Years had past since Nicolas St. North had sworn his life to the protection of the land of Westeroes by joining the Night's Watch. He remembered the day with clarity, and had never regretted the decision. He used to be a petty criminal, pickpocketing drunkards at taverns, and stealing some goods from unwitting traders. He was good at that job for he had never been caught.
Unlike most criminals who were on the Wall, he'd join of complete free will.
When he'd sworn his oath, the Watch was down a great many of bodies. They'd been leaving by the tens. Some disappeared behind the Wall, getting lost or murdered by the Wildlings. Others were driven mad by their time beyond North, and others attempted to skiv their sworn duties and fled to Winterfell, where the Lord was waiting with his greatsword to execute them. Even the most dedicated had fallen.
All while this was going on, North had heard tales of House Targaryen being overthrown by some royal from a far off land who called himself the Monkey King. The king and queen had been slaughtered, but they'd died in order to give their only daughter time to escape.
Having dealt with his fair share of politics, North would've normally ignored this, if the new king wasn't doing piss poor at taking care of the land.
In the years that followed, hostility between houses grew. Five years after the Targaryens were sacked, the Greyjoys, newly allianced with the Monkey King, launched a full seige of Winterfell. Despite speculating it, the Starks weren't prepared. To their credit, they were able to hold off the Greyjoy advance for a while. Lord Stark was a strong soul, with faithful bannermen that would do anything for him.
It wasn't until some had breached the castle were they doomed. They slaughtered the family, their heads then mounted on pikes to adorn the fortress's walls with grotesque beauty. Every Stark was accounted for...except the bastard.
That was when North wanted to get involved. A few other Watchmen showed signs of intervention, but nobody had the courage to speak up about it. He would've, however. Hell, he would have marched down to King's Landing and led the attack himself. The new king was destroying their land and her people, only giving pardon to those who swore complete allegiance.
He wasn't a fool however. He knew if he went down their and showed signs of unloyalty, he'd be executed on the spot. The king had him outnumbered severely. And, if he did manage to overthrow him, North was never going to sit on that damned iron throne. It was too much trouble than it was worth. He was happy as a Night's Watchman.
It wasn't until he went South to recruit more members that he learned he didn't have to.
It has his third day traveling down South when he began to feel eyes on him. He hadn't reached King's Landing yet, the place where he'd get most, if not all of his recruits.
People didn't usually go picking a fight with a member of the Night's Watch. Most were too terrified to speak with them, believing the rubbish rumors that said they could perform magic. So, North knew whoever was following him was either a foreigner, or a brave fool.
"Don't follow so close," he called over his shoulder. "Alerts your target." There was a soft curse from behind him, and North chuckled. Whatever doubt that there was nobody behind him vanished.
He slid off of his horse, and turned to see who was behind him with one hand on the hilt of his blade. He was surprised to see a young woman, probably no more than the age of nine and ten was standing several lengths away, her own hand gripping the hilt of a dagger protectively. She wore a heavy cloak, the cowl covering her bowed head, and boy's clothes that fit her loosely.
"How'd you know I was there," she asked him with her hand tightening around her blade.
"I didn't," He shrugged. "Until you spoke up."
The girl took a step back, then cursed again, this time in a tongue that he didn't understand. So she was a foreigner, or, at the very least, had spent time in foreign lands.
North chuckled lightly, giving his head a slight shake. "Now it's my turn to ask question. Why were you following me?"
The girl straightened slightly, taking her hand off of her dagger to hold the other behind her back. "You're a Night's Watchman, yes?" When he nodded, she took a deep breath. "It's your duty to protect the entirety of Westeros from danger?" He nodded again.
"The country is in danger," she continued, taking several steps forward in quick recession. She'd closed the distance between them by half faster than her could believe. "We both know it. That damned king is not looking to care for Westeros, and her people. All he wants to do is exploit it for his allegiances back across the sea. He doesn't care how the country ends up as long as he's the one doing the destroying.
"I want to put a stop to him. He has no right to be doing this to our land, and he's unfit to preside over all of us. I can tell you feel the same way, considering you haven't interrupted me with proclamations that it's not your place to intervene with the throne."
She straightened her back, but kept her hood covering her face. "I want to make a deal with you, Watchman. I need your help to take him down. I have the resources...well, most of them. What I'm lacking is allies. It's been nine years, and all the people who once loyal to me are either dead or have turned to the new king in a fools hope of salvation."
North raised an eyebrow at the girl, crossing his arms over his chest. The girl bit her lip, before adding, "I need your help. You could probably rally a few people who have long forgotten their gifts and loyalties. You know the land far better than I do. It's been years since I've been home."
"I don't even know your name, child," He told her with a frown. Her words were spoken with a tone he'd heard by a fair few lords and ladies. "Yet you expect me to swear loyalty to you. The Night's Watch doesn't follow any lord, so why should you be an exception?"
The girl clenched her fists. "We're aiming towards the same goal. If the king isn't overthrown, he'll turn this country into rubble. I've seen it happen before. You're supposed to protect the country as a whole, but by the time he is through, there will be no country to protect! You must help me."
He didn't say a word, until the girl sighed, mumbling under her breath. "Bunny's going to have my head for this..."
Bunny? He thought, but before he could speak, the girl had closed the distance between them again, and he took a startled step back. He'd never seen a person move so fast.
She reached up and pulled her hood back just enough for North to see her face. She had dark brown hair, which fell past her shoulders in a slight wave, with two thin braids framing her face from either side. Her skin was darker than his, as if the sun had kissed her skin for too long, with a rich bronze color.
The thing that startled North most of all were her eyes. They were a light purple, a color that North had only seen in one house, and they were supposed to be dead.
She held out her hand, wishing him to shake it, "My name is Toothiana. I'm the last member of House Targaryen, and I want to take back my throne from the bastard who's ruining my parents' land. But I'm going to need your help."
Toothiana sighed through her nose, trying to still her shaking fists. "Will you be willing to stand by my side as we reclaim Westeros for the people who live here?"
North took a step back. He knew the rumors that the daughter of King Haroom and Queen Rashmi had escaped capture by the Monkey King, but he never really believed them. No here she was, standing in front of him, asking him to betray his oath for the good of the country.
There was cursing from behind North, and he turned around to see a tall, slim man walking towards him. The man had tattoes over his bare chest and arms. He was speaking rapidly in a language he couldn't understand, but he didn't seem to be focusing on him, but Toothiana. She responded with an exasperated tone in the same tongue.
They went back in forth in the conversation, until she said something in a tone of finality and he grimaced.
"I apologize for Bunnymund," Tooth said carefully. "He's a friend but he can be overprotective...and hot headed. He's a Dothraki, and he's still learning the common tongue of this country."
North had heard of Dothrakis before. They were mighty tribal warriors back in Essos. From the tales he'd been told, he never felt the need to cross paths with one...especially an angry one.
"He won't hurt you," Tooth guranteed, as if reading his mind. She shot them both a quick smile, "That is, of course, if you agree to help us."
He frowned, and rubbed his chin with his free hand thoughtfully. He still had misgivings about joining the two, however, he wasn't going to deny that he wanted to. The king was destroying Westeros, that much was known, and there while three people wasn't enough to lead a full-scale rebellion, it was a start. He could definitely find some more supporters on his travels, as could Toothiana and the dothraki...
Finding allies wasn't the issue. North felt bile rise in the back of his throat at the idea that he might be betraying his oath to the Night's Watch.
But it was his duty to watch over the land of Westeros. His duty was to the country as a whole, and not to a single king or queen. Surely preventing the downfall of the country was a valiant enough of a cause to make a small exception?
"I must think about it," North decided. He crossed his arms, and Toothiana frowned. Thankfully, she didn't press on the matter.
She sighed, "That is all I ask. Please, let me know as soon as possible what your answer is."
It was his turn to frown. "How will you know when I've decided?"
Toothiana laughed, grinning at him. "I'll know. Just send a raven out, and I'll come." She nodded her head at him, and said something to Bunnymund. He nodded in return, stifling a smile. "I'm afraid I have taken up more time than I previously intended, sir," She chuckled. "I hope to hear your answer soon, Watchman."
As she turned to leave, North couldn't help but call her again. "One more question, if I may." When she shot him a perplexed look, he continued. "How do you intend to take back your throne? Whatever resources you think you have will pale in comparison to an army out for your blood, and you'll need more than me and a few other allies. The King has grown stronger in the years."
She smiled happily, "I've got an inkling that you've already made up your mind to my previous offer, watchman." She turned back towards him. "The answer's simple, really. I have a dragon. She's not full grown, but she'll be getting stronger each day. I think she'll be enough to sway the current King's mind, don't you agree?"
North found himself smiling. It sounded like this girl might actually have the power to pull this off.
She stretched out her hand again, "Do we have an alliance, watchman?"
After a moment, he reached out and grasped her hand. "The name's Nicolas St. North," he told her with a grin. "And, Lady Toothiana, I believe we do."
Okay, I've had this idea in my head since December and I'm really excited to finally have the first chapter out!
As of right now, I don't have any explicit content planned out, like hardcore ships or gore, but if I start to include that, I will change the rating without hesitation. For right now, however, it will remain T.