A/N- This imagine is based on the Lily Allen version of "Somewhere Only We Know" which was made to be part of the 2013 John Lewis Advert. The song is really cute and the video is really interesting. I hope you enjoy it.
You had never thought that you would be so happy, sitting up in your bed with your newborn baby resting on your chest. It brought a smile to your lips to think of how much your life had changed since you had come to the north. There was no way that you would have married before you left home, certain that you would use your trip as an escape from your father insisting that you meet with suitors. But even the best plans often go awry, and here you were, sitting with a babe at your breast.
When you had first come north there was a tension in the men and women around you. They were not used to southern ladies and their heirs and graces, instead favouring a much more simple way of living, and you had quickly grown to prefer their ideals. You father, in all of his infinite wisdom, had insisted that you dine together for every meal, though often he would be far too busy working away in his study to join the rest of the family. Instead, it would be just you and your siblings who would sit together around a round table. There was not much that could be as tense as those evenings. Cersei was not good at hiding her dislike for Tyrion, and all Jaime could do was encourage their petty bickering. You would often leave the table with an aching head and in need of a stiff drink.
The north was different, the Starks would often dine together, but there was no arguing, no animosity or bitterness, just a happy family sharing food together. You felt your heart soar when you made it through the first evening without a nasty word being thrown between the siblings. Benjen had always noticed the way you would smile as they all spoke to one another, the way they could have a conversation without it dissolving into a verbal bombardment. One evening, as you were retiring to one of the reception rooms he had walked beside you, and when you turned your smile on him it had felt as though everything that had ever been wrong had turned right. It wasn't long after that night that he told you that he loved you, had asked for you to consider marrying him. It had taken you a while to answer him; he was kind, and handsome, and the only man you had ever brought yourself to care for, but you had made your stance on marriage very clear to your father from a young age, and changing that now would feel like a failure on your part, an inability to stick to your convictions.
You smiled thinking of the face he had pulled when you had told him that you would be honoured to be his bride. He had lit up in a way you hadn't seen before and quickly pulled you into a kiss. When you separated he was red in the face and began apologising for being so forward, but you had simply pulled him back to you and connected your lips once more. Yes, it was then that you realised that you loved Benjen Stark, on the day that you had agreed to be married.
You hardly noticed the door of your chambers open as you continued to rock the babe in your arms, shifting her into a new position, and cooing slightly when she wriggled before settling once more. "Beautiful," Benjen muttered quietly, drawing your attention away from your daughter and over to him. You chuckled as he came closer, running a finger gently over the babe's cheek before leaning in to press a kiss against your lips.
"Isn't she just perfect?" Your eyes landed back on the face of the baby in your arms, and another smile came to your lips.
He hummed his agreement, pulling a wooden chair over to sit beside your bed. "She's just like her mother," he uttered softly, resting his hand on your knee for a moment and causing you to smile down at him.
"Then we will have some stubbornness issues as she grows," you told him quietly, listening to his laughter echo around the room. He fell quiet again, his eyes focussed on the child. "Do you want to hold her?" you asked him quietly watching as his eyes widened.
"What if I hurt her?" he muttered, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.
"You won't, I wouldn't allow you to," you answered quickly, patting the bed on your other side and gesturing for him to join you. He did as you told him, mimicking your posture as he settled on the bed. You lifted the babe from your chest, listening to her soft whines as you moved her onto her father's chest.
"Hello," he uttered quietly to her as she looked up at him. The gurgling sound stopped and the baby blinked her eyes slowly.
"She likes you already," you told him, shuffling a little closer to him and resting your head against his shoulder.
Benjen released a contented sigh, smiling down at the baby as though she was the only thing that mattered in the world. "What have you named her?" he asked you and you shrugged.
"I didn't, I thought you would like some say in the matter," you answered, shifting again to glance up at him. He was still smiling as you spoke, "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind naming her after my mother," you continued and he nodded as he locked his eyes with yours.
"Joanna Stark, it's as beautiful as she deserves," he mumbled and you quickly leaned forward, pressing your lips to his.
You didn't see the need to thank him with words, he knew how much it meant to you that he was so supportive of your love for your family. "Will any of the other Starks be coming to meet Joanna this evening?"
"I believe they will be with us shortly, though I told them they should work out a schedule," he told you softly, letting his free hand come to rest in your lap. You quickly moved your hand, linking your fingers through his. "There are just so many of them, and I would prefer to be able to spend some time with my two girls without them all crowding us."
You chuckled, bringing the back of his hand to your lips in a gentle kiss. "You have us for the rest of your life, sweetness, they will only be here for an hour or so." He hummed in agreement, resting his head on top of yours lightly.
The first to arrive was Benjen's father, bringing with him a large smile and gift. He placed it in your lap wrapped in paper, and you smiled as he took the seat beside you. Rickard had always had a soft spot for you, and was delighted when he found that you would be his daughter by law, and you were sure that he was ecstatic with the arrival of his first grandchild. You unfolded the paper, glancing at the two small wooden toys, and you let out a chuckle as you lifted them to show Benjen. A wolf and a lion. "She may be a little to young for them, but it will be good for her to know where she comes from," his father told you softly, and you felt tear prickle at your eyes as you smiled down at him.
"Thank you, Lord Stark, it means so much to me," you told him as another knock came at the door. Soon enough all of Benjen's siblings were with you in your chambers, all cooing at the baby in their brother's arms. You had never believed that you would so happy surrounded by your family, but here you were with a husband and a baby, and the entirety of his family, and you were the happiest you had ever been.
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