The thin man was named Petyr Baelish, also known as Littlefinger. He found three rooms for myself, Lady Catelyn, and Ser Rodrik on the top floor. "My most expensive and luxurious rooms." Littlefinger explained, more like bragging. The rooms were rather large, filled with bright fabrics and blankets, but there always seemed to be a cloud of incense in the air, making it hard to get a breath of fresh air.

Littlefinger also promised to bring Lord Eddard to the brothel, so that he could speak to Catelyn about the dagger and how someone had tried to murder their son. No, not someone-the dwarf of house Lannister.

I still couldn't believe that the Imp had tried to kill Bran. When I had met him, he had been polite, kind even, not the kind of man who would send an assassin to kill a ten year old boy.

I paced the length of my room as my heart started to beat faster. My breathing got deeper the longer I stared at these gaudy paintings on naked people on the walls surrounding me. I stopped pacing and tried to get my breathing under control again, but it was hard. I shut my eyes tightly and sat down on the floor, pressing my hands against the sides of my head and taking deep, steadying breaths, anything to make the room stop spinning.

By the time I was calm again, there was a soft knock on the door. "Enter," I said without stopping to think about who could be on the other side. The door opened to reveal one of the whores, but this one was dressed properly and she had a baby attached to a sling on her back. I stood up off the ground and the young girl stared at me questioningly.

"What were you doing on the floor, m'lady?" She asked me. Her voice was incredibly soft and light.

"I, uh, had to stop and breathe for a moment," I said dismissively. "It was nothing, really. Can I help you?"

The girl looked to be about sixteen, maybe fifteen. She smiled and shook her head. "No, I was told by Lord Baelish to come and fetch you. Lady Stark and the knight are going to leave right before sundown, you see. So Lord Baelish told me to come up here and tell you."

"Oh, well thank you," I said, nodding. The girl smiled again at me and I finally looked to the tiny baby on her back. A head full of black hair was peeking out over the top. "How old is your child?" I asked.

The young girl smiled even wider. "She's just two months, my little Barra. She's got her father's look, she does."

"Congratulations," I told the young mother, ignoring the stab of pity I felt for her being so young and already the mother to a child. Did she even know who the father was...? I had to assume that she did because she just said that the baby looked like her father. The young girl smiled once again at me and ducked out of the room. The last thing I saw of her was the tiny tuft of black hair that her daughter had.

Littlefinger gave us enough supplies and food to make it back to Winterfell. I went off with Ser Rodrik around sunset to get the three horses ready for travel. Dust whinnied a greeting at me and I happily hopped onto my horse's back.

Ser Rodrik and I waited outside of the brothel with Lady Catelyn's horse while she said goodbye to her husband. Lord Eddard and Catelyn stood a little ways away, their heads bent close and they were talking to each other so quietly I couldn't overhear a word they were saying. Finally, the two of them kissed deeply and separated, as Lady Catelyn started to come back to her horse.

As Lady Catelyn mounted her horse, Lord Eddard and I somehow locked eyes. The lord of Winterfell somehow looked older and more tired than he had the last time I saw him. But he gave me a deep nod in what could've been a form of respect. I nodded deeply back to him and turned Dust around so that we could finally leave this shit-stinking city. Ser Rodrik was right behind me and Lady Catelyn followed a little ways behind us.

The three of us traveled on the road until well after nightfall, the shadows growing longer and darker as the sun finally set beyond the horizon. There was an inn about twelve miles away from the capital's gates, and when we finally stopped there for the night, I noticed that the stench of shit and salt water wasn't lingering anymore.

At first light the next day, we started towards the North and continued our journey home. I took the lead this time, eager to get back North. Dust moved at a fast trot, as if he knew where we were going. What was I thinking, wanting to come and live down here with the other half of the Stark family and the royal family? Winterfell was my home, with its gray looks and cold weather. Right now all I wanted was to go beyond those walls of the castle, find the biggest pile of clean snow, and bury my head in it. Anything to get away from this area's muggy and uncomfortable heat.

I could tell that Ser Rodrik and Lady Catelyn felt the same as I. We seemed to be moving faster than before just to get away from King's Landing. By the end of that first day of travel, we were already several dozen miles away from the capital and crawling our way up the country and into the North.

Three nights into the journey north, we stopped at a tavern, trying to keep a low profile. This tavern was close to a small village; as the horses were put into the stable for the night, I could look out over the horizon and see the lights of the village. From the village my eyes drifted upward into the sky, and I heaved a sigh. I wanted nothing more than to see snow clouds up there instead of clear skies.

"Why do you do that, Helaena?" Lady Catelyn's voice behind me made me jump. She automatically noticed. "My apologies; I didn't mean to frighten you."

"It's alright, my lady," I said. "And what d'you mean when you ask why I do...what exactly?"

Lady Catelyn looked up at the sky, the same way I did. "I've known you for seventeen years now, Helaena. And not a day has gone by without me spotting you looking up at the sky at seemingly random times of the day. I've always wondered why you do it, so why do you?"

I blinked and shifted my feet. "It's sort of a force of habit by now." I confessed. Lady Catelyn raised her eyebrows, waiting for further explanation. "Back when I was really young, when Sansa was just born and the Greyjoy Rebellion was defeated, King Robert came to Winterfell to make sure Theon was delivered there."

"I distinctly remember that." Lady Catelyn said slowly. "He kept you at his side the entire time he stayed with us."

I nodded. "Yes he did. And I remember the night before he left to go back to King's Landing. He told me that no matter how far apart we were, we were still weren't that far away from each other. Because of the sky. He told me that the sky we lived under was the same, and that somehow made it all better that he left me up there for years."

Catelyn was watching me with what could've been a sort of pity. I met her eyes for a moment and continued. "He told me that night that he'd be back soon. That he'd take me south with him and that we'd get to spend time together. But he never came back. King Robert promised me he'd come back to visit and I didn't see him again for thirteen years."

"You have a right to be bitter, Helaena." Catelyn told me. "But maybe something happened that changed his plans."

"It's not hard to send a raven, my lady." I pointed out.

Catelyn smiled slightly despite herself. She turned and gestured to the tavern. "Come on inside, Helaena. Ser Rodrik has already found us a table and is probably wondering what's become of us." I sighed heavily and started for the tavern, and Catelyn actually patted me when I walked past her.

Lady Catelyn and I didn't mention to Ser Rodrik about what we talked about outside, and for the most part we ate our dinner in silence, so that no nosy travelers could hear and report to the queen what we had gone down to King's Landing for.

The next morning showed a drastic change in Lady Catelyn's feelings towards me. We rode side by side for a while, leaving Ser Rodrik behind as Catelyn tried to talk to me about what it was like for me to grow up in Winterfell. I wanted to point out that she had been there so she technically should've known, but I didn't. It was a nice change of pace for Catelyn to be treating me this differently. But all the while, I couldn't help but wonder if she and Lord Eddard had spoken about me in that brothel, and if that was the reason she was trying to be so kind.

There was an inn on the crossroad simply known as just that, and we decided to stay there for the night. Ser Rodrik got us a table with Lady Catelyn while I dragged the horses into the stable. By the time I was finished and inside of the inn, there was a minstrel sitting at the table with Catelyn and Rodrik, singing a song and strumming his lyre.

"Excuse me?" I interrupted the minstrel's song. The man turned around and looked me up and down before cracking a wide and white smile at me.

"Why, you're excused, my fair maiden." He said, drawing out his words. I frowned deeply at him as he stood up and made a grand gesture of giving me his seat. I caught Catelyn's eye and rolled mine. "Shall I sing the popular, Bear and the Maiden Fair?"

"No." I snapped.

At the exact same time, Ser Rodrik said, "I'd rather throw myself down a well."

The door to the inn creaked open loudly. Naturally, I turned to see who had entered, and I froze when I saw that it was none other than Tyrion Lannister. Lady Catelyn and Ser Rodrik saw him as well and we all tried to duck and make ourselves as invisible as possible.

The minstrel, however, cried out when he recognized the Imp. "My lord of Lannister! Perhaps I could sing for you the song of your father's victory of King's Landing?"

"Nothing would ruin my appetite more." Tyrion said with snark. There was a heavy pause and then I felt the burn of someone staring at me. "Lady Stark! What an unexpected pleasure. I am sorry to have missed you at Winterfell."

The atmosphere of the inn changed drastically. Suddenly, every eye in the inn was on our table, waiting to see if Catelyn really was the lady of the North. Lady Catelyn turned slowly to face Tyrion Lannister. And then she stood up, removing her hood to reveal her dark auburn hair. Ser Rodrik stood up as well and I followed suit, keeping my hand on my dagger the same way he was keeping his hand on his sword.

"I was still Catelyn Tully the last time I stayed here." Lady Catelyn began. She looked off and her eyes landed on a young man near the bar. "You. Is that the black bat of Harrenhal I see on your coat?"

"It is, my lady," The young man said, standing up.

"And is Lady Whent a loyal friend to my father, Lord Hoster Tully of Riverrun?"

"She is."

Catelyn's gaze went to the next group of men, and I started to get where she was going with this. "The red stallion was always a welcome sight at Riverrun. My father considers Lord Bracken to be one his oldest friends."

"My lord is honored by his trust."

And then the next group. "I know your sigil as well. The twin towers of Frey. How fare's your lord?"

"All is well, my lady. He plans to invite your father to his ninetieth name day; he plans to take another wife."

Tyrion let out a laugh at that. I glared at the dwarf, which he didn't notice. Catelyn turned herself around until she was facing Tyrion again. She pointed one of her injured fingers at him. "This man came into my home as a guest. And there he planned to murder my son; my ten year old son. In the name of King Robert and the good lords you serve, I command you to seize this man and take him to Winterfell, so that he can face the king's justice."

All at once, every man who Catelyn had called upon stood from their chairs and drew their swords, pointing them at Tyrion Lannister, who stood between all of them, powerless to stop what was happening to him.