Long rambling note at the end :))

Sole disclaimer: I own close to nothing: the OC and her thoughts :)) This story is written purely for fun.

Hope you enjoy!

Her head bobbed beneath the water again, the currents dragging her body like nothing more than a rag doll. She struggled to reach the surface again, arms and legs paddling desperately, but with little effect. She was getting tired,limbs heavy and lungs screaming for oxygen. Logic told her that she had to calm down for a second and figure out which way she was swimming. But logic had little place when black spots were forming on her vision and her lungs felt like they would burst apart. She held her breath for as long as she could; she knew the second she inhaled she'd be as good as dead. But how can you stop something as natural as breathing? You couldn't.

In movies they never quite capture the pain. You'd think holding your breath was the hard part, but what follows is terrifying. There's a short moment of sweet relief when you finally let go and draw in to fill your lungs. Then the water floods and the feeling of being torn asunder returns tenfold.

She was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it. Her body jerked, still searching for the much needed air and finding none. She couldn't see the surface anymore, but weather it was from lack of air or her location at the bottom of the river she didn't knew anymore. One last attempt to gather her forces only resulted in her fingers slightly twitching. She was dying and all she could think was how much she wanted to live.

She woke with a violent series of coughs, water draining out of her system. It took her a few moments to get her bearings and make sure the earth beneath her hands and knees was real. She both laughed and cried, thanking whatever benevolent god had listened to her prayers. The thought of kissing the ground and vowing to never set foot in any body of water larger than a bathtub crossed her mind. But her happiness was short lived as an uncontrollable shiver ran through her entire being; she was wet and freezing and night was closing in. Checking the pockets of her dress, she took out her phone with little hope for its survival. Her reflection on the little black screen stared back at her. Great, no phone. She didn't know for how long she had been out, but it couldn't have been more than a couple of hours, maybe even minutes. No one was looking for her yet so she had to get to the road and find help as fast as possible.

If she hadn't been so shaken she might have noticed the discrepancies: the colder weather, the denser forest or too narrow bank of the river. She would have thought it strange that no sounds from the nearby city made their way to her. But in her shaken state, the only thing her mind processed was the need to get to safety - follow upstream, for the road she drove off of must have been in that direction.

One foot in front of the other, she followed the river, feet numb in the straps of her sandals. She survived drowning, what was one more obstacle? After all, it was only a little cold. But she was far from being out of the woods, and the encouragements in her head were not keeping her body warm. She didn't get to get far though. A white shadowy figure moved between the trees of the dense forest. At first, she thought it was the consequence of asphyxiation that was still playing tricks on her mind. A low growl behind her made the hairs on the back of neck stand. Frozen in place, heart threatening to burst out of her chest, she listened to the rustling of leaves as whatever was behind her made its way closer. Tears clogged at the corner of her eyes. It was all a cosmic joke. She wouldn't drown, wouldn't freeze, but be eaten by some wild animal. She didn't know which death was more terrifying, but the impending one was running for first place.

"Ghost! Come back here." She turned to the sound of human voice, too fast for her weakened body and the world spun with her. She was steadied by a pair of gloved hands. "Are you alright, my lady?" Black eyes looked her up and down, before a cloak was wrapped around her shoulders. Tears finally burst out of her eyes with a silent sob. She wanted to speak, but the task was proving hard between weeping and clattering teeth.

"T-thank yo-u." She managed to get out, stopping between each word to form it properly. Wrapping the cloak tight around her, the man lead her away from the river. He might have spoken something to her, but her mind was fuzzy and eyelids heavy. She could have sworn the white shadow was still there, in the forest, yet every time she turned her head she couldn't find it. She hoped she hadn't suffered any brain damage from the prolonged lack of air. Her feet stumbled against one another, but everything was going to be alright; the guy would call her an ambulance and she'd be home before she knew it. That had been the last thought she had before her mind plunged into darkness again.

But it wasn't a complete darkness, no. She found herself floating in a vast black sea, millions of little lights sparkling within. Or was it perhaps the sky at night? It was beautiful and terrifying at the same time; endless and all consuming. She rationalized it as her newfound fear of the sea and drowning. It was only natural that she'd be plagued by nightmares for a while after she almost lost her life. But it didn't quite feel like a nightmare. There was no threat in sight or monster in the shadows causing her fright, just the hollowing sensation of being so incredibly small that her existence barely mattered. The necklace she was wearing tugged at her throat, but she ignored it, her eye catching one of the lights fluttering. Was it a star? She wanted to get closer, but walking seemed to have no effect. She was just floating in a weird limbo, no gravity or land to steady her feet. The flickering light made her look up again, and as she lifted her eyes she was suddenly on a bed, covered in thick furs. Despite the heavy covers and not being wet anymore, she was sill cold. Someone was speaking in hushed tones near her and she turned her attention to the two girls in the room.

"Who do you think she is?"

"I don't know, but father seemed shocked upon seeing her. Do you think he knows?"

"He definitely knows something."

"Or he was just surprised to see Jon bring home a half naked woman."

"I don't think she's from the North."

"What gave her away Arya, the little lace dress or her sun kissed skin..." The redhead trailed off as she turned and saw the woman in question was sitting on the bed wide eyed and staring back at them. There was an awkward silence before the younger of the pair jumped on the edge of the bed startling her and started asking questions in rapid fire.

"What's your name? Are you from Dorne? What were you doing in the forest? Were you traveling alone?"

"Slow down Arya, can't you see she's scared and confused. Forgive my sister, she's been curious about you since our brother brought you here."

"It's alright, I guess I owe my life to your brother." She looked at the sisters with caution. The looked nice enough, but what was with their clothes? And what was with the room itself? She felt like she landed in some medieval reenactment play.

"What is your name, if you don't mind? I'm Sansa and this is my little sister, Arya." No matter the weird surroundings, their brother did save her so she decided to play nice.

"You can call me Tori."

"What house are you from?"

"House? You mean like Slytherin and Griffindor?" She managed a chuckle, the two were obviously still children. She moved to get out of bed; best not prolong her stay, her family must have been worried about her. The warmth of the furs was sourly missed as she slipped from them, but her new attire kept her from taking too much note to the fact. They had dressed her in an equally heavy dress, lined with furs. She looked up at the oldest sister, but the girl was looking at her with unsure eyes.

"We've never heard of those houses... Are you perhaps from further East? From Essos?"

"Essos? What are you girls talking about? I'm from Europe, though I've been living in the US for most on my life. But what's with the weird clothes? Is it some sort of Live Action Role Play? Or a festival?" The girls shared a look, Sansa opening her mouth to speak but was interrupted by the door swinging open abruptly.

"Girls, what are doing here? I told you not to come near the woman."

"But dad, she looks harmless. A little weird but-"

"Come now, you're late for your lessons." The youngest puffed, but followed her sister out of the room nevertheless. Tori was left alone with the older man, who was most likely their father. He had a stern look on his face, and was looking at her funny, like she might pull out some magic trick and he wanted to make out how it worked. "I see you're finally awake."

"Yes, sir, I was told I have your son to thank for that. I am grateful he took me out of the cold." Her hands brushed against her upper arms, hoping the friction would warm her up a little more. Still the man watched her with interest.

"What is your name and where are from, girl?"

"My name is Victoria. I was visiting family in the city not far from here. Speaking of which, could I use your phone to call a taxi, please? I should be going..." The confused look on the man's face made her weary. Were they not letting her go? Was she some kind of prisoner?

"Winterfell is the only town in miles. What is the name of your house?"

"House? You mean my family name? It's Carter. Victoria Carter. But I don't see how any of this is-"

"Carter? Never heard of them... "

"Well why would you? I never heard of you, you never heard of me. It's big world out there."

"You don't know who I am?" There was a little pause, unsure of what to answer. On one hand, he looked truly astonished that she had no clue who he was. Telling the truth might insult him. Lying on the other hand, she was extremely bad at and risked getting into even more trouble.

"No, I don't. All I gathered is that you're the father of those girls and the boy who helped me. Should I know of you?"

"I am Eddard of the House Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North." He said the title as is it had left his lips a million times, no joke in his voice, just fact. Her body shook, either from being cold or the mortifying realization that she was in deep shit. Her heart rate accelerated, breathing becoming a labor. There were two plausible explanations: either these men were all crazy and really believed they lived in some medieval setting, or she was washed up by the river further than she realized. Though, wouldn't she be aware of a town filled with crazy people, ruled by a 'lord'? And what was up with 'Warden of the North'? The North, either if it was the north of the state or the country, was a long way from there. She doubted her body had floated in the damn river so far.

"I'm sorry, I've never heard of you, or Winterfell." He regarded her for a moment, not giving away any of his thoughts.

"Come with me." He turned and exited the room before Tori had a chance to protest. She supposed she could follow and gather more information about her surroundings. Maybe even spot a phone.

She didn't expect much when she exited the room, but whatever she thought might greet her outside was far from the reality of it. The size of the man's house alone was a surprise, the decorations another. Massive stone walls adorned with torches, sometimes covered with banners depicting a gray wolf. And the sheer lack of light bulbs and wall plugs was mind boggling. They passed men and they bowed their heads to the 'Lord Stark'. No wonder he fancied himself important... They reached another room and he strode inside directly to the table in the center. She made her way closer as he picked up an old looking scroll and unrolled it.

"This is the map of the known world. You must come from somewhere on it."

"The known world..." One look at the silly map was all she needed to know she was not going to find any familiar places scribbled on there. She liked to describe herself as a calm and collected person, but anger rushed into her, boiling her blood. "Are you shitting with me, old man? I'm in no mood for... whatever this is. I am grateful for your help and hospitality, but I nearly fucking drowned and I think it's high time I went home."

She manage to reach the door before she heard him call for the guards. Neither agility nor speed were skills she boasted possessing, so it came to a surprise to her as well when she managed to evade the two men who appeared in her way. Adrenaline or some sort of self preservation instinct kicked in as she ran on the gloomy halls with no real destination other than 'out'. The heavy skirts of her dress were tripping her, but she made good use of the objects in her way, throwing back candle holders and torches at her pursuers.

Light shone around a corner and for a moment she thought she wold be alright. She would get outside and maybe, just maybe there would be a sane person to call her a taxi or even the police. But as she took that corner and stepped into the wooden balcony her heart dropped, breath hitching.

There was nothing out there for miles and miles, nothing but the walls of this town she was cursed into and the vast expanse of a sad looking plain, cut by a lonely road. The people inside the walls were as oddly dressed as the 'lord' and his children. The sound of metal hitting metal was deafening in her ears; a blacksmith, an actual fucking blacksmith forging what looked like a sword. There were horses being lead into stables and people pulling carts.

Tears welled up in her eyes again, but she didn't let them fall.

"Oh, definitely not in Kansas anymore."

Ok, let's see

This escalated quickly... it was supposed to a plotless porny one-shot trash fic... but then I wanted to give the OC a little backstory. I couldn't decide on a house to give her... Stark? Way overused and why the hell would she love the man who crippled her brother and who's son killed her lord father?Who's father is responsible for the Red Wedding? Hell nah, girl, get your priorities straight! Baratheon? They'd be in-laws, tho that would be one of the least disturbing things in the show. But the Lannisters would be responsible for the death of Robert, weather he was the father or brother of the OC. Cercei would plot her unsolved murder before she got a chance to learn Jamie's favorite color, never mind fall in love with him. Martell? THEY MURDERED ELIA AND HER CHILDREN! Martells hate the Lannisters. Tho I love their house *heart emoji* Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken! Tyrell? It seemed fitting for a while as in Margery+Joffrey/Tommen, Cercei+Loras and Jamie+OC. But Lannisters and Tyrells seems to be killing each other off...

Now there were other smaller houses I considered, like Arryn, cause I love their motto "As High as Honor" (but again, Lannisters hate...) Or Hightower and Dayne (and now that I'm typing this, Greyjoy... she might have made a nice Greyjoy... oh well, too late )

But as I was reading lore, I thought it'd be fun to have her learn the history of this strange lands she fell into as we go. I thought it be nice to have an OC with no family ties to the politics and power grabbing. Also fun to have the world of Asoiaf seen through the eyes of a modern woman. So generic girls falls into fantasy land was born. Yay!

I don't know if I'm doing right by sharing this early on, but I want to make some things clear:

1. It's a Jamie x OC love story, albeit a super slow burn one, mixed with a dash of Epic quest. I don't foresee this having more than 20 chapters tho...

2. There will be no Jon, Robb or other character romance... no love triangles (unless... you count Cercei? :)) )

3. I want her to have some impact on the plot. As in, she wasn't brought in this world just for the sake of it. So I'm giving her some magic. Nothing too wow. I'm thinking one-two dreams of White Walkers and maybe dragons and... something else you'll find about later on :P But she will in no way be Azor Ahai or defeat the walkers single handed -_-' Oh and a meeting with Melisandre :))

4. Did I mention slow burn? I did? Oh well, I'm saying it again :)) They will be friends before anything else. And I will try to keep him as close to his Cercei-obsesses self. Also, she won't be joined by his hip - she will travel quite a bit and Jamie's story will follow the original closely.

5. This fic will be heavy on lore! I didn't know weather to put in under the TV show or the book... it follows the plot in the show, but will be heavy with lore from the books. So, beware of potential spoilers?

Let me know your thoughts *hugs*