Side note! The Greywater Watch I am using will be VERY DIFFERENT than the one in Game of Thrones, probably, because the people are very different.
Thanks!
Charlie trotted through the marsh on the back of her favorite mare, not even searching for something, but waiting to be found. The sides of the saddle displayed banners with the symbol of House Lunedor, a black quill pen on a white disk on a deep burgundy field.
The Neck was a boggy mess, and Charlie had to be careful where she went. Fortunately the horse, Spring, was marsh-bred and intuitive, so she would balk when Charlie urged her towards a bad part of the ground, and Charlie would be quick to redirect.
The marsh-men would find her soon enough, she knew. They were probably watching her even now as she picked through the reeds and water.
Her suspicions were correct. A few moments later, a young girl emerged from the marsh, where she had been silently standing. The marshpeople were extraordinarily good at hiding themselves amongst the colors and patterns of the mud and plants of the Neck and this one was no different. The girl was wearing drab brown and gray, a shawl-like covering draped around her shoulders atop a short skirt and high boots. There was a tight binding about her torso and under her arms, wrapping over her shoulders in cross pattern.
"Hello," Charlie said pleasantly. The girl carried a peculiar two-pronged spear, which she held loosely by her side, one end resting on the ground. She said nothing. Charlie shifted uncomfortably on her mare and continued. "I have to speak to the lords at Greywater Watch."
The girl blinked slowly and nodded, then turned and briskly set off along a path through the reeds. Charlie spurred Spring into a walk and followed her, the horse picking her way along a barely visible stable path amongst the boggy pit traps that could ensnare a traveler forever. She had no idea where she was going.
Greywater Watch had no high stone halls, no soft castle beds, no battlements and barricades. Greywater Watch wasn't even strictly a castle- it was a camp, and it moved constantly. Those who attempted to invade the Neck had never succeeded in doing anything but bothering the marshmen, and disturbing their peace. The only reason the Wyrman family and the marshpeople had agreed to be bannermen to the Lunedor family was the Lunedors had promised to try and keep trouble out of the Neck unless they absolutely couldn't. It was a peaceful agreement.
Charlie followed the young girl through the marsh for what seemed like an hour, continuing endlessly past identical splotches of ground and reed patches until she was totally lost. She was intensely grateful for her guide.
All at once she found herself in the midst of a camp. She had passed a bush and suddenly there were beautifully constructed tentlike buildings everywhere.
Charlie didn't even have time to speak before the girl led her to a tent that looked slightly larger than most, and stood waiting at the entrance. Taking the hint, Charlie dismounted Spring and left the reins with the young girl as she ventured into the tent.
There were a few people inside, but most notable was the lady sitting on an ornately carved wooden chair, with rushes strewn about her. She had long dark hair and dark eyes, chocolate brown with flecks of silver.
"Lady Madison," Charlie said, and bowed her head.
"Lady Charlene," Madison Wyrman replied in an equally cool and cordial tone. "What brings you here?"
"We've had a message from Winterfell, about the usurper in the south," Charlie told her. "They're sending down a Celestian to keep watch on the Neck, but she'll need our help."
"Who is it?"
"The princess, Annael." Charlie had deduced this, as Annael was the only direct heir to the throne that was female. Sure, there were cousins, but she was a true princess, sister to the king.
Lady Madison shifted, thinking. She was beautiful, and kind, though she looked sometimes fearsome. Her claws lay to the side of her makeshift throne, and when she smiled, her teeth were sharpened- like many of her house, and many of her people.
Finally, she spoke. "What does the princess need of us?"
"To help her keep watch. We must watch by night- you, specifically. During the day the princess will be able to see through the eyes of her Bondmate and patrol far further than any of us could see." She took a breath. "We're to house her at Moat Cailin."
The lady of the marshes considered this, then nodded. "I will send delegates to the castle," she said after a moment. "I thank you for your swift information."
"I couldn't send a courier," Charlie apologized. "They would have gotten lost."
"As is the point," Lady Madison responded. "Otherwise, we wouldn't be very hidden, would we?"
Charlie smiled. Lady Madison did as well, which was slightly frightening, but Charlie made no comment. The Lady of the Marshes stood and walked out of the tent, snatching up her claws on the way. She dismissed the young girl holding Spring's reins and Charlie mounted her horse. "I'll accompany you back to the road," Madison stated.
Charlie nodded. She nudged Spring and they set off back through the small camp. Within seconds it seemed that they had left it behind, and the sound vanished. The paths back were as convoluted and confusing as the ones in had been, and Charlie was fairly sure that they weren't even the same paths.
When they reached the Kingsroad, Madison held back. "Here you are," she said. She had slipped the claws on while they walked. The claws were really just blades attached to light gauntlets. "Send word when the Celestian arrives."
"Of course." Charlie bowed her head. "Thank you."
"My pleasure."
They stood there for a second more, then both of them mumbled and turned away, Charlie up the Kingsroad and Lady Madison back to the marsh.
