Author's Note: Hello, my lovelies! How are you on this fine Friday? I present to you the conclusion of the last chapter. I do apologize for that cliffhanger, but I must say that I enjoyed your reactions and speculations!

Chapter 10: In which there is an unexpected guest and an even more unexpected conversation.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here, Mr. Lannister."

"Please, call me Jaime."

"I guess that makes me Sansa."

"I guess it does."

"So, what are you doing here, Jaime?"

"I saw the invitation, unopened, in my father's rubbish bin. He's not one to throw correspondence away without looking at it, which around my insatiable curiosity. Ow! What was that for, Bear?"

"You're stalling; spend less time praising yourself and get to the point."

Jaime threw a longsuffering look at Sansa, "I don't recommend getting a wife, Sansa, as they tend to be more trouble than they're worth. Ow!"

Sansa's eyes widened at his words, "You're married? Ty—I mean, I didn't even know you were engaged."

His playful look turned shrewd, "I could say the same about you, Sansa. According to my father, you should be the one currently smashing cardboard cake into the mouth of Willas Tyrell, not some other woman from the North."

Oh gods, did he tell Tywin? "Jaime, did you—"

"Inform my father of his mistake? No. Which means you will be the one to satisfy my curiosity. Why would my father be so angry about a wedding featuring you as the supposed bride?"

She cast about for a credible lie, but came up with nothing. Tears began to well in her eyes, sending Jaime into a panic. "Bear, do something!"

"You shouting won't help anything. Shut up."

Sansa's shoulders were grabbed and suddenly she was looking up into the bluest eyes that she had ever seen. "Sansa, my name is Brienne Tar—"

Jaime interrupted her with a cough and she glared at him before continuing, "Brienne Lannister, and I'm a PI. You know what that is right?"

Sansa shook her head yes.

"Good, now, how about I tell you what I found out for Jaime, and then you fill in the rest. Sound good to you?"

"Ye-yes."

"Okay, here goes: for a little over two years, you engaged in an affair with Tywin Lannister. About six months ago, you broke off said affair, left King's Landing, and briefly stayed at Winterfell before removing to High Garden, where you've remained for the last several months."

"How—how did you find all that out? We were so careful…"

"I'm even better at my job than Mr. Lannister's pet spider."

"Oh."

Jaime broke back in, "We're not here to sit in judgment on you, Sansa. We need to know the rest of the story. Well, I need to know so I can decide what to do about my father."

She looked at him in alarm, "Is he all right? What happened? Please, I need to—"

"All in good time, my dear, but first, tell us what we don't know."

Jaime hadn't been lying when he said that he and Brienne were not there to judge her. Their faces were open and honest, ready to hear what she had to say, so she told them everything. She concluded her story by trying to explain why she had gone to such great lengths to get away from Tywin, "I love him more than anything, but I know him. I know what he's like as a father, and I didn't want that for my child."

"And what is he like as a father?" Jaime's voice was hard and his lips had thinned in displeasure.

Sansa wasn't intimidated though, after all, he couldn't hold a candle to Tywin. "He's manipulative, uncaring, sometimes cruel, other times neglectful. He never had a kind word to say about your brother and sister."

"You're not wrong."

"Then why are you so angry?"

"I'm angry because you never stopped to look at his reasons. My mother died giving birth to Tyrion. My father loved her more than anything else in the world, including his children, but he did his duty by us, by all of us. Is Tyrion treated with scorn and derision? Yes, but as of the last decade or so, it has more to do with his excessive whoring, drinking, and lack of respect for his family name. Cersei is an alcoholic who has spent the last decade drinking herself into an early grave. Her children are the product of an affair, which has been over for quite some time, with her twin brother. That's me, in case you were unsure. Now, my father, being aware of all of this, has never turned his back on us, though Tyrion continues to cut it rather close, and I doubt he ever will.

"But instead of giving him a chance to try again, you ran. You made him think his child wasn't his, that you didn't love him, that you were going to marry the grandson of his greatest rival. Wouldn't it have been easier to talk to him about your concerns? I think you ran because you were afraid of something else entirely: you were afraid of what your parents, your friends, the whole godsdamned world would think of you for fucking an old man and having his child. And do you know what that makes you, Sansa Stark? A godsdamned coward, which is the most un-Stark-like thing you could ever be. Am I wrong?"

Sansa had spent months burying that piece of truth beneath all of her excuses, half-lies, and insecurities about why she ran. She knew that her fears regarding Tywin as a father were not unfounded, but Jaime was right. Sansa didn't want her parents to look at her with disappointment and horror; she didn't want people whispering behind her back. "No, you're not wrong."

"Godsdamned right I'm not."

"But I wasn't wrong to do what I did."

"I know that, but it can't go on like this. He's a monster to be around and it's your fault."

Sansa felt terror rising in her, clawing at her insides, but she had to ask him anyway, "What should I do?"

"Fucking fix it! I don't care how, just fix it."

"What should I do if I can't?"

"Hole yourself up in the North and be grateful that wars are fought with pens and lawyers instead of men and swords. Although, he might be so ecstatic at your return that you'll end up imprisoned in our ancestral home for the rest of your life. Or, he could marry you. You won't know until you confront him."

"And you would be okay with that, him marrying me?"

"If it stops him from trying to rip my head off every time I see him, then yes."

Jaime and Brienne left her a little while later. Her mind and emotions were in chaos.

She'd just put her life back together. What would she do if he tore it apart?

But what if he listened, what if he took her back and forgave her, and what if he agreed to try to be a good father? There were too many what ifs and not enough answers.

It was time for her to stop being a coward and muster the incorrigible Stark optimism because she had a lion to fight.