Only A Northern Song ~ Game of Thrones / Willas Tyrell ~

Chapter Thirteen: New Life

It took them another three weeks to get to High Garden, and by the time they'd gotten to the Reach Eddmina was exhausted. She'd never travelled so far before, and her anxiety over being so far away from home didn't help her tiredness. Not that she let any of her emotions show though, remaining as stubborn as ever as she held herself strong.

Stubbornness, however, couldn't protect her from everything though, and the fact that she'd begun spending most nights in the inn taverns with Willas and Garlan meant her betrothed had begun to see through her facade. It was only natural that she wouldn't remain a closed book to him forever, but she didn't think he'd be able to see through her until months after they'd gotten married. Unknowingly and without really meaning to, ever since she'd played the lute and sang for him she'd opened her emotions up to him, and with that he felt as though he was able to understand her a great deal more than he did before. With this new knowledge of her, he spent the days watching her ride, giving her space until he saw the crease appear between her eyebrows, knowing it to mean she was trying to fight some thought or emotion away. That would be when he'd ride over to her and strike up a conversation. He did it for his own good, not wanting to spend every second with her before they got married because he knew if he did the wait would become unbearable, but also for her good too, knowing she probably didn't want him bothering her all day.

To her though, he wasn't a bother. She enjoyed his company as he was a welcome distraction from the lonliness that had begun to set in. Before setting off for High Garden, Eddmina had hardly gone a day without seeing her siblings, and to go from constant company with her brothers and sisters that she knew so well to being surrounded by people who were still practically strangers was rather jarring. Willas wasn't a stranger though, and she felt comfortable with him, much more comfortable than she did with the other Tyrells, with whom she remained polite with. The were to be her family after all, but on the journey she had not managed to bond with any of them as much as she did with Willas and Garlan.

Perhaps it was because her family were all so close that she found the dynamics of the Tyrells initially quite difficult. Her family ate together every night, and they often broke their fasts together as well. Most of her time in the day was spent with her sisters sewing, or with her brothers watching them fight, not to mention the days they took off from lessons and training to go out riding. The Stark children held a close, tight-knit bond, and Eddmina couldn't imagine her life without them. She thought every highborn family was like that, and she thought every highborn child held a good relationship to their parents, even with her difficult relationship with her mother. Being around the Tyrells however, proved all of that wrong to her, and she couldn't believe how naïve she felt when she realised how wrong she was.

Willas and Garlan were close, that was for sure. There was only three years between them and watching them together when they were bantering made her almost jealous she didn't have Robb or Jon with her. Their brotherly bond was sweet, but their close friendship didn't extend to the other two Tyrell siblings. Margaery and Loras seemed to share a similar relationship, and though the four of them were all friendly with each other and Eddmina could tell there was a lot of love between them, they didn't always mix. They seemed to split off into two separate groups, and it made Eddmina miss the unity of her family, even though the Tyrells would soon be her family.

If they were only a few hours away from reaching High Garden, that meant it would only be a few weeks until their wedding. That thought, as much as she liked Willas, terrified her. It was surreal how quickly her life had changed, and the thought of no longer bearing the Stark name as well as being married scared her just a little, not that she'd admit it.

"You've gone quiet," Willas spoke on their last day of riding, a small smile on his face as he was riding through familiar territory, knowing they weren't far from home.