Stags and Wolves, part 1
Author note: I am not intending to be mean towards the Stark family in this and the coming chapters that will be set in Winterfell, just trying to point out the flaws of the Stark children getting a very sheltered and isolated-from-politics childhood in Winterfell, especially in contrast to the three children of Lysa and the royal Baratheon children. Also, be ready for some Ned Stark criticism especially about his parenting towards his daughters and the result of Jon Snow being raised as a true-born noble child despite being a bastard / Rogercat
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Winterfell, early months of year 296 A,C:
"Robb! Robb Stark, get down to the courtyard at once!"
It was not ladylike to curse, as septa Mordane always told her as a child, but right now Catelyn Stark nee Tully was doing exactly that, at least mentally. Ten days ago, a letter from the King arrived...with the information that he, his children and a few other members of the royal court had left White Harbour to come to Winterfell so that Robb Stark and Argella Baratheon could meet for the first time face to face. And now, when the royal party could arrive any moment, so was the heir to Winterfell nowhere in sight.
"Ned! Ned, Robb is nowhere in the castle! No one has seen him since the morning meal!" she finally admitted to her husband, after checking so all their other children looked respectable. In fact, the current Lord Stark looked alarmed at this information.
"Surely he must be somewhere? His betrothed is coming here today, with the estimated travel time…"
"Lord Stark!" one of the stable grooms called in unease, "both the horses belonging to master Robb and Jon is not in the stable."
And in that moment, both Lord and Lady Stark knew that the first impression of their son for the Princess would not be in Robb's favor, unless they managed to find him before the arrival of the royal party.
Back up in one of the private chambers for the family, Sansa Stark was currently helping her sister Arya in brushing her hair so they could braid it. After all, Catelyn had promised her younger daughter that if Arya tried really hard to be on her best behavior during this royal visit, then Lady Stark would write to Willas Tyrell and ask for a hunting hawk for her as reward for her good behavior. Since the young Lord Tyrell was known for breeding the finest hawks and dogs for hunting, Arya had promised to please her mother.
"I wish that Father could let me wear that blue dress that you have outgrown, Sansa, but surely he did not need to say no in that way he did?"
Her sister did agree that their Father had acted a little strange this morning when Catelyn had reminded her daughters to dress in their finest dresses for making a good first impression on the royal party. As both sisters seemed to take after their Stark lineage by being tall for their age already, Arya was on the edge of her best dress being almost too small now and it had made perfectly sense for her to borrow one dress from Sansa, which they could adjust with some needles in places where it was slightly too big yet. But Eddard Stark had stared at her as if she had been a ghost when Arya mentioned which colour it was on the dress she wished to wear, and then loudly said no for everyone in the Great Hall to hear. But Catelyn had tried to quickly explain to her daughters that Arya in a blue dress might remind their father too much of the lost Lyanna, and surely they did not want to wake up any bad memories for the King about what could have been?
"I think Father is nervous because the King is his good friend and this is the first time we all meet the Princess that will marry Robb in a few years. Do you think that there will be many Lords and knights coming as well? I hope that they will bring musicians!"
For the two Stark sisters, who only knew their life in Winterfell, this was an event they could almost not imagine to be real. A true King and his children coming here! Like in the stories Old Nan would tell in the evenings. Sure, they had known about it since first learning that Robb would marry a true, living Princess as his future bride, but only now did feel real.
Meanwhile, the royal party was coming closer and closer to Winterfell. But it was not just Robert and his children alongside important members of the court and servants, some others had joined them. Lysa Arryn and her three children had come from Sunspear, escorted by Vorian Dayne. And Edmure Tully did not miss a chance to meet his northern nephews and nieces, though Lynesse remained back home at Riverrun to care for their children, because both Axel and Minisa sadly had caught a nasty cold after playing in the cold mud at the river, as well that she was pregnant in the sixth month with their third child which gave her another legal excuse to avoid travel.
"Well, I think that Lord Wyman Manderly and his family will be a good House to be fostered in, for the last years before my marriage to Robb Stark. At least, they promised to not try and make me lack for something while being in their care," Argella said, where she was riding beside a large horse-drawn carriage where her sisters, younger brothers and the three Arryn children were seated together while Lysa Arryn was one of the riders behind the carriage. If Cersei had been there, she would have insisted on the royal children traveling with her in a wheelhouse, which would have delayed the journey a lot. But the Lannister Queen consort was still in the Maidenvault of the Red Keep, remaining locked up because of her madness that had not lessened with the passing four years.
"That is good, sister. It would not be nice if you were unhappy," Elinor commented from the layers of thick animal skins and woolen blankets that covered the younger children. It was especially needed for Aemon to avoid that he fell sick at some point because of his frail health, and the three Arryn children, used to the warmer climate of Dorne and in Rohan, naturally found the cold of the North unbearable despite it being summer.
"Father, are we there soon?" Lyonel asked on behalf of the younger children who found the cold uncomfortable.
"Soon, my Prince, we are nearly there."
As Lord Manderly and some of his household knights were guiding the royal party to the right path towards Winterhell, he could answer the question better than Robert.
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When the royal party arrived in the central courtyard of Winterfell, Robb and Jon had not yet been brought back. As a result, Ned and Catelyn were both trying their best to not show how uncomfortable this made them. For Lady Stark, she was especially alarmed about how this would serve as a first impression of her oldest son to the King and Princess, since Argella Baratheon was to be her own successor as Lady of Winterfell if the marriage happened as hoped.
"Ned! It is good to see you!"
Even if he had stopped eating and drinking so much at the royal tables, Robert had added somewhat in weight since the Greyjoy Rebellion, yet he still was strong enough to carry his trusted old warhammer on his back. Catching Ned in a bear hug, he then looked on the gathered Stark family members.
"I see that the Queen did not come along?"
Personally Ned was just grateful that none of the Lannisters had come, he did not want to deal with Tywin demanding something to help the situation in the Westerlands and the memory of Jaime sitting on the Iron Throne with his white armor still having the fresh blood of Aerys on the white steel…
"Cersei is best staying where she is, and she would not be well enough for travel anyway. Children, come over here to meet Lord Stark and his family!"
The royal twins obeyed, Elinor coming after helping Myrcella and Tommen down from the wagon. When removing their hoods, there was no doubt that the third princess and second prince indeed looked pure Lannister, while the three oldest royal children clearly looked like Robert with their black hair yet there was something of the Lannisters in their faces.
And in the moment Ned saw Prince Aemon peeking out among the furs as Brienne Tarth helped him down on the snow-coloured ground, it was like being slapped in the face with the memory of the stillborn child that had taken the life of Lyanna. The youngest Prince was nine years too young to really match, but the undoubted Targaryen colours still triggered unwanted memories of that horrible day.
"Hm? Where is young Robb, Ned?" Robert wondered when he realized that there was one name missing from the introduction of the Stark children, "Surely he would want to meet Argella today when we came all the way here to let them become familiar to each other before the wedding. My clever girl can not have displeased him already without knowing about it, right?"
Almost like shattering the mental image of her taking after Robert in terms of being able to charm people without much trouble, Argella proved her Lannister lineage as well by commenting:
"Pleasant to see how my future husband seems to think that his bastard cousin is more important for his eventual reign as Lord Stark than the southern Princess that he is bound to marry."
Yes, Ned decided for himself when he realized that this day would go so horrible wrong from the planning, his oldest son and nephew were going to find themselves with more than just a scolding after the dinner tonight.
"Lysa! Edmure! I am so glad to see you here!" Catelyn called when she noticed her younger siblings and the three children who had to be her sister's offspring by the late Jon Arryn. Quickly masking her inner distress, Lysa pretended to smile in return at her older sister as she pushed over Eorl to Edmure, knowing that her son would be distrustful of Catelyn at first because she was a stranger he had never met before, while Edmure had once again proved himself a good uncle by simply letting Lysa's children slowly grow more comfortable around him during the journey north.
"Father would have been proud. Ned Stark has indeed been a blessed match," Lysa pointed out as they hugged each other, clearly hinting to the four younger Stark children as Robb yet had not returned from wherever he was with Jon Snow. For Catelyn, the comment in her ear was not what she expected. Sure, Jon Arryn had been older than even their own father and under other circumstances she doubted that Lysa would have been a bride to a such much older husband who was in desperate need of heirs, yet the bítterness in her sister's voice said a lot of unspoken things about how her marriage had been.
"But we both have daughters, twice in the same years, no less! I am sure that Sansa and Arya will enjoy the company of Celia and Amanda…" Catelyn tried to say, in the hope of changing the atmosphere. Besides, surely Lysa would agree about their respective daughters, who was so close in age, would be able to get along? Also, Sansa and Arya needed to build female friendships outside Beth Cassel and Jeyne Poole whose mothers was her own ladies-in-waiting, especially with other high-born daughters from noble families in Westeros since Cat wanted one of her children to marry south and with Argella being set as the future Lady of Winterfell by marriage to Robb, there was greater chance of southern ladies coming north.
"Greetings to you, Aunt Catelyn."
Despite that they had spent most of their time over the past years in the house of their stepfather Tirwald, Celia and Amanda had still learned basic manners for Westerosi nobles by Lysa so they would not stand out as much if they ever visited Westeros again like here in Winterfell. But thanks to Rhoyne still remaining as their private tutor in order to keep up the claim that the Arryn children were fostered by the Martell court in Sunspear, their manners therefore were more Dornish, showing this by greeting their maternal aunt though bringing their hands together with the fingertips facing upwards.
"Ehm. Would you all like to pray in the sept to thank the Seven for allowing a successful journey?"
Catelyn knew that this first day would be spent unpacking the travel luggage for all the guests, and trying to find Robb before it got dark. Hopefully, by tomorrow, she could have a better time talking with her younger siblings in private to catch up what had happened for them over the years and letting their respective children enjoy the company of the royal children too.
As they prayed together in the sept of Winterfell, Lysa allowed herself a small side glare on Catelyn. Behind themselves, Celia and Amanda seemed to be praying but the now former Arryn widow did not doubt that their silence actually meant that her daughters mentally prayed to the Valar, the gods of Middle-earth, in the hope that they would not need to stay here at Winterfell for long. Thankfully, Eorl was also being silent in the prayer, since his older half-sisters were showing him how to do it right.
"She has no idea how lucky she is, that a northern husband who worships the Old Gods actually was willing to build a sept for her because she followed a different faith…"
No, it was not jealousy towards Catelyn herself that Lysa felt, because clearly Eddard Stark had proven a better match for her sister outside the early years when everyone thought Jon Snow to be his bastard son rather than the natural son of Brandon Stark, only the old anger towards her late father Hoster Tully whose favoritism of his older daughter once again seemed to have assured her future life as a married lady.
"Blessed be this household, and blessed be the fruitful union of those lands presented by Lord and Lady Stark in the form of their five children."
Thankfully, Morgan Sand had come along from Dorne as a somewhat familiar face for Lysa's children, dressing up as a septon to not draw unwanted attention. By Morgan posing as the confessor of Lysa and his mother Rhoyne as the septa acting as a governess for Celia and Amanda, no one questioned their presence in the sept.
"Catelyn? I wish for my family to stay a little longer. I want us to pray together that I will find a new husband that will not try to use my son as a puppet ruler of the Vale due to his tender age."
But the moment Catelyn had left the sept and was not within earshot to overhear any talk, Morgan removed his hood so his face could be visible in the light of the candles better.
"Again, our apologies on behalf of House Martell for that you had to come along, lady Lysa. But as we heard in the water mirror, the royal court thought this visit to Winterfell a perfect reason for your children to meet their Stark cousins and sadly the nobles of the Vale is bound to desire a meeting with the young "son" left behind by Jon Arryn."
Lysa did not blame House Martell for the current situation she found herself in. They had not been able to predict what Robert could come up with, and she could hardly refuse a royal order coming all the way to Sunspear that she and her three children should follow along the royal party.
"It is not your fault with this mess about coming to Winterfell! I knew that the Vale would want me to return with Eorl at some point, but at the same time, I am still pretending to be a widow so many of them will seek my hand in marriage!"
Indeed. If it came out that she had married in secret, then a hell would break out because while Tirwald was a wealthy noble by the standards of Rohan, most people in Westeros would view him as a landed knight at best and unsuitable as a second husband of Lysa, who was a daughter of a Lord Paramount, the widow of a another and the mother of a officially third one.
"Mama, all three of us are still having the medallions from Prince Oberyn!" Amanda spoke up, proudly showing off the three pendants she, Celia and Eorl wore. With some careful first attempts to check so the Martell family magic would not blackfire in a really bad situation for it to happen, Oberyn had used his former studies in the Citadel to craft three medallions for Lysa's children that would ensure that none of them mentioned Tirwald or any other detail about Rohan in a moment of carelessness.
"Good children. No need to get your mother in trouble because of a slip of tongue," Rhoyne smiled in pride over that they had not dropped the medallions so far, and then guided her changes to their guest chamber.
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Later that evening;
It was well into the second course of the welcoming dinner for the royal party, when the missing Stark heir and his bastard cousin returned after being more or less literally dragged back home by the guards Ned had sent out to find the two boys.
"Your Highness, Lord and Lady Stark, here is the heir to Winterfell."
From the way Robb was darker than usual in his hair, as those sitting closest to the doorway noticed, he must have been quickly stripped of his clothing, tossed into a bath barrel despite the water undoubtedly being freezing cold now and quickly getting the worst dirt cleaned off before he found himself dressed up in his best clothing by the servants so he looked respectable for the royal guests.
"Argella?"
Robert did not need to say more to his daughter. The oldest Baratheon princess rose from her seat beside the Crown prince and King. As she walked over to Robb, there was no way people could miss the golden silk dress with black fur lining it. Her long hair was set up in two braids which fell down along the front of her gown, a plain gold circlet with blue sapphires on her head to match the Baratheon eyes.
"Pleasant to meet you, Princess Argella. I hope that Winterfell is welcoming you well."
"The same to you, Lord Robb," Argella said in a polite manner and even tried a curtsy when he was almost breaking basic ettitice of ignoring her. Not giving her oldest son an easy escape by using his hunger as an excuse, Catelyn made a sign for him to see that he would prove himself to be a well-raised young noble by kissing the hand of his fiance. Yet Argella, who looked straight at his face, did not miss how Robb failed to hide his aversion in the blue eyes inherited from the Tully side of his lineage.
"As if he will be able to ignore the bigger picture of getting a Royal Princess to wife…even if she is not becoming his type of woman as an adult, this match was agreed by our fathers!" Lyonel thought with serious disappointment with his future brother-in-law. Sure, Robb Stark was only a year older than the royal twins, but as the future King, who would probably witness the inside events of his three sisters' marriages much longer than Robert, Lyonel wanted to make sure that both Argella, Elinor and Myrcella were treated well by their future spouses.
"The wolf may be a feared predator, but even a well-aimed stroke of the antlers on a stag can kill a wolf," Argella suddenly said with a false smile that was all Cersei for those who had seen the Queen in her worst moments of cruelty, somehow managing to scare Robb a little with the reminder that the wolf was not all unbeatable, and Sandor Glegane had to actually walk out from the Great Hall in order to not openly laugh at what Argella just had warned her betrothed about. Unlike what Robb and Jon had joked about over the years, while thinking that Argella undoubtedly would be like those passive princesses in a tower waiting to be saved by a heroic knight, this very comment shattered the mental image of her being like that in personality.
"Well, it looks like the Stark heir had a pre-designed image of his royal betrothal in his head, and now this visit will make him realize that she is a true human of flesh and blood," Holly smiled behind her goblet of apple cider as the Stark heir and Baratheon princess returned to their seats at the high table. But she did also glare towards Jon Snow, where he was sitting at a much lower table with a sullen look, sending resentful stares against Argella. It looked like Holly, her brother and mother would need to keep a eye on that boy, for sure, because he did not seem used to the idea of suddenly having another person taking all the attention from Robb, even if it likely would be on the orders of Lord and Lady Stark that their oldest son would be kept separate from his bastard cousin during the royal visit.
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Author note; As this post mentions, we readers NEVER see the normal relationship between Sansa and Arya in everyday life in Winterfell prior to the start of the series. Acting as if their relationship have always been as they act in King's Landing is weird, because they are in a new place without the comfort of their mother, they are both traumatized prepubescent girls because of the events that led to Lady's death and Ned is NOT helping by being busy as the Hand of the King:
post/645512165415059456/when-it-comes-to-the-great-sansa-and-arya-debate
Edmure managing to win over Celia, Amanda and Eorl to become a trusted uncle in their eyes is partly because he is a father himself since only a few years ago even if his two children are the youngest outside Rickon in the Stark-Arryn-Tully cousins generation and becoming Lord Tully much earlier than in canon helped him to mature in this AU. Also, it is pretty telling about his personality in-canon that the smallfolk would rather want him back as Lord of Riverrun than the Lannister-Frey alliance
According to their respective character profiles on the ASOIAF wiki, Jeyne Poole is born the same year as Sansa and Beth Cassel as Arya, so the four girls are in the same age group but as the daughters of a very minor northern noble and the Steward of Winterfell, Jeyne and Beth would likely find themselves going a different path in life later when they are old enough for marriage.
Argella is meant to be wearing a Westerosi version of a burgundian gown, an RL medieval dress style that was common in the late 14th century