FRACTURED MOONLIGHT ON THE SEA

Bows and arrows

The King's Party slowly assembled in the heart of the courtyard of the Great Keep. The party counted hundreds of wagons, all guests whom were to stay at Winterfell. Kaelyn Whitehill had never seen so many carriages in one place. There seemed no end to the long line of riders and carriages, all following each other in a perfect line. In the front of the party, the Royal family was found, surrounded by their ever so loyal King's Guard. Behind them rode knights, septa's, handmaidens, it seemed as if they had brought the whole of King's Landing with them

All houses of the North were gathered together in the courtyard, watching the Royal guests arrive from the South Gate. The Baratheon's were strangers to Kaelyn, having never seen them before. She always wondered if Cersei Lannister was as beautiful as they all said.

Kaelyn watched closely as, what undoubtedly had to be King Robert, ascended his horse. She had never expected the king of Westeros to be so fat. The king immediately made his way over to Eddard Stark, who greeted each other eagerly. She knew that they had been old friends and had fought together in battle when Kaelyn was younger.

The door of the carriage swung open and Cersei Lannister stepped out. She wore her long and beautiful golden hair loose and was clad in a red and gold dress, the Lannister colors. The queen perfectly matched Kaelyn's imagination, although her grace seemed to be in discomfort by the cold of The North. Having never visited King's Landing before, Kaelyn could only imagine the big difference between the two places. It was getting colder and colder in the North, while summer was still present in the south of Westeros.

Behind the queen her two brothers appeared, Jaime and Tyrion. They were easy to spot, their golden hair immediately set them apart from all the Northmen around them.

Kaelyn couldn't wait for the large feast to start. They never had a royal guest before and she could only imagine the food being served. From across the yard her eyes met with Theon Greyjoy, a hostage of the Starks, while a soft smile formed in his face. Kaelyn rolled her eyes and looked away, hoping her father had not seen it. Theon had been after her for some time now, much to her fathers dismay who never liked men from the Iron Islands. He despised their Drowned God and the Greyjoy Rebellion was still fresh in his mind. He had always told her not to trust a kraken, so she didn't. She knew Theon had been with some women and she was not planning on becoming one of those women.

"Is that the prince?" Myrilla Whitehill asked her big sister.

"Yes" Kaelyn guessed. The boy Myrilla was admiring had the same gold locks as the queen had, it had to be Prince Joffrey. Kaelyn felt like there was something not right with him. Maybe it was the arrogance radiating from him, or the fact that he rode on his horse looking like he owned everyone. She looked down at Myrilla, noticing she was smitten by him. Kaelyn couldn't blame her, he was a prince after all and every little girl wanted nothing more but to be a princess.

The King and Queen disappeared inside the Great Keep, leaving the rest to making preparations for the big feast. Lady Catelyn Stark had insisted on everything to go perfectly.

The feast did not disappoint. Hundreds of candles had been lit and the smell of roast boar was making Kaelyn's mouth water. Because she wasn't of high birth she was seated in the back of the Great Hall. She did not mind, here she could mingle with her friends while she could observe the royal family unnoticed.

"The queen looks beautiful" Sera Fenn exclaimed. Kaelyn let her eyes wander to where the queen was seated. She did indeed look beautiful, although her expression was far from it. Cersei Lannister looked incredibly bored and uninterested, it was quite obvious she would rather by in King's Landing right now. The harsh cold of the North was probably nothing for her.

After everyone was seated, the food arrived. Kaelyn's nose had not betrayed her and she indeed had smelled roast boar. The boar was accompanied with fresh leeks and mashed potatoes and a glass of honey sweetened wine. The servants placed a plate in front of her. It was hard to contain herself from diving in, but Kaelyn waited patiently until everyone was given a plate.

Music was being played while they were eating, entertaining the royal guests. Every so often Kaelyn sneaked a glance at the queen and Lady Catelyn. They both looked very uncomfortable and Kaelyn was grateful she was seated in the back. She didn't have a taste for politics and she was glad she could do as she wished.

"Theon is looking at you" Sera whispered before softly nodding behind her.

"Again?" she sighed. Kaelyn turned around to see that indeed Theon was smiling at her. Rolling her eyes, she turned back around. "He doesn't have a chance with me. I know what he's like"

"What am I like?"

Kaelyn turned back around upon the sound of his voice. Oh no.

"I don't know, you tell me" Kaelyn snapped. She knew she were not to talk to him in such way, even though he was a hostage of the Starks, he was still a Greyjoy, which meant he was of higher birth than she was.

Theon smirked, like he often did. "Incredibly good looking, heir to the Iron Islands, a good archer and incredibly good at making love."

The latter made Kaelyn roll her eyes. Even though Theon was a hostage, he didn't act like one. The Stark had treated him well and he was just as much part of the Starks as Jon Snow was. Robb Stark even considered Theon a brother.

"Will you dance with me, my lady?" Theon asked, extending his arm. The music had changed and more guests were standing up to take the dance floor.

Kaelyn figured she couldn't decline. Even if she declined, Theon would find a smart way to convince her otherwise, as he always did.

"Excuse me, please" she said ever so politely to the people at her table before standing up. With her hands she straightened her purple dress, her house colors, and stepped over the bench. She took his hand and he let her through the Great Hall. To her relief more people had started to dance. From the corner of her eyes she could see Sansa Stark accepting Joffrey Lannister's invitation to dance, glowing happily.

Theon placed his other hand on the small of her back and pulled her closely to him. A little too close if it were up to Kaelyn. Slowly, they shuffled to the music. She was never a skilled dancer, but to her surprise Theon was quite good.

"My father will kill you if he sees us together" Kaelyn warned. She tried to distance herself from him, but his grip was firm.

"Then we must make sure he won't" Theon replied, a mischievous sparkle in his eye. Kaelyn knew all too well what he was intending.

The music changed into something more up tempo and Theon immediately responded and picked up the pace.

"I'm not going with you, if that's what you are thinking" Kaelyn replied, turning her head to see where the rest of her friends were. The table were she was sitting was empty.

"My lord" Theon corrected, squeezing her hand softly to get her attention.

"If you want me to call you my lord, you should start treating me as a lady" Kaelyn challenged. "My lord."

"Do you think all the girls get to dance with me? I am treating you like a lady" Theon laughed. He was enjoying this little game they were playing.

Most of the time Kaelyn didn't know whether he was serious or not. She was very familiar with his womanizing ways, having seen it so many times before. She knew of his regular visits to the brothel in a village close by. Would he have danced with someone else if she had not been at the feast? There was no way to tell.

"Then you should know a lady does not give herself to someone this easily" Kaelyn wiggled her hand free from his and took a step back. This was the only dance from her he was going to have. "If you want more, there a girls who would happily attend to your needs."

She knew she was being a little harsh on him, but even if she wanted to, she could not be with Theon. Her father would not allow it and besides, he could never be with her, his birth was much too high for her.

Does he know I am still a maiden? Kaelyn had never been intimate with a boy before. She had to be a maiden if she ever wanted to get a decent husband. "If a man wants an experienced woman, he should go to a whorehouse" her father had always told her.

Before Theon had a chance to speak, Kaelyn turned around and quickly made her way across the Great Hall. She noticed the royal family had already left and most of the guests were beginning to leave. She could only hope that her father wouldn't find out about this little dance with Theon.

Since a few weeks Kaelyn had been learning the basics of treating wounded men from Maester Luwin. There had been a growing need for nurses around Winterfell and it was her mother's idea for her to become a nurse. Kaelyn liked the idea, she had never been afraid of blood and if it meant she could help others, why not?

Today Maester Luwin had shown her a book where all the muscles inside the human body were described extensively. She had taken a real interest in the subject and she was very eager to learn.

While she was studying the pictures, taking them all up, they had brought in a man who had fallen from his horse. Kaelyn closed the dusty book and followed Maester Luwin to see exactly how he treated the man. She knew she could never be a maester, she was a woman after all, but she could still learn the basics for times like this. Maester Luwin could not possibly be at a few different places at once.

After some examinating, Maester Luwin came to the conclusion that the man had broken his foot. The man was riding along the edges of the Wolfswood and after hearing something, his horse had jumped and he fell off. Kaelyn brought the man some honeyed wine to ease some of the pain while Maester Luwin was setting his foot.

"Pay close attention now, Kaelyn" Maester Luwin told her as he was about to place a splint to keep his foot in place. Kaelyn did what she was told and bended over the shoulder of Maester Luwin to see exactly what he was doing.

"Do you think you could be able to do this?" Maester Luwin asked after he was done and had sent the man on his way back home.

"I think so" Kaelyn replied, trying to remember exactly what Measter Luwin had done. Putting a splint itself wasn't hard, putting the broken bone back correctly was more difficult. But with some practice she knew she would be able to do it.

"Good, the next one to come in will be for you then" he told her with a smile.

As she rode her horse outside of the castle's gates she spotted Bran Stark climbing walls that seemed to be impossible to climb. It made Kaelyn smile, the Stark kids seemed to be so happy around Winterfell, and she could not imagine Winterfell without their presence.

When she came home she had given her little sister a kiss and praised her for her needlework before taking her horse to head outside. She had always wondered how her sister could be so good at needlework, as neither Kaelyn or her mother had any patience for it.

She knew the Wolfswood could be a bit dangerous, as the name suggests, but Kaelyn had never encountered anything dangerous before. She loved to come there to think, to reflect on her day, to find some peace and quiet. Especially with the royal guests, Winterfell was packed and it was nice to be somewhere where she could only hear herself and her horse grazing on a patch of grass before her.

Securing her bay mare around a tree, Kaelyn retrieved a bow and arrow out of her saddlebag. By practicing out in the woods, nobody could see her failing. Besides, a woman in a dress with a bow and arrow was a strange sight, even Kaelyn herself had to admit. There was just something about releasing the arrow from your bow and seeing it entering the aimed target. Maybe it was so special because she most of the times missed her aimed target and was therefore pretty content with herself when she did hit the target.

With some dirt from the wet ground Kaelyn painted a bulls eye on a tree with her fingers. She took a few steps back and placed her feet so she wouldn't loose balance. After placing her arrow, she slowly pulled the string back as she lifted the bow. Kaelyn closed her right eye to aim the arrow the best she could. She let go to see the arrow whirling past the three, it wasn't even close of the target.

"Now I understand why you come here to train" Someone laughed behind her.

Kaelyn shot around, she didn't expect anyone to be here. No one could possibly know she was here except if they had followed her.

"You are doing it wrong entirely" Theon said, a smirk still covering his face. Kaelyn couldn't believe she hadn't heard him following her.

"Did you follow me?" Kaelyn asked him suspiciously. Why would he even want to follow her.

"The Wolfswood can be a dangerous place. You need protection" He replied, taking a few steps forward towards her.

"I can protect myself" Kaelyn said determined.

Theon laughed. "After what I just saw, I don't think so."

Kaelyn sighed. She knew she was not the best archer in Westeros, but she wasn't that bad. It was the wind that was sending her arrow in the wrong direction than she aimed for.

"Shut up, it wasn't that bad" Kaelyn said, retrieving another arrow from its shaft and placing it in the bow.

"Your holding it wrong" Theon smirked.

"If you know it so well, come and show me" Kaelyn sighed.

She could hear his footsteps and before she knew it Theon was standing closely behind her, placing his hands on her hips. "You should stand this way." His hands made her turn a few inches to the right, when he was content with her position, he moved his hands and placed it over her own hands. "Don't be so tense" he told her. "Take note of the wind and aim a few inches off, the wind will help you."

With Theon's help, Kaelyn aimed more left than her target and let loose of the string. The arrow soared through the air, straight in her target.

"You see?" Theon said. He let go of her hands so Kaelyn could lower the bow, but he did not move away.

She had to admit, it was nice of him to help her with the bow. And even though she did not like the fact that he had followed her, it made her feel a bit special. He did not have to follow her if he did not want to.

"Thank you, my lord" Kaelyn said the latter with a mocking tone, her back still pressed against his chest. "You can move away now."

Theon didn't. Kaelyn turned around herself, facing him, clutching her bow tightly. "Do you miss Pyke?" she asked out of nowhere. She didn't know where exactly the question had came from, and why she had asked it right at this moment.

Theon raised his eyebrows before answering her. "Not really, haven't been there for so long."

Kaelyn felt guilty for asking the question. She could never imagine how it felt like being taken from your own home to a place with people you did not know. Even though the Starks treated Theon like one of their own, he was still a hostage. A hostage who could be killed at any time.

"Please forgive me, my lord. I should not have asked the question" Kaelyn had to remember her courtesy.

Theon smiled faintly. "We have to get back, its almost getting dark."

Kaelyn was helping her mother bake bread when she had heard the news. Bran Stark had fallen from a tower when climbing. She couldn't believe her ears when she had heard it. She had never seen Bran fall and she never thought he would ever fall.

She gave her mother a kiss before rushing to Maester Luwin to see if there was any way she could help, but Lady Catelyn didn't want anyone but her family and the Maester near Bran, which was understandable.

Instead Kaelyn asked if she could help Maester Luwin himself. "I could use some wine, yes thank you" he replied gratefully.

Kaelyn hurried down to the kitchens, not wanting to disappoint her teacher. She fetched a cup from a shelf and filled it with the first bottle of wine she could find. Personally she preferred honey in her wine to sweeten it a little, but she had no clue how Maester Luwin liked to drink it. Deciding against putting anything in it, she took the cup back to his tower and placed it on his desk.

She knew she would be called out if Maester Luwin ever needed her and since there wasn't much to be done about Bran's condition Kaelyn decided to leave them all to it. If it were her child which was badly injured she wouldn't want any strangers poking around.

On her way home she passed Robb Stark, Jon Snow and Theon in the yard. They seemed to be training with swords, taking their minds off the recent events. In the corner of the courtyard Septa Mordane seemed to be comforting a very sad looking Sansa. Kaelyn reminded herself to go and pray for little Bran to recover, whole of Winterfell seemed to be shaken with the news.

"My lord" Kaelyn greeted Robb, nodding her head slightly.

Robb smiled back faintly, before getting ready to fight Jon Snow with their newly forged swords.

"Kaelyn, wait"

Kaelyn turned around to face Theon, quickly looking around to see if her father was in sight. She smiled, waiting for him to speak.

"If you want, we could practice more often" He suggested. "In the Wolfswood, so your father won't see"

"Yes" Kaelyn surprised herself with her reply. "I'd like that."

"So I'll see you tomorrow around midday?" Theon smiled.

Kaelyn nodded. "I'll be there."

Theon turned around to rejoin Robb and Jon, who were still fighting. By the looks of it Jon was winning.

She also turned around to continue her path home. What have I gotten myself into? Kaelyn could only imagine.

A/N: So I've pretty much fallen in love with Theon and I will defend him until my death, lol. This is my first Game of Thrones fanfic and it's so much harder to write than any other fanfic I've ever written. If I made any huge mistakes, please correct me, I'm not a native English speaker J Also, please review! I love reading them and they motivate me to continue writing. Enjoy!