Winter Is Coming

“Don’t listen to it. Crows are all liars,” the mad woman said and I watched as she sat in front of the fire, rocking back and forth knitting herself a scarf, “I know a story about a crow.”

‘…Oh god, not another story…’ I thought as I leaned my head back against the bed and felt Summer lick my face.

“I hate your stories,” Brandon said and I nodded my head in agreement.

“I know a story about a boy who hated stories,” she said and I snorted.

“Of course you do,” I muttered and heard Brandon chuckle.

Lady Stark and Cynthia have been gone for almost a week now, Brandon was awake, but he was paralyzed from the waist down, not able to use his legs, she unless we carried him everywhere, he didn’t leave his bed.

“I could tell you about Ser Duncan the Tall-“

“You told us about Ser Duncan yesterday,” I said and then sighed, ‘…This is so boring, I’m gunna kill Robb for leaving me here like this…’

“My favorites are the scary ones,” Brandon said and I sighed and sat up, turned around and knelt against the bed, petting Summer and looking at Brandon stare at the ceiling.

“Oh my sweet summer child, what do you know about fear?” she asked and I waited for her to continue, “Fear is for the winter, when the snows fall a hundred feet deep. Fear is for the long night, when the sun hides for years and children are born and live and die, all in darkness. That is the time for fear, my little lord, when the white walkers move through the woods.”

‘…What are white walkers?…’

“Thousands of years ago there came a nigh that lasted a generation. Kings froze to death in their castles, same as shepherds in their huts. And women smother their babies rather than see them starve, and wept and felt the tears freeze on their cheeks. So is this the sort of story that you like?”

‘…Nice time…’ I rolled my eyes, but wanted to hear more about these ‘white walkers’.

“In that darkness, the white walkers came for the first time,” I leaned against the bed, staring at the woman, fixed on her story, for the first time, telling an interesting one, “They swept through cities and kingdoms, riding their dead horses, hunting with their packs of pale spiders as big as hounds-“

“Spiders?” I yelled and then jumped when the door opened and Robb looked in, “Oh geez, Robb,” I said holding my chest and then laying my head on the bed because he had scared me.

“What you telling them now?” Robb smirked and I waved him off.

“Only what they want to hear,” the mad woman said and I sighed and stood up.

“Get your supper, I want some time with him,” Robb said and the woman nodded her head and headed for the door. I looked at Robb and gave him a small smile before heading towards the door, “Jess.”

“Yeah.”

“Stay,” he said and I sighed and nodded my head, walking over towards the chair that the woman was sitting in before she walked out. Robb closed the door and walked over towards us, “One time she told me the sky is blue because we live inside the eye of a blue-eyed giant name Macomber,” he said and I snorted and smirked towards him.

“Maybe we do,” Brandon said and I looked back towards him and sighed.

“How do you feel?” Robb asked as he stood in front of me and then sat on the bed, “You still don’t remember anything?”

Brandon shook his head ‘no’ and I rubbed my face, ‘…It’s probably for the best that he doesn’t remember…’

“Bran, I’ve seen you climb a thousand times. In the wind, in the rain,” Robb sighed, “A thousand times. You never fall-”

“I did thought,” Brandon said and I looked at him sadly, “It’s true, isn’t it, what Maester Luwin says about my legs?” I bit my lip and looked away, trying not to cry when I saw Robb sadly nod his head, telling his brother that he was never going to walk again, “I’d rather be dead.”

“Don’t ever say that,” Robb said and I looked back towards him.

“I’d rather be dead,” Brandon repeated and I stood up and placed my hand on Robb’s shoulder.

“Just give him time,” I said and Robb nodded his head and stood up, “Get some rest, Bran.”

We walked out of the room and started down the hall; I turned and saw no guards following us. I placed my hand on Robb’s arm, stopping him from walking and he turned around to look at me. I saw the sadness in his eyes and couldn’t help myself from wrapping my arms around his neck and hugging him, he really looked like he needed a hug.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It’s been a long journey, but we finally made it to the Capital. Lady Stark, Ser Rodrick Cassel and I had rode to the back of the Capital in hope that less people would be there, so far we were right. Lady Stark rode in-between Ser Rodrick Cassel and I, and as we got closer, I pulled the hood over my head and kept my eyes and ears opened.

“Fewer eyes back here, my lady,” Ser Rodrick Cassel said as we passed through the back gates, “But still too many.”

“It’s nine years since I’ve set foot in the capital, and no one knew who I was the last time I came, either,” Lady Stark said and I looked up to see two guards riding horses coming towards us.

“My lady,” I said and placed my hand on her horse’s reins, stopping the horse as well as mine.

“Welcome to King’s Landing, Lady Stark. Would you mind following us?” one guard asked and I looked back and forth between the two.

“I would,” Lady Stark stated, “We’ve done nothing wrong.”

“We’ve been instructed to escort you into the city,” the other guard said and I saw that their hands weren’t on the hilt of their swords, so I was only assuming that they were no here to fight, so I took my hand off of my hilt.

“Instructed?” Lady Stark was getting angry, but I didn’t believe that these two provided a threat, “I don’t know who’s providing your instructions, but-“ the one guard came closer and I glared at him and placed my hand on the hilt and lifted the blade a little, earning a look from the other guard.

“Watch yourself,” I growled and the guard pulled out a paper and handed it to Lady Stark.

“Follow me, Lady Stark,” he said as Lady Stark took the paper and opened it and I watched as the guard turned around and I removed my hand from the hilt.

We followed the guards without a word and they brought us to a strange looking building. Leaving our horses outside, the two guards escorted us inside the building and up some steps. My sword was left outside, under the orders of the guards, though I knew that I had my claws if something went wrong.

Lady Stark burst through some doors and I heard someone yell ‘Cat’ happily. I walked into the room behind Cassel and saw that we were in someone’s home, maybe. I saw a man sitting happily between two women wearing skimpy clothes.

“You little worm!” Lady Stark growled and I scratched my head, confused as to what was going on. She threw the paper at the man, “You take me for some back-alley Sally you can drag into a-“

My eyes widened when two naked women walked into the room, losing the concentration of everyone. The man sent the two girls off, but I stared at the stop that they just were standing in, ‘…Are we in a whore house?...’

“I meant no disrespect, to you of all people,” the man said and I was so confused on what was going on.

“How dare you bring me here? Have you lost your mind?!” Lady Stark asked.

“No one will come looking for you here. Isn’t that what you wanted?” he asked and my eyes widened.

‘…I’ll be damned, he’s right; the last place anyone would look would be a whore house…’

“I’m truly sorry about the locale,” the man said and I sighed.

“How did you know I was coming to King’s Landing?” Lady Stark asked.

“A dear friend told me,” the man said and then pointed to the beaded door behind us and we turned to see another man standing there.

“Lady Stark,” the man said and then walked through the beads.

“Lord Varys,” Lardy Stark said surprised.

“To see you again after so many years is a blessing. Your poor hands,” he said and then took Lady Starks banged hands, banged from the cuts she received from trying to hold off her sons attacker.

“How did you know I was coming?” Lady Stark asked and I was getting an uneasy feeling.

“Knowledge is my trade, my lady,” he said and I turned my head to see that the first man staring at me,” Did you bring the dagger with you, by any chance?”

I snapped my head back and stared at the man intently, ‘…Who is this guy?...’

“My little birds are everywhere…” he said and Lady Stark nodded her head towards Ser Rodrick Cassel, who brought out the cloth wrapped dagger, “…even in the North. They whisper to me the strangest stories.”

‘…Does he know about Jess and I?...’ I thought and the man stared at me before Cassel handed him the dagger.

The man unsheathed the dagger and stared at it, “Valyrian steel.”

“Do you know whose dagger this is?” Lady Stark asked.

The man looked upset before looking at Lady Stark, “I must admit, I do not.”

I heard chuckling and turned my head to see the other man smiling. I glared at him, wondering what he was up to, “Well, well, this is an historic day. Something you don’t know, that I do,” I looked at him surprised and saw Lady Stark turn around, “There’s only one dagger like this in all of the Seven Kingdoms,” he said and I wanted him to continue, “It’s mine.”

“Yours?” Lady Stark asked surprised and I clenched my fists and glared at him.

“At least it was, until the tournament on Prince Joffrey’s last nameday. I bet on Ser Jamie in the jousting, as any sane man would. When the Knight of the Flowers unseated him…”

‘…Knight of the Flowers? How is that manly?...’

“…I lost this dagger.”

“To whom?” Lady Stark asked.

“Tyrion Lannister,” the man said and I had to think of the name.

‘…The Imp…’