Okay, those to thank for helping me get this one out:

Reviewers, (even though I only got 1 last chapter )
My sugar crash
My photography teacher for reawakening my love of GoT via talking about the book
And my brain for dwelling on how badly I needed to spit this out

Chapter 10

Furiously, Adriena threw a few of her dresses onto her bed, her breathing uneven from her storming around the room, and tears in her eyes at the cold realization that this could be the last time she ever saw home.

Her body hunched forward suddenly, her face contorted as if a knife was twisting into her back and bending forward was the only way to escape the pain. Her trembling hands rested on the bed and she tried to breathe evenly.

Home...father, Kimya, Gwyn, Lydia...mother who was resting in this earth...

That last thought jolted her. If the next time she returned, would her sisters and father be alongside her mother in the cold, unforgiving earth? Would she and her brother return at all?

The night before, when she made it up to her room, her cheek still burned where Arwin's meaty hand had struck. The hall was thankfully, emptying out, the merriment officially being acknowledged as a lost cause by Vyncent's outburst and the subsequent leaving of their host and his daughter. Her sisters were gone, but Robb Stark was still there, lingering and slowly filing out with his men near the entrance. Her face flushed with humiliated anger at seeing his stupidly handsome face and just as appealing body, but she could do nothing but storm upstairs with all the dignity she could muster.

An hour later, Vyncent raised a tentative hand to the wood of her bedroom door. Adriena's foot still throbbed in pain from when she kicked her bed post in anger, and her side pounded from the exertion, but she half limped over to the door anyway, glaring at her brother's face. Her cheeks were red still and her eyes tired, Vyncent noticed, and he felt a stab of guilt for what he was about to tell her when she looked like she needed a good rest.

Still, he told her. He took her angry curses, her betrayed-teary stare, her slap. Vyncent left then, not able to control his own emotions and left for Nara and took her grief instead. Nara's sadness was more weeping than slapping.

The night was half gone when he brought her this news, and so, for the rest of the night, until the sounds of the early risers made her realize it was morning, she stayed up, the news heavy on her mind. Once, when she was a child, the idea of leaving the village for parts unknown had excited her, before she realized it was impossible. It frightened her now, leaving this familiar place, when her entire life had been told that she'd never leave.

Straightening, and scolding herself for being such a child and having a child's fears, Adriena carefully folded four dresses and stuffed them in her sack, her heart still whirling with questions and heavy with apprehension.

Robb reread the short scroll of paper, carefully contemplating its message.

The messenger he had sent out, had found a place to release the raven far quicker than he anticipated, and Lord Karstark's reply had only just arrived, the raven having been mistaken as being an enemy's.

The gully, where he and twenty others now stood, was just as cold as it had been the night before. The sound of snorting and fidgeting horses filled the freezing morning air.

Lord Karstark had settled the other half of the army around Pinkmaiden's perimeter, but was far enough away that they were not seen with the rolling hills providing cover. Karstark had arranged it so the troops blocked the roads leading from Pinkmaiden and took all travelers going to and from the outpost. Now he just awaited Robb's go ahead to storm the walls.

Thank the gods, Robb thought. Still, Pinkmaiden was too close to Golden Tooth (a Lannister outpost) for Robb's liking. He needed to move, cut off their retreat and take Pinkmaiden and stay strong against the Lannister's, should they decide to retake Pinkmaiden.

Where would the two new comers fit into this? He did not expect them to fight for him, for many reasons. They were untrustworthy and he knew he was not trusted by them. They'd stand by in battle surely, and part of Robb feared he'd lose his men's respect by bringing them along. But, to him, there was no other way. What was to stop the Hoff people from going to the Lannister's once they were gone? Adriena and Vyncent as assurance would make Robb sleep a little easier at night.

So, as Robb packed up his horse, he silently prayed that this choice was the right one.

Kimya sniffled against Adriena's shoulder, her small hands resting behind her sister's shoulders. The village was around them, its inhabitants had come out to see the two of their own being taken off by the dire wolf demon as many of them called Robb now.

"Kimya..." Adriena whispered her voice a painting of emotions.

Kimya pulled away, her face blotched red. Quietly, she whispered, "Be careful. If you meet a handsome soldier, remember Olanna's annoying lessons on the art of love." Kimya smiled weakly. Adriena smiled back and took her sister's hand in hers.

"Shut up." Adriena murmured good naturedly to her sister.

As Kimya slowly stepped away, Lydia rushed forward and griped at the fabric clothing Adriena's hips. Her face was buried into Adriena's stomach when the elder girl's arms wrapped around the younger.

Slowly, almost shyly, Gwyn approached her sisters. She and Adriena had never been close, but, they were around when it mattered. Adriena looked up in time to see Gwyn quickly take the last few steps toward them and wrap her arms around her sisters, her head resting awkwardly against Adriena's shoulder.

There were times that Adriena hated her sister, so much at times that she wished Gwyn would go and get lost in the woods. But all her previous little annoyances with the younger girl were forgotten in the face of Robb Stark. She leant her head a little against Gwyn's but kept both arms around Lydia. Neither girl would have it any other way.

Vyncent stood by, his thick arms set around Nara. Nara of the Moon Stone Caves was a strong girl, able to hunt and carry back her kill when her father's joints ached too much to do the task himself. Yet she wept as Vyncent prepared to leave. She had light brown hair, and freckled skin, and preferred smaller groups to large gatherings. So much like Vyncent. The day Vyncent came home all moony eyed and smiley, Adriena knew that Nara would be Vyncent's wife one day.

Nara's face was buried in Vyncent's chest, her hands clinging to the muscles on his arms. Kissing the crown of her sweet head once more, he pulled away and Nara's mother came rushing forward to console her teary eyed child.

Vyncent turned to Arwin then, talking with him in hushed tones. Adriena looked over at them, still hugging her sisters, and narrowed her eyes. Pride overshadowed her desire to hug her father goodbye as well, but when he looked at her, and quickly looked back to her brother as if this last goodbye was nothing, killed the want to bid him goodbye. With his new attitude, she didn't feel he deserved it.

"Come on!" a northern soldier ordered to escort them, shouted.

Pulling herself away from the other girls, as Vyncent muttered a quiet goodbye to their father, they slowly turned on their heels and walked toward the northern soldiers awaiting them. Adriena's pack was heavy against her back, but it didn't bother her. Natalya's weight was all she felt, the heaviness around her neck giving her comfort.

She kept her eyes forward, gazing out with an absent mind and telling herself that she didn't need to take a last look at home because it wouldn't be the last time she saw it. If she turned back, and met her sisters and father's eyes...

She looked at Vyncent, seeing that he still glanced back to where Nara stood with her family. Carefully, she reached out and touched her fingers to the forearm of his injured hand. His still angry eyes flashed down to hers.

"It's not goodbye. I won't let it." Adriena murmured, her voice full of conviction.

Vyncent merely scoffed, portraying so many things with just one action.

Arwin watched his eldest go, his heart aching despite his clam, cold outer shell. It stung him a little that his daughter had not even bid him farewell, but she was stubborn, a lot like Ismae. She looked like her too... Please, he prayed, don't let this be the end.

With that, his children and the solders disappeared into the foliage for the last time.

Samyella turned to him, her dark greying hair falling over one shoulder. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she glared at Arwin. Arwin did not look at his former sister-in-law, knowing that she knew what he had planned for his eldest daughter. After a few moments, she gave up that he would have enough nerve to look her in the eyes and turned away to the Hall, where her apartment was located.

The trees and rocks went by in a blur of bleak colours that had once been vibrant in the summer. The horses' hooves clicked against the rocky floor of the gully and the few wagon's left, creaked and groaned as they rolled along.

This time their march was going quite faster than before, and Robb was hopeful they would reach the edge of the forest by nightfall. Suddenly, something cold and wet hit his cheek, and from experience, he knew it was snow. He nearly groaned aloud but refrained. Snow presented many obstacles but perhaps Robb could use the oncoming snow storm to his advantage.

A cold chill brushed against Adriena's fingers, sliding an icy finger through her hair and pulling the hood of her warm cloak down. The breeze soon reddened her cheeks and ears, but she could not be bothered to fix her hood. She griped the reigns of the horse so tight her knuckles paled white, her eyes were trained on her hands and her back remained rigid. She could faintly hear a man no too far off whisper to someone and laugh at her terrified state. But she could not be bothered with retaliation, she could not help it. She could barely remember the last time she'd been on a horse, and the slightly jerky movements of the horse at this height made her fear falling.

She let out shot gasp as the horse stepped on a rock that quickly gave way and jolted her body. The horse recovered quickly, but Adriena tightened her hands more, if it were possible.

Vyncent looked to his sister, her face bare to her fear of the animal and glanced to Robb Stark who looked forward. Fear is not attractive, he thought. Although Robb Stark was looking away soon he would look back and see his sister's face and Arwin's "plan", as he called it, would be put off.

Vyncent loved his sister, but it was her virtue or their villages' freedom and safety. He was damned whatever he chose.

So he leaned forward and hissed at Adriena, "Calm down! They'll think you're weak!" Adriena flinched from the sharp words, but slowly, straightened her back. Her stomach lurched as she looked forward, the world shaking as the horse moved on.

Catelyn kept a watchful eye on the Hoff strangers, not liking the way the fair haired man kept looking between his sister and her son. The woman was slim and couldn't stand a chance against the band of men physically, but she could attack through sneaky means, poison or use her womanly wiles to get close to the men surrounding Robb.

She would keep a close eye on her, but an even closer eye on the large burly man that was her brother.

The snow came down in small flakes as night descended, swirling through the air and landing on the curled up, sleeping bodies that lined the ground.

Adriena was among them. On the left side of the trench, she and Vyncent laid themselves down, carefully aware of the other men throwing themselves down for sleep around them. Her body was curled up underneath the sleeping furs she had packed with her. Her bottom was sore from sitting on the hard saddle all day, and her hands were stiff and ached from gripping the leather reigns so tightly.

For a long time, she laid there, away from her brother, her fingers resting on her lips in a worried manor.

This was the farthest she'd ever been away from home. It unnerved her. All these strangers around her did not help and she was thankful Vyncent had opted to stay up to keep watch.

They had been traveling all day, farther and farther from Hoff, until the trench sloped downward into a short, but steep hill. From there, the trees parted and they could plainly see the high walls of the castle.

Adriena had stared in awe at the stone structure. The walls were as tall as the highest of trees, and the tops of the pointed towers could be seen, the far off flag fluttering flaccidly in the cold, snowy wind. The snow swirled around in the air, thicker than before, starting to stick to the ground with thick flakes. The trees provided coverage from the icy fluff.

From the way Robb Stark had ordered no fires to be lit that night, and they way men did not venture out further toward the castle, Adriena concluded they were enemies. Were they planning to take that? Although she prayed she was wrong, she felt that an attempt on the structure would be a blood bath.

She closed her eyes and took in a long, deep breath, and only then did she realize how tired she was. The lack of sleep the previous evening had taken a toll on her. Quickly, languidly, before she knew what was happening, sleep drifted over her conscience and took her down into the abyss of dreams.

Robb leant against a tree, Grey Wind resting his large head on his leg, while Robb scratched behind his ear. He could not sleep; the messenger he'd sent out would surely be back soon.

Turning his head to the left, he sighed as he looked at the castle of Pinkmaiden, blurry with the swirling flakes of snow.

YEEEELLLLOOOOWWW! ;)

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