A/N: Sorry for the delay! Thank you...yes, you...if you're still reading this! There's probably about 3 or 4 chapters left after this & then it's done.

Hope you could do me a favor & leave reviews. I don't get much anymore, & I'd still want to hear what you guys think, especially now that I have to know where this is going.

As usual...GRRM is a genius.

Bran found Arya in her room, typing furiously on her laptop. He noticed she had several books plus papers strewn all over her desk; he assumed she was busy doing something for school. He hesitated for a moment before knocking on the door twice, making Arya look up from her school work and giving her younger brother a smile.

"Hey, Bran!" she said before biting on her pen and resumed typing.

Bran sat on the edge of the bed behind Arya's desk and said, "I know you're busy, but do you have a minute?"

Arya made a few last strokes on the keyboard before taking the pen out of her mouth and faced him. "I'm all ears. What's up?"

"So…we're leaving tomorrow morning…and uh…I just wanted to say thank you for letting us stay here."

"It's not my house, Brandon. You should thank the Baratheons," Arya said softly. She got off her desk chair and sat beside him on the bed instead, giving him a small nudge to ease his tension.

"I've already thanked them, well, except for Gendry," Bran said with a smile. "I wanted to give him something so I figured I should thank him last."

Arya's eyes squinted out of curiosity. "And what is it you're going to give him?"

A grin spread across Bran's face. "Oh, nothing fancy. Trust me, it's not something I bought, but it'll probably mean more to him than you could imagine."

"Okay, now I'm really curious," said Arya. "But okay. I won't push you into saying what it is."

"But you'll find out about it, I'm sure."

"Which is why I'm not going to push you into saying it because I can do it to Gendry instead."

Bran laughed. "I like your boyfriend, okay? He loves you for who you are, so don't do anything stupid to make him think otherwise."

"Here we go again on the topic between Mature Bran versus Immature Arya," Bran said as he got up to leave. "Anyway, I have to find Gendry now. I'll catch you later?"

"Later, Bran."

Robert rubbed his temples to ease the ache. He and Ned were discussing the latest developments on S & B Corporation. They were getting close to the root of the problem, and unfortunately for them, a Bolton was attached to it.

"Roose Bolton has been involved in several drug trafficking operations," Ned said, leaning back on the leather swivel chair right across Robert's. "So he's dealing with people who cultivate, manufacture, distribute and sell drugs. And these aren't just regular people, Robert. We're dealing with big name companies and prominent families."

Robert let out an expletive. "The bastard's dealing with these people and we don't know if he's been using S & B Corporation's name while doing so!"

Ned rubbed his chin while deep in thought. He never did like Roose Bolton and the people he was dealing with. "He probably is. I still need to get to the bottom of this, and it's been a hard and grueling investigation because we had to be careful about who we're questioning. We have to make sure we're not questioning rats."

Robert nodded as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. "Ned, I need to tell you something about Bolton. But it happened months ago, and none of these kids know that Cersei and I know."

Ned felt nervous when he heard him say kids, and wondered anxiously if his sons, nephew and daughter had anything to do with it. But he patiently waited until Robert was ready to tell. He watched as his friend poured two glasses of whiskey and took the one he offered. He knew the alcohol was supposed to calm his nerves, but it only served to make him more nervous.

"Drink," said Robert as he poured himself a second glass. "You'll need it."

Ned took a drink of the whiskey and found Robert watching him with such uneasiness. Dreading the worst news but not able to hold it off much longer, he drank the last of the whiskey in his glass and nodded to Robert to continue.

"Roose Bolton's son, Ramsay, was arrested for using and dealing," Robert explained in all seriousness. "There were about three or four of them, but one cut ties when he realized where it was heading. In fact, this guy made the call to the cops."

Ned frowned. It was a serious case, but he didn 't know how he should be concerned about it aside from the fact that Ramsay is the son of the man they were running an investigation on.

"Your nephew almost got himself tied up with these guys, had he not backed out sooner," Robert said, hearing the hitch in Ned's breath and bracing himself for a whole different reaction when he tells Ned more. "And Ramsay had a…what do kids call it nowadays? He had a thing for…Arya."

Robert was surprised at how fast Ned stood from his chair. Ned had a look that was filled with anger, something that he hasn't seen in a long time since his sister, Lyanna, was killed in an accident.

"Did the bastard do anything to hurt my daughter?" Ned growled out the question, and Robert had never seen his friend look more like his children's wolves than at that moment.

"You need to calm down if I'm supposed to tell you more," Robert said, placing a hand on Ned's shoulder to help him calm down. He watched as his friend finally sat back down before he went on relaying the incident. "Ramsay had a thing for Arya. On the night of one of a friend's party, Ramsay and his buddies were getting high in one of the rooms until my son's friend, Sandor, called the cops. Unfortunately, Ramsay found Arya and cornered her in one of the rooms. Our sons were there to save Arya just before the bastard could do anything to her."

Ned seemed to be in pain at hearing all this. "Why didn't you tell me about this sooner? I have the right to know about this, Robert!"

Robert held his hands up and said, "I'm sorry, Ned, but I only found out recently when I ran into my friend at the station. But it's all taken care of. Ramsay's in jail, so there's no need to worry about him doing harm out there." Placing a hand on his friend's shoulder, he added, "Arya's safe now. Our children are safe."

Seemingly appeased, Ned nodded and relaxed a bit before sitting back down. "Let's get back to the problem with the company so we could finally get things in order."

"Let go! Let go, Ghost!"

Jon found Rickon in a tug of war competition with his pet when he stepped out into the lawn. His youngest brother was tugging a grey cloth that Jon immediately recognized as Robb's old t-shirt. It was a funny scene he was watching; Rickon holding on tightly to one end of the material while Ghost was biting on the other end. They were pulling on both ends, although it seemed like Ghost was winning. His pet's size was no contest to his brother's thin frame, and Rickon was frustrated because he was aware of this.

"What are you two doing?" Jon asked as he approached them. Immediately, Ghost and Rickon let go of the shirt, and Jon bent to grab it from the ground. "This is Robb's shirt!"

Rickon pointed a finger at Ghost, as if he were a child. "I wanted to pull a prank on Robb and hide his shirt, but Ghost wanted to play tug."

Jon held up the shirt and raised his brows when he found it stretched beyond recognition. "You ruined Robb's shirt! This is his favorite shirt! He's going to kill you!"

"Ghost is as much at fault as I am!" Rickon argued.

Jon sighed. "See, this is where the problem lies, Rickon. You're being childish. You and Bran, okay? Running away from home isn't the solution, even if Mom and Dad are at fault."

Rickon frowned. "Weren't we talking about Ghost and that t-shirt he destroyed?"

"Technically, yes. But the point is, some actions are derived from rash judgements and immature thinking. If you and Bran had a problem with Mom and Dad breaking numerous promises, you talk it out because that's the mature thing to do. You don't just sneak out in the middle of the night, jump on a plane and go wherever you think is safe to go. Sometimes talking it out saves you a plane ticket to somewhere. You understand what I'm saying here, kiddo?"

"Yes. And I'm not a kid."

"Then prove it."

"When did you get so old and grumpy?"

"Since the day you younger ones were born."

"I'll let Sansa, Arya and Bran know you said that."

"I've already told them."

Rickon finally laughed, making Jon join in the laughter. "Promise me you won't do anything brash like this again in the future?"

"I promise."

Jon nodded. "Good. Now, what are you going to do about Robb's shirt?"

"Ahh…so that's a shirt?"

Jon and Rickon turned to find a grinning Gendry standing there, with Bran and Tommen behind him. Jon waved a hand at the shirt and said, "Robb's shirt, but long story. What's up?"

"I'm taking the boys for a little ride around town," Gendry said, jingling his car keys around his fingers. "It's their last day in King's Landing and I figured I'd take them out for a spin."

"Is Arya coming too?" Jon asked, rubbing Ghost's soft, white fur in half-distracted motions.

Gendry shook his head. "No, she has a paper due Monday and that sister of yours hasn't even started a thing."

"Sometimes, I like the way your brain works, Baratheon," Jon said with a chuckle.

"Genius, I know," Gendry replied with a smirk, before turning around to the younger boys. "You boys ready to go?"

"Why didn't you tell me, Robb? I expect better of you," Ned said as he huffed out his frustration. "Something bad as that happened and no one…not a single one of you…picked up the phone and called to tell me what happened!"

Robb, Jon, Theon and Arya sat on the couch with heads hung low, as Ned told them off for not informing him about the Ramsay incident. Catelyn was sitting on the other end of the couch right across their children, looking distraught and bothered, although she left the scolding to her husband.

"Because this is exactly how you'd act, Dad," Arya reasoned out. "If something did happen, we would have called immediately. But they got there in time and Ramsay's in jail now, so what's the use of getting you and Mom worried about it?"

"That's not even the point, Arya," Catelyn finally said. "We are your parents. We're supposed to know if something good or bad happens to you all!"

"Yeah, like discovering Bran and Rickon were missing only at seven the following morning?" Arya said, but biting her tongue as soon as the words left her mouth. She felt Robb nudge her side with his elbow, and she tried her best not to nudge him back.

"I know you're all not going to let that one go, but this is far more important than those boys running away from home. We're sorry for not being there for them as we're supposed to, but as I've explained countless times, there is a problem at work and in fact, it's something really serious because it involves the Boltons."

The Stark siblings and Theon were taken by surprise, and immediately, the questions started pouring out of their mouths. Ned raised both hands to stop the barrage of questions.

"Nothing gets past this room, do you all understand me?" Ned asked, and satisfied only when they all gave their nods. "There is a drug-related problem within the company, and it involves cultivation, manufacturing and dealing of drugs to several big-time business partners. The money that comes in is exorbitant, but they're dragging the company's name down with them, which is why I was called to Storm's End to help investigate."

"I'm sorry, Uncle," Theon said to Ned. "But how is Ramsay involved in this?"

"Ramsay's father, Roose, is a business partner of S & B."

"Like father, like son!" Robb said with a sneer. "That prick is already paying in jail, though."

"And I hope he stays there long enough for his father to join him," Ned said, taking a seat beside Catelyn. "Guys, promise me that you won't get involved with the Boltons, whether directly or indirectly. This is a dangerous family, and I don't want Starks and Baratheons to be in contact with any of them."

Everyone nodded except Theon, who said, "And Greyjoys. Starks, Baratheons and Greyjoys."

Ned chuckled. "Yes, Theon."

Robb finally stood and said, "We got that, Dad. No messing with the Boltons."

Ned nodded. "No messing with the Boltons."

Gendry watched and listened as the three boys talked animatedly during the drive around town. They dropped by Castle Darry for a quick snack, then heading over to a couple of stores and the video arcade. Before they went home, Gendry decided to make a quick detour and drove straight to his and Arya's favorite spot overlooking the city. He's never seen Tommen this excited, and he was thankful for Bran and Rickon's company because his little brother felt as carefree as an 11 year-old should be.

"Having fun, boys?" Gendry asked as he took a quick glance at the rearview mirror. They were laughing over a story Rickon was telling, and they nodded at Gendry in answer. "We're almost there."

Following the road's curves, he steered the car smoothly until he took the last right turn and onto the spot that was overlooking the city. The sun was a blazing orange in the horizon as it started to set, preparing the sky to be enveloped in the darkness of the night sky. When Gendry finally put the car to a stop, the three boys practically jumped out of the car and were happy to roam around the area after an hour's drive. He let them watch the city below; with its lights and signs and colors dotting the vast horizon, making Gendry think that this was a good idea. He instantly thought of Arya, and wondered if she was done with her report. Taking out his cellphone, he punched her number on speed dial and waited until she picked up the call.

"Miss me already?"

Gendry laughed. "Guess where we are right now."

"Hmm…is it somewhere wholesome enough for my brothers?"

He laughed again. "We're at our favorite spot."

Arya chuckled. "Our favorite make out spot?"

"Ha! You got it!"

"How are the boys?"

Gendry looked over the the ones in question and grinned when he saw them laughing and pointing towards the city below. "They're having a good time."

"I can actually hear the laughter. I'm proud of you, Gen."

Gendry smiled. "I miss you."

"But you just saw me earlier."

"Doesn't make me miss you less."

Arya laughed softly, her voice turned husky when she said, "I miss you, too."

"Wish you were here."

"You know how much I love my family, right? But I'm actually sort of glad they're leaving tomorrow because I haven't been kissed properly in close to a week."

"You know how I love your family too, but yes, I agree with you."

Arya laughed again. "Patience, babe. You'll find yourself rewarded greatly."

Gendry almost groaned out loud. "I'm recording this conversation."

"Tomorrow."

Gendry frowned. "Can't you sneak into my room tonight?"

"You know that my parents' room is right across mine, right?"

"So? Your brothers are right beside yours and they haven't said anything about hearing you sneak out."

"My father sleeps with one eye open."

It wasn't hard to imagine Ned Stark doing just that so Gendry only laughed and said, "Tomorrow then."

"Don't let the boys jump off the cliff."

"All right, all right, I'm ending the call now. See you later when I get home."

"Love you."

A grin broke out on Gendry's face, and he replied, "Love you."

As soon as he put his phone back into his pocket, he found an amused Bran standing a couple of steps away from him, a huge smile plastered on his face.

"I assume that was Arya?"

"How'd you guess?"

Bran laughed. "Well, aside from the 'love you' and that stupid grin on your face, I don't think you'd react the same way if you were talking to Joff."

"Well, they did say you were the clever one, Bran Stark."

The smile faded from Bran's face, to be replaced by a serious one. "I, uh, have something to give you, Gendry. It's not much, but I think you'll like this."

Gendry watched as Bran reached into the back pocket of his jeans and handed him something inside a white envelope. With great curiosity, Gendry raised his brow in question, and Bran only nodded his head to let him know that it was okay to open it. Peeling the flap open and peeking inside, Gendry's face turned from curiosity to awe, and just then Bran knew he did the right thing.

"Thank you, Bran. I love it and I'm glad you gave this to me."

"Take care of my sister. She loves you more than she thinks she does."

Gendry: So there's no chance of you sneaking in tonight?

Arya: We already discussed this earlier. Do we need to discuss it again through text?

Gendry: Just sayin!

Arya: Imagine me rolling my eyes right now.

Gendry: Go to sleep, Arya.

Arya: So now you can't wait to get rid of me?

Gendry: Shut up. Good night, Arya !

Arya: You shut up. Good night, Gendry!

Gendry almost placed his phone on the bedside table when another text message came.

Arya: Bran said he wanted to give you something. Care to elaborate?

Gendry: I don't know what you're talking about.

Arya: CONNIVANCE! CONSPIRACY!

Gendry: Good night!

He waited a while longer until he was sure Arya would no longer respond to his last text, before placing his phone on his bedside table. His fingers touched the smooth, white envelope as it lay beneath his cellphone. With a smile, he pulled the envelope from beneath and lifted the flap once more, before reaching inside to pull out a five year-old colored photograph. He flipped it over and stared at the scene immortalized on photo paper, soft laughter erupting from his lips as he recalled the day it was taken.

It was the summer when they went on vacation at the beach house; the blue and green waters of the sea served as a background to a cute 11 year-old Arya grinning at the camera, her arm was flung around a chubby 12 year-old Gendry's shoulders. They were both grinning when the photo was taken; when Joffrey was crying in the background because he was digging into the sand and got his fingers snapped at by a crab.

Gendry reached for the frame on his bedside table; the one with a photo of him and his brothers; and pried it open so he could slide the photo over the old one. Placing the frame back on the table, Gendry stared at it until his eyes grew heavy with sleep.