Serena Whitestark said nothing as she stood upon the shores of the Stepstones, enjoying the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks as the wind ran through her entire being giving the Captain General of the Company of the Rose a sense of peace that she had not had since she rose as the Company's Captain General after the death of her grandfather.
Cregan Whitestark had been a strong man, a great man and Serena could not remember one time that she saw her grandfather hesitate or stumble and even on the man's deathbed he was as strong as an ox. Her grandfather was born of the line of Brandon the Bastard, the King Who Knelt's own bastard brother who refused to bend the knee to Targaryen invaders and who took upon the name Whitestark upon founding the Company of the Rose and the Whitestarks have ruled as the leaders of the Company ever since from Serena's great-grandfather, to her grandfather, to her father and now to her.
For over three hundred years, the Whitestarks of Essos have removed all connection with the Starks of Winterfell, neither family reaching out with the Starks of Winterfell regarding House Whitestark as fools that did not understand King Torrhen's sacrifice and the Whitestarks of Essos regarding the Starks in Winterfell as weaklings that could not protect even their own kingship but in Serena's opinion, they were both fools.
They were family and they should have stood together. This was the one lesson that her grandfather hammered into as much as he could. He had taught her that the Starks of Winterfell and the Whitestarks of Essos were blood, both descended from the line of King Torrhen's father and Brandon the Bastard's father and so they must stand together, but Lord Rickard Stark had been a man too focused on his petty ambition and Lord Eddard had been a man entirely to stubborn for either Serena or her grandfather to pledge their sword to.
Serena, however, had no idea what to think of this Jon Stark. She knew of him, of course, who did not know of the man that slew the Night King and brought order to the world? There was not a man or woman alive did not either fear or worship the White Wolf but beyond that, she knew nothing of the Hero of the Dawn.
Yet, she would soon learn, one way or another for the Lord of Winterfell sent his own brother, the young Lord of Moat Cailin – Rickon Stark – on his behalf to speak to them, to convince to return home to fight for the Starks of Winterfell, Serena had no doubt, and she had an even smaller doubt that her company would want to fight for the Starks, to avenge a daughter of their blood. Sansa Baratheon's death is still whispered about among the company, each cursing the Dragonlords in more hate than they ever had.
Serena felt herself stiffen when she sensed the presence of Rickon Stark, known far and wide as the Savage Wolf, who stood behind her, his great black beast stood beside him as Serena turn to gaze upon the man. Save for his red hair and blue eyes, Rickon Stark was every inch a Stark, muscular and tall, wielding a greatsword with ease.
"Your commanders talk and talk." His voice was a deep northern drawl that many in the Company have lost after years of not being in the North. "They speak but they say nothing, they talk of acting but they do not act." Serena could hear the anger in the young man's voice, well there was always an anger to Rickon Stark, she mused, but it was a different kind of anger, a cold wrath so like the Kings of Winter of Old. "While they talk and whine, my brother remains a servant to the dragon fools that took our sister from us." Rickon hissed, standing beside Serena to look out onto the Narrow Sea. "I came here for a reason." He told the young leader of the Company of the Rose.
"And what, pray tell, is that reason, Rickon Stark?" Her voice was contemptuous, glaring at the hot-headed Lord of Moat Cailin.
"For my brother. For my nephews. For my nieces. For my siblings. For the North." Rickon declared, his voice getting louder as he spoke. "This company mocks my house for bending the knee to dragons once again, but they do not know what it means to rule. They do not have to worry about the safety of their people, of their family." Rickon clenched his fists. "My brother must think of more than himself."
Serena considered this, silently agreeing with the man but feeling an apprehension in committing her men to the cause of this infamous Stark Lord.
"Our loyalty is to the North before anything else." Serena said, catching his attention. "Yet, what the Seven Kingdoms and beyond say of Jon Stark is not pretty. They say that he is Tywin Lannister come again." She said, observing the hard glint in his eyes. "They say the Lord of Winterfell makes the Old Man of the North seem tame in comparison to his ruthlessness." She continued as Rickon absentmindedly nodded. "How can I trust such a man to lead my troops? How can I trust a man that would sooner wage war than sit down for peace?" She demanded of him, turning to him with blazing eyes. "Jon Stark is many things and few of them good."
Rickon was silent for a long moment, so long that Serena even thought that the youngest son of the late Eddard Stark would not speak.
"Jon seems a hard man to you, but he's no harder than he's had to be." Rickon said, a calmness to him that Serena had not seen since his arrival. "Our own father was kind and honorable, but his honor had lost him his head and broke his family." Rickon's expression twisted into a scowl at the reminder of the horror his father's weakness had inflicted upon his children.
"Our oldest brother was brave and honorable, so like our father, but his honor had him taking a woman to wife that would spell the near extinction of House Stark and that weakened the North." He shook his head, trying not to think bad of Father and Robb as he did while Serena saw a different side to Rickon, a softer side.
"In the North, while the Boltons, House Stark's destined enemies, ruled the North, our brother was openly mocked as the King Who Lost the North and throughout the Seven Kingdoms, lords and ladies openly called our father a fool of the highest degree." Rickon clenched his fists at the mere reminder.
"At court, they japed of broken wolves as they abused my sister. It fell to Jon to restore House Stark to its proper place. Just as it fell to him to rule the North, when he was no more than twenty and one. He bore that heavy burden for almost twenty years and all it earned him was mocking in the South. Instead of the honor he deserved, he was made to suffer slights beyond count, yet he gave the North peace, plenty and justice. He is a just man." He finished, taking a deep breath after speaking without a break.
"You admire him." Serena realized, now understand why the Savage Wolf was known as the Mad Dog of Jon Stark. Serena had long thought she understand loyalty, but this was a loyalty that even surprised her and much to her surprise she found that she respected it and him. For all his wildness and anger, Rickon Stark was a good man, she believed, and a good man would not give such unbreakable loyalty to a man that was not worth it.
"He is my brother, he is my lord, he is my King." Rickon only said after a short silence. "Now, tell me, Lady Whitestark, will you pledge your swords to my brother, will you serve the Lord of Winterfell as you were always supposed to?" He demanded of her, his blue eyes hard. "Will you join us in our quest to overthrow House Targaryen?"
Serena was silent, even though she had already made up her mind and she felt a smirk curve at her lips at the impatient expression on the Savage Wolf's face, a heat pooling her belly at the savage snarl on his lips.
No.
She shook her head, she could have no such thoughts when she was about to declare her swords to a man that was plotting to wage war on the greatest dynasty the world has ever seen since the fall of Valyria.
"I will, Lord Rickon." Serena Whitestark put her right hand to her heart. "I swear my sword and the swords of the Company of the Rose to the Lord of Winterfell and his heirs. We will fight together as one, Stark and Whitestark, to bring death and destruction upon House Targaryen to avenge the North and all its sons and daughter." She went so far as to bend the knee before Rickon who seemed more than a little surprised. "I do so swear that House Stark will rule over Westeros from the Land of Always Winter to Sunspear on the honor of my house and my family."
Rickon grinned, a savage, wild grin that did things to Serena that could not be spoken about in the presence of the young.
"Good."
He pulled her up by her shoulders.
"Together, let us show House Targaryen and the South the wolf's fury."
Serena felt a smile pull at her lips even as he cheeks began to flush.
"Let us, Lord Rickon."
With a shared grin, Serena felt a lightness that she had never felt before entering her heart.
And, she liked it.