Sansa did not like that House Dustin thought they could just appear on their front gates and would be welcome. It set her teeth on edge, and she didn't approve at all. However, they were allies, even if they were some of the most annoying allies she had ever dealt with. If there were ravens that she did not like getting or passing along to Jon, it was the ones with House Dustin seal on them because they were going to be about a grown man complaining that he wasn't getting what he deserved. The Lord of the House would essentially say that he was always loyal to the Stark's and should have gotten something for that. Ryon Dustin vanished almost immediately, but Harlan stuck close to his father, and Sansa didn't like the way he was looking around Winterfell. It was far too confident. Jon walked into the Great Hall and smiled, but it was that tight smile he wore when he was annoyed.
"Lord Dustin, I didn't know you were coming, what can I do for you?" Jon asked.
"I was wondering if we could talk in private man to man. What I want to talk about isn't suitable for the ears of ladies," Lord Dustin said, and now Sansa was annoyed. She was the Hand of the King, which meant that anything he could say to Jon she needed to hear as well. However, Dustin had already threatened to withdraw his support the last time that Jon told him off, and they couldn't afford to lose any allies right now. At least not until the formal alliance with Free Folk was in place, and Sansa planned to tell several lesser houses that they could fall into line or shut the fuck up.
Unfortunately, that was not something that she could do right now, so before Jon could tell the Lord Dustin that he was being an asshole, Sansa decided it was best to remove herself from the situation.
"Of course," Sansa said. "I'm sure my brother will give me the more sanitized version once we meet again."
"My son Harlan hasn't been to Winterfell before; perhaps the princess could give him a tour?" Lord Dustin said like Sansa was just a pretty face in this house and not the second most powerful person in all of the North. She thought back to what her mother would say in a situation like this and nodded her head.
"Come, Lord Harlan, I will show you my home," Sansa said.
"Thank you, Princess Sansa, I would be honored," Harlan replied. Jon looked annoyed as he and Lord Dustin made their way up to Jon's private solar as Sansa led Harlan outside to the grounds of Winterfell. She began to show him around the castle and noticed that Ryon Dustin was apparently shooting arrows with Arya, which was a strange thing to witness. Theon, once he heard about Dustin visiting, made him scarce as he often did during visits like this. There were too many people in the North that didn't like Theon, and his presence had almost cost them allies in the past. All of the North knew they were betrothed, so Sansa didn't see why he needed to hide, but Theon said he didn't want to deal with it. "May I offer you my arm, Princess Sansa?" Harlan asked.
"I'm fine, thank you," Sansa replied. She didn't want this strange man to touch her in any capacity, and he frowned deeply when she turned him down. Bran and Meera were in the Godswood, which meant that Nymeria was close by. Sansa smiled when she saw the two of them, but Nymeria was apparently in a mood. She raced forward and bared her teeth at Harlan. He jumped back and immediately drew his sword like he was going to use it on Nymeria, which was not acceptable. "Put that thing away immediately," Sansa snapped.
"That beast is going to kill me!" Harlan said, and his voice was a little higher. He sounded legitimately afraid, and Sansa wanted to roll her eyes.
"A direwolf will only attack someone who is a threat to House Stark," Sansa said with a sweet smile. "Are you a threat to someone from House Stark?"
"No, Your Grace, of course not, I just wanted to keep you safe from the beast," Harlan stammered though his voice was shaking.
"I am the Red Wolf, Hand to the King, and a Stark of Winterfell. Why would I, of all people, need protecting from a direwolf?" she asked. Both Bran and Meera were grinning, and Meera called Nymeria back, who bared her teeth at Harlan one last time and turned back to put herself between Meera and Harlan. He still had his sword in hand, and Sansa narrowed her eyes. "I said, put that weapon away." Harlan did as he was told, and the two of them walked around the grounds in complete silence until it was time for dinner. Sansa did not miss that both Ryon and Arya were missing from the training grounds when they left the Godswood.
The dinner was strange, and Sansa could tell that something wasn't right. While Gendry didn't like events like this, he and Arya usually came down for food at the least very least. When Sansa took one of the kitchen girls aside, she asked if she had seen Theon the girl said that Theon was in their rooms and would bring him a meal. The kitchen girl, Tisa, was the same one who walked in here and Gendry the other day. There was something about her that Sansa didn't like, but she couldn't voice that right now. Right now, she needed to keep Jon from siccing Ghost on House Dustin, all three members of which were looking oddly smug.
Sansa did her best to play the gracious hostess and listen to what the men had to say. Lord Dustin was saying something about trying to find suitable matches for his sons and how he wanted the best for his House. Jon narrowed his eyes and watched the man carefully as Lord Dustin lamented how hard it was to find worthy women befitting his two amazing sons.
"The North has suffered in recent years, so I imagine that the number of available women in other Houses would be limited," Jon said.
"Oh there are plenty of good women out there, Your Grace, it's just a matter of convincing them to make the right decision," Lord Dustin said, and Sansa gripped her fork tight enough that she could feel the edges digging into her skin.
"Perhaps you could look into matches in the South, Lord Dustin, since there don't appear to any in the North that meet your rigorous standards," Sansa replied benevolently. She didn't want to deal with this anymore, but she also didn't have much of a choice. Sansa sat through the entire dinner and kept bribing Ghost with food so he didn't go over and growl at the Dustin family. Nymeria, who remained close to Meera, was also eyeing the family with barely concealed rage. Harlan, in particular, would look over at the direwolf and go a little pale.
"Yes, well, those Wilding fuckers are just looking for a chance to steal more of our good Northern women," Lord Dustin said, and Sansa sighed because there were many things that Jon would tolerate but talking badly about the Free Folk was not one of them.
"Lord Dustin," Jon said loudly, and everyone in the room immediately fell silent. Sansa quite enjoyed watching her brother scare lesser men when he showed just how much of a wolf and a dragon could be when provoked. Jon had a good heart, but he was also the man that chopped off the head of the Night King, and men like William Dustin would do well to remember that. "The Free Folk fought and died to give Winterfell back to my family, and then they fought and died to save us all from the dead and the Night King. I would not have succeeded in killing the Night King were it not for the Free Folk, so it would be in your best interest not to talk badly about them."
"Your Grace, I merely-"
"The Free Folk have been nowhere near your household," Bran said in his voice that said he was very much telling the truth, and it would be in everyone's interest to listen to him. "So your worries about them are unfounded or filled with lies. You should hope it is the former since my brother does not take kindly to liars." Lord Dustin turned red at those words, and Sansa took a sip of her wine to hide her smile. She did so adore her brothers.
The dinner finally ended, and she stole two extra lemon cakes to bring up to her room so she could have dessert with Theon. She did enjoy watching the Dustin family go to their rooms in disgrace, but there was still something strange about all of this. Sansa was trying to push it from her mind when she opened her door and found Theon utterly covered in mud.
"My gods, what happened to you?" she asked as she sat the lemon cakes down and quickly closed the door behind her. Theon was fighting with his ruined clothes but also appeared to be shaking.
"I didn't do what they accused me of; you have to believe me, Sansa, I would never do that," Theon babbled.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Sansa said as she held up her hands in a way that she often had to when she needed to placate Theon. "Please, just tell me what happened, so I can help you get out of these clothes."
"I was outside and trying to avoid House Dustin because I know they have been giving you trouble, and I didn't want to make it worse by being around. I was out near the stables when a few of the stable boys pushed me into the mud. They kicked me and said that I was dishonoring their princess. They said that I was back to my old ways and sleeping with some kitchen girl whose name I hadn't ever heard of. They said I needed to pay for making one of their Princesses look like a fool. I managed to get away from them, and I've been hiding up here ever since," Theon explained far too quickly. "I swear to you, Sansa, I would never dishonor you, I would never touch another woman. I can't even-"
"I know you wouldn't ever touch another woman," Sansa replied as she touched his muddy shoulder. She didn't care about the mud, or the fact that Theon nearly falling into her arms was ruining her dress. Sansa didn't know who was shaking more; Theon as he whispered that he swore he was faithful to her or Sansa as she struggled to contain her rage that someone would spread such terrible rumors.
Something was afoot, and Sansa very much intended to find out what it was.
Arya helped clean and put a bandage on Gendry's head and told him to stay in her room so she could go talk to someone about this. He agreed, and it looked like he already had a headache from the rock. Arya, on the other hand, was already so angry that she was seeing red. She thought about going to Jon but decided that Sansa was probably the better choice when it came to this sort of thing. Her sister would be calmer, more rational, and maybe even able to provide some kind of explanation that Arya couldn't think of at the moment. She walked up the stairs and knocked on Sansa's door. She was a little surprised to see Sansa covered in mud and looking like she wanted to feed another person to dogs.
"What happened?" Arya asked.
"It's a long story," Sansa said as she looked over her shoulder. Theon was soaking in a tub and looked like he wanted to be anywhere else. "Let's go somewhere else." The two of them walked up to the library and found a dark corner where no one would listen in or bother them.
"I know why I'm angry, but why are you?" Arya asked.
"Someone is spreading lies about Theon and saying that he is sleeping with a kitchen girl behind my back. They shoved Theon into the mud for dishonoring me," Sansa said, and Arya felt her blood run cold. Her first instinct was to say it was a coincidence, but she couldn't ignore that the timing was too good. "Why are you angry?"
"Funny, you should ask," Arya replied. "Because someone is going around and saying that Gendry is sleeping with a kitchen girl too. They threw a rock at him at Winter Town, and he came into Winterfell bleeding." If Sansa looked angry before now, she looked furious. "And you won't believe who told me about this rumor."
"Who?"
"Ryon Dustin after he came out to shoot arrows with me and acted like he was trying to court me," Arya said.
"How odd for I had to take Harlan Dustin around Winterfell for a tour at the insistence of his father, and he offered his arm much like a man trying to court someone as well." Sansa stood up and looked out the nearby window. It was late, and the moon was already high, but Arya didn't intend to let this sit. "House Dustin arrives just as the rumors that both of the men we are with are being outed as cads, and he's here with two eligible sons while ranting that no one in the North is worthy."
"I don't like being pawns in someone else's game," Arya said. "But if I go around threatening all of the kitchen girls, then I'm just going to look like a madwoman, and we can't bring this to Jon without any proof."
"Maybe we do have proof or at least a name," Sansa said as she sat back down. "When I asked him to make my rings, a kitchen girl, I believe her name is Tisa, came in to drop off food. He didn't look surprised to see her, which could only mean that she had been to the forge more than once. She is also the one I tend to see sent up to my room when Theon needs time to himself and won't come down for dinner."
"What do we know about her?" Arya asked.
"Not much, she didn't start working here until recently, which would make sense if she was sent here by William Dustin to start rumors," Sansa said, and she smiled. Arya knew that smile because she saw it in her own mirror; that was a smile of a wolf about to devour its prey. "I think we should go visit young Tisa. What do you think?"
"Gladly," Arya said with a hand on Needle.
Tisa was still in the kitchens when Sansa and Arya found her. She was a plain-looking girl, but she made sure to flaunt the curves that she did have. She bowed deeply when Sansa and Arya walked in and started to go a little pale when Sansa ordered everyone but Tisa out of the kitchen immediately.
"M'ladies, how can I help you?" Tisa asked meekly.
"I want to know why you're spreading rumors about Gendry and Theon sleeping with you," Arya said, not at all in the mood to be subtle right now. This was her marriage that this girl was trying to destroy, and she was not going to stand by and let that happen. Tisa went white as a sheet as she stared at the two of them.
"My Princesses, I would never do such a thing," she said, but Arya knew liars, and this girl was not a very good one. Sansa stood up a little taller and loomed over the smaller girl in a way that made her take a step back. Tisa's eyes hit the floor and clasped her hands in front of her.
"You are the one that's been dropping off food in the forge for weeks," Sansa said. "I saw you come in, and Gendry didn't seem bothered to see you there, which means he's seen you before. You are the one I've sent up to my room to bring Theon food when he doesn't feel up to coming to dinner. So, we're going to ask you one last time, why are you spreading these untrue rumors?"
"How do you know they're untrue?" Tisa said quickly. "Maybe I have laid with Ser Gendry and Prince Theon. You can't know if I'm lying."
"Because Prince Theon is a eunuch thanks to the torture he suffered at the hands of Ramsay Bolton so he couldn't lay with you even if he wanted to which he doesn't. It took time for him to let me touch him in any capacity," Sansa snapped.
"And I know, Gendry. We've been through hell together, and he's had other opportunities to be with other women. If he was going to lie with another, he would have done it years ago and not now," Arya replied, and she took a step further. "I know when my husband is lying to me, Tisa, and he wasn't lying to me when he said he had no idea what people were talking about. Now, this is your last chance, why are you spreading these lies or we'll show you what happens when you try to tarnish the names of the She-Wolves of Winterfell."
"It was never about tarnishing either of you!" Tisa blurted. "He wanted the rumors to spread so King Jon would have to call off the betrothal or banish them from the North! He was the one who wanted me to come here and work!" Tisa began to openly weep as she stood before the two of them and eventually fell to her knees. "I swear, m'ladies, I was just doing as I was told. He said it was for the good of the North, and I needed to do my duty. He said our princesses shouldn't be lying with foreign men while good Northern blood is right in front of them."
"Who told you to do this?" Sansa asked, and Tisa hesitated. "Tisa, it would be in your best interest to tell us what you know, or you'll be looking at something worse than banishment from Winterfell."
"Lord Dustin!" Tisa said, and she began to cry again. "He was the one who told me to come here and start the rumors. He wants you to marry his sons, and he thought this was the only way. He told me I was doing the right thing for the North. He said I needed to do what was right. Please, m'ladies, I beg of you. I have nowhere to go, and I was just doing what my Lord told me to do. Please!" Arya glanced at Sansa, who was looking at the ceiling like it had all of the answers that she needed in this world. Arya knew the feeling because she felt the same way. This girl couldn't be older than seventeen, and she was crying on the floor of their kitchen. Arya knew that she was probably telling the truth about having nowhere to go, but she couldn't stay here. Not with the rumors that she had started.
"Tisa, stand up, you're going to come with us, and you're going to tell King Jon exactly what you just told us," Sansa said. "And then we're going to see about placing you somewhere else. Perhaps the Reed's will take you in the Neck. We'll find somewhere for you to go, but you can't stay here. Do you understand?" Tisa nodded and pushed herself up on shaky feet. Arya began to guide her out of the kitchen, but Tisa looked like she was about to panic.
"Now? But it's late, the King, I can't-"
"We need to deal with this immediately," Arya said as they walked through the hallways. "I will not allow that man to use my life as a ploy." Tisa was still crying and shaking by the time Jon opened the door. He took one look at Arya and Sansa, both of them looked like they were ready to rip out throats, and a weeping kitchen girl, and sighed.
"Come on and tell me exactly what's going on," he said.
Gendry was thankfully asleep by the time Arya made it back to their room. They had spent the last several hours talking to Tisa and getting all of the information they could from her. She was from a family that had worked for the Dustin household for many years, and she was caught sleeping with Ryon a few months ago. Dustin sent her to Winterfell after telling her about how terrible it was that the two Northern princesses were married to a southern bastard and the man that betrayed the Stark's. Tisa was in love with Ryon, and he told her that if she did this, Ryon would still come to her when he got married to Arya. The whole thing made Arya so angry she almost punched the wall. Sansa was too still, and Jon looked like he was about to march down to deal with the Dustin's himself. Tisa revealed that both of the sons knew about this plan, so there were no innocents here.
Arya cuddled close to Gendry in their bed and closed her eyes. The problem was that there was no way of squashing the rumors entirely. That was what Tisa didn't understand as she begged for her life. The damage was already done; the people of the North just wanted an excuse to hate Gendry and Theon, and these rumors would follow them for the rest of their lives. It was a stain on their honor that wouldn't ever go away. Gendry might be able to weather it, he endured so much already, and Arya hated it, but Theon was a different story. Arya didn't want Sansa to lose the man that she chose. She didn't want Sansa to be alone or get forced to marry someone she didn't love.
The next morning Arya insisted that Gendry join her to break their fast. He didn't want to, said it was a bad idea, but she told him it was important. He reluctantly agreed, and Jon, Sansa, Theon, Bran, Meera, and both of the direwolves were in the room already. They were seated and waiting for when Lord Dustin and his two sons came in. Bran and Meera seemed to know what was going on, judging by the way Meera very much looked like she wanted to throw a spear through someone's eye. Lord Dustin seemed to realize that something wasn't right.
"Your Grace, I'm so glad to see everyone here to break our fast," Lord Dustin said, and he jumped when the guards slammed the doors shut and blocked the doorways.
"Lord Dustin, I thought it was odd that you came to talk to me out of nowhere for such trivial matters," Jon said. "I thought it was even stranger that you brought both of your sons with you. Now I understand why you did what you did, and this is your only chance to try and explain yourself." Theon and Gendry both looked confused, and Arya took Gendry's hand into hers and held in tight.
"Your Grace, I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," Lord Dustin said, which was a mistake if Arya ever heard one.
"We spoke to Tisa," Sansa said, and Arya watched the two sons. Harlan didn't react to the name, but Ryon went a little pale. Both Ghost and Nymeria were circling the Great Hall and growling softly. "She told us quite the tale about how you told her that she needed to spread the rumors that Ser Gendry and Prince Theon were being unfaithful with her. You told her this was for the good of the North because you thought your sons were better matches for Princess Arya and me than the men we choose for ourselves. You told her to lie."
"I did no such thing," Lord Dustin snapped. "My King, you really must talk to your sisters and get these crazy ideas out of their womanly heads."
"You would be wise not to say anything about my sister or me," Arya said. "My wolf is very protective, and my sister is Hand to the King. You are demeaning the second most powerful person in the North. You told your sons to come and try to court both of us while you wasted our brother's time yesterday. You thought that neither of us would notice, and Jon would end our betrothal or marriage due to the scandal, and we would fall into your son's arms. It didn't work."
"My King-"
"Furthermore," Bran said. "You seem to have forgotten that I can see things, Lord Dustin, and I saw you tell young Tisa what she needed to do. I saw you tell her to start these terrible rumors, and my family believes her and me."
"Now would be the time to beg for mercy," Jon said, sounding much like the warrior everyone seemed to forget that he was. "Now would be the time to throw yourself on the mercy of Princess Sansa, Princess Arya, Prince Theon, and Ser Gendry because they are the ones who will decide the sentence I lay down on you for such a grave insult against House Stark. How dare you claim to be loyal when you would undermine the decisions I made."
"Your sisters chose their men! You didn't choose them!" Harlan said, and his father tried to silence him.
"I didn't, but you undermine me because I approved of both of their matches," Jon said as he stood. "Ser Gendry is a direct descendant of Robert Baratheon, brother to the Lord of Storm's End Edric Baratheon, and cousin to Queen Daenerys in the South. He was the man who armed Westeros in the fight against the dead, and their marriage forms a strong alliance with not only the Crown but the Stormlands. Prince Theon is a prince who is already a higher rank than you, Lord Dustin. His marriage to Sansa aligns us with the Iron Isles. So why do you think your sons are better than them? Why do you think you know better than me what is good for my sisters? Why do you insult the intelligence of your King so flagrantly?" Lord Dustin was white now as Ghost and Nymeria began to circle them.
"Mercy!" Ryon said he pushed past his father and brother and fell to his knees. "Please, mercy on me and my family. We were thinking only for the good of the North, but we see now how terribly we've insulted you. Please, mercy." Lord Dustin looked like he wanted to yell at his son for doing this, but then Nymeria growled loudly, and he and Harlan both fell to their knees. Arya didn't want to grant mercy, but she also knew that slaughtering the head of a lesser house is what got Robb in trouble. They still needed House Dustin, and showing mercy would be the way to go. Jon looked at her and Sansa. Arya squeezed Gendry's hand, and he looked at her.
"Shall we grant them mercy?" she asked softly. Gendry looked like he wasn't sure what to do with that sentence but eventually nodded slowly. Sansa was clearly asking the same thing of Theon, who looked a little green. Jon looked at them both and nodded.
"My sister's and I have agreed to grant you mercy, but rest assured this is the last time I will tolerate any sort of slight against me or my family, Lord Dustin," Jon said. "Do not test me again." All three of the Dustin men were thanking Jon, thanking them, for their mercy and promising never to do anything like this again, but Arya wasn't listening. The people of the North had their grievance against Gendry and Theon, and it wouldn't matter what any of them said to try and refute it. No one would believe them. Arya glared at the Dustin men because their arrogance had severely harmed her family's reputation with the people of the North.
Lord Dustin wanted the North to hate Theon and Gendry and forever taint their reputations and make Jon look weak for allowing this to continue. He was the one begging for mercy, but Arya couldn't shake the feeling that, on some level, he'd won.
