CHAPTER TWENTY ONE - HIS TREASURE
"And what did she say?" Robb asked Ser Alton who had returned from King's Landing. They were stood inside a tent, but the opening was open, so everyone who walked past could see them. The ones standing inside were Robb, Lord Bolton, Ser Alton, Hera and some other Lords and bannermen. Frankly, Hera didn't know why she was standing with them, but she had nothing better to do anyways.
The air around them were chill, and whenever they breathed, a frosty mist escaped from between their lips. Hera hid her hands inside her cloak to make them warmer, but it didn't really work that well.
Ser Alton gulped, adjusting his eyes away from Robb. "She admired your spirit, your grace," He stopped to glance at Robb, who kept a neutral face.
"What then?" Robb asked.
"She....uh..."
Robb sighed. "If every man were to be held accauntable for the actions of every distant relative, Ser Alton, we'd all hang." He narrowed his eyes as he waited for Ser Alton to speak again. Hera stood silently at his side, watching with curious eyes.
"She tore the paper in half, your grace." Ser Alton finally answered. Hera glanced at Robb, just as he looked at her. They shared a look which said that they both expected that she would do that.
"You've acted with honor, I thank you for it. Lord Karstark, see that Ser Alton's pen is clean, and give him a hot supper." Robb spoke as he looked at the Lord.
"Ser Alton's pen is occupied your grace, the prisoners from The Yellow Fork..."
"Too many prisoners," Lord Bolton interfered.
Robb had led his army into battle by the Yellow Fork in the Westerlands the night prior. Hera hadn't fought with them though, because her arm were still healing. They had won, and taken many of the soldiers as prisoners. But apparently, they had captured too many prisoners to keep in the pens.
"Is there room for Ser Alton?" Robb asked with a frown.
Lord Karstark lifted an eyebrow. "Does he need to lay down?" Ser Alton's eyes widened in offense as he turned his head around to look at the lord in annoyance.
Robb leaned against the table. "Have the men build him a new pen, put him in with the Kingslayer for now, and have your boy watch over him."
At the mention of the Kingslayer, Hera's thoughts flashed back to the time when he had insulted her and her family. She breathed out from her nose deeply in anger, but calmed herself down quickly. He was in a pen, she told herself. That's where he deserves to be. She could insult him all she'd like if she wished to.
"Thorenn," Lord Karstark called for his son to come forward. The boy moved towards Ser Alton and gripped him by the shoulder. He escourted him out from the tent just as Robb spoke again.
"That will be all."
Most of the Lords left, but some remained. "Your grace?" Everyone's attention moved to Talisa, who stood awkwardly by the entrance. She wiped her hands on a cloth, and she had dirt all over her dress and on her face. "A moment of your time?" The other Lords and bannermen left the tent quickly. Hera glanced at Robb, asking with her eyes if he wanted her to stay. He responed by gripping her hand in his own. The action caused her skin to tingle, and a small smile appeared on her lips.
"I've been treating your wounded men," she spoke while fiddling with the piece of cloth. Hera noticed how she eyed their interwined hands, causing her own eyes to narrow. Talisa looked at her with a knowing look, but didn't say anything.
"And my enemies, as some of my bannermen are fond of mentioning." Robb's hand left Hera's so he could roll a map together. Hera's hand instantly turned cold, causing her to put it back into her cloak to warm it up.
"They're not my enemies," Talisa quipped.
"That's what I tell my bannermen," Robb responded lowly.
"I've already ran through the supplies I brought with me," Talisa informed him. "Some are easily replaced, egg yolks, turpentine, oil of roses..."
Robb nodded his head. "But some are not."
Talisa sighed while nodding her head softly. "I need silk for stitching. I need fennel root for those with fever, willow bark.. But mostly, I need milk of the poppy. You saw what it was like to amputate a man's foot without any." Hera grimaced at the memory. It was definitely not a pleasant one. "I assume there will be more loss of limbs before this war is over," she continued bitterly.
"If you need help finding these..." Robb started saying, but she interrupted him.
"I know where to find them!" Her eyes widened and she quickly lowered her voice. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't interrupt you."
Robb looked at her with raised eyebrows, while Hera let out a sigh. "Continue, lady Talisa," she spoke.
"You're riding to the Crag to negotiate surrender?" She asked, her eyes showing doubt.
"Yes."
"The Crag will have a maester, and he'll have what I need," she spoke softly, glancing between Robb and Hera.
"I expect he will," Robb nodded, mentioning for her to continue.
"If I could write a list of the supplies I'll need, you could find them and bring them back here?" She asked.
Robb nodded. "Write your list. I'll see what I can do."
Talisa nodded, before she excused herself to leave the tent. That left only Hera and Robb inside. Hera bit her lip as she let her eyes rest on Robb's form. He was looking down at the table, clearly stressed.
Hera cleared her throat lowly to get his attention. His blue eyes looked at her in question. "Have you decided wether or not I am allowed to come with you to the Crag?"
Robb sighed. He stood up straighter, giving her an apologetic look. "Yes, I have," Judging by his tone, she guessed it was bad news. "Your arm is still healing, so it is not wise for you to come with us. I'm sorry."
Hera clenched her jaw. She knew he was only looking out for her, but she was tired of waiting for her arm to heal. She was tired of sitting at camp doing nothing while the others would ride horses and fight. She kept her gaze on the floor. "Okay," she answered simply.
Robb frowned. "You're angry."
"No, I'm not," she clarified while smiling softly, to make a point. "I understand."
"Good, because it's much safer for you here." His voice held a lot of emotion as he said it, causing Hera to not feel as irritated anymore.
"I know, but I can take care of myself."
And she could. She had proven that many times. But to Robb, she was too important for him to ever be put in danger. He was well aware of her strenght, because it was one of the things he liked the most about her. He would always keep her safe, he swore. No matter what.
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Yikes, I'm so sorry for the awful chapter! I didn't have any motivation to write at all, but I still felt like I needed to give you guys an update. School also started recently, so I've had much less time to write. When I get home from school, I just want to relax, so I haven't really been writing that much. Next chapter will be better, I promise, but for now this will have to do. Again, I'm sorry!