Seagard 299 AC.
Catelyn.
The questions had come on the ride and those who asked them should have given Robb more to think about than her words had. Maege, Ser Wylis, and the Greatjon all coming to her at various times during the ride and asking her if it was true that Jon Snow was in fact not Ned's son and was actually Lyanna's. Even though Robb himself had spoken of it after he'd presented the raven from Dragonstone, albeit in a manner that she'd disagreed with, still there had been questions as to the authenticity of the words it contained, questions she had answered.
"Aye, it's true. Both Harwin and Alyn confirmed it when they told me about Arya. You all heard Howland speak out on it at that farce of a meeting." Cat said annoyedly.
"My lady?" Ser Wylis asked, his features schooled and making him look so much like his father, though his eyes gave away his surprise at her words.
"We received a letter from a king, a letter that my son presented as a threat." she said only to be interrupted by the Greatjon.
"Was it not a threat, Lady Catelyn?" the Greatjon asked, though it was clear he'd made his mind up that it was.
"It was a letter from a king. A statement of intent and an opening of sorts, could it have been friendlier, aye, but it was not a threat unless we make it so." she said and saw Maege nod "I have mine own issues with the lad, Jon, mine own questions that need answers and yet…"
"My lady?" Ser Wylis asked.
"He saved my girls, both of them. He may not be Ned's son but the boy is as much of a Stark as mine own children are." she said to a small smile from Maege Mormont and an intrigued look from both the Greatjon and Ser Wylis.
She had wished to say so much more and to speak out much more freely, but she knew she could not. Robb was not just her son, he was her king and she was straying close to treason by simply questioning him with others. Something her son seemed to think as well, as no sooner had they arrived at Seagard than she was called to Lord Mallister's solar to speak to him. Cat arriving and finding Robb to be wroth at the words she had spoken to three of his bannermen and even more so at the words, she then spoke to him.
"I spoke the truth, to them and to you. I've told you that this is folly, that your brother was right when he called you out about your crown." Cat said angrily.
"He's not my brother." Robb replied almost petulantly.
"Not by blood, no, but by the Seven if he's not so by choice then I find I know you no more. For most of my life, I saw that boy as a threat, as someone who wished to take what is not his to take. I was fearful, jealous, and I let it guide my actions. Cruel I may not have been, though mayhaps cruelty comes in different forms." she said as she remembered telling a six-year-old child that he was a bastard and not her son.
"Mother?" Robb asked as she began to get lost in other memories.
"Bran and Rickon see him as their brother, both your sisters do and by the Seven I know so do you. I feared he'd take Winterfell from you and what do I find? What has it come to? Now mine own son wishes to take one of his kingdoms from him." Cat said, her annoyance threatening to turn to disdain as she spoke to her son.
"The North named me it's king." Robb said and she moved to him, her hand touching his face only for him to move away from her.
"The North is not yours, Robb, it never was." she said and he moved away from her.
"You would have me what? Kneel to him? Give up the North to someone the North would never accept? Someone with no army to call upon and no forces to bring to bear?" Robb asked his own anger clear and she sighed as she heard her brother's words, her uncle's, both of whom had said the very same things to her. Though for very different reasons.
Edmure wished to be uncle to a king and he feared that should Rhaegar Targaryen, for she could no longer think of him as Jon Snow, should he rise to the throne that he'd then seek to punish those who rose against his father. Catelyn did not, if they supported him from the start as they should then she felt that he'd have accepted and perhaps even welcomed that support. His letter seemed to suggest so and though she'd pointed that out to her brother, Edmure had refused to see sense.
Brynden was thinking differently, he too had dismissed the idea of their house being punished although now perhaps that was more likely than not. Instead for Brynden, it was the idea that the Riverlords and the Northern Lords wouldn't accept a grandson of the Mad King as their king. That and the thoughts that Rhaegar Targaryen had the smallest army and level of support out of all who fought in this war. Something that while it was true on the face of things, would not be true before the end of the war or so Catelyn believed.
"Mother?" Robb asked looking at her worriedly.
"I've already told you what will happen, Robb. In time your brother will gather the largest force that Westeros has ever seen. Loyalist houses, Leal Men, the Targaryen supporters will all rally to his cause as should we." she said looking to her son almost pleadingly.
"I'll not kneel to Jon." Robb said shaking his head.
"Jon Snow is dead, You need to kneel to Rhaegar Targaryen, Robb, and you need to do it sooner rather than later."
"Mine own mother." Robb said looking at her with a look that took her aback "You feared he'd take what was mine and now you seek to help him do so."
"I seek to make my son see sense. We cannot win this war, you've said it more than once already. I'm winning every battle but I'm losing the war, whose words were they? Not mine, Robb, they were yours. Allies and alliances, that's what we need and there is none better than your brother to be both. With a Targaryen at our head then and only then can we see Tywin Lannister brought low. I've said my piece, I've told you what it is that you should do." she said turning to walk away from her son.
"I am a king, not a child, mother, lest you forget." Robb said as he took a seat.
"You are my child, my blood, and I tell you that on this you are wrong."
The raven arrived later that night bearing the news that Margaery Tyrell had married Tommen Baratheon and was now queen of the Seven Kingdoms. Robb, her uncle, and her brother now convinced more than ever that they were right and she was wrong. Catelyn listened to them as they spoke dismissively about her belief that the Reach would have declared for Rhaegar Targaryen thereby giving him the army he did not have.
"You think Tarly and Rowan will accept this? Ashford?" she asked them after they'd told her the news "They support the dragons and have no love for Mace Tyrell. Who beat Robert at Ashford, uncle? Who did you all most fear when you marched against Rhaegar at the Trident?"
"Randyll Tarly?" her uncle said as he sat there with a contemplative look on his face.
"Hightower, Redwyne, Fossoway may be tied to the Tyrell's by the bonds of blood and marriage, but will they actually stand up against a dragon? For I tell you that Randyll Tarly certainly will not, nor will Mathis Rowan. Not when they know a son of Rhaegar lives and marches with the Lords of the Narrow Sea and with Ser Arthur Dayne standing at his right shoulder." she said and was glad it at least took the smug looks of her brother and son's faces.
They were ready to ride to the Twins the next day when the rider arrived, the news he bore only proving her more right and she knew then she had no other choice. She pulled Robb aside and bid him speak to her alone, her son only doing so reluctantly. The two of them walked to the nearby Godswood and for once she wished it was to a Weirwood that she was heading to. For many years the white-barked trees had discomfited her, now she found that she missed them greatly.
"I told you it was but a matter of time, Robb, we need to make peace with your brother and do so quickly." she said as Robb looked at her a little less angrily than he had the other times she'd brought this up.
"I cannot kneel, mother, my bannermen won't accept it." Robb said his voice sounding weary.
"They or you?" she asked to no reply "His aunt is on his side now Robb. They're married and if you doubted that the realm would rally behind one Targaryen, don't be so much of a fool to believe they'll not rally behind two." she said softly, her words to convince and not to berate.
"What is it you wish of me?" he asked after a few moments of silence.
"Give me leave to travel to Dragonstone, Robb, let me go and see if an accord can be reached."
"I told you that you could, after the wedding." her son said and Catelyn shook her head.
"It needs must be sooner, Robb, I must depart now if we're to have any chance of catching your brother before they march."
"You would miss my wedding?" he asked and she hated to hear the hurt in his voice.
"I must." she said as she reached out to touch his shoulder.
It took him some time and he bid her take a letter to Rhaegar that she had to wait for him to write. Catelyn then bid her farewells to him and to the others, taking time to speak to Maege and Ser Wylis to explain that reason she'd not be traveling with them to the wedding. The hug she gave her son was a short one, Robb not wishing to look a boy in front of his bannermen and Catelyn understanding and allowing him his pride. She was surprised when her uncle was among the men who stayed with her. Brynden telling her that Robb felt that if she was to travel to the Dragon's Den then best she did so protected.
Catelyn had no fear that she'd be in any danger once she got there, but the travel to the island would take time and the sea was as dangerous as ever. After sending a raven to Dragonstone to let them know she was on her way there, she and her uncle along with their escort made their way to the docks and boarded The Silver Eagle and were sailing not more than an hour after Robb had set off. She found herself more focussed on the fact that she would see her girls soon than on the fact that it would be moons until she saw her son again. With a last look to the docks behind her, Catelyn nodded to her uncle and she made her way to the cabins below deck. Once there she offered a prayer to the Father to keep her son safe and to the Mother that her family would be back together soon.
King's Landing 299 AC.
Olenna.
It had gone just as she had hoped it would, Tyrion was arrested almost immediately and no one else was even being looked at. Cersei had acted exactly how she had anticipated, her grief at the death of the one child she actually paid attention to and her hatred of her brother both combining to give Olenna just what she wished for. As for Tywin, his own feelings towards his son were well known to her and the only doubt she had in her mind that he'd not do as she expected was the fact his other son was still a prisoner.
In the end, it had mattered not and the opportunity to finally be rid of the son he despised was too good for him to resist. Margaery was upset, though more at the events themselves than over the loss of Joffrey, and by the time they had arrived back at their rooms, she was getting over even them. Mace worried that this meant they'd not see Margaery crowned and Olenna was in no mood to allay his fears. Let him be left in the dark for now, he deserved it since it was he who'd pretty much put them in this position in the first place. Had he not made that stupid deal with Renly Baratheon they'd have been able to sit this war out and she'd have been able to take a better look at the board in front of them.
When she lay down in her bed that night, Olenna felt she'd done an excellent job and was looking forward to the negotiations with Tywin Lannister that were soon to come. She'd wished for a crown for Margaery and it was still their price, a price that now would require perhaps even more if she had her way. She gave little thought to the dragon on Dragonstone, Tywin's, and the High Septons letters having put paid to most of her fears there and as she fell to sleep it was with a wry smile on her face. One that she wore for perhaps the full night, only to have it wiped from her face when she was summoned to a meeting with Tywin Lannister the next morning.
"You sent for me at this ungodly hour?" she said irritably as she took her seat across from him.
"I did." he said and the way he looked at her caused her a moment's worry.
Did he know?
How had he found out?
Did they have enough men with them in King's Landing?.
Her thoughts were fleeting but worrying all the same and she breathed a sigh of relief once she got them under control. If he did know then this is not the meeting she'd be having with Tywin Lannister and she'd perhaps not have woken at all this morning. No, this was something else, something different and as she waited for Tywin to speak, she knew she had to show her thorns.
"Well out with it, I'm not getting any younger." she said with a scowl on her face.
"Neither am I." Tywin said before she swore she saw the merest of grins on his face, only to then think it was just a trick of the light "Tommen and Margaery are to be wed." he said surprising her.
"They are?"
"Come, let's not be mummers here today, Olenna. I know it's your price for support and while I mourn my grandson, his death can't be what defines the realm. Tommen and Margaery are to be wed and I wish it done quickly." Tywin said and she looked at him curiously.
"How quickly?" she asked.
"Days." he said surprising her once more "The king is dead, a new king must be crowned and wed as quickly as possible. The realm must see it done and until it is we leave ourselves open to discontent."
"What of the mourning for the king?" she asked and she swore he snorted.
"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." Tywin said and she found herself agreeing.
"Can it be arranged so quickly?" she asked as she reached out and took her wine glass in her hand.
"All that's needed is your go-ahead. All the arrangements are still in place, was it to be today then we'd not even need to cook the food again." he said, and coming from anyone else she'd have thought that a jape.
"It can't be today." she said and he nodded "Three days from now." she said and he nodded once more.
"Once the wedding has taken place, I'll expect your men to join with mine own. We sweep through the Riverlands and put an end to this rebellion once and for all." Tywin said and she nodded.
"And the dragon?" she asked as she placed her glass back down on the table.
"Is no more." Tywin said and this time he did smirk.
For the next three days, they scrambled to ready the wedding. Margaery complained about being married to a child, Mace argued that they didn't have enough time, and Olenna herself feeling some relief that the dragon wouldn't be an issue. Her bannermen had still not received word from their houses of the ravens sent from Dragonstone and now by the time they did so it would be with news that another prince soon to be a king named Rhaegar Targaryen had fallen. This one she could at least claim was an impostor and that her own spies had proved this to her which was why they'd delayed their support for him. The last thing she or her House needed was for her bannermen to look at them and blame them for yet another dragon's death.
The wedding itself went off without a hitch and though she was forced to watch the ridiculous spectacle of her golden rose marry a boy who was still wet behind the ears, the crown she received was more than worth it. Unfortunately given Tommen's age there would be a long wait until an heir was born and she could truly wrap her vines around the throne, but she had waited this long and it was not as if there were not things she could do until then. Tywin was taking care of one of the big obstacles to their control of the seven kingdoms in trying his son. Cersei would then need to be handled and Tywin himself would need to have an accident of sorts. Though not until the rebellion was crushed, the Old Lion still had some uses and better he than Mace to lead them, Olenna shuddered at the thought.
Once again she went to her bed with a smile on her face and once again when she woke the next day it was to see it wiped from it. This time though not because of being summoned to a meeting that she wished to attend. The letter from Willas was troubling, speaking of the Red Viper and what he suggested and Willas's own suggestions would have given her pause had she received it earlier and only did not now because of what Tywin had said about the dragon's demise. Yet it was the next few messages that she received that truly caused her smile to be replaced by a worried frown.
The princess had not only arrived back in Westeros but had landed on Dragonstone and had married her nephew. She'd brought an army of Unsullied and three dragons with her and this had happened before even Margaery had been wed to Joffrey let alone Tommen. It had been kept from her on Tywin's orders no doubt and it made her wonder what else had been kept from her and to question every word that the old lion had spoken to her. When the last letter arrived though it almost caused her to faint when she realized just exactly what she'd done and were it not for her need to confront Tywin Lannister then she would have. Instead, she hurried to the Tower of the Hand and made her way inside, her guards Left and Right brushing aside Tywin's own as she stormed into his solar.
"You lied to me." she said angrily as she looked at the man sitting calmly in his seat "You said he was dead and I find not only does he breath still but he's wed too."
"Welcome to the great game, Olenna. Now would you like to take a seat so we can plan our next move or do you wish to shout at me some more?" Tywin asked, almost smugly.
Reluctantly she took a seat as she had no other choice, he'd played her and played her well and the only way she would keep her head and her position now was if they worked together. You play the game of thrones and you win or you lose, it was a game she had no intent on losing.
Riverrun 299 AC.
Jaime Lannister.
While a part of him wished he had a looking glass, a much larger part was more than thankful he did not. The smell and the feel of the itchy beard were enough to tell him just how far he'd fallen and though he'd not been starved, he had lost a lot of muscle and weight already. Only the gods knew what he'd look like should he ever be released, though that release was looking less and less likely. The damnable truth of things was that other than Robb Stark himself there was no one valuable enough for him to be traded for.
They'd not do so for the girls and the news that Ned Stark had lost his head had hurt him as much as it had the Starks themselves, for very different reasons of course. He was also finally beginning to think that he would actually lose his head here. The way Rickard Karstark and his men would look at him, how long it was taking for him to be released or rescued, and the fact this war had not been won by his father yet, all combining to create doubt in his mind that he'd ever see Cersei or Tyrion ever again.
As the days stretched into weeks, the weeks into moons and as he spoke to fewer and fewer people, Jaime felt his mind drifting to things he'd long since put out of it. Memories that were too hard for him to think about, all coming back to him in the solitude that he found himself in. Thoughts of a prince and the last words he spoke to him. Images of his brothers in their pristine white cloaks and the last time he saw them. What was real and what was imagined soon blurring as he found himself arguing with men long since dead.
"You broke your vow." Arthur said, his voice sounding broken and sad more than angry, which was more than he could say for the angered way that Oswell and Gerold spoke.
"Kingslayer." Oswell spat.
"Our false brother would burn in the seven hells." Gerold said.
"I had no choice,"
"I did my duty"
"I'm already there".
His answers were like words in the wind and he welcomed waking even if it was to the face that he woke to. Why Catelyn Stark had come to his cell he knew not, she'd not visited him in he knew not how long. Not since the news of her husband's death had come had she deigned to grace him with her presence and yet he welcomed it and her now.
"Lady Catelyn, forgive me if I can't rise." he said or thought he did, his words not sounding like words so long had it been since he'd used his voice.
"Drink." Catelyn said handing him the mug and he was surprised to see her hand shaking.
At first, he thought she feared him and a part of him rejoiced that he still had that within him. It was but a brief thought and feeling though and as he handed her back the mug and saw her hands shaking still, he knew it was not his presence that was the cause of it. It made him worry that something terrible had happened, that the Starks had suffered yet another loss, and that this loss would end with him losing his head. His fear for that causing his own hands to shake a little and he felt shamed for not being brave at the end.
"What know you of how the rebellion began, Ser Jaime?" she asked catching him by surprise.
"The same as anyone, my lady." he said and his voice while strained and scratch at least could be heard.
"Which is?" she asked curiously.
"That Rhaegar kidnapped the Lady Lyanna and that Brandon and his party rode to King's Landing demanding that he come out and die." he said, though he didn't and couldn't believe that was the entire story, then or now.
"And Prince Rhaegar?" she asked and he looked at her wondering what it was she wished him to say.
"Was not the man we all thought he was." he said once again saying words he didn't truly believe.
"Who did you think he was, Ser Jaime? And speak freely without fear of what your words may bring. It's me your speaking to and no other." she said which surprised him, as did the look on her face which seemed almost desperate.
"The best man I've ever known, my lady." he said and Catelyn breathed deeply.
"So his actions seemed out of character to you?" she said and he nodded before he pointed to the mug and she filled it and handed it back to him.
"Very much so, my lady." he said after taking another large swallow of the water.
"I wish you to answer me honestly, Ser Jaime, can you do so for once?" she asked, her eyes and expression almost begging and he nodded without thinking "Do you believe that Prince Targaryen kidnapped Lyanna Stark? That he and Sers Arthur and Oswell held her against her will?"
Of all the questions he'd expected her to ask him, that was not one of them and it threw him for more than a moment. Over the years he'd been forced to listen to a version of events that never tallied with the men he knew. Prince Rhaegar was good and true and had no need to force himself on a woman, any woman. Hell, his own sister would have given him up if she could have been wed to the prince of her dreams. Oswell would do as Rhaegar bid for most things, though it was hard for him to see him agreeing to that, and even were he to, then Arthur certainly would not. No man was as true as the Sword of the Morning, no knight as true and while he may have gone with Rhaegar's request in relation to the queen, he'd not have done so with Lyanna.
"No my lady, I do not nor have I ever believed that." he said and she nodded as she went to move from him "Why ask this of me, Lady Catelyn? Why ask me this now of all times?"
"In the days to come things will come to light, Ser Jaime, things that will change Westeros forevermore. Truths will be revealed and while I already know of them and believe them, I wished another opinion, one who had no reason to steer me wrong." she said cryptically, and then she was gone and he was alone once more.
She was true to her word and he heard the snippets of it and finally the full story just after the lady herself had left. Jon Snow was not the bastard son of Ned Stark and while some named him a bastard still, others did not. As he lay on his bed in the cell that had been all he'd known for moons, he heard them speak of things that made it all so very clear. Tales of weddings, both in King's Landing and on Dragonstone and one to be held at the Twins. He heard them speak of both Stark girls being rescued by a boy who was now no longer their bastard brother and a call to arms that came with a warning. Jaime listened eagerly as the dead came back to life and a dynasty thought long since past roared once more.
Arthur was alive.
His prince's son lived.
His prince's sister had arrived and joined her claim with his own.
The dragons had returned.
Jaime slept comfortably and his dreams were of dragons and white swords, of violet eyes and dark grey ones, and of Fire and Blood bring brought down on all their heads.
White Harbor 299 AC.
Howland.
They were fools and he was so angered at them that he almost refused to listen when they tried to bring him to their side. Instead, he decided to use it as one last attempt to have them see sense and so he, Maege Mormont, Galbart Glover, the Greatjon, Ser Wylis Manderly, and Rickard Karstark met in the Godswood at Riverrun and spoke on things that could be considered treasonous. Though to the other lords and not to him, since it wasn't his king he was committing treason against.
"I've told you all the truth, what you do with it is up to me, but you're making a mistake." he said annoyed as he looked at the oak that was a pitiful excuse for a heart tree.
"We named Robb Stark our king, Howland, you would ask us to what, uname him?" Maege asked.
"I would see us kneel to the rightful king, a king the realm can rally around." Howland said.
"The realm would never accept another dragon, Howland, you're a fool if you believe so." Galbart said and Howland laughed at him.
"Am I? Or am I the only one here who sees the sense in things? Never accept you say? With Tywin Lannister and his bastard grandson running the realm, you think they'd not accept a good and true man?" he asked looking to them all "And don't tell me that you don't believe him to be so, for I've ears to hear and I've heard all of you speak your praises when you believed him Ned Stark's bastard son."
"You're asking too much, to kneel to a dragon…"The Greatjon said and Howland angrily interrupted him.
"It was the dragons we married and the dragons are all dead. Whose words were they Jon? Mine or your own. What do they know of the Wall or the Wolfswood. Who was it that said that?" he asked looking to the giant Umber lord who bowed his head "Who knows more of the Wall than a boy who was sent there, Jon? Has Robb Stark ever set foot at the Wall, have any of you, or I other than Maege?" he asked to no reply "The dragons are not dead, one lives and it's he who I owe my fealty to and who you all do as well."
"You ask too much, Howland." Ser Wylis said.
"Speak to Lady Catelyn, speak to the gods, speak to whomever it is that will make you see the sense of things. I know you not this day, I've spoken the truth and my conscience is clear, what happens from here is down to you all." he said as he walked away, stopping to take one last look at the men and one woman who stood by the tree speaking to each other animatedly "The North Remembers and her son is of the North."
The ride had taken far longer than he wished and even cutting through the Neck and the swamps hadn't reduced it as much as he would have wished for. When he reached Moat Cailin he was tired and it made him wonder if he'd have been better served going back to Greywater Watch first. He worried though had he done so that he may not leave, that he'd decide to stay and not do what needed to be done and so he forbore it and rode further.
He left the next morning after a night's rest and a conversation with the Smalljon who told him of the state of affairs in the North. The Greatjon's son giving credit where it wasn't really due to Howland's mind. Robb Stark may have ordered the men to ride back and protect the North, but he only did so after Rhaegar had told him how wrong he'd been in trusting Theon Greyjoy. Had he not done so, then the Iron Born would have found the North far more welcoming and open than they did and yet Howland knew that to most of the Northern Lords, it was the wrong king they'd give credit to.
It took him days rather than a week to finally see the walls of White Harbor and he longed both for a soft bed and some warm food, as well as to finally speak to a man with a good and true mind. Wyman may be as proud and stubborn as the other Northern Lords, but the man was wiser than any of them and he needed to speak to someone wise. He'd failed thus far in trying to bring the North to his king's side and he feared what would happen should he continue to do so. Dragons don't forgive and they don't forget and the fact they'd not come to him would be something that hurt Rhaegar far more than anything else.
"I'm here to see Lord Wyman." he said as he dismounted his horse and looked to Ser Marlon.
"Lord Reed?" Marlon said, his voice showing his shock at his visit.
"Aye, Ser, is the Lord within?" he asked and the knight nodded before calling for some guards to see to his horses and his men.
Wyman was holding court and Howland caught the smile on his friend's face when he saw him. The Lord of White Harbor quickly turning to his son Ser Wendel to get him to continue while he himself rose and bid Ser Marlon and Howland follow.
"By the gods, Howland, how long has it been?" Wyman asked as they walked down the corridor.
"Far too long, old friend. You know why I've come?" he asked and Wyman nodded.
He was bid to hold his tongue until they were sitting in his solar and refreshments had been sent for and once they were sitting and he had eaten some of the warm soup and a piece of the lamprey pie, Howland began to speak on truths he'd kept to himself for far too long.
"Ned Stark was a fool, Wyman, a fool and a dishonorable one at that." he said to a shocked look from the other man "His nephew was never to end up at the Wall, never to be sent to swear his life away and in time was supposed to come to Greywater Watch so the truth could be revealed to him. You met the lad did you not?"
"Aye, him and Arthur Dayne." Wyman said and Howland looked at the small smile on Wyman's face and felt comforted by it.
"We sold a mummery for many years, Wyman. Ned played his part in it and Arthur and I lived up to agreements that had been given by a man I thought a friend once. When he was of age, Jon Snow was to ride to Greywater Watch and what he decided from that point forward was to be what we all agreed to. Promises were made and wherever he is I'm sure that the fact he didn't keep his has found Ned disfavor with the She-Wolf." he said with more than a little bite.
"I find it hard to reconcile the Ned you speak of with the Ned I knew, Howland, it makes no sense to me." Wyman said shaking his head.
"That he'd seek to keep his brother by choice on a throne that didn't belong to him? Seek to join his line with his and usurp his own blood?" Howland asked and Wyman nodded "Nor me, and yet that's what he did and what I curse him for. Had it not been for the gods themselves, who knows what life that boy would have lived."
"What is it you wish of me, Howland?" Wyman asked curiously as he moved closer to the table.
"To support the true king, Wyman. For we need Stark blood on the throne, but only if it's the right Stark." he said and Wyman sat back and said nothing for what felt like an age.
"Wendel told me the extent of the Iron Born attack, had we not been ready for such then the North would have fallen, or most of it at least. While some men name Robb Stark a hero for seeing that it did not, I know the truth of things. It was he who sent Theon Greyjoy to speak to his father, he who trusted an Iron Born, and he only sent Wendel, Dacey, and the Smalljon and their men back after being called out on his mistake by Jon Snow. I know that boy rescued both his sister's and that he sits now on Dragonstone married to his aunt." Wyman said catching Howland by surprise "Yet it matters not, mine own raven was sent long before then."
"Your raven?" he asked with intrigue.
"Naming him my king and telling him that White Harbor and its men were his. I've sent word to Wylis, once the wedding is over and done, he's to return with our men and await the king's instructions." Wyman said and Howland felt his heart begin to race.
"I had not thought it to be so easy." he said to a loud laugh from Wyman.
"It was not. We swore an oath to always come when a son of House Stark calls and though he's a dragon, he's a wolf too is he not?" Wyman asked.
"He's her son as much as he is his father's." Howland said proudly.
"Then you'll join me in a toast. To the king, to Rhaegar Targaryen the first of his name." Wyman said lifting his glass.
"To Rhaegar Targaryen, the First of his Name." he said as he joined him and for the first time in days, Howland felt at peace.
Dragonstone 299 AC.
Arya.
She had been so angry and had wished for Jon to take her, Arthur and Lightbringer to King's Landing so they could deal with the lions once and for all. Even long after the men had been dealt with, her anger had not receded. They had dared to try and take him from her, from Sansa, and from Dany too and she found that Tywin Lannister was now the first and most important name on her list. True there were others still and she wished to see them all pay, but he was who she felt needed to be dealt with and soon.
It was why she intensified her training and why Jon had felt the need to pull her to one side, his worries for her clear in his face as he bid her sit with him in Aegon's Garden. They were alone, or as alone as he ever was these days. Not that she begrudged Arthur's presence and if anything it brought her great relief to see him there. She was getting much better with a sword, Jon too was much further along than he had ever been, but never had she seen a man wield a sword like Arthur Dayne. The Bold himself was no true match and there were others on the island too who offered them even more protection.
"You can't be so open with how you feel, Arya." Jon said taking her from her thoughts.
"They tried to kill you, Jon." she said angrily.
"People have tried to kill Dany all her life. In Vaes Dothraki a man tried to poison her and she and my uncle spent years on the run from assassin's blades. You've known what it was like to have people seek you out and wish you harm, Arya, and now so do I. I'm not telling you not to be angered by it, but use it, let it fuel you, and keep it in here." Jon said pointing to his heart.
"Is that what you're doing?" she asked curiously.
"I hope so." he said with a small laugh that she joined in with.
"Will you make them pay?" she asked and he nodded and she found that for now that was enough for her.
"We need to speak later, you, me, and Sansa, we need to speak about Robb." Jon said and she looked to see that he wore a sad look on his face.
"Aye, we do." she said determinedly and she moved from him when he went to muss her hair.
"Take some time for yourself, little sister. You and Nymeria, take some time together." Jon said as he rose to his feet and Arya nodded and said she would.
In the end, she took very little, instead finding herself following after Sansa as she and the young lad from Dorne walked and spoke together. She'd seen how her sister looked at Ned Dayne and it worried her as it was exactly how she'd seen her look at Joffrey. Arya fearing that she hadn't learned as much as she thought she had and that perhaps Ned was not how he seemed to be. Even the fact he was Arthur's nephew hadn't been enough to make her not worry and so she had followed and watched.
Ghost though didn't seem to worry about the boy at all and she found she liked seeing her sister smile and laugh, when before it would annoy her greatly. Seeing Nymeria leave her alone in her hiding place made her look more keenly at what her wolf was up to and when she went and licked Ned Dayne's hand, Sansa wasn't the only one who wore a smile on her face. Leaving them to their fun, she went to find some more of her own and spent the day with the Dothraki children and their mothers.
It was after dinner that Jon asked Sansa and her to join him and he brought them both to the Chamber of the Painted Table to do so. Arya was surprised that Dany wasn't there too, as her brother and his new wife were almost inseparable, something she should be annoyed at and yet was not. Seeing Jon happier than he had ever been before was more than worth having to share his time with someone else. That she also really liked the person he shared his time with, only helped in that regard.
"I had considered keeping this from you both." Jon began and she and Sansa both went to argue, only for him to raise his hand and continue to speak "But I cannot and will not keep things from my sisters." he added making Arya smirk a little.
"Is it bad, Jon?" Sansa asked worriedly and Arya found her eyes on her brother's as he answered.
"It's not good, no." Jon said with a sigh "Robb is not supporting my claim, he seeks the North to remain free and under his control."
"But you're our brother." Arya said angrily as she rose to her feet.
"Cousin in truth." Jon said and she glared at him.
"Brother." she said leaving no room for doubt.
"Brother." Sansa said just as firmly and she welcomed seeing the smile on Jon's face.
"Does this mean we'll be fighting the North?" she asked worriedly and saw Jon shake his head.
"I don't wish to fight the North, I hope in time that Robb will come to see this for the mistake that it is, that he and they will understand that the North can't be free." he said and it was Sansa who answered.
"Can they not? Could you not work together? Two kings?" Sansa asked and Arya was about to say something to her sister only for Jon to reach out and place his hand over hers and shake his head, only when he did so did she see how Sansa looked worriedly to the ground.
"Seven Kingdom's Sansa, my family forged Seven Kingdoms and for three hundred years the Starks were happy to name themselves a part of them. Your father was happy to kneel and accept Robert as a king, happy to accept Joffrey until the truth of his birth was known, even though he should have rejected him for his nature alone. Robb spent all his life wishing to be Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, training to be so and seeking no more than that and I've spent all of mine being looked upon fearfully for you mother for seeking to usurp him." Jon said his voice sadder than she had ever thought possible.
"You would never." Arya said firmly and felt him squeeze her hand.
"No, I'd not. So why should I accept Robb doing the same to me?" Jon asked and she shook her head.
"I don't want you to fight each other." Sansa said softly and Jon looked to her before he moved closer to Sansa, Arya nodding to tell him to do so.
He knelt in front of Sansa and reached his hands to hers, holding them in his as her sister finally looked him in the eye. Arya could see there were tears that were threatening to fall and she smiled when Jon wiped Sansa's eyes and brushed his fingers over her cheek.
"Neither do I. I intend to fight those I must before looking North. I believe that once the rest of Westeros sees what Dany and I and our armies and dragons can do they'll seek to kneel and some I'll be more accepting of than others. If Robb comes I'll accept his fealty, but…" Jon said and Arya felt a hitch in her throat "I can no longer accept him, Sansa, no longer accept him as my brother or my Warden of the North."
"Jon.." Sansa said worriedly.
"I'd not seek him harmed Sansa, but Robb will not be Lord of Winterfell or Warden of the North, and he'll not be king, I can't accept it. I thought him a brother, he's shown he's not, and while as kin I'll not seek him harmed. As king he has left me with no choice." Jon said as he rose to his feet.
"Can we write to him, ask him to come to his sense, if he did would you…" Arya asked and she saw Sansa's relieved look.
"You can, but he can't know about Dany, Arya, nor the dragons." Jon said and Arya nodded as Jon moved to kiss Sansa on her forehead and to then do the same to her "I love you both, you and Bran and Rickon, I love you for the wolves you are and for the family I'm proud to name as mine own."
As he walked from the room she didn't need to even think about the fact that he had not named Robb the same and while Sansa was still fearing that Jon and Robb would come to blows, Arya was incredibly angry with her brother. If she saw Robb before he knelt then it would be him and her who may come to blows, she thought as she moved to sit beside Sansa.
Dragonstone 299 AC.
Rhaegar.
He had wanted nothing more than to lay with his wife, to hold her in his arms and make up for the wedding night that had been denied to them both. That Dany wished for the same was clear in her eyes and yet they had so much to do and so for now at least they could not. There were arrangements to be made, plans to be put into place, and sisters to speak to and so despite his mind and thoughts being elsewhere, it was that he concentrated on.
His sisters took it as well as could have been expected, Sansa's worries for what he and the North facing off against each other may mean had shined through and he'd done his best to reassure her. He'd told her the truth and made it clear that he had no desire to fight against Robb and the North. Though he perhaps had kept it from her that he was willing to. For now, he could let the North do as it wished almost, his true enemy and the true obstacle to his and Dany's reign was not Robb Stark and Northern Independence, it was Tywin Lannister and so it was there he would concentrate.
Just not how Tywin would expect him to do so and he smiled at the thoughts of what they were about to do. He had been honest with both his sisters when he'd told them that he hoped that his and Dany's actions would bring the North and Robb to heel, he just doubted that it would. Robb was stubborn and seemed to care more for his crown than anything else and it was hard to see him giving it up without a fight. One that Rhaegar may not wish for but would be more than ready for when the time came. It was to these thoughts that he found himself walking with Arthur and looking over Dany's men. These and the thoughts of soon being parted from his wife and perhaps it was his worried expression that caught Arthur's eye.
"Your grace?" Arthur asked and Rhaegar turned to him.
"Am I doing the right thing, Arthur? Splitting up our forces is it the right call?" he asked as he and Arthur walked the steps back to the keep.
"I believe so, your grace." Arthur said with no doubt in his voice.
"Truly?" he asked curiously.
"Truly, your grace. What Tywin did needs an answer and to attack the West will force him to come to you." Arthur said.
"But it won't be me in the West, Arthur." he said a little worriedly.
"No, but should you need to be there, then it will be much easier for you to travel than it would for anyone else, your grace. I believe you're in the right of this as does Barristan and Ser Jorah." Arthur said and Rhaegar nodded.
He saw the wolves first, Nymeria and Ghost running across the courtyard as if they'd been waiting for him and then he saw his wife and sisters. Arya had stayed with Dany while he and Arthur had walked to the village and Sansa he was pleased to see was laughing at something Ned Dayne said. His sister and Arthur's nephew had gotten close and he felt it helped her forget the cruelty she'd suffered from Joffrey. If it restored her faith that there were good men out there then that alone would be worth it. Should it develop into more than that, then it would be a good match and one he'd encourage.
"Aemon wishes to see us, Rhaegar." Dany said as he kissed her cheek.
"Then we shouldn't keep our uncle waiting, should we?" he said with a small laugh that Dany joined in with.
"My spar?" Arya asked annoyedly.
"Will take place after you've eaten as promised." he said and when she went to answer him back, he looked at her and shook his head, Arya quietening down and giving him a nod.
They spoke on trivial things as he made his way into the keep, Dany letting Arya and Sansa do most of the talking while she held his arm and leaned against him. In two more days, they'd be parted and he promised himself that at least one of them would be just the two of them together. It was a promise he hoped he'd be able to live up to. Aemon awaited them in the Chamber of the Painted Table, the room having become the go-to place for meetings of both import and not. Sansa and Ned Dayne had left them once they'd seen Missandei and so it was just Arthur, Barristan, Arya, he, and Dany who entered the room, his uncle and aunt already waiting for them.
"A raven, nephew. Bearing the seal of House Tully." Aemon said and Rhaegar looked at him in surprise.
"You've opened it?" he asked and Aemon shook his head as Arya looked at them both curiously, a look that was shared by Dany and by both Arthur and Barristan.
"No, with you here I felt it best if you did." Aemon said as he handed him the raven and Rhaegar opened it to read, soon finding that he was shocked by both the content and by who had sent it.
To His Grace, Rhaegar Targaryen,
A divide has opened between yourself and my son, a divide that I seek to see to the end of. I know I've not always treated you well and I'll not speak words here that are better said face to face, only saying that for what it's worth, I'm sorry for my part. I seek a meeting, your grace, a meeting between yourself and me, and I seek permission to see my girls once more. The issues we have between us, both personal and political can be best addressed in such a meeting, though I understand if you'd not wish for one. Given the distance between Dragonstone and where I am, I've arranged to set sail and should be setting off in a day or so. As a mother, I wish to tell you that my desire to see my daughters again may have robbed me of the ability to wait for your permission and I hope you'll forgive the presumptuousness.
I hope we can bridge the gap between us, politically and personally, yet I'd settle for just one of those if the other is beyond being redeemed. I carry a letter from my son, an offer of reconciliation and I pray it will be enough to see us all on the same side once more. You have my thanks, your grace, for the rescue of my girls and for seeing to their safety, you have my thanks and I owe you a debt that I can never repay. I beg you to allow me to at least try.
Catelyn Stark.
He read the letter out loud and saw how Arya almost perked up, Dany looked at him curiously, and yet it was Aemon that Rhaegar found his eyes drawn to. In their many conversations about what to do once he and Dany had taken back the throne, the non Leal houses had been brought up more than once. His uncle had decided the course of action for him in relation to the ravens that had been sent out, both the initial and the later ones, and while there was some room for forgiveness, in some cases that would be impossible and foolhardy. House Tyrell had joined with the Lannisters, even after knowing of him and so they would need to be removed. House Lannister could and would not be allowed to stand and House Baratheon too would face consequences.
As for House Stark and House Tully, one of them would see their end and no longer be in the position they held. It was only that he blamed Robb more than anyone else and that he had no wish to see the end of his mother's house, which allowed for it not to be them. House Tully had risen against his house twice now, both times for at best tenuous reasons, there would not be a third time. He'd not seek their deaths but their house would fall before he was done, no matter what Catelyn Stark asked of him. So lost was he in these thoughts that he'd not heard Arya call for him or Dany's worried voice and it took his wife almost shaking his arm to gain his attention.
"Forgive me, this is unexpected." he said as he looked to Dany and then to Aemon who he could see felt the same way.
"What does this mean for us, Rhaegar?" Dany asked.
"I know not." he said with a shrug of his shoulders, "I have no wish to fight the North, so if they agree to my terms then we can be allies, but I know not if they will. So for now it changes nothing." he said and Arya looked at him worriedly, his little sister keeping silent for now.
"We still sail?" Dany asked.
"We do." he said and she nodded.
He spoke to Sansa and to Arya, neither of them keen to stay on the island and await their mother's arrival and though it surprised him, he welcomed it too. Sansa would set sail with Dany, his sister wishing to see the Lions pay for all they'd done and attempted to do, while Arya would travel with him and Arthur and take part in their own campaign. Aemon would hold Dragonstone in their name and along with Shiera would play host to Catelyn when she arrived. Rhaegar promising that he'd return with Ōñosmaghare, but only once his work was done.
The next day he got his wish and spent it with Dany, the two of them laying in bed and having the wedding night that was denied to them. They spoke about their fears, their hopes and Rhaegar promised her that Ōñosmaghare would know to come to her if he was needed. He promised her that he'd take no risks and she did the same and as they lay together he spoke to her about the future they would have together.
"We'll restore our house, Dany, you and I and our children, we'll restore our house and see all those who sought to end us are no more." he said as they lay in their bed, morning was breaking and he'd be leaving first and so they'd woken early.
"Do you truly believe we'll be blessed with children?" Dany asked hopefully and he leaned forward to kiss her softly.
"Ōñosmaghare tells me that Rhaegal and Viserion will be our children's mounts, my love. I find it best not to argue with him, he's quite large you see." he said and welcomed the smile that appeared on her face.
"Will it be wise to allow one of them to go to Dorne?" she asked and he shook his head, Dany looking at him curiously.
"Dorne will be coming to us, I'd not gift them a dragon but they wish a queen and so we came to an accord. Our son will marry a daughter of House Martell, a steep price to pay but it is the way of the world." he said as she nodded reluctantly.
Far better it be a queen of Dorne than a prince of one, that way at least the dragons would always remain in their control and he'd known long before the meeting with Oberyn what the price would truly be. Aemon had told him what it was that all men wished for and so he been prepared. Had he been available then they'd not have settled for anything less than him and while he felt the offer of vengeance and justice should have been enough, that was not the world they lived in.
"How long until I see you again?" Dany asked as she snuggled against him.
"If all goes to plan, a moon or two." he said as he ran his fingers through her silver hair.
"If not, then sooner?" she asked and he nodded.
They stayed in each other arms for far too brief an amount of time, Rhaegar being the first to rise and after they broke their fast he knew he could put it off no longer. He spoke briefly to his aunt and uncle, then to Sansa and he hoped the words and the fact she and Dany would have Ghost and Nymeria with her would offer the comfort that he intended. While Arya said her own goodbyes to Sansa and then to Nymeria and Missandei, he said his to his wife, the words not coming to him as instead he just kissed her deeply and felt it was enough. Less than an hour later they were in the sky and heading North and he wondered just exactly where he would meet with the Lord of the Narrow Sea and the Skagosi.
The Twins 299 AC.
Robb Stark.
Grey Wind was behaving oddly and when the Frey's suggested he be put in a cage, Robb almost agreed to it. For some reason, he found he could not though and so instead he'd knelt down and spoken to the wolf before sending him off to hunt. When they arrived in the keep and were given guest rights, he finally relaxed and he did so even more when he was introduced to Roslin. His uncle Edmure perhaps just as shocked as he was by the woman he was to marry and Robb finding the prospect of her being his wife a far more welcome one than he'd at first feared.
The drinks flowed and though Walder Frey bristled that his mother and great-uncle weren't there, according to those who knew the lord best, he was actually almost jovial. He'd certainly spared no expense on the wedding feast and the drink was flowing from early on. When the time came for the wedding itself, Robb felt his nerves begin to rise. It was seeing that Roslin seemed to be feeling the same that gave him the resolve to fight them and to do his best to offer her reassurance, something she accepted gratefully.
He barely remembered the ceremony, the Septon said the words and he repeated his part as his mother and uncle had informed him he must. The kiss they shared at the end of it though was something he enjoyed greatly, as did his new wife given the look on her face. It was as they sat down to eat and he offered her a piece of the pigeon pie that he first got the feeling. Something wasn't quite right and he wasn't sure what that was. His frown was noticed by his wife who looked worriedly at him and her question actually caught him by surprise.
"Have I done something to displease you, your grace?" Roslin asked worriedly and Robb shook his head and smiled at her.
"No, of course not, my lady. The last thing you could possibly do is displease me" he said and she smiled beamingly at his words and how he took her hands in his when he spoke.
"But something concerns you?" she said softly and he found that he enjoyed her voice and how earnest she looked at him.
"It's nothing, my lady." he said, more because he couldn't understand what it was that he was feeling than because he didn't wish to speak about it.
"I'd like for us to be able to speak freely, your grace."Roslin said nervously.
"Robb." he said with a warm smile.
"Robb." she said back and he felt a small shudder go down his back at how she said his name "I'd like for us to be able to share our worries and concerns as well as our hopes and dreams." she said and he found he wished for that too and so he told her so.
For the next hour, he told Roslin almost everything on his mind. How he wished his mother was here with them and that he missed his sisters so. That he longed to be back in Winterfell and that the war was over with. When it came to speaking about his brother he told her things that he'd not even spoken to his mother about. How hurt he'd been by Jon's letter, how jealous he was of him for saving their sisters when he could not. He even told her how hard it was for him to see his brother as more than him and through it all Roslin listened. She offered up small words of advice and when she felt him growing despondent it was kisses rather than words that she gave him.
Time passed so quickly that he barely heard the bedding be called for and only that he was then being pushed and shoved and undressed, he not have known what was going on. It was as he was being moved to the room that he would share with Roslin that he felt it, the hairs on the back of his neck began to stiffen and something inside of him told him that all was not well. He heard Grey Wind's howl, then heard the sound of fighting outside, and then the sound of music being played. As he was pushed along he swore he heard a loud roar and when the door opened he knew he'd been betrayed.
"Sit down, your grace. Or we'll take the only sword you have at your disposal from you." Black Walder said with mocking in his tone and a smirk on his face and as Robb looked to those around him and realized they were all Freys and then to his own nakedness, he knew he had no choice.
He'd no sooner sat down than he heard the howl once more and though angered he could do nothing when Black Walder suggested that someone gut the wolf. Yet as he sat in the room and felt more a fool than ever before, it was the loud roars he heard that he and the Frey's were all focussed on.
The Bite 299 AC.
Ōñosmaghare.
They were flying once more and this time it was to bring Fire and Blood to those who'd dared to stand against them. His brothers flew too and he wished he could be with them, that he and his rider were with Drogon and his own and that Rhaegal and Viserion were flying by their side. For now, it was not to be and so he flew faster and more eagerly. The sooner he was done with what needed to be done, the sooner their family would be together again.
Family, a strange thing and something he had long given up hope of ever having. His mother had been all the family he had known and eventually she had feared and then been taken from him. His rider was his family, his brothers were his family and he swore that no one would take any of them from him now. They calmed him, soothed his rage, and yet his rage was there too, always there and always waiting to be unleashed.
"Unleash it we will, Ōñosmaghare.." his rider promised and that promise filled him with joy.
Joy because his rider felt as he did, neither of them wished to cause suffering, but both of them were willing to make those who deserved it suffer. It was why he flew faster now, why he gave his all to get there and to do as his rider wished him to do. They'd flown and met with the men from the island, the men who'd known of him and yet had not known. He'd landed on a small beach after they'd flown over the ships and had waited for the boat to come to take his rider, his rider's protector, and the girl his rider loved so much to the ship. Ōñosmaghare had flown over the ship while his rider was on board, he'd let them know he was there and though he'd hunted and eaten, he'd not flown far until his rider was once again on his back.
Then he'd felt it, the concern from the girl his rider loved so much and the anger from his rider as his own fire threatened to burst forth. He'd not needed the order and had flown where his rider wished without it, increasing his speed and not stopping or slowing down for any reason. When he saw the two towers in the distance and what was happening beneath them, he shared it with his rider and felt his rider's fire begin to burn. A flicker, a spark, a flame, a blaze, and finally an inferno waiting to be unleashed.
As he landed he waited for his rider to give him the word and he roared loudly to those around him. He let his rider see through his eyes, shared with him all that he could share, and felt his rider's anger grow and so he'd roared even louder. The girl his rider loved so much was angered too and though she was a wolf and not a dragon, Ōñosmaghare was happy to feel her own fire burning. He roared and when a man moved too close and readied to fire upon him or his rider, he tasted man once more and felt no disgust or judgment from his rider for doing so.
"Dracarys." his rider said and Ōñosmaghare let loose his flames at those his rider wished to burn.
A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed. I want to thank you all for your kind words and thoughts, they've meant a lot to me over the past few days and have helped me greatly. Up Next The Twins faces a dragon's wroth. Dany sails to the Westerlands and reflects on the time spent with her husband. Shiera and Aemon speak on magic and Olenna tries to keep rebellious lords from deserting while as the Dornish Army march, Stannis makes a surprising move. Daryl Dixon: So glad you liked it. Calmness: There will be Fire and Blood, don't worry. Undeath: The Red Wedding is season 3 Episode 9. So the Story is pretty much at that point, some of the changes are based on Jon and what he's done so he's affected the timeline. The story pretty much starts in season 1 and runs to Season 3.9 as in terms of where it is timelines-wise now. But I wanted to get there a little quicker in that we know most of the events that occur and I really want to get to the not just changes, but the complete divergence from the timeline, which we're pretty much at now. With the Name, I think Rhaegar makes as much sense for Jon as Aegon does, more actually considering it's more likely to name a son after his dead father than his dead brother. Though it does take some getting used to lol. The Tyrell's are in so deep and Jon's offer was not enough to convince them, knowing that he has Dany on his side however will cause issues which is why Tywin did as he did here. Theon and Ramsay are both prisoners in WF along with Asha, Jon's words to Robb changed the events in the North and he sent Dacey and the Smalljon to see it right, stopping the full fall of the North and Ramsay taking charge. Dorne we'll see get a good price for their fealty. Rhatch: Very much so, though the events here will change things slightly. German: I feel if someone is willing to take the time to read and review your work, you should at least reply to them and I find I enjoy it too as it makes me consider things I may not have or at times helps me with things I'm struggling with. Nikki: We'll see the full extent of the Twins next (I won't make you wait too long and intend to have it out next week). Celexys: So glad you liked it. Oberyn will have some fun interactions as will Arya and his daughters, though they may be apart for a little bit. Glad you're enjoying the LB parts, I think they add something so it's good to see someone agree. Sibeal: Thanks so very much for your kind words, they're much appreciated. Zenry: See that's my thing about Northern Independence, we're told that even with the help from the South that they get in canon, they still struggle far worse than any other region when it comes to Winter. They still have the tradition of the older men going off to hunt in Winter (basically heading out to die so they're not a burden) and yet somehow we're to believe they can manage without the south. It makes no sense, also there is never a question of the North seeking to be independent when Ned is in charge, something I really wanted to get across here in relation to Jon. I mean can you imagine how that must feel, your uncle is willing to kneel for the man who named your dead siblings as Dragonspawn, while your brother won't kneel for you, that's hard to take. Jaimerey: Veremos sobre el RW como para el GC y Jon Connington, llegaremos a eso en un tiempo y también a Varys. Dunk and Egg: A friend of mine is doing a collaboration with me, a couple of one-shots one of which I hope for the next week or so and another later. But one of them is the PW with that idea, the biggest problem for it in a fic is it's pretty much a game-over moment, if the dragon lands at the PW then it's an instant win. Anyway, I hope to have the one-shots out soon, the other is Jon not accepting going to the Wall in season 8 and asking for a Trial by Combat. We'll see more of Jaime, I wanted to just show a little of him here, as for Robb well you can see he has his own problems, but I hope this cleared up how Jon feels about him. I'm glad you like the meeting between Jon and Oberyn that Lightbringer's protective nature shone through. Guest: So glad you liked it. Cat is more attuned to things here, she may still have issues with Jon but both politically and practically she is thinking more clearly and she feels she owes him a little. As for Robb, I hope this offered some insight into his thinking, not fully but just a little. You're right, Jon would never seek harm to his siblings, but he and Robb are kinda done. Aemon's plan was very simple, make it so that Jon would be doubted before revealing the full truth and while people will come to their side now, they'll always know who it is they can truly trust. Had they explained it all right at the start, then they'd have made things easier, but also learned less about their true allies. Oonighteyes: So very glad you liked it. Lady Octarina: Tyrion will feel somewhat different here, angry yes but not as angry because in the end the Trial by Combat will be different. As for the attack, we'll see from Dany's pov next that Tywin has woken her dragon lol. I had thought of showing the full extent of Oberyn's deal here but felt it best from Dany's pov but you're on the right track. Arya in Dorne is just a fic waiting to happen lol. I'm with you on Ned/Arya I think they're a much better pairing than Gendry/Arya and kind of shipped them a little in the books too, also agree completely on her and Dorne. With Ned/Sansa I like the idea of her falling for a truly chivalrous knight and with Arya being more with Jon here, in terms of where she'll be, I felt it works better with Ned/Sansa. I think funny enough Sansa/Trystane could work too. I have my own issues with Robb, on Jon's side, it's the same as the ones you point out here. I can understand letting him go to the Wall, but the moment KL happens he should have sent for him, and hell even after once Theon does what he does, Robb's first act should have been to send to the Wall, release Jon and have him raise the North and take it back while he did his work in the South. My biggest problem with him is still not swapping Jaime for the girls, which is why I had Jon bring it up here in the fic. I can understand it right up to when he marries Jeyne, but that's where I lose it with him. Like what he does is selfish, it creates the same problems with his bannermen as he's reluctant to do with swapping Jaime and for me, that's just a no-no. I have other smaller issues with him, he never corrects Theon for how he acts with Jon, while the use of Snow is supposed to be affectionate, it's also a reminder of who or what Jon is and I think anyone with a brain would have ensured that he or no one in his presence named his brother as such. I mean Arya never calls Jon, Snow does she. The funny thing is here it's actually none of the issues (other than the girls) that really influenced me. Instead, it was the thoughts of him not kneeling, because I can't see him just accepting it and the idea of Jon allowing him to keep his crown is just idiotic. As idiotic as Sansa telling Bran that the North wouldn't accept a Stark as their king and needed to be independent IMO. Xand007: Thank you, my friend. Oh, there will be restraint, but you also need to send a message, there's no reason to fear a dragon until you see what a dragon can do. We'll see with Robb as for Tywin he won't die as he did in canon. Glad you're not completely against the Jon/Dany pairing here, I know it can be hard to read a fic with a pairing you don't like, but I hope it remains enjoyable or at least bearable lol. Stay safe and well my friend, have a drink, wear a smile, eat something you shouldn't, life is too short and we best enjoy it as much as we can. Keb: Yes they were, Tywin will now reap the whirlwind. Msfluer: He is yes, I think though we forget that in the end, he was just a boy, as both of them are like 16 here and so there is still that stupid/petty thing going on a little. Jon went to the Wall and was forced to grow up, Robb never really got the chance to learn or change, and never truly faced adversity. Tywin is messaging them yes. Oh don't worry, Jon/Dany have messages of their own lol. The biggest problem with Olenna is she's out of the loop, so here she was able to be played a bit. Marrying the Lannister's once was forgivable, twice not so much. Akramwow: So very glad you enjoyed it. Abbadon: Yes Dany will learn to use a weapon, not just yet though but when she and Jon are reunited he'll teach her. Xan Merrick; Thanks, my friend. I so love Oberyn, I think he's one of the best characters and it's such a shame we see so little of him. Sending him the Mountain and Lorch and the offer of revenge makes him more eager, but he still strikes a hard deal. Arya really needs to go to Dorne lol. The reaction will be next chapter. Ara: Una de mis principales motivaciones para escribir esto fue que Jon / Arya pasaran tiempo juntos y que ella fuera su escudera. Amo su relación en los libros y tienes mucha razón, ella está enojada con Robb. También quería hacer lo de la amistad de Dany / Sansa / Arya, para compensar el horror del espectáculo jajaja. Creativo: Tal vez sea el nombre, jejeje.. Hartley Skarsgard: I think for both Jon/Dany they need someone like Aemon and we've just enough time with him for him to impart the wisdom they both need. With the dragons, I like the idea that just like the wolves they can sense the danger, Grey Wind pretty much told Robb all he needed to know and had they listened. Jon even at the Wall should have always had Ghost by his side. With Robb, I think it's hard for him to just simply come to his senses, he needs a push, a shove, and not even his mother's words are enough for now. Trinity: There will be some of that, but Cat is going with a different mindset, so there is that to keep in mind too. I'd love to see people on Jon's side meet canon Cat with canon Cat's mindset, I think they'd be fun scenes to write. Veni: Does Stannis have him or are you mixing him up with Edric Storm? I need to reread to be sure, but as far as I can remember Gendry is on Dragonstone with them, he's just not a big part of the story and so I've not really shown him other than when he's actually playing a part in things. There is no real relationship between him and Arya here, not only do I think the show made too much of it, but I'm not a fan of it (Gendry is Jon's age, and so a romance between them is kind of creepy). So he played a role in KL and sailed with them from there, but I don't think he's really been seen much since then since as I said he's less important here.