Robert and his travelling companions followed Howland Reed through marshland on foot leading their horses by the reigns. They traveled in silence as they were too focused following the path the crannogman showed them. Every once in a while, they would stop at a signal from lord Reed, and he would move forward disappearing into the tall grasses and reeds. Fortunately, he would return before the men got too anxious about standing in the eerily quiet bog, waving for them to follow again. Robert was sure he saw Howland just walk across the water as if it was dry land once. In the past he would have reasoned it away as a trick of light or a tired mind deceiving him, but now he understood that there was so much more to the old tales.
It seemed that the further they traveled into the swampland the winter mist would grow thicker and thicker, even to the point that they could scarcely see more than ten feet ahead. After several hours of marching through the marsh, they arrived at the edge of a expansive dark body of water. Several large stakes were hammered deep into the bank and around them were tied strong ropes as thick as Robert's arms that disappeared into the murky waters.
"Hail Lord Howland," A feminine voice called out from behind the group causing everyone but the subject of the call to nearly jump from their skins. A couple of the men had their steel nearly halfway drawn before they thought better of it. Even Robert felt his blood pumping as he searched for the one who had snuck up on them. He found the speaker as she silently stepped from a clump of tall reeds. Clad in a thick green cloak with, she wore lambskin breeches and a leather sleeveless jerkin worn over a heavy cotton tunic. She was slim and short, though slightly taller than Howland, and could be easily mistaken for a young boy if not for the feminine features of her face. Her eyes were a bright green, almost jade, and she wore a scowl as she looked over the group. "And friends," she continued before looking back at Howland. "I distinctly remember you saying you would not return to us till winter's end. And yet here you are bringing outsiders to your father's halls."
"Ah, my lovely lady Jyana. It is good to see you too." He smiled warmly while her scowl remained. "Allow me to introduce you to Lord Eddard Stark, the quiet wolf, and Lord Robert Baratheon, the king of stags, and their companions" The woman's scowl disappeared while her eyes went wide. "My lords, might I introduce my betrothed Lady Jyana of House Greengood." She gave a stiff bow that by southern standards would see her laughed out of court, but Robert and his men dared not speak of it while they stood in the middle of the endless swamps. It was Eddard who spoke first.
"Hail Lady Jyana and well met." He nudged Robert.
"Yes, well met indeed my Lady. It is unfortunate that Howland failed to inform us that you'd be joining us on our trip to his home." Robert said looking at the still smiling lord.
"That would be because I will not be travelling with you to his home. You've already arrived." With that she put her fingers to her mouth and let out a shrill whistle. A few moments after the echoes dies away, a similar whistle answered from somewhere in the direction of the water. The distant clanking of some sort of cogs and chains could be heard as the ropes laying in the water were drawn up and pulled taunt. Robert, Eddard, and the men stared in awe as the shadow of a keep slowly began to loom in the mist. The keep itself was practically primitive by southern standards, being made of logs and mud bricks with thatched roofs. What was truly impressive was that it sat atop a massive manmade island know as a crannog, for which the people of the land took their name. Three smaller islands surrounded it forming a triangle, each smaller island had a tower built on it and was connected to the main island with a sturdy bridge. The main keep was no more than fifty to sixty feet tall, but the fact that it was afloat made that all the more impressive.
Eventually, the keep reached the shore, and a drawbridge was lowered like the boarding ramp of a ship. A group of servants came down ramp as Howland spoke up.
"Come, my people will tend to your beasts." He motioned to a young woman who carried a tray. "Please, partake of bread and salt and we can go rest from our travels." So they did before heading into the keep proper. Howland led them to the main hall where a large fire burned in the center of the room. Robert thought the hall was homey, a far cry from the high hall of the Eyrie, but comfortable nonetheless. Wooden panels lined the walls and small glassless windows were spaced out around the top of the room letting some light in and smoke out while still keeping the worst of the elements out. Ancient Tapestries lined the walls depicting the stories of House Reed and the people of the Neck. The men made themselves comfortable as a strong-smelling stew containing meats and vegetables they did not recognize was placed before them. Robert looked at his guards who were all eyeing they meal warily before shrugging and digging in. It was different to say the least. Not bad, heavier and fattier than most stews he had eaten in the past It grew on him as he ate it however. The rest of the men began to dig in as hunger overcame caution.
"Please make yourselves comfortable my lords. I have to see my father in his chambers. Unfortunately, he is fairly weak and cannot entertain visitors. Please let the steward know if you need anything." He gestured to a well-dressed, by crannogman standards, older man standing off to the side. And so, the travelers rested and enjoyed the hospitality of Greywater Watch. Eventually Robert was starting to get restless, and he called over to the steward who had done little but oversea the hall since Howland had left.
"I feel like I need some exercise. Do you have a training yard here? Also, I would like to send a raven to Winterfell letting them know that we will be further delayed." The steward bowed a little before replying.
"Of course my lord. I'll have one of the men show you to the training yard. I'm sure it is not as grand as you are used to, but I hope it will meet your needs. As for your request, we have no ravens or maesters here. Fear not my lord, Lord Howland has already instructed men to take word of your whereabouts to Lord Rickard." The steward signaled for a man to come escort Robert to the training grounds.
Robert followed the man to a small open-air area on the third level of the keep that had been set up for sparring and training. It was empty at the moment, so Robert had the space all to himself after his guide had left him. He took some time to look around, the space was about forty feet above the surface of the swamp and from up here he could appreciate the unique beauty of the environment. The moment didn't last long as he started going through his warmup routines and then began running through forms with his hammer.
"Good afternoon Lord Baratheon." Robert turned to see Jyana Greengood standing behind him watching his exercise. Robert was surprised to see her armed with a net in one hand and a trident, whose tips had been padded for training, in the other. He vaguely remembered Howland demonstrating net fighting while on campaign and wondered what it would be like to spar against him sometime.
"Good afternoon my lady." Robert replied going back to his exercise.
"Care for a sparring partner my lord?" She asked casually. Robert stopped and looked at her.
"Are you serious?" was all Robert could manage.
"Are you afraid to be humiliated by a woman?" She replied with a mocking tone. Robert felt his blood rising at the goading. But he took a moment and tried to calm himself. He tried to think about what she wanted to accomplish here but couldn't come up with anything, maybe it was a cultural thing. A memory of Eddard sharing that Lyanna would have carried around a sword if their father had allowed it came to mind. Perhaps, he thought, he held too many assumptions about what women should and should not do. He decided to just go with the flow and see what would happen, he'd have to hold back of course but he'd at least see what net fighting was like up close.
"No." he said simply before looking to the assortment of training weapons available for a somewhat suitable replacement for his warhammer. He returned to the center of the space and took up his stance. Jyana's face turned grim as she held her trident tightly taking a stance in front of him. He saluted and she nodded in response swinging her net around steadily. Robert, as always, was the aggressor in the spar and started things off with a couple swings just to gage her response. She dodged them effortlessly and even threw a counter stab with the trident which he skillfully parried. He had to give her some credit for knowing how to move and keep her distance. Robert did his best to keep an eye on the spinning net while trying not to lose track of the trident. He knew how quick it could lash out. After a few more exchanges at his lower speed, he decided that he could ratchet things up without seriously hurting her. His strikes became a little faster and a little more powerful. She continued to expertly dodge and counter with her weapon until when Robert had taken his eye off the net, she lashed out with it and tangled his weapon and arm in it. Robert was surprised, but he just smiled and showed the strength that he was famous for. In one flued move, he stepped back and yanked his arm violently back pulling a surprised Jyana forward before she could let go of the net. As she stumbled off balance his free hand shot out grabbing her spear arm by the wrist, before easily picking her up off the ground. She dropped the trident and he put her back down.
"No, my lady, I am not afraid of being humiliated." He said with a laugh, finally untangling himself from the net. "My apologies if I got too rough there at the end."
"Thank you, my lord, for humoring me and no harm done." She replied humbly, "Howland has asked me to guide you and your companions to Moat Cailin. I just wanted to see if you were the kind of southron who expects all women to be dainty delicate things."
"To be fair, my lady, many men are dainty and delicate things to me." He replied with a chuckle. "You move like a warrior to be sure, do all women of the neck learn to fight like you?" Robert could respect her effort to pursue the martial arts. Perhaps, he pondered, if more women did so there would be fewer tragedies in the world. Though, years of practice would not have saved Elia from the hands of the Mountain. He tried to shake the dark thoughts from his mind.
"No, not particularly, but all learn to hunt with spear and net. Here, everyone must work towards ensuring survival. It was Howland who encouraged me to learn when we were still young however. He wanted someone his age to practice with." She said with a bit of a nostalgic look on her face.
"Still young? You can't be much older than six and ten. You're hardly old." Robert said with a chuckle.
"I suppose so. Mayhap we just have to grow up a little faster here. Regardless, we will leave Greywater Watch for the Moat the day after tomorrow. I'm sure there are plenty of Lord Reed's household warriors who would jump at the chance to spar with the king of stags." She said with a teasing tone.
"We've already been delayed coming here. Can't we move out sooner?" He said obviously impatient.
"Delayed my lord? Nay, you forget that the Keep moves. We will be taken to a place where we can make up for your slow travel through the Riverlands and causeway." Her expression was that of an adult talking to a child.
"Oh! Well, that's great!" Robert's mood brightened.
"Yes," the voice of Howland called out. Robert turned to see he and Ned entering the yard. "I would trust few others than my lady Jyana with guiding you through the Neck. She learned the old ways from her father just as I have learned it from mine. Now, I must continue my journey south, I wanted to come and say goodbye."
"So soon?" Asked Robert, "You barely spent any time here."
"Yes, I am called to the Isle of Faces and though the old gods bade me to guide you here, I cannot put my pilgrimage off any longer." He gave a quick bow to Robert before walking over to give a hug and quick peck on the cheek to his betrothed. "Till spring comes again my dear."
"You said that the last time love." She deadpanned.
"Yes, but this time the trees aren't crying out for me to help some lost lords on their journey." He smiled again and took his leave.
"So, Ned, you up for a spar?" Robert asked. Eddard sighed and retrieved a training sword from the armory. This time Eddard came away with the victory and Jyana walked away with a newfound respect for the two young warriors.
True to her word, the next day was spent riding on a castle through a swamp, truly a once in a lifetime experience for Robert and his companions. The great ropes that had tethered the home of House Reed to the shore yesterday had been connected to a group of shallow bottomed boats crewed by a score or so men sworn to the Lord of the Neck. The men used long poles to propel the keep through the various inlets and waterways of the neck. Robert could hear the Valemen arguing about how there was no way those boats could pull the whole keep. He and Eddard supposed that it must be part of the marsh magic that Howland had talked about. While the experience was surely novel, it didn't take long for Robert to grow bored and begin asking if there was anyone willing to spar with him. The master-of-arms for House Reed, a man by the name of Tregar Bog, was tall for a crannogman and well-muscled. Robert saw the same style employed by Jyana taken to entirely new level. The man managed to dodge and bait Robert into exposing himself while using the net as a form of flexible shield that could easily be used to catch an opponent off guard or pull them off balance. It took three bouts before Robert adjusted enough to the unfamiliar style to counter and press the attack. All who watched were impressed by the stag's warrior prowess.
The day came and went and eventually it was time for them to leave the keep. Several of Jon's men grumbled that they would have to leave the warmth and comfort of the keep and endure camping in the swamp. Even Robert admitted that he had come to enjoy what he had eventually found to be Lizard-Lion stew. But he was more focused on reaching the end of the journey than worrying about the hardships he would have to endure.
Jyana as it turned out was an excellent guide. She led them through the marshes as if they were taking a stroll through a garden. It seemed as if they never stopped moving for as night fell, they always found other crannogmen waiting for them with barges that could carry them and their mounts through the night. Eventually Robert asked her how she managed to find all these people willing to help just when they needed it.
"Unlike Lord Howland, I am not one to easily reveal the secrets of my people." She said with an imperious tone. And so, a journey they expected to take possibly two and ten days up the causeway, only took them six. Robert was ecstatic as he saw Moat Cailin growing on the horizon. They spent the night in the ancient ruins to recover before travelling the last leg of their journey. Even though the snow was thicker on the roads here they managed to make good time good time, making it from the Moat to Winterfell in just less than a fortnight.
The banners of the stag and the wolf flew proudly next to each other as the party neared the ancestral seat of the Kings of Winter. Robert couldn't help but think about the last time he had been here. It had been as a fat king with over three hundred men plus a bitch of a wife. Now he was arriving as a young fit lord paramount with ten men and his best friend. It was easy to think of which he preferred. In but a few hours he would have a fresh chance with the woman who had fought a war over. As they grew near, he heard the horn call announcing their arrival. Robert's heart was beating like mad as he rode into Winterfell for the second time. This time she would not be a statue stuck in the dark crypts of Winterfell, this time she would be living and breathing and laughing.
Standing in the courtyard waiting to greet them was the whole of the Stark family. Rickard Stark stood tall clad in a thick winter cloak. His long stern face displayed a quiet dignity. Robert assumed that is where Eddard got it from. Next to him was Brandon he was essentially the inverse of Eddard. Taller and more handsome, he carried himself with a self-assuredness that bordered on cockiness. Next in line was the one he had come for, Lyanna, the wolf maid of Winterfell. She was just as beautiful as he remembered her to be, true she was young still and it would be some time before they could wed, but he was determined to do this right. A part of him also registered that young Benjen Stark was there too, but he was far too focused on Lyanna to make any note of it.
His gaze lingered on her for a moment and when they made eye contact, he could feel his heart skip a beat and couldn't help but smile like a boy experiencing his first crush. She on the other hand merely frowned, here gray eyes looking upon him with poorly hidden disgust. Robert tried not to feel crushed in that moment. He knew what she thought of him and knew that it was going to be an uphill battle. He girded himself and prepared for the conflict to come. First however he would have to observe the courtesies expected of a man of his station. So, he approached Lord Rickard first.
"Welcome to Winterfell Lord Baratheon. I admit I was surprised to hear that you were travelling north. Was there something you sought here?" the older man asked casually.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Stark. Any discussions of the purpose of my visit are best done behind closed doors. Perhaps after I have gotten a chance to know your fine family?" Robert replied, he had been running through ways this could go for the past few days. He couldn't jump right out and declare his love for Lyanna on the spot no matter how much the impulsive side of him demanded it.
"This is my son and heir Brandon." The older lord continued. "He's not much older than you, I expect that you two will serve the throne as lord paramount for years to come. Hopefully you can build strong bonds during your time here."
"Well met Brandon, I hear you are the best sword in the North. Not only that, but you are skilled at the tilts, I have been working on perfecting my skills for the upcoming tourney and hoped to watch you ride." Robert said jovially.
"Ha, you heard true. I'm sure I can take the time to show you a thing or two." Brandon responded with a smirk, but Robert felt no warmth behind it. He was eager to move on, however.
"This is my daughter Lyanna. I hope you both get along well" Lord Rickard said a little too much hope in his voice. For her part, Lyanna executed a very passable curtsy and greeted Robert.
"It is a pleasure to meet you my Lord Baratheon." Though she said it with a smile, it hardly reached her eyes. Robert could tell that she would rather be anywhere else than here right now.
"The pleasure is all mine Lady Lyanna, I brought a gift for you if you would be so kind as to accept it." He signaled to Ned who brought out a small bouquet of blue roses they had managed to secure from the Lady of Castle Cerwyn the previous day. She accepted it with a conflicted look. She was obviously surprised by the gesture, perhaps impressed, and possibly annoyed as well. He wasn't sure if he had won the first battle or if it was a draw. Regardless, Lyanna received reinforcements when the young voice of Benjen called out.
"Do I get a gift too?"
"Ah, and my youngest Benjen." Lord Rickard stated with only a hint of annoyance.
"Sorry Lord Benjen, I am fresh out of flowers. I'll have to go pick some more for you tomorrow."
"I don't want flowers!" the boy exclaimed at the perceived insult.
"Oh, then I'll need come up with something else." Robert said laughing.
"Good, good, let us take this out of the cold. There is bread and salt for you and your men, and a feast will be served shortly." Declared the Lord of Winterfell. Robert looked to Lyanna again, but she had taken this opportunity to completely ignore him. She quickly moved around him and launched herself at Eddard.
"Ned! I've missed you, is it true that you visited Greywater Watch? Does it really move around the swamps?" She questioned while Ned gave Robert an apologetic look.
Robert sighed. He had his work cut out for him, though he noticed that she was still holding onto the flowers. Perhaps it was not all bad.
A/N It's been a while since I left an author's note. I wanted to thank everyone again for their kind comments and excellent feedback. I actually updated chapter six with a statement as to why they are not taking a boat to White Harbor and travelling to Winterfell from there due to some feedback I received. Because seriously, you would need a good excuse to ride over 1000 miles rather than take a nice boat ride.
I struggled with a few things in writing this chapter. For one I went back and forth on whether to include the spar with Jyana or not. I think I ended up going with it because I wanted to give Robert a chance to think about his views on gender roles. At the same time I wanted to make it clear that there was no real physical contest between Robert and Jyana, and that she was requesting the spar knowing that just to gage what kind of man Robert was. Hopefully that came across well.
Finally, I hope that Lyanna and Robert's first meeting lived up to your expectations. Lyanna is smart enough to know what an unmarried lord paramount with such close ties to her brother coming to visit means. Even if the betrothal isn't official, I am sure her father has spoken to her about getting along with Robert. So she is less than enthusiastic about his attentions, even now rumors of Robert's character have already reached Winterfell. Also, as for Benjen, as a little brother myself I would have done the exact same thing.