It was dark outside when Cassia opened her eyes. She lay on Theon's bare chest but sat up quickly as she realized the time. Theon groaned underneath her and tried to pull her back towards him, but opened his eyes in surprise to find she had gotten out of bed so quickly.
Cassia tried to brush out the wrinkles in her dress, pinching her cheeks to wake herself up as Theon propped himself up on his elbows, watching her with a sleepy grin.
"I like seeing you in the morning."
Cassia laughed, "It is night in case you haven't noticed."
"Then I enjoy seeing you at night," he teased with a grin, looking at her through the mirror.
She bit her lip to hold back her own wide smile. "I will see you in the Great Hall?"
"If you wait a moment, I will walk with you."
Theon took his time to put on a shirt, which did not bother Cassia much. He almost began to walk out the door, but looked down. "I've worn these pants since yesterday. I should probably change them as well."
"Theon." Cass warned.
He just smirked in reply before leading with her down the hall. "I know you are curious."
Cassia laughed lightly but kept her mouth shut, her red cheeks giving away what Theon had already surmised.
"Had you wanted to tell me something earlier today? You came in all purposeful," Theon stated.
"A lot of things actually. After supper?" Cassia asked as Theon pushed in the oak doors to the Great Hall.
Inside, everyone had sat down to eat, and for once, they were the ones awkwardly plodding through rather than Adaira and Robb. Cassia acted as though nothing were out of the ordinary, while Theon sauntered in his typical fashion
.
Cass tried to catch her sister's eye, but Adaira and Robb had strategically positioned themselves on the other side of the table.
"You missed such fun today, Cassia, Theon," Sansa began before launching into a recounting of Adaira's dance lesson. "Except for the mud. That was rather unpleasant, but once I was able to forget that, we had such a great time."
"I can't remember the last time I danced that dance," Cassia said with a smile. "I'm happy you showed it to them, Daira."
Her younger sister nodded her head politely but said nothing more.
"Robb, did you give her that pendant?" Cassia asked next.
Robb couldn't help but turn a proud smile at that as he nodded, "I think I did well."
"Very well," she agreed. "It's beautiful."
Adaira tried to keep from looking at her sister, knowing that one glance might set her off, but it was growing harder. It was clear enough that the elder girl wanted to make peace, but she had lied to Adaira. More than that, the mere fact that Cassia had feelings for a boy who had been so hateful towards the youngest Devenny her entire life seemed like a slap in the face. How could a sister do such a thing and think everything would return to normal the next day?
As an uncomfortable silence fell over the table, Adaira couldn't take it anymore. She stood abruptly, shrugging off the strange look that Robb gave her.
"I'm not feeling well, excuse me," she added once she had already taken a few steps from the table. As her younger sister disappeared from the hall, Cassia stood, ready to follow her.
"Cass, don't," Robb cautioned, also rising to his feet. "Please. Let me."
"I've known her since she was born. I dried her tears long before you did, Robb Stark. And she can't stay angry with me forever."
"If she wants to go, Robb, then she can go. It's not right what Adaira is doing to her," Theon argued, arising as well. The younger children at the table looked around at those standing, and Jon burst into laughs. The tension only rose at his chuckles as all eyes fell on him.
"Don't you realize how ridiculous you are all acting?" Jon asked through laughter.
"Adaira's mad at Cassia, Theon's mad at Adaira, Robb is mad at Theon, Cassia's mad at Robb. I suppose this is partially my fault, for pushing you all in each other's directions, but for the love of the gods, you all are acting younger than Bran."
"I don't fight with anyone!" Bran objected, crossing his arms.
"I'm going to check on her," Robb said coldly as he walked from the table, his eyes icy and his tone sharp.
He exited the hall and decided to go outside before heading up to Adaira's room so he could calm himself down. He didn't take well to Jon's insult, and even less to Theon's flippancy about Adaira's feelings and Cassia's doubt in his ability to calm her. Much to his surprise, though, Adaira was outside, not in her room like she usually was when upset.
She was outside the stables with her horse, pressing her face against Buttercup's mane. He approached quietly, but she didn't notice him as she swung into her saddle and urged her mount toward Winterfell's gates. Robb's first instinct was to call after her, but he decided against it, and instead gathered up his horse to follow her. It didn't take long for Robb to realize where she was going, so he lagged behind to allow her the time she needed alone.
When he rode up to the dell and corralled his horse next to Buttercup, he heard Adaira singing softly to herself. As he neared, he realized she was dancing the steps she had tried to teach him earlier near the edge of the pond where thick, tan sand covered the bank.
The sand, though damp from the pond, was flying up around her feet as she had described, and just as she had promised, it looked absolutely stunning – a manmade, twirling sandstorm.
Instead of crossing to her, he listened for a moment to her voice singing a song he'd never heard before. It was only when she crumbled to her knees in the shallows of the pond that he went to her. His strong arms enfolded her, pulling her close to him and out of the night-chilled water. She didn't even jump in surprise at his sudden arrival. Much to his surprise, and to his relief, she wasn't crying.
"The Greyjoys really have taken everything. Now, they took her," she whispered, leaning her head on his shoulder. "My sister didn't see what I saw that night. I mean, we both witnessed more than any child ever should…but she didn't see them."
"See who?" Robb encouraged, stroking her hair as she spoke. She had never opened up to him about the invasion, a time he knew haunted her still. As far as he knew, she hadn't even told Cassia the full extent of everything that she had seen, and he could only imagine how heavy a burden it was to bear.
"My mother and brother. I still have nightmares about the way they died," she paused for a long moment in which they both stayed silent as she worked up the courage to say more. "A knight, Ser Rendon, took me from my room and tried to get me to safety, but we were too late. Ryen was only twelve, and the sword he tried to swing at the Greyjoy soldier must've been nearly as tall as he was. The soldier cut him down like a tree branch.
"My mother…gods, I will never forget how she cried out in anguish as he fell. She had been trying to gather his lifeless body into her arms when the soldier took her head. I watched the whole thing happen, and I couldn't even cry out. Ser Rendon couldn't protect them, because he was too busy protecting me. If I had been a little older, or a little braver, maybe I could have taken care of myself so that he could have fought for them. I still hear Ryen's last words. I still see my mother's hair reflecting in the sword."
Silent tears were now streaming down Adaira's face as Robb held her close to him, kissing her temple and whispering "I'm sorry," over and over.
"Robb, Cassia is involved with one of them. How can I forgive her, but how can I forsake her? She is the only family I have left, but she…"
"She fell in love, Daira. We don't have a choice who we fall in love with. And Theon cares deeply about her. He would never hurt her, nor you, the way his family hurt yours."
"If she marries him, when he returns to the Iron Islands, she would go with him. She would become Lady Greyjoy and disgrace everything that our family died for. He would inherit the ruins of the Snowsands by rite of marriage. My home would fall to them again, just as it did that night so long ago."
"I suppose it would, Adaira. But you only think about a future that isn't yours and a past that you can't change," Robb reasoned. She turned her face to his, her eyes filled with frustration, but he spoke before she could. "Listen to me. Let's talk about your future. When you marry me – "
"If I marry you," she corrected in a small voice, to which he just shook his head.
"When you marry me, it means that you will someday become the Lady of Winterfell. Your home will be here, as it has been since you were seven years old. You will spend your life by my side, and we will never have to pretend or hide again. You will be the wife of the Warden of the North. The Snowsands are allegiant to the North, and therefore, so would be Theon and your sister, if they do marry."
"And what of Pyke? What of the Iron Islands?"
"It's true, those will be Theon's someday, but before he is Lord of the Iron Islands, he would be Lord of the Snowsands and would pledge fealty to Winterfell. Cassia would never let him betray us, and he never would – he is as much of the North as he is of the sea. He grew up side by side as my brother. Your sister would be back in her rightful place as the Lady of the Snowsands, and your nieces and nephews will inherit your girlhood home, and your family will once again rule the Nautic Keep. Yes, Theon's blood as well, but more importantly, Devenny blood.
"And you, my love, will help me lead and guide Winterfell, and with your charisma and intelligence, you will be very good at it. Our children will be the heirs to the North, and will play in the courtyard we once played in, Ser Rodrik teaching them swordplay and Jory protecting them from dangers. And you will have no more anger toward your sister, because you will realize that you both got a chance that most girls never do – you will marry for love. And we will grow old together. I will love you for all of our lives, and anything that ails your mind now will be long forgotten and forgiven. I promise."
"Robb Stark, I hope you're right," she whispered, running fingertips over his stubble as he dried the last of her tears.
"I am. Put your trust in me, my love. I am to be your husband, your lord, and I command it," he teased, rubbing his nose against hers and eliciting a giggle.
She leaned up and kissed him slowly, but as their lips and tongues moved against each other, the simmering kiss grew to a blaze. Just inches from the edge of the water, he pressed her onto her back in the sand and hovered over her, running his mouth down her neck. When he met the edge of her dress, he slipped it off her shoulder and kissed across her collarbone. He had settled his hips flush against hers, his body in between her legs. He ran his hand slowly up her leg, bringing her dress and underskirt with it up just above her knee.
"Robb, tell me again," she whispered in his ear, kissing softly at the angle of his jaw.
With a groan, he brought his lips from her shoulder roughly back to hers. He pulled back and met her eyes, his blue ones ablaze with desire.
"I love you, Adaira. I love you so much," he whispered as he ran his hand underneath her skirts and up the outside of her bare thigh. She gasped slightly at his touch, unsure if his fingertips or his eyes were setting her on fire more.
"I love you too," she smiled, still fascinated by the way the words felt in her mouth.
As he pressed his lips to hers again, she lost herself in the closeness, his breathing intertwined with hers, his hand on her hip, exploring her skin, and the tension she felt in her stomach as he rolled his hips into hers. And as suddenly as she felt heat coursing through every vein, she felt nothing but cold. She opened her eyes to find he had sat up, pulled back, and was running a hand vigorously through his auburn curls.
"Robb?" she asked quietly as she sat up as well, looking at him through her eyelashes.
"We can't do this," he sighed, though as she placed a hand on his cheek, he instinctively turned his face into it and kissed her wrist. "I won't disgrace you."
"Shhh," she whispered in response, shifting to her knees so she could reach his face to kiss him again. He kissed her back, but quickly shook his head and caught her chin softly to pull her back.
"We should go back," he cautioned, but as soon as he looked in her half-hooded eyes, he kissed her again, this time, pulling her onto his lap. "I want you, Adaira, but this is…"
"This is what?" she asked, sitting back to make eye contact. "Wrong? Inappropriate? Dishonorable?"
"Please don't call it that," he asked, flinching at the mention of honor.
"It isn't, Robb. I love you. You love me. You said that someday, we are to be married, right?" she asked, running her fingers through his hair tenderly. When he nodded, she added, "This is you and me, practicing for that future. Please don't say we have to stop. I'm not ready to go back to the present yet."
Whether it was the devotion in her words, the memory of her skin under his fingertips, or his desire to reassure her that the future he described was real, he picked her up and wrapped her legs around his hips. Once he had relocated them to a softer patch of grass, he helped her out of her dress and smallclothes. Her skin was golden-tinged, a trait she had inherited from her southern mother, and in the moonlight, seeing her for the first time, Robb could have sworn she was glowing.
When he felt the smooth skin of her lower back, the shiver that ran through her when he caressed her side, and the way every part of her felt under his lips, the worry and hesitation he felt disappeared. Her small fingers were working to unlace his doublet as he kissed her chest, distracting her and leaving her so shaky she could barely grip the laces. With a throaty chuckle against her skin, he moved his hands up to steady hers.
"Nervous, Daira?" he teased, biting her bottom lip as she shot him a look, blushing wildly. Instead of provoking her further, he whispered against her lips, "You look so beautiful."
His words just caused her to blush further as he pulled his doublet and shirt off his chest. With a deep breath, she ran her fingers down his toned stomach to the laces of his trousers. Again, he clasped her fingers in his and stopped her.
"Are you sure about this, my love?" His voice was filled with concern and desire, each battling the other for dominance over his senses. She nodded and helped remove the rest of his clothing. He leaned back over her, supporting his weight on a forearm as the other hand ran down the length of her body and he kissed her softly. She let out a shaky breath.
"I love you, Adaira Devenny."
"I love you, Robb Stark," she whispered back, closing her eyes and blocking out the entire world, except for the feeling of his skin on hers.