The Rebellion was over but at great costs throughout the entire realm, the major houses, the minor houses, the smallfolk and even the land itself. King Aerys II Targaryen more commonly referred to as "The Mad King" had been removed from power by force and the realm was about to begin its road to recovery. Even with the late Robert Baratheon's attempts at getting revenge and justice for his assumed kidnapped betrothed, House Targaryen remained the ruling family of the seven kingdoms. King Rhaegar Targaryen, first of his name had been crowned shortly after his father's death along with his Queen Elia (Martell) Targaryen but both monarchs had hoped for a third to be crowned on that day alongside them.
Lyanna Stark was the breath of fresh air that their stagnant marriage had needed, both Rhaegar and Elia were good friends but romantically indifferent towards each other, which was not helped by the fact that the maesters had advised for Elia to not birth anymore children after the struggles of birthing her first child Rhaenys and the expected problems they predicted would occur when birthing her second, Aegon (with the later almost killing her). At the Tourney of Harrenhall both Rhaegar and his newly announced pregnant wife Elia along with their appointed Kingsguard for the day Ser Arthur Dayne and Ser Barristan Selmy had witnessed (without her knowledge) Lyanna chase off a group of Riverland squires with nothing but a stick and her wolf-blooded bark after she had caught them beating down one of her father's bannermen.
Lyanna would later go on to procure a mismatched set of armour and enter the lists with only one task in mind, unhorse the knights whose squires were responsible for the beating of her now good friend Howland Reed. She was dubbed "The Knight of the Laughing Tree" and would succeed in her task demanding that the fallen knights chastise their squires in order to ransom back their horses and armour. Shortly after, Lyanna would sneak away to remove her armour but would find that she had been followed by non-other than the crown prince himself Rhaegar and his sworn sword Ser Arthur Dayne.
Rhaegar and Elia had a pretty good idea on the identity of the mystery knight, so when the forever paranoid King had claimed and was whole heartedly convinced that the mystery knight was an enemy, Rhaegar on the advice of Elia had announced to his father that he would attempt to find this knight for him alongside Ser Arthur and would return with them if he was successful. Obviously Rhaegar and Elia just wanted to make sure nothing would happen to Lyanna but also wanted to meet this beautiful northern soul to hopefully get the ball rolling on Rhaegar and Elia's brand-new plan.
You see, from the moment the pair had seen Lyanna's protectiveness towards the vulnerable, the love she showed towards her family and friends, the aura of freedom she seemed to radiate whenever they saw her smiling whilst caring for or riding her mare, the happy tears she would shed when she heard Rhaegar's harp, her strength and sheer devotion to justice when knocking a grown man off his horse and her overall wild beauty had left both monarchs smitten. And with both of their feelings towards the northern beauty being mutual, they both decided to try and revive their relationship by proposing an addition to their marriage bed that not only helped with creating more heirs thus taking the pressure off of Elia but also introducing a beautiful soul into their lives that they were both slowly but surely starting to fall for.
They had come to the conclusion that they wanted her and the plan was to simply make her want them. It began when Rhaegar and Arthur discovered her removing her armour...
The snap of a twig*
"Who goes there?" Lyanna spoke out.
"Just me and my sworn shadow my lady" Rhaegar japed as Arthur rolled his eyes.
Lyanna's eyes widened "Your Grace? I...I Heard your father had made me a wanted man, are you here to turn me in?" She tried to make light of the situation but she was already trying to conjure up an escape plan.
Rhaegar could already see she was spooked and looking for an out but he had to take control of the situation and hope their plan hadn't been ruined before it had even begun, Elia would kill him. "No, I'm not here to hand you in I'm afraid, I'm actually looking for a treasonous man who my father has claimed to be his greatest enemy, you haven't seen him come by this way have you?"
That earnt him a chuckle from the lady and he could already see some of the tension leave her body. "What about him?" nodding at Ser Arthur "Is he gonna turn me in? He is kingsguard after all, the job description is in the name".
"Unfortunately for my father Ser Arthur here is MY sworn shadow and unfortunately for Ser Arthur shadows aren't known for their power of speech or capturing enemies of the crown, your secret will never leave his lips even if he tried". Rhaegar japed receiving a look from Arthur who was trying to not give Rhaegar the credit of seeing him grin.
"Bit of a shit kingsguard aren't you then?" Lyanna boldly replied earning a stunned look from Arthur and Rhaegar with the later trying and failing not to grin at her reply.
"Well...that's...that's, look your lucky I'm his shadow" Arthur replied, completely caught off guard by her response.
"You're right, they really aren't known for their power of speech" Lyanna replied as she subtly admired the dashing smile the prince was currently blessing her with.
With that Ser Arthur huffed and looked away, Rhaegar burst out laughing and Lyanna began to giggle, it was one of the loveliest sounds Rhaegar had ever heard. They carried on with their conversation with Arthur contributing from time to time speaking about what they've been up to at the tourney, what their friends and family are like, what their homes are like and what their plans are for the future, that's where the conversation took a bitter turn for Lyanna.
"My father has decided to betroth me to an oaf a drunk and a whoremonger, a man I have no plans on marrying." Lyanna spoke shaking her head. "He can't marry me off to that Baratheon idiot if he can't find me can he now" Lyanna smirked.
This could be a problem, he and Elia were unaware there was a betrothed in the way and if this Baratheon turned out to be his brash, ill-tempered cousin Robert it could become an even bigger problem. "What do you plan if your father forces you to marry him?"
"I love my father, but if he thinks he can force me to marry that pig on the recommendation of my brother then he'll have to deal with the consequences. I won't marry Robert to just become some trophy wife of his as he leaves me to run his household singlehandedly as he whores himself around the seven kingdoms. He's already got a bastard and it wouldn't surprise me if there's more out there" Lyanna spoke passionately.
So, it was Robert...big problem indeed but what scared him more was how determined she sounded about avoiding this marriage. "You still haven't said what your plan is if you were forced by your father?". He dreaded her answer.
"I'll leave it all behind, whether I go into hiding here in Westeros, go east to Essos or see what is west of Westeros, I've always wanted to go on an adventure" She smiled. "I would rather sail into the unknown, high chance of death than spend the rest of my life with that man".
Rhaegar had believed every word she'd said and knew she would go through with those plans, he had to act and act fast for his, Elia's and by the sounds of it Lyanna's sake. He informed her of his wife's wish to meet her and get to know her as well and hoped he wasn't being too forward and scaring her away, but to his relief she seemed to be genuinely interested in personally meeting his wife.
He and Arthur had left after leaving an open invitation for Lyanna to speak with him, Elia or both whenever she wanted stating all she had to do was to let Ser Arthur or Ser Barristan know that she wished for a private audience with them. It hadn't taken long for Lyanna to take up that offer and the three of them were enjoying sweets, fruits and Dornish red along with relaxed conversation and even a bit of flirting between Elia and Lyanna that very night.
"I must say, it must have been something very controversial to get Arthur's tongue twisted Lyanna" Elia smirked behind her goblet of red.
"Lady Lyanna here has a sharp tongue which Arthur unfortunately for him found out about the hard way" Rhaegar smiled as he peeled his blood orange.
"I wonder what else that tongue can do" Elia mused as Lyanna blushed and Rhaegar fumbled with his orange.
"You'd be surprised" Lyanna returned as Elia grinned and Rhaegar tried to not combust.
And with that their budding relationship started to slowly grow, all three started to enjoy their nightly meets with each night becoming progressively flirtier than the last but keeping it innocent even though in their minds all three wanted to push the boundaries with touches and kisses. Rhaegar and Elia knew they had to keep it innocent, they couldn't force this plan of theirs, it needed to be mutual between the three of them. They also needed to consider a way to get Lyanna out of this betrothal she so vehemently hated the idea of.
The next day was the last day of the tourney, Rhaegar had successfully unhorsed man after man and earnt his place in the final of the joust. Elia had managed to pull Rhaegar away for a few moments to tell him of her idea...
"You want me to what? Wouldn't this just incite tension and anger Elia?" Rhaegar answered, worried that this plan of Elia's could come back to bite them.
"If you win you can split the garland between me and Lyanna, I'll be smiling throughout the whole spectacle so nobody will see that I'm displeased of your actions, blue roses are Lyanna's favourite as we found out last night, she would love it". Elia pleaded with Rhaegar, she was confident this act would get the plan moving a little quicker.
And so, after a thrilling final tilt, Rhaegar managed to unhorse his good friend Ser Barristan Selmy to win the joust tournament and go on to crown both Elia & Lyanna as his Queens of love & beauty. Elia and Lyanna's reactions were as predicted both smiling towards Rhaegar as he placed the two crowns on each of their laps but what wasn't expected was the deathly silence that the rest of the onlookers were exhibiting which was broken when Robert Baratheon decided to down his wine, launch his goblet into the crowd and storm off muttering to himself.
Unfortunately, after that Lyanna was kept away from both Rhaegar and Elia by her brothers and they didn't get to talk to each other for the rest of the tourney. In the end both Rhaegar and Elia returned to Dragonstone to wait out the birth of their second child and Lyanna returned to Winterfell to plan out her escape from her betrothal. To be honest, Lyanna didn't have to think hard on a plan and decided that she would use the wedding of her brother Brandon to Catelyn Tully at Riverrun as a distraction to collect supplies, ride down the river road and fork off to Maidenpool where she would find a ship and leave for Pentos. She wasn't naïve enough to think her new life would be easy but it sure as shit would be better than marrying that cunt.
Rhaegar and Elia meanwhile had discussed how they could get back in touch with Lyanna but keep it discrete as the whole realm was watching Rhaegar after his stunt at the tourney. Many moons passed, Elia had finally given birth to his heir who they named Aegon but not without problems, the maesters were right, Elia nearly died and they both agreed they wouldn't risk a third as it wasn't worth losing both mother and child. Both Rhaegar and Elia were becoming more affectionate with each other with every moon that passed, with Elia surviving her ordeal and both of them still determined to go through with their plan to introduce Lyanna into their marriage, there was an excitement between them of what their future would bring.
Finally, Rhaegar and Elia would catch a break when word got out that Brandon Stark would be marrying Catelyn Tully at Riverrun and that Lyanna would be travelling with his host. Both of them decided that it would be best for Rhaegar to travel up to just outside Riverrun, close to Harrenhall and send a trusted envoy to sneak into Riverrun and hand the note personally to Lyanna instead of using a raven which they did not trust at the time, that note gets in the wrong hands and this whole plan is over. So, after all the planning, Rhaegar decided him, Ser Arthur and a loyal servant they had hand chosen to sneak into Riverrun would ride up to Harrenhall, send the envoy in and wait to see if Lyanna would accept his and Elia's proposal.
Lyanna would receive the note 4 days before her brother's wedding and agreed to Rhaegar and Elia's proposal. She thought about them both, they were both beautiful in their own way, Rhaegar's mesmerising violet eyes, Elia's dark eyes that were almost black, Rhaegar's locks the colour of the stars, Elia's coal black tresses, both of their caring attitude to some northern girls personal problems, a girl they had never met before and had accepted into their circle of friends with open arms, a girl they had put their necks on the line for by exhibiting a public show of affection in front of the entire realm just because they like her and because she likes blue roses. And now, now they were offering her an out and into their open arms in the form of a polygamist marriage. She must have stared at that note for half an hour and came to the conclusion that yes, she could actually see herself being happy being married to them both, she would have to put up with court but it could be entertaining if she was doing it alongside Elia. Rhaegar can rule whilst her and Elia had fun, she's always wanted to visit Dorne and imagined Elia would entertain her wishes. She'd also get to share their bed and that conjured up all types of images in her mind's eye that caused her to blush.
Surely her father would agree to the marriage, yes, it's a bit unconventional to say the least but her daughter would be a Queen of the seven kingdoms and not just the Lady of Storm's End. Robert would just have to get over it, probably in between the legs of some whore no doubt, it still amazed her that her sweet brother Ned had vouched for that man. She would of course have to inform her father of her choice via raven, whether he consents to it or not is none of her concern, if he was willing to sell his only daughter off for some political gain with no interest in her wishes or happiness then she was willing to take charge of her own life whether she hurt his feelings or not. So, with all that she'd decided to go through with it, she gathered her belongings, handed off her note for her father to be sent via raven and left in the dead of night to meet up with Rhaegar and Arthur where the three of them met up with Ser Barristan who had escorted Septon Maynard from Kings Landing at Rhaegar and Elia's request. The group would then travel to the Isle of Faces to perform the wedding ceremony and then onto Dragonstone to meet up with Elia and their children.
Obviously, it had all gone wrong when Brandon Stark and a host of young nobles had come to their own conclusion and rode all the way to Kings Landing to demand Rhaegar's head for abducting his sister. He and his host were subsequently imprisoned in the black cells by King Aerys to nobody's surprise with the King summoning their respective fathers for the crimes they had committed. Aerys would go on to execute the sons and fathers leaving just Rickard and Brandon Stark alive with Rickard demanding a trial by combat as was his right fully expecting to be fighting a kingsguard and not Aerys actual champion, Fire. Rickard was suspended in the throne room of the Red Keep, a pyromancer lit a fire beneath Rickard while he was dressed in his steel armour. Brandon, with a noose around his neck and a sword just out of his reach, was made to watch his father roast. Trying to reach the sword to save his dying father, Brandon strangled himself to death.
Aerys's next step was to demand that the Lord of the Vale, Jon Arryn send him the heads of his former wards, Eddard and Robert. Lord Arryn refused the order and instead called his banners, essentially starting a war. Rhaegar, Elia and Lyanna blamed themselves for the start of the conflict although they don't know how Brandon could have come to such a conclusion and make such a rash decision afterwards, Rickard must have received Lyanna's raven and known before the summons from Kings Landing came through that Lyanna had left wilfully with Rhaegar so what had happened for everything to go so wrong? This was all a misunderstanding at the highest order, and Lyanna's Father and Brother had paid with their lives because of it.
Lyanna was heartbroken to say the least with the only thing managing to get a smile out of her being the news that she was with child. Rhaegar and Elia were ecstatic with the news that there would be even more children in their new little family, the three of them discussed baby names all the while trying to be strong for each other in these trying times. 2 moons would pass where Rhaegar would receive a summons from his father to come back to court along with Elia and their two children with the excuse of "I need them close to keep those dirty dornish loyal". Rhaegar and Elia decided it would be best and the safest for Lyanna to travel to a privately owned keep in Dorne named The Tower of Joy where she would be guarded by ten loyal soldiers from Dragonstone along with her very own kingsguard, Prince Lewyn Martell who had grown fond of Lyanna after getting over the shock of Rhaegar taking another wife and seeing just how happy Lyanna made his niece.
Eventually, Rhaegar, Elia and their two children along with Ser Arthur and Ser Barristan would arrive in Kings Landing where they would find out that Robert and his allies had been winning battle after battle and that Rhaegar would be soon leaving to command the royal army. Rhaegar and Elia were relieved that they had gotten word of Lyanna's arrival at the tower and that she would be safe to progress through her pregnancy but they were also worried about Aerys and his paranoia and unpredictability, especially around Elia and the children. With Rhaegar departing soon, anything could happen to them when they are gone so Ser Barristan stood up to the task and promised to protect Rhaegar's family which they both happily accepted. Two moons would pass and with that, Rhaegar along with Ser Arthur, Ser Gerold and Ser Oswell would march with the royal army towards the Trident.
Rhaegar would call for an audience with Lord Robert Baratheon, Lord Eddard Stark, Lord Jon Arryn and Lord Hoster Tully to try and come to an understanding and explain this whole misunderstanding, nobody came and so the Battle of the Trident would proceed as planned. It was a bloody battle with both sides losing great numbers but with a thrust in the armpit with one sword and a slash to the throat with the other, Ser Arthur Dayne would end the life of the would-be usurper, Robert Baratheon and subsequently cripple the command of the rebel troops and ultimately end the great battle. Soon after Rhaegar had Lords Stark, Arryn and Tully and all the other lesser Lords bend the knee and swear fealty to him and not his father stating to them his plans to remove his father from power and end his rule of tyranny. He also explained the entire situation involving Lyanna and her apparent "obduction" and stated it all as being a misunderstanding that got way out of hand. The Lords reluctantly accepted his terms, explanation and his plan to take the capital, although Lord Stark was secretly not buying anything that came out of the crown prince's mouth about his sister.
Rhaegar along with the royal army, Eddard Stark and his personal host would go on to march up to the capital where they would meet up with non-other than a certain Tywin Lannister who had tricked Aerys into opening the gates to the city and proceeded to kill all of Aerys's loyalist guards and take control of the city for Rhaegar's arrival. When the host finally got to the Red Keep they made a beeline for the Throne Room where they would witness Ser Jaime Lannister knocking out the King of the seven kingdoms with his mailed fist and following that up by putting his sword through the back of an escaping pyromancer. With that, Rhaegar ordered for Aerys to be thrown into the black cells to await his execution and sent Ser Gerold and Ser Oswell to retrieve Ser Barristan and his family. Rhaegar wasted no time and sent a raven to Lord Mace Tyrell who was told to end the siege of Storm's End and another raven to Stannis Baratheon who was holding Storm's End stating that his brother had fallen in battle and all his allies had bent the knee and that he should do the smart thing and follow suit.
With that Rhaegar got started on fixing Kings Landing, starting with the removal of all the wildfire caches hidden underground. With Rhaegar being occupied to the realm at that given moment he decided to inform his good-brother Lord Eddard of his sisters' location in Dorne. With an order stamped with Rhaegars personal wax stamp, Eddard Stark along with his six companions: Howland Reed, Willam Dustin, Ethan Glover, Martyn Cassel, Theo Wull, and Ser Mark Ryswell marched south to this so called "Tower of Joy" to retrieve his sister with the full intention of bringing her home to Winterfell and not Kings Landing. The plan was simple, arrive at this tower, kill the guards so there's no witnesses, burn the bodies, collect some of their ashes, retrieve Lyanna, send her north with his host, arrive at Kings Landing alone with an urn of his "sisters" ashes and a bullshit excuse of a "misunderstanding" when questioned on why he had to fight the guards stationed at the tower. He would then return home with his sister where she would be kept away from the public eye, safe and surrounded by what little family she had left and especially kept from Rhaegar and the poisonous pit they like to call Kings Landing.
As Eddard and his host approached the tower they noticed five guards outside, these odds were okay with Ned who dismounted in front of the guards and asked them the whereabouts of his sister, not even bothering to show them the sealed message Rhaegar had given him. Their reply riled Ned up with them stating that she was under the care and guard of the royal family, with that Ned unsheathed his sword and all hell broke loose. The fight was bloody but over rather quickly, all five Targaryen guards had been dealt with but at the cost of Theo Wull and Martyn Cassel's lives. Unfortunately for Ned and the survivors, six more guards would emerge from the tower with one wearing the distinctive armour of the kingsguard.
Prince Lewyn saw the mess that was left outside the tower and instantly engaged in combat with the first man he came across who happened to be Ethan Glover, they traded blows with each other but it was obvious that Prince Lewyn was the better swordsman of the two, half a minute later Ethan Glover had been defeated with a slash straight across his throat. Prince Lewyn moved on to Ser Mark Ryswell who was getting the upper hand on one of the Targaryen guards, with a sword through the chest, Ser Mark defeated the guard but was taken by surprise by Prince Lewyn who claimed the upper hand from the get go. Ser Mark never recovered and with a miss step to avoid a strike that never came, lost his sword hand to Prince Lewyn with an overarching strike. Prince Lewyn put the man out of his misery by piercing his heart.
With one final strike, Ned defeated the last Targaryen guard. All five guards were dead at the cost of Lord Dustin, Ser Mark and Ethan Glover with only him and Howland left standing to face the last survivor, Prince Lewyn Martell. The fight ensued between Lord Stark and Prince Lewyn with Ned telling Howland not to get involved between them, Prince Lewyn heard this and fancied his chances a bit more. Unfortunately for Prince Lewyn Martell this was all just a bluff with Howland manoeuvring behind the kingsguard with a dagger in hand. Both Ned and Howland knew it was not the honourable thing to do but they had to get Lyanna back at all costs. And with that, Howland buried the dagger in the back of the kingsguard's neck and Ned finished the rest.
As soon as Prince Lewyn fell, Ned dropped his sword to the ground and all but sprinted up the stairs to the tower. Ned informed Howland to keep watch to make sure there wasn't any returning guards they had to prepare for and entered the tower alone, dagger in hand. As soon as he entered the room where noises could be heard he was hit by the intense smell of blood and sweat, with the source laying in a bed in front of him, his sister.
"Ned?...is...is that you brother?" Lyanna whispered out.
Ned rushed to the side of the bed where he could get a good look at his sister. He grabbed hold of her hand and instantly grew concerned with the lack of grip he received back.
"Yes...It's me Lya...I'm here for you...I'm here to take you home" Ned explained, trying to be strong but failing as a look of concern took over his visage.
"I don't...I don't think that's gonna happen big brother..." Lyanna managed to get out as her bottom lip started to tremble and her eyes started to fill with tears.
"Don't talk like that, you're going to be fine..." Ned replied as he looked down at the blood-stained sheets she was laid in. There was too much blood and it seemed to be still flowing to his horror. "Is there a maester or anybody here who can help?" he asked her. He looked around the room and yelled for somebody to bring her a maester or a nurse or anybody. "Bring her some water, somebody!". Lyanna squeezed his hand with all the strength she had and he turned to look at her.
"It's too late big brother...I think my time is coming...just don't leave me...I don't want to die alone" Lyanna rasped out as the tears flowed freely from her eyes.
"You're not going to die, stop talking like this!"
"It's all my fault...father's and Brandon's deaths are on me...I hope they forgive me when we meet again".
"Lya, stop...you need to save your energy...stop blaming yourself for all of this".
"Prince Lewyn had to deliver him, the nurses were returning from Starfall, they should be back soon but he was early".
"You...you have to promise me Ned...promise me that he'll be loved...promise me that he won't be blamed for any of this...promise me he'll be cared for by his family".
"What...what are you talking about, Lya?"
As soon as he asked her this he heard the little whimpers of a baby, a baby that was resting inside a small makeshift crib. He had a little wisp of dark brown hair, tiny button nose and a furrowed brow almost as if he was concentrating.
"His name...his name is Jaehaerys...Jaehaerys Targaryen...you have to keep him safe Ned...he's so small" Lyanna got out as she let the tears consume her.
He could see she was struggling to hang on and desperately needed him to make that promise "I promise Lyanna, I'll love him, his siblings will love him, he won't be blamed for any of this, he'll be cared for by his family". Ned vowed.
"Thank you...big brother".
Ned took his eyes away from Lya's little boy and looked at Lya, her eyes were closed with a slight smile on her face. He took a hold of her hand as her breathing slowed down. "Lyanna?" He whispered but received no reply as her chest stopped moving and her face slackened. She was gone.
Ned sat there for a few moments trying to collect himself after what has just happened, he took a deep breath, stood up and went outside to sort things out with Howland, when he reached the bottom of the stairs he could see that Howland was preparing the bodies to be burnt. So much death for nothing, was he right to withhold Rhaegar's order from the guards? He came to the conclusion that if he hadn't fought then Prince Lewyn would have no doubt followed the babe until he was in Rhaegar's arms. He did the right thing...for his family.
As Ned was fussing over the little one, Howland burnt the bodies and gathered the ashes to return to their respective families, Lyanna wouldn't be burnt, her bones would return to where they belong, the Winterfell crypts with the rest of her family. The little family that he had left was all that mattered to him right now and that included Lya's son. He'd made a promise to her and he would keep it, he would have to claim him as his own, the life of a bastard wouldn't be easy for him but it would be better than a life of whispers and loneliness in Kings Landing away from his real family, he just hoped his new wife would forgive him.
He hoped the babe would react well to goats milk, they weren't gonna wait for the nurses to return, it was a risk but it had to be done. He needed to ride hard with Howland to Nightsong since that was the closest place he could think of where he could hire a wet nurse discretely. Ned and Howland would have to hide any house sigils and clues to their identities when entering Nightsong, find a wet nurse and leave as soon as possible.
After gathering the Lyanna's remains and the ashes, explaining his plan to Howland, riding to Nightsong and successfully finding a wet nurse, him, his adoptive son who he had been calling Jon named after the man who was like a second father to him Lord Arryn, Howland and the recently hired wet nurse travelled to Kings Landing where Ned informed Howland to keep Jon and the wet nurse out of sight whilst he went to the Red Keep to do something that he dreaded.
He had to use Lyanna's body to help with his lie, a lie that would go on to devastate Rhaegar and Elia who would end up crying on each other's shoulders as Lord Stark replayed the events to them of the whole misunderstanding, Prince Lewyn believing Lord Stark was still loyal to the rebels, that he was there to take Lyanna away from her husband and wife and return to Winterfell with her, the battle that would ensue because of it all and the loses of both Ned's bannermen but also Prince Lewyn along with all the guards that were stationed there. He handed them the ashes of Prince Lewyn and hit them with the hard news that Lyanna had birthed a stillborn girl and that he'd spread her ashes at Summerhall on the way there. They'd appreciated the sentiment and agreed with Ned that the best place for Lyanna was with her family. They looked devastated and Ned felt like shit throughout the whole ordeal, it was cruel but it was the best for his family and Jon, Ned was the Head of his family now, he had a duty and he'd still not forgiven their family for what had happened to his, he was bitter and, in his mind, rightfully so.
He offered his condolences, explained that he had been away from home long enough and made a swift exit with Lyanna's body after Rhaegar and Elia had said one last tear felt goodbye to her. They took a ship from Kings Landing to White Harbour and from there he and Howland would say their farewells to each other and ride back to their respective homes.
He approached Winterfell dreading Catelyn's reaction to Jon but also excited to see his new-born child. Catelyn's reaction turned out to be muted but he could see she was holding her tongue and didn't agree with his actions one bit, he would just have to live with the guilt for the sake of his family. Seeing Jon and his new son Robb laid in their cribs babbling nonsensical noises at each other was what it was all about now, his family, the future.