[Open to the dark, seedy town of Moles Town. Two men walk toward a brothel with smiles on their faces. Inside everyone is happy, drinking, enjoying themselves. One woman is burping a tune]
"The Rains of Castamere!"
"That's the Bear and the Maiden Fair," Sansa said. She'd heard that song enough times for her to know it anywhere. Plus, it was one of her favourites.
"You fucking dick! Same wrong guess every fucking time. Listen, ya cunt."
[Everyone laughs and goes "ooooo". She burps the same tune]
"Oh, The Bear and the Maiden Fair!"
Sansa smiles smuggly. She knew it was that.
It was the smaller things now that the young Stark looked for to keep herself happy, especially with all she'd seen so far.
"There's a man with an ear. Too bad you've got a hangnail for a cock. First time I saw you with your britches down, I thought you were a eunuch! You seen it girls. Like a baby snail peekin' out of his shell."
"Are the smallfolk always so brash?" Joanna questioned with a crinkle of her nose.
"That's what makes them so fun to be around! Always a great time around them" Tyrion said with a grin, cheered up by the fact that future him did have a champion willing to fight for him.
[She laughs and walks toward Gilly]
"Your baby was crying this morning. It waked me up. You hear me?"
"What does she expect? It's a baby!" Lyanna said with a huff. Babies did that all the time because that's all babies could do other than eat, sleep and shit.
Her son probably did that too… and was probably cursed for it by her fucking good sister. Lyanna did not hold it against her because for all she knew, the child was her husband's bastard and there was a stigma about bastards. But still, she couldn't help but be sour about it.
And she couldn't help but curse herself for being so stupid and running away with Rhaegar. Had she just told her family then a lot of shit could have been solved. Her son for one would have grown up loved by his mother.
"I'm sorry he woke you up."
"I don't care if you're sorry. Keep that baby quiet, or I will."
"Don't you ever touch him."
"Hehehe, little Wildling bitch. You should've stayed with your own kind."
[An owl hoots in the distance]
"Are you listening to me?"
"Shut your mouth."
"What? It's just an owl you dumb bitch."
"No, it's not."
[The owl hoots again. A man walks toward a well and in the reflection it's seen that Styr sliced the man's throat. Tormund is also seen as the Wildlings walk through the town killing everyone. Ygritte is also there. Styr and the Wildlings break into the brothel, continuing their killing spree.]
"They've made it to Moles Town," Ned said grimly.
"It was only a matter of time" Brandon the Elder muttered. "And this is just the smaller army meant to draw the Watch's attention from the greater one."
Brandon leaned over to his brother's ear.
"What do you plan on doing?"
Ned frowned, his face darkening at the thought of what he'd do. He knew the North would never accept the Wildlings, and the Wildlings would never bend their knees to any Lord or Lady, let alone a King. But just leaving them on the other side of the wall meant that they would become fresh numbers for the army of the dead.
"I'm still thinking about it" the Lord of Winterfell finally said.
Brandon leaned back and nodded. He knew it was not an easy decision to make, and he was never so glad to not be the Lord of Winterfell than now.
[CASTLE BLACK]
"I should never have left her there."
"You couldn't have known."
"Of course, I could've known. They were raiding the villages close by."
"IS Gilly dead?" Arya asked, eyes wide in shock and horror.
Jon shrugged, a look of dark frustration on his face. "We haven't seen the boy or seen anyone kill her. She could have escaped."
He knew it was highly unlikely with all those wildlings, but he couldn't tell Arya that. No matter how much death she'd seen, Jon refused to involve her in these thoughts and make her worry. She was still his little sister.
Little did he know that Arya was already considering Gilly and her baby dead. There was no way she made it out of there.
"And we just cower in here while they slaughter our brothers?"
"Our brothers had orders to stay at Castle Black."
"Oh, so it's alright then?! Black Jack and Kegs and Mully chopped to pieces 'cause they broke the rules?!"
"I didn't say it was alright! I'm sayin' they shouldn't have been there."
"We pledged to guard the realms of men. We can't even guard Mole's Town."
Rickard's brows furrowed further from frustration. The Night's Watch owed no allegiance to anyone but itself and governed without any intervention from Lord or King. Yet he couldn't feel bitter about the fact that he'd let the Watch fall into disgrace while he sat as the Stark of Winterfell. Ned couldn't do much to help right after the war since he had a North to help heal as much as needed, and Rickard knew that once Benjen joined, Ned had done all possible to help the establishment. It was his predecessors who had failed him and The Watch… and probably the Kings as well.
At least now Rickard could hope that Robert would do something since he was seeing this with them.
"We can't go after them, you know that. That's what they want."
"Little Sam. As if I'd cut their throats myself."
"Get a grip on yourself" Olenna sighed. There were bigger things to worry about than the mistakes that had already been made. It was not that Olenna did not feel bad for the boy, but there were other things he needed to worry about.
"Maybe she managed to hide herself. I thought one of you was dead, you went North with Mormont and no one came back. Not for ages. But then you did."
"She survived Craster and he was the worst shit I've ever met. She survived the long march to the wall. She survived a white walker for fuck's sake. She might've got out."
"Exactly" Jon nodded. The girl was a survivor, and survivors hardly went down in silence.
"If they hit Mole's Town, then we're next. Mance's army must be close."
The statement sobered all those who were worrying about Gilly, the worry now shifting to the Night's Watch. If that army broke through…
"A hundred thousand."
"And there's what, 5 of us left."
"If you're counting Black Jack, Kegs, and Mully. A hundred and two."
"How do a hundred and two men stop a thousand?"
"You don't," said Brandon the Elder softly. He saw no way that the Night's Watch could come out of this alive. Which meant he'd be watching another nephew of his dying. He wasn't sure whether he could do it another time, another death. He was not the kind of man to break at the death of a loved one, but seeing his father die, his brother and then his nephew, he wasn't sure how much more his control of his emotions could take. He may have had the Wolf's blood in him, but that didn't mean he was a man who openly cried or broke down.
[MOAT CAILIN]
"Bracken. Mmm, strong. As long as they're in the sea. But when you take them out of the water, no bones. They collapse under their proud weight and slum into a heap of nothing. You'd think they'd know that. Unfortunately, they're not very bright. What do you tell them?"
"I'm Theon Greyjoy, son of Balon, heir to the Iron Islands."
"Say it like that and nobody will believe you" Yara muttered with a scowl. "Your eyes show your fear and your posture is that of a man defeated."
"That's because I am a man defeated and I am afraid" Theon threw back with a grown. "He castrated me, tortured me to the point where I'm listening to him without complaint or otherwise."
"And what are you really?"
"I'm Reek."
"And I use some other name!" Theon leaned back scowling. "That is not me, that is not Theon Greyjoy. Expecting to still see him is foolish."
Yara frowned, reaching out and patting Theon on the hand.
"You are still Theon Greyjoy. That won't happen to you his time. If not the Starks for their selfish reasons, I will come down on the Bastard and split him in half with an axe, from his head to his balls. Then I'll feed him to his hunting bitches."
Theon snorted. He appreciated his sister's words and appreciated what she wanted to do with those words. But those were just words, and words were wind. He himself is an example of that, breaking an oath to Robb. He saw no freedom from this fate, not until that bastard was dead.
He would personally see to Ramsey's death, just so he could fight his fate. He refused to go down fighting.
"That's right. Until you're rotting in the ground. Remember what you are and what you're not. Bring me, Lord Kenning."
[Theon approaches the castle on horseback. He is stopped by a GUARD but is allowed in after he's told his identity. Theon enters the castle walls. Inside a lot of people are sick or dying]
"Stubborn bunch, these Ironborns" Jaime chuckled. Even sickness and abandonment haven't made them pliable.
"I'm Kenning, commander of this garrison. And you say you're Theon Greyjoy? Why should I believe that?"
"I was born on Pike to Balon Greyjoy. His third and last-living son. I am your prince. I swear it by the drowned god. What is dead may never die."
[EVERYONE chorus 'What is dead may never die']
"And if you were my prince, why are you marching with a Bolton army?:
"Lord Bolton took me captive after Winterfell. He sent me to treat with you in good faith as your fellow Ironborn."
"And what does Lord Bolton want?"
"You are fading from sickness. You are badly outnumbered and you're hundreds of miles from the sea. Lord Bolton implores you to protect your men and abandon this fortress you can no longer hold. Do this and he will be just and fair with you as he is being with me."
Theon snorted. Just and Fair his ass.
"He wants us to surrender?"
"My own father, your king, surrendered years ago to Robert Baratheon. I watched him bend the knee. There was no shame there. He fought with honour, as did you."
Robert rumbled. He should have killed the man that day.
[Kenning falls to the ground. His men pick him up. He spits blood in Theon's face]
"No shame fought with honour. Only a whipped dog would speak this way. Or a woman. Are you a woman boy?"
"Only an Ironborn would spit on that" Tyrion snorted.
"I'd say the Boltons and Freys would as well from what we've seen" Jaime mused, "and let's not forget our father dearest as well. Honour and everything."
Tyrion snorted.
"The Ironborn will not surrender. You go tell your master that, Theon Greyjoy. Or whoever the fuck you are. What in the hell are you muttering?"
[One of the MEN kills Kenning with an axe]
"If we yield, we live? Is that what it says on this paper here?"
"He was their commander!" Robb exclaimed.
"They grew desperate, sick and dying. Their commander basically told them that he didn't care about that and was ready to let them all die to hold Moat Cailin" Stannis reasoned. "Even the most loyal of men turn on their liege when their liege cares more for orders than his people."
As the Karstarks and Boltons turned on me, Robb thought with a scowl.
[Cut to MAN'S body with no skin and his eye cut out]
"You didn't really think I'd let them go, did you?"
"Promises and oaths mean nothing to these Boltons" Robert spat in disgust.
"Some people just look out for their interests over others" Renly mumbled, eyes shooting to Lady Olenna and Margaery.
[THE VALE]
[PETYR BAELISH, LORD ROYCE AND LADY ANYA are talking]
Jon Arryn smiled at the familiar faces. They were friends of his, man and woman loyal to him. They will help Sansa.
But only if she reaches out to them.
"You have foreign blood, don't you, Baelish?"
"A great-grandfather from Braavos, yes. I suppose all of our ancestors came from somewhere else originally."
"Our forebearers settled the Vale thousands of years ago. We've fought off invaders ever since."
"And before that, they came from somewhere else. Lord Baelish wasn't wrong" Shreen pointed out.
Robert grunted and Stannis nodded.
"The beauty of the Vale is matched only by the nobility of its great families. Lady Arryn often told me you were her rock, Lord Royce."
"Ass licker" Lyanna muttered.
"She told me nothing about you, Baelish. But I didn't need to hear from her. Moneylender. Whoremonger. You've been licking Tywin Lannister's boots so long, it's a wonder your tongue's not black."
Tyrion snorted. The man wasn't wrong in his assessment.
"And when Jon Arryn named you Master of Coin, no one cared. Always been a grubby job. Why not let a grubby man do it? But when I heard you were lurking here, fawning over the Lady Arryn..."
"Lady Arryn invited me. She and I have been close since childhood."
"Yes, we all know how close you were."
Jon Arryn shifted in discomfort. His counsel had advised him not to take Lysa as his wife, that her past would sully him in one way or the other. But Jon was desperate then for the Riverlands army to join their cause. He had little choice.
"Lady Arryn's predilections were her own affair. Her death is our affair."
"Of course. Her suicide shattered us all."
Catelyn snorted. She may still be angry with her sister, but the audacity of the man…
"She was an odd fish. Everyone knew that. But suicide? She adored that boy of hers. I don't see her abandoning him. Not by choice."
"Strange that within days of your arrival, you've married Lady Arryn and she's fallen through the Moon Door."
"She was always prone to melancholy. My lady wasn't meant for a world as brutal as ours."
"We were told there was a witness. A girl."
"A niece of yours, I believe."
"A girl with no learning and scattered wits. I assure you, she would be of no help."
Sansa was affronted to be even considered as such.
"We'd like to speak with her."
"Let me fetch her."
"No need. We prefer to hear her testimony unadulterated."
[Sansa Stark enters the room]
Jon smirked. The opportunity was now. All Sansa had to do was reach out.
"Come closer, child. You have nothing to fear from us or him. Lord Baelish here is your uncle? Your name is Alayne? Perhaps you would feel more comfortable if Lord Baelish left the room.:
"My lady..."
"I wasn't asking you."
"Good, shut him up" Arya whispered. Sansa will speak up now, she's learned what lying would mean. These people can help her if she's truthful.
"Speak up, girl, you're not a damn kitchen mouse. Tell us what you saw."
[SANSA turns to LORD BAELISH]
"I'm sorry, Lord Baelish. I have to tell the truth."
"Please, Alayne, leave nothing out."
"My name is not Alayne. It's Sansa Stark, the eldest daughter of Lord Eddard Stark. Lord Royce, we met when you came to Winterfell. You were escorting your son Ser Waymar to the Wall."
"Sansa Stark? You tell lies right to my face, you little worm?"
"Lord Baelish has told many lies."
"Yes!" Arya cheered. Sansa would tell the truth and that man would finally get what is coming to him.
"All to protect me."
The girl's smile fell. She wasn't.
"Since my father was executed, I have been a hostage in King's Landing. A plaything for Joffrey to torture or Queen Cersei to torment. They beat me, they humiliated me, they married me to the Imp. I had no friends in King's Landing...except one. He saved me. Smuggled me away when he had the chance. He knew I'd be safe here in the Eyrie with my own blood, my Aunt Lysa. The Lannisters have friends everywhere. Even the Vale. He made me swear not to tell anyone my true name."
"You could have told them the truth," Arya said stubbornly, her eyes flashing with anger and disappointment.
"In Sansa's defence, she wasn't there when Father was taken prisoner in the Throne Room" Jon whispered to Arya.
"And? The man confessed to having a hand in Joffrey's murder, killed our Aunt Lysa and told Sansa that he was doing everything for himself, and that he loved Mother. He was supposed to be father's friend in the capital but he did nothing and was still in Joffrey's good graces after."
"That would not automatically make him guilty, killing Joffrey and Lysa, and saving his skin. Baelish played it well that Joffrey needed to die and knew Sansa would not question it because she hated Joffrey. Lysa was threatening Sansa and Baelish played it as if he came in and saved her. And everyone in the capital played at saving their skins rather than helping Father."
Arya only glared at her brother and looked away fuming. Sansa had lied. These men and women were Lords of The Vale who put honour overall. Their father knew them too and they knew him! They would have helped her if she had just tried!
Jon Arryn too sighed in disappointment.
"Your father grew up right here in these halls. We hunted together many times. He was a fine man."
Ned smiled slightly. His time in the Vale had him knowing all its Lords and Ladies, befriending them as well. He thought the best of them all and it warmed him that they thought the same of him.
"Tell us what happened to your aunt, Sansa."
"You knew her well, my lords, my lady. You knew she was a troubled woman. She always loved Lord Baelish. She told me herself. From the moment he arrived at the gates of Riverrun, a boy of eight carrying everything he owned in a little sack. She confessed to me she never loved Lord Arryn. She did as her father commanded, as so many of us have. When the gods finally allowed her to be with Lord Baelish, she was so happy. For a time. My aunt was a jealous lady. She was terrified that Lord Baelish didn't love her anymore. That he would abandon her for a younger woman. And then...one day she saw him kiss me. It was a peck on the cheek and nothing more. Lord Baelish is my uncle now, in truth, by marriage. He's always been so kind to me. I was so happy to be here, to be free. All because of him. But my aunt turned on me. She cursed me. Called me a whore. Promised to throw me through the Moon Door. When Lord Baelish tried to calm her, she struck him. She said she didn't want to live anymore. She stood on the edge of that Moon Door. He tried to reason with her. Promised her she was the only one he had ever loved, but she stepped through those doors and she was..."
[SANSA begins sobbing]
Arya rolled her eyes. Her sister was acting, she knew it well enough. No doubt the idea was Baelish's and Sansa was going along with it because she was an idiotic fool!
[LORD ROYCE, LADY ANYA, and PETYR BAELISH walk down the stairs]
"You could see it in the way she raised that boy. Feeding him from her own teats when he was 10 years old."
"Lord Royce! This is hardly the time."
"No. But it needs to be addressed" Jon Arryn whispered darkly. He needed to get his son away from Lysa before she ruined him completely.
"Apologies, my lady. And to you as well, Baelish. We treated you a bit harshly."
"You want justice, Lord Royce. I can hardly complain about that. I want the same."
"Not much justice to be meted out in suicide, is there?"
"For Lysa, no. But for her son? Only 20 years ago, the knights of the Vale rode behind Jon Arryn, Ned Stark, and Robert Baratheon. They fought together to overcome the Mad King. And since then, Arryn, Royce, Corbray, Waynwood, and all the great houses of the Vale watched from the corner. A timid boy at a tavern brawl."
"Are you questioning our courage?"
"No. But he is using your outrage against you" Oberyn hummed. This Petyr Baelish, as deplorable as his character was, was a smart man. A shame he wasn't Dornish and that he had true loyalty. It was easier to turn people from true loyalty than from none.
"I want to know which side you're on. Do you support the Lannisters, the house that executed your friend Ned Stark?"
"Of course, we don't support the damn Lannisters."
"No? Catelyn Stark begged her sister for support and Lysa refused. By staying out of the fray, you've allowed Tywin Lannister to destroy his rivals on every compass point. Who stands against him now?"
"Who would you have us back, Lord Baelish? Robb Stark is dead."
"I'd have you back Robin Arryn, Lord of the Vale."
"Robin Arryn is a sickly little boy."
"And sickly little boys sometimes become powerful men."
"No doubt he says it about himself" Catelyn scoffs. "He wasn't much of a healthy boy growing up either."
"Wouldn't it be funny if Robert Arryn was secretly Baelish's considering how much Lysa only wanted him and he used her" Lyanna murmured.
She did not voice it out, thinking about poor old Jon Arryn. The man was betrayed by his wife, no use put any such seeds in his mind that he'd throw his son aside.
"I adored Lysa with all my heart. But she loved her son so much, that she became overprotective. He needs to learn how to swing a sword. How to ride a horse."
"Aye, it's time."
"Yes, it's time. Time for him to tour the Vale, to visit all the castles in his domain. Time for Robin to leave the nest."
Jon Arryn mused. Petyr was not wrong, and perhaps it should happen sooner this time. Jon was already thinking about it, now he was certain to do so. Now he just needed to think about what House to reach out to.