Danaerys was the last remaining guest at the sleepover. Jon and Ygritte had decided to take their adventures to the streets for who knows what kind of fun. The adopted Stark asked his brother to tell their father that he was going to be home before the sun rose because he knew that he would not be in trouble for it. Instead of looking down on him in scorn, like his wife did, Ned Stark believed that Jon had potential and practically let him do whatever he wanted.
Loras politely kissed Sansa goodbye on their doorstep and, still crying, she pushed herself into his arms and stayed there for a lot longer than Loras would've liked. But what Joffrey did to her was despicable and he knew that, as the nice boy from a fine family, it was his duty to see Sansa through the nightmare she was in. So he held her while she cried. And when she stopped crying, he still held her.
Margaery had been the one to decide that the group should disband to give the Starks their space. After the mood died when the incident with Joffrey subsided, no one was really in the mood for sleepover games or activities. Everyone… except Jon and Ygritte. His ferocity towards the young Lannister boy had only made things more passionate between the two young lovers.
So the youngest Tyrell daughter called their grandmother to come and pick them up from the Stark house and bid her friends goodbye. She kissed Sansa on both cheeks and held her shoulders firmly.
"Never forget who your friends are" Margaery said to her, "I'll always be there if you need to talk."
Sansa felt comfort at the words but didn't know that Margaery Tyrell was already forming a plan in her mind.
So that left Dany who was fast asleep on Robb's shoulder. He didn't know what to do or who to call so his only plan was just to let her sleep until she woke and wanted to go home. With carefully orchestrated movements so as not to wake her, Robb draped a blanket over them both and lifted a random novel off one of the side tables. Danaerys murmured gratefully in her sleep at the warmth of the blanket and Robb kissed the top of her forehead.
"Sleep well, love" he whispered.
Hours ticked by and Robb himself began to feel sleepy but he wanted to be awake when Dany woke so he trudged on through the drowsiness. He thought it was his sleep-deprived imagination at first but then he was sure he could hear someone entering from the upstairs window.
Robb was on high alert but didn't move. He remained solidly still as the footsteps from the second story of the Stark's house came down the stairs and hallway. Their owner emerged into the living room and Robb was relieved to see that it was just his adoptive brother, Jon. The eldest Stark shot him a look.
"You know there's such thing as entering through the front door?" he whispered.
Jon shrugged. There were shiny smudges on his neck and his hair was mussed. Robb also noticed a slight tear in the armpit of his singlet. Jon's fly was also unzipped.
Robb watched as his brother grabbed a ginger beer from the fridge and then came to sit beside him and Dany on the couch. Jon took a quick glance at the girl and then smirked. He made sure to sit down gently so as not to wake her.
"So you and Ygritte had a wild night…" Robb said to him. Jon replied with a questioning look and his brother gestured to his neck.
"Lip gloss" Robb said as Jon wiped it off his neck lazily.
There was silence after that. The two Stark brothers just stared into space and recounted the events of the night. Jon sipped at his ginger beer and Robb thought about what he did to Joffrey, how his hands shook and how the power surged within him.
"Do you think it was right? What we did to Joffrey?" he said lowly to Jon, just soft enough to sound like a whisper.
Jon thought about this for a moment and took a contemplative sip from his ginger beer. His knee was jigging up and down in thought.
"Yeah, I think we did. The little fuckhead needed to know that if you mess with the Starks then there'll be consequences."
Robb smiled at Jon's words. He absentmindedly lifted a hand to stroke Dany's silver locks and then looked at his brother.
"You said "Starks". You've never included yourself as one of us before," Jon averted his eyes in embarrassment and Robb continued, "I mean don't get me wrong, it's great to have you as my brother, but I don't know, Jon Snow suits you better. It's got a better ring to it than Jon Stark. You should at least keep the name" Jon spied the smirk on Robb's face and lightly punched him in the arm.
"I'm not fully a Stark yet. Becoming one of a family requires acceptance from every member of the family. Unfortunately…" Jon didn't have to finish for Robb to understand what he meant.
He couldn't comprehend it. Catelyn Stark, the strongest mother of all, couldn't extend her reach beyond her own blood. Why did it matter if Jon was born of a different woman? Why did Robb's mother have to be such a stern woman and yet so spineless? Maybe the bastard son of Ned Stark just reminded her that he had shared another's bed, another's passions. Maybe that was why Catelyn kept such an icy distance. Jon had felt that distance between them ever since he had grown to understand the meaning of family. There was nothing Robb could do but make him feel included as a brother. Even if he didn't feel included as a son.
Danaerys stirred in her sleep and Jon took that as a sign that she was going to wake soon.
"Well, this Snow has to hit the sack. Don't forget we have training tomorrow" he said.
"I can't make it. Dad's got me at the shelter all day. The pups need to be trained as soon as they're able to walk. He says that if they come through okay, we're all going to get one!" Robb contained his excitement in mildly shouted whispers.
Jon smiled sadly; "save the runt for me" was all he said. Robb sadly watched after him as he made his way upstairs to his room. The one furthest away from his parents'.
...
Jon shrugged off his shirt and switched on his lamp. He had no regrets about the beating they gave to Joffrey this evening. Quite the contrary. The adrenaline heated his blood so much that the sex he had with Ygritte afterwards was probably the best he had ever had. She wouldn't let him walk her home though. Come to think of it, Jon was pretty sure he had never seen her home or her parents. That part of their relationship had just been left in the dark.
However, she knew about him. He was the bastard son of the Stark family who owned a five-bedroom household and were successful not just in name only. Jon wondered how Ygritte thought of him, how she saw him. They'd never talked much about their families before. Then again, they'd rarely spend any time just talking.
Jon was just about to pull back the covers of his bed when there was a knock at his door.
"Jon?" said a small voice as the visitor edged the door open.
"Arya! It's nearly 2am, what are you still doing up?" Jon put on his big brother voice.
"I was just about to go to sleep! But then I heard you come up stairs and I wanted to ask you about something…" she looked away shyly.
Her short hair was tied in a small pony-tail at the bottom of her head and her pyjamas were purple with pink puppies on them. Jon knew she hated any "girly colours" but they were Sansa's and, despite being wealthy, the Starks fiercely believed in hand-me-downs. Most of Robb's old stuff, including the bunk bed him and Jon shared when they were younger, had been handed down to Bran and Rickon and now the two brothers had gone from fighting to being inseparable. Bran had to have the bottom bunk of course, despite Rickon's age; he no longer had the legs to climb the ladder to the top.
"No, I will not teach you fencing tactics so that you can beat up Rickon. He's only a boy and you don't have a sword" Jon smirked at Arya and she scowled.
"That's not what I was going to ask!" Arya huffed and then walked over to Jon's bed to sit down. He didn't mind, on the contrary, he was quite amused at his youngest adoptive sister's attitude problem.
Arya bit her lip and picked at her thumbnail. She was a little nervous to face her brother about her problems but he was pretty much the only person she could go to. Robb was too busy being Dad's second-in-command to care and Sansa wouldn't take her seriously.
"When did you know you… liked Ygritte?" she said quietly.
Jon was pleasantly taken aback by her question but didn't reject it. He thought for a moment before answering.
"I guess… well, I thought she was really pretty back in 10th grade" Jon couldn't tell his younger sister the full story. The truth is that Ygritte flashed him once at a swimming carnival, breasts and all, so he got the message. They both thought the other was hot so they pounced like two jungle cats. It was meaningless at first, until tonight…
"But I don't think I realised that I loved her until tonight. But it's a big thing to love someone… you've got to know them and I'm not sure if I know her as well as I'd like to."
Arya considered this for a minute. Everything he had said was true, minus the explicit details.
"Why do you ask?" said Jon when Arya hadn't spoken for several moments.
Arya flushed red and looked everywhere except at Jon. It dawned on him a moment later.
"Do you like someone?" he said and he had a pretty good idea who it was.
She couldn't go a shade darker so instead Arya started to chew her bottom lip. She still refused to answer the question.
"You like Gendry don't you? That's why he's been coming over so often!"
Arya gave in and laid back on the bed in defeat. Her eyes were squeezed closed like she couldn't face Jon's enthusiasm.
"Thank you for not making me say it" she said hurriedly. She rubbed at her eyes with the bottom of her palms and yawned.
"Wow… so you and Gendry. Isn't he a bit old for you?" the big brother voice returned again.
Arya sprung upright, "no, he isn't! He's sixteen and I'm fourteen! That's not much difference!"
Jon smiled at her because his question was just to tease. Their father would never have let Gendry come over if he was an inappropriate age.
"Please don't tell anyone!" Arya cried suddenly.
"Why? Ruin your reputation, would it?" Jon joked.
Arya scowled and punched him in the chest. Before she could argue further she yawned.
Mid-yawn she said, "And you especially can't tell Sansa. She would just make fun of me."
Jon actually thought quite the opposite.
"No, I don't think she would. If there's anything Sansa's been waiting to talk to you about, it's boys. I think you should tell her, she might surprise you!" When Jon finished talking Arya didn't object, she just yawned.
"But I think it's bed time for the both of us. You've had a big night and I've got training tomorrow." Jon lightly pushed Arya off his bed.
"Oh can't I come with you to training, please?!" Arya drew out the last word like the child she was.
"I've told you before, as soon as the school gets a girls' team I'll be happy to sign you up. But for now, there are limits on sword-fighting for girls. I'm sorry."
"But I want to learn to fight!" she shouted.
Jon stood up- he towered over Arya- and scooped her up in one fluid moment. He slung the youngest Stark daughter over his shoulder and exited his room. Arya beat her fists against Jon's bare shoulder but he just laughed and walked to the room Arya shared with her sister.
In two strides he had crossed the room and was standing in front of her bed. Ungracefully he plonked her down on top of the covers, pulled them back from under her, and glared at her until she laid back. Smiling, he drew the covers back up to Arya's chin.
"Good night" he said, with a tone that suggested he had won.
"I will get you back!" Arya shouted back at him but Jon was already shutting the door and switching off the lights.
Just some clarification here, I am making Arya older than she is in the show and the books so that the Gendrya ship can be a little less perverted. In the show she's 12 and he's probably about 16 but in the books he's also 16 and she's 9 so you can see why I "grew her up" a little bit. I say in this story she's about 14. Hope you guys are liking the story and I've got plenty more ideas to come! Love yas xx