A Mad World
AN: Well here's a weird one, like holy shit this is weird. This story is something I struggled with and struggled with it hard. Yet I fancy myself a decent story teller and don't back down from a challenge.
As top why this story was written when I had such trouble? I believe it is the story teller that makes a story, not the story premise.
I think I have done a decent job at proving that with this one.
So, take this story for what I tried to make it, a good story with a weird concept (that I don't think would work in any other fandom whatsoever).
As I don't want anyone to confuse the issue, here's a warning.
I Do Not Condone Incest. It Is Wrong.
This story does have a switching POV.
Let's see how it goes.
Disclaimer: I do not own GoT/ASOIF (Game of Thrones/A Song Of Ice and Fire) or any of its characters, I'm just writing my story in their world.
King Aerys The Mad he was called, and Ned thought it an apt title for who ever would decree such a thing as he did. To decree all Great Houses to wed brother and sister as the Targaryen's have done for centuries.
It would be madness that ruled over the land he was sure.
Most Great Houses were safe from this decree for at least a while, and that was enough for them. Yet House Stark would have no such luck, as both Ned and Lyanna were of age and not in any betrothals like their brother Brandon.
Ned swallowed around the lump in his throat for what felt like the hundredth time, he couldn't meet the eyes of his sister, Lyanna, who sat across from him in their fathers solar. Their father Rickard Stark was a giant of a man, and he seemed as large as the room as he paced, muttering curses that would be considered treason if they left the room.
Not only had the king made such a ridiculous decree, he was personally travelling to Winterfell to see his decree carried out with Ned and Lyanna Stark. King Aerys the Mad was coming to Winterfell for a wedding, and the North was in a downward spiral to make sure he would find it a glorious affair, or wildfire would surely be the punishment dealt.
When they walked out of their fathers solar a couple hours later, the air between them was thick with awkward tension. They could barely look into one another's eyes before they turned down different hallways, muttering quick goodnights.
The following months would be an awkward affair for sure.
Lyanna had never really dreamed of a wedding as most girls did. No, her dreams were of Tourneys and Knighthood. Yet those dreams seemed to fall apart as her father read the decree to her and her sweet honorable brother Ned.
Was she morally corrupt when her first thoughts weren't the shame of wedding her brother but rather, that her sweet Ned deserved better than her. He deserved someone who could love him, and what love could come from such a union?
She had never saw Ned as agitated as he was when they were forced to spend time with King Aerys. More than once it seemed only her hand on his would calm him, and the looks they gave each other were treasured. Ned always looked out for her, and she vowed even though they would commit a great shame that she would protect him, and they would bare the weight together.
They found themselves together more than they ever were before their betrothal was set up by Aerys. Through the whole ordeal, Lyanna found that she liked being in Ned's presence, not in any perverse way, but she was starting to see something about him that she didn't think many noticed.
Her sweet Ned, the somber, honorable, Quiet Wolf of Winterfell, had a fierceness within him that outshone all her other siblings, and even her own. He had fangs, but they were not coated with a fiery temper, his wolf blood was as cold as the Northern Winds, and it made him all the more intense when she caught glimpses of it in the weeks before their wedding.
King Aerys was complaining about the cold, and just about everything else too. Ned was sure the man regretted his idea to come to the North, ye the man made no mention of calling off the whole thing, no matter how much Ned wished he would.
Hell, if he would just leave it would be an immense improvement. Yet he seemed content with talk of the upcoming wedding and would smile at Ned and his sister whenever they were in the same room.
Which, Ned thought, was too often. Aerys would make sure the Ned and Lyanna were always together, no matter what they did. Luckily, or not so luckily, the wedding was tonight. Ned was screaming on the inside, yet he was able to maintain his somber mask.
Which was another thing Aerys made a point to complain about, often telling him to be happy for he was about to wed a beautiful woman.
Aerys ought to thank Lyanna, for she had stayed Ned's hand when it would unconsciously reach for his sword.
As Ned dressed Benjen came into his chambers, his face bearing a somber visage. House Stark was about to commit a great shame, yet nothing could be done. Ned was going to wed Lyanna. He had contemplated running off with her, fleeing to the East, but he couldn't do that to Lyanna, it would be a worse life.
Hours later and night was upon Winterfell. Ned stood before Winterfell's Heart Tree, snow littered the ground as was usual, yet Ned was near shaking for a completely different reason. The reason being a thing man in red and black robes, emblazoned with a three headed dragon. The madman was smiling, and his head bobbed to a tune only he heard, and Ned had to fight to maintain a neutral face.
Two of the Kingsguard were there with him, Ser Arthur Dayne and Ser Barristan Selmy. They both stood with stone faces, yet Ned could swear there was a tightness to their eyes that hinted at disproval.
The sound of horse hooves drew Ned out of his thoughts, and he took a deep breath to steady himself.
Ned always though his baby sister was a beautiful woman, but it was a passive knowledge, yet when she stepped into the torch light, Ned almost saw her as a Northern woman in her blue dress and gray Stark cloak one identical to his own. Ned cursed himself mentally for these thoughts when his eyes found the purple ones of the king, who smiled all the wider as if he knew Ned's thoughts.
"Smile my boy, you are to wed a true beauty this night." The King's voice was rough but still had the melodic tones all Targaryen's are said to possess.
Ned forced a smile at the king, who nodded, satisfied.
The smile grew just a little more genuine when his gaze met that of his sisters as she took her place by his side. The words that had been spoken for centuries were spoken once more that night, and Ned did his duty and wrapped his cloak around his sisters' shoulders, and when their eyes met he saw his own fears mirrored in Lyanna's gray eyes.
They kneeled in front of the heart Tree and Ned prayed not for himself but rather his sister. He could bear this shame with head held high, and he had no doubt Lyanna would do the same, but he prayed for a way to take her burdens.
When they rose, hand in hand, Ned saw the spark of madness in Aery's eye as he smiled like the madman he was, and Ned feared for his sister wife. The thought of those words almost had Ned running for the hills once more, but he would not dishonor Lyanna that way, no they would bear this great shame together.
Lyanna was nervous, more nervous than the She Wolf of Winterfell had ever been. It was ridiculous really, for a woman who never wanted to be married off to be nervous of messing up her own. Yet, she figured it was she didn't wish to bring even more shame on to her brother by baring her fangs and ruining what throughout the centuries was supposed to be a glorious affair for any maiden.
That thought led to her faced being flushed bright red. Many men would never think her, the She Wolf of Winterfell would be a maiden, not with her crass attitude and wildness. Yet, she was, and this night she would lose her maidenhead to her own brother, and the thought sobered her faster than the biting winds of a Northern Winter.
Ser Arthur Dayne was in the room with her, and his eyes watched her closely, as if he was there to stop her from fleeing, which was normally a smart thing to worry when Lyanna Stark was involved. Yet, she would not be fleeing. No, she refused to bring shame onto her Ned, and she thought with a sickened smile, he truly would be hers when the night was through.
What caught her by surprise was when The Sword of The Morning came up behind her, gently taking the brush from her hands as she fussed over her hair. He merely smiled sadly at her when he started to braid her hair in a simple Northern braid, explaining that he had a younger sister when she questioned his deft ability of braiding.
When she was ready for the wedding to take place, she caught one last look in the mirror, and was surprised to see a determined faced woman where not an hour before a half-grown kid had stood.
The feast was a sad affair by Northern standards. Ned could blame no one, how could they possibly celebrate this shame? The only man full of real laughter was King Aerys, and why wouldn't he be joyful? He had brought about a change all of Westeros mocked, and the Starks were the first to fall under the change.
Not to say there wasn't a party, no matter the circumstance they were still a bunch of men with mead flowing freely.
While everyone drank themselves into the depths of their stock Lyanna dragged Ned onto the dance floor, and Ned was only barely competent enough to keep up with his wild sister, wife, whatever they were now.
Her reasoning Ned would learn was that there were worse fates than to be married to an honorable man, even if that man was her brother.
The music and mead had slowed, and Ned was leading Lyanna through a slow dance, making her laugh with stories of his time in the Eyrie with Jon Arryn and Robert Baratheon.
The mood shifted when Aerys stood tall from his seat above everyone else, shouting for the bedding to commence. A few drunken men joined in all yelling for them to bed, and before anyone could say anything Ned and Lyanna were separated from one another and lead out through separate doors.
The only comfort Ned found was when Barristan Selmy accompanied his sister, batting away a few wandering hands.
When Ned was deposited into the bedding room, only in his small clothes, he found the purple eyes of King Aerys staring at him. Ned kneeled quickly and Aerys kept him there for but a moment before he was allowed to rise.
"I'm not stupid Quiet Wolf, I know you would seek to deceive this sacred tradition. So, know I will be watching closely to make sure this marriage is completed in the eyes of the gods, both old and new."
Ned was about to respond when Lyanna entered, mostly clothed with Barristan the Bold following close behind. Aerys repeated his words to Lyanna, using the term She Wolf for her, before he and Barristan slipped through a side door used for the newlyweds the next morning to return to their rooms in private.
Lewd shouts were heard through the thick doors, and Ned apologized profusely as he stood across from Lyanna. It was her who would silence him, and she would do it with a finger on his lips. Ned was shocked to find her standing so close.
"Let's just get this over with Ned, please." She pleaded with him, and he could only numbly nod, they were going to do this, and shame filled Ned with a great intensity.
The shame flared quickly into guilt when he found his body reacting to the sight of a bare Lyanna in front of him. They fell into bed holding each other, apologies whispered fervently between them.
Neither noticed the pair of purple eyes that watched them through a slit in the door, his grin mad as he watched.
Lyanna felt shame for how she came undone underneath her brother the night of their bedding. They both would blame the wine they had drank, but she knew the truth, and it made her flush when she realized her brother was a tender lover.
They were an estranged pair, neither being able to quite look one another in the eye before red dusted both their cheeks. Indeed, as much as she came undone beneath her brother, he came undone beneath her gentle hesitant touch.
Both knew it was wrong, had said so even, but it was hard to not remember the night when it was the first of their many firsts.
They would show small, horribly fake, shows of affection when the King was around for the week after their wedding. That being the reason, the night of their wedding was so close in the top of their minds, for Aerys took every opportunity to poke them about it.
Both were flush with shame when they realized he had seen them, and their first act seemed truly wrong with the revelation. What made it worse is the quietest thought that Lyanna wished it was a moment only her and Ned had shared.
A month after their wedding and she had missed her moonblood, and she was hesitant to tell her Ned, but the small smile that crept over his face was worth it in the end.
Another month later and the maester confirmed what they had dreaded. Lyanna was pregnant and weirdly the shame that flushed through them both was lessened by the private moment when she revealed her lack of blood. They decided to keep the child, for it was innocent of its parents wrong doing.
Their father was outraged to say the least at their decision, but neither could bring themselves to kill their child, even if it was born of something regretful.
Another few months and their father would announce that they would receive Moat Cailin as their home and be charged with the reconstruction of its defenses.
Ned and Lyanna knew it was a twofold plan. Part one was to take away the shame they brought with their very presence, and part two for rumors of Rebellion where whispered of South of The Neck.
The Lannister's were the second of the Great Houses to fall into the same shame of Ned and Lyanna. With the marriage of Ser Jaime and Lady Cersei Lannister married in Kings Landing, to which Ned and Lyanna were personally invited to by the king himself.
Lyanna almost punched the king when the madman fawned over the babe growing in her belly, and Ned as always had to help quench her anger with his solid, ice like, support. She had whispered to him that their child would be their pride and joy and no man or woman, be they king or peasant would mock them without earning her ire.
Ned noticed that Jaime and Cersei didn't seem as disturbed by the fact they were married, and in fact seemed to enjoy public displays. Ned did not know much about them South and chalked it up to their strange fascination for the playing of the 'Game' as they called it. The four bonded over their shared predicament.
Jaime would later confide in Ned, just as Cersei would confide in Lyanna that they in fact loved their sibling beyond the family type.
Jaime and Cersei taught Ned and Lyanna a little about the game, and that cowering in the face of this so-called shame would make them easy prey. Instead they taught them to hold their heads high and smile at their petty insults.
Even if it was forced upon them, they were in it together and would only have one another to rely on.
They both left Kings Landing with their heads high while their souls trembled with doubts.
Lyanna thought long and hard on the words of the Lannister twins. She and Ned would only have each other to rely on, and as she turned her thoughts backwards in time she realized as soon as their father banished them to The Moat, they truly only had each other.
She should have been more surprised to know that that thought didn't bother her. She would depend on Ned and him on her, and she would protect her Quiet Wolf.
Lyanna's water broke a month before was expected and Ned panicked as he carried her through the halls of Moat Cailin to their maesters quarters. He never thought of his sister as small and frail until that moment when she shook in his arms as he quickly walked down the halls of the ancient fort.
Lyanna was supposed to be the She Wolf of Winterfell, not trembling and clutching him like she was.
As the maester and midwife came in Ned was ready to leave and let them do their job, as tradition stated too. Yet when Lyanna's hand gripped his and her face filled with fear, he couldn't deny her quiet pleas to stay.
The labor was hard, and Ned was certain Lyanna had broken the bones in his hand, and her threats almost had him running for the hills, but he would do his duty and stand by his wife through her trials.
Twins were born to them, a boy first and a girl second. They both were of Stark blood, with dark hair pale skin, and while the boy had his mother's slightly bright gray eyes, the girl had her father's darker gray ones. They had ten little fingers and ten little toes, and both of them breathed a sigh of relief their children had no deformities. Their names were Jon for the boy and Arya for the girl, and Ned's heart lurched in his chest as he gazed upon the mother of his children and lost in the moment his lips brushed against hers.
Lyanna, lost in their private moment returned the kiss, and they fought for dominance. A polite cough interrupted them and both blushed red. Ned fled the room, face still flushed as soon as the maester told Lyanna she needed rest.
Her laughter followed him down the halls.
Lyanna was happy as she feed her children, even though the birth had taken quite a lot out of her, and she had been bed ridden for a couple weeks already, feeding her son and daughter was one of the best parts of her day.
The best part was teasing her sweet Ned when he walked in to see her bare chested and his face would flush the brightest red.
She would admit, only to herself of course, that maybe she loved her brother more than she should.
Lyanna was weak for weeks after the birth, and Ned could barely be dragged from her side to oversee the construction efforts of their home. It would be Lyanna herself who would get him moving and many of their workers would laugh at his chastened state.
Their laughs would die off with one look at Lyanna who would defend her brother-husband from all who would ridicule him. Ned was her sweet quiet Ned, as she would often tell him, usually loudly in front of their men when he was being particularly stubborn.
They would start to sleep in the same bed, after she was given leave from the maesters quarters and maybe their love wasn't as innocent as it was before.
Their nights spent sleeping in the same bed were some of the warmest Lyanna had ever had. She would often tease Ned calling him hers as she stripped bare in front of him to change into her night clothes. She admitted she definitely loved Ned, and it was moving further away from a family love with each gesture they shared.
If she blushed bright red when he returned her teasing, well no one needed to know that.
A raven arriving from Kings Landing was usually something to dread for them, yet when it also bore the Lannister Lion, they breathed a little bit easier. The news was not so joyous though, as it bared details of a stillborn. They had named their unborn son Joffrey, and their hearts broke for their friends. The letter also contained a coded message that was to be delivered to Rickard as discreetly as possible.
The message was delivered as swiftly as it could be, baring the Stark seal hidden within progress reports.
Ned and Lyanna were caught once more by their Maseter, Luwin. This time it was a small moment as they watched their children in the nursery. Once more lost in the moment they soon found themselves locked in a passionate embrace. The kind old maester merely smiled at them with what seemed a knowing eye. Ned and Lyanna could barely look into one another's eye without Ned flushing, but it didn't stop them from falling asleep in each other's arms that night.
Sadly, the peace would not last.
Soon a tourney would be called at Harrenhal, and their weird lives would change.
When Lyanna found Howland Reed being bullied she saw red and beat them back with a training sword in hand and hair flowing wildly in the breeze, looking every inch the She Wolf she was claimed to be.
She would devise a plan and that plan would set a certain silver haired prince's plan into motion.
Lyanna had found one of their fathers bannermen being bullied by squires and she had given them quite the scare when she pulled on of the swords from the training racks.
When she told Ned her plan, he laughed, and she pouted so adorably that he gave his blessing, though he made sure she knew she never needed it to do as she wished. She merely told him she wanted his support should worst come to worst, and he made a vow to watch over her.
She trounced knights in the tilt, dressed in dark armor she was called the Knight of the Laughing Tree, due to the laughing tree on her shield. When summoned before the king and asked for her name she merely told the king that his knights needed to be taught some respect. When Aerys demanded her to remove her helm she charged her horse out of the gates, a laugh bubbling from her, and thus The Knight of The Laughing Tree legend was born. The knight would never be found, and when Ned heard mention of the knight he would merely cast a glance at Lyanna and they would share a private smile, their gray eyes twinkling with mischief.
When Rhaegar crowned Lyanna Queen of Love and Beauty, publicly passing over his own wife Elia Martell to do so, Ned had never felt an anger quiet like he did that day. When Lyanna accepted the crown with a smile, Ned felt jealousy and anger grow into a pit in his stomach. The knot soon grew to include guilt, as he should not feel these feelings for his sister.
The knot would only dissipate when Lyanna would throw the crown into the heart in their room and leap into his arms, weeping as she was sure the whole realm thought her Rhaegar's whore.
Ned would never let her know how much he agreed with Brandon's treasonous words, nor how close he was to acting them out as her tears stained his undershirt.
Ned also wouldn't let Lyanna know how much he enjoyed her embrace or her loyalty, though she owed him none. Ned knew without a doubt that his sister was no whore, he had taken her maidenhead and they had not been in the same room as the prince before that day.
Ned would never forgive Rhaegar for his actions of that day, for making his Lyanna cry in despair. Ned would carry her to bed that night and whisper comforting words as she cried herself to sleep in his arms.
Ned would have to stop Brandon and Robert from charging at the Crown Prince when they saw him for the rest of the tourney.
Lyanna could hardly handle the words whispered about her being a Dragons Whore. She wanted to vomit with each one she heard. Yet, she wouldn't shame her Ned. So, she took a page from the Lannister handbook. She very publicly pushed Ned against a wall when a comment silenced the crowd around them, and the kiss she gave him left him gasping.
They would hold their heads high in the face of their judging. She would not lose her Ned to something as stupid as a prince.
Before the Stark party would leave both he and Lyanna would come before Princess Elia Martell and offer apologies for the disgrace she suffered, but they made it clear that Rhaegar's actions were his own, and had they known what he had planned they would never had shown.
The Princess was said to be a frail and weak woman yet when she accepted their words there was steel in her gaze.
As they rode North back to their home, they could only hope against hope that the shame of the tourney would not follow them as their marriage and possibly growing love did.
When Lyanna did not return from her evening ride, Ned started to worry inwardly. When evening turned to dusk his worry showed outwardly. When dusk turned to night, Ned was tearing out of the keep and into the surrounding areas with 20 good men at his back, including one Howland Reed, the boy they had met at Harrenhal, the heir to Greywater Watch.
Ned didn't find Lyanna but rather one of her guards, a wandering warrior looking for a place to call home. He was badly wounded and leaned against a tree with blood that wasn't all his splattered across him and his blades.
"I'm sorry my lord," the man, Brydan Ned recalled, spoke up weakly. "I couldn't keep them away, they were too many."
"Save your strength, my friend. We'll get you home." Ned reassured the swordsmen. Yet they both knew it was an empty promise.
"No, my Lord. I will die here, but there's something you need to know. The men who took her, they flew Targaryen colors." With the last sentence the man's body went slack as his last breath escaped his body.
Ned and his men quickly rode back to the keep, carrying Bryden's body behind them in a cart one of the townspeople had let them borrow. He was given a true Northern burial, as his station deserved.
When the funeral was done Ned returned to his solar and sent out letters, with the news he had learned. With his jaw clenched Ned swore to make whoever took Lyanna pay dearly.
Lyanna cursed at her captors one again as they kept her locked in the wheelhouse. Her curses and rude gestures went unheeded as she screamed herself hoarse. She knew who took her, the red and black three headed dragon emblazed on the inside of the wheelhouse was a good enough clue, but the men who kept their faces hidden kept her from outright accusing them.
No one knew where Lyanna Stark had disappeared to and Ned's heart ached for her and not just as his sister. He would admit it to no one, but he had developed feeling beyond those of family for his sister and this shameful secret would follow him to his grave, but first he would find Lyanna and return her home safely.
A raven from Kings Landing reached him quickly, and it had the Lannister Lion, and was written by the hand of his friend Jaime. It detailed how whispers of rebellion grew fiercer and how word of Lyanna Stark's disappearance had reached the South. Jaime and Cersei both sent their regard for his missing wife, and Ned replied thanking them for the news and their kind words.
Months had passed and still no sign of Lyanna Stark. Yet the whispers of rebellion had become full fledged shouts. A great council had been called and thrown the realm into civil war.
Moat Cailin had become a bustling Fort almost over night as men from the North and South alike sought its protection. Ned left his home in the capable hands of Luwin, and marched South as a commander for his father's army.
When the Stark army reach Kings Landing it was being sacked by men carrying Lannister banners, who attacked them in the confusion.
The army split off into groups and tried to enforce their own flanks as the battled through the streets of the stinking city.
Ned and Howland got separated from their men and made their way toward The Red Keep, the rallying point they had set for any disorientated men.
Lannister men poured into the gates of the keep and Ned lead Howland and a small group of Northerners into the keep.
A scream ripped through the air of the keep, and Ned led his men toward the source. The source turned out to be Elia Martell who had hunched over two small forms that could only be her children. There were two other man in the room. One was a mountain of a man who would make his large father look small. The other was younger man with a mop of blonde hair on his head and fierce green eyes. Jaime Lannister wore the white cloak of a Kingsgaurd and he was fighting fiercely with the large man.
Ned added his sword to the fray by plunging it into the back of the knee of the giant, Jaime being the skilled swordsmen that he is plunged his blade into the ribs of the giant. Howland added his own weapon, his four-pronged spear into the mans exposed neck. Still the giant somehow continued to struggle to get to his feet.
The three men put an end to it rather quickly, slashing, hacking, and stabbing into the mountain of muscle until it toppled into a bloody, hacked up pile.
Jaime duty bound stepped before the princess his sword held at the ready, yet Ned could see in the young man's eyes he wished to not have to fight, and Ned signaled for his men to guard the room, only Howland staying by his side.
"What in the seven hell's is going on Jaime?" Ned asked his gulping in breaths.
"My father," he spat the words out, his jaw working hard, teeth grinding before he forced himself to continue "Tywin, was upset at my appointment to the Kingsgaurd. The marriage to Cersei, something he could look over 'Keeping the bloodline pure' but assigning me to the Kingsguard has made Tyrion heir to Casterly Rock. Father has been itching for a fight since the decree, but Rhaegar calling the council was just his opportunity."
Ned nodded slowly absorbing the words quickly and analyzing them.
"Have you heard any news of Lyanna?" Ned asked, his heart hurt as he thought of her in danger.
Jaime could only shake his head sadly.
"You once did me a kindness, Lord Stark," a soft voice interrupted them "and another today, by saving the life of me and my babes."
All three men turned to the Princess, they bowed swiftly before rising again at her behest.
"I will repay this kindness with information of your sister-wife. My brother has written to me and claimed that some of the Kingsgaurd were marching in the northern territories of Dorne. I apologize this is all I know."
Ned kneeled quickly Howland following his lead. "Thank you, Your Grace. Your words bring my heart some comfort. If you ever require need of me Your Grace, you only must ask. The North Remembers."
With his vow made Ned swiftly rose gathered half of the men to follow him and left the other to help Elia Martell escape the keep.
So, Ned, Howland, and 8 other men rode from Kings Landing and farther South still.
Lyanna had never truly struck another person in anger until Rhaegar's hand slid up her thigh, as soft words of prophesy slipped from his lips like honey mead.
Yet, her fist balled just as her brothers had showed her and her knuckles crunched the prince's nose to one side. The prince reeled back, and she would have continued her assault, if not for Ser Arthur Dayne hauling her off her feet in a strong grip.
She cursed them both, loudly, as she was deposited into her room, more a prison cell. She cursed them till her throat hurt and then she cursed at them more. Damning them for taking her from her husband. Her brother. Her sweet quiet Ned. Tears formed in her eyes and she tried to blink them away, but they came anyway, unbidden.
Ned, not the first thought she had spared him, but her heart ached for him in ways it shouldn't. He must be worried about her, she was certain he was. Feeling guilty the whole while, and that thought hurt her even more than being separated form him. She never wanted him to hurt over her. She vowed to let him know her true feelings, consequences be damned, when she next saw him.
When Rhaegar returned to her room, keeping his distance this time, he apologized. Asking her if her marriage was the problem, and she didn't wish to hurt her brother in such a way, he would have it annulled. When she rose with her wolf blood howling and her teeth bared he quickly backed up, hand falling to his sword hilt.
"I'm no dragon's whore. The only man who I spread my legs willingly for is my Ned." The words flowed from her filled with truth, and she would show no shame and dared the prince to try and continue with his line of thinking. He didn't and simply left, vowing she would see reason eventually, but he would not lay a hand on a woman that was not reciprocating of his affections.
The silver haired fool had another thing coming if he thought imprisonment would break her resolve. Indeed she was the She Wolf of Winterfell, and she would fight by what ever means, teeth bared and heart howling for her Quiet Wolf.
If Ned learned one thing from this ordeal it was that Dorne was hot. He sweat more in that desert than he had ever in his life, but he ignored his discomfort and rode hard still. Lyanna was here somewhere, and he would find her and bring her home.
They had followed the rumors South and across the northern part of Dorne. Finally, they had a location, a place called The Tower of Joy.
They rode for it hard, this would be where it would end.
The Kingsgaurd were awarded their position for good reason, as was evident by how Ned came with 9 other men and yet it was only he and Arthur Dayne the legendary Sword of the Morning left standing.
Ned wasn't stupid, and he knew his chances of beating Arthur were slim, and of killing him outright even slimmer, but he would not give in, he would have Lyanna back home if it killed him.
His vow very nearly did kill him as Arthur disarmed him after a drawn-out engagement. If not for Howland stabbing Arthur in the neck with his spear he knew he would be dead. As Dayne collapsed to his knees, Ned picked Dawn up from the ground and killed Arthur in one swift motion. With one last look at Howland who was already bandaging himself up, Ned raced up the steps of the tower.
When Ned saw Lyanna for the first time in months, he hadn't expected her to try and bash his head in with a chamber pot. When she saw who she had hit she cursed and flung herself in her arms.
He wrapped his arms around her tightly, breathing in her scent that was uniquely hers. He pulled back and looked her over, and other than some gauntness in her cheeks, she seemed healthy enough and Ned could finally breathe again.
He stopped breathing when she pressed him against the wall and her lips attacked his with a ferocity he had never experienced before. Ned though gave as good as he got and before they knew it the plush bed welcomed them as their clothes were shed, and they lost themselves in a hungry forbidden passion.
Lyanna loved her brother. That was the crux of their marriage. They had a strong family bond, and yet here she was in love with him as a woman loved a man.
When they finished their reunion and the glow was slowing fading, she straddled Ned's lap and smiled gently at his raised confusion. She gave him the gentlest kiss she could manage before a declaration of love left her lips in a soft tone. None could doubt their sincerity, and it mattered not if he returned them, for she had finally said what was on her mind and she could truly begin to love her Ned.
The three of them set fire to the wooden supports of the tower and pulled the standing remains down with the horses left behind. When the tower was nothing but cool ash and stone, they buried the men who were slain with it's remains.
Ned rode forward, alone, to the gates of Starfall. The sword strapped to his right hip a heavy weight on his conscious.
"I'm Lord Eddard Stark of Moat Cailin, requesting an audience with Lord Dayne of Starfell."
When he was allowed entry only with an armed escort Ned steeled himself for what he thought would be his death.
When he offered Dawn back to Lord Dayne, a man with strong Rhoynar features frowned even deeper, reminding Ned of Robert's brother Stannis. Ned once more thought his head was as good as separate from his body.
"Lord Stark, you have returned a blade you had no reason too. For that House Dayne thanks you. For delivering the news of my sons' death personally, I thank you."
When Lord Dayne plucked the sheathed blade from his hands, he offered him and his companions a few night's rest away from Dorne's heat, under Guests Rights when Ned hesitated.
After a small supper, Ned and his two companions were taken sperate directions. Howland's injuries were tended to by the Dayne's maester, as Ned and Lyanna were led to a room for them to retire into.
No longer carried by his determination to see her live, Ned broke down into Lyanna arms, clutching her hard to his body as tears streamed down his face. Lyanna, his sister, the woman he had come to love as a man loves a woman, merely held him through it all, whispering words of comfort and love.
The kiss they shared that night, would be the first where true born, shameful love, would be involved, and he whispered his own declaration much in the same fashion as she did.
The smiles they bore were true and the love was easy to see to any who dared to look for it.
They rode back to the North, Howland had departed to his home of Greywater Watch, stating he would find it faster on his own as his reasoning when they offered to accompany them.
By the time Howland departed from them, Ned was worried for Lyanna had started to display signs she had when she was pregnant with their twins. When the reached their home, her swelling belly was more evidence than any maester could give.
Rumors raced across Westeros that Lyanna Stark was pregnant with a royal bastard.
Lyanna came to Ned in his solar, swearing to Ned, on her knees with tears in her eyes, when she heard these rumors that the child she carried was his. That Rhaegar had not taken her against her will, instead working to have their marriage annulled.
Ned while maybe wanting to behead Rhaegar, could at least respect that he hadn't raped his wife.
Ned took Lyanna in his arms as she begged him to believe her and professed his trust to her as best as he could. He kissed her swollen belly, her body proudly bearing stretch marks, and whispered his love for her, there in the privacy of his solar.
Months later when a small boy, baring the features of his older siblings was born, Ned's soul lifted a weight he didn't know was there. They named his after their brother, calling him Bran Stark.
When the room was left devoid of all, but their little family Ned didn't stop to think twice of giving his wife a kiss when she tilted her face for one.
Lyanna was in love with Ned, and any in Moat Cailin could tell the truth of it, and that Ned was in love with her. She freely kissed him and draped her body possessively over his when any woman paid to much attention to what was hers.
Ned would merely laugh at her actions, easing any built tension before accepting the jealous kiss she would give him.
Having a third true born child, seemed to spread as many rumors as when Westeros thought it to be a royal bastard.
No one within the Moat uttered a word when displays of affection were shared between them, they were good rulers of the keep and they had loyal men who could easily see the love in their actions.
Still, when their father visited and saw these, he raged. Rickard was a large and good, if very calculating, man. Yet when he took steps toward Lyanna while drunk, Ned smoothly positioned himself between them, his hand on his sword, face fierce. Ned didn't wish to draw steel on his liege lord, even less so his father, but if it was between his drunk father and the woman he loved. Ned would make this choice every time.
Rickard stopped, his eyes dropping to the hilt where Ned's hand rested, before he shook his head, a frown on his face, before he staggered away muttering something to low to be heard.
Ned relaxed only when he felt Lyanna's hand guided his off the hilt, and he looked into her gray eyes. She merely smiled at him and dragged him out into the courtyard, before dragging him into the stables.
This was the first time she would take him out on her evening rides, but it would not be the last.
The North was able to mostly ignore the Civil War after Lyanna's abduction, and when Rhaegar Targaryen became King over Aerys, having the former king locked away. Rhaegar worked to stabilize the realm after his coronation, yet the North remained cold in their actions toward the South. The Moat being most harsh in their words of the King. They would not so quickly, if ever, forget or forgive the abduction of the She Wolf of Moat Cailin.
All that changed when a letter bearing the Sun and Spear of House Martell. Elia Martell was calling them to King's Landing and Ned was quick to remember his oath. What worried them both was the seemingly innocent request for their children to accompany them.
Kings Landing looked better than the last time Ned had saw it, namely that there wasn't dead men, women, and children on the streets. The smell though was still the same, the city stank of waste.
When granted a private audience with King Rhaegar and Queen Elia, Ned was tense and Lyanna had to hold his arm to keep him from fleeing. He was not so worried for himself, but rather his family.
When they entered the private solar Lyanna held baby Bran to her chest in a sling, while Jon and Arya stood quietly behind their father's legs.
Rhaegar, who Ned had always heard described as a handsome man looked haggard, and when Lyanna began to laugh quietly at the King's crooked nose he was confused.
She would later tell him of her time in the tower, and when she recounted her breaking Rhaegar's nose he laughed harder than ever before.
On some level Ned could sympathize, ruling Moat Cailin at times was frustrating, and he didn't want to think of a life where he would be burden with the Iron Throne.
Prince Aegon and Princess Rhaenys were playing in a corner and with gentle prodding from their parents, Jon and Arya joined them and soon they were all giggling with each other.
Ned and Lyanna turned back to the king and queen and sat when Rhaegar indicated for them too.
"Elia tells me you saved her life, Lord Stark." Rhaegar began, his voice tinged with melancholy. "I thank you for that."
Ned bit down the barb of a response he wanted to sling, and instead settled for inclining his head, though his eyes shifted from the king to Lyanna.
"My wife has counseled me to seek reparations with the North for my lapse in judgement concerning your wife. I have agreed with her. So, I've called you here to make said reparations."
With those words, he slid a contract across the table toward them.
Ned glanced at Lyanna as she looked upon the parchment as he did, his jaw having gone slightly slack.
It was a betrothal agreement for Jon Stark and Rhaenys Targaryen to be married when they were old enough.
"You're Grace," Ned tried to talk, but the King would have none of it.
"No, Young Lord Stark. Elia was correct. I wronged not only the North, but you personally. Tis only fair after all. A wife for a wife."
Ned looked at Lyanna, hoping she could say something in his stead.
"Ned," it was Elia who spoke. "I know you are shocked, but you saved my life."
"You repaid that debt Your Grace, when you told me where I could find information to find Lyanna." He interjected but felt properly shamed when Lyanna scolded him with a slap on the back of his head, though her hand quickly found his own out of sight.
"Not only did you save my life, you also swore an oath to return a favor to me. Now I call this favor in. Please Lord Stark, accept. If not for your own sake, then the sake of the realm."
Lyanna would always appeal to Ned's honor when she wanted to get away with things when she was younger, saying he was too easy to manipulate. She still did the same on occasion. The queen was now appealing to that same honor.
"The realm, your Grace?" He asked slowly, his tongue felt numb.
"My father," Rhaegar interjected, "Made very questionable decisions, and I too have made a few already. The realm is still in shambles from my ascension to the throne, and people whisper at how the Starks were most grievously wounded. Doing this for you, will win favor back into my favor, and with it the realm will start to stabilize. This marriage could hold it together, Lord Stark.
Ned's honor won out in the end, and he and Lyanna both signed the contract, right under the king and queen's. Rhaenys would become Jon's wife and when she became of sufficient age she would be sent to Moat Cailin to be tutored in the ways of the people she would one day lead there.
The four parents watched their children play as they sipped wine, and Ned thought Jon and Rhaenys had the makings of a fast friendship, if nothing else.
Lyanna and Queen Elia were cold and indifferent to one another, though Lyanna had tried to bridge the gap that seemed to lay between them. When Lyanna finally had enough and demanded to know the reason, the queen treated her as such, Elia's reply sent a white-hot anger through Lyanna.
"Though no fault of your own, the realm still whispers that your third child, and second son Bran Stark is not Ned's but Rhaegar's. My husband has shamed me and continues to when he looks upon you. I fear my insecurities have left us at an impasse."
"Let me tell you the same thing I told your husband, Queen Elia." Lyanna's words were as cold as Winter.
"I'm an no Dragon's whore. The only man who spreads these legs is my brother-husband Ned Stark."
The words were spoken coldly but with a truth the Queen couldn't deny. They would have a friendship of sorts after that conversations.
Lyanna noticed how the queen would watch her interactions with not only Rhaegar but with Ned as well.
Lyanna feeling bad for the scorned woman, took pity on her as much as she could. Spurning any unofficial talk with King Rhaegar, and aggressively chasing women off her sweet quiet Ned.
Not that she had to pretend about that part though.
Ned would strike up an odd friendship with Queen Elia Martell while they stayed in King's Landing. Letting the children get to know each other, and both thinking it best to have them know one another and not be strangers as most marriages were.
Ned also noticed that Lyanna would shift closer to him whenever Rhaegar was near, and Ned would merely smile and pull her close, hiding her fear by making a fool of himself more than once.
News of the betrothal sped across Westeros, as word out of King's Landing usually did, and soon even Ned could see the change in the tense air. It had somewhat relaxed, and it seemed as this betrothal had seemed to stabilize something.
Ned and Lyanna could often be found sparing against each other. Ned would admit Lyanna had gotten better, and when she managed to truly best him, he swore Jaime laughed the loudest. Ned didn't mind though, the smile Lyanna sent his way was well worth it.
The night before they left King's Landing Rhaegar offered an annulment of their marriage. They could be spared the shame their marriage must have brought them.
Ned had responded seriously telling his King and Queen in the private of their solar, that he loved his family and would not dare dishonor them in such a way.
For the first time since Dorne, Ned would take the lead and prove his words when they would retire to their guest chambers that night.
Lyanna would forever remain the aggressor of the two of them. Actively pursuing Ned as if they were not already married with children. It became almost a game to them, Lyanna cheering in triumph when he relented to her seduction that she truly had never needed for him to agree to anything she wanted.
Years later and still Ned wasn't sure what it was but there was something about Moat Cailin that made him breath easier. Maybe it was that it was because it was were the North truly began or maybe it was it was were his family, his home, and his heart truly lay.
They had just traveled back North from King's Landing from the wedding of his son Jon and Princess Rhaenys. Arya had stayed in the viper's nest, but Ned needn't worry for his little Knight daughter for she had three pair of eyes watching her, one green, one purple, and one dark brown. Their third child Bran was off fostering with Howland, learning all about the legends that so interested him all throughout his life.
Lastly his thoughts turned to his beautiful wife. Lady Lyanna of Moat Cailin. Ned admitted he may be biased but he was certain age had only added to her beauty. He would often tell her so too, only for her to twist his words in ways that had him stumbling over his words to apologize, only to blush red when she laughed at him. The kiss that usually followed was always worth it though.
She had never stopped their game of seduction, clearly enjoying his feeble attempts to thwart her advances, yet he loved the game as much as she did.
Speaking of his wife, he found her laying in their bed, wearing only a smirk and Ned laughed in his mind as the Quiet Wolf of Moat Cailin stalked upon the She Wolf of Moat Cailin.
His mind thought back to the thoughts he had when he first learned he was to marry his beautiful Lyanna.
It truly was a mad world.
AN: Well there it is, hope you enjoyed it! Please review, constructive criticisms are also welcomed as are just general comments. As usual, thank y'all for reading.
Once more, just in case you forgot because of my awesome story telling.
I Do Not Condone Incest. It Is Wrong.
I think y'all get the point but I want to make sure. I don't want to just be known as the guy who wrote an incest story.
I hope that the premise of this story wasn't too much of a turn off for people, and y'all could see it for what I previously mentioned it as, a good story with a weird concept.
This story was originally only about 6.5k words but I was re-reading it to edit it some and felt that it would benefit from a Lyanna POV, so I added one. I kind of struggled adding in Lyanna cause this story was originally just from Ned's POV. So, adding her in but remaining with a product I was happy with. Which took some effort.
I hope I did Lyanna justice, as I have stated before, I don't have a lot of experience with GoT/ASOIF and don't really plan on changing that, though I will continue writing these stories.