AN: I want to thank Misery Loves Sarah and Maria A'louca for leaving such nice reviews that made writing so much more fun. I hope you like this chapter it's a little repetitive.

Chapter 3:

The halls of Meagor's keep were almost alive at night, the flickering of candles on the wall imitated the undulating breathing of a sleeping giants it was unnerving and helped keep her wolf dream alive with in her. The little boy was unnerving too, he barely blinked when she brought her knife to his throat.

The stopped in the underbelly of the beastly castle before a heavy wooden door. The little boy left her and a voice like the slithering of snakes summoned her.

"Yes. Come in."

Varys was standing in the center of the small dimly lit room. He clutched his hands and smiled at her with fake courtesy. His eyes were so very much like a spiders analytic and calculating. She stood before him as still as ice.

"I assume you know who I am as I know very well who you are." His eyes locked on her and she knew what he meant. She wasn't noone. He continued.

" You will do whatever I command, mainly you will be my ears within the castle."

"Yes Lord Varys." He smiled and sent her on her way. It was after she was behind the door that she allowed herself to shiver. She could still remember the lion in the forest. The crunch of dying leaves under foot and how she had gone from hunter to prey.

In the early morning, the girls hall seemed to come to life all rushing to start the royal breakfasts of warm the water for the queen's bath and feed clean the different rooms of the massive palace. Arya got up and followed some maids of the same age as her towards a matronly woman in a grey dress that matched her shawl.

"You five will be off to serve His Magesty. The seven of you will be off to prepare lady Cercei's bath." At the mention of the name, Arya saw a plan unfold. She began to follow the other maid when the matron grabbed her shoulder.

"Not you. You're off to prepare the bath for on of the Tyrells." She pushed Arya and two other girl toward the part of the castle that was for the Tyrells. She could almost taste the tension, it was like ashes on her tongue.

"You can go to the wash room." A squeaky voiced girl commanded her. She had light hair and the bones of a bird.

"What do I do there?"

"Bathe Lady Alla. Make sure her water is warm enough and scented make sure her towel is warm and then clean the bath room for her when she is done. Arya nodded and patted to the bathroom. It was a marbled floor with a giant bowl-like tub in the center of the room. Arya grabbed a soft linen towel and folded it over the small wooden chair in the corner of the room near a fire place before scurrying down the steps to retrieve the warm water. It took her seven trips up and down the narrow servant's stairs to fill the massive bowl. By the time she was done her legs felt wobbly and under her arms were wet. She didn't want to stop so she laid a second linen towel before the bowl for Alla to step onto after her bath. She was reading the different vials of oils when the young girl of perhaps seven and ten entered. She looked at Arya holding out two of the oils.

"I would like the orange blossom" She yawned. Arya took the oil in her left hand and tipped it into the hot water. The girl then dropped her robe to the floor with careless regard and walked to the tub Arya held her arm out to help support her into the water. Smiling she took it and slipped into the warm water, splashing a bit on the floor. Arya felt awkward just standing there. But she washed the young lady's back and scalp for her before helping her out of the tub and wrapping the towel around her body and patting her dry. When Alla left, she went to cleaning the messing bathroom; scrubbing the floors and tub collecting the wet towels and clothing for wash. When she was all done it was mid-noon and the sun hung heavy in the sky. She climbed down the servant's stairs with her load and was sent to a fountain in the gardens where the other maids were, with their loads. They were all scrubbing their lord's and lady's fine clothing while gossiping. Arya kept her head down and listened for anything the spider might be able to use. The woman spoke of the flings of the highborn and their illnesses and such. From what she heard lord Redweyne had been coughing up phlegm, Lady Charla of Montagion had not been sleeping with her lord husband for a month, though her place was being taken by one of her maids.

After washing Lady Alla's clothing and linens, she left them to dry on one of the many lines of fine clothing. And went with some of the other girls to get her food. This became a routine that she would start her day with the washing of lady Alla and her clothes, eating her lunch and then taking up the laundry and cleaning of the rest of Alla's quarters before she went to bed. There was time after that for odd jobs or castle wandering.

"Vionnya, take this up to Harrys and Kip." The greasy cook, Wallas, barked handing her a large platter with thick stew and mugs of ale. Arya's heart stopped and her ear buzzed, she was sure she would faint.

"Don't look so dumb and get yer ass up those stairs yonder and bring them good men some food." She turned on her heels before Wallas could throw something at her, as he was known to do. Walking up the sturdy limestone steps, Arya felt as though her whole body was shaking like she would burst into a thousand tiny fragments. But she kept it inside, she had to think on her feet and remember everything she learned while with the kindly man and waif.

The men smiled when they saw her with their food and a plan emerged. A girl shall never want. They were both young, shy of twenty and full of pride and bravado. They felt great all dressed up in their newly polished suits of armor.

Harrys approached her first. He held his helmet under his arm so that his long brown hair slid freely onto his shoulders. She was lucky had had always been kind to her but now she needed more.

"I've brought you some stew though I might suggest you scoff it down as fast you can and wash it down with the ale." She placed the tray on the bench underneath the nearest window. It was close enough to the door they were guarding that they could sit and try to eat the stew that Wallas had made.

"I was beginning to think we'd have to eat the rats that crawl all over here now." Harrys quipped as he sat down on the bench. When he did, Kip followed but not before giving Arya a hesitant look. She smiled encouragingly but then put her attention on Harrys, it was him she needed not shy Kip. She slid onto the bench beside Harrys.

"Might find more meat on the rats." She joked. Looking down at her feet she gathered her gull to ask what was really on her mind.

"So…" She sighed, putting her shoulder to his arm.

"So…" he repeated looking at her in amusement.

"Well, I've always wanted to see where a queen sleeps." She started looking up into his gaunt face. "I was hoping you could show me?"

At that he let out a loud laugh that in any other situation would have led her to put her fist to his face but now she needed to be a girl. So she blushed and batter her eyelashes like an idiot.

"A request like that could get us all killed."

"Well it's a good thing the castle has such brave men to protect us. I would certainly think they need a reward." Reaching up so that her chest brushed his arm and her fingertips rested on his jaw she whispered into his ear, " it's not just Lannister that can pay a dept."

"Well that is an interesting proposition." Without a hesitation Harrys was to his feet and pulling Arya up as well lending her his arm to wrap her own around. "Kip, shall we let Her Majesty in?"

Kip was spooning the stew into his mouth with hung open even wider at Harrys' request. Before he could shake his head, Arya was slipped between the doors. She felt the air leave her was where the queen slept, vulnerable. The room was a golden yellow with a row of marble pillar lining the one side of the room connecting the door she had just entered to the balcony that over looked the courtyard of the royals. It would be easy for her to climb sometime and put some poison on her pillow so that it looked like she died in her sleep hut something inside demanded that the queen must know it was Arya who killed her. She had to know she was paying a grievous dept to the house of Stark.

Arya almost jumped out of her skin when there was a knock on the door. She walked back to the door and joined the two knights. Pecking kip on the cheek and Harrys on the lips.

"I'm very grateful." She breathed when she pulled away from Harrys, who had wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Not as grateful as I'll be." He whispered back.

When he released her, Arya went and collected their dishes and turned back to the stairs she came from. Wallas scolded her for taking her time and then cursed the knights for eating so slow but then let her on her way. She did some tidying, scrubbing dirt caught in the corners of the parlor room and putting new sheets on Lady Alla's bed, when she was about to finished her day as she usually did, Tucking lady Alla into her bed, Nolly the woman whom she had first met grabbed her wrist.

"No you shall be going the Jailors and bringin 'em some food."

Arya tried not to show her confusion. Had something gone wrong? Lady Alla had always seemed to like her, though. Not wanting to argue she grabbed the tray of food and headed for a different flight of stairs, deep in the earth. These stairs were not as even or as nice as the stairs she usually climbed, these stair were wedges of dirt with slabs of metal compressing the dirt down. Every step she took sounded like that clang of a hammer on steel. It would be difficult to ever escape here.

There were three guards standing slack at the opening of the stairs. They all looked the same, their features hidden in the dankness of the cavernous dungeon. When her eyes adjusted she realized there was a forth, much larger man.

"There's a girl." The one said as she held the tray out for each to take his share. There were three measly bowls as well for the prisoners- she imagined. She was about to ask what to do when the larger man took the tray from her.

"I'll take that." His voice was gruff but to her practiced ears it sounded forced. She followed him as he went to the cellar that contained three very dirty prisoners all crumbled into hopelessness. When the large jailor slid the door open and put the tray of food on the floor, the younger more massive captive looked up at him with anger and stubbornness.

"Thanks ser."

It was than Arya realized that she knew these men for she had travelled with them so long ago. The archer, the yellow-cloaked knight, and the blacksmith.

Gendry.

AN: I lovelovelove him! gah! did anyone see last night's episode just perfect! thank-you for reading update as soon as i can :)