Bleeding Ivory l Robb Stark

winterfell

As she roamed the grounds she was quite surprised with what the North had to offer. As a child her mother taught her that the Northern people were savages and ungraceful. That their bodies were covered with hair to keep them warm from the winter, that they fucked animals to keep warm and ate their own children. It seemed like all her mothers words were lies, not that she wasn't used to her mothers web of secrecy and lies.

"Your home is quite beautiful Sansa. It's so much more beautiful than I could ever imagine." Joanna complimented the young girl that was strolling with her.

"Thank you my l-"

"Sansa, if I may, I would appreciate it if you didn't call me by formal names. I mean no disrespect to your kindness. It's just - I'm called princess and my lady more than I think people know my name. I want to be your friend, not your princess." Sansa's face beamed at Joanna's words. Just like Joanna , Sansa had heard rumours especially from her brothers that Joanna had a temper and was prone to throwing tantrums. But the graceful woman that stood before her was everything but that.

"Of course, Joanna." Sansa bowed as they continued to walk the grounds. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Brandon climbing the roofs again much to his mothers dismay, Arya was running around with a couple of boys playing with wooden sticks as swords. Some part of her envied the freedom that the Stark children had to be children. She grew in the Red Keep and all her life she doesn't think she was ever allowed to even run around the castle. It was deemed ungraceful and savage.

"Your childhood must be so much fun Sansa. You have the freedom to do as you want you. I don't think my mother would ever allow me to even climb the roof to anything."

"Perhaps your grace but I dream of the day I can leave Winterfell and go to the capitol." She sighed as she looked to her wild sister running after Rickon.

"You want to leave? Why, if I may ask."

"Just look at my sister." Sansa groaned "She and everyone around me act so wild. I've always wanted to be in King Landing. Wear gowns made of the finest silk and my hair shimmering in the sun. Where the boys have more respect and don't see me as a piece of meat." Joanna chuckled at her words because in truth she thought exactly the same about the South. Though Joanna adored her family, faults and all, she hated the south. She hated the smell of pigshit, she hated how the men didn't love her but only wanted her for sexual desires, and that she wasn't allowed to be the truest version of herself.

"I do hope you find what you look for in Kingslanding Sansa. Is that why you were asking your mother if our fathers to have you marry Joffrey?"

"Yes, he's so handsome Joanna. I pray to the Old Gods that my father lets me marry him." Sansa's words didn't sit right with Joanna. Joffrey was vile, manipulative and in times of tension was a fire ready to burn your limbs off. She had no doubt that if Sansa would end up marrying Joffrey she'd be another victim to his abuse.

"Sansa, - "

"And if I marry Joffrey and you'll marry Robb we would practically be sisters - bound by blood." Sansa excitingly replied. Joanna through her uncomfortable smile wanted to recoil in the thought of marriage. She had nothing against the oldest Stark, she just always hoped that she would marry for love and not for political advances.

Sansa and Joanna continued on their stroll to the kennels where the horses were being fed. Joanna had mentioned that she wanted to see the Weirwood trees and Sansa was more than happy to show her. Joanna's eyes wondered outside the walls to see a small grey pup run towards her.

It along with the rest of the direwolf pups surrounded the princess. In a joyful glee Joanna bent down and they pawed at her dress. She lifted her arms to pick up a direwolf no older than a month and held him in her arms. The pitch black pup and one as white as snow jumped on their hindlegs while the others wiggled their tails in her presence.

"I don't care Theon. My father doesn't want the wolves around any of the Baratheons- especially the prince and his sister- " Robb and Theon stopped in their tracks to see the pups playing with the Baratheon princess and not attacking her as Theon encouraged. To say they were bewildered would be putting it lightly.

Even as pups the direwolves were loyal to their own, the Starks. Even sir Roderick wasn't safe from Shaggydogs growls. So to see the Southern princess play with the pups, like she was a Stark, was frightening but at the same time enchanting.

"Greywind!" Robb called. The pup in Joanna's arms jumped out of her graps as he followed the command of his master. The rest of the pups following behind him. Just like with Robb Joanna could already see that Greywind took the role as the alpha between the pups.

"My lady, I must apologize. We thought the pups were out of reach to your family. I hope they meant you no harm." He sternly apologized. Joanna turned to Sansa who seemed just as surprised as Theon that the wolves didn't attack her.

"You have direwolves?! Why did no one ever tell me? Where did you find them I thought they didn't travel South of the Wall. Is there mother here as well?" Joanna sounded like a child that was told she was allowed to skip her dinner and eat dessert first.

Robb turned to Sansa who seemed just as amused by Joanna's questions. Perhaps they judged her character all too soon.

"We found them while we were hunting. Their mother had died. My father planned on killing them but my brother convinced him to let the Stark children keep them." Robb answered as she kept cocking her head to where past Robb's head to where Bran and Tommen were playing with Summer.

"Would you show me where?" Robb was hesitant to answer especially after his mother told them not to travel out of reach with the princess if they wanted to be spared from Cersei's wrath.

"Please Robb, I've always wanted to see the North and to be honest I have no patience to be around my family. Please, please, please." Robb couldn't help but crack a smirk as Joanna continued to plead. He turned to Theon ordering him to saddle the horses.

Joanna looked to Sansa and promised that she would meet with her again and even show Sansa how to do her hair like the Southern girls wear them, which Sansa only saw a bonus for herself.

The pair left the castle on their horses but not without Robert Baratheon and Ned Stark looking down at them from the balcony. Ned seemed concerned that Robb would go against his mothers words of having the princess leave the castle but Robert encouraged him that it was good the two were getting to know each other.

"You see, with your son and daughter marrying mine, we'd create a new dynasty. The Starks and Baratheons all of the seven kingdoms as they should have long before the rise of the Targaryen and Lannisters did."

"You forget that you daughters mother is Cersei Lannister. I'm fear you've made a mistake with those two. Winter is coming and I sense danger it brings death and tragedy along with it." Ned Stark stated as he overlooked the heirs of their households praying to the gods that what he feared may never come true