The Wild Wolf

She was stuffing her face with the delicious food the innkeeper had made, while Brienne of Tarth and Podrick Payne watched her. The two of them had hardly touched their food, but Arya felt as though she was starving, even though Brienne made sure she had plenty to eat since the day she first started protecting Arya. She figured that they would be going North, possibly to the Wall, but they had been at the inn for about a week. Arya couldn't help but wonder why they were keeping her in one place. She figured it was because she was safe for the moment. She cleaned her plate and started to eye Podrick's food.

"Are you going to eat that?" Arya asked.

"What?" he frowned, then his eyes went wide before he handed Arya his plate, "Here you go, my Lady."

"What did I tell you about calling me that, Podrick?" Arya glared at him.

"If I continue to do it, you'll stick me with Needle," Podrick replied.

Brienne smiled a bit, "I feel the same way when people call me 'Lady'."

"I pretended to be a boy for a while, I'm no Lady," Arya stated.

"Neither of us are arguing with you, Arya," Brienne's smile grew. "You remind me of me when I was younger."

"How so?" Arya asked as she chewed her food. She noticed that Podrick made a face, she knew she was eating like an animal, but she didn't care.

"I was just as stubborn as you," Brienne stated.

"Did you lose your family?" Arya asked, her tone went a bit cold. "Did a Red Woman come and take your best friend from you?"

"Red Woman?" Brienne frowned.

"She was going to hurt Gendry... he's probably dead too," Arya pushed the plate away from her, she had lost her appite. She jumped up out of her seat and stepped outside. She pulled out a wetstone and began sharpening Needle. With each stroke, she said a name, "Joffery. Cersei. Tywin Lannister. Illan Payne. Meryn Trant." Someone was watching her, she could feel the eyes, but she wasn't finished with her prayer, "The Mountain. Walder Frey. The Red Woman."

"What are you doing?" Brienne asked.

"Naming the people I'm going to kill one day," Arya replied. "I say their names every night before I go to bed."

"The people who have hurt the people you love?" Brienne sat beside her.

Arya nodded, "I had a chance to have Tywin Lannister killed, and I didn't take it."

"Why didn't you?" Brienne asked.

"I thought about it, but I wanted help escaping instead. With Hotpie and Gendry," Arya smiled a little at the thought of traveling with her two friends, and Hotpie's way of saying Winterfell as "Winterhell". She missed them both, almost as much as she missed her family. It was the Brotherhood's fault that Arya was separated from them both. They had sold both of her friends off, as though they were livestock. Even after they offered Gendry a place among them. He had trusted them, and they stabbed him in the back.

"They must have been good friends," Brienne offfered a smile.

"Gendry looked out for me since the day I met him," Arya told her. "That same day my father had been exicuted."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked," Brienne sighed.

"My teacher, he told me that there's only one god, Death, and we tell Death, 'not today'. Death came for my family and best friend, there's nothing I can do about that," Arya continued to sharpen Needle.

"You don't believe in the Gods of your parents?" Brienne asked.

"Not any more," Arya breathed out. "They haven't helped us at all. Why should I believe in them? Everyone can be killed, it just depends if Death is ready for them."

Brienne stared at her, Arya could feel the intensity of the warrior's eyes. She could feel the pitty that was there. No one could understand how she felt, but she didn't want their pitty. She was strong, she had survived this long with a drunken beast of a man as her protector, the last thing she wanted was for anyone to feel sorry for her. She kept her eyes on the sharp blade, wishing that she could stick Needle through everyone of her enemies. Starting with Joffery. A dark smile crossed Arya's lips as she pictured the life draining from his eyes as she stabbed him with Needle. That was something she wanted to do.

"What if there was some news that I've been keeping from you?" Brienne asked after a long moment.

"Like what?"

"Your sister, the one who was in Winterfell when the Ironborn invaded, she's said to be alive," Brienne told her. "And Lady Sansa is on her way here as we speak."

Arya narrowed her eyes at Brienne. Her gut told her that the warrior spoke the truth, but by now, Arya was becoming skeptical of ever being reunited with any of her family. She let out a breath, "You should tell her not to come. Everyone dies before I reach them."

"She's coming to you, and there's no way to tell her to turn around," Brienne said. "That would mean she'd return to King's Landing. That place wasn't kind to her."

"It wasn't kind to any Stark," Arya pointed out.

"True enough," Brienne nodded. "You still want me to try to send her word to turn around?"

Arya shook her head, "No one should be forced to return to King's Landing. Not even someone who begged to be queen once."

"Why wasn't your oldest sister in King's Landing with you?" Brienne asked.

"She went to Ironrath instead, insisting that she wanted to remain a Northerner," Arya smirked. "I've been told that she was like me when she was younger, though she was a lot prettier than me the last time I saw her."

"You're not mad that I kept this information from you?" Brienne's voice was soft.

"No," Arya shook her head. "I knew there was a reason we were staying in one place."

"Good," Brienne smiled and stood. "I'll see you inside?"

Arya nodded and watched Brienne go into the inn. Maybe her father's Gods kept an eye on Alyssa and Sansa a lot better than they did the rest of the Starks.