Wolf of NúmenorLouen_LeoncoeurChapter 17: A Hasty meeting
Summary:
Jon and company continue through the Stormlands
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Chapter Text
Jon felt the softness of the bed he was on and the presence of someone lying next to him. Opening his eyes, he saw her face, relaxed, and it looked angelic to him. Moving a loose strand of her hair away from her face, she finally opened her eyes and looked at him, smiling.
"Jon," Margaery said softly.
"Good morning, my love," Jon said as he planted a kiss on her head.
"Did we oversleep?" She asked, still in the process of waking up.
"No," Jon said with a small smile. "Dawn just broke a short while ago."
Margaery moved closer, snuggling up next to him, putting her arms around Jon's waist. "Good, it means we have some more time."
Jon put his arm around her and planted a gentle kiss on her head. She was here, next to him, in his room in Highgarden. As Jon continued to look at the sleeping beauty next to him, a pleased look on her face, he wondered if everything that occurred was just a bad dream, if there was no war if his father was still alive, Sansa and Arya safe. Then all started to shake, and he felt someone arm on his shoulder, calling to him.
First Margaery vanished and soon the room. Feeling the shaking intensify, his eyes opened again, sunlight hitting his eyes. In front of him knelt Robar calling his name.
"Jon, Jon wake up," Robar said.
"I'm awake, I'm awake, what is it?" Jon asked frantically.
"Riders approaching," Robar answered.
"What riders?"
"Tarlys," Loras answered as he came closer and walked towards them, "At least twenty."
"It looks like your father did not appreciate you leaving in the night," Robar said to Loras.
"More like my grandmother, but that doesn't change a thing; we can't let them find us," Loras said.
"We are too close to the road; how far off are they?" Jon asked.
"About thirty lengths," Loras replied. That was not much of a distance, so they did not have time to ride away or move further in the forest; their best course of action would be to lay still and wait for the riders to pass.
"Loras make the horses lay down behind those bushes over there as low as they can, Robar, you do the same," Jon said. "We can't run, so we will just have to let them pass us." Both knights nodded and proceeded to do as asked, both managing to let their horses lay low, Jon doing the same with Winter and the poacher's horse.
After that, Jon approached Grenn, the man still tied up and gagged. "Listen to me carefully, I need you to stay silent, or we are all going to be in trouble, understood?" Grenn just nodded, and Jon proceeded to move to Ghost and Lady, who were lying next to each other.
Soon the thunder of horses galloping was heard, and it was getting louder by the moment; a dead silence filled the camp as the group waited for the Tarlys to arrive. The first rider passed and then the second and the third, with the rest following close behind. Jon counted eighteen men pass; he waited for a moment before he lifted his head up. Just as he thought the danger had passed, two more riders came, Jon, lowering himself down immediately.
Jon looked through the tall brush as the soldiers were about to pass them until Bluebell neighed and the two riders stopped. Jon looked at Loras, who had a scared look on his face. Turning his gaze to the road, Jon saw that the riders were looking in their direction.
"Did you hear that?" the first rider said.
"Yes," the second answered. The first one moved slightly towards them, gazing from side to side; Jon held his breath as the soldier did so. Moment after moment passed, and it felt like they were about to be caught, then the second soldier's voice was heard again. "Probably just some forest critter; come on, Markus, we have to catch up with the others."
The rider stared in their direction for a moment longer before he turned his horse around and proceeded to join his comrade. "I could have sworn I heard a horse."
"Maybe it is a stag or something, come on. We need to move forward; they have a good head start; we need to ride more to catch up with him. You know what Lord Tarly said."
"Fine, let's go," The man said, and Jon and the company watched as they rode away, Jon letting a sigh of relief once he was sure the riders were far away.
"That was close," said Robar.
"Indeed," Jon said as he got up, taking Winters reins making her get up also. "We should probably wait for a while to let them put a decent distance between us, and then after that, we will head to castle Hasty."
"A solid plan now; let's eat something," Loras said. While they were breaking their fast, they talked a bit about what occurred in the camp after Jon left and how Loras and Robar managed to track him down. Jon tried to be careful; he knew that he could be a potential target with the Tyrell siding with the Lannister, a hostage even.
"By the looks of it, Olenna did not take your departure well," Jon said, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"That much was to be expected," Loras said. "When I first heard why Baelish came, I thought that my family would reject it, father, Garlan, Margaery. I thought they would be against it, but it seems I underestimated my grandmother's lust for power. Father always did whatever she told him to do, for this once I thought it might be different, but I was wrong; it stayed the same. Garlan just kept quiet, and when Margaery told me that she took the offer and that you ran away, I felt such anger and disdain for my family," Loras sighed. "It's the first time I was ever ashamed to be a Tyrell."
Jon could do nothing but look at his friend; he could not offer any words of consolation because the way Loras felt was like how he felt, only the feeling of betrayal still hurt.
It was noon when they finally mounted up and continued their way; the journey to castle Hasty should not take them long, two or three hours at most. They rode with Loras overseeing the poacher this time. Jon rode first with Ghost and Lady to his sides with Robar and Loras behind him. The journey was not long; the banter between the three of them and the occasional mumbles from Grenn made it more interesting than it had been for days.
"What do you know about the Hasty's?" Jon asked.
"I know that they have a good reputation, that they are an honorable family," Robar answered.
"Anything else?"
"I have heard that Ser Bonifer Hasty had been a talented jouster in his youth, and according to some sources, he was in love with queen Rhaella. After she was married to Aery's, Ser Bonifer gave himself over to the faith and formed a group known as the Holy hundred. His younger brother and sister run the castle."
"You think they will stay true to their word?"
"I do,"
As they neared their destination, the walls of castle Hasty could be seen in the distance, and an army camp was sent up around it.
"Maybe this isn't such a good idea," Loras said.
"It seems you are right," Robar said.
Jon gave the castle a closer look, and to his astonishment, he saw the banner of Renly Baratheon on its walls, the Baratheon stag in the colors of House Tyrell waving proudly in the soft wind. Looking at the camp, he saw that it was not the same Baratheon banner that the men there fought under; it was the stag on the burning heart of Stannis Baratheon.
"It seems not all of the lords of the Stormlands have sided with Stannis," Jon said. His two friends came a bit closer and saw what he saw.
"Well, I'll be damned," Loras said.
Loras
He could not describe how happy he was when they finally caught up with Jon and seen him unharmed. Jon's distrust was reasonable considering what happened but, in the end, his brother realized that what he said was true, that Loras was there for him, to be at his side like he always was. They were lucky to find Grenn; Loras was thinking about setting camp for the night when they saw the poacher. If they did that, Jon would have avoided them for who knows how long; it was ironic that they owed their success to a criminal.
Loras took the first watch just in case something or, more likely, someone came towards them. He felt relieved that during his watch, nothing happened. During that time, he found his mind returning to his family's actions; Jon meant a lot to them all everyone knew that, well, to everyone but his grandmother. There was no question about it, Olenna was behind this, but as he thought about it more, he started placing more and more blame on his father and his brothers for not standing up to his grandmother, Margaery, for saying she loved Jon but then choosing the crown instead.
Loras always thought that if anyone stood up to their grandmother, it would be Willas, he was the oldest, the smartest, the heir, but now Loras could see that his brother had no backbone just like his father, doing whatever Olenna told him to. The more he thought about it, the more agitated he became; only when he realized that it was time for Robar to take over that he started calming down.
Laying down on the ground, putting his head on the sack, he thought how Jon just feel about all of it if he felt like this. Closing his eyes, he let the sleep take him away. Hours later, Jon woke him up to take over, and he did, the first rays of the sun coming over the horizon. Watching the rode carefully, he saw nothing, so he looked at his companions. Robar was sleeping tightly, as was the poacher, while Jon twisted and turned from side to side several times before settling down. Loras could swear that he heard Jon call out Margaery's name in his sleep.
"Damn you, Margaery," Loras thought; Jon deserved better than this. Margaery has always been raised with the notion that one day she will be queen, father said it, grandmother said it, and now she will but at the price that should not have been paid. Jon loved Margaery with all his heart. That much was evident, and Margaery did too, or at least that's what he thought.
As Loras returned his gaze back to the road, he saw a cloud of dust in the distance; looking closer, he saw the shapes of horses and men riding them. Moving quickly, he shook Robar awake and told him to wake Jon. Standing behind a tree, Loras looked at the riders once more, and he could make out the huntsman as their sigil.
"Tarly," Loras growled and made his way back to the camp. They hid as best as they could and waited for the riders to pass. Holding Bluebell's reins, he felt nervous as he watched the Tarlys past one by one until only two remained. Then suddenly Bluebell neighed, and Loras thought that they were caught, that they would have to kill these two men if they intended to remain free. He thanked the gods once the riders left, they were not caught, and none of his countrymen would need to lose they live today.
After a while, they continued their journey, riding to castle Hasty to hand Grenn over. What they found there he could barely believe, the Hastys refusing to bend the knee to Stannis, Renly's banner still on the castle walls.
"It seems that Hasty is not an option anymore," said Robar.
"Aye indeed, we can't go there with an army at its gates," said Jon.
Loras thought of Renly, of the promise Loras gave him, a promise he could not keep. Staring at the banner, a feeling of guilt washed over him.
"So, what do we do now?" asked Jon.
"We can't do anything; we don't have any men with us. It is not honorable, but we can't do anything for them now; we need to continue forward," answered Robar.
"No," Loras said.
"What?" Jon and Robar asked, looking at Loras.
"I said no," Loras said.
Jon rode closer to Loras, putting his hand on Loras's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Loras, but Robar is right; there is nothing the three of us can do against an army."
"Maybe not, but I'm not leaving without getting it a closer look," Loras said, and he rode forward.
"Loras!" shouted Jon, but Loras ignored it, continuing to ride forward.
"Oh, for god's sake," said Robar and rode to join Loras, Jon following right behind.
They rode into the woods that surrounded the castle; standing at the edge of the tree line, they observed the camp.
"It's just three of us Loras, what can we do?" Robar said, but Loras tuned him out. Watching the camp, he could see the soldiers preparing for an assault. Loras guessed that there were about five hundred men in the camp, maybe more. Looking at the castle walls, he could see arbalests with their crossbows pointed at the men below. Stannis's men had siege ladders and a battering ram.
"Those gates won't hold that ram for long," Loras said, and the two other knights looked at the ram. He could hear Jon and Robar talking, but he paid no attention to it until he heard something coming from behind them.
"Loras," Jon said, and by his tone, Loras knew something was wrong. Turning around, he could see ten armed men standing in front of them; a tall, thin, older-looking man stood in the middle, looking Loras directly in the eyes.
The day before
Ser Lucas Hasty
When the news of Renly's death had reached him, he refused to believe them; there was no way that the king could just be killed like that in the middle of his own camp. So, the only reasonable explanation was that it was a ruse either by the Lannisters or by Stannis. Lucas never really liked Stannis, he met the man several times over the years, and each time he wondered how he and Robert were related. Where Robert was fun and jovial, Stannis was unpleasant and too stern for his liking. When he met Renly, it was easy to see that he was Robert's brother, the same easy smile and jovial nature, whereas Lucas had never seen Stannis smile not even once.
Bonifer was the official head of their house, but ever since he took to the faith and swore not to have any heirs, the responsibility of leading their house fell to him. When the time came to choose which king his house would follow, he declared for the man who was his liege Renly Baratheon, sending his sons along with five hundred infantry and two hundred cavalries to the king. He would have joined personally, but he could not fight, not since he lost his arm during the rebellion.
Lucas was ready to ride out to Storms End and see the truth for himself when an army under what he could only guess was Stannis banner marched and encircled his castle.
Now, as he stood on the Wall of his keep overlooking the camp, he knew that there would be a battle; Renly was alive. There was no doubt in his mind about that, and he will stay loyal to his king. News of this force has undoubtedly reached the king and his sons by now; all he had to do is hold out until reinforcements arrive. The walls were sturdy, the garrison numbered two hundred men, and his sister, ever the vigilant one, made sure that the castle's stores were full enough to last a prolonged siege.
"My lord look," one of the soldiers said, and he gazed in front of him; three horsemen rode towards the castle gates with a wight flag.
"They want a parley, then let's parley," Lucas said and proceeded to walk down a stairway down to the castle courtyard. "Open the gates," he told the men, and soon the gates opened. Stepping forward, he could hear crossbows being cocked on the walls and soldiers walking behind him. He stopped in the middle of the road and looked at the three riders, two he did not know but the one in the middle he recognized.
"Lord Simon Fell, what brings you to my castle?" Lucas said.
"King Stannis has tasked me with bringing you to heel; you were supposed to swear your allegiance to him, and yet you refused."
"Stannis is not my king; Renly Baratheon is my king."
"Renly is dead, my lord; his forces have all pledge themselves to Stannis, we'll all but you," Fell said.
"You think me stupid; there is no way that anyone can get past an army that large and kill the king in his own tent. Stannis will have to do better than that if he wants me and my men to follow him. Fools attempt at a trick, and it seems that even bigger fool follows him." Fell grimaced at the insult.
"Your son has already pledged your men to king Stannis. Renly is dead, my Lord; Stannis is your rightful king."
Lucas scoffed. "Duncan is my heir. He would never do that."
"Indeed, my lord, your eldest son shares your stubbornness, while the younger has seen reason."
"What have you done to Martin?" Lucas said worried, had they hurt his son?
"Nothing, my lord, unlike you, he swore to the rightful king after Renly's death; he and his rides follow the same king as I do."
"Could this be true? No Martin was brash but not a traitor," Lucas thought as he looked at the Lord. "If true, then why did not Stannis send my son to persuade me? Instead, he sent you," Lucas said.
"The king's decision is not yours to question my lord; your duty is to follow him," Fell said.
"You and your king can go fuck yourselves all I care until I see real proof king Renly is dead my loyalty lays with him. King Robert named Renly the Lord of the Stormlands; Stannis has never been my liege, which will not change today. Attack my castle at your own will but know I will not fall on this day."
Lord Fell laughed slightly, Lucas glaring angrily at him. "You are a cripple with barely a few hundred men at his side. If we attack, we will take the keep; why condemn good men to death if you can save them with one simple gesture?"
"I told you already until Renly's body is in front of me, I will not bend the knee. Even if my son did so, I will not. House Hasty stands behind Renly Baratheon."
"In that case, you will join him, my lord," Fell said.
"You can come and try, my lord, but you will not succeed," Lucas growled.
"I thought you would see reason, but instead, you chose defiance; I'm sorry, my Lord, but king Stannis has made his orders clear. Because we are countrymen, I will give you one day to reconsider. If you do not know that I will be forced to take the keep."
"Feel free to try," Lucas said defiantly.
"The deaths of these men are on your hands, my lord," Lord Fell said before he turned his horse and rode back to the camp, the two other men beside him. Lucas spat on the ground and walked back into the keep, the gates being closed as he did. He looked at his master at arms.
"Double the guards tonight," Lucas ordered.
"Yes, my lord," the man said.
Moving as fast as he could, Lucas made his way to the great hall where he found his wife, youngest son, and sister. Looking at them, he knew that if the castle fell, they would be captured, but an even worse thought crossed his mind. He shook his head; the castle will hold, it has to, at least one of his sons will arrive, and once they do, this will all be over. Walking to the table where his family sat, he tried to give them a reassuring smile.
"So how bad is it?" his wife asked.
"At least five hundred men, maybe six hundred, Lord Fell is leading them. He says that Renly is dead."
"We already heard that," his wife said. "Maybe it's true."
"There is no damn way someone could get past thirty thousand men and the Kingsguard and kill the king. Stannis is lying; our son might have fallen for it, but I will not."
"What about Duncan?" his sister Bethany asked.
"It's nothing about Duncan; it's Martin. Fell said that he already had to bend the knee to Stannis."
"Duncan was with the infantry at Bitterbridge the last we heard, right?"
"Yes, he was. By now, he must be heading this way; we need to hold out until they reach us."
"You think we can hold out that long?" His wife asked, fear clear in her voice.
"We must," Lucas said and looked at his son. "Alex, come with me."
He and his son made their way to the Lord's solar; Lucas told his son to open the chest at the back of the room and help him with putting the armor on. Almost twenty years have passed since he wore that armor last; it was at Ashford that he lost his right arm to some Tarly knight. He honestly thought that he would never put it on again, but now his home and family are threatened, and he would have to fight even with just one arm.
Lucas looked at his son, the boy's uncertainty clear by the look on his face. "You have nothing to worry about. Help will come; your brothers will return," he said, trying to do his best to reassure his son.
"But what if help does not come, what if we are left all alone?" Alex asked.
"We have strong walls and a capable garrison; we will hold," Lucas said with grim resolve.
"As you say, father," Alex replied, nodding his head as the last piece of armor was put in its place and helped Lucas with the sword belt. Wearing armor and with a sword at his hip, Lucas was ready for what is to come.
"Tell your mother I will be on the battlements with the men tonight; you are to stay with her and your aunt, is that understood?"
"But I want to fight; I can help, father," Alex said in a pleading tone.
Lucas put his one hand on the boy's shoulder. "I know you can, but I need you to stay with your mother. If worse comes to pass, they will not harm you."
"But father,"
"Don't argue with me boy, you will do as I say," Lucas said in a stern tone. Sighing, he continued, "Keep your mother and aunt safe."
The boy looked at his father, a determined look in his eyes. "I will, father."
"Good, now let us go."
Exiting the solar, they walked together until they separated in the great hall, Alex going to his mother while he went to join the men on the walls.
"My lord," said his master at arms with a hint of confusion, probably not expecting to see him like this.
"Have the men been doubled as I asked?"
"They have, my lord," the knight answered.
"Good, let us hope that Fell will stay true to his word and not attack until tomorrow," Lucas said, looking at the direction of the camp. "Where the hell are you?" he thought.
Bonifer Hasty
The hundred declared themselves for Renly Baratheon first, as did his family, Lucas always liking Renly more than Stannis. Stannis might be the next in line, true, but having a priestess of a foreign god at his side made Bonifer sure that the course his brother took was the right one, his gods are the seven, and he will not fight for a foreign god.
When the word of Renly's death spread, he did not believe it at first, but when all of the host that was with Renly sided with Stannis, he knew that he and the hundred need to make themselves scarce. Speaking with his nephew that night, he tried to talk him into returning to their family, but the boy refused, saying that Stannis was the king now and that he would side with him as will his father in time.
Bonifer laughed at that; his brother was a stubborn man, siding with Stannis was not an option, but his nephew scoffed at his words and said that his father would have no other choice. They argued some more before the boy stormed out of the tent, leaving Bonifer alone.
With no other option, Bonifer ordered the hundred to get ready to leave, and leave they did. The journey back to his family's castle took longer than he expected because they had to avoid several large contingents of Stannis's army and once, they came near the castle, they saw that it was under siege.
"This is not good," said Olden, one of the hundred.
"It seems I was right; my brother still refuses to bend the knee," Bonifer said.
"What are we to do?"
"We need to get a closer look at the situation," Bonifer said and took a dozen men with him into the forest to see if there was any chance of aiding his brother. Moving through the trees, he heard voices coming from in front of him. Moving carefully, he and his men came closer and found four men, three on the ground looking at the camp and one tied to a horse.
Just as they were few meters away, one of the three turned and looked at them. Calling the man's name next to him, he immediately recognized who the three were, but what were they going here?
Bonifer looked at the brown-haired knight in the middle "Ser Loras," he said with a nod. The three looked at him, two making themselves ready to pull their swords out. "We are no threat; you have my word."
"And who's word do I have?" Loras asked.
"Ser Bonifer Hasty, lord of that castle behind you," Bonifer answered calmly.
"I thought you sided with Stannis," the man who he knew was Ser Robar Royce said.
"Only my nephew, myself, and the Holy hundred won't follow him, for the god he now worships, and I will not go against my family."
After a moment of silence, a dark-haired man that could only be Jon Snow spoke. "If that is so, then you will aid your family trapped in their keep."
"I will Ser, I will not let my family suffer in any way," The three men looked at each other as if to see if the others agree with trusting him, and then Ser Loras spoke first.
"Your brother refuses to join Stannis. Why is that?"
"Lord Stannis had never really had good relations with the Stormlands to begin with, and my brother dislikes the man for his own reasons."
"So, you have a hundred men with you?"
"That is correct, Ser Loras."
"Then my friends and I will aid you in any way we can in lifting this siege."
Jon Snow turned to Ser Loras. "Loras, there are five hundred men out there; what can a hundred men do?"
"How many of your men are mounted, Ser Bonifer?" Loras asked.
"All of them,"
"Hundred mounted knights, Jon, that is not a small force compared to what is there."
"Five to one is not big to you?" Jon asked. Bonifer understood the young knight's worry but decided to not say anything about it for now.
"Trust me on this, would you?" Loras said. Jon stared Loras in the eyes for a moment before nodding.
"Fine, I'm putting my faith in you; you better not get me killed," Jon said before whistling, and then out of nowhere, two large beasts past Bonifer and his men. The men immediately taking steps back away from the beasts, stunned looks on their faces. Had they been behind them the entire time?
"Are those?" one of his men asked.
"Aye, Direwolves," Sir Jon said. He knew about the Stark bastard and his Direwolves and even saw them once while in the camp at Bitterbridge, but now seeing them closer, he could see just how large they truly were; a beast like that could tear a man apart in seconds.
Shaking off the astonishment, Bonifer spoke to the knights, "I thank you, good Sers, but if we are to help my brother with just my men, we are going to need a plan. Considering you already gave the camp a look, do you have any suggestions?"
"Come and look for yourself, Ser Bonifer," Ser Jon said, and he moved. The camp surrounded the castle, and by the looks of it, it housed somewhere around half a thousand men. The siege equipment was there, a ladder and a ram. If that ram got near the gate, the gates would not be able to hold out for very long. He also noticed another thing that no trenches were being dug or spikes placed around the camp to act as a defense measure. Being confidant is good; being too confident will get you killed.
"So?" Ser Loras asked.
"No outer defenses for the camp, but that ram will pose a problem if it gets near the castle gates," Bonifer said.
"We should make a plan then," Ser Robar said.
"Aye," said Bonifer. As the three started discussing the possible plans, they had two advantages, the element of surprise and the lack of defenses that will come it much easier to attack. As they continued to talk, Jon's voice cut them off.
"We wait," the knight said, and they looked at him confused.
"Wait, what do you mean?" Loras asked.
"We wait for the attack to commence; once most of the men are at the walls or near them, we attack, we outflank them and push them at the walls. They will be caught between two forces, so their numbers wouldn't do them much good compared to being in an open field," Jon said.
"Hammer and anvil," Robar said.
"Aye, hammer, and anvil. The castle will be the anvil, and we will be the hammer."
"It's a risky plan, but in war, every plan is risky," said Ser Bonifer.
"Anybody have anything to add?" asked Ser Loras.
"I do have one more thing," said Jon.
"Go on,"
"Do you still have Renlys banners with you?" Jon asked Bonifer.
"Some yes," answered Bonifer, raising an eyebrow.
"What are you thinking, Jon?" asked Robar.
"Well, all three of us are still in the armor of the rainbow guard, so if we are seen at the head of the force, carrying king Renly's banner, that might cause panic and confusion amongst the enemy forces."
Ser Loras thought about it for a moment, a strange look on his face but eventually nodded, and Bonifer ordered his men to tell the other the plan and to get themselves ready.
"What will we do with him," Ser Robar said as he pointed at the man that was tied to a horse. "We can't just leave him here."
Ser Jon walked over to the man and pulled a cloth out of the man's mouth. "Can you fight?"
"Not very well," said Loras with a smirk.
"Fuck you, I know how to fight," the man shouted.
"Then you will help us," Ser Jon said.
"Jon, he is a poacher," Loras said.
"I know, but we need every man we can get for this, and as Robar said, we can't leave him here."
"Why would I fight for you? You want to hand me over to some lord who will cut my hand off or send me to the Wall."
"Fight with us, and we won't hand you over, you will not be tried, you have my word," Jon said.
"What good is your word to me?" the man said.
"I'm a knight and a northerner. My word is my bond, I tell you again, fight with us, and we won't hand you over." The poacher agreed far quicker than Bonifer thought he would. Ser Jon took a knife and cut the man's bonds.
"Don't try to do anything stupid again," Ser Loras said while the poacher glared at him.
"Fuck you, pretty boy," the man said and got a laugh from Ser Jon.
"Come on now, it's in everyone's best interest for us all to get along; the sooner we are done with this, the sooner we all get back on your merry way," Sir Jon said, and all of them nodded in agreement.