Notes:

This fic will contain corporal punishment. If that bothers you, please don't read.

No flames, please.

Also, Grenn and Pyp are also alive in this fic. In my AU they both survived the Wildling attack on the wall.

Today was the day. The day that Jon would put Thorne and his band of traitors to death. The Lord Commander contemplated having Olly attend the execution. However, five nights of rocking his ward back to sleep after violent nightmares made it clear to Jon that the boy was in no state to witness such a thing.

So, he asked Pyp to keep an eye on the boy and keep Olly distracted until the execution was over. Pyp was more than happy to oblige; now, he and Olly were engaged in an intense game of Cyvasse.

"How did you beat me again?!" Pyp cried in mock dismay. "I just taught ya this game, how in seven hells did you catch on so fast?!"

"Somethin' tells me that he's played this game before," Jon said, sharing a conspiratorial grin with his adopted son.

Pyp paused for a moment, looking between his Lord Commander and the boy.

"You little trickster," he said, causing Olly to dissolve into a fit of giggles. "You knew how to play this entire time!"

Olly just nodded as he began to laugh harder.

Jon longed to stay a bit longer, but he forced himself to focus on the task ahead.

"Olly, I have to go deal with Thorne and the other men," Jon informed the teen, placing a gentle hand on the boy's shoulder and rubbing it slightly. "I'll be back as soon as I can, alright?"

Jon walked past the crowd gathered in the courtyard, and up the stairs towards the gallows. The three traitors Bowen Marsh, Othell Yarwick, and Alliser Thorne, were standing on a platform with their hands tied and ropes around their necks. Jon looked up at them and paused before speaking.

"If you have any last words, now is the time," he informed the men.

"You shouldn't be alive. It's not right!" Marsh exclaimed in disbelief.

"Neither was killing me," Jon countered, walking over to stand in front of the second traitor.

"My mother's still living at White Harbor. Could you write to her? Tell her I died fighting the wildings," Yarwick begged.

Jon just stared at him for a bit, silently shocked at the audacity of the man; before making his way to stand in front of Thorne.

"I had a choice, Lord Commander. Betray you or betray the Night's Watch. You brought an army of wildlings into our lands—an army of murderers and raiders. If I had to do it all over knowing where I'd end up, I pray I'd make the right choice again," Thorne said.

"I'm sure you would, Ser Alliser," Jon said bitterly. The two men locked eyes for a second before Thorne continued.

"I fought, I lost. Now I rest. But you, Lord Snow, you'll be fighting their battles forever," with that, Thorne stared straight ahead of him.

Jon turned his back and unsheathed Longclaw. He breathed heavily before bringing the sword down to cut the rope. The platform was pulled out from under the traitors' feet. The men choked for a few minutes before going limp. They were dead. It was over.

Jon turned to head back down from the gallows when he suddenly caught sight of his adopted son, Olly standing with Pyp.

The boy stared up at the gallows. His eyes were fearful, and his small chest heaved with panicked breaths.

"Olly," Jon murmured, holding out a hand towards the boy in an attempt to soothe him.

Just as the Lord Commander was about to grasp his young steward's wrist, the teen bolted.

"Jon, I am SO sorry," Pyp apologized. "I turned my back for one second, and he was gone."

"There's nothing to apologize for, my friend," Jon assured. "The fault is mine, I should have anticipated that this would happen. Olly is too curious for his own good at times."

Olly hid in the farthest corner of his closet; knees tucked to his chest and hands around his head as he sobbed.

He had disobeyed Jon. Jon told him to stay with Pyp, and he snuck away.

"Now he's gonna hang me too," Olly thought. "He gave me a second chance, and I was bad. He'll hang me for sure!"

Those thoughts only served to make the teen cry harder.

"I have to run away," the boy thought. "If I run away, then he won't have to hang me."

Frantically searching in the dark, Olly found a small bag that he brought to Castle Black after the attack on his village. Inside he found a small, leather-bound journal and a pocket knife. Those would have to do, there was no time to grab anything else.

Crawling out of the closet, Olly paused to listen for the sound of footsteps. When he heard none, the 14-year-old made a break for it. He ran out of his quarters, down the stairs, and straight into a solid, leather-clad chest.

Falling onto his backside, Olly looked up to meet the concerned gaze of Jon Snow.

Yelping, the boy scrambled backward, swinging his rusted knife wildly in front of him.

"Olly," Jon murmured, taking a knee and reaching out a placating hand towards the terrified child. "Why don't you put the knife down before you hurt yourself, eh?"

When the boy refused to obey, Jon reached out and grabbed Olly's wrist. He squeezed it gently; applying just enough pressure to force the teen's grip on the knife to go slack.

Feeling powerless without his weapon and overwhelmed from the morning's events, Olly began to cry.

"C' mere son," Jon encouraged, using his grip on Olly's wrist to draw the boy into his arms.

Olly went willingly, too scared and upset to do anything else. Jon stood up and lifted the terrified child onto his hip, pressing a kiss to the top of the boy's head. After ensuring that he had a good hold on his ward, Jon turned to walk back towards his quarters.

"So, can you tell what has you so riled up?" Jon asked kindly as he situated Olly on his lap.

"Didn' listen," Olly admitted. "Yer gonna hang me cause I disobeyed you."

"Oh, Olly," Jon sighed. "I'm not gonna execute you for what happened today."

"You're not?" Olly asked hesitantly.

"Of course not," Jon promised.

"A-are ya gonna spank me?" the boy inquired. "For not listening?"

Jon decided to forgo Olly's bedtime spankings three days after the boy's first punishment; deeming that the boy learned his lesson. However, there was nothing stopping him from punishing Olly for this newest bout of disobedience.

"Do ya think you deserve a spanking?" Jon pressed.

Olly nodded slightly, toying with a loose thread on his father's tunic.

In response, Jon lifted the boy slightly and placed two firm smacks on his bottom.

"There's your spanking," the Lord Commander said in response to the boy's shocked look.

"That's it?" Olly asked.

"That's it," Jon affirmed. "That's it because I don't believe that you deserve a spanking. While I'm not too pleased that you snuck out, I am not going to punish you for being curious. The fault lies on me for not telling you why I wanted you to stay inside with Pyp. I would have given anything for you to have not witnessed what transpired today."

Olly remained silent as he toyed with a loose piece of leather on his father's jerkin.

"It may do us some good to get out of Castle Black for a few hours," Jon thought. "I'm already anticipating that we're going to have a rough night. Going for a hunt would certainly tire Olly out if nothing else."

"Olly, what do you say that we go hunting for a few hours. Give ya a chance to practice your archery skills? Would ya like that?"

Olly nodded, seeming to perk up a bit at the mention of leaving the castle.

"Well, go and get your gear then," Jon encouraged, gently helping the boy to stand. "We'll head out as soon as yer ready."

Olly moved towards the bedroom before turning back and throwing his arms around Jon's neck.

"Thanks, Papa," the boy murmured.

"Any time, son," Jon murmured, turning slightly to kiss the boy's temple. "Any time."