Chapter Seven: Treaties and Alliances

Jon POV-Two days later

They were finally here. All 20,000 of the Lannisters. The past few days had been spent eating, drinking, resting, and sending letters. The letters had been to Mace Tyrell about a possible union of their houses between himself and Lady Margaery, to Tywin Lannister about the exchange, the Martells about a possible alliance through marriage of Sansa, and the Baratheons, who had finally joined forces, about an alliance through marrying Arya and Renly. He knew Renly would do his duty by Arya, despite the rumors of his inclinations, and that he would allow Arya to do as she pleased afterward. It was the best match she could hope for. None but Tywin had answered as of that moment.

In a moment, Jon had issued his orders. Archers manned the walls, a sortie of all their cavalry behind the gates mounted and ready, and the rest of the men in a Phalanx position in the courtyard ready to march to the gates as needed. The remaining men not on duty were sleeping and would replace those on the walls and in the courtyard as need dictated. He gathered Ser Jaime and used his powers over the dead for the first time since training. Summoning ten skeletons at once took quite a bit of power, but he need not hold it long. He quickly ordered them dress in ordinary leathers and chainmail as Robb had the army previously outfitted in and covered their heads in hoods. Using the powers over shadows, he shrouded their faces. Jaime was gagged, and Jon proceeded out on foot halfway down the bridge.

Soon enough, Tywin Lannister appeared himself, along with what looked like twenty guards. As per custom, he dismounted and walked to the middle of the bridge as well, Jon's sisters both behind him, wrists bound and gagged with tears streaming down their cheeks. He hoped they were tears of relief, not pain. As the two men met, they shook hands, guards ten feet away with the prisoners.

"Lord Stark." Lord Tywin greeted him stiffly.

"Lord Tywin." Jon replied evenly. They sat at the table provided and began to read and sign the treaties. Once they had finished, they stood and traded copies.

"I will send over the eldest first. The youngest may follow when my son is at the halfway point." Tywin said in a tone that brooked no argument. Jon shook his head.

"No. My brother may have been killed and fooled by treachery, but I am not him. Bring the girls and two guards, and I will do the same with Ser Jaime." Jon replied in a hard tone. Tywin's eyes glimmered in anger for a moment before nodding shortly, wanting this finished.

As the girls drew near, Ser Jaime did the same from the other side. They drew to a stop right behind both men. The guards released the girls at Tywin's nod, and Jaime was set loose as well. They crossed paths, coming to a stop behind the two men on their own sides now. As Tywin turned to leave, Jon called for him to wait a moment. As he knew he would, Jaime stopped as well, and so did Tywin's guards. His own skeletal guards had immediately taken the girls toward the castle gates. Once they were mere steps away, the gates opened just enough to let the girls slip in where Jon's commander had them brought to their own chambers. The skeletal guards remained outside the gates. Jon drew a breath, then acted.

With a quick movement, his dagger was in hand and slicing across Ser Jaime's throat. Two more slices saw the two closest guards drop and a stab was aimed at Tywin's throat. Before it connected, a guard jumped between them. The dagger buried itself in his throat and Jon jerked it free with a curse. He changed it to a sword with a thought, barely blocking the final guard's slash in time. Tywin fled, dropping the treaty as he ran for his horse, shouting at the army that was amassed in the encampment. Most of them had seen what had happened.

Jon quickly blocked a stab before brutally cutting off the man's head. He gathered the other treaty, using his powers to burn them both to ash. He turned and quickly ran to the gates, using his speed, trained by Hermes himself, to reach them just as a party of horsemen made the bridge along with several swordsmen. The gates closed behind him, and he rushed up to the top of the walls. When he reached them, the order to fire had already been given, and the party of horsemen had already fallen. The men following began to fall quickly as well, the valyrian arrows finding their way through the armor more easily than steel, though some bounced off the plate mail. Those men quickly died under another onslaught of arrows that found their mark in unprotected areas of the armor. Lannister men now marched across the bridge forming ranks as Tywin began to regain some control.

Wanting to prevent that, Jon drew on his powers as he called for his horse and for the cavalry to move into position. He flooded the bridge quickly, drawing Lannister men down into the bogs and swamps either drowned or set upon by the creatures within. He hurried down and mounted his horse as another wave of soldiers appeared. Tywin sat on his horse stunned. Using his powers to dry the bridge with heat as his party approached the gate, Jon led his cavalry forward with a cry.

"Charge!"

The cavalry thundered over the bridge and into the Lannister men who had not had time to rally. They mowed them down and continued on through rank after rank of unprepared men, chasing Tywin down as he fled to his camp. They killed man after man, rank after rank, battalion after battalion. They devastated the enemy, but Jon sounded the retreat upon seeing ranks of spearmen in the distance being marshalled by Tywin. He could use his powers to bring fire or lightening or even water upon them, but it was a high risk with a low amount of men to guard him compared to the army they faced.

Jon led his men back into the gate and gave the Lords and commanders their orders. He set men on the walls and at the gates, and set a revolving shift change to keep them fresh, fed, bathed, and battle-ready. He then went to his chambers for a family reunion. As soon as he entered the room he was hugged fiercely by two blurs.

"Whoa now, easy." Jon said smiling as he slowly extricated himself from them and looked upon their tear-stained faces. "It'll be alright now. You're both safe. I have been doing things to ensure that you stay that way no matter what."

"Jon, you don't understand…" Sansa replied brokenly. Arya clutched her sister in support, anger shining in her eyes.

"What is it Sansa?" Jon said patiently, worried. He could feel something…off.

"She has been raped!" Jon's mother said in his mind angrily. He could feel Artemis' rage as well. Suddenly understanding, Jon reached forward and grasped Sansa's chin, raising her head.

"Did they hurt you? Defile you?" He asked her forcing himself to remain calm.

"Y-yes. Tywin let many of them use me. They used all of me Jon. I still feel the horrible things those men did to my body. The marks are probably still there in some places. He wanted to 'soil the Northern flower' he said." Sansa told him as tears began to pour out once more. He hugged her hard, crushing her to his chest as anger swirled within him. He would kill Tywin one way or the other for this, painfully.

"I can't tell you it will be alright Sansa, nor do I know how to comfort you I admit, but I can say that he will pay for this. I will kill him for this. I can also tell you it will not affect your future." Jon said strongly.

"My future?" Sansa asked in a whisper, fear in her eyes. He understood. The last time an arrangement had been made for her, it ended in Joffrey.

"Nothing too horrible I assure you, sister. I have arranged marriages for the both of you in return for alliances. Hear me out!" Jon said loudly as Arya opened her mouth angrily and Sansa took a step back in fear, shaking her head.

"Fine, but this had better be good." Arya said angrily. Jon almost smiled.

"It is. Sansa, you are to be wed to Prince Oberyn Martell or his elder brother. Oberyn has many lovers, but no wife. He is experienced in the bedchambers, aye, but fiercely protective of those he loves, appreciates beauty not purity, and spoils those whom he cares for. His elder brother is the ruler of Dorne currently. He is crippled, but patient, caring, kind, and best of all you would never need worry about being too intimate with him unless at your own pace. Children he already has, though their mother had forsaken him a long time ago." Sansa seemed to gain some strength and confidence at his words and looked somewhat hopeful and yet doubtful all at once. He turned to Arya.

"I have arranged for Arya to be wed to Renly Baratheon. You may or may not have heard of his inclinations, but they do not lean toward women. He would do his duty by you and likely no more. If you fell in love, bore him many children, and grew happy with that, it would be great. If not, do your duty by him in return, and then he would happily allow you to practice the sword or whatever else you choose, and they certainly may not be rich, but are well off enough to see to whatever happiness you require. In return, both these people would give us their armies in our time of need, as well as food, trade, and more. The details are not set, nor are the agreements. I am merely letting you know of them beforehand. Do you agree?"

Sansa hesitated, but slowly nodded. Arya watched her older sister quietly for a moment before sighing.

"What if they don't do these things?" Arya asked him.

"Then you need only get a letter to me. If they break the terms of the marriage or alliance, we will bring our armies to bear on them and rescue you, as I did this time. This is a risk you must willingly take. I do not believe any of these men to be malicious in their intentions however, and believe that with proper instruction or luck, you may yet control them instead." Jon answered.

"Instruction? What does that mean?" Sansa asked, speaking up once more.

"First I must know, do you agree?" Jon asked them. They looked at one another. Sansa broke first after some hesitation, nodding quietly. Arya caved soon after. "Good. If this does not work out, there is someone who would happily take you both in for your protection and own good. For now though, there is someone I would like you both to meet, someone who will teach you both how to control your future husbands better, along with many more things I am sure. Meet my mother."

At this, a soft white glow permeated the room. Out of this stepped a truly stunningly gorgeous young woman. Her beauty seemed to capture the heart of all those present, and stirred their lust, even her own son not being totally immune.

"This is Aphrodite, goddess of love and pleasure, and my mother." Jon said in introduction, bowing to his mother. She smiled at him and focused on the two girls, Sansa in particular.

"My dear girls. Come with me. Let me take you for a bath and let us talk on things." She said in her musical voice. "There is yet hope, and I will revive you and help you both to achieve your potential, for the love my son bears you."

In awe, Sansa and Arya were too stunned to say anything or to resist if they had wanted to as Jon's mother took them into the white glow, most likely to her home, to talk to them. Knowing they would return when she had finished as they had discussed, likely three days she had told him, Jon called for a hot bath brought to him and undressed quickly and climbed into the hot bath when it was brought. After he bathed and soaked for a moment, he went in search of some food.

Now that the battle had been joined as planned, the food was being rationed, though not strictly yet. Jon was brought some roasted chicken, a bowl of steaming venison stew, some hot loaves of bread and butter, and a jug of sweet red wine. As the King in the North, he was entitled to some privileges, and since he had not brought along a whore he figured food was the next best thing. He quickly ate everything to the last drop and left to check the walls. The Lannisters had made camp and set watches, but no activity could be seen in the dark at this distance. Giving orders to ensure no scouts got close enough to probe the walls, he left for his chambers once more. No letters had arrived in his absence, and he was exhausted, so he turned in for the night, getting a pleasant night's rest before the events he was sure tomorrow would bring.

Jon woke to the sound of bells being run and someone knocking on his door. He rolled out of bed, summoning his dagger quickly as he opened the door, cursing himself for forgetting to set guards on his door. I was only Lord Umber fortunately.

"The Lannisters are attacking, your grace." He said in his booming voice.

"As planned." Jon said with a smirk. "To your post, Lord Umber, let us show Lord Tywin what his army is truly worth against the might of the North."

Lord Umber nodded and hurried off to see to his men. Jon closed the door and changed into comfortable and warm clothing before activating his armor over the clothes. He changed his dagger to a sword and left the room at a jog. He stopped by the kitchens and grabbed some bread, meat, and cheese with a cup of milk. He ate quickly and then rushed to the walls. Sure enough, the Lannister army stood in formation facing the castle. A lone man on a horse rode forth, stopping halfway down the bridge.

"Lord Tywin is generous. He bids you turn over Jon Stark who killed his son, lay down your arms, agree to peace, and no harm shall come to any other. He will leave the North to its own devices."

"Right." Jon said sarcastically. The men around him laughed. "Lord Tywin is known for being so forgiving to his enemies. He protected the man who slaughtered my family at a wedding! He had Ned Stark, your lord, executed! He had my sister Sansa raped and beaten, defiled in all ways, by his men before the prisoner exchange. This is the mercy my men are to expect? We will have none of it."

Around him, his men nodded darkly. They glared at the messenger and the Lannister army behind him. Many stares of hatred were reserved for the man sitting on the horse in front of the army in fine armor. He ignored them all as his messenger continued.

"If you do not do this, your consequence shall be death! If Lord Tywin takes your castle, you shall all be put to the sword, your women and children enslaved, and all memory of you erased! This is not the path you want. Remember the Rains of Castamere is no mere story! If we take your castle, all of this will come to pass! What is your answer?" The messenger shouted arrogantly. Jon merely lifted his head and answered with one word.

"If."

The messenger stared at him dumbly as the men around him cheered and stamped their feet. He looked at his lord, who nodded, and he gave them one last chance.

"Lay down your weapons!" He shouted. His answer was a strange arrows that pierced his heart. It killed him instantly and he toppled off his horse who trotted away in fear. Jon lowered his bow.

"Come and take them!"

With a shouted order from Tywin, the enemy army advanced. They carried ladders, two rams, and had one siege tower. A lot of work for one night, but Jon assumed they had such things prepared beforehand. He sent the order down the line to burn the siege tools and to fire upon the enemy. He was sure they couldn't break the gates right away, and there was an entire fully armored phalanx ready to greet them if they did anyway, but better safe than sorry.

"Kill them all!" Jon's father's voice sounded in his head deeply, almost like a growl.

The archers fired again and again. Soon the ladder and siege tower was on fire, followed by one of the rams, but one of them made it to the gates and they heard a booming noise as it began to be put to use. The archers continued to kill rank after rank of soldiers while Lord Umber's men poured burning oil down on the men with the ram and dropped a torch on them. They caught fire and died, but were soon replaced. This process continued for most of the day, the blistering cold and snow putting out the fires quickly. It was getting colder by the hour, and snowing harder. The Lannister men were horribly affected, shivering and slipping, unable to keep their footing. Jon's men shivered occasionally too, and it affected their ability to keep burning the men at the gates, but it did affect them less as they were used to it far more than the men attacking them.

As night began to fall, the snow began to let up a little and Jon thought the attack would be called off, but with a loud boom the gates finally were breached. He hurried over and jumped down in front of his men. Taking a lead position with them, he made the phalanx march to just inside the gates, blocking entry to the fortress. The Lannister army marched forward, charging Jon and his men inside the gates. They were met by shields and thrust back. After each thrust of the shield, came a spear thrust, killing the front line before they were replaced and then repeating the process. The archers continued to slaughter vast amounts of the enemy cut off and vying for entry below. Stuck in this kill box, the Lannister army could not retreat, nor push forward.

After two hours of this, Jon began to tire along with the men behind him. He passed the order down the line for relief, and with the next push of shields the line behind them took their place quickly. They were pushed back slightly, but quickly gained ground after a moment of quick and dirty work. Jon and the others in the front line slowly swapped places with each line behind them until they managed to exit the situation, being replaced immediately by fresh men led by Lord Howland Reed. Jon nodded to the man as he took command of the gates and went up to the top of the wall to see how things were going from there. As he caught his breath, he looked out on the invading army.

To his surprise, it wasn't much of an army anymore. In his grief, Tywin had thrown everything at them. He barely had maybe five thousand men left. Grief and anger shone clearly in his face, intensely. In that moment, Tywin shouted for a retreat. Jon was prepared for this, though not totally expecting it in that moment. He ordered the sortie ready and left to mount his horse too. They all rode out together, overtaking many of the soldiers that were running, causing a panic. The men cut down all they could reach, but Jon ignored all that. Instead, he pushed his horse to its limits and aimed for the armored man on horseback.

When he finally caught up to Tywin, he severed his horse's back leg, and it threw him to the ground. Jon dismounted his own horse as Tywin rose and drew his sword, his face set in anger. He attacked wildly, slashing and hacking at Jon as quickly as he could in his anger, forgetting all his training. Jon easily parried all of the attacks and with a contemptuous flick of his blade, he sent Tywin's sword spinning away into the darkness. Snow had begun falling again as the two enemies looked at one another. Tywin opened his mouth to speak, but only a gurgling sound exited as Jon stabbed him in the stomach. Drawing his sword out, he stabbed him once more in the leg. As Tywin fell into the snow on his knees, Jon finally ended it, cutting off the head in one clean strike. He took the head, climbed back on his horse, and rode back to the castle to mount it on a spike without a backwards glance.

As he went he sounded the horn to let his men know to fall back. The rest of the enemy could flee west and live for all he cared. The Lannisters would not trouble them for a long time yet, if ever again. After mounting the head, he instructed the cooks to make a victory feast. He went to his rooms to clean himself, clothed himself in his warmest and finest furs, and sat at the head table.

He feasted with his men after a brief speech complimenting their hard work. The feast was good given what was available. Roasted chicken, gravy, potatoes, buttered carrots, slabs of ham, fried onions, hot loaves of sourdough bread, butter, fish rolled in salt and pepper, and ale, wine, and water. Bellies full and warm, many men went to bed happy and satisfied that night, Jon included. He knew that he would soon have to deal with the Iron Born as well, but he hoped that would come after winter had ended or at least let up. Sailing in the cold was usually a miserable affair he was told. Any replies sent in response to the letters he had written would find him at Winterfell all the same as he resupplied and sheltered there temporarily to build up their supplies, and so with all taken care of for the moment, Jon slept peacefully once more.

When he awoke the next morning, he readied his men to march to Winterfell. His heart was already a little lighter thanks to the fact that the snow had let up and actually seemed to be melting a little. Winter had struck, and would periodically do so getting worse and worse, but it was good to know it had not yet become untenable. With a positive mindset, he mounted his horse after a hearty breakfast and gave the orders to move out, leaving behind a guard force of two thousand men to hold the Moat.

"Hopefully things will begin to look up." Jon thought to himself as he left.