Jon and Daenerys' caravan had made it to Winterfell in 3 weeks thanks to good winds from Dragonstone and good roads from White Harbor. Brienne and Pod had ridden ahead of the caravan to reach Sansa sooner, knowing that time was of the essence. Jaime was only 1 day behind the rest, having taken the King's Road and ridden even through the night at times. He'd changed horses twice and had slept very little.

The sun was rising as he approached the village, the snow-covered castle looming in the distance. Everyone seemed to be retreating to it, as the roads were packed. Finally, he made it through the gate and dismounted, stretching his legs as he took in grounds. A wave of anxious nostalgia washed over him, and he wished he could spot a familiar face in the din – any familiar face.

Well I came home
Like a stone

His wish was granted. When he spotted Bran, his face fell. He recognized the boy he'd tried to kill all those years ago. The Stark boy he'd pushed from the broken tower after he'd caught Jaime and Cersei in a stolen moment while the king was hunting. Jaime suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe. Coming here had been a mistake. It was one thing to defend your actions when it came to men you'd killed. It was quite another to defend your crimes against a living man. His head was pounding, and he felt torn in every direction. But before he could move, the Unsullied were upon him.

Sansa had begun planning and preparation for the battle before Jon's arrival, and had been looking forward to having Brienne's insight following her return from King's Landing. That morning they'd walked out to overlook the yard and were discussing the need for space around the forge, and alternate locations for training some of the less-experienced fighters when a hooded man rode into the yard and drew Brienne's attention, putting her on alert. The mount was unfamiliar but she would swear that the figure had just dismounted without the use of his right hand.

She watched as he pushed the hood from from his head and ran his hand over his hair and face in exhaustion. He turned, taking in his surroundings. Sansa was in the middle of a question about armor when Brienne gasped in clear recognition.

Sansa followed Brienne's eyes and her look hardened. She glanced down below them in the yard and spotted Grey Worm and two of his companions. "You!" she said, drawing his attention, and pointing to Jaime on the other side of the yard, "Seize that man. Have him brought before your queen in the great hall." Grey Worm looked warily at her, but nodded and marched off. Brienne panicked.

"My lady, he – "

"Go warn Jon. Tell him Cersei Lannister has sent her vile brother to do her dirty work."

"Lady Sansa, I – "

"Go!"

With a last glance toward Jaime, she ran back inside and through the halls until she reached Lord Snow's chambers and pounded on the door. Jon opened it right away and was alarmed to see the striking woman towering over him. She did not wait for his leave to speak.

"My lord, your sister bid me tell you…Ser Jaime Lannister has just arrived."

"The army is here already?"

"My lord, it would appear he's ridden here alone."

"What? What of the men?"

"I do not believe he has brought the army, my lord. For him to catch up with us this soon from the King's Road he must have ridden very hard. I suspect there may be something amiss."

"There've been no ravens. We'd thought to hear of their march by now at least."

"Lady Sansa had the queen's guards bring him to the great hall. My lord, I beg that you will hear out whatever Ser Jaime has to say – he would not have come all this way –"

"- The Lannisters wanted the Starks dead, Lady Brienne. He's the Kingslayer. He killed our queen's father. His intent may not be honorable."

She drew herself up to her full height, "I know that Tywin Lannister had no love for your family. And I know that Cersei and Joffrey had no love for your family. But Ser Jaime and Lord Tyrion are not their father. They have both made mistakes. Many mistakes. You know him as the Kingslayer, but he is far more honorable and trustworthy than that name would suggest, despite what you may know, despite what he has done in the past. I beg you, hear him out. He made a promise to come north and so far he has fulfilled that promise. That must be allowed to count for something. Let him prove his intent."

Jon sighed. "If it comes to me, I will hear him. We do not execute prisoners in the north without proven guilt. And we have a war to fight. But the queen...she may not see things that way."

If Daenerys thinks she's going to murder Jaime Lannister for keeping a promise, thought Brienne, they would need to go through her. She would not stand down.

And I fell heavy into your arms

"Thank you, my lord," she said coldly, and made to leave.

"Lady Brienne?"

She turned back. Jon felt her anger radiating and felt helpless to dispel it.

"Lady Brienne I do not control the queen. She will do as she sees fit. For his sake and yours, do not hesitate in your appeal to her. And if things do not go the way you wish, I only ask that you think of Sansa's protection before acting."

Brienne took a breath. She and Jaime had fulfilled their promise to Lady Catelyn. She'd sworn her sword to Sansa. But this – as with the war to come – it was bigger than oaths. Bigger than loyalty.

"Your sister is very strong, my lord – both of them are. They do not need my protection."

And with that, she left the warden of the north feeling as helpless as ever, and made her way toward the great hall.

A/N: I do not own Game of Throne or these characters; some dialogue may be taken verbatim from HBO's Game of Thrones or George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. Lyrics used are directly from Mumford & Sons' "I Will Wait" (C) 2012.