Sansa led him through the neatly swept little front yard, where a few fat chickens were busily pecking around, into the wooden hut. Tyrion looked about him in disbelief.

"And you have lived here for the past three years?" he asked in wonder.

Sansa nodded. "Me and Septa Genella. She is just gone to the village beyond that hill, for some new milk and freshly baked bread. The folk here supplied us with all we needed throughout the winter."

Tyrion looked around again, noticing more details. There were two narrow hard-looking beds in the hut, a stove, a row of shiny copper pots hanging from one of the walls, a crude wooden table and two stools. From the little window he could see the neat rows of the vegetable garden behind the house, green and thriving in the warm spring sun.

"It must have been a dull life," he finally said. Sansa's eyes were downcast, but suddenly she looked up at him, more confident.

"It was better than the fate that awaited me in the Vale," she said.

"The Vale?" Tyrion was perplexed. "You meant to go to the Vale?"

"I did go there, with Petyr Baelish. He spirited me away, right after - after Joffrey's wedding," said Sansa.

Tyrion looked at her in amazement. "Littlefinger spirited you away?" But of course, surprising as it was, it made far more sense than her running away all on her own. "With what design? For that bastard must have had a hidden purpose, if I know anything at all about him."

"He convinced me that he has my best interests at heart, that he wants to help me for my mother's sake," said Sansa, "but..." her voice faltered, "he really intended to... to..." she struggled for words. "He was in love with my mother once," she said eventually, "he... he thought he could have me, as he never had her."

Tyrion swore softly under his breath. An innocent, guileless, unprotected beautiful girl was easy prey - although in Sansa's case, this was true only in part. "You ran away from him," he stated. She nodded in agreement. "Have you pledged yourself to the Faith, then?"

Sansa looked straight at him. "I could not do that," she said, "I am married... as my lord will recall."

"Indeed," he said, and held her gaze. She had thrown back her grey hood now, and her braided auburn hair fell across one of her shoulders. Her deep blue eyes were wary, but at the same time there was peace in them such as Tyrion had not remembered, and she had grown, if it was possible, even more beautiful. The smoothly flowing curves of her body were difficult to miss even through the roughspun grey septa's dress. "In fact," he went on, "it is precisely our marriage I would wish to discuss, my lady."

She looked reluctant but resigned. "I would have thought as much, my lord."

"You might know that, with the death of all my kin, I am now lord of Casterly Rock," said Tyrion, "I have gained my birthright. Now I need a son, an heir. I scarcely need to tell you what this means regarding us."

A look of fear appeared in Sansa's eyes, but she spoke bravely. "You wish to consummate our marriage, so that you can beget sons."

Tyrion was surprised in the extreme at the notion. "The thought had not crossed my mind," he assured her, "I intend to annul our marriage, so that we can both be free."

Sansa seemed to be relieved and uncomfortable at once. "I have thought of this too, my lord," she said, "and I do not believe it can be done as easily as you imagine."

"What do you mean?" he frowned. "Our marriage was always in name only. We never truly lived together as husband and wife."

"Yes, but to set this marriage aside, we would need to stand in front of a Council of Faith, and they would require other reasons but mere non-consummation. I have actually asked Septa Genella about this. There was, for instance, no continuous denial of spousal rights," she blushed slightly, "as you only broached the matter once. Non-consummation coupled with mistreatment could be a valid reason for annulment, but you never treated me badly." Did he imagine this, or was there a faint hint of warmth in her voice now? "As a matter of fact, only later I realized to what pains you have gone to ensure my well-being. When we were first married, I'm afraid I was too young and too deeply immersed in grief to appreciate this. It wasn't until years after that I learned to recognize disinterested kindness, and understand its true value."

This made Tyrion feel absurdly gratified. "I did what little I could to prevent my dear family from tormenting you further," he said, "but Sansa, you were forced to marry me. Surely that is reason enough to set our union aside."

"Perhaps it would be, if I were dragged into the sept and made to say my words at swordpoint," she said, "but there were witnesses aplenty who watched me walk in and say my vows willingly."

"As willingly as a trapped animal gnaws off its leg," Tyrion said impatiently. "Look, my lady, I know you must want to end this farce of a marriage."

"I cannot deceive the Faith," Sansa said solemnly. Tyrion sighed. He had almost forgotten how devout she always was. "As for you not being the man of my choosing..." he almost snorted. This is mildly put. "Well, in a way I did have a choice. I could marry your cousin Lancel, or someone else your father would deem fit. I preferred you, my lord," she paused, "and I'm afraid that in the Seven Kingdoms, so many maids are wed to men who wouldn't be their first choice, or who were chosen by their father or guardian, that it is too common to be grounds for annulment."

Tyrion pulled out his last card. "I can confess I whored while we lived under the same roof," he said, "it ought to appease the septons, and it wouldn't be a lie."

If he thought to shock her, he was very much mistaken. "Do you mean the affair you carried on with my maid Shae?" she asked almost indifferently, rendering him mute. "That was too long ago to be taken into account now, and in the past years we lived separately, neither of us knowing anything about the other. I'm afraid that if you intend to argue along that line, you would have to supply some... fresher evidence, my lord."

Tyrion looked at her. And looked. "So what is it that you are saying?" he finally asked.

"Just this - for now, I can see no quick way to annul our marriage," she said. He could tell she was not thrilled by the prospect, and neither was he, but something stirred at the pit of his stomach. He could not quite define it or describe it, except that it made his heart beat faster.

"Will you be coming with us, my lady?" he asked. "Her Grace seems to feel very benevolently towards you, and earlier expressed hope for the dawn of a new era between houses Targaryen and Stark. And by strange coincidence, we are now heading for Winterfell, to plan its rebuilding. I imagine you would want to take part in this."

For the first time, a smile appeared on Sansa Stark's face. "I would," she said.