AN: This is a short story I came up with mostly because I really like Eddards character and I really wished he survived at least a bit more. I wont spoil anything here, just read it and you will see what happens. Read the books they are great mostly because there are a lot more details then there are in the show, at least for me. Leave your opinion on this story and i hope you like it.
The lion and the wolf
Ser Ilyn Payne climbed the steps of the pulpit. Both Stark girls watched in horror as the mute knight was preparing to kill their lord father while the entire time the crowd roared in anticipation. This entire spectacle was being watched by a man in the crowd, he saw the little girl behind the statue and the girl on her knees next to the king and queen. The king watched with satisfaction as ser Ilyn pulled out the great sword from its scabbard. The man started moving his way through the mas of people who were waiting for the execution. He made his way to the front of the crowd and went towards the pulpit. He started climbing the steps but was quickly stopped by two kingsguard, Joffrey looked at the man.
"And what do you think you are doing?"
"Me, your grace, I come to ask for you to spare lord Eddards life."
Joffrey laughed at the mans words "I already made my decision! The traitor dies!"
"In that case I demand a trial by combat for lord Eddards life."
"I made my decision he dies, that is the kings word."
The man turned to the crowd "Good people, your king those not seem to care about the traditions and way of our land. A man is given the right for the trial by combat and yet your king denies it to this man here." The hooded man pointed in lord Eddards direction "What is a king who does not follow the laws of his land!" The crowd started agreeing with the mysterious man.
"Let the trial decide!"
"Give him a chance!"
"Let him fight for his life!"
The young king gritted his teeth and clenched his fists in frustration. He was the king, how could anyone speak to him like this. He noticed that the people were getting restless and so he granted the request believing his kingsguard were more that a mach for anyone who challenged him.
"I will grant this request, but who will fight for this traitor?"
The cloaked man took another step forward "I will fight for him!" Joffrey laughed at the man. During this time queen Cersei was wondering who the man was, his voice was familiar to her so she had to have met him somewhere. The may he moved and the way he spoke was eerily familiar. Maybe he was a lord or a knight she wasn't sure, but there was something familiar about him.
"Alright then, Ser Preston Greenfield you will be my champion."
"Its is an honor to serve my king." Eddard watched the whole thing enfold, he did not believe that someone was trying to save him from his terrible fate. Who ever he was he was brave, to say the least. Two guards removed the northern lord from his spot and held him to the side. The man walked up the steps, as he was passing by the queen he gave her an odd smile, she was surprised by this but shuck it off. He took a stand in the middle of the pulpit and looked at his opponent. Ser Preston could not see a sword in the mans hands.
"Do I need to give you a sword too?"
The man smiled "There is no need for that, I have one of my own." With those words the man moved a part of his cloak to the side to reveal a sword. The sword immediately attracted the attention of all present there. Its hilt was red and gold in collar and on its top stud a lions head, the man pulled it out to revile that the sword was made out of Valyrian steel. The people around him stared in disbelief, especially the queen who knew the sword well, she saw the drawings of the sword in the library of the Rock. The sword that was lost with her ancestor ages ago in Valyria. Her father tried to buy a similar sword from the other lesser noble houses but never succeeded. And now here it was in the hands of this man, there was only one man this could possibly be, he had finally returned and had picked the worse time for it. The man removed his hood and cloak and tossed them a side, there now stud a blond man in red ornate armor wielding the great ancestral sword of his family Brightroar.
"Uncle Gerion?" said Cersei with pure shock and disbelief. How could this be possible, everyone thought that he died years ago. He disappeared while looking for the valyrian steel sword of their house.
Gerion looked at his niece who was still in shock "What is it Cersei, you look like you seen a ghost." Joffrey gave her a confused look wanting to know what was going on but she did not say a word. Then the kingsguard attacked the smiling Lannister, swords clashed into each other making a clinging sound, that crowd roared in excitement. The two knights fought valiantly each matching the others blows. To those few that realized who the man was in was obvious from who Jaime inherited his fighting skills, the man here was as good as the golden lion. Both Varys and Petyr Baelish watched everything enfold, both wondering how the return of the lost son of house Lannister had not come to their attention. After a while Gerion decided that the people had a good show a wanted to end it spectacularly. He used his full force to swing his sword towards ser Preston, the kingsguard tried to block it but his blade shattered when it came to contact with the valyrian steel sword. Brightroar went through the kingsguard sword and logged itself into the mans neck. The rest of the royal guard watched in shock as one of their own was just killed. Gerion pulled his sword out of the mans neck and looked at lord Eddard as ser Preston's body fell to the ground. The people around watched in disbelief and wonder, especially the young king.
The king refused to acknowledge that he was beaten, he was not just going to let a traitor go, he and this man will die together for defying him. "Kill them both!" he shouted to the kingsguard. The men pulled out their swords ready to fight, but none had the courage to attack first, they just surrounded him and waited.
"So this is how you treat me, I have won fairly and now by the law I should be released with lord Eddard and his daughter. But instead you order my death, I true king would honor his word."
"I'm the king! If I want someone dead, they will die!"
"Any man who must say I'm the king, is no true king!" Gerion smiled at the boys frustration.
"I gave you an order, kill him!"
Then finally Cersei came out of her state of shock and reacted "Don't, he is your uncle!"
The young king turned his gaze to his mother "What?"
"That man is your grandfathers brother Gerion." Joffrey looked at the man who was ready for another fight. Now that he gave a better look at him, he did look like his uncle Jamie but older.
"Good people, by the law of the land the winner of the trial gets what he wants and I have won. That means that lord Eddard and his daughter come with me. Or would you rather the king disrespect the laws that have been a part of these lands for centuries."
"Let them go!"
"They won their freedom!"
"You must obey the laws!"
Joffrey looked at the crowd and the back to the knight. He wasn't just going to let them after humiliating him like this. He was the king and his word was law. "Kill them!" The guards looked at each other, they knew that if they attacked they could easily die like Ser Preston and maybe provoke
The crowd and turn it into an angry mob. Seeing that his guards weren't doing anything the king grew even madder. "Do as I command!" Meryn Trant was the only one who decided to attack the lion knight but was stopped dead in this tracks when the tip of Brightroar came only few centimeters from his face. Everyone watched in suspense as the knights stud still.
"So, what it going to be, your grace? We you act like a king or like a spoiled child." These words made the boy king even angrier, he was getting tired of this mans insults even if he was his uncle. It was then when Cersie spoke again "Let him go. Let them go!" The boy and the guards turned to the queen looking at her with surprise. She knew what risk the northern lord posed because he knew her secret but she also knew that killing him would only make thing worse. But what she feared even more was her father wrath if he would to find out that his lost brother came back and was killed in Kingslanding. Tywin Lannister was not the man who you should provoke even if you were his child.
"What? Are you crazy?" asked Joffrey.
The queen grabbed him by the arm, a move which the boy did not appreciate. "Listen, if you kill lord Eddard we wont be able to stop the Stark army and if you kill uncle Gerion your grandfather will never forgive you, even if you are his grandson and king." The boy looked at his mother and then to his great-uncle.
"Fine, have it your way mother. Release them. Now." The boy king trembled in anger as he said those words. The kingsguard shewed their swords and stepped away from the Lannister. Gerion gave a good look around to see that there wasn't anyone getting ready to stab him in the back, to his relief there wasn't. Once again he looked towards the queen mother and the king.
"To be honest I was kinda hoping that I would need to fight my way out of here. That would have been spectacular. But I'm not the man to look a gift horse in the mouth, if you don't have any more objections I and the Starks will be taking our leave." The king did not say anything he just stared angrily at the man, while Sansa quickly ran to her fathers side.
"Father?"
"Sansa!"
"I'm sorry to break this reunion but I have a feeling we better get going." Gerion took the wounded lord and lifted him up. He and Sansa carefully carried the injured man off the pulpit and through the large crowd. They stopped when the Lannister stopped to look at the statue once again, there he saw the girl being held by a brother of the nights watch. Lord Eddard looked at the mans direction.
"Arya." he barely murmured. The little Stark girl broke from the nights watchmans grip and ran to her father.
"Father!" the man did not respond, he was to weak now. The watchman came to the group.
"Lord Eddard needs help, he is not going to last long without a healer."
"Do you know where we can find one?"
"I do, follow me." As the group was living king Joffrey watched, he swore that he will have his revenge for this humiliation, if not soon then some day.
The nights watchman Yoren lead the group to a healer he knew in Kingslanding. The man managed to do what he could for lord Starks leg, but because it wasn't treated this long he might have a limp for the rest of his life. Eddard did not care, he was relieved to only be alive and to see that his two daughters we safe.
"Will he be able to ride?" asked Gerion.
"I'm afraid not, he is too weak. It will take him some time to recover his strength." said the healer.
"I'm leaving with new recruits for the wall tomorrow you can come with us. We can put him on a wagon and take you to Riverrun, I hear that your family is there."
"Good, then we leave tomorrow." said Gerion. "Stay here, I have something I must take care of first before we leave." The lannister exited the healers house and went in his direction.
"Do you think we can trust him?" asked Arya.
"He saved our lives. I trust him." said Eddard.
"Lets hope you are right." replied Yoren.
In the morning the group met up with the nights watch recruits and loaded up the injured lord into a wagon. As they were ready to leave, Gerion showed up ready and eager to leave this city. The group left the city in hurry, thinking that any moment Joffrey could sent his assassins after them. They traveled for the entire day up the kingsroad before stopping for the night. As everyone was setting up the camp Gerion approached the wounded warden of the north.
"Tell me what made you betray your king?"
Eddard looked at the smiling man "I did not betray my king, Stannis is the rightful king, Joffrey is a bastard."
Gerion was intrigued by the lords words. "A bastard? Whose bastard?"
"Jaime's. He and Cersei had an incestuous relationship. All of Roberts children are in truth his."
For the first time in a long time Gerion Lannister was serious. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, if you want proof all of the Baratheons have black hair no matter who is the mother. Look over there, the boy next to Arya, see him?"
"Yes what about him?"
"He is Roberts bastard son." Gerion gave the boy a better look, the boy really looked just like Robert did back in his youth. Strong build, black hair only thing missing was a women at his side and he would be just like his father.
"Let me guess, he knows how to swing a hammer?"
"He does. He is how I figured it out."
"And you could not have kept your mouth shut."
"Joffrey is a bastard born out of incest, he is not the rightful king."
"And Roberts was? Last time I checked Robert became king after he killed Rhaegar at my nephew killed the mad king. And the Targaryens became kings after Eagon concurred the six kingdoms. There is no such thing as rightful king, only the man who sits on the iron throne. Thanks to you now a war is upon us, many will die on all sides."
"There is no honor in letting Joffrey rule, Stannis is the rightful king and I will support him."
"What you will do after we go our separate ways is up to you. I will go to my brother Tywin and see what I can do there. He is going to be so surprised to see me and with Brightroar in hand. Took me years to find it and get out of Valyria but it was worth it."
"I wanted to ask, why did you save me? You went against your family to save me."
"Me and my family never really got along. Tiwyn and Kevan are too serious, but I do like Tirion and Jaime, they are good man. When I heard that the honorable Ned Stark was being trialed for treason I knew something wasn't right. So when I came and saw what was going on I could not just let it happen, I had to do something. It was all worth it just to see Cersies face when she saw that it was me. I cant wait to see how my brothers react."
Ned managed to lift himself a bit "T-Thank you for saving my life and my daughters. Im in your debt."
"You know what they say about the Lannisters, we always pay our debts but we also collect on them. Someday I might need something from you, who knows? Now I suggest you rest you are going to need it."
Days past and the time for them to separate had come. The Stark girls said their goodbyes to the man who saved their father. Arya remarked how he is nothing like any Lannister she met to which Gerion laughed and told her that she is right. Gerion then turned to Ned Stark.
"Thank you again for saving me, I will not forget this. I wish you luck on your journey."
"Thank you my lord, I wish you good fortune in the wars to come." Those words hit Eddard, he remembered those word well, those were the same word Arthur Dane told him in Dorne. The day he found his sister. Before he could reply to those word Eddard noticed that ser Gerion had already gone, a cloud of dust being left behind him as he road away. Ned thought that now at least there was one honorable Lannister in Westeros. He hugged his two girls as they continued to Riverrun.