His name was Ser Adren. His doublet bore a tattered and stained lion, and his horse battered trappings of gold and crimson. His cloak was torn and in desperate need of a wash, though it looked at though soap may have caused it to fall to pieces. His manner was beaten and weary as he led his horse along a rough track through the riverlands.
His ears picked up the sound of the river off to his right, though which river he didn't know. He was headed west and south, hoping to evade Riverrun and the forces encamped there. It wasn't that they would be searching for him, for he was a hedge knight, unlanded and with no wealth besides his horse and sword to his name, but he had deserted.
Ser Adren wasn't proud of his desertion. He hadn't been proud of serving either. In fact, he wasn't proud of anything he'd done, not really. He lived, he fought for a lord who didn't know his name, been responsible for the death of some common folk, seen his brother die, and then he'd finally broken at the Whispering Wood, where he'd seen the Lord Jaime Lannister, the Kingslayer, taken captive by the Young Wolf and his men.
Adren had turned his horse and run though that long night, nearly killing the poor animal in his haste to be away from the wood. When morning had come he was far from any Lannister or Stark, and he'd been wandering ever since.
Adren laid a hand on his horse's neck and stopped walking, listening to the sound of the wind in the trees and the river, gently running. He avoided bandits and robbers by staying away from where people lived, because he was just one man and had no want to be hanged by the Lightning Lord's men. Or that Lady Stoneheart, who's name was beginning to be whispered throughout the riverlands. Adren just wandered alone with his horse, scrounging food where he could. He had kept his Lannister garb because finding clothing would mean that he'd have to go closer than he liked to settlements for an illegal purpose.
Sometimes the young knight would go to a battered town and get the latest news, wrapping his cloak tightly around his stained red clothing. The cloak had been red too, at one point, but dozens of patch jobs and being soaked with everything from rain to blood had turned it into more of a colorless ripped bit of fabric.
But other than that, Adren just walked the riverlands. He'd knowledge of several different good locations for making camp—caves dug into hills, small stands of woods, and a riverbank or two. His life was one of getting by day to day, with little thought for the future or politics. He didn't care about the ruling of the realm or the fighting of great lords. He had, once, but it seemed now like a different man had lived back then, one full of fire and righteousness.
His horse nuzzled his free hand, and Adren patted the mare fondly on the nose. "There's my girl," he murmured. The mare bumped him again and then tossed her head. "Are you getting tired, Star?" It wasn't the most creative name for a horse, but his little sister had named the horse the day he was knighted, and the name stuck.
Adren sighed, then swung himself up into the saddle and turned Star away from the sounds of the river. He nudged the mare and walked again to the south and west, heading for one of the nice caves he knew. His eyes took in his surroundings, the riverlands that would be otherwise beautiful if they hadn't been stained and tarred with so many battles and rough memories.
An hours' walking brought the duo to the cave. Adren slid off the mare's back and unsaddled her, starting a smokeless fire in the shadow of the cave. He'd gotten quite good at judging the right combination of wind, wood, and dampness of the wood when he wanted a smokeless fire. He pulled out from his saddlebag a stale loaf of bread and dried meat of a deer he'd hunted and killed a few weeks ago. He had considered himself lucky to have found the deer, so he'd dried all the meat on it and he'd attempted to skin it as well. The skin had been less than pristine, but he'd sold it for a good enough price.
The coins he'd gleaned from the deer pelt were still with him, though he knew that they wouldn't last for long. He'd need to make another trip into a town soon, and that would use up his hoarded savings.
Star whickered and nosed her rider, causing Adren to pat her absently. He wasn't thinking of anything of importance, but he was pensive all the same.
Adren bedded down that night after having let his fire burn itself out, sleeping in the shadow of the cave. He slept lightly, and woke several times to check on his small camp. Adren was never an easy sleeper, and his being alone had taught him to be even more wary when he slept.
It was his life, though it wasn't much. He felt when he woke up every morning as battered and ragged as Star's tack and harness, no matter how lovely the dawn. Every day his mind dwelled on things better left forgotten and untouched, such as his family, wherever they were, and his honor, not that that existed anymore.
And so he set out the next day for a town. The grey skies matched his mood, and the occasional raven winging its way along painted a stark contrast. Star's harness he'd buried safely behind some rocks back at the cave, as walking around with red and gold wasn't a good way to stay alive, especially around peasants. Walking as a wolf would do no good either. A humorless smile touched on Adren's face. Maybe a dragon would be the best. A big, three-headed dragon emblazoned on a kite shield.
Finding a town that wasn't burned and desolate was hard, but Adren had wandered these parts since the Whispering Wood, and he knew a few. He was never truly welcomed into any town, usually treated with sullen resentment, but they tended to appreciate what coin he had even if it wasn't much. Adren privately thought that the peasants liked to see a down on his luck knight—even without the bardings of Lannister, the only people who still owned horses were obviously knights.
Riding into the town attracted the usual glares, more so than usual. Adren looked around a bit closer at the town, noting smoldering coals amidst soaked timbers. A recent attack, it seemed, though that too was nothing that these people were unaccustomed to. Nudging Star into a quicker walk he rode through the streets, looking for anyone willing to sell him food. He didn't think it likely, if there'd been an attack. But all he could do was look, however fruitless that may prove.
The villagers bore haunted looks, men more threatening and women more cowed that they would have ordinarily been. Adren understood, but he knew he had little to no hope of explaining that he knew what it was like to be attacked and beaten, scared, with no one to turn to. He knew that the common people saw him as a knight, and that was cause enough for hatred.
His attention was caught by what had been a store, though it was blackened from smoke. Dismounting, he tied Star's rein to a hitching post and wandered inside. A small bell rang lightly, the only bright thing in the dismal place. A woman strode out from behind a curtain, wiping her hands busily with a rag.
"Whad'ya want, ser? Mind ye, we ain't got much." Her voice was choked with smoke, and Adren gave a slight bow, hoping it wouldn't be taken badly.
"I need rations enough for a week, two if you have them. I can pay."
"What can ye pay?" The woman didn't move to fetch food, she just eyed the broken knight with uncaring eyes.
"I have some stars and one stag." He had a bit more than that. But he wasn't about to let on.
"Ain't enough fer a week. I can give ye a few days of food fer that."
Adren sighed, though he understood. Food was hard enough to come by that it was worth much more than it should be here in the riverlands. He nodded a bit and turned, walking out of the inn. He'd just have to make do with what else he could find. Untying Star he led her through the battered streets. Good horse that she was, she didn't spook or shy at any of the smoldering ruins.
He stopped at what had once been the town square. Hollow-eyed peasants stared at him and he didn't stay for long. He mounted up and kneed Star easily, walking out onto the main road.
As usual, he didn't know where he was walking to. Looking back at the town he saw a few dark shapes, either people or animals, he couldn't tell which, moving out of the burned place as well. Something held him there—a shadow of his forgotten honor, perhaps. If anyone was traveling into the riverlands they'd need a protector, a knight. Not that Adren really considered himself a knight anymore. But he could still fight and guide, and he was lonely.
He pulled Star to a slow pace, then settled for walking himself. Very slowly. People passed him, usually in groups of more than five people. None of them paid him any attention, besides more of their glares.
He was about to give up his valiant attempt and move on himself when a girl caught his attention. She was pretty, albeit in need of a bath and fresh clothing. Her hair was dark and thick, bound in a tight braid. Her eyes were that midnight blue of an ocean storm… and Adren didn't know exactly how he could tell that without being near to her. And she was alone.
That, more than anything, was what caught Adren's attention. He led Star over to near where the girl was walking. The girl's eyes flicked up to Adren, confirming the color, and then she looked back down. "Can I be of service to you, my lord?"
Adren was taken aback by her speech. It was proper and courtly, though this woman didn't carry herself like a lady. A lady wouldn't be on the road alone, either. "My la-miss, are you alone?" He'd almost called her a lady, and by the twitch at the corner of her mouth, she picked that up.
"My mother always told me never to say if I was alone when a strange man asks, my lord."
"My-miss, I am no lord."
"And I am no lady. Your name, ser knight?"
"I am Adren. Ser Adren, as you've guessed. And yourself?"
"Andrya." She fell silent and kept walking.
"Miss Andrya, where are you headed?"
Andrya eyed Adren with those blue eyes. He looked away first. "I am sorry, miss. It's none of my concern."
"You are correct, Ser Adren, though I will tell you anyway. I am bound to only the gods know where. And yourself?"
"Nowhere and everywhere. I am a knight, as you see, but I have no lord or liege. So I wander."
Andrya nodded, seemingly to herself. "So why are you speaking with me, Ser Adren?"
Adren hesitated, a little unsure of how to answer. You looked alone and I am lonely, sounded wrong. I need something to guard, someone to protect. I am tired of being alone. No, that wouldn't do either. He realized that he'd been silent for a while and Andrya was giving him a strange look, and he smiled at her. "You are alone, miss, in this dark time. I might have no lord or liege, but traces of my honor and my vows remain. It would be my honor to accompany you and see you safely to your destination. A maid alone won't be a maid for long."
Andrya said nothing at that, causing Adren to sweat slightly. Had he said something wrong? "Very well," she said eventually. "Though I must warn you that I don't know where I'm going. Just away from here."
"As you say, miss Andrya."
"Storm."
"Andrya Storm? From… King's Landing?"
"Yes. Either King's Landing or Storm's End. Mother never said, but my name is Storm nonetheless. So I am certainly no miss."
Adren shook his head. He motioned to the saddle on Star's back, then stopped. "Miss Andrya—don't look at me like that, Mother raised me to treat women with courtesy—please, will you ride?"
Andrya had it on the tip of her tongue to say no, but at the last second she smiled slightly. "Since you ask so nicely, I suppose."
Adren gave her a leg up. She looked like she was used to riding, though he couldn't for the life of him figure out why. If she was bastard-born she was likely the daughter of a whore, and how would a whore manage to teach her daughter to ride? Adren kept his face carefully blank as he thought about that. Not really what he'd meant by riding… he stopped his thoughts.
They walked on for a while, until the sun began to set. Adren led Star into a secluded clearing he was familiar with and created on of his smokeless fires. Amazingly, Andrya appeared to have food and set about preparing dinner as Adren unsaddled Star and let the mare roam. They ate quietly and talked of nothing in particular—the conditions of the road, weather, and other harmless things. Adren didn't ask Andrya what she was doing alone, and she didn't ask him about his knighthood.
Adren was slightly surprised when Andrya didn't comment about his lack of keeping watch. He supposed that if she'd traveled alone she'd know that you can't expect to keep watch and sleep at the same time, but it was strange from a maid. And she was clearly a maid, in name if not in actuality. There was a childlike nature about her as she petted Star before lying down, though he caught a look of sadness in her eyes as well, sadness like adults knew. He guessed her age at around sixteen, which was younger than his 21 years.
Her eyes snapped open and met his across the fire. She gave him a tiny smile, a sort of smile that women have only to confuse men. Adren returned the smile weakly and settled down for some sleep himself.
So, this is the first fanfiction I've attempted in a long while. And the first I'm putting on public view. There won't likely be any characters that you all know, because it feels weird to me when I write about other people's characters and make them do things. I always second-guess myself and characte actions, so I'm solving that problem by simply leaving the big nobles, kings, queens, lords, ladies, ect. out of it. I really wish there was a proper ASoIaF area for me to put this, but... apparently there isn't. Which sucks.
And, being that there isn't, I'm not really expecting much feedback for this. I have too much pride to beg for reviews, but it'd be really nice if you could just say a few words--good, bad, whatever. Updates on this are going to be spotty, but I'll do my best. I'm on an exchange program right now so I'm busy, but ASoIaF is what's been keeping me sane, and I got this idea, and... the rest is history.