A/N: Out a day early as promised because we'll be leaving early tomorrow for our holiday to Edinburgh.

Keep an eye on the brackets next to the pov names (7x02) for the next several chapters as it'll show you whereabouts in canon we are at the moment. Right now you should easily be able to recognise the scenes from the show, but it will start becoming more AU again very soon.

Jon VII

Winterfell (Set during 7x01)

"Oh, Jon."

Daenerys' voice cracked with emotion, fingers tracing the scar around his heart as he finished telling her how he had received it. They had spent hours in her bed talking, mostly focusing on Jon's story with Dany adding a few things about her life whenever it seemed relevant. They would now have two days and a night to themselves - otherwise they would never get any sleep - but they had needed to have this conversation today, especially in light of Melisandre's visit and then, next time, it would be her turn to relate everything to him. Well, as much as she was able. Despite tonight's long talk, Jon had to admit that he'd only scratched the surface of his life since the two of them had parted.

"Nine years worth of news," he said, "and that's not taking into account how little we really talked when we were children." He huffed a laugh. "You didn't even know I was a Snow."

"You didn't even know I was a Targaryen until you were … thirteen?"

He nodded. "I suspected it a little earlier than that but, aye, back then we were just children and playing was always far more important."

"So, were you born in the north?" she asked him.

"No. I'm not sure where exactly, only that my father returned to Winterfell with me after the war."

"So why Snow and not one of the southern names?"

"It's not a hard and fast rule," he replied. "It depends on a lot of things and my father obviously thought it made more sense considering where I was to grow up."

She frowned. "I still wish I could work out who your mother was but … I guess we'll never know."

"You're certain she must have been Targaryen?"

"I can't see how you can utilise this magic otherwise and the more I think about it, the more Targaryen you seem to me."

"Oh?"

"Stubborn, determined, barely controlled rage bubbling just below the surface? Sound familiar?"

He pulled a face. "Aye. Just a bit."

"And then there's our famed beauty and warrior spirit." She moved her hand lower then, tracing in-between the scars to caress the pronounced muscles at this abdomen. "You certainly have a warrior's body, Jon, and I would love to see you in action some time but ..." She froze for a moment, as the strangest thought flitting in and out of her head before she could fully grasp hold of it.

"What is it?"

She shook her head. "I'm not sure. Just a memory of something – someone. I did see you train of course but only when you were much younger. I'm just trying to remember when that was."

Jon sighed. "I was so certain of my abilities when I went to the Wall. Cocksure." He pulled a face. "Gods, how they put up with me when I first arrived I have no idea, but the truth of it is that I learnt most of my craft up there - first with the Night's Watch and then with the Wildlings - and, truthfully, I'm sick of it. The fighting? I have the ability - so people say - but I don't enjoy it."

She frowned again. "The same was said of my brother." She looked at him again, those flashes of faint childhood memories hopping in and out of her head and confusing her.

"What is it?"

She shook her head. "Never mind. We should sleep now, I think. Or you could return to Winterfell on your own?"

"No," he replied promptly, leaning down to kiss her. "I think I'll have you one more time and then let the magic take me back."

"Again?" she asked, blinking in surprise.

"Hmm," he said, lowering his head to nuzzle at her neck. "Unless you would prefer me to leave?"

Gods, what had she done to deserve this? To deserve him? "No, you can definitely stay for a little longer." She giggled as his lips started to trail lower, his hands stroking and squeezing her breasts. "That's another Targaryen trait, you know?"

"Hmm?" he asked, his mouth currently occupied at her stomach.

"The insatiable appetite of the dragon." His reply was no more than a muffled scoff. "And, Gods you are so good at this."

He lifted his head briefly to smirk at her. "An ability I have that I do enjoy then. That's good to know." And then he was back between her legs whilst Dany fought with the conflicting desire to just lie back and enjoy it, or order him to move so she could satisfy her own hunger.

Making her decision she pulled away from him, laughing at his complaint and pathetic pout at her apparently denying him. "Lie on your back," she demanded.

He raised an eyebrow at her commanding tone. "Your Grace?"

"Are you going to deny your queen's request, Jon Snow?"

"Depends what the request is," he replied, although he was already moving to do her bidding, quite obviously curious. Thankfully they had both warmed up enough by now and so Dany straddled him in reverse, her knees on either side of his shoulders as she began to lay down gently on top of him, exposing herself to him completely as she slid down his body and immediately took his cock in her mouth. "Ah ..." Jon bucked his hips in surprise, before his gasp turned into a contented groan and she felt him readjust a little, hands tugging her hips towards him a little before his mouth was back on her again, both of them now suckling at each other. She slowly, lazily pulled her lips up his length, tongue and teeth teasing, before briefly releasing him.

"Do you hate me very much for suggesting this?"

"Only if you keep stopping," he replied, gasping.

"You want to finish like this?" she asked.

"Do you?"

She didn't reply, simply taking him back in her mouth, speeding up her movements and trying not to get distracted by her own pleasure as Jon continued to work her in turn.

She loved the sounds he was making now he was close, the way his hands grabbed at her hips and his body squirmed underneath her and yet, he wasn't letting that distract him, his tongue now deep inside her - a fair substitute for his cock seeing how flexible it was - and discovering secret, sensitive places Dany hadn't even known were there. All the same, she managed to finish him off first, ignoring his warning and happily swallowing him down whilst he gripped her firmly, refusing to let go until he'd got his breath back. He then returned to his task, dragging her hips up higher until she was straddling his neck and using both tongue and fingers until she was crying out his name and almost sobbing in relief.

"You all right?" he asked as he noticed her wince as she moved off him.

"Oh, yes," she gasped, snuggling up against him, her fingers lightly playing with the ring around his neck.

"I hurt you?"

"I'll have a few bruises on my hips perhaps, but I'm not complaining." He took a deep breath, most likely to start apologising. "I mean it, Jon. I enjoyed that and I've marked you in a few places too these last couple of nights. I think it's only right that we both fully claim the other as ours, don't you?" She felt him still then, knowing him well enough to sense his uncertainty even when she couldn't see his expression. "What is it?"

"We've not even met," he said. "You and I have not actually been in the same place all this time."

"I don't think this is an illusion, Jon. You are actually, physically here with me now, even though it's not possible for you to remain for long. It's like ... you're tied by a chord to Winterfell, stretching it tight until you relax into sleep and it drags you back home."

"Yes, that describes the feeling very well. And if we do meet officially?"

"I think we will have to at some point, don't you?"

"Aye." He sighed. "Honestly, I'd be riding or sailing to you just as fast as I could if I wasn't needed up there for other things."

"Well, I'll get Tyrion to send you that letter and we'll take it from there. As you said, we've both got people who rely on us and have our own priorities to deal with first but, who knows, maybe this Dragon Door will be useful to one both of our battles later on."

~o~0~o~

Jon X

Winterfell (7x02)

They had talked quite a bit more that night before Jon finally fell asleep, and his first order of business the following morning was to test an idea they'd discussed about leaving each other notes rather than crossing over themselves at inconvenient times. So, as soon as he woke up, Jon headed outside and crouched down by the Dragon Door, quickly spotting the edge of the scroll poking out under the corner of the door, far too small for anyone to notice casually. He unfurled it, grinning as he saw the small dragon Dany had drawn on it before pushing his own trial note back through for her to collect, trying to judge how far it needed to go. Then he returned to the room, jotting down all the relevant points from their conversation at his desk along with a few other thoughts that appeared in his head, and very quickly lost track of time.

In the end Davos had to come down to collect him, looking confused about his king's obsession for his childhood room and eyeing him suspiciously as he moved closer.

"Why do you not just move chambers if you prefer it down here?" he asked.

Jon shook his head. "I like to have somewhere to hide away, nowadays," he replied. "Still not entirely comfortable in this new role of mine, after all."

"If you say so, but I wondered if there might be ... some other reason?"

"Such as?" he asked, still writing.

"A girl perhaps?"

Jon looked up from his notes with a start, shocked at Davos' fairly accurate guess. "What?"

The man flicked a hand across his own neck, nodding towards Jon. "Just noticed the marks there and ..." He swallowed as Jon glared at him. "None of my business, of course, although I thought perhaps you should be aware that they are currently quite visible and … specific."

Jon shook his head, sighing deeply. "Aye. Thanks for telling me. I know I can rely on your discretion?"

"You can, of course."

"Good." He put his quill down, rolled the parchment and placed it in the wooden box on his desk, before standing up and adjusting the shirt he was wearing, pulling the collar of it a little higher and bunching it under the fur of his cloak. "Now that task is complete I had better get on, I suppose. See what complaints my sister and the lords have for me today."

~o~0~o~

The official letter from Daenerys, written by Tyrion Lannister, arrived a couple of days later and Jon showed it to Sansa whilst in the company of Davos, curious to hear their thoughts on the matter whilst also allowing them to influence his own reaction – seeing he wasn't exactly impartial at this point in time.

His sister had been horrified at the idea of her brother even contemplating the invitation, despite agreeing that Tyrion was someone who could be trusted to a certain extent, and it soon became obvious that, from a northern point of view, there was no logical way that Jon could accept right now. However, it was interesting that Davos had quickly latched onto the same thing as he had – that dragons would indeed be a useful weapon to have on their side.

"I got your letter," Jon said with a smile, waving the scroll at Dany as he strode into her living room in Dragonstone later that evening. "Tryion's wording certainly managed to ruffle a few feathers."

"Aw, did they not want their king to bend the knee either?" she teased.

"Ah, it didn't say that." Jon handed it over, wordlessly, watching as she unrolled it and frowned as she took note of the words.

"I most definitely told him to include that bit."

"Why?"

"Why would I not? You and I may be friends, Jon but that still doesn't change the fact that you are rebelling against the Iron Throne, no matter who currently sits on it."

He scoffed. "I think both you and Tyrion need some lessons in tact. I've just received two letters from two queens, both ordering me to drop everything and swear fealty. Yours at least contained some hint of an alliance request but, if your Hand had mentioned knee bending, I can assure you that would have been the end of any negotiation."

"Northern stubbornness?" she asked.

"Aye, and I doubt even this version would have moved me to visit you, even with the temptation of dragons."

"So, what now?"

"We continue our alliance negotiations via the Door, I suppose."

She smirked. "And in bed?"

He laughed. "That could be seen as a problem if it weren't for the fact that both parties are benefiting equally from this relationship."

"Perhaps," Dany replied. "Personally I think I'm getting the better deal. Certainly I'm getting the larger number of rewards."

"That depends on your point of view," Jon said with a sly smile. "Having you squirming underneath me is near as pleasant as being inside you. I'd say we're even enough on that score."

She laughed at his turn of phrase. "Seriously though, Jon, as much as I would like to help, my armies and my dragons are needed for my southern campaign."

He sighed. "I get that, truly I do, although I still don't think you understand just how big a threat the Night King is to the whole realm."

"He's stuck behind the Wall though?"

"For now but ..." Jon shook his head. "It's just the fear, Dany, having seen it all for myself. Knowing that every single person he kills takes away from our side and adds to his. Something a very good friend of mine once said, has stayed with me until this day. 'When they wake up,' he said, 'I hope the Wall is high enough.' I've climbed that Wall, I've watched Wildlings breach the castles and I can tell you for a fact that there are not enough men defending it right now to guarantee it will survive a focused attack by that many."

"Well, you have my word that I will not force the issue of your fealty in the short term. I will happily leave you to focus on your throne and then, once I've defeated Cersei, I will come north to help you." She shook her head. "Although we will need to work out how to explain my doing so without requiring you to bend the knee first."

Jon nodded. "Melisandre wanted us to meet. She wanted us to talk about these things together and, fortunately, the Door allows us to do so without pulling either of us away from our main enemy."

Dany nodded. "All right, so … I think that's enough for this session, don't you? I believe we've made some progress?"

Jon shrugged. "Aye, I suppose we have."

"Good." She smiled slightly. "So, let us now … exchange gifts to honour our tentative alliance and new found understanding."

Jon smirked at her. "No need to by coy, Dany. If you want me to fuck you, you only have to ask."

~o~0~o~

Two nights later, Jon was back in Dragonstone, pacing impatiently as he waited for Dany to arrive, with a scroll in his hand and a small wooden box resting on a nearby table.

He spun around when the door opened, briefly calming as he took note of her - just so beautiful - and she headed towards him with a soft smile, obviously expecting the usual affectionate greeting but pausing as she reached him, her head tipped as she sensed his mood.

"What's the matter?"

"I just received another letter," he replied, handing her the scroll.

"From Cersei?"

He scoffed, trying not to make some negative comment about how single-minded she was about the southern queen. It wasn't as if he was in a position to criticise her for being obsessed with an enemy, after all.

"No, from my good friend Samwell Tarly at Old Town."

"The Citadel?"

"Aye. He's training to be a maester and I asked him to look for information whilst he was there." Jon nodded at the scroll she was still holding. "Read it."

She unrolled it, biting her lip as she read the words, her head tipping to one side as she looked at the small diagram Sam had drawn. "Dragonglass?"

"Aye and you've already seen it here on the island, I know."

"I have?"

He nodded, moving to the small box, opening it and then fishing out the small piece of black treasure she had gifted him all those years ago.

"I ..." She moved forward to the open box, smiling as she understood what it was. "You kept all this … rubbish?"

"They were gifts," he replied with a frown, offended by her choice of word.

She laughed lightly, coming forward and reaching up to kiss him on the cheek. "Is it any wonder I thought I'd made you up, Jon Snow."

He shook his head. "That's not why I brought it over though. This letter says this island has a mine, you see, and dragonglass destroys White Walkers and is an effective weapon against Wights too. We lost a huge cache of it north of the Wall and now have so little left."

"So … you do need to come over here," she said. "Or …?"

"It needs to be mined and fashioned into weapons so, yes, I could come or …" Jon frowned and lifted up the piece still held in his hand. "Objects can move between places and they stay where they're left, unlike us, so the other option would be for us to pass it over from Dragonstone to Winterfell via the Door."

Dany gaped at him. "I suppose ..." She shook her head. "I may not feel able to spare my whole army to take to your fight but, a few men to mine this glass. I believe I could give that a go except ..."

"Aye," Jon said, having already thought of the problems. "We still have the issue of how we're going to explain all of this. It's all very well us negotiating and perhaps passing a few sacks of dragonglass over the threshold but, ultimately questions are going to be asked. We are no longer little children, after all. We are king and queen and both of us need to remain to reign effectively. Davos is already suspicious of my obsession regarding my old chambers and ..." He grinned at her, tipping his head back to show her just how visibly she had marked his neck. "… my secret lover."

"Seriously? He thinks that's why you've set up your old room?"

"Isn't it?" he asked, smirking.

"Huh! Nothing so straight forward as that. Fine. No more joking around about negotiations in bed, Jon. Let's sit down at the table and talk about all of this. Really talk."

"So, no rewards tonight?" he asked as he moved to sit down.

"If we make some meaningful progress then, perhaps."

He grinned at her as he took a seat at the desk, knowing full well that neither of them would be able to walk away from the other tonight, no matter how important this conversation was going to be.

~o~0~o~

"We're still going around in circles," Jon complained some time later. "We have to think how this would actually work if we didn't know each other. I've just discovered that you have dragons, armies and dragonglass, everything I need to help me win my fight, and your letter, despite the hint of threat contained within, is effectively suggesting an alliance."

"Would you come then?" she asked. "If you didn't know me at all?"

"Before I got Sam's letter, no. Now?" He sighed. "They would all hate it but, aye, I think that now it would be worth the risk." He shook his head. "It's almost impossible to know if I'm letting … 'this' effect my thoughts though."

"Fortunately, you don't have to abandon your people in order to come and talk to me."

"No, but I think I should still reply to you officially."

She nodded. "What will you say?"

"I need this alliance with you. I need to keep you onside despite refusing your invitation to visit. So, what can I do? How should I answer this without offending you?"

Dany nodded, understanding this strange game they were now having to play. "What do you have that I need?"

"Only what you have already asked for. For me to take your side over Cersei's."

"You northerners have no wish for the Iron throne?" she asked.

"What? No. We're just getting fed up with being told to bow to one monarch or another."

"And yet, winter is here. How do you hope to survive if you make an enemy of the southern ruler?"

He nodded. "You're right. We can't. One way or another we have to come to terms. You either have to allow us a certain amount of autonomy or I have to bend the knee. I can't see that any other option will bring the north peace … or food, as you said."

Dany nodded. "I have done that to a certain extent with Yara and Theon Greyjoy and allowed-"

"-Wait! What? Theon?"

"Yes." She smirked.

"You recognised him?"

"Not at first. I didn't really interact with him much in Winterfell, after all, but Tyrion knew him far better and mentioned enough things about him for me to put it all together."

"He's with you now? Here on Dragonstone?"

"He's part of my alliance and … close by," she replied cautiously. "But … let's get back to the main point here, Jon. The one thing I can give you now is time. Currently you're of no threat to me whilst Cersei most certainly is and, quite honestly, she is keeping me busy enough right now anyway."

"So, I just have to ensure that you keep viewing me that way. Be openly polite and apologise for not being able to visit because of the threat I'm facing?"

She nodded. "It'll be interesting to see what my advisors make of your talk of White Walkers and the Night King. Yes, Jon, tell me of your war and your hope that I will vanquish Cersei. Say you also wish for an alliance so we can help each other out." She shook her head. "We're still missing something though. Honestly, how can I take you seriously? What's to stop me thinking that you're simply biding your time until you come up with a way to defeat me?"

The answer hit him all of a sudden and he looked up at her wide eyed, forcing himself to keep a straight face. "I can offer you a different sort of alliance."

"What do you mean?"

"A marriage alliance."

She gaped at him for a moment before her lips twitched slightly. "If that was supposed to be a proposal, Jon, I have to admit that I'm most disappointed."

He grinned. "It would work though, yes? If we're married then there won't have to be any direct bending of the knee, which will satisfy the northern sensibilities and yet, you will also be guaranteed my full support."

"The King in the North hasn't even met me though," she said. "He knows nothing other than a few rumours, and I doubt those that have reached Winterfell are especially flattering?"

He pulled a face. "You're right. They'll all think me brave, foolhardy or both but then … that's nothing new."

She was thoughtful for a moment. "My advisors might say that I could make a better match. That the circumstances of your birth make you unworthy of a queen and yet ..."

"And yet?"

"If you were to suggest this marriage alliance then I would have to be honest and explain that I couldn't give you an heir. How would that go down with you and the north?"

He frowned. "As a bastard and then a man of the Night's Watch, I accepted long ago that children were not in my future. I'm sure many will question us about heirs but it doesn't have to be all about descendants. I would name Sansa as mine and I'm sure you can find someone worthy to succeed you too." He shook his head. "Honestly, the danger we face from both sides means there's no guarantee that any of us will survive this winter anyway. However, a successful alliance now really is the only way of giving us some fighting chance."

"Fine," she agreed. "Scribe your letter with that in mind and we'll take it from there. We'll keep negotiating our alliance officially via raven whilst you deal with your issues and I deal with mine." She frowned, her mind obviously drifting.

"Do you want to talk about any of that?" he asked.

She shook her head smiling. "It's fine. It's mostly sorted now, I think. I've met with my allies and we're putting things into motion."

"Oh?"

She grinned at him. "Ah, but you and I are not allies yet, so you don't get to know all of my plans. Now, about that proposition of yours?"

"Ah, yes?"

She smiled. "Am I your queen, Jon Snow?"

He stood and moved to her side of the table, taking her hands in his and urging her to stand. "I wish for the King in the North and Queen Daenerys Targaryen to be allies, aye. I wish us to support each other in all our battles but also I … I love you, Dany and I really do want to marry you."

"Jon ..." She was staring up at him, eyes wide and lips slightly parted.

"Tell me I'm not being selfish here and am genuinely thinking of what is best for everyone?" He tipped his head, curious as to her thoughts at that moment.

"You love me?"

"Aye. For as long as I can remember."

She reached up to put a hand on his cheek, a soft smile on her lips as she gazed at him. "I love you too, Jon and I also worry about letting our relationship get in the way of everything we're doing here but to be honest, right at this moment, I can hardly bring myself to care."

And then they were kissing, hands fumbling at ties and fastenings, working to undress as quickly as possible and reward each other for a most successful negotiation.

~o~0~o~

A/N: Chapter 11 should be out as usual next Sunday, depending on when we get back from north of The Wall. :P It's a long drive up there, you see, as I live just about as far south as south goes in this realm! :D

I know people were expecting Jon and Dany to meet at Dragonstone as usual but, as I was plotting this out, I just couldn't see why Jon would risk leaving Winterfell when he knew they could already talk. Of course, that one decision will now start pulling us away from canon and this is the bit I was fretting about earlier in the year when I kept putting this fic to one side, thinking I couldn't make it work.

Of course, most of the rest of the storylines are unaffected by this. Dany's troops are already on the march, Cersei continues to plot and Arya and Bran are still travelling. It's like ripples on a pond though, as more and more canon plots will start to be influenced by this one change. Any thoughts about what might happen from now on?

I included images of the actual show letters on AO3 and then realised they wouldn't show here so made a couple of minor tweaks so it all made sense. Hope that worked.

I will be taking my phone and work Tablet with me on holiday so I'll still be contactable - just won't have time for any serious writing or editing. I've also recently re-discovered my old, neglected instagram account so you might like to follow me there or on Twitter to see pictures from my travels (jaqtkd for both) xxx