Petyr Baelish smiled broadly at Sansa as she made her way into the High Hall of the Arryns and took her place next to Arya. "I am glad you were able to join us for supper, my dear. I was beginning to wonder if you were taking up training as a healer."

"No, my lord." She poured a glass of wine and took a small sip.

"And yet you have been spending a great deal of time with Morwen, helping her with the Hound."

Sansa nodded her thanks to a server as he handed her a plate. "Sandor Clegane was the only protector I had in King's Landing. I would have been dead, or worse, without him. I simply wish to repay his kindness by ensuring he is well cared for."

"The only protector?" Baelish eyed the girl speculatively and she blushed.

"Forgive me, my lord. I...that is…"

"No, that's all right, Sansa." Baelish toyed with his goblet. "I helped you escape from King's Landing, but I wasn't able to protect you during your time there."

Sansa smiled gratefully. "That is all I meant, my lord."

"I know some terrible things happened to you. I heard an ugly tale of how during the riot the mob raped you and no one came to your defense but somehow you escaped with your life..."

"That's not true!" Sansa sputtered indignantly. "The Hound saved me before anyone could do anything to me! He was so brave…" She stopped talking and drained her glass, refilling it with a shaky hand.

Baelish was watching the girl's reaction to his fabricated story with great interest and now he said smoothly, "It seems there is more to the Hound than I realized. I will be glad when he is well and I can give him a fitting reward."

Arya opened her mouth, then winced as Sansa kicked her under the table. The younger girl heeded the mute warning and the rest of the meal passed in silence until Baelish excused himself with a plea of pressing business and left the sisters alone.

"I want to see the Hound," said Arya fiercely. "I haven't been able to see him since that first day and I'm not going to be kept out any more."

"Arya, please…" Sansa understood Arya's wish to see Sandor, but he was still delirious at times and she dreaded the thought that he might say something about Baelish and their father to her little sister. She was determined to talk to the Hound first and find out if there was any truth to what he had said. If Baelish had betrayed their father, there would be time enough to tell Arya about it, but she didn't want her sister to be tortured with wondering what had really happened, or confronting Baelish.

"No!" Arya slammed back from the table and stood up, her fists clenched. "He told me I was lucky to have him to protect me, he said he saved you from rapers, and I didn't believe him. I called him a liar..."

"So now you want to apologize?" Sansa sighed. "Arya, I want to talk to him too, but he's been too sick. He hasn't been making much sense."

"I don't care about that. Every time I tried to get in, that healer or her assistants stopped me. And you've been in and out every day, and you're not the one who lived with him for months. You're not the one who traveled all over Westeros with him."

"And you're not the one he pulled out of a riot!" Sansa's eyes filled with tears and Arya abandoned her anger and put her arms around her sister.

"So it's true? They were going to…"

Sansa put her hand over Arya's mouth. "Don't say it. Please don't...I can't stand to think of it, I still have nightmares about it."

"But he saved you?" Arya's eyes widened as Sansa nodded. "We can't let Littlefinger hurt him, Sansa. He's the only one I trust, he's the only one who can get us away from here."

"And where would we go?" Sansa asked wearily. "Mother and Father and Robb are all dead, Winterfell is gone, and I'm a fugitive from justice, accused of poisoning the king. Where in the Seven Kingdoms would we be safe?"

"We could leave the Seven KIngdoms," said Arya. "We can go to Braavos-I have friends there."

"What friends?"

Arya avoided her sister's eyes. "Well, maybe not friends. But Syrio came from Braavos…"

"Syrio?"

"My sword-master." Arya lifted her chin at the look on Sansa's face. "Father hired him to teach me how to use Needle properly."

"And you think he's in Braavos?"

"No." The younger girl stared at the floor. "He was killed by Meryn Trant, saving my life...the guards attacked us and Syrio fought them off so I could get away. He gave his life for me...maybe he had friends or even family in Braavos. And the Hound could get us there and probably find work as a guard or a sellsword…" Arya's voice rose at the look on Sansa's face. "It's better than nothing! I didn't want to come here and I don't want to stay here."

Sansa took Arya's hands. "We can't do anything by ourselves. We have to wait until Sandor is better. Once we can talk to him, we can decide what to do, together."

Baelish turned away from the intricately carved panel that hid a secret passage to the hall. Lysa, pathetic jealous woman that she had been, had had the passage constructed years ago, shortly after her marriage to Jon Arryn, so she could spy on him when he was in council. She had shown Baelish the passage after he asked her to marry him, and he had been amused. Now he was grateful for his dead wife's distrustful nature. So Sansa thought she was going to run away from him, and with Sandor Clegane of all people. Baelish would have to give serious thought to the matter. The Hound would have to be disposed of, but in a manner that left Baelish blameless in the eyes of the Stark sisters, and that would not be easy as they were already suspicious of him. It was a pity he hadn't died of his infected wound, but the healer was sure he would recover completely. Selling him to the Lannisters was out of the question-the sisters would come to hear of it sooner or later. Baelish smiled, and a very unpleasant smile it was. It was the sort of challenge he enjoyed, getting rid of an enemy in a way that allowed him to escape accusation.

It fell out that the day after Baelish spied on Sansa and Arya, the Hound's fever finally broke and he rapidly improved in health until less than a week later he requested a private audience with the Lord Protector of the Vale. Baelish waited until he knew Sansa and Arya had retired for the night before going to the Hound's room, consumed with curiosity. He knew that both girls had been helping the healer with him, and he was sure they must have all talked a great deal about what they planned to do, but even his fertile imagination could not come up with a reason why the Hound would want to see him.

He knocked softly on the door and was admitted by Morwen, who pursed her lips in disapproval. "My lord, to come so late when my patient still needs his rest…"

"All I need is for you to leave." The Hound scowled at the old woman and she huffed indignantly.

Baelish grinned. "Morwen, I think he's safe enough to talk for a few minutes. I won't stay longer than that."

She threw her hands in the air. "Spend the night if you like! It's off to bed for me...I'll not stay longer nursing this ungrateful uncooperative…" She went around Baelish, slamming the door behind her, and he looked gravely at the Hound.

"Have you been giving the best healer in the Vale difficulties, Clegane?"

Sandor got out of the bed and started to dress. "She may be a fine healer but she's a bossy old woman and I no longer need her services. I no longer need anything but my reward so I can be on my way."

Baelish looked keenly at the other man. The Hound's face was pale and drawn and his hands trembled with weakness, but there was a determination in his face that brooked no argument. "Just how much of a reward were you thinking?"

"A hundred gold dragons." The Hound sneered at the look on Baelish' face. "Come now, my lord, we both know you'll have ten times that hidden somewhere and Arya Stark would be cheap at twice the price, or her weight in gold, for that matter. Of course, if you don't want to pay me, I'll have to stay if I have no money to tide me over until I find a place to catch on."

"You would leave Sansa and Arya? I thought you were their friend," said Baelish slowly.

"I did what I did for Sansa Stark to curry favor in King's Landing with Joffrey and the queen," said the Hound with brutal frankness. "And I held onto Arya Stark for ransom. I can't help what they got into their little heads. Do I get my money or do I stay?"

Baelish shrugged and gave his toothiest smile. "You get your money."