Chapter 3
Daenerys
Daenerys still was not afraid, every muscle in her body remained calm, even when she saw the gloomy castle of Winterfell she felt at ease.
"Who are you?" The Targaryen inquired, her eyes passing both men before settling on the black haired one.
"I am Robb of House Stark, first born son of Lord Eddard Stark, Warden of the North." He answered back, honor in his voice.
Only then did Daenerys feel terror crashing into her body. She had felt it in Pentos and when she left Jorah Mormont, but only then she knew certain death was approaching, and she felt a new feeling, one deeper, so much darker than anything ever before.
"And I am Jon... Jon Snow." The second man said, sounding unsure of himself. A bastard. She turned her head to study Jon Snow ;there is something in his eyes, something so deep I don't know what it is, but it's something I can't turn away from...
"OPEN THE GATES!"Robb Stark called to the watchmen on posts. Winterfell, despite its mud and gloom, seemed so magnificent. This is the Westeros I was told about.
Daenerys becomes aware of the crowd accumulating around her, some faces were hateful, the others awash with looks of fear.
It didn't take long for shouts to be spat from the crowd;
"TARGARYEN WHORE!"
"KILL THE DRAGONSPAWN!"
"BURN THE MAD BITCH!"
Daenerys clutched her eggs harder, she was struggling to keep her tears hidden within her purple eyes.
"Robb? Jon?" The crowd fell silent as a man wearing the same clothing as Robb and Jon spoke, voice thick with honor. Daenerys knew it was Eddard Stark, yet he was unlike what Viserys had said about him.
"What is the meaning of this?" He demanded his sons; Robb answered his question by motioning Jon to lift Daenerys from his horse.
Eddard's eyes grew wide as the Targaryen was placed infront of him, though not in shock, but in a suttle respect.
"What is your name, child?" He asked.
Daenerys responded, making her voice sound strong," Daenerys Targaryen, my Lord."
"KILL HER NOW!" A voice from the crowd yelled, only to be silenced by Lord Stark.
"For her farther's crimes?" Daenerys' eyes met Eddard's before he continued." The child is innocent."
Daenerys couldn't believe what she had heard; all her life Viserys had told Daenerys tales of the Starks. Lyanna, a whore who ruined the Targaryen dynasty and Eddard, a traitorous coward who led the Usurper to victory. " But how can a coward help someone win a war?" Daenerys had asked her brother, whom had replied with a smack in her face. Yet the man who stood before her looked strong, fatherly and fair.
"Robb, find her a room." The Stark child nodded and led Daenerys into the castle of Winterfell.
Daenerys felt like a whole layer of dead skin had been removed when she took a bath, she bathed until the warm waters turned brown and cold. In the time of two hours, she had been given a handmaiden who had been given the eldest Stark daughter's dresses. They were a little small around various parts of her body yet after many weeks of wearing a torn cloak coaked in mud she had nothing to complain about. After her bath, Dany realised how exausted she was, and had collapsed onto her suprisingly warm feather bed.
Daenerys opened her eyes to see a woman, her eyes had a spark in them but were sad and cold. Her hair was a light brown an her skin, sunkissed and sandy. A sudden spark of fear appeard in her green eyes when a man, hair like Daenerys' and eyes as violet as hers marched towards her. "Please..." The woman pleaded, tears rolling down her cheeks as the man ripped open her clothes.
"Burn. Burn. Burn. BURN!" He thundered in a rythym like the music Viserys enjoyed.
Daenerys knew who they were, and it was far worse than anything she had imagined.
"Mother?" Daenerys knew, she knew they did not lie about the man she no longer calls father.
He was mad! My mother...
She awoke, salty tears streaming down her face.
She turned her head round at a slight rustling noise from her wardrobe and wiped her tears quickly and tilted her head towards he noise in order to listen.
"Do you think she had dragons?" A voice said.
"Will you please shut up?!" Another hissed and before long four children tumbled out of the wardrobe.
They all clumsily stood up, the pretty red headed girl's face a shade of pink. However the smaller three children all stepped forward, clearly in awe of finally meeting a Targaryen.
"Who are you?" Daenerys questioned in a friendly voice, making no effort to speak kindly to the children.
The other girl came even closer to Daenerys. Daenerys saw her wild hair, muddy dress and face, yet Daenerys could see she was pretty in her own way. Her eyes were grey and stormy, so full of life. She wasn't an obvious beauty like the other girl.
"I'm Arya, that's Rickon and that's Bran my younger brothers."She swung her arm round to point to the two boys. One was scrawny and the older one was short but appeared strong and agile. Arya then pointed at the older girl and spouted," And that's Sansa, my older sister."
Sansa still looked embarassed, but Arya, Bran and Rickon were clearly curious.
"Our dad is Ned Stark!" Bran boasted and Daenerys could see it now; each child looked like their father.
"Who is your father?" Rickon piped up, eager to learn more.
Sansa, Bran and Arya's smiles all fell when the words left Rickon's mouth.
They know.
But they are kind to me... Viserys lied.
"Rickon!" Sansa broke the seconds of silence.
"My father was King once... but he is dead now."Daenerys replied, unsure if Rckon would be upset. But he wasn't he kept on asking questions.
"Why is your hair white?"
"Because my family came from a place called Valyria, and there people had white hair."
Daenerys could feel how awkward Rickon's questions were making Sansa feel. She had been told of her family, what they did to her's. Yet, here she stood, talking to the mad king's daughter. The Starks really are honourable...
Once every last one of Rickon's questions had been asked, Daenerys decided to it was her turn to ask questions.
"Do you have any other siblings?" The question made her think of Viserys, how enraged he will be after I disspeared.
Sansa looked shy for a moment, but then the feeling cleared and she replied to the Targaryen's question," I am the eldest daughter of Lord Eddard, my older brother is Robb Stark, they and Arya, Bran and Rickon are the only other siblings I have..." She spoke like a proper Lady, she had clearly paid attention to her mother and Septa's lessons.
"And Jon!" Arya exclaimed, a contrast to her sisters lady-like qualities.
Daenerys' ears picked up at the sound of 'Jon', and she was eager to find out more about the dark haired boy.
"Yeah!" Bran and Rickon chourused.
"Well... he's only our half brother!"She snapped at her siblings,"He's a Snow, a bastard." Rickon's face fell, as did Bran's. Arya just looked furious.
"You sound just like mother! And she hates Jon, our brother." Arya looked at Daenerys and said," Come on! I will show you around Winterfell. First let's find Jon." Rickon and Bran skipped behind Arya and Daenerys while Sansa slowly trudged behind, trying to mask her exitement. The Stark children and Daenerys all left her bedchambers into the stone halls of Winterfell.
Pentos
Viserys stormed into Mater Illiryo's great hall, his furious steps echoing around the castle. Three of Illiryo's soldiers stood in the center of the room, trembling in their armor in the presence of the mad Targaryen's son. Visery stood there, fuming from his nostrils for a few seconds before stepping closer to the soldiers.
"A MONTH? A WHOLE MONTH AND YOU FIND NO TRACE OF HER?"
The first soldier trembled but then replied," W-w we have done everything we can y-your grace..."
"WELL NOT ENOUGH! Why were there no guards at her door?" For weeks many of his and Illyro's men had searched far and wide through Essos, yet no trace of his sister had been found. Over that time Viserys was at his angriest, his rage had put an effect on the castle's people, who were also in a state of frustration. Khal Drogo was enraged of his to-be bride's dissapearance, and had taken his feelings out brutally on Viserys and Illiryo.
"What about Westeros?" Viserys turned his head in a swift movement to see his host behind him. "It's the place where she belongs, and where the Usurper sits on the throne."
How did I not think of this?
"If she is in Westeros then where is she?" Viserys demanded.
"We have to travel there to find out ,your grace."
Jon
They had shown her every corner of Winterfell, every brick and wall despite the stares given my its people. Why would they not stare? She was incredibly beautiful, her silver hair like a dream amongst the darkness of Winterfell. She was supposedly mad, but Daenerys Targaryen was kind, she listened intently to Rickon's boasting stories, to Bran's hopes of being a night of the North and Arya's continuos rude statements of the Septa.
Daenerys had been asleep for three days, and over that time the news travelled across Winterfell. Most of the people were just curious, their Lord had accepted her, so they did too.
"Arya, Bran, Sansa, Rickon!" Maester Lewin called while Arya was telling Daenerys all the names of the horses and huffed in frustration when she was called. A wild spark flickered in her eyes and she began to walk the other way but Jon caught her soon enough.
"Go, we'll be here when you come back." He gently turned her in the direction of the maester who nods at Jon and Daenerys before leading the Stark children into the castle.
Jon's eyes lock with Daenerys' violet ones; her beauty was unreal, but so natural. They stared at eachother in silence, yet he could not feel awkwardness rising. A small smile broke onto Daenerys' face and Jon mirrored it. Daenerys began to laugh, so elegant but a genuine one.
"So... you have a brother?" Jon asked Daenerys.
Her smile quickly dissapeared, leaving a trail of sadness across her face,"Viserys..." All the light had drained from her voice when she spoke of her brother."He was cruel...to me especially. He was to sell me to a Dothrakin horselord to get an army, he knew he would rape me. Yet he still agreed to the marriage. All my life he beat me, and I am so happy to be free of him now." A watery smile appeard on the Targaryen's face, and Jon noticed that tears were gushing out of her eyes.
Without hesitation, Jon wiped the salty water off her face. "It's okay, he's not here anymore." He assured her.
"No. It's not that, it's just... here, it's a proper family. something I have always wished for."
Jon looked at her then, he could see hope in those eyes; hope for someone to love her, give her the love her brother had failed to give. "Arya already looks up to you like a sister, so does Bran and Rickon... and Sansa will come round."
"What about you?" She asked, a true smile on her face.
Jon was unsure of what to say; I love her, but like a brother loves his sister or something else?
Daenerys
There was something about Jon Snow; something so deep, so mysterious she had no clue what it was.
She spent the remainder of the day with Jon Snow... and Arya too, who stuck to the two. Not that Daenerys minded; Arya was fierce, fiery. She was a lot of fun to be around. By the time the week was over, Daenerys knew every single brick in the castle of Winterfell.
On many nights she had been invited to dinner with the Starks. To her suprise, dinner was not a formal occasion like it had been in Pentos; the Starks talked to eachother of their day, and the hall would fill with sonds of joyous laughter. During dinner, Daenerys had met Theon Greyjoy, Lord Eddard's ward. He seemed arrogant, but talked to Daenerys kindly enough. She had also warmed up to Robb, whose icy mask had worn off over the week. Lord Eddard was truly the most honorable man in all of Westeros. He treated Daenerys almost like a daughter, and for that she was greatful. The last person she had met was Catelyn Stark. The woman had auburn hair like Sansa and Robb, she loved her children but showed no affection to Jon. That angered Dany but she respected the woman. She was strong, and had not ill-treated Daenerys. She had even told her of her beauty, and said some day suitors would come flocking to her feet.
But I don't want suitors, I want...
I want Jon Snow.
Yay that was my third chapter! Leave a review and thanks for reading :)