Within minutes we were ushered back into the Great Hall, our cloaks for the winter time were stripped and music was heard from the local workers in Winterfell who were also musicians on the side. I was surrounded by loving family and allies, and the tables were filled with laughter, music and joy as we ate the fest in front of us. Gendry and I were at the Head Table, with Bran on the one side respectively and the Lannisters on the other side, but we were mostly dancing anyways. Gendry and I had our first dance together as husband and wife. He held me close, never wanting me to leave him once as we swayed back and forth since we both were pretty terrible at dancing. But I saw that the others were watching with good smiles and sincere hearts in their souls. I was beyond happy, since I was now married to Gendry and we were both now one.
I even looked over and saw Sansa and Tyrion talking to each other, smiles on each other faces and showing nothing but support for one another. Tyrion must of seen Sansa at the ceremony and went to talk to her right after the ceremony finished. At first I was worried about her, thinking that she would be afraid to see him once more from all that happened to her in the past with his sister, nephew and family. But seeing her from where I was, I saw nothing of fear and worry in her eyes or in her stance. She was safe, since i knew if Tyrionw as going tot ry anything on her, he would have a whole fortress against him. He was not that stupid or foolish, he wouldn't do anything bad to her with her family there to witness.
After Gendry and I had our first dance and others were dancing together, the couples and married folk of the workers, Jon Snow asked me for a dance as Gendry danced with Sansa. I watched him with Sansa, seeing her trying to coach him through the dancing but he was too tall for her petite and gorgeous frame.
"Mother and father would be very proud of you." Jon said to me as we swayed with the music, "They would think of Gendry as the perfect match for you."
"And you think so as well, brother?" I asked him with a hint of curiosity.
"Very much so, Gendry will bring you a good amount of happiness." Jon explained in his proud tone. I giggled from his antic from being the proud older brother, seeing him smile in return. It was nice to see him smile, no longer looking so brooding or mad.
"And I would also think that Robb would be proud too, to see his twin sister be married and who looks radiant." I felt myself blushing from his recent compliment on me.
"He's with us, Jon. I can feel it." I reminded him, seeing him pause mid-dance with me and looked down at my stare at him. I missed Robb at that point, a small part of me in my heart broke from the mere thought that he was not here with me in this moment, to give me a warm hug and tell me who beautiful I was in my dress. His face was in my mind at that moment, but then I realized that he was at peace now that Winterfell was back in it's original glory and placement with the world of Westeroes. He was happy, at peace, and content.
But the rest of the night was sheer bliss. I was blessed and thanked by all the workers and Houses that were in attendance, even Coen came and thanked me. I was beyond glad he was there for me, his kind and old soul and the fact that he was the first to come to the aid of Winterfell when it was just Gendry and I, it was beyond wonderful he was there. He closed his hands on my own, showing me his youthful grin on his worn face and body.
"I thank the Old Gods for you, Milday High." He said to me as he stood in front of me, holding my hand across the table as I sat next to Gendry. I smiled at him, bowing my head in appreciation.
"It is I that is honored with your presence, dear Coen. You were my first friend here in the mist of chaos, and you have been beyond loyal since." I explained to him in my kind tone, seeing him almost tremble and have a few tears in his eyes from what I was telling him. He only nodded his head as I felt Gendry wrap his arm around my waist.
"You are a wonderful comrade and friend, Coen. We thank you." Gendry said to him as well, having me nod my head in agreement.
"I thank you both for your kind words and kind hearts. May the Old Gods bless you and protect you." Coen said in a hopeful tone, slowly loosening my hand and releasing me, moving back to his spot at one of the table and hearing the other workers talk to him in earnest. I sighed, looking back at Gendry and see him sitting at the high table. He looked different, something about seeing him in Highborn clothes and sitting next to me, it made it seem like a dream, but a good dream. A dream that I have had for many moons, but now it was a reality.
"Are you happy, my husband?" I asked him, having him look over at me and what I was wearing: still in my wedding dress and my hair in loose curls down my back.
"Very much, and you my wife? Are you happy with this?" He asked me, having me turn my eyes from him and see the scene in front of me. I heard laughter, chatter about the upcoming war but of memories and weddings past. Jamie Lannister was talking to Brienne, both of them looking content and having small smiles on their faces as I looked over to Pod, whom was talking to some of the Brotherhood Without Banners men and having em see them cheer him on in appreciation.
"I am." I replied, looking back at him and see him bring our joined hands to his lips, kissing my hand in a loving manner and having me smile widely at him. His blue eyes poured into my own, showing me nothing but love as he then pulled me up from my spot. I looked at him in confusion as he pulled me away from out seats, Rickon and Arya watching with grins on their faces from their spots at the High table.
"Where are we going?" I asked him over the music, seeing him chuckle next to me as he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close.
"I'm wanting to have a dance with my wife, is that too much to ask?" He asked me with a cocked eyebrow as we swayed together with the music.
"It is for you, since you are not to keen on something like this." I replied back to him, hearing him laugh and kiss my hair in a loving manner, as if we were the only ones in the room and no one else was around, watching us.
"You calling me a horrible dancer?" He asked me, though I still kept my grin on my face as I looked at our joined hands together.
"Well I did get a good bruise on my big toe if you would like to see it." I teased him, hearing him laugh and hide his face in my neck, kissing it in the process and making me both squirm from his sudden forwardness with me in front of the crowd and his need of intimacy.
"Gendry, behave yourself!" I said to him in a airy tone as he kissed my neck some more, looking down at me finally with a grin on his face. He never once lost his smile with me since we saw each other at the beginning at the ceremony.
"What? Am I not allowed to show love to my wife?" He asked me in a shrug, having me finally loo up at him and kiss him squarely on the mouth, hearing him sigh against my lips as I traced his jaw with me fingers. When I pulled away, I left my hand on his neck, having me feel the pulse against his skin that was fast and strong.
"You are, and you are going to for as much as you can." I said in almost a order, seeing him nod his head and the both of us dancing some more together. I looked over his shoulder and saw Sansa and Tyrion talking once more. It didn't look like a uncomfortable conversation, more the opposite really. The conversation looked as if they both were trying to make amends with each other from the past and from all that happened. Quickly I looked over from the pair of them to Arya, whom was talking to Thoros and Anguy with a heated look on her face, probably arguing about how best to hold a sword and how to kill a man. But there were smiles on their faces, so who was I to fret over them having a fight? I trusted them enough to enjoy my own night.
"Nora." I heard Gendry call back to me in a small tone, having me look back at my husband and seeing him eye me suspiciously, "Would you stop worrying about everyone else?"
"Since when do I do that?" I asked him with a hint of annoyance, but with the look on his face, he could read my own eyes and see what I was looking at and what I was in fact thinking.
"All the time, love." He replied, wrapping both of his arms around me and trapping me in his hold. I rested my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat and sighing in content. Gendry was right, I did have t stop worrying about the others and know that this was for the both of us, and us alone. I decided to let it go, let it all go and have this moment in my life with him. This was what we both wanted, to be together as not only husband and wife, but as friends and comrades and fighters in Westeros.
"You will always be my Blacksmith." I murmured into his dress shirt, feeling him kiss my forehead and his hold on my tighten slightly from my declaration to him.
"And you will always be my Dressmaker." He replied back to me, having me hear someone hitting the side of a goblet and then the whole room going quiet. I cringed, knowing what was going to happen. If I remembered correctly, from the past years of being a lowborn and seeing a couple of weddings here and there, right after the dancing and the feast, was something else that could either be seen as a embarrassment or a right of passage.
"It is time for the bedding!" Someone shouted aloud in a cheerful tone, having me hear the gaggle of men coming over to me and a sworn of girls going to Gendry. But even before one of us was hoisted away from each other, though I felt a bunch of manly hands on me, Bran spoke up.
"I think that these two, don't need a typical bedding." Bran announced to everyone, while I was holding onto Gendry in a tight grip since I had no idea how this was going to work. The hands of the men left me, having me hear groans and complains from the men. But Gendry and I looked over at Bran, seeing him smirking at the two of us. He must of seen the fear in my eyes and how I was clinging to Gendry for dear life.
"Let the Stark Family help them to their quarters, along with their hand maidens. I doubt they like having the lot of you grabbing all over them." Bran said in his grin, having me then seen Jon wrap his arm around my shoulder and pull me away from Gendry, having me look behind my shoulder and see Gendry being embraced by Sansa and pulled away in another direction. I looked back over at Jon, whom was joined by Rickon. They were leading me out of the Great hall, in which the rest of party was continuing on with laughter and music. But my mind was currently on the task at hand: the bedding ceremony.
"You nervous sister?" Jon asked me in a grin, having me look at him in shock and then down at Rickon, whom was pulling my hand along with a gleeful grin on his face. I had doubt in my heart that he knew what was really going on with the bedding ceremony.
"Does it not show?" I asked him under my breath, hearing him laugh aloud.
"As clear as day it does." Jon joked with me, having me smack him on the arm as we turned in the hallways and up the stairs.
"It's going to be fine, Nora. I feel like Gendry will not bring you any pain or harm to you. And if he does, he'll be sure to see the one end of my blade." Jon explained to me as we were right at the room. I shoved him playfully.
"Don'y you dare!" I warned him in a threatening tone, seeing him place both hands in the air as a surrender.
"I won't!" He said back to me, having me look over at Rickon in front of me, whom was still beaming with his youthful look and innocence.
"I'll smack him if he hurts you ever, Nora!" he said in a beaming tone, having me even wonder if he knew of this tradition and what was going to happen. But I only smiled at him, patting him in the shoulder as Jon nudged Rickon with his arm.
"Go tend to the wolves, and head back to the party." He instructed him, having me see RIckon nod his head and run off and disappear in the night of Winterfell. Without Rickon, I looked back at Jon and I saw him place a hand on my cheek, showing me love as a brother would to a younger sister.
"It will be fine, Nora. It's nothing to be afraid of." He explained in his hushed tone, then opening the door to the new room. I peered inside, seeing lit candles, a large bed with furs turned down ready for us to…use? A part of me was petrified, thinking that we were about to do something so huge as a married couple, in which we were. But then again, it's not like we haven't done this before together. It sounded and seemed morally wrong, that we both were in bed countless times before being wed as one, but this was more intimate, more personal and more loving. I walked into the room, looking around and seeing the new arrangements that were given to us. After a moment or two thinking about this to myself, I looked back at Jon, seeing him bow to me and show me his loving smile.
"Be a Stark." He reminded me, having me watch him as he closed the door and leave me alone in the room. It was then that reality hit me: Gendry and I were together and we were about to make the marriage legal: the consummation. I panicked, thinking that I needed to fix my hair or even how my dressed looked. Was it ugly? Dirty from the dancing that happened? I wished I had a mirror, but there was none in the room, having me rake my fingers in my hair and try to get less knots in it, thanks to Sansa and her doing my hair. My breath was becoming shallow, less calm and more scared. Why should I be scared? What was there to fear?
I heard the hollow wind against the window on the other side of the room, having me walk over and open the door to listen outside and hear the coolness of the night. I peered out, seeing the blue and black of night, the snow falling softly on the fortress and having the castle look like a winter wonderland to me. I smiled, pressing my hot cheek against the cool window and feeling relief.
The door opened behind me, having me move away from the door and see Gendry being shoved into the room by a couple pairs of hands. AS soon as the door closed, I looked at Gendry, seeing him look down at his shirt, which a couple of the buttons were already undone and his trousers loosened. He looked out of breath and out of place, his hair ruffled and his stance was off balance. It took him a moment or two before he looked over in my direction, having me see that he was frozen from looking at me up and down. HIs stare at me made me clutch the window in a death grip, since that look alone could kill me.
"I see that they wasted no time on you." I saw in a breathless remark, having him look down at his ruffled attire, a small smile on his lips as he started to chuckle. That sound rang in the air, made me smile as well and find happiness in the moment.
"I didn't think some of your hand maidens had a death grip, one of them almost took me out." Gendry said in laughter, having me join in as well. We were laughing on our wedding night, at the silliness of it all and how we were finally here at this moment together. After we went through so many days and nights together, thinking we weren't going to wake up in the morning, we find a unusual moment to laugh together at the silliness of it all. But just seeing him smile melted everything I feared away, hearing his laugh was the only thing I needed to hear for the rest of my life.
After we laughed, I felt him take my hand in his and walk so close to me, our chests touched and our hands intertwined. Gendry rested his forehead against mine, having me hear his heavy breathing and feel how cool his head was, but as soon as we made contact with our skin, he pulled away with concern on his face.
"You're warm." He said to me, placing a hand on my forehead and his face looking scared for me. But I shook my head, taking his hand that was on my head and placing it in between us, showing that it was nothing to me.
"It's nothing." I reassured him, seeing him scan my eyes with his blue orbs, "It's only….we're husband and wife now. We're wed together." He smiled when I saw this, placing a gentle kiss on my forehead and having me feel his cool ups against my heated forehead. While he kissed my skin, I traced his outer shirt garment he wore to the ceremony, taking off the last couple of buttons and stripping it off of him, having him only in his small shirt and dress pants. I want this as slow as I could, not like before when were both were in the middle of lust and passion for one another. And I felt as though he was thinking the same thing, since he was carefully placing his hands on my back and undoing each string that was holding the dress together. He touch was delicate, light and careful with me, having me feel his skin touch my bareback every once in awhile as the dress was slipping off my shoulders, leaving me in my small clothes.
"You are my life, through and through Nora Stark Baratheon." Gendyr murmured against my skin as he kissed my neck and shoulder so slowly and delicately I thought I would loose my breath from it. I clung onto his shirt, though it eventually slipped off of him and had him only in his pants and bare feet. Through ally hat we have been though, every fight and worry that we would die in enemy arms, every day and night riding together and ever discovery, I knew Gendry was never going to leave me nor forsake me. I knew that we were connected from the moment we met, even as children when we saw each other in Flea Bottom. I knew out connection was strong and good and unbreakable as we made love one more time, this time, as husband and wife.
"As you are mine, Gendry Baratheon."