Chapter 6: Drama in the North

A/N: The reason for different chapter titles is because I sometimes change my mind.

After I left Sansa, I headed towards the training ground to meet Robb and Jon. AS I approached, I could hear shouting, which I soon learnt was from a shouting match between Robb and Joffrey. It turned out that Joffrey was refusing to use wooden swords in his match, and, although Robb was willing to use steel, ser Rodrik Cassel, Winterfell's master at arms, refused to allow him.

Joffrey looked at Robb, Jon and Theon and said, "Well, if you're all too childish to fight me properly, I suppose I win this bout."

As he turned to walk away, I jumped into the pit and announced, "I'll fight you brother, in fact, I'll let you use steel whilst I use a wooden sword." He looked frightened at this. He had always lost to me on the road and knew that, even with an inferior weapon, I could still beat him.

Robb passed me his wooden sword and, before I even turned to face him, he charged at me. I ducked under his swipe, before putting my leg out for him to trip over.

He ended up sprawled on the ground his sword a few metres away, as I straightened up and walked away. As predicted, he could not let it go, and quickly got to his feet, charging at me, although this time I was facing him.

He ran with his sword raised, and I darted towards him and elbowed him in the ribs, causing him to falter, before smashing my sword into the side of his belly, causing him to throw up over my back (I was saved by having lunged downwards) and falling to the ground.

One side of the arena applauded, whilst the Lannisters, and in particular Cersei, were absolutely silent. I knelt down beside Joffrey and whispered in his ear; "Don't ever think you can best me at anything."

I got up, pulling him up by the hand and chuckling, as if we had a healthy brotherly relationship, and some of the Lannister glares abated, but Cersei's look was still ice cold, and I could tell that I might have gone one step too far.

Stubborn by nature, I refused to back down, and held her glare until she stormed off, presumably to complain to me to her husband. I felt victorious, but the smirk I saw on Margaery's face echoed what I had been thinking: humiliating Joffrey had been a little too far.

Nevertheless, I started to spar with Robb and Jon, and before long was coated in sweat, so much so that as we were about to go to dinner and I kissed Margaery, she pushed me away because her face was getting wet.

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That night, after dinner, I had a conversation with Margaery about my strategic plans.

"I'm sorry, my love, but I believe that my plans have now changed. I don't think that any man can now control the entirety of Westeros."

"You mean to leave the North out? You would return us to before the conquest? A time when there were wars every few years."

"The dragons are gone, and with them any way of subduing all seven kingdoms. Now the only way to rule the north is through a northerner. I may follow the old ways but they would never follow me as they do the Starks."

"And so you would plan to halve your kingdom? You plan this before you even start." She seemed disappointed.

"I plan this now because I am reminded of the loyalty the Starks control. I also know that the Targarens are gone. They bent the knee to the Targaryens, not the Baratheons. Both my houses, Baratheon and Mackinnon, came into being due to it."

"Before the conquest, my family were only stewards. We too are thankful for it. As stewards, it is we that remember how much blood was spilled when there were seven Kingdoms, and people went to war more easily, as one Kingdom could easily defeat another, and there would not instead be six others in the way. The future Kings of The North will always fear an invasion from the south "

"There will not be six others. There will be three: The north, the south and Dorne. The dragons could not even take Dorne, and they only joined through marriage. The Young Dragon showed that thousands could be killed trying to do so, and the North will never be conquered by men alone"

"What of the Iron Islands? They will not bend so easily now that you give the northerners and the Dornish their freedom. They will expect their own."

"I honestly have no idea, but I do know how to handle them for the meantime. They will not accept me as king. They will rebel again. They do not follow honour, only strength. I will show them a brand of strength similar to Tywin Lannister's and they will not think of rebelling again in our reign."

"Our reign?"

"Of course, when we marry, you will be my queen." I smiled as I said it and leaned in to kiss her. We only surfaced for air a minute later, and only paused for conversation an hour after that, when I decided to bring something else up.

"I want to talk about the preparations for our wedding."

She laughed before replying, "And you bring it up now, when you know I can never say no to you. I knew you were cunning, I didn't realise you were that smart"

"Exactly. I would rather not marry in the Great Sept of Baelor. They aren't my gods. I would rather marry at The Cross, may family's stronghold. There lies the only Weirwood south of Moat Cailin, and I would feel much safer there as well. Also, my grandfather is dying, and, with the Starks coming south, there will soon be a war upon us, and I probably won't be able to see him again."

She smiled, before interlocking our hands, looking me straight in the eye, and saying, "It would give me no greater happiness than to marry you, and the location does not matter. Your gods are my gods, and if that's what you want, then we'll wed there."

I smiled back before closing the distance between us and kissing her softly. "I love you so much," I finished, just before we fell asleep, content in each others arms.

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The following morning, the men of both families, as well as myself, Robb, Jon, Theon and Mya, although she was wearing a hood so that she would be allowed to.

Surprisingly to most, although not to me, Ser Jaime was conspicuously absent, as he apparently wanted to spend "quality time" with his sister. After hearing this, Margaery gave me a knowing look before kissing me and leaving to spend the day with Lady Catelyn.

The wolfs-wood was fantastic. It felt so much more mystical than the Kings-wood, where I normally hunted with my father. Five minutes in, Mya and I split off and hunted alone. We agreed that whoever arrived at Winterfell at the end of the day would win 10 gold dragons.

I quickly got off my horse and climbed a tree, aiming to find a better vantage point to find prey. After an hour of climbing through the trees, looking for something good, and luckily I soon found a stag. This was very fortunate, as I knew I would need the antlers of a stag for my helmet.

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I returned to Winterfell around noon, with a much larger prize than my sister's. However, I found practically no one else in the main courtyard. I asked one of the guards at the gates what had happened.

Bran had fallen from the tallest tower!