p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"Chapter 7: Lorraine/span/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Ouch! Does it need to be that tight?!'' I exclaimed as my Septa was pulling the string on the back of my dress. I could barely breathe in this monstrosity. It wasn't anything like the dresses that I had worn on Bear Island. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''This just came in from Queen Cersei Lorraine, as a gift for your engagement,'' my septa warned me as she was finishing the knot on my dress, ''-if only you would cut down on eating so much,'' she continued complaining. I ignored her last comment./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''That blonde incestuous witch? Oh please she's just a b-'' I started but was immediately cut off by my Septa. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Don't talk like that! Lord Marbrand is a Bannerman to the Lannisters, which means that you shut your mouth,'' she went on like the hag she is. I sighed and rolled my eyes. She made me spin a circle as she judged my dress and said that it would be perfect for dinner tomorrow. Lord Marbrand was hosting a dinner in his great hall in honour of our engagement. Which naturally meant that the bride-to-be had to attend as well. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''And you need to stop disappearing Lorraine. Someday Lord Marbrand is going to want to know where you go and it will not be good.'' I let all her complaining just wash over me and didn't respond anymore. It was useless anyways. That evening, after I had been released from that horrible dress, I fell asleep quickly. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"When my eyes closed in the real world, my eyes in the dream world opened. I smelled dirt, grass, trees. I was standing in front of a dark forest and the last rays of sunshine barely managed to shine through the trees. I knew the forest wasn't on Bear Island or in the North, the trees were different and it was too warm. The road ahead of me split two ways and I knew it was the Kingswood, just south of King's Landing. I heard some rustling in the bushes and was only just in time to see a stag dart away to the right. The Baratheon sigil. I decided to take the right road and made my way down the road, deeper into the forest. As I climbed over a huge tree that had apparently fallen on the middle of the road, I heard something else. It was a heavy breathing, very heavy. I recognized the sound immediately and turned around to see its black eyes staring back into mine. It started at me, it wasn't angry or curious. It just stood there as if it was waiting for me to do something. As I touched its fur I felt as close to a bear as I hadn't felt in years now. It was as if someone was staring back at me through those black eyes and as I tried to slip into its skin, everything around me disappeared. /span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I woke up abruptly, breathing heavily. The bear, I was a bear. It was real, it had to be. I hadn't felt anything like this in a very long time, it couldn't just be a dream. I slipped out of bed, hurried to put my riding clothes on and climbed out of the tower once again. I sneaked past walls and doors in the dark, feeling like a shadow. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"At the stables, I stared at the gate. I would never be able to get back in again without help. It didn't take me long to pull up my hood, make for the forge and climb through the kitchen window. As quietly as possible I went into Gendry's room and covered his mouth before waking him up. His eyes shot open and he immediately reached for a knife that he had tucked away between his bed and the wall. I signed for him to be quiet and even though he seemed confused and angry at the same time, he didn't make a sound when I removed my hand from his mouth. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"Not wanting to make a sound, I signed for the door, indicating that he had to come with me. He clearly understood that something was going on, and got out of bed to put some clothes on. I couldn't help but once again admiring his toned muscles and he found a shirt to put on. After he led me outside, closed the door, put on his boots and a sword, he finally talked./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''What's going on?'' he hissed, seemed tired and concerned. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''You have to come with me, I need you,'' I said, grabbing his wrist and dragging him to the stables. I offered him one of the brown carrier horses, knowing that these wouldn't be missed as soon as the other ones. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''What for? This better be good,'' he muttered as he was getting on the horse, no idea of what was going on. I grabbed the reigns, nudged the horse and made for the gate which as usual, allowed people out at any time, but not in. Once we were out of the city walls, l nudged my horse into a gallop, making for the Kingswood. It didn't take Gendry long to catch up with me. We rode in silence for a while, not speaking at all- just riding. By the time we got closer to the forest he broke the silence./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Lorraine- seven hells, just tell me already,'' he breathed, seeming frustrated. I looked at him and then back at the road. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''I had a dream,'' I muttered./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''You what? Hold on- you dragged me out of bed, in the middle of the night, for a dream?!'' he shouted, looking at me like I was some lunatic. I sighed but didn't comment. We had finally reached the edge of the forest. I got off my horse and tied the reigns to a nearby tree. I looked at the exact some fork in the road that I had seen in the road./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''I've seen this place tonight, in my dream. We need to go right,'' I said decisively while Gendry was still sitting on top of his horse. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''We are not going into the forest. WE- are going back to the keep before Lord Marbrand will have my head off for this,'' he said. I kept on walking and turned into the right road./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Lorraine!'' he called after me but I kept on walking. I heard him curse to himself as he slid off his horse as well and tied it to the same tree as the other horse. I knew I had won, because he wouldn't leave me alone here, I had learned that from the day he helped me in that barfight./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''So what are we looking for your highness?'' he asked with an exhausted and annoyed tone in his voice. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''A tree, fallen on the middle of the roa-'' I said right before I saw it doom up in front of us from the dark. Gendry looked at me, dumbfounded. I smiled a little, turned towards him and gave him the I-told-you-so look. He shook his head in disbelief. There was a silence. In my dream the bear should've already been here, where was it? I started looking around, trying to see if I could see shining eyes through the bushes somewhere. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"In the distance, I could hear the whinny of one of the horses, soon followed by the other one. I didn't want to stop looking yet. Gendry got the message and announced that he would briefly check on the horses to see if everything was okay. I nodded and approached the trees to be able to look further on into the forest. As if on que I heard a loud roar, but it wasn't coming from the forest, but from further down the road. Gendry!/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I ran down the road, all the while cursing at myself for still not having a bow or sword. I was as useless as a whore without a cunt. One of the horses we took ran past me, further into the Kingswood. I looked back at it but decided that Gendry was my priority now. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"Then I saw her again; the enormous brown she-bear, standing upright, towering over Gendry. The bear struck him with her claws, tearing open the entirety of his right sleeve. It didn't take long for blood to seep through the remains of his shirt. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Gendry, back away!'' I screamed as I almost reached the bear. No weapons, nothing. Gendry ignored my command and tried slashing the bear with his sword which proved near useless against such a tall creature. As I reached them, I threw Gendry aside onto the road and stood in front of this huge brown bear that was about to slash my skull to bits. The she-bear lifted her paw, now aiming for me, but right before she did I looked into her eyes and felt myself slip inside her skin. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"The bear was fighting me, trying to push me back out again. I looked through her eyes and was overwhelmed by the sense of smell, hearing and seeing. It had been years since I had felt this way. I looked at Gendry who was frantically staring at my body that was laying on the ground, as useless as a doll. I brought down my two front paws till I was on four paws once more. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I smelled other animals; deer, squirrels, horses- and Gendry. He didn't speak but just stared at me in disbelief. I decided it was best to turn this bear around and get her as far from Gendry as I possibly could. I turned around and made for the cover of bush where I once experienced again what I had loved so much, not to be in my human skin anymore. After walking around and finding a river to eat fish, I could hear a distant voice. I knew it had to be Gendry. It was time to return, before I wouldn't be able to do so anymore. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I slipped out of the bears skin, and back into mine. I felt my eyes roll back and saw Gendry who was bend over me with a panicked look on his face. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Ouch! Does it need to be that tight?!'' I exclaimed as my Septa was pulling the string on the back of my dress. I could barely breathe in this monstrosity. It wasn't anything like the dresses that I had worn on Bear Island. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''This just came in from Queen Cersei Lorraine, as a gift for your engagement,'' my septa warned me as she was finishing the knot on my dress, ''-if only you would cut down on eating so much,'' she continued complaining. I ignored her last comment./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''That blonde incestuous witch? Oh please she's just a b-'' I started but was immediately cut off by my Septa. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Don't talk like that! Lord Marbrand is a Bannerman to the Lannisters, which means that you shut your mouth,'' she went on like the hag she is. I sighed and rolled my eyes. She made me spin a circle as she judged my dress and said that it would be perfect for dinner tomorrow. Lord Marbrand was hosting a dinner in his great hall in honour of our engagement. Which naturally meant that the bride-to-be had to attend as well. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''And you need to stop disappearing Lorraine. Someday Lord Marbrand is going to want to know where you go and it will not be good.'' I let all her complaining just wash over me and didn't respond anymore. It was useless anyways. That evening, after I had been released from that horrible dress, I fell asleep quickly. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"When my eyes closed in the real world, my eyes in the dream world opened. I smelled dirt, grass, trees. I was standing in front of a dark forest and the last rays of sunshine barely managed to shine through the trees. I knew the forest wasn't on Bear Island or in the North, the trees were different and it was too warm. The road ahead of me split two ways and I knew it was the Kingswood, just south of King's Landing. I heard some rustling in the bushes and was only just in time to see a stag dart away to the right. The Baratheon sigil. I decided to take the right road and made my way down the road, deeper into the forest. As I climbed over a huge tree that had apparently fallen on the middle of the road, I heard something else. It was a heavy breathing, very heavy. I recognized the sound immediately and turned around to see its black eyes staring back into mine. It started at me, it wasn't angry or curious. It just stood there as if it was waiting for me to do something. As I touched its fur I felt as close to a bear as I hadn't felt in years now. It was as if someone was staring back at me through those black eyes and as I tried to slip into its skin, everything around me disappeared. /span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I woke up abruptly, breathing heavily. The bear, I was a bear. It was real, it had to be. I hadn't felt anything like this in a very long time, it couldn't just be a dream. I slipped out of bed, hurried to put my riding clothes on and climbed out of the tower once again. I sneaked past walls and doors in the dark, feeling like a shadow. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"At the stables, I stared at the gate. I would never be able to get back in again without help. It didn't take me long to pull up my hood, make for the forge and climb through the kitchen window. As quietly as possible I went into Gendry's room and covered his mouth before waking him up. His eyes shot open and he immediately reached for a knife that he had tucked away between his bed and the wall. I signed for him to be quiet and even though he seemed confused and angry at the same time, he didn't make a sound when I removed my hand from his mouth. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"Not wanting to make a sound, I signed for the door, indicating that he had to come with me. He clearly understood that something was going on, and got out of bed to put some clothes on. I couldn't help but once again admiring his toned muscles and he found a shirt to put on. After he led me outside, closed the door, put on his boots and a sword, he finally talked./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''What's going on?'' he hissed, seemed tired and concerned. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''You have to come with me, I need you,'' I said, grabbing his wrist and dragging him to the stables. I offered him one of the brown carrier horses, knowing that these wouldn't be missed as soon as the other ones. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''What for? This better be good,'' he muttered as he was getting on the horse, no idea of what was going on. I grabbed the reigns, nudged the horse and made for the gate which as usual, allowed people out at any time, but not in. Once we were out of the city walls, l nudged my horse into a gallop, making for the Kingswood. It didn't take Gendry long to catch up with me. We rode in silence for a while, not speaking at all- just riding. By the time we got closer to the forest he broke the silence./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Lorraine- seven hells, just tell me already,'' he breathed, seeming frustrated. I looked at him and then back at the road. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''I had a dream,'' I muttered./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''You what? Hold on- you dragged me out of bed, in the middle of the night, for a dream?!'' he shouted, looking at me like I was some lunatic. I sighed but didn't comment. We had finally reached the edge of the forest. I got off my horse and tied the reigns to a nearby tree. I looked at the exact some fork in the road that I had seen in the road./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''I've seen this place tonight, in my dream. We need to go right,'' I said decisively while Gendry was still sitting on top of his horse. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''We are not going into the forest. WE- are going back to the keep before Lord Marbrand will have my head off for this,'' he said. I kept on walking and turned into the right road./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Lorraine!'' he called after me but I kept on walking. I heard him curse to himself as he slid off his horse as well and tied it to the same tree as the other horse. I knew I had won, because he wouldn't leave me alone here, I had learned that from the day he helped me in that barfight./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''So what are we looking for your highness?'' he asked with an exhausted and annoyed tone in his voice. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''A tree, fallen on the middle of the roa-'' I said right before I saw it doom up in front of us from the dark. Gendry looked at me, dumbfounded. I smiled a little, turned towards him and gave him the I-told-you-so look. He shook his head in disbelief. There was a silence. In my dream the bear should've already been here, where was it? I started looking around, trying to see if I could see shining eyes through the bushes somewhere. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"In the distance, I could hear the whinny of one of the horses, soon followed by the other one. I didn't want to stop looking yet. Gendry got the message and announced that he would briefly check on the horses to see if everything was okay. I nodded and approached the trees to be able to look further on into the forest. As if on que I heard a loud roar, but it wasn't coming from the forest, but from further down the road. Gendry!/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I ran down the road, all the while cursing at myself for still not having a bow or sword. I was as useless as a whore without a cunt. One of the horses we took ran past me, further into the Kingswood. I looked back at it but decided that Gendry was my priority now. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"Then I saw her again; the enormous brown she-bear, standing upright, towering over Gendry. The bear struck him with her claws, tearing open the entirety of his right sleeve. It didn't take long for blood to seep through the remains of his shirt. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"''Gendry, back away!'' I screamed as I almost reached the bear. No weapons, nothing. Gendry ignored my command and tried slashing the bear with his sword which proved near useless against such a tall creature. As I reached them, I threw Gendry aside onto the road and stood in front of this huge brown bear that was about to slash my skull to bits. The she-bear lifted her paw, now aiming for me, but right before she did I looked into her eyes and felt myself slip inside her skin. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"The bear was fighting me, trying to push me back out again. I looked through her eyes and was overwhelmed by the sense of smell, hearing and seeing. It had been years since I had felt this way. I looked at Gendry who was frantically staring at my body that was laying on the ground, as useless as a doll. I brought down my two front paws till I was on four paws once more. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I smelled other animals; deer, squirrels, horses- and Gendry. He didn't speak but just stared at me in disbelief. I decided it was best to turn this bear around and get her as far from Gendry as I possibly could. I turned around and made for the cover of bush where I once experienced again what I had loved so much, not to be in my human skin anymore. After walking around and finding a river to eat fish, I could hear a distant voice. I knew it had to be Gendry. It was time to return, before I wouldn't be able to do so anymore. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"I slipped out of the bears skin, and back into mine. I felt my eyes roll back and saw Gendry who was bend over me with a panicked look on his face. /span/p
