Warning: This chapter has a graphic nightmare scene so please skip over that part if it disturbs you. The dream sequence is in italics.
Theon lay against his sister's side, listening as she recounted the lore of their people. Only two weeks had passed since they docked at Pyke, and Yara took the Salt Throne.
Theon was settling in well, all things considered. The prince still had yet to speak more than a few words, and his various injuries would take at least another month to heal. There was no telling how long it would take for the psychological damage to fade, but both his sister and uncle noticed small improvements every day.
Since her brother's rescue from the Dreadfort and subsequent return home; Yara was quick to establish a nightly routine for the teen. First, they had dinner together, along with their uncle Euron. Next, Yara gave her brother his nightly bath to help relax him. Finally, she got him settled into bed and lulled him to sleep with a story. Although the boy would inevitably end up in her bed sometime during the night; the queen made a point of starting her ward off in his room.
"..The Andals came to us as conquerors, in the end, they drowned, " Yara explained, her voice low and steady as she absently carded her fingers through Theon's hair. "For the Ironborn are of the Sea; as our god made us, and given to it as our god taught us. We do not fear the Storm God's winds or his waves. But you should; for they bring us to you.."
Concluding the story, Yara gently extracted herself from Theon's grasp and stood up. She watched with affection as her baby brother settled himself further under the blankets. The queen then moved around the room as she did every night; checking to make sure the windows were securely closed.
When she came back to the bedside, Yara found Theon blinking slowly with his hands tucked under his chin. The teen's breathing was already beginning to slow, and Yara had no doubt that he would be asleep before she made it to the door.
"Good night, baby brother," the queen murmured, leaning down to press a maternal kiss to the boy's forehead. "I love you."
"N-ni-night Y-Ya-Yara," Theon stuttered. "L-lo-love y-you too."
The queen stayed awake for another hour, reading over some paperwork and listening to the waves crashing against the rocks; lightning occasionally split the dark sky as a storm raged outside.
Eventually, exhaustion won over, and Yara set the papers aside before laying down and falling asleep herself.
Yara was trapped. She lay on her back atop a wooden table; hands and feet shackled to the four corners. Struggle as she might, there was no escaping her bonds. Around her, hooded figures moved like ghosts.
Suddenly, one turned and made their way to stand above her. The young woman's heart pounded in her ears, and her breathing sped up as the figure produced a knife.
"You are a traitor," one of the figures said, removing their hood to reveal the face of one of her slain crewmen. The others, including her torturer, followed suit, and she was suddenly faced with all the warriors killed under her command. "A traitor to your house. A traitor to your name. You sacrificed us to save your cowardly brother. Now, both of you will die as traitors!"
As one of the men spoke, another hauled Theon into the room and held him up so that Yara could see.
The young woman screamed as she watched her torturer take his knife and slit her little brother's throat.
Then, with purposeful steps, the man walked back over to Yara. She felt the cold steel of the knife rest against her throat.
She awoke with a scream and shot up in bed only to find two strong hands gripping her shoulders.
Her mind still fogged by the nightmare, Yara fought against the hold on her. She jerked and screamed, even throwing some blind punches, but the hands remained.
As her mind began to clear, the young queen heard someone speaking to her. She quickly recognized the voice of her uncle, Euron.
"Yara! Yara, you're okay!" Euron said, desperately trying to shake the girl out of her fit. Yara didn't seem to hear him; her eyes remained squeezed shut as she fought against his hold.
"You're awake now! C'mon little dolphin, open your eyes for me," the elder Greyjoy pleaded. "Open your eyes and see that you're safe!"
After a long while, Yara obeyed; she took one look at her uncle and flung herself into his arms, weeping like a terrified child.
Euron didn't know how long he held his niece to his chest; it could have been minutes; it could have been hours.
Eventually, Yara cried herself into exhaustion and collapsed against her uncle's chest.
The two sat in silence for a while; Yara was trying desperately to stay awake, and Euron lost in his own thoughts.
Suddenly, the heavy door to the room opened, and Theon limped tiredly across the threshold.
"Hey there, little brother," Yara greeted, working to keep her voice steady as she walked over to the boy.
"Did ya have a bad dream?" she asked, leading Theon over to the bed and lifting the boy onto her lap.
Instead of answering the question, Theon gazed silently at his sister, analyzing her.
"S-sca-scared," the 14-year-old stuttered out, pointing to the queen. "Y-Yara s-scared."
Both Yara and Euron chuckled at the boy's astute proclamation.
"You're right, Lil' Kraken," Yara agreed. "I had a bad dream, and I was scared for a bit. But uncle Euron woke me up and took care of me. Just like I do for you when you have a bad dream."
Theon nodded slightly in understanding before he reached his mangled hand up to his sister's cheek.
"C-cry," the teen murmured, using his remaining fingers to trace the dried tear tracks on Yara's face. "S-scared cry."
"Yes, I did cry for a bit," Yara responded.
"N-no cry. I p-pro-protect you," Theon assured before going silent and turning to hide his face against Yara's shoulder.
Euron and Yara were stunned. This was the most that Theon had spoken since his rescue. Aside from an isolated incident at his father's funeral, Theon remained timid and silent. Even if the boy did manage to string a few words together, this was the first time that he actually formed coherent sentences.
"Alright, you two, it's high time that you both got back to sleep," Euron announced. He stood up and helped the two siblings to settle back under the blankets.
"I'll stay for the night," he assured, leaning down to place a fatherly kiss on each of their foreheads.
The hardened sea captain then lay down atop the covers at Yara's side, propping his upper body against the headboard. Euron then grabbed an extra blanket and draped it over his legs.
"Thank you, uncle," Yara said quietly, as she blinked slowly up at him. The girl was clearly on the verge of sleep. "Thanks for everything."
"Shh," Euron soothed. "Just sleep, little dolphin. If either of you has another night terror, I'll be here to wake you up. I promise."
To help ease his two wards into sleep, Euron began to hum a quiet mariner's ballad. As he hummed, he allowed his words to mix with the sounds of the raging storm outside.
Yara's story comes from the Game of Throne History and Lore video explaining the Ironborn religion.
