The Rebellion that overthrew House Targaryen and replaced it with House Baratheon left many scars upon Westeros, of which some would never fully heal. Eddard Stark and his wife Ashara have lived happily in Winterfell with their children for fifteen years but now that King Robert is in need of a new Hand, they are dragged into the Game yet again...will they survive or die?
So after Scars Of Robert's Rebellion failed at what it was meant to be and after some more planning and sudden urge to write this. Here's a full rewrite from A Happy Marriage with some differences from the original that the original Scars was meant to introduce.
Some quick points:
-Daenerys was raised at Winterfell and is not a Mad Queen, her coin landed on the right side.
-The North is slightly different from canon, there are some changes here and there but don't expect something overpowered like 100 000 soldiers or mammoths riders or things like that.
-Some story points will not be fully explained like how the North got to the point it is as my other work A Troubled Regency will focus on that but it shouldn't be necessary to read it to understand this one.
Daenerys Targaryen I
Winterfell, North, 297 AC
Daenerys woke up in her comfortable bed and was quick to stretch her arms, yawning before standing up and opening the window to let some fresh air in. She walked towards the bathtub and smiled after finding it filled with warm water. Ros had been there and Daenerys had not noticed it at all…as always…Ros' feet were quiet.
She undressed her nightgown and then immediately got inside the bathtub, sighing with pleasure as soon as her skin felt the warmth of the water. This was a habit she picked from her mother, the Lady Ashara Dayne Stark. Well…Lady Ashara was not her real mother and Lord Eddard Stark was not her real father and her siblings were not her real siblings but they were her family, the only family she knew…
Her adoptive parents treated her as if she was one of their own children, her adoptive siblings treated her as if she was a sister and the servants who used to look down on her when she was growing up now treated her just as they treated any other Stark.
Winterfell was everything she ever knew and thus her home, where she felt safe, a home which she did not wish to leave by any means. She knew many Northerners and Southrons did not like her because of what her real father did to them but she did not care anymore, she had grown above it, she no longer was a crying child of six wondering why people were being mean to her, she was a Northerner whether they wanted it or not. And the people that mattered to her supported her.
Sometimes she did wonder about her true parents…the previous King and Queen who died when she was a babe. She never knew them besides from what Maester Yolan told her in his History lessons…about the madness that supposedly lurked in House Targaryen and was especially prevalent in her true father, King Aerys who harmed the North and her adoptive family so much…nothing scared Daenerys more than turning mad and hurt her family and friends as her true father did to his…it was her biggest fear…a fear that gave her nightmares at times…
Instead, Daenerys hoped to turn just like her true mother, Queen Rhaella, who her adoptive parents assured was not mad even when she suffered so much at the hands of her true father and loved Daenerys from the bottom of her shattered heart and fought with all her might to bring her to the world and give her the gift of life at the cost of her own…her parents told her she should never forget the last Targaryen Queen and she did not.
Just last year, when she began flowering and was deemed more mature, her mother, the Lady Ashara gave her some more information about the previous Queen…about how she was raped when King Aerys burnt his victims but also scratched and injured…Daenerys was convinced she was a product of one of those rapes even if her mother Ashara did not say it so she asked why Queen Rhaella sacrificed herself for a child that was conceived during her suffering…her Dornish mother smiled and said once she was a mother and had children of her own, she would understand why.
It wasn't much to go by but suddenly the funny name that Daenerys called her real mother since the age of six, when she learned she wasn't the daughter of Lord and Lady Stark, felt like it was truly fitting…Dragon Mother…for she was a dragon who endured so much for her hatchling…putting some more thoughts into it and Daenerys was convinced there was no better homage to such a woman. Her Dragon Mother was in her heart and her blood.
Once Daenerys was done bathing, she dried her long silver-blonde hair and had her small and slender body, wrapped in a towel before walking to her wardrobe where she picked a red gown and began dressing it. Normally Ros would be there to help her but all of Lady Ashara's daughters trueborn or not knew how to get dressed by themselves.
She took a seat in front of the mirror and brushed her long hair until it was perfect and tied. The latest nameday present she received from her family was around her neck again. It was a gorgeous silver neckless with both a direwolf and a dragon coming from an amethyst surrounded by the silver framework. She had shed tears of joy when she found it inside a box that little Lyra of two had given her, it meant so much for her because it meant she was truly accepted by her family.
She took the furs and placed them on her shoulders and then climbed down the stairs and made her way to the Great Hall, greeting everyone she saw on her walk. There she found the girls, her sister Elianna Stark, Jeyne Poole the daughter of Vayon Poole, the Steward of Winterfell, and Beth Cassel which was the youngest of the group and daughter of Ser Rodrik Cassel, the Master-at-Arms. And…there was also Arya but knowing her sister…she probably was bothering the boys to spar with her again… "Good morning everyone!" she said with a smile as she approached the group to take a seat and eat something.
They replied the same way and Elianna gestured for her to sit next to her. "You slept quite a lot today Dany…" Jeyne said with a smirk. "Good afternoon to you."
"Did I sleep till afternoon?" she asked surprised. "I did not even notice it…"
"Ros went to your room to help you bathe but returned smiling just a couple minutes afterward and told your mother that you were sleeping peacefully so she decided to not wake up the Princess…" Beth pressed forward with a smile.
Given that the water was just warm when Daenerys entered it and that Ros usually heeded to her request of having it nearly scalding, it meant that some time had indeed gone by… "You didn't even see the boys leave with father to exert the King's Justice on a deserter." Elianna said as she took a sip of whatever was in her cup, most likely water or tea because none of them drank wine.
"Another one?" Daenerys asked concerned with the news. "It has to be the fourth one this year is it not?"
"Indeed." Her sister nodded. "And last year father killed three…I'm rather worried about him and the boys' mental condition…I cannot imagine what killing or seeing a person die does to one's head, especially when I know they are all good people and they have to see it so many times…"
That was true…none of them had seen more than two or three old servants passing away and it hurt them dearly so being responsible for ending one's life was of course much harder…hence why her father always went to the Godswood afterward… "I'm concerned with them too…" she admitted grimly.
"That is because my dear children have good hearts as well." Her mother entered the Great Hall and immediately all the attention shifted to her. The Lady Ashara was gorgeous even after so many pregnancies, her body slender, her breasts full, her black hair neatly arranged and shining, cascading down to her back, her violet eyes shining with mirth…she was like father said more than often, a goddess in flesh.
"Did you hear us mother?" And Elianna who just asked the question was definitely going to be just as gorgeous in the near future as her appearance was a copy of their mother's. Daenerys and her sister used to look very similar despite being daughters of different mothers, they had and still have the same eye color and when younger they were of similar height to the point some people called them the day and night maids of Winterfell but as of late, Elianna had become a few inches taller than Daenerys and with bigger breasts too so no longer were they that similar besides the eye color.
"Elianna dear, you should know by now that your mother has a pinky finger that tells her things…" Mother said smiling as she approached her trueborn daughter and kissed her forehead. Of course no one could forget about the pinky finger that told mother things… "And I see a sleepy head has awakened…"
"I couldn't help it but sleep so long…I was so cozy in me bed…" Daenerys replied as she received a kiss from her mother.
"Yes…we have all been there before…" Her mother admitted as she went on to kiss Jeyne and Beth too. "Haven't we Jeyne?"
"I do not know what My Lady is talking about…" The brown-haired girl said, blushing and shifting her brown eyes to the ground, knowing full well what mother was talking about.
"Of course you do not my dear…" Mother chuckled as she kissed her. "Of course not…"
"Jeyne is flushing!" Beth proclaimed merrily as she was kissed too. "Jeyne is flushing!"
"I'm not!" Jeyne protested as red as a tomato, making everyone giggle. "Stop giggling!"
"Speaking of other things…has Ros found Arya yet?" Mother asked as she eyed everyone but Dany for obvious reasons.
"If she did, she did come here." Elianna replied.
"Oh well…I would like to have a word with our favorite redhead but it seems I will have to wait a while more…thanks to our favorite troublemaker…" Mother sighed.
"Is it something important? We could look for her and Arya, My Lady." Jeyne proposed.
"You could but she will eventually return here." Mother dismissed. "I'm sure the boys will not take long either."
"Yes, they have been away for some time." Elianna nodded. "I'd say they will return before Ros does."
"It's likely indeed…" Mother agreed. "Or not…"
Suddenly a disappointed Arya entered the Great Hall, walking like a soldier in front of Ros who proved the previous statements wrong. "Look who I found bothering Ser Rodrik to teach her how to fight with swords." The young woman said with a smirk. "Thought she wouldn't be found…"
"Arya…what have we spoken about regarding playing with swords?" Mother asked with a stern expression, an expression that still sent shivers down their spines…
"I can only practice when Arthur is practicing and when I have finished all my daily chores…" The dark-brown haired and grey-eyed girl replied shyly. "But Arthur is not here!"
"And you haven't finished practicing etiquette today, young lady." Ros pointed out sternly. "So while he is away, you should come with me and the rest of the girls so we can practice and maybe but just maybe you may practice swords afterward when your brother is back…"
"Etiquette is boring!" Arya hissed, crossing her arms. "I have the blood of Nymeria in me, I should be practicing with swords!"
"Nymeria was also a Princess and a Princess knows etiquette well." Mother countered. "How can you be like her if you don't master etiquette as she did?"
Arya pursed her lips and sighed. Daenerys stood up from her chair and walked towards her sister. "Arya and I will practice some etiquette together so it's less boring, won't we?"
"I guess so…" Arya sighed again. "Will I truly be able to practice swords afterward?"
"You will." Mother nodded. "And you should thank Daenerys for her kindness."
"Thank you, Dany."
"Don't mention it," Daenerys said while placing her hand on her sister's shoulder, and then she glanced at the rest of the girls. "Are you girls going to join us?"
"I guess we can." Elianna said as she stood, Jeyne and Beth following her deed.
"And us Milady? Are we joining too?" Ros inquired with a smile and some movements of her eyes.
"I guess we can but only after I speak of something with you." Mother smiled and Ros did too as if she understood everything, Daenerys was always curious about how her mother and Ros knew each other so well to the point some words and smiles said everything they needed to know... "And let us bring Lyra too so she can watch and start learning."
Eddard Stark I
Winterfell, North, 297 AC
The new deserter had been caught quite close to Winterfell and Winter Town for Ned's taste…and if he had made into the latter, he would have been far harder to find and captured but unluckily for the man, someone found him before such thing could happen.
The man had been half-mad…speaking of the Others returning and the Long Night being close…it all sent a shiver down Ned's throat…Before his fostering in the Vale, Ned had believed in the Others and other creatures of Old Nan's tales but after arriving in the Eyrie and meeting Robert and Jon, such legends lost their terror and charm. No one believed the Others existed from the Wall to Starfall and the Maesters argued they never existed to begin with. Ned wanted to share a similar opinion but because the number of deserters of the Night's Watch was not only increasing but also for the same reasons was troublesome and worrisome…
And then there was Mance Rayder's lot…the last King-Beyond-the-Wall had been Raymun Redbeard and he caused havoc in the North, slaying Ned's great-grandfather, Willam Stark, in single combat before being slain by Willam's brother Artos the Implacable…Reports he got from his brother Benjen and Lord Commander Jeor Mormont warned him that Mance was a far greater foe than Raymun ever was and likely all the previous holders of their titles combined.
Ned did not fear fighting Mance Rayder, Wildlings were usually poorly armed and not too good at fighting but remembering his great-grandfather's demise in the previous Wildling Invasion and his experiences during the Rebellion made him wary of dying…He had built a life with Ashara and his children that he did not wish to forsaken…and neither did he wish to see more good people die in war, he saw too much blood and death during the Rebellion…and it was already quite a lot to serve the King's Justice. Never again I vow.
The Lord of the North sighed as he noticed that his eldest sons had gone off to race each other back home as it was not too far from where they killed the man and they liked competition…somewhat like he and Bran, or he and Lya…or his siblings with each other when they were younger…There wasn't a single day where Ned did not think of them, miss them…they were taken from him and the world too early…
Ned noticed his youngest son riding beside him in a pony still, pensive…Arthur was ten namedays old, he had black hair and dark blue eyes like his namesake, Ser Arthur Dayne had and he was a quiet lad who enjoyed reading and hearing legends resembling him and his namesake quite a lot in behavior thanks to that. Ash had hoped he could be knighted at some point and become something like his namesake, a paragon of virtue to inspire other children but the lad did not like fighting too much, a trait he got from him so she gave up on that idea quickly. "Are you well, Arthur?" he asked of his son.
"I am, father…I was just thinking…Bran said the man died bravely but Jon says he was just afraid…"
"Do you remember what I told you a few years ago when you started coming with us?" Ned questioned. Deep down he knew his son knew very well for he was very smart and had a good memory but it never hurt to make him work it.
"A man can only be brave if he is afraid." His son replied as he should. "Mother also added something to it…fear makes us stronger because we recognize that we are not perfect but human beings full of faults…"
Ned chuckled as he heard that. "Your mother is very smart. I don't know what I would be or do without her…"
His son smiled. "What would we all be without her is more likely, father."
"Indeed." Ned laughed louder this time, catching his men by surprise but most of them also smiled upon seeing his expression. "See lad, you got too much of her in you that you know very well one of the sacred rules of the world. Never forget to cherish her, you only have one mother."
"I won't." His son assured. "I love her."
"Good," Ned said as they continued their ride. "And what have I told you about deserters?"
"That they are dangerous because they know their life is forfeit if they are found and captured, so he would not flinch from committing any crime no matter how vile." Arthur recited. "But father…that man did not seem like he was willing to commit any crime…he was so afraid of something that we would just run and run if he was not caught…"
How to best approach this question… "Sometimes in life, you ought to do what is expected of you and is demanded of you. You may be right in that this man did not truly deserve to die but if you don't kill him when you are expected to, you are an oathbreaker just like him and then someone else can do to you what I just did to this man."
"But does that make us good men?" His son insisted. "Vows and expectations are contradictory father…a knight is supposed to protect the weak but if the weak is an oathbreaker…he is not protecting him because he needs to kill him because his duty commands him to…"
This lad has too much of Ash's wits in him…and he is not wrong in his assessment…I was like this once… "One day you might become a bannerman of your brother Jon or mine if I live long enough to see to that. You will have a keep of your own and justice will befall upon you to deliver it. You must…"
"My Lord!" Harwin called before Ned could finish his speech and teach his son something he learned over the years. "Lord Jon and Lord Brandon are both without moving on their horses just up ahead…something seems wrong with them…"
Not good… "Trouble, My Lord?" Jory Cassel questioned as he reduced his horse's pace to match Ned's.
"Beyond a doubt…" Ned replied worried. "Could be that they have found some bandits…"
"We are not near Winterfell or Winter Town but the Winter Guard does patrol this area if I'm not mistaken…" Jory told him. "The North hasn't seen bandits this far south outside House Bolton's lands in ages."
"There is only one way to fully know, let us see what the matter is," Ned commanded as he ordered his horse, Brooding the Third, to trot forward. "Harwin get ready to ride to Winterfell and bring the Winter Guard if need be."
"Yes, My Lord."
They reached his sons not long after as they were not too far away. They were by a riverbank from a stream of water that Ned knew well and allowed him to conclude that they were about two miles away from Winterfell. His sons were still without moving and so he got closer to them to learn what was happening. "Jon, Brandon what is the matter?"
"Look over there father…" Brandon told without moving his head. "In the snow in front of me…near the trees…"
Ned looked to where his son told him to and his eyes bulged with the sight…a huge dark grey beast almost as big as a man grown stood there with part of its body hidden by a tree…It was likely as big as his sons…and that was not good…Its yellow eyes were shifting to the whole lot of them…and the creature was getting more frightened…it could very well attack at any point…
"Gods!" Theon Greyjoy, his ward exclaimed abashed while struggling to keep control of his horse. "Why the fuck have you two stayed there like scarecrows? Are you fucking stupid?"
"If they rode away in their position, the direwolf could have felt threatened and run after them and then attack the horses and cause them to fall and injure themselves…" Arthur said by Ned's side, his tone was frightened, the creature, a bloody direwolf scared even Ned…
"Still they can't stay there like statues!" Jory said worriedly as he took his sword out, making the beast look at the Captain of Winterfell's Winter Guard and gritted its teeth. "Get away, we will take care of it!"
"Theon, take Arthur back to Winterfell and Jon, Brandon, you two are going in as well," Ned commanded as he unsheathed his sword wondering how to best kill the beast without causing much damage to his men. Don't…Ned looked around to see who had spoken but no one said a thing like what he heard, Theon was dragging his youngest away while Jon and Brandonwere protesting. Don't do it Ned… "Who is talking?" Ned asked worriedly…he had killed an insane man that day and now he was turning like him just by the sight of a direwolf.
"My Lord?" One of the guards next to him inquired, confused.
"I must be going mad…" he whispered as he rubbed his face. You are not…don't kill it Ned…what was this voice…this feminine voice…Remember your sigil…
"Best if we charge at her with a sword and slash it!" Harwin suggested as the direwolf looked around them all in a defensive position, growling.
Don't do it, Ned… "Wait!" Ned shouted as he somehow dismounted his horse without a single thought, wondering what was happening. He began walking towards the beast.
"Father!" Brandon called worriedly at what he was seeing. "What are you doing?"
"Father!" Jon called just as worriedly.
Ned did not stop and kept walking towards the direwolf who seemed to relax somehow. Yes Ned, do it! When he was close enough, just a few inches from the beast, he extended his hand to it and…it began licking his gloves…like a dog usually did… "Easy there girl…" How do I know it's a female? "Everything is going to be alright…" I have lost my wits… "No harm shall come to you…"
"What is happening?" Brandon asked behind him. "Father what in the Seven Hells?"
"It seems…she is not dangerous…" Ned proclaimed. "I do not understand why but…we can't kill her."
"Her My Lord?" Hullen asked confused.
"It's a female," Ned explained as he patted her and inspected her, still wondering how he reached that conclusion without watching her parts which now he did and confirmed it was indeed a female. But he also found another way to confirm it… "And it looks as if she is pregnant…"
"Seven Hells…" Jon murmured as Ned turned at him. "I can't believe this…a direwolf…south of the Wall…"
"There hasn't been a direwolf sighted south of the Wall in two hundred years right?" Theon asked.
"Aye." His youngest nodded. "It's…cool…"
"Direwolves loose in the North after so many years…" Muttered Hullen, father of Harwin, with an unsure expression. "I like it not, My Lord."
"It is a sign," Jory said worriedly. "I like it not either…"
Ned ignored them and kept inspecting the direwolf until he found a nasty wound on her left side between the stomach and her back leg…there was a huge opening there. "It seems it was fighting something…"
"What?" Jory muttered worriedly. "I need to warn Rickard Ryswell to send the Winter Guards to patrol this area…"
"We shall worry about that later Jory when we are home…" Ned proclaimed. "I think we shall take her to Winterfell…have Maester Yolan and Farlen take a look at her and patch her up and soon she will be as if she was new I'm sure."
"Pardon me, My Lord, but are you…" One of the soldiers began but was speaking too slowly to the point Jory finished the question.
"Intended on taking the beast to Winterfell? What of your wife and your children?"
Yes…this was stupid but he could not control himself for some reason. "She won't harm them…Starks and direwolves go way back, to the Dawn Age and Daynes…well…I'd say my wife will talk her way out of danger…she is resourceful enough for that…" His poor attempt of jape did bring some smiles but even he was worried. "You won't harm them will you?" Ned questioned and the direwolf licked his fingers again as if it was telling she wouldn't. "I shall take that as a yes…don't leave me a widower…please…" Ned patted her back and then moved to his horse as he watched the direwolf limp after him.
"Are you sure about this, father?" Jon asked one more, amazed by the looks of this.
"No, but something told me to not kill her and I'm trusting this feeling." Ned explained.
"Did the feeling also tell you to bring her?" His second-born asked.
"Not really…" Ned admitted shyly…it cost him to be this vulnerable around his children but he was not perfect at the end of the day, he had his faults…many faults… "I trust you two and Arthur will help me with your mother…"
"You don't need our help with mother, father." Brandon chuckled, making Ned remember both Robert and his son's namesake, his deceased brother Brandon whom Ned missed so much. His second-born was good looking with his mother's coloring, black hair, and violet eyes just like his twin Elianna and he had quite a few female admirers both at Winterfell and Winter Town and Ned was sure he would have to face the same problems his father had with Brandon and Jon Arryn with Robert…skirt-chasing… "You know how to…talk with her well enough…"
"Brandon have some respect!" Jon warned but Ned could see a shy smile on his son's lips which the lad was trying to conceal. His eldest son, had been born during the Rebellion and as people said, was a copy of Ned in looks and personality but he was being raised to rule the North in the future something which Ned was never meant to be despite knowing how to rule. "It's not mother I'm worried about, father…"
"Aye, I know…" Ned nodded. It was the children… "But there is only one way to find what will happen…by letting it happen. Come on, let us return home. Winter is Coming." And so they returned to Winterfell…with something that none of them ever expected to carry back to the place they called home but if legends were true, this is not the first direwolf in Winterfell and it may just not be the last…
There isn't a schedule for this one so let's see where this goes. Hopefully, this will not end in disaster...
Thank you for sparing time reading and I hope everyone has a nice day and stays safe.