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CHAPTER 9

SANSA / SANDOR

Sansa had feared that moment for two long days, but finally there it was, only about a mile away: a small inn next to the road, with smoke in the chimney and an old stable with some horses. Who knew who would be there? Perhaps men of the Queen, or men of the Vale. Or at least, there'd be nasty men like the one who had tried to rape her. In any case, nobody she wanted to meet. Clegane was confident about the decision to stop, so she had no choice but to follow him.

"Alright, let's go. I'll do the talking. You stay at my back and try to hide your face, the bruise is still there."

They rode to the inn and left the horses outside with a stable boy who took care of them. Clegane opened the door to a big common room with wooden tables and benches. There was also a big chimney and a staircase that led to the first floor. A tasty smell wafted out of the kitchen, and Sansa realized how hungry she was. She walked at his back looking at the floor, but she noticed that everybody had shut up when they had walked in.

Sandor looked around as if nobody was staring at them until he found who was supposed to be the innkeeper.

"You! Two flagons of ale and a big bowl of whatever you're cooking. It smells good."

The man hurried to the kitchen while they sat at a table in the corner of the room.

"Well, at least we could eat something different. I'm tired of dry food and rabbits," he said.

From her seat, Sansa peeked at the men who were there – they were dirty, drunks, with angry eyes... most of them had swords and daggers and some were looking at their table. She didn't like the place at all.

"Stop looking them that way, girl. These are the kind of men we are going to find on the road from now on"

When the innkeeper came with the flagons, Sandor lifted his and drank half of it in one gulp.

"Mmmm…" he groaned, "I'd almost forgotten how ale tasted! Now, we'll also need a room for tonight."

"Can you pay for it?" the man dared to ask. Sandor touched the bag of coins that hung from his belt and the innkeeper's face changed: "Oh, don't misunderstand me Ser, these are hard times and you never know what kind of people are sleeping under your roof."

Sansa wondered how he could say that, taking into account the men who were already there.

"Don't worry man; I guess mine are the few coins you'll see tonight. I can pay you even more if you also tell me some things I need to know before going on traveling again."

A hint of greed crept in to the man's eyes: "Of course, Ser, I'll be very pleased to help you. But first, let me tell my daughter to prepare a room for you and your young wife. I'm sure she'd like to have a bath, wouldn't she?"

Sansa blushed at his words and looked down at her hands, sitting in her lap. Sandor chuckled eyeing her from the corner of his eyes. "Oh, yes, I'm sure she'd like it. Have it prepared after dinner. Now, though, we are hungry."

"You should have told him I'm not your wife!" she replied as low as she could when the man left them alone.

"Why? It's safer that way. Otherwise they'll start wondering about your age or that bruise. Stop worrying and drink something."

Sansa drank a little gulp of her mug and found it sour and thick. She much preferred wine. After a while, a fat woman came with two big plates for them. Dinner consisted of two big slices of roast pork with vegetables dipped with a thick sauce. The smell was delicious and they ate avidly. Sandor finished his meal and his flagon when she'd barely eaten half of hers, and he ordered another one. She was also very hungry and finished it too, even half of her beer. When she was done, she lay on her seat feeling completely full. Then, Sandor made a sign to the innkeeper and the man came again.

"This is for the meal", he said handing over some coins to the man.

"Thank you, Ser", the man said while keeping the money, "What more can I help you with?"

"My wife and I are traveling to White Harbor. We've been on the road for many days, running away from the war," Sandor lied.

"It's been hard times. War has devastated everything. Us small folk have to manage the best we can."

"We need to cross the Neck, do you know what has been happening around there lately?"

"Oh, krakens are gone for now, but if you are going to White Harbor you should go through Moat Cailin. Bolton's men are there now."

"Bolton's?" Sandor asked, surprised.

"Yes, Roose Bolton is now Guardian of the North. They passed through here some months ago."

The news surprised Sansa too. Did that mean they lived in Winterfell now? It that was true she couldn't go there.

"What you should do is to go to Moat Cailin. I know one of the captains there, Guncer Prister. Aye, he is a good friend of mine. He sometimes comes to my inn, looking for girls. Guncer and his men are very generous he he he. Ask for him; tell him old Pate sends you and that Jocelyn is eager to see him again he he he. He'll let you pass with any question if you are generous with him too…" the man made a nasty smile and his eyes sparkled, wickedly.

Sandor handed him over some more coins, but the news had saddened Sansa and she didn't pay too much attention.

"Oh, thank you Ser, you'll be always very welcome here," he was saying as he kept the coins in his apron. "And now please, your room is ready. You'll find it on the first floor, the last one of the corridor. It's the best we have… here is the key."

"Let's see what kind of hole you've given us," Sandor growled grabbing the old key

They went up the stairs and walked through the corridor to the last door, and he opened it. The room was small but cleaner than she'd thought. It had a small chimney with a fireplace at the bottom, a tiny window, a cot and a big wooden bucket that looked like a tub.

"This place sucks," he snarled, "If that bastard thinks I'm going to pay him for this stinky hole…"

"But there is a cot, and clean water. That's much more than I could ask for right now…" she replied.

"Fine. Take your time and have a bath. I'll lock the door from outside."

"What are you going to do?"

"Drink for the days I couldn't do it. And hear what people say when they're drunk. I'll try to buy some food for the next days too. You try to rest; we'll leave tomorrow as soon as possible."

He tapped her shoulder and then left, locking the door as he went. When Sansa was alone she suddenly felt very tired. The water was still hot so she hurried up to take off her clothes and get into it. It was warm and comfortable inside the tub; she closed her eyes and relaxed for a few moments. Then she rubbed her body and washed her hair as best as she could. When the water cooled, she went out and sat by the little fire to dry. She realized she'd used the tub only for herself. He'd like to wash, too, she thought, we should ask the man to prepare another one tomorrow morning.

Sansa rose and went to lie on the cot. It was hard, but nothing would feel so soft for her body after so many nights sleeping outside. The last few nights, they had been sleeping close to each other because she felt safer knowing he was next to her, so she huddled up under the duvet on one side of the bed. There was space enough for both of them there. Despite the voices and laughs that came from downstairs, she fell asleep almost immediately.

Once in the main room again, Sandor ordered another flagon of ale and sat at the same table as before. The girl would have time enough for her bath; it had been hard days and she deserved it. He also ordered the innkeeper's wife to prepare a package with food for the morning and paid for it. The men in the room peeked at him from time to time, but he was used to it – his face never went unnoticed. Time passed, and people drank and began to talk. They told the Boltons were in Winterfell now, that Roose's bastard son had married one of the Stark girls. He couldn't imagine the she wolf getting married at all and couldn't believe the tale. Another man was worried about the snow; he'd heard from someone, somewhere, that heavy snowstorms were falling on the North. Another one said something about the Imp fleeing his prison after his trial. But after some flagons, the men began to ramble off stories about Starks turning into wolves, dragons in the East, wildings attacking the Wall and other stupid things, so he decided it was time to leave.

Sandor was already a bit drunk and his steeps were clumsy while he climbed the stairs to their room. It was difficult to open the door with his shaking hands, and when he finally got it, he was sure he'd made enough noise to wake up the whole house. But the girl didn't move. She seemed deeply asleep, curled up in one side of the bed. He dragged a chair next to the bed facing the door and sat, just in case someone had the idea of paying them a visit. Sandor looked then at the little bird. She barely took up space in the cot and he longed for a good rest too, but he resisted the temptation to lie with her. Even though they had slept side by side the last nights, this was somehow different — too close, too much intimacy and too much beer in his belly. He thought she deserved something better than that room, better than his company, better than anything he could ever offer her. He stared at her quiet, peaceful body; her long hair was clean now and its characteristic auburn color had begun to show again... Sandor fell asleep while his eyes ran over her silhouette.