Two weeks had passed since the attack on the Lannister soldiers where the captain got away. Arya kept waiting for an entire hunting party to come looking for them but it never came. If anything there seemed to be less soldiers running around which made no sense at all. It didn't really bother her that much at the moment. The fire her and Gendry has built had long since died and now they only had the moon and the stars giving them any light.
It was enough for her as she lay wrapped in the arms of the man she loved exchanging slow and deep kisses. They weren't in any hurry and despite the fact that she always wanted him Arya didn't think having sex in the middle of the forest was the best idea. That didn't stop Gendry's hands from wandering and made her think back to two weeks earlier.
They had just finished giving out the last of the Lannister supplies to a village that was extremely grateful. It wasn't the first time someone gave them a room in an inn and it wasn't even the first time the room only had one bed. It was the first time they had shared a room since they confessed they had feelings for one another. The air was different as they went into the small room. Gendry closed the door and as soon as Arya heard it lock something inside of her snapped.
She took three large steps forward and yanked Gendry down so she could kiss him. He didn't hesitate to kiss her back and it didn't take long for the kiss to turn into something different. Arya didn't know how much experience Gendry had but in Arya's opinion, this might be the best kiss of her life. They broke apart only when they both needed to breathe. Arya stared at him, this amazing man in her life, and considered herself so incredibly lucky. So many women never got the chance to be with a man they loved and here she was.
They both silently removed all of their weapons and let them fall to the floor without looking away from each other once. Gendry was usually a lot more careful with weapons but he didn't seem to care this time. He was still too tall but Arya could think of a good way to make things easier. She pulled him toward the bed and pushed Gendry down so he was sitting. He watched her with wide eyes as Arya settled into his lap.
"Arya..." he whispered but she cut him off with a kiss. She could feel so much more like this. She could get her fingers into his hair and pull which made Gendry groan beneath her. Arya had seen him in various stages of dress over the years but, for the first time, she wanted skin. She wanted to feel his body beneath her hands. Arya slipped a hand beneath his shirt to touch his stomach and Gendry froze beneath her. "What are you doing?" He was out of breath and his eyes were almost black.
"I want you," Arya replied. "I want all of you because I love you and that's what people in love do." She leaned forward to kiss him again but Gendry moved out of the way.
"You love me?" he sounded like he couldn't believe that but shook his head as if to clear it. "Arya, this isn't something that can be undone. If we do this it changes things."
"I am yours and you are mine. What more needs to be said?" Arya was not one for patience and she really wanted to move things along.
"You're a lady of a great house," he whispered and now it was Arya's turn to tense but Gendry held up a hand to silence her. "Please let me explain. You might be the daughter of a dead house but if anyone should recognize you as Lady Arya Stark it won't matter. They will see me as the bastard that stole your maidenhead, they will label me a raper even if it was something we both wanted because you're a lady and that's how it is. I'm afraid not because they would likely kill me on the spot but because they would make you watch as they killed me."
Arya was reminded of a Mycah and how the Hound cut him down for something she did. It didn't matter that she was the one who drew blood; she was the daughter of a great house and Mycah was the one who paid the horrible price. Arya always hated when Gendry got up on their differences because it didn't matter to her but it might matter to someone else.
"I swear to you, on my life Gendry Waters, that I will let no harm come to you," Arya said.
"You can't make-"
"And yet I just did. I have sworn this oath that I will let no harm come to you. I will protect you with my life just as you protect mine with yours because I love you," Arya said as she framed his face with her hands. He still looked a little afraid but Gendry slowly began to smile. It was like watching a sunrise.
"I love you too," he whispered and he leaned in to kiss her. This time there wasn't any hesitation as the two of them began to strip away their lawyers of clothing. Gendry was no doubt leaving bruises on the sensitive skin of her neck but, at the moment, Arya couldn't care less. She finally got his shirt off of him and she trailed her fingers down the terrible scar on Gendry's chest. This was the night she almost lost him and it still hurt to think about. Gendry took her hands and moved them both further onto the bed. "If I do something you don't like I want you to tell me," he said softly as he touched the scarred skin of her stomach. "I'm going off knowledge gleaned from listening to the whores and other men talking."
For some reason it made Arya feel even more special that this was a first for him too. There was no doubt that it was going to be a little awkward but the idea of any other woman sinking her claws into Gendry's skin made her see red. She nodded and Gendry pushed her shirt up and over her head so she was bare before him. He leaned down and began to place soft kisses along her shoulders and slowly made her way down to her breasts. No one had ever touched her there and she jumped a bit when Gendry's rough hands touched her skin. He looked up at her and she nodded for him to continue.
He took one of her nipples into his mouth and Arya couldn't stop the moan that escaped from her lips. She was getting wet between her legs the way she sometimes would when she had a dream about Gendry doing exactly this. Arya always thought sex was just men fucking but Gendry didn't even seem interested. She had always wondered if sex was supposed to be good for the woman too. Gendry was apparently determined to make it good for her.
After teasing her breasts mercilessly Gendry began to kiss his way down her stomach. He paused when he got to the scars that she bore from the night they almost lost each other and the reason why Arya couldn't have children. He kissed each one tenderly and Arya loved him even more just for that.
"I want to try something," he whispered against her skin. "That I heard some of the girls say was good for them. If you don't like it, we don't have to."
"I promise I will tell you to stop if I don't like it," Arya replied. Gendry knew what it was like to get used like a tool rather than a person. He was always making sure that she was doing things of her own free will and Arya wasn't surprised that he was no different when they lay together. He began to undo her pants and Arya made a point to kick off her boots. Gendry smiled at her he slowly pulled her pants down revealing her pale legs. He took the small clothes with him so when they hit the floor she was bare before him.
Arya's first instinct was to cover up but then she saw the way Gendry was looking at it. He looked in awe of her as if she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. She didn't know how to react to it. He crawled up and began to kiss her sweetly as his hand traveled down her body. Arya knew a little about what he was about to do. In the most private moment, she had touched herself a little but ever since King's Landing she didn't have much time alone. Arya thought she knew what to expect when he touched her but it was so different. She gasped against his lips and tried to ignore the fact that he looked a little smug.
He was touching in places and in ways she never had before and it making her body feel warm and tight. Arya threw her head back and Gendry latched onto her pulse point as his fingers drove her out of her mind. He slipped a single finger inside of her and Arya gasped again. She could feel him hesitate and the last thing she wanted was for him to stop. "If you stop I might actually kill you." Gendry pressed himself to her neck and she could feel him softly laughing. He slipped another finger into her and the stretch was unfamiliar but it didn't bother her. Gendry moved away from her neck and began to kiss down her body. His thumb pressed against a part of herself that Arya didn't know existed and she began to tremble. Gendry used his thumb to slowly move a circle around that one spot and Arya couldn't take it anymore. Every muscle in her body clenched and she swore she saw stars. It was the peak that she had heard some whores talk about and a thing that most men didn't let women have.
Gendry removed his fingers from her and drew Arya into a soft kiss as they lay side by side on the bed. It took a moment for Arya to realize that Gendry was still wearing pants and didn't seem to be in any hurry to take them off. That was not acceptable for Arya and she reached down to undo the laces of his breeches. Gendry seemed to keen her until her lips were nearly numb but he gasped she got a hand around him.
"We don't need to do this," he whispered against her lips. "There are ways we can love each other without doing this."
"I swore to protect you and intend to keep that promise. I want this with the only man I have ever loved," Arya replied. Gendry smiled and removed the rest of his clothing. Arya knew she was supposed to be nervous about having a man in her bed, she heard from so many ladies that the first time hurt, and while the stretch wasn't exactly pleasant it wasn't so bad either. Gendry took his time, letting her adjust until they were together. There was no taking anything back now and Arya was glad for it. She pulled Gendry down for a kiss as they began to move together.
No one knew her better and it didn't take long for her to peak again clenching hard around him. Gendry snapped his hips forehead twice more and pulled out just as he fell over the edge. She knew why he was doing it even if there was a very good chance she couldn't have children. Gendry would never father a bastard. They pulled each other close as their breathing slowed and the sweat began to cool on their bodies. It was perfect.
For all of the fighting and killing, they did Gendry still liked to treat her properly. Arya had no problem taking him to bed somewhere other than an inn but Gendry didn't seem comfortable with ut. That was why they were curled together exchanging deep kisses with no rush to remove any clothing. The moonlight made his eyes shine and Arya loved every moment of it.
There was a noise in the woods that had them both breaking away quickly. An arrow fell from the trees and handed mere inches from Gendry's head. Arya was about to pull out her sword when someone stepped out of the shadows.
"Now, now, I wouldn't do that if I were you."
"Anguy?" Gendry said.
"Lovely to see you both again," Anguy said as more brotherhood members came out of the shadows. "You'd do well to hand over your weapons before I put an arrow in him, m'lady. You were always so protective of him and I doubt that has changed from what I just saw." Arya grit her teeth together but removed her swords and dagger all the same. Lord Beric and Thoros of Myr emerged once Arya and Gendry had surrendered all of their weapons.
"Can't say I'm very surprised to see the two of you running around together still," Beric said as he looked the two of them over.
"We didn't have a choice but to run," Gendry snapped. "You were going to sell to that Red Woman."
"We lost out on a good set of coin because of that," Thoro said and he nodded. Members from the brotherhood took Arya and Gendry's arms and brought them forward. Thoro put a finger under Gendry's chin and forced eye contact. "If you've put your bastard hands on that girl you won't live to see the morning."
The words shook Arya to her core but this is what Gendry was worried about. The exact scenario he feared before they laid together was here and now it was her turn to protect him. She needed to think fast or she was going to lose yet another person that she loved.
"The way I see it you have two options here," Arya said with her head held high like the noblewoman she was born as. "Either you see me as Lady Arya Stark, heir to Winterfell, and the last of Stark's as you well know. You were loyal to fighting for the Riverlands and my Uncle. I am the one who could lead this group to war if I wanted. In which case, the only person who can pass judgment is me." She paused as she looked at the men before her. "Or you could see me as a girl traveling with a boy and what we do in beds does not concern you in the slightest because her house is dead. Which is it?" Beric and Thoro looked at each other and they both smiled a bit like something was amusing.
"Very well, Arya," Beric said and the men released her and Gendry. "We've heard all about the two of you running around all of Westeros trying to make things better."
"We don't exactly have an army we can call on to get the Lannister's out of power," Gendry said. "But we could be a persistent thorn in their side and take care of the smallfolk at the same time." Gendry and Arya began to gather their weapons but she could feel Thoros and Beric watching the two of them. Someone made a strange noise when they saw Gendry's warhammer and they both turned around.
"Would you look at that," Thoros said with a drunken smile. "Like two ghosts from the past and I can't believe we didn't notice we had two runts of noble birth among us."
"Hardly," Gendry muttered.
"There is power in king's blood," Thoros muttered. "Now I see why the woman wanted you so badly, boy."
"It's best if we're known as Wolf and Bull," Arya said. "As you know Westeros has a long memory and both of our names are dangerous."
"Very well. Now, I don't expect either of you to trust us but you are welcome to come back to the Hallow Hill for some time to rest and plan your next move," Beric said. Arya glanced at Gendry and he shrugged. If the Red Woman was not here then the Brotherhood was of no danger to either of them.
"Just for a few days," Arya said and they all made their way back to the camp.
Arya didn't mind being around the Brotherhood again that much. They were good people who made plenty of mistakes and while she hated them for trying to sell Gendry it hadn't happened and it was in the past. There was nothing she could do about it now. She was sitting with Thoros one night while Gendry was in the small forge working when she asked the question that had been bothering her for a long time.
"When you found out who Gendry's father was you said, "there is power in king's blood". What did you mean and do you know what that woman would have done to him if we hadn't gotten away?" she asked.
"Dark magic requires sacrifice," Thoros muttered. "She likely would have bled him dry or burned him at the stake."
"And you were okay sending a young man to his death like that?" Arya snapped.
"I didn't know who he was and I suppose I was willing to look the other way which was wrong of me." Thoros poked at the fire and took a long drink. "He's in danger. The smallfolk are calling you both Lyanna and Robert back from the dead. It won't take someone like Cersei long to realize that one of the bastards escaped."
"We know the risks we're taking," Arya whispered. "But we can't get on a ship and sail away from all of this. These people didn't do anything wrong and they are the ones suffering in the wars. This is how we can help."
"The two of you would have made a hell of a King and Queen," Thoros whispered. Arya didn't know what she was supposed to say something like that so the two of them sat in silence for a long time as Beric came over to the fire and joined them. Arya still didn't know where Gendry's was but if he was working on a project she didn't need to bother him. She just missed always being close to him. Arya thought about names and what they meant, she thought about traditions, and family.
"Lord Beric, Thoros," and the two of them looked at each other. "Have you found any heart trees nearby and do you know how to perform a Northern wedding?" Arya would cherish the look on both of their faces for the rest of her life. "We're together in all of the ways that count so now I want to stand before my Old Gods and make it official. If he says "yes", Thoros and Lord Beric, will you marry us?"
"I can think of nothing else that would make Cersei Lannister angrier," Thoros said with a grin. "Let's find you a Heart Tree."