in my blood

           Ravella  squeezes  her  hand  in  a  warm  sentiment,  “i  suppose  i  simply  do  not  know  how  to  be  spoiled  like  this,  i  am  unused  to  it.”  she  muses  back  with  her.  “and  i  can  promise  to  try  and  accept  the  attentions  with  a  better  outlook.”  she  taps  on  her  hand  one  more  time  before  she  goes  back  to  placing  it  over  her  stomach,  her  other  one  still  interlock  with  that  of  the  princess.  “it  is  quite  strange  to  me  too,  we  have  hosted  many  people  but  even  in  the  celebrations  of  the  north  we  have  never  hosted  this  many.  it  is  quite  lively  though,  in  times  like  this  i  think  its  appreciated.  its  a  celebration  to  someone  who  did  wonderful  things  and  left  amazing  marks,  that’s  why  this  many  people  traveled  this  far.”

      ‘ i think we are all pleased to have a reason to spoil you, ‘ sara said, hoping it comforted her somewhat. ‘ after all that’s happened - we starks are due some happiness, are we not? ‘ though it saddened her still to think of her uncle’s recent loss, the thought of looking ahead to the future brought some hope along with it. she had to believe that they’d be happy, with harrion as their king and ravella beside him - not to mention the child, and all the joy they would bring. ‘ perhaps we should have celebrations more often, ‘ she mused. the north wasn’t known for throwing quite as many lavish events as elsewhere, but that did not mean they couldn’t. ‘ under different circumstances, of course, ‘ sara added. gods forbid anything should happen to another member of her family ; the thought made her shiver more than any cold could. ‘ i hope our guests are finding their stay a welcome one, at least. ‘ 

-

Desmor was struggling quite a lot with being so far up north. This was the first time he left Dorne and the lack of sun and warmth was really getting to him. There were different layers of fur covering his body and still, the freezing breeze was still chilling him to the bones. Desmor tried to find some sort of warmth and protection from the cold inside the castle, but it didn’t seem to be helping that much. He turned around to face the source of the voice, offering her a small smile. “I’m alright. Cold, but alright.” A chuckle escaped his lips. “Well, trying to find a room with hopefully a fireplace to warm me up, but haven’t had much luck so far.”

      it was unsurprising, she thought, that someone from so far south as dorne might not quite be suited to the northern weather. lysara had found king’s landing uncomfortably warm at times, but she imagined dorne would be almost unpleasant. at least it was said to be beautiful, in its own way. ‘ i’m sure you aren’t the only one, ‘ she said, smiling kindly.

     ‘ and as for a fireplace - i’m sure we could find one. there’s usually several burning in the hall - i can show you the way, if you like? ‘ it wasn’t a difficult task to aid one of their guests, after all. ‘ and of course, if you find yourself too far frozen, there are always the hot springs. ‘ 

          The  now  queen  shakes  her  head  as  she  sighs,  “it  is  nearly  impossible  to  become  tired  when  people  are  adamant  of  doing  everything  and  anything  for  you.  the  pregnancy,  and  well  not  this  new  station  of  ours.  it  is  all  slightly  overwhelming,  but  i  am  doing  my  best  to  remain  true  and  strong  for  us  and  our  people.”  she  had  to  lived  to  the  expectations  the  former  king  had  seen  in  her,  he  had  picked  her  among  many  other  because  he  had  seen  something,  a  greatness  he  spoke  of  she  could  barely  imagine.  but  she  was  committed  to  making  him  proud  specially  now.  “yes,  having  the  pack  together  will  always  be  what  matters  the  most.”  although  she  would  prefer  it  if  it  was  just  them,  the  family,  but  this  was  tradition,  duty,  and  honor. 

        sara smiled, holding back from laughing aloud. ‘ ah - it seems as if we are all being rather overprotective of you, are we not? ‘ she said, teasing gently. it was understandable, given the circumstances - no one wanted to risk her health, or that of the child she carried. still, sara could give her some credit, for no one could deny that she was handling herself very well, in such complicated circumstances ‘ i’m afraid i cannot promise to stop, but i will try to be a little less overbearing, ‘ she offered a some sort of compromise. perhaps it was because it had been some time since there had been a babe in the family, but sara was certainly excited at the prospect. ‘ there are a rather a lot of people here now, aren’t there? it’s strange - i’ve never seen winterfell quite so overrun. ‘ 

       it was unusual to have so many strangers about winterfell ; she was not used to seeing it quite so crowded with people of all walks. generally, it was easy enough to spot a southerner, of course, bundled in layers of furs against the cold. given her recent visit south, she could understand the shock of the adjustment, but wondered how their many guests would fare if winter came in full force. making her way through the familiar halls of her family’s seat, she paused at the sight of someone glancing around in what seemed to be confusion. ‘ are you alright? ‘ she asked, approaching them with a careful smile. ‘ you seem lost - may i ask where you what trying to find? ‘ 

getting  lost  in  the  red  keep  had  been  easy  so  far,  the  many  twists  and  turn  of  the  corridors  had  lyanna  deciding  not  to  stray  too  far  from  what  was  known.  the  gardens  itself  were  a  maze  of  their  own  but  at  least  being  outside  gave  for  better  visibility.  catching  sight  of  her  cousin  had  lyanna  veering  to  come  up  beside  her.  looping  arms  and  shooing  off  the  person  she  had  just  spoken  to,  “  i  know  not  dear  cousin.  they  did  not  have  us  study  flora  in  winterfell,  i  fear  that  has  put  us  at  a  disadvantage  here.  ”

            she was glad to see her cousin - there were so few she truly trusted in this foreign place, but in her family, sara always had faith. ‘ i’m sure i learned the names of some plants - northern ones, at least, ‘ she mused, thoughtful. had she been taught those things, though, or simply picked them up over the many years? truthfully, she wasn’t sure. ‘ isn’t it strange to think that even the flowers are different here? i am not sure i’ll ever get used to it. ‘  

        it’d  been  easy  to  remain  in  the shadows when the people around him were more concerned with themselves and those of equal status than a mere sellsword. so he almost didn’t realize that the woman was addressing him when she spoke. it was luck that daeron glanced in the direction of her voice and realized that she was staring at him. eyes glanced at the bush. of all the questions to be asked…        ❝  um… a blue one, my lady?  ❞

     the number of people in the red keep often overwhelmed her - there were so many she did not know, that sara could hardly remember who was a lord and who was not. ‘ oh - well, yes, i can see that, ‘ she agreed, smiling widely. she could hardly criticise him, for the answer was technically correct. ‘ i suppose i wondered if you might know its name, ‘ she explained, ‘ i’m unfamiliar with the flowers here in the south. but i can hardly criticise you for not knowing. ‘ 

lysara stark. perhaps the least insufferable of her house, arthor watches her with a peculiar gaze. how could one spend so much time in one place ? there was certainly more entertaining things do to other than strolling about the gardens. “ugly ones,” arthor answers her, his fingers gracing some of the petals before he snatches one away from the rest. even uglier now, he thinks to himself. “if you believe yourself to be imagining things, perhaps you should seek entertainment elsewhere, princess.” harsher words cross his mind, but he knows there is no reason for him to show such disrespect to his sovereign’s house at the moment. “or better company,” he adds. 

          sara smiled at the sight of a somewhat familiar face - perhaps not a close friend, but anything was better than a stranger. ‘ they are not so ugly, ‘ she laughs, but it’s mostly a lie. the garish shade of pink that had drawn her eye to this particular flower looks almost fake. ‘ that is a fair suggestion, my lord, ‘ she agrees easily, ‘ but i’m afraid i lack ideas. i’m open to suggestions, however. ‘ given the current state of lockdown in the red keep, it wasn’t as if she could do as she pleased. ‘ would you consider yourself to be good company? ‘

dealing  with  the  after  effects  of  the  poisoned  wine  had  been  hard  on  visenya,  that  rhaenys  knew.  their  sister  had  never  been  the  type  to  sit  around  and  having  been  bedridden  for  days  had  no  doubt  made  them  almost  go  mad.  they  would  have  been  fine  with  their  books  if  the  worse  had  happened  to  rhaenys  as  well.  but  not  everyone  loved  to  read  as  they  did.  noticing  that  lysara  was  perusing  a  book,  they  tilted  their  head.  “  you  couldn’t  have  known.  i  should  have  expected  this.  ”  a  polite  smile,  “  i  have  read  a  lot  in  my  time  in  this  library,  but  even  my  dent  isn’t  so  large.  what  sort  of  literature  are  you  looking  for  ?  ”  they  would  try  and  help  to  give  another  story  lover  something  of  interest.

       it was somewhat of a relief that she hadn’t offended anyone by being here. ‘ well, i do not mind moving. i’m sure there’s a hundred other places i could sit, ‘ she said, happy enough to be obliging. she was a guest here, after all, and not particularly attached to sitting here. sara thought for a long moment before giving her answer. ‘ something...entertaining, ‘ she said, then realised that was a rather vague. ‘ or at least, something not utterly dull. there seem to be a thousand books on the history of westeros that were written by ancient men who haven’t left a keep in decades. ‘ if there was one thing she didn’t want, it was to feel as if she was being lectured by some old maester when she was trying to keep her mind occupied. ‘ but perhaps that’s a little much to ask for. ‘ 

        harrion  was  certain  his  father  wished  all of the stark family would be content remaining safely in their chambers until a culprit was found, but wolves were not content in cages. he laughed.        ❝  then you’ve beaten me. i barely lasted two days before trying to sneak out after i was injured.  ❞        not that he’d made it far. his father, knowing his son, had posted guards directly outside his door. unconsciously, one of his hands rested where his wound was, still bandaged underneath his tunic but mending.        ❝  i’m certain we can find something. lead the way.  ❞

  “ yes, it at least should appear to be so, ” xavion agreed, though the rational side of him was already counting the many broken betrothals and forced unhappy marriages he’s seen. one was his own, after all. “ i would have thought you’d be interested to travel through more of westeros. do you find it hard to be away from home, then ? ” the starks have left that impression on him. “ i have not, as i have not had any business there, but i will trust your word and perhaps one day i will see it for myself. ”

         ‘ i’m sure it is a very happy occasion for all involved, ‘ sara lied, but her smile was sweet and almost sincere. her own feelings on marriage were complex at best, but it seemed safest to simply play ignorant about tonight’s lack of enthusiasm, at least to those she didn’t know well. for all that they were acquainted, sara could hardly say she knew him well, and even in the short time they’d spoken he seemed a very different man than she’d met a few years earlier. ‘ well, i do quite enjoy visiting other places. there is so much of the world to see, and yet... ‘ sara shrugged slightly. ‘ there is nowhere quite like my home. when i am there, it seems like a fun idea to travel, and yet when i leave, all i seem to think of is how long it is until i return. ‘ was that more honesty than she should’ve had, for someone who was all but a stranger? perhaps it was. ‘ you must visit, then, ‘ sara added, half mere politeness. ‘ i’m certain you would love it. ‘