Northern Wind Chapter 29 Reap What You Sow, a Harry Potter + Game of Thrones Crossover fanfic

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Game of Thrones.

Firstly, I am sorry this chapter was delayed. I hit a major case of writer's block and I had some personal issues to deal with so it really slowed me down. Thank you to everyone that read and reviewed the last chapter.

Someone asked what the North's current military strength is, at the moment it is roughly seventy thousand warriors. They are currently bolstered by ten thousand Free Folk warriors as well. So combined they have an army of about eighty thousand.

No review response this week sorry!

Chapter 29 - Reap What You Sow

Black Wind, Northern Fleet, Sailing to the Iron Islands…

The winds and favourable tides brought the North's commandeered fleet towards the Iron Islands at impressive speed.

Meera and her family were standing on the deck, her face firm with concentration as she pushed the ships forward. The effort of this was starting to tell with the sighs of exhaustion she came out with sometimes and the way she had to tightly grip the spear.

But it had worked.

On the horizon, the Iron Islands came into sight.

She had used the winds and tides to carry them around Harlaw which had been the closest island as she needed to go somewhere else first, she had gone straight for Pyke itself. Meera had no intention of letting Balon Greyjoy organise a defence of the Iron Islands and instead going to cut the head off this particular sea snake quickly and efficiently she thought with anger at the man.

Intending to make his end both painful and prolonged, Meera thought with venom for all the trouble and pain he had caused with his pathetically high and underserved arrogance, not to mention huge ego and rotten ambition.

But it wasn't just him, Meera thought with disgust. It was the entire culture, one that praised you stealing from others and looked down on those that tried to actually work for it. That glorified rape, murder, theft and kidnapping, not to mention slavery in regards to salt wives and thralls.

It made her sick! Meera thought with her anger growing, she released the winds as they were now close enough not to need her controlling the winds now. But as they closed on Pyke above them in the sky the clouds turned very dark, there was no rain but the winds picked up and then thunder began racing across the sky with loud cracks that echoed around the whole area. Robb, Jon and Ygritte all of whom were familiar with Gungnir looked around in confusion as the weather changed right before their eyes. Then looking to Meera's whose face had grown almost as rageful as the sky and felt intimidated if indeed the two were connected.

- x -

Balon Greyjoy watched from the window of his castle, not understanding how the weather could change and become this violent and angry so fast. He knew such things happened at sea but never like this.

Something made him think of his people's most hated enemy, the Storm God and the thought that he might be enraged made even him shake with fear. A chill ran straight through him, as it did through everyone on Pyke that day although they had no idea why.

He saw his own ships coming in and frowned, they should be conquering the Northern coast and pushing deeper inside now but instead all of them seemed to be heading for Pyke. He was angry at the failure, forgetting his earlier worries and seeing their sails knew they were his so he did nothing and expected his pathetic son and daughter to come up here, their tails between their legs with excuses for their failure.

- x -

For a nation that used sea born attacks against others, they themselves didn't seem to protect themselves against the same sort of attacks. The small town of Lordsport, seat of House Botley was completely unprotected and there was no-one there to repel them. People there from what they could see were just going about their business, not panicking or grabbing weapons, clearly completely unaware as to their true identity or just what the ships were carrying.

Robb's idea to not change the sails was a good one, it had gotten them into the harbour unchallenged.

As the first ships, including the Black Wind drew up alongside the small dock while the long boats all came up on the rocky beach. That was when the Northern forces dropped the gangplanks and ran straight down onto the dock, no longer needing to hold up their disguise and eager for some payback after months of fighting them. They had reapplied their warpaint and let out the loudest cries they could manage as they charged off the ships.

The Iron Born on the docks immediately realised they were under attack, they soon started screaming but the Northerners that had joined this invasion and the Free Folk were among the most ruthless and angry they had. People who were disgusted at the Iron Born and not caring just what they had to do to stop them.

Meera, with her direwolves was one of the first to get off the boat. She ran with Arya who had Nymeria with her too and Meera's own personal band of warriors.

Romulus and Rema leapt onto Iron Born that tried to fight them while Meera twirled her spear around, cutting down men and women left and right while her Unsullied Strong Shield and Arrow Point like her ruthlessly cut down any Iron Born that came in her path without any expression at all. Osha on the other hand was laughing like a madwoman as she ducked and weaved around with her own spear, killing Iron Born and enjoying every moment of it.

Gendry was more focused as he swung his Warhammer around and caved in heads and chests while Thoros ignited the green fire around his sword and started cleaving his way through those that got in their path.

On the deck of the Black Wind, Theon and Yara were brought up to witness the attack themselves. They looked on in horror as the North gave them a taste of their own medicine, Jon and Robb both felt sick themselves at what was happening. Neither of them had the stomach for this kind of thing, merciless killing but unfortunately, they had to join in. They tried to stop the killing of innocents but in the heat of the moment it was hard to tell one from the other and even the smallfolk here were joining in the defence of their town, using whatever weapon they had to hand, some even throwing tankards from the local tavern with ale still in them.

Some however fled towards the tall structure of Pyke in the distance, while some rushed instead towards the small hall owned by House Botley who in fact held the town. It had no wall and in the chaos of the moment, the Northmen were able to reach it before it managed to close its doors, forcing their way inside.

Meera was among the first inside and found the various men of House Botley standing there in their leather armour ready to fight her. Lord Sawane Botley and all his sons not to mention Sawane's brother Germund and his boys, thirteen in all. Meera gripped her spear tightly, time to thin the herd she thought with anger.

Without hesitation she leapt into the fight, her spear stabbing Lord Botley straight through the chest but she did it with only one hand so her other grabbed Fireheart, her Valyrian sword that came with the armour she was wearing and slashed open the guts of his brother Germund, cutting deeply enough that his organs cut fell out of his belly.

Wrenching her spear free she sheathed Fireheart and began to twirl her spear around in a defensive motion before stabbing into each other Botley boys the moment they came close. Rema and Romulus didn't hold back either, they leapt on two of the boys from behind and bit straight into their necks, jerking them so hard that they snapped.

Arya and Nymeria ducked and weaved around them, stabbing or biting them as they moved. The Botleys soon all lay dead on the floor of their hall. Many of their reavers lay there with them but the Northerners only cared as it meant more work for them clearing up the dead bodies. But some cheered themselves up by looting from the Iron Born, just as they had been looting others for centuries. They had surprisingly good steel weaponry and many of the Free Folk enjoyed getting themselves some new weapons, even some of the Northerners too who hadn't been so well-equipped or they just wanted a souvenir.

The Botleys had a modest collection of treasures from around the world and soon they were taken by some of the Northerners who felt inclined to loot. Meera didn't care either way and you had to reward your army somehow if you wanted them to fight for you so if they did to the Iron Born what they had done to others then it wasn't something she'd loss sleep over.

Of course, there were bad apples in the barrel Meera acknowledged and why she had made it perfectly clear to everyone that if she even heard of any raping, or hurting children…then they would be made an example of. She thought darkly, listening carefully in case she heard of anyone boasting of such things as people while drunk were prone to do. She had instructed those that she trusted to do the same, knowing discipline had to be enforced or they would run out of control.

Hence the reason why she had charged Dacey Mormont and her sister Alysane to lead the force going to Iron Holt, the only other town on the island which lay to the north held by House Wynch. The Mormonts were a small house but without a doubt loyal. With the exception of their last Lord Jorah of course, she thought with disgust at what he had been caught doing and then fled rather than face justice.

Slavery was something she would never condone, not under any circumstances.

Her thoughts turning darker as she looked towards the castle that shared a name with the island. It was not a single structure like most castles but a series of large towers clustered together on coastal rocks and connected by a series of bridges. A couple of hundred years more it would likely collapse due to coastal erosion Meera thought with some science from Earth coming in.

Already at the first sign of trouble the Lord Reaper had closed his gates and locked all the people desperate for safety out to save his own skin. She presumed the old coward must be intending to sit it out while hoping they would not be able to keep up a siege or until he could negotiate favourable terms namely that he lived and kept his seat.

You deluded fool, Meera thought darkly as she looked at the castle with disgust. There was no going to be a siege at all, not with what she had in mind.

Winterfell, the North…

The atmosphere at Winterfell was unsettled, the new peace with the Wildlings as they still thought the Free Folk was such a change from the way it had been for centuries so no-one on either side of the Wall knew quite what to expect next. So, for now they were staying on their own individual sides of the Wall and using Castle Black as a trading point.

Lanna meanwhile was grateful to receive a letter from Tyrion down in Kings Landing, she could tell he was not happy that they had created such a ruse but understood why and had promised her that he would deal with any problems that arose.

He had also told her that they wouldn't need to maintain the ruse for long, she knew what that meant Lanna thought with a shiver running down her spine. She did her best to put it out of her mind as she didn't want to know just what Tyrion was planning but if it worked then the end of Tywin must be in sight.

It honestly unsettled her, worried that Tyrion was getting himself into so much danger by doing what she assumed he was doing. Tywin Lannister was easily the most dangerous and cunning man that the hells had ever spat out, men like him didn't go down easily and she was worried that if Tyrion failed to take him down all hell might break loose.

She wanted to tell the Starks to abandon the plan just for their own safety but Sansa, who had seen the letter and understood the situation put a comforting hand on her shoulder and told her with a smile.

"Don't worry, whatever else he might be Tyrion Lannister is the most intelligent Lannister, bar none." Sansa said paying a rare compliment as the Starks still didn't trust Tyrion because of what had happened with Tysha; however, he was trying to make amends and had even told Lanna that when he died, she would inherit his holdings which he had hinted were substantial. "If anyone can destroy Tywin Lannister then it would be him."

"But the risk…" Lanna said, it was not just his life but hers and the Starks too. Hells if this led to war with the south it could mean a lot of lives at stake.

"Is something we all live with every day. This invasion of the Iron Islands is a huge risk but we take it because it what makes us human, taking risks and hoping for the best. Those that play it safe, they rarely get anywhere in life." Sansa said was she squeezed Lanna's shoulder. Lanna managed a smile, even if she wasn't completely settled or reassured. Sansa and her were still really good friends and it was a real shame in some ways that her engagement to Jon was a fraud as it would be nice to be actual family.

- x -

Wylla was standing in the yard with Rickon to meet with their new guests to Winterfell, both were important albeit for different reasons.

The first part was arguably the more important of the two as they were a key ally to the North and whether they would stay that way ensured this meeting went well. A party of riders almost as if they had been actors getting their cue came through the gate, flying two separate banners. One was white and light blue banner with a falcon on it denoting House Arryn, the other was a more complicated design, a bronze field with runes on the outside while inside was black studs which showed they were House Royce.

Wylla was smiling broadly as she saw the two lead horses came up to them, she was standing tall and proud as an older man dismounted. He had grey hair and was much older than her, maybe older than her father but was also tall with a stern and strong face. He turned to see a young boy of about ten or eleven, he was slim and looked rather pale, he had to have help to get off his horse which wasn't a good sign Wylla thought with some concern given the identity of their important guests.

"Lord Arryn, Lord Royce, you are both most welcome." Wylla said with a polite nod of the head, both lords bowed to her in turn and young Robb Arryn tried to grab her hand to kiss but she awkwardly rejected it by putting them behind her back. Lord Royce gave him a sharp look and the boy faltered a little before he spoke for them both.

"Please excuse my ward's behaviour Lady Stark, his mother did little to teach him proper manners especially in the presence of a Lady of a Great House." Lord Royce said, he was having to try and get the boy straightened out. His voice was booming but respectful and clearly heard across the yard. "Lady Stark, thank you for permitting us entry. I am hoping that he might benefit from seeing what his extended family has achieved might help him."

"I see." Wylla said with a slight feeling of annoyance at having to deal with this and two small children to raise while her husband was off fighting again. Sansa had thankfully taken some of her duties so she could spend time with her children but it was still falling on her to do a lot of the work that came with running Winterfell. Now she was going to have to host the Lord of the Vale and his regent. "I am afraid my husband and most of his siblings are away fighting at the coast against the Iron Born, although Lady Sansa and young Rickon are here." Wylla said with a smile, urging Rickon forward.

Rickon was roughly the same age as Robert Arryn, however Rickon being an active child and raised in a much more stable way that Robert had ever been was an inch or two taller and had a stronger build not to mention more colour in his skin even though he lived in the North. He stepped forward and introduced himself.

"Lord Arryn, Lord Royce. On behalf of my brothers and sisters, welcome to Winterfell." Rickon said with a polite nod. Robert seemed confused as he didn't quite understand that he and this boy were related but his mother had never really explained their connection to others as her coddling of him was unhealthy.

A matter that was revealed a moment later when Sansa came into the yard.

"Mother!" Robert cried out with childish glee and only the quick reactions Lord Royce prevented him from charging straight at her. Everyone cringed and Sansa was mortified by what had just happened.

"Robert Arryn! That is not your mother, that is Lady Sansa Stark your cousin. Her mother and your mother were sisters and clearly, she looks a lot like her mother your aunt. Now apologise immediately." Lord Royce told him firmly before turning Sansa who was red in the face. "I am sorry Lady Stark; he has moments of confusion and your Tully look threw him."

"I am very sorry." Robert Arryn said with genuine upset on his face and Sansa with good grace nodded and smiled.

"That is quite alright Lord Arryn, Lord Royce, I am delighted to finally meet my cousin and the future Lord of the Vale." Sansa said with her warmest smile which completely enchanted Robert Arryn, who now smiled himself. "Perhaps we might all go inside and get something to warm to eat while rooms are prepared for you?" She suggested and Lord Royce nodded, sighing in relief that she hadn't taken offense.

"That would be most appreciated Ladies Stark. You have my thanks." Lord Royce said to both Wylla and Sansa who both nodded in acceptance before they all went to the hall to get something to eat. The kitchens were fast workers and managed to have some broth sent up immediately, they all tucked in with relish while Rickon told Robert stories about Winterfell and his siblings.

"And so, once they had completed their mission beyond the Wall, Jon and Meera both had to climb the Wall to get back into the North and warn us of the Wildling invasion." Rickon said, telling his cousin what Rickon's elder brother and sister had gotten up too.

"Wow." Robert said with awe on his face, he had only heard stories from centuries or more ago of people do things like that and it made him want to see his cousins for himself but they were away fighting in a war. He wanted them to come back to speak to him but he knew Lord Royce would scold him for making such a demand.

They were…doing their duty to their kingdom, Robert thought with effort, recalling the lessons Lord Royce had been teaching him. It was hard, he missed his mother but he was strangely feeling a lot stronger now. He had been told by his mother as long as she fed him from her own breast, he would be strong but ever since he had stopped that and started eating more and exercising as Lord Royce made him do…he felt better Robert thought with confusion as he found it hard to concentrate on things sometimes.

His cousins clearly didn't he thought, they were off fighting wars and having adventures! He thought with annoyance while he was kept at home, learning he fumed.

"Then they are just as stubborn as their father." Lord Royce said with a wistful smile. Robert asked him eagerly, wanting to know more about his uncle.

"Did you know him?"

"Know him?!" Lord Royce said with a loud barking laugh that filled the room. "He and I were good friends when he was fostered in the Vale. Myself, Robert Baratheon and Eddard Stark used to go out and ride for hours. While Robert Baratheon indulged in local women, me and Ned would do the work that needed to be done. Good times. Good friends." Lord Royce said with a sad look in his eyes, he was the only one left of their trio now, he thought sadly. Robert and Ned, both gone years before their time, Ned he thought sadly never even got to see his grandchildren.

Gods he felt old Lord Royce thought to himself, but was pleased to see much of his old friend lived on his children. He wished he'd brought his own sons but with Robb Stark and his sister away there was little point, deciding to send them here when they had returned in the hope that friendship might continue into another generation, especially given how useful it could be to have a good relationship with the most powerful family in the North of Westeros.

- x -

Jeor Mormont felt he should have joined the invasion of the Iron Islands but his heart was still heavy from the loss of the Nights Watch, Aemon he was glad to see was settling in just fine and enjoying himself immensely as he worked with Maester Luwin and Benjen was busy helping Lorra meet the rest of her family that she had never met before.

He however, he thought with anger was finding himself useless.

He thought about going back to Bear Island but he hadn't the heart to do…face his sister and her family after his failure at the Wall. The disgrace of being the last Lord Commander of the Nights Watch, that the Order would fall on his watch…it was deeply heart-breaking for him.

However, a surprise visitor had come to see him.

"Maege." Jeor said with shock as his sister arrived, he would have expected her to be leading the Mormont forces in the invasion.

"Jeor, finished moping around yet? Or am I going to have to beat that out of you?" She asked him with a vicious grin that he knew very well. He found himself smirking back, having not seen her in many years and yet she was exactly the same.

"I deserve a few moments; the Watch fell while I was commander. That is a great shame." Jeor said with a sigh but then received a punch on the arm from Maege.

"Stop it! You didn't bring down the Watch it was brought down from under you! If had more men and the rest of the bastards below the Neck actually sent more then maybe it could have been avoided but it wasn't your fault you bloody idiot." Maege told him with a glare that could have levelled the Wall itself. Jeor honestly was intimidated enough that he even started believing it himself.

"And don't even think of giving back Longclaw, that's your sword. The only man in House Mormont worthy of wielding it anyway and us women prefer other weapons. We'll have it back after you die but not before." She warned him and Jeor couldn't help but be a little amused at her statement.

"Well don't expect that too soon. I intend to live for a good while yet." Jeor told her with a chuckle which she scoffed at before punching him on the arm again.

It felt good, he thought to be with his family again, even if it was just his sister. He knew her girls were either with the invasion force or looking after Bear Island in her absence, but he would be glad to finally meet them he thought to himself with some happy expectation.

Seeing young Rickon Stark working with the younger men who were now teaching the lad to wield a sword, it angered him that his brothers and father were not here to help him as it should be…all taken from him by either death or the war. It didn't help that the men were teaching the boy wrong and he clearly wasn't getting it.

Frustration finally got the better of him and he charged over, scaring the daylights out of Rickon and the men who were failing to teach him.

"No, fix the footwork first. Without a good base, you fall easily." Jeor said with a gruff sternness that stunned them. Sighing with annoyance he used his own foot to tap Rickon's feet apart so he had a steadier base and made him stand straighter. "Now, when you fight, you keep your feet on the ground. This isn't a dance; you are learning to fight so you can live and go home afterwards. Now, grip the sword with both hands till you can move it around with some precision and not flapping your arms like a bird trying to fly." Jeor told them harshly and they were so terrified that they did what he said without thinking while Maege smirked in the background, enjoying the sight of him whipping them into shape.

- x -

Ironrath, the North…

The state of things between Lord and Lady Forrester after the reveal of the existence of his two bastard children became cold, their marriage had always been strong and loving, made more so by the presence of their children. Having them all at home was so rare now and so the parents clung to the children they still had, especially with Rodrik, Asher and Mira, all putting themselves in such danger. It was strained further when they had received a betrothal for Mira, it seems her close relationship with Meera Stark and growing beauty had caught the attention of House Hornwood who wanted to tie her to their son and heir Daryn. He was bit older than she was but not yet twenty and would not wed till she turned sixteen so it wouldn't happen just yet.

But the idea their daughter might wed into a more powerful and larger house had further strained things as both of them had their own opinions on this and had yet to discuss it.

But now it was awkward and difficult, Lord Forrester had also lost a lot of respect in the eyes of his people for not just breaking his marriage vows but also banishing the two children beyond the Wall, whatever his reasons. His younger children too had lost their awe of him as they now knew what he had done, betraying their mother and their older half-siblings.

Gregor however was more concerned about his relationship with his wife, he was heartbroken to see the distrust in their eyes and knew they might never really think of him the same way again. Elissa had been pulling away from him and he wasn't going to let his marriage break apart.

Since she had taken to sleeping in another room the same day that Mira had broken the awful news, Gregor had hoped she might use their shared room after a while but it seemed she wanted to avoid him. He had few people to ask for advice that weren't involved in the situation or had already made their judgement clear, and not in a good way for him.

But he knew better than to push, he had been the one to wrong her and the rest of their family and it was up to them whether they forgave him or not. He knew Josera and Elsera wouldn't, he thought sadly, he had been determined that the North Grove was protected perhaps too much but it had been the duty of the Forresters for hundreds of years and it was vital it was protected, he was nervous enough now about them not being there.

But it had cost him the relationship he could have had with his two older twins, and then that action had later ruined the ones he had with the rest of his family.

And he had no idea how to fix it.

As he settled down to his empty bed, the absence of his wife made it cold and uninviting but as he reluctantly undressed to go to bed, he heard a sound at his door and looked up, amazed to see his wife standing there. His heart soared for a moment till he saw the cold expression on her face and the way she had folded her arms that let him know she was still absolutely furious with him. Years of marriage had let him know her well enough to see the signs.

"Gregor, I am going to speak and you are going to listen. If you speak before I say you can then I will leave this room and not come back. Nod if you understand." She told him coldly.

Gregor, scared he was going to mess up what might be his only hope of salvaging his marriage nodded. Elissa sighed before she continued talking.

"Honestly, when I saw those two…I knew you were their father and frankly it hurt Gregor. I have always been loyal to you and you betrayed me. Those two are the same age as Asher and then you hid them beyond the Wall. You showed them such little compassion, even if they weren't mine, they were children Gregor! Your son and daughter and you discarded them like nothing! Just like our vows seemed to matter so little to you. I will ask this once and once only…was there any other times?"

Gregor, too afraid to speak at first managed to find his voice and told her.

"No, they were a drunken mistake…it happened during a wedding, we were all drunk and none of us were thinking straight. It was the only time it ever happened and I never drank more than one tankard ever again after that. Elissa, I honestly swear on my own life that it was the only time and I never meant to do it." Gregor told her. Elissa frowned a little before she spoke again.

"But you did do it. Honestly, I don't know if I believe you but despite everything, I still love you." Elissa said, making his heart leap but only for a moment. "But I really am not sure if I can spend the rest of my life with you, so I am going to make a deal with you. We stay together for the sake of our children, so you have till Ryon comes of age to convince me that I can trust you. Our children deserve our love and so for their sake I will stay but you must prove to me every day until that time, six years that you can be trusted. If you break my trust again though, that will be the end. Do you understand?" She asked him sternly.

Gregor honestly was terrified at the danger to his marriage and his family if Elissa even suspected he was unfaithful and told her with complete devotion.

"I will make you sure every day, I will devote every single moment of my life to making sure that you know how much I love you. And our children! Never will I lie to you or let you down again." Gregor swore to his wife, she looked hopeful for a moment, like she wanted to belief him but her doubts and anger were holding her back. All she managed to say was.

"I hope so Gregor…I hope so."

- x -

Sea Dragon, the North…

Rodrik Forrester and his wife were bringing their own young son to meet his cousin and his aunt and uncle. They should probably have been with the invasion force heading to the Iron Islands but had been ordered to stay behind to protect the coast while so many men were away. It angered him to be left behind, he knew it angered Asher too but at least they were getting time to spend with their children he thought with relief. Even if they were scared about Mira being that close to the invasion and wanted her home as soon as possible, they just had to trust she was ready to handle herself.

The sight of the castle was a relief to both him and his wife, and Asher was there to greet them with Gwyn at his side. They gave them warm hugs as they dismounted from their horses and while Gwyn took Elaena and their son to warm up and get comfort…Rodrik went with Asher to his solar so they could talk. Neither said anything as they walked through the castle's corridors until they were securely in the room with the doors closed.

"So, we have two new siblings…or is old siblings as they are the same age as us roughly." Rodrik said as Asher poured them both a glass of scotch each. They both took a drink before Asher asked.

"How are mother and the others taking it?" He wished bitterly to have been there to help during this time but with the Iron Born still a threat he had to same close to his fleet in case it was needed.

"Not well." Rodrik said with anger, not pleased himself at what their father had done. "Mira is apparently the one that has the bond with 'Josera and Elsera' as they are named and refused to hide their existence."

"Can't say I blame her…what father did to them. I would probably have done the same thing." Asher admitted as they both took a seat, looking unsettled as they tried to wrap their heads around all this.

"I know, they seem a good sort though." Rodrik said with unease. "I don't think they mean us harm but, who knows." Rodrik said with a shrug, uncomfortable with the entire situation and wished dearly that this wasn't happening.

"So, we wait till they return after the invasion and question them ourselves?" Asher asked, for once the two of them being on the same page so Rodrik nodded, not sure what else to do given the circumstances.

The Red Keep, Kings Landing…

The Red Keep was slowly getting ready for the coming wedding of Joffrey and Margaery despite Joffrey refusing to have anything to do with the planning, he was doing literally everything possible to avoid his approaching nuptials.

But even if he had to be dragged in chains to the altar of the Great Sept by the Mountain himself, Tywin would see this wedding done.

Tywin was fuming as he had just received word that the Starks had wed Lanna to their own bastard Jon Snow. As matches go, they were more or less equals despite Lanna being legitimised but it was the fact that it was a marriage that he had not planned nor truly benefitted from.

Well, he thought as he sat at his desk, not in the normal way.

The Starks when they had informed him of the marriage had also waived any dowry from House Lannister for Lanna's hand, that saved him thousands of gold dragons or other things of worth. But also, they had promised him Nightfall from House Harlaw and more to the point they had sworn to deal with the Iron Born by themselves and would make them bend the knee to the Iron Throne.

One saved him money, the next gave him something House Lannister had been deprived of for centuries and the third prevented him having to fight another costly war. He had at first wondered if the third was even possible or just bravado but then word had reached him from his spies in the North that they had ambushed the Iron Born's only holding there and taken not only it back but captured over a hundred of their ships and had been planning to use their banners and vessels to sail straight to the Iron Islands to end them as a threat once and for all. Not to mention that with the Night's Watch's collapse the North now had castles and land to spare and had placed a significant amount into the hands of the bastard Snow, meaning once those lands were fully settled, Lanna's husband would be a head of a new major house in the North.

He wasn't sure whether they would succeed on their own but the Northern army much to his chagrin was larger than his own and if they managed to catch the Iron Born unawares it might just work.

He would Tywin decided with a pondering look in his eyes wait and see if they were able to succeed or not. If they didn't then he would of course have the bastard killed so Lanna would be free to marry again, if they succeeded then he would have eliminated an enemy and given up nothing.

He could at least take comfort that his plans against Stannis were advancing, Tywin thought to himself and pondered on other ways to make sure the Iron Back received their due.

- x -

Joffrey meanwhile was enjoying himself immensely, he had come from a boring Small Council meeting where it had been reported that the North had now defeated the wildlings and was now turning their full attention towards the Iron Born. Hopefully they would be dealt with soon enough Joffrey thought and instead decided to return to his new hobby, knife throwing.

It had been hard at first but he had soon mastered the skill and was now practicing with it and his other weapons too, finding the more he practiced the better all his skills became overall.

He had even gone to the Grandmaester and learned the most vulnerable spots on the body and those that could be stabbed or hit to cause pain but not necessarily kill.

Hence why he was in the yard with his throwing knives, crossbow and a bow, practicing but not on range dummies…that was boring.

Instead, he was using live targets.

Prisoners from the war in the south, bandits they'd caught, common criminals or supposed spies. One of which was a whore from one of Baelish's old brothels, apparently a Northerner that had come south in hopes of a better life instead was now accused of trying to spy on the king and was now being stabbed by knives thrown by Joffrey, hitting the areas that would cause her the most amount of pain without killing her too fast. Her screams of agony echoed loudly around the area and Marei who was passing was horrified at what she was seeing but knew there was nothing she could do to help the poor girl. Quickly she went on her way to get as far away from the screams as she could and hope the hell that he didn't remain king for long.

Varys meanwhile was staring with dismay at the situation, his asset had been foolish to be so overt in her efforts and he wished he could help her now but there was nothing he could do.

It honestly scared him as he could see the chaos of Aerys Targaryen's reign coming back again, Joffrey was competent in managing affairs of state and didn't ignore such things as Aerys had done but he was just as sadistic. He might be young but clearly it was getting there Varys realised with dismay and knew sooner or later someone would likely kill him, if not a victim or a victim's family then the Tyrells for being so disrespectful.

That would mean Tommen would ascend to the throne he thought with concern as while a far more stable than his older brother and much kinder, he was not strong enough for the throne Varys thought with dismay and would be torn apart by all the factions at court.

But he had little option but to hope for this outcome as his preferred option was still unwilling to come to Westeros and who knew if it would even work Varys thought with depression. He was just glad that the steady hand of Tyrion Lannister would be present to keep an eye on things and if the Tyrells didn't kill Joffrey, Tyrion likely would and Tywin Lannister too. Varys would feel a great deal better if the Old Lion was removed from the game, chaos might occur if he did but a man like that was something the world was better off without.

- x -

Olenna Tyrell was at last getting some traction in her own plans.

Today was the day that Cersei Lannister would return to court, under supervision of course she thought with amusement knowing ways around that.

Cersei was an important piece in her plan to make sure the Lannisters couldn't afford to break their alliance and more to the point later securing Joffrey's death. That part of things was already in place she thought with satisfaction but now she just needed to make sure the removal of the Starks was ready.

And she couldn't waste any more time, Olenna thought with great concern for her granddaughter as Joffrey's latest hobby was now the talk of the Red Keep and probably most of Kings Landing by now! She had seen those people tied up as living targets for him to practice with and honestly, she was wondering now just which one of the Seven Hells had spat Joffrey out? Cersei might have squeezed him out but his mind was so warped and twisted she honestly considered just what Cersei had done to make him that bad?

"That boy will kill Margaery." Olenna said with her concern open on her face as until Joffrey was finally dead, they couldn't relax regardless of what they might have in place.

"I'm sure he will be fine when they are married." Mace said with a stupid hopeful look on his face and Olenna honestly wanted to strangle him. She took some enjoyment from smacking his head with her stick instead and he cowered from her as she sighed in frustration.

How was this family going to manage without her? She thought to herself with dismay.

- x -

Cersei checked her appearance in the mirror and was pleased to see she had regained some weight and her figure was much more pleasing now she thought with satisfaction and she had managed to gain back some glow, her body hadn't managed to regain the curves that she had before but she hoped that would come later.

Her hatred towards her father had not abated, but she had merely managed to keep it contained for now as she would seek her revenge when she had regained some power. Right now, she knew she had little and that angered her enough to make her face twist up with her rage, but she forced herself to stay calm and continue to plot as there was time to make her father pay later.

The gown was good, she thought with some satisfaction after having nothing nice for some time. Red Myrish lace and embroidery she thought with relief that at last she was being treated with the respect she deserved.

She was aware of the guards following her and scowled at their presence before continuing to the throne room, eager to see her son who she was sure would have softened his attitude towards her surely after they had been a part of so long.

He needed her, she reassured herself. He would always need her to guide him and help him become the great king he was destined to be, she thought with certainty.

Wandering down the corridors she made note of those that gossiped about her as she passed, just so she knew who to punish when she regained her power and influence.

Arriving the throne room, she was disappointed to see Joffrey wasn't there, frowning as she had hoped to see him and how much he had changed since she had last seen him, so she knew how much work was required to rid of him of the bad habits he had acquired and such stupid notions as he didn't need her.

What boy didn't need his mother? She thought, thinking the mere idea of him not needing her was ridiculous.

She saw Olenna Tyrell coming over and scowled at the sight of the old witch, she was smiling pleasantly which was a mask Cersei knew with annoyance.

"Well, it seems the king has decided to not grace us with his presence today, from what I have heard he is working on his latest hobby, throwing knives." Olenna told her with some dismissiveness in her voice. At least that gave her an idea where to look Cersei thought with frustration and when she went to go. She went to walk away to find her son when Olenna said something, almost off hand to one of her ladies.

"The news from the North certainly isn't good. The Starks are refusing to pay their taxes and have been moving their soldiers to the south, I have heard from the sources we have inside the North itself that the Starks intend to declare their independence from the Iron Throne." Olenna said quietly to her lady although Cersei could overhear it. Cersei stopped and listened carefully while meeting with an old friend of hers Lady Falyse Stokeworth.

"Are you sure? Such a thing would be a great risk." The simpering Reach lady said only for Olenna to scoff and deride her by saying.

"What risk is that? The southern kingdoms are weakened by the war and will take years to recover, they have full food baskets and a fleet of their own. They have enough men to garrison their coast and by the time the King can rally enough men to even try and invade them, winter will come and our armies will be frozen. There has never been a better time and even when summer comes again the North will have had plenty to time to prepare for an invasion. That is assuming of course they just don't have the king and his brother killed to leave the rest of the kingdoms in such chaos that no-one can stop them." Olenna said with an exaggerated shake of her head.

"Does the Lord Hand have any plans to prevent it? I mean, he is the Lion of Casterly Rock, surely, he could stop them?" The Reach lady asked and Olenna shrugged and told her.

"If he does, I do not know what it is and he is running out of time to apply it, I can only think he has become obsessed with dealing with Stannis Baratheon and has become blind anything other than that." Olenna said before she and her lady wandered off.

The idea of the North defying her beloved Joffrey sent a rush of anger straight through Cersei, she had always known those barbarians were not to be trusted she fumed and stormed off, angry while Falyse followed her. The idea they might try to kill her sons made Cersei move all the quicker and with much more rage, intent on finding some way to destroy the Starks once and for all.

- x -

While Cersei was planning on how to find the solution her father had created to deal with the Starks Olenna looked on smirking, Cersei was capable enough when she wanted something to get it and as a Lannister, she would find acquiring such information than Olenna herself. Not to mention she thought with amusement, was so short sighted and angry she did not bother to think before she acted.

Whatever the plan was, given Tywin had thought of it Olenna could only presume it would cut House Stark off at the knees she thought with satisfaction. And even if war did come, well House Lannister wouldn't be able to survive without House Tyrell Olenna thought with certainty, and after all any action taken by Cersei left her blameless. Even if Cersei did say she had heard such things from her Olenna could make up any story she wanted and appear blameless.

But unknown to her and Cersei herself, Falyse was looking at Cersei with an expectant look. Studying her from head to toe, assessing her for something.

Dragonstone, the Narrow Sea…

The deary island of Dragonstone was far from an ideal place to live, unless you liked eating fish Renly thought as he and his party arrived aboard the small boat they had managed to acquire. There was seemingly nothing alive on the whole island and nothing beautiful at all he thought with dismay but here was his young and hopefully gullible niece.

The last place he might find aid in Westeros, he realised knowing no other options were open to him now and if he wanted to escape to Essos, he would need the funds to do it and he hoped to effectively swindle them out of his niece.

His party were silent as they followed him up the path towards the imposing fortress, he honestly had no idea just who would want to rule here? Renly thought, depressed by just being here one day…how miserable must you get if you had to live here all the time he pondering, jokingly thinking to himself that maybe this place had drained all the joy and happiness from Stannis.

Arriving at the castle gates he saw they were barred shut and on the gate house which had been styled to resemble dragons a pair of guards called out.

"Halt! Who seeks entry to Dragonstone?"

"Renly Baratheon, brother of Stannis Baratheon and uncle to Shireen Baratheon. I have come to see my niece." Renly said boldly and the mention of his name certainly did have an effect on the guardsmen who looked between themselves and a fairly hurried conversation had one of them running up the path to the fortress. It seemed an awfully long wait before finally the gates opened, much to their surprise as they had almost expected to be turned away.

Renly, emboldened by this began walking through the gates with his entourage following him. Loras and Brienne felt very uneasy about this and wanted to leave, maybe they could steal a ship or just convince a captain to take them across the Narrow Sea?

Anything seemed safer than this.

It was a long and winding walk up to the impressive fortress, finally when they got there a lot more guards were waiting for them, accompanied by an old grizzled looking man who looked at them suspiciously.

"Renly Baratheon, you betrayed your brother. Why have you come?" The man asked, taking a moment Renly recognised him now as Ser Davos Seaworth, an illiterate peasant who had somehow convinced Stannis to employ him.

"Your grace, I think you should remember his station." Loras said sharply at the disrespect of not addressing Renly by his title which only made Renly love Loras more.

"Not a king of anything last time I checked." Davos said back gruffly which made them and Renly especially bristle at the mention of his fall from grace. "I wouldn't have let you in but the princess demanded it. So come inside." Davos told them with suspicion and the number of guards made even the best fighters among them, Loras and Brienne feel nervous as they were moved inside.

The bleak black rock corridors did little to make the castle seem more homely, Renly thought now full of confidence as he was now inside and had all the words that he needed in his head to take coin from his silly and ugly niece. He had heard she was supposed to be cured of the horrible scars that covered her face but from what he could remember of his brother's old wife, well he was hardly expecting a beautiful princess.

The large and heavy doors to the throne room of the castle were opened by the guards and they were admitted to the dim and dull looking throne room, looking ahead he saw his niece sitting on the uncomfortable stone throne that had been carved out of the rock itself that Aegon the Conqueror had once used and he could hardly believe the girl was not using a cushion or something to make it more comfortable. Clearly not as intelligent as he had feared she might be if she put up with such discomfort when she didn't have too.

"Well, Uncle…I see you have seen fit to visit." Shireen said with a calm voice that admittedly was more intelligent than he had first thought. He also had to admit she was far from the ugly creature he had been led to believe…objectively speaking as puberty had started, she was taller than most girls her age and her face would be pleasing to the eye if one cared to look Renly thought dismissively.

"Yes, my dear niece. I thought it high time we met, after all there are few Baratheons left these days." Renly said with a big smile, hoping to charm her but Shireen looked at him with dismay and shook her head.

"Yes, and divided since you sided against my father, the elder brother and the true heir to the Iron Throne. Living in luxury at Highgarden till your failure to be an active participant in the war and to actually act as a husband made the Tyrells kick you out. Which leads me to suspect since the Faith are still hunting you that you are here to seek funds from me to escape to Essos and live there on Baratheon gold." Shireen said with a look of someone much older in her eyes.

Renly was shocked, so were Loras and Brienne and the others as they had never expected for the young Baratheon princess to figure them out so quickly. Stannis had long said many times that his daughter was a very intelligent young woman but everyone had put that down to fatherly pride, now though they all started to realise it was true.

This shock was enough though for Shireen's guards to rush forward and seize all of them. They argued but the guards had their weapons in hand already not to mention considerable numbers, Shireen leaned back in the throne and told them.

"You have had it easy your entire life Uncle, I think my father will ensure you know just how many mistakes you have made. I am sending you and most of your party to him, we will keep Ser Tyrell and Brienne of Tarth with us here though, I wouldn't want to risk the Tyrells trying to snatch Loras back on route. And we greatly respect Lord Selwyn, so his daughter will be given comfort till my father and hers can come to some arrangement." Shireen said firmly.

The party was terrified at being sent to Stannis who would surely kill them for what they had done, Renly in particular was terrified as he was dragged away to the cells alongside his party. Stannis could be so harsh, he thought with dread at what his brother might do to him for his betrayal.

Loras and Brienne meanwhile were scared for Renly obviously, Loras more as he knew what would happen if the Faith got involved with things. He and Renly were both lovers of men and that was high crime in the eyes of the Seven, it scared him so much what might happen to his lover if the septons had their way. He wasn't so concerned for himself as he was fairly certain that his family would intervene on his behalf.

But either way, Renly was doomed Loras thought with terror as he and the rest of their party was confined till more permanent arrangements could be made.

Storm's End, The Stormlands…A Day Later…

Stannis was actually smiling, in a very rare occasion he had actually something worth being happy about.

His daughter had captured Renly and was sending him here!

Shireen had seen straight through Renly's attempts at manipulation and taken them into custody immediately, she was keeping Loras Tyrell and Brienne of Tarth at Dragonstone for now which gave them a valuable hostage against House Tyrell and Selwyn was likely to be grateful for the safe return of his daughter.

His pride in his own daughter had never been so strong! He thought with more joy than in any other time in his life so far. She had done so well as Princess of Dragonstone and when the opportunity to get Renly had fallen into her lap, she had taken it quickly and decisively. Proving again how intelligent and resourceful she was.

When the time came for her to wed, and he sincerely hoped that day wasn't coming soon Stannis thought not wanting to imagine his daughter as a woman yet nor that some man would be taking advantage of her, Stannis would make sure she was treated to the life and style that she deserved.

Only the best for his daughter he thought with pride.

This only made his day feel more enjoyable for once as his wife had just confirmed her latest pregnancy, whether it was a boy or a girl meant nothing to Stannis as more children meant his claim got stronger as did his position.

A letter from one of Master Kilburn's spies had revealed that a Reach force was going to try and sneak through the Kings Wood to invade the Stormlands that way, but the spy had given him the exact path they intended to take and their numbers.

This was a perfect opportunity to deal with a particular problem he was facing, Stannis thought with a cold look coming to his face again, removing it from the board and making his situation more secure.

Qarth, Essos…

Daenerys honestly had no idea just how much time had passed since she had been taken in the desert.

She had felt like she was floating in a sea of shadows for a long time, not sure which way was up or down or even if she was alive or dead. She hoped she wasn't as this was hardly an afterlife that she wanted to spend eternity in.

Finally, she felt stone beneath her back and she blinked, able to see a rough stone ceiling above her. She slowly sat up and saw the stone chamber she was being held in, getting to her feet she felt herself for weapons and found none. She frowned and felt nervous of her sudden vulnerability. She saw a door and careful walked up to it, hopefully she pushed it and much to her surprise it opened.

She carefully leaned through the now open door and saw a long corridor lined with torches; she was doing her best to suppress the fear that she felt with the strange place. It wasn't just cold but it had an aura that felt...oppressive Daenerys thought, like the air itself was pressing against you.

This only made her more eager to get out, she thought moving quickly through the corridors, desperate to find some way out but soon she found herself lost. She couldn't tell if she was going anywhere or just going around in circles, then to make her situation even more dire she heard what seemed to her ears to be inhuman laughter all around her.

It was so loud that it made it impossible to hear anything else, it actually hurt to listen and she desperately put her hands over her ears to try and block it out but the noise was just unbearable.

She kept running, urgently seeking a way out of this maze she was lost in when she finally came to a main chamber, her heart sank as she saw it was a dead end and when she tried to turn back the door slammed shut behind her, trapping her inside. She honestly felt the oppressive air stronger than ever here and when she looked at the symbols that had been carved into the stone floor, she saw what looked to her at least like dried blood.

The mounting sense of dread was now making her shake, she desperately pushed at the door which just would not move as the laughing grew even louder and she was suddenly pulled backwards against her will into the centre of the room and forced onto her back. She hadn't felt so powerless before, even as a little girl and tears leaked from her eyes as she was faced with the very real chance that this was her last moments alive, that she would never see her Drogo, their son or her dragons again. She hated that more than anything else in her entire life and struggled hard but whatever cursed sorcery that was holding her was too strong. A shadowy form appeared above her and she could see a dagger in its hand.

Closing her eyes to not have to see her own murder, she uttered one last prayer to the gods and silently begged for help.

She had not expected that the gods were listening to her or that she would be saved.

With great roar the entire wall on one side was blown open! Stone fell straight across the room and yet amazingly none of it hit her, the shadows were unaffected by it but it was enough of a surprise to them that they released their grip on Daenerys who immediately scrambled for hole created by the blast, light was blinding but she crawled and then ran for it anyway. One of the shadows lunged after her but a sword blade seemed to come from nowhere and bisected it, the creature screeched and fell to the ground where it reformed into an old almost skeletal human man with blue lips.

Daenerys felt a hand, soft, warm and strong grab hers and pulled her forward into the light.

She blinked as she was pulled along, not sure just where she was until her eyes adjusted and she saw that they were in the middle of a great city. Not one that she recognised but she could tell she was still in Essos by the heat and presumed she must be somewhere further east, which she only guessed at when she saw in the distance one of what seemed to be a set of three walls, but they were decorated by portraits of animals and people having sex not to mention battle scenes.

Qarth, she thought with certainty. It was the only city she knew of that decorated their walls as such. However, knowing where she was didn't exactly make her feel any better as she knew Drogo and the khalasar were many miles from here, she looked now towards her rescuer and saw it was the figure of a woman, taller than her and her figure shapely but hidden by dark clothes and her face by a red lacquer mask that only had holes for eyes.

"Come Mother of Dragons, we have little time before they come after us." The woman said, although Daenerys couldn't trace her accent.

"What is happening? Why have they brought me here?" Daenerys asked and the woman who was still dragging her at a run through the strangely quiet streets told her.

"The Undying Ones in the House of the Undying. The Warlocks of Qarth who in recent months have been gaining more and more power, what caused this I do not know but they now rule Qarth and are sacrificing anyone with any power in the blood to extend their own existence." The Masked Woman said as she pulled them into a small house which seemed to be deserted, so they could rest a moment.

"Who are you?" Daenerys asked, caution in her eyes as she knew better than to just accept kindness at face value.

The woman sighed before telling her.

"I am known as Quaithe. A Shadowbinder and magic wielder who is perhaps the only one in the city that will fight back against the warlocks now, they have grown so strong that I fear I may not be able hold them much longer and if you are to protect yourself, should something happen to me…take this." Quaithe said as she pulled a bundle from behind a nearby desk, pressing it into Daenerys's hands.

Daenerys carefully unwrapped the bundle and saw to her astonishment that it was a longsword, a special one too as it has been made slimmer and fitted her hands well. Not only that but she saw it had the distinctive ripples in the steel that she had only seen before in her dragonbone dagger.

Valyrian steel, she thought with amazement, holding the sword in her hands and marvelled at how well balanced it was. Quaithe however seemed anxious and told her.

"The Sorcerers are strong but they can be killed only by a blade forged of magic. Valyrian steel is the only substance I have found so far that can kill them, I acquired this sword and my own to fight them with. I have seen in my visions that you know how to wield a blade, use it wisely as if I fall you will need to protect yourself." Quaithe warned her. "I know not just who they have in their thrall so beware who you trust."

Then the quiet was broken by that awful screeching again and they both looked through the doorway and saw the shadows charging straight at them, both were struck with fear for a moment before Quaithe pushed Daenerys towards a back door.

"GO! If I survive, I will find you later but if not get out of the city!" She warned Daenerys who wanted despite her fear to stand and fight with her but Quaithe then hit her with a blast of magic, that sent her flying back through the door and skidding across the sandy ground. She looked back and saw the shadows were swarming the house, lights seemed to appear inside but then nothing.

Daenerys honestly was so shocked she had no idea just what to feel, Quaithe had seemingly given her life for her and now she was alone, trapped in an unfamiliar city with no friends or protection, beyond herself she thought with her new sword in hand and with reluctance she got to her feet and ran off into the city, intent on getting as far from the sorcerers as she could.

Riverrun, the Riverlands…

Edmure was being washed down with cold water as Brynden and his men did their best to sober the boy up.

"Uncle!" Edmure cried in discomfort as the very cold water splashed all over him. Brynden however was hardly moved by his pleas.

"If you are going to be a lord worthy of being 'Marshal of the Rivers' as you so boast then you need to stop drinking!" Brynden said firmly as more water was poured over him, leaving Edmure gasping with the coldness of it and shaking. "Right now, the Riverlands are in a good position, the lords of both the North and Vale are friendly with us and they have blood ties. The crown favours us and we have a full army if needed. But a drunk for a lord could destroy all of that so we are going to keep doing this till you get the hint." Brynden told him firmly much to the horror of Edmure.

- x -

In the Lord's Solar Catelyn was working hard on managing the trade and other matters that came with running a kingdom, gods this was hard work she thought with a sigh of exhaustion. Running a castle, that she could do in her sleep but this was well beyond her own experience, although with the help of the maester she was getting the hang of it.

How had Meera managed all the trade of Winterfell at a much younger age than she? Catelyn asked herself with a frown, her daughter was probably the smartest person she had ever met bar none but still, as a girl she had managed far more than this and made it seem effortless! Catelyn remarked with astonishment, maybe she thought Meera had been born with the temperament for it or maybe Catelyn thought with a small smile she just had such a strong spirit that nothing phased her.

Gods she thought with grief for the relationship that she could have had with her daughter, she wished she could talk to her now. She wanted to try and mend the rift between them but she had barely even started doing it with Robb and Brandon and she hadn't even managed to get the others to respond to a single raven.

She just had to remind herself to take it one day at a time.

But a cheerful cry made her smile as she looked up to see Minisa was enjoying herself, playing with the servants who absolutely adored her. The sight of her now two-year-old daughter running around was enough to bring a lump to her throat, time was moving so fast it seemed like she aged another year every time she blinked. The maester said she was a bright girl too, much like her older sister who seemed to learn everything in the time it took most people to breathe.

It also made her remember the earliest days of her time at Winterfell when Robb and Meera had been no older than Minisa was now, they were always running around and it had been an ongoing struggle for her and Ned to keep up with them both not to mention the whole of Winterfell.

Gods, she missed those days now when everything had seemed so much brighter Catelyn thought with sadness at all they had lost now.

Their bonds of family, Ned, time…so much she thought with grief. But a laugh from Minisa managed to bring her back and make her smile again.

Those things, she couldn't get back she thought sadly, but she could still find love and happiness in the world.

The Kingswood, the Stormlands…

Randyll Tarly was moving his forces as quietly as possible through the dense wood, hoping to use it to get his army inside the Stormlands so they could press the war against Stannis Baratheon. He personally was eager to see the man crushed as he had brought great pain to the Reach and even the horror of the Wildlings onto them. He honestly had no idea just how the North had dealt with them for so long.

His own house's lands had been scarred by their actions and was just eager to see this war end so he could get back there to see it all fixed.

Randyll wasn't exactly thrilled about trying to use the Kings Wood, he thought looking around and seeing the very thick trees around him. It was the perfect place for an ambush and Stannis had good spies apparently as every movement they had tried into the Stormlands and every tactic had been repulsed with harsh casualties on their side. Stannis might not be as well known as a strategist as his late elder brother but he was hardly lacking in that area either, not to mention it was as if he knew exactly what his enemies were planning and he had the perfect tactics to counter it.

Randyll's worst fears were confirmed as the attack horn sounded, another ambush just like he thought might happen. His frustration at their inability to break Stannis and with anger was forced to grab his own horn as he knew fighting in this thick forest against a prepared enemy was going to cost him more than he was willing to pay for likely little gain.

He blew it hard, signalling his forces to retreat back the way they came to the Crownlands and relative safety. He with self-loathing joined in the retreat and retraced their tracks back out of the woods.

An hour later he gathered his forces and saw to his annoyance they had lost at least a thousand or two in the aborted invasion. Struggling to keep himself outwardly calm as he dealt with another failure. Seeing one of his knights come up to him he asked.

"Where is my son? And how many did we lose?" He asked sternly to his knight who he realised looked very unsettled and reluctant to answer. Randyll glared at him before his will broke and he answered the question.

"A thousand men my lord, either killed or captured." The Knight said before telling him the part that he really knew his liege lord wasn't going to like. "But Lord Rowan…and your son I have heard were taken alive."

Randyll's fury as he heard that his son and heir not to mention Lord Rowan, perhaps one of the only real lords in the Reach had been captured and that it had happened on his watch no less was infuriating. But his son! Randyll thought with anger as Stannis had taken his heir and best chance of continuing their family!

He was not going to lead another attack regardless of what orders came from Kings Landing until his son was safe and whole, Randyll thought with anger. He didn't care what any of them said or who it might cost them but he wanted his son back and until he had Dickon returned to him, the Reach army wasn't going anywhere.

The Red Keep, Kings Landing…

The nights in the Red Keep could be long for men who preferred action to sitting around doing nothing so they all drowned their sorrows in alcohol.

Jaime Lannister, Bronn and the Hound were all gathered around a large barrel of strong alcohol, all of them just wanting for one night to not bother with any of this 'politics bollocks' as they thought of it. They were just swapping stories and just letting loose which given the place they lived it was a necessity for them to stay sane.

- x -

Ravens from spies in the Stormlands and on Dragonstone began to arrive, informing people who had them that Renly Baratheon, Loras Tyrell and their remaining followers had been captured by Shireen Baratheon and even as they read about it, Renly along with most of his men were on the way to Stannis to be judged for treason.

That horrified the Tyrells, thinking what might happen to Loras if Stannis was to judge him and knew there was little chance of ransoming him or negotiating a prisoner exchange as they had no one to trade that was worth as much as Loras. They might have tried a group of less valuable prisoners for him but Joffrey had killed them all so that only added to the growing animosity between him and the Tyrells.

In truth Olenna was just glad that Loras was in the hands of Shireen Baratheon as despite being Stannis's daughter it seemed she had far more sense in her head than her father did, she knew Loras's value and therefore would keep him alive and healthy for now at least. Some were wondering if the Reach blood the girl had from her Florent ancestry had made her smarter than her father but to Olenna it mattered not.

She just had to figure a way to get Loras home, especially before either Stannis or the Faith could try him. Not to mention Dickon Tarly she thought knowing how angry Randyll was thanks to Mace's taking credit for his work and the way the war had been conducted in his absence combined with all the recent failures. She couldn't afford to antagonise him further she realised with worry and would do whatever it took to ensure the health of Dickon Tarly till they could get him back. The last thing she wanted was for Randyll to abandon them or worse yet, join Stannis.

That she thought with worry would be a disaster for them all.

Pyke, the Iron Islands…

The Starks had set up a camp not far from the town but close enough to the castle that they could watch it, not to mention give their warriors a place to rest their heads.

The Starks had a tent to themselves, guarded heavily it was somewhere they could consider their strategy and tactics in relative peace, but at the moment each of the Starks was bonding with their dragons. The Direwolves cuddled up to them which made sure the Starks paid them attention as the dragons all curled up in their respective laps.

"Vhagar is just like me." Arya said as she held her small dragon. The dragon was small, red scales for the most part but had gold specks and black whorls around her small body. Vhagar as Arya had decided to name her took after her human in many ways, being the boldest of the four and often Nymeria could be found either carrying the dragon back to its bed when it had wandered off or riding on the direwolf's back.

"I think Skychaser has the same eyes as me." Jon said as he had his dragon around his shoulders, gold and silver coloured scales with patterns that looked like flames moving across its body. It did indeed seem to have the same darker grey eyes as Jon but also his serious and somewhat downcast nature.

"Northfyre is easily the most behaved of the four." Robb said as he rubbed his finger on the purple and gold coloured dragon, it was true as well as he was often the one that kept the others in line and his growls often brought them back into order.

Meera didn't comment as she considered Aurora, which was to her mind the most beautiful of the quartet. White platinum-coloured scales with golden flecks, she almost simmered in the light and was easily the most intelligent of the dragons, easily finding ways to escape and explore.

It was just as well that she knew from Harry's world how to care for dragons, that information had been a part of her assembled knowledge although she still had no idea just how they had acquired it. She had managed to catch up to after the defeat of Voldemort now and was revealed to know they had vanquished him in the end, after they had gone to work for the ministry as an auror but still she had didn't understand where this knowledge had come from.

But unfortunately, she couldn't waste more time on such mysteries nor just play with the dragons as there was a siege going on and she was not willing to consider allowing it to go on any longer. She had two options for forcing their way into the castle, she could use the gunpowder to blown the gates open but since they didn't have a cannon design it would need to be placed near the gates and ignited. The gates of Pyke unfortunately were perhaps the most impressive thing about the ridiculous castle, plenty of hidden archer positions, oil pouring drains and other nasty little surprises.

The other option was far more dramatic but would break the castle open quickly, magic could easily break that door down but knowing how many in this world thought of magic as evil…she didn't want to risk anything that could link back to them.

But she could test her new command of the weather, she pondered wondering if it was even possible but she knew the physics of it would work and she had the energy stored up to do after the fight to take the island.

But she would need a cover, she thought knowing if the weather kept acting up like that around her someone was going to realise that she was causing it. Back on Earth there had been a whole group of people to cover up the existence of magic but here she was on her own with no failsafe and if she was ever found out she knew the southern kingdoms would be up in arms about it. She worried at the idea of them trying to invade the North just to kill her because her powers were an affront to their bigoted beliefs.

Meera certainly didn't want that much bloodshed on her hands so she would need to figure out some excuse for why the weather was acting up, relaxing into Romulus and Rema while Aurora curled around her.

She then came up with an idea.

"I will bring down the gates with Gungnir tomorrow morning." Meera said with her decision now made. "Tell the rest of the camp I will be praying to the Old Gods for their aid all night, telling them in the name of the safety of their people I am pleading for their help."

Her announcement did not quite meet the approval she had been hoping for, her siblings even Jon who knew the powers of her spear first hand was shocked at her plan of action.

"I know Gungnir is supposed to be able to command all of the weather but I doubt even it could break those doors down." Robb said with disbelief in his voice. Jon just shook his head in exasperation at Robb's lack of faith while Arya was affronted at the suggestion their sister was incapable of doing what she said.

"If Meera says she can bring down the gates…she can bring down the gates." Arya said stubbornly and Robb looked suitably chastised but Meera while touched by Arya's faith in her understood Robb's disbelief.

"I know it sounds incredible but it can be done. We just need to make it seem like divine intervention; one thing you cannot expect from a god no matter how hard you pray is that they will answer you. We just need to make people think they might have done this time, especially with what I have planned." Meera said, a grim expression on her face. It was going to play to not only the Old Gods but to the fears of the Iron Born as she effectively drew on the legend of the Storm God.

- x -

Later that day, storm clouds gathered overhead, thick and dark the noises within scared the horses who had to be firmly held by their riders while the men and women that had joined them all looked up in dismay as they thought they were about to be near drowned with rain…but they suddenly realised that no rain had fallen anywhere and all of them became confused as the weather seemed too unusual especially when they were told to prepare for battle and that the 'Old Gods' were about to answer their prayers.

Theon and Yara, still bound and gagged watched the growing storm and felt a chill run down their spines, especially Yara who honestly felt like she was watching the work of the Storm God himself.

Meera, under the protection of her family and closest friends not to mention her Unsullied was standing with her spear in hand, eyes closed with great concentration. The others all watched with awe as she summoned up a storm seemingly from nowhere, Robb who had not really gotten used to his sister's new abilities was shocked and more than a little afraid of the power that she now commanded. Jon and Ygritte too were looking almost open mouthed with awe at the incredible sight before them. Arya on the other hand was almost laughing with the incredible thing her sister was doing and hoped that maybe, one day she might be able to wield Gungnir herself.

When the storm had become the most intense that she could make it, Meera lifted her spear up with one hand, her eyes still closed and with a yell of anger, pointed her spear straight in the direction of the castle.

Above them, the weather responded and out of the storm cloud came the biggest and brightest lightning bolt that any one had ever seen. It was not normal, not in anyway.

Nor did it simply head straight for the ground as a normal bolt would, instead it went straight for the locked gates of Pyke, hitting them with tremendous force! They were blasted open and straight off their enormous hinges, the Northerners looked on in astonishment at what had just happened, not able at first to believe it.

Meera, having done what she needed too felt extremely tired all of a sudden and collapsed, Jon and Robb catching her as she fell. Arya too was doing her best to help, giving her a drink of water to try and help her. But Meera stubbornly told them.

"I opened the gates, now go and take that castle. I'll be fine." She told them, exhausted as she wasn't really used to using the spear's greater powers yet. Jon and Robb reluctantly looked at the castle and then back at her and then nodded, running off with Ygritte to lead the charge into the castle while the Unsullied stayed with Meera. Arya looked at her sister strangely, not sure she had ever seen her looking this exhausted but then decided rather than run off to join the battle to stay with her sister. Meera smiled a little at that and allowed Arya to help her back into the tent, so glad that in this life at least she had a family that cared about her.

Unaware to them in the distance, Thoros of Myr looked at them with surprise, having never expected to see such power before and although the girl was unused to it for now and thus exhausted by the effort of commanding it, she had incredible potential.

Meanwhile the Northern army seemed to realise the incredible opportunity that had been given to them, the way into the Greyjoy's stronghold was open now and they charged straight for it with Jon and Robb leading the charge. Ygritte proving her skill as an archer when she managed to pick off two Iron Born on the walls as they pushed straight in through the open gate.

Robb and Jon both with swords in hand cut down the first men that dared try to fight them as more and more Northern warriors poured through the open gates, they spread out quickly, running up the steps onto the walls and gatehouse above and started attacking the few men still up there while others began forcing their way deeper into the castle's interior.

The sounds of steel and fighting echoed everywhere as the attackers and defenders clashed, Balon Greyjoy had been watching from his room in the centre tower of the castle and honestly was still in shock at the way his castle had been breached, he was far too arrogant a man to ever consider a greater power than himself. The idea that the Storm God himself had risen up against them seemed impossible to him, but he simply had no idea what else could command the weather like that.

The sound of fighting broke out and he looked over in time to see the door that he had locked be cleaved in two by a blade covered in blue flames! Now he was seeing a second miracle in the space of an hour, Balon thought with shock as the broken door was kicked in and in came two younger men, one of which was carrying the sword that sheathed in blue flames, the other young man looked at it with awe but then focused on him as men poured into the room and roughly seized Balon.

That finally got a few words out of him.

"UNHAND ME! I AM THE KING OF THE IRON ISLANDS! DO AS I COMMAND!" He shouted only to be back handed by the warrior with the blue fire sword which had now extinguished and he could now see it was a strange gold colour.

"A king? Don't see much of a king here. Do you Robb?" The warrior asked his fellow who Balon now realised was likely Lord Robb Stark of Winterfell. That probably made the other one with darker hair Jon Snow, his bastard brother and figuring out he had been slapped by a bastard only increased his rage at the indignity of it.

"Not at all Jon, just a pathetic little man that got above himself." Robb said with disgust at Balon who swelled up with rage and was about to start screaming at them when a pair of the Stark men grabbed him and snuck a gag in his mouth.

"Normally I would kill you right now, but we have a statement to make and you are going to witness it before justice comes for you." Robb said with a look of annoyance on his face at having to be around this rotten old man for any longer than he had too, dragging him out of the castle as their men cheered for Pyke was now completely in their hands.

- x -

An hour later the castle was being stripped of all the stolen wealth the Greyjoys had been gathering for years, some of which they must have hidden before the last war, either that or they had been raiding like crazy since and no-one had noticed Meera thought as she saw the good amount of wealth they had stocked up.

"Lady Stark, we found a set of cellars underneath the castle that have been partly bricked up." One of the guards told her and she nodded thinking that was probably how they had hidden some of their wealth last time. But as she looked at the pile of gold she noticed a set of daggers among the pile, interested she picked them up and saw that she had been right.

Valyrian steel daggers, five of them with different designs. While swords made of Valyrian steel were quite rare, daggers were far more common although still expensive. The Greyjoys must have acquired them by raiding she thought with disgust but then realised something.

There was enough Valyrian steel in the daggers to melt down and make more rings, rings her siblings could use to channel their magic like hers and Jon's. Meera grew excited as she now could give her siblings full access to their powers and maybe teach them what she knew from the other world.

"Those rings will be potent." Thoros of Myr said as he came up behind her, his presence was still off putting and she bristled at him being so close. "But nothing like the power I have seen you wield. The Azor Ahai is said to wield great power."

"And what is the 'Azor Ahai'?" Meera asked, fed up with him looking at her like that and not knowing why. He took a breath before explaining to her.

"The Azor Ahai is the mythical warrior from ancient times, the one who forced the Other's servants far north and brought the dawn for the whole world. A legendary hero who is supposed to return at the time when they are needed once again, the so called 'Prince who was Promised'." Thoros told her and she shook her head and told him while a cold feeling began to creep up her spine as it sounded all too familiar to her.

"I'm not a man. Therefore, not a prince or this supposed chosen one." She told him with a mocking scorn but he wasn't affected by it and told her much to her dismay.

"Not necessarily. The term for prince and princess is often the same in many languages, a comet is supposed to appear in the sky when they are born and that they will come during amidst war and destruction…and you were born not only when a comet passed through the sky but during the rebellion against the Targaryens. You slew the Other's greatest servants and his best chance of destroying the world…you lead your people into battle…I honestly believe it is you." Thoros said with complete certainty.

Meera's heart sank, this can't be happening she thought with anxiety, not again! She thought with rage rising inside her, as Harry they had a prophesy hanging over their head their entire lives. One that had cost them both parents and many other people including Sirius their lives, even after defeating Voldemort it had clung on as everyone had expected them to defeat any new threat that happened to appear.

Now…she thought with dismay, it was happening again.

"It might not be me. The prophesy might never come true." She warned him and dearly hoped so, she didn't want the fate of the world hanging on her shoulders again…but with Gungnir coming to her and the red wisps…and Surtr she thought with dread it seemed to be likely that once again she might have to take responsibility for the world.

"Maybe." Thoros conceded but then said. "But I think it likely, how else would you end up in such battles as the one beyond the Wall. Or have the only weapon that can kill the Other in your hands?"

Meera didn't want to talk about it anymore after he said that, she didn't want to have this responsibility…not again she thought with anger and began to hate Thoros for doing this…bringing this into her life.

All she wanted was to live her life, even when they were Harry that was all they wanted and she just hoped to have many more memories coming of a long and happy life but she honestly could feel in her gut that whatever had happened to them as Harry and brought them here wasn't good.

But for now, she thought with stern self-discipline forced herself back to the matter at hand. Mainly on making sure that no king would be crowned here again and making a statement that all the Iron Islands would fear, enough to make sure they never bothered the North again.

"Strip the castle of anything valuable or useful." She ordered the men who nodded and went see to her orders.

Those cellars she realised would be quite useful for what she had in mind.

- x -

Hours later with the castle now stripped of all its looted wealth and lay empty, also abandoned as no-one was still alive inside it and finally Balon Greyjoy was forced to kneel before them alongside his daughter and son. He scowled as he looked at them, deciding that this was their fault but none of them could speak as they were still gagged as none of the Northerners could be bothered to listen to their boring bedding or threats. Instead, they were here to make it clear to everyone who had survived their invasion, that things were going to change. The crowd of townspeople from both towns on the island had been gathered to bare witness.

Meera saw smoke emerging from the lower windows and knew the fire was making its way down to the lower levels just as she had set up and made a speech while the people and her own family and friends looked on, none of them having a single clue just what she had prepared.

"For too long, we have been lenient with your people." Meera said, her magic augmenting her voice so everyone could hear her. "Time after time we have allowed you to self-rule after another failed rebellion, you always return to raiding as you seem incapable of anything else. Well, I think it is time for us to make a statement, something everyone can understand loud and clear. It is over! No more Iron Born! No more Raiding! No more drowned god! From this point on, you either find a new way to live! Or we will destroy you completely, you serve the North now. And if you fail to remember and honour that…well witness our power." Meera said and she couldn't have timed that better as the fires she had set in Pyke castle reached the cellars at the bowels of the castle and more importantly, the gunpowder she had placed there.

The explosions shocked everyone as the ground itself shook and bottom of each tower was blown out, sending rock flying but with the structure and foundations now compromised the greater weight of the upper areas of the towers was too much and it crumbled before their eyes, causing many to scream in fear and stumble backwards like the land beneath them was going to collapse any moment.

Her own siblings, unaware of the plot she had put together were also caught completely by surprise and the direwolves not to mention Shadow the snow bear went crazy at first from the incredible shock of the explosion. Her inner circle and guards all turned to look at her with shocked awe at what she had just done.

Balon, Yara and Theon all looked on as they saw their family's seat break and fall into the ocean below right before their eyes, shocked and terrified would sum up their feelings towards what they were seeing. The Sea stone Throne had been inside so that was now buried under a pile of stone falling in the ocean, no one would ever sit on it again.

Meera smiled grimly before drawing Fire Heart from her waist and with a single effortless swing took Balon's head clean off.

The move only added to the shock of those around them, Theon and Yara both had tears in their eyes from what they had seen, not just the end of their home but also the death of their father right before their eyes.

Meera knelt before them and told them with a cold and hard voice.

"I am going to make sure that you both live a long time, in the dudgeons. If you refuse to eat then we will force you and maybe, maybe when you have finally relented and learned your lessons…we may release you." She told them with a viciousness that Theon had long feared. Her family too was shocked at how cold and harsh she was being but Arya meanwhile smiled, enjoying every moment of it and her brothers and others who knew her reassured themselves that eventually they would release Theon and his sister.

The two prisoners meanwhile were terrified and horrified at what they were being faced with, years likely of being locked in dark cells while everything they knew was destroyed.

"Put the head in the jar I prepared, we'll send it to Kings Landing…that will keep Joffrey happy." Meera said with some reluctance but knew they had to give him something to keep him amused. She had therefore mixed a solution in a glass jar that would keep his head preserved till it arrived in Kings Landing.

The Northerners didn't like it but they did as she said, her own family were shocked at what she was suggesting but it would keep the peace with the south and end the war for them.

"That's revolting." Jon said and Robb nodded agreeing completely but Ygritte scoffed at their naivety.

"That's life…we have to show what happens to those that betray or attack you, not just to those that are attacking you now…but might do in the future." Ygritte said with a stubborn look on her face. Arya nodded, liking the outspoken archer more than ever.

"I know how you feel, I don't like it either but we have to. Now you get yourselves back to the North and lock us down. With the war over we are going to face demands to go south and join the fighting, I am counting on you to find reasons not to while I take care of dealing with the other islands. If we want this rebellion to end for good someone has too." Meera told them firmly, her family not happy about it but decided to go along with it since she had a point. Not to mention Jon and Robb needed to go back and see to things in the North especially Jon with his new castle and holdings and Arya had to plan for her new ranch.

Arya especially didn't like the idea but she had a ranch to plan and Robb was eager to get back to his family.

- x -

Nearby Loki, in disguise watched as things unfolded and smirked broadly. Everything was going exactly as he had planned and she would be ready for the role he had planned for her. He knew the time wasn't exactly right just yet so he retreated and disappeared in a green flash of light, returning to put the rest of his pieces into order.

- x -

As the Northern forces left Pyke and proceeded to the next island word of what Meera had done spread, the slaughter of all the Iron Born raiders on Pyke, stripping of the islands, smashing of the Drowned God shrines, the execution the supposed noble houses, the destruction of castle itself.

The surviving people of the Iron Islands would give her a name, one derived from the way Pyke Castle had been broken. They would name her 'The Will of the Storm God' or his chosen warrior, here to destroy the Drowned God once and for all. That he had helped them reach the islands so fast and brought down their defences so the Drowned God and his followers might be struck down.

The North however had a different view, instead thinking she was the chosen one of the Old Gods themselves who had delivered them victory against their enemies and her reputation among them only rose higher.

Khalasar on route to Qarth…Essos…

Khal Drogo had been pushing his people to move as fast as possible to get to Qarth in time to rescue his moon, his face tensed with anger at her being taken again but also the fear in his eyes only made it worse.

She was alone out there, without protection.

He didn't want to have to raise their son alone, he thought with his fear rising the longer he was separated from his Khaleesi.

Please Great Stallion, Drogo pleaded privately, let us get there in time to save my moon.

Qarth…Same Time…

Dany, scared and cold huddled in a doorway. She was too afraid to sleep but knew she must if she was to be alert for the next day, then she had too. She was so cold though as the night drew on but had no blanket or other way of keeping warm. She huddled as deeply into her hiding place, trying to make herself as small as possible in hopes that she might not be found.

There we are, I hope you all liked this chapter and please leave me a review to let me know your thoughts.

Next Chapter - Daenerys in some jeopardy must navigate Qarth while in Westeros plots are evolving in every corner.