littlestarkpup

[littlestarkpup]

handofhonor:

“you sound like a true northman.” ned loathed to say the words but from the way his youngest son was speaking, he knew of the north, he knew the ways in which this land treated people. unfortunately, it seemed to happen at such a young age as well. if he could have protected his son, ned would have done it in a heartbeat. he would have gathered rickon into his arms and shielded him from the horrors of the world as he did his other children for all those years. eventually something had to give, something had to happen and it seemed it did before rickon was old enough to truly remember them.

“somehow he oft finds his way to the foot of our bed.” while both ned and catelyn had assumed that shaggy had come to them by rickon’s command, it seemed that it was not the truth. instead, shaggy came to him out of his own command, venturing to their chambers, being let in by the guards ned would assume. “aye, mayhaps we can ride together again once it is deemed safe.” with these killings, it would not be safe, ned knew. however, rickon’s next words caused ned to stop, feeling his heart break a little knowing that his son never truly knew nor ned truly knew him. they had been ripped from each other before either of them had such a delicacy. “as i wish to you know, rickon.”

“I should think so,” Rickon raised a brow and allowed a small smile, “I have never left the North and it is all I know,” He’d gone as far as North could go without going beyond the Wall. But even after they returned from Skagos… Osha had always dissuaded him from venturing further than they had been. And he’d had no desire to ever go South. The South only meant death for his family… He’d truly come to believe that Starks melted in the South, “Nothing good comes from the South.” Despite what his sister said. She’d been so insistent on him finding a wife and that a match with a southern house might be a good place to start. Rickon had no desire to take a bride at all, never mind a southern bride.

“Oh…” He nodded, not truly surprised. He’d assumed as much… It frustrated him that he’d felt such a deep sense of longing from his old friend. He wanted so to be close to Ned and Cat at all times, and the feeling had been so very confusing for Rickon. He looked at his Father, somewhat nervously, nodding once again, “I am glad… For I take no joy in the fact that we are all but strangers to one another.”

[littlestarkpup]

snowdrenched:

“Your sister, Arya, the one with dark hair, the younger,” Genevieve confirmed, nodding a little, “Yes, I think you are right. I think she would have liked the little ones to stay, that she wanted to learn about them, learn and befriend them” Genie remembered coming across her in the snow and seeing the young girl kneeling before the little dragon, feeding little scraps, coaxing it, showing no fear, being cautious, yes, but not afraid. 

“Perhaps you are right,” She agreed, smiling at Rickon’s efforts, wanting him to feel better, wanting him to feel that he had helped, that he had made her feel less ill, less worried. “They are not alone, but together, and the other people, there were many others who disappeared, who were taken, so they are not alone and that is better”

“Why wasn’t I taken?” Gwyn asked, genuinely curious “I’m new, and they didn’t take me. Everyone else new is gone, Grandmama”

“I think…a witch in my shop, she says it is because you were the only one from the future, not the past…you…exist, are not dead, or from a time that is no longer here…it is all very confusing sometimes, this country, this magic” Genie admitted as she tried to explain.

“Yes, Arya,” Rickon nodded and then laughed a little, “She makes friends with everyone and she is not afraid of anything… But the dragons scared me a little,” He admitted quietly. The little ones were not so bad, but there had been more than once that he had heard a much larger one in the sky and he had been so scared that he had found himself in his wolf form without even realising.

He bit his lip a little, “I hope so… It must make you feel sad, Genie,” He looked down then, concentrating on his little card once more. He hadn’t particularly liked Genie’s husband when he first came, because Rickon had decided that he was going to marry her when he grew up a little more. But it had been very hard not to like him, especially when he made Genie so happy. “It makes my Mama very sad. I can hear her crying when she thinks there is no one else around.”

Rickon looked at Gwyn then with a frown and then back to Genie before turning to his new friend once more, “You’re not going to go anywhere, you’re different.” He didn’t know why exactly, but he was determined that it would not happen to Gwyn. Or Genie. “Both of you are staying here.” He said in a tone that left no room for argument.

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

She felt him shaking more than she saw it, and quickly put his t-shirt back, removing the terrible wounds from sight and drew him gently close into her lap once more as they sat upon the barn floor, sitting him there on her knee as he did so often when they were at home and he would plead to sit with her even as she lay with Ned upon the couch…though often, they acquiesced. 

“I do have reason to be sorry….Mummys should keep their children safe…you shouldn’t have had to go through all this, my darling, and for that I am very, very sorry. But never again, I promise you, never again…never again..” She did not know who she was reassuring more; herself or her little boy. 

“You can cry if you want, my darling, making as much noise as you like…..for crying sometimes can make us feel a little better, can’t it?” She encouraged gently, and wanted so desperately to cry herself. She wanted to weep; weep for her failures, weep for all Rickon and the rest of her family had suffered, weep for all of it…but she could not. She could not afford to be less than strong, even for a second. “But we can’t go home just yet, my darling, we can’t leave everything here as it is,” We can’t just leave Petyr’s body here, she added silently. “We mustn’t make it easy for any of Petyr’s nasty people to find it or us, must we?” 

Catelyn kissed him and held him more tightly, before standing, still holding him, balancing him on her hip, “I’m going to call someone who is going to help me, and they will be here very soon, but while we wait, I have some treats in the car I think….milk buttons? Would you like some milk buttons, my darling? As many as you like?”

His arms went around her neck once again, his fingers grasping the ends of her hair. When Rickon squeezed his eyes shut really tight he could pretend he was at home and he’d just had a nightmare and that Mummy was going to make it all better. He shook his head again, “No… It’s not your fault, Mummy… It’s not.” But he believed her when she said never again. And almost instantly it made him feel a little better. His Mummy never broke her promises. Not ever.

He gasped and looked up at her and then back towards the steps which he knew led to Petyr’s body. His dead body. Dead because he had killed him. “But… won’t we get into trouble? Maybe… Maybe if we call an ambulance they can make him better and then take him to gaol?” He whispered and rubbed his nose against hers, “Please, Mummy… Can we just go home?”

Rickon held to her all the more tightly when she stood, nodding against her neck, “I’m hungry,” He agreed, “My tummy hurts because it’s empty,” He added sleepily, his eyes beginning to droop, “I like buttons.”

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

“Well, I see no naughty boys here, so I have no cause to fear, and neither should you,” Catelyn instructed with a gentle firmness to her voice. “And Winterfell is an ancient castle, guarded by the old Gods as much as old walls…no Wildlings nor wights nor Others nor creatures shall ever venture here. So long as a Stark is in Winterfell, this place shall always be a haven to you, my boy” 

Catelyn smiled at her son, “I think she must indeed be very old, for she was here when your Father was no older than you, and she was old then, he tells me,” Catelyn thought it would be hard to find any living man who remembered Old Nan young; it was a curious matter and one which she had not yet solved…and was not sure she wished to. 

“Where is Shaggydog, Rickon?” Catelyn asked again, as she folded up his cloak and handed it to one of the passing servants who took it carefully, “You know the cooks do not like him in the kitchen” The direwolf was only a pup, but he was a wild thing, prone to biting, and growing far more quickly than any kennel hound and the servants found all the pups unnerving at best and frightening at worst. 

Rickon grinned a little at that. He did always try to be a good boy and he was very glad that his Mother must clearly think him to be one if she saw no naughty boys. He wrinkled his brow in confusion, “But what if there is no Stark here? What if the King wants us all to visit him in his castle next time?”

He did not quite understand how Old Nan had always been old and it did not sound like his Mother knew either. He thought perhaps he could ask her, but then he thought that it might be a little rude. Perhaps she had been born old, for he saw no other reason why her mama would have named her Old Nan otherwise.

“He is not in the kitchen, Mama,” Rickon hastened to assure her before once again lowering his head so that his hair fell a little over his eyes, “He wanted to have a little nap in bed and it warmest in your room, Mama.” The big bed in there was the most comfortable one of all and Rickon liked to take a nap in it sometimes too.

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

“I go out there alone, because I am trained to do so, I studied and trained for years, Rickon, and it is my duty…to keep you and others like you safe. You are expected to remain home in order to remain safe” Catelyn stressed, a paraphrase of the lecture she had already given him three times before after she had caught him following out on a patrol she had with a Potential. 

“Your Father taught you how to defend yourself, enough so that you might reach somewhere safe, and someone who would be of help….these lessons will go much further than that, Rickon, and shall be far tougher and harder,” Catelyn warned him though she doubted it would deter him; even when compared to Arya, Rickon had always been the wildest of her children.

For a moment she hesitated as she walked towards the quarterstaffs, made of light and hollowed wood they were perfect for practising, and wondered if she might turn back now and deny Rickon what she had promised him….but no, if he would insist on wandering, insist on being old enough, then better he was prepared than not. She handed one of the quarterstaffs to him and held one in her own hands. 

“Let us see what you can do first, then we will know how to improve, and what needs most work. You claim you are already prepared enough to wander at night…then I ask that you prove it”

Rickon frowned, looking down for a moment before he had the courage to meet her gaze once more, “Dad studied and trained for years too and he still died, Mum.” He didn’t want the words to hurt her, for that was the last thing in the world he ever wanted, but he had to at least try to make her understand how terrifying it was now every time she stepped out through the door, “How can I just stay home when you’re out there by yourself? I want to do this, Mum.” He shook his head, “I need to do this, please understand.”

He nodded once again, listening to every word, “I know they’ll be hard, Mum… I want to be able to protect myself and I want to be able to protect you. Dad always used to tell me to look after you when he went away…” He shook his head, “I know he didn’t mean it that way… But I always promised him I would. I need to do this for Dad as much as for you.”

His eyes never left her as she moved to retrieve the quarterstaffs, his eyes widening a little as he looked from it up to her, “Pr… Prove it?” He eyes the one she held in her own hands, his eyes widening even more, “Mum… Are you telling me to fight… You?”

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

“No,” Catelyn agreed quietly, offering no further argument, as she thought on Petyr’s idea of love and compared it to what she knew and remembered and felt of her own love with Ned. Ned would rather throw himself from a cliff than intentionally hurt her, and had said as much himself before, and his first thought after protecting their children was to protect her. But Petyr…..how had he let his own desires, and his own resentment, turn him so, take hold so terrible as to warp him to such extremes? It felt like he had died twice. 

“You are not bad, Rickon,” She insisted firmly, almost a trace of scolding anger in her voice, though it was the faintest part, but she had to make him understand. She would not have him thinking such terrible things about himself when Petyr had placed him such a harrowing situation. “You haven’t a bad bone in your body. I will not say you are not naughty sometimes, and your wildness can be mischievous at best, but you are never bad, not a single drop of you, do you understand?”

She held onto him tightly, kissing the top of his head, rocking him slightly as she rubbed his back, trying to offer every simple Mother’s comfort she could give him. “When someone who has hurt you has died, when you are free from them entirely, it is normal to be glad of that, Rickon. No one would think any differently…..but please, if you can, do not think on it anymore. It is done and gone, and you are safe here, I promise, you are always safe…and it does no good to dwell, my darling boy”

Rickon wiped at his eyes a little, “Well I love you and I won’t ever hurt you, Mummy,” He kissed her cheek before looking down again, “I promise.”

He nodded when she kept saying he wasn’t bad, keeping his head lowered as his eyes filled with tears again. He hadn’t meant to make her angry with him. He kept making silly little mistakes, first with his sums and now what he said was making her mad too. It was all so confusing. It hurt his head to think about it, so he thought maybe it was best not to ask any questions. Asking questions was making her upset… And he thought that was making her mad too. He didn’t want her to be mad. He didn’t want anyone to be mad. Only bad things happened when he made people mad. He looked up and nodded solemnly, “I understand, Mummy.”

He nodded again and closed his eyes as he leaned into her, “Okay… I won’t,” He promised, biting his lip for a moment. He wouldn’t talk about it anymore, if nothing else he could at least do that for his Mother.

[littlestarkpup]

snowdrenched:

“Well, I don’t have bananas, but we can find some, buy them, yes? Buy them and you can have them with toast tomorrow? And other things. I promise that I shall have more than just the bread, more than things to toast…I only, it is only that I did not know, did not think, anyone would be here with me. That I would find you. This food, it is enough for one alone, when you do not care, do not bother what you eat, but now you are here, and we must find more things, buy different things, interesting things, yes?” She said, giving him a smile, a smile which she hoped was encouraging. Encouraging and welcoming, making him feel at home, even though he was far from his home, she thought, and alone. 

“Crumbs in bed…they feel very funny. Very uncomfortable, make it difficult to sleep,” She could feel him playing with her hair, pulling on the strands, and she thought perhaps he was already falling asleep, dozing in her arms before she could give him toast, but he must eat, must not got to bed on an empty stomach, must have something.

“There, be careful. Do not fall off, yes?” She said as she sat him on top of the washing machine, it was one, cleaning some thing, but only rattled a little, did not move too much. She began to make the toast. “What else do you like? Like to eat? And to drink? Maybe we could get them, Buy them tomorrow”

Rickon smiled and nodded at Genie, he could not help but feel excited at the thought of going to the shops with her to buy things, “I would like that very much… And we can both have them, yes? You will have some too, won’t you, Genie?” It sounded to Rickon that Genie did not keep very much food in her house because she was all by herself and perhaps she was too sad to remember to eat sometimes. He smiled at her and put his hand on her cheek for a moment, “It’s okay, Genie… You don’t have to worry that you don’t have bananas or anything else… You’ve already given me more than I’ve had in a long time.”

He nodded against her shoulder, though he did not lift his head up, “They feel funny…” He agreed, “And they stick to you and they get in your hair.” It wasn’t a very nice feeling at all really.

When she sat him on the washing machine, he nodded, a little sleepily, but he kept his eyes opened and resolved not to fall off. That might make Genie worried. And it might hurt too. He watched her silently for a moment as she began to make the toast, “Erm… I don’t really remember…” It had been a long time since he had been at home and anything he had to eat now was usually old bread and whatever else Osha had been able to find, “I… I remember making pancakes with my Mummy once… And she always gave me milk because she said it makes you grow big and strong… But I like orange juice too… And apple juice.”

[littlestarkpup]

fractuscantus:

“well it just happens that i’m not a teacher but rather i work at the front desk. there is a very big difference. who knows, your friends might like it to see if i could give them excused slips.” edmure shrugged as his hands slid into his pockets. he understood that it wasn’t cool to be seen with his uncle but edmure also knew what would happen if he didn’t heed to his sister’s rules. she could be quite scary when she’s angry. edmure had seen it many of times considering that it was she who raised him for the most part. “when it came to making sure that she came home after there’s been a murder, she couldn’t talk me into meeting her somewhere else. besides, she’s already in the car waiting for you. and no, she’s not getting a pony for her birthday, where did you that idea?”

“yeah, before everyone came here.” edmure replied with a soft nod, his hand running over his beard. it was a time that definitely had unsettled a lot of people, caused many to grow up, and caused plently to move. even edmure had been in all three of the categories during that time. but when rickon stopped to grin at him, edmure waggled his eyebrows. “ice cream, dessert, that kind of treat. what do you want?”

Rickon grinned and shook his head at his uncle, “There’s no difference at all… You work there and therefore you’re practically one of them.” He shrugged his shoulders and gave him a look of pity, “It’s not your fault… and you’re still a really cool uncle,” He looked at him pointedly then, “When you’re not in school.” Although he thought it could have been worse… Just imagine if it had been his Mum or Dad who worked at the school. He wouldn’t have stood a chance.

He turned to look at the car to see his cousin sitting with a rather impatient look on her face before he looked up at his uncle curiously, “How do you know it was a murder? Couldn’t it just have been an accident?” He couldn’t imagine anyone in their little town killing someone. It was like something that happened in the movies and not real life. He wrinkled his nose and shook his head, “I heard her telling some girls in the canteen at lunch time. Said she was going to ask you for one and you wouldn’t say no to her.” Rickon grinned at him then, because it was a well-known fact that his uncle hardly ever denied Harper anything.

“I don’t remember much about that and no one ever really talks about it,” He shrugged his shoulders. He knew it was bad, and he remembered moving from a really big house, but that was about it. Most of everything else he remembered was from here and that was all pretty good.

“Ice cream,” He answered with a grin, “Always ice cream.”

[littlestarkpup]

fractuscantus:

“rickon, there are somethings you’ll learn to accept and one of them is when your sister asks you to make sure her youngest two get home safely, you’ll do it.” edmure wrapped his arm around rickon’s shoulder. gods, how tall was he now? he certainly had grown since he saw him last week. he definitely was a bean stock. “you know why your mum asked and you know that this isn’t something i’m going to let slide. you’re too young to remember before.” edmure wasn’t going to let his nephew slip through his fingers and let something happen on his watch, he was going to make sure that his nephew was safe and sound. “and this isn’t a wee thing. this is a big thing. if you don’t run away from me for a whole week, i’ll get a treat – how about that?”

“My sisters don’t have children,” Rickon grinned and stuck his tongue out at his Uncle before sighing dramatically, “You could at least wait around the corner or wait until there’s no one around,” He moaned, “I mean… I love you and all, Uncle Ed, but you have to understand how it looks when people see I have to go home with a teacher.” He looked sideways at him for a minute, “I bet if Harper asked you’d let her talk you into meeting her somewhere else.” Which reminded him of something he’d heard at lunch, “Is she really getting a pony for her birthday?” If it was true he was pretty sure his cousin could talk his Uncle into anything.

He tilted his head to the side a little, “Remember before what… You mean when everyone had to move and all that?” He’d heard a man had been killed and while it was unusual for the town, surely the police were going to be able to find out what happened. Murders didn’t happen here. People didn’t kill other people. It was just an accident, somehow. It was sad, yes, but surely just an accident.

He stopped and looked at his Uncle with a grin, “What kind of treat?”

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

Catelyn waited with due patience until the familiar auburn topped head appeared over the edge of the bannister. He was beginning to look more like her brother each passing day, as limbs stretched and pulled, and his face moved, leaving less of the boy and more of the man in his features. Her last baby was not going to be a baby for very much longer, she realised sadly…though the thought did not deter her from the matter at hand. 

“Making dinner is the last thing on my mind right now, considering what I have found in the garden,” Since the discovery that each of their children had the ability to slip into the skins of animals, she and Ned had become used to certain side-effects around the house; muddy paw prints, scratched doors, the remnants of a meal eaten by a beast, but there was a general rule about the animals in question. 

“You cannot keep that wolf here, Rickon, you know that. Especially not in the garden where anyone might see it” 

Ugh oh, Rickon thought as he immediately recognized that he was in trouble for something and scrambled to remember what he might have done or not done to anger his Mother since this morning. He hadn’t done anything bad in school… There had been an incident two days ago with a Bunsen burner but his teacher had assured him it hadn’t been his fault and commended his enthusiasm for ‘trying to push the boundaries of science in his own way’, even if the man had seemed a little frazzled at the time.

He looked past her to the door, “Huh?” He hadn’t noticed anything unusual in the garden when he’d been tying his old friend to the fence. Oh. There in lay the problem, it seemed.

“But Mum…” He moved the rest of the way down the stairs and took her arm, gently pulling her to look out the window at the wild wolf he had named Shaggydog the first time he’d met him when they first moved to the town. He tapped the window and grinned as the wolf looked at him and began wagging his tail, “I was with him last night when he was hunting and he was going to eat a fox,” Which would have been fine had Rickon not recognized the animal, “And… It was a… A friend of mine…” He looked to his Mother with a pleading look on his face, “I couldn’t let him eat my friend, could I? That’s all kinds of wrong, Mum!” He tapped the window again, “I was hoping he could have some dinner… Seeing as it’s my fault he didn’t eat last night?” He looked back to her, “He doesn’t have to come inside if you don’t want?”

[littlestarkpup]

fractuscantus:

{ @littlestarkpup

          “did you think you were going to be able to slide past me without realizing?” edmure was causal about the fact, watching rickon for a moment before he nodded towards the car. when his sister asked him to bring home bran and rickon until things were deemed safe, he wasn’t going to skirt around his uncle duties. no, he would take them seriously. “c’mon, i won’t tell your mum you tried to sneak off if you get in the car.”

Rickon groaned and stopped in his tracks as he turned back to look at his uncle, “I wasn’t trying to sneak off…” He glanced around the grounds where there were still a few people milling about, “But come on… Didn’t we have a deal where you don’t do all these wee things Mum asks you to do when there’s people around?” That’s all he needed was the added reputation of a Mummy’s boy who had his uncle spying on him all day every day. Even if he WAS a Mummy’s boy and actually enjoyed spending time with his uncle… Who was pretty okay and actually pretty cool… Most of the time.

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

@littlestarkpup

Catelyn sighed at the sight which greeted her in the garden, though, in truth, she was never quite sure what constituted their little garden, and what was, in fact, the wild lands beyond it, for even six years on, they had still not replaced the old fence with a new one, once the old had crumbled to non-existant pieces.

Stepping back inside the kitchen, she stomped off the snow from her shoes a little more loudly than intended, before making her way to the bottom of the stairs.

“Rickon! Could you come down here for a moment, please?”

Rickon had become so absorbed in writing up the results from his project in school that he hadn’t even noticed the time and he certainly hadn’t noticed when his Mother had arrived home until he heard her call up to him from downstairs. He guiltily shoved the empty crisp packet under the bed beside where he had been lying on the floor and jumped to his feet, leaving his books and papers scattered hap hazard all over the carpet. He peered over the banister to see his Mother standing at the bottom of the stairs before descending them two at a time, stopping just short of the bottom, “You’re home early… Are you making dinner early? I’m starving.”

[littlestarkpup]

snowdrenched:

“I’m glad the dragons are gone,” Gwyn announced, in her own native tongue, swinging her legs, before she repeated it in stilted common tongue, pronouncing dragons as dreegons, but it was close enough, close enough to be understood, even if a little wrong. 

“I think it is better without the dragons, yes,” Genie agreed; she had found them scary, the sounds, the fire, even if the large ones stayed away, stayed away from the city, only the little ones in the crowded areas, it still made her nervous, and she was glad they had been taken away. But everything else…people….people that were loved, loved and now were missed…

“I do not know if things will come back, if people will come back, Rickon,” She answered honestly, “I do not think they have disappeared, only gone somewhere else, and something that is elsewhere can return, I think….” I hope.

Rickon frowned a little, tilting his head to the side as he tried to understand what Gwyn was saying. She talked very fast sometimes… And he was sure when she was speaking in a language he could understand that she left little pieces out… Pieces that she changed her mind about telling him. It made him want to learn the language… So that he could share secrets with her and Genie. He grinned and nodded eventually, “Me too…” He agreed with Gwyn and Genie, “I think my sister misses them…” But Rickon did not. He didn’t like the loud noises they could make.

He looked at Gwyn for a moment before looking back to Genie, “I hope they do come back,” He said quietly, “I hope they all come back soon,” He set his little pen down and reached over to clumsily pat Genie’s shoulder, trying to make her feel better, “If they’ve gone somewhere else… Maybe Bran and Micah are together and they can help each other find their way home.” After all… Bran was a wolf and Micah was an adult and he thought that might make them a very good team.

[littlestarkpup]

colourofaubergine:

Micheleine raised her eyebrows and smirked a little, surprised and a bit amused by his apparent scolding, telling her not to be quick with her opinions. Not many often corrected her, dared to suggest her opinion was anything other than the right one, the one to agree with…and she wasn’t deaf to his little implication there, the subtle flirtation. She said nothing in reply, merely shrugged her shoulders a little, carelessly but elegantly, smiling a little, as if nothing mattered, as if the argument, the non-argument, was already gone, never been, disagreement forgotten. 

“Well, it is not takeaway, I will say that,” Micha agreed, taking the wine as she also took silent pleasure in his approval of her appearance, feeling the smug satisfaction of knowing she had dressed well, that she could still charm with looks as easily as she had in her youth. 

“Well, it was a little difficult, getting ready, making myself presentable, when I have so few of my things,” She wondered if the remainder of her items were still in her home or if her husband had simply thrown them out along with her, when that little Reborn announcement had been made. “You look quite…well yourself, very…together” She added, flashing him an elegant smile, before taking another sip of her drink. 

Tom saw the smile. He saw the smirk and the shrugging of the shoulders and he saw in her eyes what it was. He smiled a little himself, finding himself both pleased and a little amused that he had seemed to surprise her. He knew not many people challenged her, even gently as he had done, but he also thought there was a part of her that liked it… And he couldn’t help but think there was a part of her that needed it… Just as he did; as most people did on occasion.

“No,” He agreed with a smile, “It’s not takeaway…” He raised his glass before taking a sip, “But I have to tell you… I cheated a little with the dessert, I’m afraid I’m not the best pastry chef.” And so he’d bought the little pastry shells from a local bakery… Although he had managed to successfully fill them and dress them himself.

He glanced at her outfit once more and thought that there were probably no situations in which Micheleine did not look presentable. He thought she could most likely make an old sack look glamorous, “Together,” He repeated with a grin, “Well, thank you…” He watched her take another sip, thinking on her earlier words, “It must be difficult,” He acknowledged, “If there’s anything you need, you know… Well, I’d be more than happy to help you out… If you still have a key? I could wait until your husband leaves?” New clothes and things could be bought… But he thought for sure there must be other little tokens of her life that she might wish to hold on to.

[littlestarkpup]

Rickon frowned a little as he listened, nodding his head so that his hair fell a little over his eyes, “So… Theon was always bad? Even when we thought he was our friend?” That made him a little sad… And it made him even more sad for Robb who had been sure that Theon was his best friend and just like his brother. He wrinkled his nose a little when she tapped it, giving her a tiny smile, “I want to be good… And I hope I am never bad.” It felt nice to know that Maggie thought he was good at any rate. He did not think she would lie to him.

He grinned and nodded, “Mama has very pretty hair and eyes… Mine are not as pretty as hers… No one’s is…” He paused and glanced up at her again sheepishly, “But your hair is very pretty too… And your eyes…” He hastened to reassure her in case she thought he did not think she was pretty. Sansa said girls liked to hear that they were pretty.

“Oh…” He frowned a little, not quite understanding, “But if he thought she was beautiful and he loved her then why did he take her away… And why did it make everyone want to fight?” He thought love was supposed to be a good thing and couldn’t quite understand why it would cause a war. He did not know what folly meant… Perhaps that was what had made people angry.

He smiled and hugged her back, his hands a little clumsy as he tried to pat her back, “I am glad you are not sad anymore,” He looked up at her nodding his head, “I think it sounds very profound, Maggie…” He bit his lip for a moment, “What does profound mean?”

“Good people do not need to be shown how to be good,” Maggie told him, “They just are. Just as a bad person does not need a bad example to be a bad person either…..if you want to be good, then you shall be. Simple as that” Maggie tapped him on the nose, “I do not think you have to worry about being bad” From beside them, Shaggydog growled low in his sleep, as if always prepared for attack, and she wondered if the wolf might be a little bit bad…or perhaps only aggressive. It seemed to respond to Rickon’s emotions; the more frightened and defiant the boy became, the more aggressive the wolf became. 

“Tullys have always had stunning looks,” Maggie agreed, “Gorgeous hair, gorgeous eyes…..it’s easy to be envious of them…you have your Mother’s hair and her eyes also,” Bright blue eyes, searching and wide, and his auburn hair was thick and full and falling in gentle waves. Wasted upon a boy, in truth, but no doubt it would make him handsome and princely when he was grown. 

“Yes, Prince Rhaegar….he was the one who named your Aunt the Queen of Love and Beauty,” Even though his wife had been present…Maggie had winced openly at that and her Mother had scolded her for it later. A lady should not bare her thoughts and emotions for all to see so clearly. Maggie had never been very good at that particular instruction. “War for love and folly……” So much could have been spared if people had only had more sens….and if King Aerys had been a little less mad. 

“I was very sad…..but life is for the living, and dwelling would not bring them back, Rickon….but living my life could honour them,” She gave him a tight squeeze, hugging him close, “I think that sounded quite profound don’t you agree?”

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

“I know that she is,” Catelyn agreed; a curious friendship, to be certain. Genevieve was in her mid-fifties with a grandchild of her own, and yet Rickon attached himself to her as if she were a child his own age. It was true she had a youthful enthusiasm, for Catelyn had seen it in the way the woman worked about her shop, and the way she spoke with Ned….perhaps that had been enough for Rickon to think her a like mind. 

“She has far less cause for risk than we do right now, Rickon,” She continued, “The police do not accuse her nor the people suspect her…and your Father will have warned her against wandering the Wolfswood and other forests. You need not worry” Genevieve was not a five-year-old child even if Rickon might appear to think her so. 

Rickon nodded, looking at his Mother with a worried frown on his face, “But... But do you not like that she is my friend, Mama?” His words were barely more than a whisper, because he did not want to upset his Mother... But he did not want to stop being Genie’s friend either and though he did not cry, he felt a heavy lump in his throat at even the thought of it.

He nodded again and lowered his eyes, “But people are not nice, Mama... And I would hate very much for Genie to get hurt because she is our friend,” He looked up at her again, “Her family is all gone and she is all alone... I think her husband went to heaven and her little boys left her by herself and went far away.”

[littlestarkpup]

starkmatriarch:

“All of that is a very pleasant rephrasing of telling me that you are a grown man and to mind my own business,” Kate surmised with a sigh, knowing he was right. He might have been her youngest son in the past, but here he was a man with thrice as many years as herself and more her grandfather than her child…she couldn’t tell him how to live his life. 

“Leo was always a sweetheart, who did good things, and helped people,” She argued, although she hadn’t herd from him in a long time now and he had faded away from all his old philanthropic and charitable hobbies, “Micha has done nothing but snub and degrade and make snide comments….she hasn’t proven herself to very nice” Kate forced herself to add “yet” at the end as a kind of compromise.

Tom shook his head, “That’s not it at all... I would never tell you to mind your own business,” And he wouldn’t. The truth was she had valid concerns about the woman and she had known Micha in her previous life (or at least known of her) where he had not.

He nodded, knowing there was truth in what she was saying, “You know him so I won’t argue with you on that... But all I remember is that he was the man who ordered your death and Robb’s and I don’t know if I can ever forgive anyone of that.” He sighed a little and rubbed the back of his neck, it was also true that Micha did not tend to do herself any favours... But there had to be more to her than the face she was so determined to show to the public. He’d seen but a glimpse of it. A flicker of vulnerability in her brilliant blue eyes.

“I think... I think she’s too scared to allow herself to be nice... To allow herself to show any weakness,” He looked at her seriously for a moment, “But if you genuinely... If you want me to keep my relationship with Micha as strictly platonic...” He paused for a moment, “I... Is that what you want?”