Arya expected the welcoming committee when they arrived, but she didn't quite expect Sansa to stomp up to them looking so much like their mother about to scold her for dirtying her dress. It still gave Arya whiplash to see Sansa walking around Winterfell with how much she looked like their mother and how some of the older servants and maids looked at her like she was Catelyn brought back to life. Right now, she looked all like the woman who birthed both of them as she stared the two of them down.

"I got a raven from Bella saying you were leaving and you should have been back over a month ago, would you like to tell me why it took you so long to get here?" Sansa asked.

"We just took our time," Arya said with a shrug. "We hadn't had the chance to really travel around Westeros together without worrying that someone was going to come out of nowhere and chop off our heads. We just wanted to take our times and see the lands a little bit before coming home." It wasn't strictly a lie, which was probably the only reason that Sansa wasn't going to be able to see through it. It was perhaps a good thing that Bella wasn't at Winterfell anymore because if there were anyone who could see through their lies, it would be Bella.

"Really," Sansa said, and she didn't sound like she believed them. "Gendry? Is this true?"

"You know we want to travel someday, Sansa," Gendry said, which was also not strictly an answer to the question either, and Sansa narrowed her eyes. She had no proof that they were doing anything wrong, and even if she did know about the Westerlands bandits, it's not like it was wrong. Those men were killing people, and they needed someone to take care of them. Sansa looked between the two of them and seemed to visibly deflate a little.

"I know none of this appeals to either of you, but Arya, you're a princess and Gendry, you're her husband and a knight. You both have duties and things that need to be done for the betterment of the North and for our family. If you want to take a long trip, the very least you need to do is let you king know so when people come looking for you both because you're supposed to be back he doesn't have to make up some excuse," Sansa said, and Arya winced. Jon was an honorable man, and the last thing she wanted to do was put her brother in a position where he would have to lie for her sake. She glanced at Gendry, and he sighed as well.

"I'm sorry, Sansa," Arya replied. "Sometimes, I forget that there is more at play here than just what I want to do."

"I know, it has never interested you before, and I know it doesn't interest you now, but we have to be united as a family. There aren't any other options anymore, and being united means all of us," Sansa said softly. "Now, the two of you look exhausted and disgusting. Please go take a wash in the hot springs, and I will let everyone know that you have arrived home safely after unexpected delays in the Riverlands."

"Thank you, Sansa," Gendry said, and he smiled at her. Arya knew that smile because it was a smile that he was learning to use a lot more. It was a smile that was disarmingly beautiful and could usually force people to forgive him for any transgressions. She didn't like it when he used it on her, and Arya snorted a laugh when Sansa raised an unimpressed eyebrow and waved him off. Arya took Gendry's hand and pulled him through the castle to their room. There were clean clothes in their trunks, and despite how sore and tired they both were they Arya was glad to go down and soak for a little while.

The hot springs underneath Winterfell were something that Arya always enjoyed as a child, but as an adult and married woman, she loved them. She loved locking the door and pulling Gendry into the warm water with her. She loved the way his hands felt in the water and how they had time for indulgences like this. Arya threaded her fingers through Gendry's wet hair and sucked on his tongue. She thought about the dream she had in the Riverlands about someone trying to take him away from her and how she wouldn't ever let that happen.

Gendry sucked a bruised onto the tender skin of her neck that was only just going to be covered up by the collar of her shirt, which was a little irritating. If she moved the wrong way, everyone was going to see it, but she also loved knowing that he was the one marking her. She knew that it was only a matter of time before Sansa came looking for them, but right now, she didn't care. Right now, Arya wanted Gendry, but it seemed that time was not on their side. She could feel him hard against her, and she was pulling him between her legs when there was a knock on the door.

"Princess Arya?" a servant said, and Arya groaned as she rested her forehead against Gendry's shoulders. He was clearly trying not to laugh and failing quite miserably. "Your brother, the King, is looking for you and has asked that you come and see him immediately."

"Do you think he knows what we're doing?" Arya whispered.

"I don't think your brother wants to think about what we do when we're naked," Gendry replied, and they weren't going to have time to finish this off properly.

"We'll be out in just a moment," Arya called out as they quickly finished washing and climbed out of the hot spring. It was cold, and the shock of the cold plus the interruption must have been enough to kill the mood for Gendry. He still looked a little uncomfortable as he got dressed, and Arya wanted to make fun of him, but that seemed a little mean. So she pulled on her clothes, took his hand, and they walked through the castle to Jon's solar. He looked up when they opened the door and smiled when he saw them.

"I was getting worried," Jon said as he gestured for them to take a seat. "Sansa told me what you both said about exploring and wanting to travel around Westeros, and you know that I want to support you both doing that, but I need some sort of notice. I can't have people coming around and looking for my sister for some reason only for her to be missing. No one likes it when Stark's go missing these days."

"I can't imagine why," Arya deadpanned, but there was something about this that was bothering her. "Why would anyone want to see me? I'm not Sansa, I don't have any specific duties, so it's not like someone is going to get anything by talking to me."

"It was a representative from House Dustin," Jon replied, and he shrugged. "He didn't say why he wanted to see you just that there was something important he needed to talk to you and only you about."

"I'm sure that's nothing to worry about," Gendry said.

"People came looking for you too," Jon said, and Gendry winced. "Now granted, most of them are Lords of various houses hoping that the great Ser Gendry Stark will make them a great weapon that they can pass along to their children, but it is something."

"You high horns are so obsessed with passing things along to the next generation," Gendry said as he shook his head. "I'll take their orders when they can start looking me in the eye and respecting the orders for what they are. I put a lot of work into the things I make, and I don't like that those people look down on me for it."

"I won't allow it," Jon said. "All someone needs to do is look at my crown or Daenerys' crown or Yara's crown to see how talented you are. I won't have anyone look down on you."

"That's nice of you to say, Jon, but you can't make them do anything," Gendry said with a shrug. "You know some of them still resent me for being here at all."

"Don't remind me of politics," Jon said as he rubbed his temples, and the door opened as Sansa and Theon walked in. Arya was a little surprised to see Theon since he usually avoided conversations like this, but it seemed like he was a little more secure in his place here. He made Sansa happy, and it would make Sansa happy to see Theon jump at loud noises and shy away from crowds a little less. Perhaps it was only a matter of time before he was better.

"Is he complaining about politics?" Sansa asked as she sat down at the table.

"Oh yes," Arya said with a smile.

"He has every reason to," Sansa said. "We are getting ravens from the lesser houses, and they are starting to ask some questions that we need to start thinking about." Bran and Meera came into the room a few minutes later, and the door was finally closed as they were all finally settled down so they could talk.

"What are these ravens?" Bran asked.

"The houses want to know about the crown and what we plan on doing next," Sansa and they all stared at her because it seemed like no one, even Jon, knew precisely what she was talking about. "Jon is still unmarried, and that makes them nervous. They don't like a king that doesn't have any heirs."

"I don't want to talk about this again," Jon said.

"But we need to talk about this," Sansa said. "They want some sort of plan for the future, and you not having any heirs seems to be some sort of indication that you don't have any."

"That doesn't make sense," Jon said, but he looked a little uncomfortable about this entire conversation. "Sansa is my Hand, she would rule in my place if something happened to me, and Bran is my heir with Meera followed by Sansa and Arya and Gendry. I don't see why that is a problem."

"They don't like that there aren't any children running around," Bran said as he reached over and took Meera's hand. "They know that there is a chance that I won't be able to have children because of my accident, and until Meera gets pregnant, we'll never really know one way or another."

"I'd like to wait a few more years, but I have a feeling that isn't an option," Meera said, and she frowned.

"Meera, I don't want you to force yourself to get pregnant just because it's what a bunch of lesser lords want. If you aren't ready, you shouldn't have to have children yet. I'm young; we're all young, there isn't any reason we have to rush this," Jon said.

"I can assure you, Jon if it is going to happen, it's going to happen. We're not exactly careful," Meera said with a smirk that made Bran's ears turn a little red. Arya didn't want to think about her little brother having sex, and judging by the faces that everyone at the table save for Gendry made no one else did either. Gendry, to his credit, didn't look like he really cared either way.

"Thank you for the update," Sansa said carefully, and Meera just looked far too pleased with herself about this entire thing, which only made Arya laugh a little to herself. "Jon, I'm currently unmarried and don't plan to be with anyone besides Theon, and he cannot have children anymore."

"Sansa, we've never really talked about-" Theon said.

"I'm not getting into this conversation yet again," Sansa said a little louder as she looked over at Theon fondly. "I chose you, and you're the one I want to be with. I don't want to lie with another man anyway, and the idea of lying back to think about Winterfell, the North, and heirs turns my stomach. I can't do it, I just can't, and you know that. I want to be with you in the capacity that we are currently together. It is more than enough for me." Theon blinked, took Sansa's hand into his own, and kissed her knuckles.

"Jon," Arya said softly. "You know that I can't have children either. It's not exactly something I want to let all of the kingdom know, but they are going to figure it out eventually."

"We don't have to tell them it's you," Gendry said. "We can blame me, say there is something wrong with me, and that's why it won't happen. It's no one's business, but I won't let people look down on you because you're a survivor." Arya smiled sadly at her husband and didn't say anything; she wasn't sure she wanted anyone to know anything about the fact that they couldn't have children.

"When I decided to honor Arya's marriage and continue to allow Sansa and Theon's courtship, I knew that this was something that I was going to have to deal with eventually. I just didn't think it was going to have to be so soon," Jon said as he leaned back in his chair and rubbed his temples. "I still love one woman, and she isn't here anymore. I never thought I would have to marry someone for political reasons, so it's not something I've exactly had time to get used to." Jon glanced at Sansa. "How much longer do you think I can hold off the lords asking about my marriage?"

"It would depend," Sansa said.

"On what?" Jon asked.

"On us," Bran said. "If we're going to have a child, then you could name him or her as your heir, and it would calm the lords down long enough for you to find someone to make a strong alliance with."

"They would be happier if I named you or your children my heirs anyway, Bran," Jon said with a bitter smile. "They said they support me, and at the end of the day, they probably do, but they want a trueborn child of Ned Stark on the throne, which I am not. If I name you and your children as my heirs, it might make them more willing to follow me for the foreseeable future."

Arya's first instinct was to yell and insist that Jon was their brother and a Stark, he had the name, but she held her tongue. This was one of those moments where she knew that she wasn't playing the game properly. It didn't matter that Daenerys legitimized Jon the same way that it didn't really matter that they legitimized Gendry. There were always going to be people that judged them for their birth and what that meant. She might not like it or agree with it, but that didn't make it any less accurate. It was the same way that someday they were going to have to make a formal announcement that she couldn't have children, and people were going to see her as lesser for that even though it wasn't her fault.

"I'll begin to draft formal ravens to send to all of the lesser houses, and then we need to consider your marriage, Jon," Sansa said.

"It was the choice I made when I decided to become King of the North, and I would do it again to give the three of you the chance to marry for love," Jon replied. It was selfless and something Arya could see her father doing. While the lesser houses might claim that Jon was not Ned's son, her father was all she could see in her older brother.

Sansa sent out the ravens the next day, and Arya wished that she could feel a little better about it. She wasn't supposed to be anywhere close to the crown, yet there weren't that many people between her and ruling the North. Arya didn't want it, she didn't even want to be a princess, and if she could relinquish her title, she would in a second. There wasn't anything Arya gained by being a princess, and it only seemed to make her life harder. It made people look at her like they expected things from her, and it made them judge what she did with her life. If she was just Arya, she could take Gendry, and they wouldn't have to worry about any of this. They could find a small home with Nymeria and just live without any worries.

That would mean leaving Winterfell, and that wasn't something Arya thought she could do again. She wasn't sure she could leave for longer than a couple of months at a time. Even being away to help in the Westerlands and Storm's End with Edric, Mya, and Bella was a bit too much. The North was part of her, and any time she was away from it was like leaving a part of herself behind. Arya didn't want that either, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She would do her duty as a princess of the North and help Jon the best she could. She would turn the other cheek to the people who looked at her like they couldn't believe that she didn't have a babe on each arm already. They were talking about Gendry, they were blaming him because it couldn't be her fault and Arya didn't want that.

"Let them blame me," Gendry said when Arya went to visit him the second time she heard someone mention how they didn't have any children even though they had been together for so many years. "They already say that I'm a southern bastard who isn't good enough for you. We might as well let them say there is something wrong with my cock too."

"You don't mean that," Arya said because there was no way he meant that. Gendry didn't even look up from the work he was doing on Yara's crown as he looked over the metal and frowned. He was detailing the metal to make it look like wood, and it was a process that was taking so much time.

"I do," Gendry said. "What's one more thing to add to the many reasons they already hate me? It isn't going to make a difference one way or another at this point. If they find out you can't have children, even if they found out how it happened, they might hold it against you in some way. One of us should stay in good standing with nobles, and you're a lot better at faking pleasantries than I am. I can just hand them pretty weapons; they won't know how to use and pretend I don't hear what they say about me."

"When did you get so smart?" Arya asked.

"I didn't. We both know I'm an idiot as you like to remind me," Gendry said, and he looked up to smile at her. "Sansa suggested it, and I agreed with her; giving them one more reason to think I'm not good enough for you isn't going to make a difference at this point." Arya wanted to yell at Sansa for suggesting that Gendry debase himself further to the lesser houses of the North, but she held herself back. Sansa was right; they needed the lesser houses on their side, and this was one way to keep them from rebelling.

A month went by after Sansa sent the ravens out, and Arya caught her sister making faces as scrolls with the seal from House Dustin on it. She didn't know what the Lord was doing to make Sansa so annoyed, and when she asked, Sansa waved her off. She said it was stupid things that didn't make any sense and that she would handle or Jon would. They gathered in the Great Hall for dinner, and Arya noticed that Meera and Bran were looking at each other and smirking. Nothing good ever came from Bran and Meera giving each other a look like that. It usually meant that Bran was about to say something incredibly weird that was going to make everyone very uncomfortable, and then they were both going to sit back and watch everyone react to the news.

Arya prepared herself for something insane when Bran tapped his glass and called for everyone to be quiet. They didn't have any guests visiting today, so it was just the members of Winterfell and the family in the Great Hall, which was still a fair amount of people.

"Everyone, I wanted to share some news with all of you," Bran said, and Jon was already rubbing his temples like he had a headache from whatever Bran was about to tell all of them. Arya knew how he felt and waited. "Maester Wolken confirmed today, and Princess Meera and I are expecting our first child." Jon dropped his glass of wine, Sansa made a high pitched squealing noise, Theon went a little pale, Gendry looked delighted, and whatever Arya was expecting Bran to say it wasn't that.

Meera was with child, her little brother was going to be a father, she was going to be an aunt, and there were going to be wolf pups in Winterfell again.