A/N: Hey everyone :)
I finally had time to write the next chapter of this story, I will admit I jumpstarted the relationship a little bit between Rhaegar and Arya (I'm not a patient person to say the least lol) so there's that to be forewarned of, I do hope I did it in a way that's natural though and not rushed and I do hope you guys like it. Another forewarning, I can't write smut to save my life, but I did try for this particular story and chapter because I felt it needed something a little extra spicy thrown in, I'm not sure if I did a good job or not but I tried my best and what's posted is as far as I was able to get to without trashing the whole chapter lmfao so hopefully it's okay.
Anyways though I hope you guys enjoy :)
Chapter Six: A Chance For Change
Walking into her bedchambers after the Prince, Arya lingered by the door, slipping her hand to the latch she flicked it to the right to lock the door. She wasn't planning to do anything with the Prince, but she also didn't want her father or uncles to make a surprise visit to her, only to catch the main culprit for the rumors inside her room, alone with her. Only the gods knew what kind of trouble she would get her aunt Lyanna into if that happened, or rather herself into.
From the door, she silently watched him walk around her chambers, he was curiously looking at the neat ornaments that didn't belong to her, running his fingers over them carefully. He hadn't said anything to her yet, the silence was starting to irritate her, she wanted him to talk, she never was one to be patient for anything. Arya raised one of her eyebrows when the Prince stopped his movements by the bed, his legs were close to the edge of the bedding but he wasn't touching the bed, instead he was mainly eyeing it with a mischievous glint in his eyes that Arya knew all too well. She's seen that look before, on multiple men, eyes on her or another girl in the whore houses she did brief training at for the House of Black and White.
Arya found that she quite liked that look in his light eyes, it didn't daunt or disgust her like the men she had previously encountered at those whore houses, disgusting men that sent her instincts on a flight or fight response into a flurry. His look didn't make her want to turn tail out of the room, or make her feel ready to pick up any blade she can get her hands on to protect herself. It made her feel hot under her dress, it made her throat dry, her skin itchy and tight in an unusual but pleasant way.
Finally after what felt like hours he turned to her, she ignored his piercing gaze on her face, she didn't want to meet his eyes, she still wasn't comfortable with her bodies reaction to this man. It was strange for her body to do anything without her permission, she's trained herself to be vigilant of every move, every expression, every emotion. How quickly he could disarm that training frightened her, it made her vulnerable in a way that she hasn't been in a long time, like a little girl, vulnerable in a way that she promised she would never be again after the Lannister's murdered her father right in front of her and Sansa.
"May I take a seat?" He broke the silence between them, flickering his eyes away from her, seemingly in tune with her internal battles, which just made Arya that much more irritated.
"Of course." Arya nodded, she stared as Prince Rhaegar slowly lowered himself to the edge of her bed, barley on it at all, feeling like she looked silly still standing by the door, she walked to the head of her bed and sat down as well. More properly then the Prince did, he was forced to turn towards her, which made Arya smirk with childish mirth.
"You're leaving." Rhaegar said to her, it's a statement rather than a question, Arya's confused for a second because she thinks he means at this very moment but on closer inspection she realizes he means Harrenhal. She doesn't know what to answer back right away, his expressive eyes were no longer mischievous, they were sad, as if the thought of her leaving was physically hurting him.
"I am," Arya answers back with another nod, she looks straight into his eyes, "my brothers think it's best to go back to Winterfell where hopefully the gossip of your rash decision will lessen with any luck." She doesn't look away from him, though he seemed sad that she was leaving, she wasn't hesitant to make it clear why her family and herself had to take an early leave.
"My rash decision?" He shakes his head with a laugh, as if the thought that crowing her could be anything but a rational choice is amusing.
"What else would you call it Your Highness?" Arya crosses her arms at her chest, his purple eyes flash down where her breasts are unintentionally pushed up before they meet her own, unlike when Lord Baratheon looked at her breasts she didn't feel anger or disgust in the pit of her stomach, "Foolish perhaps?" Her tone had turned from serious to playful, in the dark parts of Arya's mind she's pleased that his choice to crown her his Queen of Love and Beauty was one made of sound mind on his part, the way he says it would make one believe the decision was an obvious one, that he would have been foolish to NOT crown Arya. The prideful part of her brain is joyous of this, the other parts of her head are calling her an idiot for harboring these feelings.
"No," he says to her, Prince Rhaegar moves closer to her, the bed squeaks under his weight, protesting his movements. He's almost as close to her as he was when he came to her room after the tournament, she fights the urge to close the small distance between them. His closeness is intoxicating, she swears she can feel his breath fan across her face, she wonders if his touch would burn her, excite her like it did the last time they were in a similar position, "I'd call it honest." He finishes saying.
"How so?" Arya breathlessly asked, her cheeks heat up from the blush that spreads over her face and chest, to her own ears she sounds ridiculous, like Sansa when she tried to sound sexy to Joffrey on their journey from Winterfell to King's Landing but the Prince doesn't seem to mind how she sounded judging by the darkening of his eyes. He lifted his hand to her, pausing briefly just before her collar bone, hovering his hand there, seeking permission, Arya slightly leaned forward, his touch is like air, hardly felt at all as he runs the tips of his fingers across her collarbone and up her neck.
"I was asked to choose a woman worthy of the title," his voice was breathy, like hers, which instantly made Arya feel less embarrassed of her reaction to his closeness, though she thinks he pulled off the sound far better than she ever could, "I did." He moves his body even closer to her, close enough to whisper that in her ear, his breath tickled her neck, he was now just as close to her as he was that night, and just like that night, Arya wanted to forget everything in the world to focus on him, to give her body over because it didn't feel like it belonged to her anymore, it was his.
"You're married." Arya states with a slight shake to her head, the words heavily float between them but they don't snap them apart. It surprises Arya when that statement, that thought doesn't bother her as much as she feels it should. She should be pulling away from the Prince or pushing him away, she should be making the right choices, smart choices for her aunt Lyanna's future, her future, but she can't help but wonder if Rhaegar is a right choice for her future. He was a powerful man, someone that could help prevent the rise of the Lannister's, someone that could provide her the necessary tools she needs to protect her family, someone who could prevent the marriage between herself and Lord Baratheon.
"I am," He said back to her, his face was now pressed into her neck, his nose made slight contact with her, he was more hovering there than anything else, his hands were clenched on his lap, no longer touching her. He couldn't deny that fact even if he wanted to but Arya is still mildly surprised by his bluntness to her statement. It's said like it means nothing to him, like it was a minor character flaw to his person, not at all as it was, what it was is a whole person, a whole woman whom he made vows to, there is supposed to be meaning to that, there is supposed to be honor in those vows.
"You have children." She whispers this part to him, this is also something that doesn't bother her as much as it should, it's another statement that should stop her closeness and interactions with the Prince, but it doesn't.
He pulls back from her neck, giving her some much needed space to properly breathe without inhaling his smokey scent, he looks to her with little emotion to his face, scrutinizing her expression instead, "I do." He states back, just as nonchalant as before.
"It doesn't bother you?" She questioned him with a hard edge to her voice. A part of Arya wanted him to say it did bother him, she wanted him to say he loved his wife and he wouldn't dare risk tearing their family apart, this admission would give her a further excuse to pull away from him the way she knew she should have done already. A larger part of her head and her heart though wanted him to answer that it didn't bother him, that whatever they have between them was worth every second of exploration and worth the risk he was taking.
Arya was raised with more honor then this, she wasn't raised to look at another woman's husband, let alone to contemplate bedding that husband and taking him for herself. Furthermore she never imagined any man would incite that feeling of wanting to do that in the first place. She hadn't anticipated to ever feel the kind of emotions Rhaegar arose in her, it was conundrum that wrestled inside of her, she wasn't sure where she wanted to go from here, where the best place to go was, not only for herself but for her family as well.
"No," he replied, taking a deep breath Rhaegar slowly grabbed her hand in both of his, giving her time to pull away if she wanted to, which she didn't, before he continued talking, "I have no love in my heart for Elia, I once thought that I did but I quickly realized what I felt was a responsibility to the duty that my father and mother put on me to marry her. I do love my children, but this, " he motioned between them, "is unlike anything I have ever felt before, and I don't want that to disappear, I don't want you to leave." The last part was said to her in a hurried whisper.
"I have no control in whether I leave or not, that's decided by my brothers," she told him, it was unfortunately a misogynistic truth, she as a woman had little say in anything in her life, something Arya hated, she was of sound mind and body to make her own decisions, she didn't need that right taken away from her because men thought she was the weaker sex, "For what it's worth though, I've never felt like this either." Arya admitted to him, this unexplainable connection she feels to Rhaegar was tantalizing.
There was nothing she could do about leaving though, her uncles and father had already decided that this was the best course of action for them to take, there would be no hope in trying to persuade them otherwise, if she attempted to, it would only make them more suspicious of everything, give them more of a reason to hover over her, which she wanted to avoid at any cost. She could however do something about her future here, her aunt Lyanna's future, and her families futures, and it all stemmed back to this one man sitting next to her, lovingly and gently cradling her hand in both of his as if it was made of the finest jewels that could shatter at any moment.
Arya took a moment to really look at the Prince, he was so obviously and glaringly beautiful, it almost hurt to look at him, it was entirely unfair for a man to be this pretty. She almost felt like a troll next to him, she couldn't find it in herself to feel this way though, not truly, not when he looked at her like she was the most gorgeous thing he's ever had the pleasure of viewing, it felt unjust to feel like a troll when he looked at her like she was a goddess capable of the most disastrous and stunning creations in the world, she had no right to feel unworthy when he looked at her like this.
She hesitated only briefly before she opened her mouth to speak, not entirely knowing what would come out "Do you ever wonder what the future holds for you? If you'll be happy or sad? If you're making mistakes now that could be detrimental to you? Do you ever wonder how or when you'll die?" It's not all what she thinks she means to say but the questions come sprouting from her mouth anyways, one right after the other. Silence follows her questions, Rhaegar tilts his head to her, his lips pressed together in a tight line, she thinks she may have asked something wrong but the more the silence carries on the more she's curious as to his answers.
Lines appear on his forehead from him scrunching his eyes, she couldn't tell if the questions made him uncomfortable or if he was busy answering them to himself to answer her out loud, Arya continued staring at him, his eyes moved around her bedchambers, pausing on her chests of clothing that she assumes Lyanna never finished unpacking when she arrived at Harrenhal for the clothing inside of them was half out and messy.
"Truthfully, I've never had any reason to wonder what my future holds, since my birth everything has been planned out for me, I've never had the opportunity to make choices that would lead me to a future that wasn't one already mapped out. One of the only choices I've ever made that was purely my own was giving you the crown of winter roses the day of the tourney. I suppose I have been questioning my future more since then." Rhaegar revealed to her, Arya felt for him, she really did, she had nowhere near the responsibilities or expectations that he did being the Prince and future King of Westeros, but she had felt the pressure people had put on her to fulfill expectations of her station in life. Her life, like his, had been decided from her birth, she would grow up a Lady, marry some rich Lord, birth him sons and daughters to carry his family line, and die of old age knowing her purpose in life as a Lady was met. Even with her father's indulgences in her more unconventional likes and hobbies and her attitude towards being a Lady, there was always an undercurrent that permitted the air around them that said she would one day have no choice but to follow these expectations of her.
"You don't think of death?" She pressed for more information, she knew in the previous past with her aunt Lyanna he died in the upcoming months, Lord Baratheon killed him "avenging" Lyanna as it's thought that Rhaegar kidnapped and raped her. This killing is just one of the many things that took place in Robert's Rebellion that has repercussions for years to come, it's just one of many things that forever changes everything in everyone's lives, even someone who has yet to be born like herself. She couldn't imagine letting Rhaegar die in this current timeline she's living, he had to live, she was sure of it, he was a catalyst for so much bad in the future, she was positive this was one of the changes that the Old Gods wanted to happen.
"Sometimes," he plainly said to her, not elaborating. Arya thought about telling him everything, how she wasn't Lyanna, about his future, about her family and the changes she had to make if she wanted to get back to her own time with positive changes, she thought about telling him the truth, and she even went as far as to open her mouth but she closed it within a second of opening it, he wouldn't believe her if she told him, beyond that she couldn't risk someone else knowing and making things worse.
"Do you?" Rhaegar asked her in return, seemingly genuinely interested in her answer.
She thought about death all the time, but Arya knew she couldn't tell him that, it would look very strange indeed for a Lady like her aunt Lyanna to be contemplating death with such a serious note, having no real reason too. Arya had reason to, she paid her share of dues to the God of Death, she stood on his doorstep more than once, only to turn around when he opened the door because her dancing teacher told her to say to herself and to the God of Death "Not Today".
"I once met a dancing teacher who told me that when the God of Death comes to take you away, you look into his eyes and you tell him "Not Today", I have wondered since if this God would respect polite declines of his arrival." She told him a partial truth, not wanting to lie to him completely. Before he could answer anything back to her, she was talking again.
"If what's meant to happen in your future is horrible, would you change it if you could?" Arya whispers to Rhaegar, to speak louder than her whisper seems like a crime to her, her question was left on a silent note again, she wondered what Rhaegar was thinking was going through her mind, why she was asking such questions. She didn't even know why she was asking him these questions, Arya felt like she was looking for some assurance that changing the bad things before they happened isn't bad in itself, she felt like she was looking to him to justify the thoughts running through her head.
"If given the chance to change a horrible future then yes I would take it, I would assume that chance was given for a reason." Arya nodded to his answer, her chance to change the future was given for a reason, she was meant to fix mistakes, to fix the past because the future it leads to is beyond terrible, but that chance of change is so unknown to her, Arya could just end up making things worse then what they currently are, and what then? How does she fix that? Would she even be given a second chance to fix everything if she messed it up?
Rhaegar is visibly concerned with her line of questioning but isn't saying anything to her about it, just letting her intake his words and make of them what she will, she must have him confused beyond belief, she's sure this turn of conversation was the last thing he expected to encounter when he entered her chambers, the thought of that brings a small smile to her face that Rhaegar notices, he smiles back at her, the edges of his smile are unsure of its purpose but it's still genuine regardless. It's his smile to her that makes her final decision in this moment.
Taking a chance at change for a future she never wants to be relived, she hesitantly closes the little bit of space that separates them, slowly she wraps her arms around Rhaegar's neck and lets her body slowly climb on top of his, straddling him, pressing her heat against him, trying to get some reaction from that part of his body, this connection between them feels right, it feels natural. His hands move automatically to hold her waist, his fingers pinch her as they clench her flesh through the material of her dress.
"Lyanna." He speaks softly into her ear, it hurts that he says her aunt's name and not her own, she doesn't want to be reminded right now that he isn't half in love with her, he's half in love with her aunt Lyanna, she doesn't want to think about the fact that he doesn't know Arya Stark, she doesn't want to think about how he probably never will know who she really is. She sees him open his mouth again to say something else, instead of letting him Arya presses her lips to his to incite a messy kiss between them, one that has her clenching her thighs, pressing impossibly closer to him, closer to the growing bulge she feels beneath her. She doesn't want to hear anything about Lyanna right now, she wants to pretend he knows who she is and she wants to pretend he's choosing her, not her aunt. Even though this choice is actively in favor of a better future she can't lie to herself and say she wasn't falling hard and falling fast for Rhaegar, despite it all, she couldn't deny that she wants him.
Without warning he holds her tighter as he breaks their kiss, abruptly moving them to the middle of the bed, he manages to carefully untangle her from him to move her underneath him, slotting his body in between her spread legs. His closeness to her is thrilling, his breath is warm against her face where he puffs trying to catch his breath from their kiss, his touch is burning her in the most wonderful way.
Unexpectedly his leg moves up to wedge itself between her thighs, Arya unconsciously clenches herself around him, she hisses through her teeth when a shot of pleasure shoots through her core, making her whole body vibrate.
She scarcely holds back a moan when his leg slowly begins a rocking motion, her arms tighten even further around his neck, needing something to steady herself so she can ground herself down on him, trying to match his every move. Her hands tangle in his silver locks, gently pulling his hair, his hands are on her hips guiding her along with him at a slow but steady speed. Arya's eyes are focused on him completely, but his eyes are trained to where her dress rides up, exposing her creamy thighs to his wandering gaze.
Arya moans deep in her throat when his leg moves faster, she clenches harder, desperate for something only he can give her in that moment. Her body freezes mid motion, she was definitely spasming from the pleasure that flowed from her most sensitive area, Rhaegar hadn't stopped his rocking motions, instead he watched with dark eyes as she came undone, pride swelled his chest, he's the one who brought her to that brink, he's the one that got to witness her flustered skin and her deep-rooted moans.
There was silence between them as Arya tried to catch her breath, Rhaegar didn't press for more in that moment, letting her instead come to terms with what she just felt but it was obvious he wanted to continue. Her grey eyes flickered downward to his erection that pressed against her center again, she bit her bottom lip to prevent herself from gasping at the firmness, she was no green girl virgin experiencing things for the first time, but she has only been close like this with one other man. The entire encounter with Gendry was fast (truthfully over before it really started, over far sooner than Arya thought it would be), hard (Gendry tried for gentle but Arya couldn't stand the sweetness of it, and had demanded he go faster because they weren't making love), and lacked intimacy (Arya thought of him as her friend not her lover, even in that moment). This short escapade with the Prince was different, the things he made her feel were foreign, it was fast yes but it held so much more emotion behind the action, it her feel so much more then she thought she was capable of.
She wanted more, she wasn't satisfied with the taste she just got, with Gendry she couldn't wait for it to be over so she could leave, the periodic thought in her head was not how much she was enjoying Gendry's snapping hips but rather that she could die with no regrets during The Long Night. She had assumed that every act of intimacy after that would be met with similar results, she was young in mind to think that.
Arya had taken a bite from the forbidden fruit, it tasted like nothing she's ever had before, and she has every intention of finishing it.
"Please." She says to Rhaegar, pushing her hips up, indicating what she wants from him, he gently smiles at her before holding her hips down, he presses his face into her neck to start pampering kisses there that he trails down to her collar bone and then to the top of her flushed chest.
She pushes through her doubt that's telling her that this might not be the right decision for the future, reminding her there is no going back after this. She pushes through her Lady lessons that tell her Rhaegar is a married man with kids, telling her he's Princess Elia's husband and not hers to touch and wither beneath. She ignores that little voice in her head telling her all the reasons why she should stop before things went further between them, this was her choice, she was sent to the past against her will and for the first time since being brought here, she feels good, she feels whole, and despite the consequences that might result from this decision, she wasn't going back from it.
A/N: Arya and Rhaegar are gonna give me a heart attack with all this chemistry lol. Arya finally made a choice, this choice was to sleep with Rhaegar, what happens from here? I have no idea lol so stayed tuned for the next chapter to find out :)
Hope you guys enjoyed, feel free to leave a review :)
***ANSWERS TO REVIEWS***
To: Lilly1127: Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, it's beyond appreciated :) I understand where your coming from as a reader, and your notes on the story are not just going over my head, I promise lol. However as much as I don't want my story to disappoint anyone, and as much as I wish I could give for-sure answers as to what happens in later chapters I can't :( I'm writing this as I go with a vague outline so even I don't really know where I'm planning to ultimately take this story. I am doing my best to mesh Arya's character into these new settings she's found herself in, well at the same time keep her "Arya-ness" (I love that by the way lol) intact, well at the same time trying to build a relationship between her and Rhaegar (because the story is centered on them) that feels genuine and natural, not just something she had to do in order to get an upper hand at saving her family. Some things that happened in the original book and in the show might happen again and they might not, I can't promise an all or nothing deal, which I'm sorry about. I appreciate you sticking around for another chapter, however if you find this story isn't for you then that's okay too, I would hate to lose a reader, but I understand :) thank you so much again for leaving this thoughtful review, I really do hope you enjoy the next chapter, whenever I post it lol :)
To: Varvara11: Danke schön! Ich freue mich, dass Ihnen die Geschichte so gut gefallen hat, dass Sie mehr wollen :)
To: Scillacci: I'm very glad you like the story so far :) it's always amazing for me to know that there are readers enjoying what I write. Now at the risk of repeating myself in these responses to reviews lol jk I cannot promise anything. I would hate to promise that I'm taking this story that way or this way to appease readers when I actually don't even know as I have yet to write anything out yet (personally I'm the type of writer who doesn't really know what's going to happen next until I've actually started writing), I would hate for readers to be expecting something from the story and me not being able to deliver what their expecting. I do understand that you and other readers have expressed your dislike for the story to have Arya just be a bystander to Lyanna's past, I completely get that you guys don't prefer to read a story like that, and that's okay because to each their own in fanfiction :) However, I do have to disagree that if I were to keep that original concept of Arya not changing anything that no one would read the story, I personally have read stories of similar background in different fandoms and I've loved them and I do firmly believe that some readers would enjoy such a story for this fandom as well, I understand that maybe that kind of story isn't for you, but just because it's not for you or some other readers doesn't mean it's not for everyone :) now all this is not to say I'm opposed to Arya making changes to the past, because that couldn't be further from the truth, all I'm saying is that I haven't wrote anything yet since my last chapter so I literally don't know how this story will go and if there will be changes or not and if so what or how much will actually be changed lmfao, as always though I will do my best to keep Arya as Arya in this story. Thank you so much for your review, I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the story :)