The feast that night is a much less raucous affair than the night the King arrived, but he still has to sit in the back with the men. Iv has been dolled up in one of her dresses again, and she's sitting with Sansa and Jeyne Poole, just like before. This time, though, there is a musician that's braved the Kingsroad and a few people are dancing.

He's had more wine than he should again.

This time, Iv leaves the hall before he does. Once the doors are closed, and it isn't too obvious he's following her, he does, Ghost trailing at his heels. It doesn't surprise him at all to find her in the yard, still in her dress, stabbing relentlessly at one of the target dummies. He clears his throat when he's close enough and she spins, sword in hand, to face him.

Her eyes, rimmed in black again, are also tinted red with unshed tears, likely ones of anger. It makes his ears ring to see her upset and he offers his arm to her. She hesitates a moment before sliding her sword out of sight and resting her fingers in the crook of his arm, allowing him to lead her away from the dummy who's now poked full of holes.

"Your father can not be letting Sansa marry that boy… He's awful," she says quite suddenly, and Jon almost laughs. He remembers the day in the yard when Robb had nearly come to blows with the crown prince, and how the taunts of the royal brat had niggled at all of the Northerners; but no matter that she might carry a sword, Iv is a lady still, and the fact that she'd been disrespected makes him wonder if perhaps he should act the bastard he was and lay into the blond brat.

She seems to sense his upset, because she squeezes his arm to get his attention. "Do not be doing anything foolish, Jon. Go to the Wall willingly tomorrow, not because you are deserving to go. Not for my sake."

Silence falls between them again and when he looks up, he's surprised to find he's taken her back to her room. She looks at the door, then gently disentangles her arm from his, giving a small smile. "Thank you for your company," she offers hesitantly, looking up at him.

Maybe it's the wine he's had at the feast, or maybe it's the fact that he's leaving tomorrow and doesn't know how to thank her for the companionship she's given him… Maybe it's just because he's a teenage boy and it's what he's supposed to do; Jon doesn't know. All he knows is that, suddenly, he's kissing her in that awkward, not-thought-out way that young people often do.

She kisses him back hesitantly, and then they both pull back and look at one another. It seems to occur to both at the same time that neither wanted nor enjoyed the kiss. But rather than show embarrassment or shame, Iv's face cracks into an amused smile and she takes his hand, threading her fingers with his for just a moment, squeezing reassuringly to let him know that nothing has changed between them. When she lets go and disappears into her room, Jon looks down at his hand and smiles.

The squeeze means more to him than the kiss ever could.


Author's Note: Next update will be Monday, January 30th. The story will update Monday, Wednesday and Friday!

We're at the half-way point now! Soon, the chapters will be a bit more spaced out in terms of story timeline and, eventually, there WILL be spoilers for ACOK, ASOS, and beyond.