Margaery smiled as she looked out over the hall, her friends, family, and so many others celebrating the end of the Long Night. Drinks flowed freely from barrels and casks. Music and laughter fluttered through the air like butterflies as people danced, told stories, and generally reveled in a life that they know had for a little while longer.
The Long Night was known as the "Year-long Winter" to the common people. The winter itself had gone on for almost a year and a half, but the name had stuck and that's what the people knew it as. The people of Westeros would later know what happened, once Robb's soldiers returned from the Wall and spread stories, but for now, Margaery was content to let the information be spread naturally.
The effects of spring had been noticed immediately. There had once been a blanket of dark, stormy clouds rolling south, covering the Vale, Riverlands, and Westerlands. Parts of the Reach were covered as well, and snow fell as far south as Sunspear, but the storm clouds and the storm they brought with them stopped just short of the city. While the snow covered the entirety of the Riverlands and the northern edge of the Reach, it was much worse in the Vale, making it practically impossible for riders to make it through the mountainous region.
The Mander had been completely frozen, as were all the rivers that crisscrossed the Riverlands. The fertile lands of the Riverlands and the Reach were as hard as stone and practically impossible to dig into. The damage was going to be so much worse than snow and ice. It would have made the land inhospitable. Nothing would grow, meaning that nothing would be able to live.
Now, reports were flooding the capitol, explaining how the ice and snow were melting more and more each day. The clouds that had covered the realm were crawling back north, revealing the sun. the commoners were very happy, celebrating the coming of spring after a short, hard winter.
The highborn knew better. Everyone knew that it wasn't just the turning of the seasons. It was evidence of Robb's victory over the Others.
"Your grace," Mira said quietly.
Margaery turned towards her trusted friend, a soft smile on her face. "Yes, Mira?"
"A letter from the Wall," Mira said, producing the letter and handing it to Margaery. "It's from Lord Jon, my lady, not the king."
Margaery immediately felt ice water run down her spine as she looked down at the little piece of parchment in her hands. All of a sudden, all the music and laughter turned to ash in her ears.
"Thank you, Mira. Please wait a moment," Margaery said, her smile gone as she turned back towards the railing. She quickly unraveled the message and read it carefully.
Margaery,
Firstly, Robb is alive and unhurt save for a few cracked ribs
We won, as you might know already, but it wasn't easy
Robb does not intend to leave the Wall until things are set to right
I do not know how long that will be. I expect 3 months…or longer depending on the ride south
finally…Our father died, and Robb had taken his death hard
do not expect the same man who left you. I will try my best to bring him back
All the best,
Jon Stark
Margaery read the message a second and third time before releasing the breath she didn't know she was holding and leaning over the railing, catching her breath. Robb was alive, but if Jon was right in his assessment of her husband, how much of her Robb was she getting back. It was no secret how much Robb loved his father. His death might have permanently altered the man she loved.
"Mira," Margaery said.
"Yes, your grace."
"Please summon my grandmother and Lord Tyrion," Margaery said, turning back around. "Also, please let Maester Samwell know that I will need his services in the morning. I will need to write a declaration."
"Of course, your grace," the northern girl said before swiftly leaving.
Margaery waited, looking calm and collected, but her thoughts were anything but. She hoped that she was not being too impulsive. With Robb gone for an unknown number of months, Margaery needed to make it known that all was well, and she needed to do it publicly. People would begin to wonder what was wrong if the king didn't return in the next two or three months.
The problem with Margaery's theory is that people would believe that something happened regardless of Margaery's declaration. Without the king in King's Landing, there's no telling how many snakes might slither into King's Landing, hoping to build a nest before the Young Wolf returned to his lair.
If he ever returned at all.
"Margaery, what's the matter?" Grandmother asked as she and Tyrion approached.
Margaery held up the note. "Word from the Wall," she said. "Robb won."
Tyrion frowned. "Forgive my honesty, my lady, but you don't look too happy about that. Is the king alright?"
"Physically, he has his wounds, but his mind seems to have taken a bigger blow," Margaery said. "Lord Stark fell in battle."
The realization that Margaery had come to hit both her advisors at the same time. While her grandmother merely frowned, Tyrion shook his head sadly and put his hands on his hips.
"The note is from Jon, actually," Margaery continued. "He says that Robb won't leave the Wall until he ensures that things are in order there."
"How long will that take?" Grandmother asked.
"Jon said three months or longer," Margaery answered. "I don't believe he's factoring in the time it will take for Robb and his men to travel back south."
"He'll stop at Winterfell, that's for certain," Tyrion said. "He'll need to make sure his father is put into the crypts there and Ice will need to return to his mother until either of his brothers takes over when they're older."
"So we're looking at potentially another half a year before the king returns to the throne," Grandmother surmised, laying both her hands over her cane. "I assume you have a plan," she said before looking down at Tyrion, "and if she doesn't, you should. If you don't, then I certainly do."
"I have a plan, Grandmother," Margaery said. "I plan to announce the end of the Long Night, Robb's victory, and his intentions for the next few months."
"No mention of his injury or the death of his father, I presume," Tyrion said.
"Of course not," Grandmother said firmly. "No sense in revealing the wounded wolf to the court. All that anyone should know is that the king is alive, victorious, and will retake his throne in half a year after he is done doing his kingly duty." Margaery's grandmother nodded approvingly. "You are setting the story before anyone can come up with their own. Very good."
"I will have it written tomorrow morning," Margaery said. "I will present it to the council in the afternoon."
"Yes, your grace," Tyrion said with a bow of his head. "With you leave."
Margaery nodded and gave the pair a thankful smile before turning back towards the party, working to sort out her feelings.
Jaime Lannister
Jaime rested on the banister, watching as builders worked in the courtyard of the Nightford, dragging their tools the length of the tree trunk as they slowly turned the trunk into a plank. Without the bone-chilling cold, the men had warmed themselves to the point where they had shed their sweat-soaked shirts, allowing strips of wood to jump up against their beards and bare chests.
How men of the Night's Watch made selected the wood for their gates was fairly smart. They carved the trunk of the tree down until they had the strongest part of the tree itself, which was usually the heart of the trunk. That way, when they put the gate together, there were no weak points. Every part of the gate was strong.
It would take months before the Night's Watch could carve enough wood to replace or repair all the gates that had been destroyed during the Long Night. As of now, all King Robb wanted was a single gate at each castle before he made his way back south. It was just one demand of his short, but very detailed list of demands. Other items on the king's list included the collection and burning of the wight army, which meant included searching the woods, and figuring out the purpose of the Night's Watch now that the threat that they had been ordered to guard against was gone.
The first demand was the easiest to meet. King Robb had nearly seventy thousand men at his disposal, and men needed something to keep them busy or else they were liable to make their own entertainment or simply get stupid drunk. Even still, it would take months for the king's forces to clear the area north of the Wall since every day, more layers of snow melted and revealed more bones.
The second demand was a bit harder to make decisions on, and the king's council had shown that.
Flashback
Jaime rubbed his side again, still dealing with the constant pain of his injury. After being smacked senseless by a White Walker, involuntarily leaving Lyonel Corbray defenseless and allowed to be slaughtered, Jaime now dealt with a pounding headache the like of which not even the strongest wine could produce and four cracked and bruised ribs that left one side of his abdomen black and blue.
Nevertheless, Jaime was grateful to be alive. Three soldiers from the King's Company, who fortunately happened to be from the Westerlands, dragged Jaime to safety as the White Walker turned its attention on the king and his brother.
It had taken him the better part of a week to fully regain consciousness and almost a week and a half before he was able to even get himself out of bed. Because of this, he had missed the mass funeral as well as Ned Stark's funeral. Jaime regretted missing the first, but certainly not the latter. It wasn't hard to imagine that many of the northern lords despised him for his role in the war and would happily refer to him as "Kingslayer" simply out of spite.
Jaime shook himself from his pain and mentally rejoined the meeting as Robb asked the group their thoughts about the future of the Night's Watch.
"Why again can't they just stay here?" Edmure Tully asked curiously, one of the few men to stay behind after Stark's funeral. The others around the table had already been here or had arrived at the Nightfort after the funeral.
"Because they have no purpose here," Jon said. "The Wall was built to keep out the Others. The Night's Watch was formed to man it. Now that the Others are no more, the Night's Watch is no longer needed."
"We can't abandon the castles," Lord Royce grunted. "Brigands, bandits, and cutthroats will flock to them for shelter and will strike out at the people of the North. Pirates will build dens near the coasts."
"Well said, Lord Royce," King Robb nodded.
Jaime stared at the king thoughtfully. Robb Stark had changed. He was still surrounded by authority, but it was if some of his optimism, his charisma had crumbled away. There was nothing charming or inspiring about him. It was as if his father's death had taken a piece of the boy's heart with him.
Much like how the death of Jaime's mother had taken his father's heart.
"What if we deconstruct the castles?" Lord Mallister offered. Like Edmure, he had arrived for Stark's funeral. "We could use the material in other places. There are bound to be countless holdfasts that can be repaired throughout Westeros."
"That would take years, my lord," Lord Harrold Arryn, the young lord of the Vale, countered respectfully.
Jaime eyed the boy, still unsure what to make of him. He was the exact opposite of Robin Arryn, thank the gods, but he didn't seem to have Jon Arryn's sense of where he was. He was known to be a good, honorable man despite his bastards, but there was nothing amazing about him like there was about Jon or Robb Stark. He almost reminded Jaime of Ned Stark. Solid but unassuming.
"I think there is a way we could keep the castles and still benefit the realm," Jon said slowly. "Besides the men of the North, who else is adept at surviving in the cold?"
"The free folk," Mance Rayder grunted immediately before his eyes widened. "You want to give the Wall to the Free Folk?"
Jon shrugged. "Why not? We can split up the Gift, name twelve new lords, and since they would have access to both coasts and the lands beyond the Wall, they would have the ability and materials to trade."
"Would they be their own kingdom or be a part of the North?" Lord Tarly asked.
"I believe the North would be best," Jon said. "Mance?"
The former King-Beyond-the-Wall nodded slowly. "It would take them some time to come around, but I believe that it could work with the right circumstance."
"Lord Jon, your idea has merit, but there's one problem," Lord Commander Qhorin said gruffly. "My men."
Mance Rayder cursed under his breath. "He's right. How many of the Night's Watch are murderers, rapists, and thieves? Most were sent to the Wall for a reason."
"Not all are bad men," Jon said quickly. "But there is a good portion that shouldn't rejoin society."
"I would recommend the King's Company, but that is a freedom they should not have," Thoros added. "What about Essos?"
"What about it?" Lord Tarly asked.
"The free companies are always looking for soldiers and killers," Thoros said. "Why not just give them away? The sellswords get new troops, those men get a new start, and we get rid of terrible men."
"What's to keep them from coming back?" Ser Brynden asked.
"They'll get killed if they come back," Jaime said, speaking for the first time. "Without the Wall to save them, if they return to Westeros and commit more crimes, there's a good chance they'll get the block or the rope. Thoros's suggestion is a good one. We just need to give them some…incentive not to return. Death is a pretty good one."
"That deals with the Lord Commander's objection," King Robb said, looking towards the black-clad man for confirmation. When the lord commander nodded, the king turned towards Rayder. "Mance, what circumstances were you referring to?"
"There would have to be some compromises made between the traditions of the free folk and the traditions of the westerosi nobility," Mance said, rubbing his jaw. "But the main idea I had included your brother, Jon."
"Me?" Jon asked, surprised.
"The free folk will need help dealing with the -people of the North. They know you as the White Wolf, as do my own people. You could act as the bridge between the two factions," Mance explained. "I can find eighteen men or women to run these castles and I can trust them to stay in line under my authority, but will the people of the North listen to me if I ride out to settle a dispute? They'll see me as no better than the same savages they think wronged them."
"But…" Robb said, prompting the man to continue.
"If the people of the North see a white direwolf and a man who looks like a Stark, then I believe things will be much easier," Mance concluded. "After all, who is more trustworthy than a Stark?"
"Jon, isn't your holdfast close to the gift?" Edmure asked.
"It is," Jon said slowly. "I will have to talk to my brother about this, Mance."
The former leader of the wildlings nodded. "No one is gonna force you into anything, lad."
"Your grace, what of the brothers of the Night's Watch that won't be heading to Westeros?" Lord Tarly asked.
"Those deemed trustworthy enough to stay in Westeros can either go home, join the King's Company, or can accompany others to Essos," Robb answered.
"And the nobles you sent here after the Wall?" Jaime asked bluntly. "They won't exactly be happy if they try to go home and find their homes in the hands of another man."
"Sending them to Essos may not be an option either," Ser Brynden added. "That's how Bittersteel kept the Blackfyre rebellion alive for so many years."
"The King's Company?" Lord Harrold asked.
Jaime shook his head. "They could rise to the rank of captain, or worse, leader of the company," he explained. "I don't know if the company would ever turn against King Robb, but I know better than most that hatred can live on for a very long time in the hearts of sons and daughters."
"Essos may be our best option," Robb said grimly. "Jaime raises two fair points. We can't allow the realm to be split with lords vying for the power they once held. We also can't give them a chance to infiltrate my standing army."
"Essos may be our only option," Jon nodded. "At least there, we have the Narrow Sea between us and them."
"Essos it is then," Robb said.
Flashback
"How are you, Master Jaime?" Jon asked, coming to stand beside the former knight.
"Still feel like I've been trampled by horses," Jaime grunted. "Have you and the king figured out if you're staying this far north yet?"
"We have," Jon said. "I'm staying to do my duty."
"Thought as much," Jaime said. "I assume your fire-breathing friends were also mentioned."
Jon nodded. "They were. Robb and Mance agreed that I will have two castles; Long Lake and the Nightfort. The dragons will stay here and be free to roam beyond the Wall to hunt. Long Lake will be a place for people who have issues with the wildlings to bring their problems. It might be easier for them instead of having them travel through free folk land to bring their troubles to me."
"Complex system," Jaime noted.
Jon shrugged. "Until the two factions learn to live with one another peacefully, a complex system is a safe system."
"Fair enough," Jaime conceded. "Was anything else discussed?"
"Yes," Jon said. "To help bind the North and the free folk, I have agreed to take a wildling wife."
Jaime looked at the young, who was unable to hide his blush. It was clear that he was still embarrassed by the decision.
"Did you now?" Jaime said jokingly, standing up and crossing his arms. "And what wildling princess has Mance offered you?"
"I ain't no princess!" the red-haired archer called as she strode on past, exiting the room that Jon had just left. "You better be up to the challenge, White Wolf. I won't make it easy."
As the woman walked away, Jaime used the railing to keep himself up as he laughed. Jon merely became a bit redder in the face and bowed his head, but unable to keep the smile from his face.
Jaime's laughs turned to pained coughs as he grimaced and grabbed his side.
"Damn," Jaime gritted. "The pain was almost worth it to see that look on your face."
"I may have also accepted the tradition that comes with free folk marriage," Jon explained, eager to be done with the conversation. "A man has to steal a woman away from her family or clan. She's expected to put up a fight the entire time."
Jaime clapped Jon on the shoulder. "Good luck with that. I was never a fan of arranged marriages."
"This wasn't arranged," Jon said. "I chose to marry Ygritte. Neither Robb nor Mance made me do it. Mance offered his wife's sister, but I chose Ygritte."
Jaime looked towards where the woman had disappeared before looking back at Jon.
"Don't make her mad," he warned.
"I plan on marrying her," Jon said, defending himself. "Not dying."