Ashes, Ashes

Maya oversaw the goings-on within the castle, watching the people of Winterfell go about their daily business in a routinely manner. With her father away to attend matters outside of the North it was his only heir that was left in charge — the Lady of Winterfell. She never cared much for the title, more concerned for her people’s well-being than any honors given to her, but she was also aware that the title itself could help her ensure the safety of the people if she was sensible enough not to repeat past mistakes. And she was determined to not let the Northeners nor her father down. “Lady Stark, if you don’t mind, the farmers notified me that the main granary has reached capacity, and they’re asking where to store the rest of the grain.“ The familiar voice pulled her out of her thoughts, causing the brunette –whose hair was tied together in a braid– to turn her head, smiling gently as she nodded before giving the instructions that had been inquired. “Please express our gratitude to them. My father and I appreciate all their hard work. So does the entire North.“ she added before suddenly being interrupted by Wind’s piercing shriek which she was well acquainted with by now. As were her people. Admittedly, it had taken some time for them to accept the dragon and his rider’s regular visits but these days Niko and Wind were greeted with a warmth her people only showed to those they trusted. “Excuse me.“ the young woman said before she already began walking off to where she knew they’d landed. And she had been right, seeing as Niko was already approaching her with quick steps that matched her own before she was finally able to pull him into an embrace.

Everything about the North was so different from his life at home. There, the weather was warmer, and there were always so many people about. Life at King’s Landing or even Dragonstone tended to suffocate him, but in Winterfell, there was a beauty to the barren landscape around him. It felt like her could finally breathe without someone baring down his neck for one reason or another. But the most important difference between the North and everywhere else was that Maya was at the North. A bright smile was on his face as he wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace, lifting her off the ground a little so he could twirl them around. “I’ve missed you,” he said into her ear as he set her feet back on the ground. “I hope I wasn’t disturbing anything important. My brothers were in a stupid war meeting and I had to take any opportunity I could to get away.” It was surprisingly easy for him to go by unnoticed by all except the King’s Guard who were there to shadow and protect him. On the days of war meetings, his guards were usually distracted enough for Niko to slip away before they noticed that the young prince had escaped. And once he was gone, nothing could stop him from getting on Wind’s back and taking off. He pulled away from Maya and looked up at the impressive Winterfell. “I swear this place looks better every time I see it. I bet it’s because they finally have you in charge of everything."

For the longest time Maya had tried to figure out what she wanted to do with her life. As a kid she wanted to be an astronaut, before eventually that dream was replaced with the one of owning an animal shelter and later she hoped to be a prima ballerina one day. Granted, Maya was just a child back then but that hadn’t kept her from pursuing her dreams relentlessly. Sure, in the end she had become none of those things but who else could claim they had put together a Lego space shuttle at the age of six, convinced their parents to adopt yet another stray animal and could dance pirouettes around someone until they felt dizzy. All her childhood dream were still part of Maya even if she no longer tried to reach for them. Because they had all made place for the dream she was living now. Maya liked to think of herself as a fairy godmother, to provide guidance and advice when parents were either oblivious, helpless or simply didn’t care. Yes, Maya Andreyev was living her dream by encouraging others to never give up on theirs. Namely the students that attended this school.

Unlike the students ––most of which dreaded school 99% of the time–– Maya always looked forward to coming to the school, oftentimes being the first to arrive and the last to leave. Which was probably because Maya herself never attended high school since she was home-schooled, considering she grew up in the middle of nowhere somewhere in Russia. Something she was grateful for since her parents had always been more open-minded than the system under which they lived which eventually led to the small family migrating to the US.

Maya was in her office, sorting through a few pamphlets which had arrived that morning, deciding whether or not they offered some helpful advice while waiting for her first appointment to knock on her door. Classes began soon but she made sure that every student who needed help got it, hence why she had squeezed in two appointments before the first class. She hummed softly, neatly arranging a few of the pamphlets on the display so students and teachers alike could take them home. It was then when a familiar voice pulled her out of her thoughts and Maya looked up, meeting Niko’s gaze who was in a good mood as usual. She smiled brightly, waving back not even realizing how they must look to any bystanders. “Good morning! How are you? I see you’re all ready for class.” she said, nodding at his guitar which she had gotten to see him play quite a few times. And she always considered it a privilege.

Odd had always been synonymous with Nikola. He grew up in a van, where he was homeschooled by a woman who could barely speak English and could read notes long before he ever figured out how to read a book. He started fires for as long as he could remember, most of them blossoming into a frenzy he couldn't look away from. And yet, what he found the strangest thing about himself, was his utter fascination with one Maya Andreyev. Perhaps, for once, he was able to recognize her undeniable kind heart that seemed to surpass his own. He was confident that her smile could warm him up better than any fire he has ever made.

Seeing her every morning was more than he could have possibly asked for. As she gestured to the guitar behind his back, he nodded, almost bringing it toward his front before remembering that it was a very cramped office. "I am ready. Remind me to play you another song that I wrote for you. I think you'll really like it." He felt a heat color his cheeks, but he wrote it off as the heated room finally warming him up.

He took a couple steps toward her, nodding at the office receptionists as he pretended to go check his mailbox that was conveniently next to Maya's office. "What were you looking at? New pamphlets to help the kids?" He remembered seeing several kids in his class deface some of the pamphlets that he knew that she put a lot of effort into picking out and he took them away immediately, burning them later in the night so that she wouldn't ever see them. He knew a lot of the kids there didn't care about all the effort that they went to to help them out, but he especially didn't want Maya to see it.

Niko walked down the street with his guitar swung behind his back, whistling a small tune to himself as he adjusted the messenger bag on his other shoulder. He didn't exactly live close to the school that he taught at (in fact it was about three miles from where his apartment was situated), but he enjoyed walking. Before his father passed away, he and his mother walked everywhere. Since the car they had was only ever used for touring, unless they wanted to scrape change together for the bus, they walked. His father once told him that walking built character and that he used to walk to school in the snow. Since he grew up in Florida, Niko didn't quite know how that was possible, but he still wanted to honor his father's memory and decided to walk to school.

The tall cold building of the private school that he taught music at came into view through the thin morning fog and he felt his lips curl up into a smile. A few students lingered outside, mostly likely because their parents dropped them off before going to work--despite the principal's strict rule that no one come onto campus before seven. Regardless, he gave the students a bright "good morning" and they tiredly muttered a "hi" in return. Ignoring any residual grumbling after he passed them, he went inside of the building and walked straight to the office.

As always, it was full of the normal office people and teachers, making copies and printing out handouts for their classes. Niko ignored all of the usual hustle and bustle to look for her office, seeing the door wide open as it usually was and her face smiling back at him."Good morning, Maya," he said brightly, giving her a small wave. It was only then that he took in the rest of the room, giving them a similar bright grin. "Good morning everyone."