The first time she wanted to run away was nothing like the first time she actually did. She had only been eight. After a rather nasty scuffle with Brandon, she had vowed she was leaving and never coming back. As she stomped away from her elder brothers, Benjen had run after her. When his little legs had finally reached her, he threw his arms around her and begged her not to go. She had pulled his hands off and turned to him, ready to tell him to leave her be, when she saw the desperate look on his face. He had looked to be on the verge of tears with his bottom lip puffed out. She grabbed his hand before the first tear could fall.
"I was only jesting. Of course, I wouldn't leave you, Ben." She spoke softly as she walked with him back toward the castle. Brandon was smirking as they passed by as if he knew she would never follow through. Before she could think better of it, she mustered all her strength and pushed him over. She quickly grabbed Benjen's hand again and made their way to the entrance. After hearing Brandon cursing and Ned chuckling, Lyanna was smiling as she looked down to see the quiet glee in Benjen's eyes.
She had smiled down at him when she left intent on never coming back, too.
The second time, Brandon had been right by her side and ready to help her.
"Father, you can not really be considering a match with that Baratheon boy! I'm sure you've heard the rumors." Brandon was taking the news of her betrothal exactly how she expected him to. It was one reason she insisted he be present when her father had requested her presence. While her father gave her more liberties than most lords would have, he would never allow her to speak to him the way Brandon was. Brandon was barely getting away with it.
"I've heard the rumors, yes, but rumors have also spread of you. Despite that, Hoster Tully still accepted your suit." Lyanna saw a faint red coloring spread across his upper cheeks as he glanced a quick look in her direction. He had a hard look in his eyes, but so did her father. They now stood staring at each only a few feet separating them. Even though he was almost a head taller than their father, Brandon still looked small compared to him. She had hoped Brandon could convince her father to hold off on her betrothal, but after her father had told them Robert was to be her husband, Brandon seemed to have forgotten the plan.
"And 'that boy' is the lord of a great house and a dear friend to your brother. Do you really believe Ned would ever approve of someone who would hurt your sister?" With Brandon here, the focus has shifted from her, and she had a second to think.
When she had turned fifteen, she knew her betrothal would soon follow. She had not met Robert Baratheon, but Ned spoke of him often in his letters. She now knew Ned's descriptions in her letter often differed from Ben's or Brandon's. He had been trying to get her to like him. Leaving out the things she would find unsavory, but including all the details in Brandon's letters. She didn't need those letters to know of the company the young lord seemed to keep.
No, she did not think Ned would approve of someone who would hurt her. But Ned was also blinded by his love for Robert. Their friendship as boys had turned into a brotherhood of sorts. He was a great friend to Ned, but could he ever be a good husband to her?
The empty silence brought Lyanna back into the moment. Brandon was red-faced and his jaw was clenched. She could almost feel the anger rolling off of him. She wondered why she didn't feel that way. Maybe that would come later. She had been shocked, after all, when her father had said Robert's name. She had thought for sure he was going to name a northern lord. She and Jon Umber got on well. Lord Glover's eldest son was also around her age. She didn't know why she had been so sure.
Rickard Stark had his back turned to both his children, a clear dismissal. Lyanna stood and left without another word. Brandon followed soon after. Both were silent as they moved farther and farther from their father's chambers.
"You will not marry that boy. I'll make sure of it. I don't care what Ned says. He's not good enough for you." Lyanna started to walk away, not wanting to hear any more of her brother's empty promises. She wished she could just leave. Winter. Westeros. Just leave all of it.
Brandon gently grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him
"I mean it, Lya. I'll get you out of this." He sounded so sincere. Lyanna wanted to believe him, but she knew her father. He had already made up his mind. Lyanna would be married and suck in the south without her pack.
"Brandon, father has already agreed. I am to be married off, shipped out, and left to rot in the south." The words were true and the look on Brandon's face confirmed it. "I had hoped… I don't know what I had hoped for bringing you along in there. I had hoped he would have said a northerner. I had hoped to have more time to...to." She didn't know what she wanted. She was only fifteen. She just wanted more time.
"More time to what, Lya?" The question came out softer than she had ever heard Brandon speak. It probably had to do with the tear now falling down her face. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.
"If I was to marry Jon Umber or Lord Glover's boy, I would have had more time." Brandon tried to mask his confusion. "They're not lords yet. I would have had time to.." the words were coming out slow. She didn't know if Brandon would understand. "I want time to live, Brandon, to have adventures before I'm stuck making babies and running a lord's household."
The tears which she had been trying to stop the flow now fell freely. She didn't want to become a mother before she even knew who she was. She tried to wipe the tears away before Brandon thought of her as some whimpering child. She turned away to hide the steady flow that was dripping down her face. Instead, Brandon surprised her. He gripped the arm wiping tears away and pulled her firmly into his chest. It made her cry even harder. But as her sobs got louder, his arms pulled her tighter to him. The last time he had held her like this, their mother had just died and they both had been sobbing. And as he spoke, she heard his voice choke as if he, too, was about to cry.
"You'll have adventures, Lya. I promise you."
Months later, she wished he hadn't