Lady Sansa Stark of Winterfell, formerly styling yourself Queen in the North, you stand accused of the following charges", intoned Lord Leyton Hightower solemnly, "namely, treason against Her Majesty, Daenerys of House Targaryen; the murder of Lady Barbrey Dustin of Barrowtown; murder of the subjects of Her Grace, Yara Greyjoy, Queen of the Iron Islands; enslavement of the subjects of Her Majesty and Her Grace. How do you plead?"
"I plead not guilty to each and every charge, my lord," replied Sansa firmly. She stood in the Great Hall at Dragonstone, before her judges, Lord Hightower, the Grand Maester, Valyn, and Prince Mors Martell. She knew she would be condemned, yet still she wished, if possible, to vindicate herself in the eyes of posterity. She was accompanied by Myranda Royce, who had had been allowed to travel with Robyn Manderly, Wolkan, and Mya Stone from Winterfell to give evidence on her behalf. A vast number had travelled, from the North and Iron Islands, to give evidence against her. They'd tear her to pieces if they could, she realised.
It was a relief, really, now that the end was in sight. For more than eighteen months, she had been half courtier, half captive; not dissimilar really, to her time with the Lannisters in the Red Keep; save that Daenerys, unlike Cersei, was not malicious towards her, merely indifferent. She had been confined to Dragonstone, but otherwise had the run of the palace. Then, she had heard of Jon's execution, and Elaena's flight with Arya. She guessed that Daenerys would now settle accounts with her, confirmed when she was told she would be tried. The preparations were in fact, well in hand. So, now she listened as the charges were outlined against her in detail. She had answers to them all, but no confidence that she would prevail. She would be found guilty and executed, and that was almost a blessing, really. Her life had been a nightmare. She couldn't say through no fault of her own, but her luck, like her parents' and Robb's had been rotten. At least she wouldn't die at the stake or on the cross, and that had been her chief concern.
She paid attention to again, to Lord Hightower, who addressed her. "Lady Sansa, for the Court record, kindly confirm whether or not you have been subjected to torture."
No point in lying, it could only count against her "My lord, I have not been." Would she have tortured Daenerys if their positions were reversed? She couldn't say she would not. But, she had been desperate. Daenerys had won, completely.
The charge of treason was presented by the Master of Laws, Thomas Cecil, a legal scholar from Oldtown. He asserted that from the moment that Jon Snow had pledged fealty to Her Majesty, Sansa had become her subject; that she had defied her openly and secretly; had plotted her assassination; after the meeting in the Dragonpit, she had ruled the North as a pretender, and finally she had raised an army in defiance of her, and her allies North of the Wall. Most of the principal witnesses were now dead, but still he produced servants from Winterfell who testified to Sansa's actions. Even her conversation with Tyrion in the crypts had been overheard. "Out of Lady Stark's own mouth she admitted her treason", declaimed Cecil "Any man who married me would have divided loyalties".
She began her defence. "I completely, and entirely deny that I have ever committed treason against Her Majesty, Daenerys of House Targaryen. At no point during the period in question was Her Majesty ever Queen in the North. Therefore, I cannot be found guilty of treason towards her. " There was a stir among the gathered onlookers.
Cecil leapt to his feet. "Even now, you deny that her Majesty is Queen in the North?"
"Not in the least. Her Majesty won the North by right of conquest, the day she defeated me at the Fist of the First Men. In precisely the same manner that King Aegon, and his sisters, won the Vale, Stormlands, Iron Islands, Reach and the West by conquest. No king who fought them was guilty of treason, any more than I was. The very fact that I abdicated my throne before witnesses proves beyond doubt that I was the lawful Queen in the North, up until the point that I bent the knee. I have renounced all claim to the North. That does not mean that my rule was unlawful." There was more muttering among the crowd, some of it sympathetic, she thought. Sansa spoke at length, arguing that her brother Robb had re-established the North as a sovereign state, and that the Northern lords had acclaimed Jon Snow as their king; Jon had then violated his oaths and obligations to his subjects by renouncing his crown in favour of Daenerys; that at no point had she ever given fealty to her, nor left her in any doubt as to her enmity; that she had in turn been acclaimed as Queen in the North, both at the Dragonpit and subsequently by the Northern lords at Winterfell ; that as a sovereign she was well within her rights to wage war. "War is the ultimate argument of kings. I lost that argument. That does not mean that I committed treason," she concluded. Cecil and she argued back and forth throughout the rest of the day, before the Court adjourned.
That evening, she dined with Randa on buttered crabs, quails, and fresh greens. Her friend was in high spirits. "You were superb today; and I know, many in that hall agreed with you."
"They'll be less sympathetic when it comes to enslavement." Her friend winced. "Tell me what life is like at Winterfell, now."
"Much duller. Maege Mormont keeps a dreary court. It's more like a barracks, really."
"My sister will rule, there. Things may get better. She's returning from Lys, with Princess Elaena. You're not facing trial, are you, or Robyn?"
"No. There was some talk of it, but in the end, it came to nothing. Our families are destitute, obviously. At least, father has managed to find work in Pentos, as an officer in the city guard. Robyn is a member of the garrison at Winterfell." They continued talking well into the night.
As she had predicted, any sympathy she had won, by her vigorous rebuttal of the treason charge, vanished the following day, as the charges of enslavement were presented. Truth be told, it was very painful to listen to the accounts of families that had been dispersed, and abused, in some cases never to be reunited. She may have stopped the sale of children on Pyke, but their parents still plainly hated her. All kinds of difficulties had arisen in the North, as parents of the Ironborn sought to be reunited with children who had been adopted into Northern families, or employed as servants. Wolkan gave evidence on her behalf that she had stopped the sale of children, but that weighed very lightly in the balance against her. There was palpable anger among the spectators as she put forward her defence, namely that as Queen in the North, her will was the law, and that only the gods were entitled to judge her for her actions in that capacity. She pleaded an alternative argument of necessity; her people had faced starvation, at the hands of Bronn Stokeworth, and she needed the money from the sale of captives to feed them. The murder of Lady Barbrey Dustin was equally hard to justify. Her former chief inquisitor, Yagoda, already under sentence of death, but maybe hoping for a reprieve, gave evidence that she had ordered the woman be poisoned. In turn, she argued that the Lady Dustin had been a traitor, but could hardly dispute Cecil's point that no investigation, let alone a trial, had been carried out into her behaviour.
Finally, after a week's argument, the trial turned to her invasion of the Iron Islands. Queen Yara herself gave evidence, to the effect that at no point did Sansa ever communicate any list of grievances which she might have against her, or her people, nor issue any formal declaration of war. "This was an act of unprovoked piracy", she concluded.
"At its worst, it was no different from the treatment your people have meted out to mine for centuries", Sansa snapped back. Yara rose to her feet:
"I made a bargain with Her Majesty, to prevent my people from reaving, in return for their independence. I kept to that bargain. You chose to trade in slaves. "
"You just call them thralls instead." There was uproar in the Great Hall. Eventually, Lord Hightower restored order, before admonishing her,
"May I remind you, Lady Sansa, that you are the one facing trial, not her Grace, Queen Yara."
She was allowed a visit from Robyn. They made love eagerly. Lying in bed together, afterwards, she warned him, "I'm going to be put to death. You've got the rest of your life to live. Don't do anything mad like raising rebellion against Daenerys Targaryen. She has won, completely. "
"You deserve none of this" he replied.
"Robyn, you've seen the evidence against me. I'm not getting away with this. And even if I did, what then? I'd spend the rest of my life a prisoner. If I was freed, a hundred thousand people would gladly tear me to pieces. " He hugged her tight. It would be the last time they would enjoy each other.
The last witness was her sister, Arya, newly returned from Lys. She made an impassioned plea for Sansa's life, detailing her sufferings, from the time she had travelled to Kings Landing as a girl, begging for her life, and offering her to keep her in custody for the rest of her life. She had thought it undignified to complain of her own sufferings, but still, she was grateful to her sister for trying to save her life.
On the morning that her judges were to deliver their verdict, she made sure to dress with care. She wore a black and silver dress, fringed with seed pearls. Randa bound up her hair, in case the expected sentence was ordered to be carried out immediately. She returned to the Great Hall, flanked by her friends and Arya. It was a great comfort to have them with her at the end. Both Daenerys and Princess Elaena were present in the Hall. Lord Hightower spoke for more than two hours, reviewing the evidence against her, before delivering the verdict. To her very great surprise, she was acquitted of the charge of treason. She couldn't resist a broad smile at that, imagining Daenerys's fury. The woman herself remained quite impassive, behind her silver mask. To no surprise at all, she was convicted on the remaining charges. In particular, Lord Hightower stressed that slavery had been a crime for centuries in the Seven Kingdoms, that even the worst monarchs had abided by that law, and that Her Majesty had punished the masters of Essos for that crime, and could hardly do less to those guilty of such an abomination in the Seven Kingdoms. Inevitably, she was sentenced to death for her crimes, such sentence to be carried out at Her Majesty's pleasure. She rose, bowed, and then returned to her chambers, Arya crying quite openly.
She spent the afternoon talking with Arya and her friends, before her sister finally departed, to attend to her duties. A short while after, there was a knock on the door of her chambers. To her consternation, a servant announced the arrival of Daenerys herself. Her friends left, and she awaited her worst enemy. They had exchanged barely a word sincere their return to Kings Landing, after the defeat of the Great Other. No doubt she had come to gloat over her.
The Empress stood before her. Sansa rose and curtsied to her. There was a long silence before Daenerys sat. "May I offer your Majesty some wine", she began, finally.
"Thank you, no. I don't drink."
"Have you come to rejoice over me?" she asked.
"I've never felt less like rejoicing. I find it difficult to remember the past. Difficult, in the sense of painful, but difficult also, actually to recall it. Being murdered does that, you know. The past is vague, unclear. But, I do remember that you hated me from the moment we met. Even as the Dead were coming for us. For the gods sake, why? We could have had it so easy, you and I. I'd happily have installed you as Lady Warden of the North, and left you to rule the place as you saw fit. If you preferred, I could have made you a lady in waiting or appointed you to the Small Council. Yours would have been the second family in the Realm."
"I didn't trust you. There was too much bad blood between our families."
"I never knew my father. I am told he was a dreadful man. You never knew your grandfather, who by all accounts was a decent man. Why should his death have meant so much to you? I had to forgive my father's death, which was easy enough, and the deaths of my brother, his wife, and their children, which was much harder. I could never have hoped to rule the Seven Kingdoms had I sought vengeance on every family that fought against mine."
"I thought you could never forgive us. In the North, blood feuds last for centuries."
"So, that's why you plotted to bring me down?"
"Yes, an act which even your own judges did not deem to be treason."
"I admit, that surprised me. Still, I have to abide by my own laws. You have, in any case, committed far worse offences towards others than you did to me. " There was another long silence. Then, "I'm not offering you a reprieve. Even if I did, it would only be a slow death sentence. The people you enslaved would kill you far more cruelly than I would. Nor do I think it would be safe for Princess Elaena, if Arya kept you prisoner for the rest of your life. Nor for Arya herself. There would always be a risk of rebellion in your name."
"I'm not afraid to die, so long as it's clean. " Then she felt a stab of anger. "Whatever I did, Jon didn't deserve to die! He was pathetic, but he was never evil. Men like the Imp and Tarly exploited him." Alone with the small, frail woman, she wondered briefly if she could lunge at her, choke the life out of her. But, what was the point?
"You exploited him, as well, don't deny it." Daenerys replied finally. "No, he was not evil, just very weak. He would have been a burden to Elaena when she comes to power. And, how could her children grow up knowing their father was a man reviled across the world as a traitor! I took the taint of his death on myself." After a further silence, she remarked, "You may choose the manner of your death. That is the extent of my mercy to you. You may find this helpful in choosing". Daenerys rose and placed a canvass bag on the dining table.
"For that, I thank you. And, yes, I know I have committed crimes that deserve death." Daenerys walked to the door. Before she left, she turned back, and spoke again,
"If it's any consolation, I will not long outlive you."
"Some. Not much. You're right, actually. I made a mess of everything. I'm sorry for it. Sorry for all that I did. Goodbye, your Majesty."
Daenerys nodded and left. She opened the bag that the Empress had left behind her. Inside, she found a noose, a dagger, and a clear vial, marked with the apothecaries' symbol for sweetsleep. Exactly the same end as the Spider had planned for Daenerys, all those years ago. Well, the message was plain enough. And suicide was about as civilised a sentence as she could have hoped for.
What to do? Hanging herself was out of the question. She had no idea how to do it properly. The last thing she wanted to was to spend half an hour choking on the end of a rope and pissing herself. That left the dagger or the poison. Opening her wrists would be simple enough, if messy. Sweetsleep would be the gentlest, but she wasn't sure of the doseage. And, what if Daenerys was tricking her, and the poison was actually something hideous like Widow's Blood or Demon's Dance? Arya would know. Yes, she'd send for her, and get her to check it. After her friends returned, she asked Mya to find Arya and bring her to her. Her sister returned as the Sun was starting to set, and she explained the situation. Arya examined the poison, tasting a drop on her tongue.
"It's no trick, that's Sweetsleep."
"How much do I need? "
"A quarter of the vial. Please, Sansa, let me go to Daenerys, and beg for your life, once again. Years ago, I exposed a plot by the slavers of Meereen to murder her. She owes me this. I'll give up Winterfell, even!"
"Arya. You're the last of the Starks. You have to rule at Winterfell, and continue our line. Even if it means you have to bend the knee to her and Elaena. I can't let eight thousand years of history come to an end. " Arya cursed, and paced the room, angrily. Then,
"You're determined on this. "
"I am. Let's do it now, before it grows dark. " Sansa poured the required measure into a goblet of wine, and led them to a small balcony, outside her chambers. Randa brought her a chair, and she sat, overlooking the sea. Fate was inexorable. What had the Starks done, to suffer as they had? Her mother and father, grandfather, uncle, and every sibling except one, all had died violently, and now her. She had made dreadful mistakes, and committed dreadful crimes, but she tried to remember the good times, when life had been a round of lemon cakes, dances, singing, and Arya putting goatshit in her bed. At least she was dying with her friends beside her. She downed the goblet in one, and waited for the end.
Arya had seen her sister die. She had spent the night, alternately crying and then smashing up most of the furniture in her rooms. She sent a message to the Empress, demanding an audience. This was granted. Two mornings after, she entered the atrium to her chambers. She had to give up her weapons, and then she was led to the balcony which overlooked the sea. Waiting for her were Daenerys, mask in place, Grey Worm, and a pair of bodyguards. She was cold now, but still furious. Would she try and kill her? One part of her wanted to. Something that Daenerys could sense.
"I suppose you want to kill me, after this."
"Would you blame me! First Jon, now my sister. After all I've done for you, you could have spared them. They wronged you, the gods know they wronged you! My sister did much worse besides. Her actions disgusted me. But, she was a victim! Did you even care what Joffrey, Cersei, and Baelish, and the Beast did to her! She was abused, raped, tortured. As for Jon, we all used him. We forced him into conflict with you. I'll hate myself for the rest of my life for it - but he was no threat to you by the end. He was no threat to anyone!"
"I disagree. Your sister said the same to me, and I gave the same answer. His children can't grow up, knowing their father was a traitor. "
"Elaena told me. You forced her to use him like a brood-mare. How sick is that! As for Sansa, she was still my sister. For the gods sake, couldn't you have just confined her to a Motherhouse, if you wanted her out of the way?"
"I don't think she was suited to a life of religious devotion", replied Daenerys, drily. Arya really did want to kill her at this point. Grey Worm sensed it, swiftly drawing his short sword, the bodyguards following suit. Daenerys raised her hand.
"Arya, you have every reason to want me dead, I know that. Believe me, when I say I'd even let you do the deed. I have killed two people you loved, whatever their faults. Of course you can't forgive me for that, and nor should you. I'll simply repeat what I said to your sister, "If it's any consolation, I will not long outlive you." My work is very nearly done, now. There is a place for you in the new order, as Queen in the North. Yes, the Northern kingdom will continue - I have made that clear in my will. Elaena will rule over all, as Empress, but the North will have at least as much freedom as Dorne has. You are fond of Elaena, as she is of you. You will work well, together, I have no doubt of that. You have more of a place in this new world than I have. But, kill me, and my followers will surely kill you. By ruling the North, you will honour the memory of your family far better than by murdering me. Stay your hand a moon's turn, and you will have your vengeance."
Queen in the North! Gods, never had she expected that. And, no, she couldn't kill Daenerys now. Three million people lived in the North. She couldn't sacrifice their needs, just for her quest for vengeance. She still felt, bitter, angry, upset, but what could she do, but agree?
"Very well, your Majesty. I accept. But I need time to grieve. And, I want my sister buried at Winterfell, with her family. I want Jon's ashes taken there, as well." He had been cremated at Dragonstone.
"Of course, that will be done. Take all the time you need to mourn your brother and sister." She left for her chambers.
Yara was waiting for Daenerys, in her private drawing room along with Daario, who would shortly sail East. As far as she was concerned, Sansa had been treated with absurd leniency, ever since she had been taken captive. She had urged the Empress to give her to the ironborn. She would not have tortured her, however much she deserved it, but she would have taken her to Pyke, and there chained her to a rock at low tide, before letting the sea return and do its work. Serving the Drowned God throughout eternity would have been an entirely fitting end for the proud, treacherous Lady of Winterfell. Her God would have welcomed a beautiful woman as his thrall, unlike that wretched little tree stump (how she had laughed, when Gwyneth Yronwood wrote to her of his end). Daario had simply favoured a hanging. Well, dead was dead. Good riddance to bad rubbish, as far as she was concerned..
The Empress entered the room. They both rose to embrace her.
"How was Arya", she asked.
"Much as expected. She wanted to kill me, I think."
"Say the word, Daenerys, and Daario and I will gut her."
"You may not find that so easy. In any case, the last thing I want is another round of wars, when I'm gone. " When I'm gone . The words hung heavily in the air. Before she had flown North to fight the Great Other, Daenerys had explained to her, just what a burden her half-life was, that at some point she would want to end it. With Sansa dead, the last of her enemies of any importance was no more. The Seven Kingdoms had been governed well, since the fall of Kings Landing. It would be many years before the ravages of the cycles of war were repaired. No doubt feuds remained; families who had lost lands resented that fact. But, no one wanted to return to the horrors of the recent past. She had sent Ser Qarl to govern the Iron Islands as Regent, while she had divided her time between serving as Hand, and governing her new fief in the West. Sooner or later, she knew she must return to Pyke.
"You and she will have to work together. She will be Queen in the North."
"What madness is that?" exploded Daario.
"She has served me loyally. She's a Stark, and she and Elaena are friends. Of course, Elaena will have to wage war against the enemies of freedom. Qarth remains, a powerful enemy and a slave state. Norvos and Qohor are slave powers. Not all the Dothraki followed me, by any means. And some did so, only out of fear. They would love to return to the old ways. But, when she sails East, I want there to be peace in the Seven Kingdoms, and across the Narrow Sea. You are both important elements in maintaining that peace, and so will Arya be. I will need all of you to serve Elaena loyally. You've already given me your promises, but I'll need to you to give them to her. Not, that that affects the independence of your people", she added, to Yara. "It is a personal promise." Yara felt her eyes water, just as they had the first time Daenerys had spoken of this to her.
"So this is the end?" asked Daario.
"Very nearly. But, hopefully, not quite. Lady Shiera - and someone else - have devised plans that might let me live on, in a fashion. A much better fashion, if these plans succeed, than my current existence. "
Yara walked over to the Empress and took her in her arms, removing her mask to kiss her passionately. Then, Daario followed suit. Perhaps there was some hope of a better life after all, for this brave, brilliant woman, who had given so much, and suffered so greatly.