Previously on POTG: Nathalia slaps Cercei and she makes an agreement with Tyrion.
Thank you for all the reviews, favorites, and follows. You guys have no idea how much of an inspiration they are to me.
Chapter 12: Stay
*Sansa Stark*
Sansa has never seen such a regal woman in all her life. Not even Cersei Lannister could compare to the power radiating from her. She wonders how the woman, who introduced herself as Nathalia, came to know her. She's sure that she would notice someone so beautiful in King's Landing. She almost feels envious on the full lips and long lashes covering Nathalia's strong features.
"T—take me home?" She almost laughs at the thought. Nathalia may seem powerful but no woman could take a kingsguard all by herself.
"You seem incredulous" Lady Nathalia seems to be laughing at her.
Sansa tries to sit up straight. This time, she succeeds without groaning in pain. The throbbing seemed to have lessen, making her very aware of her surroundings. "Where are my ladies' maids?" She doesn't really need them. She just needs to know why they left her so suddenly. She thought that she had made progress in becoming their friend.
"I sent them away" A smirk makes its way on Lady Nathalia's face, making Sansa intrigued about her maids' departure.
"What did you do?" She asks.
Instead of answering, Lady Nathalia merely shrugs and sends her a dazzling smile. Safety seems to be enveloping her bedchambers. It seems astonishing how Sansa feels secured with the presence of the older lady. The thought of a guard coming inside to execute her seems to vanish from her thoughts. Silence reigns inside their room while both ladies studied each other thoroughly. The Lady Nathalia, in Sansa's opinion, is a temptress—in the best way she can describe. She's quite sure that many men fawned over her and would go to the moon and back to gain her hand. The red gown that she was wearing seems provocative at first but can slowly be described as the perfect symbol of the confidence that the lady wearing brings. The beads lined up in the bodies were obviously made by an expert. Only years of experience in making gowns would make such clothing. If the situation wasn't so drastic, Sansa would have been giddily asking her where she got the wonderful gown. Though she wouldn't see herself wearing one—the cleavage is much too exposed!
For a short while, Sansa could almost forget the previous events that occurred. Until a doe-eyed girl flashes in her mind. A loud gasp escapes her. She throws the covers out of her body, scrambling to place her feet on the ground. Oh her sister must be so scared! Sansa has never been so close to her but she knows that both of them would need each other's company since they are the only Starks left in King's Landing.
Lady Nathalia must have sensed her panic. "What's wrong, Sansa?"
"Arya" Was her short answer as she dizzily tries to balance herself on the floor. She feels a heavy hand on her shoulder, making it known that the only reason that she is able to stand upright is the lady. "I need to find my little sister"
She hears Lady Nathalia curse loudly. Sansa's wide eyes darts in the lady's direction, amazed and baffled on how a lady could speak such words out loud.
"A lady never says such words" She reprimands, her instincts coming out in a warning her mother gave her when she was young.
Lady Nathalia looks up at her, making Sansa note how much smaller she is then her, and grins cheekily. "Then it must be a relief that I'm not a lady then"
"W—what do you—" They both stop moving when a sound of muffled cries erupted outside her door. Sansa lets herself be pushed behind of the smaller lady, already trembling in fear of being killed. She takes the hand of Lady Nathalia, her breaths coming out in loud gasps. She has never been good at handling tense moments.
The moment of silence outside seemed to take only a second before metal clashing with metal fills the bedchambers. Tears of fear starts falling from Sansa's eyes, making her vision blurry. Her heart seemed to lose its place on her chest and decided to catapult in her stomach. A vile comes up her throat but she swallows it down. She is going to die before living her life. She is going to die before she has even experience the love that she longed for.
Both ladies seem to have stopped breathing when the door is suddenly thrown open. The first thing that came inside is a sword, poised for killing. Sansa grips Lady Nathalia's hands harder, not caring how she looked so much like a little girl in that moment. Her blue eyes gazes at the blade heatedly. This is the blade that will kill me. A mop of dark curls soon follows, making the owner's face known. The face that looks so much like Ned Stark's surveys the room before turning in their direction. Sansa lets go of Lady Nathalia's hand and launches herself on her brother's arms.
The sword lets out a loud clang before Jon Snow's strong arms encircled her. For the many years that Sansa has been in Winterfell, it is the first that she has ever allowed herself to indulge in her half-brother's affections. She takes a large intake of breath, smelling the snow and pine in Jon's clothes. Her eyes continue to release tears of relief. The familiar face of Jon Snow is enough for Sansa to finally let go of the overwhelming sadness that she felt as soon as her father's head is cut off. Loud, strangled cries escapes her mouth. She grips her brother tightly, afraid that if she will let go, he would disappear and that she would be along once more. Jon lifts her up in his arms, setting her down on the soft confines of her soft bed.
"Jon, you're here" She says, happiness overcoming her grief.
He smiles at her and she almost cries because of how much Stark features that Jon has. "Yes, little sister. I'm here"
A genuine smile escapes her lips followed by a soft giggle of relief. She sniffs, noticing how Jon had moved away from her to cup Lady Nathalia's face in his hands and whisper something to her.
"I'm fine, Jon" Lady Nathalia rolls her dark eyes, the action usually depicted annoyance but it is filled with affection from her. Sansa's curiosity seem to grow stronger at the kiss that her brother has bestowed on the lady's forehead before moving back beside her.
"Where's Arya?" She hears Jon ask.
Another round of tears seems to come out. Her poor little sister must feel so alone. "I—I don't know. I—I was coming o—out to get her b—before—" Her explanation is cut short by the sobs radiating from her body.
Her brother holds her closer but doesn't say a thing. Sansa knows how much Jon is closer to Arya than her.
"We'll find her" Lady Nathalia promises, making Sansa look at her in surprise.
"W—what do you mean? How can you find her?" She knows she is being rude, but the toll of her sister's disappearance overcomes her senses.
Lady Nathalia doesn't seem to be insulted but only smiles at her. Sansa feels her warm hand covering her own. "Do you remember the stories being told of the helpers of the realm?"
Sansa nods hesitantly, not sure where Lady Nathalia is getting at. She's heard of the stories on powerful people helping her father and the late King Robert to best the Targaryens.
"I'm one of them"
*Nathalia*
Nathalia watches as a flicker of confusion, understanding and surprise simultaneously clouds the lady wolf's face. It seems as if the whispers that she has heard about Sansa Stark's beauty are proven to be true. She has been present in the birth of the Robb Stark but has not stayed for long to witness Sansa coming out from her mother. While having no Stark features, Sansa has been blessed by the beauty of Tully features. Nathalia is sure that she will grow to be more beautiful than her mother when her moon blood comes.
Jon wraps his strong arms at the stunned lady, offering his support. A pang of longing for someone to hold her in a friendly embrace is quick to disappear when she remembers why she's here.
"Come" She says in her powerful voice. "We must be quick as to not get caught"
Her surprise is shown when Sansa did not move and shakes her head. "No"
"What?" Nathalia asks in disbelief.
"I'm not coming with you" Is the younger girl's attempt to elaborate her meaningful word.
"Sansa, you must" Jon sits up straight, looking at his younger sister annoyingly—not that Nathalia blames him. The girl's judgments are quite foolish.
"No, Jon. I want to help you"
"You can help us when we reach Robb's camp, Sansa" Jon tries to reason with her but the lady wolf only pulls away from his arms, standing.
"I will stay here and help you" Nathalia notices the honor hidden beneath her Tully blue eyes. Perhaps she has a Stark in her after all.
Nathalia laughs, amused by the young girl's proposition. "Do not be foolish, Sansa. They will surely know that I've been here. Cersei will murder you herself"
The young wolf shakes her head once more. Her mind must already be made up. "What if Arya decided to come back? I won't be here to welcome her…to keep her safe. I will only come to Robb's camp if I have Arya with me"
Nathalia drowns the loud protests of Jon, focusing on the stance of the lady wolf. She must be scared. Poor girl. She could tell how nothing will change Sansa's mind. The conviction in her voice alone is the reason why Nathalia is not dragging her towards Robb Stark's camp. King's Landing might have done something good for Sansa if she is able to talk like a powerful woman. Maybe Tyrion would not lose his mind if he has some company to talk about their rebellion against the crown. Nathalia is sure that she can summon some helpers to pose as one of Sansa's handmaidens while watching over the young wolf.
"Sansa, you could get killed—!"
Nathalia cuts of Jon with a raise of her hand. She smiles at Sansa. "Very well. I will not pressure you into joining us"
"I will" Jon takes a small step towards his sister, making her roll her eyes. She raises on hand, freezing him mid-step.
"Hush, Jon" Then she takes a step forward. "If you think that this is the right thing to do, then I have nothing more to say" The lady wolf beams at her, glad to know that someone is on her side. "However, I will send some help. Be sure to stay out of trouble, Lady Sansa. You are a very brave girl"
The girl meekly expressed her gratitude. Nathalia can see the surprise hidden beneath her eyes. Perhaps nobody has trusted her to do such things before?
"Come, Jon, we must go" Nathalia says, releasing Jon from the hold of the wind and turning towards the open door.
She sees the dead bodies of Sansa's guards and wrinkles her nose in disgust. Jon should have just knocked them unconscious instead of letting their blood stain the clean floor. Surely she well have to hide their bodies before anyone will catch sight of them—though she is quite surprised that no one has. It is either people have chosen to ignore the revolting sight or security in King's Landing is becoming scarce. Raising her hands, the blood is quickly absorbed by the guards' clothes, not a drop in plain sight. She manipulates the wind like she did with Jon and sends the guards in a poorly lit corner of the room. She hopes that no one would notice them in the near future.
"Are you out of your mind?"
Nathalia sighs. Jon will be difficult in the nearby future. "We must leave before anyone notices us"
"I cannot leave Sansa here. The queen will manipulate her—I know it"
Nathalia whirls around, her eyes blazing. "Do you have such little faith on your sister, Jon?"
Nathalia triumphed over the guilt on Jon's eyes.
"We, helpers, do not help by manipulating people to do the more sensible actions. We take pride when the people that we are helping learn from their mistakes" Nathalia says and walks away. She does not wish to be mad at Jon but his stubbornness could get to her nerves sometimes. Jon follows shortly after. Just as he wishes that Sansa could go with them, he cannot help but accept that Nathalia's declaration only made him look like a child in a tantrum.
I know that this chapter was short. Sorryyy.
So Sansa stayed in King's Landing! I know what you're all thinking: WHY? Well, dear readers, I have some plans for the older Stark girl. After all, I love cooking up a nice revenge hehe. Don't worry though. This isn't the last that Nathalia sees Sansa. She did promise to keep her save, right?
REVIEW REPLIES:
Ojha: Thank you! I'm glad you kept on reading even though you weren't so sure at first. I think that Cercei getting slapped was my best idea yet. Hehe. And yes, it might take a while for Robb to meet Dany. Sorry
Arian Eripmav: Thank you! Sorry it took so long for this chapter. I promise that you won't be disappointed in the upcoming ones.
MrVemom10: We'll see hehe..she does have powers that she can use instead ;)
COMING NEXT: Nathalia looks for a suitable protector for Sansa.