"A man may rise high," Jon said, thinking of how he'd risen from bastard to Lord Commander and later from Lord Commander to King in the North. Being born on the wrong side of the sheets had affected his chances at everything and had been a blight since birth; somehow, some way, it had ceased to matter. Perhaps Hawke was the same way.

"It is good to hear that skill and valor are rewarded in Thedas, though. It isn't always the case in Westeros, that is for certain."