The Fox and The Wolf

2. Bear Island

We decided to go to Bear Island first. With Hearthgrove at the northwest of the Wolfswood, it was easy to get there. The Mormonts have been friends with my family for many generations, so I was sure Lyanna would accept our small party on her lands. I wasn't sure if she would accept to join me against the Boltons though.

"Why don't we go to your uncle first?" asked Elayne once I told her the plan.

"Because it's where Ramsey will try to find us, if he knows about my mother."

"Why would he bother to look for us?"

Because I am still alive, I wanted to say, but her question made its way to my thoughts. Maybe she was right, maybe he wouldn't care if I was alive or dead... Yet I didn't want to play our lives on maybes.

During our escape, I was lucky enough to have my purse on me. We used the money to buy three horses for and a piece of bread from a village a day from our first safe-house. Elayne suggested to sell my dress but I refused. The Stormfeld sigil was embroidered on the heart and I didn't want anyone to get in trouble because of this. My mother embroidered it herself as a birthday gift too, and I didn't want to lose the last thing I had from her. Even if it meant I had to starve to death.

By the time we arrived at the shore, the dress had lost its vibrant blue to the mud. My hair, usually nicely done up, seemed more like stray than hair and I could feel a layer of dirt on every inch of my skin. Even without my heavy coat, nobody could have recognized me.

With the last coins, we brought passage to the island from a fisherman. With the air colder with each passing day, the trip on the small bark was not pleasant. I dreamed of a bed near a fireplace while Bear Island grew bigger and bigger.

It wasn't hard to find the castle but it was a challenge to enter. I had to pass my knife to a guard for Lady Mormont to verify. Once that was done, the large wooden doors opened. Lyanna herself greeted us at the center of the small but sturdy looking court. I bowed my head to her.

"Thank you for letting us see you, Lady Mormont."

She studied us with her signature cold gaze and I couldn't help but froze under her inspection. The little I once knew was no more. I wondered if she had forgotten me and the games we used to play. Now that we were face to face, this seemed like ages ago.

"No wonder they didn't let you enter," she finally said, her eyes locking with mine and a smile on her lips. "You need a bath. And a new set of clothes."

She gestured the servants to take us away. We gladly followed them. I don't remember well this part of our journey. I was too tired, too relieved to take notice of what was happening. I think I fell asleep in the warm water.

Once I was ready, a girl told me Lyanna was waiting for me in the dining hall. My stomach grumbled at the mention of dining and I obediently found my way to the young lady.

I could hear the roaming of a fire on my way there, and a faint odour of meat was feeling my nose. Lyanna was sitting at the end of the wooden table. A set of cutlery had been set at her right side.

"I'm afraid we're lacking dresses your size," she said when I entered the room.

"I think this fits me better."

I was given leather pants and a white fur blouse. At first, I thought it was man outfit, but the cut was definitely feminine and it flattered my silhouette more than any dress I wore before.

I sat beside Lyanna. The food was simple but most welcomed. The bread was still fuming and the chicken and potatoes looked liked a fancy king banquet for me.

"Where are my men?" I asked with water in my mouth.

"In the kitchen. They are being fed too."

I smiled to my host then happily attacked the poultry. She looked at me, first, silently, probably judging my lack of manners. I was too famished to care though. While a took a bite from a potato, she spoke.

"I learned what happened to Hearthgrove."

I stopped chewing. Her voice was equal, without sympathy nor threat. I took a sip of beer to help me gulp down the vegetable.

"If you have heard of it, you must know why I am here."

"I only see two possibilities: either to hide or to fight. And if I'm guessing right, it's the second one."

I smiled at the young Lady. "You're too wise for your age."

"Wise enough to not follow you in your revenge."

So it was going to be the difficult way. I had hoped our friendship was enough to have her and her men follow me to retake the North from the Boltons, but I could see plenty of reasons why she wouldn't want to.

"Why?" I still asked.

"Why would I want to sacrifice my men for a war that doesn't concern me nor them?"

"Because the North doesn't belong to the Boltons. If we don't act, our snowy fields will only be as red as the blood they spill."

"And who would you see ruling the North?"

"The Starks. Or at least someone in their place while they come back."

"The Starks are gone, defeated by the southern kings. Let the Boltons have their piece of land for a while. Bear Island will stay out of this."

"Sansa Stark still have a claim to Winterfell."

"As what? Lady Lannister or Lady Bolton?"

"She married Roose?" I never heard of this. I knew for Tyrion, but her disappearance had me hope for her return. I couldn't believe it would have been like this.

"No it was Ramsay! How long have been on the run?"

I looked away, my cheeks burning. "Two to three days... Gary was the one who took care of politics."

A silence fell on the room, only interrupted by the wind howling through the windows and the logs cracking in the fireplace. I knew she was waiting for details. I took a deep breath, I told everything.

How my family made a good living with a ruby mine, even though she knew this. How I was kept from any politics since the war of the five kings started, how I decided to focus on raising and training animals. And then how Ramsay came to Hearthgove just few days ago, stating he was tired of his crows being ignored.

When he asked Father to bend the knee, Father refused. Two of his son had died for Robb Stark, he had said. He would die for a Stark only. Ramsay obliged slighting his throat. When Mother stayed true to her husband words, Ramsay slained her as well. Garry tried to avenge them, but the Boltons' men were faster. I was in the kennel then, and Jarden forced me to hide behind a fence. When Ramsay ordered to put Hearthgrove on fire, we fled thanks to a hole behind the mill we didn't had time to repair yet. Elayne found us after a few hours.

I talk for a long time and Lyanna listened silently, her eyes not leaving my features even once. I felt like I was the child there, confiding in her like this. When I finished my story, her gaze shifted to the dying fire.

"You weren't born to be the Lady of Hearthgrove and yet, here you are. You have a lot to learn. I'll lend you our maester. He is strict, but he his a good man. Learn from him as much as you can."

Before I could thank her, she called him to the dining room. She quickly explained the situation to the old man and left us behind.

The maester had a grave face, fitting the Lady's. He put his hands on the back of the chair in front of you.

"So. What will this Lady learn?"