Chapter 5

"My lady, are you sure that this is the wisest option?" Ser Daavos asked, voice laced with doubt.

They had spent the past several hours revising plans and answering letters that came from Tyrells, Baratheons, Arryns, Martells and many others, all of which welcomed her home. And here I thought I was not missed she mused whilst reading each letter. Everra snapped her gaze towards his and said flippantly, "Yes I am quite sure, send the raven to tell Laria to sent the package to Magister Illyrio, tell him that I send my apologies and congratulations."

"Congratulations?" Ser Daavos could never quite tell what she was up too. She was like fog, it blinded you and confused you but occasionally it let you glimpse the path ahead. Unfortunately for him, it would probably show him the path too late and would let him fall off the cliff in his confusion.

"Yes congratulations.." She noticed his confused expression and her mouth curled up slightly at the sides,"You'll find out sooner or later."

They carried on answering and writing letters in silence, the only sound in the room was Andromache licking her paws. As Everra reached for another letter, Ser Daavos asked something that had been bothering him for many months, "My lady why are you helping the Starks?"

Everra's hand paused mid air and she brought her hand back to her lap, lacing it with the other. She diverted her gaze from his, and looked as though she was deciding something. Mistaking her silence for having upset her, Ser Daavos quickly spoke, "My lady, my apologies I did not mean to offend you-"

"You have not offended me, Daavos you have merely made me realise something," she said as softly as her voice could go. Everra knew that this question would come, she had just not prepared an answer for it. She hated it, not being prepared for something. Of all the years that she had been alive she had always prepared herself for everything, every question, every lie, every betrayal….. She hated not being prepared, it almost made her feel like a child again and gods know that she didn't want to feel like that.

She looked at him, her gaze lingering on his face and sighed softly, "To be perfectly honest Ser Daavos, I have no idea."

They both dropped the matter and continued on answering letters until the sun went down and it was time for supper. But they both knew she was lying. She knew why she was helping the Starks, she just wouldn't tell him. Wouldn't tell anyone for that matter. She wouldn't even fully admit it to herself.

She just wasn't ready.

Everra stood by the window, relishing in the feeling of the wind against her face. The moon was high up in the sky, not a cloud in sight. Her hair was tied in a loose braid and her white nightdress clung to her skin. It was late, all signs of life from the castle had gone. There were the few occasional guards but other than that everything was quiet, peaceful almost.

Everra hadn't been able to sleep,not that she slept well usually, when she was younger she used to be plagued with night terrors about monsters now, she only saw her that it was her guilt that was making her see them, she didn't cry out her apologies for killing them and they didn't ask for one. They all just stood there, arms opened as if preparing to hug her. Lord Gilbert, his son, his wife and gods know how many had slept by her feat and when she noticed that she couldn't sleep, she had laid her head across her mistresses's stomach in an attempt for comfort. Everra didn't know what this feeling was. Fear? Anxiety? Annoyance? Dread? She didn't know but she knew she didn't like it. But she didn't like anything that actually made her feel something, she preferred her usual numbness, it made things a lot less complicated.

Everra side and turned around, pacing. If she slept she dreamt of the dead, if she was awake she was reminded of the dead, It seems I just can't escape death. What was it they said ? If Death were a person, she would be it. Everra lay down on her bed again, feeling restless. Andromache purred softly and rubbed her head against Everra's stomach.

Everra stayed there for a few moments, but sleep wouldn't come to her. Frustrated, she kept out of bed and shrugged on a robe and made her way to the door. Maybe if she got some air she would finally be able to go to sleep.

Everra stopped slightly and turned around to look at Andromache who had leaped out of bed after her. Everra almost smiled down at the panther, whom she cared about more than anyone or anything since her mother died when she was four.

She shifted her fingers in front of her and gently tapped her side saying, "Follow me." And Andromache did, as usual. As Everra exited her room she decided to go up the stairs to the top of the tower. She hadn't been there since she was four and for good reason.

She shut her eyes and willed the sight out of her mind. No matter how much time had gone by, her mother was still a sore spot for her. But her mother was just a pile of bones now and Everra had never managed to forgive her mother for it.

As Everra stepped out onto the top of the tower, she immediately felt the wind blowing through her hair and could feel the coolness of the stone beneath her feet, not that it affected her anymore. As her eyes adjusted to the moonlight, she noticed that there someone else atop of the tower with her. She walked towards him, his back facing her but she knew whom it was, she just hadn't thought after all this time…

When she finally stood next to him, she leaned forward against the battlements and looked forward. Everything seemed so small, you felt so powerful standing here, you felt as though yo could see until the end of the world, could see everything happening all at once. It was no wonder why everyone in her father and his father before that and before that had been such power-hungry bastards.

"I did not expect you to come here," the man said, his voice cool but you could here the waver of emotion in his voice. Everra scanned his face briefly and looked up at the stars thinking that if maybe she had been different she would have been able to appreciate their beauty.

"Neither did I, Lord Edwin."

The man let out a sigh and tugged his fur cloak closer to him, struggling to keep warm. When he noticed her lack of warm clothing he almost spoke out before it dawned on him, she couldn't feel the cold anymore. He grimaced at the thought of what happened to make her that way and quickly apologised, "If its any consolation, I am sorry for what-"

"Don't," She spoke, the emptiness in her voice made him wonder if she was really alive. Her heart really is made out of stone, he realised. It made him regret not doing what they did sooner.

"I loved her you know, very much." He mean it too.

Everra let out a small sigh and tilted her neck to look at him briefly and then snapped her eyes forward, "I know you did, so did I incase you have forgotten."

The words were said with a hint of… loss. Lord Edwin sighed and ran one of his hands across his face, "There is a war coming, isn't there?"

When he didn't get a reply he continued on, "I can feel it. Its going to change everything isn't it?"

When she nodded slightly he walked beside her and sighed, "I don't suppose you will be telling me anything about it?" Again she shook her head, keeping her gaze towards the stars. Lord Edwin raised a hand to place on her shoulder but stopped mid air at the pointed look she gave him.

She stepped around him and made her way towards the door, not in the mood to have this specific conversation, "She wouldn't have wanted this you know! She would have wanted you to be happy," he called out after her.

Everra stopped mid-step and tilted her neck slightly towards the side and said, "Do yourself a favour Lord Edwin and never mention my mother in front of me ever again."

She strode out of sight, leaving the man alone with only his thoughts for company. Bitterness and grief pounded through his veins, until he almost felt like throwing himself off the battlements just like her.

Everra shielded away from the light from her window and turn onto her side, trying to go back to sleep. She slowly became aware of another person in the room and with her eyes still closed spoke out, "Whoever you are, you better have a good reason for being in my chambers at this hour."

Anna let out a small shriek and Everra could hear a small clatter as something fell onto the floor. Everra propped herself on her elbows and observed as Anna kneeled on the ground, quickly picking up the dress she had dropped.

"Apologies, my lady. I did not mean to- to- wake you," Anna stammered, quickly rising to her feet, fear evident in her voice.

"No need for apologies Anna, I had already woken." Everra slowly climbed out of bed and rubbed at her eyes, trying to get the mental image of Robb Stark with a dire wolf for a head out of her mind.

"Did you sleep well my lady?" Anna asked, quickly maneuvering around Andromache's large body on the floor to start fixing her bed. Everra looked back at her from where she was standing, "No not very well unfortunately."

"I could get a remedy from Maester Liwin if you'd like my lady."

"No, thats fine thank you."

Everra turned around and stared at the girl, frowning. Anna noticed her gaze on her and tried to hide her shiver of fear, "My lady is something amiss?" Her voice was small and wary, she had witnessed the recent 'dismissal' of Lord Gilbert. She did not know how much like her father Lady Everra was, but she prayed that she wasn't. Anna had seen firsthand Lady Everra's fathers mood swings…. many people had not ended up unscathed, her mother being one of them.

"Nothing," Everra spoke softly and turned to face her mirror. She had black circles around her eyes, making her emerald green orbs look as dark as the colour of her hair. Her hair had come loose from its braid and hung in loose curls around her.

"I was thinking that you could wear the dark blue dress today, my lady. Is that alright with you?"

"Yes, yes it fine," Everra replied indifferently and walked towards the centre of the room

After Everra had finished getting dressed, she noticed that Anna was walking stiffly and with a slight limp and could see a purple bruise fading from around her eye.

She leaned froward and gingerly tilted Anna's head upwards and frowned when she saw red marks around her neck. She noticed that Anna flinched the moment she played hands on her and Everra quickly snatched her hand back in realisation. But before she could question Anna about it, a servant knocked on the door calling out, "My lady, may I enter?"

"Yes, you may."

Anna had turned her face downwards in order to avoid Everra's questioning gaze because unlike many of the other servants who had looked upon her with empathy and pity, Everra's eyes were cold and unfeeling but they had hardened with… anger? Annoyance? Anna did not know, nor did she plan to find out.

The servant gently pushed the door open and shielded away from Andromache who was sleeping close to the door, noticing Everra's expression, he nervously tugged at his sleeves with his head facing the ground and said, "My lady, master Liwin asks for your presence in the dinner hall, he says that is incredibly urgent."

Everra nodded slightly and waved at the boy to get out, which he did glanced back at Anna and her gaze hardened slightly as cold fury crept into her heart, hardening it even more, "Stay here until I return. Understood?"

Anna nodded meekly and didn't raise her eyes to meet hers. Everra did not turn around to see Anna's reaction, she was already halfway out the door with Andromache following beside her.

"You asked for me, Maester?"

Everra strode quickly down the hall towards the table were Maester Liwin was sitting, two servants were scrubbing at the floor roughly, trying desperately to remove the stain of blood from the floor. She stopped where she stood as suddenly a rush of images of her stabbing Lord Gilbert's wife ferociously. She remembered how when she had finally calmed down her corpse had been so mangled that she had not looked human anymore. Everra ignored how the entire hall had gone quiet at the sight of her, how everyone had gone silent and terrified. She didn't particularly blame them. She would be scared of her too, as a matter of fact, she used to be afraid of herself too.

Eventually she realised that she was standing there in the middle of the hall, staring into nothing and quickly made her way down, sidestepping the two servants on the floor.

"My lady," Maester Liwin muttered and rose from his seat.

"Maester no need for pleasantries, you said it was urgent." Everra was not in the mood for delays.

"My lady a raven was sent from Kings Landing. The hand of the King has recently passed on and the King rides for Winterfell."

"I'll send my condolences to the King at once, Maetser thank you." Everra turned on her heel and just as she was about to walk out of the hall Maester Liwin called out "My lady wait! There is more."

Everra turned around expectantly, raising an eyebrow, "Well."

Maester Liwin shifted uneasily, "The King expects you to join them at Winterfell."

Everra nodded slightly and felt a wave of satisfaction run through her body, everything was going as planned. She noticed Maester Liwin's suspicious gaze and quickly said, "Well we'll start to prepare to leave at once."

As they busied themselves with plans for the journey, Everra noticed Ser Daavos enter the hall and caught his eye and mouthed 'Daor'. His eyes widened slightly and he suddenly looked grim.

The rise of the young wolf was approaching.

A/N Hello Everyone! Tried to update as quickly as I could, sorry its a short chapter though! Thank you to all of you who favourited and reviewed and followed, it really means a lot too me. So Everra is finally going to meet the Stark family and not just see them in her dreams. I was debating whether or not to do it in Robb or Everra's POV, I couldn't decide. Tell me what you think! oh and if everyone forgot why Everra can't get cold anymore its because her father left her in the snow for a few days straight in nothing but her nightdress.

Jafcbutterfly (, in response to your question on whether or not Everra will have a love interest (thank you for your review), I can't say no but I can't 100 percent say yes either. I mean there will be kissing and stuff in this story but this isn't a story of how Everra and (whoever) fell in love with each other and everything was sunshine and unicorns.

Thanks again! Tell me your thoughts!