The hazel eyed man sat directly across from Brienne, Sansa sat beside her and begrudgingly ate her stew. It was not the nicest but considering where they came from anything was a blessing, Jon who sat across from Sansa made a few half-hearted jokes about it. But tension was thick in the air, between Sansa brewing about Winterfell beside her and man sat across from her who had yet to cease eye contact it was unbearable. While maintaining her stature, she averted her gaze to the stew sat before her. Jon could obviously sense the tension between the two, he cleared his throat and managed to distract the large man for a time, "Lady Brienne, this is Tormund Giantsbane. He's the leader of the Free People and my saviour" he stated, the smallest of grins tugging at the corner of his mouth. Tormund turned his head to resume his gazing at the stunningly broad woman who sat across from him. Brienne looked up at him, unable to control her facial expression the faintest of blushes graced her pale, sharp features. She sat up abruptly, her face in a stern scowl at this embarrassment she was enduring. Brienne looked into his eyes, now in the firelight she noticed that amongst the treebark-like brown there were golden flecks surrounding his pupils. She re-focused and looked at the large man in the eye,
"I am Brienne of Tarth, I am sworn to Lady Stark as her protector" she said curtly before returning to her stew, finishing it faster than she would have hoped.
Brienne ate her meal quickly, gathering her bowl, spoon and mug she raised from her seat, "Lady Sansa, I would turn in for the evening with your permission" she asked with a bowed head, Sansa nodded and said goodnight. Tormund got to his feet a little too quickly, the wooden bench scraping loudly on the flagstone floor, "I could, I mean if you would let me Lady Brienne of Turth, escort you to the guest room" he said, being this the first time he's seen a southern woman who'd taken his fancy Tormund wanted to be polite before he allowed her to see his not-so-polite Wildling side. Her mouth opened in surprise, but Jon spoke before she could make a sound.
"No Tormund, let us not harass our guest anymore". He signaled a member of the Night's Watch to escort her to her chambers. The man was considerably shorter than Brienne, this one looked at her like she was some kind of brute, just like all the others. But this option was far better than having to be looked upon in such a manner by Tormund, at least the smaller man would leave her be.
Tormund awkwardly sat back into his chair after Lady Tarth had left the room, her bore a hole into the side of Jon Snow's head whilst he discussed overthrowing Winterfell with Sansa. Jon only seemed to notice Tormund's glare when Sansa started looking oddly at him. Jon leaned on his elbow as he munched hungrily on his piece of bread, it was hard work after all coming back from the dead. "Yes, Tormund. What is it?" he asked before taking another hearty bite. Tormund's nostrils flared angrily,
"Why did you do that Crow? I was polite, I wasn't going to hurt her" he snarled, banging his fist on the table making the young Stark jump a little. Jon raised his brow, telling the Wildling what he already knew with his expression.
"Because Master Giantsbane, you were making our guest uncomfortable with your staring" Jon stated before returning to his original stance, "besides, Brienne is a southern lady. You're going to have to do better than staring if you want to win that one", Tormund pondered Jon's offer of advice before digging back into his meal.
He rose from his chair and left the hall for the Wildling encampment close to Castle Black. His cob ran as fast as his little legs would carry him through the dense trees until he arrived at the gathering of tents. He trotted along rows of cloth tents until he came to one which had boxes surrounding it, he dismounted and walked into the tent, trusting the hardy animal to stay where it was. An older woman sat on her bedroll, pouring hot tea into two cups. Tormund sat before her,
"Dahild, I need your help. I am attempting to woo a southern lass. Do you have anything that I could gift to her, perhaps it would soften her gaze towards me" he said, glancing down at his hands and back up to meet the woman's. She lifted a finger to her chin in thought before smiling, Dahild gestured for him to bring a box that was sat behind him, he complied quickly and gave it to her. She held the box gently and pried it open, inside was a small silver broach with a sapphire wolf cast into the silver. It was a masterwork, engraved in the silver were branches that swirled across the metal. It was a masterwork, something that one of his people had spent many hours crafting. Tormund paid for the gift, handling it gently on the ride back to Castle Black. The castle was quiet; nightfall had already descended upon the snow crested land. He trotted quickly across the courtyard, tying his horse for the stable boy before darting off to Brienne's nightchamber.
The saliva was thick in his throat when he knocked on the door to Brienne's chamber, he heard her clamber out of bed and pad to the door. The door creaked open, allowing a sliver of candlelight to shine out from behind her. The light allowing him to see her form through her woolen nightgown. He averted his gaze remembering his manners, when he looked back to Brienne, her expression was a combination of confusion and surprise. "T-Tormund?" she asked, blinking to adjust to the darkness outside her room. He presented a small wooden box to her,
"um yes, my lady. I bring you a gift, it has travelled many miles to get here and also crafted by one of my people" he said as he handed her the gift. When she opened the box, Brienn'es face was awash with gratitude and surprise, but returned to confusion shortly after.
"It is a beautiful gift Tormund, but I do not understand why you have given it to me" she said, honestly baffled by the gesture. Tormund scratched the back of his head,
"The broach is pretty and well, you're pretty too. Like a rose that has managed to dig through the snow and flower, its rare and beautiful. Just like you" he said quietly. Brienne's brows knitted together, she turned her body away from him, shy all of a sudden at her bareness.
"The gesture is most kind Master Giantsbane, I am grateful for the gift" she said calmly, eyeing the gift with such delicacy that one could almost mistake her for a typical southern lady. "It is late; I must rest for tomorrow. Goodnight Master Giantsbane" she said quietly, flickering her eyes to his in offering of a kind smile. She closed the door before he could reply, but Brienne seemed grateful enough. Tormund made his way down to the courtyard where his horse awaited him.
On his way out, he caught himself grinning in a passing window, he had not felt this way about a woman, never had Tormund found himself in such awe of a specimen. Once he was back in the saddle he pushed the cob into a steady walk, the sound of the horse's hooves echoing around the courtyard. He looked across to the tower that held Brienne and released a heavy sigh before nudging his horse into a comfortable canter back to his camp.