Northern Wind

by Sage1988

An accident sends Harry to Westeros in a new body with a new identity, born into House Stark with knowledge of his old world how big an impact will be made? And when the war begins all of Westeros will know the strength of the North. Rated T for the moment but may go up to M later. Girl!Harry.

8. Chapter 8 Tensions Part 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Game of Thrones.

Thank you to those that have stuck with the story so far and hope you are all enjoying it.

This chapter will probably annoy people who were hoping for immediate action against the Freys but I assure you it is coming.

Dan – I agree it is stupid given high born Meera is but bearing in mind Catelyn wanted a marriage which would humiliate her daughter and punish her at the same time and Baelish wanted to cause trouble between both Ned and Cat not to mention the North and the Riverlands. The first part worked perfectly as for the second? We shall see in the chapters to come.

Cptbludz13 – Glad to hear you are enjoying this story!

Ariadne Venegas – Agreed so he now has her chaperoned wherever she goes but as for who helped her? Baelish is too good to leave something like that behind.

Morganelove98 – Thank you! I really appreciate the support!

Light Lord Cybergate- I know hence why Ned now has her chaperoned everywhere she goes and no servant will take orders from her. Poison? Maybe. As for giving Cat to the Freys, Cat is older now and Hoster has made it clear she will stay there if they want to keep the alliance with the Riverlands. However Ned will respond soon especially after the events of this chapter and the Freys will get nothing from the Starks except perhaps a reminder of just who they are messing with.

AIP Alexander – Thank you! You guys are the best!

Fandom novice – I appreciate it! I know Meera is maturing quickly but in regards to Catelyn keeping notes? Sorry Baelish would keep any trace of his involvement to a minimum at best however that is not to say that it will stay that way. As for the Free Folk, there is a plan for them and the ground work is being laid. Those that work in the mines are doing their best to integrate into the North, they just want a better life like the immigrants from Europe or elsewhere who went to America.

917brat – I agree that Meera would probably have castrated Walder if he tried to lay a finger on her but thankfully that will never happen as Meera isn't going. As for Baelish, he can claim if he is even questioned at all that he merely helped out an old friend and put her in contact with the Freys without any idea of what she and Old Walder were planning. We all know how slippery he is and there is no real proof that he was involved more than that except for Cat's letter and that is assuming he didn't just hide or burn it.

Venus4279 – Glad to hear you have liked them! Meera won't be a spinster but it will be awhile before she meets her future partner.

Spectreofslytherin – Sorry but as much as things have improved between her and House Stark she does still dislike Ned greatly and have a town to rule.

Carden88 – Thank you!

Dragonfan91 – War between the Freys and the North? In this chapter sadly not but believe me, it will come soon. Meera being an animagus? I had almost forgotten so thanks for the reminder but what animal do you think she would become if she did? There is no proof Harry ever did or what is involved.

Beleriond – I agree about the chains but I don't know if they have the knowledge to do that yet. Sansa is a little OC I suppose but this Sansa has had a sister encouraging her to be more Northern than Southern and teaching her to be strong and to be more free in her feelings so a Northern match makes sense. I wanted to give Tyrion something that was uniquely his, a skill that to be honest we don't see very much in Game of Thrones but that being said he finds a way to use it to his advantage. Glad to see you are enjoying the cultural elements I am bringing in.

On with the chapter...

Chapter 8 – Tensions Part 1

Asshai…

Melisandre had never been more scared in her entire long life, the voice of her lord actually speaking to her! She had heard it had happened before but it was so rare she had never considered he would give her even a moment of his time!

"If you have come to waste my time then I will be most displeased." The Lord of Light said with deep menace and she quickly spoke to prevent him from getting more displeased with her than he was already.

"My lord, I believe the Long Night is upon us again and that the Azor Ahai has been born into this world." She told him and there was a painful silence for a moment before her god spoke again.

"You believe? If there is nothing certain about this then I will make you burn eternal." He seemed to growl at her before she said, terrified of that fate.

"I am certain my lord! The girl has a spear that can destroy the Other's Essence! I have seen it." She told him with desperation.

A silence followed and Melisandre became very fearful of what was going to happen next before her god said with a calmness that had been missing in his earlier speech.

"Open your mind to me, let me see."

And with eagerness to be in his good graces she did so and felt his presence in her mind, looking though her memories with almost painful intensity. Then when he saw the memory of the spear killing the possessed pirate in Braavos she felt his satisfaction.

"You are very correct, I have long awaited this moment and it seems I must walk the world again. Since I lack a physical form, yours will have to do." He told her and she was not able to fully understand what he meant until a stream of green flame appeared around her and begin to enter her nose and mouth. She could put up no resistance and soon started feeling very much like she was going to sleep before slipping into the deepest slumber she could ever have known short of death itself.

But her body did not slump to the floor, instead it stayed standing and in fact her eyes changed colour, becoming a pale green rather than their usual red. She blinked and a devilish smirk appeared on her face.

---

Winterfell, the North...295 AC…

A month had passed since the Freys had barged their way into the North, shouting about a contract that claimed Meera Stark was to marry Lord Frey. A contract that was fake and had been rejected as such. Meanwhile the Northern people carried on with their daily lives and ignored the annoying and much disliked southern house.

A few letters of complaint had been sent around the North but most Northern Lords and the people knew the truth and laughed or were angry at their demands. However nothing more had happened.

Robb Stark meanwhile was dealing with a surprise visit from his betrothed, Wylla Manderly.

He supposed it was only right that she should see the castle that she would one day rule, her eye-catching hair was certainly causing many to look at her with surprise when they passed. She held his arm as a lady should and was courteous to those they met but her voice was that silly high one and he was sure that it was irritating people.

"My lady, must you use that voice? We both know it is not your natural one which is most lovely." Robb said trying to spare the ears of the Winterfell servants. Wylla frowned and looked annoyed.

"How else am I to test them then?" She asked her voice slipping back into a much lower and smoother voice. Her northern accent was gentle and almost soothing compared to some but still it was strange and welcome at the same time.

"By getting to know them perhaps?" He said with sarcasm which earned him a jab in the side from her elbow.

"Did you learn nothing from my grandfather?" She said with exasperation. "People lie, people lust, they keep secrets. You cannot always trust people to tell the truth, so to make sure catch them when they are unaware. My high and squeaky voice catches people off guard and lets them think silly things about me. Meaning I can watch them and see what sort of people they really are and right now my lord you are dull and boring." She said pulling her arm free and walking away at a fast pace. Robb sighed with annoyance.

"Damn it." He cursed and went after her.

He managed to catch up to her in the glass garden where the blue winter roses were housed. Their sweet scent filled the air and he saw her kneeling down to sniff them more closely before forcing down his pride and saying.

"I am sorry!" He said and she looked at him with the same annoyed look on her face. "I am too naive to the ways of the wider world, I have a lot to learn and am short of patience. Perhaps you could help me with that and guide me when we are married?" He said with eagerness to make amends else his future marriage come apart like his parent's was tearing itself apart now.

Wylla looked a little surprised at his admission and studied him closely, assessing him with sharp and judgemental eyes that made him very nervous before she said.

"Perhaps there is hope for you yet Robb Stark."

Robb sighed with relief, glad that she seemed to have forgiven him for his error. Wondering if they were going to be doing this often and if so gods help them both he thought with worry.

- x -

Meera sat in what had once been her mother's solar, looking at all the various lists and documents that came with running a castle and scratched her head with frustration. She knew how to do these tasks; making sure there was enough food in the castle, making sure servants were paid and their needs met and making sure that her sisters and their closest friends were educated in those same duties.

But that wasn't to say that she was enjoying it, she had lost a great deal of time in her workshop now she had to take on Catelyn's duties and was hoping to find some more time soon. Not the least to see to the large order for glass placed by the Night's Watch to create some glass gardens for their castles now they had the gold to pay for it.

Even this though was not the full cause of her frustration and growing headache, many offers of marriage had come in from other houses across the North and beyond to 'help escape the contract fraudulently created by her mother'. Offering their sons or brothers as a shield against the Freys, she frowned at their greed trying to take advantage of the situation.

Lastly though was she now had recovered her memories of the other world and her life there, those at the age of fourteen anyway. The visions of Voldemort's actions even cold blooded murder, the Quidditch World Cup, the Triwizard Tournament and worse Voldemort's return along side Cedric's murder.

The emotions that came with those memories were as fresh and raw as if they had just happened, the invasion of their own mind and the majority of the school and even Ron turning on them and the very real danger the events posed. Not to mention Cedric dying right in front of them...her eyes closed with the grief, guilt and shock of that moment, her stomach felt like it was about to force her last meal back up her throat.

She wondered what other little treats she had to look forward too, what else could they have suffered through? She honestly was dreading the answers, once she had been glad to get other memories back as they would she hoped give her answers of that other life but now she was starting to dread them.

On top of the situation with her mother and House Frey.

She cursed her mother and wished dearly that they had been able to send her away before she could do any more damage if Hoster Tully had not made it clear he would break the alliance if they sent her home. The fact that Catelyn had been willing to do that to her...sell her to Walder Frey of all people she thought with a shudder of revulsion at the mere idea of having to be anywhere near that old fucker.

So far though, the Freys had been quiet apart from their annoying messages and hopefully they would bluster but nothing more. Without the tolls from Northern trade they would be a great deal poorer she thought with a slight smirk but that turned into a frown as she considered just what they could do if they did cut off trade to the south. Routing all trade by the sea through White Harbour was very inefficient and likely to cause huge delays with their different trading partners which was far from a good thing. They could tolerate this for a time but eventually another solution would need to be found.

Still at least she had been able to complete her new potions before this work had overshadowed it she thought with some pride. Contraception and Fertility problems were both rampant across Westeros, while Moon Tea could solve the former it was not perfect and in fact was quite damaging if taken too frequently. So she had managed to recreate a pair of potions used by wizards and witches in the other world to prevent pregnancy when it wasn't wanted and another for when it most definitely was. The Contraceptive Potion would be a far safer option than Moon Tea and she was tempted to send a bottle to House Frey to mock them but decided that would be extremely petty.

Still she became very sober as she wondered what the Freys would do when it became clear to them that House Stark wasn't going to change its mind and bow to their pathetic attempts of applying pressure.

- x -

With Meera confined by her new duties Jon had taken over teaching his youngest siblings to use their powers, most had a strong grip on them by now but Bran had only just begun his training and needed help and since Robb was organising his new version of the Northern Games it fell to him to teach Bran.

"I see it." Bran said as in the strange visions of the past and future they saw their father and uncles training in the yards of Winterfell, seeing their father knock Uncle Benjen down while Bran's own namesake oversaw them.

"Give him another go Ned." Uncle Brandon said to their young father who offered his hand to Benjen so he could get up.

"That's father and Uncles Brandon & Benjen." Bran said in amazement while Jon smiled gently next to him. Listening carefully they both heard young Ned say as he leapt forward and held his younger brother's head.

"Keep your shield up, or I'll ring your head like a bellows." When Benjen nodded their younger father smiled and ruffled his hair before they separated and went back to practising their sword and shield play.

Bran was still caught up in the amazing power they had to see other times and places, even with the changes that his eldest sister had brought the castle was still almost the same now as it had been back in his father's youth. It was incredible and he dearly wanted to see so many other things such as the Great Knights of the past like Ser Aemon Targaryen 'the Dragonknight' and maybe see what it was like to fly by seeing the world through a raven's eyes.

But a small part of him was sad too.

"They are so happy." Bran said sadly and Jon next to him nodded with the same mournful expression having felt the same when Meera had first shown him and Robb the past.

"This is before...before everything." He said sadly, wishing he could reach out and warn them all of what was too come but regretfully they could only see the past, not influence it. Still he was impressed at how fast Bran had gotten a grasp on his abilities, far quicker than he or Robb certainly faster than Sansa or Arya too. "You have a natural gift for it." Jon said with a small smile returning to his face which Bran returned, liking the idea of being good at this.

Then they saw the figure of their late aunt Lyanna riding through the gates of Winterfell and ride around her brothers on a white mare. Father they noticed looked exasperated and called out.

"Stop going off." Seemingly either playfully or to annoy them she continued to ride her horse around them in tight circles and while Brandon laughed as if this were all a jape, young Benjen said out with a slight fear hoping dearly to make her stop.

"Lyanna!"

"Aunt Lyanna, I've seen her statue in the crypt." Bran said with excitement, amazed at how much she resembled Meera and Arya though the smirk on her face as she rode around her brothers reminded him very much of Sansa when she was particularly proud of herself for something.

Bran then noticed that Jon was staring at her in the most strange, almost entranced way like he could see or feel something Bran could not, Bran was a little confused at this and stared at his older brother for a moment before looking around the rest of the yard.

That was when something he had missed caught his eye.

A tall man with dark brown hair and wearing golden direwolf clasps to hold up his cloak at the far end of the yard was speaking to a woman with a small child who looked around the same age as Benjen was in the vision maybe younger by a couple of years. The man handed a large pouch of what sounded like coins to the woman while the little girl looked across the yard towards Brandon, Eddard, Lyanna and Benjen and stared at them with curiosity.

There was only man Bran realised who would be wearing golden direwolf clasps over a fine cloak, Lord Rickard Stark his grandfather. That made him wonder just what he was giving the woman such a large pouch of coin for and who the young girl with her was.

---

The Twins, the Riverlands…

Old Walder Frey was fuming as he sat on his 'throne' in the hall of castle he had ruled for longer than most men had been alive. He had seen the defeated and broken looks in the eyes of Stevron his supposed heir's eyes, he had been expecting for him to die a long time ago.

What a foolish little shit Walder thought with derision, he enjoyed living far too much to die.

However the fact that he had been reliant of whores alone to warm his bed recently angered him intensely. He had been promised the cunt of a Stark and the fucking wolves hadn't delivered!

Fucking Northerners he thought with disgust, tree rutting fuckwits the lot of them.

They had always looked down on him and his house, always thinking they were so above him.

He longed for the chance to bring them down, make them grovel at his feet.

So he would cut off all trade to the North he decided. When they came and begged for him to take the fucking little bitch he would greatly enjoy rubbing it in their faces, enjoy breaking the proud little bitch down until she begged for his cock.

---

The Red Keep, Kings Landing…

The Small Council was gathered in an emergency session as news of the growing situation at the North/Riverlands border came to their ears. Varys, easily the most informed of the situation as was appropriate for the council's Master of Whispers was finishing the report.

"Lord Frey is incensed that Lord Stark has rejected the contract that Lady Stark negotiated without her husband's consent." Varys told them with calmness, an aloofness that honestly seemed inhuman sometimes but served the man well in a crisis and one that Jon wished dearly he could emulate given the dangerous event happening up at the Neck and Green Fork. Varys continued his report. "He has decided to prevent all land based travel by closing the bridge at the Twins to travellers and traders going in either direction."

Oh damn them all to the Seven Hells! Jon thought with a sharp pain stabbing at his head, this was precisely what he had feared would happen. A diplomatic crisis between the North and the Riverlands, the two closest of their allies worst of all was a situation that just begged to be exploited by their enemies. With the Freys refusing to allow the Northern army south then a major part of their fighting force was going to stay bottled up instead of fighting where it could be vital in achieving victory.

"Have the Starks responded yet?" Lord Stannis asked with some distaste over the situation, feeling that the Freys should just accept they had been fooled and stop trying to claim a false contract was real. His mood was rather cold and sharp given the fact that not only had he just received the news that not only could his wife not carry any-more children but his only surviving child Shireen would be scarred for life due to the Greyscale she had narrowly beaten. Honestly it was more than a man could bare sometimes Jon thought with sympathy that he knew Stannis wouldn't accept.

"Not yet, it seems that they are willing to just ignore the problem and trade by sea from White Harbour." Varys told them.

Jon gritted his teeth knowing that an army could hardly be sent the same way quickly and the North was reliant on trade.

"How long can they sustain that before they start to starve their people?" Jon asked Varys as the potential for civil riots and famine were keenly at the forefront of his mind.

"Indefinitely I should think." Varys said surprising Jon before he explained his statement. "The vast number of glass gardens and new farms and foods they have now will allow them to feed their people for as long as they need too. Income from trading will reduce but not to levels enough to make them suffer."

Jon was very surprised, he had long known that the North was making new glass gardens and farms but not that they had so many of them that they could feed their entire people now. The North men were used to making the most of their food and resources and could if Varys was right now feed themselves for as long as they needed without southern trade, a far cry from how things had used to be.

"Then how long are the Freys willing to go without their toll?" Robert asked with a smug smile from the door surprising them all with his sudden and unexpected appearance, liking the idea of the horrid little weasels going poor. They made good money with their bridge but it was their only true source of wealth, if the North could trade through White Harbour and feed themselves then this would break the Freys long before it broke the Starks. "Stupid old fucker." He said with a laugh.

"Your grace." They all said rising to their feet but he still laughing waved them off and took his seat at the table. They all took it as a sign to sit down.

"Pycelle." The King asked intensely, making the old man sit up straighter with how he had suddenly become so serious. "There is nothing to this contract is there? It is not legally binding?"

"Oh in no way is it legal your grace." Pycelle said quickly with an urgency that seemed strange given he was a Lannister man through and through. "The contract was never signed by Lord Stark and Lady Stark in fact forged his signature, since she has no power to make such a contract on her own and falsified a document the law quite clearly states that House Stark is in no way obligated to honour it." That was pretty cut and dry it seemed, the contract had no weight but Renly then stuck his nose in.

"Doesn't mean that Lord Frey isn't trying to enforce it, he has cut off all trade with the North by land and is demanding the young lady come south to wed him. Not a particularly wise move as we were just discussing brother." Renly told him with a slight smile. Jon then frowned at the situation before speaking.

"It would be best to end this situation before it escalates any more your grace." Jon said knowing this next statement was not going to go over well with the king. "If the Starks honoured the pact made by Lady Stark relations between the North and the Riverlands would be mended and the army of the North would be free to come south if you needed it. It might be best then to tell Ned to send young Meera Stark to the Twins now."

The silence following those words was instant and oppressive in how heavy it felt, all the faces around the table looked astonished that the honourable Jon Arryn would ever say such a thing but what happened next shocked them all.

Robert with a strength and speed that they would have thought long passed him leapt up from his chair, grabbed Jon by the scruff of his neck and raised him up in the air with his face red with anger.

"NOT A CHANCE JON!" He roared at his foster father who was being held above the ground looking surprised and a little fearful. "THERE IS NO WAY NED'S LITTLE GIRL IS GOING TO BE FORCED TO WED THAT DIRTY, DISGUSTING OLD FUCKING WEASEL BECAUSE CAT BROKE THE LAW! SEND A MESSAGE TO THE OLD BASTARD AND TELL HIM TO STOP WITH THESE POINTLESS PROTESTS AT ONCE!" Robert yelled at Jon who was covered with spit and terrified as was the rest of the Small Council at the sudden outburst. Robert then let Jon go and the man sagged down into his chair and Robert with eyes burning with fierce intensity told him.

"I am leaving the city for a few months to deal with the pirates plaguing our southern coast and I want this dealt with by the time I return. Tell Ned he has my blessing to deal with this situation as he sees fit."

With that Robert left the room followed by Ser Barristan who had been surprised at the King's still incredible strength despite seeing the man fight against bandits and Hill Tribes in the Vale quite frequently. He had still gained a lot of weight over the years but less than many would have thought and his skill as a warrior had not diminished either, he still fought in the yard and was able to beat many much younger men into submission.

- x -

Jon Arryn watched the king leave with his heart still thundering in his chest, shocked the Robert would do that to him and wondered again if he should just leave the city and resign his post.

But...he couldn't...not yet.

While once he had been actually intent on the idea of wedding Prince Joffrey and Lady Meera Stark to unite their kingdom closer in preparation for future challenges to the dynasty and keep the peace but if his suspicions about the Prince and his two siblings were correct and he thought it likely then the last thing he should do is allow the Starks to be tied to the Lannisters, backing their bastards especially if he was right about who the father was. Certainly he didn't want them being honour bound to serve a false Lannister King over Stannis who was the right and true heir if Joffrey was indeed a bastard.

Not to mention his greatest concern was for what could happen if the alliance between the Riverlands and the North collapsed, they stood the best chance of survival by standing together especially if the Vale was with them. Something that should be a given as all three of future lords of Stark, Tully and Arryn all shared blood ties. But this could break all that, stick a wedge between them that could unravel all the work he, Rickard Stark and Hoster Tully had put into creating this alliance.

So it would be best that this was resolved before Robert returned and made sure that wedge was stuck in by only standing with Ned and not seeing the Riverlands were recognised.

He would send a message to Ned and tell him to honour the pact, better the Old Weasel and keep the alliance with the Riverlands intact than being tied to a mad Lannister bastard who would lead them all to ruin. Robert would be told only when there was nothing he could do about it and hopefully when Jon had managed to find some evidence to back his suspicions.

- x -

Next to him although Jon could never have known it, Baelish was enjoying himself immensely.

This plan had worked out better than he had ever dreamed, the chaos it was creating was perfect to increase his own power and influence. The fact it had driven such a deep wedge between Stark and Cat only made it better. He needed this to get worse to ensure though that it was truly stuck in deep, deep enough that their relationship would never in a thousand years recover.

So he would ensure that any messages from Jon Arryn whatever they might say never reached their destination, either to honour the pact or reject it Petyr didn't care as long as the chaos continued.

- x -

Elsewhere in the city Tyrion was staring proudly at the place where his future theatre would one day stand, workmen had constructed the wooden frames that stood three stories high while stone walls were built up around the outside slowly day by day.

The entire building was not as large as the Dragonpit where it was being built but would hold at least two to three hundred people when it was finished in a half circle with a pit in the middle and a rectangular stage, behind which hidden by stage dressing was the workshop where scenery or props were prepared and the actors waited. It would have outer stone walls but the wooden stands with the special royal box as ordered by Robert.

Finding labour was easy in Kings Landing and for very little coin a large workforce could be found but of course making sure that they could actually build anything which would stand up longer than a day was the real challenge.

Tyrion however had the services of Pycelle and the best builders in the city thanks to Robert, he had learnt so much thanks to this venture that he now had a web of contacts all across the city which allowed him to find everything he needed to create his plays and perform them. But he thought with some satisfaction it also fed him a constant and fresh source of information on all the comings and goings, everything that was going on in Kings Landing and even the Red Keep.

It was empowering Tyrion found with some enjoyment to be one of the main people in the know across the whole city. To know the coming and goings of people who were masters of the game or thought of themselves as such. He knew exactly which men Cersei secretly met with and when including their brother much to his disgust, he knew where Baelish met with his various puppets and when, exactly which Goldcloaks were the most corrupt and easy to bribe, which dock masters were involved in smuggling and what they were smuggling too.

It was like he was the spider sitting at the centre of an enormous web and could feel each touch and breath of wind in the city.

While so far he had no real use for all this information aside from putting on his plays and finding everything he needed for them but who knows what could come his way in the future, maybe useful titbits of information that could benefit him Tyrion thought with satisfaction and a little expectation.

---

Winterfell, the North…

Lord Stark was troubled as word reached him of the Freys' blocking of any movement by land, without the land road the North was largely cut off from the rest of Westeros. Not completely as they could trade through White Harbour but nevertheless by large they were confined.

The rest of the Northern Lords in the room were angry too, especially given that it was the Freys who on top of being southerners were little more than dirty filthy scum in their eyes. Cowards and leeches all. They all sat around with furious expressions and spoke angrily to each other about the sheer nerve of the Freys and at former Lady Stark who at present was confined to her room. Meera sat in her place at his side as was now fitting of the Lady of Winterfell. He had watched her closely to see if she was coping with her new power and responsibilities and he was glad to see she was up to the task. He would have complimented her but first he had too call this meeting to order.

"Order!" Ned said loudly, bringing all the lords attention back to him and once they had quieted down and given him their full attention he continued speaking. "I know you are all angry as am I but the fact of the matter is the Freys will lose more coin than we will and we can now feed ourselves! Ships from White Harbour will begin to sail around the Vale and dock in Maidenpool before joining the Kings Road that way. It will be slower but we will continue to trade and starve the Freys into submission."

He had come up with this plan just a few nights before and exchanged some ravens with Lord Mooton who had been most enthusiastic about having more ships dock in his port even for a short time. The increase of revenue in port fees alone would be a great source of coin for him and the fresh goods would be excellent for him anyway. Gulltown and others had been considered but the dangerous travel over the mountains was far too slow and dangerous.

It would allow them to trade a little more as the goods had less way to travel but not as fast as he would like, however the sound of the plan did seem to improve the Northern lords' collective mood who laughed at the idea of the Freys draining their treasury in a battle of attrition they couldn't win. Ned then made the other announcements he had to make.

"But onto better news, the Northern Games are set for a month from now and all Northern families are invited to attend. And more crucially not only have the new rivergates been constructed but Sea Dragon Castle has at last been completed and garrisoned." Ned told his lords with pride and they all cheered before Ned continued. "For the first time in countless centuries we have the means to protect our coast, to keep our people safe and stand tall."

The announcement was immediately followed by a loud and almost deafening cheer as some jumped to their feet and roared with excitement while others bashed their mugs of mead together and laughed. Ned was glad that at least had lessened the anger over what was happening down at the southern border, he also was aware that Rickon would now need a strong betrothal too as he was due to receive that castle following Bran in the path of founding a new house of his own.

He was worried that perhaps this was too big of a burden to place on his young son's shoulders but it would be years away he consoled himself. His eldest son's decision to bring back the Northern games had been a master-stroke too Ned thought with pride as his son mixed with the rest of his peers warmly. Any hesitation about him being too southern to rule the North was being forgotten and he could rest easy knowing when the time came Robb would be ready to rule the North, though Ned thought with some dry humour not too soon he hoped.

- x -

Elsewhere in the castle Catelyn sat fuming in her new room as the feast went on nearby, she should be down there she thought with anger...she should be there to celebrate her son's excellent idea to hold a Northern tourney with them while Meera sat miserable in the Twins while being forced to accept Old Walder's grasping hands.

Except here she was, locked up and alone while her children wouldn't even talk to her.

That made her want to scream with anger and frustration while grasping at her own hair with almost enough strength to pull it out, she was doing this for them! She raged, to keep them safe from their cursed and evil sister but they only saw her innocent facade unlike the demon she really was until she was going to destroy them.

Cat screamed in anger and frustration bashing her hands against the locked door but no-one responded and she soon had given all her strength and was spent.

She leaned against the door and started weeping as she considered how much she had lost; her husband she had loved so much was now her jailer, her sons and daughters yes even Meera who had once been her pride and joy now no longer wanted anything to do with her. This castle she had once run too had been taken away from her.

It was as if the gods themselves were cursing her, she thought although she was confused as the angry fog that clouded her mind was driven back for a brief moment.

Why had she done these things she thought with worry, she hated the Freys as much as anyone and would never make one her own children marry the disgusting old lord himself and yet that was what she had done. She would never have gone behind Ned's back like that and betrayed him and put him in such a horrible position.

But she had.

Why? She pondered and again the images of fire and the images of the flame haired creature reared in her head again. What was he she wondered desperately and with great fear, why was he in her mind? She didn't want this and pushed against it with all the strength she had.

Although she had no way of knowing it herself her eyes glowed red slowly before fading and a slight red wisp seemed to start escaping her mouth but as soon as it started Catelyn lose her will power and started falling asleep. By morning when she woke she would remember nothing of the creature, wondering how he kept making her forget as she fell into unconsciousness.

- x -

One Month Later…

Winterfell was busier than ever today as the first day of the first Northern games in nearly three centuries began.

The blockade of the North was far from their minds as people, commonfolk and nobles filled the stands and watched the events unfold. In the main box the Starks and their personal guests sat watching the tug of war, two teams of eight enormous men trying to outmuscle each other with the strongest rope they could find. The men heaved and breathed hard, their breath easily visible in the air as each worked their hardest to stay on their feet and pull with all their might.

Lord Umber and his son were paying particular attention as some of these men were easily a fit for their berserker warriors. While strength alone did not guarantee winning a fight it was important and the Umber Berzerkers were among the strongest and most experienced fighters in the North. Even now Wildlings tried to get through the Wall rather than work the mines and get a pass so the Umbers frequently clashed with them, one of the reasons that Umbers often had more experience in battle.

One the teams from the south of Karhold finally prevailed and managed to pull their rivals from a fishing village on the Saltspear over the line and win the competition. The crowd cheered and the winners gave each other a manly hug before their captains came over and shook hands.

"The first round is on us!" The winning captain said and any upset the other team had about losing was forgotten as the Northerners indulged in their favourite pastime, drinking. Ned stood up and passed the pouches of coins to the two teams.

"Congratulations to you both, you have all done the North proud." Ned told them and both teams bowed to their liege lord. "Make sure records of their names are recorded for all time." Ned said to Maester Luwin who nodded and pulled out a book full of blank parchment that he had brought for just such a purpose.

"Well done young wolf, you are doing your ancestors and the North as a whole proud." The Greatjon said and the Smalljon slapped him on the back causing Robb to nearly fall out of his seat but he grinned widely as the Umbers and other Northern nobles all smiling at the games he had revived. They were not alone as his father and siblings all gave him big smiles and even Theon was enjoying himself much to his own surprise.

Meera from her seat next to her brother gave him a wider smile as she was so proud of him, he had managed to find a way to gain the favour of their vassals on his own. Making his own mark on history with the revival of the Northern Games and ensuring people knew that he cared about not only the North itself but its cultural identity.

Robb himself was slightly overwhelmed and surprised at how well this was going but smiled widely and father handing him a speaking horn with a grasping of his shoulder and a firm smile. The fact that his father approved was perhaps what meant the most to Robb in that moment.

"The Javelin Competition is due next, all contestants to their starting positions." Robb shouted out through the horn so everyone could hear.

- x -

The Javelin was a weapon of war that had fallen out of favour in the last few centuries but nevertheless was deadly in the hands of someone who knew what they were doing especially for hunting.

So it was no surprise that most of the competitors in the javelin competition were hunters and less surprising that the majority of them came from Beyond the Wall where it was one of the best and only reliable weapons they had.

Osha was one such person, a spear-wife who had worked the mines for a year to get her passage to the North. She had refused to learn cooking or other 'womanly' skills as to be honest they bored her so much she would rather force her own spear up her own arse than do any of them.

She was a fighter and she would remain a fighter till the day she died and would accept no other role but that. The idea of spending her life spinning thread or tending fields or worse just cooking for others...she shuddered at it.

The attitude of men honestly was astonishing, even north of the Wall women were often little more than servants to men and in the south it was even worse with some even being treated as possessions. It angered her greatly especially as few houses would take her seriously or would refuse a free folk into their service, however even beyond the Wall they had heard of the Young She-Wolf who was the true power behind House Stark. She was said to be smart and stood up for a woman's rights and hopefully Osha might find a place in this castle with her there.

If she could prove herself in the contest.

She saw others, all men lining up at the launching position and make their throws. Some were even good she thought with amusement, perhaps better than some of the boys she had seen north of the Wall but she smirked they were nothing compared to her.

She waited until a young lad who was so nervous of throwing in front of a crowd and made a few mistakes with his aim and his direction, landing well short of the others. He looked defeated and she almost felt some sympathy for him except if he couldn't throw proper, then he had no place here.

The appearance of her, a wildling woman no less lining up on the throwing position was enough to send a wave of whispers and much louder gossip through the crowd but she didn't care, getting into position she scanned the area for something to tell her the speed and direction of the wind and checked the distance to the target. None of the others she noticed had really come close and as she smirked, she drew her arm back, braced herself and threw her javelin.

It sailed through the air, her eyes following it every step of the way until it curved back towards the ground planted itself right in front of the target...closest throw of the day, nearly a perfect hit.

The crowd was silent for a moment before clapping started from some people who reminded the others to do the same, in the stupid main box where House Stark was sitting Lord Stark looked surprised as did his children but with no more contestants and hers being the closest she approached the box.

"A fine throw, your arm is excellent." Lord Stark told her and handed her a pouch of gold coins but instead she pushed the coins back in his direction, surprising all of them before saying.

"I don't want your gold Lord Stark, I want to join the guard of Winterfell."

- x -

That certainly was a bold boon to ask for Meera thought with admiration at the older woman's spirit, looking at her Meera was struck with a sense of familiarity although just where from she had no idea as there was little chance she had ever met her before.

She was dressed in the typical furs and rough cotton garments usually given to wildlings when they worked the mines and other than that looked very Northern with her grey eyes and dark brown hair with pale skin. Her eyes did Meera note burn with a strong will and slight arrogance but given what she had just done with that javelin it was deserved.

Her ambition was surprising, most women didn't want to work as guards even those that came from north of the Wall. They were keen to find a better life for themselves and a more peaceful one, however there was always an exception to the rule Meera thought with a slight smile.

She wondered sometimes if she was doing enough for women across the North but change she knew worked slowly, even in the other world which was easily centuries ahead of them in development women were still treated at least differently to men and often worse or lesser. She was a noble and as such had far greater freedom than most but was it enough she asked herself.

Maybe this was a chance to do some of that she thought as she saw her father was likely to deny her request fearful of a woman living with so many men in their barracks and decided to interject.

"Father, a female guard would be helpful to us and those not comfortable around men. Not to mention since she denied the gold we are honour bound to give her this request." Meera reminded him quietly and he turned to give her an uncertain look before slowly nodding as he realised she was right. Turning back to the woman he nodded and said.

"Very well, you will be responsible for guarding the female residents of this castle when needed. If you are to join my guards though, I will need to know your name." He said and many including the nobles looked shocked he had agreed to her request. The wildling woman smirked and told him.

"Osha my lord."

---

With the javelin and tug of war complete that was the last of the events for the day and so all the guests and attendees retired to the castle or tavern or wherever else they liked to spend their evenings. In the main hall while the Starks and their noble guests received their dinner Meera was wondering how long this situation in the south could go on for, she was astounded that no other bridges crossed the Green Fork and it would certainly if there were more make the Freys far less of a nuisance to others if they couldn't charge such high tolls.

Then an idea sprang into her mind, one that honestly made her feel foolish for not thinking of it before.

Why not build a bridge of their own?

They had the labour, the materials, the coin to fund it and if it was being built on their side of the river they wouldn't even need to ship the materials south. Longboats sent from Torrhen's Square or Barrowton could aid in construction too if they sailed up the river from the west from the ocean.

A bridge that they controlled and would not need to pay such expensive and irritating tolls.

It was brilliant she though except there was a problem, in fact a number of problems. Firstly the bridge would technically be in the Riverlands and building there without consent from Riverrun or another local house could incite some pretty bad responses.

Second, given that another bridge would be basically a death sentence to the Freys major source of wealth they were bound to attack it so it would need to be heavily defended and reinforced. That was doable she thought, a Northern force could be sent down but how long would they need to be down there and could they manage that?

Also there a question of where to build it? Few houses had holdings in that area she knew from her lessons with Maester Luwin but some others did have land along the Green Fork.

"Father." She said, waiting to make sure she had his attention as he tucked into his venison. "Do you know any of the lords who have land on the Green Fork?"

He seemed surprised at the question and had to think for a second as they tucked into his meal before remembering something.

"Yes I do." He said with a suspicious look, wondering just what she was getting at knowing full well this had something to do with the situation with the Freys. "Lord Tomas Barnell was given the lands of Castle Grenward after he saved my life at the Battle of the Trident. They have portions of land on the Green Fork and he served several Northern families before the Rebellion faithfully, why do you ask?" He asked her wondering just what scheme she had in mind this time and how much a headache it was going to cause him.

Perfect, Meera thought with glee of this was just perfect. A former Northerner with land just where they needed it and one who had links to some Northern families, he was just what they needed she thought for her plan.

"We should invite him to Winterfell, have a ship take him from Maidenpool to White Harbour and then here. He might father be the answer to our 'southern problem'." She said with a smirk and father looked at her with exasperation before asking.

"Just how exactly?" His voice was wary and she told him.

"If Lord Barnell is willing then we could use his land to build a bridge over the Green Fork of our own. Cutting the Twins off completely and allowing a new road for trade south, not only does it help him having a potentially cheaper toll to charge travellers and traders for passage north or south but it cuts the Freys off at the knees as they lose the only true resource they have. No longer can they demand such large and exploitative tolls if the Barnells offer passage for far less." She said with a calculating look in her eye. The Freys would suffer greatly if this plan worked she thought, that was a major enticement...watching them slipping back into the mud.

Father blinked for a second before shaking his head.

"Sometimes I wonder where you get all your ideas from and ones that are so promising to cause not only great advancement but also trouble. I know that Lord Barnell has been trying to build a bridge of his own for years even if it is only to move his soldiers around, I will send the raven though as you are correct that this could be the answer to our troubles." He said.

"Thank you father." Meera said and forgetting decorum for a moment gave him a kiss on the cheek and a hug in full view of everyone not that she cared about that. He smiled at that, glad that for all her gifts she was still first and foremost his daughter.

Meera too was glad her father gave her such freedom, wishing she could repay him somehow but contented herself with making his life as easy as she could.

---

The next day dawned with renewed vigour as everyone was highly anticipating the next event, the caber toss. The sight of the long and heavy poles made many blink wondering just who was mad enough to compete in such a thing but the line of burly and muscular men, some of whom had competed in the tug of war just the day before answered that question.

While sitting in the stands with Gwyn and Mira, Meera wished dearly to have Romulus and Rema with her but they were today she could sense were teaching the younger direwolves to hunt in the woods nearby. The six pups they had rescued were now far bigger and a nearly a year old, perhaps she had forgotten how fast her own wolves had grown but she was shocked as the pups now were the size of regular wolves and still growing.

She wondered if the magic in her siblings and herself had aided them in growing faster, it wouldn't surprise her as she remembered Hedwig had not only been far smarter than most owls but also been able to find them when they were Harry ahead of time wherever they went.

Pushing that thought aside she looked over to see sitting between Mira and Gwyn was Asher Forrester, she had not yet spoken to the young man who had just been named as her younger brother's sworn-sword. Bran who had not even really started his warrior training and never even left Winterfell hardly needed one as far as she could see and wondered if the request had more to do with the fact it allowed him to spend time with Gwyn.

It was almost as if Romeo and Juliet had come to life she thought sadly, the tragic young couple who were never destined to be together because of their feuding families. Meera honestly could see some tragic end coming between them however much she hoped not, at Winterfell at least they could carry on an affair without too much notice or care but gossip about it would eventually get back to Highpoint and Ironrath.

Then the shit would really hit the fan Meera thought with worry at all the upset this could cause, especially with all the trouble regarding the Freys going on already.

- x -

Arya did not even register the same issues as her sister, watching with some interest as the men carried the enormous cabers as they were known and threw them into the air but her real interest did not come till later that afternoon...the horse race.

She had listened in to the stable boys and read all she could about horse breeding and was interested in seeing horses in action. She could ride and rode well for her age but this would be the first time she would actually see horses compete against each other. This was the first time she had found such a hobby to occupy her time and one that she might actually be able to pursue, the idea of having the fastest and best horse in the North appealed greatly to her and she was smiling brightly at the image of her sitting atop such a fine beast with Nymeria at her side.

It seemed to take forever for the horse race to finally begin, she saw the proud stallions that nobles were riding while others had brought mules and whatever else they had. Looking at the stallions she longed to see them up close but now knew that she must be very careful around horses as they could be as dangerous as any scared animal. Her father noticed her staring and with an amused grin asked her.

"Does this interest you my girl?" He said already knowing the answer from all the stable boys and master not to mention Maester Luwin who had given her all the books he had on horses. It pleased him to see that she had found something that interested her apart from learning to fight or use the bow. Something that she could do that no one would question and was uniquely hers amongst his children.

"I...just a little father." Arya said not wanting to give away how much she was enjoying this and her father smiled wider, promising to find her a horse to start her hobby with that would be uniquely hers to get her started for her next nameday which was half a year away.

Just as he thought that the race was started with the blowing of a horn, the horses immediately started running and became almost blindingly fast as they gained speed leaving the slower animals in the dust.

Arya watched, taking note of which was fastest and who owned them, utterly entranced by the scene much to her family's amusement.

- x -

A Month Later…

The Northern Games were over and the event had been an awesome success, the North's mood in general was good despite the Freys who were now far from their minds.

Particularly as they had just received some very good news, their prices for glass both clear and coloured had achieved notice in Braavos and Pentos. The skill of their glass smiths had become so good that the two Free Cities had turned their attention here and would exclusively buy from the North now.

The coin this would bring in was very considerable and further infuriate Myr which was to be honest an enemy that they could do without right now but Myr was too far south to be a major threat and the Northern Fleet could handle any privateers that they might hire.

The other piece of good news was that Lord Barnell had finally arrived and was standing in the hall of Winterfell with Ned and Meera receiving him.

"Welcome Lord Barnell, I hope you have been well and the journey was not too difficult?" Ned said with a smile for the man that had saved his life once. The man had his hair cut very close to his scalp and his beard was likewise short and a light brown colour. He held himself straight and upright at attention and bowed to Lord Stark with all deference.

"It was uneventful Lord Stark and I am most grateful for your invitation." Lord Barnell said with reverence. "I am very most gratified that you are interested in my bridge."

"Indeed we are Lord Barnell, one that would benefit both our houses and the North as a whole once completed." Meera said politely. Father then introduced her.

"My eldest daughter Lady Meera Stark."

"My lady, it is an honour. Your grace and beauty are known across Westeros." Lord Barnell said with a bow and she managed to keep her mask of politeness intact when she wanted to scowl at not being recognised for her brain instead but kept up her image of the just and kind young lady.

Though it did boost her ego a little to referred to as a beauty, she had been changing the last few years as her body blossomed. She had grown much taller, easily keeping pace with Robb and Jon and had to adjust her clothes frequently, her long dark brown hair was tied in a single braid which fell down her back and while slim and slightly muscular from all the practice she did in the yard her body had started gaining her womanly shape.

But she turned her attention back to the meeting as father spoke.

"The North is willing to support building the bridge and front most of the costs not to mention send soldiers to protect it while under construction in exchange for much cheaper tolls for crossing it. It would be a great boon to us both to undercut the Freys dominance of ways to cross the Green Fork."

She nearly grimaced wishing her father hadn't revealed the real reasons they were doing this but it seemed Lord Barnell was not offended and nodded in agreement.

"I can appreciate that Lord Stark, they have been trying to force me to take one of Lord Walder's wretched spawn as a wife and accept her son as my heir for quite some time and I would enjoy the freedom to move my soldiers without their interference."

Glad that things seemed to be going well Meera nodded and said.

"Materials will be brought down the road from Moat Cailin and longboats will be sent from Torrhen's Square to aid with the construction, supplies for the roughly six thousand men who will be guarding the construction site and workers present." Meera told him with a smile and added. "We would of course trade through this bridge once it is completed which is a boon to us both and would only see your house rise in stature."

Lord Barnell seemed overwhelmed at what they were offering, not only would they find the materials and coin to build the bridge but provide most of the manpower and infrastructure needed to build it, true this would seem incredibly one sided since he would own it...but House Stark would be able to use this bridge whenever they wanted with only the smallest necessary toll to maintain its upkeep. House Barnell might operate it and would at least on parchment own the bridge but in reality the Starks would.

"I am honoured to accept your terms Lord Stark and myself and my son and his children to come will honour this investment." Lord Barnell promised with genuine gratitude. Meera decided then to ask something she had been meaning to find out.

"That is most gratifying to hear Lord Barnell, if I might be so bold can you tell me what the rest of the Riverlands thinks of our situation with House Frey? We have not been able to discover the general feeling."

Lord Barnell nodded and told her what he knew.

"Most of the Riverlands is in agreement with your house Lady Stark over the contract your mother made being illegal and not binding, only those that have blood ties to House Frey or their vassals seem to think it is. Also given their attitude and constant pressure to take family members as either brides or husbands most Riverlands Houses dislike the Freys intently."

Meera knew better than to take this as truth without more information but it went well with what information they had on Riverlands and their attitudes towards the Freys. They might be of the Riverlands but Old Walder had driven most of them away in disgust or irritation, so when faced with being the North's good graces or standing with the Freys most houses would stand with the Starks. Her mother's family had not intervened in the situation which she thought a little strange and knew the Blackfish would not support this contract Catelyn had made, Hoster her grandfather on the other hand she had no idea what he would say when eventually he recovered from his latest bout of fever.

Still having to find six thousand men not counting the construction workers was going to take some time, the soldiers was fairly easy as most houses could be persuaded to send some and with the recent completion of Sea Dragon Castle many construction workers needed more work to pay for themselves and their families. But it was still a large number of people and resources to send down there and while things were far better than they used to be they still had limits.

How great though were those limits? She pondered, not sure how their country stood in many things these days with all the changes made. The North rarely changed and so everyone knew how things were or what was possible or not, now however she couldn't be certain and knew there was only one way to resolve that...a census.

The word made her nearly groan given how large a scale and time consuming project this was likely to be, at least a year or more before it could be completed in any kind of accurate way. There hadn't been one in the North since the Iron Throne had been established by order of Aegon Targaryen to see what he ruled.

Finding men to gather the information and travel the whole length and width of the North to do so was going to be hard. The Maesters around the North could be helpful she admitted but it was still going to be a long project either way.

She would get that underway soon so she could present the results to her family when they were complete and find out just where they stood now.

She also considered how much gold they still had in the treasury, many houses did not have access to the gold mines to the north and some had projects like the Barnells without the means to complete them. Not only projects which could help the North like the Rivergates but helping these houses would be a major step forward in tightening their bonds with Winterfell.

So she would also have the people she sent out to do the census spread the word that Winterfell might consider supporting projects if they were of value. The decision would of course be her father's but if he could be persuaded to aid a few they might make him far more popular in his rule and strengthen his image after all Catelyn had done to undermine it.

When Lord Barnell had retired to the room they had prepared for him she explained her plans to her father who nodded, smiling which surprised her.

"It is good to see you interested in helping the people, too often nobles think only of themselves but this will help not only the noble houses but the commonfolk as well. Not to mention you are quite right in that we need to know just where we are with our lands these days." Ned said before saying. "I will want final say on what projects we choose to support but I hope that some good will come of this."

---

A Week Later…

Lord Barnell had left Winterfell and returned home to prepare for the construction of the new bridge while resources were being gathered and workers and warriors assembled. The other houses had been excited at the new bridge, finding the idea of cutting the Freys down to size hilarious and now would do everything in their power to see the plan through just to fuck with Old Walder and his brood. Meera smiled at that, she had never expected all the houses to be this excited about a project and had to admit she was eager to see it completed too.

The trouble she knew would be begin the moment the Freys realised just what they were doing hence why her father had upped the number of soldiers being sent to seven thousand which would work with Lord Barnell's well trained if small force to make sure construction was not hindered. To that end Greywater Watch and Moat Cailin had also been warned and were alert for anything the Freys might try to interfere with their plans.

The census takers had been chosen and were now moving from settlement to settlement, farm to farm, castle to castle to gather the information they sought and hopefully within a year it would be complete.

Meera had finally managed to find some more time to herself with her new duties and stood in the yard with her training spear in hand. Harkoon stood opposite her with his own wooden spear and the pair began their dance, Harkoon began twirling his spear around and Meera kept herself light and flexible to move at a moment's notice. The staffs smacked together as they circled around each other at a blinding speed as they both got into the flow of battle, occasional jabs with the blunted ends broke the constant twirling motion of both combatants but after a few moments and much sweating from both of them, Meera got through Harkoon's defences and managed to land a 'killer blow on his stomach.

Harkoon however smiled widely and dropped his spear, signalling her victory, he told her with good spirits despite his defeat.

"Excellent my lady, you have become a great master with the spear. You could probably rival the Red Viper himself right now."

Meera smiled too, knowing he was flattering her as even with her greater than normal strength and reflexes Prince Oberyn Martell had been wielding his spear for years and actually had used it in battle. He was still far too skilled for her to ever consider taking him on but she did appreciate the compliment.

"Thank you Ser Harkoon, we shall take a break and spar again later?" She asked and he became slightly reluctant for a moment.

"Regretfully I cannot my lady, I have an appointment at the..." He said starting come up with some excuse when she cut in with a knowing smirk.

"With Ros down in Winter town I know." The most sought after whore in the town Meera thought, men waited in line for a night with her and paid more than any other whore. Theon she knew loved to spend his coin down there and while he had managed to convince Robb and Jon to go once neither had used her services for fear of making a bastard or disappointing their parents or both.

"Then you will excuse me my lady." Harkoon said, relieved he didn't have to invent some incredible story to cover his session down at the local brothel. He bowed to her and walked off with and eager and hurried step which only made Meera shake her head. Could be be that all Dornish men were so hot blooded? She wondered to herself, having only met one she couldn't be sure but Harkoon seemed an example of that stereotype.

She then began looking over the yard for a new training partner as her blood was still running hot, instead she saw Theon sparring with the latest addition to the guard of Winterfell, Osha the spear-wife. The woman was wearing similar leather training clothes to those she was wearing, again she was stuck with a feeling of familiarity but had no idea just where it came from.

Turning her attention to the pair in front of her Osha was very skilled with a spear, she handled it expertly and with confidence while Theon was just leering at her shape in the tighter leather outfit she was wearing. A fact that made Meera frown but not as much as it did Osha who in fact used this to her advantage, while he ogled her breasts Osha caught him off guard with a hard jab to the stomach. The training armour Theon was wearing would keep him from being injured but not from the pain of impact and the wind being knock out of him. The former wildling then while he was struggling to get his breath back moved around him and kicked him hard in the back sending him down with a painful thud.

Osha stood over him with a victorious smirk and said.

"Maybe you should try sparring with a man, clearly women are too good for you."

Meera smiled slightly at that, Theon would she hoped not make the same mistake again of underestimating people especially women again but then again she had been beating him in the sparring circle for years and still he hadn't learned so she wouldn't hold her breath.

"If you want to fight a woman, fight me." Meera said to Osha, leaning on her spear with a challenging look and Osha smirked.

"We'll see if you're a woman yet or not." Osha said not showing any deference at all for their respective positions which was just as well in the sparring circle. Okay with her but she hoped Osha would be smarter with the rest of the family who Meera doubted with be as understanding as she was.

The two of them stood apart and readied themselves. She was going to wipe that smirk off Osha's face Meera vowed to herself as they prepared.

Osha moved first with Meera just a second behind, their spears coming together like an X when they met in the middle smacking loudly against each other. Osha tried to jab forward but Meera with strength that surprised the other woman pushed it away with her own spear. Osha realising she had been too cocky at first stepped back and the pair began to circle each other, each keeping their spear in a defensive position as they moved, ready for the next attack.

Meera however was the first to attack this time and as she came forward Osha tried to raise her spear to jab but Meera moved too quickly and managed to slam her body into Osha with enough force to knock the older woman off her feet but her head caught the staff of Meera's spear on the way down.

Osha felt the pain of the whack to the back of her head not to mention the embarrassment of being knocked on her arse by a girl younger than her. She struggled to her feet and began a flurry of fresh jabs to try and regain some lost ground but Meera with her spear held her defence with a twirling motion to ward the attacks off before landing a jab in Osha's shoulder.

Osha was breathing hard as she creased her forehead with concentration, never having expected the girl to be as good as this at her age and having grown up pampered in a castle, the lord's daughter no less. She then aimed her new jabs lower as she tried to break through Meera's defence but Meera leapt away in a move like a dancer before responding with an overhead strike. Osha managed to raise her own spear in time to block it but Meera used this distraction to deliver a powerful kick to Osha's stomach.

Osha was thrown back a couple of steps by the force of it and the wind knocked out of her but before she could recover, she found the blunted tip of Meera's training spear pointed at her neck. The Wolf Girl was smirking at her and said.

"Maybe some humility might help in future hmm?" Meera spoke with a cheeky tone. "Still you are the best spear wielder I have come across since Harkoon." She said indicating the man with darkened skin across the yard with a nod of her head. He too was smirking and bowed mockingly.

Osha was not sure whether to be insulted or proud, she had just been humiliated by a girl much younger than her and in front of people as well. Her pride was wounded and she dearly wanted to smash the girl's face in but it would hardly be a good way to spend her first day as a member of the guard would it she realised.

Smashing in her lord's daughter's face.

Still it was true she had liked a challenge and thought she was going to train harder until she could best the girl and prove who was the best spear in the North.

Yes Osha thought to herself with a smirk coming back to her face, she might have a rival now but she would use that to become better.

Much better.

---

At that same moment Sansa sat with her friends enjoying some time together, just talking or playing games to make the most of their time together. Even Mira Forrester had joined them while Meera sparred in the yard while Gwyn was somewhere doing something private.

While Jeyne and Beth were drawing together and Mira was styling her hair in some of the same elaborate braids her elder sister used Sansa played cyvasse with Lanna who was thoroughly smashing her side through any strategy she could come up with. Like Robb and Meera Lanna seemed to have a natural gift for the game and it showed, Lanna had become skilled enough to compete with them really quickly.

"Do you think Jon likes me?" Lanna asked as she moved her scorpion in what Sansa was sure was some kind of flanking move. The question caught her off guard as despite apparently being a bastard like him the two didn't really speak much. There was a small age gap and their different circles didn't mix very much, Sansa wasn't sure just why Lanna was asking.

"I think he likes you as much as he likes any other girl." Sansa said watching closely to see if she could learn anything for Lanna's reaction.

"Oh." Lanna said looking disappointed and defeated for a moment and that was when Sansa realised just what was going on.

Lanna was developing feelings for Jon.

Sansa nearly smiled, it was adorable she thought and wondered if Jon was even aware of it, there had to have been signs of this before but then again she had missed them and if she had there was no chance of Jon, her far too honourable and solemn brother noticing.

It might just she realised be a little harmless infatuation, she couldn't be sure of that but given that they were both approaching the age when boys might become interesting it wasn't unlikely. So she told Lanna.

"My brother is clueless about girls, trust me all my brothers are. Just take your time and see, okay?" Sansa said with a smile and Lanna smiled back too after a moment. Sansa would never admit to it but she was a little jealous of Lanna sometimes; the perfect golden hair she had, the enchanting green eyes, amazing cheek bones. It seemed she got more beautiful each passing day and in time Lanna would probably have most of the boys in Winterfell chasing after her.

She was often told she was beautiful too and most of the time she believed it but sometimes she honestly wondered if Lanna, one of her best friends was more beautiful than her. She pushed that aside though and swore to never let it get in the way of their friendship.

Beauty faded...friendship however that could last forever.

- x -

Winterfell, the North...Five Months Later…

Nameday celebrations were always big occasions in Winterfell, family events always were.

Even Catelyn had decided to come down from her rooms to see her youngest daughter's day.

Arya was smiling widely as her favourite foods sat in front of her and gifts were being presented, some from close family friends but most came from her family.

Before her were the gifts from her siblings; Robb and Jon had come together to give her a brand new set of leather training armour, Sansa had made her a new soft and warm cloak which had a silver direwolf sew into it and runic symbols along the edge, Bran had given her a pair of warm boots and Meera had given her a pair of vambraces that had her name in runic language engraved on them.

Needless to say she was already wearing most of it, the cloak hung from her shoulders, the boots were keeping her feet warm and the vambraces were attached to her arms. She ran to each of her siblings and hugged each other them who gladly hugged her back, happy that she was enjoying their gifts.

Her father then out did all of them, the stablemaster came in with a beautiful young foal which instantly entranced Arya and her siblings with its shiny dark brown coat.

"He is all yours." Father said with a small smile, after all in his mind if she could handle a direwolf which was now equal in size to the foal and that of a normal wolf then she could handle a horse with a little help. "To train and to ride when he is large enough."

At Arya's side Nymeria whined a little and Arya looked down to see her direwolf was looking a little distressed and felt a sense of worry, it wasn't hard to guess her wolf was worried of being replaced.

"Don't worry girl, nothing could ever replace you." Arya told her with a big smile and gently petted Nymeria who immediately perked up and rubbed her head against Arya's leg.

Then came her mother's gift.

Time in isolation, largely at her own insistence hadn't done their mother any favours they noticed, she was thinner than she had been before and her dress hung on her a little not to mention the large shadows under her eyes made her look much older than she really was. Still she was smiling at Arya who looked at her with distrust, not having forgiven her for trying to wed Meera off to House Frey without their father's consent to get her out of the castle.

Catelyn tried to smile and handed her youngest daughter a small book which she took with suspicion before her mother explained.

"I made this book for you, its full of all the stories my uncle the Blackfish told me when I was your age." She said with a small and almost timid voice, like she was expecting Arya to shout at her if she didn't do so. Arya took the book and with a slightly conflicted face said.

"Thank you mother."

Catelyn smiled wider at that and seemed to want to reach out to hug her daughter but refrained from doing so as it seemed Arya was keeping a distance between them. It obviously hurt her but she accepted it as all she could hope for right now.

Meera stayed away, her own feelings of anger still very strong towards her mother and decided to keep to herself and not disrupt Arya's nameday with her own issues with their mother.

Still the armed guards nearby couldn't be ignored and Catelyn sighed as she wondered how long they would be there.

---

Bridge Construction Site, The Green Fork, the Riverlands...

It was an extraordinary sight in a place that rarely saw anything happening at all.

Along two sides of a large river a massive construction project was underway. Boats and longboats lined the river to help establish the supports for the massive bridge in reinforced stone for extra strength. Wood would have been faster but they were trying to make a bridge that was sturdy enough to handle large numbers of men marching across it and regular carts and caravans of traders. One made of stone that would last for centuries or so they hoped. Wooden arches though were being used at first to mark out the bridge and slowly around it the stone bridge took shape.

So the construction took a lot longer and cost a great deal more resources but the North had all the stone and mortar they needed and work was proceeding on time. Thousands of men worked their hardest all day and night to see it completed as soon as possible, thousands of soldiers meanwhile surrounded the site ready to repel an attack if it came.

Frey scouts watched them from a distance and reported their progress and more than once men had tried to enter the site to try and sabotage construction but the men guarding it had been chosen for their diligence and commitment and caught the fools easily.

Now the stone elements of the bridge were starting to be added, it was far from completion and would take at least the rest of the year to finish but it was finally starting to come together.

- x -

The Twins, the Riverlands…

Old Walder looked at his measly dinner and frowned, the coffers were strained with the stopping of trade and although he had known this was a possibility he had thought the North would in need of food break before him. But it seemed they were doing better than ever and taunting him with their full dinner tables and full coffers while his cellars and treasury shrunk smaller and smaller.

He cursed his temporary bed-warmer, a girl from one of the local villages that had been comely enough and had a tight cunt but was useful for little else. She was rather stupid and did whatever he said but the look of disgust on her face was evidence that she didn't like it very much.

"Earn your coin." He snapped at her and with reluctance she got on her knees before him under the table and started pulling down his breeches. He grew annoyed with her slowness and forced her head forward and she gagged but he didn't care, just held her head there till she did what he tossed her coppers to do.

The cloth on the table hid her from view and so when Black Walder and Lothar, perhaps his most capable sons wandered in with a number of his other sons and grandsons behind them they didn't even know what was happening under the cloth just a short distance ahead of them. Any other men would probably have stopped with his sons in the room even if they couldn't see her but Walder didn't care either way and forced her to continue sucking his cock while speaking to his sons.

"Well, what have you dragged your arses in here for?" He snapped at them both and while they averted their gazes they didn't flinch from him.

"The bridge they are building is taking shape and our men haven't been able to get close enough to stop it. Another half a year and it will be complete." Black Walder said with worry at what they were going to do about this thing that was threatening their livelihood.

Old Walder gritted his teeth, the useless whore being no help at all for relieving his stress. If this bridge was completed then he and his family were finished, no one would use them if another bridge existed.

"Do you have any good news then since you're all fucking useless at this?" He snapped at them and they all flinched but Ryman, one of his many grandsons came forward and said.

"I found a path to Greywater Watch, if we take the Reeds as hostages Stark will have to stop construction of the bridge." He said with all the signs of his recent feast splattered down his front. Old Walder was incredulous to say the least, in decades of trying he and his family had never even managed to catch sight of the fucking castle owned by the swamp dwellers but the idiot boy was right about having some hostages to stop construction until he could come up with some new plan to force Stark to bend.

"Fine, take a force and do it but you had better come back with three Reeds in your hands or I'll have your fucking mouth sewn shut." Old Walder warned and the man with a speed that no-one had believed possible ran out of the room to do so. The boy was stupid and Walder honestly expected this to come to nothing but he was desperate enough to risk it, anyway he thought the boy's appetite was too big to feed anyway so if he died then it was more on his plate.

- x -

The Neck, a Few Days Later…

The swamps of the Neck were among the hardest terrains to navigate in all of Westeros, something that had kept the North safe for centuries. The Freys boasted about knowing them well, they hunted for the elusive Greywater Watch all the time but in reality they were completely useless in these lands.

So when the path that Ryman had found led the small force of one thousand five hundred men in circles many times, the bugs and plants were irritating enough on their own not to mention the sagging earth beneath their feet as they moved around the bogs. Worse though was the occasional screams of men who wandered away from the firmer ground and were taken by the lizard-lions. Any who rushed back to help found only red on the top of the muddy water, they were just gone.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Aegon 'Bloodborn' Frey demanded as he felt yet another insect bite him. He was an outlaw but still obeyed his grandfather when called on and after all his failures to get men in to sabotage the bridge the Northerners were building he had been forced to join this foolhardy expedition. Ryman blinked for a moment before answering, showing the world again how much of a fool he was.

"Yes, we should be close now."

"That's what you have been saying for the last two days!" Aegon snarled, sure they had passed the same twisted tree three times now. He would have gone off on his own but to leave the path was suicide as the lizard-lions blended so well with the land around them, so you couldn't tell just what was a log and what wasn't or if they were waiting just below the marsh's surface.

So until they found another path out of here he gritted his teeth and followed his stupid cousin.

"At last!" Ryman cried out with pride as out of the thick trees a castle finally emerged. For a moment Aegon was astonished, his idiot of a cousin had actually achieved what members of their family had failed to do for centuries and find a way to Greywater Watch.

However as they got closer doubt started seeping into his mind even as Ryman ordered the men to charge at the gate which surprisingly was open, this castle was far larger than he had imagined the mud-dwellers would have and actually made of stone rather than wood. The land it stood on looked too firm to be the constantly moving mass that kept Greywater from being found and then as he looked up he saw a banner flying from the battlements...a grey direwolf on a white field.

A cold shiver ran down his spine as he realised just what was going on here.

"STOP!" He cried out to the foolish men following his moronic cousin, yelling at the top of his voice but couldn't be heard over their battle cries. "ITS NOT GREYWATER! ITS MOAT CAILIN!"

But it was too late to do anything about it, the guards at the gates quickly shut the portcullis and the reinforced Ironwood doors to stop the Freys from getting in. A bell rang out and men started appearing on the battlements with impressive speed with bows in hand or manning the scorpions and what followed was a demonstration of why the Andals had never managed to conquer the North.

Arrows and bolts started raining down on the poorly protected Freys who yelled out in surprise having not expected to be stopped before they could get inside. Many were wounded by the arrow or scorpion fire and many panicked, fleeing in all directions especially back into the cover of the swamp but as they waded into the mucky water the lizard-lions ambushed them.

Few would ever been seen again, perhaps bits of them anyway.

Aegon with his horse rode as far down the track as he could, clinging to his horse when an arrow lodged itself in his shoulder. Gritting his teeth he pushed his horse south as fast as he could, wishing he had never even come on this trip.

The guards on the walls of Moat Cailin however were none the worse for the surprise attack, their clear view and the yelling of the Freys having alerted them in time to close the gate. Still the maester assigned to the castle sent a raven north to alert Lord Stark to the incident.

---

Winterfell, the North…One Week Later...

Ned sat in his solar reading not one but three messages, one from Moat Cailin informing him of the Freys rather pathetic attack on the castle while the second was from Kings Landing and written by Jon Arryn himself and the third was from Stannis Baratheon surprisingly.

The Northern lords were outraged at what the Freys had tried to do, cutting off trade was one thing but this was an attack and on a very important Northern stronghold too. Granted the complete and utter failure of the attack had many laughing at the Freys' for their incompetence but still the growing hatred of the Freys was causing many to rally their armies around them.

He however had not done the same yet, fearful perhaps because of a letter from his old foster father, Jon Arryn who was scolding him for allowing the situation with the Freys to get so out of hand and escalating the situation with the building of the new bridge. Risking the alliance with the Riverlands in his words was not worth his daughter's happiness or Ned's own pride. So he was telling Ned to forgive the attack, cancel the building of the new bridge and just send his daughter to the Twins immediately.

That honestly made Ned sick to his stomach, to just ignore what had happened and give his beautiful and intelligent daughter to the old weasel to preserve an alliance that he was starting to doubt was even worth it any more. He had never gone against Jon before but this was so revolting to him that if it had not been a command from the Hand of the King supposedly on the King's behalf he would have dismissed it out of hand.

But then came the third letter, one from a man he had not heard from or thought too since the end of the Greyjoy Rebellion Lord Stannis Baratheon. The more grim and stern brother of his good friend the king had a rather nasty tale to tell, Robert had apparently left the capital months ago to deal with the increase of piracy on the southern coast and was by all accounts having the time of his life, even launching attacks into the Stepstones to clear out the pirate dens from where the raids were coming from. But according to Stannis before he had left Robert had said that House Stark was free to deal with the situation as they saw fit and would have the crown's support.

But Jon Arryn had ignored those words and instead send a message demanding the opposite. Many of the letters had for one reason or another not left the Red Keep until now but still Jon had lied to him and tried to wed Meera to Old Walder to preserve this false peace and alliance he had created. Stannis felt it was his duty to inform House Stark of the deception before any decisions was made on his brother's behalf.

To say Ned was angry was an understatement, Jon had raised him in ways more than his own father. He had helped him form his friendship with Robert and when the Mad King had demanded both their heads Jon had called his banners to protect them rather than kill his own wards. He had taught him so much and always been there to advise him. Hells he had even named his nephew after him.

But now...Ned looked at the letter defeated by the difficult feelings running through him. He had been betrayed by Jon in a very considerable way...he had used him and now Ned didn't know what to think. He was only a second son, supposed to serve his brother when Brandon became Lord of Winterfell and if he was lucky be given a small holdfast and find a good wife. That would have been his lot in life if not for the Mad King's obsession with fire and Brandon's ill-judged ride to Kings Landing demanding Lyanna back...but instead here he was shouldering the burden of leading the North.

A role he had never felt fit him and one he never in his life could have prepared for, he was meant to serve not lead. He could feel his ancestors eyes on him every time he walked near the catacombs and felt their disapproval of his actions. After all no lord of Winterfell had ever allowed a sept to be built here before or allowed his marriage to fall apart.

A slight knocking at the door woke him from his dark musings and he looked up before saying with a sigh.

"Come."

The door opened and in walked Jon and Robb, the pair were so different physically but their expressions were near mirror images of each other. They might not be brothers in blood Ned mused with some relief but they were in spirit.

He said nothing and handed them the letters, they both read one each and then exchanged it with the other so they could read them both. The pair of boys were disgusted when they had both read them especially the one from Lord Arryn.

"Father, you can't give in to this." Jon urged him, being surprisingly forceful and informal but the fear for their sister pushed him to speak on this. Ned was impressed almost but felt so tired.

"I was just a second son." Ned said with exhaustion as his worries and the pressures of the last year caught up with him. "I was supposed to serve my brother. I was never meant to rule and to be honest I feel sometimes that it should have been me that was strangled by the Mad King." Ned said just wanting to say what had been on his mind.

"Never say that!" Robb said with fear and anger that their father would wish himself dead in place of their uncle. "You might not have wanted to be Lord of the North but that is what you are! You are the head of our family and we need you! You have to protect our family since clearly we can't trust the southerners to do it." He said with the message from Jon Arryn raised in his hand as if to prove his point.

"You have made so much possible, Meera and Robb might have come up with the ideas but it was you that had the faith in them to put them into action. You who saved me from the abuse of the septa and have taught us all how to be ourselves. You have made all of us proud to call your our father and our lord, one who would stand up for what is right and not what is easy." Jon added and their words shocked and touched Ned more than he could ever say.

What good young men his sons were becoming Ned thought with pride in both of them, they were so strong and brave...far more than he was Ned thought and nodded as with their counsel, his course of action was now far more clear.

"Then we need to make sure the Freys learn the meaning of our family's words." Ned said with a slight smile as similar smiles came to their faces as they caught his meaning.

"Winter is Coming." They both said together and Ned nodded.

"Indeed it is…for the Freys at least." Ned said.

---

Volantis...Same Time…

A pile of bodies that looked dessicated filled a lavishly appointed room with many drapes and carpets made of the richest silk and dyed in the most fantastic colours. But at the centre of the room on a large chair that was made of pure gold and decorated with silk cushions for comfort and wide enough that once could lay their whole body out on it.

Upon it lay Melisandre but her manner and demeanour were now far different than they had been before, she lay with a glass of fine wine in her hand and her expression was one of boredom. She kept making strange tunes with her lips as she was so bored of everything around her. Killing those men that now lay around her had been ridiculously easy but it had served her purpose and her powers were now restored enough to create her illusions. The poor little bitch that had once inhabited this body could create an illusion of youth and beauty to fool others but now at last he could assume his actual form.

A green light that seemed to simmer like fog passed over her body, transforming it as it did so. Leaving an outfit of black, gold and green in fabrics unlike any seen on this world, the shape of the body changed too losing the curved lines of a woman and become more masculine. The final change went to the top of the head and revealed a man of slim but hawkish features, his face sharp and his eyes were now a pale green. His hair became black and a devilish smirk appeared on his face.

"Better." He said his voice now very cultured and almost soothing in a way, glad to have not only his powers back but a body to use them. He sipped his wine and was glad to have chosen Volantis for his little jaunt to regain his powers. The men had been practically dropping at his feet to spend some time in the bed of the female body he had taken over, so much so they hadn't even questioned it when he had brought them all here and drained their life force. The wine he noticed with a slight distaste wasn't bad but it lacked the proper ageing to make it better and the quality of the ingredients was subpar to say the least.

It was palatable he supposed for such a miserable little world.

One that he was stuck in for now he realised with anger, his powers limited and unable to escape. He wanted to rule, to actually live the king and wear the crown but...he faltered for a moment as memories of that last battle haunted him. The sight of Thor bleeding with his eye gone, the land devastated around them...the sight still filled him with dread.

The sensation of falling, crashing into this place and having to pull his body back together. It had almost been more than he could bare, the way using his powers had aged him and he had been forced to drain others to sustain it.

Taking over the cult had been his salvation, diverting the power of their worship had enabled him to sustain his own existence even after his body had withered away and even now was giving him the strength to keep going.

At least until his own plan was completed he thought with a smirk, after all the God of Mischief should always have a plan Loki thought to himself.

---

There we are, hope you all enjoyed it and liked the special guest star! Please review and let me know what you think.

House Barnell comes from the A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying Game.

Loki is only just getting started, he is here for a reason and not just for star power or something silly like that and without saying too much...he isn't the only one from Norse mythology here.

Next Chapter – House Frey discovers the North Remembers, a diplomatic flashpoint between the North and Riverlands, Hoster, Stannis and Edmure make an appearance and Meera's Census reveals much about the improved North.