Convincing Arya
Robb
Robb Stark was utterly and incredibly screwed, he knew it. He needed to do something, he needed help from someone, anyone.
He needed his siblings and cousins (who were actually raised as siblings) for he had done the only thing his mother had asked him not to do, and it was all his fault for being so reckless, over confident and just plain idiot.
Today was the New Year's traditional lunch back home at Winterfell, it was one of the few times his family was together. Since forever they had managed to get together on the first weekend of the year, ever since he was a kid. This lunch was tradition. It was the day family from all over came to his house to have a weekend all together.
Horrible aunt Lysa Arryn and her paedophile boyfriend were going to be there.
Thankfully, all of his siblings were there too, trying to figure out why he called them the basement, away from the crowd.
"I need help"
"What did you do this time?" he turned to look at his sister Sansa, he knew, for a fact, that she was not going to be the one that would help him. She was already on their mother's black list for bringing his new boyfriend of one year (only new because their parents haven't met him before). Sansa brought Sandor Clegane, better known as The Hound, an ex-marine now mma fighter. That guy was far from what her mother pictured. Ned was going to approve of him, eventually, since he made Sansa happy and treated her gently. Catelyn would take some years to at least stand him.
"C'mon fucker, what did you do? Dumped Jeyne a month before the wedding? Or did she dump you instead? You know Ned already paid for the reception…"
"No, that's not it! She's upstairs resting in my room for she's not feeling well when we arrived last night. She'll come down… later" he answered his cousin Theon, who had brought along a bottle of vodka and already drank half the content of it "Pass me that!" and he yanked the bottle away taking a sip of it before giving it back. If Theon was drunk enough he could create a scene and divert Catelyn's wrath away from him. It was typical Theon to get wasted on every special occasion and almost every weekend since they discovered alcohol back in high school.
"Seriously Robb, what did you do this time?" now his brother Rickon spoke. Rickon, the youngest one, was wild, maybe he could do something to distract the attention. But what could a 14-year-old boy do now in this moment? Maybe they could get him drunk…
"Robb, stop being such a bloody twat. You're pissing me off, you skinny red haired wanker" the insults came from his little sister Arya this time. Fuck, he was going to be the disappointment of his parents now.
It was mostly Arya the one who stressed and angered Catelyn most of the time. By moving to another continent with her boyfriend to go to college. The guy actually transferred to be with her. Oh and they announced they were moving a week before they actually left.
Fuck.
First Arya got herself a boyfriend 5 years older, one who had been to this particular lunch tradition since forever. He was the son on "uncle" Robert Baratheon, Ned Stark's best friend. Uncle Robert would be arriving anytime soon with his kids. At least he finally got divorced and none of the Lannisters would be present this year.
Then she decided she was never going to wear a dress and wore a tuxedo for their parents 25th wedding anniversary instead.
She was the trouble maker, followed by Rickon and Theon! Even Jon and Sansa had managed to annoy their parents most of the time!
But him? Robb was the good one, the pride and joy! The exemplar first child! Good grades, good looking, well behaved, nice girlfriend, incredible job and awesome car!
And now he fucked up way worse than even Arya herself had ever done!
"I fucked up! I really screwed up this time" he sat down covering his face with his hands, resting his elbows on his knees.
"You cheated!" Jon accused incredulous. Even Ygritte, Jon's girlfriend, who happened to be the lead singer in all girl's punk band and was half naked on stage most of the time wasn't as bad as what he had done!
"No! I did not! Fucks, I've been with Jeyne since our first year of high school and I've never had a side chick! How could you possibly think that, fucker?!"
"You know what? I don't even want to be a part of it! I'll go upstairs and help mum!" Sansa said before standing up and going upstairs.
"You just do it to score fucking Hound points! You kiss ass!"
"Oh, zip it Arya! Not all of us have a significant other mum loves!" was the final thing Sansa said before banging the door on her way out.
"If you not talk I'm going upstairs too, this place is giving me asthma!"
"Theon, you don't even have asthma" Robb answered back before running his fingers through his hair again. Fuck, he was so nervous.
"Robb, is it that serious?" it was his younger brother Bran who spoke this time.
He just nodded.
"Did you do THAT?" Bran asked again. Robb raised his eyes to his brother, looking him in the eye. Yes, Bran figured it out, what was troubling him, he knew.
Robb just nodded again.
The room went completely still and a gasp came from Arya as soon as she figured what THAT meant.
"Are you planning on saying it now? Like right now?!"
He nodded again.
"But… Robb is it that" Jon paused trying to look for the right words "it it too obvious, couldn't you wait for the wedding?"
He shook his head this time "It shows"
"You're fucked" Rickon said.
"You're utterly fucked, Robb. The one thing Catelyn asked you not to do, you did" Theon was now sitting, eyes wide "Wow, can't believe it"
"That's why I need you. If you can, in any way, help me please do so! That's the favour I'm asking. I just need you all to cover my back, please" he sighted looking down.
"We'll figure something out" Jon said trying to ease him up.
"Guys, I tried stalling Catelyn but she's getting angry since none of you are upstairs and Robert has already arrived. Benjen is here already, too" Gendry's voice was hear coming from upstairs.
"We should go; we'll figure something out bro" Bran said patting his shoulder before going upstairs, followed by the rest.
Robb was still sitting, covering his face before finally deciding it was time to go upstairs and face everything. He opened his eyes to find Arya still there in the basement with him.
"Don't worry"
"Ar, I fucked up bad. Mum's going to be so disappointed"
"I got your back, I'll help you. Don't worry" she said so confidently it made Robb wonder what was going through her head at that moment?
"What are you going to do?" he asked carefully.
She grinned, those wicked grins Arya showed before all hell broke loose "You'll see".
They were all sitting down by the table.
Jeyne had texted him already, she was going to come down any second. He told her to stay upstairs, only coming down if she was feeling well because he didn't want anything to upset her. Not now.
He stood up, cleared his throat to gain everyone's attention "I have something important I'd like to say"
His eyes averted to his parents at the head of the table, they were looking at him curious expecting his next words. The he gazed towards Arya who was whispering something to Gendry's ear. She looked back at him and winked an eye and Gendry showing him a coy smile.
What the hell were they going to do?
"Mum, dad. Everyone. I'm very happy to announce to you all…
"WE GOT MARRIED"
there was a collective "WHAT?!" coming from everyone on that table.
Robb's head shot to the left where Arya was standing now along with Gendry, both of them pulling necklace chains with wedding bands on them.
"Arya Lyanna Stark Tully, WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAID?"
Shit was going down; Catelyn was standing with both hands supporting her weight on the table. Her eyes screaming murder.
"Arya!" their mother's voice was at least three decibels higher.
"We got married!"
"In Essos"
"On New Year's"
"Completely wasted"
"It's legal"
"Can't be annulled"
Robb was stunned, his mouth wide open looking at his sister and her now husband. Both were speaking pretty fast, alternating each phrase with one another.
"SHAME! SINFUL!"
"Lysa!" Cat turned to her sister cutting her conservative and frankly hypocritical rant off "you say one word about my children and their actions and I'll personally throw you out. So, if you want to stay be quiet"
"How dare you?"
"Leave! If you have nothing good to say, LEAVE!" the voice Catelyn
It happened all too fast. One moment aunt Lysa was having a glaring contest with her sister and the next she was leaving the house followed by paedophile.
There was an awkward and tense silence filling the room after Lysa left. "Arya, would you care to explain this?" It was his father who spoke now, his face unreadable and his voice flat. Shit was getting serious.
"We are married. Gendry finally made an honest woman out of me"
"Whose idea was it?"
"Mum, you know whose idea it was" sansa added gas to the flames of everything by thinking out loud.
"Truthfully" Gendry began "I was the one who asked her to marry me. We were in Essos, with the casinos and parties and chapels and we just did it…"
"Arya Lyanna Stark! How dare you get married without telling us? How dare you get married in a cheap casino chapel!"
"It wasn't a cheap one, we got hitched on Daenerys hotel" Arya crossed her arms like a spoiled child
Jon gasped "What? You mean my aunt knew about it and didn't tell me?!" he lifted up from his seat "You didn't tell me! You tell me everything!"
"I was going to tell you" came a mumble from Arya…
"Of for fucks sake, the kids are married! They were going to do it eventually. Our families finally are united, let's fucking celebrate this!" finally Robert started pitching in. The contrast was incredible; the Starks were angry at their daughter for eloping while Gendry's dad was just plain cool with everything. Robert was so relaxed, never worrying about anything, sometimes Robb envied him.
"Do you plan on changing your name?" his father asked Arya.
"No. Never intended to do it"
"Hey, what's wrong with being a Baratheon?!" Robert asked offended.
"Nothing's wrong, just curious. But you could change it to Arya Stark-Baratheon" His father said taking a sip from his glass.
"That's too long"
"I rather like it…" Gendry said smiling to Arya to which she only rolled her eyes "Of course you do" she said.
"Does anybody else know what you did?" hi mother asked again, her voice calmer this time.
"NO! Daeny's hotel is super private, no cameras allowed and it was just us and the…minister" Gendry answered his now mother in law.
"You got hitched by an Elvis impersonator, didn't you?" Theon asked laughing while passing a bottle of rum to Robert.
"Could be…"
"Oh that's it! How could you do that to me?! I don't care you got married because I thought you'd never do it! But how could you deny your mother the chance to see you walking down the aisle?!" Catelyn was on the brink of tears now… oh shit, they made their mother cry.
"Mum! Don't cry! We can always have a wedding wedding! We were actually planning on having one so you could be happy and never finding out about us being already married… to avoid this…" Arya glared at Robb now, before going to hug her mother "Please, don't cry! I'll have the big wedding with the big white dress! Don't cry"
Now, the thing that always happened when their mother cried was starting: they all cried.
Arya was crying trying to comfort Catelyn along with Sansa who happened to be a weeping mess. Bran and Rickon were fighting tears, trying to ease their mother too saying it wasn't such a big deal. Hells, even Jon and Theon were red eyed trying hard not to let the tears fall.
"WE'RE HAVING TWINS"
"What?!" another collective yelp was emitted by everyone on the table.
"Robb is Jeyne pregnant?" his father asked
"Yes, I am. I'm 11 weeks pregnant with twins" Jeyne appeared out of the blue. Even though she was wearing baggy clothes one could see a bump in her belly. She must have been listening for a while, thinking the same as him. They couldn't let the just married couple get all the heat trying to cover for them.
"About fucking time"
wait, what?
It was Catelyn the one who spoke wiping the tears from her eyes before standing up to hug Jeyne and place a hand on her belly.
"Mum, aren't you mad at me?" He asked dumbfounded.
"Of course I am, but you were taking too long in giving me grandkids! You're getting married anyway! It was about time!"
"Mum, didn't you threatened to cut Robb's dick of and cutting him off from your will if he got Jeyne pregnant?" Bran asked surprised at his mother's reaction.
"I said that while they were still in high school and they were 15. I would have done that if they had gotten pregnant while on high school or college, but your brother is 28! It was about fucking time!"
"I think this comes in handy" Sandor appeared out of nowhere carrying champagne bottles and glasses for everyone, sans Jeyne. When did the hound left the room?
"Thank you Sandor. Now, before let's sort this out" His father took a stand.
"Next time you think you have done something without witnesses check what you text, Arya. You sent me your wedding certificate that night but I guess you don't remember it" he sighted "and you will be having a wedding ceremony as the gods demand! There's no backing out of it!" He turned to Robb now "You, congratulations and it was about freaking time. Now, let's celebrate and have this lunch once and for all"
He raised a glass followed by everyone, most of the people were still in shock.
Robert was talking enthusiastically about how he wanted granddaughters to spoil on and how happy he was to be finally related to the Starks. Sansa was already sketching a wedding dress and planning a baby shower.
Bran and Rickon were laughing at everything.
Benjen was having a blast.
Sandor kept looking at them with a face that said "what the hell have I gotten myself into?"
Gendry's siblings were happy as his dad, congratulating their bother.
Theon was passed out drunk by now.
Catelyn finally hugged Arya, before reminding her about the big wedding she must have to have now. Robb glanced at Arya, who was glaring at him and mouthing "You owe me" and he mouthed back an "I know".
He would pay the favour back to her. First, her and Gendry were godparents of one of his children, hell he may even name one after his sister and maybe the other after Gendry! He was going to do everything in his power to keep Arya's wedding ceremony as close and intimate as she'd like, he could maybe pull some strings (favours owned to him) to get Sansa to help. And he was paying for her honeymoon!
Fuck, this annual new year's lunch always implied trouble, but this year was going to remain in the top spot for years.
Author's note:
Fav, follow, review please if you like. Reviews make me happy. : )
