CHAPTER TWO

290 AC

Fidgeting with the bottom of his formal dress uniform, the seven year old could not stop moving. Jon was nervous, more nervous than he had ever been. The Starks of Winterfell were vacationing at Starfall, an absolutely unheard of event in the history of Westeros. Not only them, but Jon's beloved home was also playing host to the Tyrells as well, along with Obara and Nymneria Sand. To anyone else, it looked like a mere coincidence but Jon could sense that it was something more. The adults in his life were planning something and, while he may not have known what it was, it made him infinitely curious.

"Stop moving," Ashara admonished to both of her children. Little two year old Elena was fidgeting worse than her brother, pulling on her black braids and sucking on her fingers. When her hand was not in her hair it was held in her brother's hand, the other one firmly plopped in her mouth, sucking on her thumb. Jon moved to take a nervous step back but a gentle hand on his shoulder stopped him. The two Sand Snakes were positioned behind him and he looked up to find Obara smiling at him.

Riding up to the castle was a large plume of people headed by a large man carrying the direwolf banner of House Stark. Just behind the banner rode a man that looked so much like Jon, he was taken aback. Gulian was his father but he looked nothing like the dark skinned, brown eyed Dornishman. This man, whom his mother informed him was Lord Eddard Stark, looked more like him than his own father. He had the same midnight dark hair, the same long face, and the same plae skin that could not seem to tan; though his eyes were a steel grey, rather than Jon's purple tinged stormy orbs.

"Lord Stark," Gulian called out in a friendly tone. He had known the man once, before the war, and he remembered him with the utmost fondness. Even though he had once been in love with the Dornishman's wife, he did not feel threatened, as he knew that Ashara had eyes for only him and their children.

"Please Gulian, that child makes me feel old," the northern lord gave a slight smile as the two embraced.

"Ned, it's good to see you."

A beautiful woman was the first to exit the carriage. She was tall and had the look of one from the Riverlands, not the North. She had cascading auburn hair that fell to her waist in luxurious cirls and eyes the color of shinning emeralds. In her arms she held a babe with her same features, wrapped in a grey and white blanket and giggling. Next came a little girl that, again, looked just as her mother did. Last was a boy Jon's age with the same red hair and blue eyes as his siblings.

"Arya," the woman, Lady Stark, called gently, and out of the carriage tumbled a child no older than one who clearly took after her father. She took her mother's outstretched hand with a pout and Jon was delighted to see himself in her.

Hugging the Lady of Winterfell, Ashara gushed, "Catelyn, it's so wonderful to see you." She was careful of the infant and cooed at him when she pulled away. "He's precious! What did you decide to name him?"

"Brandon, after his uncle. Bran, for short."

"It's a fine name. and this beautiful young lady must be Sansa, yes?" The four year old blushed and gave a rehearsed curtsy that could have put some of the highest court nobles to shame. "That would make this strong man Robb." The boy beamed up at her and the Lady of Starfall instantly knew that she had just won his heart forever. She then turned to the people behind her and introduced them one at a time. "This is my son, Jon, my daughter, Elena, and our two wards, Obara and Nymeria Sand."

"You foster bastards with your real children?" Lady Stark asked, only to be met with a growl. She looked up, expecting to see one of the Sand Snakes, and was shocked to find that the two teens were actually holding back the true perpetrator as Jon struggled to get free.

Shooting an incredulous look at the other woman, Ashara went over and kneeled before her son, speaking to him in a gentle voice, "Calm yourself, love. It does you no good to struggle." Her words seemed to help as the boy stilled. "Things are much different in the North then they are in Dorne."

"I'm not a bastard, Mama. People say I am, but I'm not," there were tears in his eyes and hurt in his tone.

"No, my love, you're not. But Nymeria and Obara are, and there's no shame in that." At that, she looked up at the two girls and gave them a look to assure them that she truly meant what she had said. She had come to care for the teenaged assassins greatly in the years since they had met and she would not allow anyone to hurt them, not even another high born lady. "Lady Catelyn, there is something that you must understand about Dorne. No one is less because of their birth, not here. Obara and Nymeria are treasured members of my household." Both girls looked oddly smug at the compliment. "If you could, I would ask you to respect them while you are here."

A sour look crossed the northern noble's face but it soon dissolved into a polite, courtly smile. With the tension eased, they were all led into the castle to meet in the library. Jon knew that he was supposed to be socializing with the newly arrived children but he stuck to Nymeria like glue, jumping on her as soon as his parent's backs were turned. He laughed wildly as she zigzagged through the halls to the astonished looks of the others. Obara followed them with little Elena on her shoulders and both giggled at their siblings' antics.

"Mama, can we go to the gardens instead?" Jon asked from his perch.

"Only if you take the Stark children with you," the Lady of Starfall smiled indulgently. "Oh, and Obara, Nym, keep them out of trouble and watch them."

The two Sand Snakes nodded and herded the little people towards the palace's lush and expansive gardens. There was a patch of plain grass surrounded by a grove of cherry trees that the children sat up in, Jon bringing his ball from where he had left it under his favorite tree. He kicked it to Nymeria and enticed Robb and Sansa so play with them. Obara stayed aside and played with Elena and Arya, although the youngest Stark girl seemed far more interested in the game that she was not allowed to join than the other little lady.

Jon found that he rather enjoyes the Stark children, even if they were not as loose and laid back as the Dornish. Robb was the first boy that he had ever met his own age, and the two were instantly thick as thieves. It was not long before the young heir to Sandstone was showing the northern boy down to the yard where the sparring ring was. Having been trained by the Sand Snakes and his Uncle Oberyn, Jon was excited to test himself against the unknown skills of the Stark heir, though they were told that they would have to wait until the morrow.

In the library, the adults sat discussing the details of their visit. Having left his little brother Benjen in charge of Winterfell, Lord Eddard and his family were staying in Dorne for several months on a long awaited holiday. He hoped that during their extended stay he, Ashara, and the Tyrells would be able to decide their plan of action for the coming years. He had not, however, expected Gulian Qorgyle to know of their dealings.

"The Tyrells will be here next week. There were some delays in Highgarden, I'm afraid," Gulian said, handing a cup of tea to his wife and kissing her forehead sweetly before taking a seat next to her on the small couch. "It does give us some time to relax before preparations must get underway."

Feigning Ignorance, Ned said, "What preparations?" as far as the Warden of the North knew, the only ones that possessed the knowledge of who Jon truly was were himself, the Princes Oberyn and Doran, and the Tyrells. He had not even told his wife of the real reason that they were in the south, though he had planned to explain it to her.

"Don't play dumb, Ned. It's never suited you," Ashara said playfully to her one time would be husband. She had loved him in her youth, before she had become a young mother to his nephew, but that time was long past. "Gulian knows."

"I thought we had agreed in our letters-"

"He's my husband, and Jon's father, what would you have me do?"

"How many others know?"

"Well, you've already met the only two that I've told, Obara and Nymeria. They're Oberyn's oldest daughters and they've been with us for more than a year."

"Is it customary to foster those of… lower birth?" though Catelyn tried to find a kinder word for the two bastards, her tone still held a note of disdain. Her own betrothed had fathered a bastard, as well as a hate for them in her heart. She had loved Brandon in her youth and the arrival of young Corren Snow had wounded her deeply. Though he lived with them at Winterfell, she had never been able to bring herself to love the boy. She hated herself for this, as the ten year old was an exceptionally kind and intelligent young man.

"As I said before, things are quite different here. Sand's can rise as high as any great house, and I have no doubt that Nym and Obara certainly will. They are fierce and oftentimes frightening, but they can also be extremely caring and gentle, especially with my children."

"Perhaps they can speak with… the boy." It pained her still to talk about him, but she would not offend their hosts again.

"The boy?"

"My brother Brandon fathered a son before the beginning of the war," Ned informed gently. "He's a good, hard working lad. Perhaps, you would consider fostering him as well?" He knew that he was asking a lot of his friends, but the Lord of Winterfell was sure, as soon as the idea came to him, that this was the best course of action for his illegitimate nephew. The boy's life at Winterfell was far from comfortable with Catelyn looking down on him every day. He could tell that here he would be well cared for, perhaps even loved.

Considering the question, Ashara asked, "How old is this boy?"

"Corren just turned ten."

"Prime age for fostering, though he is younger than the girls." Then, she considered another Sand Snake who would soon be joining them. She had agreed to house and train yet another of Oberyn's brood as a favor to the man. He hoped that the family could pull the girl out of her shell. "Actually, we have another ward arriving in about a week. Sarella is a year younger than Corren, but they will be close enough in age. It will be good to have them join the household at the same time. Did you bring the boy with you?"

Plans were made to introduce the child, who had stayed back at the caravan with Winterfell's master at arms, to the rest of Starfall's children. Though Catelyn thought it all very odd, the joy at fostering yet another child was clear on both Ashara and Gulian's faces. They seemed to have a natural affinity for children, as showcased by the barely noticeable baby bump that the lady was trying to hide.

That night, as Nymeria tucked Jon into bed, she had to marvel at the boy that she thought of as her own brother. He had so much love in his heart, even for strangers that he had just met, like the Stark children. Though Lady Ashara and Lord Gulian had always made her and Obara feel like part of the family, it was their son that made them feel at home. Both dreaded the day that they would have to leave Starfall and return to their father, for it meant leaving behind the young boy that had completely stolen their hearts.

"Nym, do you think she'll like me?" there was fear in his voice that would have been adorable had Jon not sounded so insecure.

The Sand Snake did not need to ask whom he meant, as he was referring to the only person that he had been able to speak of for days, Margaery Tyrell. She smiled down at him and said, "I'm sure she will love you, Jon."

"But what if she doesn't? She's supposed to marry me someday."

"Even if she does not like you now, I can assure that she will come to love you over time. Though, I severely doubt that she will be able to resist your charms."

"I wish I could just marry you, Nym. Mama said that marrying someone means that you spend the rest of your life with them, and I'd love to spend the rest of my life with you. You'd marry me, wouldn't you?"

"I'm a little old for you, don't you think, Little Spear?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

He breathed gently and soon drifted off to sleep, cuddled in the arms of the sixteen year old girl that he had just proposed to.