Thanks for following, new followers and old! :) I also thank those who have reviewed, I really do appreciate it. I hope you like the story so far, and I'm always open to hearing your opinions or ideas for what's to come. Please enjoy this next chapter, all in Jon's POV! Next chapter will be from mostly Storm's POV.

A Tale of Magic and Monsters and Lords

Chapter 8. Two Halves of One Heart

Jon Snow

It was the first night since arriving at Castle Black that I did not sleep a wink. Gods know I tried, but my efforts were unsuccessful. My head was too full; thoughts of the morrow, worry for my father and my family, doubt that I am making the right decision, and fear that I won't succeed. Every time I closed my eyes, the thoughts weighed heavier on my mind, pressing down on me until I felt like I couldn't breathe, so of course I couldn't sleep, and if I had who knows what I would have dreamed about. I remained in my bed until the first sign of light, and then I began to ready myself for the journey home to Winterfell.

With my bags being packed already, I made the castle's food pantry my first priority. We need enough food to last us the twenty days it will take us to ride to Winterfell; that is how long it took Uncle Benjen and I to get here so that is how long it should take Storm and I to get back. There are few welcoming towns on the King's Road, so I make sure to pack a bit extra food in case we should have need for it.

Once the food is loaded into a pack that I can put on my horse, I decide I should wake Storm. Ghost will be wanting to go out for his morning run, and I want to be on the road before the rest of Castle Black wakes up and starts asking questions. As quietly as I can, I move through the hallways of the castle until I'm outside of Storm's door.

Before I have time to knock, the door is opened, and Storm jumps when she sees me, her eyes going wide and her mouth dropping open. "Oh!" She gasps, throwing a hand over her heart. "Jon! You scared me. I wasn't expecting you to be there." She begins to laugh before explaining, "I was just about to let Ghost out."

"Sorry for frightening you," I say as I greet Ghost with a pat on the head. Noticing that she is dressed in the clothes Sam found her yesterday, I ask her, "Are you almost ready to start packing up the horses?"

"Um...yeah," Storm nods after hesitating briefly, "Yeah, I'm ready." She picks up a large pack that Maester Aemon or Lord Commander must have gotten for her and hoists it over her shoulder. "My bag is packed. Aemon helped me find some more clothes and things. There's just one, teensy little problem."

I knew there'd be something. "What is it?"

Storm twirls a strand of her long, brown hair around her fingers as she admits, "I've never actually ridden a horse before."

"What?" I must have misheard. She can't have said she's never ridden a horse before. Has she never gone anywhere? How did she get around in this Illinois place? Surely she didn't walk everywhere. "Are there not horses where you're from?"

"There are," Storm informs, "But not as like a primary mode of transportation. People drive cars where I'm from. They're like these metal boxes on wheels with seats inside, and a motor, which...oh, never mind. It is not going to make any sense if I try and explain it to you. I've just never ridden a horse, okay? So...is that going to be a problem?"

I frown at her, wondering what I've done in my life to stick me on a path with this strange girl. Is this further punishment for being born a bastard? It isn't so much that I don't like Storm as it is I don't understand her, and I don't know how she's going to be able to help me, or how I'm to help her. I find her confusing and maybe just a little bit scary. She gave Aemon the gift of sight, but she denies having any power, and she doesn't know what else she is capable of. Who knows what she could do?

"Are you all right?" Storm wonders, reaching out to touch my arm as she continues, "You don't look like you slept very..." She trails off, her hand lingering on me for a moment before she pulls it away quick, staring at me with wide eyes. She turns away and starts down the hallway, mumbling, "Never mind," as she hikes the pack more securely on her back, "We should get going."

I don't follow her right away because I'm unsure what just happened, but then I pull myself together. I close the door of her room and signal Ghost to follow as I hurry down the hall after Storm. I catch up to her quickly and inquire, "What was that?"

Storm looks at me sideways before shaking her head. She very obviously lies, "It was nothing." Her cheeks have turned pink.

"It didn't look like nothing." I press, something I don't normally do, as we start to descend the stairs.

Storm sighs, "Sometimes I get...glimpses, uh, flashes of things when I touch people. It's only happened a few times. Like when I saw Bran pushed from the tower when I hugged you. It happened two more times, not with you, and then just now." She shrugs her shoulders and concludes, "But I don't really know what that was. It's usually something that has already happened, but this was...well, it was something that hasn't happened. I told you I wouldn't tell you about these things anymore. You don't want to know."

"Storm," I say in a low voice, "If you know something about my family, then you-"

"It's nothing like that!" Storm interrupts loudly. She covers her mouth. "Sorry." She says in a much quieter voice, "It wasn't about your family. Just you. And...nothing. I promise it wasn't important."

I am ashamed to admit that the more she insists I don't need to know about it, the more I find I want to know what it was she saw. I refuse to beg for answers though. She just said she would have told me if it was important. But still..."Fine. Tell me. I want to know."

"Ah, there you two are."

Storm and I both turn our heads in the direction of the Lord Commander's voice. He is standing in front of the door which leads to the stables, exactly where Storm and I are heading now. I briefly wonder if he's changed his mind and decided against allowing me to bring Storm to Winterfell.

"I have a few things I'd like to say to both of you before you leave. Come on; I'll walk you out to the stables."

-*-*-*-A-Tale-Of-Magic-And-Monsters-And-Lords-*-*-*-

This is unbelievable. It is absolutely unbelievable. I think the gods want us to fail, otherwise why would they set us up with so many obstacles? I was told the Night's Watch needed men, and now Lord Commander wants to give them away?

Pyp and Sam are to accompany Storm and I to Winterfell, so ordered by Lord Commander Jeor Mormont.

I saddle up my horse, silently fuming, and then start to saddle one for Storm. She has gone back inside to say goodbye to Maester Aemon. I just can't believe our luck; my luck. First, I find an unknown girl in the snow, and then Maester Aemon makes me promise to look after her, and soon after that she tells me she's been dreaming about me from the foreign land she came from. As if it weren't already enough crazy, she had to go and dream about my father's death too. I'm stuck with her. I'm stuck with Storm, but Sam and Pyp weren't part of the deal and now I've got them as well.

"So..." Sam speaks up finally, "We're off to Winterfell, then? This is exciting. I thought Storm's family was from Essos, though? Who does she know in Winterfell?"

"I don't know, Sam," I answer tiredely. I had wanted to be on the road by now. The later we leave, the later we'll arrive, and I don't know how much longer before my father's untimely demise. I have to get to Lady Stark and Robb to warn them. It will sound crazy, but they will listen if it means saving my father.

"What's with you?" Pyp asks, securing his bags to the horse he chose for the journey. "You sound especially moody this morning. Is it us? You didn't want to be alone with Miss Storm, did you, Jon Snow?"

"No, Pyp."

Sam gasps, "Is that it? Oh, it is, I can tell. You like her. You were hoping for one last chance at a little..."

"Will you shut up?" I cut in, sneering at the both of them. I'll be glad when this whole thing is all over. "I don't want anything from Storm, and I am not going to sleep with her, ever."

"Well that's good," Storm says from behind me, "Because I have a boyfriend." I turn and see that she is smirking at me. In her hand, she clutches a medium-sized satchel. She sees me looking and answers without being asked, "Aemon gave me some things for the trip."

I extend my arm for the bag and Storm hands it over so that I can pack it with her other things on her horse. She approaches the horse and stares up at the beast nervously. It snorts at her and Storm jumps. She then giggles, as she did earlier when I spooked her. Cautiously, she reaches out to touch the snout of the brown mare, who stays still and allows itself to be stroked by a stranger. Storm smiles. She doesn't look so scared anymore.

"I've heard horses can sense fear," Storm shares, "So I thought I'd introduce myself. Hopefully he won't throw me off his back now."

"She," I correct.

"She," Storm repeats, "Sorry." She says this to the horse, not me, "I should have known. You're too pretty to be a boy, aren't you?"

"She's a gentle girl," I tell her, "So she'll do well for your first ride. Ready?" I approach the horse's side and motion for Storm to come closer so that I can place her on the horse. She stares at me blankly for a moment before stepping close enough to where I can grab her by the waist and swing her up, where she then throws her leg over the horse's saddle and grabs the ropes tightly. I don't let go until I'm sure she's settled nicely. "You all right?"

"I think so," Storm affirms, "I mean, I'm up here, right? She'll do everything else, won't she?"

"Never ridden a horse before?" Pyp comments, having mounted a grey mare moments ago. Storm shakes her head. "You'll do fine. Don't worry about it."

"Okay," Storm nods, straightening her back and settling her feet in the footholds, "What are we waiting for then? Let's get going."

Sam, as usual, needs help mounting his horse, and I feel bad for the poor beast that must carry him to Winterfell. I don't usually comment on Sam's weight, but what was Lord Commander thinking when he chose Sam to come along? He said it was for protection, but everyone - Sam himself included - knows that anyone would have been a better choice than Sam. Grenn, even, would have been a good pick, but he is to take the Black with the rest of the recruits in a fortnight, as was planned for me and Pyp and Sam. We'll take our vow when we return.

I am last to mount my horse, but the first to lead us out of the stables and onto the road, leaving Castle Black behind us.

As soon as we pass through the gates surrounding the castle, Sam opens his mouth to ask a stupid question. "What is a boyfriend, then? Is it a male whore?" He whispers the curse, like he knows he shouldn't say it in front of a lady.

"What?!" Storm asks, her voice squeaking in embarrassment. "No! No, it's not a male whore. I think the only term for that is pretty much 'man whore'; it's not very creative, I guess." I don't believe I've ever heard my sisters or Lady Stark speak with such vulgar words, but it must be another difference between here and Storm's home. "A boyfriend is just..." She frowns, unable to define the word. "It's just someone you like, and who likes you back, and you enjoy being together. It isn't so serious that you're going to marry the person, but serious enough to put a title on the relationship. It basically means that person is unavailable. Like me. I have a boyfriend, so therefore, I'm unavailable."

Sam scratches his head, guiding his horse up beside Storm's so he can converse easier. "But you aren't betrothed?"

"No," Storm replies, "I'm only sixteen. I'm too young to get married."

"Sixteen isn't too young to get married," Sam points out, "Lots of people do it."

"Not where I'm from," Storm says.

"And where are you from, exactly?" Pyp wonders.

I put an end to the interrogation before Storm slips up. "That's enough of the questions," I tell them gruffly, "She doesn't have to tell you two anything."

"Boy, you're a right ray of sunshine today, aren't ya?" Sam comments on my bad mood.

"I'm just tired of the talking."

All is quiet for, oh, about half a moment, until Storm has to go and say, "Well, they were talking to me, Jon, and I don't mind answering them."

I drop the reigns with my left hand and look over my shoulder. "No, Storm." She can't possibly be thinking of telling Sam and Pyp she's from some other world or something and magically transported here with no explanation. I'm still having trouble believing that part.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Storm asks, a hint of challenge in her voice.

"Uh...what's going on?" Pyp calls up to us.

"Nothing." I answer before Storm can open her mouth to respond.

Storm huffs, "You know what? Fine. I won't say anything right now. But it's a long to way to Winterfell. Don't expect me to be quiet the whole time." She then tugs her horse's reigns away from mine so that she doesn't have to ride beside me.

I've made her mad.

-*-*-*-A-Tale-Of-Magic-And-Monsters-And-Lords-*-*-*-

Much later on, when the sun is beginning to set in the sky, and Storm demands we make a camp somewhere and build a fire before it gets dark because she hates being in the dark, I hear she and Sam talking about that boyfriend again. I try not to listen while I am laying out twigs and sticks for a fire, but it is hard not to overhear. After all, they are merely feet away from me.

"Does this boyfriend have a name?" Sam asks first. "If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't mind," Storm states, "His name is Trey. Well, really it's Christopher James Pelletier, but he's the third of his name; named after his father who was named after his father. So, he was nicknamed Trey. It suits him better than Christopher anyways."

Then, Sam asks, "How long has he been your boyfriend for?"

Storm is silent while she thinks. I cast a glance in her direction and see that she's is using her fingers to figure out how much time it has been. She finally supplies, "Almost two years. I've known him since we were kids, though. We've been friends since we were six years old." I detect a hint of sadness in her voice, one she is trying to conceal.

"Why don't you marry him?"

"Well," Storm sighs, "Besides being too young, marriage is never something Trey or I talked about. I guess it's because he never really loved me as much as I loved him. Honestly, I don't think he ever truly loved me at all. I just wanted him to."

Sam, who has finished putting together the tent, places a chubby hand on Storm's shoulder, murmuring, "I'm sorry, Storm." After a pause, he queries, "Do you ever think you'll see him again?"

"No," Storm says without hesitation, "I don't think I will."

Switching the topic completely, Storm smiles playfully as she counters, "What about you, Samwell Tarly? Have you ever had a girlfriend?"

Her teasing tone causes the big guy to blush bashfully. He shakes his head, telling her, "No, no. None of the girls were ever interested in me. Who would be? Look at me."

Pyp returns with more wood for the fire, and together we light a small flame and help it to grow. Meanwhile, Storm chastises Sam for putting himself down. She says looks aren't everything and true love is something you have no control of.

"Love is a silly thing. I don't think most people understand it until they've really experienced it. Of course, the first kind of love you experience is the love of your parents, your family. That kind of love is unconditional; nothing can break it or change it or make it go away because the love of your family is eternal. Some people don't get that love," Storm continues, her voice melancholy, "Either because their parents weren't there to give it to them, or they were too selfish to give it to them. Those are the ones who are most confused about love. They think they've felt it once they meet someone who shows them even a little bit of affection. They're lost to it, blinded by it, and totally wrong about it. Love is not lust; that's the biggest thing people confuse. Lust is the desire to possess, the overwhelming need to just be inside of another person, to have them fill you all up, but it doesn't last. Lust fades. Love is forever. That's the difference."

"So then...how do you know?" Sam asks her, staring at her as though she is the wisest woman he's ever laid eyes on. "How do you know if it's love or lust?"

"Sometimes you don't," Storm shrugs, admitting that she is not the expert, "That's why people say 'love hurts'. It's kind of a trial and error sort of thing. Like me and Trey. I thought I loved him, but being away from him has left me confused, and knowing deep down that he didn't return my love makes me realize that we weren't right for each other. If it was true love, being away from him would be too painful to bear."

"Who would want that?" I ask bitterly from in front of the now crackling fire. Storm and Sam meet my gaze over the flames. "Why would you want to be in pain? Why would you put yourself through something that if you didn't have to?" The Night's Watch is starting to make more sense now; banning marriage for its members and sexual relationships to keep their heads and hearts in the right place. Love is a weakness to men of the Night's Watch, and I am glad I have never felt it for myself. I don't want to, not if it's anything like Storm has described.

"It isn't a choice, Jon," Storm says knowingly, "It happens without your control. One minute, you're you, and the next you are one half of a whole; the two of you share two halves of one heart. It's beautiful." She smiles, but her lips are trembling, "I can't wait to have that."

I feel something strange in my heart to see how talking about love affects her so. Something inside me wants to give her what she's asking for because it would make her happy...But I push those thoughts aside. I meant what I said, and I don't ever want to be in love. I am to be a Brother of the Night's Watch. I can't love. And I know it will be better if I stay as far away from Storm on this trip as I possibly can. I know Storm says there's no controlling who you love or when it happens, but I'm going to make damn sure to stay in control of my feelings. I won't fall victim to love and it's silly side effects.

What do you think? Will Jon fall victim to love, or will he stay strong? Let me know what you think. Please review! :)

-MissCarolineForbes