Chapter 33

Road to Maidenpool

Arya

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Arya thought as she rode on the same horse as one of the people who attacked her and the Hound, her luck never seems to get any better, she should have known that someone would find them eventually. The Hound might be one of the men on her list but at least with him, she had a chance at getting back to her brother and mother but now chances of that happening looked slim. Everything, since they came south, went from bad to worse, first when the queen and Joffrey lied to the king at the inn, then when she finally thought she had some peace and something good for herself Joffrey and Cersei did it again and killed everyone she cared about, her father, Syrio, Vayon Poole, Jory, fat Tom, and even septa Mordane. Then when she thought Yoren was going to bring her back home he died and soon after she ended up at Harenhall. Then she was captured by the Brotherhood, the Hound and now these people.

The man she rode with was named Ronald Storm from what she heard from her captors, a bastard from the Stormlands who seemed unlike any captor she ever had or expected. He was at age with her brothers Robb and Jon and carried himself the same way as Jon did, as a knight. What was interesting was that most of the group was made out of knights, she knew that not every knight if most are decent people and at first glance, the same could have been said for them as well but they acted more like something Sansa would preach about, at least on the surface. Aye they captured her and the Hound but none of them mistreated her, at first they thought she was a captive and after a short talk decided to take her with them. They said that they were hired to find and capture the Hound so he could answer for his crimes, a part she did like somewhat.

Beside Ser Ronald, there were Ser Brendel an old yet honest and blunt man who reminded Arya of her father a bit, then there was Ser Rolly who always had a smile on his face and was ready to lighten up the mood and the final knight, at least she thought he was a knight due to his name, which she overheard one night when Ronald called him by Tollett. She remembered the name belonging to one of the houses from the Vale because when lord Yohn Royce came to Winterfell about a year or so ago to escort his son to the Wall, one of the men with him was a knight by the name of Andrew Tollett. This man by the name of Edd was not as serious as Brendel but he did seem more pessimistic about everything, he always had some kind of comment that would put a frown on Arya's face.

There were also two people who weren't knights, an archer who was almost always quiet and a woman by the name of Wenda. Arya actually found it interesting to meet a female warrior, even if she was for all tends and purposes a sellsword at best.

During their travel towards Maidenpool, they kept the Hound sedated with something Wenda kept making him drink. The Hound was always tied up with a good number of ropes and there was constantly one person watching him when they stopped to rest. Whoever these people actually were they sure did not want him to escape. She didn't know to who they were loyal to, at first she thought it might be the Lannisters but they were not heading back to Kings Landing or south for that matter, instead, they were going east. For a moment she considered the idea of telling them who she really is in hopes of them taking her to her family but she chose otherwise, not knowing what they might do after she tells them, so when asked she told them that her name is Jayne.

Now they stopped for the night near some trees where they tied their horses and made a fire. For the meal, they had what they been having for days salted meat and hard bread. Brendel, Rory, the hunter and Ronald slept while Tollett kept an eye on the Hound and Wenda seemed to be going through her gear. Arya watched the two of them and threw one more wood into the fire. Once Wenda falls asleep and Tollett isn't looking she will make her escape. She will steal a horse and untie all the rest. Just as she was planing her way out Wenda's voice caught her attention.

"Don't even think about it girl," Wenda said sharply.

"Think about what?" Arya asked as she looked at the woman.

"You are looking at me, Edd, the rest of them and the horses. You are thinking of a way to leave."

"No, I'm not," Arya lied.

"Dont try it with me, it's not going to work. Even if you manage to get a horse and start galloping out of here, all that would take to stop you is for one of us to take a bow in their hands," Wenda said coldly.

Arya was surprised by how easily the woman had read her intentions. "And how do you know what I would do, maybe I'm just looking around."

"Because if I was in your situation I would do something similar. You think you are a prisoner and maybe you are, it all depends on how you see it," Arya's only response was a huff. "Sandor Clegane is a bad person but for some reason, you are with him. I usually don't take an interest when I see men like that with anyone, even someone like you but the way you reacted when he caught him and the fact that he did not harm you tells me that he at the very least was decent towards you," Wenda leaned towards Arya, her bright eyes shining due to the closeness of the flame. "So tell me what would a man like the Hound want with a little girl like you?"

Arya's face hardened, she glared at the older woman. "I don't know, he found me on the road and took me."

Wenda looked at Arya for a moment before she smirked. "Not bad, but not good enough. You are going to need to learn how to lie better."

"I'm not lying," Arya protested.

"As I said you need practice," Arya gets annoyed by the woman, she lowered her head and muttered something under her breath. "What was that?"

"Nothing," Arya grumbled.

"It was something. If you have something to say say it, never hold back."

Arya lifted her head and look Wenda in the eyes. "I said that if I had a bow or a sword I could show you."

Wenda raised an eyebrow. "A bow you say?" She got up and took her bow and arrows. "Get up."

"What?" Arya asked surprised.

"You heard me, get up. You want a bow, you will get a bow. You are going to show me your skills."

"But it's night," Arya said.

"If you can hit a target during the night you can hit in during the day. I won't repeat myself anymore."

Arya mumbled something and got up. Wenda proceeded to walk away from the campsite and Arya followed her. They stopped once they were about a dozen meters from the camp, then Wenda handed Arya her how and an arrow.

"The second tree of the right, you see it?" Wenda asked and Arya nodded. "Hit it," Arya looked at Wenda and then at the tree. Frowning, she lifted the bow, notched the arrow and let loose. The arrow flew and missed the mark, although only by a small margin. "Again," Arya tried once more and missed again.

"It's too dark, if it was day I would be able to hit it easily," Arya said. Wenda took the bow from Arya's hands, pulled three arrows from her quiver, all three resting between her fingers. She notched the first one and it hit the mark, then the second followed and it did the same. The third she shot up in the air and took several steps back.

Arya looked at the woman and then at the sky, she recognized that move but only ever seen one man do it. She quickly took several steps back and just a few seconds later the arrow fell right next to where she was standing. Arya looked at Wenda with amazement.

"How do you know how to do that?" Arya asked.

"Years of practice," Wenda replied.

Arya took a step towards the woman. "I only ever seen one person do something like that, another archer."

Wenda first looked a bit surprised, then she smiled at Arya. "Who?"

"A man called Anguy," Wenda now sported an amused look on her face.

"So you meat my old pupil, where did you meet him?"

Arya then realized what she said, damn it, why didn't she think before speaking? She knew that she had to tell something and also knew that Wenda would know if she lied so she decided to tell the truth.

"I first saw him during the tourney at Kings Landing, I watched him win the archery."

Wenda chuckled. "Good to see him using his skills for something."

Arya looked at the woman, thinking how she could ask her next question. "You said he was your pupil, so you taught him how to use a bow?" Wenda just nodded to that. "Who are you, really?"

Wenda gave Arya a steely look. "I will tell you who I am if you tell me your real name." After a bit of consideration, Arya agreed, after all, she wasn't the only Arya out there.

"My name is Arya."

"A truthful answer, so I owe you a truthful one in return. My name as you know is Wenda… but I'm also known as the White fawn," Arya stared at the woman, the name sounded familiar for some reason. Then she remembered where she first heard it, she heard it from Bran when he talked about Ser Arthur and how he defeated the Kingswood Brotherhood, Wenda was said to be one of their leaders. Arya just stared wide-eyed at the legendary outlaw.

Kings Landing

Tyrion

Tyrion had been racking his brain since the wedding night, he knew that the mysterious guard was just a lackey but whose lackey, that's what bothered him. The logical answer would be that the guard in one of his father's men, could be but he may still have split loyalties. The attempt on his life by a member of the kinsguard during the battle of the Blackwater made Tyrion more paranoid than he was before. His gut was telling him that something was off. He refused to let any suspicious matter, no matter how small slip through his fingers. He talked with his cousin who was embarrassed that he got drunk but Tyrion soothed him by telling him that he had every right to get drunk on his wedding night. Tyrek remembered the beading ceremony, walking with Sansa to their chambers but nothing after that, after that it was a complete blank. When he woke up the next morning he found himself almost completely naked with a naked Sansa sleeping on a pillow next to him. As far as he knew they slept together but he had no recollection about it, something that bothered him. Tyrion sympathized with that, first time with a woman and you can't even remember it. Even if he felt that the wedding was wrong.

When he asked Sansa about that night, she told him mostly the same story as Tyrek. When he asked about the coupling her face went red as the Lannister banner and she became uneasy, understandable considering that she had no real choice in the matter, he just hoped that Tyrek was gentle with her. He did not enquire about the crashing noise or the guard because if he did then that someone who was behind the guard could perhaps be notified of his snooping around.

He had also called his brother to meet him, he wanted to know if this was one of his sister's petty skims and if it was, Jaime would be the man to know about it. Just as Tyrion thought about him, a knock was heard from the door and Jaime walked inside. His brother hadn't been the same since he lost his right hand, he saw himself as a lesser due to that and he was right, without his good sword arm, he might not be as good of a warrior as he was before but he could still command.

"Ah, Jaime right on time. Pod feel a cup for my brother," Tyrion said and his squire did as told, pouring a cup with wine. Jaime sat down on the chair next to Tyrion.

"Thank you Podrick," Jaime said to the squire as he took the giblet into his left hand. Tyrion gave his older brother a good look, Jaime seemed as broody as usual and he also looked rather tired. Tyrion sincerely missed when his brother was cheery and ready to trade japs. That still happened when they were together but Jaime just wasn't the same.

"Are you alright brother?" Tyrion asked.

Jaime sighed. "It this wedding, I been going over the security plans over and over to ensure that we don't have any unexpected surprises during the festivities."

"Come now, I know you have that under control. You don't need to exhaust yourself to the point where you would be useless in doing your duty."

"I know, I just want for this to go well. The safety of the king and our family is my main concern."

"Everything will go well, quiet eating yourself about it."

"Bronn told me you wanted to see me. What's this about?" Jaime asked.

"Cant two brothers just sit down and have a drink?" Tyrion asked.

"Usually that is the case but for that, you don't send Bronn to fetch me."

"You are right about that," Tyrion said taking a sip from his cup. "I needed to ask you something?"

"What?" Jaime looked at him with interest.

"You are acquainted with some of the Lannister guards here as I remember."

"I know them but if you want more guards you are either going to need to ask father or captain Vylar."

"No, what I need I cant get from them, at least not from the first and I could get it from our good captain but he might just tell someone so I decided to ask you first," Jaime looked at his brother with a raised eyebrow.

"Ask away," said Jaime.

"I'm interested in a guard, black hair, big ears, a bit on the short side, well taller than me that is."

Jaime looked thoughtful for a moment before he looked at Tyrion with a look that said he knew something and that he was confused at the same time. "I think you are describing Big Ears Tom."

"Tom?" Tyrion asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, I believe he is from Lannisport."

"You mean to tell me that you don't have an attention span to read a book and yet you know our guards by name," Tyrion japed but he was still a bit amazed.

"I like to know the men who are charged with protecting my family. I sparred with most of them but never with Tom, he was a latter addition to the guards, he came around the time Ned Stark came here. From what I have seen he likes to jape and is on good terms with the rest of our guard, including Vylar. Why do you ask about him?"

"Because I saw a very peculiar scene on the night of Tyreks and Sansa's wedding. Our Tom followed them and went inside the rooms and then quickly left."

"Maybe he was just on patrol, father and Vylar did put few extra guards around the keep for safety during the wedding."

"I know sneaking when I see it brother and he was sneaking."

"So a spy?"

"Possible but I don't see why a spy would follow our cousin and his bride. I was thinking that he is working for someone here," Many possibilities crossed Tyrion's mind, he even thought that Joffrey might have had some cruel notion but the little shit hadn't bragged about it or said anything as he usually does after one of his acts of cruelty.

"Who?" Jaime asked intrigued.

"That's what I'm trying to find out. I take it that our dear sister didn't mention anything or our father."

Jaime shook his head. "Neither Cersei nor father told me anything. And I doubt they would do something like that."

Tyrion sighed. "I thought so myself. Well then, that leaves our good friends the Tyrells, Baelish or Varys. Maybe even Robb Stark."

Jaime scoffed. "The boy is too much like Ned Stark, he deems using spies dishonorable, he would never do something like that."

Tyrion waved his cup towards his brother. "I would be inclined to agree with you but recent events have made me think. You do know that three Freys just dropped dead and Black Walder Frey became the new lord of the Twins and almost immediately as he took the title he declared for Robb Stark, a rather suspicious tern of events don't you think."

"Fine, maybe it is but he is too much Stark to do something so devious."

"Last time I checked underestimating him got us in this position in the first place. Something you felt first hand," Tyrion said and Jaime gave him a glare. "Sorry brother but what I said stands. We cant cross Joffrey's main rival of the list so easily."

"So what do you intend to do?"

"I want to get to the bottom of this. If he is indeed one of ours he will be safe, if he is against us, well I will have a talk with him to determine that. And you are going to help me."

Now all he needed to do it to talk with Varys and hear what he has to say. The Spider must know something, there might be more to this Tom than what Jaime or his father know.

Olenna

It is frustrating when a good plan fails and an opportunity is lost and yet when it happens you must count your losses, perhaps see if there is anything you can still pull from the mess, something which in this case they could not do and press on. Losing Sansa to the Lannisters was a shame but there was nothing she could do. Olenna was still trying to find out how the lions found out about their plot to marry the girl to Willas, there was no other explanation for the sudden decision to marry her instead of them finding out. It was the Lannister who now held the claim to Winterfell, something that should have belonged to her family. The loss was one she could put up with considering that the greatest prize was fastly approaching. The wedding between her granddaughter and the king was close, her rose will take what rightfully belongs to house Tyrell. She will make a great queen, she has the support of the smallfolk, a clever move to Margaery's part, she is loved by the courtiers and Joffrey adores her. Her golden rose did everything right and soon the prize will be theirs. But there was still worry in her mind.

Olenna knew that Joffrey was fond of her granddaughter and that he always acts like a proper king around her but what Sansa Stark said and what she heard from the servants still stands, that the kind and kingly behavior is just a mask. Olenna wanted what was owed to her family, something the Targaryens never gave them. From what she heard she dared believe that Margaery succeded in taming Joffrey and making the mask stay permanently on but as she gave it more thought she started to realize things, only the next weeks will show how effective Margaery was in taming the lion. Olenna knew that she has been harsh on the granddaughter lately but she loved her, out of all the children Margaery was most like her. She will gladly do what is necessary to make her house grow strong but she is not willing to condemn her child to the suffering of that kind. Margaery will not be the next queen Rhealla. Joffrey didn't necessarily need to be king so Margaery could be queen, there is always an alternative, a much easier to manipulate and easier to manage alternative. She had quite an interesting conversation with Baelish before he left. Olenna understands well what kind of a man lord Baelish is, a self-serving man who wants to fly high, higher than he is meant to. Their interests aligned when it came to Joffrey, at least partially. Baelish didn't want someone who was unpredictable, someone he could not control in charge, he needs a reliable ally when it came to the crown, something he could get if Olenna goes through with the plan they concocted.

Her son has been a pompous fool as ever, something that only increased since he received a position on the small council. Her son didn't know the first thing about ships apart from them being used on water but luckily Paxter was there to act as an advisor if not as the real master of ships. Garlan was still doing his duty as the commander of their guard in the keep. While it has been some time since she had heard anything interesting coming from Willas, her eldest grandson being in charge of everything in the Reach including her spies. The most interesting thing he had forwarded to her was Tarlys efforts in the Riverlands and she already knew about them from Mace. What was truly bothering her is that even after all this time neither she nor anyone else was able to find Loras, Tarlys attempts proving unfruitful at every turn.

According to both Mace and Willas, Tarly is marching on Maidenpool, where he intends to capture the castle and move further into the Riverlands from there. The situation with the Freys was interesting. Olenna had no doubt that Black Walder killed his father and brother so he could take over the Twins and Robb Stark must have offered him something in return for joining him once more, probably more lands or coin, Freys are a greedy bunch. She did not care much for old Walder Frey's death, the man was a disgusting creature full of greed, spite and lust, ninety years old and still he took a wife that could be his great-great-granddaughter. Killing that fool was a service to the realm, if only the gods would deem it good to eradicate the rest of that foul family it would be a blessing.

She knew that the Greyjoys were still raiding the North left and right and that the Stark boy had sent s portion of his army back home to deal with that situation and according to what Mace got from the council meetings the army is stuck at Moat Cailin, unable to pass.

There was something that still bothered her, it was the Martells. Everyone who knew about what happened at the end of the rebellion knew that Martells hated the Lannister with all of their beings and yet they did not join the war. Joining any side to fight against the Lannisters was a logical direction for events to go but still, they did not do so. Instead, they remained neutral, safely tucked away in the little sandy corner of theirs. If she didn't know better she would say that the relationship between the Lannister and the Martells was healing, princess Myrcella is to wed Dorans younger son and Doran has been called to Kings Landing to join the small council and as a guest for the royal wedding but she did not better.

Doran is of a cunning and patient sort, he prefers to play the long game so he could determine what cards his opponents possess but there is a problem with that much waiting, you act too late.

Tyrosh

Jon

He wondered what he had done to deserve this, why could nothing be simple for him. Perhaps it is a curse due to him being a bastard or did he do something vile in his previous life that would warrant some kind of punishment if there is such a thing. Nothing since his father's tourney went smoothly or was easy. Every time he takes a step towards a goal it always seems that he takes three steps back. He reunited with his family only for them to either be killed or held captive, joined a side in a war whose leader refused to take things seriously, decided to go help with brother but ended up in Drone, he wanted to know who his mother is only to be sent on the other side of the world, all the while going further and further from his goal, keeping a promise he made to his sisters. He swore that when they needed him that he would be there but so far he failed at that oath, if not outright broke it. Loras kept saying that Robb will hold out until they arrive but how long can Sansa and Arya hold.

When he went to Starfall he came for answers and maybe get the support of his possible family in fighting the Lannisters, instead, he got only vague words and was sent to a free city. Why did he agree to it, he should have gone to Robb but instead, here he was, somehow still holding up hope to get what he wanted when he first came to lord Dayne. For weeks while he was on the ship he kept thinking about it, no matter what happens in Tyrosh he will be on a first ship back to Westeros to finally join his brother and aid in rescuing his sisters. But a question still plagued him, what did Arthur Dayne have to do with his mother?

The time of the boat gave him the opportunity to reflect on his actions and to see every mistake he had made. He had believed that he had a chance at loving someone he could never possibly be with, spend his life with. He believed that she loved him as he did her only to be proven wrong and thrown away as if he never mattered to her. He believed in the chivalry and honor of the Reachmen but they proved to be as treasonous and two-faced as the Lannisters. The family he saw as his own threw him out when they did not need to put up with him anymore, after all the years and everything they been through together. His second mistake was trusting an unreliable man to do the work for him, instead of immediately going to Kings Landing and demanding a trial by combat for his father, he knew that the odds of the Lannisters holding to their word was slim but he could have tried, instead, he let Renly lead him by the ear with empty promises. There were other mistakes he had made but those are the two greatest ones. And yet he could not help but wonder what could have been if Margaery stayed with him, what would have happened if the Tyrells didn't join the Lannisters? He still thinks about her, even dreams about her but that only serves to make the hurt in his heart worse.

Not all of his foster family abandoned him, something he kept telling himself, he still had his brother with him. Then there were two new companions who he knew would remain loyal to him, unlike all the rest they had proven that he could trust them with crossing half of a continent and tracking through a scorching desert for days with him. Robar was everything a man could ask in a friend, not to mention that he and Jon were technically cousins due to Beron Stark's marriage to Lorra Royce and Jocelyn Stark to lord Benedict Royce. Slightly removed cousins but cousins never the less. And there was Grenn, an ox of a man whose story of how he befriended three knights almost sounds made up. Grenn had proven that he is ready to follow them where ever they wished to go, even if he constantly complained about it. He was also getting good with a sword, all the lessons were finally starting to pay off.

As they docked Jon and the rest of the group were relieved not to see any welcome party that was made out of men wanting to kill them. Jon looked around the busy port, seeing various ships from all over docked there with sailors, merchants and slaves making up the crowd in front of them. What Robar said was true, people here really did dye their hair in strange colors. As they were about to step off the ship the captain stopped them and told them to wait aboard the ship until he returns, something that they did although reluctantly. Jons patience was running thin as they continued to wait. When the captain returned it was an hour or so later and with several guards. He told them to follow him and his new escort and they did but with their hands on their swords. They moved through back alleys with the captain and several guards in front, Jon, Loras, Robar, Grenn and the wolves in the middle with several more guards at the back.

"Where do you think they are leading us?" asked Grenn.

"I don't know but be ready for anything," whispered Jon.

"I will normally take your distrust as an insult but considering the circumstances, I will not hold it against you," the voice of the captain came from the front. The four men didn't say anything, they just continued to look around, ready for something to go south just in case.

As they walked through the alleys Jon could still see the city and its people, the part of the city they were going through looked nice, even slightly lavish but the sight of so many slaves took the beauty away. They passed through a part of the city that held many temples of various gods that were worshipped in the city. They finally stopped at a back entrance of a decent-sized manse. The captain knocked and after a small wait, a guard opened the door letting them in. They followed him through a lavish garden filled with flowers of all kinds, some of which Jon knew from Highgarden. They followed the captain until they entered the hall of the manse. There the guards dispersed and left them with the captain who stood calmly as if waiting for someone. Jon was just about to ask a question when a man entered the room.

The man was tall, broad-shouldered, muscular, with unmistakable blond silver hair and purple eyes, they were the same as lord Daynes. Jon could not help but just stare at the man with wonder just like his companions, the man in front of could only be one person, Ser Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the morning.

AN: Here is the next chapter guys, the things are starting to heat up. Jon has reached Arthur, Tyrion is aware something is going on, Olenna is planning further and Arya is heading to Maidenpool where a welcome party made up of some fifteen thousand soldiers will wait. In the next one, Jon learns the truth, Howland goes to war, and some more Kings Landing.

Response:

jaimerey007: With Barbrey having no children the heir to house Dustin would be the brother of the previous lord, in this case, it's one of Denys nephews. The Dustins actually have a larger family, Willam Dustin has at least two uncles in the story, his father's brother and his grandfather's brother(Denys in this story), possibly more. Jon Connington will appear later along with the golden company, Dany will appear too.

BioHazard82: Thanks mate.

Force Smuggler: Glad you like it.

nerdwaf: Varys has always been one of my favorite characters and you are right about him. Howland on the other hand is mysterious due to the fact that we don't see him at all but we know that he knows the truth about the rebellion and possibly more.

Guest: I'm glad you liked it, I just thought Robb deserved more love as a character.