This one's a bit longer than the ones before, and that for good reason ;) ENJOY!
A week had come and gone since Samaya had returned to Highgarden, and no word from Daenerys yet. She had sent her a raven as soon as things had settled, explaining what they had found, and how they planned on restoring order. Sam had waited for days, but she did not get a response. The same raven she had sent the letter with had returned after four days, but he did not bring any news.
As soon as word had travelled that the Tyrells were back in Highgarden, farmers and other commoners from the Reach had come to help them rebuild. Samaya felt more grateful than before that her House was beloved by the people. There was some distrust between the Dothraki and the others, but they worked together still.
On Samaya's orders, all the fallen soldiers and other dead were burned, rather than buried. They had built hundreds of pyres outside the castle's walls, the biggest of which was positioned in the middle. It carried the bodies of Olenna and Garlan Tyrell. Her brother was amongst those dead in the courtyard, whereas Sam found her grandmother in her solar, high up in the East Tower. At first she had thought the old woman to be asleep, she was sat peacefully in her favourite chair, an empty goblet of wine on the table, her expression peaceful. Sam did not know what had happened to Olenna, but it seemed she was granted a tranquil passing.
Every single person residing in the castle had gathered on the fourth night to watch Rhaegal set the pyres alight. It was an impressive sight, and just as much as the flames rose higher, so did Sam's anger at the Lannisters. Cersei would pay for this.
Slowly, Highgarden returned to its former glory. Rubble was cleared and chaos removed, and every day, it looked a little more like it used to. Samaya had been on her feet around the clock, lending a helping hand wherever she could. Willas had insisted on staying in Sunflower Hall, where they had put a footstool for his injured ankle in front of the Lord's chair. He was governing from there, taking care of all the little requests and complaints people brought before him, while Sam was making herself dirty and sweaty by rebuilding what had been destroyed.
The only moments of relief Sam got was when she reported to him at the end of the day. They would sit at one of the tables, Sam eagerly chowing down the simple stew they were serving. The Lannisters had taken most of their food supplies, and Daenerys had burnt it in battle. Sam now cursed that action bitterly, seeing how quickly winter was approaching. Already, it had become significantly colder, with harsh winds and longer nights to warn them of what was to come.
Willas had a lot of questions for her, and it took them a few days to catch up on everything that had happened. Sam was overjoyed when she heard that Shadowfoot had made it back with her message from Storm's End, but the horse had not been seen since the invasion. The stable boy she had hired to deliver the message had decided to stay in Highgarden, and had luckily escaped the massacre. He had barely left her side, thankful for keeping her promise and finding him a better home here than he ever had before.
Sam had told Willas about Jon Snow and the Army of the Dead, which made him very sceptical at first. Only after she had insisted countless times did he start to believe in the threat beyond the Wall. Some raiders had been caught trying to take advantage of the castle's weakened state, and Willas immediately sent them to the Wall, escorted by four of the remaining Tyrell soldiers. They were to send word of the state of Castle Black, and any news they picked up along the way.
After this first week, Samaya had finally allowed herself a moment of rest. She was once again sitting in her favourite spot beneath the Three Sisters, staring out into nothingness. She had missed the weirwood trees even more than she realised. On her first day back, the familiar dreams of her early adulthood hat returned. Only now, she understood some of the symbolism. Sand for Dorne, Water for her escape from King's Landing, and her journey across the Narrow Sea, and fire for Daenerys and her dragons. Only now, there was ice and snow involved as well. Samaya often had the same dream. She was standing in Winterfell's Great Hall, but it was desolate. The cold wind was howling, snow was blowing in from every opening, and corpses littered the floor. On the dais were the remaining Starks, all cold and dead. The only one missing would be Jon. In her dream, Sam would run through the deserted castle, screaming for him, but she never found anyone. In the Godswood was the body of a dead dragon, but it was not Rhaegal… it was Viserion, something that Sam understood no less than the whole dream itself.
She sat there for a long, long time, until sun gave way to dusk, and night slowly descended. That was when Orys, the stable boy from Storm's End, found her.
"Lady Samaya, there was a raven for you," he said, startling her. In her trance, she had not noticed his approach. Immediately, her pulse picked up and she got off the ground in a flash.
"Who sent it?" she asked him eagerly. The boy just shrugged his shoulders.
"Your brother wouldn't say. Just asked me to find you," he replied a little nervous. She gave him a kind smile.
"Thank you, Orys, I will be on my way," Sam told him and started walking back at a fast pace. Like always, she found her brother in Sunflower Hall, which was usually buzzing with excitement. Now, the people were quietly whispering, every eye on her as soon as she entered. Sam felt a strange sense of foreboding. Whatever message she had gotten, it was not good. Quickly, she walked to her brother's side, who wordlessly handed her the tiny scroll.
Jon Snow and company trapped beyond the Wall, Army of the Dead closing in. Send help as fast as you can. Davos Seaworth, Hand of the King, at Eastwatch-by-the-Sea
Sam's mouth fell open in shock, and her hands started trembling. Why were they beyond the Wall? What nonsense had gotten into his head? Willas took her hand, giving it a firm squeeze.
"We cannot afford to send help, and it would reach them way too late," he told her quietly. Sam blinked away the confusion.
"You are wrong, I can help. It will not take me long to fly there," she told him sternly. Her brother's expression darkened at the thought.
"I cannot let you endanger yourself like this, I will not allow it," Willas said in a loud voice. They had now gotten the attention of the rest of the people in the hall. Sam wrenched her hand from his grip and gave him an angry look.
"I am not yours to command, I am going," she replied with vehemence. Willas gave her a small smile.
"You are willing to die for this King in the North? Willing to leave Highgarden behind again?" he asked in a sad tone. Samaya shook her head, he did not understand her reasons.
"I will not die, and I will return. You have not met Jon Snow, Willas. If you had, you would know that he is the only one that can save us all. He is the only one that can teach the rest of this realm how to fight them. I have to go," she replied quietly. They stared at each other for a long moment, before he finally nodded.
"Do you have to go alone, though?" he then added.
"I won't be alone, Willas. I'll have the dragon," she replied and with that, she quickly hurried off to gather her things and be on her way as fast as she could. Jon Snow was in danger, and she was not ready to lose him. If not for the good of the realm, than for her own.
Rhaegal was roaring loudly as she quickly packed her things. When she stepped into the courtyard, donning her travelling cloak once again, her bow slung around her back, and a fierce look on her face, he was waiting by the destroyed fountain. People have gathered to watch her depart, and she knew she had to ease their minds. Standing in front of the dragon, she faced them and started speaking.
"I do not wish to leave you all so soon, but much more than one life is in danger, and I have to help. My brother will have an important message for you, and I urge you now to put any doubt to rest. The legends of the Long Night are true, and if we do not work together, they will destroy us all. Prepare for winter and what it brings," she announced in a loud voice before she climbed on the dragon. Her brother gave her a last, small wave before she got ready for her long journey. Leaning down closer to Rhaegal's head, she whispered her destination.
"Take me to Jon Snow."
They would die here today, and it was all his fault. As Jon looked at his companions, their faces torn between bravery and desperation, he cursed himself once again for going on this reckless mission. All hope for help had passed when hours came and went without any change in their situation. Now, the water on the lake had freshly frozen over, and the Army of the Dead was attacking them with all their might.
Some of their Night's Watch companions fell, but the core group of fighters was more or less able to fend their enemies off one by one. Cold sweat was coating every single one of them, and Jon felt his strength dwindling. How could he have been so stupid? The whole realm would fall if they could not convince the Lannisters of this threat. And with him dead, who would? Daenerys would rather fight Cersei than the Undead, and Samaya… well, Sam was not the Queen. There was little she could do.
As he plunged Longclaw into yet another rotting corpse, his heart ached at the thought of Samaya. He would never see her again, and she would fight a lonely battle trying to convince Daenerys of this. Gendry clearly had not made it to the wall, or something, anything would have happened by now.
Their line was weakening, exhaustion taking a hold on them. For a brief moment, Jon thought about just surrendering himself to the inevitable, but he did not go through all of his life's hardships to die like this. He could not, he would not give up. He gave a loud battlecry as he killed another one of their attackers, motivating those around him. They rallied closer than before, trying their best to take as many of them down with them, when a loud roar filled the air.
Time seemingly stopped for a moment, and Jon never heard a sound as sweet as the mighty call of dragons. They craned their necks and immediately spotted the two huge beast soaring overhead. Drogon dived down from the sky, and as the fire came out of his mouth, the Army of the Dead was turned to ashes. The dragons blasted their way through the corpses, creating a rift between where Jon and the others were, and where the rest of the army stood.
However, the fight was not over yet, and Jon got knocked off his feet as a rotting body collided with his. The wight tried to claw at his throat, but he took its head off with one clean cut. Tormund helped him to his feet, and with re-found strength, they carved their way through the remaining enemies.
Just as Drogon landed on the rock they had huddled on with a loud thud, another screech filled the air, immediately answered by him. Jon looked up once more to see the third dragon joining his two brothers. A smile broke out on his face as he spotted a familiar figure on its back.
"Jon!" Daenerys's voice seemed distant as she called to him. He faced her and watched as the rest of his men climbed onto the back of the grounded dragon. As he started moving toward them, he was pulled back by a bony hand, and had to fight another group of whites that had approached out of nowhere.
He was so immersed in his fight, he did not notice the icy spear hurled forward by the Night King. Only as Viserion roared in pain did he notice what had happened. In horror, he watched as the dragon crash-landed onto the ice and slowly sunk underwater, any sign of life having left him. Immediately, his brothers filled the air with wailing sounds, mourning the fallen dragon.
With fear in his heart did Jon notice that the Night King was reaching for another spear just as Sam was diving for him on Rhaegal. He turned around and shouted for Daenerys to go, hoping at least she would make it out alive. He would do whatever it took to get to Samaya, but the others needed to be safe first. The ground shook slightly as Drogon pushed himself off, Daenerys giving him a heart-wrenching look as she left him to fend for himself. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Sam had avoided the second spear and had turned the dragon around, heading into his direction.
The enemy was still clawing at him, threatening to drag him underwater where a hole in the ice had formed, but Jon fought as hard as never before. His efforts were futile when they finally succeeded and dragged him under. As Jon was staring up through the ice cold water, a yellow hue engulfed everything, and he knew that it must be Rhaegal, spitting fire at his opponents. Now he was determined: he was not going to die today. With his last ounce of strength, he started pushing upwards, and finally heaved his body out of the water with a gasping breath. Where Drogon had perched before was now Rhaegal, and he quickly limped over. Without a word, Sam held out her hand, and he caught it in an iron grip, being heaved up the dragon's back, and just in time. As the dragon took flight, another spear soared just past their heads, and Samaya was screaming at Rhaegal to get them out of there. When the clouds engulfed them, and blissful silence descended, Jon wrapped his hands tighter around her slender body, which was still shivering in fear.
"You came," he whispered against her ear, his voice shaky from the cold. She pressed her body tighter against his, wrapping one of her hands around his that were clutched over her navel. Turning her head to look at his eyes, he saw that there were tears threatening to spill over in hers.
"Don't you dare do that ever again! I thought you had died," she almost screamed. Jon was baffled, and wiped away her tears with his frozen fingers. Her skin was warm, so unbelievably warm and her eyes full of unspoken emotion. And then, without thinking about it for one fraction of time, he did the one thing he had wanted to do since that day in the Godswood – he kissed her. And without a second to waste, she kissed him back, and it was right there, on the back of a dragon, soaring high above the lands beyond the Wall, that they both felt something they had never felt before. They felt like they had found where they belonged… they belonged with each other.
As Daenerys landed her dragon at Eastwatch, the mood between her and the survivors was grim. Drogon was still wailing, and took off immediately after they had dismounted, probably in search for his remaining brother. Daenerys surveyed the sky as well, she was afraid for Samaya and Rhaegal. They had to flee so suddenly, she did not know what had happened after…
"Your Grace, where is the King?" Ser Davos strode up hurriedly, addressing her. As she looked at him, he stopped in his steps, reading her expression.
"No… no, it can't be, he can't be dead," the man said, shaking his head vehemently.
"I do not know, Ser Davos. My sister was still fighting when we had to leave. They took down one of my dragons," she answered, her voice breaking. Davos' eyes widened.
"They killed one of the dragons? How?" he asked, but she just shook her head, unable to explain. The pain was still too fresh. Ser Davos inhaled deeply before he continued to speak.
"Well, I am relieved to hear that the raven reached the Lady Samaya, though. Let us hope for her safe return. With Jon Snow," he added, and Daenerys narrowed her brows at him.
"So that's why she showed up, you sent her a call for help as well?" she asked incredulously. Davos nodded slowly.
"Apologies if that was against your wishes, your Grace, but I thought Jon could use all the help he can get," he explained in a quiet voice. Daenerys stared at him for a moment before composing herself.
"I suppose so, though my sister had instructions to stay at Highgarden until I sent for her again. I will have to sort this out with her if she returns," the Queen answered, anger boiling deep inside her. She did not know why she was so enraged by Sam coming to Jon's aid, but she had defied her orders once again, and she did not like the thought of her own sister following her heart more than her Queen's orders.
The pair of them started walking, eager to get inside, when they stopped in their tracks at the sound of a massive thud behind them. Rhaegal had landed in the courtyard, and two figures slid off his back. Daenerys was more than relieved to see her sister and Jon Snow alive and well, though the expression on her face remained somewhat impassive.
Sam looked beaten and tired as they walked up to them, Jon Snow leaning onto her for support. He had been injured in the fight, but it did not seem to be a dangerous wound gaping open on his leg. The thick fabric of his breeches was shredded, and red coated the dark material. The pair stopped a few feet from Daenerys, and Sam gave her a small, sad smile.
"I wish I'd seen you again under better circumstances," she told her sister, who sighed deeply.
"Me too. Thank you for your help, Samaya. Now, get inside and have the maester look at that wound of Lord… Jon," she said, quickly correcting herself. Daenerys had spent some more time with the Northerner, and knew now how much it bothered him to be called 'Lord Snow'. Ser Davos helped to support the King, and the three of them took off toward the maester's study. The Queen was left alone in the empty yard, nobody around but the cold winds that battered her hair. As she looked up at the sky where her two dragons were circling each other, no doubt trying to get over the death of their brother, she finally let the grief get to her. Today, she had not just lost a dragon. She had lost a child, and she had lost her blissful ignorance. Jon had been right, this army would destroy Westeros… and it was up to her to stop them.
Sam did not leave Jon's side as the maester cleaned and dressed his wound. She was quiet, her gaze fixed on the gash on his leg. Intently, she watched how the old man treated him. She had never given healing much interest, but what she had just witnessed had changed her outlook on a lot of things. War was coming, and it would not be a bad idea to know such a useful skill.
"What's that?" she asked as he put ground up herbs into the gash. The maester gave her a quizzical look, but answered after a few moments.
"A mixture of yarrow, goldenrod and calendula. It helps close the wound and to fend off infection," he explained while she watched his nimble fingers with interest.
"Sam," Jon almost whispered as the maester pressed the mixture deep into his wound. She saw the pain etched on his face and quickly reached for his hand, squeezing it in a comforting way. After a few moments, the maester finished and quickly gathered his things, leaving them alone.
It was eerily silent as Sam stared at the wound, his hand still clutched in hers. Jon was the first to speak.
"Are you afraid?" he asked quietly. She nodded slowly before answering.
"I believed you from the start, but now that I have seen them… they are terrifying," she said in a low voice, finally looking into his eyes. He looked back worriedly, and now it was his turn to squeeze her hand.
"I know, but that's not what I meant," he replied, and she furrowed her brows in confusion. Slowly, he pulled her down until her face was only inches from his. He searched her eyes for confirmation, and when she did not pull back, he closed the distance between them, hungry for her kiss.
Sam was a little stiff at first, but then relaxed into him, inching closer while their mouths were locked in the most intimate of embraces. Jon felt his frozen body coming alive, just the touch of her seemed to warm his blood and make his brain explode with excitement. She sidled up next to him on the small bed, pressing her frame against his, careful not to touch his wounded leg.
Time seemed to stand still and rush past at once, while they were passionately exploring each other. Finally, Sam broke the kiss, breathing heavily as she put her forehead against his. Jon could not help the small smile that creeped onto his face while he showered hers with soft kisses.
"Jon…," she protested weakly and he stopped, searching her eyes for answers. She seemed a little panicky, which made him smile even more.
"Don't tell me the woman who rides dragons and was once married to Oberyn Martell gets scared when she gets kissed by a Northern boy," he mused, a hint of glee in his voice. She chuckled nervously and pulled away a little, taking another deep breath.
"I just… there are so many things on my mind right now, and this… this is very distracting," she said in a flustered way, her cheeks blushing while he stroked his hand down her face.
"I know we have bigger problems to face, but this is just what I need right now. A few stolen moments with you. You are quite something, do you know that?" he said teasingly. Sam snorted, all of the shyness gone.
"I suppose you could say that… but so are you, Jon Snow," she replied, the way she said it stirring flashbacks in Jon's mind. He suppressed the image of a certain redhead and focused on Samaya instead.
"I should talk to your sister. I hope she will understand the extent of this threat now," he changed the subject. Sam nodded slowly and drew away from him. As soon as she left his side, he started missing her already.
"I am actually surprised she has not visited you yet, I will go and find her," she said as she straightened her clothes. When she got up to leave, he quickly caught her hand in his again, drawing her back towards him.
"Wait," he whispered and gave her a pleading look. She smiled when she realised what he was asking and bent down to give him another deep and long kiss. They broke apart a few moments later and she squeezed his hand one more time before turning to leave.
Sam was so flustered and confused by all the things that had happened on this day that she did not notice the small figure hiding in a nook in the hallway. As she started walking towards the common area, the figure stepped out from the shadows and watched her walking away.
When the girl had rounded a corner, Daenerys Targaryen let out a long, deep breath she had not realised she was holding and stared at the open door her sister had just come out of. When she had arrived a few minutes before, she heard them talking softly, and as she glanced through the gap the unclosed door provided, her eyes widened in surprise and she had to clasp a hand over her mouth to cover the sound that came out.
For some reason, she did not go in. For some reason, she hid in that nook when her sister came out of the room. For some reason, it felt as if somebody had thrust a dagger in her heart when she saw the King in the North and Sam kissing. And for some reason, she was as angry as she had not been in a long, long time.
So... well... any thoughts?