I'm writing this part as the new trailer for Season 7 has been released, and OH MY GOD I CAN'T WAIT! Grey Worm taking Casterly Rock, more of Dragonstone, Jon attacking Baelish, Arya in the North, Ellaria and Yara, Dragons and Dothraki charging. It's too much I can't deal! The coolest thing for me was either the Ironborn ship on fire or the Dothraki jumping off their horses.

But anyway, still over a month to go before it's released, and I have a new chapter for you! As ever I only own Roland.


285 AC

The first few months of Roland's time in charge of the Vale ran fairly smoothly. Ilene had settled in to the mountaintop castle and had been put in charge of running the household, finances and roles that helped the Castle Steward, while Roland kept himself in charge of diplomatic and martial matters that affected the Vale. He kept regular correspondence with Jon, asking advice on matters he wasn't sure about. The last message from King's Landing explained that Dorne had fully come back into the fold after Jon's successful mission to Sunspear, which was a relief.

He was grateful to have the experience of the Blackfish to call upon too, the Tully knight was a valuable sparring partner, and a refreshing voice too, never afraid to speak his mind while remaining respectful to the Arryn Lord. Roland travelled down to the Bloody Gate at least once a week for a chance to spar and chat with the Knight, and it was arriving back from one of these trips where his life changed again forever.

It was almost dusk when he arrived back at the Eyrie, and he immediately went to the High Hall to eat. Walking into the room he noticed Ilene and Lynora were sat waiting for him.

"Lady Ilene, Mother. You didn't have to wait for me." Roland said.

"We wanted to, we know you've been busy and we wanted to make sure you relaxed tonight." Lynora smiled. Roland grinned appreciatively and sat down in the Lords chair. Food was brought, and Roland tucked in ravenously, but noticed that Ilene wasn't touching much of her dinner.

"Are you ok?" Roland asked her.

"Sorry? Oh, yes My Lord. I'm fine." Ilene said, before noticing his concerned expression. "Truly I am, I just have something to tell you later. Finish your meal."

Roland was concerned but finished his food anyway, Lynora left the married couple to take a walk around the castle, and they found themselves in the gardens. Roland looked over at the statue of his ancestor, Alyssa Arryn, the woman who saw her husband, brothers and children all killed before her eyes and did not shed a tear. "My Father always said that the Seven punished Alyssa Arryn for not weeping, and that is why Alyssa's Tears don't reach the ground. I think she was a marvellous woman though, so strong in the face of such horror."

Ilene nodded, looking at her husband hopefully. "Maybe we can name our child Alyssa, and she will grow up to be strong as her namesake."

It took a moment, but Roland finally understood the meaning of what Ilene had said. "You… you're with child?"

"I am. Maester Ryman says it's to be a girl." Ilene said nervously. "Are you mad he hasn't predicted a son?"

"Mad?" Roland laughed incredulously. "How can I be mad? You're gifting me with the most precious gift in the worlds." Ilene visibly relaxed at this, and Roland brought her into a fierce hug before snapping back, away from Ilene. "That won't have hurt her, will it?"

"No." Ilene chuckled. "I'm not so delicate that you can't embrace me, husband."

"Good." Roland grinned, hugging Ilene. They stood together in front of the statue of Alyssa for some time, enjoying the quiet of the gardens, and the candlelight that made it possible to see anything and Roland had never been happier.

"You must write to your father, and Ned." Ilene told him.

"Aye, they will be overjoyed." Roland grinned. "My mother knows then I presume?"

"I needed someone's advice when the sickness began." Ilene said. "She was the only one I knew you trusted, she was beside herself with joy." Roland laughed at the image.

"We shall have a feast in celebration!" He decided. "And you must begin to hand out tasks, your health is paramount now My Lady."

"I'm not an invalid." Ilene said fiercely. "I will decide when to stop working."

Roland could see she was not backing down, and sighed defeatedly before a smile was back on his face. "How sure was the Maester?"

"That I'm pregnant? There is no denying, I've been hiding the small bump for a few weeks now. That she's a girl? He said we will be able to tell more by how the bump grows, but he's convinced you are to have a daughter." Ilene explained. All sorts of images ran through his head of a little girl with blonde hair and blue eyes running around the gardens, and again felt the happiest he had ever felt.


The happiness lasted little over a week before the first test of Roland's tenure as Lord of the Vale showed itself. Roland was sat in his solar going over some land boundary issues when Maester Ryman burst into the room.

"Lord Arryn! Lord Arryn! There is a man from the market town here to see you, he claims they've been attacked!"

Roland sprang out of his seat. "What? Where is this man."

"In the Throne Room, My Lord." And with that Roland rushed over to speak to this man.

It still felt strange sitting in his Father's Weirwood Throne, but ignoring his lack of comfort, he looked down at the man down below.

"You have something to report friend? Please, don't be shy." Roland said kindly.

"Milord, the clans." He stammered. "They came just after dawn; we'd set it all up ready for the day and they came."

"The clans?" Nestor Royce asked. "Which clans?"

"A… All of them milord." The man said, and this caused Roland to sit up in concern.

"All of them? Impossible, you can't get three clans together without them killing one another." Roland said.

"I swear to all the Gods, all of them came. I ran straight here as soon as they came." The man sobbed. "My friends…"

"Lord Royce, gather as many men as you can, we will go to the town at once." Roland commanded. "Get this man some food and wine too. My friend, I swear to you that the clans will pay for their treachery."

"My family, we live in the next village along, I don't know what's happened to them and they must be worried…" The man trailed.

"Ser Vardis will escort you back to your village to see your family. Tell them of your courage and bravery today. They will be proud."

"I ran though." The man sobbed. Roland made his way down the steps quickly, stepping in front of the town man and laying a hand sympathetically on his shoulder.

"You ran to warn us, so that those in power can do something about it. Running isn't always a bad thing, running saved your life, and possibly the lives of countless others." Roland smiled, showing the man the direction to the High Hall. "Maester, prepare ravens to all the Lords of the Vale, if it is true that all the clans have joined together, we will root them out mountain by mountain. I will need the support of the Vale."

"At once, My Lord." Maester Ryman bowed, leaving Roland to prepare himself.


Nestor gathered 500 men, and after collecting the Blackfish on the way through the Bloody Gate, they made their way to the market town to find the place completely destroyed. Roland knew that the man had been right, and that all the mountain clans had been involved by what was left behind. There were men and women cowering in one building, ears cut off from the Black Ears. Corpses nailed to trees by the Sons of the Tree. Tongues cut out and thrown in a pile from the Howlers, and the Burned Men had gathered people in the local Sept, which was now a pile of ash and rubble.

"Go and help those people over there." Roland ordered some of his men towards the victims of the Black Ears. "Nestor, take some men and give them over there proper burials. Then do the same for any other dead you can find." He said, pointing over to the trees.

"At once, My Lord."

Roland then went over to the Sept, and knelt before it taking in the horror of the situation. The Blackfish came with him.

"The Burned Men have the centre piece; they must have united the clans." Roland said.

"It seems that way."

"So many people under my protection, dead." Roland sighed, a tear escaping his eye.

"You cannot blame yourself." The Blackfish insisted. "Use this to fuel your anger, the clans have done this because they think you weak. Prove them wrong."

"Oh I will." Roland snarled. "They will pay for their crimes here today."

"Good." The Blackfish smirked. Roland made his way over to his men.

"I know you all came here for a fight, but these are your brothers and sisters here that have been massacred by the clans! It is our duty to help them find peace. Bury the dead, give them their last rites. We will find the evil that did this I swear to you by the Seven, and we will have our fight!"

Men immediately got to work, and Ser Nestor came over to Roland, concerned. "My Lord, we've found something."

Going over to where Nestor had been, he was pleased to see an injured clansman being held by two Vale Knights. Roland immediately went up to the clansman. "You attacked this town?"

"Aye." The clansman said after a moment of silence, his tongue loosening after a punch from a Valeman.

"Why?"

"To show you, the clans are strong. The clans will take what is rightfully ours."

"Who is leading?" Roland asked, and the man stayed silent again. This time Roland threw the punch. "Answer me now."

"The Burned Men." The clansman spat. "They gave us steel; we gave them men."

"Where do the Burned Men get steel from?" Roland asked Nestor.

"They don't." Nestor said, looking at a confiscated weapon in anger. "Not in this quality."

"Someone is supplying them then?" Roland said, cursing in his mind. "Take him to the Sky Cells, we will question him more later."


Lords and Ladies from across the Vale had either come themselves or sent representatives to the Eyrie in response to the Clan problem, although none of them seemed to take it seriously even after news of more and more towns being slaughtered filtered through. Banging on the large table in the council room, Roland managed to quieten everyone.

"I understand that this seems needless. The clans have hardly threatened for thousands of years but this is different! The Burned Men have united the clans, that much is a given. Never before have they posed this much of a threat. We either need to treat with them and see what they want, or exterminate them once and for all." He announced. Murmuring grew in the room before Lyn Corbray spoke.

"The Mountain Clans don't have the numbers, weapons or armour to threaten us! They are no threat to us."

Roland sighed. "They may not be a threat to you, sitting behind castle walls and archers, but I saw a town that had been put to the torch. A sept burnt, men and women mutilated. The smallfolk are the ones that will suffer, and under my rule that will never go unpunished."

"Then send a small squad to smoke them out of their caves, why summon all of us?" Petyr Baelish, the young lord of Baelish Keep asked.

"Because, Lord Baelish." Roland began, nodding to the Blackfish in the corner to come forward and throw the sword recovered from the Black Ear down on the table. "This is the sort of weaponry that they have been given."

The room fell into silence as they took in the castle forged steel. "Impossible." Lord Royce said shocked.

"Castle forged steel has found its way to the Clans in numbers. This isn't the trophy of a raid; this was a gift." Roland announced. "We need to deal with this. Somebody wishes to see the end of the Vale as we know it."

"Aye." Was the call from the room.

"What would you have us do, Lord Arryn?" Lyn Corbray asked.

"Send messages to your castles, bring as many men as you can to the Gates of the Moon. We will hunt the Clans mountain by mountain if we have to, but we will see an end to the raiding once and for all." Roland said, to the cheers of the men and women in the room.


It was a different type of warfare to what Roland was used to. Whereas in Robert's Rebellion is was sieging cities or fighting in the open, the Mountain War was often fought on narrow passes, and not leading to any definitive results. It had taken 5 months to root out the Black Ears from their hideouts. 5 long months of blood, anger and everything involved with war. Roland missed his wife, he missed his mother, and wanted to be home. Ilene would be giving birth soon and he prayed to all the Gods that he would be able to make it on time.

The final battle was the bloodiest yet. Hundreds died trying to push through the bottleneck that was the entrance to the Black Ear caves, and finally when they pushed through the Knights of the Vale bled as many Black Ears as they could find. Roland strolled into the cave as the fighting was waning, and was surprised to have a man, woman and a fierce little girl thrown at his feet.

"Milord, this one says he's the chief." A Vale knight said.

"Very good." Roland said pleased. "What is your name?"

"Cheyk, son of Chayle." Cheyk spat.

"I am Roland, son of Jon." Roland said. "Tell me what you know of why you are doing this, and I may let you live."

"You killed my son Roland, son of Jon." Cheyk spat. "I only have a daughter now."

"If you had stayed in your hole in the mountains, you would still have a son." Roland said unyielding. Now tell me what you know or I will kill you."

"No." Cheyk spat.

"Very well. Take his ear." Roland nodded to a knight, who complied. Cheyk screamed in pain. "Now will you talk?"

"Andal scum. Timmett, son of Timmett leads us. Threatens us if we don't. Made us fight with the Stone Crows." Cheyk scowled in pain.

"Very good, which Mountain houses the Burned Men?" Roland asked.

"I'll show you." Cheyk sighed, defeated.

"Good, is your family here?" Roland asked.

"Yes."

"Ser Brynden, see to it that Cheyk's family are well looked after at the Bloody Gate, we will hang on to them until the rest of the clans either surrender or are defeated."

"At once, My Lord." The Blackfish nodded.

"I claim this Mountain in the name of Jon, Lord of the Vale." Roland announced to Cheyk. "Your fight is over." Cheyk looked to the floor, defeated in shame.

Roland walked out the mountain, and gathered Nestor, Yohn and the Blackfish. "I will personally escort Cheyk to the Eyrie, he can stay in the Sky Cells for the rest of the war. I leave the armies of the Vale in your hands gentleman, I need to see my wife and child."

"Of course, My Lord." Yohn bowed. "I pray mother and child are well."

"As do I, Yohn." Roland chuckled. "I will leave at dawn."


The ride back to the Eyrie was tiring, and all Roland wanted to do was sleep in his bed and make sure Ilene was safe and healthy. He grew concerned when he noticed that neither Ilene or Lynora seemed to be around to greet him as they arrived at the Eyrie. He put that to one side however as Cheyk was dragged into the castle.

"Throw him into the sky cells, I'll question him properly soon." Roland ordered, and Ser Vardis Egen nodded, dragging the clansman away to the cells. The Arryn Lord then went searching for his wife.

He found a servant who told him the news. Ilene had gone into labour the day before and the Maester and Lynora were with her. Rushing up to his wife's rooms he found her door locked so he began knocking fiercely on the door. His mother came outside.

"Rolly! Keep it down!" Lynora scolded.

"I want to see my wife, how is she, how is the baby?" Roland asked quickly, causing Lynora to try and calm him.

"Lady Ilene is fine; the baby is fine they are just resting at the moment." Lynora smiled. "You have a healthy daughter."

Roland broke out into a grin, and thanked the Gods silently. "I have a daughter…" He repeated.

"And a beauty too, she looks like you." Lynora smiled.

"Poor girl." Roland chuckled. "When can I see them?"

"Now, if you're quiet." Lynora said, and led him inside after Roland's agreement. Maester Ryman was inside checking on Ilene who was lying on her bed, fast asleep. Roland would check on her later, but all his attention was on the little basket with bundles of furs inside to the side of the bed. He gingerly made his way over, and gazed upon the form of his new born daughter. He was in awe as she looked up at him with the same shade of blue as he had himself, and he instantly fell in love with the small baby.

"Can I hold her?" He whispered to the Maester. "How do I hold her?" He added, chuckling softly.

"Like this, look." Lynora said, picking up the baby and showing him how she was holding her. Roland took the baby in the same way, and grinned at the way the baby nestled into his chest.

"Have you got a name, My Lord? Lady Ilene said you had thought of one, but wouldn't say until you got back." Maester Ryman asked.

"Lady Alyssa Arryn." Roland told him. "Maester, go and announce to the King, Lord Stark and all the Lords and Ladies of the Vale. Lady Alyssa Arryn has been born."


I'm so sorry the wait was so long! I had most of the chapter written over a week ago but it's my last week at uni and I've spent most of it with my girlfriend, who I won't see for a couple of months now. It's finally finished though, and now I'm done with uni for the summer!

I hope I got the clans right, they're attacking towns in strength as they now have weapons and armour that can actually damage the Lords of the Vale.

And Roland has a baby girl! Alyssa is probably the most famous girls name in Arryn history, so Roland chose that.

Please continue to leave reviews if you have anything to say. I really do love reading them all.

Reviews:

TMI Fairy: Thank you!

serenity000: In the show, it looks like the only way to the Eyrie is via the Bloody Gate, it doesn't really show any other way to get there and remember this is a show fic. In any case, it's such a minor part of the story it really doesn't matter too much.

The Mikaelson Cupcake: She was given the 3rd steward trait and selfish, authoritative, trusting and honourable. In terms of actresses, I'd say in my eyes she's more of an Eva Green when she's older, and a 'thinner faced' Kristen Stewart/Kat Dennings for now.

WeylandCorp 4: She's not really an OC in terms of the character, but more as a personality. Yeah I love the game, it's my go to for any family queries I have in terms of ASOIAF.

: Considering you last told me to 'fuck myself' because of a vital story element you didn't like I'm glad you've toned your responses down. I'll have a chapter on the Greyjoy Rebellion, then another on Lannisport afterwards. All major story points have already been decided and while your story is a good one, it's not where I'm going with it.

Kingbismarck: A full chapter on the rebellion, a full chapter on the Tourney of Lannisport.

alec-potter: She's not really OC, it's canon that Anya Waynwood has 6 children, the three sons are named and the daughters I got from CK2. Her personality I'm trying to keep in line with her character traits as well, rather than create something brand new. So far the only OC's are Ryman, Roland and Alyssa Arryn.