Begin Again

A/N: Just a story I thought whilst crying over this wonderful couple and wishing there'd be more AU fanfics about them. I love them to pieces.

Summary: With their children already growing up, Ned and Catelyn Stark found themselves growing apart, too. When Ned had the unfortunate luck of forgetting their wedding anniversary, he thought that maybe, it's time to make things right between him and his wife again.

Chapter One:

If there was one thing Eddard Stark couldn't possibly deny is that he loved his family more than anything. He has a loving wife by his side, five beautiful children – six if he included his nephew by his sister Lyanna, whom he raised to fulfill the promise he made on her deathbed. He wasn't much of a family man, actually, he wasn't the kind who'd graciously attend parent-teacher meetings or watch his sons' soccer games, or play tea party with his girls, but he loved them so deeply and would do just about anything for the sake of his children and their future, even if it involved him working 24/7 as CEO of his company, barely even spending time with his family.

He sighed. Truthfully, the underlying truth is that he was somewhat melancholic that the children are growing up without him being there to witness it. Robb, Jon and Sansa are now in university to take their college courses and they very seldom go home, Arya spends most of her time hanging out with her friends and study group, and Bran has become an active member of his soccer club and spends most of his time practicing with the team.

And Rickon, well, his youngest had only recently started schooling and Catelyn had been a very hands-on Mom, as with their other children, and he had her to thank for that. She'd been nothing but a very dutiful wife to him, a loving and caring mother to the kids, and his very own confidante whenever he finds himself at conflicting decisions regarding their company, and other matters entirely. She was the epitome of a perfect wife, and oftentimes he wonders how in the world did he ever come to deserve a woman like her.

At the sudden thought of his wife, Ned shifted on his swivel chair, dropping the pen he'd been holding for the last thirty minutes signing and reviewing his paperworks. He stood up, headed for his own small bar in his office, and then poured himself a glass of scotch.

His thoughts immediately went back to Catelyn, driving him to take a gulp of his liquor in just one go.

Indeed she was the perfect wife, and theirs was seemingly a perfect marriage to the onlookers – they have a beautiful family that resides in a mansion at Winterfell, their company, Stark Enterprises, grows bigger and bigger every year. Catelyn accompanies him to launches, galas, parties and whatnot, and interviewers fawn all over them. They'd been featured in many magazines as the perfect couple numerous times, for which he didn't really seem to care and neither did she.

They were perfect, they really were.

But he decided long ago, when things started to go dull between them, that no marriage can ever be really called perfect.

He loved her, and he was certain that she loved him too. Their marriage wasn't really born out of love but of duty, and they hardly even knew one another when they got married. But over the years, he learned to love her – as a friend, as his wife. They learned to love each other for the sake of their children.

But the last months had been difficult. With their children already growing up, they found themselves growing apart, too. They have had more arguments in the last year than they ever had in the eighteen years of their marriage, they barely even talked, and only when in the presence of their children did he ever get to have a decent talk with her.

Ned glanced at the clock and saw that it was already 6:30pm. He needed to go home or else he'd be keeping his family waiting for dinner. He put the glass back down on the table, then proceeded to stuff all the remaining paperworks and laptop into his briefcase. He slipped his coat on, took one last look at himself in the mirror, and hurried out.

The streets had gone dark, saved only by the numerous lamp posts that lined the cemented road. Ned drove as fast as he can, and when he reached their home he immediately pulled over into the garage. He stepped out of the car with as much haste, holding his briefcase with his right hand and his coat with the other. He passed by the lawn and noticed that Rickon's bike was nowhere to be found; strange, he thought. But Ned continued on and entered their house soundlessly.

The house was awfully quiet, as it had been the last couple of months since three of his children had moved out, but the silence tonight was quite intriguing. He could hear no television on, no shouting and yelling arising from whatever argument Arya and Bran are having. But from the huge living room he smelled something quite mouth-watering coming from elsewhere in the house, and his stomach growled. Ned hastily dropped his briefcase and coat on a nearby table and hurried to the dining room.

The sight he stumbled upon kind of surprised him. Catelyn was preparing his favorite meal on the table, but the kids are nowhere to be found. She was wearing a black dress, which showed her curves and the muscled arms he loved so much. Her hair, as red and fiery as ever, was flowing freely behind her back. And her face, despite not having make-up, glowed. His wife looked absolutely beautiful tonight.

"Hey," Ned greeted. He moved closer to her and saw that she was wearing a black Louboutin shoes, matching her outfit.

Catelyn turned around to greet him, and if it wasn't Ned's imagination tricking him, Cat's eyes flickered downward, as if to eye his hands, but he was empty-handed. "You're just in time," she half-smiled. "I was just about to finish preparing dinner. I'll just… get the wine." She turned her back and trotted back into the kitchen, rewarding Ned a sight of her bare back, unhidden by her dress.

Ned simply nodded and sat on the chair. His wife did quite a number on preparing the food tonight, he'd give her that. And the wine… What's with the wine? Is there an occasion he forgot to mark?

Before the questions could bug him any further, Cat came back, a bottle of wine and 2 wine glasses in her hands. She pulled a chair and sat opposite him, her usual spot, and stared at him for a while before looking down to her lap. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she kept her mouth shut.

It felt awkward, with just the two of them in that table. Being alone with her had been really uncomfortable especially the last months.

"Where are the kids?" he asked as he started eating.

Cat started eating, too. "Have you forgotten? I messaged you earlier about Arya, she'll be spending the night with her study group since her exams are coming in a week. Bran and Rickon are at Benjen's. He's taking them camping tomorrow." she uttered, a hint of coldness in her voice.

Ned chose not to reply, for he doesn't remember getting a message from her or Arya earlier that day, and he had forgotten about Benjen taking the boys. He dismissed it, no point arguing about it anyway.

Minutes seemed like hours as they ate in casual silence, only the clinking of utensils echoed the dining room as they both finished their food. Once or twice, Catelyn looked up to meet his eyes, as if waiting for him to say something, anything, and he just nodded, mentioned how good the food was, and Cat just smiled.

Soon enough, after what seemed like an excruciatingly long dinner, they finished. Ned rose from his seat. He passed by Cat who was already collecting the plates, and tapped her shoulder before completely leaving her alone to clean up.

Ned gathered his coat and briefcase and went upstairs to the office adjoining their bedroom. The office was large, there were a few wooden bookshelves and vintage paintings adorning the office, a large glass window that leads to the balcony, and his own table situated in the middle of the room. He retrieved a few more documents, sat before his table and started picking up where he left off.

About an hour later, as he was perusing a proposal a business partner offered him, Ned noticed Cat standing by the doorway. She looked tired, her impossibly blue eyes displayed her fatigue, and if it weren't his eyes deceiving him, her eyes mirrored sadness… and so much more. She was still wearing the black dress, but she was barefooted, her black shoes dangling on the tips of her long fingers. Her hair was tied in a messy bun. Catelyn may have looked worn-out, but she was still so beautiful.

"Are you busy?" She asked, her voice cracking. She stepped inside the office and sat in the couch in one corner.

"No, I'm just reviewing these documents…" he looked over at her and saw a frown marring her face. "No, I'm not busy, Cat. Never for you,"

She gave a little laugh at that. She settled herself comfortably in the couch and watched him intently. "You know," Catelyn began, her eyes glowing. "I've always known that one day it'll only be just you and me again this house, just like how we started," Cat hummed. "The kids are growing up so fast…"

Ned huffed out a small chuckle. He was thinking of the same thing only a little while ago. Come to think of it though, tonight was probably a little glimpse into what would happen when all the kids had moved out, and it wasn't good. "We still have little Rickon though," he replied.

"Yeah and later on he'll be joining the soccer club too and chasing girls and hanging out with his friends and going to college. It's just… Time flies so fast, Ned. Soon enough we'll be old and wrinkly and we'll think that we'll still have all the time in the world to make up for the things we didn't do," She sighed. "But we won't,"

Before Ned could make any more remark at what she just said, Catelyn had already walked over to him. She moved closer, and he could smell her perfume and the sweetness that was naturally just her. Cat straddled him on his chair, pushing the hem of her dress up a little, and placed her arms around his neck. Her fingers played with the little hairs on his nape, and before he could stop himself he pulled her face down and kissed her hungrily.

The kiss was passionate and hard and full of longing, something they hadn't had in a long time. He revelled in the feel of her lips in his', softly biting, making attempts at pushing his tongue inside her mouth to explore. But she soon broke off the kiss, their faces mere inches apart, both of them breathing hard.

"Cat…" he whispered, voice hoarse and his grip on her hips tight.

His wife looked deeply into his eyes. "Is there anything you want to say, Ned?" she asked, her tone a little hopeful.

Ned didn't reply and instead attempted to kiss her again, but he was having none of it as Catelyn pushed his chest and moved away from him in such a swift motion. She stood up to her full height and eyed her husband down one more time before she turned her back and walked away.

On her way out, she suddenly stopped, looked over her right shoulder and spoke. Her eyes were glowing with tears. "I'm sorry for expecting so much from you, Eddard Stark," Her voice cracked at the mention of his name and she bit her lip before continuing. "Happy 19th anniversary."

Nineteen years, he remembered far too late, and now he's starting to realize why it's not working out between them any longer. One look at her all dolled up, his favorite foods laying on the dinner table, the kids not being home should've already been one huge hint but he was too dumb enough to realize it.

Ned mentally cursed himself. Quite simply, he had forgotten their anniversary. He did actually remember a few days ago that it was already coming but when the day finally arrived, it slipped his mind. And now he doesn't know how in the world he would confront her in the morning, much more in the next days to come.

He stood up from his swivel chair and paced around the room, pressing his thumb against his now pounding temples. The affronted look on his wife's face once again taunted him and he felt his insides turn at the sight. He actually felt bad, seeing the woman he loved so much be hurt like that. And the worst part – he was the one who caused it.

And so he thought hard and hard, thinking of possible solutions to make it up with Cat not just for forgetting their anniversary but also for all the other things that had somehow cracked and tainted their relationship, and to prove her that despite everything, he still loved her deeply.

An hour of intense brainstorming only led him to one conclusion – there's no way in hell that he can actually manage to do this on his own. Ned took a deep breath, opened his laptop and hesitantly sent an e-mail to Robb and Sansa, who are probably asleep right now, but he needed them. He felt absolutely absurd resorting to his kids for advice but he knew they could help him in whatever plan he had in mind.

He waited a few minutes and later on heard the sound that passed for ringing with Skype. Ned hastily clicked accept, and his daughter's face beamed up at him from his laptop's screen.

"Hey Dad," Sansa smiled, the blue eyes she so obviously got from her mother lighting up. "Is the video coming through clear?"

"Yes, it's fine. How are you?" Ned suddenly noticed that her red hair, which was usually flowing freely behind her back, had been cut short, but he chose not to remark on it. "I haven't seen you in ages. We're all missing you here,"

It was true he missed his daughter a lot. Even if he spent most of his time working, Sansa grew up close to him. He remembered when she was a little girl, she'd always visit him in his office and question him about a lot of things, and as she became a teenager she'd still visit him to ask how he was, and to sometimes rant about school and the like.

"Awww. I miss you guys too... It's so great to see you, Dad, truly. But will you please tell Bran to stop sending me those game requests and Arya to refrain from sneaking into my room to get my clothes? I saw a picture she posted online yesterday and she was wearing my favorite shirt," she pouted. "Anyway, happy anniversary to you and Mom! What present did you get her?"

The fact that he seemed to be the only person who had forgotten their anniversary kind of baffled him more, and he gave his daughter a hesitant smile. "That's the thing… I forgot,"

Sansa's forehead crossed. "What do you mean, you forgot?"

"I forgot our anniversary and I think your Mom now hates me for it. She hates me now more than ever," he muttered the last words under his breath.

"That's not true. Mom loves you, you know that, we all know that,"

"Yeah – but the point here is, I forgot a special day in our lives… I must have hurt her feelings. Tell me sweetheart, what should I do? You're the expert about love and stuff," Again, he felt absurd, but he'd become a little desperate.

Sansa fell completely quiet for a few seconds, and Ned's eyes remained glued to the screen, waiting for his daughter's reply.

"Give her an anniversary gift, something she would like… What's the saying… better late than never," Sansa said steely, with a certain tone to her voice. She seemed mad.

"You do realize you're not helping here, sweetheart," He intends to give her a present, but with the way things are going between them, he figured he must do something a lot better than that.

"Maybe you could try to court her again," she later retaliated. "Give her flowers, take her out for a date, watch movies together… Mom would appreciate that, I know,"

Ned breathed hard, of course he'd thought about those things she mentioned, but he needed something that would give him assurance that he can win her feelings back. "I'd think about it. Call you soon."

Sansa sighed. "I'm sure Mom still loves you, Dad, never doubt that. And I know you love her too. Whatever it is that is happening between you two, whatever it is that you're not telling us about, I know you two could make it through this. Good night, Daddy. Love you,"

He smiled, bid his daughter good night and then ended the conversation.

As he just sat there, alone in his office while his wife was sleeping with her pillow probably still wet with her tears, Ned thought back of all the wonderful years he had with Catelyn, and at that moment he became more determined to make things right between them.

But how?

Just as he was about to turn his laptop off and retire for the day, he suddenly heard a familiar ring.

But this time, it was from Robb.

As he clicked 'accept', Ned kind of hoped his eldest would give him the better solutions he was actually desperate for.