History Has It's Eyes On Us ~ Gendrya

6

The chill of the night bit at Gendry's neck as he stood in the stable. He leaned on his hammer, feeling the ice cold metal against his skin. He closed his eyes and swayed slightly, becoming accustomed to his surroundings. He could smell the frost in the air and hear the sound of feet in the snow. Not human feet. Something else. He slowly let his eyes flutter open, and in front of him saw a baby deer. It shivered in the snow as it walked. Gendry slowly rested his hammer against the wall and took an apple from the bag used to feed the horses.

"Come on," he said quietly as he walked carefully forward, crouched down, "It's okay," he whispered as the wary creature started stepping forwards. It sniffed his hands, afraid, "it's allright," he said, with a small smile. Carefully, it bit into the apple, but rather than leaving with it as Gendry had anticipated, it sat at his feet and nibbled ferosiously. Gendry stepped away from the creature and sat with his back to the wall beside him, directly in the moonlight. It was rare to see deer so far from the wolfswood, he imagined, "you're far fom home," he said softly and it glanced at him for a few moments before returning to it's feast, "me too," he sighed, studying the creature. It was tiny and malnurished, barely able to support it's body. It finished the apple and trotted back to Gendry, staring at his eyes in a way that made him feel discomfort. It had eyes like the sky before a storm, clouded with white smoke. Unafraid, it sat beside him, resting it's head on his knee. Unsure of what to do, he rested his hand gently on it's neck, stroking it's fur. Peculiar. He wasn't a hunter, but he knew this wasn't typical of the animal. Of any animal, in fact.

"We're survivers, you and me," he smiled, letting his head rest against the stone behind him.

"I know," a voice said quietly, coming closer to him. The young buck looked around, alarmed. It's ears twitched as the shadow approached them. Gendry was more interested in what the animal was doing than seeing who it was. The figure stepped into the light and after a few momens of staring and two blinks from the innocent creature, it laid it's head back on Gendy's knee, licking his bruised knuckled effectionatley.

Arya watched, more confused than anything. Too many questions flooded her mind.

What was he doing?

How was he doing it?

And more importantly, why was there a deer?

Silent, she carefully moved and sat beside him.

"It's good to see you," he said, soft. Arya looked at him, shocked that he would speak, "speaking doesn't seem to bother him,"he shrugged.

"He's blind," she said quietly, "is that why his eyes are that way?"

"I don't think so... just a second ago, he was looking straight at me. It wouldn't make sense,"

She was quiet for a few moments after that, unsure of how to handle herself.

"I missed you," she said, uncertain of herself.

"Missed you too..." his head fell down under the weight of his guilt, "I regret it, you know? Leaving was... easily the scariest thing I've ever done,"

"It didn't seem it. Even before they sold you, you made the decision to stay quicker than I could click my fingers,"

"That doesn't mean I wasn't scared. I thought about it for a while, Winterfell's not my place. I finally had the opportunity to save myself and I took it,"

"Save yourself? What do you think woud've happened? Oh hello, you helped bring one of the Stark children home, we have a nice cold cell for you in the dungens. Send him away," she huffed in frustration.

Gendry laughed slightly, "I was saving myself from you. If I had to watch you become someone you're not, it would have killed me. Almost killed me today, seeing the way you were. Till your brother left anyway. You always told me he was your favourite of your siblings, but-"

"Jon's a different man these days. He's... cold. Something happened during his time at the wall that changed him in ways I can't even explain. He barely knows reason, and he's blinded by lust. I would say love, but that implies the feelings to be reciprical, and I don't believe for a second that that's the case,"

"But, I thought she loved him?"

"She loves his skill in battle and she loves his ancestory. Born a Targaryen, raised a Stark. Some would say, it's the perfect combination when it comes to making alliances,"

A comfortable silence followed this.

"So... King Robert's bastard, aye?"

Gendry nodded, "Wierd, isn't it?"

"That explains why the goldcloaks were after you,"

His eyes widened, "I didn't even think of that,"

Again silence fell, and Arya rested her head on his shoulder, watching the deer. It startled him at first, but he quickly accepted it; the unamiliar feeling of interaction on any physical level causing tingles and sparks all through his body. Wanting this sensation to last as long as possible, he connected his hand to the hand resting on Arya's leg and let his head balance on her's. The smoky aroma of her hair filled his nose, making him almost feel at home. As he let the moment consume him, he closed his eyes. Overwhelmed, he could feel a tear forming and he refused to let it venture on his cheek.

"Are you sure you want me to ride with you tomorrow?" He mumbled.

"Who else would I bring?" She smirked, "you're the only one I know I can trust,"

It was in this moment that Gendry realised her smile was hiding unconitional pain. A pain he knew couldn't be fought. The fear of being betrayed.