Postcard From Italy

What happens to Snow in summer? It melts! What happens to Jon Snow when he decides to go on a trip all over Italy in the middle of the summer? Quite the same!

Truth be told, he would have gladly gone to France, Germany, even somewhere in South America, being Chile his preference. Like his surname implied, he was far too used to the cold weather to ever consider the possibility of venturing in any tropical place, or Italy for that matter.

It was Robb's idea and Jeyne was enthusiastic about having a romantic night in Venice, an afternoon with Michelangelos' in Florence and a grand finale in Rome. The Italian tour was full of art museums, churches, pasta, wine, and dehydration. He wasn't built for such a place. Not that Italy wasn't lovely, but it was maddening hot in summer and he wouldn't mind if the weather got a bit cooler.

If it wasn't for Arya's infinite requests for him to come along, Jon would be at home, with his favorite book, enjoying a peaceful vacation. Still, he couldn't understand why he agreed to accompany Robb, Jeyne and Arya. In fact he never got why Arya was there in the first place. Probably there was a mysterious plan to get him mad, or simply to watch him get sunburned.

"You look like someone who could use a gelato." Her voice broke his line of thought. Arya was there, with her full smile and a cone in hand. Well…Gelatos were the only thing that made that trip tolerable.

"Sure thing." He said accepting her offer. "Enjoying yourself?"

"Yes, I am. It would be better if you could pretend to be enjoying too. You look like someone who swallowed a shoe." She teased as she usually did. Jon smiled at her.

"You know me. I like my cave, as you like to call it. And frankly, it's too hot for me." It was his usual answer. Arya rolled her eyes and poked his abdomen.

"You boring old man."

"Remind me again what am I doing here when it's plain enough that Robb and Jeyne would rather be alone." Jon insisted and Arya bitted her inferior lip.

"You are here because you are lovely and gave me the perfect excuse to come along. I don't give a shit about Robb and Jeyne being in a sort of honeymoon. I wanted to travel, I had the money, and father would never allow me to come along if there wasn't someone, said you, to make sure that I wouldn't spoil my big brother's vacation."

"I'm your babysitter than?" Jon defied her. Arya had always hated whenever he implied that she was a child.

"I would rather say that you are my trip buddy, but you are the worst companion ever! Come on, Jon. We should be making the most of it. Venice, Florence, Rome, there's literally nothing for you to hate about these cities. You love art, history and you are kind of a gladiator fetishist. I don't get why you are being so grumpy about it, and don't fucking tell me it's because of the heat."

"Ok, fine! I'll do my best to not spoil your vacations, you little brat." He said while he grabbed her by the waist with both of his arms and spinet her around like he used to do when she was ten. Oh God, things used to be simple back then.

It had been quite a quest that trip. Since the beginning he found himself trapped with Arya more often than not, starting with the fact that they were sharing the same hotel room. Robb and Jeyne usually got locked up in their room after dinner and Jon had to entertain Arya for the evening.

It was better to stay out doors with her, first and foremost because little Arya was no more. She was his best friend's little sister, but he never understood when she went from a tomboy girl to an alluring and extravagant young woman. When they were young she was all about scratched knees and bruised arms she owned in a football match, or a fight. Now she was quite refined about her taste in photography, music and art. She was aspiring to be an architect, and no doubt she would do just fine in college.

He wished that he could understand when she became so damn stunning! It was getting him mad, literally. It was hell hot in Italy, they were having dinner together every night, they were sharing a room and who cares about twin beds, anyway?! If she had given him a chance, any chance, he would have made it up for all of his sour moods. If only she saw him as a man and not as some kind of sexless creature, like one of Raffaello's androgenic angels!

In Venice they spent a whole day sightseeing and taking vaporetos. She bought him a Venetian mask to thank him for his company. A Pierrot mask, with a teardrop falling from the right eye. He was the sad clown. What an accurate observation.

That night Robb and Jeyne decided to have a romantic gondola cruise at the Grand Canal, leaving Jon and Arya alone to explore the city. They had dinner in a quiet and cozy restaurant with a lot of wine to pull everything down.

To say that they got drunk was an understatement. They were beyond drunkenness, to the point of making fool of themselves by dancing tango at the Piazza Di San Marco. Jon grabbed her by the waist turning her around and trying to do his best to stand up on his feet.

She was dazzling that night, with her grey short dress and lips painted red. Arya danced with him and her laugh was his favorite song. Jon thought about kissing her there and then. Maybe that trip could turn their awkward friendship into something else. Thank God he was too drunk to try anything else at the hotel. Jon felt a slept as soon as he reached his bed. Given the circumstances it was for the best. It was their first day in Italy and he didn't want to spoil it by fucking Arya senseless and imposing an awkward situation to everyone else during vacations.

Well…He must add that Arya wasn't helping a single bit by wearing those shorts and light transparent blouses. Jumping on top of him every morning to wake him up wasn't helping either. No wonder his humor was so sour and grumpy. Arya was planning to kill him with frustration.

Since he was somehow attracted to her and nothing good could come out of a one night stand with Arya Stark, Jon tried to conceal his frustration with gelatos; tons of it to be more accurate. The sweetness and coolness of the Italian ice cream was at least efficient against the heat.

They were exploring Florence that day. They enjoyed Michelangelo's sculptures at the museum and after lunch Arya spent a good hour taking pictures of the Santa Maria Dei Fiore. The impeccable combination of three different colors of marble that made Jon think about a woman's beauty portrait in a Renascence kind of art; delicate, sophisticated, exquisite. They went to the riverbank to see the Ponte Vecchio and Jon noticed the quantity of padlocks hanged in the chains of the bridge. Some of them had letters carved, others had hearts. He wondered about the meaning of it.

"They are all love promises." Arya's voice sounded near. She was holding one of the locks in her hand as if it was some kind of jewelry.

"I've heard that if a couple puts the lock in the chain and throw the key in the river it means that the lover's bond become eternal." Jeyne said in a dreaming tone.

"And that is the reason why I bought this for us." Robb kissed his bride cheek before putting a padlock in her hands.

"You two get a room!" Arya shouted bluntly. "Oh, come on! Being around you love birds is killing me and Jon."

"Say it for yourself. I'm totally ok with it. You were the one who insisted in accompany them in this trip." Jon answered with a laugh.

"You could give me some back up here, Jon." Arya replied.

"You know what? Jon is right about it. You were the one who insisted. Maybe you two should get a room. It will work wonders in your humors. You are dragging Jon around for a week, the guy is being the epitome of patience and you don't let the poor man have a minute for himself. Jon could find a girl in Italy, but you are ruining all his chances. No wonder he is in such a bad humor." Robb replied bluntly, making both Jon and Arya uncomfortable.

Robb and Jeyne putted the lock in the chain. Unfortunately nobody had warned them that the practice had been forbidden in the late years. Robb got pissed off about the fee he had to pay and Jeyne got terribly disappointed. The couple decided to retire to their room early that night, letting Jon and Arya by themselves again.

He got to their room to find Arya wrapped in a towel. Her short hair still wet, while she was brushing her teeth. Really. Share a room with your new found sexual fantasy without having any kind of sexual intercourse. Hell of an idea! He was feeling more like a landscape every day, or maybe like one of her siblings. It was getting on his nerves and from time to time Jon wondered if she was truly naïve, or if everything had been meticulously calculated.

"Thought you would be ready by now." He said while unbuttoning his shirt. Well…If she could walk around the room wearing nothing but pants and bra, she could deal with him walking around in his boxers as well.

"I've lost the notion of time." She shouted from the restroom. "What do you wanna do?"

"Dunno. Maybe go for a walk and have dinner somewhere nice. And please, let's have a real meal. I'm done with carbs."

"Oh! I can swear that you've just read my mind. I'm dying for a steak!" She came out of the bathroom wearing jeans and a light blue blouse. Her lips were painted with vermilion lipstick.

"A bloody steak, some salad, a good wine. That sounds like heaven to me." Jon answered trying to ignore her tantalizing figure.

"You forgot the gelato." Arya said throwing a towel at him.

"You and your gelatos will make me as fat as Sam." He laughed.

"Maybe I like chubby guys. Go take a shower, caveman." Jon needed no further encouragement to do so.

They left the hotel about fifteen minutes later and for a change the night was breezy and much more pleasant than he had given it credit for. Italian nights; that was something he was quite fond of.

His humor had improved since afternoon, maybe because of Robb's blunt statement. So it was obvious to everyone that something was off about Jon and Arya during that trip, he just wasn't sure if it was mere unsettled sexual tension, or something else. Arya was making a spectacular effort to call his attention with all kind of provocation. He often wondered if it was all about physical attraction or if she wasn't over her crush for him yet.

Oh, that had never been a real secret. All the Stark's knew that Arya had been in love with him for most of her teenage years, until she started dating Gendry. The relationship lasted about three years and since they would attend college in different cities they decided to break up. Jon, on the other hand, had never been distant given the fact that he had been Robb's best friend since ever.

Ned Stark had always been sure about Jon being trustworthy and there was no surprise when he gave his permission to Arya accompanies him and Robb in their trip. In fact he was quite sure that most of the Stark's believed that Jon had no blood in his veins, or was positively gay, since they acted as if Arya sharing a room with a guy was something perfectly acceptable.

He talked about it with Robb before they got into that plane. His friend seemed to be perfectly at ease with the whole thing. "As if we could stop Arya if she decides to hang out with a guy or another. Believe me, Jon. If she put her heart at something she will get it no matter what. I honestly think that she has no hopes of taking your virtue or something. If she still has a thing for you, I can at least have some comfort in the fact that she chose you and not Theon."

Sometimes he doubted that Arya could ever premeditate anything, but there was also those furtive moments when Jon was resolute about her mischievous mind. There was a kind of game going on, and he wasn't sure about how well he could play it.

At the restaurant everything was just fine. They got a table for two and a bottle of wine to go with the steak both of them were craving for. She was pretty in an unusual way, Jon concluded. It was a beauty that grew by the hour, as you talked to her and let her charms and wit get under your skin.

"Jon, are you listening?" Her voice dragged him out of his mind palace. It was when Jon noticed that he had been staring at her for far too long.

"Oh, I'm sorry. What were you saying?" He tried to be as polite as he could. Arya smirked at him.

"Never mind." She replied in annoyance. "Am I making you miserable in this trip? You know you can sneak away and find someone interesting or something."

"I'm not miserable, but I'll keep in mind that what you've said." Jon smirked in answer. "You know you can do just the same, don't you?"

"I'm fine this way, but I have to admit that Italian guys hold a certain appeal to me. It must be the beard." She said it after biting her lip.

"I'm sure it's their lovely temper and propensity to drama."

"Jon, dear. You are all the drama that I could require for. You are almost an opera."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You are tragic. I won't even mention your dramatic childhood, since I know how touchy you are about it. There is your thing for hopeless cases and each one of your ex-girlfriends can prove that. Last but not least, your prince charming complex. You are a walking opera." He gave her a skeptical look.

"Is that so? Well, if I am a walking opera, what would you be?" He asked with a hint of humor.

"I wish that I could say a road movie, but I guess you would think differently." She said winking at him. Jon laughed.

"I would say a Shakespeare comedy." He concluded. "You used to dress like a boy, just like Viola; but this whole trip thing makes me think about Midsummer Night Dream, and you are as bossy and demanding as Titania."

"What would that make of you?" She replied full of mischief and malice, while Jon wasn't as sober as he should be.

"Nick Bottom, perhaps." What the hell?! Arya laughed at the answer.

"The man with a donkey's head? You surely have enough hair to that." She teased him, pretending she hasn't understood the insinuation at all.

"I'll take that as a compliment since you've just said that you favor the bearded guys. Maybe one day you'll wake up madly in love with me." The answer came out of his lips immediately. Perhaps he should go easy with the wine and void to make fool of himself. It was Arya, for God's sake! She probably saw him as a part of the landscape or something like that.

"That wouldn't be the first time, would it?" She winked at him once more, making Jon speechless.

Well…That was the first time she actually admitted that she have had a thing for him, but it had been a long time ago and things have changed, haven't it? She was going to college and all that. There was a whole new world ahead of her and Arya would have all the freedom to explore it. She didn't need him anymore and maybe the Italian heat was just messing up with their heads.

"So…Tomorrow we will explore the Eternal City." She drastically changed the subject. "Any ideas of what we should do there?" Arya asked and if he was to be honest about the question he would have said "fuck like rabbits", but he was Jon Snow and he would never say that kind of thing to her even though he was seriously interested in that kind of possibility.

"The Coliseum, the Vatican, probably a dozen of different churches. I'm nearly converting to Catholicism because of this trip." He sipped his glass of wine after that. Sure he should get a grip over his thoughts about her and stop drinking for the sake of his sanity, but that was being a difficult night.

"You already practice celibacy, that shouldn't be difficult to you." Arya teased him. Oh if she only knew the kind of thoughts about her he have been nurturing since they entered that damn airplane…

The dinner went on and on with several caustic observations about his behavior during the trip. Talk about sexual frustration. Arya was literally driving him crazy with all the teasing and poking. The only thing he could think about was how he wanted to press her against one of those walls and kiss her under the moonlight. How he wanted to taste gelato from her lips and hear the soft moans escaping from her mouth when he went down on her.

They finished their supper and Jon suggested a leisure walk to help with the digestion (and the amount of wine consumed with the food). He wasn't sure if being in doors with her would be a wise idea at that point and the cool breeze was more likely to help him with the mood swings.

Arya grabbed his hand and pulled him around the ancient streets all the way to the Palazzo Vecchio. At such an hour, the place was considerably calmer and it was possible to actually admire the marble and bronze statues in display in the piazza.

Jon realized that he liked Florence better than Venice, mostly because he could walk anywhere without the risk of getting lost or drown in the canals. The smell was also better there and there were almost no rats in the streets, but what he liked the most was the possibility of being surprised by the masterpieces spread all over the city. Marble statues, unique architecture and history impregnate in every wall and every corner of the city along with the fleur-de- lis, Florence's official coat of arms.

There was also something very feminine about Florence, very sweet and tempting, like a woman's kiss. He wasn't a fucking poet, but he had to admit that the wine, the moon, the stars and Arya were giving him an artistic soul; or maybe it was just Italy and its ability to add a twist of drama and comedy to everyone's life and nature.

They walked to the corridor made of statues that represented every important Florentine that ever lived. Artists, scientists, philosophers, politicians…A tribute to the most brilliant and talented minds of Renascence and the reason why Florence had been such an important place not only to Italian history and culture, but also for the humanity.

Perhaps it was the effect of the wine…In vino veritas, as the romans used to say, but the truth is that he was finding that particular Italian night quite lovely; especially the sight of Arya walking down the street, heading to the river side with her bold smile and flirty eyes.

Jon grabbed her by the wrist when she came near him. Arya looked at him puzzled, almost curious about what he had in mind. Jon spinet her around in an awkward attempt of a dance, just like they did in Venice except that there was no music. She laughed and there was nothing like the sound of her laugh and the Italian moonlight.

"What are you doing?" She asked still laughing at his drunken steps and pitiful attempts of keep his balance.

"Making of drunken dances a tradition between us." He said with a smirk on his lips and stars in his mind. "Maybe just trying to make up for all my latter grumpiness."

"You'll have to do more than this, you know?" She gave him a big smile, one with vermillion lips and sweet dimples on her cheeks. God! He loved whenever she did that! "You have been a royal pain in the ass until now."

"What else can I do to make it up to you?" He asked slowly, while swinging her in his arms to the rhythm of some imaginary tune. "I know! I could rent a Vespa when we arrive in Rome and drive you around the city as if you were Audrey Hepburn on that black and white movie that you like."

She laughed again, throwing her head back and giving Jon a great view of her neck line. That was too much for him to take, too much to resist. He could blame the wine latter, or maybe say that all the heat melted his brain to the point of making him do the most stupid things.

He pulled her back to him, making her lips collide with his own in the way. If she was taken by surprise, Arya never showed that. She sank her fingers in his hair when Jon pressed her against a wall to deepen the kiss. There was nothing shy about the way her tongue played with his and how she liked to bite his bottom lip. There was nothing innocent about the way her hands played around the waistline of his trousers or scratching his back under the t-shirt he was wearing. In fact it had been a while since the last time a girl kissed him back with so much enthusiasm.

When the kiss parted they were both breathless and dizzy. Jon had kissed away all her red lipstick and Arya had marked his neck and back with her long nail covered in black nail polish. She smiled at him a mischievously, making Jon kiss her again.

"We should take a taxi back to the hotel…" She said in a husky voice, close to his ear while Jon kissed her neck. "Don't you think?"

"You're a probably right." He answered while trying to have one coherent thought.

How did they get in a taxi? Well… That's a question that neither of them would be able to answer. In fact neither of them would know to explain how they got in their hotel room at two in the morning, being both drunk of wine and lust. The process might have involved some extra money for the taxi and a shocked Italian driver that cursed both of them dramatically during the way back to the hotel, but that's a wild guess. Although the "how's" can't be perfectly clarified, they got to their room locking the door behind them blindly while kissing each other with the need of the thirty.

The pieces of clothing formed a track from the door to one of the beds. Again…twin beds, for a couple that until that very moment hasn't had the chance to explore the final frontier of a friendship. Arya laughed when Jon hit the drawer with his toe while trying to get rid of his boxers. Since he seemed very much distracted cursing his aching toe, she pulled him to the bed, making him sit just to saddle his lap.

She kissed his mouth eagerly and Jon realized that Arya had a very playful way of conducting her passions. She enjoyed the bites and the scratches, probably too much. She also like the teasing and that was getting him anxious and desperate for release; especially when she was gloriously naked on top of him, rubbing her wet folds at the tip of his throbbing cock.

He grabbed her ass with gusto when she bit his neck, pulling her down to receive him inside of her moisture folds. Arya threw her head back slightly, as if searching for the breath she had just lost. Soon she lowered her face so her eyes could look straight at him. She imposed the rhythm, while using his shoulders for support. Jon reclined his back just a bit, sustaining his weight with one hand, while the other rested at the small of Arya's back.

Arya came first, moaning his name in an absurdly erotic way and sending him to edge of his own pleasure. He didn't last much after that. Jon laid back, while Arya rested on top of his body. At the end they were exhausted, breathless and laughing like loons given the circumstances and the lack of space in the bed to accommodate both.

"Best vacations ever." Jon let it escape in the middle of a laugh, making Arya roll her eyes with incredulity.

"I always knew that your grumpiness was all about sexual frustration." She answered in a cocky way. "You know…I nearly gave up my hopes of ever seducing you. Nobody plays dumb as good as you, Jon Snow."

"It's a natural talent, I guess. You have made it quite difficult to play dumb, though." He answered already dozing off. "When we check in at the hotel in Rome, let's make sure they will give us a proper bed."

"Agreed." She yawned minutes after passing out on top of him. Obviously none of them remembered a minor detail about that session of drunken reckless love making. There was no condom involved in the process.

A.N.: Hey guys! As you can see I got nostalgic again and decided to revisit some of my own experienced in Italy. This one is kind of autobiographic (yes, I've drunk too much and danced a tango at Piazza Di San Marco, but my pair wasn't Jon). This is also an attempt of comedy after so many drama fics. Florence is my favorite city in Italy and I make no secret of it (after writing this chapter I started to look for hotels and tickets to go back). I love the way Italy can make you feel passionate about things and I guess this is what I would like to explore here. I hope you like it and I guess there will be only one more chapter to close the story.

I suggest "Postcards from Italy", by Beirut as a soundtrack.

Reviews are love. Give me some, will you? ;D

Ciao!