The news of Bran's fall was something that rocked Winterfell to its core. Everywhere Sarah went, she could hear whispers and murmurs of it. People speculated how it had happened. Some said that it was a tragic accident; others said it was the Gods lashing out, and others dared to suggest that someone had pushed him.
Sarah did not know how it had happened, and she did not know why it had happened. She deemed it necessary to ignore the gossip.
She had never been one to act selfishly. She had never dared do anything selfish whilst on Dragonstone. She had always thought that it was her place to care for Shireen. She had always found it necessary to be there for her mother. She often wondered what would happen if she left her mother alone.
But Bran's fall seemed to bless Sarah with what she needed; time to escape.
Beren wasted no time in moving whilst the rest of Winterfell mourned and talked. He readied the horses and made no sure no one watched him. It seemed as though no one had time for the King's niece whilst his best friend's son lay injured in bed.
Sarah kept herself wrapped in her cloak, holding it tightly around her body before she dared to leave the safety of her chambers. Beren had told her to come to him at nightfall. No one would be watching, and the grounds would be silent.
She did as she had been told, keeping her head down and her hood over her face. She couldn't help but think that Ser Jaime would randomly appear. The man had a talent when it came to that.
She was still in two minds of what to think about Ser Jaime. She knew that he was arrogant. He was ruthless with a blade, and ruthless with his words. He was a man who often got what he wanted. She could see that. Yet she couldn't help but feel that there was something else about him; something more than ruthlessness.
"My Lady."
Sarah stopped moving as she heard a sudden gruff voice. She turned on her heel and moved her hood to rest on her shoulders. Her black hair fell from the material and she curtseyed in front of the man before her.
"Lord Robb," she replied. "I am very sorry to hear of your brother."
Robb Stark seemed to be a man of few emotions to Sarah. She'd never truly gotten to know him, and she didn't really mind. She didn't want to know him. But she could see the anguish in his face. Seven Hells, Bran was his brother. If anything happened to Shireen then Sarah knew that she wouldn't be able to stomach it.
"Thank you," Robb replied to her, his words hardly sincere. "I was returning from visiting him when I saw you."
"How is he?"
"Sleeping," Robb spoke, his hand running down his chin. "I never spoke to you of our marriage."
"You have no need to," Sarah responded. "There will be no marriage. You have more pressing matters to deal with."
Robb seemed to look uncomfortable in Sarah's presence. Not that the girl minded; she needed him to leave so that she could go herself. She kept silent for a few moments, waiting for Robb to leave her alone. She could see dark circles forming under his eyes and she could have sworn his orbs were red raw from crying.
"I still believe there is a marriage if the rumours are proved wrong," Robb commented to her. "Or is that no longer true?"
What did he want from her? He had never wanted to marry her. He had never wanted to be with her. He had to let her be soon enough.
"I believe that to be true," Sarah nodded to him. "However, in the meantime, you should really look after your siblings. It is your duty."
"Duty," Robb whispered the word, doing his best not to sound too scared at the thought of what could happen to Bran.
"I have a little sister," Sarah replied, daring to offer a comforting hand on his arm. Robb looked down at the contact, freezing for a moment and feeling his spine stiffen. "Shireen means the world to me. I can only imagine how you are feeling, and even then, I don't want to imagine."
Robb said nothing to her, a loud gulp moving down his throat as he thought about Bran and what he was going through.
"Thank you," Robb whispered. "Anyway, where were you going? It is late at night."
"I was on my way to the Godswood," Sarah lied to him. "I sometimes go there to think."
"At this hour?"
"I sometimes find this hour to be the finest," Sarah whispered. "I shall be fine, my Lord. I have one of my father's guards waiting for me outside."
"I shall take you to him," Robb nodded. "What kind of a man would I be if I didn't?"
"If you are certain," Sarah said with a blunt nod.
She allowed Robb to take her arm and lead her outside. She spoke quietly in the dark, looking out for Beren. She soon found him in the distance, stood by the stables. She noted his brow furrow in front of her as he took a step forwards and bowed in front of the pair of them.
"Lady Sarah," he spoke. "Lord Robb."
"Beren," Sarah replied, her voice confident. "Lord Robb was escorting me to you before we leave for the Godswood."
"I see," Beren said, knowing that Sarah was lying. He went along with it, offering her his arm.
Sarah released Robb and she curtseyed with haste. "I will pray for your brother, my Lord."
"I thank you, Lady Sarah," Robb said back to her with an incline of his head. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight, my Lord," Sarah said.
"My Lord," Beren responded to him.
The two of them remained in the shadows, watching as Robb left them alone. Sarah turned to look Beren and she nodded, pulling her cloak tightly around her body.
"Is everything ready?" she checked with him.
"Everything is in place," Beren promised her. "The gates are open and the sky is clear. We should have a clear ride for this evening before heading to the coast."
"I understand," Sarah said. "Thank you again, Beren. This means a lot to me."
"Aye, it means a lot to both of us," he assured her. "We could be in trouble if we're caught. You know that, don't you?"
"I have an idea."
...
Jaime didn't know what to think when he received the news the following morning. Sarah Baratheon had gone missing with Beren. The last person to see them had been Robb Stark.
Jaime didn't bother to indulge in the gossip. He kept quiet as he sat at breakfast and his sister told him the news. She sat next to him and hissed in his ear, still annoyed with what he had done the day before. He'd gone against her in favour of the little chit, and then he had pushed Bran from a window.
It was almost as if he wanted to be caught.
"And what do you want me to do about this?" Jaime asked from his sister. "Stannis knows nothing. Her marriage has been called off. Why should she stay in Winterfell?"
"Stannis knows more than you think, Jaime," his sister contradicted him. "He was talking with Jon Arryn."
"He will not act on what he knows. They are simply rumours, Cersei."
Jaime sipped on the water as his sister straightened out in her seat, looking at the food on the table. She couldn't stomach any of it to eat.
"The girl was meant to be leverage," Cersei drawled, tapping her fingers against the wood of the table. "The King has sent some men after her."
"Has he?" Jaime wondered. "Why is he concerned over this?"
"Her marriage to Robb Stark could still go ahead if she is found not to be barren. However, you seem to be against the idea of giving her moon tea." Cersei reminded her brother.
Jaime kept quiet for a few seconds, a confident smirk on his face as he lowered his goblet back onto the table. He turned his gaze back to his sister and cocked his head to the side, wondering if he would ever be able to appease his sister on anything. She always worried. She worried about everything, and Jaime knew that she was worried more than anything.
"The girl didn't deserve that, Cersei. She is innocent in all of this," Jaime replied. "And now she will go and hide on Dragonstone. Stannis will not attempt anything, Cersei. He has no proof. You need to stop worrying. It will do no good."
"Whereas you never worry about anything," Cersei said with a harsh voice.
"Worrying never does anyone any good," Jaime promised her, draining his water before he stood up and looked down at his sister. "I should go to the King. I assume he will want someone to guard him this morning."
"Yes," Cersei snarled, "run along and do your duty."
Jaime was tempted to snap back at his sister as he turned his head over his shoulder to look back at her blonde curls. He moved away from her and allowed his mind to turn to Sarah. He smirked as he thought of the girl and how she had managed to escape during Winterfell's flurry of activity.
"Clever," Jaime muttered to himself. "Clever girl, indeed."
...
Dragonstone was as dull as Sarah had remembered. The journey had taken days on end of travelling. Sarah had managed to gain some sleep on the boat before she was told that Dragonstone was upon them. Her mind had been full of worry the entire way. She had wanted to know why her father had declared her presence necessary. What could be so important?
She suspected she would soon find out.
Docking took a while and Sarah followed Beren from the ship and to the port. She walked quickly before noticing a familiar face at the end of the port. Sarah did her best to refrain from running towards her little sister.
However, Shireen didn't have that restraint. The young girl escaped from her mother's grasp on her shoulder. She rushed forwards and Sarah's smile widened. She crouched down and opened her arms, urging for her little sister to hurry towards her.
"Sarah!" Shireen cried out, holding onto her sister around her neck. Sarah's arms slid around Shireen's waist and she wrapped a hand into her hair. "I've missed you so much!"
"I've missed you too, Shireen," Sarah replied, standing up and taking hold of her sister's hand. "How have you been?"
"I've been fine," Shireen promised her. "Father came home earlier. He wasn't very happy. He said that there is something bad happening. Mother didn't tell me what he meant. She told me to go back to my chamber."
"I don't know," Sarah replied grimly. She kept hold of Shireen's hand and slowly made her way back to her mother as Beren spoke to her. "Where is father?"
"He is working," Shireen commented. "He is always working, Sarah."
"He's very busy," Sarah excused his behaviour.
"And mother is always with the red woman," Shireen whispered. "She scares me a bit. I don't know what to think about her."
"Melisandre?" Sarah checked.
She'd heard quite a bit about the fire priestess. She didn't exactly make Sarah feel at ease either.
"Yes," Shireen commented. "I don't say anything. I don't know what to say to her."
"You don't need to say anything," Sarah promised her sister. "Let me do the talking to mother."
Selyse watched as her daughter stood before her and she felt herself well up. Selyse stopped speaking to Beren and pulled her daughter into her arms.
"I have prayed for you to come back to me," Selyse whispered to her. "You have no idea how long I have longed for this day, Sarah. When I heard of your marriage...I knew that something had to happen to stop it. I knew that the God of Light would bring you back to me."
Sarah held her tongue, wanting to tell her mother that it was not the God who had brought her home. It had been Beren and fortunate timing.
"I have missed you too, mother," Sarah decided to say.
"I trust your journey was safe," Selyse said, sweeping Sarah's hair from her face. "Your father wishes to speak with you once he has finished speaking with the Onion Knight."
"Why did he bring me back home, mother?" Sarah wondered.
"You did your duty by him," Selyse replied, holding her head high. "It is your father who shall answer your questions if he so wishes to. It is not my place to speak for him."
Sarah took a deep breath and looked down to Shireen. The young girl kept quiet for a few seconds before nodding up to her sister. Shireen slowly moved her hand out, longing for her sister to stay with her again. She'd missed her more than she cared to admit. Sarah felt Shireen's moving hand and she took hold of it, their fingers closing around each other before they began the trek up to Dragonstone's castle.