Hey all! I'm extremely sorry for not posting in MONTHS! But I just finished university in December and started a real job immediately so I've been adjusting to that. I'm SO, SO, SO SORRY! I love you all and thank you to everyone who has followed and favorited in the time that I've been on hiatus. You're all the best and I hope you enjoy Arya and Gendry's continued journey!
Gendry's head slid down his hand and he was jerked awake by the sudden loss of support. His small council was staring at him and he straightened up in his chair and cleared his throat, feeling a blush spread across his cheeks. He muttered, "My apologies."
The Hand of the King said, "You have no reason to apologize, we understand why you had little sleep last night. The young Stark girl was due to arrive this morning, is that correct?"
"Oh, Davos, nothing slips by you." Gendry said, smiling at the Onion Knight. That was one of the things that he hated about being king, everyone knew what he was doing every second of the day. And everyone knew how he felt about the young girl returned from Braavos.
Ser Davos Seaworth nodded at the king and continued, "As we were saying, Your Grace, our dungeons are full of soldiers from Stannis Baratheon's army. What would you have us do with them, Your Grace?"
"How many?" Gendry asked.
"Nearly a thousand, Your Grace." Nymeria said. She had been in charge of their imprisonment.
"Enough with 'Your Grace,' in these chambers, I'm just 'Gendry.' I mean, blimey, you're all several years my senior." Gendry said, with a very sarcastic roll of his eyes. Nymeria smiled as him and his half-siblings let out quiet chuckles. Gendry let the chamber fall silent before asking, "What are our options?"
Nymeria took a deep breath and said, "We have several, Your Gr…Gendry." Edric laughed but when the Sand Snake shot him a glare, he stifled his laugh immediately. Nymeria went on, "We can kill them all and put their heads around the city to ward off anyone who would dare challenge your throne; another option is sending them all to trial for their individual war crimes, although that would take months; we could release them, if you felt generous…"
"What of sending them to the Wall?" Gendry asked, everyone looked at him. "Give them the option of taking the Black or losing their head."
"Isn't that a bit…harsh, Gendry?" Theobald wheezed. The old man had perked up in his chair at the start of the conversation.
Gendry shook his head and stared down the Grand Maester. "We all know that the Night's Watch is desperate for men and we have a dungeon full of experienced warriors. To quote the Starks, "Winter is Coming," and we need defense against the White Walkers when it does."
"Is that your verdict then, Gendry?" Nymeria asked.
"Yes." He said, nodding. He looked around the table and asked, "Anything else for discussion today?"
"One more." Davos said, glancing at the notes he had made. He seemed a little hesitant as he continued, "The issue of Stannis Baratheon. He, too, is in chains in the dungeon. Will you give him the option of taking the Black or losing his head?"
Gendry was truly at a loss when it came to Stannis Baratheon. After Gendry and Edric, he had the best claim to the throne. But if he was going to send Stannis' men to the Wall, shouldn't he do the same to him? Or should he kill the false king?
"Gendry?" Davos asked, a sense of urgency in his voice.
"I will need to think on the issue of Stannis Baratheon. Keep him in chains for now." Gendry stood up and said, "If you'll excuse me, I've an old friend to converse with."
Everyone bowed to him and Commander Brienne fell into step beside him. He looked up at the woman and asked, "May I help you with something?"
"I can take you to young Arya. She is in the practice yard with my men." Brienne said as they exited the chamber. They walked through the Great Hall and Gendry glanced over at the Iron Throne. It was the most uncomfortable thing he had ever sat on and wished to have words with Aegon Targaryen, the one who ordered the forging of the horrid creation. How he hated the thing. Brienne couldn't help but notice him. "How is your kingship suiting you, Your Grace?"
He smiled at her blunt question. "I'm still pondering that myself, Commander. I wasn't raised to rule. They say it's in my blood but I have yet to wade through my commoner blood to get to the royal kind."
"You'll find it, Your Grace."
"How do you know?" Gendry asked as they passed through a gate into the Godswood to take a shortcut to lower bailey where the White Cloaks would be practicing. It was peaceful in the Godswood, not many in King's Landing practiced the Old Religion. He knew Arya used to since she was of the North, but she had told him on their travels with Yoren that she had abandoned religion altogether.
He forgot that Brienne was talking and missed her reason for why he would find his true royal self. He just nodded when she finished talking and they walked in silence to lower bailey. They passed through the gate and heard grunting and the clashing of swords. Some men were shouting as Gendry and Brienne rounded the wall that surrounded Maegor's Holdfast. In the center of the bailey, two people were fighting, swinging their swords at each other. From the small stature and size of the one opponent, Gendry knew that Arya was one of them. He waited for them to finish and clapped with the other knights of the Kingsguard, who had been unaware of their Commander and king's presence.
While the men bowed to the king, Arya rolled her eyes and took off her helm, setting the dull practice sword in the holder with the dozen others. Gendry walked over to her and her opponent. Ser Loras Tyrell was sweating profusely and looked down at Arya as he said to the king, "This one is feisty, Your Grace."
"Yes, she is." Gendry agreed. Arya smiled at him.
"This one can speak for herself." She commented.
"That she can." Gendry said, chuckling to himself. Ser Loras began to remove his armor but Gendry said, "Are you not going to give me a demonstration?"
The knight looked at the king but another, taller, knight stepped over. He removed his helm and stood next to Arya. He was tall and lean with gray hair and a face lined from age. His bright blue eyes settled on his great-niece but he spoke to the king, "If you would like a true demonstration, perhaps you should look to someone more experienced than Ser Loras and dear Arya here."
"Ser Brynden, I meant no disrespect to you and your fellow guardsmen." Gendry said, looking at the knight as sincerely as he could. Arya looked up at her great-uncle as he replied, "No disrespect taken, Your Grace. I was merely suggesting we offer you a real demonstration. Although young Arya here fights like her brother Robb and is certainly worthy of watching."
Arya had to look away. This was the first time she had seen her great-uncle in over a decade, not since she was a little girl and his hair had been slightly more auburn, yet he offered her the highest of compliments. Robb Stark had been a valiant and brave fighter and to be compared to him was too much for her. She would have cried had she not been hardened by her years on the road since her father's beheading.
"What say you to a fight against young Podrick?" Gendry said, looking over at their newest knight. Podrick Payne had proven himself in damn near every battle waged for Gendry's war. He had been taught by Commander Brienne Tarth herself while they searched for Sansa Stark years ago. He wasn't a pudgy squire anymore; he was a hardened knight, well-built.
"The lad is quicker than I, Your Grace, but I have experience on my side. A worthy challenge, I'd say." The Blackfish said, glancing over at Podrick. He picked up his helm and walked over to Podrick Payne to issue a practice challenge.
Brienne said to Gendry, "If Pod gets hurt, I'll have your head."
"Now that's no way to speak to your king, Brienne." Gendry joked.
The large woman stared down Gendry until he said, "Alright, alright, you can give me a good wack if Pod's hurt badly."
Brienne smiled and stalked off to get a better view. Gendry looked at Arya and said, "Want to get closer?"
"To the fight, you mean?" She clarified, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course, Lady Stark." He said, playfully.
"Let me get this armor off." She made quick work of it with his assistance and they walked over to the fight that was shaping up. Podrick had put his armor on and the Blackfish was doing his best to intimidate the young knight. Brienne was trying to encourage her friend but the old man from Riverrun was seasoned and knew how to win. Gendry and Arya sat on a low wall a short distance from the men and watched as they danced around each other. When they heard the first clang of metal on metal, Gendry leaned toward Arya and said, "Wager on the outcome?"
"The Blackfish, of course." Arya said without hesitation.
"I'll go with Podrick, I like the weak ones."
"You always did like the scrawny kind, didn't ya?" She asked, nudging his shoulder with hers.
He smiled and said, "Yeah, well, maybe I just felt sorry for them."
Arya rolled her eyes. "I can take care of myself."
"I never said you couldn't." He said, quickly. He looked down before glancing over at her. "Can I ask you something important? It's a matter of life and death for someone."
She perked up and half-turned toward him. "Go."
"We still have Stannis Baratheon in our dungeons. What do you think should be done with him?" He asked, not taking his eyes off of hers. She took her time with the question. They listened to the clashing of swords and the clanging of sword against armor as the two men fought a mere 10 meters from them. She finally said, "I would send him to the Wall. My brother, Jon, needs all the help he can get. He's the Lord Commander now, did you know?"
"Of course, I know." He said, smiling. "I'm supposed to know everything, right?"
"Yeah, but it's you, so I figured you wouldn't." Arya joked.
"So the Wall then?" He asked, seriously.
Arya nodded. "It's the smartest choice."
Gendry didn't say anything and turned his attention back to the fight that was winding down. A few more attacks and Podrick yielded. Arya smiled and her great-uncle removed his helm and his opponent raised the Blackfish's arm in victory.
"Well done, Ser Brynden!" Gendry said, standing up and shaking hands with both competitors. He was glad to see that Podrick was still healthy and unharmed; Brienne wouldn't get the chance to throttle him now. "It was truly a spectacle to watch. But I must be off. And I'm sorry to say that I'm stealing the Lady Stark from you." A few of the knights were upset, particularly Ser Perros Blackmont and Ser Narbert Grandison. Gendry added, "I'm sure she'll grace your presence again before long."
The knights all bowed to him again as they left; the direwolf, who had been laying by the well, stood and trotted after them. Nymeria kept her distance behind as they walked through the gate into the Godswood.
"Why are we going this way?" Gendry asked.
"Your reward."
"I get a reward? You won the bet, my lady."
"Fine, my reward." She shook her head at his nerve and took his hand, pulling him on. She took him to the overlook and they looked over the Blackwater. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
"Yes." He said, simply. He placed his arms on the rock ledge and leaned against it, looking over the water to the land on the other side. He still couldn't believe it was his. Arya slipped her arm under his and leaned her head against his shoulder. He glanced down at her. "Are you glad you left Braavos?"
"Let's just say I'm glad I'm with you." She said, smiling. She looked away from the water and turned her attention to him. Their eyes met and hers flicked to his lips before returning to his eyes again. He smiled and leaned in, she did the same until their lips met. This time, it wasn't a brief brush, Gendry untangled their arms and turned toward her, taking her head in his hands and kissed her properly. Her hands rested on his chest as he kissed her until he couldn't anymore. They stood there, their foreheads touching as they caught their breath. Arya knew that she would never go back to Braavos, at least, not without him.