Hello everyone. I know it has been far too long between updates and I thank you for staying with this fic. As I have said in previous chapters, I do have a family member who has had health problems. This has now been extended to me. I found out a few months ago that I have a lifelong medical condition that has turned up out of the blue. I was hospitalised because of it. What has caused it we don't know, but it has been a difficult time for me. Fanfiction hasn't exactly been at the forefront of my thoughts.

The next chapter isn't quite as I want it but hopefully I can get back into the swing of writing again. It is slightly shorter than I usually write but it felt like the correct place to leave it. Thank you for all of your comments. I will try to respond to all the logged in comments and I do love reading my guest comments.

I hope you enjoy the next chapter.


Chapter 20

A loud roar shook everyone to the core as they started towards Winterfell's keep. Rhaegal had taken to the air voicing his displeasure as he flew high above the castle, circling it as though he was stalking prey. Ghost remained still as he gazed upwards towards the dragon.

'Which dragon is that?' Arya asked as she stared up into the darkening sky. Rhaegal's silhouette eerily contrasting as he flew around in circles.

'Rhaegal,' Daenerys answered without looking at the younger of the Stark sisters, Daenerys made her decision and turned around heading for Winterfell's gate. The last thing she needed was Rhaegal causing a panic and the idea that she couldn't control her dragons. 'Open the gate,' she commanded as she neared the guards. The guards obeyed immediately as their worried looks told her they were worried about the dragon circling above them.

Daenerys raced across the frozen land where the road towards Winterfell had been cleared. She headed towards the dark shape she could see in the gloom knowing that it was Drogon, resting on the ground. When she was halfway between Drogon and Winterfell she stopped gasping for breath in the crisp, cold air, condensation pouring from her mouth as she breathed.

'Rhaegal!' she called. She knew her dragon could hear her, even if seemed as her voice was being carried in the other direction by the wind. 'Rhaegal!' she called again. Rhaegal answered with a roar but stubbornly kept circling Winterfell.

'Rhaegal, come here,' she ordered in the hope that Rhaegal would stop his circling. She wrapped her arms around herself as she felt the bitter cold seeping into her body. She wasn't dressed warmly enough for the cold outside of Winterfell and the North was far colder than she had thought it would be. Jon hadn't been lying when he said Winterfell was warm inside due to the water from the hot springs running through pipes in the walls and the contrast between the two was incredibly jarring.

Suddenly, she felt warmth around her and realised that Drogon had come to her and she revelled in his warmth. 'Rhaegal, please!' she called again and was this time followed by Drogon's own call. Drogon's call seemed to work as Rhaegal circled the castle one more time before landing next to Drogon and Daenerys.

Rhaegal whined as Daenerys moved to soothe him. He allowed her touch but only momentarily before he looked back to Winterfell. It was then that Daenerys realised how strongly Rhaegal was linked to Jon. Rhaegal was feeling Jon's emotional pain and wished to comfort him.

She moved closer again and gently rested her head on Rhaegal's snout. 'You care for him a lot,' she stated and she heard the familiar rumble that meant 'yes'. 'He is your rider. Jon's just found out he is my brother Rhaegar's son and that his mother died birthing him. He's a bit distressed. Ghost is watching over him though.' Rhaegal gave a low rumble at her words and Daenerys lifted her head to see a spark in Rhaegal's eyes that she knew meant that he wished he was with Jon. 'Jon will come and see you when he's calmed down,' Daenerys said hoping that it would be the truth.

Drogon moved closer and she reached out to him so that she was now touching both of her children. 'You both knew, didn't you? That Jon was one of us,' the dragon's answered with similar growls. 'He's my nephew and my blood. I'm not the last Targaryen,' she whispered as a couple of tears froze on her cheeks.


Jon wasn't sure how long he had been weeping but eventually his tears dried up. The alcove where his mother's tomb and statue were situated was cold and dusty but he really didn't care. He leant against the alcove looking at his mother's statue with the direwolf closer to him. His mother had been in these crypts the whole time and right now he hated Eddard Stark for doing this to him. Jon felt his father, no uncle, owed him the truth but sent him to the Wall to rot instead. It wasn't the fact that he was trueborn, or even that his parents had been denied him, which troubled him. It was that he hadn't been given a choice. Would he have gone to the Wall? Would he have chosen to find his aunt and uncle in Essos? What would he have done?

Jon sighed, it didn't matter now. What was done was done. He made to stand as he knew his charge through Winterfell had caused some panic and he need to quell it as soon as possible. He had no idea how the Northern Lords and Ladies would react to his news but he also knew that rumours would probably have already surfaced. Even walls have ears, he thought bitterly. As Jon pushed himself up to stand something caught the corner of his eye.

Jon's curiosity got the better of him and he knelt where he had originally been sitting. Due to his emotional outburst, much of the dust covering Lyanna's plinth had been disturbed and wiped away. Jon looked closer and behind the foreleg of the direwolf he could see a mark which didn't look like it belonged. He wiped the extra dust away with his hand and crept closer. Jon suddenly startled back as he recognised the mark, or more accurately, the symbol. It was a very small, barely distinguishable, three-headed dragon.

Jon felt his heart rate raise and his breathing became more ragged. The symbol would not be seen by those looking at the statue head on and was clearly meant to be hidden from view, but also meant to be there. It was meant for him, he was sure of it.

Jon calmed himself and started to scour the rest of the plinth near to the stone direwolf. It took him a few minutes but he eventually felt the same symbol on the underside of the edge of the plinth. Jon noticed that the side of the plinth nearest the direwolf and facing the alcove was slightly loose. With some effort, Jon pried it loose and revealed a small wooden box underneath the plinth. Jon stared at the box, wondering whether he should reach for it or not. Eventually, he reached out and pulled the box from its hiding place with trembling hands.

He opened the box carefully to reveal papers inside. He lifted them out one at a time to reveal three pieces of paper. Two had broken seals while one had a grey direwolf seal intact. The candlelight was starting to dim but Jon broke the direwolf seal and started to read.

Jon,

If you're reading this, then you now know the truth I have kept secret ever since the day you were born. I am not your father. My sister Lyanna was your mother and Rhaegar Targaryen was you true father. A secret I had to keep for you to be safe from those who would kill you for just being alive.

I write this as I depart Winterfell to go south to Kings Landing. I hope to tell you about your mother once you are under the protection of your Night's Watch vows. This way, you cannot be seen as a threat to Robert even if the truth is known. I know not if you will ever read this, but I hope you can forgive me for not telling you of your mother, my sister, before now.

In this box are the documents which prove your heritage. Howland Reed also knows of your parentage and has also sworn secrecy to protect you.

I believe my sister did love your father and the rumours of her kidnap and rape were false. She was a stubborn young woman who preferred fighting and riding to her more ladylike pursuits. Arya is very like Lyanna in her spirit and appearance. Lyanna's last moments were spent thinking of you. She made me promise to protect you and I hope I have fulfilled that vow.

Your Uncle, Eddard Stark

Jon sat staring at the words before him. His father's, no, uncle's words. Anger started to rise within Jon as he realised Ned Stark hadn't trusted him with the truth. What did his uncle think? That he would try to start a Targaryen restoration? Start a war for the Iron Throne?

Jon looked towards Ned Stark's statue and shouted, 'Did you think I would be safe rotting at the edge of the world!? How was that 'keeping me safe!?' I don't forgive you!'

Jon scrunched the paper back in the box and tried to calm his breathing. His life was lie and his uncle was to blame. Jon picked up the next piece of paper and gingerly opened it.

I, hereby decree, the lawful union of

Prince Rhaegar of House Targaryen and Lady Lyanna of House Stark in marriage

Performed by Septon Maynard, Priest of the Seven, and

Witnessed by

Ser Arthur of House Dayne and Ser Gerold of House Hightower

Jon looked at the evidence of his parent's marriage in front of him with the different signatures of all those involved. He wasn't a bastard and he never had been. The names of the Kingsguard as witnesses secured the truth. Jon folded the paper and placed it back into the box. He took a deep breath before unfolding the final piece of paper.

I declare the birth of

Aegon of House Targaryen

Sired by Prince Rhaegar Targaryen and birthed of Lyanna Targaryen

Witnessed by

Eddard of House Stark, Lord of Winterfell

Howland of House Reed, Lord of Greywater Watch

Jon felt his head swim as he saw the name his mother had given him confirmed in writing. No-one would question a birth witnessed by two lords of the realm, even without a Maester's signature.

The candlelight was dimming quickly and tiredness quickly washed over Jon. He looked up at his mother's statue wondering what she had actually looked like before closing his eyes.


It was late at night and many humans were still working but not as many as earlier in the day. Ghost stayed in his position in the archway to the crypts but the humans paid him no mind. They knew he wasn't dangerous unless they were threatening his human or those Jon cared about. Ghost knew his human's name was Jon and that Jon had named him Ghost. He didn't know what the name meant but he was happy to respond to it.

Ghost knew Jon had been very upset by something that had been said in the room with a lot of humans, including the two new ones. The red haired woman and the shorter, dark-haired woman were close to Jon like Ghost had been with his brothers and sisters, but he knew the humans weren't born of the same parents. They smelt too different. The silver-haired woman was closer to Jon, Ghost knew that, but still not the same. He was sure the flying creatures, he thought he had heard Jon call them 'dragons', also seemed to know about the connection. Jon was hurting and Ghost wanted to make sure nobody else got hurt and protect Jon from those who might hurt him. The big, red-haired man was a man Ghost liked. That man would not hurt Jon, neither the one with missing fingers.

Ghost decided it was time to check on Jon so he slowly made his way down into the darkness. The candles had burned out but Ghost could see easily in the dark as he followed Jon's scent. His fur coat kept him warm as he searched through the darkness until he found Jon sprawled over the plinth that housed Lyanna Stark's statue. Ghost noticed the box beside Jon and looked at it before deciding he could fit it in his massive jaws and picked it up. He didn't know why it was important but he felt it was. Ghost looked at Jon's sleeping form and decided to leave his human for the time being and left the crypts with the box in his jaws.

The castle was mostly empty as most of the humans were sleeping but Ghost knew where he needed to go. Any human who crossed his path moved out of the way to let him through, some with more fearful gazes than others, until Ghost found his destination and scratched at the door.


The scratch at the door immediately alerted Sansa and Arya to Ghost's presence. Arya dashed to the door and opened it to let Ghost into the room as Sansa remained at her desk. The direwolf dropped the box he had carried from the crypts onto the desk with a sharp 'bang', making Sansa jump slightly.

'What is it?' Arya asked as she looked at the box. Sansa carefully lifted the lid to see three pieces of paper inside.

'Where did he get these?' Sansa asked, mostly too herself, as she carefully unfolded the papers. 'Arya.'

'What?' Arya asked as her sister handed over the papers. 'This is proof that father lied to everyone for so long. Jon is Rhaegar and Lyanna's son.'

'I was hoping it was just a misunderstanding...but Jon isn't our brother,' Sansa said quietly.

'Yes he is!' Arya roared at her sister. 'He will always be our brother!' she insisted as Ghost watched on.

Sansa gave a small smile at her sister's defence of Jon. They had always been close and Arya wasn't about to give up her 'big brother'. Sansa took the key to her desk draw from its hiding place and placed the papers inside the desk and locked it, before returning the key.

'What did you do that for?' Arya asked as her anger had quelled slightly.

'Right now, I don't trust Jon not to do something stupid,' Sansa replied with worry in her eyes.

Ghost decided that the women had talked for long enough and strode over to the door, which took him only a few strides due to his size, and stood waiting for one of them to open it.

The sisters exchanged warm smiles at the direwolf's antics before Arya opened the door and Ghost moved into the corridor. He looked at them expectantly and they realised that he expected them to follow.

Ghost led Sansa and Arya further down the corridor towards the guest quarters instead of travelling towards the crypts.

'I thought Jon was in the crypts,' Arya said quietly to Sansa, who just shrugged in response. Soon it became clear to the Starks exactly where Ghost was taking them.

Ghost stopped in front of the appropriate door and scratched at the door. Muffled voices could be heard until the door was wrenched open to reveal Tormund and Ser Davos in the background.

Tormund took in the sight before him, Jon's sisters and the direwolf, and grinned widely as Davos found his way to the door.

'What's going on?' Davos asked.

Ghost answered by moving away from the door before looking back, indicating that they should follow.

'We're following the wolf!' Tormund chuckled as he made to follow Ghost with Davos. Sansa and Arya following the Wildling.

Ghost led them towards the crypts and slowly they descended into the darkness. Tormund had lit a torch which helped illuminate the way somewhat but was grumbling under his breath. 'This place gives me creeps. Dead...not burned...why do that?'

Sansa and Arya couldn't help but smirk at the large Wildling's commentary, for Tormund actually seemed scared. Something the large Wildling would certainly deny if any of them challenged him on it.

'Where is he?' Davos asked as he felt the cold seep into his bones, wishing he'd thought to wear a thicker cloak.

'With his mother,' Arya answered in a tone which made it clear just how stupid she thought the man's question was. Tormund snickered under his breath.

'It isn't far now,' Sansa reassured Davos as they continued deeper into the crypts.

The light from Tormund's torch illuminated the cloaked lump which was Jon as they approached Lyanna's statue and tomb. Jon was clearly asleep as they approached him, his eyes were shut and his chest rose and fell rhythmically.

'Who wants to be brave and wake 'im up?' Tormund whispered as they all looked to each other. Arya sighed and rolled her eyes and moved towards Jon but before she could reach him Ghost had blocked her path. The direwolf used his snout to lift Jon's left arm, which Jon was resting his head on.

Jon woke with a jerk to see Ghost beside him. He turned and frowned as he heard the stifled laughter coming from behind him. Suddenly, he remembered the box and its contents and started searching the floor wildly.

'If you're looking for the box, Ghost brought it to me,' Sansa told Jon who instantly glared at Ghost.

'Don't look at him as though he betrayed you,' Arya snapped at her brother.

Jon ignored her and continued to glare at Ghost, who in turn, stared back with his unblinking, ruby red eyes. In the end, the direwolf won the staring contest and Jon conceded defeat by ducking his head.

'Just leave me alone,' Jon grumbled as he avoided any eye-contact by staring at his knees.

'You can't stay down 'ere,' Davos stated in a business-like tone. 'You'll freeze if you do.'

'So?' Jon replied not looking at the older man.

'So?' Sansa replied sounding rather angry. Jon couldn't see her glare but he knew it was there.

There was an awkward silence and Jon was wondering why Arya hadn't said anything when Tormund knelt down beside him. Jon slowly raised his gaze to look at the man and their eyes connected.

'There you are,' Tormund said gruffly. 'Now, you're coming with us or I'll knock you out and throw you over my shoulder. Your choice,' the Wilding beamed as he stared at Jon. Jon heard Arya snigger slightly and wondered whether he should try and fight Tormund but he knew he needed to get out of the crypts. Jon sighed in resignation and Tormund held out his hand and pulled Jon to his feet.

Jon felt himself sway slightly as hours on the floor had left his legs and feet with pins and needles, Tormund's grip strengthened as Jon swayed.

'How much chaos did I cause?' Jon asked gingerly.

'Enough,' was Sansa's answer and Jon didn't press her for more information.

'Why won't you look at us, Jon?' Arya asked having lost her patience.

'How can you look at me?' Jon mumbled finally having removed himself from Tormund's grip.

'Jon, I am looking at you...and all I see is my idiot of a big brother who thinks I no longer see him as that!' Arya's exasperation was evident in her tone as she glared at her brother, who was still staring at the floor.

Jon couldn't stop his smile at Arya's tone. In the past, she would probably have kicked him in the shins as well. Jon raised his head and spoke quietly,' Do you mean an idiot or your big brother?'

'Both!' Arya wrapped her arms around Jon and held him tightly as Jon held her in return.

Sansa moved closer towards her aunt's statue, gazing up at the stone and wondering whether her aunt had looked anything like it. Sansa had earlier pondered how Jon's revelation may work in her favour and that she would perhaps be the ruler of the North if Jon took the southern kingdoms. She hated herself for those thoughts now she saw the state of her brother. This was no time for politics but the time would come, eventually.

'When the snows fall and the white wind blows...'Sansa started, still gazing at her aunt's statue.

'The lone wolf dies, but the pack survives,' Jon and Arya finished together, still holding one and other.

Arya pushed away from Jon giving him a stern look. 'We are a pack and that includes you! If you doubt that, all you have to do is look at him!' she pointed towards Ghost, who tilted his head to the side slightly before moving to Jon's side. Jon dug his fingers into Ghost's fur and felt his anxiety fade a little and fatigue start to take over.

Tormund and Davos watched on silently, understanding that Jon needed his family around him at that moment.

The group started to move out of the crypts with Ghost leading the way. Jon felt as though his legs were made of lead and his body felt as though he had been fighting for hours on end. There were still a few men working in the gloom but none took any notice of Jon and the others. A roar above the castle alerted Jon to Rhaegal, who was, once again, circling the castle from above.

Jon sighed as he looked up to the skies. Rhaegal's calls were coursing through Jon's body as though Rhaegal was feeling Jon's pain, and in truth, Jon knew that was what Rhaegal was feeling.

'I'll be back in a minute,' Jon mumbled to everyone else as he started to walk towards the gates. He didn't even have to give the command as the gates opened, as if by his will.

He hadn't walked far when Rhaegal landed in front him, snout extended and searching. Jon walked up to the dragon and extended his hand to Rhaegal's snout, with no fear, feeling the warm, rough scales beneath his hand.

'Hello Rhaegal,' Jon said softly and felt the dragon purr in response. Jon rested his head against Rhaegal's snout and stayed there for a moment. 'You knew. You could tell. I was wrong though, the Valyrian blood comes from my father, not my mother.'

Jon wasn't sure how long he stood there, resting his head against his dragon, but he didn't think it was too long before Rhaegal moved away slowly so Jon could find his balance. Jon looked up at the dragon and saw that Rhaegal was looking towards Winterfell, where Ghost was sitting watching them calmly.

'I better go and get warm,' Jon said quietly as Rhaegal stared back. Rhaegal looked to Ghost and then back at Jon before moving away and then flying to the place the dragons had claimed as their own. Jon watched Rhaegal land next to the larger silhouette of Drogon before turning back to Winterfell. Once level with Ghost the man and direwolf walked in step and disappeared into the castle.


A/N: I wanted to show more of Jon's torment. I felt that the show just glossed over it and it didn't really seem to matter to him. We never understood how he felt about it. As you know, I love Ghost so he will feature rather a lot.