The next morning Rhaena had been brought breakfast by a servant whose knock had awoken her whereby she had rushed to the door and almost completely forgotten about Bran in her bed. Thankfully she was able to take the tray herself and thanked the servant for bringing the food to her before shutting the door behind her. It was then she saw the mop of hair peeping out from under the covers and with a jolt, remembered that the little boy was still in the room with her. Hastily Rhaena put down her breakfast upon the small table in her room and went to the bed in order to rouse Bran from his sleep. He was befuddled and confused, but upon realising he was not in his own room, he was soon leaping up and untangling himself from the sheets. Rhaena laughed at this, helping him free himself before setting him down on the floor. "Take care now, do not get caught little bird." She said to him as they looked out beyond her door to check that there was no one else in the corridor before Bran took off running, but not before he made Rhaena promise that she would sing for him again and answer all his questions. She waved him off, thinking him to be a sweet and endearing child before returning to her breakfast in peace.
It was a pleasant morning for no one else called upon her or demanded her presence. She was not expected to make herself useful and earn her keep by working alongside the servants or managing the children, so her morning was happily spent reading quietly until she decided that a walk might be a refreshing alteration of attitude. So, after tying her hair back with a ribbon and putting on her thickest dress, the same she had worn yesterday, Rhaena set off in no particular direction and with no destination in mind to walk through the castle of Winterfell, smiling softly as she hummed, listening as the echo sang back to her. Deciding that she might go outside for some fresher air, Rhaena attempted to recall the way back to the courtyard or to find some other route to the outside when she heard something else echoing in the hallway, footsteps. Initially she tensed in preparation for whomever it might be, expecting it to be one of the guards or perhaps even one of the Kingsguard sent to fetch her, but when the owner of the footsteps turned the corner Rhaena stiffened entirely as her eyes widened. It was Lord Eddard Stark himself in quiet conference with his wife, Catelyn Stark. Recovering her senses Rhaena stepped to the side and bowed her head, allowing them the full corridor to pass as was now instinctual to her. To her surprise, however, both stopped before her and spoke to her directly.
"How do you find Winterfell, little one?" Rhaena could not hide her expression when she lifted her face to stare at Lord and Lady Stark, gaping at them rather stupidly before she mentally slapped herself and fought to give a sensible answer.
"Very beautiful and comfortable, my lord. You have a fine household." She informed him with a respectful incline of her neck, lowering her eyes once more.
"You are well provided for?" He pressed which made Rhaena want to smile. Lord Stark was true to character, it appeared, continuing to be concerned for the welfare of one as unworthy and insignificant as herself.
"I am content, thank you my lord." She promised him quietly. Both the Lord and Lady Stark studied the girl before them, finding her rather meek and timid. A man may not notice, but a woman and certainly a mother would take note that although wearing a winter dress, the one Rhaena wore was still too thin to contend with the cold and had only another single layer underneath. She had no cloak, no gloves, no furs to keep her warm and Catelyn also noted how the dress the girl wore was the same she had been wearing the day before. Already Catelyn was making arrangements in her head for the girl to be given proper clothing. She could not make anything herself quickly enough, but the child was small and had a similar build to Sansa, so perhaps some of her old things would do well. Catelyn glanced to her husband as he spoke, wondering how he could not have also noticed.
"Good. Do not be afraid to ask for something should you need it. You are very welcome here, my lady." Rhaena curtseyed once again and spoke with her elegant manners to thank both the Lord and Lady for their hospitality, earning a motherly smile from Catelyn who reached out in order to lift the girl's face.
"You will freeze to death if you do not dress more warmly. I shall look for some things that you may wear whilst you are here. At the very least you will need a cloak if you are to go outside." She spoke with warmth and natural affection which Rhaena was not accustomed to. The only maternal love she had ever seen was that of Cersei towards her own children and it was never directed at her. Such softness and kindness was unexpected, so much so that Rhaena began to stiffen in suspicion that there must be some kind of expectation to be returned for the favour of such a gift. She held her tongue, however, from any curt remarks and instead thanked the lady as graciously as she was able. Her eyes turned to Lord Stark then, a twist in her gut and tongue prompting her to want to say more but years and years of indoctrination to remain silent and know her place took hold and kept her silent. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a flicker of movement and a glimpse of movement and a white cloak as it appeared then was quickly snatched away to remain out of sight. They were being watched. Of course they were. "I shall have the clothing sent to your room. You will let me know directly if there is anything else you require." Lady Catelyn insisted as she lowered her voice to whisper to Rhaena. "Such as ladies' necessities."
"Of course, my lady." The offer was kindly meant, Rhaena knew this, but she could not help but remain hesitant to accept such kindness. She curtseyed low to the Lord and Lady Stark even as Lord Eddard insisted that it was unnecessary and that Rhaena did not need to be so polite towards them, telling her that she was a guest in their home and that she may go where she liked and make herself comfortable here. She remained in place as they went on their way, sneaking secret looks after them as she then slowly rose back to standing straight. They seemed to be a wonderful pair of people. Perhaps the North, in all its hardship and bitterness, bred kind and warm people in its wake. Hiding her smile, Rhaena turned and walked in the opposite direction in order to continue her walk, dismissing her previous plan to go outside as she had no cloak of her own, as Lady Catelyn had noted to her. She knew that there was one of the Kingsguard close behind her, probably Ser Boros who was following her about her walk to see where she went and no doubt report back to the queen who she spoke to as the knight did not do well at concealing his loud steps. Rhaena turned down and took a flight of stairs which brought her past a door which lay open, and the laughter of children caught her attention. The door opened the way to the outside and a breeze brought in a chill which caused Rhaena to shiver, however she recognised at least one of those voices, and eventually her curiosity and longing to see the children outwitted her reason of staying inside where it was warm. Stepping out into the courtyard, Rhaena immediately spotted Bran, who appeared to be playing some sort of game with his siblings, the ones Rhaena was yet to meet. Arya and Rickon. Seeing Rhaena approaching them, Bran immediately stopped what he was doing and waved brightly to her.
"Rhaena! Rickon, this is the girl I was telling you about." Eagerly grasping hold of his younger brother, Bran all but dragged little Rickon over to meet Rhaena who smiled as she quietly approached them.
"The dragon lady?" Rickon frowned then looked up at Rhaena. His jaw dropped wide open. "Where's your dragon?"
"I have no dragon, little one. They all died a long time ago." Rhaena told him simply as she lowered herself down in order to greet the youngest of the Stark children. "Hello Rickon, my name is Rhaena." Rickon gave Rhaena a dimpled grin, squirming on the spot as he continued to clutch onto his brother's hand but, upon deciding that Rhaena seemed and looked to be a very nice person – and also because his feet were aching – he flung his arms around her neck as he knew well that when he did so, usually the person would lift him up. Rhaena did not disappoint, giving a surprised laugh before wrapping her arms around Rickon and lifting him off the ground to easily tuck him against her hip so that he was nestled safely and warmly against her as he rested his head against her shoulder.
"I'm going to find a dragon one day, they can't all be dead." The rather wild looking girl known as Arya suddenly appeared with them, having emerged from her hiding place in favour of talking to the exotic guest everyone was so interested in. "I'll sail into the sun and search the lands until I find them." Arching an eyebrow at the rather strong bravado of the girl before her, Rhaena chuckled as she naturally began to sway with Rickon.
"I would love to come with you, Arya Stark, if there is room for another upon this ship you plan to sail upon. That sounds like quite an adventure." Rhaena told her before then noticing to the wooden sword Arya was holding. "Do you train?"
"No, but I'm good with it, I can jab people good and proper." Arya grinned then proceeded to demonstrate her ability by using her poor brother Bran as her victim, jabbing him in the ribs which caused him to yelp before he then lunged for her and Arya leaped out of the way, arching her back like a cat and giving a rather unladylike shriek of laughter as her brother began to chase her. "Come on, let's see what you've got!" Arya challenged her brother with a wolfish grin, holding her sword out and adopting a fighting stance as Bran did the same after running to get a training sword of his own though he seemed rather clumsy in his grip, struggling to hold it aloft without it wavering. Rhaena observed with a soft expression as she continued to hold Rickon, listening to the clack of wood hitting wood as the two fought one another in play. Arya clearly had no formal training, but she was quick and determined whilst Bran remained clumsy and uncertain of himself. Rhaena longed to give suggestions to help Bran at least hold the sword better but she held her tongue. What talents she possessed and any skill she had beyond reading and writing were kept a close secret, especially from the king and queen. Were it known to everyone that Rhaena knew her way about a sword then she would be dead by sunset. As for her teacher…she could not even imagine what would be done to him were they found out.
"Arya!" A shocked shout pulled Rhaena from her thoughts as she turned to see that Sansa had appeared, wearing a beautiful shade of pale blue that set off her eyes perfectly as she all but stormed over in order to scold her sister for fighting with Bran. "You know you are not allowed to do such things; I shall tell mother that you are playing at knights and soldiers again." Sansa vowed which caused Arya to scowl at her older sister.
"We were only having some fun. Besides, if I'm going to be a knight one day, Sansa, I need to train." Arya quipped back though this only made Sansa scoff with a slightly snide sneer which Rhaena did not think suited her at all.
"Don't be ridiculous Arya, you can't become a knight. Ladies cannot be knights. Only men can." Sansa chided as she lifted her chin rather proudly. Beside her Lady sat down quietly at her heels, having padded over with her mistress though her arrival summoned the other direwolves from where they had been resting in some hay where Rhaena had not even noticed them, jolting slightly when all three came bounding over. She could not guess which one was which, but if she recalled what Sansa had told her yesterday then these were Nymeria and Shaggydog as well as Bran's unnamed wolf pup.
"Why not? What makes men better than girls?" Arya demanded to know, placing her hands on her hips rather defiantly.
"We're stronger than you are." Bran piped in as he swung his wooden sword at the open air.
"And girls are smelly." Rickon giggled in agreement from where Rhaena continued to hold him, one of the direwolves now moving towards them and sniffing at Rickon before then turning his attention to Rhaena in order to learn her scent. Soon all four of the direwolves were sniffing at Rhaena, causing her to gulp and laugh nervously before looking to Rickon.
"Does that mean I smell, Rickon?" His eyes widened before bashfully shaking his head as Sansa then began to reprimand him as well.
"Girls are not smelly, Rickon, it's rude to say such things." Sansa told her little brother but he merely stuck his tongue out at her. This time Rhaena laughed a little more comfortably. She looked down at the four direwolves, thankful that they were still only the size of pups. If they were fully grown, she imagined she would be panicking and trying to retreat by this point. Warily she opened her free hand, turning her palm outwards so that one of the direwolves could sniff at her with its wet nose before then beginning to lick at her fingers.
"Nymeria likes you Rhaena." Arya declared rather happily, grinning at Rhaena who still felt a little nervous and faint as the four direwolves all tried to lick and snuffle at her hand. "Nymeria! Come away girl. Nymeria!" Nymeria clearly had a slight problem listening to orders so in the end, Arya had to pull her direwolf away from Rhaena herself, Lady and Bran's wolf going to their respective masters upon being called whilst Rickon instructed Shaggydog to sit. Eventually the creature obeyed, though it took several attempts, but Rickon was proud of the achievement and turned an expectant grin at Rhaena who immediately praised him for a job well done.
"Oh my, I see you have all gathered and yet I hear no arguments? Perhaps miracles do happen." Lady Catelyn announced with mirth as she approached the gathering of children, looking over each child in turn and smiled to see Rickon in Rhaena's arms though in her shock to suddenly be greeted again by Lady Catelyn, Rhaena instantly dropped into a curtsey with the boy still in her arms. "Oh stand up girl, it is only me." Breathing a sigh of relief, Rhaena stood up. "I seem to recall, however, saying that it was much too cold to be out here without a proper cloak, Lady Rhaena." To this, Rhaena winced with guilt.
"Yes, my lady. However, I heard the children playing and could not resist taking a look and getting to know them a little better." She excused, giving them all a smile in turn. "You have wonderful children, Lady Stark. They are all…lively and lovely." To this Lady Catelyn arched an eyebrow and gave a special look to Arya but smiled all the same.
"Lively I agree, though some perhaps need to work on being lovely." Lady Catelyn's tone then took on that of a mother. "Arya. What have we said about you running around with toy swords?" To this Ayra only scowled and groaned in annoyance but dropped the wooden sword as her mother's gaze was stern and expectant. "You are a lady, Arya. You must start behaving like one. Especially now when we are under the scrutiny of our guests." A dutiful 'yes mother' was muttered with a great deal of bile and bitterness, causing the lady to sigh heavily. "I am glad you are all getting along nicely, however. Lady Rhaena, please do not remain out in the cold. You should come inside before you take ill." Knowing better than to argue, Rhaena agreed to do as she was bid however the children all decided to follow her, crowding around and returning inside with her as their chattering and twittering began. Behind them, Rhaena recognised Ser Meryn Trant was still watching her closely, a deep frown set on his face. They children followed her gaze as they entered the castle to find somewhere warm to gather and think of some other game to play.
"He seems mean." Rickon noted in his simplistic yet rather accurate childlike sense, instinctively knowing that the person watching them was someone he would not like and cuddled in closer to Rhaena who naturally hushed him gently and stroked at his hair.
"He is." Rhaena murmured. "He is like a shadow to me."
"Can they not trust you to go anywhere alone?" Sansa questioned in disbelief, her eyebrows delicately knitting together.
"No."
"Well, how about we go to the godswood?" Arya suggested, already tired of being inside despite it only having been a few moments. "We can show Rhaena what it's like." Bran and Rickon liked the idea, especially with the direwolves crowding all around them however Sansa reminded Arya that Rhaena had nothing to keep her warm and shouldn't be outside in the cold for too long. "So? Can't you lend her some gloves and a cloak? Or you can borrow mine if you like. We're used to the cold here, but you must be freezing." To this Rhaena could not deny that she was indeed beginning to shiver rather violently.
"Oh no, you really are freezing! Let's find you a fire and sit down for a while. We can show you the woods another time." Sansa immediately became concerned and caring, forcing Rhaena to put Rickon down so that she could lead her to the nearest fire and have her sit beside it for a while as Arya ran to fetch a shawl and blanket for Rhaena to wear and warm up with. The boys both ushered the direwolves close to Rhaena and she had to admit that with one of them sprawled across her feet and the others pressed against her legs, even through her dress she could feel their warmth. The children all rushed to take care of her, Rickon bringing cushions in order to prop Rhaena up until she laughed and assured them that she was perfectly alright and they needn't worry. So instead, she settled Rickon upon her lap and began to tell all of them stories from the books she had read in the great library of King's Landing, as well as recalling the events of the most exciting tourneys she had ever been able to witness and described the dashing knights as they fought for the honour of victory. She held a captive audience completely enraptured by her stories, though Sansa was more interested in the ones about the handsome knights. It was Bran and Arya who questioned her about dragons, because of course what else would they be interested in when they were in the presence of a true Targaryen descendent? So Rhaena regaled them with the stories of her ancestors and their dragons, for she had studied them well as it was a shared interest between herself and Lord Tyrion. In the back of her mind, she noted she had not seen Tyrion at all yesterday and had left the feast so early he had not yet even arrived. Perhaps later she would go looking for him.
Time flew away so quickly with the children utterly enraptured by Rhaena's stories that they did not even notice how hungry they were until they were being called for supper. Recognising their rumbling stomachs, the children all leaped to their feet and began to race to where their food was being laid out for them though Rickon paused and turned back to look behind him. "Will you come and play with us again and tell us more stories?" Rickon called back to Rhaena who stood with Sansa's arm looped through hers.
"If you would like me to." Rhaena agreed with a smile to the little boy who grinned back at her brightly. "I know I would love to."
"We'll come and find you!" Bran waved to her with Arya before the pair shoved at one another before racing away with Rickon toddling in tow. Admiring their energy, Sansa and Rhaena followed at a more subdued and ladylike pace whereby Sansa began to apologise for her siblings and their behaviour, calling them wild little animals and the like so Rhaena laughingly assured Sansa that she enjoyed their liveliness as it was a welcome change from her usual daily routine of sombreness and boredom. Giving her arm a squeeze, Sansa glanced around before lowering her voice with a clear sense of excitement in her expression which Rheana had already learned meant that Sansa had some gossip she wished to share.
"I have heard that the king is speaking with my father, he wishes to arrange a marriage between Joffrey and I." Sansa whispered to Rhaena who flinched at the information and immediately felt a cold sense of dread in the pit of her stomach. Poor, sweet, innocent, naïve little Sansa. She had no idea the beast Joffrey truly was.
"Are you sure that is what you would want?" Rhaena asked her reasonably with a slight touch of apprehension for she feared she already knew the answer.
"I would be a queen! Of course I want it." Sansa clutched Rhaena's arm so tightly she feared it might snap. "And you and I could be close friends at court, it would be wonderful!" She went on for quite a while, talking about the dresses she would wear and the tournaments she would go to as well as the jewels she would have and how she would be able to bear little princes and princesses for Joffrey.
"Will you ever marry, do you think?" Sansa asked Rhaena suddenly, making her laugh sharply without meaning to at the stupidity of the question so she quickly cleared her throat.
"Not if the queen had her way. The king would not risk me producing an heir to strengthen the Targaryen claim to the throne should my brother, Viserys, comes back. Which he will, if he is like any other Targaryen I have either heard or read about, he will want the throne for himself." Sansa gasped in horror at the thought.
"He would make war on us?"
"My dear friend, if he is anything like my ancestors, he would burn everything to the ground just to purge the kingdoms from traitors and dance among the flames." Rhaena told her and she paled visibly.
"Would he come north?"
"That depends if he sees a threat. But hopefully, it will never come to such things. He is a Beggar King, he needs to cross the sea with an army if he hopes to claim anything and he cannot afford so much as a slice of bread without begging for it. I think we are in no danger of such a war ever happening so you need not concern your pretty head over such things." Rhaena soothed and watched Sansa visibly relax before she then looked at Rhaena with a pitying expression, one Rhaena had learned to bear from many kinds of people.
"It must be awful for you, a princess reduced to little more than a servant." Sansa took Rhaena's hand and squeezed it softly, attempting to offer her some comfort. "I hope that we can remain friends, Rhaena, I do like you."
"I like you too Sansa. I never knew that the north could hide so many wonderful things." Rhaena answered before entering the side chamber where a smaller gathering was present for supper and Rhaena was welcomed instantly by Lord Stark, who spread his arms in welcome and sat her down as if she were one of his very own children. All dark thoughts swiftly melted away and soon enough, Rhaena was laughing and joking with the Starks as if it had been her place there for all the years of her life.