Chapter 2 everybody!

ENJOY

The Smuggler and The White Wolf

To say that the first meeting between the King in the North and the Dragon Queen did not go as either one intended would have been a gross understatement.

It had taken every fibre of Jon's being to keep calm in the presence of the last Targaryan. With the amount of times he had to try and convince people of the threat beyond the wall, coupled with the time they probably had until the army of the dead figured out how to breach the wall…it made him want to grab Daenerys by the arms and shake some sense into her.

Then again…he wasn't in any rush to be beheaded by Dothraki or burnt to a cinder by Dragons.

He had to convince someone not of the North…someone who had never set foot in Westeros since the day she was born. He had to not only convince her of the threat beyond the wall…he had to convince her to see it as the primary threat.

Cersei Lannister may have been a threat, but she and her armies were nothing compared to the army he had seen beyond the wall.

The Night King could not be bargained with. Could not be reasoned with. He would not show Mercy, Pity or Remorse. He and his undead thralls would roll over the lands to the south until every single man, woman and child suffered a painful, gruesome death.

Cersei and her armies were mortal, they could starve, they could die from the cold, they would need rest and shelter…the Army of the Dead didn't need any of that.

If only he could get Daenerys to see that.

And he couldn't do that by bending the knee on their first meeting.

As the King in the North stood on the balcony of his room he pondered both his and her words. The moonlight was pleasant enough, but not enough to keep the Bastard of Winterfell from brooding like he was known for.

He could not bring himself to kneel as soon as she requested. Not while she refused to believe him.

If he bent the knee this day, not only would his people lose all respect for him, he would be enlisting them in a war that wasn't theirs, a war they had stopped fighting long ago, a war that would leave them broken and vulnerable when the real threat arrived.

Jon did not know the true character of this Daenerys Targaryan, but based on first impressions she cared for her people greatly. But what was to stop her from throwing his people into the line of fire first, to lessen or avoid her own casualties?

From what he had heard she was allied with the Dornish, Highgarden and the Iron Islands. He had also heard whispers that she had planned to use their armies to take King's Landing.

Jon had reason enough to believe that Daenerys didn't give two shits about his people, and like every other Southern ruler, would only use them to further her own gains. Once she sat on that iron throne she would probably treat him and his people like rat shit, just like every other fucker that planted their arse on that chair.

His first impressions of her, needless to say, were not good.

"Silver Stag for your thoughts your grace?" came the Fleabottom accented voice of his hand, Ser Davos Seaworth.

The old knight was standing in the doorway with his hands behind his back.

"Hello Ser Davos" Jon replied in his broody voice, looking back at the moon, hanging high in the sky.

"You seem a bit on edge your Grace" Davos continued, walking towards Jon until he was standing next to him.

"You know you don't need to keep calling me that. Just Jon is fine" Jon replied.

"Sorry, force of Habit. If I didn't refer to Stannis as 'Your Grace' he would get awfully cross. Besides, you are a King, I'm not the crabber's son that I used to be, I am an anointed knight and I'm going to bloody well act like one, and that means referring to my king by his proper title" Davos replied.

"You would be the only one on this rock" Jon replied with a huff.

He was used to being insulted and ridiculed to his face, it used to bother him greatly when people referred to him as 'Bastard' or ironically called him 'Lord Snow' but after so long he had become very much immune to it. He took Tyrion's words to heart, to wear his status like armour, then it could never be used to hurt him.

But lately that didn't change the fact that the Queen's disrespect to him wasn't making convincing her any easier.

Believe it or not even Jon had a limit to his patience.

"You can't give up so easily your grace. A man in your position can't afford to accept defeat without giving it your all" Davos tried to keep his king's spirits up.

"Everyone has their limits Davos. I've been fighting non-stop since I left Winterfell, with every passing moment I spend thinking what to do, the Night King and his army march closer…I'm in a race against time and there is nothing I can do" Jon gripped the railings of the balcony tight.

"I understand what it's like to feel like you've got nothing left your grace"

"No offense but I don't think you do"

"Granted, probably not to the same extent as you have. But I've been low, after the battle at the Blackwater I felt defeated, like I had nothing left and could barely muster the strength to keep fighting. I lost my son, my pride, the trust of my king and even my own self-worth. Yet here I am, advisor to the King in the North" Davos replied.

"Quite a downgrade, isn't it? From serving the Mighty Stannis Baratheon, first of his name…to serving a Bastard who needed his sister to save him from his own stupid mistakes" Jon kept looking out at the Moon.

"You are too hard on yourself. Yes, you've made mistakes, you aren't perfect, but guess what? No one is. I bet even the high and mighty Dragon Queen has a flaw or two. Stannis may have been a strong man, an intelligent man, pragmatic, stern and had a great mind for battle…but he was proud, in the end he became deluded of what Melissandre told him and then he became arrogant. Until that arrogance made him do the unthinkable and give Shireen to that Witch" Davos stopped himself before he prematurely went into a rage. Taking a second to compose himself he took a deep breath and continued.

"You may not be flawless. But you are a good man, strong, Compassionate, you care about those beneath you. And believe it or not, the fact that you have no birth rights makes you a much better leader than all the Noble Lords in the North and South…people follow you for your actions, not your blood or your birth rights. You think I follow you because you are Ned Stark's son?"

"I follow you because you are a good man. And unlike Stannis, you know mercy, forgiveness and you inspire those feelings in those around you. Like when you stood up for young lord Umber and Lady Karstark. Your sister wanted them punished…but you did what was right, and your people applauded you for that" Davos put his good hand on Jon's shoulder.

"There is potential in you Jon. I know it. You convinced the Wildlings and the Northmen to work together for Fuck's sake. If you can do that…imagine what else you can do" Davos smiled.

"Then how in the seven hells do I convince this Targaryan Queen to help me?" Jon finally turned to meet Davos' eyes.

"She's a stubborn one. She'll need convincing there is no doubt about that, but like it or not you were right when you said she needed you as much as you needed her" Davos replied, leaning his back against the railings.

"That's the plan? Stand my ground and hope she caves in first?" Jon asked.

"She is a stubborn one for sure…but so are you. You need to get to know her better. What she wants, her personality, how she thinks, what she needs from you. Once you know that…then the rest should be much easier" Davos replied.

"You are talking about idle chit chat, I'm talking about convincing her that the Army of the dead is real" Jon replied with a frustrated tone.

"You have to show her your character and you have to learn hers. Establish an understanding if not a friendship, once you've done that she might just listen to you more" Davos replied before he stood up from the railings and gave Jon a stern look.

"You have to see things from her perspective. Yes, you don't know her, but she doesn't know you. You have to gain her trust and that means understanding her…once you do that you may just have turned a potential enemy into a potential ally" the old Sailor finished.

Davos may have been a former smuggler, a son of a Crabber and a former hand to a now dead king, but a better advisor was hard to find. All his years as a silver-tongued smuggler had given Davos the uncanny ability to understand people, to see a problem and formulate a strategy to get them on his side, a very useful talent for a Hand.

"Sounds like a lot of hard work" Jon smirked.

"No one said ruling would be easy" Davos chuckled.

"I'm not a great ruler, I never claimed to be. I've led men to their deaths, I would have lost the battle against Ramsey if not for Sansa. If Robb were here he would probably have her on his side by the end of the day"

"Forgive me for saying this your grace. But your brother isn't King in the North anymore…you are. You are the one that has to do what is best for your people, because no one else can" Davos tried to raise Jon's spirits or at the very least motivate him.

"I'll do what I can Davos…getting to know her will be difficult after that first impression. Though I get the feeling she won't listen until I'm on my knees kissing her arse" Jon replied.

"Been thinking about Kissing her Arse often have ya?" Davos smirked with a chuckle.

"Don't start, now isn't the time"

"I won't lie, it's probably a very nice arse" Davos chuckled as he continued to tease the King in the North.

"I swear, the Lannisters and Baratheons didn't have to put up with this" Jon chuckled.

"Stannis wasn't nearly as patient as you. I'll take whatever jabs I can Jon" Davos smiled, his beard and moustache adding to his lovable smile. The man was criminally charismatic for a Crabber's son.

"What happened to calling me your grace? Shouldn't a Hand address his King as such?"

"What can I say? You are very convincing" Davos chuckled as he slapped Jon on the back.

Alrighty, another chapter done and dusted.

Now just a bit of fair warning. In case I didn't make it clear from Jon's thoughts about Dany, I don't intend on making this a quick 1,2 They're in love. There is going to be more tension between the two of them and I don't mean the tension like in the cave.

These are two strong personalities with a lot to lose and a lot to gain, so not all of their interactions are going to be smooth, like a lot of relationships it's going to have to be heated up, bend and hammered before its dipped in the quench (Relationships being made are a lot of Forging in that way).

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, cuz I got more in the works, and please don't be afraid to check out my other fics (Especially my AVP stuff, I get a tonne of inspiration from Thrones), see what tickles your interest.

Please leave your reviews and keep telling me what you thought!

Dakkaman777 signing out.