This chapter takes place in the early morning after the Tournament of the Hand, occurring before 'GOT Tyrion IV'. It's a tad bit shorter, but I still think that it gets the message across. The next update will finally debut the Lord of Dragonstone talking with is disciple.

Disclaimer: I do not own nor do I claim any ideas, places, or characters from the 'A Song of Ice and Fire' series. Cheers

She watched as the body of the fallen Vale knight was loaded onto the boat by some of Olyvar's bannermen. She had always found the knight to be nice, he had even opted to not tell her lord father when he had caught her and Mycah sneaking off back at the Neck. She hadn't even thanked him for that. Now, she wouldn't be able to.

"I don't suppose Robert is going to make it common knowledge that I'm not Warden until I'm clear of King's Landing?" She looked back to see her cousin conversing with her father. Olyvar's face had grown constantly grimmer since the Trident, when he had yelled at the king. His hair had grown to be quite unkept, and he was prone to throwing more dirty looks at Joffrey and Queen. But not once did he have a public outburst. Father had told him not to.

"I suspect that's his plan. Robert never minded doing as he pleased, but I feel as if your attitude towards him as made it difficult for him to say it publicly while you are at court." Father put a hand on Olyvar's shoulder. "I've done all I can to make him see reason, but it seems he is content with keeping to his decision"

"So it seems." Olyvar was bitter. The king had declined to see Olyvar off this morning. She had heard her father cursing the king, believing him to have gotten too drunk the night previous and choosing to sleep over seeing Olyvar off with the Starks. Arya hadn't heard her father get that angry since the Trident. "At least he felt guilty enough to not say it aloud while I still roamed his halls."

"Yohn wasn't too happy after hearing of it in private last night. Insulted the king to his face, left in a mood." Her father said quietly, drawing a smirk from Olyvar's face. "You should have heard him, the old man still has the same fury as he did during the Rebellion."

"He approached me this morning. Told me that it was an appalling decision which he wouldn't stand for." The two looked over to the boat, Arya following suit. There she spotted the Lord of Runestone, who was quite disgruntled as he continued to make sure all the necessary preparations for the voyage were made. "It's good that the Royces are loyal. Hopefully the rest of my bannermen will regard me as highly as they do."

"Considering you're the very image of Jon when he was youthful, I find that to be very likely." The two shared a laugh before Father pulled him in for a hug. "We will hate to see you go, but it's high time you returned to the Eyrie. Your mother and brother miss you."

"And I them. But I hate leaving all of you." Arya could hear the sadness in Olyvar's voice, which only attributed to her own.

"We will be fine, my boy. Trust me." The two parted and shared a smile before Olyvar nodded and moved on to Sansa.

"Goodbye, Cousin. I wish you a safe journey back." Arya wanted to punch Sansa as she curtsied. She had spoken to him in such a brisk manner, as if she didn't care for him. You're so stupid, Sansa. Her love for Joffrey was making her disregard her own family. She was forgetting who exactly had fought so hard for Lady back at the Trident.

Olyvar evidently sensed the tone in Sansa's voice as well, and figuring that she didn't want to embrace him, simply bowed to her and said "My lady." Then he came to Arya, who was looking up at him with a sad face.

"I'm going to miss you." She wanted him to stay, to come and watch her sword lessons with Syrio just once. They had been so preoccupied that she had rarely seen him outside of dinner. Arya regretted not going to the tournament and sitting with him for a final time and watching as the knights fought and jousted. She suspected she would have enjoyed herself if she was sitting by him

"I'm going to miss you too, wildling. Life won't be nearly as fun without you." He gave her a small, sad smile. She couldn't hold back any longer, and rushed forward to hug him at the waist. She didn't care if she didn't act like a lady, like her stupid sister. She wanted him to stay.

"Don't go, Olyvar. Please." Olyvar embraced her back, one arm on her back and another on her head. Flashbacks to her last meeting with Jon rushed to her mind. She felt tears beginning to form.

"Now, now. Don't be like that. You know I have to go back." He parted with her and knelt, looking into her eyes with a sympathetic look in his brown ones. "I promise, the next time I'm back in the capital, I'll have a surprise for you."

Arya sniffled and nodded, trying to hold back her tears. He had been her only friend in the capital after Mycah had been run down by the Hound. He understood her when Sansa and Father didn't, she could talk to him. Now he was leaving for the mountains of the Vale. Who was she going to talk to now? Who was going to listen?

He rose and turned. "Lord Royce, are we prepared?"

"Yes, my lord." The old man shouted in response. "Waiting for your word to depart."

Olyvar nodded before looking back to Arya, ruffling her hair. "Stay out of trouble, wildling. I won't be able to get you out of it all the way in the Eyrie." Arya swatted his hand away, a smile finally spreading across her face. "I promise to see you soon." With that, Olyvar turned and walked down the docks a bit before boarding the boat that would take him and the Royces back to the Vale.

Arya knew that he had to go. But as she watched him board, she wanted more than anything to go with. She had asked Father numerous times, each time being denied. He had told her that she would eventually grow to like King's Landing. But Arya wanted nothing more than to leave, to return to Winterfell or go to the Eyrie. The capital was dirty and vile to her.

"Gods grant you safe a voyage." Her father called out, waving a hand at the passengers. She knew that her father would miss him as well. He loved Olyvar like one of his own.

"And Gods watch over you, my dear Starks." Olyvar waved back. By now the boat was a fair distance away from the dock and out into the harbor. From there, Arya knew they would travel into Blackwater Bay before heading north towards Gulltown and the Vale. As she watched the boat continue on its voyage, she couldn't help but notice Olyvar, who had not turned away from the sight of his cousins and uncle on the docks.

"When will we see him again, Father?" Arya asked as she felt her father's hands rest on her shoulders, the boat fading from view.

"Soon, sweetling. Perhaps sooner than we think."

A/N: Poor little Arya. She lost what was her best friend in King's Landing. Shame that Ned refused her when she wanted to go to the Eyrie.

Question comes from KnightOfHolyLight, asking 'Is it public knowledge already about Jaime Lannister being Warden of the East?'

Up to this point, no. I made it so Robert would at least have the decency, or cowardice if you want to view it that way, to not disclose it publicly. I'll say that Lysa likely knew it would happen, but the rest of the Vale and realm would have likely assumed that Olyvar was old enough to be granted the title.

Also of note, I know that many were interested to see if Myrcella would be accompanying Olyvar to the Vale, considering their betrothal had not been called off yet. Some of you guessed right that she wouldn't be accompanying him there. I figured that Cersei would be too possessive to send her, as well as too spiteful to even see the Lord of the Vale off (if you didn't catch it in the chapter, Cersei and her cubs are absent as well).

Well, that will do it for this one. Keep the reviews coming, I enjoy reading them!