Author's Note: Here's another one! Unfortunately Jaimee will be absentee for several chapters but that's pretty much unavoidable. Don't worry though. The reunion will definitely be worth it:) I finally got some Stark family interaction into this chapter so enjoy!

"Feeling any better?" Amarah asked a bit more loudly than necessary to rouse her sleeping uncle.

Giving a groan of frustration at his interrupted slumber, Ned Stark slowly cracked open his eyes to find his niece leaning over his bedside with a concerned frown. With an obvious amount of effort he struggled into a sitting position in order to see her better.

"My leg feels as if it's on fire" he muttered. Rubbing his hand up and down the thigh of his injured leg, he seemed to want to ensure that the offended limb was still in tact.

Grimacing at his obvious distress Amarah held in check the sudden urge to blurt out the entire story. She wanted to apologize for setting off Jaime Lannister in the fit of rage that had triggered the entire bloody incident. When she heard from her father that several of Ned's men had been slain by Lannister guards including her old friend Jory Cassel she was ashamed of her part in causing their deaths.

"I'm sorry" she finally admitted with a downcast gaze.

"Sorry for what, Amarah?" her uncle asked squeezing her hand in gentle comfort.

Unable to bear his kind touch after playing a part in his misery, she quickly jerked her hand out of his warm grasp. Wincing at his wounded expression towards her icy response she began to explain what had happened.

"I don't deserve your kindness, Uncle" she whispered still unable to meet his gaze. "None of this would have happened if not for me."

"What do you mean?"

"I was the one who told Jaime Lannister about Tyrion. I was the reason he attacked you."

After admitting this Amarah could not bear to look up and see the disappointment in her uncle's gaze. Once he realized her treachery he would never be able to forgive her.

"Amarah" she heard his gentle voice as he recaptured her chilly hand once again. "Jaime Lannister would have discovered the news of his brother's capture regardless of your help. It would have changed nothing at all if you had held your tongue."

Shaking her head at his insistence that she had done nothing wrong, Amarah continued to stare at his callused hand holding her pale, delicate one. "I still feel as if I played some part in Jory's death."

"His death was no one's fault but Jaime Lannister's" he said more forcefully, this time grasping her chin to force her ashamed gaze to his. "Do not let yourself think otherwise."

"Did he die quickly?" she couldn't stop herself from asking. She had to know that Jaime had not forced him to die a painful death.

Understanding her need to know, Ned answered quickly. "Yes. He did not suffer."

Giving him a shaky smile at that reassurance she nodded her head in acknowledgement. "That is good."

Amarah had fond memories of Jory Cassel from her childhood. She had remembered his helping her small trio when they had tried to borrow a horse from the stable to pretend that Robb was a brave knight and she and Jon his faithful squires. He had procured a small pony for each child to take turns riding as the knight in a dangerous joust, and he had helped hide the evidence once the disapproving stable master had gotten wind of their mischief.

Jory always had a kind word for the quiet, shy little girl that had wandered the grounds in her early years at Winterfell, and Amarah had only good memories of the gentle man. Thinking of his handsome face and kind smile she found it hard to suppress the rage and disappointment she felt when she thought of Jaime Lannister taking his life so unfairly.

He had honored his word not to kill her uncle but he had caused as much devastation to the Stark house as that promise would allow. Amarah did not understand the man's enjoyment over taking the lives of others. She remembered his face as he left her that day in search of Ned. The anticipation there. The thrill of the hunt. She would never understand ruthless men like Jaime Lannister and she never wished to.

"Why did you tell him?"

"What?" She had somehow lost track of their conversation in her wandering thoughts.

"Jaime Lannister. Why did you tell him about his brother?" her uncle clarified.

"Because I was worried about him… Tyrion that is, not Kingslayer" she hastened to clarify. "Why would Aunt Cat think that he was responsible for what happened to Bran?"

Taking a deep breath, her uncle proceeded to explain the recent assassination attempt on Bran's life and how the knife used in the attempt belonged to Tyrion Lannister. Surprised at the tale, Amarah could not help but defend her friend.

"Uncle" she began in a pragmatic tone. "Tyrion Lannister is one of the smartest men of my acquaintance. I find it hard to believe that he would try to assassinate Bran with a weapon that could so easily be traced back to him. Who told you the dagger was his?"

"Peter Baelish."

"Littlefinger?" she asked, using the man's more well known nickname. Peter Baelish was the owner of the whore house where Ned and his men had been attacked by the Lannisters. She had never liked the cunning fox and she doubted his honesty regarding the dagger in question. "What exactly did he say?"

"He said that Lannister won the dagger in a tournament betting on Loras Tyrell against his brother."

"Well he was telling you a falsehood" she replied without hesitation. She had suspected the man of dishonesty but her uncle's tale confirmed it. "Tyrion Lannister never bets against his brother in the joust. He would be a fool to do so. Whatever Littlefinger's intentions he did not tell you the truth about that dagger. Please take my advice, Uncle, as it will be of great benefit to you in this city of lies and corruption. Never trust a pimp, especially if he is Peter Baelish."

"What would be his reason to lie?" her uncle questioned still unconvinced.

"I would never attempt to guess Littlefinger's reasons for doing anything, but would you take his word over mine?"

"Of course not" Ned hastened to reassure her. "But this means we have more questions about the attempts on Bran's life than when we first began."

"I will look into the matter for you, but I can assure you whoever was behind it was not Tyrion Lannister" Amarah informed him. "You must tell Aunt Catelyn to release him immediately."

"I'm afraid that's not possible" he said in an apologetic tone. "I didn't tell your father but I don't know where she's taken him. They were supposed to return to Winterfell but there has been no news of them."

"If she kills him it will be war between you and the Lannisters" she warned him. "I doubt my father would appreciate the inconvenience."

"He said as much when I asked to hunt down Jaime Lannister for what he did to my men" Ned agreed.

Shaking her head at Jaime's stupidity, Amarah wondered again what the man had been thinking. "I was foolish to think he would try to peacefully negotiate Tyrion's release. The moment I mentioned what happened he was out for blood. It amazes me that so clever a man can make the most thoughtless decisions. He did not even ponder the consequences before running out to attack you."

"Aye" her uncle replied. "I pray my wife does not make the same mistake or there will be no telling what the Lannisters will do. Jaime might very well come back and finish me off then."

"Tyrion will find a way out. He has a very keen instinct for survival." She had to believe that. She refused to contemplate any other possibility. Her uncle didn't look as if he shared her optimistic view of Tyrion's fate but she decided to let the subject drop.

"There was another matter I needed to discuss with you."

He raised his brows in a silent query.

"What do you mean by visiting my father's bastards?"

He looked momentarily surprised at her chosen topic of conversation but recovered quickly enough to supply an answer. "I am trying to discover what led to Jon Arryn's death. It seems he made similar visits before his untimely passing."

"Let me see if I rightly understand you" she said in a voice of disbelief. "You have discovered that the former Hand of the King visited a good number of my father's bastards before his untimely, mysterious death and you have decided to do the same?" When he did not refute it she continued on. "Are you mad?"

"I am simply trying to uncover the truth" he defended himself.

"Let it be, Uncle. He is dead. Getting yourself killed will be of no help to him." She knew she sounded uncaring but she meant every word. Her uncle was too noble for his own good and while it may have been of credit to him in the North it would do him no favors in this city.

"Do you even hear yourself?" he asked in a tone heavily laden with censure. "Do you know how unjust you sound? I shouldn't pursue justice for a good man because it is an inconvenience for me. I taught you better than that."

Though his words pricked her conscience her they did not change her mind. "How can you be of any help to Jon Arryn if you get yourself killed by going about it this way? There are spies everywhere in this city, uncle. Even I have informants lurking in places one would least expect. How do you think I know of your visit to see young Gendry and the whore's child at the brothel? If I know you are looking into Jon Arryn's death then I assure you that whoever orchestrated his demise knows as well and they will not hesitate to stop you at whatever cost."

"I don't play games, Amarah" he sighed. "I must do this the way I see fit. I'll have no part of secrecy and lies. The little girl I knew nine years ago would have had no part in it either."

Hurt by his assessment of her character Amarah did not hesitate to defend herself. "The child you knew nine years ago no longer exists. This place is not Winterfell. It is a seat of lies and corruption and that girl had to learn to adapt in order to survive. I would suggest you do the same."

Not wanting to hear how else he was disappointed in the woman she had become Amarah quickly turned to leave, but before she was five steps from the bed she heard him speak again.

"You may have changed but you are still my family and I still love you. I don't want you to think any different."

Turning back for a moment, she gave him with a weary smile before bending to kiss his unshaven cheek. "I love you too, you honorable fool. Get some rest now. You will have to be up and about as soon as possible. I hear you've been reinstated as Hand."

Ned gave a wry laugh before settling back down to sleep. "I wasn't given much choice in the matter. Your father threatened to give it to Jaime Lannister if I refused."

"The seven preserve us" Amarah said with a shudder at the thought. As she turned to leave once again she heard her uncle mumble something before he drifted off to sleep about Arya wanting to speak with her.

Exiting quietly so as not to disturb him, Amarah went off in search of her little cousin. She had seen very little of Arya since returning to the city. A disgruntled Sansa had informed her that Arya was spending a great deal of time practicing with her "dancing instructor" Syrio Forel, a Braavosi swordsman that Ned had engaged to teach Arya.

Amarah was unsurprised at Arya's desire to learn swordplay. After the incident with Joffrey and Arya's wolf Nymeria, she didn't have to imagine who Arya might hope to practice her new skills on. Smiling inwardly at the thought of Arya attacking Joffrey, she approached the large, great room of the Hand's quarters where she heard the loud clack of wooden swords.

In the center of the room Arya was busy on the defense as Syrio pursued her relentlessly around a small, imaginary circle. Trying to be as unobtrusive as possible so as not to distract the girl, Amarah slid silently into the room. With a valiant effort, Arya fought off her teacher's attacks but eventually her arm slipped just enough for Syrio to undermine her defenses. Amarah had to quickly step aside to avoid the wooden sword that came hurtling in her direction.

Seeing who he had almost struck with the flying makeshift weapon, Syrio quickly asked her pardon.

"It's of no matter" she assured him. "I think I shall recover from the shock well enough. Do you mind if I speak with my cousin?"

"Of course not. We are done with our lesson for now." He turned to give Arya a quick bow and final instruction. "Continue our practice of the dance."

Once he had departed after these few cryptic words, she moved to sit at the round table by the large open balcony. Arya quickly moved to join her. Looking down at the wooden surface, Amarah saw a multitude small knife points carved into the top.

"Part of your practice?" she asked with a suspicious smile.

"I was picturing Sansa's face" Arya replied.

"Arya" she chided her. "Sansa is your sister. You should not say such things."

Arya seemed to be in an argumentative mood. "But Joffrey is your brother. Have you never said nasty things about him?"

"Not out loud" she admitted. "But Sansa is not Joffrey. Believe me, your sister might be inclined to temporary foolishness but she is a good person. There might be a day when you regret saying hurtful things about her."

Arya simply brushed off her concerns. "I don't want to talk about Sansa. I need to tell you about father."

"What about him?" Amarah asked patiently.

"Yesterday I was exploring near the dragon heads in the lower part of the city. While I was there I heard two men talking. One was fat and the other bald. I didn't understand most of what they said but I heard them say something about killing father."

"Did you see either of their faces?" Amarah questioned intrigued by her cousin's story.

Arya shook her head no. "I tried to tell father but he didn't listen. I think something bad is going to happen to him."

"Arya, nothing will happen to your father. He's well aware of how to defend himself against fat and bald men" she said with a playful grin.

Her little cousin gave a reluctant smile. "Well fat men do make easier targets."

"That they do" Amarah replied with a small chuckle. "Take care you don't speak of this to anyone else though. It's best to keep knowledge to yourself. The more secrets you keep the more powerful you are."

"I like that" Arya replied with a smile. "I like fighting with swords too. Sansa can keep her princes."

"How very wise of you" Amarah returned with grave seriousness. "Swords are much more dependable than princes."

"Do you know how to fight with a sword?"

"Gods, no!" she answered with a rueful laugh. The image of her battling with a sword was a comical one at best. "But I know how to wield a dagger well enough. The size of your weapon does not matter as much as your ability to handle it."

At her words Arya gave a shrewd smile as if she was mulling over a serious thought. After a moment she ran out of the room without any explanation. Amarah was confused but stayed to see what her cousin had in mind. Returning a few moments later, Arya carried a small, rolled-up bundle in her hand. Now Amarah's curiosity was peaked.

"What's this?"

"I call it Needle" Arya answered before unrolling the small bundle on the table. Once her treasure was uncovered, she lifted the small, narrow sword with great care. "Jon gave it to me before he left for the wall."

Amarah slowly ran her hand down the small, round blade with an interested gaze. "A special gift. This is why Uncle Ned procured the dancing lessons for you I see."

"Yes. Master Syrio won't let me practice with the real thing, but I'll learn soon enough" she replied.

"I'm sure you will" Amarah told her. "You'd best put that away now. It's a fine piece of workmanship. You wouldn't want someone to steal it."

Nodding in agreement Arya replaced the small weapon in its bundle. Once she had finished this task she looked back up at Amarah with a worried expression.

"You won't let them hurt father. Will you?" Amarah's heart constricted painfully at her cousin's trusting words. How could she promise to protect her uncle when he would not listen? She could not force Ned to choose wisdom over honor. Not sure how to answer she simply enfolded Arya in a tight hug.

"Your father must protect himself I'm afraid" she whispered in her ear. "But I will do my best to watch out for all of you." She pulled back to look Arya in the eye. Gazing at her with a stern expression she finished speaking. "Sansa as well. You may not always like your sister Arya but you must always love her."

"I know." Arya nodded her head in understanding.

"Good" Amarah replied. "I'll leave you to your practice now. I have other things to see to. Run and put that weapon away before someone else finds it."

Reaching for the bundled sword, Arya quickly ran to do her cousin's bidding. As she watched Arya scamper off, Amarah hoped her little cousin would have no need to use that gift any time soon. However, she had the ominous feeling that it was a wish made in vain.

Please, please review! I want to see how many I can get before I post another chapter. Thanks for reading!