Game of Thrones: Hearts in the Forest

Chapter 1 of my new Game of Thrones story, enjoy.

This is the first Arya/Gendry story for my GOT marathon, just a few notes to point out. In this many events stayed canon but there have been changes. Ned survived, as did Mordane; it will be mentioned what happened to them in this chapter. The wars are still raging but with different purposes now, except for Stannis and Renly, who are still fighting for the same reason. Also the characters have been aged up, just to make things easier.

Anyway, hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: Game of Thrones belongs to George R.R. Martin.

Chapter 1

The sky was bleak and threatened rain; yet that did not deter the young woman. She walked through the woods; trying hard to keep her bearings. The young woman was named Arya, a young woman of six and ten, she was the third child and youngest daughter of Eddard Stark, Lord of Winterfell, and his wife Lady Catelyn. She was trying to find her way home, to the North, to Winterfell. Currently she was lost in the woods that grew along the Kingsroad. She guessed she was in the Riverlands by now, but saw no means yet to be certain. Her grey eyes narrowed and she ran a hand through her brown hair, it had once been long, but she had been forced to cut it very short. She heard the footsteps come up next to her and she turned; she hadn't been travelling alone after all, so she wasn't worried. Her companion was a tall, muscular, black haired, blue eyed man of one and twenty. His name was Gendry.

"So, any idea where we are yet?"

She shook her head. "No, of course not, if I did, I would tell you."

Gendry sighed and nodded. "Right, right, of course M'lady."

Arya rolled her eyes and turned.

"Let's just keep going and stop calling me that." She said to her friend.

So together they continued onwards, through the woods.

Arya sighed as she thought back to everything that had happened, everything that had led her to this situation. At one point, her family had been invited to live in the capital; her father was to become Hand of the King, to his old friend, King Robert Baratheon. In truth Arya hated it; especially the King's family, particularly his wife Cersei and eldest son Joffrey. Arya was not a typical lady, holding a strong hatred for dresses and sewing and all that. Yet her father did not chide her for it. Instead upon discovering Arya had been given a sword, a thing bladed one she called Needle, he arranged for her to have lessons. Those had been Arya's happiest days, training with the Braavosi sword master Syrio Forel. As a dress was unsuitable for fighting, she got to wear more comfortable clothes, mainly simple breeches and a tunic, clothing more fitting for men by the standards of many around her. Then one day, it all came crashing down; the King died; her father unearthed some shocking news but was declared a traitor and captured, her sister Sansa was taken prisoner and the rest of the Stark household present were slaughtered. Arya had managed to escape thanks to Syrio and had gone into hiding. It was then she first met Gendry; who helped her hide and brought her food and news while she was doing so. As such she knew, more or less, the current situation and how things stood. It was also why she was traversing through the woods and not walking on the Kingsroad. The reason being that Westeros was at war.

Following her father's imprisonment; her eldest brother Robb, had rallied the Northern armies, as well as those of the Riverlands, who served her mother's house. Not only that, but King Robert's two brothers had raised armies too; all but Robb aiming to claim the Iron Throne for themselves. The news which brought Arya relief was that, one day, with the war heating up, her father had somehow managed to escape along with Sansa and the only other survivors who were held prisoner, Sansa, Jeyne and Mordane, the Septa who had taught Arya and the other girls the 'ladies arts'. As such, as soon as the opportunity presented itself, Arya planned to escape. However something happened which changed her plans. At one point Gendry came to deliver food and such, he announced that he wouldn't be able to do so anymore. He then revealed that his master, the smith Tobho Mott had told him to go into hiding. Apparently he was being hunted too; by the Gold Cloaks, yet he had no idea why. As such Arya adapted her plans and, when the city prepared itself for a siege from Stannis Baratheon, Arya led Gendry to a secret tunnel she had found. From there they had managed to escape and reached the outside. Since then they had been wandering together, trying to get to Winterfell.

Another thing that crossed her mind as they headed north was Gendry himself. She didn't know much about him, about his family. At first she had been wary of him, even if he knew who she was. Yet as time passed they had grown closer; remarkably he not only didn't mind her less than feminine interests, he encouraged them. He had even said to her once that he didn't see why men should do all the fighting and rescuing, surely women should be permitted to fight to, at the very least so they could defend themselves. Eventually she began to trust him enough to talk about her family and her past. He had done the same, but didn't seem to reveal as much as she did. But then again, she supposed it wasn't that surprising, one of the first things he revealed was that he had no idea who his father was. He also explained that his mother had died when he was young and that he was all too aware of his bastard status. But when it came to details about his father, he had nothing, his mother he could give plenty of details about. However she didn't like to push for them, it was clear her death still hurt him. By now she was certain, there was no one she would rather have at her side, helping her. While not brilliant, he knew enough about sword-fighting to keep himself alive. She also knew that travelling through the woods, or anywhere when war was raging, was very dangerous, especially for females. War brought out the bandits and rapists and others who would wish harm upon her. So in a way it felt comforting to know she had someone to help her, should such a situation arise. She had confidence in her own skills; but knew it never hurt to have help.

Just then Gendry stopped before suddenly pulling her back and down.

"What the…" She began before he cut across her.

"Arry, shhh." He hissed, using the name they had agreed on for her disguise as a boy.

That was the reason she had cut her hair, she also wore firm bands under her tunic to hold her breasts down. By disguising herself as a boy, she hoped to further avoid the dangers that would threaten her due to her gender. She scowled but said nothing. She could see why he had pulled her back, why they were now taking cover behind some fallen trees. A contingent of horse men, each one bearing the sigil of the Lannisters on their shields and tabards, were riding past. If Gendry hadn't pulled her out of the way, they would have seen her.

Arya moved forward slightly. Gendry let out a hiss of breath but she quickly whispered.

"Quiet, I'm trying to hear what they're saying."

He nodded and waited; it was disturbing to Arya that, despite them being so close to each other. Their bodies pressed tight together, Arya felt no sense of discomfort. She ignored it however and listened carefully.

One of the soldiers sighed. "I still can't believe it; I thought with the Young Wolf back in Winterfell…we would regain lost ground, how could their resistance be so stubborn."

The other conversations continued in this manner; but Arya was able to pick up some facts which gave her hope. Her brother Robb had returned to Winterfell; her father, sister and Jeyne, along with Mordane had all made it to Winterfell. Despite Robb's departure, the Riverlands, likely still being aided by northerners, were holding ground. The Lannisters were still suffering defeats, winning only small skirmishes.

She knew that would change eventually, but for the moment, for her, it was enough. Finally however the contingent passed by and was out of sight. They waited for the outriders to also leave; Arya still surprised at her lack of discomfort, regarding her and Gendry's closeness. Once they were certain they were alone however, they stood up.

"Well, things are looking good for now." She said with a smile. "We better press on; I want to try and get as far north as possible, before sunset."

Gendry nodded but looking dubious. "How do you know we're going the right way?"

Arya sighed. "I know we're in the Riverlands, so we're relatively safe. Even if we can't find our way north ourselves, we'll likely find one of my grandfather's bannermen, who can ensure we get there."

Gendry accepted this and they pressed on, determined. Gendry however was worried, especially with sunset approaching; that was a favoured time for ambushes after all. He was fairly certain, with a degree of concern, they'd run into some group of bandits or other lowlifes, before finding anyone helpful.

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.