I walked through the fortress once more with Astrid, my hair down past my shoulders and my hands folded gently in front of me as I was walking towards the Great Hall to meet with my siblings once more, having realized that we received word from Stannis Baratheon, whom apparently heard of our news and our mission and wished to meet with us in order to have neutral grounds. I was hesitant to talk to him, but it was no loner my concern, but Bran's since he is the Lord of Winterfell now. It made me think, that I was technically second in command of Winterfell since I was the eldest. Bran never saw me as anything less since i filled him in on all that happened with the Houses in Alliance and their soldiers in our command now. Bran came at the perfect time, taking care of the planning of the army that we were getting and also helping with Gendry. Bran knew most of what it took to be a Lord, he had school as a child and now he was teaching Gendry, since that was his new title now.
Gendry, a Lord. All for my sake? I always wondered if he made the choice for himself and not for me. I wanted it to be so, not have him be forced to take a big leap in his life all for me. I hated to think that it would be true, since I only wanted him to be happy, and this was a new life and new situation for him. All that he knew was gone, and he had toe tart fresh again with new rules, new regulations and a new identity. Did he want this? For himself, or for me?
Not only did Gendry get stripped from his Bastard title, but Jon did as well. He became a Stark child as well, but he chose to stay as the next in line as Lord of Winterfell after Bran, and the Captain of the Guard for our fortress as well. I knew this was something he needed all his life, since he knew of his Bastard life and he was never given the moment to be a true noble. He lived as a noble, not as a cruel man, not to me. As the new ruling commander of the army, Jon got help from both Brennon and James with getting the arm prepared for war.
I opened the doors, walking in and seeing my siblings except Sansa, James, Brennon, Jamie and Tyrion Lannister, Brienne of Tarth, and Gendry. Bran was in his Lord Chair, in which everyone was standing around him with Summer at his feet. They were all talking together as I walked in with Astrid next to me. Her nose was still recovering from the assault by the Wildlings, a scar was morphing on her nuzzle against her fur, but she was still a elegant direwolf in my eyes with her two toned irises and her light coat. We walked into the Great Hall and I saw the group look over at me, Jon holding the note from Stannis Baratheon.
"He is on his way to Winterfell to discuss a alliance between House Stark and House Baratheon." Jon explained to me as I looked over at the note in his writing. I read it to myself, seeing that it was true: he wanted a truce and alliance. I only remembered him so far along ago, when Gendry and I were kidnapped and placed in his own dungeons, and he almost killed Gendry. Gendry was his nephew, something that I never thought would really happened. A part of me didn't want to meet him, since he almost got the both of us killed when we were merely lowborns, but another part of me wanted him to come and see what we have become now, how we defeated death and became nobles by right.
"He's only bringing handful of his battalion." I said as I finished the letter from him, looking up to the group in front of us, "And one of them is his good friend, Davvos."
"Davvos?" Gendry asked me in surprise, having me smile and nod my head at him.
"Who is he?" Jamie asked me from his spot next to Tyrion.
"He helped us escape from Dragon Stone when we were held there." I explained to him, "Stannis almost got Gendry killed because of the Red Woman." As soon as I mentioned her, I saw Gendry look away from me and down to the floor. It's been a long time since she was mentioned in our conversations, but I knew it was still a sour note from what she did to him and how she treated him all for her own religion.
"Is the Red Woman going to accompany him, since she has Stannis around her finger, and perhaps his cock, at this point." Tyrion said in suggestion, but I heard the hint of amusement in his voice.
"Not from what I was see in this letter." Jon said back to him in a shrug, "He must of either left her behind at Dragon Stone, or she is no longer in the picture. Let's go with the first suggestion, she's left behind."
"Better for her than, since I suspect she would loose her head as soon as she stepped on the Winterfell grounds." Arya said in a cocky tone, having me smirk at her and Jon did as well. She knew what the Red Woman did to Gendry, and she wanted her dead as much as I.
"We will be ready for Stannis Baratheon and his troupe when they come." Bran said from his chair, having us all look to him, 'Until then, we will keep Winterfell in full work force and keep in contact with the other Houses. I wish to have scouts out in the woods to keep an eye out for any South armies coming our way."
"As you wish, Milord." James said aloud, bowing from his spot and walking out of the group, ready to carry out commands. Gendry then turned over to me, taking my hand in his with a small smile.
"You think Stannis will listen and follow through with my lineage now?" He asked me in wonder.
"He'll have to, since Bran is a Lord. Perhaps you can reason with him, tell him your true intentions to not take over the throne that belongs to him." I suggested in a shrug of my shoulders.
"Perhaps, I was never one for words." Gendry said in a tone of defeat. I squeezed his hand in mine, having him watch me as I smiled at him.
"I'll help you." I reassured him, seeing him nod his head and lean in to kiss me sweetly on the lips. He pulled away, sighing relief.
"I'm going to go to the forge and help Coen with the finishing touches." He said to me in now a excited tone, as if it was his own Nameday. I looked at him in confusion as he brought our joined hands up to his lips and kiss my own. He moved away from him before I would grab him.
"Finishing touches one what?" I asked him, calling out as he was walking to the fort doors of the Great Hall, he looked back at me with a smirk on his face and a twinkle in his blue eyes.
"My wedding gift to you." He replied, having me loose my breath as he exited the Great Hall, having me look behind me at the group and most of them are still talking about Stannis and the situation involving him. Arya walked over to me, along with Rickon and the three of us talking together about something else, something more important in my mind and more exciting than this whole stupid war.
"Is everything ready for tonight?" Arya asked me with happiness in her voice.
"It should be ready, I believe so." I replied to her, seeing Arya never loose her smile on her face as well as Rickon, but I eyed Arya from seeing this odd behavior from her.
"Shouldn't you be dreading something like this, since this is clear not your kind of enjoyment?" I asked her in a amused tone of voice. She rolled her eyes and waved me off, as Rickon hugged me around the middle.
"It's not really a thing that I like, to be fair, But you are my sister, and I am beyond happy for you." She explained to me, "And I promised Sansa that I would wear a dress, a proper one really."
"I'm holding you up to that." I said to her in a grin, having me look down at Rickon, whom was still beaming brightly at me and showing me his full support.
"I'm happy for you, Nora," He said in his cheery grin, having me lean down and kiss the top of his head, feeling so good that I had a younger brother that was still young and filled with hope in the world.
"I am too, Rickon. I'm glad I'm getting married tonight."
By the time the sun was falling away from the skies and the coolness of the air was coming through Winterfell, the Great Hall was lit and filled with so many of the workers of Winterfell, along with the Heads of the Houses in the North that were in our Alliances. It's been a good couple of days since we were back in the Great Hall with the news of the legitimization of Gendry. Since then, Sansa and Bran have been trying to get a wedding together at such short notice. Sansa wanted a huge wedding for us, where I just wanted a handful of people and only the closeness of the people there. Thankfully we met in the middle, Sansa getting help with the Girls in Waiting and other servants, whom were all wonderfully accepting for the help. Dresses were made within a couple of days. and I wanted to help as much as I could but Sansa forbade me from lifting a finger since she was doing most of the work.
We got a feast ready to be made, warm hospitality and everything set in place, thanks to the help of my family. That night was calm enough and not even freezing for us to be married in front of the Old Gods in Godswood, having it be perfect for us and the celebration in the Great Hall after we said out vows to one another. So as I was getting myself ready in my chambers with Sansa and Arya in the room, I was feeling the burst of happiness comment through my chest and down my spine. I knew that it was now finally real.
I was going to wed Gendry.
"You made a lovely dress." Sansa said to me aloud we looked at it from my spot at the middle of the room, other maids helping get the end of the dress onto the floor and also having my cloak ready for the coldness of the night. I looked over at Sansa, seeing her eye my dress and I smirk at her as she played with the loose curls in my hair.
"I'm sorry it's not the big dress that you've wanted." I teased her with a coy tone, seeing her roll her eyes at me as she was fixing some of my hair with her slender fingers. I then remembered that she too had a wedding, but it was against her own will to Tyrion Lannister. Since he came to Winterfell, Sansa has been out of sight and away from his vision. But now, she knew that she would have to come out and show herself to but him and Jamie.
"Sansa." I said to her, seeing her twirl one of my strands of hair with her fingers, "Will you be alright seeing Tyrion tonight?" She paused her movements with my hair as the maids continued to get my dress ready and looked down for a moment before composing herself once again.
"This is about you and Gendry, and I don't mind seeing him again. I really don't, he's no threat to me." She reassured me, squeezing my hand in hers and showing that she was truthful. She was safe here in her walls of Winterfell, and I knew Tyrion was not going to do anything to her to cause her harm or pain. For what I could see, she wasn't going to let him get to her if that was in his own mind.
"I'm glad you're here with me Sansa, since you have groomed into being a proper lady for once." I explained to her in a grin, hearing her laugh and I laughed as well. We had a good moment together as sisters, though I was about to step into being a wife and have her next to me was also a good was of being grounded into reality. I was beyond nervous, beyond scared, and I for brief moment I felt as though I was making the wrong decision. But then I felt Sansa stroke my face gently with her hand, showing me that she was in fact there for me with a warm beautiful smile on her radiant face.
"You look beyond amazing, Nora. And Gendry loves you, beyond words." Sansa said to me in her bold tone, "This is a good, getting married to him and becoming his wife. You too are very happy together, we can all see it, and you deserve this happiness from all that you guys have been through." I grinned, almost crying for a moment. I tried to hold it together, but just hearing it from Sansa and knowing that she was supporting what we were about to do, that made the entire world for me. She then ran her finger sin my hair once more, having me watch her from my spot for a moment or two before I looked down at my own dress that I was wearing.
It was a light gray, almost ivory dress with swirls of green around the dress and waist to show my colors to Thedra House. The dress was the most formal dress I have ever made, since I knew it had to resemble royalty. It shined in the room, covering my arms and showed the fair skin and the red in my hair from the contrast of the colors. It was radiant, and I made it me feel so unworthy to even wear the dress myself.
"Are your ready?" Sansa asked me aloud, having me nod my head at her and we both got our cloaks on. Seeing her in her best Stark gown and me in my wedding dress. It was finally time for me to take the next step and start something fresh.
A new beginning.
Jon Snow walked me down the aisle that was in Godswood, with the workers and the Heads of the Houses on both sides to make a aide in the middle. The cold crisp air of winter was filling the air with a light snowfall as I was taken down the aisle slowly, under the red leaves of the Heartree and a Sept waiting for us there to conduct the ceremony in order to make it legitimate. I saw my siblings on both sides of the trees, the direwolves were next to their respected wonders. That left Astrid and Koda, whom were both by Brennon and James the whole time and I saw them in their best armor as I looked ahead at the person I wanted to see the most: Gendry.
He wore a new attire which was fit for a royal to be certain. His face was the only thing that looked the same, though be was now sporting Baratheon colors on his cloak and dress tunic, with black pants and shoes. He shaved, giving himself a sense of youth once more with his hair shortened as well. With all the black he was wearing and the tint go gold, it made his blue eyes brighter and more crystalized. Every step i took towards him, my heart was beating faster and faster in my chest and make me wish I could run to him and not walk. I was both excited and nervous to do this, to take a huge step and become a wife.
His Wife.
As we stood facing each other, I felt as though I couldn't breathe for a moment or to, just seeing how handsome he looked and how much joy was soaring though me. I clung onto his hands for dear life as I then recited what I was going to tell him.
"I vow, in front of the Old Gods and the Ancestors of my father and mother, that I pledge my life to you and call you Husband. I vow to honor you, to follow you wherever you go, to never forsake you or leave you, and to love you until my last breath. My best friend, my foundation, my love and joy, and my Lord." I recited them as if I was talking in front of millions of people, but I only picture it being the two of us under the Hearttress leaves and feeling the cool air of the winter dusk. My voice rang out in the woods, having me smile widely as Gendry finally took a deep breath and said his own vows.
"I vow, in front of the Old Gods and the Ancestors of the Stark family, that I pledge my life to you and call you wife. I view to honor you, to follow you wherever you go, to protect you from harm and danger, to be your shield and cloak, to never forsake or leave you, and to love you until my last breath. Nora Stark, you are my life, my best friend and my constant light. I will never stop loving you, everyday for the rest of our lives together as one." I felt a couple of tears leave me, rolling down my cheek as he said that to me. I knew that it was true, hearing it in his tone and see his eyes on me. He would never lie to me about something like this, about our love for one another. We then faced the Sept, seeing him smile at the approval of our vows.
"In the eyes of the Seven, I hereby seal these two souls, "The Sept started, taking out the cloth in his hands and wrapping them around our joined hands in the middle, "Binding them as one, for eternity. Now, look upon one another, and say the words." With that being said, Gendry and I looked at each other once more.
"Father, Smith, Warrior, Mother, Maiden, Crone, and Stranger. I am hers, and she is mine, from this day, until the end of my days." We said it in union together, not having our eyes wonder or our grips on each others hand loosen, not in the slightest. I then leaned up and kissed, as our first act as Husband and Wife. Gendry kissed me back, having me hearing nothing at first, and then the sound of cheering and joy from the people witnessing it. But I was too enthralled with Gendry, since we were now Husband and Wife.
We were now one.