Happy Friday Everyone!
This chapter is a good one. (IMO lol) After this, things are really gonna start picking up. The next few chapters are gonna have a lot of shit going down! I can't wait to share it will all of you! Just wanna shout out all the people favoriting and following this story! This is now the most followed Fic I've ever written, beating out my TWD AU that only got 25 chapters in before I lost interest in TWD and never finished it, lol. (Shout out to the Dixons Blood fans, sorry I never finished everything up lol.)
Friendly reminder, no chapter after this till Monday! I'll be at Wizard World Philly all weekend! See you guys Monday at 12 pm EST!
"You understand how urgent this is? No one can find out what we've done here. Not my sisters, no one." The next morning Jon was sitting down at the little table in Daenerys home with her and Rosemary. They spoke quietly so that someone outside could not hear. All of them were tense as if they were walking on pins and needles. Every move they made now had to be one that counted because their futures depended on it.
"That's why I'm writing this letter in Valyrian," Daenerys was finishing up the little letter, "Let's just hope this raven can find its way home… before your brother finds it."
"Maybe you should send one of us, and not risk the raven," Rosemary suggested.
Jon shook his head no, "We need everyone here, between our enemies here and in the South, we'll need every man and woman we have."
Daenerys blew on the ink to help it dry and once it was good she rolled up the note and sealed it with wax. The stamp she used left the mark of the Lord of Light: the burning heart. "Together is the only way we'll survive our enemies." She handed the note off to Jon, his figures grazing hers and he reached for it.
"Yes, together." His fingers lingered for just a moment before he pulled away. "Rosemary, can you get us the raven?"
Rosemary glanced between both of them and then smiled, "Of course, your grace."
They all rose at the same time, Rosemary walking away to find Kinvara's raven. Once she was gone, Jon turned to speak to Daenerys. "How are you?"
She sighed and nodded, "As okay as I can be," Daenerys rubbed her left arm, looking away, "It still stings… that she's gone." Her cheek was still red from the night before, Parsley had gotten a pretty good swing on her.
"And your cheek?" Jon questioned, "How that happen?"
Daenerys stopped rubbing her arm to rub her cheek, "A silly accident, that's all," She didn't want to give him any more reason to have issues with Parsley. She also didn't want to have to explain the meltdown she had either. It was bad enough that she had to spill all those feelings out in the first place, she wouldn't do it again with Jon. "and how is Snowhome?"
"Lonely." Jon was so quick to answer he didn't even notice what he said, but as so as he did he managed to cover it up, "It's just… so much quieter there."
"Right," Daenerys smiled faintly, the dance they did around each other's feelings was painful but both of them were too scared to outright say anything. "It's not the same without you around or the rest of your clan."
Just in time to break the tension, Rosemary returned with the raven. "Alright, let's get this guy ready and on his way."
Together the three of them sent Kinvara's raven on its way, and then Jon decided it was best if he headed back to Snowhome. Daenerys said quick goodbyes, which Jon found strange considering he felt they had been getting along a better. He could see Parsley watching from a distance as he was saying goodbye to Rosemary. He figured she still felt embarrassed from the night before.
"Don't worry about that one," Rosemary told Jon, breaking him from his thoughts, "She's still just a girl, she wasn't raised like the rest of us. She'll just take a little longer to move past it."
"You know?" Jon was shocked that Parsley told anyone about the stunt she pulled.
Rosemary chuckled, "We are sisters, we hide nothing," He smiled faded a bit as she took Jon's hand in both of hers, "I know you don't believe in myths and legends, but what Mum saw in Kinvara's flames was enough to motivate every move she made up until you first came to us. She believed in you more than you will ever know."
Jon sighed, "I don't know what she saw in those flames, but I'm not-"
"We know exactly who you are, Aegon." The way Rosemary used his birth gave him a shock. "But Dragons blood or Wolves blood, Fire or Ice, it doesn't matter to us. You were blessed by the Lords Light. You are the prince we were promised. It doesn't matter who you were born as, because it's Jon Snow who will lead us into a golden age of peace and advancement." Rosemary smiled, "It's what Kinvara promised us. You'll just… take some time to get there."
Jon smiled, "Thank you, Rosemary. Until next time, then?"
"You're always welcome here, King Crow."
A few weeks had passed since Jon's last visit to Widow's Keep. In that time he had kept busy with his work, patiently waiting for Kinvara's return or if anything for her to send a response. Everyday Jon would open 'court', for no better sense of the word, and meet with the people of Snowhome and hear their problems. The town would come together in the main hall in Wolvesden to discuss the things that were on their mind, and then after they would enjoy dinner together. Jon liked being constantly surrounded by people because they kept him distracted from how lonely he was. Dinner was in full swing, many of the men were drunk telling stories and cracking jokes. Tormund was found of telling war stories of their many victories together when he was drunk. Jon smiled and listen as he told the men how Jon rode Rhaegal into the Long Night. Everything seemed at peace.
And then, a man covered in blood ran into the room.
"Help! Please!" Everyone got silent as the man limped over to Jon's table, and collapsed to his knees as he got close. Two of Jon's clansmen quickly got up to help the man and sat him in a chair.
At the sight of that poor man, Jon quickly rose from his seat and rushed over to see what happened, "Who did this to you?"
The man was sobbing, he had many deep wounds all over his body and was losing a lot of blood. "It… It was Thenn's, your grace! The clan attacked in the night… there were only thirty of us. Men, woman and… and…" He started to cry harder. "My wife… my baby… They murdered everyone!"
"Fucking hell." Tormund slammed down on the table next to him, "We should've killed those cunts while they were still in Widow's Keep!"
"Where were you settled, friend?" Jon asked the man.
A clanswomen brought the bleeding man a drink of water, and he took a long drink before replying. "To the west, by the river. On the border of the Haunted Forest and the Frost Fangs…"
"Frost Fangs is Thenn Territory, but the Thenn capital is more northeast of the Fangs." Tormund explained to Jon, "If they came from the west, then it has to be Skinna! When brother banished him that's where he settled."
"His brother?" Jon questions.
Tormund nodded, "Aye, that shit was related to Styr, the Magnar of the Thenns. At least he was until he was killed attacking Castle Black in Mance Rayder's army."
"You don't have to remind me," Jon sigh heavy, "I'm the one who killed him."
"Lodoba was in charge, until Hardhome," Tormund reminded him. Flashbacks of the massacre there flashed through Jon's mind, old war memories that sent shivers down his spine. "With both of them gone, Skinna probably went back. Took over."
"Or at least rallied enough men behind him to help cause chaos." Jon proposed, "We need to get together a search party. I need men to go back to this mans camp to see if anyone survived, and find out where the hell Skinna is going."
"You heard him, men! Who feels like hunting Thenn!?" Tormund pumped up the men and many jumped up to serve.
While Tormund gathered a search party, Jon took care of the bleeding man, "What's your name?"
"Kristof, your grace." He told Jon.
"Well Kristof, this is Aveline," Jon pointed to the clanswomen next to him, the same lady who brought Kristof water. "She's going to take you to someone who can take care of you."
"Thank you, King Crow," Kristof reached out for Jons' hand and squeezed it tight, "Thank you."
No one else survived the massacre of Kristof's clan, and the search party lost track of Skinna's raiding party in the darkness of the night. Word had got out of the attack, and it caused many of the smaller clans to come to Snowhome for protection. In a few days, time as many as 100 more men, women and children had settled in Snowhome, and the town had grown at least double in size. Those who came to join them immediately because to settle, working on building their own house and chipping in where ever they could. The Free Folk were a hard-working people, not a lazy clan member amongst them.
In the main hall at Wolvesden, Jon and Tormund met with many of the men to discuss Skinna's movement. Trying hard to put their heads together and figure out where he was going next.
"A few of the men come from the northeast have of the Fist have reported empty camps…"
"It's almost like he's circling us, your grace."
"Well, I saw dead men from the south!"
"What if there are multiple raiding parties, King Crow?"
The men bickered amongst each other while Jon stared at the ever-growing map the men had helped him create of the lands Beyond the Wall. The larger clans were marked on the map, Snowhome, The Thenn's of the East, Hardhome, The Fork, Giants Land and of course Widow's Keep.
Widow's Keep… Oh fuck.
"The Keep!" Jon yelled out loud as he slammed his hands down on the map. "They are going to attack Widow's Keep next. Half the women there don't even know how to use a spear…"
"If the attack while they sleep it would be a slaughter," Tormund added.
All Jon could think of was Daenerys. He needs to act fast. "We can't take everyone, gather a dozen of your best men. We leave within the hour."
If Skinna attacked the keep, he would rape and murder every woman there. Parsley. Rosemary. Thyme. Daenerys. Jon wouldn't let anything happen to any of them. They had to move quickly, every second was necessary for their survival. He none of them would die like that, not while he was king. His anxiety was on the rise, his mind kept going back to Daenerys again. He wouldn't let her die again, not after everything that has happened. Not now that they were finally on better terms. He would rather die himself. I'm coming, Daenerys. I promise.
I won't fail you, again.
Author's Note:
LMFAO CLIFF HANGER! A WHOLE WEEKENDS WORTH!
Sorry, kids, I'm an asshole who loves me a good cliff hanger! Have they been hit yet? Is everyone already dead?! FIND OUT MONDAY! xD