The morning after, news from the south, a conversation with a Corvus and a dragon.
Jon
Jon and Sansa had spent all night in Summerhall, exploring and making love all over the ruins, or so it had seemed. When they finally got some rest, they woke in the cold bedroom of the King's Bedding Chamber. Even closing the voile didn't send them back to the beautiful warmth of Summerhall, which had been night when they left. Knowing Sansa's rooms would be warmed as they had instructed the fire to be kept lit until they decided to return. They both made water in the small privy and returned to the warmth of Sansa's chambers, where they curled up in the furs and fell back to sleep.
It was afternoon when they finally got up. Although they weren't supposed to be performing any duties, and the castle was pretty much asleep from the previous night's festivities, nothing truly stopped; bread still needed baking, animals needed feeding, the fires needed stoking... the list went on. Importantly, Jon wanted Tyrion Lannister to leave Winterfell. The dwarf hadn't just been on a mission to talk Jon into a marriage alliance with Daenerys, he was trying to stoke the fires of discord between the northern Lords. He'd also tried to persuade the Vale Lords to abandon the north and support Daenerys. He hadn't bothered with Lady Margaery, Jon suspected he would try reaching out through Dickon. Therefore, Jon and Sansa had ensured they appeared to be angry with one another to test the loyalty of their bannermen and allies. Those closest to them knew of the ploy, and they were split into divided loyalties. Davos, Edd and Pod had aligned with Jon, while Margaery and Brienne were with Sansa. Nobody of significance would talk to these close members of the royal council, however the castle staff and Winter Town smallfolk were a different matter. This was where Lady Margaery was a genius. She had a way with the children and how to make the smallfolk feel special. Jon had told her it was something she did a lot in Kings Landing. Clearly for her own gain, but it looked good to outsiders. This also allowed her to recruit spies, and they had become of great use to them since Tyrion arrived. Bronn's arrival had put them on an even higher alert.
"Do you think he's gone?" Sansa asked as Jon returned from the privy.
"Tyrion? Aye, If he knows what's best for him." Jon nodded sitting beside her on the bed, stroking her hair, which was messy from their almost non-stop coupling. "You alright?"
"A little sore." Sansa admitted, blushing. "But considering how many times..."
"I didn't mean that." Jon blushed. "Sorry.."
"No need. Is was worth it." Sansa smiled.
"I meant where I stabbed you in the chest." Jon frowned as she presented her naked breast, but there was no mark.
"There's nothing there, as if it never happened? Do you think you really did you stab me, or was it some strange vision?" Sansa seemed just as confused as Jon.
"If it were a vision, we were both in it together." Jon walked over to his clothes, which were laying over his usual chair next to the fire. He pulled Dark Sister from its scabbard and examined it. The blade was still white and shining. Jon touched it; the blade was hot, then suddenly it turned red. Jon dropped it from shock. He looked at the hand which had touched the blade, but there was no mark to suggest the presence of the scorching heat. Jon looked up at Sansa, who was gazing down in horror. She quickly climbed out of bed to examine the sword. "Don't touch it. It'll burn you."
"I'm not stupid!" Sansa rolled her eyes. "Let me see your hand, where it touched the blade." Jon showed her his hand. "You're a dragon..." she stopped and looked at his face. "Jon, come with me, over to the window." Jon followed her, the window wasn't open, but he could still feel the draft, he shivered a little.
"You'll catch your death wearing nothing." he japed.
"I'm a Stark, I don't mind the cold." she sighed. "Face me." she placed her hands on the side of his face and stared into his eyes, examining them. "They're still a dark blue/purple colour."
Jon rushed over to the mirror to look for himself. From afar, his eyes looked almost the same, but even from a distance it was clear they were different. On closer inspection, they were still grey, but with a background colour, which appeared to be as Sansa had described, a dark blue of purple. "Seven hells!" he cried. "When did that happen?
"I've seen them look like that before, on occasion. Only since I came back, but never this noticeable before. They turned more vivid while we were at Summerhall." Sansa told him. "I thought it was the vision which caused it. But clearly not." she frowned.
"Do you think people will notice?" Jon asked.
Sansa frowned. "Not from a distance. The skies are too grey; it will hide the change, and most people don't get close enough to you to see your eye colour. Those that know you well will see it." Jon's shoulders fell. Sansa placed her hands on his arms. "Jon, you are a Targaryen. You can't run away from it." She stroked his face and kissed him. "I need to use the privy." she said. "We should get dressed, speak with Davos, Brienne, Pod and Margaery about Lord Tyrion."
The council room was where the six of them met to find out what had transpired the night before in their absence.
"Lady Margaery, I feel I must apologise for my rude language last night..." Jon started.
"It is no trouble, your grace. I understand. I know it wasn't personal or directed at me." she smiled.
"Thank you." Jon nodded. "I suppose I should apologise to Lady Dustin." Jon nodded.
"Oh I think she quite understands. Lord Tyrion was far too intrusive in his desires to see that you were genuinely coupling or whether it was a mummer's farce, as he put it." she told them. Although you might have been too preoccupied with the task at hand." she blushed as Jon's temper flared up, Margaery looked at him strangely, and he knew she'd noticed his eye colour.
"What do you mean?" Sansa frowned. "We could barely see anything when the voile was down."
"He kept checking and shaking his head, saying that nothing was really happening, and that you weren't truly consummating the marriage." Margaery shook her head. "I have no idea what made him think that." she rolled her eyes. "I suspect he got quite the surprise when he saw what he saw before you cursed at him." she blushed.
"Does anyone know if he took my advice?" Jon asked.
"He left late this morning your grace." Brienne told them. "He departed with Lord Cerwyn."
"Are any of your spies with them?" Sansa asked the group.
"I have two." Margaery told them. "As soon as they return, I'll let you know what they say. So far none of the Lords seem to have been swayed by the charms of the Dragon Queen. On the other hand, I do hope Lord Tyrion hasn't taken your threat too seriously." she warned.
"What threat?" Davos asked.
"Jon threatened to steal her dragons." Sansa said, turning towards him and smiling.
"Does anyone know why Ser Bronn is really here?" Jon asked. "I don't trust Jaime Lannister."
"I might be able to offer some information." Margaery said. "I had a raven from my grandmother this morning. She was kidnapped by Ser Jaime's men." she smirked. "He stole all of the gold and grain too."
"And from where did your grandmother send her last raven?" Sansa looked concerned.
"From Hornvale, your grace. House Brax a proving to be the most gracious of gaolers. Although she has heard the Dragon Queen has attacked Casterly Rock, therefore she needs to move north. She couldn't confirm her route, although she has been told that her stay will always be most comfortable." Margaery told them.
"He's bringing her north." Davos said, glancing at Margaery who nodded. "He'd be daft to send them..." he stopped. "The Dragon Queen has her ships tied up in the south. Bronn told me Cersei has her ships around Kings Landing and the south." he frowned. "That's two lots of Ironborn fleets on opposite sides." he shook his head, staring down at the painted table. That's just asking for war. But that's to ours and hopefully Ser Jaime's advantage." he walked over to the western side of the map. "Ironman's Bay should be clear of the Ironborn. As long as they can get Lady Olenna to Banefort, she can sail her up round Blazewater Bay and up to Torrhen's Square. If we're lucky, the Ironborn will destroy themselves." Jon smiled, until he noticed the look on Sansa's face.
"Theon." she frowned. Jon couldn't feel sympathy for the man, although he did appreciate what he did for Sansa. She'd also told him that Theon sacrificed himself for Bran. Jon had forgiven him, but not enough to mourn him.
"He'll survive." Jon tried to reassure her. "If he can survive Ramsay, he can survive anything Euron Greyjoy throws at him."
After the meeting, Jon decided to visit the Godswood to speak with Bran. As soon as he touched the tree, he felt the presence of the Three-Eyed-Raven, then he saw Bran stood in front of him, the almost permanent blank stare he seemed to don these days was evident.
"Was that what you wanted? Me to stab my wife through the heart?" Jon asked.
"I needed you to trust in my instructions." Bran told him.
"Did it really happen? We were at Summerhall." Jon frowned.
"You were where you wanted to be. You both wanted to be together, somewhere away from the prying eyes of those who watched. When you visited the past; life your father, you felt an affinity towards Summerhall." Bran told him.
"Is it because it is magical?" Jon asked.
"Many people died there. It has its own magic, blood magic." Bran nodded. "I cannot say any more than that, for you must make your own decisions to be able to use the magic of Summerhall. Yours are not the only decisions to affect your future."
"So the only purpose of thrusting the sword into my wife's heart, was to make me trust you, yet you tell me nothing." Jon couldn't understand the logic of Bran's cryptic messages.
"No." Bran shook his head. "The sword needed a blood sacrifice, one from a heart of ice."
"A Stark?" Jon frowned.
Bran nodded. "Whether you really thrust it through her heart is irrelevant, she lives. Your lives are now forever intertwined. If you make the right decisions, you may have a beautiful future together."
"Can I ride the dragons?" Jon suddenly asked.
"You can do whatever you want." Bran smiled. "You have abilities most do not. You have noticed some changes."
Jon nodded. "I'm not affected by fire and my eyes are a dark purple-ish colour, in the right light."
"They always have been." Bran told him. "Just nobody noticed as it was so slight they would appear more blue than purple. Grey eyes change colour with many factors affecting them. You died, which is causing the colour change to be stronger, the paste has also had an effect. The change will become more noticeable over the coming days."
"Am I now immune to fire?" Jon asked, Bran nodded. Jon had had enough of talking about himself.
"Have you arrived at Bear Island?" he asked.
"The journey was an easy one. Your friend will return to you soon." Bran smiled for the first time.
"The army of the dead?" Jon finally asked.
"Contained behind the wall." Bran told him. "They will bring an eternal winter should they not be dealt with. You must find a way to destroy them from south of the wall. You must unite these lands to fight them and bring back summer. Goodbye for now, Aegon Targaryen. Remember, your parents made sacrifices for you, repay the debt." with that, Bran disappeared.
"Bring back summer?" Sansa asked. They were sat in Jon's solar, discussing Jon's conversation with Bran.
"I suspect killing the Night's King will return the land to summer." Jon shrugged.
"That's too obvious." Sansa shook her head, working her needle through the dress she was sewing. "You don't think he means his direwolf?"
Jon shook his head. "Summer was Bran's direwolf, the Three-Eyed-Raven has no need for a direwolf."
Sansa smiled. "He means Summerhall. That was the reason we were there last night."
"That would mean going south." Jon got up and walked over to his desk. "Why would I build a palace in the south?" he sat down and began to rummage through his drawers.
"I think Bran is telling you to take the Iron Throne. Look around you, you already command most of Westeros." Sansa told him.
"You are the reason for that." Jon disagreed. "The Vale came for you, the north came for you, the Riverlands came for you, the Reach came for you."
"Ser Jaime came for you, the Freefolk are your men. The north are your men as well as mine. They only wanted me to marry you to give you a legitimate Stark name, yet they accept you are a Targaryen. They wanted you to be King over me. By kneeling to me, my men kneel to you, they know that. You have the best claim to the Iron Throne. If you don't want it, you need to choose a side. Only you can stop Daenerys."
"The north is my home...and yours. You should never have to return to that snake-pit capital. Surely there has to be another way." Jon complained. "We can't rule the Seven Kingdoms from the north."
"I won't force you, but whatever you decide may be out of your hands. Should the Lords of Westeros become unhappy with whichever ruler sits on the Iron Throne, they will rise up in support of you and put you in their place. Not matter how much you tell them you don't want it, the people of Westeros will disagree." Sansa sighed. "What are you doing?" she asked as Jon picked up a quill and began to write.
"I'm writing to Sam. If I'm to rebuild Summerhall, there must be plans somewhere. Most likely the Citadel."
"How do you intend to pay for it?" Sansa asked. "Westeros is broke. Unless you can find another gold mine to repay the Lannister's and the Iron Bank." she sighed.
"I'm still writing to Sam, he should be able to find something. I know what it looked like, but I wouldn't be able to draw what is needed to build it." he began to write the letter. "How long do we have until the whitewalkers reach Eastwatch?" Jon asked.
"About another year." Sansa replied.
"It isn't enough time to beat Daenerys." Jon shook his head. "Getting the Lannister and Vale army south would take too long. Not only that, but we don't know how many of the Reach army are available. We don't stand a chance against dragons."
"Jon, you are a skinchanger. You have to try and take at least one of her dragons. You don't have to bring it north. Send it to Valyria. Without her dragons, she has no power. The Dothraki follow strength, her dragons are her strength. Rhaegal is your dragon, fly the others east. If you must, keep Rhaegal to allow you to move around Westeros more quickly. Instead of taking a month to reach Kings Landing, it would only take a couple of days on dragonback."
"I'll think about it." Jon sighed.
"Why don't you try now. Just see if you can enter the mind of one of the dragons." Sansa suggested.
"I don't know how." Jon frowned.
"How do you do it with Ghost?" Sansa asked.
"I think of him and where he is, or should be." Jon told her. "I thought you were a skin changer. You said you can enter the mind of birds. Have you done it since you returned?" he asked.
"I've done it a couple of times, but I haven't found a bird I am comfortable with. I prefer eagles, but I haven't found any close by. I haven't spent much time looking." she got up to look out of the window. "There's a Robin in that tree over there. We both lay on the bed. I'll try to see through the eyes of the Robin, you try to look through the eyes of one of the dragons."
"How do I know where to find them?" Jon frowned.
"I'd start with Dragonstone. I'm sure one of them will be there." Sansa suggested.
Jon nodded and put his quill down. "I promise I'll try."
They made their way to the bedchambers and lay down on the bed. Jon closed his eyes and concentrated on Rhaegal and Dragonstone. After a moment, hos body began to feel heavy, wrong and out of place. He opened his eyes and he immediately recognised the scene in front of him; a grass field, running all the way to a cliff which overlooked the stormy sea. He was on Dragonstone. Jon lifted his arm, but it felt strange, turning his head, he saw a green wing. He'd done it, he was inside the mind of Rhaegal. But as soon as he realised, he felt a push, as if Rhaegal was trying to shake him out of the body.
"Hush, I'm not here to hurt you." Jon tried to say to the dragon, but instead it came out as a shriek. However, it seemed to calm Rhaegal down. Jon decided it might be a better idea to try to control Rhaegal as if he were riding him. Jon knew the Valyrian commands, he'd heard enough of them as he'd witnessed dragon riding through the ages.
"SÅvegon!" he commanded the dragon to fly in his mind. Rhaegal stood up, Jon felt him stretch his wings and begin to run to the cliffs edge, then the dragon leapt off and began to soar above the sea.
Jon had to admit, this was far better than anything he'd ever experienced before, however he needed to concentrate hard. This was not like Ghost where he became the direwolf; instead he was inside the dragon alongside the dragon. This didn't think this skinchanging either; Jon was controlling the dragon as if her were actually riding it, he wasn't in the mind of the dragon, he was another alongside the mind of the dragon, seeing the world through its eyes.
Deciding he wanted to view Dragonstone from above, Jon commanded Rhaegal to fly over the island to look for the other two dragons, but Rhaegal was the only one on the island. That was when the strangest thing happened. Rhaegal spoke, although not in words, it was as if the dragon was able to put a thought into Jon's head.
They have gone west with mother to burn the bad kraken. Jon understood what it meant. Daenerys had gone to hunt Euron Greyjoy's fleet.
"Why?" he asked the dragon.
Bad kraken hurt mother's kraken and sun friends.
"Am I your friend?" Jon suddenly wanted to know.
You're my best brother. Words which made Jon want to weep, which was clearly an emotion too much, as he was suddenly back in his chambers with Sansa sat on the bed looking down on him.
Jon blinked his eyes and sat up. "How long was I gone?" he asked.
"I don't know." Sansa frowned. "I only just came back myself. Did you manage to skinchange into a dragon? Your eyes were white."
"Not really. I was with Rhaegal, but I wasn't him. I could control him though, but it was hard." Jon rubbed his eyes, a headache was coming on. He looked up at Sansa. "Did you get into the mind of the Robin?" he asked.
Sansa nodded. "I found an eagle and entered her mind, but her chicks have just hatched." she smiled. "They're beautiful." Jon laughed. "What?" she asked.
"You're acting like you are ready for your own chicks." he raised an eyebrow.
"It'll be a while." Sansa shook her head. "I want to wait until the wars are over. I don't want to lose a child to Daenerys or the whitewalker. Any child of ours would be a target."
Jon nodded sadly. "I know. As soon as we get rid of the Dragon Queen, then we can think about starting a family." he agreed. "Rhaegal told me there has been a battle between the Ironborn fleets. Daenerys has taken Drogon to destroy Euron Greyjoy's fleet."
"Sun friends..." Sansa frowned, deep in thought. "Does he mean the Dornish? In my last life, Cersei captured Ellaria Sand. If he's right, that just leaves the Unsullied at Casterly Rock. I'm not sure what she can do, other than destroy Kings Landing."
"Doesn't she do that after she's lost everyone?" Jon asked.
"Her situation is different." Sansa started to pace. "The two people who prevented her from acting on her instincts are not there to advise her. You, Ser Jorah and Tyrion. You tempered her worst impulses. Ser Jorah will soon return, in another moon or so. But that will be too late. The only people by her side are Lord Varys and Missandei. They will try to talk her out of destroying Kings Landing, but she won't listen to Varys. Missandei is our only hope."
"I could try distracting her. Fly Drogon to Valyria." Jon offered. "Rhaegal called me his best brother." Jon smiled.
"She has a greater connection with Drogon. He might be more difficult to control than the other two." Sansa was silent for a moment. "Fly Rhaegal to Winterfell. See if it is possible to communicate with Viserion. He might be needed. When he gets here, he must understand he needs to feed on the sea creatures to the west, seals, walrus and small whales. Do you think you can make him safe to the people here at Winterfell?"
"Aye, I think so. He seems quite receptive." Jon headed over to the bed, but Sansa stopped him.
"First, you will need build up your strength. You might need to be with him for a few hours." she warned. "You didn't stay with him for long, so you'll need to visit him daily, stay with him longer each time. Gain his trust. Try and visit the other dragons. They might be more difficult to control, but you need to befriend all three. Rhaegal cannot take on the other two. This is going to take time, let us hope you can control all three before Daenerys goes all fire and blood over Kings Landing.
Jon wrapped his arms around Sansa and kissed her on the lips. "You don't think we've got time for..." he started, but Sansa slapped him on the arm. "Ow!" he pouted.
"Don't be a baby, that didn't hurt. Jon, I'm sore, I'll need at least another day to recover." she smirked. "Now, let's get something to eat, then we can work out where our friendly dragon can sleep."