They were satellites of one another. Their lives often paralleled, but during her first few years at Winterfell, they did not develop anything that required more than a cordial hi and a polite smile.
She clicked with everyone. Either they were intrigued by the fast Los Angeles lifestyle that seemed almost unfathomable to those born and bred in the wild winds of winter or they were drawn to her demeanor: a humble confidence, strong yet sweet, effervescently kind but rather mysterious.
It would be safe to say that it didn't take long for her to find a group of friends of her own. Jon knew them already, as he did almost everyone in Winterfell, but it was easy to take note of Dany's eclectic group of friends.
There was Missandei, a rather quiet girl who spent most of her time planning activities for the Interact service club. Dedicated to a life of social justice, Missandei was known for her sense of right and wrong. Her beliefs were strong, but she didn't hand out praise lightly. Jon was friendly with her, and actually, everyone was friendly with her. Dany and Missandei immediately clicked, often caught laughing in the back of class or chatting adamantly in the cafeteria.
Next was an obvious choice, Margaery Tyrell. She was friends with Robb, who was friends with Rhaegar, which would automatically make her friends with Dany. She had the same too-intelligent-for-her-own-good feel about her that Dany also emulated. Winterfell wasn't cliquey. It truly wasn't big enough for large cliques to develop and after going to the same school with the same classmates for all these years, they learned to mostly smooth out any animosity early on.
Nevertheless, if this was a stereotypical high school, Margaery would end up close to the top of the social hierarchy. Along with her brother, Loras, Margaery was well liked. They came from old money, but never flaunted it around, well except for the exceptional outfits Margaery was known for. Involved in student government from the tender age of five, leading Ms. Graner's kindergarten class.
Torgo Nudho, or Grey Worm for short, was also an expected choice. One of the fastest members of the local ice hockey team, Grey was given his nickname because he always seemed to worm his way out of any situation on the ice. No opposing player could ever catch him.
Jon often saw the group hanging out with Robb, Rhaegar and their friends. It was well known, and openly discussed, how Rhaegar liked to keep her close, always under his watchful eye. In a town as small as Winterfell, it wasn't surprising that people still cared about the gossip surrounding the Targaryens. Jon heard the rumors. Everyone heard the rumors and there were a handful, who would never tell, that started the rumors.
It was surprisingly hilarious to listen to the embellishments. Runaways was a common one. He had even heard of Dany and Rhaegar escaping a very blonde cult whose main purpose was to breed out any non-blondes. Any hair dye was strictly forbidden. Nobody thought to just ask Rhaegar and Dany why their parents still hadn't moved in, and so the rumors continued.
Jon hung out with them too, but he needed alone time to recharge. His best friend was Sam and Sam had been ever since elementary school. He was a truer friend than anyone else could be. Sam knew how to break Jon's brooding stares that sometimes seemed just a tad dramatic. Jon lived a happy life with a big family in a town that had its drawbacks but was overwhelmingly idyllic.
A few weeks after Dany and Rhaegar arrived, someone first caught sight of their parents. Let it be known that they were as beautiful as their children with their hair the exact same shade. Aerys and Rhaella, Jon later found out, immediately took it upon themselves to become part of the community, but they weren't met with the warm welcome they wanted. First of all, people talked about their names. Aerys, Rhaella, Daenerys and Rhaegar. It's like they came out of some fantasy land. Winterfell was not known for very out of the box names. Residents knew that people from Los Angeles loved some strange names. Look at the names of celebrity children for a good chuckle, but the Targaryens took it to the next level.
Second was the fact that all of the townspeople already knew that Aerys and Rhaella were the parents that left their children to fend for themselves. New England is pretty liberal, but even for the citizens of Winterfell, leaving your 9th and 12th grader alone in a big house in a new city was an entirely new ballgame. Still, Aerys and Rhaella went to PTA meetings and town halls. They went to the Halloween party and brought handmade cupcakes with little dragons frosted on top. They tried, well, Rhaella tried. Aerys, when he did decide to come to events, was often on edge. His features were sharp and pointed. His lips were often pressed together in a long line.
Maybe that's just how he is, Jon reasoned, but he couldn't understand how such polite and caring children came from his stoic genes. Maybe Rhaegar and Dany were just lucky. He didn't know how lucky until he met the already infamous brother, Viserys. Again with the names. It's like they just tried to put letters together until they formed some semblance of a name.
Jon heard Viserys was tall and lanky. Not as a surprise, Viserys had the same Targaryen hair that fell across his face. His chin was always held high and he left a scent of arrogance. Jon first met the three new Targaryens for dinner.
The invitation came up when he was walking with Arya and Rickon downtown. Their parents had taken the car up to visit Ned's parents for the day and Jon was left with babysitting. Arya would fight him if he ever said he was babysitting them. Arya was fine on her own.
He could tell Targaryen hair from a mile away so when he saw a girl with platinum blonde hair pulled up in a loose braid, he knew that it was Dany. He quickened his pace to reach her.
"Dany," he said when he was just a few feet behind her. She spun on her heel, her brain blowing in the air before falling gently on her back.
"Jon! What a coincidence running into you here," Dany leaned down until she was at the level of Arya and Rickon, "And who are you two?" She offered a smile and she outstretched her hand. Rickon, relatively non-confrontational, backed behind Jon's leg. Jon let out a laugh in response. He was going to introduce Rickon, but Arya already chimed in, "Arya Stark." She shook Dany's hand with her own, "and you're Daenerys."
Dany raised her eyebrow quizzically before continuing, "Well it is very nice to meet you, Arya, and . . ." She turned to look at Jon.
"Rickon," Jon finished her thought, "We were just trying to pick up some ingredients for dinner. The parents seemed to forget that no Stark is skilled in the kitchen, especially not Sansa."
With that comment, Arya laughed out loud. "She burnt the pasta the other day."
Jon jokingly put his hand over her mouth, "but we applaud her effort." Arya laughed as Rickon gave the universal gagging motion.
"You guys could come over for dinner," Dany offered as she put down the bag of groceries she was holding, "I swear my parents think they are going to feed a small army with all the food they prepare." Dany looked down at Rickon and Arya, "Plus, I heard my brother bought a big, fancy chocolate cake from Hot Pie's down the street," Arya's eyes widened.
Arya put her hands together, pleading with Jon, "Jon, please. I can't take another one of Sansa's recipes. She says they'll be good because they're on the Food Network. She forgets that she isn't Gordon Ramsay."
"We'll be fine. We don't want to intrude," Jon said. Arya frowned, crossing her arms in objection.
Dany laughed, "No really. It's no problem at all. Take it as a belated thanks for welcoming us to Winterfell dinner. I'm sure my parents will enjoy the company."Arya nodded up at Jon and even Rickon had come out from behind Jon's leg. Maybe Dany didn't seem like an intimidating stranger to him anymore now that she mentioned chocolate cake and a dinner that wasn't burnt to a crisp.
Truth be told, Jon was also dreading dinner. "You're sure everyone will be okay with this?"
Dany nodded, "I'm not taking no for an answer. See you around 6? It's the big white house on Maple. Can't miss it. Invite the rest of the family too. Oh, I can't wait." Dany grabbed her bag, turned on her heel and left him on the sidewalk, mouth agape. So they were having dinner with the Targaryen family tonight. That was a turn of events. At least he would be saved from Sansa's cooking.