6. Winterfell [S07E04]

Rage would carry Jon Snow through. Through the raven sent by the Mother of Dragons, he had learned, with relief, that his sister was alive all this time, only to learn further that she was swallowed by the blackness of the sea.

He cared not for slain dwarves or family names fallen. Arya was the closest to a sister the bastard boy had, before he gave her up for brothers in black. He had done his duty as well as he could, but somewhere, could not do the duty of deserting ties of family. Despite what he heard of the wars while on the edge of the world, Jon hoped they were all lies, that one day he would enter an inn at Mole’s Town to find Arya, Robb and Bran together with Lord Eddard Stark, all waiting for him, beams on their faces. But that was a green boy’s dream, a dream for spring that would never be found in icy cold winter.

Chaos echoed across stone walls of Winterfell as the lords discussed war. Jon was glad the northmen shared his fury. He had declared war rather than bend the knee to the people who killed his sister, and he felt glad he did. Suddenly, Daenerys Targaryen was less a possible ally and much more a threat to the north. “She thinks I will swear her fealty. She wants me to meet her at Barrowton,” Jon told the bannermen. “And I will, but only with the might of the north!”

Roared Wyman Manderly over the cheers, “The Targaryens are a southron house. I shall like to see how they fare on our lands!”

Amidst shouts of victory and war, Jon saw Littlefinger participate in none. Jon’s rage gave way to doubt. What is this man thinking of now? When the hall finally fell silent and Baelish spoke, Jon was surprised to hear his usually eloquent speech falter.

“I am no northman,” he said, “even though I have pledged my house to the Starks. But if we are to be defeated, if our king is to die or be captured on the snowy shores of Barrowton, what must become of the north when Queen Daenerys marches to Winterfell? Will these walls keep Lady Sansa safe,” he said, voice cracking, “or will the Mother of Dragons show her no mercy as well?”

There must always be a Stark in Winterfell, Jon wanted to say, but the words stuck in his throat. Theon Greyjoy passed these walls with twenty men and nearly ended the Stark bloodline. If Daenerys Targaryen truly had a three-headed dragon, as rumor had it, no castle in the north would hold it. If Jon was to lose, the north needed Sansa to keep the Stark line alive, to fight the army of the dead when the time came.

He is a slippery man, Jon thought, looking at Littlefinger, but I cannot believe he wishes harm on my sister. Besides, I would rather fight Daenerys Targaryen with loyal northmen than slippery ones like him. As king, Jon had to make the hard decision no one could. But before he said it, Sansa Stark did.

“You speak truth, Lord Baelish. Daenerys Targaryen has a massive army,” she said. Jon liked that she did not mention the three-headed dragon to not coin facts to rumors. “You have proved yourself loyal in the Battle of the Bastards. Will you prove your loyalty again, when the north demands it, by giving me shelter in the impregnable castle of the Vale?”

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