Written after the 3rd episode of season 2 that's why I connect it with "the Game of Thrones" tv show and not with "A Song of the Ice and Fire".
Sounds are monotonous but they don't seem friendly. She can hear the horses snorting, the rattling of harness, but the forest is quiet. It is almost like it is watching them with caution. It's too quiet for her, unnatural, vicious. The soldiers are close to the only fire that was lit before the night came. They're not eager to talk to each other. They are glad they have killed the bastard but the rest of the captured men is just a burden for them.
"We should just kill them all" says one of the soldiers and Arya recognizes him. This is the man who took the Needle. She's been watching him ever since and thought about getting her sword back. But the odds are not in her favour. She has to wait for a better situation. For different circumstances.
"They slow the march and now we have to freeze because of those rats!" continues the man.
"We wouldn't get home any earlier" replies a soldier sitting next to him and gives him an angry look which ends the conversation.
She is cold. Even though she is from the North and she has gotten used to winter, she has to admit that she is freezing. She can see that all of the other men are cold too, their uneven breaths create small clouds of fog in front of their faces. The fire is too far from them to feel its warmth. They are all sitting or laying on the ground, hands tied, clinging to each other to get warmer, resting for the night, sleeping. But there is no rest for her. She can still hear Yoren's words. She can still see his death. He fought till the end, protecting her. Protecting them.
She looks at Gendry who lies a few steps away from her. His eyes are shut, mouth trembling because of the cold but she is sure he is not sleeping. He is trying to fight with the cold air, maybe trying to erase images of the fight from his head. She will be trying to do this later but now she is too tensed, all the deaths are too fresh in her mind. The swords sliding against the armour, cutting the flesh, blood not dripping but spurting out of the wounds. Fire reflecting in non-seeing eyes, the smell of death and the fear what's going to happen next, the fear of the unknown.
She puts her knees closer to her chest to keep her warmer but a chatter of her teeth breaks the silence anyway. Gendry opens his eyes. Firstly he looks alarmed, maybe expecting to see a sword ready to cut his throat. He looks around not moving from his place. Finally, as if calmed down a little he looks at Arya.
"You need to sleep" he whispers not to draw the soldiers attention.
"I can't" replies the girl with sad eyes. Her look is sad but not frightened. Sad but not idly depressed. She surprises him even with this detail.
He doesn't have to ask if it is because of the cold or because of the situation they have gotten into. He knows it's both. And he knows this girl, this high-born lady has also different demons to fight with. He crawls silently towards her and lays closer. She looks a bit surprised when he puts his tied hands on her cold fingers only to put them on his chest to warm them up. She looks in his eyes and after a moment she moves closer to him. For a second she wonders if someone has noticed any movement but it doesn't look suspicious. Little by little they are able to feel the warmth of their bodies. The chattering of teeth stops and only once in a while one of them shivers.
"Thank you" he says unexpectedly. His whisper reveals the depth of his words. He owns her his life and although being a bastard doesn't exclude the knowledge of what honour is, he expresses his gratefulness when he thinks she is asleep. As if he was afraid.
But afraid of what? Of the consequences? No, he would do anything to protect her now. Scarred of what it means for them? No, he's not afraid of tomorrow although he has no clue what the gods have prepared for them. Of her reaction? Most probably. He has never known anyone like her and she surprises him with her strength, ambition, courage and how a pain in the arse she sometimes is. She is intriguing and impressive. A true high-born. Maybe that's the case.
He suddenly feels a warm grip of her hands on his own.
"You would have done the same for me", she says quietly and with an unwavering certainty. He is a bit embarrassed at first and shocked but then he only smiles a little in the dark.
She is surprised to be falling asleep. She hasn't slept well or at all for so many nights. But somehow now she is able not to think of the dreadful images in her head. Is it because of Gendry? She wonders for a while but then sleep consumes her thoughts and visions. The last of them was his tender smile in the dark. Or maybe she has just imagined it.