Chapter 24 - Valar Morghulis
Once they finished their meal, Clint, Natasha, Arya, Gendry, and Hotpie left the inn. Natasha and Clint waited for the youths outside, closer to the forest, while Arya, Gendry, and Hotpie talked amongst themselves. Hotpie held something wrapped in cloth in his hands.
"They are looking for a Stark, and you want to go with them?" Gendry hissed at Arya. The wolf girl kept her mysterious coin in her left hand.
"They are looking for a Stark who doesn't exist," she whispered to him.
"Does it matter? They are looking for a Stark regardless," said Gendry, glancing back at the two foreigners. Arya gave a slight side-eye roll.
"They saved our lives," she rebutted.
"And when they find out who you really are, what do you think they will do?" Gendry challenged.
Clint watched the children argue.
"What do you think we should do with them?" he whispered to Natasha. She sighed, her hands wrapped around her in the stolen ropes with long flowing sleeves. Her round hood framed her face elegantly.
"Well, they're not exactly our highest priority," she noted sadly. Clint turned towards her.
"They're just kids…" he said.
"I know," she said, still gazing upon the three children, "Maybe they should come with us; we know nothing of this place," said Natasha, looking around at the green forest, the rustic inn, the people coming in and out of it, and the dirt roads. Arya pinched her coin between her fingers and walked up to them.
"Arry! What are you doing?!" hissed Gendry. She looked up at Clint and Natasha.
"Where will you go?" she asked.
"Wherever we can," Clint said plainly. Arya furrowed her brows, unsatisfied by the answer.
"Valar Morghulis," she said to both of them. Clint raised one eyebrow and exchanged a glance with Natasha in confusion. "Means 'All men must die'," she answered for them. Both remained silent. The wolf girl narrowed her eyes. "You're not from Braavos, are you?" Arya challenged. Gendry shook his head.
Before Barton could speak, Natasha said, "Люди могут умирать, но слова — никогда." Arya relaxed her face, curiously hopeful.
"What does that mean?" she asked innocently.
"Oh, I thought you knew?" the spy said cleverly. Arya waited. "Means 'People die, but words never.'"
Arya smiled. She smiled so hard her eyes practically lit up. It wasn't the answer Arya was looking for, but she liked this one even more. She put her coin back in her pocket.
Arya's voice quivered with a mixture of determination and vulnerability as she faced Clint and Natasha.
"I want to go with you," Arya practically begged, her gaze unwavering. She could hear Gendry heavily sigh. The weight of her decision hung in the air, a thread connecting her fate with theirs.
"Well … we do need a guide," said Natasha to Clint. Barton smirked at her. The wolf girl grinned happily. The smith's apprentice slowly joined her at her side.
"I guess that means … I'll go too," Gendry said reluctantly. "Hotpie?" he asked when his friend remained behind. He looked down at the object wrapped in cloth in his hands.
"I'm staying," he said sadly.
"You what?" asked Arya, surprised. Hotpie shyly looked up.
"I baked brown bread for the innkeeper; she said she never had better. She wants me to stay and apprentice for her. Anyway, it's not me the Brotherhood wants," he said, glancing at Natasha and Clint, "Besides, they can protect you far better than me." Arya smiled weakly. Gendry's face sank sadly.
"Well, I made you something," said Hotpie, handing her the clothed object. Arya took it gently and unwrapped it. Clint and Natasha looked over her shoulder. They couldn't make out the shape.
"What is it?" asked Clint.
"It's … a wolf," said Hotpie. Clint glanced at Natasha and shrugged his shoulders slightly.
"Yes, it is," Gendry lied kindly. Arya traced the shape with her finger.
"Well, be safe," said Hotpie.
"Yeah, you too," said Gendry.
"Don't get stabbed."
"You don't … burn your fingers."
Arya gazed sadly upon her friend, hoping this would not be the last time they saw one another. A lump formed in her throat. She wished she could freeze this moment. She held the taste of their shared memories and the warmth of his friendship in her hands.
"Goodbye, Hotpie," she said, not wanting to let those words leave her lips.
"Goodbye, Arry," he said. And just like that, they parted ways. A heavy burden weighed on Clint's and Natasha's shoulders as if they were responsible for their separation. They knew how it felt to lose someone. Natasha watched as Arya pinched off a piece of the bread, and she held out her hand. The wolf girl gave it to her. Natasha put it in her mouth and stopped walking. She turned around before the young cook completely disappeared into the inn.
"Hey, Hotpie!" she called. He looked back, surprised that the dangerous woman called for him.
"It's really good!" Arya could see her friend smiling happily in the distance.