CHAPTER 19:

Present time.

Arya surprised herself by enjoying teaching. The spear wives were a lively lot, and curious; they chatted happily with her about her experiences in battle, and their own. They also learned their lessons quickly and well, which gave her a feeling of accomplishment.

Brienne took charge of teaching the spear wives about riding and the care of horses, and she, too, seemed pleased at the progress made by her pupils. But Arya also noticed that Brienne seemed rather enervated during and after the lessons, and during one of the classes, she collapsed. Hjordis, who was among the students, darted forward, and knelt beside her. "You," she said to Arya, "run and fetch Oona, now, and don't hang about while you do it!"

When Arya burst into the hospice in the town, she discovered Oona in the adjoining walled garden, harvesting plants. There were three small children with her, running and playing on the paths in between the raised beds of medicinal herbs. When Oona heard about Brienne, she wiped her hands quickly on her apron, seized her medical kit, and rose to follow Arya. "I'll go, but you stay here with the children. I don't have anyone else to mind them just now."

Arya was not pleased, but Oona gave her no chance to argue. She dashed from the garden, leaving Arya staring awkwardly at the children. There were three of them, a girl of perhaps six years and two younger boys. "Hullo," Arya said finally. She knew nothing about children, and truth be told, had no desire to learn anything.

"Hullo," the little girl said. The small boys said nothing.

"Do you have a name?" Arya asked her, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Siegelunde," the child said.

"Lord!" said Arya. "That's unkind!"

She could see that the child did not fully understand this, but had garnered enough information to determine that Arya had just insulted her. She scowled, and the little boys, taking their lead from her, scowled, too.

Arya felt helpless. "What do you want to do?" she asked Siegelunde.

"I don't want to do anything," the child said, with an air of offended majesty. "Except watch you go 'way."

"That's nasty of you," Arya said, rather offended. I'm not that bad.

"You're rude," Siegelunde responded, crossing her small arms over her chest and turning her back. Arya felt that there was strong possibility that she was outmatched against this stubborn, if tiny, creature.

"I have to stay," Arya explained. "I promised Oona I'll watch you."

"Watch us do what?" Siegelunde said, eyes flashing.

"Whatever you were doing when I came in."

Siegelunde took the two small boys in hand and plopped them on a spread-out blanket. She then plunked herself down beside them, and gave Arya a glare. "Go 'way," she said. "We don't need you."

"You weren't doing that when I came in," Arya said. "You were running on the paths."

Siegelunde, with an air of exaggerated patience, lay down on the blanket, and closed her eyes, obviously feigning nap time. The boys immediately imitated her. She's got them trained, and no mistake. I'll have to ask her how she does it.

Next Arya tried asking questions. The names of the boys? (no answer), did they like Oona? (no answer), did they want to race her from one end of the garden to the other? (Siegelunde did pop an eye open at this offer, but it was only a momentary lapse on her part.)

"How old are you?" Arya was now desperate.

"She's five," another voice said, and Arya turned to see an older woman in the doorway.

"I know you," Arya said. "I met you at the hospice in the Harbour, didn't I, but I forget your name."

"Gytha," the woman said.

"That's right - Gytha," Arya said. "I remember it now. Can you look after the children? Ser Brienne has fallen ill, and I'd like to go to her and see if I can help."

Gytha looked amused. "There's nothing you can help her with," she said.

Arya bristled. "You don't know that."

"I do know that, Arya Stark. I know more than you, because you can't ever seem to see what's right in front of you."

Arya huffed, and Gytha laughed. "What do you think, my sweetlings?" she said to the children, who had gathered around her. The three of them beamed up at her.

"Obviously, they agree with you," Arya said, with a lopsided smile. "There's no accounting for tastes."

"I always knew that they were bright," Gytha said fondly, ruffling the hair of the older boy. He smiled back at her.

"What's wrong with Brienne, then?"

"Not your business, and not anything I'm prepared to discuss with you. Ask her if you want to know."

Arya rolled her eyes. "You're as bad as Hjordis and Oona," she said.

Gytha swept the smaller boy into her arms, and led the other two children indoors. "You come too," she said to Arya. "And wait with us. Let the poor woman have some privacy."

"She's not going to have any privacy at all in that gaggle of spear-wives," Arya pointed out as she followed Gytha inside.

"Hjordis and Oona will handle that," Gytha said. She found a basket of toys for the children, and they dove into them with gusto.

"Whose children are they?" Arya asked idly, as she and Gytha watched them. "One of the spear wives?"

"No. Siegelunde is Hjordis' daughter; the boys belong to Oona."

Arya was surprised. "What are they doing working here then, if they've got children?"

Gytha shrugged. "They're both trained healers," she said. "Are we to be deprived of their skills just because they have children?"

Arya had not thought of it that way. "Aren't they married?" she ventured.

Gytha laughed. "We have very different notions of marriage here," she said. "The community is responsible for the children, no matter who their parents happen to be."

"I hadn't seen the children here before," Arya said.

"The older women of the town care for the children generally," Gytha said. "When their mothers can't, or have work of their own to do. In this case, though, they were attending your lessons."

Arya nodded. She sat down and watched as Gytha brewed tea, now a great delicacy in the rest of the continent, but readily available in the Far North because of their trading fleets. She produced floury baps and milk for the children from a milk-safe. The children greeted this flourish with great satisfaction.

The tea revived Arya, and she tried to use the time to draw out her companion. She had little success. Gytha was a tall woman with golden brown hair - greying a little now - and eyes of the same shade. Arya could place neither her appearance nor her very slight accent. Her manner was not typical for a Westerosi woman, either.

She noticed that Gytha was studying her just as closely.

"What do you see?" she asked half-facetiously.

Gytha smiled. "A young woman who has experienced great pain, and acquired little wisdom."

Arya smiled right back at her. "And I see an older woman who has experienced nothing at all, and pretends to all that she has."

"A pity your brains aren't a match for your courage," Gytha responded calmly, sipping her tea. "If they were, nothing could stop you."

Arya laughed. "I shall take my unintelligent self off then, since I seem to be boring you."

"Oh, you don't bore me, exactly, Arya Stark, though I must admit that you are deeply exasperating," Gytha said.

Siegelunde now appeared beside Gytha, and indicated her hearty agreement with this sentiment. "She's rude," she said, pointing at Arya. She stuck out her tongue for good measure.

"There are definitely times," Arya said with a grimace, "when I'm glad I'm childless."

"Your unborn children undoubtedly thank you for it, too, I would guess," Gytha said, smiling at Siegelunde.

Arya had a sudden feeling of remorse. Is this how my mother felt about me? I fear it is, and I can see now exactly why she did.

"Never fear," she said. "As soon as my brother answers my letter, I'll be out of here."

There was a momentary flicker in Gytha's eyes - was it pity? - Arya could not tell - that distracted her. Well, that, and the fact that Gytha didn't ask her what she meant. She knows about the letter, then.

She was about to enquire about that, when there was a shriek from outside. She noticed that all three children were now gone from the room, and jumped up.

"They're all right," Gytha said lightly.

But Arya went to the door. She saw that the children were sitting on the front step in a row, facing Jon, who was kneeling in front of them. He was dusting Siegelunde's chin with a yellow flower.

"Hah!" he said, inspecting his handiwork. "You do like butter!" Siegelunde shrieked again, this time with laughter.

Jon saw Arya standing in the doorway, and winked at her. He then proceeded to do the same butter-test trick with the boys. They, too, were delighted.

Watching him with the children, Arya marvelled at his unfailing patience. My father was like that. He listened, and he didn't mock nor scold like Mother did.

"Have you been getting acqainted with Arya?" Jon asked Siegelunde.

Siegelunde grimaced. "No!"

"She's nice when you get to know her," Jon said, looking up. "Aren't you, Arya?"

"Not so you'd notice," said Arya. "I don't like children any more than they like me, either."

"Don't pay any attention to her," Jon said to Siegelunde. "She's just cranky today." Siegelunde giggled.

Arya grinned. "I'm cranky all days," she admitted. "How like Father you are, Jon!"

Jon blinked. "What makes you say that, Arya?"

"Just your way with children. You should go ahead and have some of your own."

She regretted saying anything at all when Jon's good humour immediately disappeared. Usually only mention of Daenerys Targaryen caused such a lowering of his mood. She immediately changed the subject, telling him of Brienne's collapse. His reaction surprised her.

"Has anyone told Tormund?" he asked sharply.

"I assume Hjordis or Oona sent for him," Gytha said. "They're both with her now."

Jon turned on his heel. The children went after him. "Stay with Gytha, younglings," he said, but the children clung to him.

Gytha came forward and gently disengaged the children from his cloak. "Jon will see you later," she said, shepherding the reluctant threesome before her, and back into the house. Arya ran after Jon, who was already half way across the square.

She overtook him, and together they hurried through the streets of the town. They discovered only a few of the spear-wives left at the teaching site; they reported that the lesson had been cancelled. They also told Jon and Arya that Brienne had been carried to her quarters.

The first person they saw there was Hjordis, who was trying, without much success, to calm Tormund down.

"Look, she's asleep! You don't want to disturb her, do you?"

As it turned out, that's exactly what Tormund wanted to do. Hjordis was having none of it, and the argument was becoming heated.

Oona came out of Brienne's bedchamber, closed the door quietly behind her, and then hissed: "Be quiet, the both of you!"

This allowed Hjordis and Tormund to forget their differences, and turn as one on Oona. Arya thought things might have gotten worse from there, had Jon not intervened. "How is she?" he asked.

"Resting," Oona said, turning to him. "She should be fine," she then said to Tormund. "Calm down, and stop making a twat of yourself."

"Can you give him something to calm him?" Jon asked her in an undervoice. "He needs it, I think."

Oona inspected Tormund, and then nodded, and went to a nearby table where her medicines were laid out. She started mixing one of them with some water.

"There was no miscarriage, you great fool," said Hjordis. "But she needs to rest and eat more."

"Miscarriage?" Arya said blankly.

They all stared at her as if she had just grown horns.