AN: Hey guys. Yes I know its been a while and I do appolagize but work has been extremly stressful as we are coming to another end of a year!
Anyway, here is chapter twenty five. Hope you all enjoy it!
Please read and review!
Thanks
CE
Jon's POV
The crow girl clung tightly to the squalling babe in her arms as Jon paced the now emptied hall. He could feel her terrified eyes upon him as he moved, she was nervous still, she feared him. She only trusted the fat boy. And rightfully so.
The incesent noise of the screaming new born played upon Jon's nerves until he could take no more! With a slender leather bound hand perched between the bridge of his nose, the dark haired bastard turned sharp upon his heel and stared dangourously down at the wildling girl.
"Can you not silence that fucking screaming!" He roared down at the vunerable girl.
Instantly Gilly recoiled at Jon's anger, squeezing her babe even tighter her chest before hushing him gently into a peaceful slumber. When the noise had disissed, Jon sighed heavily, ashamed by his own reaction to an innocent child's cries. With furrowed brows, Jon slumped down onto the furthest bench away from the Wilding girl allowing her to feel unthreatened by his prescence.
Longclaw clanked against the wooden table as he sat. Black tunic spilling over the edges, gloved hand spread out upon the scratched surface.
"I'm sorry." Jon nobely appolagised. He saw how the young girl looked at him. She was terrified, unnerved by the bastard of the Walls unusual behaviour. In her eyes all she saw was the blade being sharpened that would soon plunge into her heart.
Gilly did not reply at first and so a tensed silence ensued between enemy and Crow. Jon saw how Gilly kept her eyes cast downward onto the babe in her arms, refusing to look at him. Jon didn't blame her. Of late, he too had noticed teh change within him. Gone were the days of the boy. In it's stead now was a man, a confused man who knew his duty but battled constantly with himself to follow orders.
After a long silence the young finally spoke.
"Its ok," Gilly whispered barly audible. "I'm used to being spoken down to. Craster always spoke to us like a dog m'lord."
Turning his head of dark curls to look at the girl, Jon held Gilly's eyes with a dead stare.
"I'm not a lord." The bastard replied tiredly.
"You live in a big castle. Don't that make you a lord here?"
So full of questions. Jon's mind whispered defeatedly.
"A long time ago." Jon's voice was monotonous, exhausted. He had not slept in weeks, his mind alive with the thoughts of preperation for East Watch beyond the sea. "There can only be one lord that rules here, and it is not me."
Gilly swallowed nervousley before turning to look back at her baby.
"What did you see?" Jon finally asked the young wildling girl sharply. "When Moles Town was ambushed by Mance Raydar and his men. What did she tell you to do?"
Gilly's eyes were alive at the mention of the attack. It was obvious to him that the young girl did not want to remember. But he needed to know. He needed to hear what happened from the horses mouth.
It took a while before she found the courage to speak. But when she did, she spoke true.
"We were in the kitchen's, she was staring outside of the window at the moon. She didn't talk. Never much did she speak m'lord, it was like she was in a daze."
"Yes?" Jon prompted calmly. Inside his soul was raging to know more.
Gilly looked hesitent to finish her sentence but she on could see that she feared his wrath if she did not comply.
"The crow girl always seemed so distant, her eyes always looked sad. I asked her what was wong with her but she didn't answer. She was distracted, had a letter from some lord that I guessed."
This pricked Jon's attention. He remebered the letter that he had written to Bryanna. The only letter that he had constructed. Jon had given the parchment to the fat boy upon her leaving the wall on the ride to Moles Town.
"I asked her what was wrong but then it all made sense. She loved this lord, loved him very much but she was scared, so scared."
Jon frowned deeply.
"Scared? Of what?"
Gilly looked at Jon then as if it was the most obvious answer in the whole of the seven kingdoms.
"Of the truth. She was hiding a secret. I knew she was hiding a secret."
"What secret?"
"She was with child and was afraid of what her lord would say."
Jon felt his blood run cold at the mention of the thing that grew inside of her. His hate must have shown on his face for Gilly paled and tensed ready to face the reprocutions from speaking so boldly.
Rising to his feet, the sullen bastard began to pace the hall once again, deep in thought.
"I..I did not mean to cause offence m'lord." The young girl whispered almost panicked. Jon turned his eyes to face her, his expression hard though it was not directed at her.
"You've caused no offence." He stated blankly before turning sharply away once more.
Silence prevailed once again until it was broken by a meek voice.
"If I may be so bold to say M'lord, but your her lord?"
I'm not a lord Jon's mind repromanded the girl scourfully.
Jon stared at Gilly with a pained expression etched upon his handsome feautures. Dark curls fell into brown eyes, partially concealing the anger that he Jon Snow also hid.
Groggily, the babe stirred in the wildlings arms as she stared back at the bastard with wide expectant eyes.
The mention of he being Bryanna's lord stirred something within the black brother that he could not clearly fathom. Was it the yearning of wanting to be her lord? Or was it resetment from the memory of her sleeping with his brother?
"I am nothing to her." Jon Snow replied darkly.
"I must say m'lord but to me you seemed something to the crow miss. The words on the paper stirred something within her. I sensed it."
"She has no reason to feel anything for me." The dark haired bastard answered curtly.
"You love her her m'lord?"
The question stunned him into stony silence so unprepared for what the girl was about to ask. Jon did not know how to answer, so confused was he to his own emotions. The only thing the bastard of Winterfell could do was drop his eyes and shift his booted feet so that they carried him to the exist door.
Gilly watched on as the sound of leather clad feet echoed over cold stone. Jon's pace was fast, consistent, hurried as if wanting to avoid the question. He kept his head down cast lost in his own thoughts.
The tension between crow and wildling was so thick that it could have been cut with a knife.
Before leaving the girl to stew in her own silence, Jon placed a leather gloved hand upon the ridge of the wooden door partly opening it preparing to leave. With his back to her he spoke in a dead tone one last time before his exist.
"You should find Sam. The watch is no place for you to be wandering alone."
And then he was gone.
Bryanna's POV
"Always make sure to sharpen the point of the arrow," Bryanna instructed a group of young wildling children who had seemed to grow an interest in her ever since she and Ygritte's encounter before stalking away though the crisp morning snow.
To Bryanna, the notion of an interest being taken in her made her uncomfortable especially when it was Wildling young ones who insisted on following her every move. The crow girl often showed them the cold shoulder, snapped out her instructions to them rather than show an interest in them. Many a women would have fawned over the little ones, urging them to come sit around the camp fire and regail them with stories of old like a wet nurse.
I'm no fucking wet nurse Bryanna's mind hissed resentfully, I am no baby sitter to these wild creautures. If they think me brave for almost killing one of their own then their people are fickle. I have no time for liabilities.
Behind her the crow girl could hear the laughter of the wildling children as they played with the wooden arrows that she had briefly shown them how to sharpen. Camp fires had become alight as each of the free folk stirred from their slumber, rising to meet a new dawn.
Gruff men looked on at the crow girl with angry snarls upon their faces as she stalked heavily through the innocent white to a tal mountain peak that bowed down over the Mance Raydars ever growing army. She had been summoned by the prince beyond the wall and his father Mance Raydar to consult with them in secret council away from prying eyes.
The words from Bryana's last conversation with Mance Raydar replayed constantly in her mind. He had condemned her to reveal the truth to his son under threat that if she failed him he would make sure that she paid the price for disobedience.
Something told the crow girl that this meeting was somehow related to the task at hand yet somehow she managed to keep control of her emotions.
The Northern wind bit at Bryanna's face, whipping her long hair around her face so that it stung her eyes. Where once her hair had been lushious and sleak it was now matted and hung limp down her back in sectioned black dreadfalls. It was the hair of a proper wildling and it made her sick.
By the time she reached the peak, Bryanna was breathless. Her belly had swelled more but still remained safely concealed beneath the grey furs that shielded her body. Faint voices could be heard as she approached, a mixture of men and then a womans voice. Bryanna felt her fist clench and her jaw tighten at the sound of that voice.
Ygritte was with them!
Walking out from beneath the clearing all eyes turned to watch her approach. Bryanna first noticed Mance Raydar's calm and collected eyes upon her before the viscious eyes of the flame haired cunt eyed her maliciously. Bryanna darkly smirked to herself as she noted an array of rainbow bruises glowing a sickly purple from off of her face.
When the crow girls eyes met hers, Ygritte challenged her for a moment before relenting an turning away from her.
The last pair of eyes to devour her were those of her capture himself Torin Raydar. As usual he stood proudly, axe within his grasp, drinking in her in as she approached.
"You finally decided to join us girl eh?"
Mance Raydar was the first to speak. Even though he spoke calmly, the meaning behind his words was clearly a threat.
"I received word that you wanted to speak with me." Bryanna replied curtly. Mance laughed under his breath before answering her.
"Aye, I indeed wanted to speak with you. It seems you have caused an issue with one of my men." At his words Bryanna instantly turned to look at Ygritte and found that she too was looking at her.
The crow girl could feel the eyes of Torin Raydar burning into her soul but she refused to give in to his stare.
"The issue was resolved." She answered bluntly not taking her eyes off the flame haired one.
"Aye so Ygritte has informed me. But as part of our custom here if a free folk attacks another of their people then there has to be a trial by combat." He ceased to speak. "Or to put it in simplur terms, A fight to the fucking death! Unless one yields first."
Bryanna turned her eyes to Mance Raydar's face before turning her eyes to Torin Raydar's. A cold self satisfied smirk burned within his eyes as he studied her. Once it would have unnerved her, now it only made her stronger.
When she looked at Ygritte it was clear to Bryanna that the flame haired bitch could not hide her delight for want of tearing her apart. A bitter smirk was stretched across her croked feautures and in her hand she twirled her axe in an intimidating manner.
Bryanna openly laughed at the stupid bitch!
"If that is the will of the king beyond the wall." Bryanna mocked politely.
"Aye it is!" His deep voice boomed.
"Let us begin m'lord!" Ygritted cried impatiently, "Let me tear the crow bitch apart so I can send her back to her nest piece by piece."
"You would have to catch me first to perform such an act, cunt!" The crow girl snarled.
"Dont you worry crow, i'll leave your wings till last. That way you can still fly back to castle black with your head stuffed up your arse!"
Bryanna smirked menacingly. "You forget that we crows are tricksters."
"The only trick you know crow is how to suck my prince's cock!"
Hatred.
"Aye, but I had to practise on one man first." Ygritte glared hatingly at Bryanna. "Jon Snow never complained when my tongue slid up and down his shaft, tasting him." The thought of Jon Snow sent a pang of pain through her body but she refused to let the bitch see so keeping her face expressionless, Bryanna continued her taunt.
"Just think. He was mine and not once did he think of you or your fucking fire hair!"
That was it. She had struck at nerve.
In an instant the wildling girl lunged over to where Bryanna stood cockily, swinging her axe as she went, growling in hate. Quickly Bryanna dodged the weak attack, bent backwards so that the blade of the axe completly missed contact with her flesh.
As Ygritte staggered to regain her balance, Bryanna lifted her leg and delivered a kick so furious that Ygritte screamed out before collasping in the snow, raising her eyes to look at the crow girl and then running at her again.
This time Bryanna was fast. Using her skills as a trained Sister of the watch, she turned her crow like eyes to the belt of Torin Raydar where a sword hung at his hip. In an instant Bryanna lunged to the blade, ripped it free and parried the attack that would have almost ended her life.
The sound of metal on metal resounded through the air, singing its song of death. With all their strengh that both parties could muster, the crow girl unlocked the attack, pushing the wildling backwards with all the strengh that she could muster.
Ygritte stumbled in the snow and fell once again onto her back with a growl leaving her guard open for an attack.
Bryanna thrusted her sword outwards towards the wildling girls vunerable body, hate burning in her eyes. Just as contact was about to be made the wildling girl kicked Bryanna's legs from out under her causing her to fall onto her back with a grunt.
Dazed, the crow girl did not have time to see the fist of the flame haired bitch lash out to her face but could only feel the pain as she continued to deliver blow after blow.
Copper filled Bryanna's mouth. Spurting blood into her enemies face, Ygritte recoiled giving time for Bryanna to sit up fast and deliver a firm headbutt.
Ygritte collasped to one knee. Bryanna rose to her feet.
For the first time since her capture did Bryanna feel like the true crow that she actually was as she sauntered over to her enemy, sword in hand, ready to deliver the final blow.
But what the crow did not know was that Ygritte had pulled a knife free from her boot.
"Now I will finish you!" Bryanna thundered raising her sword above her with both hands.
Ygritte looked up from beneath tendrils of red hair, smirked coldly and said:
"It seems that crows are not the only things with tricks." Before growling in fury and slashed out at the crow girls stomach, tearing through the thick furs and revealing the thing that she had tried so hard to hide.
A long silence passed between the wildlings and the crow. All eyes were trained upon the swollen belly of the crow girl, all but the king beyond the walls. He looked on at her with cold satisfaction.
"The whore is with child!" Ygritted finally screamed.
The sword left Bryanna's fingers and fell softly to snow covered floor with a thud. Bryana's heart raced both from fear and humiliation. Finally her worst nightmare had been revealed and now she had no choice but to play the Game of Thrones.