ELIA

(collaborative chapter)

All Elia could think of, as the party rode through the mountains, was her son's beautiful face. It must be some cruel joke the gods are playing on me, she thought, to have this be the day I first ride through the Prince's Pass. The Stranger and his ilk must truly despise me, to leave me alive after... She would not finish the thought. As a little girl, she had often been told that, in contrast to the foreboding Boneway, that the road they were currently traveling was awe inspiring, serene, or majestic, and that the days she came to look upon its mountains would stay in her memories to the end of her days; but the rocks and cliffs made no impression on her now that her eyes finally were laid upon them, as the image Aegon's smile would not tear itself from her mind's eye.

Elia Martell was to meet her brother at Kingsgrave, where the Manwoodys and other Dornish forces would standing by to take charge of her safety; Ned Stark and his host would head north after that, and that would likely be the last she ever saw of him.

Initially, she had thought she might be taking a boat home from Storm's End once the wolf had lifted the siege there, but apparently there were concerns for her security. It seemed the man who was to provide her sailed escort, the usurper's brother Stannis Baratheon, had received instructions to sail immediately for Dragonstone; the Redwyne fleet, meanwhile, had already sailed for home in anticipation of the wolf host's arrival. True, the brother had offered to provide her a ship and escort from there, but it was found the man he had chosen for the task was a former smuggler; when the man she knew only as Stevron - the only person in her company she could bring herself to trust - had spoken of this as unacceptable, she felt compelled to agree. When she learned Eddard Stark was to head for the Prince's Pass (for what, she did not know), she (and the maester of Storm's End) arranged for him and his company to accompany them that way and take her to the Dornish border, where her brother and loyal men would meet her. The wolf had been reluctant at first, saying that her safety was too important to the realm to risk taking the land route; but her brother's friend managed to convince him, by combination of appealing to reason and honor, both of which this man seemed to know something of.

And so it was they found themselves here, along the Prince's Pass; Elia was regretful she had allowed herself to be cautioned against riding home with the smuggler. If he had proven trustworthy, I would be home by now; if not, what difference would it make?

The man her brother had sent to her was riding with them as well; he had been talking with Eddard Stark, but now it seemed he was slowing down, falling back in the party. He pulled his horse up next to Elia's and rode beside her. "Pardon Princess, but I've learned that our Stark host intends to make a stop at someplace called 'the Tower of Joy'. The wolf lord seems to think that there might be some trouble there, and has asked that you fall to the back of the party." Elia would not say anything; the fool spoke again. "Princess, I admit he was acting strange, and I told him as much, so if you want me to -"

"It makes no difference." The words seemed to come on their own accord. "Perhaps they intend to abandon us here, it makes no difference to me."

"Why Princess, what are you on about? I'm fairly sure if these men meant us harm, they'd have done so by now. I admit, I was nervous eariler, when..."

"Oh will you plese shut up!" This stupid fool means to distract me from my son. "Look, I know why you continue to follow me. I know that you mean to make sure that I return alive to my brothers so that you can collect your reward. Perhaps you even intend to enter my family's service. It makes no difference to me, so long as I never have to look on your face again."

The fool seemed taken aback by that. "Princess, I admit I hadn't even thought-"

"Look Stevron, you've achieved your task. I'm almost back in Dorne, alive; just... let me have a few hours to myself, if you would."

He seemed to take her words into consideration; but rather than leave, he continued to pester her. "My Princess, are you alright? I know we've been riding for a time, and..."

"Why do you persist in bothering me?" Elia was screaming at this point; she could feel tears on her face. "I was stupid to listen to you back in Storm's End. If we had just ridden with the smuggler -"

"He wasn't close to reliable, Princess. He might have held you for ransom, or killed you..."

"Good! At least then I wouldn't have to listen to your foolishness anymore!"

At first, the former fool looked offended, dumbstruck, and at a loss for words; he started to turn his horse, and it seemed he intended to take her hint and leave the princess alone to her thoughts. But then he cursed, turned his horse round again, and spoke.

"When your brother bought my freedom, I had no notion to ever pay him back. At first, this made perfect sense to me; 'what's the point of having freedom if you owe it to somebody else? What kind of freedom is that?' But after a few years of making a living in Braavos, making clever rich people laugh and making myself money, I began to wonder, here and there, why he had done it, you know? What was in it for him? Now, as I thought it, and still think it to some extent, he was probably hoping to buy my loyalty or a few nights of passion between the sheets, which of course he did not get. So, it was a loss, I figured; Oberyn Martell had done an act of kindness, and got nothing for it but a lighter purse. Good deal lighter, mind you, I wasn't cheap."

The former fool nervously laughed at what he must have thought was his own cleverness; Elia was not amused. "So is that it? You've finally learned to feel indebted to my family's kindness, and want me around to accept your gratitude?"

The eyes belonging to the man called Stevron met those of the Dornish princess. "I'm not a Westori. I don't want to swear my life to you, or your family, or anything like that. Frankly, with what I've been through the last year, I'm tempted to return to Braavos earlier than expected and take my chances there. Except..." It looked he was struggling with what to say next. "Except, now I don't know if I can bring myself to. I don't know if I can bring myself again to accept that there's no profit in basic decency and kindness. There are so many people, Princess, who are good and decent, some of who care about you a good deal, and I couldn't bring myself to just go home without you... at least recognizing that. Unless you agree that the continuation of your life is a good thing, worth protecting - if only for their sake."

For once, Elia Martell did not know what to say. Suddenly, her mind's eye turned from her dead son to her still living daughter. Rhaenys. Rhaenys is still alive. Her mind looked upon her brothers, Oberyn and Doran, to her nieces and nephews, the bastards and royalty alike. It turned to Ashara Dayne and her Kingsguard brother, to all the friends from the courts of Sunspear and King's Landing. Then it turned to her husband. Rheagar? But you are dead. He smiled. "And you are not Elia."

Elia cried. She felt an arm on her shoulder and opened her eyes again. They were approaching the Tower of Joy now. "I guess I decided not to fall back." She heard her friend laugh as his arm fell from her shoulder. "No Princess, it seems you did not."

As the party approached the tower, Elia recognized three members of the kingsguard in their path - on one side was Arthur Dayne, his hand on his hilt; on the other was Oswell Whent, on one knee and sharpening his blade; and between them stood the Lord Commander himself, his blade in hand, Ser Gerold Hightower.

Lord Eddard Stark had already dismounted his horse, and was approaching them. "I looked for you on the Trident."

"We were not there," Ser Gerold answered.

"Woe to the Usurper if we had been," said Ser Oswell.

"When King's Landing fell, Ser Jaime slew your king with a golden sword, and I wondered where you were."

"Far away," Ser Gerold said, "or Aerys would yet sit the Iron Throne."

"I came down on Storm's End to lift the siege," Ned told them, "and the Lord Tyrell dipped his banners, and his knights bent the knee to pledge us fealty. I was certain you would be among them."

"Our knees do not bend easily," said Ser Arthur Dayne.

"Ser Willem Darry is fled to Dragonstone, with your queen and Prince Viserys. I thought you might have sailed with him."

"Ser Willem is a good man and true," said Ser Oswell.

"But not of the Kingsguard," Ser Gerold pointed out. "The Kingsguard does not flee."

"Then or now," said Ser Arthur. He donned his helm.

"We swore a vow," explained the Lord Commander; but just then, his eyes turned to surprise as they met her own.

By this time, Elia Martell had dismounted her horse and was approaching the men herself. "Ser Gerold" she said, as courteously as she could muster. "Your Grace" said the White Bull. Elia, by this point, had ascertained what was happening. "You are standing over guard over the Stark girl, this good lord's sister who my husband absconded with, correct? Then it is by my husband's orders that you are standing guard here, and not elsewhere, as Lord Stark and others expected?"

"Aye," Ser Arthur answered for him, "and other reasons as well."

Elia discounted that part; she was short of patience at the moment. "You are aware that my daughter lives. You can plainly see that I live." ("Aye" Ser Oswell said, though she had not meant it as a question.) "Then do I really need to command you to step down?"

The three kingsguard said nothing, but did not put down their wepons. It was at this time that all could hear the screams of a young woman coming from atop the tower; Eddard made to rush for her, but the men in white cloaks raised their swords and he drew his.

Elia's patience had come to an end; she spoke loudly and firmly to the men who were sworn to protect her family. "You have sworn vows; including obedience to the crown. If it is your intent to defy my order and fight the wolf here, very well, but have the courtesy of telling me why. On whose authority do you purport to stand between this man and his sister? My dead husband's?"

Those last three words nearly choked her; at first it looked that none of the three would deign to answer her at all. Then, the White Bull looked to Ser Oswell, who nodded and began to sheath his sword; but when he turned to Ser Arthur, the last simply simply repeated, in his softest tone, those four words: "We swore a vow."

At this, Stevron tried to intervene: "What in the name of any of the gods are you doing? If you fight, you endanger the mother of Prince Rheagar's only remaining child."

Ser Gerold cleared his throat at that. "Ser, that is not strictly speaking true." The screams came again from the tower. Lord Eddard charged forward again, only this time Ser Gerold stood out of his way, taking hold of Ser Arthur's arm as he stepped. "Let him go" he said, "it seems we still have much to talk about."

…

Elia Martell was the first of the party, after Lord Eddard, to make her way up the stairs of the Tower of Joy.

"My Lord?" He turned dead eyes to her, and Elia shivered. Might Oberyn have looked thus, if Jaime and the fool had not saved me from the mountain? "My Lord, your men are concerned for you."

"And they sent you to beard the wolf in his den?"

Elia chuckled softly. "No, My Lord; I took that upon myself." She entered the room, looking at the dead girl, and the crying babe in the cradle. "None of us look the same, when the life is gone. The body does not do her spirit justice."

"That is more true of her than anyone else I have seen. She was bursting with life once."

"A moth drawn to a flame." Elia's voice was sad.

"Do you not hate her?" Ned's eyes were anguished. "The girl your husband took in place of you?"

Elia laughed harshly. "Hate her, My Lord? Should one moth hate another? You forget, I knew my husband. Courteous, charismatic, chivalrous, full of promises and prophesies, leaving us with nothing but fire and blood. No, Lord Eddard, I do not hate her; I pity her, and her babe most of all."

"You do not think it was rape, then?"

"No; that was never Rhaegar's way. Honeyed words and sweet promises, but never force. Your sister went willingly, and what young nobly born woman would not have? You did not know Rhaegar, My Lord."

"Perhaps I did not know Lyanna either." Elia patted the wolf lord awkwardly on the arm.

"These past years have shown us how little we truly knew of the ones we love. Kings and prophesies have robbed me of my son and you of your sister. My daughter lives, but it could be years before I see her again."

"And all that I have left of my sister is her child, the grandson of the man who burned my father alive." The Princess and the Lord of Winterfell exchanged a wordless glance, and an understanding passed between them in that moment.

"I will speak to Jon Arryn. Perhaps a place can be found for you in the Vale."

"And I will help you save the life of Lyanna's child." She extended her hand, and Eddard Stark took it gravely, and the bargain was made.