Sorry I took so long to update! I had to watch the fourth season again to get some more ideas and to remember how the time line worked
I hope you enjoy it. Small shift in the dynamics here, I hope you like!
please please please leave a review! the more detailed the better! I will be eternally grateful!
Saebyl and Sandor's horse hand reached an understanding, no longer where they were rivals trying to make one another miserable. Some where between meeting the Brotherhood without Banners and now they came to this conclusion that life was better when they got along. Especially now the party consisted of three people and just one horse. When she took him to a small river she talked to the beast.
"Look, I'll ask The Hound if we can get another horse. Take the load off your back, maybe get a nice filly." She said as she removed her clothing. Laying them carefully on the rock she dipped into the river, missing those hot springs so desperately. She had refused to stink just because they were out in the wilderness, but her companions did not seem to share the philosophy. It was good to be alone though, collect her thoughts, air her grievances, even if it was to a horse. They were all hungry and getting on each others nerves, even rat was sounding good to her at this point.
"Put your damn clothes on, we need to move." The Hound's voice rang out from a fair distance away, she trusted that Arya did not let him spy on her. Sae groaned to herself, she had just got in and only took the first layer of filth off.
"Wouldn't you care to join me?" She called back, she swore the horse chuckled. Arya was then thrown forcefully into view.
"The lumbering idiot wants you to put your clothes back on. At least that's what he says." The girl scowled in the direction she was chucked from.
"Fine, I'll be right there." Sae waded back to land, dried off, tied her hair in a braid and grabbed the horse's reigns, dragging him back to the company.
She didn't immediately see her fellows, fear quickly rose in her chest, eyes darting back and forth looking for them. The rustling of bushes pulled her gaze to the left, just catching Sandor's large frame moving quickly out of sight. She ran after them, leaving their horse behind. Arya was moving quickly to a stone inn, Hound on her heels, growling at her the entire way.
"What in seven hells-" Sae's sentence was cut short, when a short man opened the door. Sandor beckoned for her to follow Arya in. Her hand pulled her cloak over herself to hide her dagger as much she could.
They sat in a table away from a group of men, who were harassing a young girl. The owner pleaded for them to let her be, but to no avail. Even before Sae could shift her weight in that direction, Sandor swooped his arm over her shoulders and moved her to their seat. They all sat on the same side, both girls flanking the large man.
"Hey I know you," the air went cold, all three seized up and stared at the ugly man who had called out to them, wondering which one of them he had recognized, "You're the Hound." Sae exhaled a breath she didn't even realize she had been holding.
The short man crossed the room and offered Sandor a drink, which he accepted eagerly. His eyes glanced over Arya and landed hungrily on Sae as the he talked. She felt like retching just by his stare, and prayed that he wouldn't be given the chance to lay a hand on her. She made the choice to play scared and tremble whilst staring at the floor.
"This one, where'd you get her?" The man asked.
"Took her." The Hound replied, shrugging.
"And the other?" he glanced at Arya.
"For When this one cries too much." He nudged Sae with his elbow, and took it as a cue to whimper lightly.
The man chuckled, "You know what, you should come with us." He offered. "His kind, they've always got something hidden away, some where." Gesturing to the Inn Keeper, " Gold, silver, more daughters, always something if you know how to make them talk and there's plenty between here and King's Landing. You could do well for yourself, we certainly have been."
There was a heavy pause, "I'm not going to King's Landing." Sandor finally replied.
"Think about it, we can do what ever we like, where ever we go!" The swine of a man pointed at his tunic. "This are the King's colours. No one is standing in his way now, which means no one is standing in ours." He leaned back confidently in his chair but the Hound leaned forward.
"Fuck the King." He stated boldly. Sae bit her lip to stop from grinning, she knew it was a foolish thing for him to have said, they were definitely outnumbered. There was silence and the demeanour in the room shifted dramatically.
"When I heard that Joffrey's dog had tucked tail and run from the battle of the Blackwater, I didn't believe it, but here you are."
"Here I am." Sandor replied mildly irritated. "Bring me one of those chickens."
"You've got money to pay of it?" The ugly man sat up straighter. Sae could almost feel the battle approaching. Someone was going to die before they left this inn, she just knew it.
"You pay for it?" He asked.
The man laughed, shaking his head, "No, but we're the King's men." There was another pause while the Hound finished his drink. "So, you got money?"
"Not a penny but I'll still take that chicken."
"Tell you what, we'll trade you. One of our little chickens for one of yours." He looked pointedly at Saebyl, who visibly shuddered. "Give us a go at your pretty little friend." He looked over his shoulder, "That one there likes them a bit broken in." Sae watched Sandor's hand clench so tight his knuckles went white, she simply placed a hand on his knee, hoping the subside the violence. It worked to a small extent.
"You're a talker. Listening to talkers makes me thirsty." Sandor grabbed the drink across the table and drank its entirety. "And hungry, think I'll take two chickens."
The man looked to his companions, "You don't seem to understand the situation."
Sandor moved Sae's hand off his knee, and deliberately bumped her dagger as he brought his hand up onto the table, as if to warn her. "I understand that if anymore words come pouring out of your cunt mouth, I'm going to have to eat every fucking chicken in this room."
"You lived your life for the King, you're going to die for some chickens?"
"Someone is." He replied ominously.
The men stared at one another, waiting for the other to make the first move. When the small ugly man was first on his feet, Sandor followed, flipping the heavy wooden table into his enemy. He quickly pushed Sae back behind him. She stood with Arya and watched helplessly. Sae had always enjoyed the duels at King's Landing, where men would try to best each other in single combat, she always preferred it over the joust. This fight was different, it wasn't for a purse of gold, or for the favour of the King. This was for their lives. If Sandor lost, she'd be raped and possibly murdered, at least she would try to help Arya escape before that happens.
She thought the battle was done when the Hound fell to the ground. Two men above him, kicking and beating him before finally swiping at him with a sword. It moved so quickly, Sae hardly saw how he managed to get back to his feet again. Unfortunately, almost as quickly as he was up, he was back on the ground, only after throwing a man through a half wall and leaving another screaming in agony, clutching his groin. A small struggle and the man on top of Sandor, attempting to put a knife across his throat, was impaled several times on his own blade after he had overpowered him.
Sae's eyes quickly darted to Arya, who moved to the man closest them. Walloping him over the head with a clay pot then sticking him with his own sword, the blonde remembered her own blade, and pulled it out awkwardly. The Stark girl stalked behind their table companion and took out his knees, making him fall onto his back, not before she delicately withdrew a small elegant blade from his waist.
"Something wrong with your leg, boy?" She asked him.
"Wha-? What do you mean?" He asked in confusion.
"Can you walk? Do I have to carry you?" Arya said as if it were a script, like she had rehearsed this. Sae crawled out of the shadows and watched curiously.
"Carry me?" The man was still confused, admittedly, so was Sae. Arya looked at the thin blade.
"Fine little blade," She pressed it against her victims throat, "maybe I'll pick my teeth with it." There was a flash of recognition on his face before she smoothly pushed the sword through his throat.
Sae stepped forward and watched curiously as the man sputtered his last breaths. She had never seen a man die so close, so purposefully. Blood spattered onto the front of her cloak when he gave his last desperate gasp.
"What did he do to you?" Saebyl asked looking up at the girl.
"He killed my friend." She replied solemnly.
Sandor stepped in, "Go pick one of their horses, girl. Inn keeper says we can take one." Arya's face lit up, she had begged earlier for a horse, claiming that she needed to escape his stench. She walked out the door to find a suitable animal companion. When the Hound turned to follow, Sae grabbed his arm and pulled him back.
"Thank-you." She said simply. He stared at her, pulling his arm away from her.
"What are you thanking me for, woman?" He glowered down at her, trying to figure out her actions.
"You saved me, us. You should be thanked." She explained simply. She looked him dead in the eyes, Sandor just stared back. Her eyes didn't flick to his scarred side of his face, in fact, they never had. She had always just stared him in the eye, never found him scary or intimidating. He couldn't quite decipher these actions, but she was one of the few women the didn't recoil at his gaze.
"Here," he grabbed a rag off the bar counter, "blood on your cheek."
She took the scrap of cloth from him and dabbed her cheek, "Thanks, again." She bowed her head with a smile. He simply grunted in acknowledgement and stooped over the bodies, claiming their silver. Sae crossed the room to the inn keeper and his distraught daughter.
"I'm sorry about all this, we'll help take the bodies out back and I apologize for my companion's behaviour." She said apologetically.
"Your friend there saved my daughter from those men." The Inn keeper gestured to the bodies. "Please, take some food, I said he could have a horse and any silver on the corpses." The daughter skittered to the kitchen and made up three bags for each of them filled with food, enough for the next few days.
"This is too much!" Sae tried to push back the bags of food.
"It's not enough but it's all I can offer you now." The old man said bowing his head and apologizing. Sae glanced over her shoulder to Sandor as he hauled the last corpse out of the establishment.
"Listen, if I could just take one of those chickens those men had-" before she could finish her thought, the roast bird was bundled up and shoved into her arms. She beamed at the old man, "Thank you so much, and again, I'm sorry we made such a mess. If we are back this way, we will be sure to stay, with lots of coins in our pockets." She turned to leave when a thought occurred to her. "These don't have the feet on them, do they?" She asked.
"No, my Lady, we don't use them."
"Excellent." She smiled, curtsied and left to find her party.
"Took you long enough, lets go." The Hound called to her, he had his horse's reigns in hand, it had obviously wandered back after Sae had left him in the clearing when she chased after them.
"They gave us food." She threw one of the parcels in his direction.
"Not much here." He grunted in replied.
Her brows furrowed and she scowled, "It was kind of them to give us anything at all! Where's Arya?"
"She's picking her pony. You want one, little bird?" He asked sarcastically, as he packed away his share of the food.
"The owner gave us one horse, we don't need another. We're not taking what we don't need." Sae yelled at him.
"One man and his daughter do not need five horses."
"He could sell them, or eat them come winter. Which we're going to be stuck in if we don't get a move on to the Eyrie." She stomped her foot. Just as Sandor was about to turn round and yell at her some more, Arya came trotting by on a beautiful white horse.
"You're not fighting again, are you?" The girl asked. The Hound broke their heated stare and turned back to the horse.
"No, we're just getting ready to leave." Sae threw Arya's bundle of food at her, who beamed back in appreciation. "Say, that's a pretty nice horse you have there. Could I hitch a ride?"
"Welcome aboard!" she replied cheerfully. "I picked one that I could actually get on top of."
"Very wise." Sae laughed, tossing the other bundle of food for Arya to put in the packs. "Oh, and I got you something." She called back to Sandor, he barely grunted at her in recognition. "Eat, your damn chicken." She threw it forcefully into his chest, a smirk on the corner of her mouth. He opened the bundle to verify the contents, when he looked back up to thank her, she was already confidently sitting behind Arya waiting for them to continue their journey.
The journey was much more pleasant for everyone. They could stay out of each others hair, ride in comfort and go further without having to stop so often. The trio actually started to get along, Arya opened up, despite all her recent tragedies. Her impish aways ran deep in her, and the girls soon found themselves inventing games to pass the time. Their favourite was trying to throw small objects, typically acorns, into Sandor's saddle bags. He did not find the game so amusing.
"Throw another pinecone at me and I'll rip your bloody arms off!" He roared back at them. The pair burst into a fit of giggles. He rolled his eyes and let a string of profanities roll off his tongue.
"Fine, let me off, I'll walk for a bit. I'm getting restless up here." Sae slid off the horse's back and walked along side.
She hummed merrily as she strode along side her companions. It was a decent day, warmer then it had been, she hoped to get a decent nights sleep without shaking with cold in the dark. Now if she could have a hot bath, she'd be in heaven.
Along side of the path, she noticed a curious little plant, stooping over, she examined it more closely. A smile spread across her face, just the thing she had been looking for. The leaves were tiny and rounded, with a blueish hue. It was used for pain relief and Sae was trying to keep her medical pack well stocked just in case. She had a morbid fascination with the treatment of ailments and read everything she could on the subject, even sweet talked the Maester into letting her see some of his operations.
She plucked the few leaves that were on the sad little plant when she noticed another deeper in. She followed the trail, collecting as many leaves as possible. The plants lead her deeper into the brush without her even noticing.
"Seven hells, were did that woman go?" Sandor said glancing around after not seeing Saebyl or hearing her rustling in the trees.
"Sae?" Arya called out, standing tall on her mount. "Saebyl?"
"Stop here, girl. Stay with the horses, I'll do find her." Arya nodded, withdrawing Needle and stood guard.
Sandor tied his horse to the tree and stepped off the path. He stepped quietly, listened for any disturbances and looked for any trails the bastard girl could have left behind. He cursed himself quietly as he hunted, should just leave her, she won't fetch him any price anywhere. No money attached to the name Waters. She was just a pain in his ass, taunting him, teasing him, the constant remarks from that smart mouth of hers. He couldn't help but think how different this trip would have been if the little Stark bird had come with them. He had to admit that he had liked Sansa, she was sweet, almost to a fault. If there were any gods, he hoped they kept her safe.
But Saebyl on the other hand, she seemed to be making it her duty to cause him misery. He had taken a personal oath that he would not steal and he would not rape. He would not be his older brother. He would only kill a man if it was necessary, no senseless murder. Sae made it hard to stick to this oath, if she wasn't waggling her ass in front of him when she walked, she was so ridiculously demanding that he wanted to throw her in the river. How Tywin put up with this petulant brat, he'd never know. Then again Sandor had spent time with Cersei and her children, maybe it made more sense then he thought.
But right now, Sae was missing, and out in the country during war times, was never a safe place to be lost. He'll scream at her until his throat is bloody when he finds her, until then he had a mission.
Saebyl's satchel was overflowing with her found foliage. She was immensely pleased with herself, until she looked up and realized that she didn't know where she was.
"Look, a pretty flowa, pickin' flowas." A strange voice called from behind her. Turning quickly, she was faced with an extraordinarily ugly man. His eyes were unfocused, his back was twisted at an uncomfortable angle and what little teeth he had left were visible with his unsettling smile.
"Who are you?" Sae asked, trying to keep her voice steady.
"No concern, sweet fing." The twisted man advanced on her. "Don't get 'em pretty down 'ere."
"Please, if it's coin or food, I've got both. I could give you some." His slow advance was now really scaring her. 'Where is that bloody dog?', she thought to herself.
"Don't need coin, got plenty. Don't need food, got even more of that." His jaw moved in exaggerated motions as he spoke, not settling the receding blonde's nerves at all. The horrid man was mere inches away from her. Sae's back was against a large tree, she bumped into it, making her jump.
"Step away from her, cretin." Sandor's voice rang out. Sae looked up and smiled, seeing him at the top of the small valley she had come down. The man let out something like a hiss and slithered up behind Saebyl in a flash, knife to her throat. The Hound barrelled down the hill with surprising speed and agility.
"Not so fast, hero." The knife pressed into Saebyl's neck breaking the delicate skin.
"Let her go and I promise to end your fucking life quickly." Sandor growled menacingly, sword drawn.
"Naw, I fink I like this one's pretty hair. Fink I'll keep her." He twisted a curl around his finger and took a sniff. "Oh and a pretty necklace, fink I'll have that too." He said, noticing her jewelry as he glanced down her clevage. His knife snaked around the gold chain and he yanked it hard off her neck, pocketing it quickly and putting the weapon back to her throat.
"Fuck you." Sae hissed, trying not to move a muscle.
"No, I fink I'll be fucking you, call off your dog and I'll be gentle." He ordered.
Sae looked up, violet eyes bright with something brewing behind them. "Sandor, summon the Prince, tell him his bride has been captured." The bizarre phrase was enough for the knife to slacken, giving her time to plunge her dagger into the wretched man's side.
The initial wound brought him to his knees, which allowed Saebyl to move out of his grip. Before she could even process what had happened, the blade found itself through his jugular. He blinked twice at her, gurgled and slumped to the ground dead.
"By the seven." Sae fell to her knees and was caught before completely passing out.
"Stay with me, little bird." Sandor said, clutching her in his arms and shaking her gently. She shook her head and held together.
"I killed him." She said quietly.
"Aye, you killed him but he would have raped and killed you first." He replied, trying to sit her up.
"I killed him, with my own two hands." She looked at her bloodied hands, then to the body. "He died, and it was because of me."
"Look, it had to be done." The Hound placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look round at him.
"I know it did. I need to learn how to do it better." She said finding new confidence in her, though tears still filled her eyes. "I will not be defenceless, men will not lay hands on me, unless I permit it. I'm done playing princess, this will be the last man to hurt me." She stared at the corpse in front of her and tried to dry her eyes on her sleeves.
"They won't, I'll make sure of it." He reassured her. "Clean your little blade and lets go."
"My locket." Sae said suddenly, rooting around the grubby body until she found it in his pocket. She kissed it lightly but noticed that the chain had been ruined. "No." She breathed despondently, "he broke it." Tears flooded back and ran down her cheeks.
The Hound didn't know what to do. Damsels in distress weren't his expertise, just whiny bitch princes. He moved around and knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his, looking at the locket.
"It's just the chain, bent out of shape, an easy fix for a smith." He said calmly. His unusually soft words did nothing to soothe Saebyl.
"Seven fucking hells!" She screamed to the heavens. She screamed so loud, several birds took flight from their resting places in the trees. "Why this? This one thing." She cradled the locket to her chest, looking up to the sky as if she were pleading for a life.
"We can fix it, if it means that much to you." He tried to speak as gently as he could, crying women always made him uncomfortable. "May I look at it?"
Sae bit her lip, and looked at him with large glassy eyes. She nodded slowly, putting the trinket in his large hand. She watched him carefully look at the malformed link in the chain, he tried to bend it back but his fingers proved too large. He then looked at the pendant that hung from it.
A Lannister Lion brilliantly embossed onto into the gold, small amethyst as it's eye. It was intricately engraved and left no smooth surfaces. Gently, Sandor opened the latch on the locket, he heard Saebyl take in a breath of air sharply as if a trap were about to spring. There was no trap, just a name, Tybin Lannister. The 'i's were dotted with green emeralds. Sae choked another sob when she saw it.
"Tybin...your son?" He asked carefully, running his thumb over the name. Sae just nodded unable to say anything.
"Tywin had this made for me soon after he found out I was with child. I had the name engraved soon after. It's all I have of him." Sae sputtered pressing her hand to her mouth to prevent more tears. "It was one of the few kind things that man ever did for me."
"You deserve far more things then a trinket." He closed the locket and looked at the detailed lion again.
"My son would have been a Lannister, this proved that Tywin recognized him as his own. Until that bitch of a queen took him from me." Her face turned red with the thought, a fresh set of tears started and escalated quickly until weeping wracked her entire body. "I never even got to hold him, never see him. Pulled him from me when I was unconscious. Don't even know what they did with his body." She gasped through her sobs.
Something strange overcame Sandor, and he pulled her into his chest while she cried out 'my son' over and over. The undeniable urge to protect her and kill Tywin Lannister washed over him. The girl had never let on how much it hurt her, she never mentioned her time with the Stone Lion but he understood. He could imagine how much it hurt, being a bastard child, never knowing her father but to also have a mother that forced you into one of the most powerful and dangerous men's bed, risking her very life, was worse. She nearly had something of her own and even that was taken from her. She was alone, and that was something Sandor Clegane could understand more than anyone.
"Come, little bird. Let's go back, the girl will be wondering if we're dead." He lifted her to her feet, wiping her eyes when she looked up at him.
"I'm not a bird. Don't call me that." She replied using her sleeve as a handkerchief.
"Fine, I won't call you that. Any suggestions?" He asked, trying to lighten the mood.
"Don't care, but I'm not a helpless little bird anymore." Her voice was stronger now and she stood tall, remnants of tears dripping off her cheeks.
"Aye, I know, you're a dragon." He nodded, he turned to lead her back to where he had left Arya, but he felt her tug on his hand.
"Sandor, wait." She stopped him, not many people called him by his name. He nearly forgot what it sounded like, but he decidedly liked the way it sounded on her lips. "I'm sorry for wandering off, and getting lost and-"
"Don't worry your pretty head about it, I won't abandon you." He said stoically. Sae bit her lip, holding back a smile.
"Thank-you. You don't know what that means to me." She replied, palming her locket nervously in her hands.
"Come on, lets go back and clean that cut, if the Stark girl hasn't run off by now." The blonde let out a little chuckle and nodded and followed her protector closely back to where he had left Arya and the horses.