Disclaimer: All characters are owned by the great and glorious genius George R. R. Martin!
Chapter 2: Inside the Spectrum
Summary: Perspective of a child born of class
Before the incident, Sansa Stark was happy with the lot she had. She had a loving family that supported her decisions, a trust fund that assured her welfare and a promising career after she graduate from the Citadel. In short, she had everything that life had to offer. And though it was hard living away from her family, she enjoyed her stay in the Citadel. Every time there was a party from one college to another, she was always invited. She was known throughout the school not only for her looks but also for her intelligence.
She even auditioned for a part in a play and got the lead role. Everything she asked for was given to her. But this was not because of her family name but through hard work and perseverance. Her father and mother always taught her that nothing came in easy and must be thankful for everything given.
Still to be a Stark had its perks, she was popular and well known throughout the school and to be a blue blood meant being a member of the highest echelon of society. That being said, meant she also had a duty and that was to uphold the social standing of her family. Being the second child, she was not burdened like Robb to take in the family business. She was allowed to choose the path of her life which was simple really, to marry and have children.
Living in the North, she often thought of herself as a country bumpkin going to the big city for the first time. And it was as though a dream came true going to the Citadel. Only she went to the Citadel all her older brothers went to different colleges and schools throughout Westeros.
Robb didn't attend the Citadel because he was being groomed as the next CEO of Winterfell Realty. He stay in the North before he went to the Riverlands for study. Jon entered a military school. He wanted to train and become a member of the great men and women serving at the borders of their country.
Her other older brother Theon, on the other hand, decided to go Pike to join his other family in the trading business much to the chagrin of mother and father. They would never forgive the Greyjoys for their lack of care of him.
Sansa was still very little when Theon came to live with them. From what she heard from the servants, Balon Greyjoy was so drunk that he bet his only son at a card game. When Balon lost the game, he sent his little boy to work at the fishing yard. When the authorities found out that a little boy was doing manual labor, they immediately took the child and place him in a foster family which thankfully were the Starks. It was hard for Theon at the beginning but he eventually opened up having Robb and Jon with him.
Living with older brothers wasn't always easy. Theon, Robb and Jon always played war games, running around the manor with their toy guns and sword sticks, while she played with her dolls alone.
She thought with the coming of her sister, Arya, she would have a companion but as though that dream became a nightmare. They were polar opposites. Arya shunned the dolls and preferred to play with the boys. While she preferred to talk about fashion, literature and music, Arya preferred to stay with the boys, camping, playing sword fights and gym. Arya was a natural athlete while Sansa was an artist. It didn't take everyone too long to see how they were very different, like night and day. Such qualities also meant little clashes between sisters. Arya was a troublemaker always looking for an adventure while Sansa wanted to relish the luxury of life. She knew how to play the piano and high harp while her sister knew how to sharpen a knife and trap little animals, a real girl scout.
Bran and Rickon were still so young when she had to leave and study at the Citadel. Bran wanted to be just like Commander Barristan Selmy, a war hero, and would follow Jon in a military school far in the North. While baby Rickon was safely tucked with mother and father at Winterfell.
She really had a big family but that's why she wanted to have a family of her own. She wanted a life like her mother. They say she looked like her and has all her virtues; she was good at acting, singing and dancing. Such traits would make her a star like her veteran actress mother but what they didn't know was that she was also her father's daughter.
Before the incident, she was frivolous and carefree, optimistic in life that a promising career was waiting for her after college but now, she found herself remembering the words of her uncle Petyr, "Life is not a song, sweetling."
It was hard to forget the things Joffrey did to her. Not only did she verbally abused her but physically hurt her. It was hard looking at her golden prince only to find a horrible boy, cruel and malicious. She found out that all the rumors she heard of him were true.
Father was angry at what happened but nothing would quell mother's fury. She wanted to hurt Joffrey and pay back every bruise inflicted in her body by tenfolds. This was agreed by her older brothers. They wanted to break every bone of Joffrey's body. Arya also started sharpening her hunting knife saying she would be hunting a large animal.
But of course, Cersei refused to see her golden boy neither harmed nor tarnished by such a folly. To her, Joffrey was only fooling around, blinded by Joffrey's flaws. But mother wouldn't have it, she wanted to let Joffrey rot in jail which only fueled Cersei's protectiveness over her cub.
This incident started the enmity of both families. No one refused to budge. Robert Baratheon played neutral and tried to pacify his Lannister wife. He also tried to talk to his best friend. But he failed in both accounts.
It was a good thing that both companies were in their respective fields of industry for it would have ignited corporate rivalry between them. Still Winterfell Realty refused to establish business relations and cut ties with Lannister Corp entirely, upholding their honor. All the northern part of Westeros were controlled by the Starks and all were free from the machinations of Lannisters. This strengthened the familial and business relations with the Arryns and Tullys who specialized on aviation and fisheries while the Lannisters held the Baratheon Holdings with a firmer grip and opened a door to the Tyrells who specialized on winery.
A political and economic stalemate on both sides, the Citadel refused to side on either family. It decided that since the incident was committed by its student, it had the right to place its own penalty. For harming another student, Joffrey was expelled from the school. It did not reach the news because Cersei paid every media not to publish such a humiliation but everyone knew of Joffrey's leaving.
Thus, here she is back for her second year. Joffrey, according to hearsay, was at the moment at king's landing while she stayed with her family together with an hour of therapy for every day of summer. Sansa sighed, she was not a cripple. They didn't have to be careful as if she was made of eggshells; she was not going to break. Being back at Winterfell made her safe but it also frustrated her to no end.
A month before the start of the semester, she decided to visit her aunt Lysa who had just remarried after being widowed for a year. Her parents wanted for her to stay a little longer but she would not have it. A few days during her stay, she almost regretted her decision, if not for the wise counsel, her new uncle gave her.
Her uncle taught her that there were other forms of fighting aside from openly defying an enemy. It was those remaining days that Sansa learned the most about business and politics under the tutelage of Petyr Baelish who was also the financial adviser of Arryn Enterprises.
"Sansa," Arya called, leaving Sansa out of her thoughts. She looked at her sister as she carried her bags into the apartment. When Sansa said that she would be returning to the Citadel, her parents refused to let her go. After several amounts of pleading, they only agreed to let her go, if Arya would come with her. This was accompanied with several other stipulations of friends and family checking up on them. No longer will Sansa stay at the dorms but a flat of her own with her sister.
"Sansa," Arya called once again.
"Yes, what is it?"
"I'm going out to the gym for a while," called Arya. "I'll be back before dinner."
"Won't you wait for uncle Edmure?"
Arya rolled her eyes before leaving the flat. "That's exactly why I'm going." She was often annoyed with Edmure. It was probably because of her uncle's denseness. This was also aggravated by the fact that he was currently going out with a woman ten years his junior who was also the daughter of Walder Frey, who was related to the Lannisters. Thus, earning Arya's disapproval once again.
Arya was never the forgiving type. After all one shouldn't fraternize with an enemy. Sansa on the other hand do not believe in animosity against innocent people. The fault of one is not the fault of another. Roslyn Frey was a nice girl, unlike her traitorous father. She was raised well. If her uncle wanted an amiable girl, she would gladly give them, her blessing.
Still, Arya was correct in her assessment that Edmure was dense. He would have to step up his game if he ever wanted to fill grandfather's shoes. Hoster Tully had many faults but everything he did was for the welfare of his family. He was a good father to his children even if he wasn't always there. At least he got to see his grandchildren grow up, unlike her other grandfather Rickard Stark.
Sansa shook her head. For all the atrocities, the Lannisters may have done to her. Nothing could beat what the Targaryens did to her family. A true scandal that rocked high society's very core. It was as though taken from a script of a soap opera.
Everyone already knew how her aunt Lyanna was engaged to Robert Baratheon. It was an arranged marriage that would have profited both businesses and united two political families. One day Lyanna Stark met Rhaegar Targaryen, a married man and cousin of her fiancé, Robert Baratheon. They fell in love. Rhaegar eventually divorced his Dornish wife and he eloped with Lyanna.
Furious and humiliated by Rhaegar's antics, Brandon took his gun and decided to hunt down Rhaegar. Rickard went to find Brandon to reason with him. But when Aerys Targaryen found out of Brandon's intent, he decided to kill them both. Even to this day, nobody really knew where Aerys disposed of the bodies. Some say, they put the bodies on large drums then filled it with cement before dumping the bodies out into the sea.
Such a heinous crime prompted a civil and criminal action against Aerys. Nobody wanted a madman such as him running around killing innocent people. There were many witnesses who testified of Brandon and Rickard Stark's abduction. It was often said, before killing the father and son, Aerys tortured the poor souls first. Aerys got life imprisonment which he never got to serve because of a heart attack. His pregnant wife left him together with the children and went to the Free Cities. Elia Martell-Targaryen wasn't so lucky. It was said the Lannisters killed her with the children to take over the Targaryen Corporation.
Even Lyanna died of childbirth later on. Rhaegar was shot in the head by an unknown assailant leaving Jon all alone. Baratheon Holdings soon seized all Targaryen property having the majority shares of the company then merging it as its own. But it was said, this corporate takeover was all orchestrated by the real puppet master Tywin Lannister. Aerys and Tywin were once friends but when the friendship turned soar, the lions all but turned against their former allies.
Father later took custody and adopted Jon like Theon. Sansa never got to know her uncle, aunt or grandfather. He never spoke of them. Mother said it was too hurtful to remember. Only tidbits that Bran was named after Brandon and Arya looked like Lyanna.
In the end, the once illustrious Targaryen family is all but extinct. A warning to never cross ruling families, Sansa knows that. And though the Starks are among those great families, it would be wise not to further cross the Lannisters. Even now, Winterfell Realty is ignoring Lannister Corp.
A hard thing to do if they are the ones itching for a fight. Sansa shook her head when she saw another unknown caller in her phone. It didn't take a genius to know its Joffrey trying to talk to her. Sansa surmised that it was time to buy a new phone. Joffrey can be a bit of a stalker if he wanted to. It must come with his psychotic tendencies. Being his very first girlfriend, it must be hard for him to grasp the idea that they were no longer together. She wasn't there anymore to stroke his ego and try to become his submissive girlfriend.
According to the grapevine, he shouldn't worry; Joffrey already set her aside for the lovely Margaery Tyrell. A stipulation to a contract signed by both families. It was also said, he was acting in his best behavior once again, showering his latest girlfriend with gifts. Like she would fall for that again.
Good riddance to bad rubbish, now if only he would stop calling her then she would be content to be left on her own. This could also be said to everyone visiting them. Even now uncle Edmure visited them four times just to check on them.
Thus, here she was going to market with her uncle. Her carrying the vegetables while Edmure haggling for the fruits. Looking around, she was interested at the wind chimes on display at another stall. Every time a gentle wind flew by it elicited a sweet sound to the ears. Since her uncle was busy at the music, surely he wouldn't mind her buying one to place near her window.
Holding her bag of vegetables, she was about to step towards the stall, when she bumped into a familiar face. The Citadel was a small school, so she recognized almost all of her classmen. This one was a few years older but he was prominent because of his blue hair.
Some of the girls talked about the handsome barista but it was always the blue hair that comes to mind. Little is known about him, only that he works at the coffee shop, goes to the gym with his best friend and a dean's lister to boot. Ironic though because she rarely saw him at the library.
They exchanged pleasantries talking about a common interest like the coffee shop. Then came her uncle, with a bag full of lemons, who has been trying to pair her off to some of his younger acquaintances. He talked about meeting other boys, giving her the good old saying, "There are plenty of fishes in the sea."
Sansa wryly smiled thinking inwardly; one does not marry a fish. She let them talk. It was pretty obvious that he was assessing the younger man. When the tower bells tolled six, it was time to stop the grilling and let the guy get a reprieve. Excusing them from him, they proceeded towards her apartment.
"Quite a nice young man," observed Edmure. "Terrible hair color though."
Sansa gave him a wry smile. She wasn't ready yet for a relationship. It was too soon. Sure, the boy was nice but she doubted they would have anything else in common aside from the same hangout. Still, the young boy was intriguing. Apart from the hair color, there was something else about him that she could not grasp.
Maybe she would meet him again and decipher what kind of boy he really was. The school year had just begun and there would be plenty of time to figure him out. He may not be like Joffrey but there was something about him, she could not put a finger on.