#until they realized that they had the arya character lying around winterfell with nothing to do plotwise

[ladycatofwinterfell]

No plan, just a dream of home

Summary: Catelyn is in King’s Landing when they take Ned to the Sept of Baelor. She has no idea of what she’s doing, but she desperately tries to grab the pieces of her shattered family and bring them home.

I wrote this a while back, but I’m going to post it now while I’m working on the next part of “A new marriage and an old one”. I feel like I should mention that it takes place in show canon. It’s also a bit illogical, but this idea just popped in to my head.

Not to spoil anything, but this involves major character deaths.

~*~

“What’s happening?” she mumbled to herself. “Where are they going?”

Catelyn had been in King’s Landing for a week. And she had never seen all the inhabitants of the city really move to one place at the same time. They were always moving, sure, but never in the same direction. She just stood and watched it from her open window for a while, tried to figure out what was happening. She listened intensely to the people below her, but couldn’t make out what they were saying to each other. All the noice and the ringing from bells drowned out their words. All of it made her very uneasy. Something was about to happen, she didn’t know what, but she could feel that it was something bad. She could feel it in her bones. But of course that feeling had been constant since the news of Ned’s arrest had reached her. That was the reason to why she had returned to the capital. And she wouldn’t leave without Ned and the girls. She would take them home.

“My lady!”

Ser Rodrik came into her room. And the bad feeling in her grew worse when she saw his face. She had never seen the old knight with such a look of pure panic on his face.

“What is it? What is happening?” she asked him,

She heard the distress in her own voice. 

“They’re taking Lord Stark down to the Sept of Baelor” Ser Rodrik said.

For his execution. The Lannisters were going to execute him for treason. Outside the Sept of Baelor. That’s what everyone was so excited about. They flocked to watch Ned die. No, Catelyn couldn't let that happen. She had to save him. She wouldn’t just let him die when they had started a war to free him.

“Let’s go then” she said and tried to repress her fear.

She didn't have time to be afraid, she had to be brave. For Ned, and for their daughters. She could be afraid later. When they were all in safety.

“You cannot risk anything, my lady” Ser Rodrik said.

She almost got angry when he said that. Had he really expected her to just quietly stay in her room after he had informed her of that her husband would be executed? 

“I’m not going to wait here while they take his head. We have to do something. And in order to do something, we have to go there.”

She had no idea about what she was going to do, she just needed to do something. 

~*~

Chaos was the right word for it. They all screamed as Ned was brought out. Screamed that he was a traitor, that he deserved death. But Catelyn could barely hear it, all she could hear was the ringing in her ears. She tried to push herself through the crowd, but seemed to get nowhere. She was just pushed around. And she had lost Ser Rodrik somewhere, but that didn’t matter. The only important thing was to get to Ned.

“Watch yourself!” a big man said angrily when she tried to get past him. “We all want to see him die.”

He really thought that Ned was guilty of treason. They didn’t have a clue about that Cersei was lying to them.

“Sorry” she mumbled and continued to push herself forward.

They brought up Ned on the steps of the great sept. Where Cersei and that wretched boy of hers waited together with the members of the small council and Knights of the Kingsguard. And Ilyn Payne, Catelyn noticed and her heart sunk in her chest. The royal executioner. No no no no, she had to get forward faster. She had to push harder. What little hope Catelyn still had returned to her when she saw that Sansa stood there on the steps too, alive and well. She had not been thrown into a cell. But Arya was nowhere to be seen, where was Arya?

The crowd went quiet when they let go of Ned and he began to speak, and suddenly it was a little easier to get closer to the steps. She managed to pass the statue of Baelor the Blessed and was going to continue her desperate fight when someone grabbed her arm.

“Mother” a small voice said.

And that small voice belonged to a dirty and torn little girl with brown hair, a long face and Stark grey eyes.

“Arya” Catelyn gasped and pulled her into her arms.

Arya smelled of rotten fish and other could things, but Catelyn couldn’t have cared less. She held Arya’s little form close and kissed her hair. She had one of her girls, she had her youngest daughter. For months Catelyn had feared for Arya’s life, but she had her in her arms. She was alive and she wasn’t with the Lannisters.

“What are they going to do to Father?” Arya asked.

She looked up at Catelyn with tears in her eyes.

“Nothing, sweetling, I promise you. I won’t let them do anything to him” Catelyn said and looked up at Ned. 

He was still talking. No, not talking. Confessing. He was confessing to a crime he wasn't guilty of. Ned was loyal and honorable, he would never commit treason.

“But we don’t have much time. Wait here by the statue. Don’t go anywhere” Catelyn said quickly. “Promise me.”

“Okay, I promise” Arya said.

She sounded so afraid, the poor little thing. She sounded exactly like Catelyn felt. She wished that she could have stayed there and just held Arya forever, until all the worries in the world were gone. She just wanted to protect Arya from everything.

“Good.”

She turned away from Arya but had to turn back again. She took Arya’s hand and kissed it.

“I love you” she said.

“I love you too, Mother” Arya said. “Now go, get Father.”

And with one last look at her daughter, Catelyn turned her eyes towards Ned once more. The crowd screamed again and someone through a road at Ned, it hit him right in the head and he almost fell over. She had to bite her tongue in order to not shout. She had to get closer. And then came more silence as Ned continued with a bleeding wound on his forehead.

“Let the High Septon and Baelor the Blessed bear witness to what I say” Ned said with a shaky voice.

He was so far away from where he was supposed to be. He was a man of the north, he believed in the old gods. But he was in the south, he stood in front of a sept. The old gods could not hear him, could not help him. Catelyn would have to help him, save him.

“Joffrey Baratheon is the one true heir to the Iron Throne, by the grace of the gods, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the realm.”

He was afraid too, Catelyn realized. He was afraid for his life. Maybe they had promised they would spare him if he confessed. Maybe Catelyn could just. take him home. Grand Maester Pycelle said something about just and merciful gods, Catelyn couldn’t listen. She just had to reach them. She saw though, how Pycelle turned to Joffrey and asked him what would be done with the traitor. The crowd shouted about killing him, but the boy king silenced them

“My mother wishes me to let Lord Eddard join the Night’s Watch. Stripped of all titles and powers, he would serve the realm in permanent exile” Joffrey began. “And my Lady Sansa has begged mercy for her father. But they have the soft hearts of women. So as long as I am you king, treason shall never go unpunished.”

He was not going to listen to them, he was going to kill Ned. She only had seconds. She had to get through. And with that Catelyn managed to push herself to the front and was almost impaled by a spear held by a goldcloak. They were holding the crowd back, stopping the people from coming up on the steps.

“Ser Ilyn, bring me his head!”

“No!” Catelyn shouted desperately before anyone else had time to react. “Wait!”

He couldn’t die. She didn’t know what she would do if he died. She couldn't do it without him.

“Catelyn!” Ned exclaimed as the same time as Sansa exclaimed “Mother!”

And everyone up there looked down at her at the same time. Joffrey even raised a hand to stop Ser Ilyn. With a relieved sigh Catelyn saw how Ser Ilyn put the sword back into it’s sheath.

“Look, it’s the traitor’s wife who has joined us” Joffrey said and his lips curled into a cruel smile. “Let Lady Stark through, it seems like she has something to say.”

The goldcloaks stepped aside to let her through. And Catelyn took a deep breath before starting to walk up the steps, she felt like her heart was about to explode in her chest. And the realization of that she had no real plan hit her in the face with full force. She had only thought of getting there, and not of how she was supposed to get away from there. She didn’t really know where to go, who to go to first. She knew where she wanted to go, she wanted to go to Ned and Sansa. She wanted to embrace them and take them back to Winterfell with her.

It was so quiet that she almost could have touched the silence.

“Are you here to bend the knee? Do like your husband and confess to treason?” Joffrey asked.

He sounded like he was having fun. He really was a little Lannister. A golden thing that had crawled up from the deepest of the seven hells. She didn’t bother with looking at him, she had decided to follow her heart. She walked straight up to Ned.

“Are you okay?” she said quietly and wiped away some of the blood on his face with her hand.

It was a foolish question, she knew that. She had never seen him in a worse state than the one he was in then. But she hadn’t known what else to say.

“What are you doing here?” was all he said. “They will take you too, why did you come here?”

“To get you and the girls back” she replied. “I wouldn’t stand back and let them kill you.”

“They will kill you too, Catelyn.”

He looked so tired and so broken. He was much thinner than when she had last seen them, his once muscled body was so thin that she felt even more scared. How close to starvation had he been when they brought him out from his cell? And he had new lines in his face that had nothing to do with laughter. His eyes seemed almost empty, as if he didn’t truly see her. But her Ned was there somewhere, she knew it.

“No, my love.”

She tiptoed and and kissed him lightly on the lips, not caring what anyone thought about it. Then she turned to Joffrey and looked him in the eye. He smiled back at her, a cruel smile.

“How sweet. Tell me, how does it feel to kiss a traitor?”

Ned was no traitor. Catelyn was no traitor’s wife. She didn’t know how it felt to kiss a traitor.

“I would no nothing of doing such a thing. My husband is no traitor.”

“There you are wrong. What are you doing here, Lady Stark?”

“I am here to tell you that if you behead Eddard Stark there will soon be an army of northmen at your gates, demanding your head. Let him go, together with Sansa and Arya, and we will pull back our armies. We will release all of our hostages, including Ser Jaime Lannister, and stop all the fighting.”

Joffrey only laughed.

“We outnumber you” he said. “You will all be gone before you have time to reach the gates of King’s Landing.”

Catelyn’s heart beat fast and loud. She had to succeed.

“The northerners have already defeated you once. And if you kill their liege lord, they will continue to do so until all of you are dead. And I can promise you, they will send you Ser Jaime’s head in a box. So release Lord Stark and our daughters. For your own sake.”

Cersei laid a hand on Joffrey’s arm and whispered something to him. And while that happened Catelyn looked at Sansa, and Sansa looked back at her with terrified eyes. Catelyn started to raise a hand, but stopped herself. Sansa couldn’t come to her until the Lannisters gave her permission to. She was afraid of them. What had they done to Catelyn’s sweet daughter? It felt like Catelyn had been stabbed in the heart. She wanted nothing more than to take Sansa in one hand and Ned in the other, walk down the steps, find Arya and go home.

Then Joffrey waved away his mother. And Catelyn looked back at him. She saw nothing forgiving in his eyes, saw nothing good. He just looked cruel. How had she not seen that when they visited Winterfell? Why had she not stopped Ned from going south?

“I want you to seize Lady Stark” Joffrey said loudly. “And I suppose I’ll have to say it again, since we were interrupted. Ser Ilyn, bring me Lord Eddard’s head. Treason shall never go unpunished.”

No. Two armored men grabbed her arms before she had time to take it all in. They held her hard, and it hurt when she tried to pull herself free. She kicked and pulled and fought to the best of her ability, but it was meaningless. She had no chance against two large men in armor, she only hurt herself. They dragged her aside and once more she could hear the ringing in her ears. She didn’t know what was happening. All she knew was the fear that burned through her body like fire. And a few seconds later she also knew the tears that rolled down her face. She could taste the salt on her lips when they forced Ned down on his knees and the sound of Ser Ilyn unsheathing his sword rang through the air. It was Ice. The Valyrian steel greatsword that had belonged to the Starks for hundreds of years. They were going to take his life with his own sword. She tried harder to pull herself free, tried to get to her husband. He couldn’t die, he couldn’t leave her there. She loved him, he couldn’t die.

“NED!” she screamed. “NO! PLEASE!”

But no one listened to her, no one heard her. The crowd beneath was screaming too, and Sansa was screaming. They were all screaming, but for different reasons. They all screamed as they watched Ilyn Payne raise Ice, they all screamed as he let the blade fall. But Catelyn screamed most of them all when she saw her husband’s head fall. The pain in her heart felt so real that she thought it would kill her. She had failed. She had failed and they had killed her Ned. She almost wanted the pain to kill her.

“I want the traitor’s wife’s head too” Joffrey demanded. “She’s as much of traitor as her husband was.”

It seemed she would meet the same fate. They kicked Ned’s body aside, like a toy that they had finished playing with. But that was Ned. That was Catelyn’s love, not just some toy. She watched it through her tears, thought of how it wasn’t really Ned anymore. Just a body. They had taken his life, he was no more.

“Do not touch Sansa and Arya!” Catelyn begged ad they dragged her out to where Ned had stood. “They have done nothing wrong, don’t punish them!”

She glanced at Sansa, she had fainted. And Catelyn was glad for it. Sansa wouldn’t have to watch as the only parent she had left was beheaded too. She wouldn’t have to see it.

“I’ll do whatever I like with them” Joffrey told her.

“They shouldn’t be blamed for our actions, they’re just girls, just children. Please have mercy with them!”

He had no mercy in him, Catelyn knew that. But she also couldn’t leave the world knowing that her daughter wouldn’t be safe. She looked up and out over the crowd that was screaming at her. She watched the statue, tried to see Arya. What would happen to her? Where would she go? Why hadn’t Catelyn told her to find Ser Rodrik? He could have taken Arya to safety. Catelyn could only hope for that she would find the knight on her own.

“I’ll hear no more from you. Give me her head!”

She couldn’t control her body at all, she just felt numb. Like she had no contact with her arms and legs. She could just watch as they prepared her for execution. They forced her down on her knees in the puddle of Ned’s blood. The blood was still warm, it went straight through her dress and to her skin. She got to feel Ned’s warmth one last time when she kneeled in his blood. And when Ilyn Payne raised Ice once more she could feel more of Ned’s blood drip down on her neck. Ned would meet her wherever they went, he would be there. It would be okay. It would be peaceful.

There, on the steps to the Sept of Baelor, Catelyn Stark met her end.

[littlexredxwolf]

War of hearts; Sansa

Fandom: Game of Thrones! Prompt: How Sansa fell in love with Jaime Word Count: 1,660 Characters: Sansa Stark and Jaime Lannister Chapters: ONE, two, three, JAIME, Sansa. Warnings: none Author note:Sorry it took so long, enjoy! 

Sansa Stark had always been enchanted by fairy stories, there was something simply romantic about the whole concept. A princess needed saving from a villain, a knight or prince coming and saving her. It was how Sansa had dreamed her life would be, she didn’t know knights can be corrupted, evil can win, the good sit back and do nothing, and sometimes no matter how much you hope your knight will come, but he doesn’t and falling in love with him can be the can feel like the biggest betrayal that has ever happened in your family.

The first time Sansa Stark set her eyes on Jaime Lannister it was in Winterfell, the golden lion of king’s guard, a knight that took her breath away and as her younger sister spoke she yearned to hear more. “That’s Jaime Lannister, the queen’s twin brother.” It was him, the knight she’d read about in books the one who killed the mad king. There was little written about him, but there were whispers all about him. He shone brighter than any other member of the precession.

She watched him with keen interest for a few moments, before her attention was pulled away by the prince himself. He wasn’t a lion, he was something else. As he smiled, she wished she’d known the truth about him. She smiled back signing her own fate instantly. If she knew what he’d become, would she of even smiled back? Did everything bad that happened to her start at that smile? To Sansa, if you asked her today she would say yes. But no matter what, even if she’d not looked at him her fate was already sealed.

The red wolf tried to not look at him as they travelled and tried to just focus on Joffrey, but that wasn’t easy. It was however once they got to the capital, she never really saw him. The first real-time she gave Jaime thought was the day she was told her father had been attacked by Jaime, and that Jory had been killed. She took a seat in her room, her head and heart were full of anguish and rage. Jory was family, he had died protecting her father and in such an awful way. She wanted to mourn him, but she felt as if she were betraying him for thinking about Jaime. When Lady was killed Jory held her while she cried, he had been with the family for years… Now he was gone and impending doom was bubbling inside her, while her heart fluttered at the thought of the Lannister lion.

After her father’s death, she found herself wondering if she were a traitor because she had a crush on Jaime. He was her brother’s prisoner of war and she found herself praying that he wouldn’t be hurt, she told herself she hated him he hurt her father and Jory but yet she struggled to remove him from her brain. Jaime Lannister, a betrayer, a man who lay with his sister, but someone she let her mind wander to when she was alone. Let herself dream of silly little things such as their children, how beautiful they’d look with blonde hair and blue-eyes, she would be nursing their newest addition while he taught their Twins archery and how to use swords. It was a dream, a foolish dream for a stupid girl, but she liked the idea of dreaming instead of the harsh reality.

The night before her wedding she found herself lying awake in bed hoping that tomorrow she’d walk into the sept and he’d burst in on a horse and stop the wedding. It was a foolish dream she wasn’t even sure if he was back here yet or if he was still a prisoner of war, or dead. People had stopped talking about things like this in front of her, she didn’t even know how her brother was doing anymore. The only thing she knew was that Arya was alive and that was because Little finger had told her so.

Sansa Lannister, it wasn’t the name she detested, it was the husband. Tyrion was good to her, he was wonderful really. He protected her, didn’t lay with her on their wedding night, and was one of the few people who cared if she lived or died. Yet, he wasn’t Jaime. She would look at him from time to time while they were in the room together and just simply imagine he was the knight she’d dreamed of so many times. Then she’d come to her senses and realize she was a foolish girl and that she should stop living in a fantasy. Jaime wouldn’t want her, he only wanted Cersei.

When he spoke to her for the first time, she’d been crying, mourning the loss of more of her family. Most people left her alone so she was able to let her tears fall freely until his voice reached her ears and she had to wipe her eyes before turning to look at him. She barely remembered the conversation, she just remembered his facial expressions and the way he held himself. The sadness in his eyes as she spoke about her family being traitors, the surprise he had on his face when she apologized for his hand and she wasn’t sure if she was imagining it or not, but the sadness when Tyrion arrived and broke them apart.

When he left, she felt a strange sense of longing, desire and want for him. Was it her imagination or had her world stopped for a few moments while they spoke? When she’d been heading back to her room, she had hoped to see him just for a moment, that maybe he and Tyrion were so close by that she’d get a peek, but there was no such luck. After that she started trying to seek him out, without actually seeking him out, she’d walk past where he was in hope of bumping into him or glance at him when she was looking for someone. But they didn’t have another conversation, while she was in kings landing.

Joffrey’s wedding, she sat beside her husband and would glance from time to time in his direction. She only met his gaze once, and it felt like everything around her slowed down and started to disappear while they were looking at each other. Then, of course, Joffrey had to ruin it by bringing out the little actors and torment her and Tyrion. She didn’t think she’d ever see him again as she escaped from Kings landing, she thought of that moment they shared at the wedding, and that it would be the last moment they ever had.

Then came Robin, Ramsay and Peytr, she was sure the three of them the brat, the psycho, and the scheming rat planned to rip her to shreds but none of them expected her to have an inner strength that she’d found in Kings landing. She stood up for herself against the brat, she slapped him and made him realize she was a force to be reckoned with. She clung onto herself and refused to allow the psycho to take all she was, she’d lay there and think of happier times, of a future with a certain knight she’d dreamed of in the past. Then came the rat, she used him and destroyed him, she shed no tears and showed no mercy when the latter two were dead, why should she? They were just people who wanted to rip her apart, till there was nothing left.

She became a queen, not by title, but how she held herself, how she became strong and cared solely for her people. Jaime had slipped from her mind, she was preparing for winter and for the battle against the night king. All thoughts of him only came back when she found out Jon had gone to try and get the Lannister’s to help. She’d told him, it wouldn’t happen, Cersei would never come. But then something happened that made her heart feel like it was truly beating again.

Jaime arrived.

Sansa had thought she was dreaming when she was told that Jaime had arrived, she made her way into the great hall for him to stand trial, she sat beside Jon and found her heart hammering as he came in. So many emotions came flooding into her as she sat him with a scruffy beard and untamed hair, Jaime Lannister the knight she’d wanted for so long stood there in front of her and the council… and there was a chance he could die.

There it was again, he’d betrayed her family. He pushed Bran from the window. Should she love a man who has hurt her family so much? No, But then you cannot help loving who you love. She looked at him as his freedom was granted and wasn’t able to pull back the smile that spread across her face. Standing, she left the room. Her mind racing as she thought about him, was there a chance something could happen now that Bran had forgiven him and he was here to fight the dead.

Walking outside, she leaned on the balcony and looked at people as they prepared to leave. She knew her family wanted her to go too, but she wasn’t going to run, no her place was beside her people. Her eyes landed on Jaime in the courtyard, he cared about the people and that meant far more than she’d ever been able to admit. She looked away for a moment and then looked back only to find him gone. She leaned forward slightly looking for him, but with no luck, she stood normally and sighed.

The world fell silent as she heard footsteps behind her, she no longer heard people talking and rushing around, she no longer heard anything apart from the footsteps of the knight who held her heart coming toward her.

[arcadianambivalence]

Is Jon OOC This Season?

When I (and millions of other fans) switched on the newest episode of Game of Thrones this weekend, I was surprised.  Not by the many parallels to season one that everyone knew were coming.  Not by how quickly the Targaryen-Stark alliance arrived in Winterfell.  Not even by the rocky reunions.

No, what surprised me the most was Jon.

And I wasn’t alone.  Browsing online after the episode aired, I found many comments by fans of the show, and especially of Jon, wondering what was up with his behavior.  Sure, the Jon of the show is generally not as cunning as the Jon in the books, but the character in this episode seemed…more foolish than usual.  Wasn’t he supposed to be a good king?  Wasn’t he supposed to be smarter than Ned and Robb?

But after thinking about it, I believe we were all wrong.  I’m going to make a bold statement here:

This is perfectly in-character for Jon because he’s going through what Sansa when through in season one.

Everything that happens will be something that you’ve seen before.

In the first season, Sansa was put into situations designed to make her realize which side she’s really on.  For a long time, it looked like she would choose the Baratheons Lannisters.  She spent time with Joffrey.  She said she loved him.  He gave her a kiss and a necklace.  It was all very romantic when he wasn’t threatening her sister and calling for her father’s imprisonment and death.

But eventually, Sansa snapped out of the bad influence Joffrey had on her and chose to side with House Stark when she quipped that maybe Robb would give her Joffrey’s head.

Seven seasons later, it’s Jon’s turn to make the choice between his birth family and his new family, a question that becomes more complicated with each new revelation about his past and that of his prospective queen.  

Not convinced?  Let’s walk through this:

Both 1x01 and 8x01 haphazardly bring up a marriage between someone set up to be the future monarch of Westeros to a (perceived) Stark.  The Stark character is rather taken by this love interest’s looks and swept up in the (dragon) power the match can give the Starks.  

Assumably, an adult man would know better than a sheltered pre-teen, but as anyone who has ever been in this situation can tell you, few are immune to falling for a song and an attractive face.

Sure, this love interest doesn’t particularly like the North.  They certainly don’t belong there.  But they put on a good face, especially for the Stark character.  

The couple decides to leave the Northern and royal retinues behind for some quality time alone, even if this is logically not a good idea.  As the crown prince, Joffrey should be near his guards.  As a young girl who is currently being plied with wine, Sansa certainly shouldn’t be alone with her betrothed.  Later, the dragon ride is also a dangerous idea physically and politically.  If Jon falls from the dragon, he is dead.  If the people see that Jon and Daenerys would rather play around instead of overseeing the distribution of food, obsidian, and weapons, they (will) consider a new monarch.  And the two really shouldn’t be alone if there is an army of the dead around.

(Incidentally, both of these cutesy scenes are by rivers)

But at the time when the relationship seems new and full of possibility, the seeds are sown to break it apart.  The couple doesn’t really know each other at this point.  Calling it love is easy, but is it genuine?  Perhaps so, perhaps not.  

What is undeniable is that the feelings are there for a narrative purpose: to make the internal conflict all the worse when in the same episode, the love interest threatens another Stark who stands up to them.

In the blink of an eye, the scene is over, and things seem to be relatively normal again.  Lady is dead, and Daenerys threatened the Lady of Winterfell, but that was just something heedlessly said in anger, right?  There’s no way this could indicate somebody’s true nature, right?  

Besides, Sansa tells herself, Arya started the fight.  Besides, Jon tells himself, Sansa likes to think she’s smarter than everyone else.  They’re wrong about my significant other.

It’s easier to believe that than to acknowledge that the future monarch of Westeros might be a lying, violent, and dangerous person.  

To do that would be treason.

So what if Joffrey has already shown signs of enjoying violence at such a young age and getting away with it because he’s a handsome, powerful royal?  It’s not like he’ll do anything to Sansa or her family.  

So what if Daenerys hides information from Jon about using dragons to burn prisoners of war?  It’s not like she’d do something that’ll hurts someone Jon loves.

What makes it worse is that in any other circumstance, Jon and Sansa would see right through their love interests.  And deep down, they know this, but they’re too afraid to admit it.

So they lie.  There are more important things to worry about, like the Stark-Baratheon alliance or the Night King.

With all this denial, Jon and Sansa push their family and friends away.  This match is bad for them, and it’s also a bad influence on them.  Sansa snaps at Septa Mordane that she doesn’t care.  Jon snaps at the Northern lords and ladies that titles don’t matter.

They try desperately to convince everyone that this love interest is different from everyone else.  Joffrey is nothing like that old, drunk king (except when he is).  Daenerys is nothing like that old, pyromaniac king (except when she is).

But maybe it’s already too late.  They’re basically stuck with this person, so Sansa and Jon can’t side against their significant others.

That is until something horrific makes the scales fall from their eyes, and they realize that this entire time, they were lied to.  They thought their families were wrong.  They thought their friends were wrong.  They pushed them away and lied to themselves until it was too late, and no one was left to hear the truth about their gaolers.

Which makes you wonder…

Where is this going?

[ansheofthevalley]

I’m coming for the Salt Throne™, so watch out.

I’m sorry but I’m afraid I must interrupt my joyous broadcast of Stark goodness brought by the last teaser because I have encountered this on the sansa tag.

 At first I wasn’t going to engage, because I was really fucking happy about the teaser. But then I thought, you know what, fuck it, some people need to know some facts and I’m gonna give it to them. Also, I stayed up till 4 am writing this shit but tumblr wouldn’t let me queue it, so now I’m writing it all over again. Second also, this person has been commenting on my posts that I clearly tagged “Sansa Stark” and “anti targ restoration”, so they’re stalking the tags, and since they’re doing that, there’s a high chance they’ll read this.

So let’s start, shall we?

First things first

Imagine being this pressed. At this point, you’re just grasping at straws, my friend.

I’m going to go point by point, since this person took the time to do the same about an anti sansa stark post but posted it on the sansa stark stark nonetheless

Point number 1: comparison with Jaime

I’ll give you that this parallel works, given that both characters start the series at a very good point: Jaime is a Kingsguard and Sansa has just gotten betrothed to the Crown Prince. But let’s examine their journey since then. Jaime ends up season one as a war prisoner of Robb Stark, the Young Wolf and King in the North after Robb won in battle, while Sansa ends up being a political hostage in King’s Landing after watching her father die. It doesn’t get any better for any of them, Jaime, in a secret exchange with Cat, promises to deliver Sansa and Arya, so then it begins his adventures with Brienne in the Riverlands, while Sansa is humiliated and assaulted in front of court. Then, while he got out of the Starks cells and thinking he could make his way to King’s Landing all on his own, Jaime loses his right hand and that’s a low point for him, actually, that’s his lowest point. Meanwhile, Sansa finds confort in the arrival of the Tyrells and her betrothal to Joffrey is put aside in favor of Margeary and there are even hints of a new betrothal between her and Loras, it’s starting to look good for Sansa, until Tywin puts a halt to those plans and brokers the marriage between Tyrion and Sansa: now she’s married to the enemy, the enemy that would ultimately kill his brother and mother. If it were possible, it gets worse for both of them: just as he arrives to King’s Landing, Jaime bears witness to the murder of his son on his wedding day, something Cersei was quick to blame Sansa for. So now, Sansa is a presumed kingslayer and a fugitive. Jaime, now changed by his experiences, tasks Brienne with finding both Stark girls, to keep his promise to Catelyn Stark. Season one Jaime wouldn’t have done that, just saying. Sansa escapes to the Vale under the “protection” of Littlefinger. There she realizes the want for home, for Winterfell, the place she wanted to leave as a teenager. Now she realizes the value of home. Both have to fulfull the role of head of the family: Jaime when Tywin is murdered by Tyrion and Sansa after Robb’s death. They are both tasked with the reconstruction of their houses: Jaime in a military way, Sansa in a political way. As Tommen ascends to the Throne, Jaime has to demonstrate that the Lannisters still are a force to be reckon with, even without Tywin. Sansa comes back to Winterfell to marry Ramsay, to reconnect with the North and its people and to find a way to avenge her family. By the end of season six, they both fully embraced their roots: Jaime is a Lannister and Sansa is a Stark. And we see that in season seven. Jaime is loyal to his House and Cersei till the end of the season and Sansa will defend the best interests of her people. It took them a lot to get where they are now, but that’s what happens with characters like them. They are perceived as perfect by everyone around them, but they have their insecurities and they go through a number of trials and tribulations before they evolve and become better than they were.

Point number two: Cersei vs. Sansa. Two (very) different people

Cersei is very much her father’s daughter, capable of lying and manipulation. This is pointed out throughout the seasons, by various characters, and is the biggest compliment you could pay Cersei. She always believed to be the best bet to take House Lannister to new heights, but always overlooked by her father, in favor of her brothers.

 Now, the scroll Sansa was forced to write. I’m going to repeat that. Sansa was forced to write that scroll to his brother. She was forced to do it by Cersei because she truly believed it would save her father’s life. You also wildly misinterpreted Maester Luwin’s response (what a shocker):

 Robb: Treason? Sansa wrote this?  Maester Luwin: It is your sister’s hand, but the Queen’s words

 It’s after this exchange that Robb decides to call his banners and declares himself to be in open rebellion to the Crown, until they release his father and sisters.

 But let’s go back to Luwin’s line for a bit. You’d know, especially if you read A Game of Thrones, that Sansa doubted in this moment. She had doubts about writing that letter. But she did it anyway. Why? Because she thought Cersei was good and someone worthy of trust. She really thought she was doing the best she could in saving her father’s life. Like worst case scenario, he’d be sent to the Wall, but he’d be alive. Also, let’s not forget she was thirteen years old.

Point number three: Sansa and her love of stories and the disregard for femininity 

Sansa is an idealist. She loves tales of knightly valor and romance, the story of Jonquil and Florian the Fool being her favorite. She appreciates and favors all that is femenine: she sings, she draws, she embroiders, she plays intruments. She’s a lady through and through. And there’s nothing wrong with that. That’s the way she was brought up. Being the Warden of the North’s eldest daughter, both of her parents knew she would have to marry someone important, not some minor lord. And with those prospects, she would be educated to be a proper lady.

I won’t get into Arya’s line since this post is getting long enough, but it shows how the show itself views women with femenine traits as inferior to women with more masculine traits. After all, we all know the GA, at that point prefered the likes of Arya and D@ny to the likes of Sansa and Catelyn.

When Sansa says she’s a stupid girl with stupid dreams who never learns, she’s chastising herself. She came to the capital a girl full of dreams and hopes, only to find people that would lie, use and abuse her, while she had to remain the perfect little lady if she didn’t want another beating. She’s chastising herself for having dreams, something every thirteen-year-old should have, but in her case, she’s been stripped from them. And she blames herself for that, when in reality, it isn’t her fault. It’s the fault of the adults that use her as a pawn to their games as she were a thing. 

So no, Sansa isn’t stupid and she certainly isn’t like most girls. She learned to navigate the turbid waters of court in order to stay alive. She never gave up hope or sacrificed her kindness.

1 extra point for trying, tho

Point number four: The moon door and Lysa Arryn

Tyrion’s experience with the Moon Door was under a sham trial for the attempted hit on Bran, which means it was public. We know from season seven that it was Littlefinger who orchestrated the assesination, in hopes to frame the Lannisters and thus creating more friction between the two houses and drive away any suspicion anyone could have that Lysa and Baelish killed Jon Arryn.

Sansa’s experience with the Moon Door was private, it was just her Lysa, and then Littlefinger. Lysa was growing paranoid of Sansa, she accused her of sleeping with Littlefinger (in which she wasn’t entirely wrong: Littlefinger was grooming Sansa and kissing her without her consent). Let’s not forget that Lysa has been in love with him since he was fostered at Riverrun. At this point, Littlefinger had married Lysa; she thought it was out of love, but he did it to secure power in the Vale. Ultimately Littlefinger interferes, getting Lysa away from Sansa, and then he threw his wife through the Moon Door proclaiming he only loved one: her sister.

So again, two very different situations. But I’ll give you points for trying hard.

Point number five: Cersei vs. Sansa part deux. Sansa and Cersei are not parallels, they are foils

It doesn’t take a genius to understand that those two lines are there to illustrate how different they are. Sansa can’t sleep, worried and tormented by the loved ones she cannot safe. There’s not a single thing in her manner or face that shows any trace of vengance, just sadness and grief. The only time we get to see Sansa get revenge is when she killed Ramsay. That was personal. She endured months and months of abuse at the hands of that monster. He killed her little brother. His family took part in the Red Wedding, killing many on the Stark men and bannermen, his brother, his sister-in-law and their unborn child and her mother. He was hers to kill. It was in name of all of those he hurt and killed. Cersei, on the other hand, is completely consumed by vengance. Her line demonstrates that she won’t rest until she had killed everyone that wronged her and her family. She’s been asking for Sansa ever since she fled King’s Landing, she tried to hunt down her own brother (not that she had much love for him, but still), she blew up a whole part of the city just to get rid of her political enemies. She drank wine and smirked while that happened. She killed a young woman in front of her mother, and had her watch as her daughter died. She had the septa from the walk of shame tortured and abused by the Mountain repeatedly. There’s a level of darkness in her actions, a level of monstrosity that rival that of her son’s. 

Again, extra points for trying reaaally hard

Point number six: Cersei vs. Sansa part tres (since you insist on drawing parallels between the two when actually they’re foils, but whatever). The matches that never came to happen: Cersei & Rhaegar / Sansa & Joffrey

When Tywin was Aerys’ Hand, he promised Cersei that one day, she would marry Rhaegar and be Queen. We know from the flashback scene with young Cersei and Maggy the Frog, that she wanted to be Queen. She wanted the power the crown brought, something she undoubtedly learned from her father. Unlike Cersei, Sansa wanted to be Queen, yes, but it was all a childhood dream. It was her love for songs and stories that led her to believe that fair Queens ruled the Kingdoms and were loved by the people. She never wanted power, she never even grasped at the real implications of wearing a crown after her father died. She learnt the hard way that Queens weren’t fair and loved, that they could be fearsome and cunning.  There’s actually someone more fitting for the parallel you’re trying to draw between Cersei and Sansa:

Both Cersei and Margaery want to be Queen for the power the Crown brings: it’s a way to give power to their House, it’s a way they can influence and shape the country in the way they want (though Margaery was more graceful and a better Queen that Cersei could ever be).

Since this got a little long, I’ll leave you with this book quote that finishes to paint Cersei and Sansa as foils:

Cersei:  “The only way to keep your people loyal is to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy.” Sansa:  “I will remember, Your Grace," said Sansa, though she had always heard that love was a surer route to the people's loyalty than fear. If I am ever a queen, I'll make them love me.”

And yes, Sansa is a Direwolf that grew up between Lions. But that doesn’t mean she grew up to become one. She grew up and survived them. I’ll leave another quote from ACOK, after Sansa is humiliated at the hands of Joffrey and his Kingsguards:

Sansa: “I am loyal to my beloved Joffrey.” Tyrion: “No doubt. As loyal as a deer surrounded by wolves.” Sansa: “Lions, she whispered without thinking.”

[howlandreads]

Intelligent/Politically Savvy ≠ Disingenuous/Manipulative

The majority of anti-Sansa posts I see contain phrases like “she’s manipulative” or “she learned to play the game from Littlefinger and Cersei, so she must be devious”.  This is such a lazy argument that has zero evidence and relies entirely on assumptions and projections.  Just because Sansa is intelligent and politically capable, antis use this as an excuse to assume the absolute worst of her in all situations.  Since she’s clever she couldn’t possibly ever be straight-forward and well-intentioned, right?  In scenes that are clearly intended to showcase Sansa’s assertiveness and kindness, they choose to see political manipulation, even though there’s no evidence to support that interpretation.  

Though Sansa is criticized nearly every time she speaks, the main scenes I see her accused of manipulation in are her conversation with Jon in 6x04 about reclaiming Winterfell and her talk with Jon in 7x01 about how he has to be careful not to make the same mistakes as Ned and Robb.  Sansa is pretty clearly forthcoming and non-manipulative in both of these scenes, but I’ll break them down one at a time:

6x04

The line from this scene antis use as evidence of Sansa’s alleged manipulation is:

“Winterfell is our home, it’s ours.  And Arya’s, and Bran’s, and Rickon’s, wherever they are. It belongs to our family; we have to fight for it.”

- Sansa Stark, 6x04

Supposedly this is Sansa using Jon’s love of his family as a way to exploit him into fighting for what she wants rather than what he does.  There’s not a single piece of evidence to suggest this.  Sansa never mentions to anyone that she’s manipulating Jon, and in season 7 her actions show that this statement was 100% truthful all along.  As soon as Bran arrives at Winterfell she offers it to him, and also denies the Northern Lords offer to make her Queen in the North, so she’s not lying to cover her own ambitions for power.  She’s a victim of abuse who’s finally found safety in Jon, and is convincing him to help her maintain it by reclaiming their home from the man who won’t rest until he’s taken her hostage again.  The fact of the matter is everything Sansa told Jon was true, and if you see the truth as manipulative there’s nothing I can say to change your mind; the truth is simply the truth and the effects it has on those who hear it can’t be considered manipulation.

7x01

Sansa’s two lines that get her accused of manipulation in this scene are:

“Joffrey never let anyone question his decisions. Do you think he was a good king?”

“You’re good at this, you know? Ruling.”

- Sansa Stark, 7x01

According to antis, this was Sansa attempting to guilt Jon into taking her advice by comparing him to Joffrey, and then course correcting to complimenting him when she realized that manipulation strategy wouldn’t work.  Once again there’s no evidence to suggest Sansa had a strategic plan to trick Jon into changing his opinion to hers.  The only two reasonable explanations as to why Sansa compares Jon to Joffrey in this scene – (1 - Doylist) because D&D don’t understand her character and feel the need to insert pointless drama wherever possible and (2 – Watsonian) because she’s an extreme trauma survivor who’s still working through her PTSD and learning to trust the people around her again, especially the men.  She loves Jon and has no reason to manipulate him rather than be honest with him.  The reason she’s quick to compliment him after comparing him to Joffrey is because she sees she’s wounded him, since he holds her opinion so highly, and does her best to let him know how deeply she respects and admires him.  Once again it’s only possible to see calculated exploitation in Sansa’s actions if you’re projecting ill-intent where there is none.

Though the show provides plenty of evidence that Sansa’s clever and politically savvy but still kind and self-sacrificing, GRRM has gone to even further lengths to show this in the books:

“He squatted silently before her, a hulking black shape shrouded in the night, hidden from her eyes. Sansa could hear his ragged breathing. She was sad for him, she realized. Somehow, the fear had gone away.”

- Sansa II, A Game Of Thrones

This encounter with the Hound shows Sansa’s ability to empathize with anyone, no matter how threatening she finds them.  Extreme capacity for empathy isn’t exactly a quality found in master manipulators.

“The king stood. ‘A cask from the cellars! I'll see him drowned in it.’

Sansa heard herself gasp. ‘No, you can't.’

Joffrey turned his head. ‘What did you say?’"

- Sansa I, A Clash Of Kings

Sansa risks her life to safe a drunken fool.  She is consistently self-sacrificial, even while being held hostage by the family who murdered her father and abuses her constantly.

"’Mya will keep the mules from biting,’ Alayne said, ‘and I'll be riding just behind you. I'm only a girl, not as brave or strong as you. If I can do it, I know you can, Sweetrobin.’"

- Alayne II, A Feast For Crows

All throughout her time in the Eyrie, Sansa cares for Sweetrobin while no one else will, and even has genuine sympathy for him.  Again – not behavior often found in a Littlefinger-esque political operator.

There are countless more examples of Sansa’s non-manipulative nature in both the show and the books.  If you actually take the time to understand her character, it’s easy to see how clever but kind she is – the perfect combination of Stark honor and political intelligence that’s needed to rule a kingdom.

[everythingjonsa]

Jonsa Fanfiction

Okay so I randomly made up a story for an ask that I answered today and I thought maybe I should better it an turn it into a proper fic. This is my first venture into fanfiction and I am a very impatient writer LOL!! So do tell me if you like it and how I should improve it. I said I’d never write fanfiction, but don’t they say Never say Never... LOL. Thank you @kitten1618x for thinking I should write fanfic. And @accuritefish for encouraging me to turn this into a fic. Love you all!!

SNOWED UNDER BY LOVE

 CHAPTER 1

 JON SNOW got out of his black and white Maserati, parked at a safe distance from the Book store he planned to pay a visit to. It was late August and the sun shone brightly in his eyes causing him to squint a little. He undid the button of his black silk shirt that he wore under his Grey Suit as he tried to read the name of the book store from a distance. Damn, he’d forgotten his glasses. After a lot of squinting he finally read the words painted in silver…

THE LITTLE CITADEL

Jon smiled slowly thinking how much Sam would’ve appreciated the name. He then braced himself for doing something he partially hated doing, but he knew it had to be done. One of the Hospitality companies he owned had bought all the three blocks adjacent to this shop for his new Hotel project and he needed to buy this store because it was facing the main road and was built on a prime location. The book store owner had turned away three of his employees politely and Dolorous EDD, his friend and the vice-president of his company informed him that apparently they all came back telling how it was such a bad decision to buy out her store. This lady had never lost her cool even once while talking to his employees and had them wrapped around her little finger in a matter of an hour; three of his BEST employees. Jon then suddenly remembered that he knew nothing about the lady who owned the store and had requested EDD to send him her file. He took out his phone, irritation creeping into him at this lacuna in knowledge. He always liked to do his homework before meeting his nemesis. And if this woman was half as good as Edd had heard she is, he was going to have to use all the tricks in his playbook to get her to agree to sell.

“EDD, you’ve not yet sent me this bookstore lady’s name and details..” Jon barked into his mobile phone irritably as soon as EDD came online “How am I supposed to convince the lady to sell her store to me, if I don’t even know her name?” 

EDD mumbled something about messaging him the details in just a while and Jon cut the phone with a huff as he entered the store. The store was bigger than he’d expected it to be. They walls were painted grey but everything else, especially the book shelves were all as white as snow. At the back end of the bookstore a beautiful weirwood tree with its fiery red leaves was painted artistically on the wall and suddenly Jon had to literally hold himself back from rushing to the tree and tracing it’s branches with his fingers. This Lady was definitely a northerner, Jon made a mental note. Could he exploit that connection? There was no one in Kings Landing who could know or appreciate the beauty of the weirwood tree like he could. Surely the lady and he had one thing in common, at least. As Jon slowly looked around, he realized that the book shop was so tastefully decorated that he almost felt bad that he was going to have to arm twist the owner into selling the shop to him. But he knew it had to be done. He was going to have to offer this woman a deal she couldn’t refuse.

Jon straightened the jacket of his steel gray suit and ran his hand over his curls which were tightly secured in a man bun of sorts. Jon decided to pretend to look through the collection of books. He had to buy some time till his office sent him all the details. He passed rows and rows of books stacked neatly in the snow white shelves. The children’s books section was the only one which had rainbow coloured shelves and a small play area where children could read and play. He imagined that a lot of book readings and story-telling sessions must happen in this very area. He paused when he saw the Harry Potter series and a sense of nostalgia washed over him. He picked up the first book in the series, Harry Potter and the philosopher’s stone and many memories that were kept hidden on purpose, threatened to come back to him. What a positive impact this series had had on him when he was growing up! He felt so connected to the characters especially because there were so many similarities between his life and Harry’s.

His mother Lyanna Snow had been a single parent and Jon had never known who his father was. When he was 11, he was called a bastard by someone in his class and somehow the name stuck. No one befriended him. He had been alone and an outcast until the Starks had moved back to Winter-fell from Castle Black. Robb Stark strode into school like a rock star and with his good nature and drop dead gorgeous looks had become the most popular boy in school overnight. When Ramsey Bolton had called Jon a bastard in front of Robb, he got punched so hard in the face by Robb, that no one had ever dared to call Jon a bastard for the rest of his schooling days. For Robb stark had become his Ron and the Starks had become his Weasleys. Jon used to practically live in Robb’s room. Ned Stark and his mother had been classmates and had gone to Winterfell high together. So Robb’s dad and his mom doted on Jon. Arya had idolised him. She had mimicked everything Jon did which would amuse him greatly. Bran was too mature for his age, but Jon had loved him dearly and Rickon was everyone’s baby. Only Sansa had remained elusive and withdrawn from him. Jon squeezed his eyes shut to will these memories away.

“Why do you like Harry Potter?”

Jon was so taken aback by the sudden delicate voice that seemed to come out of nowhere that he almost dropped the book he was holding. A little girl of probably four or five was staring up at him with icy blue eyes from a little pink chair that she was sitting on. Jon cleared his throat and looked around to see if the parent of the child was around but it looked like the girl was sitting there all by herself. He was already slightly impatient with the amount of time EDD was taking to get back with the information. It was so unlike EDD. In the meanwhile he thought talking to this sweet child may just be what he needed. So Jon grabbed a bean bag that was lying nearby and dragged it near her chair to sit down next to her.

“I like Harry Potter, because it’s the story of an ordinary boy doing extraordinary things!” Jon replied almost extremely tempted to ruffle the girl’s curly mop of black hair which looked so much like his when he was a child.

“What is extraordinary?” The girl asked him with a slight pout that reminded him so much of a girl he once knew. Sansa Stark…..

“Well the dictionary meaning of ….” Jon started to say but caught himself when he realised to whom he was trying to explain this to. He smiled slightly at his own folly as he saw the little angel’s pout change into a brood, which looked pretty much like his own childhood broody pictures. He remembered Catelyn Stark’s words. “You brood too much, Jon Snow” So he crossed his arms and leaned forward slightly. “Well, extraordinary means when you do something that no one thinks you could’ve ever done.”

The little girl’s brain seemed to process this information that had come out of his mouth. She imitated Jon’s stance folding her hands in front of her chest and leaning towards him. “Have you done anything extraordinary?” 

Her question stumped him momentarily. Jon wondered how he was going to answer. Where should he even begin? Jon had lost his mother when he was just fifteen. Ned and Catelyn Stark had insisted that Jon come and live with them. Robb and Arya had had his things packed and brought over to the stark mansion before he could even say a yes. When he was 21, he had started from scratch with the Angel investment Ned Stark had made in his company eight years back. He owned more than thirty companies in the Hospitality sector today. He had managed to create, build and grow all his businesses into a massive empire worth $340 million. Jon had been lucky enough to appear in Forbes Magazine’s 30 under 30. But how does one explain all this to a child without sounding like someone who brags? He cleared his throat. “I’ve built a few hotels.. ummm… buildings… I mean errr.. Skyscrapers so I guess, I’ve done a few extraordinary things” He replied to the girl who was watching him with great concentration, not knowing if he was making any sense.

“My uncle can turn me into an airplane and make me fly!” The girl stated with obvious pride in her uncle’s skills and Jon instantly broke into a grin. “I think that’s very extraordinary.” continued the little girl, he blue eyes sparkling.

Thank you for the lesson in humility, love, he told her in his head. “And what about your Dad?” Jon asked without giving a second thought but the second the words came out of his mouth, Jon knew he had made a mistake. The child’s face fell like her favourite toy had been taken away from her, forcibly.  

“I don’t have a Daddy.” the girl looked like she was close to tears and Jon felt like he was the worst kind of monster. This was not a good state of mind to be in before negotiating a difficult deal.  Jon was at an utter loss for words.

“Mummy says she’ll tell me about him when I’m older” The little girl’s face lifted a bit slowly  “But I have four uncles, an Aunt and Grandma and Grandpa and six cousins. We’re a big family.” Her face fell a little again “But sometimes I wish I could call Uncle Robb “Daddy” just like Sarah, Ben, George and Lilly do.”

The mention of an ‘Uncle Robb’ did various things to Jon’s heart at once, none of which he was willing to explore at the moment. He’d lost touch with the only family that was truly ever his because of one single mistake that he had unknowingly committed. But he’d always sent them Christmas cards but never got a single one in return. Five years had gone by and he missed them every single day. He never had a father, just like this little girl and his heart went out to her. His palm automatically went to cup her cheek. 

“What’s your name, darling?” He asked her wondering if it was strange that he thought he could see so much resemblance between her and his childhood photos. It had to be the hair, he told himself. All kids with a dark mop of curly hair look similar.   

“Lyanna ” said the girl and Jon suddenly had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. ‘Uncle Robb’ first and then ‘Lyanna’ … this was getting ridiculous. The girl cheerfully continued “But you can call me Lya. That’s what Mummy and everyone in my family call me. I’m named after my grandmother.” 

Jon heaved a sigh of relief. The girl’s grandmother was called Lyanna. It had nothing to do with his mother’s name. The girl said she had a grandpa and a grandma. His mother was long dead. Jon smiled at the girl. “So what does your Grandpa call your Grandma, if both of you have the same names.”

“He calls her Cat!” Lyanna looked at Jon incredulously as though he was thick-headed or something and Jon felt like all air had beeen sucked right out of his lungs. He could not be hearing this right. It was impossible. He stared at Lyanna like she was probably not real, like he had conjured her out of thin air.  

Lyanna who was oblivious to the emotions that were going through Jon, continued talking while kicking her legs back and forth playfully . “My Grandma is called Catelyn, my ‘grandmother’ is called Lyanna and no one gets confused because Grandma Lyanna is in heaven. She doesn’t come to visit us, ever.” Jon saw it then, as clear as day. Lyanna was his spitting replica only with the exception of her blue eyes which she had no doubt inherited from her mother. The very thought of her mother, now made his blood boil and set his pulse racing.

For the sake of your good health Sansa Stark, he sent out a prayer into the universe, I really really hope this is not what I think it is.

Jon was now gritting his teeth to keep the anger that was exploding inside him under check. There was still a good possibility that he was over thinking this. “So, you have an Uncle Robb, an Aunt Arya, an Uncle Bran, an Uncle Rickon, a Grandpa Ned and a grandma Cat, who is the fourth uncle?” He asked her as gently as he could.

“It’s Uncle Gendry!” Lyanna exclaimed and then looked at him suspiciously, “How do you know all their names?” She asked him frowning at him with narrowed eyes looking very similar to her mother, he suspected. So Arya had finally come around and married Gendry. But he hadn’t received an invitation for the wedding. Why would Arya exclude him from her wedding? Why would Robb not tell him that he was now a father of four??  He glanced back at Lya who was still frowning at him and realisation dawned upon him.

Of course he got no invitation for the wedding or news of the births of Robb’s children. No wonder the Starks had shut him out. They were all hiding a secret. A secret, that had everything to do with him. Jon was so livid he felt his ears becoming hot.  Just then his phone beeped. EDD had sent him a message. 

“Her name is Sansa Stark. She’s 24, unmarried and a single parent.”

Jon kept staring at his phone unable to move a muscle aware that the little girl next to him probably thought he was mad and it was not going to earn him a first good impression if he was what he thought he was to her. So he smiled and sweetly asked her the last question that he thought was necessary. “How old are you, Love?”

“I’m four.” She asked inching her chair away from him and he instantly regretted the coolness of his voice. The math unfortunately fit perfectly in his calculations and once again Jon felt like he was being hurled down a cliff, rescued then hurled down again. 

His phone beeped again and brought him out of his trance. EDD had sent him another message.

“Ummm… Is this ‘your’ Sansa Stark?”

Jon shut his eyes in an attempt to get a reign over the various emotions that were raging within him. EDD sent him another message and this time he practically growled but he read it anyway. 

“Well, She is your Sansa. I double checked twice, so that makes is four times. Hence I took so much time. Jon……. You’re so fucked buddy!!!”

[graceverse]

Kingslayer. Queen Protector.

Fandoms: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Characters: Jaime Lannister, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Bran Stark, Brienne of Tarth Relationships: Stark Sibbilings, Jaime + Brienne

Summary:  Still on his knees. Gods, these Starks. They like him groveling. Also, they were naturally wary of anyone not born in the miserable cold. How had he forgotten about that? Did he truly expect it to be easy and that Sansa Stark would joyously accept him?

Meh. Ok, clearly I’m not good with titles. But hey, look! Another fanfic. I don’t know where they’re coming from?! I should probably try and salvage my ff.net account. 

Jaime was still on his knee. Waiting. A blade can come down and cut off his head and he would have to keep still and fight off the instinct to live. He waited for the answer. For the verdict. Life or Death. Last chance at redemption. Or end of his life.

“Well, this is interesting.” This was from the younger Stark, the calm one. Calm but deadly, he could tell. Her face held nothing, her body language was completely devoid of any tension. She held her hands clasped behind her, a perfect picture of nonchalance. She didn’t seem off put that he had chosen to kneel in front of her sister. Jaime had not meant any disrespect, but he couldn’t possibly swear three vows to the three remaining Stark children, it would have been tiring, not to mention silly. “You pushed Bran out of the window.”

It wasn’t a question and he didn’t ask how she found out. How they all found out. Perhaps Bran remembered. Perhaps he should have talked to him first and had not immediately declared his allegiance to the Lady of Winterfell, pledging his life and sword.

This could actually be the shortest pledge of life service in the History of Westeros, but he has already taken a chance and he’ll be damned if he backed down over a sin he had knowingly committed. He glanced up at the boy he had harmed. He had hoped that the fall had killed him instantly, he hadn’t wanted for him to linger and suffer and had certainly did not expect to find him so very different from that boy.

All the Starks were bigger versions of what they had been years ago. The same eyes, the same rigid spine and upturned noses, chins proudly jutting out. They grew up knowing they were better than the foolish cads living south of Riverrun.

But Bran. That little boy had sweetness in him. He had seen it when he briefly, cruelly pulled the boy inside the tower, that sweet relief in his eyes, only to darken and disappear when he realized that he was falling.

There was nothing in his eyes, in his face. It was as though he was a ghost inside the room.

Jaime closed his eyes, the throbbing headache he had been feeling ever since he had rode away from Kings Landing finally exploding inside his skull. “Aye. I did. I had to. I was protecting Cersei. I was protecting myself. I was protecting our children. I would have done the same thing if it happened again.” No need to feed them lies. Lying to them will only mean death.

“And yet, here you are asking me to trust you, not just with my life, but everyone in Winterfell.” He looked up, meeting the eyes of the girl his son had tormented years ago. Except this wasn’t a girl anymore, but a Queen made. Had his son shaped her too? Will she remember to be kind when kindness was never granted her? “How do I know you didn’t come here, on Cersei’s command, to start a war between me and the Dragon Queen?”

Still on his knees. Gods, these Starks. They like him groveling. Also, they were naturally wary of anyone not born in the miserable cold. How had he forgotten about that? Did he truly expect it to be easy and that Sansa Stark would joyously accept him? “You mistake me for your bastard half-brother.” It was a murmured answer, one that didn’t escape Brienne, because he could distinctly hear her letting out a long suffering sigh.

“I had my sister slit the throat of the person who whispered such poison in my ear.” It was a fair warning. One Jaime wasn’t going to take lightly. Sansa Stark might have learned Queenship from Cersei and Margery, but she clearly had not forgotten the words of her mother’s house. Family. Duty. Honor. In the order.

He had just forsaken all and Sansa no doubt was making a point, without saying anything. She’d make a fine Queen, if she already isn’t.  

“Apologies then, my Lady. I meant it as a joke. Only a fool would try to sow disorder within your house.” He tilted his head and winced, “How long shall I kneel and wait for your answer? I’m afraid my knees are not the same as when I had been younger. Old age, you know.”

Brienne let out an impressive oath. Jaime couldn’t help the wicked grin escaping his lips. He didn’t think she had it in her, but after her impassioned ‘fuck loyalty!’ maybe he had underestimated her. Or perhaps he had mistakenly placed her on a pedestal she certainly does not want to be placed in.

Sansa Stark gave him a long hard look. In her eyes was the long list of the atrocities inflicted upon her family, to which all of them she holds his family accountable. Jaime met her steel blue eyes, jaws working as he silently let her judge him. If it is death, he deserved it. If it is a second chance, he will not fail her. He had already failed so spectacularly so many times, he had lost count. And all he ever wanted really was for Sansa’s father, the great Ned Stark, to acknowledge that even a Kingslayer can become honorable.

“He will serve you well.”

Bran. It was spoken without emotion. The words were meant to comfort Jaime and yet nothing filled him dread at the deadened voice and the surety it held. He hated that. It was though there was nothing he could hide from this boy whose life he had changed in ways he couldn’t even begin to fathom. He felt completely stripped off everything as soon as Bran spoke. The certainty of his statement was so hauntingly unnerving, Jaime almost want to stand up and immediately leave, no looking back, fuck honor, duty and redemption. Fuck it all.

But he knew he wouldn’t. That he’d never forsake these vows. He knew and Bran knew and it was… he was completely taken aback at how lost and vulnerable he suddenly felt. 

“If Bran says so.” Arya answered with a shrug, which was, of all the things she had said and done over the course of this whole debacle, was the most threatening thing Jaime had ever seen. Break your vow, I don’t care. But you’ll pay for it. That was clearly the message in that seemingly innocent little shrug.

Jaime felt a tingling on his spine. And before he could pull himself together, he heard the gentle swish of silk against stone, as Sansa moved forward, looking terribly tall and regal. "And I vow, that you shall always have a place by my hearth,” her voice was clear and steady, as though she has done this a thousand times and Jaime wonder, just how many knights have chosen her as their Queen. “And meat and mead at my table, and a pledge to ask no service of you that might bring you dishonor. I swear it by the old gods and the new. Arise, ser Jaime.”

Knees cracking, no longer the young Knight he once had been, Jaime could feel the rush of blood thrumming inside his veins. A sudden sense of purpose surges through his heart.

He glanced at Brienne who merely rolled her eyes at him. Jaime held the pommel of his sword into a tight fist, vowing to himself, a vow upon a vow: he shall not bring dishonor to her and her family, idiot bastard half-brother included, unfortunately.

Sansa Stark gives him a nod, before wordlessly turning around, the only indication that she will not forget, but she can forgive. Not necessarily right away. Not until he proves himself. Which he will.

Jaime Lannister. Kingslayer. Queen Protector.