Catelyn

They had already finished eating supper, with the children in bed by the time Ned finally returned from the Small Council Meeting. He was in a foul mood as well from what she could see, no doubt having had another fight with the Council.

Ned still remained opposed to the tourney that was being held in his name, and mistrustful of the Council as a whole. He came to her as she sat in their chambers, knitting new clothes for herself she would need to wear later on in her pregnancy, as she grew great with child.

In the first few days after she had arrived in King's Landing she had received some queer looks from the people of court, though now well over a moon's turn passed since she had decided to stay, most paid her little more heed than was warranted for the Lady of Winterfell, daughter of the Lord of Riverrun, and the Hand's Wife.

"My lord." She greeted her husband as he sat down, and rubbed his temples in frustration. Ned favored her a sad smile, before he kissed her forehead.

"Robert insists we shall go forward with this folly, no matter how often I urge him not to." He told her. "We can't pay for it, yet Robert must have one. He can hold it in my honor, though he cannot make me attend."

"Ned, surely you should be there for the Tourney. Even if it was not being held in your name you are still the King's Hand. At the very least the children ought to be present." Catelyn said.

Her husband thought about it for a moment, before nodding. "If it is your wish I will not stop you, my lady."

Catelyn knew him long enough that more was behind his stress than this tourney though. "What else troubles you?"

"We have had no word back from Lord Stannis about when he means to return from Dragonstone. Last we heard he had wed his third son to Lady Myrielle Penrose, old Lord Penrose's only granddaughter and heir, while his daughter Shireen has been betrothed to Lord Hightower's grandson," Ned told her.

"And he did not think to invite the court to Dragonstone for the wedding?" Catelyn asked.

"No, and neither for the other two weddings." Ned told her.

"Two?"

"Aye. Since Jon Arryn's death he wed his eldest to one of Lord Celtigar's granddaughters, and his second to one to a Swann girl." He explained.

"He is fostering Lysa's son, Robert," Catelyn recalled. She knew little of Lysa's children, Catelyn realized, and she figured it past time she perhaps met them, but now would not be possible.

"His fourth son is betrothed to Lord Randyll Tarly's eldest daughter, Tya? Tansy?" He said shaking his head. "It doesn't matter."

"All this after Jon Arryn died?" She pressed.

He nodded. "He was working closely with him too. I went to an armorer they had paid a visit together earlier today."

"What would they want with an armorer?" Catelyn asked him.

"Not the armorer, his apprentice, who is one of Robert's bastards."

"You know he was one of the King's Bastards?"

"I remember the boy I grew up with well enough, and the boy I saw looked his mirror image. I spoke with what little remains in King's Landing of Jon's household as well, and the Grand Maester as well," said Ned.

Catelyn was a little confused, "Pycelle?"

"Apparently a few days before he died Jon asked for this." He said, lifting the book she had not noticed prior to this. "A book of lineages, detailing members of the great houses of Westeros."

She took the book, and opened it to one of it's first pages, which detailed House Arryn. It began with the founder of House Arryn, Artys Arryn, the Falcon Knight. Catelyn read through it until she got to the most recent entry, which was the birth of Jon Arryn's younger sister, Alys, born to Lord Jasper Arryn and his Lady Wife, Princess Daella Targaryen in 221 AC.

After that, she flipped to the Tully entry, where the most recent lord listed was her great-great-uncle, Lord Axel, the eldest son of Lord Medger Tully, who had perished just five years later, and Riverrun had passed to his younger brother, Tytos, though that had not come to pass in the text.

Catelyn considered adding to the entry, to update it with the family history she remembered. Her great-grandfather, Lord Tytos had wed Alyssa Piper, with whom he had four children, three sons, Edwyn, Rogar and Alester, as well as their daughter, Celia, who was to wed Prince Jaehaerys, who later became King, and ended up marrying Lord Eon Hunter.

Edwyn had wed a Lefford of the Golden Tooth, with whom he had two sons, Hoster and Brynden, while Rogar wed Lady Melissa Piper, who only bore him stillbirths, and Alester who had strove to become a knight of the Kingsguard once, but his dreams never came to pass, and instead he wed Lady Arwen Oakheart, and fathered her sons.

After that, she turned to the entry on House Stark. Their last entry was the recent marriage between the recently widowed and risen Lord William Stark and his new wife, Lady Melantha Blackwood, while all of Lord Beron Stark's children with Lady Larra Royce still lived, save Lord Donner.

Catelyn thought to perhaps write in some entries as to William's fate, and the rest of Lord Beron's line, up to her children, but there wasn't enough room at the bottom of the page.

The most recent king according to the text was the then newly crowned King Maekar I, though he had been deceased nearly seventy years if Catelyn recalled correctly.

"What would Jon Arryn have been wanting with this?" She asked him.

"That is what I'm trying to figure out, would that I had the wits of Lann the Clever to figure it out." He said.

"What if Lysa got it wrong?" Catelyn thought suddenly. "What if it was Lord Stannis who poisoned Jon Arryn?"

"Cat…" Ned said with a great deal of disbelief in his voice. "Why would he do such a thing?"

"I do not know. But it does not seem so simple as it did before, my lord," she replied.

"There is some secret in this. Something Jon died for, but what?" Ned said.

"Will you recall Lord Stannis from Dragonstone to see if he might know something?" Catelyn inquired.

"Not yet. I would like to find the rest before speaking to him," Ned responded quickly.

"What else is there?" She asked.

"Lord Bryce Caron agreed to take on Bran as a squire," he said.

Catelyn felt her chest fill with equal parts pride and sadness. Her son was now old enough to be squiring for another lord. It was a strange thought for her.

"I'm sure Bran will be pleased to hear the news," Catelyn replied.

"Aye. Lord Caron will be here for the tourney, which should give him a taste of being a squire too," Ned added.

Catelyn studied her husband for a moment. Most his days he had spent in the Small Council chamber, returning to the Tower of the Hand after dark. "Sansa and Arya are always fighting. Thankfully those wolves of theirs refuse to harm each other, else we would have trouble. Bran has taken quite a liking to the Walls here. Lord Caron had best be able to keep him off them."

He looked at her warmly, and she finally saw the man that she had fallen in love with, not the cold youth she had wed at Winterfell again. She placed a kiss upon his lips, before they moved to the bed, and lay in each other's embrace.

Her thoughts though turned towards their eldest son. A few days passed they had gotten word that the Princess was with child. Even now, she felt a strange wave of emotions come over her when she thought about it. It felt stranger to her than it had even when she found out she was with child for the first time, or when Maester Luwin had placed Robb into her arms.

Robb was to be a father himself now, she realized. It felt queer, knowing she would soon be a grandmother. Her thoughts went to those of her own mother, who had not lived to see either of her daughters become mothers of their own.

And there was Edmure who was now soon to be married to one of Lord Walder Frey's granddaughters.

Lysa a widow, Robb a father, Bran a squire and Edmure a man wed. She wondered how they had all gotten so old without her noticing.

They remained with each other until they heard a sudden scream coming from not far away within the tower. It was one of the girls screaming, Sansa, Catelyn realized, and she immediately jumped up. Ned did as well, and together they ran towards Sansa's chambers, which weren't far from their's.

When they arrived, the first thing Catelyn saw was Sansa crying on the bed, before she saw the others. Ser Mark Ryswell was in the room, and there was a dead man on the floor, while the Manderly girl who was Sansa's bedmate was injured.

She immediately rushed towards her daughter, and embraced her closely, though Sansa didn't respond.

When Catelyn let go, she saw Sansa's hands were clutching her stomach, and were covered in blood. In the background she was dimly aware that Ned was speaking with the men there asking about what had happened, but nothing else mattered to Catelyn.

"Find me someone." She ordered one of the men at arms at once, before she sat down next to Sansa on the bed. Catelyn looked over at the Manderly girl. She too was covered in blood, though didn't seem to be injured. It was either Sansa or the man's blood.

"What happened?" She tried to ask Sansa calmy.

Sansa didn't respond, and just kept crying.

"This is one of Lord Peake's men," Ned told everyone out loud. Catelyn saw though as his eyes darted towards Sansa. "Gods be good…" He said before he rushed over, to Sansa. With some luck, her injuries didn't seem to be too bad, but they were there.

Catelyn managed to remain calm, holding Sansa close until the man at arms she had sent off had returned with a Maester. It wasn't Pycelle she saw quickly, it was Lady Tanda Stokeworth's who oft remained at court with her daughters.

She watched as the Maester began to treat her own daughter, removing some of Sansa's clothes and beginning to clean and dress Sansa's wound before giving Sansa instructions on what to do.

Once the maester had finished, and left Catelyn noted other men at arms had arrived. "Martyn, see to it that Arya and Bran's chambers are under guard," Ned directed.

"I already have my lord," the man responded.

"Good. I had thought perhaps to send men to the kennels to bring the direwolves as well…" He began.

"Yes, that is good," Catelyn replied. "From now on keep the wolves in their chambers at night."

"See to it that our guard at night is doubled as well," Ned added. "Lengthen the watches for the nonce, I shall hire more guards soon."

Cassel and some of the men at arms began to leave to attend their duties, leaving only Ser Mark Ryswell and two others in the room with them.

"My lord… If Lord Peake had ordered this…" Ser Mark began to say.

"He would have murdered my daughter to make his own be queen one day… Assemble some men and arrest Lord Titus. I should have him questioned about this," Ned ordered.

"As you command, my lord," the knight said, and he bowed his head, turning to leave, and now it was just her with Ned and Sansa alone in the room, with the Manderly girl having left already she realized.

"Sansa…" Catelyn began to say, before she saw that Sansa had already fallen asleep on Ned's shoulder. Let her dreams be sweet ones, Catelyn thought to herself. Some other servants had come, and where beginning to remove the body of Lord Peake's man that still lay upon the floor.

She watched as Ned spooped up Sansa, and began to carry her out of the room, and Catelyn followed close behind him. He made for their chambers, where when he arrived he gently placed Sansa on the bed, and Catelyn feeling tired decided to sleep as well, though Ned didn't.

"My lord…" Catelyn started to say.

"Rest Cat. I have much to attend to, but you need to rest," he said, before he placed a kiss on her forehead, and then he turned and left.

Catelyn toyed with one of Sansa's auburn curls for a moment before she felt herself drifting off to sleep as well.

Author Notes:

Well I promised next chapter would be checking in with Jeyne, but um… Sorry this is here first…

Anyways, four whole chapters in a month… That's pretty fun…

Thank you guys for reading as always.

Reviews, favorites and follows are always welcome.

ASOIAF belongs to GRRM, not me...