It was time to depart for Winterfell. Fafnir, Tohru, and Shouta stared in horror as Jon and Dany boarded the boat, holding hands.

"Dude," said Shouta. "We have to tell him."

"Do we?" Tohru asked.

"Okay, wouldn't you want to know if you had just fucked your..." Shouta started.

"Nephew," Fafnir finished. "And I don't know. Maybe ignorance is bliss."

"They are getting along," agreed Tohru.

"You guys are sick! What if they have a kid?" Shouta asked.

"They can't," said Tohru. "She's infertile after the demon incident."

"Ohhh," said Shouta, considering. "Ugh, it's not fair! She finally picks someone good, and it's..." He gagged. "We have to tell them."

"We will," said Fafnir. "After the war with the Night King."

"Yeah, we don't want to distract from that," said Tohru. "This is going to throw them both for a loop. We'll just make sure they don't do it again. It was pretty easy."

"It was also pretty easy for them to get around you two," said Shouta.

"Yeah, Fafnir, where were you, anyways?" Tohru asked.

"Nothing," said Fafnir.

Ser Gendry approached Fafnir. "We're all ready," he said. "Where is the Lady Shireen? I haven't seen her since yesterday."

"Ah," said Fafnir slyly. "The Lady Shireen is very ill, I'm afraid. But don't you worry. I've left her in the attendance of some Valkyries. She is very safe."

"Oh," said Ser Gendry. "Well, can I see her before I go?"

Fafnir put his arm around him. "The Lady Shireen sends you her love," he said. "She has asked not to be disturbed for fear of spreading the illness to the army. But rest assured, cousin. She is 100% safe."

"Umm, okay," said Gendry. "Can you give her this?" He fumbled through his pocket and produced a little wooden stag toy. "I've had it since I was a baby. I never realized why I was so attached to it until recently."

"Awww," said Fafnir. "Sure thing. I will take it to her."

He took the toy and went to board the boat with the rest of them. Gendry scowled. "Hold on. Isn't she in the castle?"

"The castle? Oh, oh, yes, yes, the castle," said Fafnir. "Of course. 100% safe, in the castle. Tell them they may shove off. I will catch up. Godspeed!"

"Godspeed," Gendry echoed, boarding the ship.

Fafnir walked slowly back into the castle, and Ornela ran out past him. "GENDRY!" she cried.

"Huh?" Gendry said, turning around.

Ornela wrapped herself around him. "Ser Gendry, my noble knight, do not go! Stay with me!"

"Ummm," said Gendry, "I'm a knight now. I have to go to battle when I'm told. You can come with me, but..."

"No!" Ornela cried. "I won't go near those wights, and neither should you!"

"I don't have a choice, Ornela," said Gendry. "And if we don't defeat them, then you and everyone else is as good as dead. So, I am protecting you. Just, you know, really far away."

Ornela sighed. "Fuck this," she said.

"I'm sorry?" he asked.

"I was sold to a Khal at twelve," said Ornela. "When Dany freed me, and I met Shouta, I thought I could finally have a normal relationship! But Shouta turned out to be mega weird, and you say you must leave me every time the Lady Baratheon tells you. This isn't what I wanted at all."

"Well," said Gendry. "Maybe you should try dating someone who isn't a knight or a mage."

Ornela looked up at him in horror. "Are you saying you want to break up?"

"Were we...together?" he asked. "I mean, we were together, but I didn't realize you thought we were...together together...erm..."

She slapped him. "Men are all pigs!" She stomped back into the castle.

Gendry held his cheek. She could hit pretty hard. "So, that's over?" he asked himself. "Yeah, that's definitely over."


Dany's army arrived at Winterfell.

She and Jon lead the way, flanked by Tohru and Fafnir. Kanna and Jorah followed, and then Lucoa and Shouta, Tyrion and Varys. Davos and Gendry lead the Valkyries, followed by Grey Worm, Missandei, and the Unsullied. The Dothraki brought up the rear. But the real showstoppers were Drogon and Rhaegal flying overhead.

The key players assembled in Winterfell's great hall. Sansa was seated at the head table beside Bran, Arya, and Rickon. A separate table was provided for Dany's Queensguard and council, and Jon and Dany joined the Starks at the head table.

"My fellow Northmen," Jon started, "please join us in welcoming the Queen Daenerys Targaryen, and her-"

Jon was unable to finish. At Dany's name, the Northern lords all stood up and began shouting incoherently, but angrily. Jon looked at Sansa to do something, but she just shrugged as if to say, "I told you so."

It was Tyrion who attempted to quell the crowd. "We realize this is a lot," he said. "We realize that we have all been enemies. But we must now unite behind a common enemy, one that does not discriminate." He looked at Shouta, who had Ser Wightsworth in a box for the time being. "This is the largest army ever assembled. Be assured, you are in good hands."

"And how," Sansa asked, "am I to feed this army, plus the two dragons? What do dragons eat?"

"Lady Sansa," Dany said politely. "My knight and handmaid Kanna will see to that the dragons are fed responsibly."

Kanna stood up and curtseyed to Sansa. Sansa caught her breath. Kanna was beautiful, perhaps even more beautiful than the queen that Jon had gotten himself so attached to. Sansa looked at Fafnir, who nodded, and she smiled in return. Oddly, Jon's dragon friend was more trustworthy to her now than Jon.

Following their strategy meeting, Winterfell got to work producing dragonglass weapons and training their troops. Fafnir and Jon were taking inventory of the Northern infantry when two hands clapped them on the back. They turned around to see Samwell Tarly.

"SAM!" they cried. The three metaphorical brothers embraced each other.

"Oh my goodness," said Sam. "I hardly know what to say. It's been so long!"

"We've got so much catching up to do," Jon agreed.

The three friends left the training grounds and headed back inside Winterfell to the library that Sam and Gilly had basically made their home. Gilly was rocking Little Sam to sleep. "Fafnir! Jon!" she gasped. Sam took the baby so that she could give them both a giant hug. The group spent the next few hours recapping their adventures.

"I don't think I like this Shouta person," Sam said, when they got to the part about Ser Wightsworth. "Where did he come from?"

"You know, I'm not sure," said Jon. He looked to Fafnir for help.

"Shouta's from Japan," said Fafnir. "He accidentally summoned Lucoa when he was really young."

"Summoned her?" Jon asked. "Geez. Maybe he can summon a few more dragons for us to use in this war."

"How many dragons are there now?" Sam asked.

"Not counting Dany's three...erm...two," said Jon. "Four. Tohru, Kanna, Lucoa, and Fafnir here."

"I met Kanna," said Sam. "She is beautiful, but scary."

"That's kind of the point of dragons," said Fafnir. "Speaking of which. Sam. Did you find any more information for me?"

Jon looked from Sam to Fafnir. "I'm sorry? Information?"

"Oh, yes," said Sam. "Fafnir asked me to research Azor Ahai for him. I'm afraid I didn't find out all that much that we didn't already know. But I did learn about his connection to the Night King. This, Jon, you should hear. Gilly, can you hand me the black notebook?" Gilly dug through Sam's satchel and found the ragged book of parchment bound in black leather. Sam looked for his notes on Azor Ahai, and he began. "Azor Ahai is documented as living 8,000 years before Aegon's Landing. When the Long Night descended upon the world, Azor Ahai forged Lightbringer by thrusting his sword through his wife Nissa Nissa's heart. That's literally all I have on Azor Ahai. Just a bunch of prophecies saying he'll return again when the world needs him."

"Okay," said Fafnir. "So the Long Night? That's where the White Walkers were first in Westeros, right?"

"Right, but in Essos it's not called that, so things are a little fuzzy," said Sam. "If you read about the Long Night, in Westeros, it doesn't mention an Azor Ahai. It just says that the First Men drove them back, and then we built the Wall. But the stories from Essos involving Azor Ahai are eerily similar."

"So what are you saying?" said Jon.

"I'm saying, the two events are probably the same," said Sam. "The Long Night apparently lasted an entire generation. Its effects were felt over the entire world, not just in Westeros."

"That's amazing," said Jon.

"So, the Last Hero from our Westerosi stories may very well be Essos's Azor Ahai," said Sam. "And knowing what we know about Azor Ahai from Fafnir, this makes sense. But here's what's bothering me. This was 8,000 years ago. If the White Walkers were still alive, especially the Night King, why did they choose now to come back?"

"Rebuilding their troops?" Jon suggested. "The magic from the Wall?"

"It doesn't add up to me," said Sam. "I have a theory...I can't prove it, but it seems to me...these are different Night Kings."

"WHAT?!" Jon cried. "Impossible. How?!"

"I don't know!" Sam said. "The Children of the Forest created the Night King from the First Men. The story goes that the Walkers got out of the Children's control until the Children helped the First Men create the Wall to keep them at bay. Why, after 8,000 years, are they just trying again now? And the Children apparently learned how to make him from another source."

"I've never heard that before," said Jon.

"There's a passage about an enchanted ice shard that they literally shoved into the first human that became the Night King," said Sam. "And it says they received this as a gift from The Great Other."

Shouta came down, leading a giggling maid. "Oh, shit, I'm sorry," said Shouta. "I guess this room is occupied."

"Shouta, wait," said Jon. "This is Sam, my best friend from the Wall. He's been researching White Walkers. I think he should see Ser Wightsworth."

"Oh, hey, alright," said Shouta. He turned to the maid. "I'll find you later?" The girl giggled and nodded before flitting off. Shouta smiled, and Sam shivered. "He's in my room," said Shouta.


Jon summoned Sansa and Bran to also see Ser Wightsworth. They gathered in the main hall for the demonstration. Shouta and Lucoa brought the box down from Shouta's room.

"I used a simple freeze charm to snare the wight," Shouta said as he opened the box. "But what truly allowed me to control the creature was this curse mark I have on my palm." He raised his right palm, and Ser Wightsworth arose. Sansa gasped and instinctively reached for Fafnir. Fafnir went to push her away, but his affection for Jon's sister overrode his instincts, and he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Can I see that curse mark?" asked Bran. Everyone got quiet when Bran spoke, since he did it so sparingly. Shouta walked over to Bran and gave him his hand. Bran traced the spiral pattern. "Jon, have you looked at this closely?" Bran asked.

"Umm, no," said Jon. "We leave these matters entirely to Shouta."

"You should look at this," said Bran.

Jon sighed and stepped over. He looked over Bran's shoulder to Shouta's hand, and his heart stopped. He looked slowly up at Shouta. "Shouta," said Jon sternly, "where did you learn this symbol?"

"My Necromancy book," said Shouta. "It's the simplest mark you can use to reanimate and control a corpse."

"Your Necromancy book? Like...from Japan?" Jon clarified.

"That's right," said Shouta. Jon backed away slowly and put his hand on his sword. Shouta reacted to his energy. "What? What's wrong?"

"White Walkers arrange corpses in this pattern when they want to reanimate them into wights," said Jon.

"Really?" Shouta gasped. "Wow. That's something!" He looked at his palm. "Necromancy must be a universal magic. It can be used in any realm. Neat!"

"That's not neat," Sansa said wearily.

"Actually, that is fascinating!" Fafnir said. "And very good to know. Jon, we ought to inform the Queen."

Sansa tensed at the mention of "the Queen." "Fafnir, can we talk?" she whispered.

"Yes, m'lady," said Fafnir. Fafnir and Sansa excused themselves and walked outside. Shouta put Ser Wightsworth back in the box and prepared to take him back. Jon and Sam went back to the library, whispering. Bran remained in his place, staring at Shouta.

"I suppose everyone is afraid of me now," said Shouta to Lucoa.

"I'm not afraid of you," said Bran.

"Thank you," said Shouta with a slight laugh.

"You are very important to us, Shouta," said Bran.

"Oh, well, that's probably an overstatement," said Shouta, becoming uncomfortable.

"It is not," said Bran. "You are...exactly where you need to be."

"Alright," said Shouta. "Good talk." He shrugged at Lucoa, and they carried Ser Wightsworth back to his room. He was eager to get back to serving the serving women of Winterfell.


Fafnir and Sansa strolled around Winterfell's courtyard, which had been turned into a forge. "I want you to be honest with me, Fafnir," Sansa started.

"I'm always honest, Lady Sansa," said Fafnir.

"I know," said Sansa with a smile. "This is why I like you. Fafnir, what do you think of Queen Daenerys?"

"Hmm," said Fafnir, choosing his words carefully. "I believe she means well," he said.

Sansa scowled. "Fafnir...you know that's not a good measure!"

"Hold on, now, hold on," said Fafnir. "She has done a lot of good in her short, miserable life. She thought she could just come to Westeros and settle into Dragonstone, and that everyone would fall at her feet simply because of her name and her dragons. She's slowly learning that this isn't the case, and that she has to earn her right to rule here. She's been good to Shireen. She could have murdered her and taken the castle by force, and she didn't. When Jon resisted, she didn't murder him either. She listened, she learned, and she's joined our cause against the Walkers. Her heart is in the right place."

"But," Sansa said.

"She's impulsive," said Fafnir. "She lets her emotions get the better of her judgment."

"That's dangerous," said Sansa. "And Jon has fallen for her like a ton of bricks."

"Well," said Fafnir, "let's just say, that's not going to last very long." Sansa looked up at him, waiting for more information. He knew he couldn't tell her, despite his pledge to always be honest with her. This was one piece of information that Sansa must not learn. She would mobilize the whole North in his name, and this would be the end of them. He took her hands. "Trust me, Sansa. There is an alliance within the alliance, and we are looking out for you. We brought Dany into power, and...we have a back-up plan, in case something goes sideways."

Sansa searched his face, but he was stoic. "Who are you, really? What stake do you have in this?"

Absolutely none, yet absolutely everything, Fafnir thought. "I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the Walls."

"Fafnir, stop," Sansa giggled. "This is serious."

"I know, m'lady," said Fafnir. They rounded a corner, and they ran into Sam, who was crying. "Oh gods, what happened? Slayer Sam does not cry!" Fafnir teased.

Sam looked uneasily at Sansa, and Fafnir excused himself from her company. Sam and Fafnir ducked away into a secluded spot within Winterfell. "She killed my father and my brother," said Sam.

"Woah, back up. Who? When?" Fafnir asked.

"The Targaryen girl," he said angrily, smacking his hand into a wall. "She burnt them alive because they wouldn't bend the knee."

Fafnir's mind went blank. "What? Are you sure?"

"She told me herself!" Sam cried. "Just now. Jorah and Kanna brought me to meet her. She wanted to thank me for curing Jorah. Some thanks!"

Fafnir put his arm around Sam, mind reeling. First, he pushed aside his first thoughts. Sam's family had treated him extremely poorly. Sam was now effectively Lord of Horn Hill. The primitive part of Fafnir was baffled at Sam's anger at Dany removing his sorry relatives for him. But Fafnir had learned that family was a complex thing for these humans, and just because someone was a total dick to you, didn't mean you didn't care about them in a way. Primitive thoughts aside, he could begin to digest the more disturbing implications of Sam's news. After he had just assured Sansa that Dany was good and just...

Ace in the hole. This was the first time there was any concrete evidence presented against Dany and in favor of Jon. Unfortunately, the death of two lowly lords was probably not enough to rouse anyone's outrage. She'd have to do something much more drastic before he'd have cause to start a schism. And he must work to prevent that, at a time like this, when icy death was knocking on everyone's door.

He must speak with the inner alliance.