Less than a year into his apprenticeship with Tohbo Mott, Gendry managed to burn his arm pretty terribly in the forge. The pain almost seemed secondary to the smell of burning flesh and Mott running in once he started screaming. He was just a boy back then, but if there was one thing from that day that stuck with him, it wasn't the pain, though that was memorable, but the smell. The smell of burning human flesh was seared into his memory. That same smell was lingering in the Dragon Pit after Daenerys finished burning the people that had ruined the lives of him and his loved ones for so long. It was a strange moment that he didn't really know what to do with. They were gone, his enemies were gone, yet he didn't loosen his grip on Arya's hand, and the tightness in his chest didn't go away.
There was still so much to do, but Gendry didn't want to deal with any of it. He was only a knight, so the work that Edric, Mya, and Bella needed to do was different from the work he had to do. Unless ordered otherwise, he didn't have any duties. While the three of them still slept in the same rooms, they had worked on being away from each other for short periods of time. So when Gendry tugged Arya away from all of the politics so they could escape, she followed him without a word. He almost wanted to go out to Flea Bottom and to be around his people, but it was becoming more and more apparent that they weren't his people anymore. He could deny it as much as he wanted, but he was the son of a king and the husband to a princess.
Gendry wasn't sure why he decided to go to the gardens, but he was a little surprised to see Sansa and Theon already outside with little Elemy. She was a terrified little thing that barely came to him when he and Daenerys found her. She was so brave, and Gendry really felt for her because he knew all too well what it meant to have nothing. The three of them seemed to be having a private moment, so he stepped aside and went off in a different direction. Arya eventually released his hand and looped her arm into his, and they walked like a proper lord and lady.
"I want you to know that you don't have to come back to Winterfell right away," Arya said. "We haven't really had a chance to talk about it, but I can tell that you still need some more time, and that's fine. We'll send for Davos, and we'll all go to Storm's End together. When you're ready, we'll go home and not a moment earlier."
"I don't know what I did to have someone so understanding," Gendry said quietly, and he released a slow breath. "It's like the first weeks or months after the war ended. I keep waiting for someone else to come out and try to hurt my family or me. I keep thinking I'm going to see the Second Sons or Daario even though I know they aren't anywhere near here. I go to sleep, and I still wake up thinking I'm going to be on a boat back to Meereen and I'm going to be a slave. I can't seem to chase those memories away."
"Every time I close my eyes, I think I'm going to wake up to a world without you in it," Arya said after a long moment of silence. "That time that I thought you were dead, that I had really and truly lost you, were terrible. I thought that I would feel different if you were gone, and I didn't. I thought that meant something about what we were to each other that you were dead, and I didn't even know. You're my other half, and I should have known my other half was gone. It made me doubt us, even a little, and I hated that."
"It isn't fair," Gendry replied as they sat down on a bench a decent way into the gardens. There wasn't anyone nearby, and Gendry was glad for the quiet. "I just want a life with you. I just want us to have the time to live because neither of us has ever really gotten that opportunity, yet the world keeps throwing a bloody wrench into it. Every time I think we're safe, we aren't, and I don't know what to do to keep the people I care about safe."
"The first step is looking out for yourself and knowing that the people you love can look out for themselves too," Arya said. "You know I can fight, but I remember looking at you and your siblings standing on the beach. The four of you looked like warriors, and if you all weren't strong, you wouldn't have made it through all of that. So Edric, Mya, and Bella can take care of themselves too. So focus on you, for now, and we'll take care of the rest later." They leaned into each other and just drank in each other's presence. "Did you know about Connington?"
"We all did," he said. "We knew there was a chance that he would be the one to try and save his own hide even more so when he found out that we weren't dead. So we made a plan just in case. She even offered to let Edric be the one to kill Connington, but Edric didn't think he could do it for the right reasons. If Dany did it, it would be justice; if any of us did it, it would be revenge, and I think we've all had enough revenge in our lives." Arya hummed, and they leaned into each other. Gendry wasn't sure how long they were going to be in Storm's End before he was ready to go back to the North, and he wasn't sure how patient Arya could continue to be but, for now, the people that wanted to do him and his family harm were dust in the wind. He was safer; he knew he was safer; Gendry just wished he could convince his own mind of that fact.
Jon was more than ready to go back to the North after two days of helping Daenerys and Yara put new members of the various traitor houses into power. When he was at his most angry, he wanted to wipe all of them off the face of the planet for hurting his family like that. They made Arya cry, and for that alone, he wanted them to burn. He couldn't do it, though, which meant trying to set everything up so this didn't happen again. Word had spread fast, and the three of them had been waiting to see if there would be some sort of uprising they were going to have to deal with. It looked like that wasn't going to be the case, which made Jon breathe a sigh of relief. Another war was the last thing that any of them needed right now.
It was late by the time Val made her way to their room, and she was a little pale as she walked into the room. Jon was on his feet in seconds because he didn't think he had ever seen that expression on Val's face before, and it frightened him.
"Are you all right?" he asked. Val wordlessly nodded as she sat down on the edge of their bed. Jon knelt down, so they were looking into each other's eyes and took her hands into his. "Val, you look like you're going to faint, and I've never seen you look like that before. What happened?"
"I went to see the maester," she whispered, and Jon felt his blood run cold. If she was sick, he wasn't sure what he was going to do. She was his closest friend, his partner, his Queen, and he didn't know how he was supposed to deal with her being ill. "Jon, I'm with child." Everything in the room seemed to stop as Jon stared at her with his mouth hanging open like a complete fool.
"You're with child?" he asked, and she nodded. "We're going to be parents." Val nodded again, and she seemed on edge like she wasn't sure how Jon was going to react to this bit of information. Jon threw his arms around her and kissed Val deeply. He pulled away and pressed his forehead to hers.
"You're happy?" she asked.
"I was a bastard who thought he was going to spend the rest of his life on the Wall," Jon whispered as he framed her face with his hands. "I never thought I would have the honor of having a wife and a family. It's something I never even considered, and even after we got married, I still couldn't wrap my head around it. Now you're sitting here and telling me that we're going to have a child, I'm going to be a father, and I couldn't be happier. Thank you for giving me such an amazing gift." Val laughed softly, and Jon used his thumbs to wipe away stray tears that were falling from her eyes.
"I should have known that you would react like that, Jon Snow," she said. They smiled softly at one another and leaned forward to kiss each other again. This was a lot slower, sweeter, and for the first time, Jon felt like he was going to fall in love with Val. They weren't there yet; he knew that they weren't, but he enjoyed being with her, and he couldn't ask for a better queen at his side to help rule the North. Val slipped her fingers into his hair and deepened their kiss. "You should know something," Val whispered against his lips as she slowly moved back onto the bed, and Jon could only follow her. "The midwife of the castle that worked with the maester told me that there is a good chance I'm going to crave my husband now that I'm with child." She nipped on his bottom lip, and Jon felt his hips jerk forward a little. "And she's right; I do crave my husband."
"Well, what kind of husband would I be if he denied my wife?" Jon replied as he settled between her legs. She moaned against his mouth, and she already sounded close from their kissing. As he worked both of their clothes off, Jon wondered if he was living in some sort of fever dream. He wondered if this was the fantasy he was seeing before he froze to death alone on the Wall. It was only a dream; it was one that he never wanted to wake up from.
Sansa and Theon spent the next few days after the execution helping Daenerys, Jon, and Yara when they could and trying to get to know Elemy a little more. She still seemed quite taken with the two of them, and she helped Sansa braid her hair, and Sansa would braid hers in return. Elemy was obsessed with Sansa's long red hair and just couldn't get enough of playing with it and styling it in different ways. It got to the point that Sansa wouldn't let the maids braid her hair in the morning because Elemy was just going to take them out again. On the third day, they sat in the gardens after Missandei brought Elemy out for the day.
"Hi Sansa, hi Theon," Elemy said. As soon as Missandei walked away, it was like the little girl lit up, and Sansa loved it.
"Good morning," Theon said with an elaborate bow, which made her giggle. "What would you like to do this morning?"
"I'd like to braid Sansa's hair," Elemy said happily.
"Of course, you can braid my hair," Sansa replied as she settled down on the grass underneath a tree. Theon sat down as well, but Elemy hesitated. "What is it?"
"Theon, you don't braid my hair or Sansa's hair," she said.
"Oh, I don't know how to braid," Theon replied, and suddenly Elemy lit up again.
"I can teach you! You sit with me, and if Sansa says it's okay, I can use her hair to teach you how to braid. Then you can help Sansa with her hair," Elemy said. Theon glanced at her, and Sansa shrugged; it would be nice to have someone else who could help her with her hair and even more so at night.
"Okay, let's teach me how to braid then," Theon said. Elemy and Theon spent the next hour or so putting various braids into Sansa's hair. Theon was incredibly gentle as he braided and made sure to tell her when he was going to touch her in a different way. She appreciated that because having Elemy touch her was something that took some getting used to. After the hour, Theon seemed to have mastered how to do a basic braid and was far too proud of himself for doing so. Elemy laughed, and she looked happy but, after a moment, she suddenly looked sad again. Sansa reached over and took her hand,
"Elemy, what's wrong?" she asked.
"I can see the people getting your things ready, so you're going to be leaving soon. I'm just sad that I'm not going to see you again," Elemy replied. Sansa sucked in a breath and glanced at Theon; this was a conversation that they needed to have, but Sansa wasn't sure how to go about it. How do you casually ask a little girl if she would like to come live with you in a completely different place a hundred miles away? Then there was the fact that Sansa didn't know if Elemy was going to say yes, and she wasn't sure if her heart could handle a no. She came to care about this little girl in the last few days, and she didn't want to lose this connection that they had developed. Theon reached forward and took Sansa's hand to help ground her at this moment, and it was time to ask.
"Yes, Elemy, Theon, and I are going to be going home soon. We live in the North, in Winterfell, and it's a beautiful place. We love it there," Sansa explained, and Elemy began to pick at the grass. "I think you might love it there too." Elemy's head shot up so fast Sansa worried about her neck. "I know you said you don't have anyone to look after you, so Theon and I were wondering if you'd like us to look after you but only if you want."
"I could come with you? To Winterfell?" Elemy asked.
"Yes," Theon replied with a small smile. "Yes, you could come with us and stay with us. You could live in Winterfell and in the North with Sansa and me."
"Like a servant? Or a maid? You're a princess and a prince so you must need servants and maids, is that why you want me to come with you? I could help braid your hair every morning, Sansa," Elemy said, and Sansa felt her heartbreak that this little girl thought that she was only good for being a maid or a servant.
"No, Elemy, not as a servant, but as our ward. We want to make you part of our family," Sansa explained, and Elemy's eyes got even wider. "I know we can't ever be your mom and dad; please know that we won't ever try to be them, but we want to give you a home and somewhere safe to live and grow for as long as you want it. Would you like to come with us?" Elemy blinked and then threw herself into Sansa's arms and hugged her tightly.
"Yes," Elemy whispered. "Yes, I want to come with you. Please let me come with you. I feel so safe with you and Theon, and I want to feel safe with you in your home."
"It's going to be your home, too," Sansa whispered as she kissed the top of Elemy's head. She looked up at Theon, and he leaned over, so the three of them were all hugging. With that, yes, the two of them were parents to a brave little girl that had already lost so much. Sansa held onto her a little tighter and so glad that she wasn't going to have to give this up. She felt blessed, and for that, Sansa was eternally grateful that she came back to King's Landing and the Red Keep.
The next few days were a blur that Arya had didn't really have a good handle on. Everything seemed to be happening while, at the same time, nothing seemed to be happening. Daenerys didn't have any problems getting the children of the Lesser Houses to swear allegiance when they realized exactly what was at stake. No one needed to be banished either, and Arya knew they were staying close mostly so they could make sure that war didn't break out because Daenerys had to execute all of these people. It was strange to walk around the Red Keep and realize that she could just live her life now, and no one was going to try and stop.
Well, at least that was the thought. Arya wanted to get back to the North because she didn't think that she would feel safe until she and Gendry were back in Winterfell. Gendry, however, while he had made progress in the recent months, he still wasn't ready to be away from his siblings, which meant she had to go to Storm's End. Arya was fine with it, or at least that was what she kept telling herself whenever she found herself getting angry. She was just so tired, and every single time that she thought she was going to get the chance to rest, she didn't.
The problem was that she knew Gendry could tell. He kept pointing out how patient she was being with him like he knew that her patience wasn't limitless. More than once, Gendry said that she could go back to the North, and he would come home as soon as he could. Each time he said those words like he would be okay with them being apart even more after all that they had been through, it hurt more than Arya could name. If she said something, Arya was worried that she would somehow set him back, and it would take even longer for them to get home.
Arya was sitting in the gardens by herself two days before Jon, Val, Sansa, and Theon were due to go back to the North. They had already sent a raven to Davos, who was with Marya and on his way back to the Storm's End. Sansa joined her, and the two of them sat down next to each other. The silence was nice, but Arya could tell that Sansa would tell her to tough it out, go to Storm's End, and be happy about it because that was the right thing to do.
"If you want to come back to the North without Gendry, it won't make you a bad wife or a bad person," Sansa said, and Arya jerked like someone had just hit her.
"We get to be together again; why wouldn't I do everything I can to stay with him?" Arya said, still so surprised that Sansa wasn't telling her to stick it out.
"Everyone is talking about what Gendry and his siblings went through because they wear their scars where everyone can see them," Sansa said, and she took Arya's left hand into her own. Much like Davos, Arya had started wearing a glove to hide the fact that she was missing several fingers. Arya watched as Sansa removed the glove and gently touched the stubs where the fingers were supposed to be. It was strange because Arya could have sworn that she could feel Sansa touching the fingers that weren't there anymore. "You went through a lot too, and you've been putting off your own healing for the sake of bringing the Baratheon's home and keeping everyone safe. You went through a lot, too, Arya, and there's no shame in feeling just as traumatized as the Baratheon's are. Your scars are just harder to see, and I know all about scars that aren't visible to the naked eye."
"I don't want to leave him," Arya whispered. "I'm scared that if I don't stay with him, then he'll never come home again, and I don't know how to deal with that."
"He'll come home when he's ready," Sansa replied, and the confidence her voice made the knot in Arya's stomach loosen a bit. "You can also come home whenever you want. If you go to Storm's End and don't want to stay long, that's fine. If you don't want to go to Storm's End at all, that's also fine. And if you want to wait for Gendry to heal so you can both come home, then that's fine too." Arya nodded, and the two of them sat quietly in the gardens for a little longer.
"You're getting very close to Elemy," Arya said carefully, and Sansa smiled softly. For a moment, Arya swore she wasn't looking at her sister but her mother.
"She's an amazing little girl, and she doesn't have anyone. Theon and I have decided to look after her. She's coming back to Winterfell with us," Sansa said. Arya blinked and realized that she had a new niece just like that. She always knew on some level that Sansa and Theon were going to take someone in someday; she just didn't know it was going to be so soon. Arya threw her arms around her sister, and the two of them held each other for a long time.
"You're going to be an amazing mom," Arya whispered, and she meant every single word. She wasn't sure when they both started crying, but here they were.
Two days later, it was time for Jon, Val, Sansa, and Theon to go back to Winterfell. Arya had made her decision that she was going to stay with Gendry, and they were going to make the journey back to Winterfell together. Daenerys, Quentyn, Yara, Missandei, Gendry, and his siblings were all there to help see them off as well. Jon didn't look overly surprised that she was staying, but he pulled her into a tight hug.
"Come home soon, or you're going to miss it," Jon said, and everyone looked at him, frowning. He looked like he couldn't contain himself, and over his shoulder, Arya saw Val roll her eyes.
"He means he doesn't want you to miss your new niece or nephew because I'm with child," Val replied. There was a beat of silence, and then everyone began to talk at once. Arya didn't think she had ever seen her brother so happy, and she held onto him for a long time. Much like Sansa, Arya knew that Jon and Val were going to love and protect their child fiercely, and she deeply hoped that she would be home soon to see them. Gendry took her hand into his as they walked her family ride away; they would make for Storm's End in the morning, and Arya hoped that they could finally begin to heal.
