Hello!

This is my first SanSan story. I hope you'll like it.

I warn you : English is not my first language, so, I am sorry if there is any mistakes; I did my best. It is rated M just to be safe.

Reviews are very appreciated :)

Summary : The war is over. Daenerys Targaryen finally rules the Seven Kingdoms. Sandor Clegane is now a free man, travelling north since he'd learned about Sansa Stark's disappearance, determined to find her and bring her home. But, he wasn't prepared for that.

The Howling Wolf

During a sunny day, a fearsome man was riding his big black stallion, as fearsome as his master. The rider had awful scars on half of his face, making him more imposing. His steel grey eyes were scanning the woods, clearly looking for something. Or someone.

While he was on his way to swear loyalty to the Targaryen Queen – he didn't want her to send her fucking dragons after him -, Sandor had stopped at an inn to rest. He had heard soldiers from the Vale talking about a pretty young maid with auburn hair and blue eyes who had escaped the place, a few months ago. These soldiers were looking for her, hoping to bring her back to Petyr Baelish and have a reward.

So, this is where the Little Bird was hiding; In Littlefinger's skirts. How in the Seven Hells did she ended up there ?!

During his time on the Quiet Isle, Sandor refused to have news from King's Landing, afraid to hear that Sansa Stark was finally dead in the lions' den. Elder Brother respected his vows. But, one day, as Sandor was digging another grave, Elder Brother forced him to listened. It was that day Sandor learned that his brother was dead.

Sandor was not sure of how he felt about it. Angry ? Sad ? Relieved ? No, he wasn't sad. Not at all. He was a bit angry, though, for he didn't had the chance to kill Gregor himself. In the end, he was greatly relieved that this monster was finally gone.

When the Targaryen girl came in Westeros with her dragons, she burned the White Walkers and sacked King's Landing to take the Iron Throne. She killed all the Lannisters, save two : the Imp, who was now Hand of the Queen, and Tommen Baratheon, since he was a child and Daenerys felt a kind of affection for the poor boy, who had lost his mother, his father, his brother and his sister. Winter had come, and now summer was back.

Brienne of Tarth had been rewarded for killing Stannis Baratheon. She was now the Queen's sworn shield. After she left him to die by the Trident, Sandor had never heard about Arya Stark again. Even if he hated to admit it, he quite liked that girl. She reminded him of himself at that age, seeking revenge and killing everybody standing in her way.

So, here he was, riding his loyal beast in the Eyrie, looking for his Little Bird. It's been a week since he'd reach the Eyrie and he hadn't find her yet. He was afraid to find her corpse, bloody and broken by outlaws. Something was sure : He would find those fuckers and kill them all, slowly and painfully.

Suddenly, the sound of a river made him stopped. He pulled on the reigns and led Stranger towards the sound. A bath would do no wrong, and his horse could drink. The sun was setting and it would be dark in about an hour. When he finally reached the river, Sandor jumped off his horse and stretched his aching limbs. He unsaddled Stranger and let the horse drink.

Sandor sat heavily on the ground and took off his shirt. He cupped water in his hands and splashed it all over his face and chest. It was then that he heard grunts. He turned his head and what he saw shocked him. In the distance, near the river, there was a wolf – no, a direwolf – eating what seemed like a stag alongside with… a naked girl?! Suddenly, the sun light reached a lock of the girl's hair. It was auburn.

No! It can't be…

He had to know. Sandor got up carefully and made sure that Stranger wouldn't follow him. He walked back into the woods to stay hidden and walked towards the wolf and the girl with auburn hair. When he finally got closer, the wolf's ears moved, aware of someone else's presence. It growled low in its throat. The girl, who was biting wildly in the raw meat, stopped every movement. She raised her head and her Tully blue eyes locked with Sandor's grey ones. She gasped.

The piece of meat fell on the ground, exposing her bloody mouth. Nymeria growled again. Sandor couldn't move. Sansa Stark was in front of him, naked as her nameday, eating raw meat with a direwolf. Her entire body was covered with mud, blood, bruises and scratches. She was skinnier than before, too. Her hair was tangled and messy.

Despite all that, to Sandor's eyes, she was still the prettiest girl he'd ever seen. He cursed himself when he felt his cock hardened in his breeches. How could he be aroused in that situation? The girl needed to be taken care of. Now.

With that in mind, Sandor stepped forward, exposing himself in the orange light of the setting sun. The wolf stepped closer to Sansa, growling louder. The girl put her hand on the wolf's head. Instantly, the wolf stopped growling, and lie down at Sansa's feet.

'' You look like a wildling, girl, '' Sandor finally rasped.

The Little Bird didn't speak. She looked at her feet, as if she was ashamed. Then, she raised her head again and looked at him, straight in the eyes, something she didn't do often in King's Landing. She wasn't even trying to hide her body, as if she wasn't aware of her nakedness.

'' How did you manage to survive during all this time? '' Sandor asked, trying to make her speak.

She lowered her gaze toward the wolf at her feet. Sandor snorted. Of course, the direwolf protected her. But, why? Sandor wasn't sure to understand. Then, he remembered that Starks had kind of a bond with direwolves, and that Sansa, just by putting her hand on the wolf's head, had calmed it right away. He didn't knew how it was possible. Winter had done strange things.

Sandor felt himself growing more and more impatient. The girl wasn't answering and he was going mad.

'' Are you deaf, girl?! I asked… '' He stopped short, realizing for the first time that the girl was staring at his lips intensely. '' Little Bird? ''

She opened her mouth and a strangled sound came out of it. And another. And another. She finally closed her mouth and her eyes filled with tears. She let out a sob and her tears flowed down her cheeks. Sandor stepped closer to her, stopping when he was a few inches from her.

He gently cupped her face in both hands and forced her to look at him. At his lips. '' Can you hear me? '' He asked. She sobbed louder and shook her head. He cursed loudly.

Sansa Stark was deaf. She couldn't hear nor sing songs, anymore. She couldn't hear the howling of the wolves, the wind in the leaf or the waves crashing against the bay. Was it because of Littlefinger? Right now, he wanted to kill Petyr Baelish.

But, he had to take care of the Little Bird first. She was still in his arms, her face buried in the crook of his neck, but she had stopped crying. Her body was still shivering though. It was getting colder and the sun was almost completely set. He lowered his eyes on her back where there was still dried mud. The girl really needed a bath.

He lifted her in his arms. Instinctively, she encircled his waist with her legs, and tightened her grip on his shoulders. Sandor tried to avoid the feeling of her womanhood brushing slightly against his abdomen. He kicked his boots away and walked into the water, still wearing his breeches - he didn't want to scare the poor girl. Nymeria remained on the ground, following them with her eyes.

The water was cold, but it was tolerable. When it reached Sansa's skin, she gasped. Sandor chuckled. He release his hold on her, letting her feet touch the ground under the water. Sansa quickly started to wash the blood from her face and her fingers. She scrubbed her whole body with her hands and Sandor helped her to wash her hair. When she was finished, she smiled up shyly at him. Sandor's heart skipped a beat. She was so beautiful. He couldn't stop himself from stroking her long damp locks. Then, he cupped her cheek and stroke it softly with his thumb.

Sansa leaned into his touch, closing her eyes. Sandor leaned forward and tenderly kissed her forehead. She hesitantly put her arms around his shoulders again, pulling her to him. He lifted her in his arms again and let her encircled his waist with her legs a second time. This time, she kept looking at his face. She brought a wet hand to his face and cupped his scarred cheek.

Sandor couldn't feel her touch, but knowing that she was willingly touching his scars was enough for him. Her fingers lingered on his cheek. Then, they moved to his lips, caressing them softly. She bent down and tentatively brushed her lips against his. She pulled back to look at him, unsure if she had done it right. Sandor grinned and closed the distance between them and gave her another quick kiss. It was only a peck, but he wanted to give her time.

She then opened her mouth and tried to speak. '' San… Sand...or. '' He felt warm tears in his eyes, realizing that she was trying to say his name. It's been a long time since she hadn't speak, he could guess by the hoarseness in her voice. And, like if it wasnot enough, she was deaf.

'' Sandor! '' She finally cried, tears running down her face. She buried her face in his neck and whispered his name, again and again, like a prayer. He tightened his grip on her, crushing her body against his. A single tear rolled on his cheek as he whispered to her. '' I'm here, Little Bird. I won't let you go. ''

Later that night, when the moon was finally up in the sky, shining brightly, Sandor and Sansa were lying on the ground, holding and caressing each other chastely. And, beside them, Nymeria howled long and loud. Sandor heard it in his ears while Sansa felt it in her soul. They both smiled, enjoying the song of the howling wolf.