A/N: Hi everybody! MaryEvH here, back for another chapter! So grad school is kicking my butt, and RL is kicking Anne's at the moment, but we're not abandoning this fic, just super busy!

So, without further ado, enjoy the next chapter!

Chapter 13:

Loras was in a foul mood. His grandmother had been even more reticent than usual since Margaery's disappearance, and now she'd summoned him and father to her quarters. It did not bode well.

He arrived at his destination at the same time as his father. Honestly, his father should know not to let his mother summon him like that. It wasn't very dignified for a Lord of one of the Great Houses to have to answer to his mother, even one as terrifying as Olenna Tyrell.

"Father," Loras greeted.

"Son," his father returned. "After you."

Loras preceded his father into Lady Olenna's quarters, steeling himself. The Lady herself sat at the small table where she usually took her breakfast, her hands folded in her lap and her calculating eyes already on her son and grandson.

Loras loved his grandmother - though he'd never be able to understand the bond she shared with his sister - and knew that the greater part of her frustrations and ire were not meant for him, so intimidated, he was not. Annoyed, curious despite himself and tired were probably the most accurate way to describe himself.

He dropped down into one of the free chairs, being rewarded with a slight scowl from his grandmother at his poor manners. Mace sat down somewhat more calmly.

"Margaery is alive and well," she started without preamble.

Mace was struck dumb. Despite his shock, Loras opened his mouth to argue, but Olenna held up her hand to stop him. "I orchestrated a plan with our guards to smuggle her out of the wedding after the King was poisoned. My intent was for her to go to Bear Island, but they were attacked. Margaery lost her guards one by one, but wound up at the Wall. She's under the personal protection of the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch."

"So you knew King Joffrey was going to die?" Loras raged. "Did you kill him, Grandmother?"

"You didn't think I'd let her marry that beast, did you?" Olenna replied more calmly than Loras expected, given the gravity of the situation.

Mace seemed to have finally regained his voice. "Mother, she would have been Queen, what- "

"That's none of your concern," she snapped irritably.

Loras took a deep breath and managed to calm himself down somewhat. "I take it you have a plan?" he asked, leaning forward.

Lady Olenna allowed herself a small smirk. "You could say that…"

/*/

There had been a change in the Lord Commander over the last month, and Edd knew he hadn't been the only one to notice it. "D'you think something's going on with Jon?" he mused to Grenn as they sat in the mess hall.

The ranger looked up to where the Lord Commander was talking to Bethany Flowers - nearly unrecognizable from the girl he and Pyp had found half-dead in the snow. Jon laughed at something she said, and Grenn raised his eyebrows. "I think something's going on, but gods know what. The man hasn't smiled like that since we let Sam Tarly win in the training yard. Remember, when he got here and couldn't fight worth shit?"

"Sam Tarly still can't fight worth shit," Edd muttered, rolling his eyes as Pyp came to join them.

Pyp grinned. "I'll drink to that," he said. "Why are we discussing Sam's shit fighting skills?"

"We aren't," his fellow ranger said, rolling his eyes. "We're talking about Jon."

"Yeah, he seems…different," Grenn commented. "You think him and Miss Bethany…"

The men all looked over at their Lord Commander and his guest. Jon seemed to have sobered up a little and was focussing on his food. Bethany seemed almost disappointed by the change. "Nah, if they were, they wouldn't be all awkward like that," Pyp said.

"Like you're the expert," Edd commented snarkily.

Pyp shot a sour scowl at Edd. "I'll have you know -"

"Alright, gents, that's enough arguing," Sam interjected as he sat down by Grenn, pleasant as ever. "What are we squabbling about this time?"

The others glanced around at each other, before Grenn spoke. "We're talking about…Jon and Bethany," he said hesitantly.

Sam had to try so hard to not feel paralyzed; he could suddenly only think about what he had heard on the other side of that locked door a day earlier. "What about them?" he asked as innocently as he could.

"Well…" his fellow watchman paused. "D'you think Jon's been acting a bit…different lately?"

Frowning, Sam leaned forward and lowered his voice a little. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Grenn said, before glancing at the Lord Commander again. "He's smiling," he said, almost as if the very thought was unsettling.

Inwardly, Sam heaved a sigh of relief. This was about Jon, not Bethany - or Margaery, if his suspicions proved correct. Outwardly, he could hardly repress a grin. "What, because he fancies a girl?"

The other men raised their eyebrows at his forwardness. They weren't used to this sort of behaviour from him. "Well look at you, being all observant," Edd commented, a little snidely. But Edd lived to be snide, so Sam didn't take offence. "I still think something's going on."

Pyp rolled his eyes. "The thing that's going on is that he fancies her, like Sam here said. And why wouldn't he? She's the most gorgeous girl I've ever seen," he said, keeping his voice to a whisper. It wouldn't do to let any others overhear this.

"Don't forget he had her in his chambers when we got back from the Keep," Grenn reminded, even quieter than before.

Rolling his eyes, Sam settled more securely on the bench. "This is Jon we're talking about. He just wanted to protect her. He'd be the first to say it, I'm sure."

"But if he fancies her…" Pyp started slowly, "then we have to ask…does she fancy him?"

Grenn shrugged. "She seems to, I think. Girls like the brooding types like Jon."

"And Jon really does nothing but brood," Sam pointed out.

Their speculations were interrupted by a loud cry, followed by a gentle female voice. "Shh, sweet boy…" Bethany murmured, rocking Little Sam as she reached for a pocket in her dress. "Do you want a story?"

The men around the table all exchanged looks. "Let's see how she does with The Mystery Knight," Edd suggested. They all rotated to get a better view of Bethany straddling a bench with Little Sam on her knee as she started to read. At the same time, Grenn and Sam both glanced up to the High Table, where Jon was smiling softly.

They quickly looked back to each other. "He fancies her alright," Grenn mouthed.

Sam did his best to disguise his laughter as a coughing fit. Things around here were getting more and more interesting by the day.

/*/

Locke hoped the girl reading was enough cover for him to sneak from the mess hall to the rookery. If that girl was who he suspected she was, then Roose Bolton would give him his own bloody castle in exchange for her head. And that wasn't even counting on the little fact that he'd seen none other than little Bran Stark north of the Wall. But first, he'd have to get word to the northern Lord, and for that, he needed ravens.

Several of them squawked as he arrived in the rookery, their coarse voices grating on his ears. He didn't have much time, so he quickly selected one and attached his message to its leg. With most of the Watch in the mess hall listening to the story, no one would see it fly off.

With that done, Locke made his way of the room quickly, only to halt mid-step when he reached the bottom of the stairs and saw someone standing outside. That someone being the Wildling girl Tarly was always drooling over. She looked at him wide-eyed, frozen. He sneered. "Out of the way, girl," he snapped. He wasn't particularly worried about her having seen him. Who would believe a Wildling, after all? Besides, he doubted the wench even knew he wasn't supposed to be in here.

When she didn't move, he got irritated. "Are you deaf? Move!"

"I…" The girl glanced over her shoulder fearfully.

"Gilly, dear?" a softer voice called forward. The old maester, Locke realized. "Is the meat out for the ravens? It's almost time to feed them."

Locke knew he couldn't stay here any longer; no one would believe the Wildling bitch, but the Maester would be believed without question. He roughly shoved the girl out of his way and sped down the hall, but he was too late. Maester Aemon stepped out of his door, directly into Locke's path.

The old man turned his unnerving white eyes on him, and Locke repressed a shudder. Maybe if he didn't speak, the Maester wouldn't know who-

"You're not supposed to be here," the Maester said.

Shite, Locke thought. He didn't think the old man knew who he was just yet, but it wouldn't take long for that Wildling bitch to rat him out. He shouldered past the Maester, not quite shoving him into a wall like he'd done to the girl, but being none too gentle about it either. The longer the man was down, the longer Locke would have to think of a plan.

He needed to get out of here soon.

/*/

"Gillyflower, who was that?" Maester Aemon asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I don't know his name," she said ruefully. "But I've seen him before. He has a nasty scar under his eye, and a beard." She paused. "He was at the Keep."

Maester Aemon's face changed in a way she hadn't quite seen before. "Locke, they call him," he said softly. "Watch him closely for me, Gilly. Be my eyes."

"Shouldn't we tell Jon? Or Sam, at least?" she asked.

The old man nodded slowly. "The Lord Commander will know shortly. But first, we must feed the ravens," he said, reaching out for the railing on his other side. Gilly helped guide him to the buckets of meat, dropping them into the ravens' cages. "Don't fret too much, Gilly," he assured her. "All these things will come to their own ends."

She frowned a little. The maester was a cryptic old man, but she liked him. "I'll go talk to Jon when the ravens are fed," she assured him.

/*/

The sky was darkening, and Sansa thought it might snow. She didn't care, though, nothing could spoil her good mood. Finally, finally, she was somewhere familiar. They'd skirted around the lands of Winterfell, not wanting to come across Bolton men - alright, maybe there was something that could foul her mood, but Sansa quickly shoved those thoughts to the back of her mind - before heading even further north. They'd lost sight of Long Lake yesterday, and could finally risk going over the main road again, something they hadn't dared since before Castle Cerwyn. Another day's ride, maybe, and they'd reach Castle Black. She'd finally see her family again.

Well…what was left of her family.

It was strange, even just a few months ago, she would never have called Jon her family. But now that she knew more about the world, knew how cruel it could be, all she felt was guilt for having treated him so horribly, and relief at still having at least one family member left within riding distance - who might know where Arya was now. That is, if he felt the same way. Perhaps he didn't want to see her either. He was her brother, but she'd always been so horrible to him…what if he didn't want anything to do with her?

"My lady?" Pod interrupted her train of thought. "Are you alright?" he asked kindly.

Sansa forced a smile - something that had become second nature to her during her time in King's Landing. "Just lost in thought. I'm impatient to reach Castle Black and my brother," she said.

"I can imagine. I'm sure he'll be overjoyed to see you again," he assured her. It was impossible not to smile a little more genuinely in the face of his optimism.

"Thank you, Podrick," she said genuinely.

The man blushed a little. "Oh, well, it's nothing! I mean, why wouldn't he be overjoyed to see you? You haven't seen your brother in months, haven't you? Or.. do you prefer half-brother?" he asked, clearly flustered.

Sansa was a little confused by the squire's sudden interest in what she called her family members, but brushed it off. She didn't know him that well, perhaps this was simply what he was like? "Brother is fine," she replied, her polite smile back in place.

"We're making good time, my lady" Brienne interrupted. "At this rate, we could reach Castle Black just past nightfall," she said, looking up at the sky to judge the position of the sun.

Just past nightfall! They were so close now; her heart almost skipped a beat. "Perfect. Let's keep going. I hope I'm not being too optimistic to pray for our next stop to be Castle Black."

Brienne smiled. "Not at all, my lady."

The trio rode on in companionable silence for quite some time, accompanied only by the sounds of horse hooves on the packed dirt of the road, and the few birds still in the trees. Shortly, though, their silence was broken by the sound of a whinny - it started far out, but gradually closed in. Sansa stopped her horse next to Brienne. "Did you hear that?" she murmured to her guard.

"Yes, my lady," Brienne whispered. Her face changed as they listened, until she said firmly to Sansa, "Get behind me."

Sansa was able to hide behind her just in time for a frenzied horse to burst through the bushes, pushed by a rider who looked as though he was being followed by a demon. He bolted past them, evidently not even noticing they were there, he was going so fast. Podrick and Brienne exchanged looks once the mystery rider was out of sight. A moment later, Brienne finally relaxed, though she kept a wary eye on the road ahead.

"Wonder what he was running from," Podrick mused, still looking back over his shoulder.

"I'd rather not hazard a guess. Let's hasten on to the Wall, I want to get there as soon as possible," she replied as she spurred on her horse.

They went the rest of the way in silence, though this time, the tension in the three companions was almost palpable. Sansa had already drawn her hood over her head to hide her recognizable Tully red hair, but she still felt…exposed. She tried to relax in the saddle, letting the cadence of hoofbeats calm her down…come to think of it, she didn't remember the last time she'd really slept…

/*/

"My lady. My lady?" Brienne's voice woke her.

Sansa sat up, still on her horse, rubbing her eyes. "How long was I asleep?" It was a true testament to her fatigue that she had been able to fall asleep in the saddle - and remain up there instead of falling.

"Not very long," the other woman replied.

"Lady Sansa, look!" Podrick interrupted, sounding excited. He was riding to her right where Brienne was to her left, and he was pointing to something ahead.

In front of them, she could see the road stretch out until it finally reached… "The Wall," Sansa breathed in awe. It truly was a sight to behold. She could almost see the entire structure as it stretched from coast to coast. Even so, she could imagine that it was even more impressive when viewed from the top.

Her eyes trailed downwards and there, nestled at the foot of the massive ice wall sat what looked like a tiny structure in comparison. Some of the wood was getting old, but she knew what those gates were. "The gates of Castle Black. We're here," she breathed.

From atop the Wall came a shout - "Incoming riders! Open the gate!"

A/N: Let us know what you think!