Sorry about not updating, but I had SUCH writers block on this story. But this chapter's a long one!

Arya

"So what are you wearing, Ygritte?" Pia asked, laying across their sleeping bags as Arya and Ygritte sat next to each other, playing a game of solitaire. Ygritte took a long drag from her cigarette and then removed it from her lips with two fingers, thoroughly uninterested in whatever Pia had to say.

"What I'm wearing now, I expect," she said with a yawn.

"Then you're going?" Pia asked, poking Ygritte in the knee. Ygritte gave her a bored look.

"Yes I'm going," she snapped irritably. "Two months stuck on this fucking pier? Of course I'm going. I need to get out."

"There'll be men there," Pia said, wriggling her eyebrows.

"There are men here," Ygritte said drily. "What is it with you and sex?"

"Helps pass the time," Pia said with a shrug. Her eyes flicked to Arya. "What about you Weasel?"

Weasel. Just another nice nickname that Pia had given Arya. Arya did not like Pia, and Pia's flirting with Gendry hadn't exactly helped warm Arya's heart towards the older girl. She just hated even thinking about the way Pia had leaned over Gendry. It was disgusting. What was worse, he had liked it, she was sure. He was a man. How could he not?

"I'm not going," Arya snapped, making her move.

"It's just as well," Pia said flippantly. "It's not really for children."

Arya debated the consequences of reaching over and taking Ygritte's beer to pour on Pia's head. It would be a waste of cheap beer.

"You're not going?" Ygritte was surprised. "But I thought Gendry was your friend. Don't you want to see him in the ring?"

"He's not my friend," Arya said firmly, feeling her stomach flare just to even think about him.

"What would he want with a skinny little thing like you anyway?" Pia asked with a yawn, rolling onto her back.

"I thought you weren't on for him," Ygritte said silkily, giving Arya a wink. "I thought you said he could go fuck himself."

"He can," Pia said loftily, "but there's no telling how I will feel when he's all sweaty and masculine and-"

"I just ate," Arya snarled, thoroughly annoyed. Pia flipped her off.

"What's the matter?" She asked, flipping back onto her stomach. "Does Weasel have a crush?"

"I DO NOT!" Arya roared, mortified. A crush? On Gendry? That was so wrong on so many levels. Besides, she hated him!

"Ooooh ho ho!" Pia crooned. "She's blushing! You do! You have a little crush!"

"I DO NOT HAVE A CRUSH!" Arya shouted, ready to strangle Pia, who was making kissing faces.

"I bet you've had a look at those arms," Pia said, grinning. "Imagined them around you? And I bet... Oh I bet you're a virgin too!"

Arya could feel hot tears of embarrassment flare to her eyes. She could kill Pia, if it wouldn't get her into trouble. She hated her for making her feel so stupid. Sansa used to do that, but she was her sister. It was different. This was much worse.

"Shut it Pia," Ygritte said sharply. "He doesn't want to shag you anyway."

"It'd probably be me over her though, don't you think Weasel? I mean, you're hardly a girl at all," Pia said, laughing.

"You shut your face!" Arya cried.

"Aww," Pia mocked, making puppy eyes. "Is the Weasel sad?"

"Shut up Pia!" Ygritte barked sharply. "That's enough, and I mean it. Leave her alone."

Pia rolled her eyes and scooted off their sleeping bags, snagging a beer before she trotted off to her bed. Arya glared after her, pulling her sweatshirt up around her shoulders. It was a cold night, and Ygritte was letting her share her sleeping bag. She did that now, and it was nice, in a way. Even if Arya couldn't sleep, it was nice to have someone there. It was nice to not feel so alone.

"Ignore her," Ygritte said, collecting up their cards. "She's just being a bitch because she's jealous."

"Jealous?" Arya said with a laugh, wriggling down in the sleeping bag. "Don't be stupid."

"I'm not," Ygritte said with a frown. "It's obvious he couldn't give a fig about her. The only one he cares about is you."

'That's only because he has to. It's his job.'

"That's stupid. He doesn't care about me," Arya sighed darkly.

"Yes he does," Ygritte said, wriggling down next to her, her wild hair springing up around them. "Whenever I see him, he's always looking at you."

Arya felt a pang in her stomach but she shook it off. She was not about to forgive Gendry. Not ever. He could rot in hell for all she cared. So what if he felt bad? He should feel bad! He should feel guilty. It wasn't her fault that he was a total twat.

"You should go tomorrow, Arya," Ygritte whispered in her ear. "To keep Pia away."

"They deserve each other," Arya snapped, but Ygritte chuckled.

"You don't believe that."

She didn't, but it was nice to pretend. It was nice to pretend she was above it all and didn't care a wit, but... Well it wasn't true, was it? She hated the idea of them together. Stupid Pia with her boobs and her flowing hair. Arya's hair was still short, slowly crawling past her ears, but no more. Once more, she hardly needed to bind down her breasts. No one had even asked her if she needed a bra. Pia was right. She was hardly a girl at all.

The sun rose early that morning, or maybe Arya had actually slept that night, she couldn't be certain. One moment she had closed her eyes, seemingly only for a second, and then she was opening them again to sunlight instead of darkness. She pulled herself from the sleeping bag and went to look out over the lake. The fog was thick that morning, so thick it felt like she was standing on the edge of the world, with only a dense, brilliant white in front of her.

"Today's the day!" Pia sang from within.

"Boxing day!" One of the girls giggled.

"Otherwise known as hell," Arya muttered under her breath darkly, pushing her hair out of her eyes.

The infamous boxing match. How she loathed the very idea. Stupid Gendry and his stupidity. Of course, of course he would agree to a boxing match. He probably loved the attention he would get. Tywin had even made the event open so everyone could go, as it was to be held in an underground basement in the city (not far from the pier, of course, and they were to be heavily supervised as well). Even if the entrance fee was deducted from their final pay, no one seemed to care. It was the most exciting thing that had happened in months, they said. No one wanted to miss it. No one expect Arya, that was.

"Come on grumpy," Ygritte said, yanking Arya back inside. "You were just bluffing last night, right? You'll come with me."

"No," Arya said firmly. The last thing she wanted to see was empty headed girls fawning over Gendry. "No way. I'd rather stay here and catch up on some sleep."

"No one's staying here!" Pia said. "NO-ONE! Not even Tywin!"

"Well I am," Arya said, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm not in the mood to see some stupid asshole get his face pounded in."

"I don't think you can stay, even if you want to," Ygritte said with a frown. "Unsupervised? Forget it."

"I'll ask Tywin today then," Arya snapped grumpily. "I should get going anyway, he hates me to be late."

"Don't forget to smile!" Ygritte called after her.

"Hardy har har," Arya grumbled under her breath, zipping up her sweatshirt. It was cold that morning, as it always was, and the pier was banked with fog, cold winds blowing across the ground and ruffling Arya's exposed bangs. Her cheeks felt raw and she stuffed her hands in her pockets to keep them warm. She didn't mind the cold so much, though. It was almost nice. It was something else to think about other than all the thoughts that were cluttered around in her mind. A distraction.

She opened the door of the offices only to find that the heat hadn't been turned on. Wheeze sat at one of the desks, snoring. Arya looked over towards Tywin's office to find that he was absent. That was odd. Tywin was usually there early.

"Hey Wheeze!" Arya barked, causing Wheeze to inhale a good deal of drool and jump in his chair. "Where's Tywin?"

"In the garage, I expect," Wheeze snapped grumpily. "He wants you to take those papers to him. You're late."

"And you're worthless," Arya snapped, sweeping up the papers on her desk. "Life sucks and then you die."

She strode out of the office quickly, ignoring Wheeze's shouted insults, and slammed the door behind her. The garage was a short walk, down at the beginning of the pier, but she didn't want to make the effort. Gendry would be in the garage, and she didn't want to see him more than she had to. Especially not today.

She pushed open the door and sighed. It was warm in the garage, and it smelled of metal and gasoline. It was dirty there, but not the sort of dirty that seemed to cover the entire pier. It fit here. The sparks, and the loud music and the grease. Arya hadn't spent much time in the garage, due to her determination to ignore Gendry, but, even though she didn't want to admit it, she rather liked the garage.

She poked around the cars, looking for Tywin, but he was no where to be found. Was anyone even there anyway-?

Arya let out a yell as her foot caught on something and she went sprawling, paper splaying out in waves. She shot her hands out just in time so that she wouldn't smack her face on the ground.

"Oi!" A familiar voice yelled. "Watch where you're-Oh. Arya."

She whipped around, red-faced and glaring, utterly humiliated. Of course it would be Gendry's feet that she would trip over, damn him. He pushed himself out from under the car and gave her a look of sheepishness. 'He's probably remembering telling me we're not friends.' Arya opened her mouth to say something horrible to him, but she stopped, because her eyes, damn them, had noticed that his shirt was missing in action. And he was covered in sweat. Which was disgusting. Obviously.

"What?" He asked. "You're... You're not still upset, are you? Because I didn't mean-"

"What kind of idiot lays in the middle of the walkway with his legs sprawled out?" Arya snarled, snatching up her papers. "I could have seriously hurt myself, asshole."

"Well maybe you should look where you're going!" Gendry snapped right back, scowling at her.

"I wouldn't need to look where I'm going if you didn't leave your feet in hazardous places!" Arya said, glaring at him.

"This is my garage! If you had just looked where you were going-"

"It's not your garage, it's Tywin's," Arya said in an annoying voice.

"Why are you here anyway?" Gendry demanded, scowling. "Obviously you're not here to see me."

"Why do you think I'm here?" Arya said, waving the paper's in Gendry's face. "To give Tywin these, dumbass."

"Well that's too bad because he just went back to the office a few minutes ago," Gendry said, unapologetically, sliding back under the car.

"Seriously?" Arya said with a huff, already hating the day, and she hadn't even had breakfast. She wrenched herself to her feet, brushing ash and dust off her jacket, papers still in hand. Throwing Gendry one last, annoyed look, she turned on her heel.

"See you tonight," Gendry called, his voice muffled.

"No you won't!" Arya roared back, storming out of the garage and slamming the door behind her with force, just for extra effect. She was not going. No way in hell.

"You're going," Tywin said firmly.

"But I have so much work here," Arya protested feebly.

"No," Tywin snapped. "You're going, and if you argue, I'll cut your meal privileges."

"But-"

Tywin's glare was so severe that Arya felt her argument die in her throat. Damn her life. She was so miserable she could cry. She did not want to go to Gendry's stupid little match. He had just broken his arm, what was he doing going back in the ring? He was so stupid! He just couldn't stay out of the spotlight, could he?

Her work for the day concluded early, so Arya went to take a shower. Water was regulated, and it was always freezing, so she had to always run in and out of the spray of water, hopping from foot to foot, her skin burning from the icy cold. Today was no different. She grabbed the bar of soap, rubbed it all over her body and through her hair, and then rinsed off, shuttering. Since everyone was still at work, she was alone in the shower room. It was rare, for Arya to be completely alone, and as she wrapped a dirty towel around herself, she went to the mirror.

It had been a long time since she had looked at herself. The change was staggering. She had always been skinny, but now it was much worse. Her cheeks were gaunt, and there were hollows under her eyes. Her arms were small, and... Well she had never had much of a chest, but... Well certainly at one point she had had to have more then that, right? Her hair was a mess too, growing out in tangles and falling into her face. 'No wonder Gendry never looks at you like he looks at Pia.'

Arya glared at herself in the mirror. Where had that come from? Not from her. She didn't care who Gendry looked at. It was probably just because she was so tired. She hadn't been thinking straight for a while, and the occasional cigarette from Ygritte probably wasn't helping. Did cigarettes have an effect on the brain? She was too tired to think about it.

"I just want some decent sleep," Arya said to her reflection. "Is that too much to ask?"

Sighing, she slithered into her dirty t-shirt and yanked on her baggy jeans. Now she looked no different than before, and she hardly smelled better either. All that she had to say for her shower was her wet hair.

She walked back to the fun house thoroughly low. But if Arya was unhappy, that was the exact opposite of how everyone else felt. All the boys were laughing and talking about the girls, and when she climbed up the stairs, all the girls were giggling and talking about the boys. Or boy. Gendry seemed to be all they talked about.

"I hear he's fit as fuck," one girl said, curling her lashes.

"Oh he is," Pia said, taking a sip of beer. "Just you wait."

"Arya!" Ygritte called, waving Arya over. "Still grumpy?"

Arya sunk down next to her, not answering. She didn't feel like talking. She was tired, but on top of that, she didn't feel like herself anymore. Quiet and allowing people to push her around. The Arya Stark she knew would never let Pia call her Weasel, or let Tywin walk around as free as he pleased. The Arya Stark she knew wasn't a mouse, she was a wolf.

"You're not wearing that," Ygritte said firmly. "Here, you need a new shirt."

Ygritte dug around her bag and then pulled out a knit shirt and a tank top to wear under it. She handed it to Arya.

"This should fit you," she said distractedly. "Put it on. Keep it if you like."

Reluctantly, Arya pulled off her dirty shirt and put on the tank top, and then the knit shirt over it.

"Much better," Ygritte said. "I snagged some eyeliner from Pia. No sense in not using it."

Obediently, Arya closed her eyes and let Ygritte run the eyeliner over her lids. For a fleeting second, she was reminded of Sansa, when they were younger, and she had tried to do Arya's make-up. It was a totally disaster, and Arya had cried. Sansa had cried too, actually, because Arya hadn't liked it.

"There," Ygritte said, drawing back and looking pleased with herself. "Now let Pia call you hardly a girl."

"You didn't have to do that," Arya said. "I didn't mind. She'll just come up with something else."

"Don't let her," Ygritte said firmly. "You've got fire, Nan, but you don't use it."

"You sound like a fortune cookie," Arya said, raising her eyebrows. Ygritte laughed.

"C'mon," she said, helping Arya to her feet. "Might as well get this over with."

They all crowded out of the fun house and walked down the pier, one huge, loud and obnoxious group. Most of the people were drunk, Pia certainly was, laughing and whooping and shouting at one another. Arya watched as Tywin's men circled n the outskirts, making sure no one tried any funny business. There was Chiswyke, who, when he spotted her, sent shivers down her spine. Arya had heard things about Chiswyke, nasty things, horrible things. Things that made her infinitely glad that Gendry had stepped in that evening when the bus had broken down.

The crowds were thick when they got into the city, everyone crowding around the entrance to where the match was being held. Tywin had spread the word well. He would be making lots of money that night.

"Come on Nan!" Ygritte shouted, grinning, ushering Arya to follow her. Arya took steps after her, looking to the side.

And then she gasped aloud.

There, in the thick of the people was the man with the accent. The man she had saved from the burning car. He was one of Tywin's men now, the lion stitched into his leather jacket. And he was staring right at her.

Before Arya could even move or scream, he grabbed her from the crowd and wrenched her off to the side, his hand instantly covering her mouth as she struggled.

"A girl keeps quiet," he hissed, "a girl does not say a word, and a man will keep quiet as well so they can talk as friends, no?"

He removed his hand from her mouth.

"You traitor!" Arya cried, but no one would have heard her, not with all the mayhem. "You work for Tywin now! For the Lannisters!"

"As does a girl," he pointed out. "How is it that it is different for her? Hmm?"

Arya glared.

"I saved your life!" She said angrily. "And you ran away! You could have helped us!"

He nodded, as if pondering what she was saying.

"You stole a life from the red god," he said slowly.

"Stole from... The red god? Are you high?" Arya snapped, confused. "What are you talking about?"

"The red god," the man said with a snap. "A man is not from here, a man worships gods that are, perhaps, different?"

"Oh," Arya said, not understanding in the least.

"The debt must be repaid," the man said seriously. "I owe you a death."

"A death?" Arya repeated, not sure she followed.

"A death for my life," he explained. "To set the balance."

"You mean... I chose someone..."

"And they die."

"Anyone?" There was a certain adrenaline rushing through Arya's veins. All the names... All the people... All at her mercy.

"Anyone."

"Who says I want anyone dead?" Arya demanded, crossing her arms over her chest. The man chuckled.

"A man knows," he said enigmatically.

"Nan! NAN!"

Arya whipped her head around to see Ygritte pushing through the crowd. She looked back to say something to the mysterious man, but he was gone. Vanished into thin air. As though he was never there at all.

"Not trying to run away are you?" Ygritte asked forcefully.

"No," Arya said at once as Ygritte began to pull her through the crowd. "But... But say I did, want to run away I mean-"

"Stop," Ygritte said harshly, whipping around and staring Arya right in the face. "Not here, and not now, got that? Not when their watching so close, just waiting for someone like you to try... Do you want to end up on the wrong end of that pier?"

"No," Arya said.

"Then keep your mouth shut," Ygritte snarled. "And come on."

Ygritte yanked Arya by her arm through the crowd and into the building. They descended down a long set of stairs and into a poorly lit and massive basement. It reminded Arya a good deal of the Pit, expect less sophisticated, and dirtier. It stank of sweat and blood and alcohol and piss. She wrinkled her nose.

"Fight's about to start!" Ygritte shouted over her shoulder as they wove through the thick mass of people. Arya could see glimpses of the ring, as they were jostled about, but no Gendry. Could it be that he had finally come to his senses and decided to forfeit the fight?

No.

As Ygritte pulled Arya upside the ring, Gendry was clearly there, shirtless of course, and looking sullen. 'What's the matter?' Arya thought moodily. 'Not enough attention for you?'

Out of no where Tywin appeared, and he walked up to Gendry, saying something in his ear, his hand gripping his shoulder. Gendry's eyes flashed and his fingers curled into fists, and Arya wondered, for a split second, what Tywin could have said to make him look so angry. Could it be... Could it be that he didn't even want to fight in the first place? But that was stupid. If Gendry didn't want to fight, Tywin wouldn't make him, would he? Not his perfect Gendry. Not his favorite. And besides, if Gendry didn't want to do something, he didn't. He was stubborn.

There was something, someone was saying something, but of course Arya couldn't hear, and then suddenly the fight was starting. Girls, probably Pia, were screaming as Gendry went fist to fist with some huge, hulking brawn of a man, even bigger than he was.

At first, it was going well. Gendry threw a few shots, a few good punches, and Ygritte and (against her will) Arya cheered. But then... Then it took a turn for the worse. The other man hit Gendry, right in his bad arm, and he went crashing down, his teeth gritted in pain, his eyes squeezed shut.

The man took a step towards, him, lifted his foot, and brought it crashing down on Gendry's arm.

The entire crowd gasped and screamed, and then cheered. Nothing like a good fight. But Arya was paralyzed. She couldn't even breath as Gendry tried to drag himself to his feet, only to be punched in the face. It didn't stop there. The other man was hitting him again, and again and again...

"NAN!" Ygritte shouted, but Arya didn't hear her. She was tearing through the crowd, blinded by some sort of madness, possessed, and then she was leaping into the ring, running at the man that was at least three times her size, screaming.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

Before the other man could even register what was going on, Arya kicked him in the back of the knee, hard. As he went crashing forward, she stomped on his ankle with all her might, causing him to roar in pain and rage.

"You little bitch!" He roared. "WHO LET THIS BITCH IN HERE?"

He made to grab for her, but Arya punched him in the throat, and his eyes went wide, his hands clutching at his neck. She grabbed his air and brought his head down while slamming her knee upwards, sending him sprawling.

"Arya-"

She whipped around, seeing Gendry try to pull himself to his feet, but she reached back and then punched him in the face.

"WHAT THE FUCK?" Gendry roared, his lip split.

Suddenly, all Arya could see was red. A mad, blindly mad, rage overtook her, and suddenly she was on top of Gendry, slapping him and beating at his chest wildly.

"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO LOOK AFTER ME!" She screamed. "But you failed! You failed because they're dead! They're all dead!"

The entire crowd was rippling with confusion, but Arya could barely see or care. White, hot and angry tears scratched at her eyes and her throat as she beat at Gendry, each blow becoming more and more frenzied.

"Stop!" Gendry cried. "Stop! Arya-"

He grabbed both her wrists in one large hand and then, struggling to his feet as she tried to get away, he released her hands, just for a second, and then yanked her around the middle, throwing her over his shoulder, and then they were climbing out of the ring and pushing through the crowd, Tywin shouting abuse after them. But it was all a blur.

And then there was silence. Arya felt the world shift, and suddenly she was on unsteady feet, and Gendry's face was very close, swimming in front of her eyes. He was shouting at her, too.

"What was that all about?" He roared. "You could have seriously been hurt, and now Tywin- Do you know what he'll do to you?"

Arya shook her head. She wished he would stop.

"How could you be so-"

"Would you go?" She suddenly shouted. Gendry blinked.

"What?" He sputtered.

"Would you go?" She asked. "If I left, would you go with me?"

There was a long silence as they stared at each other, Arya blinking tears from her eyes, her face sticky. The only expression Gendry wore was utter shock.

"What... Are you serious?"

She nodded.

"Yes," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder and looking straight into her eyes. "Yes."

Quick note: I was alerted last night that some of my stories had been plagiarized, literally word for word, by an author for a different fandom. While this one was used, but not so blatantly, I felt like it was essential that I address this here. They have since taken the stories down at my request, but they had to have read them. Please guys, enjoy my stories but don't steal my work. I love writing for you and it hurts me that one of you would use me in such a way.