Game of Thrones: Tragedy and Reunions

Next chapter of my Game of Thrones story, enjoy.

Reviews

gugadg: I'm surprised you missed it given that, in her first chapter, Catelyn references three times, once in her thoughts, once to the Greatjon and Blackfish and once to Jeyne that Robb is alive. As for your question; I'm not spoiling anything, all I'll say is soon, very soon.
Baccan: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yeah; I figured that myself, anyway, enjoy; I think the fight in this chapter is one a lot of people will like.
HarryPotterLover1996: Yup, there is; well, it's slowly improving all the time, although she will never completely regain her sight.
SayianWizard: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it; sorry to say but Robb won't be a POV character in this story, maybe not even this series; however if you PM me and tell me you're interested I'll tell you the POV characters I have confirmed so far.

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: Game of Thrones belongs to George R.R. Martin.

Sansa

Sansa was still reeling in shock from actually killing someone; the silence was almost unbearable. When she had awoken, cold, perspiring and out of breath, she looked down at her hands. They were drenched in blood; the blood of the man she had killed. She leapt up and rushed to the nearby stream and began trying to scrub the blood off. When the sob escaped her throat Sandor heard and saw what she was doing. He approached her.

"That's enough; you'll scrape the skin off, little bird." He said gruffly.

She stammered a few times before choking the words out. "B-but…the…the blood…"

She looked up and saw a strange expression on his face. The lines of his face had softened, and his eyes were empathetic.

"There's nothing there." He told her.

She looked down at her hands again. They were wet, very pink from the scrubbing, but there wasn't a trace of blood on them. There never had been.

"But…But I…" She trailed off, still in shock.

Sandor nodded. "It's like that the first time; especially after those circumstances. It'll pass."

She nodded slowly and realized she was trembling. She tried to still herself but Sandor didn't seem to notice. Instead he gathered up everything they needed and turned to her.

"Let's go, we need to hurry." He stated.

She agreed and gathered her things before following him as they continued their trek north.

They walked quietly; Sandor focusing on their surroundings and the route ahead, scanning for danger. Sansa's mind was locked inexorably on the death she had caused. Even as they walked she felt almost sick, a persistent fluttering in her stomach, and she prayed she wasn't going to retch, even though she felt the tight feeling in back of her throat. She found herself wondering how many times it took, killing someone, until you felt nothing at all. She shook her head, she shouldn't be thinking about things like that. She glanced at Sandor, she knew he had killed countless people; he had even bragged about it. Suddenly she found she couldn't help herself and asked.

"How…How long did it take you…to get over it; the first time?" She asked him.

He sighed and shook his head. "I…don't remember, sorry." He glanced back at her. "It will pass; everyone's different, all you can do is wait."

She lowered her head; suddenly Sandor grabbed her arm, he had stopped. She stopped too and looked up at him.

"What…?"

She froze when she saw the tension in his face. She followed his gaze and fear gripped her in its icy grasp. There was a bridge leading across the river, taking them to where they needed to go. But standing on the bridge, blocking their path forwards, was Gregor Clegane.

Sandor growled.

"Typical of the Queen; sends out the person most likely to stop us and puts him here."

Finally he seemed to make up his mind. "Stay hidden little bird. Use the trees, whatever you have to."

With that he drew his sword and stepped out onto the Kingsroad and walked over to the bridge. Gregor gave no sign of emotion as his brother approached him. He stood with his sword, point down in front of him, his helmet under one arm; clad in full armour and his shield on the ground, resting against his leg. Sandor, in comparison, was armed only with his sword and clad in boiled leather and ringmail; he didn't even have his infamous helmet. All the same there was no apprehension in his voice when he spoke, only the usual contempt he reserved for his brother.

"Gregor." He greeted darkly. "Has Cersei demoted you to a mere bridge guard now?"

Gregor glowered but his response was simple, with little emotion. "You know why I'm here. Where is the Stark girl?"

Sandor's mouth twisted. "If I knew, did you presume I would inform you?" He paused before adding. "Now, I am going north. Are you going to stop me or have you come just to talk?"

Gregor simply put his helmet on and took up his shield and sword before answering simply. "Stop you, kill you."

"Then come and try." Sandor spat back.

They then began their deadly dance.

Sansa watched, petrified as she hid behind the trees nearest the path. Both warriors fought and parried each other's blows; Gregor using his shield to block some of the blows aimed at him. Most of the combat was too fast for Sansa to follow but she could see that neither fighter was gaining an advantage. That was until Sandor launched a vicious two handed strike that splintered the shield. He then followed it up with a knee strike and slammed the pommel of his sword down on Gregor's helmet. Sandor leapt back out of reach of Gregor's counter attack. The swing went wide and Gregor, clearly frustrated, ripped his helmet off. He turned to face his brother again, his face contorted with rage. Then suddenly he reached out with his free hand and grabbed a nearby torch. Sandor tensed and suddenly grew more wary.

"It's a pity I only got half your face that day." Gregor snarled. "I'll finish the job now."

With that he resumed his attack, lashing out with his sword and the torch, forcing Sandor onto the defensive. Before long Sandor was bent back, leaning against the side of the bridge, using his sword to ward of his brother's and his free hand to hold back the hand that held the torch. He breathed heavily, desperately trying to break free of his predicament.

Sansa watched, panic building up inside her. She knew she had to do something but what could she do, especially against the Mountain that Rides. After a few minutes and idea occurred to her; it was only a small thing, but without Gregor's helmet on, it just might work. Reaching down her hand finally closed on a small stone. With all her strength she threw it; time seemed to slow down as she watched. The stone flew through the air and finally, struck. Gregor grunted as the stone hit the side of his head but the distraction was enough. Sandor managed to bring his knee up to strike Gregor in the groin. The dull clang indicated that no true damage was done, but the jolt threw Gregor off balance. As Gregor dropped the torch Sandor spun out from his grasp and got behind his brother. With all his strength Sandor kicked out and allowed the weight of Gregor's armour to carry him forwards and downwards. Gregor fell through the wooden barrier at the edge of the bridge and into the river. While, at this point the river wasn't deep enough to submerge Gregor, the current swept him away, howling curses at his brother.

Sandor breathed a sigh and sheathed his sword. He turned and Sansa walked towards him, nervous.

"I…" She hesitated but Sandor smiled.

"That was some quick thinking, little bird." He remarked. "We best hurry on."

Sansa seemed surprised at his haste. He then indicated ahead of them, past the bridge.

"We are nearly there."

She stepped up next to him and looked over the plains and woodland across the bridge. Her heart leapt when she saw it; standing, half hidden amongst the woodland was an army camp. Flying from the standard atop the commander's tent was the banner; a grey Direwolf on and ice white field. They had found her brother's camp; if they continued walking and didn't stop they would reach it as the sun set. She smiled and nodded to Sandor and they progressed onwards.

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.