"Don't look away" Sansa chides her daughter. "Your future subjects will never respect a weakling." Catelyn stares straight ahead at the scene.

Father, Mother, Robb, is this how it ends? Two days ago, Sansa was informed that Robett Glover had surrendered Deepwood Motte to the mountain clans. His younger brother had been caught by her agents, attempting to flee Wintertown. She holds him responsible for his brother's treason, and he will now pay the price. Night is falling, and the Godswood is illuminated with torches. She sits with her daughter on a raised platform. Before her, a wooden cage has been suspended from a gibbet. Beneath the cage have been heaped logs and brushwood. The condemned man is led into the Godswood by her guards, his hands in fetters. He wears nothing but a loincloth, and shivers in the cold air. He struggles in his bonds, as he sees what awaits him, but it is useless. The cage is lowered, and a guard opens it up. The prisoner is driven inside. Sansa rises to her feet, to address the crowd. The entire court is present, including Maester Wolkan, and Jeyne Poole. Arya too, has been brought from her chambers, under guard. It will be instructive for her sister to witness proceedings,

"Behold the fate of those who commit treason against their Queen and their Motherland. The penalty for treason is, can only be, and must always be, death." She nods at the executioner, who winches the cage a few feet into the air. "Your Grace, I am innocent of treason," shouts the man. "Grant me the right to prove my innocence, by combat, against any man you name as your champion."

"Fire is the champion of House Stark." She nods again to the executioner, who takes one of the torches, and applies it to the brushwood. The wood is damp and will not catch light. A servant pours oil over the wood, and eventually it catches light. The fire burns brighter, and some of the flames reach the floor of the cage. She hears the man praying desperately and then he cries out:-

"Sansa Stark, you are no true Queen. We bled for you, but you stole your crown from your brother and from Daenerys Targaryen. Faithless, lying, treacherous. A traitor to your kin, and a tyrant to your subjects. A usurper who betrays the memory of her Father, Mother, and brother. I curse you, I denounce you. Sansa Stark, before the year is out, you too shall join me before the judgement seat of the gods!" She feels a wave of fury. "More oil" she commands the executioner. He and his mate empty the oil on to the logs, and the flames engulf the cage, even as the man's curses turn to screams. The floor of the cage collapses, and the man is pitched into the burning logs, still screaming, but not for long.

There is complete silence among the onlookers, shocked by what they have just witnessed and heard. "When the fire has cooled, leave the man's body for the wild beasts" she commands the executioner. To her intense annoyance, she hears Catelyn sobbing beside her. "I made a grave mistake this evening, Catelyn. I ought to have had his tongue cut out, beforehand." Her daughter just stares at her, through tear-streaked eyes, saying nothing. She leads the silent procession back to the Palace. In the atrium, a servant hands her a message, delivered by raven. She reads it and smiles. She turns to her court and proclaims "My lord husband has won a victory in the South. Once he has crushed the enemy, he will march North, and destroy the traitors at Deepwood Motte. We shall hold a service of thanksgiving in the Palace Sept, tomorrow." Her courtiers express their congratulations, although she suspects that their enthusiasm is feigned. How far does treason extend into my inner circle?. She approaches Arya. "I need to talk to you, sister." She leads her into her study. They sit on either side of her desk.

"I suppose you disapprove?"

"My approval or disapproval makes no odds I think; You'll do what you want to do. I've seen much worse than that in my life. But, I think you've destroyed your daughter's faith in her mother."

"Catelyn needs to learn what it is to be a ruler. It is not all about balls, and hunts, and banquets. It is about taking hard, but necessary, decisions."

"Was the man even guilty?"

"The treachery of one brother renders the other unreliable"

"I think if Sansa the girl could look into the future, and see Sansa the Queen, she'd react the same way your daughter did, tonight". Sansa sighs, remembering what she once was, and remains silent for a time.

"Sansa the girl was a fool. Joffrey, Cersei, Petyr Baelish, Margaery, Ramsay, Daenerys. Between them, they stripped away my illusions, and taught me what the world really is. Either you're the hunter, or you're the prey."

"Even if you defeat Yara Greyjoy, Sansa, there will be others. Will you put down the world, in order to keep your throne?"

Sansa is silent for a long time, beset with doubts. Then "I'm no fool Arya. I know that I'm fighting a long defeat. I can be frank with you. Whatever my propagandists may say, I know that my subjects hate me. They never gave me the love that they gave father and Robb. They may not have loved mother, but they respected her. I have no choice but to rule by fear. I've never had a choice. But, yes, I know that among my subjects, there is one who will strike me down eventually. I just have to keep going as long as I can. For the honour of our House."

"And, is that the kind of life you want for Catelyn?"

"Catelyn is the future of our House. Unless you decide to marry and have children. What other life can I give her?"

Arya opens her mouth to speak, but Sansa interrupts her "Yes, I know you'll say I should go into exile. Let me tell you something that Jon once told me. He said Daenerys hated the idea of being Queen, but she thought she had to avenge the downfall of her family. Her honour demanded that she fight for the Iron Throne. He said her dream was just to retire to a house with a red door and a lemon tree in the garden, and be forgotten by the rest of the world. At the time, I thought she was just being a hypocrite, pretending that she didn't lust after power. But now? Now, I think she was telling the truth. Maybe I wish I could find the house with the red door, but I can't. It doesn't exist. So, I have to stand and fight, to the bitter end. "

"And if the end does come, Sansa, what happens to Catelyn?" asks Arya, softly.

"She dies with me. Do you think I'd let them do to her the things that Ramsay Bolton did to me?"

"Yara Greyjoy's a ruthless woman. But, torturing and raping thirteen year old girls? That's not her."

"Arya, she's a degenerate. She couples with anything that moves!"

"That doesn't make her a monster. If it comes to it, let me take Catelyn to Castle Black. She'll be safe there. Save your daughter, at least."

Sansa bites back an angry retort. Perhaps it is an option, after all. "I'll think about it. I promise you no more than that. Now, you must return to your chambers. " Arya leaves the study, while Sansa remains lost in thought.

Notes:

Glover's curse on Sansa is similar to that which Jaques de Molay, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, pronounced on Philip the Fair, Enguerrand Marigny, and the Pope, when he was burned on trumped-up charges of heresy. All three did in fact die within the year