I'm back! It's been a while, I've had this story written in word for about 3 weeks now and I didn't know weither to post it but me being a BIG Game Of Thrones fan, I had to give it a shot so enjoy and hopefully you'll be kind and review afterwards. Thank you!
"We're about 2 miles from Winterfell, M'lord." Jerrison updated his lord on their distance from their destination. Lord Eric Tarllen gave his young ward a gracious knod. The snow had already fallen, and the wind bit at the flesh, Rhyannon Tarllen wrapped her cloak around her tighter, it made not no difference, the cold was different this side of the north. Being born and raised in the mountain of the north, just near the sea, Rhyannon was no stranger to cold. But Winterfell being close to the end of the world made this part of the north, that much colder.
"People of Winterfell must have something in their blood, to keep alive in this tempreture." One of Lord Tarllens guards said, rubbing his hands together, trying to make some kind of heat from the friction.
"I can assure you that this journey is worth it. Rhyannon will marry Eddard Starks eldest boy, Robb in a matter of a fortnight, this shall bring our houses together and make the north stronger. No Lannister or scum of the south will dare to touch our side of westeroes." Lord Tarllen explained strongly, Eddard Stark was an old friend of his, his father would make trips to Winterfell and Eric and Eddard would play around as young boys do. It had been the subject of talk between the two lords, since Robb turned 17 that their two eldest's would marry.
Rhyannon knew Robb, not well enough to marry him but enough to know what kind of man he is and was to become. It was a long time since she last saw him though, she was a young 13 year old girl and he was 14. Rhyannon wondered what he would look like now; he would have more masculine features now he was only a year away from turning 18 and into a full man.
"Ah, Winterfell." Her father said in delight as they saw the castle in the foggy distance, it was beautiful. It had a homely look to it, Rhyannon smiled, knowing that her new home would have something her old home carried. Safety and warmth. After a few more minutes, riding the king's road towards the gates, they finally arrived. Herself, her father and three-hundred of his men, her mother turned down the invite to travel to Winterfell with them, not wanting to leave her daughter behind after 2 weeks and having the responsibility of looking after Rhyannon's three youngest sisters and her brother. They said their goodbyes four days ago, it was the hardest thing Rhyannon ever had to do but she knew it was expected of her, she was to become Lady of Winterfell. She had to be strong and face her duties. As they rode through the gates, eyes were on her instantly, it made her uncomfortable at first but she knew she'd have to get used to curious eyes, riding into the courtyard, her father bared a grin at the sight of Eddard Stark.
"Ned" Eric exclaimed in delight as he dismounted his black horse and hugged his long time friend, "It's been too long. Your growing old on me" he joked as they shared a laugh.
"I'm not the only one, Tarllen." Ned bantered back, smiling with delight.
"Cat. You have not changed a bit my dear" Eric said to the current Lady of Winterfell, giving her hug and kiss on the cheek. "My my, look at you. You've grown." Eric smiled, greeting the youngest Stark, Rickon. Her father greeted all the children, even the bastard Jon Snow, who Rhyannon remembered well. She, Robb and Jon used to play around with each other a lot, being the only ones closest at age. He too was only 14 when she last saw him, and she couldn't believe how much he took after his father in looks.
The last person her father greeted was Robb himself, by all the gods combined, he was handsome. Red hair and blue eyes just like his mother, he carried the Tully look but his posture and speech was his father.
"Robb, what a good looking lad you've turned out to be." Eric said, smiling in approval. Robb smiled and nodded as a thank you.
"I believe you've already met my daughter." Eric said, gesturing to Rhyannon, bringing her forward to the Starks. She bowed her head to Lord Stark, being taken my surprise when he embraced her in a hug. He retrieved and smiled at her.
"It's hard to believe the young girl I last saw is now this young woman standing infront of me. You look beautiful." Ned graced her with a compliment.
"Thank you, L- Ned." Rhyannon remember, long ago as a child she referred to Ned as Lord Stark. He told her numerous times to call him by Ned but she never did. Until today that is.
He laughed at her quick correction, being greeted by a hug from Catelyn and a smile and hand shake from the children. Giving a warm smile to Jon she stepped forward and hugged him, he was one of her closest friends in Winterfell. It made her smile that she could possibly get that friendship back now that she was to stay in Winterfell until her days end.
"Nice seeing you again Jon." Rhyannon smiled, he returned the favour warmly.
"You too." He said. She turned to Robb, the last one and her future husband. He stepped forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Welcome back to Winterfell." He said, his eyes locking with her hazel brown eyes.
"Glad to be back." That was no lie. She really was glad to be back.
After the meet and greet had come to an end, Rhyannon's bags were carried to her room in the castle, just a few doors down from Robb's and next to Sansa's. It was to be her room for 2 weeks, and then she was to move into Robb's.
"Here are your bags, M'lady." One of her father's guards dropped off her 3 bags of her best dresses, shoes and riding wear.
"Thank you." Rhyannon said, feeling the fur, covering the end of her bed.
"A maid will be sent for you to help you dress for tonight's feast." He said to her, walking out of her bedroom straight after. Rhyannon looked around, the room was real cosy, and it made her wonder what Robb's was like since it'll be hers in 2 weeks. A sudden voice made her jump; she turned to her doorway to find Robb.
"I apologize if I frightened you." Robb said, smiling.
"You only gave me a minor heart attack, all is forgiven." Rhyannon said, chuckling after.
"Is Winterfell just as you remembered?" Robb asked, taking a seat on her bed. Rhyannon closed her door, keeping them away from any curious ears and eyes.
"Yes, in fact. You however, have changed." Rhyannon said, sending Robb a smile as she started to hang her dresses in her oakwood wardrobe.
"How so?" He asked, she could hear a smile in his voice.
"Well, for one, you have facial hair." She said. She heard him chuckle behind her.
"You have maids to do that." Robb said to her as he noticed she was putting her clothes away herself.
"I'm perfectly capable of putting my own clothes away. Just because I am to be future Lady of Winterfell, gives me no excuse to not do my own chores." Rhyannon said, continuing her job.
"I can't argue with that." Robb said, smiling. As her back was turned to him, he had time to think of how much she changed and how thrilled he was to have her as his future wife. He'd never admit it right now but when she used to visit, especially when he was 14, he had feelings for her, innocent ones though. A few months after she left Winterfell with her family, his feelings for her disappeared and he went on with his life, seeing her today as a 16 year old girl with curves and...the top part of her torso that men are so drawn too...it made his feelings come rushing back. He knew he'd have to build the relationship they had as children back up, only this relationship would be different. They weren't to be friends, they were to be husband and wife, and they were to share a bed, make love and raise their children together.
Rhyannon could feel his eyes on her back; the silence wasn't awkward but you could tell there was something there, something between them. Rhyannon was not the type of girl to run into the arms of a man that was to be her husband, straight away. Although his handsomeness was making it more difficult, but it wasn't as if it was wrong, they were to be wed in two weeks. They would be married until their days end and they would share intimate moments between them that no one would share with them. A knock on the door soon broke what tension of sort was floating in the air, Rhyannon turned to see a young girl around 15 waiting patiently.
"M'lady, I'm Rosanne, I was sent by Lady Stark to help you get ready for the feast" The small girl said in a sweet voice.
"I shall see you in the hall then." Robb said, getting up. He leaned over and gave his lady a kiss on the cheek before making his way to his room to freshen up and change his clothing.
"Do you have a dress you would like to wear tonight, M'lady?" Rosanne asked, closing the door behind Robb.
"How about you pick one for me, I don't exactly know what ladies of Winterfell wear to these feasts without freezing to death." Rhyannon chuckled, smiling at Rosanne.
"Very well M'lady." Rosanne, bowed her head.
"Please, call me Rhyannon. I'm no lady just yet. I still have two more weeks to be just a girl." Rhyannon said, giving a gracious smile. "I would also like to take a bath."
"I'll get that done for you right now...Rhyannon." Rose said, smiling at the new future Lady of Winterfell. As Rose scuttled out of the room to fetch some warm water, Rhyannon slipped out of her riding dress and snuggled into a cotton robe while waiting for her bath.
"You look beautiful." Catelyn greeted Rhyannon as she arrived at the hall where all big feasts were held.
"Thank you, you look very beautiful too Catelyn" Rhyannon payed a compliment back to her future mother-in-law. As she made her way to her seat, she was greeted by the townspeople of Winterfell who were attending. Finally comfortable in her seat, she felt someone sit beside her. Moving her head to her left she saw Robb.
"You look lovely." Robb said, showing her his sweet smile.
"Just lovely? To the people of Winterfell I'm 'The most beautiful lady in all seven kingdoms'" Rhyannon smirked.
"Someone actually said that to you?" Robb asked, raising his eyebrows.
"They're close to being just as drunk as King Robert but it's still a compliment and a compliment I shall accepted gladly." Rhyannon said, taking a sip of wine. They both fell into comfortable silence as they watched everyone laugh and drink and enjoyed their cooked ham when it arrived. After she finished her meal, Rhyannon made her way to the childrens table where Bran, Arya and Rickon were seated, they were only young things when she last saw them. Rickon excitedly made a comfy place on her lap the minute she made interest in the young boy.
"Father said I can have my own horse when I get older. I'm too short right now." Rickon said to Rhyannon excitedly while he sat comfortably on her lap, his smile fading when he mentioned his height.
"Oh, well I'm sure you'll grow in just a matter of months. In just two years, you'll be eight and you can start riding and practising archery just like Bran" Rhyannon said, cheering the young boy up again.
"May I insist you on a walk?" Robb said to Rhyannon, holding his arm out for her as he walked up behind where she was sitting.
"You may" Rhyannon chuckled, Catelyn saw Robb's gesture and took Rickon from Rhyanno in which the little Stark was not happy about. She took his arm and he led her out to the yard, where they started to stroll.
"Any reason why we're taking a walk?" Rhyannon asked, smiling, in no way was she unhappy about it.
"Fresh air and of course we are to marry in a few weeks so we at least need to get to know each other better." Robb explained, his arm supporting her arm as they walked.
"What would you like to know?" She asked.
"Well, I know your favourite colour is red, your favourite flower is roses, honesty is something important to you and you have a kind heart." Robb finished, Rhyannon looked up at him.
"You remembered my favourite flower and colour?" She asked in amazement, she shouldn't though, she remembered his favourite things.
"Of course, ever since I knew, I'd see a rose and it'd remind me of you." Robb explained with a smile.
"Roses are rare in the north though." Rhyannon said.
"Not by God's Wood. I haven't seen a rose in years but in the summer, when I was 15 I found a whole patch of them growing just a few paces behind the tree." Robb said.
"I would of loved to of seen that." Rhyannon sighed; the one thing about the north she disliked was the small amount of flowers you'd see. You see the small ones in the summer but never the beautiful ones and of course in the winter, there's just snow.
"Maybe one day you will." He told her, "So, anything about me you remember?" Robb asked.
"I remember that you like winning. A lot. You and Jon used to get into banter fights if you thought you'd won and he thought he'd won. I also remember that you care for your siblings very much but ever since I can remember, when you learnt that you'd take over your fathers place one day, you started to weigh the whole world on your shoulders. You're a fighter but you take on to much because you feel like it's your duty." Rhyannon said, looking up into his eyes. They stopped walking and Robb moved himself so he was fully facing her.
"I is my duty." Robb said, fully believing it.
"One day, it will be your duty. But right now, it's not. I can understand when your father leaves for trips that you become Lord of Winterfell while he's gone and you really do have to hold everything up, but when your father is here, you just get to be Robb. One day when you really are the Lord, you'll look back and regret not taking the time to have a childhood because you will take on a lot of duties, more than you believe you have to take on right now...When the time is right Robb, we will have children. You will need to learn how to balance your duties with family." Rhyannon finished, their eyes for locked the entire time.
"I have a hard time believing that it's been years since I saw you, feels like you never left." Robb said softly, cupping her face with his hand. The way she spoke to him, it was like she was reading him like a book. Her mentioning that they will have children together made him feel like a little boy inside, hopping with excitement.
Rhyannon could feel their faces growing closer, his hand cupping her face felt comforting and right. The way she felt about him years ago came all flooding back to her, the way she'd fight herself to not giggle and blush like a little girl at something he'd say or do. Most girls would grimace at the thought of an arrange marriage, but this didn't seem that way. Although miles apart, they had known each other since they could walk. They barley wrote to each other but it felt like they spoke every day. Her heart was having palpitations when she felt his soft lips meet hers, ever since her crush on Robb grew as a young girl; she imagined what their first kiss would be like. She always had it perfect where they'd be talking under God's Wood and they'd have a conversation that would accidently make them confess their feelings for each other and then kiss. It was a typical un-realistic fantasy, this one was way better. They're lips moved together in sync like they'd done this all before, her heart felt like it would beat out of her chest when he moved his arms to wrap about her waist, her arms moving around his neck. Their kiss was soon cut short but a throat being cleared, they moved their heads to see an amused looking Theon Greyjoy and a smirking Jon Snow.
"Sorry to interrupt but people are starting to wonder where you two are." Theon said, still smiling. Theon gave Rhyannon a bad taste in her mouth, it was something about him that she just didn't like.
"A lot of them think you're rolling around in the sack making babies a tad early." Theon added, enjoying the moment.
"Watch your tongue." Robb said, through gritted teeth, his arms still wrapped around Rhyannon. Normally that would make a girl blush at what Theon had said but it was Theon, he was disgusting and rude mouthed. Nothing was going to change there and nothing had changed.
"Come on; let's go before you lose a leg." Jon said to Theon, hitting him on the back and walking off, Theon following, not before sending another shit eating smile towards the two.
"We should really get back." Robb said, sounding disappointed.
"Yes, I suppose we have to." Rhyannon replied, sounding just as saddened by it. Robb leaned down to give her one last kiss before they made their way back to the hall where eyes were on them the minute they walked in.
"Where have you been?" Catelyn asked the two of them.
"We went for a walk mother." Robb replied to her, taking his seat and Rhyannon sitting down in hers beside him. The rest of the night they both made small talk with the people around them, while sweetly holding hands under the table.
Hope you all enjoyed this :D let me know what you think by reviewing! and feel free to give any advice or opinions on how a character should be ect. and once again, REVIEW! :D