A/N: I'm not really sure about the funeral rites in the Stormlands, but I went for burial based on this conversation between Jaime Lannister and Loras Tyrell in A Storm of Swords:

"What did you do with Renly?" "I buried him with mine own hands, in a place he showed me once when I was a squire at Storm's End. No one shall ever find him there to disturb his rest."

Thank you for reading! Hope you are still enjoying the story :D

The sight of the castle was a great relief to Stannis. Storm's End, at last. Home, at last. Far, far away from all the plotting, scheming and falseness of King's Landing.

Or perhaps not far enough, Stannis thought, as he watched his father-in-law thoughtfully. Rickard Stark had asked Stannis a great many questions about the king and Prince Rhaegar during their journey, questions that did not seem merely designed for polite conversation.

"Lya! Lya! Stannis! You're back. You came back!"

Renly's shouting and yelling irritated Stannis. Maester Cressen should really watch the boy more carefully, he thought. And yet Renly's look of amazement and astonishment that his brother and his sister-in-law came back from their trip after all - unlike his mother and father, unlike Robert - caused a sliver of pain to Stannis.

It was to Lyanna that Renly ran, embracing her tightly as if he was afraid she would disappear if he ever let go. Lyanna kissed the top of his head, smiled, and asked. "Have you been a good little lord while Stannis is away?"

"Yes!" Renly replied excitedly. "I checked the household account and Maester Cressen let me sit at the table when he was meeting with the stormlords." He turned to Stannis. "Grandfather Estermont was here. He wants to speak to you once you're back, Stannis. He said it is very, very important," Renly said, his tone solemn and full of boyish self-importance.

Rickard Stark laughed. "My, what a conscientious boy," he said, giving Renly a smile.

"Renly, this is Lord Rickard Stark, Lyanna's father," Stannis made the introduction. "This is my younger brother, Lord Stark. I apologize for his unruly behavior. He has been indulged far too much by too many people," Stannis said, gazing meaningfully at Maester Cressen. And at his wife. The maester looked away, Lyanna did not. She raised her eyebrows instead.

Renly was suddenly looking very serious and courteous. "It is a great honor to meet you, Lord Stark," he bowed. He turned to Ned. "And you must be Ned Stark, Robert's good friend."

Benjen laughed, and then replied before Ned could. "How do you know I'm not Ned Stark?"

"You have laughing eyes. Robert said Ned has sad eyes." Renly was looking around uncertainly, suddenly a small boy again, vulnerable to the world. His gaze finally fixed itself on Ned again. "Am I right? Are you Ned?"

Ned knelt down, so that his face was level with Renly's. "Yes, I am Ned," he said softly. "Your brother Robert is … was ... a good friend of mine."

Renly nodded, satisfied. "Will you tell me stories about Robert when he was a boy? I always ask Stannis, but he would never tell me."

Ned nodded. "Yes, if you would like that."

Maester Cressen cleared his throat and spoke to Stannis. "My lord, our guests must be tired after the long journey. Their rooms have been prepared, perhaps they would like to retire and rest before dinner?"

"Yes, of course. Will you show them to their rooms, maester?" Stannis replied.

Cressen looked distracted, Stannis thought. He wondered what could be the matter.

"Patchface is ill again," Renly whispered to Stannis as they were walking inside. "Maester Cressen has been worried."

"What's wrong with him?" Stannis asked.

"A fever. It's not the contagious type, Maester Cressen said, but he won't let me see Patchface. Why can't I see him if his fever is not contagious?"

"I don't know. Ask Maester Cressen," Stannis replied, distracted himself, his thoughts wandering to the day the fool first came to Storm's End. He missed Renly's look of disappointment.

Lyanna tried to pacify the boy. "If Patchface is ill, then he needs to rest. You can see him when he's better."

"I don't want to play with him, or disturb him, I just want to visit him," Renly replied, pouting. "Will you ask the maester, Lya? If I can see Patchface?"

"Yes, I will ask him later," Lyanna replied. "But it's been a long journey, and we need to rest for a bit before dinner."

Renly was still holding on to Lyanna's hand, looking reluctant to let go. But he finally did. "You have to tell me all about the tourney later. Promise me? Promise me, Lya?"

"Of course," Lyanna smiled.

But it was mostly Benjen telling Renly about the tourney at dinner that night, with Lord Rickard chiming in here and there. Lyanna's father seemed very charmed by the little boy. Renly was excited, smiling, laughing and clapping his hands. Lyanna looked distracted, and worried. Perhaps it was a mistake telling her the things he did the night before they left King's Landing, Stannis thought. But he had wanted her opinion on the matter. He needed to know if he was worrying over nothing. But Lyanna's reaction had assured him that he was not. She thought it worrying too, the things the king and the crown prince had said to Stannis.

So Lyanna's remark about Rhaegar unburdening himself to her, sharing his troubles with her, had absolutely no bearing on your decision to tell her? A stray voice whispered in his head.

No. Absolutely not, he silenced the voice, firmly. This was not the time for self-doubt.

Ned was silent too, Stannis noticed, his eyes straying and glancing at his surrounding, not really taking in the conversation.

Do you see him too, Ned? I see him still, every day. Sitting at the head of the table, barking orders, drinking and laughing and clapping everyone's back, beloved and admired, the rightful lord of Storm's End.

"Robert said you have two brothers, Ned, just like him. Where is your other brother? Didn't he want to come to Storm's End?" Renly was asking Ned. "It's the strongest castle in the Seven Kingdoms," Renly declared proudly. "It has never been breached, not since the day King Durran built it."

Stannis chastised his brother. "You should not exaggerate and brag. Or ask questions about things that do not concern you."

And Stannis did not think it was right for Renly to call Ned Stark 'Ned' either, as if they were old friends too.

It was Lord Rickard who replied. "Oh, don't be too hard on him, Stannis. He's only curious. Boys are always curious, that's their nature. And Storm's End is a very strong castle. Almost as strong as Winterfell." He winked at Renly. Renly smiled, delighted.

Rickard Stark continued. "Well, Brandon is Ned's older brother. And my oldest son."

"And your heir," Renly chirped.

"Yes. We can't both be away from Winterfell for too long, so I told him to go home first. And his wife went with him."

"Because there must always be a Stark in Winterfell," Renly said.

"Clever boy. What a clever, clever boy," Lord Rickard said. He turned to look at his daughter. "I hope my grandson will be as clever as Renly."

"Or granddaughter," Lyanna replied. "It could be a girl I'm carrying."

Stannis spent the rest of the night consulting with Maester Cressen, the old maester reporting on what had been going on while Stannis was away. Most of it involving disputes between various lords, Stannis was not surprised to find out. King Aerys' words rang in his ears. "Make me a lord, make me a richer lord, take my side in the dispute with that other lord, bring down my taxes."

Oh yes, I understand, Your Grace. I understand perfectly well how infuriating it can be at times. But it is our duty, we have no choice in the matter.

"My grandfather was here?" He asked Cressen, to drown out the king's voice in his head.

"Yes, my lord. Regarding his dispute with Lord Penrose, about the hunting ground."

Stannis frowned. "I have made my decision about that. We have ascertained that the woods in question falls within the border of Lord Penrose's land. A letter has been dispatched to Lord Estermont to inform him of that, if I recall."

"Yes, Lord Estermont has received that letter, my lord. He was here to appeal his case to you personally."

"To use his position as my mother's father to try to influence my decision, you mean," Stannis grumbled. "I am the lord of the Stormlands, my duty is to all the lords here, not just to House Estermont. I can guess what my grandfather will say, by the way. He will say that were Robert still alive, Robert would be more sympathetic to his claim."

"Lord Robert did not always take his side either. Not if Lord Estermont was truly in the wrong," Cressen replied.

"My grandfather does not hold me in the same regard as he held Robert. He told my mother once I was a strange boy. A very strange boy. He has never liked me, not when I was a boy, and certainly not now that I am a man."

"Perhaps," Cressen said softly, almost warily, "you do not have to make your dislike of him so clear too, my lord."

"I don't dislike him," Stannis said, surprised. "I dislike his expectation that he should be given special treatment because he is my grandfather. The law is the law, justice is justice, blood and familial relationship notwithstanding."

Maester Cressen was looking at him with a compassionate expression on his face. Don't, Stannis thought. I don't want your pity. "Anything else?" Stannis said sharply.

"I have arranged for a feast to be held three days from now. Most of your lords bannermen will be attending. Except Lord Connington. His castellan sent his apology, Lord Connington is still in King's Landing it seems, and his return date is not yet certain."

A deeper frown from Stannis. "I never commanded you to arrange a feast."

The maester smiled. "Well, naturally I assume you had forgotten to put that in your letter, my lord. Of course you would want to hold a feast to honor your father-in-law. It is his first time visiting Storm's End after all."

You know me well enough by now to know that I do not forget things, old man. But he let it go.

Ned Stark walked in at that moment. He looked apologetic when he saw Stannis. "Forgive me, I did not know you're with Master Cressen. I'll come back later."

"No, I was just leaving, you can have the maester all to yourself." Stannis wondered what it was Ned wanted to say to the maester that he could not say in front of Stannis.

"I wonder if Maester Cressen could show me where Robert is buried, tomorrow morning. Lyanna looked very tired tonight, I don't want to disturb her," Ned said, before Stannis had left the room.

Before Cressen could answer, Stannis replied first. "I can show you. Be at the stables at first light tomorrow."

Ned looked surprised at the offer, but nodded. "Of course. Thank you, Stannis."

Ned was already waiting at the stables when Stannis arrived there the next morning. They rode in silence, neither of them speaking or trying to make conversation. And yet it was not an awkward or uncomfortable silence, as Stannis had expected.

"This is it," Stannis said, when they reached the spot, overlooking Shipbreaker Bay. They both dismounted from their horses. Stannis had asked Lord Arryn that Robert's body be sent back from the Vale, to rest beside Steffon and Cassana Baratheon. Ned knelt down in front of their graves first, his mouth mumbling something silently. Praying to his tree gods? At Robert's grave, Ned touched the soil, smoothing it over at first, then clenching it tightly with his balled fist. Stannis looked away. He felt like he was intruding on something he should not be present for.

I should have let Cressen show him the grave.

"If you or your father and brother would like to pray, there is a godswood close by," Stannis said after a while.

Ned looked up. "Did you have it built for Lyanna?"

Stannis shook his head. "No, Robert did, after the betrothal."

"He never told me," Ned said, his voice almost a whisper.

"He meant it as a surprise, I suppose," Stannis said with a shrug.

"Robert would have delighted in something like that," Ned said, smiling. "He would have loved seeing the shock and the joy on Lyanna's face when she found out." Ned looked remorseful suddenly. "I'm sure Lyanna was very happy when you showed it to her."

"It was Maester Cressen who did that," Stannis replied.

And as far as Stannis could tell, Lyanna had not spent a lot of time praying in the godswood. She seemed almost indifferent to it, in fact. Well, that's something we have in common, at least. Indifference to the gods, Stannis thought.

He remembered what it was he had wanted to say to Ned Stark ever since King's Landing. "Don't think about the dead so much that you forget the living."

Ned looked uncertain, hesitant. "What do you mean?" He finally asked.

"Your brothers are still living. Your real brothers. Your sister as well." Too harsh? Stannis thought not.

Ned took it unflinchingly. "I understand. Thank you for the reminder. May I return the favor with a reminder of my own?"

"Go ahead."

"It does not do to compare yourself to the dead too much. We will always fall short, people only remember the good about the dead," Ned said gravely. Stannis tried to hide his look of astonishment, but failed completely.