In the end, Gendry had wrapped Arya tightly in a sheet when she'd gotten too handsy and reminded her that she hadn't agreed to marry him. She'd huffed at him, but soon fell asleep with his arm draped over her side and her face buried in his shoulder.

The next morning as they sat at a long table breaking their fast and Arya noticed that the inn keeper kept giving them disapproving looks as she moved around serving the smattering of people in the hall and she assumed she'd heard their loud giggling the night before. When Gendry saw, we blushed crimson. Arya kept her giggle to herself. Gendry was a grown man, but there was still something of the quiet armorer's apprentice about him and she found it funny. 'Some things don't change', she thought.

"What's Skagos like?" Gendry asked and Arya's eyes were drawn back to his face. She had been about to make a sarcastic retort, but was reminded that he hadn't had the same education she had. She'd been taught geography and the houses of Westeros from the time she could talk because her father felt it was important. Gendry hadn't had that same privilege, having grown up as a lowborn bastard.

"It's a hard place. The people there are called stone people. Hardly anyone bothers with the island, it's just too remote and it's dangerous sailing there."

At those words, Gendry's ears pricked up and he looked at Arya, who was eating her porridge determinedly.

"How dangerous is it to sail there?"

"Quite dangerous. They say the rains can freeze the ropes and sails of a ship. There's also the ice fields to navigate, but it shouldn't be as bad this time of year," she said and Gendry looked skeptical.

"I suppose I should have guessed," he said and Arya felt a little bad.

"I will pick a smart crew. A ship that's sailed that way before. It won't be rashly done," Arya said.

"You can't account for the weather, my lady."

"I would learn how," she said forcefully looking down at her food. Gendry touched her hand and smiled.

"You're the stubbornest woman alive, but I trust you to get us there."

"I will and we will get my brother and sail for Eastwatch. The journey there is a third of the distance that we have to sail to get to Skagos," Arya explained.

"How do you know all this, Arya?"

"I studied the maps while I was waiting for you to heal. I have the way north memorized."

"I can't imagine keeping all that information in your head," Gendry said and she laughed.

"Don't praise me too much yet. Remember our journey towards Riverrun? I thought I knew the way then."

"You almost got us there," Gendry pointed out.

"Almost isn't good enough in this case."

The road to White Harbor was full of wagons and life. Gendry and Arya blended in with the other travelers, their clothes plain enough to make them look like anyone else. They kept their hoods up and their heads down, not wanting to be spotted. It was easier to move that way and they didn't want to be targeted by thieves who often targeted the lords and ladies moving down the road.

As they rode, Arya was happy to find that the miles fell away more quickly than she would have believed. She was anxious to make it to White Harbor and closer to her brother.

Soon enough they were riding into White Harbor, dodging carts of supplies going to the market square. The port town was smaller than King's Landing, but it was still bustling. Gendry thought it felt nice to be in a town again after all the days on the road. He hadn't been a proper town for almost a year and part of him missed it.

Arya started down a side street then, and Gendry followed confused as to why they were not making their way directly to the ships, but he didn't question her. They rode down the small street, which was sided by small houses, which got shabbier and shabbier as they went.

They passed a small ramshackle house, with a bent old man tending a small garden on the side of the house. They kept going until they reached a dead end of tiny hovels teetering on each other. She turned them around and went back to the house with the man outside.

Arya stopped and dismounted her horse.

"Good morning, sir," she said and he stood a bit taller, his eyes squinting at her.

His face was craggy and hard, but when he saw Arya and seemed to recognize her, his face softened considerably.

"You're a Stark child," he said in gravelly voice and he bowed his head to her as a sign of deference.

"Yes, and I need your help," Arya said and she motioned to the horses, "We journey to Skagos and I need someone to take care of our horses while we are gone. It's a dangerous journey that we may not come back from, so if something is to happen to us, the horses would need a home."

"It would be my honor, lady," the man said and she handed the reigns of her horse him and motioned for Gendry to do the same.

She pulled a small clinking pouch from her boot and handed it the man. "For your trouble," she said and he shook his head.

"No coin needed, my lady," he protested, trying to give it back to her, but she pressed it into his hand anyway.

"It will pay to feed them." After that, the old man relented, nodding again and Gendry got down and gave the man the reigns to his horse as well.

As they walked away from the small house, he turned to Arya, "Think we will ever see them again?"

He'd become attached to his horse and the way he said it made Arya feel sudden guilt for dragging Gendry through all of her dangerous schemes, yet she didn't want to face any of this with anyone else. She'd only ever fully trusted him since they'd met. She felt the need to tell him somehow.

She stopped walking and it took a moment for Gendry to stop and turn back towards her. He looked concerned.

"You'll see him again, Gendry. I will make sure of it," She said, not knowing if her words were true, but knowing she'd do anything to make sure they were.

They'd spent the afternoon on the docks, reviewing the ships anchored there. Arya had spoken to the harbor master, who kept the records of the ships that came and went and she'd found out from him what ships had been to Skagos recently.

Gendry had agreed to the plan, but he was still apprehensive as he looked up at the ship. Its white sails were snapping in the slight breeze and here in the harbor it looked like an innocent trading ship. Not that Gendry knew a lot about ships. He'd never bothered to go to the harbor in King's Landing. He'd been too busy learning his craft from Tobo Mott.

"You sure they're pirates?" He whispered and Arya ignored him. Or maybe she hadn't heard him, she was intently taking in every facet of the ship it seemed, her dark grey eyes darting around with intense concentration.

Without a word, Arya started up the gang plank with Gendry following reluctantly behind. He had his sword tucked under his cloak and a dagger on his belt. Although he couldn't actually see any weapons on her person, he knew Arya was armed to the teeth.

"I want to speak to the captain," Arya called to the first men they came upon, who happened to be carrying a heavy wooden cask between them.

"He's aft," one of the men said gruffly, not even lifting his eyes to see the short woman standing in front of him. They moved grunting under the weight of the cargo.

Arya moved forward, her steps were sure and she gave off a confidence Gendry didn't feel at all. They soon found the captain on the deck, talking to his first mate. The man was not much taller than Arya, but he looked much broader in his fine purple brocade coat. Gendry had somehow always thought pirates would be dirty, but this man looked like a very rich lord, with an exaggerated sort of dress.

"Good sir. I want to engage your ship," Arya said once the captain stopped talking to stare at her and Gendry.

"I have no need of a couple gutter rats." The captain said, holding up his hand to dismiss them. All his rings caught the sun and twinkled in Gendry's eyes.

Arya pulled something from her belt and flipped it at the captain's feet. The strange square coin flipped end over end and hit the captain's tall black boots. He looked down and his face became ashen. He looked up at Arya and his eyes seemed to pop from his head in fear.

"You know what I am. You know what I can do. Surrender the ship and I'll let you live out your miserable days," she said in a deadly tone.

The captain dropped to his knees and looked up at Arya with his hands wringing together. "Please this ship is all I have."

Arya snorted. "What good is a ship if you're dead?"

The man started sobbing and it took several moments before he finally nodded at Arya in acquiescence.

"Lock him in the brig," Arya demanded of a giant sailor who'd stopped to gawk at the captain's display. He moved quickly to obey, much to Gendry's surprise.

Gendry looked down at Arya, whose expression was a stony mask, but when she caught him staring she winked.

"Get us under way," Arya said brusquely to the brawny first mate. The man gave a curse and did as he was told, shouting at the top of his lungs for the sailors to trim the top sail and prepare to pull anchor.

Arya had a swagger that was inappropriate for a woman, but Gendry loved it. She swaggered now, all fox in the hen house, as she led Gendry towards the cabin on deck.

"And that's how you commandeer a ship with no money and no bloodshed," Arya said smugly as she opened the ornate door into the captain's quarters and they went in.

Gendry grabbed her arms and turned her so he could see her face. "How did you do that?" He wanted to know.

"Just a little Braavosi intimidation," Arya said with a wicked smile. "I'm feeling like... you know when you wake up and it's the first day of summer. True summer. And you've got the whole world at your feet?" She giggled, "I feel like that."

The cabin was the most luxurious place Gendry had ever set foot. There was a huge table in front of them as they came in with scattered maps and papers. To the left side, was an alcove where a large feather bed and giant wooden chest sat. Arya moved towards the chest and opened it as if it belonged to her and Gendry supposed that now it did.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for better clothes," Arya said as she rummaged through the contents, "You saw how the captain was dressed. He has a taste for fine jewelry and clothing and he's almost my size."

"Aha," she cried lifting out a pair of brown wool breeches and a flowy white shirt. Two seconds later she pulled out a tall pair of leather boots. Lastly, came a thick bear skin coat.

"You'll look like a real pirate," Gendry remarked, as she stepped behind a wood screen, he hadn't noticed, in the corner of the room.

"I am a pirate," Arya said, though her voice was muffled as if she had her tunic halfway over her head.

Gendry shook his head and settled into the chair by the large writing desk. He couldn't make heads or tails of the maps, but he looked at them like he could. He wanted to know how far away Skagos was but he didn't know which blob it was.

"Would you like to learn how to read?" Arya said popping up behind him and he jumped, having not realized she was there.

"I don't know," Gendry said quietly, once his heart had returned to its normal pace. Deep down he was afraid that after this long, he was unteachable and would never be able to pick it up.

"Think about it. We'll have time on this journey. It should take around three weeks before we reach Skagos as long as we don't encounter too many storms."

"Is my lady that patient?"

"Sometimes no, but for you I will make an exception," she said moving around the table to sit in the other chair.

"We'll need to inspect my ship. Make sure the crew are doing as they should."

Gendry nodded and followed her out onto the deck. They met each member of the crew, Arya memorizing their names and ranks before they moved on. Eventually they ended up in the hold, looking over stacks and stacks of barrels and crates.

"There's got to be a log somewhere of what they have on board. The captain would need to know so he'd know if someone tried to steal anything."

"Good idea," Gendry said giving a shiver. Arya had the bear skin coat on and she seemed impervious to the cold, but he felt as if he was being pressed on all sides by ice. It was an unpleasant feeling and he was looking forward to going back to the captain's quarters.

"We'll speak to the first mate," Arya said leading Gendry up the ladder and back onto deck.

The first mate, who was a huge man with a sunburnt face, as if he'd just come from somewhere tropical, told Arya the logs were kept in a tiny room off the captain's quarters. She thanked him profusely and he gave her a smile, even though most of his teeth were missing and went lumbering off to perform his duties.

The door to small room was locked and Arya cursed as she examined the lock, "I can't pick this," she said looking at Gendry doubtfully.

"Move aside, Arya," he said and with one well aimed hit from his large shoulders the door popped open with a squeak.

She took the books she was looking for the room triumphantly in her arms and Gendry was happy when she led him back to the captain's quarters. He was looking forward to climbing under the down covers and never appearing again until they'd reached Skagos, or at least that's what he wanted to do.

"What if your wife gives you only daughters or no children at all?" Arya asked out of the blue; looking up from the huge tome laid out before her on the heavy oak table in the captain's quarters. Gendry suspected that she was hammering out the details of their marriage with him, but she'd never admit it.

"What's wrong with daughters? And if she had no children I'd live with it," Gendry answered truthfully. They had found some wine casks in the hold and he was indulging on some of the Arbor red.

"But wouldn't you resent her?"

"I come from nothing, Arya. I'm not like the other lords who want to continue their legacy. I'll be happy if we have no children or if we have several. Even daughters." She blushed at his use of 'we'.

"Any daughter of yours could hold her own against the boys, so why worry?" Gendry teased.

"I wasn't speaking of myself," Arya snapped, going back to looking over the log.

"Of course not, my lady," Gendry said barely containing his laughter.

"This ship is up to its gun whales in apples. Who in the world did they pillage?" Arya said with a frustrated sigh. Arya had been cataloging their supplies and marking down the things they'd already taken from the hold. She didn't seem too excited by what she'd found.

"At least there's food," Gendry said, "And wine."

"Go easy on the wine. We're going to need things to trade for more supplies when we reach Skagos."

"Aren't they your banner men? I doubt they would ask for anything for what we need," Gendry said.

"Even so. I want to be prepared," Arya said, closing the cover of the book with a thump.

As silly as it sounded, Gendry admired Arya's ability to strategize. She'd been the factor that kept them alive when they'd fled Harrenhal and it seemed to him she'd only become more adept during her time away in Braavos.

She was wearing one of the captain's wide, black hats which boasted a large purple feather and sat at a jaunty angle over her hair. The bear skin coat's collar stood up near her chin, making her look intimidating, even to him.

But her grey eyes were looking at him with that look he liked too much. Like she was just happy to see his face.

"I'm going onto the deck. Would you join me?"

"Only if you stop scaring, Tom," Gendry said standing up. Arya had made enemies of the old boatswain nearly as soon as they'd met. The man treated all of the other sailors terribly and Arya had taken exception to it and had taken to scaring the daylights out of the man by sneaking up on him.

"Fine," Arya mumbled and button her coat to her chin. It was cold out on deck and they'd spent the majority of their time in the captain's cabin to avoid it.

As they exited the door they almost immediately stumbled over a squab cleaning the deck. He saluted Arya and gave her a crooked smile before going back to work. She smiled. At first, Gendry had figured the men on the ship would be upset that they'd been commandeered by a woman, but Arya had quickly won their respect and allegiance as she had with the lords of the North and the Riverlands. She had a knack for befriending people. Maybe it was because she had helped out on the deck, learning each job and learning about the men who did them.

Now the men worked diligently for her, only old Tom, who was a mean old cuss, didn't give her her due, but he was obstinate to everyone. Arya had even freed the captain, whose name was Mansel, and he'd been elected as the quarter master by the crew. He had laughed to see Arya in his great bear skin coat strutting around like he perhaps would have. He called her his protégé and they spent many evenings discussing sea travel, while Gendry entertained himself by trying to write the letters Arya had given him. He'd finally agreed to let her teach him to write and it had been slow going.

One night, as they were eating supper in the captain's quarters, Mansel's powdery scent still lingering in the air even though the man had left, Arya had grown restless. In her restlessness, she began to talk about things she'd rather have never told anyone, let alone Gendry.

"He had the nerve to tell me that he'd been tricked into marrying an impostor and by rights he should get me as a bride. Right before I slit his throat, that is."

Gendry, who had already been looking green throughout her story, leaned over and vomited into the bucket that had previously held apples.

"Gendry, this is who I am. Look at you! You can't even hear about my past without getting sick."

He put up his hand to stop her even though his head was still in the bucket. She heard him vomit again and then he finally raised his head weakly.

"I think I've been poisoned," he said.

"But I checked the food," she said skeptically, moving to grab his near empty tankard. She hadn't touched the wine, but Gendry had a soft spot for it. She smelled it and took a tiny sip, immediately making a face.

"It's not poison, but someone slipped blood root into your wine. It causes nausea."

Gendry gave another heave into the bucket as if to punctuate what she'd said. She set the tankard down and kneeled next to him, rubbing his back soothingly, much like her mother would do when she was little and had an upset stomach.

"I'm sorry. I thought I made you sick," she said softly.

He snorted in derision, but kept his head down. Arya kept rubbing his back, even though her mind was racing with who could have possibly put the blood root in the wine, when she heard shouting outside of her door.

There was a knock and she stood up telling the person to come in, her hand on her hip where she kept a dagger at all times.

"Captain, there's a storm brewing off the port side," said Mansel, peeking his nearly bald head around the door. His face looked worried and Arya gave Gendry a sympathetic pat and went with Mansel onto the deck.

Once near the side, he handed her a spyglass and she held it up, looking out at the horizon.

The ominous black clouds she saw looked to be a few miles off still, but they'd be there soon. Arya cursed under her breath, her heart picking up tempo.

"Let out the sails completely. That storm will be blowing and the wind should help us to run as far as we can before it hits us" she said handing the spyglass back to the quarter master, he nodded and scuttled off to do as she ordered.

Arya gripped the ship railing hard and stared out at the blackness swirling towards them with her heart pounding in fear. She remembered what she had told Gendry about learning to control the weather and right at that moment she wished that she could, more than anything.