Sansa basked in the warmth of the Queen's solar with her young nephew on her lap. She remembered the room all too well from her time trapped here with Cersei and sometimes she swore she would flick her eyes and see her standing there with that self satisfied smirk holding a glass of wine to her mouth. Warding off the ghosts of tormentors long dead, Sansa wrapped an arm around the precious child pulling him to her chest and inhaling the sweet smell of his dark hair. Prince Jorah was blessed with his mother's violet eyes and pale skin but his curls were all Jon, thick and unruly. Sansa remembered when Rickon was his age and clung to him a little tighter. Rickon had been as much her babe as her mother's when he was born. At first he was a novelty, a doll come to life for a young girl, but soon he was hers and she doted on him and carried him everywhere. As he grew out of the toddler stage and became more energetic, he wanted less to do with her and wanted to be with the boys or Arya who was as wild as he. It had upset Sansa at first but she was becoming a young woman and was more interested in young men than little brothers. The scent and feel of Jorah's hair against her nose brought back a memory both wonderful and painful of her last night in Winterfell before leaving with her father when Rickon had crawled into her bed crying, fretting that she was leaving. She had held him and assured him that they would not be separated forever. If only she had known how wrong she'd be.

"Are you alright Sansa?" Daenerys asked softly. Sometimes, it was hard to remember the relationship she had with her Queen when she had first arrived at Winterfell. She had been all fire and fury and Sansa all ice but now the fire had cooled and the ice had melted into a welcome thaw. They might never be sisters, never be the relationship she had with Margaery, but they could be friends.

"I was just thinking of our youngest brother, Rickon. I was enamored of him as a girl and thought of him as my own." Sansa said with a wan smile. There was more to it as well, visions of a life she thought she might once have, where the child on her lap might be her own. But that would never come to pass, her mind was made up on the subject of marriage. "He enjoyed it when I read him stories. Do you like it when your mother reads you stories Jorah?"

"I like Mama's stories, but Lord Tyrion's are better." the child said starting to squirm in Sansa's lap. "He does all the voices and makes the dragons ROAR!" the child said playing with his wooden dragon figure courtesy of Ser Davos.

"Yes, Lord Tyrion very much enjoys reading with you doesn't he Jorah." answered his mother. The child nodded enthusiastically.

"Jorah, did you know that Lord Tyrion's niece just arrived today at King's Landing today. She's your age and just became a big sister herself. Would you like to play with her soon and learn what it's like to have a little brother or sister?" Sansa asked. "I'm sure we can talk Lord Tyrion into a story as well."

"Or you may have both a sister and a brother." Daenerys said shifting her weight on the bench. Daenerys was without a doubt a beautiful woman, eclipsing both Cersei and Margaery in beauty with her silver hair and violet eyes. But those eyes currently had large bags under them and looked tense and exhausted. Some of that had to do with Jon's absence and the stress of the Spring Summit planning, but most of it had to do with the physical burden the pregnancy was placing on her body.

"Twins?" Sansa asked with a smile.

"Hopefully just the two. I don't know if I can handle a litter." Daenerys said with a tired huff.

Jorah slipped off Sansa's lap and went to play with his toys on the balcony. She watched him fondly with a sigh. "He's darling. I wish I could see him more. Perhaps when he's older he can come to Winterfell for awhile. It would be good for him to learn his Northern heritage and for the Northerners to know their future king. We are a stubborn lot and if he understood our ways it could only help him. Well that and one of his siblings being heir to Winterfell of course." Sansa said.

"So you're still determined to not remarry and have children of your own? I must admit I hoped spending time with your nephew as well as Lord Tyrion's niece and nephew might change your mind." Daenerys said. "You are too young to give up on love and unlike your sister a family was always part of your plan according to Jon."

"If the children would arrive under the Weirwood tree as old Nan said, I would have a dozen." Sansa said. "But sadly that is not the case and no man will control my home or my body again. And besides what does marriage have to do with love?" Sansa asked bitterly.

"I am not going to pretend to understand the extent your past has scarred you. Just know that some of our wounds are the same. I too was forced to marry a man as a girl of ten and four for my name, my beauty. My wedding night was as brutal and savage as Drogo was so my introduction to marital relations was neither kind nor gentle. Our stories diverge from there but know I understand some of your fear and while you may not think that you will ever want a man in your life and in your bed, I think someday you might if you allow your heart to open." Daenerys said while holding her goodsister's hand.

"As for love and marriage...in a perfect world they would always go together and people would meet and fall in love with whomever they wanted. But this is not a perfect world and sometimes with time, trust, and friendship love comes after the marriage."

"Like my parents." Sansa said. "It took years for them to fall in love, especially after my father brought home a bastard child shattering what small trust my mother had in her stranger of a husband. I wish he had felt he could tell her, but truthfully my mother's disdain of Jon is part of what kept him safe from King Robert. At least, that's what I tell myself and Jon too of course."

"I understand Lady Catelyn was a fiery sort and agree with what you say about Jon. Her ready acceptance of a bastard would raise a few eyebrows. As for you, what I'm saying is I'd hate for you to not even try. Falling in love with your brother changed and most likely saved my life. After the Long Night, after Ser Jorah, I was teetering on the edge of oblivion and if Jon hadn't caught me and our babe hadn't grounded me…" She rubbed her belly and stared off not finishing her thought as a dark shadow crossed her eyes.

Not wanting to tread into the darkness Daenerys may have slipped into, Sansa moved the subject to the main reason she was meeting her. "Is this the same speech you gave Tyrion? About love and marriage? Of trying again?"

"Somewhat." the Queen said with a frown. "He's angry with me now. He won't tell me that directly, but our interactions have been nothing but business since I told him my hopes of him finding a bride in the next few weeks. There just may not be an opportunity like this again to meet so many women and with him becoming more and more depressed….I just thought he needed a push." She picked absently at her food. "I hope in time he'll know I was acting out of concern for his welfare."

"And what if like myself, he chooses to remain unwed?" Sansa said.

"And then nothing. I'll try another way to help him. I may send him home to Casterly Rock with his brother for awhile. He is drowning himself in wine and work using it as an excuse to not live." Daenerys said. "I truly worry for him. Varys has confided that he hasn't seen him this bad since he let him out of the crate in Pentos."

Guilt flooded her as it always did with the mention of his flight, but the mention of Pentos reminded herself of the strange interaction between Tyrion and Lady Loreyna earlier. All the group on the dock had garnered from the two of them was that they had met in Pentos both under assumed identities after he fled Westeros. (After you abandoned him to die her conscious whispered.) Her plan was to get more of the story from Brienne later. She doubted Tyrion was in the mood to share with her.

"He looked too thin and a bit haggard when I saw him on the dock but not as terrible as I feared. I was surprised to see he shaved. He looks much younger without the beard. It reminded me of when we were married." Sansa gave a small smile as her tummy fluttered thinking about how handsome he looked on the dock. The smile fled her face as quickly as it came when she recalled the hardness in his eyes.

"And you think of this with fondness now?" the Queen asked curiously.

"In light of my second marriage yes." Sansa said with ice in her voice. "Plus a sham marriage led to a real friendship. Although, I believe he is currently angry with me as well."

"He values your friendship too much to be angry for long. With that being said we might as well discuss logistics." She passed a thick sheet of papers to Sansa. "This is a list of all the eligible Ladies that will be in attendance with their houses, ages, and any pertinent information about them courtesy of Lord Varys." She passed a smaller stack to her. "And this is a list of the eligible Gentlemen including Lords and Knights that will be there."

"Why do I need this one?" Sansa said.

"I wanted you to see the top four names, they are the most powerful single men in the kingdom. A good match could make or break them."

Sansa read "Quentyn Martell Prince of Dorne, Robin Arryn Lord of the Vale, Gendry Baratheon Lord of Storm's End, and Tyrion Lannister Hand of the Queen."

"Of those four men you have a close connection with three of them. The Prince can handle himself but I'm going to need some help with the other three. Your cousin Robin, to be blunt, is weak and the true power of the Vale will likely fall into his wife's lap so a good match is crucial there." Daenerys said.

"Agreed, luckily manhood has been kind to Robin and he has grown to be quite handsome. My advice is to let him make his own match but keep an eye out for trouble." Sansa replied. "He'll recognize manipulation and act in a contrary fashion much like a spoiled child. So if interference is needed, approach the woman not him."

"I had thought maybe Lord Tyrion's cousin would be a good candidate. She is reported to be quite intelligent as well as beautiful and is around his age." Daenerys continued.

"Joy is all that but was also looking quite besotted with Ser Podrick when I last saw her to Lady Brienne's pleasure." Sansa said with a grin. "Plus the Vale would never accept a Lannister, especially a bastard born one, legitimized or not. They're a stodgy bunch. Look to the Ladies of the Vale, Riverlands, or the Reach. Our Aunt Roslin may be a good source of help there and gentle and tactful enough to deal with Robin."

"Good idea. As for young Joy I'll guess I'll remove her from a possible match for Gendry too enlight of a certain knight, although I wondered at the wisdom of matching two legitimized bastards to begin with. I have enough rumblings from the Reach with Highgarden being run by a former sellsword and his bastard born wife although Lady Jenna is winning them over faster than her husband can alienate them."

"I have yet to meet her." Sansa said but the rumors indicated that there was no doubt in anybody's mind that she was a Tyrell.

"Oh my are you in for a treat! Imagine Lady Olenna coming into her prime." Daenerys said with a wicked grin.

"Gods."

"Combine that with Lord Bronn's less than orthodox way of ruling and you have a match made in heaven or hell depending on the day. Although I must say I quite enjoy her company and of all people Varys does too. I think he recognizes a kindred soul since they both have their finger in every pie."

Sansa asked "Back to Gendry, I'm not sure what you want me to do about him. I barely know him." She could only remember him from Winterfell as being handsome, much like Lord Renly but not as refined. And of course she knew of his relationship with Arya.

"He denies it to Ser Davos but we all believe he's still pining for your sister. It's been three years and she's not coming back is she?" the Queen replied.

Sansa's heart ached, her sister's absence still an empty whole in her soul. "Bran says she is alive and well but no she's not coming back. Someday I hope, but she will never return to marry Gendry or be his Lady. That's not her. It took me most of my life to realize it, but it's the truth."

"I think he needs to hear that truth from you. He's young, handsome, kind, and taking to his position quickly. A marriage to a true born Lady to help solidify his claim would be ideal. Too many house names are gone or will be soon. I'd hate to add Baratheon to the list after trying to save it."

Like Stark Sansa thought painfully. The name would die with her and her siblings.

"And Tyrion?" Sansa asked with an unexpected drop in her gut she didn't quite acknowledge.

"All I want for Tyrion is someone who genuinely wants him for the good, kind man we know. Not his power, not his name. Somebody who enjoys his wit and can keep up with his mind. Someone to care for him and ease his burden and make him smile again." She smiled grasping Sansa's hand one more time. "It is what I wish for you as well Sansa if you choose to allow it."

Sansa looked down at the papers she had been given. Between this and the actual duties of Wardeness of the North during the Summitt she would be lucky to get a moment's rest. Just as well she thought, she hadn't slept a full night since Joffrey took her father's head.

List in hand, Sansa headed for the Tower of the Hand that evening hoping to speak with Tyrion. Ser Podrick Payne, who was positively giddy with repressed excitement at the prospect of spending time with a certain blonde young lady, escorted her. She left him in the common area with Lady Joy before heading up the stairs to Tyrion's study where he was reported to be. Just as she was to knock, she heard low voices through the only partially closed door. She glanced through the door to see Tyrion and Lady Loreyna sitting together rather cozily by the fire. He held her hand between his own while he spoke to her in low, gentle tones. His eyes were soft like they usually were when he addressed her, but this time they were for somebody else. A sadness seeped into her bones when she thought of how steely his gaze had been for her earlier that day.

Sansa stared at the list in her hand feeling a fool and thinking maybe she should just go. The site of him being intimate with another woman made the realization that Tyrion may actually remarry become all too real and her heart clenched. She turned to leave, not wanting to be seen by the couple inside, when all the peculiar emotions she had been having about her former husband suddenly coalesced into a single life altering thought. I have feelings for Tyrion Lannister.

This shocking epiphany caused her to drop the sheaf of paper on the floor in a loud whoosh causing the occupants of the study to become aware of her presence.