, a loyal bannerman of the Starks whom Bran remembers meeting at Winterfell just before his brother Robb rode south for the war. Bran bids a tearful Rickon farewell, who then leaves with Osha and his direwolf Shaggydog, while Bran plans on continuing northward with Hodor, Summer and the Reed siblings on his search for the three-eyed raven.

Some time later, Hodor has finally reached the Wall with Bran and the Reeds, as they arrive at an abandoned castle named the Nightfort, formerly home to the Night’s Watch which had been deserted due to their dwindling numbers. Meera returns from scouting the castle and informs  Bran, Hodor and Jojen that the ruined fortress is safe to enter. That evening, while around the fire, Bran tells the story of the Rat Cook, a Night's Watch member who killed a guest under his roof: a sin the gods cannot forgive. Coincidentally, Bran will eventually come to learn in a vision that his brother King Robb and mother Lady Catelyn were recently murdered by House Frey under their roof while plotting with the Lannisters. Later that night, Bran and his companions are awoken by a sound as they see someone climbing out of the castle well. Meera quickly attacks and overpowers the intruder, who is revealed to be a member of the Night’s Watch and friend to Jon Snow, Samwell Tarly, accompanied by a friendly wildling girl named Gilly and her newborn child. Samwell quickly deduces Bran's identity by recognizing what a direwolf looks like, as well as having heard about the gigantic Hodor. Bran asks Sam to take his group north of the Wall, but Sam protests the idea, given the threat of the approaching White Walkers, who Osha had recently warned them about. Samwell eventually relents and takes them through the passage that exits into the territories beyond the Wall. Before they separate, Sam gives them weapons made of dragonglass, insisting that it has the power to kill White Walkers. Bran and his party then begin their trek towards the dangers of what lies beyond the Seven Kingdoms.

Some time later, further beyond the Wall, a panting figure travels through a dark, snow-covered forest. The figure kills a deer and just as they make their kill, it is revealed that the figure is  Summer and that Bran has been warging into his direwolf so that he can feed in the barren lands beyond the Wall where hunting has proven more difficult. Bran's warging, however, is interrupted by Meera Reed. He frustratedly asks why she woke him and Meera informs him that he had been gone for hours. Bran is not happy about having been snapped out of his warging, saying that he is hungry and was also trying to gain sustenance from the feed. Jojen Reed then clarifies that only Summer was eating and Bran cannot feed off of whatever his direwolf eats. He adds that Bran spending too much time in his direwolf’s skin is dangerous. Hodor looks on as Jojen and Meera also caution Bran that warging so long is dangerous for many reasons. Even though it allows Bran the mobility he lost when he was injured, Bran would become trapped, forgetting his friends, his family, his home and even himself. He could eventually forget what it is like to be human and if Bran forgets himself, they all lose everything.

Later on, the group breaks camp and continues traveling through the snowy forest. They eventually come upon a weirwood tree when the party notice Summer standing by it in the distance. Bran has Hodor take him to the tree. Bran then touches the tree just under the face that is carved into it and this spurs on a vision. Several images rush to Bran's mind, including swarms of crows and flashes of the undead, human and horse alike, who he has been warned about twice now from Osha and Samwell Tarly. Bran also sees his fall from the tower that paralyzed him as well as the three-eyed raven taking flight in the family crypts beneath Winterfell. Bran then sees his father sharpening his Stark ancestral sword in the Black Cells, prior to his execution in the capital. As Bran’s visions continue he sees the throne room inside the Red Keep castle of King’s Landing abandoned and covered in snow as well as the shadow of a large dragon flying over the city. Bran also sees several images of a different weirwood tree located on top of an otherwise barren snowy mountain. During the vision, a gravely voice tells Bran to "look for me beneath the tree... NORTH!" Bran then snaps out of his vision out of breath as Jojen and Meera come forward with concern. Bran then matter-of-factly states, "I know where we have to go."

Some weeks later, Hodor, Bran and the Reeds make camp for the night when they suddenly hear a baby crying in the distance. Summer is especially agitated in hearing the cries until Bran wargs into his direwolf in order to investigate further. Through Summer, as Bran makes his way through the darkened snowy forest, he eventually come upon a wooden cage with another direwolf inside of it. As Summer gets closer, he then falls into a man-made trap underneath the snow, which causes Bran to snap out of his vision to alert Hodor and the Reeds. Bran informs them that he recognises the other direwolf as his half-brother Jon’s wolf, Ghost. When morning breaks, the party then find a small homestead in the woods named Craster's Keep, which has been taken over by a faction of deserters of the Night’s Watch. Meera, sensing danger, urges them to move on, but Bran insists on trying to free the wolves. Before they can, however, they are caught and taken prisoner by the rebellious Night’s Watchmen. Some of the deserters amuse themselves by tormenting a chained Hodor. A man named Rast stabs him in the leg with a spear and chastises him for not fighting back, stating that if he was as big as Hodor, he would be "king of the fucking world." Meanwhile, the others are taken to the sadistic leader of the group, Karl Tanner. Karl asks who they are and answers their silence by threatening to kill Meera and Jojen. Jojen is then suddenly overcome by a seizure and falls to the floor while Meera begs to be let go so she can help him. Karl does so but only when Bran reveals his true identity as a Stark. Rast informs Karl that he is kin to Jon Snow, who they know from the Watch.

Some days later at Craster’s Keep, Hodor, Bran and the Reeds remain captive. Unbeknownst to them Jon Snow and other members of the Night’s Watch have arrived on the outskirts of the homestead, planning a retaliation against Karl and the mutineers for staging an attack some months ago that resulted in the death of the Night’s Watch Lord Commander Jeor Mormont. A member of the Watch named Locke scouts the keep for the traitorous party they were sent to eliminate. Locke finds the hut where Bran, Jojen, Meera and Hodor are being held captive, but does not enter it. Inside the hut, Jojen’s greensight suddenly takes over again and he envisions Bran at the great weirwood tree they are searching for beyond the Wall. Jojen insists that they have to make it to the tree and this capture is not the end of them. When Meera then asks “how do we know the end?,” Jojen responds by saying “you’ll know,” as his right hand goes up in flames without as much of a flinch of pain from him. He stares at it curiously and almost peacefully. Deep into the woods, away from Craster’s Keep, Locke reports back to Jon Snow. He tells them that only eleven traitors are present and most of them are drunk, which is a variation of the truth. More curiously, Locke omits informing Jon of the hut where his brother Bran and his party are in captivity. Believing Locke’s reconnaissance, Jon agrees and tells the party they are to attack at nightfall.

That evening, a drunken Karl enters the prisoners' hut and attempts to rape Meera, but Jojen distracts Karl when he reveals his possession of greensight and then claims to have seen Karl dead before the night is out. At that moment, Rast rushes in to warn Karl the keep is under attack. Jon's party rush through the defenses and in the confusion, Locke slips into the tent and attempts to abduct Bran for his own personal gain, presumably financial with intention to hand over the presumed-dead Stark heir. However, as Locke carries him outside, Bran then wargs into Hodor and uses his body to kill Locke as he is strangled to death. Hodor is visibly disturbed when he eventually regains control of his body. He then runs back into the hut to free the Reeds, as Bran spots Jon fighting the mutineers and wants to go to him. However, the young Stark boy cries out Jon’s name too far away to be heard amidst the battle. The Reeds them join him and Jojen prevents him from going to his brother, reminding Bran that they must continue onward to reach the three-eyed raven. Bran reluctantly leaves Jon, though he is comforted in seeing the Night's Watch swiftly overcome their enemies. He then instructs his party to free Summer and continue on-wards with their journey.

Several weeks later, deep into the frozen and barren lands far north from the Wall, Hodor, Bran and the Reed siblings continue their journey to find the three-eyed raven, though they are on the brink of exhaustion. Jojen has grown sick and he is barely able to stand, eventually collapsing into the snow. As Meera begs Jojen to gather what little strength he can muster to continue forward, Bran calls out to them, revealing that they have finally found the massive  heart tree that Bran has seen in his visions. As they approach, however, skeletal wights suddenly burst up from the snow, grabbing Jojen's ankles and attempting to drag him under the ice. Meera  attempts to defend Jojen from the wights, but more keep attacking, as they also begin to swarm over Hodor, who is too scared to fight back. These wights appear far older than those seen near the Wall, appearing as ghastly skeletal warriors who move with surprising agility. Bran wargs  into Hodor's mind and begins fighting off the wights with the aid of Summer, but they are quickly overwhelmed. Suddenly, the wights burst into fireballs, as Bran hears a young girl's voice calling to him from a cave entrance. Amidst the chaos, Jojen is repeatedly stabbed by a wight before Meera can fight it off. The mysterious female of non-human descent calls to out to Meera, declaring that Jojen is lost and that she must leave him if she wants to live. Meera hesitates, but a dying Jojen urges her to save herself. Crying, Meera slits her brother's throat to grant him the mercy of a quick death. They then run into a dark cave, leaving the dying Jojen behind, and are further pursued by the wights, who instantly shatter upon crossing the threshold of the cave as result of magic. The small, green, elf-like creature named Leaf explains that the power which animates the dead corpses is powerless inside the cave. Bran realizes that she is one of the last surviving members of the Children of the Forest, the original, non-human inhabitants of Westeros he’s heard stories of from Old Nan and Maester Luwin. Leaf then leads Hodor, Bran and Meera deeper into the cave and they arrive at a large central chamber where an old man is seated in the middle of weirwood roots. Bran crawls towards the old man, asking if he is the raven who has been appearing in his visions. The old man admits that he is indeed the Three-Eyed Raven, having taken several forms in the past, but his true form is before them now. The humanized raven informs them that he has been watching all of them throughout their entire lives "with a thousand eyes, and one." He continues by stating that Jojen died knowing that he would perish so that Bran could come here and regain what he has lost. Bran asks if he means he will regain the use of his legs. The Three-Eyed Raven replies that Bran will never walk again, "but you will FLY," alluding to Bran’s forthcoming training to become the new Three-Eyed Raven.

Several months later, Bran continues his training with the Three-Eyed Raven in the cave underneath the weirwood tree far north beyond the Wall. In his latest vision he stands beside the raven and is shown a scene from Winterfell’s past, watching his father Lord Eddard and uncle Benjen Stark training in the yard as young boys. He witnesses seeing younger versions of Old Nan, Ser Rodrik Cassel and his aunt Lyanna Stark. In addition, his visions show him a stableboy that he realizes is a young Hodor - and is surprised that in his youth he was not a lackwit but was intellectually normal and could talk. Hodor’s real name, which he has been unable to articulate for the majority of his life, is actually "Wylis". Lyanna suggests that Benjen find a new sparring partner with Hodor after Eddard leaves for the Eyrie, and gives Hodor fencing tips. Old Nan, however, discourages Hodor from learning to fight, since he is a stableboy, though Eddard remarks that with his size, Hodor would make a formidable fighter. Though Bran wants to stay, he is dragged out of the vision by the Three-Eyed Raven, who warns him that it is dangerous to stay too long in such visions. Hodor then carries Bran outside of the cave, where they find a distraught Meera Reed, who still grieves over her brother Jojen’s death some months earlier. Though Meera questions the point of her presence during Bran's training, Leaf, the child of the forest, states that Bran will need her when his training finishes.

Some weeks later, Bran is the only one in the cave awake and is anxious to continue his training. He impatiently then wargs into the weirwood tree by himself and enters a new vision where he stands alongside a blizzard-covered heart tree. In the distance Bran sees the army of the dead and cautiously walks towards and then through the hordes of wights. Though understanding of the fact that he cannot be harmed, there is a different feel to this vision in particular as he tries to avoid colliding with any of the wights. Bran then comes to a clearing that is occupied by four White Walkers, including their leader, the Night King. As Bran becomes aware that the Night King and the dead are now able to see him somehow, the Night King grabs him by the arm. He suddenly breaks out of the vision with a scream, waking Hodor and the others. The Three-Eyed Raven urges to him that the Night King is now able to locate Bran, who is now marked on his right forearm, and is also able to bypass the powerful magic keeping the dead from entering the cave. As a result, the Raven insists that they must leave immediately and Bran must "become" the Three-Eyed Raven, at which point Bran's eyes whiten as he enters another vision.

Later on, as Meera and Hodor are preparing to leave they notice the air is so cold that their  breath is visible, indicating the arrival of the White Walkers.  Outside of the cave, the remaining Children of the Forest try using magic projectiles to fend off the army of the dead, but they are quickly overwhelmed. The Children then light a fire around the entrance which prevents the  wights from entering, however, the White Walkers extinguish a pathway and walk through.  The wights end up climbing over the weirwood and dropping through roots at the top of the cave. Inside, Meera desperately tries to bring Bran out of the vision as she also attempts to get the terrified Hodor to carry Bran away, to no avail. Using a dragonglass spear, Meera kills the first White Walker that enters, and fights alongside the Children of the Forest to try to fend off the wights until Bran wakes up. Scores of wights begin to swarm the cave, killing every Child of the Forest except for Leaf, as Meera starts yelling at Bran to warg into Hodor. Meanwhile, inside his vision, Bran is at Winterfell again with the Raven, this time watching his father Eddard converse with his own father, Rickard Stark. While still in the vision, Bran eventually hears Meera's cries begging him to warg into Hodor while the Raven urges Bran to listen to her. Bran then accidentally wargs into both the present-day Hodor in the cave as well as Wylis, the young version of Hodor in his vision. Present-day Hodor puts Bran's body on a sled and starts hauling him down a tunnel leading out of the cave with Leaf as Bran's direwolf Summer is killed attacking the wights. As the wights close in on them, Leaf sacrifices herself, using magic to cause a huge explosion, buying the other three enough time to get to the end of the tunnel. Inside the vision, the Night King then appears and kills the Three-Eyed Raven, who blows away as ashes. Meanwhile, Hodor pushes the door of the cave open and pulls Bran through, coming back to help Meera close the door just as the horde of wights approach. Meera grabs Bran's sled and tells Hodor to bar the exit, shouting: "Hold the door!" Inside Bran's vision, Wylis notices Bran, who links the present Hodor to the past Wylis. Wylis then begins to seize when he enters the mind of his future self. As Meera continues to yell "Hold the door!" to present-day Hodor, within Bran's vision Wylis falls to the ground convulsing and starts repeating this same sentence in the midst of his seizure. Eventually, "hold the door" slurs into "Hodor," as Wylis’ condition deteriorates and it becomes apparent this is the moment Hodor lost the ability to say any other words, and his destiny was fixed. Present-day Hodor braces himself against the door long enough for Meera to disappear into the night with Bran's unconscious body on the sled.  Inevitably, the wights break through some of the door and begin tearing Hodor apart. 

*In the aftermath of Hodor’s death, follow Bran’s journey throughout the rest of the series.