Hi everyone!

I finally got a 'writer set up' aka I got a desk to write on instead of balancing my laptop on my lap while I write and I am ridiculously excited about it and wanted to share this moment, however lame that may be XD

Onto the story!


Chapter 82: Winter is Coming

An hour later in the afternoon …

Small Council Chamber, Red Keep, King's Landing, Seat of power of House Baratheon (Lannister/Tyrell) in the Crownlands, Capital of the Seven Kingdoms


Tyrion strolled into the Small Council Chamber and saw his father and Tommen sitting beside each other.

"Your early," Tywin remarked as his stunted son walked around the long rectangular table and, with considerable effort on his part, pulled out the chair on Tommen's right side.

"I like to know what is going on," Tyrion replied before looking at the way his father was leaning towards Tommen as if his entrance had disrupted a secret discussion between the two, "Not interrupting anything I hope?"

"Grandfather was just advising me on how a King should act," Tommen said in a surprisingly receptive tone as if he had truly been engaged in the conversation before his Uncle had arrived.

Tyrion reached for one of the many jugs that had been placed on the table, "He is very astute in that subject."

"Yes, he is," Tommen said, not picking up on the undertone of Tyrion's words, "He has taught me that, if I want to be a great King, it isn't enough to simply act like one. I must be a King in every sense of the word."

Tyrion started to pour the jug's contents into his goblet only to find water coming out of it. He sent his father a look of frivolous distain which the elder Lannister ignored in favour of nodding approvingly at Tommen's words.

"Tell me nephew what type of King are you going to be?" Tyrion asked as he heard distant footsteps coming from the corridor passageway, "Tommen the Little Lion Cub or Tommen the Mighty Stag, son of Robert Baratheon?"

"I won't tell you or anyone else who I am. I will show you who I am," Tommen responded with confidence Tyrion had never seen in him before.


"My King, my Lords," Mace Tyrell greeted the assembled Lannisters before breaking from escorting his daughter and sitting beside Lord Tywin.

Margaery flashed Tommen a sweet smile as she slipped into the chair beside Tyrion.

"How is Steffon?" Tommen asked across Tyrion.

"He is surrounded by people I trust," Margaery responded seeing through Tommen's simply question to the worry of a father.

"My condolences once again Lord Tywin for the loss of your brother," Mace bumbled, "He was a good man and we had grown close during our shared time on the Small Council."

Tyrion had to hold in his laughter at the insipid look his father held on his face but Lord Tywin was saved from having to reply as Queen Kenna and King Robb swept into the room followed by King Artys and Lord Royce behind them.

All four of them were in the middle of a flowing discussion.

"Ser Duncan the Tall would not have beaten Ser Arthur Dayne," Robb said turning his body towards Lord Royce as they all walked towards the Small Council table, "Ser Arthur Dayne would have been too quick, too slippery, too agile."

"Ser Duncan the Tall was never defeat, he died at Summerhall while Ser Arthur Dayne was defeated by your father at the Tower of Joy," Lord Royce reminded Robb.

"Are you sure you don't favour Ser Arthur because he is the smaller man in this proposed contest of yours?" Artys teased.

"The larger man doesn't always win," Robb tossed back at Artys, "Just look at your face."

"Enough talk of swordplay," Kenna rumbled out in an amused way, "it is time to discuss siege tactics and war."

She took the chair directly opposite Tommen while Robb cut off Lord Royce to sit beside Kenna across from Tywin and settle his icy blue eyes on Tywin's watchful green ones. Lord Royce took his seat next to Robb while observing the silent contest going on between the Stark King and the Lord of Lannister before giving Lord Mace a nod of acknowledgement. Artys took the chair to Kenna's left and laid his long lean arms down on the table taking up the space as if to tease Lord Tyrion's inability to do the same as the dwarf shuffled in his seat opposite the newest monarch in the room.

"Can we start now?" Tommen asked with mustered authority.

"Qyburn isn't here," Tyrion stated, "I would say let us drink to pass the time but it appears that we only have water."

"We need clear heads," Tywin said through gritted teeth, not wanting to deal with his son's antics.

"Well Father is right, drunken men are only useful up to a certain point then they become rather ridiculous," Tyrion said waving his hands around in lackadaisical gestures.

"That could be said of all men, not only drunkards," Kenna jested back staring at Tyrion with a playful smirk on her lips.

Banter flowed so easily between them.

Before Tyrion could retort Margaery announced Qyburn's arrival, "There he is."

Qyburn dashed through the door which was immediately slammed shut behind him and hurried to the only empty chair beside Artys, "Apologies my Lords, my Queens and Kings."

"You have nothing to apologies for the meeting hasn't started yet," Margaery assured in her characteristic charm as Qyburn perched on the chair facing her.


"Your Grace," Tywin directed at Tommen, "May I?"

"I can lead this meeting," Tommen responded hoping his grandfather wouldn't take offense before taking in a deep breath, "We are all gathered here for one purpose. To stop Daenerys Targaryen from claiming the Iron Throne and starting a reign of madness that would throw the Realm into chaos for generations to come."

"Quite right," Mace prattled out.

"I know we are not all friends around this table but we must work together if we are going to defeat our common enemy," Tommen said holding his voice steady as he looked around the table, "To that end Lord Tyrion please tell us how you have prepared the city for the coming siege."

Tyrion cleared his throat, "Thank you, your Grace. As you all know Daenerys Targaryen is on her way to our shores. She does not come alone. She has three adult dragons. She had a horde of at least a hundred thousand Dothraki and their horses, she had a well-trained army of just under ten thousand Unsullied at her command as well as I believe roughly two thousand Second Son mercenaries. It was fortunate Father, that you managed to enforce Trystane's neutrality with the capture of Myrcella and the Sand Snakes. Our scouts report he has marched his army back to Sunspear and has not moved since."

Tyrion took a sip of the water from his goblet and no one took the opportunity to interrupt him.

"It matters little that she is not well versed in the art of war or knows nothing of our customs or the land of her birth because she has Ser Jorah Mormont as her Hand, she had Ser Barristan the Bold protecting her, she has Vary's knowledge, she has my sister and Prince Oberyn's spite behind her," Tyrion listed off while he emphasised each of their opposite number with a jab of his finger on the wooden table, "But Qyburn and I believe we have come up with a few plans that will overcome all of that."

All the eyes switched from Tyrion to the unassuming man at the end of the table.


Qyburn took their attention in his stride as he pushed himself from his chair and stood at the top of the table.

"Since my arrival in King's Landing many months ago the artisans of King's Landing have crafted and placed my ballista designs all along the walls of King's Landing as well as placed a few dozen on the Red Keeps walls. I believe these ballistas to be our most effective way at killing Queen Daenerys's dragons."

"She does not only have dragons at her disposal," Tywin remonstrated.

Qyburn didn't batter an eyelid at receiving the full attention of Tommen's Hand, "My ballistas can also sling clay balls filled with incendiary mixtures that can ignite to engulf a few men in flames on impact as well as the spear like arrows that will pierce dragon hide. Lord Tyrion also asked me to oversee production of hundreds of fire pots-"

"Fire pots?" Tommen asked.

Tyrion took Tommen's attention away from Qyburn, "I thought we could place them alongside the main streets that lead to the Red Keep. Once the enemy's armies breach the walls and have got around the blockades our men will have built, they will find themselves surrounded by these explosive containers and all it takes is a well shot fire arrow and," Tyrion gestured with his hands, "boom, a line of fiery death running from one side of King's Landing to the other. I have utilised the various wildfire caches Aerys left around the city as well. Placed a few in large buildings that can be brough crashing down on unsuspecting soldiers. Of course, that is just the basic plan for once the walls have been breached and we are fighting within the city walls."

"You would destroy the city?" Margaery queried at Tyrion.

"Not all of it and besides a city can be rebuilt but a head cannot be regrown once it has been severed from your neck," Tyrion responded.

Margaery still held that look of concern, "What of the people?"

"Those that live near the main streets running from Rhaenys's Hill to the Red Keep and from Visenya's Hill to the Red Keep will be removed from their homes to keep them away from the fighting and the radius of the explosions. We will have archers on the rooftops that line the main streets who can set off the fire pots and wildfire caches when appropriate," Tyrion finished.

"The greatest defensive asset we have against Daenerys are the walls of King's Landing yet all your ideas Lord Tyrion are for when the walls have fallen," Kenna pointed out, "Might we hear your thoughts on holding those walls?"

Tyrion pursed his lips in disagreement, "With our combined forces the walls will be well manned with archers and infantry-"

"But?" Kenna cut in.

"But I expect Daenerys to target the walls and the ballistas with her dragons," Tyrion said.

"That is what we want," Robb chipped in, "The more she uses her dragons within range of the ballistas the better the chance we have at killing them."

"I would expect the walls to crumble in dragon fire, pushing the fighting to the streets of King's Landing regardless of whether we manage to kill the dragons or not," Tyrion stated.

"In the streets the Dothraki horsemen's movement will be limited," Robb said excitedly catching on to Tyrion's defensive plan, "We attack them from the rooftops with arrows and with our infantry in the streets. Create choke points. If they push past those points, we can set the wildfire caches and fire pots alight. You would make the whole of King's Landing the battleground."

Tyrion inclined his head at the King in the North, "Exactly but the Unsullied won't be so restricted once inside King's Landing. We have just under a hundred thousand battle harden soldiers between us all. We can nearly match her man for man if it comes down to it."

"And what happens if she decides to finish what her father started and burn the entirety of King's Landing down with us roasting alive like Harren the Black with her dragons while her army waits outside?" Lord Royce asked the table.

"The ballistas will kill her dragons," Tyrion tried to state with as much confidence as he could.

"They better or it won't matter how many men we have. If even one dragon survives, Daenerys Targaryen will win this war," Lord Royce said solemnly.

"She will target the walls and the ballistas with her dragons but nothing more," Tywin said in support of his son's statement.

Seeing Lord Royce's challenging look Tywin expounded, "The Targaryen girl doesn't want to destroy King's Landing she wasn't to rule from it. She will limit her dragon's destructive power on the city in favour of her army securing King's Landing and that is why we must ensure the majority of the battle is within its walls. It will keep the dragons at bay."

"We are using the inhabitants of King's Landing as a shield?" Tommen said with an unsettled expression on his face.

"They are a shield but an unmovable one," Tywin said cutting off Tommen's thought process, "The people of King's Landing are stuck in this conflict so do not dwell on their involvement."

"Daenerys Targaryen will land on Dragonstone within the week. Do I have permission to finalise my plans? Tyrion asked looking around the table.

Tommen looked to Margaery who shared his concerns but he eventually nodded.

"Go ahead," Robb said as his mind envision the scenario Tyrion had painted.

"The plan is a good one," Artys offered, "It is just a shame we have to enact it at all. If we could somehow just kill Daenerys her forces would surely just abandon Westeros back for Essos."

Kenna didn't miss the glances that Qyburn and Tyrion exchanged before sending the little Lord a supportive smile, "Your plan has the Vale's support."

Tyrion looked across Tommen, "Father?"

"The finer details will have to be worked on; specific troop placement, where the barricades will be placed, when to ignite the wildfire caches and the fire pots to maximise their casualties and minimise ours … but I agree with the fundamentals of your plan," Tywin said before eyeing Qyburn, "The ballistas better fell the dragons."

A look of pure joy spread across Tyrion's face upon the realisation that his father couldn't fault his plan, "Looking back in history there are only two ways to kill an adult dragon, with another adult dragon or with a ballista bolt and we don't have a dragon of our own.

"Let us all prepare then as best we can," Tommen stood, signalling the ending of the meeting.


A week later …

Approaching Dragon Stone by sea, Dragon Stone, East Crownlands, Westeros


Daenerys looked to the sky and she saw her three children soaring above her fleet, occasionally giving off bone rattling screeches.

"I know," Daenerys said softly, "We are nearly there."

She switched her gaze from her dragons to the tiny spec on the horizon.

Dragon Stone.

Her birthplace. Her mother's deathbed. The last resistance of Targaryen support had holed up there. It was only logical that she followed in Aegon's footsteps and make it her base from which she would conquer Westeros a new.

"Are you nervous?" Jorah asked from just behind her shoulder.

"Nervous?" Daenerys scoffed, "It is my destiny to rule Westeros and free its people from tyranny. I am not nervous."

Jorah leaned forward slightly out of eavesdropping range of Melisandre, Varys, Missandei, Greyworm, and Ser Barristan who were all standing on the quarter deck, "Was that a yes?"

Daenerys gave her Hand a sheepish smile, "Maybe."

"The Iron Throne will be yours Khaleesi," Jorah replied with fervour.

Daenerys smiled at the old title, "How long till Daario and my Dothraki reach the Vale?"

"Gulltown will fall within the week," Jorah promptly replied, "and Wickenden the week after. Daario will led them to Darry-"

"And I will take the Eyrie. I know the plan," Daenerys kept her stormy eyes on the growing rock in the distance, "I am just impatient."

"I am impatient to see you sitting on the Iron Throne too but King's Landing will be heavily fortified. We need to attack it both from the sea and from land. With Daario attacking the walls from the West with the Dothraki and Second Sons, myself and Grey Worm can lead the Unsullied from the beaches."

Daenerys placed her hands on the edge of the ship, just by the bow. All four of her commanders; Jorah, Ser Barristan, Grey Worm and Daario had agreed on their plan of action but Daenerys couldn't help but feel they were being too cautious, her dragons could do so much more than they thought. It was true they knew the art of war with men but she knew the power of fire with dragons beside her. Aegon had used his to bring the entirety of Westeros to kneel before him and Daenerys was inclined to do the same thing if it was required once again.


Jorah let his Queen stare out into the calm tide until it came time to disembark. He helped Daenerys down onto the white sandy beaches of Dragonstone.

The silver haired Queen immediately kneeled and reached down, grabbing a handful of sand and let it trickle between her fingers.

This was Westeros.

This was her land.

A place she had dreamed about as a girl. A place she had only heard rumours of.

Lord Darry and Illyrio Mopatis's stories could not convey the wonder she would feel once she had actually stepped foot on Dragonstone, or the beauty of a lost Targaryen knowing she was walking in the footsteps of her ancestors. That sense of belonging burned brightly in her in that moment.

She was home.

After everything she had gone through in Essos, she was finally in the land she was meant to rule, a land she knew she would liberate from those that kept it subjugated for their own benefit.

She would see it all. She would free it all.

"Show me the throne room," Daenerys demanded once she had regained her full height.


A day later …

Great Hall, Winterfell, The North, Westeros


Sansa sat behind the long battered wooden table listening to the concerns of the smallfolk on the worsening winter. She occasionally wrote a note down on a piece of parchment. The rationing and distribution of grain and livestock was of the utmost importance when roads would be blocked by snow piles and the normal hunting grounds were frozen to a standstill.

Her afternoon session was interrupted as the large doors leading to the Great Hall were thrown open.

A north man nearly collapsed onto his knees in an effort to get closer to Sansa.

"My Lady," he spluttered come to stop right in front of the table, "You sister and brothers have returned."

Sansa immediately stood and looked to the open doors, "My brothers."

Bran. Arya found Bran.

Her thoughts were confirmed a moment later when her eyes locked with her little sister's who was pushing Bran in a wooden wheelchair. Jon and the Hound were beside her and they was not alone but Sansa paid the others no attention. She missed the fact that the smaller of the party weren't entirely human and that the tall and thin man lurking within the group was covering his deathly pale face with a hood. She rounded the table and sprinted to her siblings. Once she had reached them, she launched herself into a hug with Bran.

"I thought you were dead," she cried as tears started to make their way down her face, "I thought I would never see you again."


An hour later ..

By Eddard Stark's Statue, The Crypts of Winterfell, The North


All four siblings looked at the statue's likeness of their father. The stonemason had done well. He had really captured Eddard's strong jaw and northern features but the warm heart and kindness that his children knew had radiated from him when he was alive could not be replicated in his stone statue.

"Robb should be here," Arya said to no one in particular as she kept a hold of Sansa's hand in her own.

Sansa took in a resigned breath, "He is in King's Landing preparing to fight Daenerys Targaryen."

"She isn't the threat we should be fighting," Jon stated gravely, "The Night King is coming and he brings a storm of death with him."

"I believe you Jon," Sansa assured, "How could I not after seeing those children and that skeleton. I thought it would have ripped out my throat."

"It would have if the Hound hadn't pulled it back," Arya said, glancing at Bran. Her little brother had been staring at their father's statue in silence for the past ten minutes.

"Join us," Bran said in an eerie tone.

His three siblings looked down at him in confusion.

"He is talking to me," Benjen said as he moved from the shadows to tower over the wheelchair bound boy.

"Who are you?" Sansa said, puzzled why her siblings weren't reacting in the same way to the intruder as she was.

"Have I changed that much? It seemed like yesterday I saw Arya fling food at you in the Great Hall."

A tremor went down Sansa's back as she took a closer look at the man from the shadows, "Uncle Benjen? What .. happened to you?"

"I died," Benjen replied switching his focus from his brother's statue to his red headed niece, "The Children brought me back."

"Your skin .." Sansa trailed off.

Benjen brushed a hand over Sansa's cheek. She flinched but didn't recoil from him, "The Night King is gathering his army of the dead and he will soon walk on the Wall. We need every living person to fight him back and end the Long Night when it comes."

"We need to start moving the people of the North south," Jon began thinking on all those unsuspecting innocents that could become fodder for the great undead army.

"Why can't the Wall hold them back?" Sansa questioned as Benjen lowered his hand.

"Because he marked me," Bran said trailing a hand over the place where the Night King had grabbed him, "The Wall's magic will no longer hold him back now. He just needs to bring it down or have his army scale it and the dead will flood into Westeros bringing an eternal winter with them."

"We will need everyone to face it. Daenerys Targaryen, Tommen Baratheon, Lannisters, Tyrells, Greyjoys, the Vale and the Dornish," Jon said, "Everyone one."

"The Greyjoys are no more. They were all killed when Queen Kenna was rescued," Sansa informed the group, forgetting how long they had been beyond the Wall for.

"Queen Kenna .. Arryn?" Benjen hesitantly said.

"Yes," Sansa replied before remember Benjen had once been due to marry Alyssa Arryn, Kenna's sister. It had been her abduction that has led Benjen to join the Night's Watch in the first place. The reason he stood half alive before the bones of his brother.

Sansa decided against notifying him of his former betrothed's death and hoped her siblings would refrain as well.

"I will continue south with Bran and whoever else wishes to continue with me and meet with Daenerys Targaryen and Tommen Baratheon. I will show them what I showed you. They will not deny the threat of the Night King," Jon said with conviction to Sansa, "They can't or there will be no Kingdoms left for them to rule over."

All there nodded in agreement.

"The Lords of the North will need the same proof I experienced," Sansa pointed out.

Jon took a moment to think, "Some Children of the Forest can stay with you."

Sansa nodded and was about to leave the crypts, having had enough of the gloom and old memories but Bran's disembodied voice stopped her retreat.

"There is something else you should all know. That we should all know, as a family."

Bran turned his head and looked directly at Jon, "It was one of Father's greatest regrets that he never told you who your mother was."

"You know who my mother is?" Jon gasped out, kneeling beside Bran as Arya and Sansa edged closer to their little brother.

Benjen knew what was coming.

The day he had left for the Wall. Ned had told him everything and made him swear to never tell another soul who Jon Snow, Bastard of Winterfell really was. He had understood his brother's decision and worry for the boy but the boy was now a man and the Seven Kingdoms needed such men now more than ever.

"Your mother was Lyanna Stark. She gave birth to you in the Tower of Joy. You are our cousin and the son of Rhaegar Targaryen," Bran revealed in an even tone that did little to portray the magnitude of his words.

Jon just gapped at Bran.

He didn't know what to do with this information. He had always assumed his mother was a whore that Ned had got pregnant while fighting in Robert's Rebellion.

But now his little brother or the boy he had always considered as his little brother, the all-seeing Three-eyed Raven was telling him that instead of being a Stark bastard he was now a Targaryen one as well.

Jon tried to force words to come out his mouth but nothing came. Arya stepped towards Jon and gently put her arms around him like she had done so many times before.

"You will always be my brother," Arya whispered to him.

Their embrace was broken when Bran corrected Jon's thinking.

"You aren't a bastard."


Author's Notes

I find tactical discussions on sieges one of the harder things to write because I don't want to bore people with the finer details but still give you a clear picture of Tyrion's preparations and leave enough things unsaid so the actual fight scenes are still fresh and surprising to you lot so what was discussed in this chapter isn't the entirety of Tyrion's ideas, for example I didn't mention anything to do with the fleets but stuff will happen involving the fleets. Tommen is giving me serious Simba vibes XD

Dany, if rather predictably, landed on Dragonstone with Daario leading the Dothraki onwards to the Vale … Kenna is not going to like this. Dany is determined to seize her destiny.

I needed that Winterfell Stark reunion and the R plus L equals J reveal has happened! He knows his relation to Dany and his true position in the line of succession …. and his siblings do too!


Reviews:

Supremus85 – Yes, all four together (Well Artys is one really only in name). Shae died in Chapter 31 and I revealed in Chapter 39 that it was Oberyn who killed her so Tyrion and Obeyrn are at odds in this story massively. Artys and Sansa were in King's Landing together when Kenna was a 'prisoner' there too but didn't interact at all. I haven't had any dialogue between them yet in this story but they would have interacted while Kenna was in the Eyrie after escaping King's Landing and in the North intervening in the Northern Civil War. As wedding presents go that would be awesome.

Mister LaGuardia – House Arryn and House Tyrell were enemies but Kenna, in her captivity on King's Landing, grew to actually like Margaery and considered her a friend. In Chapter 55 Kenna left Margaery in the Black Cells, after she took control of King's Landing. Kenna regrets locking Margaery in the Black Cells and not a more comfortable prison because the only reason she did that was to send a message to Tywin, it was hubris on her part which she regrets. Kenna's regret is more about the individual friendship that the bigger political picture.

Ksyuangel – Thanks! I am getting a bit impatient myself sometimes I just want to get to all the scenes in my head :D Well you can ask them so I have an idea of what you are thinking? I might be able to answer some :)

Hideki667 – That would be cool! He would have to double cross Kenna or maybe get her to switch sides too.

Ser Dorito of Aisle 13 – From a Lord to a Ser. What did you do to get such a demotion? I liked your other name :PI swear there was an actual canon scene that did this when the champion of (maybe) Meereen was killed by Daario?

NightlyRowenTree- Thanks Tree :)


Next Up: Arya and Sansa share a sisterly moment, Dany has her first real taste of the Game of Thrones, Tyrion basks in the afterglow of dealing a decisive blow.

If you are enjoying this story please *Toss a coin to your writer, Oh valley of readers* and review, follow and favorite!