The Neck 305 AC.
Missandei.
She helped keep the caravan moving, the sheer mass of people that made it up not allowing for speed, and yet still people fell behind. She, Ser Davos, and Ghost along with Lord Wyman's men, her own unsullied escort, and the Dothraki that her queen had insisted ride with them were all doing their best to make sure there were no stragglers. It was a constant task and a tiring one, Missandei not used to riding a horse in these conditions and almost falling more than once.
Still, they'd made relatively decent time and the weather had improved some the further south they had gone and Missandei had eaten far better than most on the journey. Her protector being more than simply that as each night they settled down and made camp, Ghost would go hunt and bring back food for her to eat. A rabbit, a bird, even a small deer, the wolf had almost taken it upon himself to make sure she was fed and fed well. That said wolf also acted as her most loyal guard, her guide, and at night her blanket, only making Missandei even more thankful that Jon Snow had sent him with her.
Missandei was under no illusions that it was her safety that he cared about, oh she knew he did and that he wished for nothing more than she was unharmed. She knew though he did so not because of her but because of her queen and her queen's feelings for her. Daenerys wished her safe and protected and so the man her queen loved would see her safe and protected it was as simple as that. Not that much was simple with Jon Snow as she'd found out from her talks with her queen.
" He is my nephew." Daenerys said.
" You are sure, your grace?"
" I'm sure, he's proved it to me, he has papers and documents which make it clear and Rhaegal allows him to ride him, as he would no other."
" It worries you?" she asked noticing her queen's frown.
" It could place me in danger." Daenerys said.
" From Jon Snow?" she asked shocked having seen how the man looked and acted with her queen.
"No not f rom Jon, from others." Daenerys said.
" You wish me to keep it to myself?" she asked and her queen nodded.
"Tell no one o ther than Grey Worm." Daenerys said with a smile which she had returned.
After she'd told her the truth it had allowed for her queen to confide even more fully in her about Jon Snow, Aegon Targaryen as he would one day be known. How they feared that his sister was working against them, something that didn't surprise her as the woman had been disrespectful to her queen ever since they'd arrived. So much so that more than one Dothraki had threatened to show her what happens when you disrespect a Khaleesi. Missandei talking them down despite how much the image of Sansa Stark being dragged behind a horse for miles amused her.
Her queen had told her that she didn't trust Tyrion Lannister either which again was no surprise, the half-man thought himself far too clever and had not shown to her at least, any sign that he was. His mistakes in Meereen had almost cost her queen the city, his mistakes since they'd arrived in Westeros had cost her far more. Missandei found his plans to be overly complex and based on far too many assumptions and she had told Grey Worm more than once to speak up to their queen about them. She smiled thinking of her love before she felt the worry come over her once more about what he was about to face.
"Stop it Ghost." she said as the wolf leaned close into her as they rode down the Kingsroad.
It was yet another thing she'd noticed about the white wolf, it seemed almost to know what you were feeling. At night when she snuggled against it and when her tears came it would almost wrap itself around her as if it was trying to comfort her. When she was feeling sad it would lean into her as if to say it was there for her, just as it was doing now and despite her worry for her love, it brought a smile to her face, one that was soon noticed by Ser Davos.
"A sight to warm even my old bones." the old knight said riding towards her.
"Well it is getting warmer is it not?" she japed the smile still on her face.
"Aye it is Missandei of Naath, though I doubt you've felt warm since you've arrived here." he said with a chuckle, and yet he as usual wore a sad look on his face also.
"Even compared to Dragonstone this is cold, Ser Davos. I find I miss the sun." she said and looked at him as he stared at her.
"Do you intend to go back to it?" he asked curiously as they now rode side by side.
"I will go where my queen goes." she said firmly.
"You have no wish to return home?" he asked and she shook her head.
"There is nothing for me there, Ser Davos, my family was taken as I was and I was but a child when they did so. I was alone until my queen came and I've not been alone since." she said and saw him smile softly.
"Especially not with that one near you." he said pointing to Ghost and making her laugh a little.
They rode on for a few more miles before she felt the chill which usually came before the night fell, Missandei glad when Lord Wyman gave the order to set up camp for the night. It was as she sat around the fire that the news came to them that Sansa Stark and some men had ridden off ahead of them, Missandei looking to Ser Davos who seemed worried. Her eyes went to where Tyrion sat and saw that he was not, there was no surprise in his eyes either and other than the hateful glares he shot Ser Davos's way, his expression never changed as the news was relayed.
That her queen had removed his pin and appointed Ser Davos in his stead was a good thing as far as Missandei was concerned. The older knight's loyalty may be to his king first and foremost, but his king was loyal to her queen which was all that mattered. So she waited until Tyrion had turned in for the night and she then sat down beside the older knight, telling him what she had felt regarding Tyrion's reaction and finding that Ser Davos had noticed it too.
"Jon asked me to keep an eye on them both, he no doubt knows about Sansa's departure already." Davos said confusing her "The wolf." he said a moment later pointing to Ghost.
"Do you think they mean them harm?" she asked not needing to say whom she spoke of.
"If they do then they'll have to go through me first." Ser Davos said and stood up, bidding her a good night as he then went to his bed.
She didn't wait too long after he'd gone to head to her own bed, her protector following her all the way and then laying down beside her as she fell to sleep. His warmth and comfort welcome but a poor comparison for who she wished to be laying beside. Missandei finding herself praying that he and her queen and to her surprise Jon Snow, would be safe in the battle to come and hoping that she'd seem them all soon.
The Neck 305 AC.
Sansa.
They'd made her leave her home, after everything she'd done to get it back they'd made her leave and not even given her the option to stay. For all intents and purposes, she'd been exiled and sent away and it grated on her. Her bastard brother and a foreign whore now both walked around it like they were Lord and Lady of Winterfell and it angered her. All the thoughts she'd had to see Jon settled, to see him given more than his station deserved were now gone for good and in their place were thoughts of seeing him and the Dragonbitch brought low.
It was why she'd ridden so hard and left the people behind even though she knew by doing so she was traveling a dangerous road. She had no choice though, the power she had thought she'd gained in the North was all but gone and it wouldn't return until she had enough power behind her to take it for herself. To do that she needed the Vale and the remainder of their knights. The force that Littlefinger had brought to bear for her was just an expeditionary one, Lord Yohn having explained what that meant as Sansa hadn't understood. What she did know was that out of the 20,000 Knights of the Vale, Yohn had a little over 2,000 men with him in the North.
It left the Vale with one of the largest military forces in Westeros, a force that could remain strong while all around it others grew weak. Sansa didn't possess a military mind, her forte was politics and understanding people's motivations. She did though know enough to realize that Jon and the Dragonbitch's forces would suffer great losses against the army of the dead. What remained to them would then both suffer and inflict loss on Cersei and the Iron Born, making the 18,000 Knights of the Vale potentially the largest undamaged force in Westeros. Should she then agree to a match with House Redwyne she'd soon have a fleet to call upon too.
"We'll rest here my lady." one of the knights that Yohn had given her as an escort said and Sansa felt relieved to finally climb out of the saddle.
The fire was quickly lit and she looked to Theon who was doing his best to fix up her tent for the night. Sansa was happy for the company and having someone she knew was loyal to her first and foremost by her side. She'd not let him in on her plans, only saying that she feared for her life under the Dragonqueen's rule and that they'd taken everything from her. True she had played up their roles in her downfall while limiting her own fault in it and had enjoyed watching the anger that grew in his eyes as she told her tale. But she was doing what she was for the right reasons, the realm would suffer under Daenerys Targaryen as the woman was no doubt as mad as her father or would soon be.
As for Jon, he was not fit to be a king, her time spent with him had shown that clearly and the Lords of Westeros would never accept a bastard as a consort either. When the war with the dead was done, when Cersei was deposed, a grand council could be called. There both Jon and Daenerys would find out the truth about Westeros for themselves, should they both or either still be alive at that stage.
"My lady." one of the men said handing her the plate and she ate the warmed meat and vegetables and tried not to think what poor fare it was.
"How much further to Moat Cailin?" she asked the knight that Lord Yohn had put in command.
"We should arrive tomorrow or the next day, Lady Sansa." the man replied as Sansa saw Theon come over and grab some food before he sat down close but not too close beside her.
"And the Vale?"
"A week, maybe two if we ride at this pace."
"Is it true that Lord Robert and the household of the Eyrie are residing at the Gates of the Moon?" Sansa asked, remembering what Littlefinger said about winters in the Vale.
"It is my Lady, they had already moved there before we left for the North."
She was glad to hear it, the idea of having to traipse all the way to the Eyrie in winter, not one she looked forward to. It had been uncomfortable enough to do so during summer, the rocky mountain pass almost causing her to lose her footing more than once and she'd found to her horror walking was the only way to get there. A small part of her had thought the Eyrie to be the perfect place to plan on how to bring down the Dragonbitch. Until she remembered that it hadn't stood against the dragons the last time they'd flown and so would not do so this time either.
No, if the dragons lived then she was in far more trouble than ever and the forces she gathered would turn out to be irrelevant. So she hoped that Tyrion was speaking the truth when he said that he had a plan to deal with them. Cersei would have something up her sleeve regarding them and this so-called Night King and his Army of the Dead may see to their deaths long before she'd ever have to worry about them. With them gone then the next war would be fought on far a more even playing field and if she had her way, in her arena.
"I'm turning in for the night, Ser Daveth, Theon." she said nodding to the knight and placing a comforting hand on Theon's shoulder before she walked alone to her tent.
Once inside she began to undress, trying not to let her fingers touch the marks she still bore on her back and sides. Each one of them was a reminder of what happened when she let others choose her fate. Each of them a reason why she'd never allow anyone else to decide for her or to have control over her anymore. Her father, Joffrey, Littlefinger, Ramsay, Jon, and Robb all of them had either decided her present or ruined her future and while the levels of blame were far different for each of them, blame them all she did.
She'd have been the queen of Westeros if her father hadn't stuck to his precious honor, a married woman and worthy queen had not Joffrey been a rabid dog. She'd be unmarked and unblemished and still a maiden true if not for Littlefinger and Ramsay Snow and as for her brothers, both of them had stolen crowns from her. One from beyond the grave and it still hurt to know that Robb felt more for the shame of her house than he did for his own blood. The words of the will still caused her pain every time she thought about them.
Jon could have been sweet, he could have been true, and were he her father's son as everyone claimed him to be then she'd love him still. But he was not, he was as far from Ned Stark as almost any man could be and was far truer to what her mother thought of him than what Sansa had or others did. Together with a sister who she had always known never cared for her and a brother who was beyond understanding, they'd abandoned her and left her alone. Along with ungrateful Northerners and a foreign whore, they'd taken what was rightfully hers and left her with nothing. She would see them all brought low and would regain her rightful place, she was born to be a queen, and a queen she would be.
Winterfell 305 AC.
Aegon.
He called them all to meet in the crypts and go over their final plans, the real ones and not the ones he'd present later on that night. As much as he wished to do this elsewhere and to not stand in front of his statue when he did so, he knew the symbolism was important too. Dany stood beside him and she held his hand in her own and Aegon welcomed the comfort it brought him, as he did having Jaime Lannister there alongside them too.
As the others started to make their way towards them, Aegon looked to the knight and wondered what was going through his mind. Had they managed to truly gain his loyalty or was it just as it had been before and simply a temporary alliance. It felt different to him and yet there was still the matter of his family and the bond he shared with them to navigate. His brother would lose his head by the end of this, it was inevitable he felt and as for his sister, Aegon could only imagine the complicated relationship Jaime had with his twin.
But the differences were stark too, Jaime seemed to have had a weight lifted off his shoulders, an air of something that surrounded him now that Aegon was sure hadn't been there before. Not that he remembered seeing much of Jaime other than remembering his betrayal of Daenerys at the end. Still, it was a strange thing feeling as if you knew something and yet weren't sure how you knew it. As if you've lived a life that you had not and had not just seen it take place in a vision. It was something that at times confused him and yet that he relied upon to almost guide his actions, something he needed to understand and yet could not. Each time he gave it thought he'd find himself distracted, just as he was to be once again.
"Your grace." Jaime said as the others arrived, Aegon having been there but also elsewhere as he'd found that sometimes he was lately.
"Lord Reed, Lady Mormont." he said while Dany welcomed Qhono, Grey Worm, and Ser Jorah.
"Your grace." Lord Reed said looking at him and nodding, a knowing look on the man's face which discomfited him even more.
Soon enough all who had been invited were there, Tormund standing with the Wull and Norrey, Galbart Glover with Maege, Lyanna, and Ser Jorah, and Lord Royce next to Qhono and Lord Reed. Aegon moved to stand in front of the statue so he didn't need to look at his face. His eyes were drawn as always to the one further down, something that Lord Reed noticed yet again.
"The fight is almost upon us my lords, we have but one more night and I'd have us spend it with those we wish to." he said looking at each of them and seeing them nod, while at the same time he reached down and gave Dany's hand a squeeze.
"The preparations are done, your grace, the men are ready." Ser Jaime said.
"Aye, your grace, the keep will hold." Maege added.
"Qhono, Lord Royce?" he asked.
"We'll be set up and await the signal, your grace." Lord Royce said.
"We will ride, Khal, for our Khaleesi we will ride and win them both a great victory." Qhono said.
"We'll stand behind the cockless men, King Crow, see our strength added to their own." Tormund said and he saw the Wull and the Norrey nod.
"The dragon's your grace?" Lord Reed asked.
"Will support the forces on the ground and engage the Night King and Viserion when they come." Aegon said.
"We're sure he'll come? He won't' just pass us by and go after our families?" Galbart asked his worry clear.
"He'll come. There's something here he wants and it's the reason that I've asked you to meet us here. In a few hours we'll hold another meeting and the plans I put forward I need you all to agree with and then to forget were ever brought up." he said looking to Dany.
"Your grace?" Maege asked confused.
"Lord Reed, you spoke to your daughter before she left?" he asked.
"I did. It's as you said your grace when she and Lord Brandon were beyond the wall, they met the Three-Eyed Raven and the Children of the Forest and spent their time in a cave beneath a Weirwood Tree." Lord Reed said to loud gasps.
"Tell them what happened next my lord." he said and Howland began to speak.
Aegon listened as the lord told of Summer's death, of Hodor's fall and the deaths of the children and the Three-Eyed Raven, of how his brother had been marked and the magic that had once protected them was then able to be bypassed. Though he didn't speak on the Wall it mattered not, as Aegon had begun to believe that the Night King could only breakthrough its magic because of what Bran had done.
"Magic?" he heard Lord Royce snort.
"What are dragons my lord, if not creatures of magic, Direwolves? You've seen my brother and no doubt my sister spoke often of the things he supposedly can do, what answer do you have for that?" he asked.
"But magic, your grace, actual magic, Dragon existed aye and I know of the Direwolves and of wargs, I may not understand them but these things are known to me. A magical barrier, a mark on an arm…"
"Dead men come our way, my lord, trust me when you look into their blue eyes you'll see that magic exists. But since you doubt it so, perhaps you can explain this?" he said undoing his tunic and nodding he was not upset or reluctant to do so as he looked to his wife.
Some had seen his wounds, Tormund, Dany, Grey Worm, Qhono, Ser Jorah, the Wull, and the Norrey, others had perhaps heard of them. Lord Reed, Maege, Galbart Glover, and Lyanna Mormont all looked his way while Brienne paled and Jaime Lannister looked ready to strike someone down. Aegon let them all look before he tied up his shirt and tunic once more.
"I was killed by my brothers, stabbed to death because I knew what came for us and refused to let a people die. Who brought me back I know not, Lady Melisandre claimed it was the Red God but I've never knelt to him, only to mine own. Why I was brought back I can only imagine was to prepare for the fight to come. I was dead Lord Royce and yet now I live and breathe and find I much prefer it." he said and was glad to hear some laughs as the tension was broken.
"Still think there is no such thing as magic, kneeler?" Tormund said and Aegon saw the Lord of Runestone shake his head.
"My brother and the Night King are linked, he wants him for reasons I know not and so he'll come for him and we'll be waiting for him when he does. How far this link extends I know not, but I know my brother sees things, I fear that the Night King sees what he does when he does and so we keep our true plan from him. From now on we act as if all we say in front of him is known to the Night King." he said to nods.
He sent the others away and was left with Dany and Jaime Lannister, the knight having held back while the others had gone about their day.
"I owe you an apology, your grace." Jaime said looking at him.
"Ser?"
"Many years ago, I made a poor jape at your expense, I thanked you for guarding us against what was beyond the wall." Jaime said his expression one of deep regret.
"You spoke the truth, Ser, had I listened to you then the world would have been a much different place." he said with a smile.
"Your grace?"
"I'm sure it'll be thrilling to serve in such an elite force. And if not… It's only for life. Those were the words you spoke to me, true words Ser, you may have meant them in jest but few men told me the truth of what I was doing and I thank you for it, so no, you owe me no apology." he said and Jaime nodded as he moved to go away before he stopped and looked at him.
"Had I known of you, the truth of you, had I known… I'd have never let you swear your life away, never." Jaime said.
Aegon gave the man his warmest smile as he watched him walk away and then turned to his wife who'd stayed silent the whole time. She'd allowed him to hold the meeting and run it and apart from speaking to her own men, she'd let him take the lead. When he'd told her what he planned to do they'd argued, made up, and argued again but they were united now, one thought, one desire, one outcome they both sought.
"You think him loyal?" she asked as he took her in his arms.
"More so today than yesterday, we'll see how he is tomorrow." he said brushing her hair from her eyes.
"You really think he'll come for Bran?" she asked softly.
"Aye."
"Which will mean he'll come for you." she said worriedly.
"I'm counting on it." he said looking deep into her eyes.
"Aegon…"
"I will see our child born, see them grow, and be joined by brothers and sisters. I will grow old with my wife and find out if silver ever turns to grey." he said holding a strand of her hair in his hands as she smiled softly.
"You'll go grey long before me." she said and he chuckled.
"We'll go grey together." he said kissing her and holding her tightly.
Winterfell 305 AC.
Jaime Lannister.
As he left the second meeting of the day and smiled as what the king had said seemed to have been confirmed by his brother's own words, Jaime looked to those he walked with. Brienne and Podrick, Lord Beric, Dolorous Edd, Galbart Glover, and Lord Reed, all of whom had been working with him to see to the defenses and who'd he'd grown close enough to over the last few days.
"I say we get seriously fucking drunk." Galbart said to a few laughs.
"Aye, seems as good a plan as any." Lord Reed said.
"Ser Jaime?" Brienne asked and he nodded.
"Let's hope we don't run out of ale, that really would be my luck, the night before facing an army of dead men ending up being the driest one of my pitiful life." Edd said in his own inimitable way and yet Jaime barely heard him, his mind was miles away.
When he'd come here he wasn't sure what to expect or even what the reasons were. He had thought he'd be leading the Lannister army and fighting for the future of Westeros and yet he should have expected she'd do what she'd done. Still, he came and for the entire journey, he wasn't sure why or how he would be received once he got here, though he doubted it would be well. That part at least going somewhat how he'd imagined it would and yet very much not as well.
Brienne standing up for him had been a surprise and he wondered then if it was her that he'd come for. Had he left his sister behind because he had feelings for someone else, or had he come here because he felt he owed her something? He hadn't been able to tell which if either was true and had then thought that he'd come for his brother. Jaime imagining that it was the thoughts of standing by his brother's side and of ensuring that Tyrion was safe, that had made him ride the length of the country and brought him to the biting cold of the North.
But when Tyrion had lost his pin, when he'd complained about how he was treated and how he'd been wronged, Jaime had found himself sure that it wasn't his brother he'd come here for either. He'd listened as Tyrion had made the same complaints he'd always made and he began to wonder just how valid they had ever been. While true his father had never given Tyrion his due, it was also because his father had always found his brother lacking. Something the queen he served now did too it seemed.
So if it had not been Brienne or Tyrion then what had been the driving force to bring him here? Why had he abandoned his sister and all he knew, to go fight and more than likely die alone in the cold and or a people that hated him? He still wasn't sure, but what he did know was that he had not come here for Jon Snow or for Daenerys Targaryen. He'd not come expecting to find Rhaegar's son and then pledging to fight for him and his wife. He'd not come for redemption or at least not in that way and yet be it the gods or someone else's will, he may have just found it.
"Ser Jaime?" Brienne said looking at him oddly.
"Sorry, I find myself perhaps more in need of a drink than I thought." he said covering up that he'd not been listening to them speak.
They walked to one of the smaller halls, Jaime taking a seat by the fire and soon finding himself with a mug in his hand and his eyes looking into the flames. Memories flooded his mind of days long past and each of them taking him further back than he'd ever imagined they would. He'd always thought that if he ever found himself standing on the precipice and if he was ever faced with a fight that he may not win, then his thoughts would have been simple. Blond hair and green eyes, the warmth of her body, and the sound of her moans. At the end, he'd always thought he'd think of her and her alone.
Instead, he saw silver hair and deep purple eyes, a dark-haired girl chasing after a black cat, a crying babe, and a mother lifting him from his crib. He saw Ser Barristan, Ser Jonathor, Prince Lewyn Martell, and Ser Oswell Whent, he saw Ser Gerold, and then he saw the pale blond hair and deep violet eyes of Ser Arthur Dayne. The sound of a harp and the clash of blades, and six shadows standing in front of him and all of them looking him over. Ser Arthur moving forward and Jaime swore he could hear his voice as clearly as if he was there in the room beside him.
" Seven we were once and you were just as we, but now there is only you who remains. Do what we could not, be what we all once were, and should you fall, then fall only as a true knight." Ser Arthur said.
The empty mug crashed to the ground and Jaime heard the laughs and the japes in the room once more, he got up from his seat to pick it up and caught Brienne's eye. Smiling at her, he walked away to refill his mug, listening as the conversation turned and noticing for the first time that Tormund had joined them without him noticing.
"You're not a knight?" Tormund asked.
"Woman can't be Knights." Brienne replied.
"Why not?" Tormund asked.
"Tradition."
"Fuck Tradition." Tormund said and Jaime smirked as he filled the mug.
What words were spoken next he heard not, his mind instead he thought on what Ser Arthur's voice had said to him as he had looked into the flames. The message may have been for him but the words spoke true of another too. It wasn't him who'd tried to keep his word to Lady Stark, nor he who'd traveled the realm searching for the girls. He didn't bring Sansa Stark safely to her brother at the Wall, nor did he stand up for honor whenever he could.
"Kneel Lady Brienne." he said and heard her try to laugh it off "Any knight can make a knight and there are few that I've ever known more worthy than you. Kneel a Lady and rise a Knight."
He looked on as she nervously rose to her feet, her footsteps slow as she walked towards him and when she reached him he looked at her and nodded. Brienne finally going to one knee as he raised his sword and moved it to her shoulder.
"In the name of the Warrior, I charge you to be brave. In the Name of the Father, I charge you to be Just. In the Name of the Mother, I charge you to defend the young and innocent. In the Name of the Maiden, I charge you to protect all women."
By the time he was done, there were tears in Brienne's eyes as she looked at him, Jaime knowing that what he had just done was good and true.
"Arise Brienne of Tarth, a Knight of the Seven Kingdoms." he said and somewhere in the back of his head he swore he could hear Ser Arthur's voice speak again.
" And now there are two." Arthur said.
The Neck 305 AC.
Tyrion.
Each mile he rode he felt his anger rise, his grip on power faltering which each step the horse took. That he was tired, cold, and hungry was not helping his mood any nor was the fact that Sansa Stark had left without him. Sure she'd told him some of her plans and Tyrion knew that she needed to do what she'd left to do. It didn't mean he enjoyed being left behind though, especially not when he was starting to feel more like the outcast that he'd become.
Looking at Davos wearing his pin and seeming to be as much in charge as Lord Wyman was, only made his mood worse. Tyrion felt embarrassed that he was replaced by anyone, let alone the Onion Knight. A smuggler from Flea Bottom who could barely read was now wearing the pin that was rightfully his and it angered and irked him. As did the fact that he'd been denied the chance to ride in Lord Wyman's sleigh, instead he'd been offered either a horse or a place in one of the carts beside the old and ill.
It was a huge comedown from where he'd been but a few moons earlier, he no longer even had any guards with him whereas before the queen would always insist he was protected. The good thing about it was that it gave him time alone with his thoughts and allowed him to try and make some sort of a plan to right his world. The bad was that so far he'd found that there were very few options that actually did anything to change his own position. Revenge could be had but he wanted much more than that, he wanted his pin back, he wanted favor back. He wanted his queen back and that was a far more difficult proposition.
When they stopped and he sat by the fire to eat his pitiful meal, his mind went in a million directions at once. Ideas coming and going, plots being discarded and plans rejected and each of them frustrating him more and more. As he slept he dreamed of rising high once more and yet even in his dreams, no pathway to that rise was shown to him. Tyrion woke up in the morning only to repeat the previous day's activities and finding himself almost going around in circles.
"Is that the White Knife?" he asked one of the Manderly men who rode by him on the way to the back of the line.
"Aye." the man said and Tyrion felt some relief knowing that they'd not be far from White Harbor and that soon he'd be laying in a warm bed and perhaps could think more clearly.
It turned out to be false hope, as rather than turn from the Kingsroad they rode further south along it, past Castle Cerwyn and ever closer to the Neck and he began to realize that they weren't heading to White Harbor at all. Upon reaching the Moat this became even clearer and he felt his anger rise once more. He'd been lied to, played, and made a fool of once more. Who? The Queen? The Northmen? Sansa Stark? The names coming and going from his head as he looked to Ser Davos Seaworth and Missandei and he saw they had known all along. No, this was Snow, this had to be Snow's plans and for a brief moment, he began to panic.
Did he know? Did he know that he planned to betray them? That he intended to see them suffer loss so that he could rise once more? He took a deep breath and relaxed, he didn't know, he couldn't, and if he did then Tyrion would already be a head shorter. The queen had only taken his pin, even as she'd warned him what could happen but she'd not closed the door completely and had Jon Snow known then he knew that she would have.
"Are you well?" he heard one of the Manderly men ask and he nodded his head as he began to calm down.
"I'm good, tired, and confused though as I thought we were going to White Harbor."
"Aye, me too." the man grumbled.
"You weren't aware we were coming here?" he asked and the man shook his head.
"The Lord just kept telling us to march the Kingsroad, I thought we'd have pulled off at some point." the man said.
"Are we marching further?" he asked.
"Aye." the man said as he walked away.
Further south could only mean they were heading deeper into the Neck itself which brought him close to the Riverlands. Had he his own men with him, loyal men, then he could ride and find a keep where to put his plans into action, where he could have access to ravens or to men he could pay to do as he willed. With these Northmen he'd not risk approaching them, even were he able to buy their loyalty the chances of being found out were far too great.
No, he needed to bide his time, wait until the time was right, and then do what needed to be done. Cersei would welcome the information and she and Greyjoy would act upon it. The losses would be severe but would not break them and Jon Snow and Ser Davos would face the brunt of the queen's displeasure, not he. He needed to wait and so wait he would and when the time was right he'd strike once more. He'd cost her allies already, what cared he if he cost her some more and a husband in the process.
Stormlands 305 AC.
Edric Storm.
He looked to Ser Andrew when they saw the shores of the Stormlands come into view for the first time in over four years. Four years, during which he'd gone from a scared young boy who'd found out he was to be burned alive by his uncle, to a strong young man who now led a decent force and was finally ready to take back his home. He'd grown bigger, stronger, Ser Andrew, and Ser Triston both telling him that he looked more and more like his father each day. Other than his clean-shaven face that was, Edric finding that the warmth of Essos not conducive to the wearing of a beard, that and the one he'd tried to grow was pitiful.
"You ready for this?" Ser Andrew said looking to him as he turned to walk away from the front of the ship.
"I was born ready for this, cousin." he said heading to his cabin to make ready to go ashore.
Less than two hours later the ships had docked and his men were disembarking. Almost four thousand in total, it had taken him time, coin, and many battles to bring these men to his side. The Company of the Stag, Lewys the Fishwife had named them in jest and though they held little to the name, the banner they flew did indeed carry a Stag upon it. Edric doing his best to both show his father's sigil of the Black Stag while incorporating his mother's and so he had it on a field of blue flowers rather than the yellow background of his father's house. As he disembarked he saw the banners fly proudly and he walked to the horse that his men held for him.
"We're ready to ride, my lord." Ser Gerold Gower said and Edric quickly mounted his horse.
"Any word from Lord Caspar?" Ser Andrew asked.
"No, but the gates have been closed and his men mount the walls." Ser Triston said.
"We parley?" Edric asked and Andrew nodded.
He looked back on the ships, fifty in total and he knew that soon most would be sailing back to Essos, their work done and their coin fairly earned. Edric and his men would not be joining them, one way or another he had sworn he'd die in the lands of his father, be it today or if he got his way many years from now.
"We ride." he shouted and together with more than a thousand mounted men they began the short ride towards Rain House.
Behind them, another thousand mounted men and their almost two thousand foot along with their three hundred archers would march more slowly. Edric was not expecting a fight here but prepared for one all the same and once they reached the outskirts of Lord Caspar's lands, he sent Ser Gerold and some men to bring his offer to the lord of Rain House. By the time they reached the keep itself, Ser Gerold and his men were riding towards them with Lord Caspar and some of his retainers. Edric relieved to see the smiles on both men's faces.
"Lord Edric, it is you, thank the seven. Ser Andrew, Ser Triston." Lord Caspar said looking to him and then to his knights.
"Lord Caspar, it's good to see you once more." he said warmly, smiling at the older lord.
"You too, Lord Edric."
"It's just Edric, my lord." he said softly.
"No my lord it's not." Caspar said climbing down from his horse, Andrew looking to him and bidding him do likewise.
As he did he looked on as Lord Caspar bent to one knee, as he drew his sword out and held in his hands while the lord looked up to his face.
"I renew my allegiance to House Baratheon and to its lord and heir, Edric Storm." Lord Caspar said and Edric looked to see the beaming smile that appeared on Ser Andrew's face, his cousin having spoken of this moment almost constantly since they'd been forced into exile.
"And I vow that you shall always have a place by my hearth and meat and mead at my table, and pledge to ask no service of you that might bring you into dishonor. I swear it by the old gods and the new. Arise, Lord Caspar."
Once the lord did, Edric, Ser Andrew, Ser Gerold, and Ser Triston were all asked to join him in Rain House as his guests, each of them accepting guest right when it was offered and Edric welcomed the warm bath and the meal they were given that night. Though he found that while he'd missed the food of his homeland while away, now that he was here it was Essosi fare that he found himself longing for. After eating their meal, he refused the drinks that were offered, surprising the Lord until Ser Andrew explained that he'd sworn an oath to forgo drink until his home was his once more. Edric noticing the approving look that Lord Caspar gave him once he heard Andrew speak on this.
"What is the state of the Stormlands, my lord?" he asked as he drank his sweetened water.
"We've been left to our own devices, Lord Edric, like a ship without a rudder we've been drifting and waiting for someone to take charge." Lord Caspar said looking to him.
"Storm's End?" he asked.
"In the hands of some Lannister lickspittle." Lord Caspar said almost spitting as he spoke.
"The rest of the Stormlords?" Ser Andrew asked.
"Will rally to their lord's side."
"What of the Realm?" he asked.
"Where to begin." Lord Caspar sighed as he took a swallow of his wine, Edric sitting eagerly as he awaited the news.
It took a long time to hear it all and by the time he was done, Lord Caspar had drunk three more glasses of wine. Edric listening to each word he spoke with great interest and barely able to believe what he had heard. The tale had everything, war, destruction, a mad queen and a crazed pirate, dragons and a bastard king, and Edric had smiled a little hearing the last part. To hear that House Tyrell had been ended, House Tarly all but and that the mad queen had aligned with Euron Greyjoy and had blown up the Great Sept, was beyond belief.
Hearing about Daenerys Targaryen and her dragons was not, as Edric had spent over four years in Essos and tales of the Mother of Dragons were well known to him. As he stood in his rooms that night with ravens sent to the most loyal Stormlords, and a plan to take his home back clear in his head, he thought of Daenerys Targaryen and wondered if she was as beautiful as they said she was. In truth she was the reason he'd come back and why he'd needed to do so now. Ser Andrew had wished for him to go to her, to offer her his hand, and to then bring the Stormlands to her side but as much as he loved his cousin, in this, he was very wrong. She'd not just blindly accept him, given his name and his father she may very well kill him unless he could offer her something that she had not.
No, he'd take the Stormlands first and then make her the offer of a marriage between her house and his own. Together they'd unite first their claims and then the realm and together they could rule, he'd even settle for being a consort if she was truly as beautiful as they said. As he lay in his bed he thought of Jon Snow, the King in the North, Lord Caspar had said. He'd lose his crown soon enough of that he had no doubt but he'd proved one thing, a bastard could also be a king and soon the realm would have another who wore a crown.
Winterfell 305 AC.
Maege.
She sat with the men of Bear Island and with Lyanna and with Jorah, all of them reminiscing about their home and how much they'd like to see it again. Maege having not seen it in almost seven years and Jorah even longer than that. Each time she looked at her daughter she saw glimpses of Dacey in the smallest of things that Lyanna did. How she looked around at all who were present and how she was always watchful and wary of the looks she got in return.
Maege had thought about sending her back to Bear Island, of asking her to take some men and leave, she'd even thought of asking her to go with the others as they traveled to the Neck. She knew though she could not, that not only would Lyanna not listen but she'd hate her for asking her to leave. But it worried her, having her here, seeing what she'd seen, and even speaking to Howland hadn't made that worry completely fade away. His words not as comforting as they should have been and the images not leaving her mind.
" The gods brought us here for a reason Maege, they made us wait for a reason. You heard their words, the promise they made, we have to have faith in them and in the king.." Howland said as they knelt before the Weirwood tree.
" I placed my faith in the gods before, in a king before and it cost me, my daughter. How am I to know this is any different?" she said looking to him.
" Jon Snow is a different king and this is a different time. You saw our people fall Maege, not march to safety, you saw Winterfell almost fall, and was it as ready as it is now?"
" No." she said.
" No. Lyanna will live, the North will survive and we will win." Howland said.
Maege heard a cheer run around the room and turned to see Jon Snow walk in, the king without a crown some had come to call him and she chuckled at that. King Robb had worn his always and while Wyman and others had offered to have one made for Jon Snow, he had refused. The crown didn't make the king, the man did, and there was no doubt that Jon Snow was a king to any who knew him. Both he and his queen had a presence about them and though it was different with each of them, it was the same too. An air of something that she couldn't quite put her words to but she something that she knew to be true.
"Lady Mormont, Lady Lyanna. Ser Jorah, my wife wishes to speak to you, she's with Grey Worm speaking to the unsullied." Jon Snow said as he looked to her nephew who nodded as he got up from his seat "May I, my lady?"
"Of course your grace." she said as he took a seat and she smiled as another round of ale was brought to their table.
"I wanted to speak to you both before the battle, I wished to thank you, for all your house has done for me." he said with a warm look on his face as he looked at Lyanna.
"House Mormont has always stood by House Stark, your grace." Lyanna said and she nodded her agreement and approval of her daughter's words.
"They have my lady, I'd not let any man dare say different. There has been never been a more Leal house than yours in any kingdom, not just the North." Jon Snow said.
Maege looked to see the prideful look on Lyanna's face, feeling her own pride rise in her chest at the sincerity of the king's words.
"But I wished to thank you for myself, my lady. For me and not for my house. Your uncle, your brother." he said looking to her "He was my Lord Commander, a guide and a mentor, he was a man I truly respected and one who gave me this." he pointed to Longclaw "Without which I'd have been dead long before I finally fell."
"You wear it well, your grace." she said seeing Lyanna's nod.
"Aye, never has a man held a truer blade and I thank Jeor every day for gifting it to me. But Jeor isn't the only Mormont I am indebted to. You, Lady Lyanna, you more than any other northerner I owe a debt and am thankful for. Were it not for you I'd have given up on the march to Winterfell and I would not be wearing a crown here today.
"You're not wearing a crown, your grace." Lyanna said and Maege swore she'd never seen a man laugh as hard as Jon Snow did just then, Lyanna herself laughing fully which was a rare thing.
"No my lady, but were I then I'd owe it greatly to you. I wished you to know that I was grateful for it, for everything you've done, and I wanted to thank you and to wish you well. I feel most fortunate to have known you my lady and I just wanted you both to know that." Jon Snow said as he rose to his feet, giving them both a slight bow as he walked away.
Maege looked to Lyanna and saw she was turned away from her, the movements of her hands telling her that she was wiping her eyes and when she turned back to face her, Maege saw the water pooling in her daughter's eyes.
"Soppy sod." her daughter said and Maege chuckled as she moved closer to her, feeling her lean in against her as they sat quietly and alone and she swore an oath that no one would harm her child, not gods, not men, not even a giant.
Howland.
He sat with Galbart and drank far more than he usually did, glad that Meera had heeded his words and traveled with the rest further south. His daughter's disappointment at what Bran Stark had become only having grown more into anger and sadness since they'd arrived. His own feelings towards the boy were anger only, his son had given his life for this, this thing that he'd become. Unfeeling, uncaring, and unwilling to offer any comfort or worse to offer any help.
Howland had seen it for himself in their meeting, he'd heard the words spoken from the boy's mouth and felt the lack of caring in each of them. Simply stating that he was what the Night King was coming for and that he would certainly come and then he'd listened on as Jon Snow had made plans that would never take place. It had been clear to him that his king was right, they could not trust this thing Bran Stark now was, and so they had to hide their true intent from him. It had been clear and yet it had hurt too, as he realized that his daughter had loved Bran Stark once and that Bran Stark was truly gone.
Looking around the room, he saw Jon Snow speaking with the Mormonts, and then he saw him walk his way. The king had been going from table to table and speaking with each of the Northmen that sat there almost one by one. Offering words of encouragement, comfort, and helping them when their courage faltered, he showed them his own confidence in the outcome of the battle to come. Howland saw him pat some men on their shoulders, laugh with others and speak softly to even more and then he was standing at their table looking down on him and Galbart, asking permission to take a seat beside them.
"Of course your grace, we'd be more than pleased to share a drink with you." he heard Galbart say.
"I thank you, Lord Glover, Lord Reed."
"Your Grace."
He didn't stay too long, just a couple of drinks before Howland saw one of the black brothers walk from the Great Hall, Jon Snow looking at the man as he did so and then bidding them farewell. The words he'd shared with them both were words of victory, words of confidence, he'd told them that they'd see what needed was done. Then came words of the future, and of what was to come, how the North would rebuild, grow strong, and rise once more, how he and the queen would see it done. Howland finding them more comforting than any of the others. He, Jon Snow, Maege, Galbart, all of them were here now to ensure that the North had a future. Their lives, their blood, were all to ensure that their people had a future and with the god's good graces he would see it done.
Arya.
She found him working in the forge still, his hammer beating down on steel and Arya looking at him as he worked. The others had either called it a night and gone to bed or were drinking in the Great Hall, a final night of peace and joy before the war to come. Gendry though had stayed to work and Arya had come to watch, or at least that's what she had thought she'd come for. Now that she was here, she wasn't sure what it was that she'd left the Hound and Beric for.
All she knew was that she didn't wish what could be her final night, to be one spent with men such as those, men who'd killed and in Beric's case had been killed. Earlier that night she'd spent her time alone with Jon, her brother telling her how much he loved her and asking her to promise that she'd not risk herself on the morrow. Arya agreeing but only if he did likewise and though both had spoken what the other had wished to hear, both of them knew their words were just that.
She'd felt his arms go around her and had held him just as tightly, letting him wipe away her tears when they'd begun to fall. That his own had come was a surprise and yet not and her fingers had soon brushed them away. They'd spoken on the future, laughed about the past, and tried not to worry too much about the present and in that at least they'd done a decent job. Neither of them had been able to say goodbye and instead had simply said two words to each other.
"Not Today." she said softly as she remembered, though she'd not heard the hammer had stopped falling and was not aware that Gendry was looking her way.
"Arya?" Gendry said catching her by surprise.
She looked at him with his face all dirty from the smoke and with sweat glistening on his arms, and before she could help herself she was in his arms and kissing him deeply.
"Arya?" he said when he moved his lips from hers.
"Shut up you stupid bull." she said smiling as she kissed him again and again.
Tormund.
He'd tried and failed once more, the big woman making it clear that she was not to be stolen and Tormund had looked jealously at the golden cunt when she'd done that. That Jaime Lannister had then left them alone gave him another chance he had thought and so he tried once more, only to find that he once again was denied. The big woman walking away with the young lad who followed her everywhere, it inevitably led him to drink and he would have drunk some more, only he had someone else he wished to speak to before the night was done.
So he made his way to the battlements and found Jon Snow standing speaking to one of the crows, the miserable one who never smiled. Tormund waited for his chance and then saw the Dragonqueen was standing nearby looking on and so he quickly moved to her.
"Dragonqueen." he said smiling broadly at her.
"Tormund, I had thought you'd have been drunk by now?" she said with a smirk on her face and he heard a chuckle come from behind him.
"He is drunk, just not fully drunk, yet." Jon Snow said and Tormund moved to him grabbing him and lifting him from his feet.
"I was waiting to see you, King Crow, before I drink my fill." he said with a loud laugh.
"Aye, I wanted to see you too." Jon Snow said as he slapped his back.
He looked on as the Dragonqueen gave them some room and then he stood silently looking at his friend. The words he wished to speak not coming to his mouth and the silence showing that Jon Snow knew not what to say either.
"Thank you, Tormund." Jon said after a while.
"I never thought I'd be friends with a crow, with a kneeler, Jon Snow, never thought I'd ever call such a man a brother." he said reaching out his arm to find it quickly gripped by Jon Snow's own.
"No man has ever had a truer friend, or a truer brother, Tormund. Tomorrow we'll take our swords and shove them right up the Night King's arse, we'll look him in the eye and we'll say, We Do Not Kneel, are you with me?"
"Always, Jon Snow." he said pulling him in and embracing his brother
After a few moments, he turned to the Dragonqueen and did likewise before he turned and nodded to Jon Snow and left them both alone and he walked back down the keep. He hadn't got too far when he heard a voice call his name and he turned to see the She-Bear beckoning him to her room. The slap he got when he smiled at her probably one he had deserved and soon enough he heard the door close behind him.
"I had thought you had no wish to?" he said as she began to undress.
"This isn't the woods Tormund, here people would have talked." she said back looking at him and motioning to his own clothes.
"And now you don't care?" he asked as he began to take off his furs.
"No, we may die on the morrow, so fuck them, but before you do that come over here and fuck your bear." she said and he moved toward the bed.
"I missed you Sheila." he said as she grabbed a hold of his member.
"Aye, I missed you too, my bear in the woods."
Dany.
They'd decided to speak to their people separately, Dany leaving Aegon in the keep while she and her guards headed to the Dothraki camp. Her men were doing what they did before a battle, almost, they were drinking but not fucking, the woman having left many days past. She'd spoken to them all and explained why they needed to go and though there were some who argued, more had accepted that the nature of this fight was unlike any they'd ever known.
Their families weren't safe here should they lose, it wasn't another Khal or Khalasar who'd welcome them into their own, it was an army who'd see to their end no matter their age or sex. It had taken some time but men had said goodbye to their women, their children, their old and ill and all had left to go south. The fires still burned and the mare's milk was still drunk, but there was no true celebration and she felt guilty because of it. They followed her and she denied them much, to deny them this too was something she wished she'd not have needed to do.
"Khaleesi." the chant broke out and Qhono stood up with the horn of mare's milk in his hand's holding it out for her to take.
"Qoy Qoyi." she said loudly as she took it from his hand and drank it down quickly.
Again the cheers rang out and she tilted the horn over to show it was empty only making them cheer louder as she did so. Dany waiting until they quietened down before she spoke.
"Qoy Qoyi, tonight we drink and offer up our thanks to the Great Stallion for the victory he will bring us on the morrow. Once again our Khalasar will ride and sweep those before us, just as we did in Meereen, just as we did in Westeros to the men in iron dresses. Tomorrow we will ride, and as you strike down our enemies from the ground, Drogon and I will strike them down from above.
Qoy Qoyi, together we ride, and together we will deliver a victory that will be spoken of for thousands of years." she said hearing the cheers ring out.
"Khaleesi."
"Khaleesi."
She accepted when Qhono gave her another horn and she drank this one down too, touching his shoulder and nodding to him as she turned and headed back to the keep. Dany made her way to Grey Worm and the unsullied and found them in a far different state than the Dothraki had been. They were relaxed but ready and the speech she gave them was simple but true. Asking them to fight and fight well but to not throw away the lives that meant so much to her.
"You too Torgho Nudho. You have a reason to live and someone other than I who wishes to see you unharmed, do not disappoint her or me." she said seeing him nod as he looked at her.
"I, for Missandei of Naath." Grey Worm said handing her a letter and Dany heard the footsteps behind her and turned to see Aegon walking her way.
"Missandei is safe and well, Grey Worm, she and Ghost rest and she prayed for you before she did so." Aegon said reaching them and taking her hand in his own.
"You see this?" Grey Worm asked.
"I see what Ghost sees and she is safe and well, on that you have my word." Aegon said, Dany seeing Grey Worm relax as much as he ever did.
They then spoke some more, Aegon standing back while she spoke softly to a man who'd been forever loyal. Dany remembering her talk with Ser Jorah earlier and telling him just how much he meant to her. Getting him to promise that he'd not throw his life away and would come back to her, just as he had already done. Her bear telling her that he would fight and fight well and promising to be by her side when she took her place on the Iron Throne. Grey Worm was now doing the same and Dany promised that should the worst come to pass that she'd see Missandei got his letter.
She and Aegon then walked the battlements, Aegon saying he wished to speak to the Lord Commander before they took to their bed. Dany holding his hand and then letting it go as he and Edd said their farewells and spoke of things she knew not and a life before she'd arrived into his own. After Tormund had said his own farewells, Dany knew it was time, the two of them walking to their rooms, and neither of them speaking a word. The emotions of what they had said and done and what they would face on the morrow, stealing their voices for now.
Dany wondered what she'd say, what they would say to each other, what words of comfort they could offer and would they be enough. Aegon too seeming to feel exactly how she did and almost searching for the right thing to say and she felt herself tense up when he looked to her and took her in his arms, his eyes starring deep into her own.
"I love you, now and forever, that's all I know and all I care about. I will wade through an army of dead men, I'll put each and every single one of them down, them, the white walkers, the Night King all of them. Any who dare stand in my way to get to you, to be with you, any, I swear it Dany, to you, to our babe, I will burn them all." Aegon said and she looked at him, saw the truth in his eyes.
"No my love, we will burn them all, together." she said.
"Together." he said kissing her and lifting her up and carrying her over to the bed.