The breakfasts at Castle Black are one of the few good things that remain to Jon Snow in this life. Eating the fried bread and kidneys, he thinks, for the thousandth time, it would have been a mercy had he been sentenced to execution, at Kings Landing. But the punishment of the kinslayer is not death. It is life. Life, despised by others. Life, despising oneself. "Ask me again in ten years", Tyrion had suggested, when he asked him if they had done the right thing by killing Daenerys. Ten years? it had taken him far less time than that to realise what a disastrous error he had made. His agents had kept him informed of events at Kings Landing. Tyrion, thrilled at the chance to exercise supreme political power, had proven completely out of his depth, in the face of the Ironborn and Dornish rebellions. He had tried appeasement, and been laughed at. He had sent out military expeditions that were destroyed. And, then, a decade ago, he had been assassinated. Bran had shown himself to be utterly ineffectual as king, living in the past, in a world of his own. He appointed a succession of Hands, none of whom had proved up to the task. Bronn Stokeworth, Master of Coin, had diverted funds intended for the army into his own pockets, a significant factor in their military failures. No one had mourned him when he died suddenly. Nor, had they wept for Sam Tarly, for that matter. His oldest friend, who had never even bothered to write to him, once he had been sent into exile, at Castle Black. Like everyone else, Sam had seen the Seven Kingdoms as his private treasure trove. Lord Commander Brienne, one of the few Small Councillors to possess integrity, had been killed in battle with the Dornish.

But, if there was chaos in the South, the North was another matter altogether. His dear sister and cousin had revealed a side he never knew existed (although he appreciates now that he ought to have done). Inevitably, the Northern lords had proved fractious and disloyal. A woman ruler was considered to be a pushover. She had responded by bringing fire and sword to them and their Smallfolk, in the form of a powerful army of foreign sellswords, and masterless men, devoid of any notion of pity, honour, or decency. On one of her visits to Castle Black, long ago, before their relationship broke down completely, she boasted that she'd studied Tywin Lannister's military campaigns in detail, and had learned some valuable lessons. Here, at least, she was telling the truth. And increasingly, she had come to rule the North through terror, with considerable skill, it must be said. Year on year, the taxes rose to fund the army, and the Queen's glittering Court. But, the rebellions had petered out, and the population had been cowed. Her master-stroke had been to sell the tenants of rebel lords into slavery (not that she ever called it that). That way, she made enough money to keep her army well paid, while getting rid of potential enemies. The price was, of course, that she had made herself hated. Speech is still free among the men of the Nights Watch. And, they don't hold back from expressing their views on Queen Sansa the Wise! Many of them make no secret of the fact that they would welcome the sight of her head being spiked above Winterfell's gate by Yara Greyjoy I would welcome it too . Does he mean that? Is this what the Stark family has sunk to at the end? He is aware that Sansa does not care that she has made herself hated.

He rises from his table, walks out, and exits the Refectory, stepping out into the light snow. Arya is waiting for him, ready to spar. She aims two cuts at his head with her rapier, right and left, lighting fast, which he only just manages to avoid. He retaliates with a savage swing that would disembowel her if it caught her, only for her to dodge it in turn. They're both very good, and a small crowd gathers to watch. They are keenly matched, Arya's skill and grace, pitted against his strength and speed. On this occasion, he wins, tripping her legs from under her, and putting her on her back. Just as often, he is the one landing on his back. The crowd applauds as he helps her to his feet. They retire to his chambers. Arya's presence at Castle Black is one of the few things that has kept him sane, in recent years. After returning from her voyages West, she had flatly refused Sansa's offer to work as her chief torturer, and taken refuge with him. As indeed have many Northerners. In truth, there is little purpose to the Night's Watch any more, but its ranks have swelled with Northern volunteers, unable to stomach his sister's tyranny. The lands of The Gift have also been repopulated with Northern refugees, enabling farms and villages to be rebuilt. He pours ale for them both, as they relax.

"The invasion is underway, now. Yara Greyjoy and her army have reached the Stony Shore. I expect they'll strike for Torrhen's Square."

"Do you expect her to honour her bargain with you, Jon? If she wins, why wouldn't she and Grey Worm come North to settle accounts with us."

"That's a risk. But, they'd have to fight their way through the Gift, and we'd have the backing of the Free Folk. And, she'd turn the North against her. No, I don't think she's that foolish."

"If they win, will they kill Sansa? "

"Do you think I care? Kill her, imprison her, it's all one to me. " Arya looks troubled.

"In spite of everything, Jon, she is still our sister."

"Do you think she acted like a sister towards me, Arya?" She shakes her head. "And, do you think it would have been safe for you to remain at Winterfell, after turning her down? Or would she have seen you as a traitor?"

"I see your point. Gods. Imagine what mother and father and Robb are thinking now, if they can see us! The family that ruined the Seven Kingdoms, and ended up more despised than the Boltons!"

"I've spent the past fifteen years, trying not to think about that. But, I suppose Lady Catelyn would just say I lived down to all her worst expectations."

Arya rises from her chair, and comes over to hug him. "You never did. Sansa set you up. And, Daenerys did kill a city."

"Not her alone. Our men were out for revenge. For Father, Robb, and Lady Catelyn; for the men murdered by the Freys; for all their losses, fighting the Lannisters; for having to fight the Dead, without the help they'd been promised. They weren't going to accept a surrender. I should have realised that. Let's face it, the North rejoiced when they heard what was done at Kings Landing. "

"We can't dwell in the past. "

"No. We need to talk about Catelyn. The Pirate Queen has assured me, she'll be spared and sent to us. But, she may still be caught up in the fighting, or worse. Would our sweet sister even let her go?"

"I need to get her out of Winterfell, don't I? I'll need to disguise myself, and take some of your men, in case of pursuit. Maybe a dozen, and we'll need remounts and supplies."

"Take all you need, only bring her home. If we can see her safe, at least we'll have salvaged something from the fiasco that Sansa and Bran have wrought between them."

Two days later, Arya rides out from Castle Black, with a dozen of his men. There is nothing more that Jon can do now, expect pray to the Old Gods and the New, that her mission will succeed.

Notes:

The Gift is the area of land which supports the Nights Watch. Once well-populated, it's population had fallen sharply by the start of the fourth century AC. The show presupposed an absurdly small population for the entire North, of less than a million. The North would just not be able to field the size of army it does with a population of that size. If one were to take early medieval Scandinavia as a comparison, the population of the North should be more like 3 to 4 million. Numbers have probably declined somewhat, under Sansa's benevolent rule