It's been a while since the last chapter. I never thought I would add another chapter to this story, but recently my interest in A Song of Ice and Fire has been renewed by House of the Dragon, so I tried to continue some of my unfinished works. Don't know if this fits the tone of the previous chapters, but after two years of absence, that's not surprising. Anyways, have fun with this one, and let me know whether or not it's worth continuing this story...

Oh, and a big thank you to all those who still took the time to leave a review, even years after the last update!

"Isn't there a single book in this chaos that can tell me something about the history of this place?" Dorea asked, clearly exasperated, as she rummaged through the stacks of books all around her. "How can you find anything at all?"

The only other occupant of the room, Maester Bors, sent her a withering glare before he decided to ignore her altogether. Instead, he returned his attention to the parchment he had been reading before. What he had not counted on, however, was that his current guest would not allow others to ignore her.

"No wonder that you are the only one who comes to this... library," Dorea continued, "Nah, I wouldn't even call it a library. It's more like a big dump for things others consider old or useless."

"Are you quite done yet?" Bors asked angrily, as he had finally reached his limit "I am a very busy man and entertaining visiting nobles is usually not among my duties."

He tried to be respectful, and Dorea had to give him credit for that. But even his patience would not last forever. But his respect was only a mask. He thought she hadn't heard his muttering, she hadn't seen those disparaging looks he had sent her the moment she had asked questions unsuitable for a woman. He was no different from some of her former colleagues...

"Have you made any progress on finding a cure for Lord Waynwood?" she asked, ignoring Bors' words.

The lord of Ironoaks was seriously ill, getting closer to death with each passing day. It was a curious disease, one that Dorea would have loved to investigate further. A slow decline, the body wasting away as the mind is fully there. She could only wonder what had been the cause for this. Had the lord come into contact with some exotic plant or animal? Or was it a sort of poison, ingested or breathed in... but curiously enough no one else was infected? Not one servant or other members of the family. And certainly not the ever stoic Maester who has treated the lord since the early days of his ailment.

It reminded her of a fungus infection she had encountered in the first year of her apprenticeship. An overly curious wizard had experimented with some magical plants in an attempt to crossbreed new ingredients for potions. But he had not paid enough attention to the soil he had planted the new breeds in and soon enough an aggressive fungus had claimed most of the surface and infected the man with its poisonous spores. But unlike the ailment of the lord, that wizard had not wasted away slowly but suffered from a rapid decline of all bodily functions. It happened so quickly, they had not been able to help the man other than making his passing less painful.

"Are there any poisonous plants growing in this area?" Dorea asked the Maester, as she walked over to the table the man was working at.

Bors shot her another exasperated look, as he remained silent for a long moment. She had to admit, it was a strange question for sure. Why would a foreigner ask about such plants? But her curiosity demanded to be sated.

Dorea could only wonder what the man was thinking before he took one of the books on his table and handed it to her.

"What is this?" she asked.

"A compendium of plants that grow in this area. Read it, then leave me alone, I have much to ponder and my lord needs his medicine soon."

Dorea perked up when she heard the word medicine. She tried to get a glimpse at the concoction the Maester had prepared, but he quickly shoved her out of his way and the room. She had tried to see what he was doing and all she got in return was banishment from the Maester's refuge.

"So rude," she muttered, "but at least I got something for my trouble."

She held the book the Maester had given her almost reverently. If this had all the plants growing in the region, it would be more than helpful. She would have to use a spell to copy its content before she had to return it to the Maester. But first, she would put it to some use...

It was late in the day when the sun had already begun to sink behind the mountains of the Vale when Elbert Arryn and his knights returned from their bloody work. Two more marauding tribes had tried to raid the surrounding villages, only to be routed by the knights. It wasn't exactly a fair fight, heavily armored cavalry against wild animals in furs and leather, wielding rusted weapons older than the men who wielded them.

But savages who butcher innocents deserve no mercy, at least that is what Ser Elbert Arryn told himself every time they went out to hunt down the monsters who haunt the defenseless villages.

As Elbert and his men finally entered the high walls of Ironoaks, he felt all the tension of the previous hours leave his body. Out there he had to be ever vigilant, mind sharp and sword ready in a moment's notice. But now he would be able to find some rest. The work was done and for at least a few days he would be able to stay in one place.

Lady Anya and Lady Rowena had come to greet the returning knights. The former was quickly by the side of her men, inspecting them, asking about their losses and wounds, a servant scurrying behind her taking notes. She was ever dutiful, the lady of Ironoaks. But she looked also more ashen and slightly haggard, the obvious result of too many long nights with much work and little sleep. A slow and agonizing death, not unlike her father's, but for different reasons. Not many were happy to see a woman as the future lord of Ironoaks and though open disobedience was avoided for honor's sake, dissent was visible at every corner. It was only thanks to Lady Rowena's presence in Ironoaks that the knights and lesser lords were kept in check. No one would dare to go against the words of the Lady of the Vale, wife of their beloved Lord Jon Arryn...

"Did you have a good hunt, Elbert?"

The knight was shaken from his musings when Lady Rowena reached his side. His aunt looked at him with her usual worried fondness, like a mother caring for the most wayward of her beloved children.

"It was... successful. We have dealt the clans a blow that they won't forget so soon. Their Warband has been routed and the few that escaped are too weak and wounded to come back any time soon. The people should have some peace now."

"That is good," his aunt agreed, "Though I am not happy with you, my boy."

Boy... she would only call him that when he had done something she considered foolish. And she has had plenty of chances to call him that ever since he had come to live with his uncle after his father's far too early death.

"How are your wounds, Elbert?"

Now it dawned on him what this was about. She must have heard about the scrapes and bruises he had suffered during the other fight with the clansmen. But the question now was, who had told her? One of his knights? Or maybe, that strange lady they had saved after her escort had abandoned her...

"So you've heard..."

"Lady Dorea has informed me of your wounds..."

"They are nothing serious, just a scratch here and there. Nothing that would hinder me in a fight," Elbert replied, miffed by the turn of this conversation. He was no longer the foolish boy who had broken his arm after falling out of a window at the Eerie after trying to catch a bird. He was a grown man, a knight of the Vale! Yet he could not find it in him to utter the words that would stop the fussing of his aunt.

Lady Rowena sighed, as she looked her nephew in the eyes. "Be more reasonable, Elbert. Your Uncle and I cannot bear the thought of losing you. You are more than just the future of the Vale, you are the future of our family. Do not forget that."

"I won't," he replied halfhearted, his head lowered. He quickly turned away from his aunt and looked at his horse instead. "I will try to rest properly before leaving the castle's walls again."

"As much as I want to believe it, I know it won't be that way," Lady Rowena said, "For I have a task for you if you are not too tired."

"A task?"

"Yes. Our guest, Lady Dorea, left the castle shortly after midday and has yet to return. She slipped out with some of the servants before we could arrange for a guard to accompany her. She must return to the castle safely." Lady Rowena's gaze wandered towards the gate, her eyes filled with concern. "I have sent some of my guards to find her, but they have yet to return."

Elbert shook his head in dismay. It would seem that the lady he had found in that remote valley was just as adventurous as the girl in the stories she had told to the children. But this was no magical world full of fantastic beasts, but a harsh and brutal place, where each moment could bring death.

"I shall find her. She does stand out a bit," he said.

His aunt nodded, her worry visibly lessened, "That she does. Please make sure that no harm has befallen her. It would do our reputation no good should her family send someone to pick her up only to find her wounded or worse."

"So the Maester has sent a letter, then?"

"Yes. The Flamel's are well known in Gull Town and have a constant presence there for their merchants. The situation with Lady Dorea should be resolved soon."

It made sense to Elbert. The Flamels would surely want their daughter back and send someone to escort her back to Gull Town and from there to Lys. Maybe they even know where the cowards who had abandoned Lady Dorea in that village had ended up. Their punishment was still on Elbert's mind.

"I'll be off," Elbert said, as he climbed onto his horse once more.

"Be safe, my boy."

Elbert nodded, before he lead his horse towards the gate and back out of Ironoaks' protective walls.

The knight started his search in the places the Lady had seen before, the granaries and the nearby village that they had passed through. But in neither place did he find any sign that their missing guest had been there. The peasants were all still busy with their work and the few he stopped to question were quick to deny that they had seen anything out of the ordinary.

But he did find the men his aunt had sent. Half drunk and far too merry for guards on the search for a missing lady. All three of them went deathly pale when they realized that Ser Elbert Arryn himself had come to find out about how their search had gone. He wanted to smack them with the flat of his sword for such dereliction of duty, but he had neither the time to waste it on these fools nor did he have enough strength left. The day had been taxing enough already.

Instead, he questioned them, scaring them witless with pointed glares and threats about what would happen to them once they returned to the Eyrie. A week in a dank Sky Cell or worse he promised them should they fail him any further.

The men claimed to have searched most of the surrounding area, only stopping from getting closer to the wooded areas closer to the mountain. The fear of possible clan ambushes was bigger than their fear of their master.

With no other leads to follow, Elbert sent the guards back to Ironoaks to personally report their failure to Lady Rowena. Meanwhile, he would search the small forest nearby. It was much further from the castle than the village, but still within a walking distance. Though he couldn't imagine a single reason why a lady would go there.

Elbert was on the edge, his hand always resting on his sword as he slowly made his way through the trees. He had lost a good few men in similar situations. Ambushes by the tribesmen, fast and unpredictable.

A sudden movement in the corner of his eyes made him jump, sword drawn and ready to fight. Completely awake and alert despite his fatigue. But it wasn't a fur-clad warrior that he saw, but a stag. A huge beast, with antlers as massive as the crown of a small tree.

The animal hadn't spotted him yet, so it was just standing there. A beast of this size would make a great feast for the whole keep, which made it odd Ironoaks' hunters had returned with merely a few rabbits instead the day before. Only when he dared a closer look at the stag, he realized that the animal looked rather sickly, like it was stricken by some sort of ailment.

Suddenly the stag moved forward. Slowly, deliberately, as if it was approaching something... or someone. It disappeared behind some large bushes when Elbert heard a voice calling out to the animal, almost soothingly.

"Come here, don't be shy. Let me help you..."

It was a voice of a woman, one that Elbert recognized. Lady Dorea. He took some more steps until he had reached a point where he could see what was hidden from view before. There she was, Dorea Flamel, petting the enormous animal as if it was a mere cat. Nearby he could see the travel bag the lady had used before and a blanket. On the blanket were a book and an assortment of herbs and flowers that grew almost everywhere in the Vale.

One step too close and the stag suddenly looked around, alarmed by the intruder. For a moment Elbert was worried it might get scared and hurt Lady Dorea in a mad dash to escape. But the animal did not harm her, it watched him with wide eyes before it ran off in another direction.

Dorea groaned loudly, as she watched the stag disappear. "A sword against a sick animal? Seems like overkill if you ask me," she said, as she watched the stag disappear. She let out an annoyed sigh, "And now it will die... maybe I could have helped it a bit..."

"Are you alright, my lady? Lady Rowena was quite worried when you suddenly disappeared from the keep without any notice."

"I wasn't aware that I have to inform my host about my every move," Dorea replied sharply, "I... will apologize to her, should I have caused her to worry. But sitting around all day, sewing, or just gossiping with other ladies in a castle isn't exactly what I consider a good use of my time. Studying the herbs and healing properties, though, now that is something interesting. And your Maester was so very helpful and nice to give me a book about this very topic."

"The forests near the mountains aren't safe, my Lady. The tribesmen roam the areas outside of the guards' usual patrol routes, not to mention the wild animals..."

Dorea shook her head in obvious exasperation. "I'm not some doe-eyed maiden who faints at first sight of danger, you know? And I've yet to find an animal that doesn't like me, especially stags..."

The beast certainly had no intention to hurt her, but that didn't mean wolves or other predators would show her the same courtesy.

"But sadly you scared the poor thing away. There is a sickness in these woods, one that I would like to study further before it spreads to the nearby villages. But you just robbed me of my best source of information... what a waste..." she looked almost dejected as she added, "And I hate being unable to help when I should have the power to do so."

"You seem strangely concerned for the well-being of a mere animal," Elbert wondered, "If it wasn't sickly, it would have been killed by hunters or tribesmen for food already."

"Stags are especially dear to me..." she hesitated for a moment, "They remind me of my father."

Elbert's face softened, as he heard this admission. The usually aloof lady looked morose and vulnerable for the briefest moment.

"Was he a great hunter?"

Dorea shook her head softly, as her eyes seemed to search for the escaped animal, "The stag was his... symbol. It represented who he was."

"Was?" Elbert asked before he could stop himself. It was an inappropriate question. To pry into the family matters of a lady was just plain rude and not how a knight should act.

"He died when I was still little. I never got to know him," Dorea admitted. Then she sighed deeply and shook her head. "Let's just stop with the sad stuff. I don't like to dwell on the past."

"As you wish. We should return to Ironoaks now, while the sun is still up. The moment it darkens, we will be in great danger so far away from any settlement."

Dorea frowned but relented. "Fine, let's go back."

She gathered her things quickly before she allowed him to lead her back towards the keep. Little did they know that the mood at Ironoaks had shifted drastically in their absence, the lord of House Waynwood had died...

On the other side of the Narrow Sea, however, the mood was much different. Perenelle Flamel sat on a terrace of her manse, overlooking the bustling city, a glass of wine in one hand and a letter in the other. A smirk spread on her lips.

"You've done well, Marlene. Very well. I had not dared to hope that we would find our missing doe so quickly. And in Westeros no less. How... peculiar."

The blond woman who had delivered the letter bowed lightly before her mistress, pleased by the praise. "Shall I send some of our men in the Vale to retrieve her now, mistress?"

Perenelle seemed to ponder this for a moment before she laughed lightly. "No, not yet. It would seem Dorea has found herself in a very interesting spot. I'm curious to see how she will fit into this world, especially now that she has claimed kinship with me and Nicholas."

It didn't bother the immortal woman that Dorea had claimed her name. Far from it. It was an amusing turn of events for sure. The only other truly immortal person in this world was now adding to the mystery and fame of House Flamel.

"But I suppose I should back her up a little. Marlene, tell Regulus that I need him..."

Well, by now it should be obvious that Perenelle has a habit of collecting people, more precisely, people others consider dead. Death sometimes isn't the end, just ask Beric Dondarrion...