Rast

Rast is a recruit of the Night's Watch at Castle Black, a bully whose cruelty and cowardice set him apart even among the hard men of the Wall. He is first seen laughing at Samwell Tarly's humiliation during training, urging Halder to "cut us off a ham" as the fat boy lies bleeding on the ground. When Jon Snow intervenes to protect Sam, Rast is one of three sent against Jon by Ser Alliser Thorne, and he is the only one who refuses Jon's later plea to stop tormenting Sam. "If Thorne sends me against Lady Piggy, I'm going to slice me off a rasher of bacon," he boasts, laughing in Jon's face. That night, three of Jon's friends—Grenn, Pyp, and Jon himself—pay a call on Rast's cell. Ghost leaps onto his chest, teeth nipping at his throat just enough to draw blood, and Jon says softly, "Remember, we know where you sleep." The next morning Rast tells Albett and Toad that his razor slipped while he shaved. From that day forward, he never hurts Samwell Tarly again. Later, when Sam is passed out of training to become a steward, Rast remains in the training yard, one of the boys Ser Alliser will continue to set against new recruits. He is among those who mock Sam for his fear, and Jon later reflects that without their protection, Sam will be left with "the likes of Rast and Cuger and these new boys who are coming up the kingsroad." Rast embodies the petty cruelty of the Watch's old guard, a figure who thrives on weakness and yields only to superior force.