Northern Sun | Robb Stark

Chapter 18

Eidalya didn't want anyone to worry.

She had Jon begin working with Sansa to devise a detailed plan for the next several months, a long list that could keep Robb occupied and nourishing his people physically while he prepared them for whatever battle might come first.

Brienne and the Greatjon were instructed to evaluate the warriors present near Winterfell to begin training camps that would teach all the teenagers that hadn't fought in the war. Every last able-bodied person would need to be ready for whatever would arrive on each front.

Arya was chosen as one of the leaders. It came as a shock to everyone, most of all to Lady Catelyn and Sansa. Arya spoke of how she fled King's Landing as her 'dancing' master Syrio Forel gave his life to protect her, how she encountered the Brotherhood Without Banners, how she traveled with the Hound trying to find her family, and how she ended up in Braavos where she became a Faceless Man.

Robb and Jon weren't judgmental, seeing it as important that they had another fighter and wonderful that their sister had been able to learn to wield weapons the way she'd always wanted to. Rickon, like Myrcella and Tommen, was simply fascinated with what she was now capable of. Sansa would need a moment to warm up to it.

And Bran, well, he wasn't really Bran anymore. Still, he would prove instrumental in the next several months and perhaps the rest of their lives. In his search for the Three-Eyed Raven, he'd become the Three-Eyed Raven, able to see the events of the past and what was currently happening through the eyes of the birds. His ability to warg had improved, allowing him control of other people and direwolves, though despite his loss of the 'humanity' that his boy self had had, he felt it was immoral and kept it to a minimum.

(Still, Jon dared to wonder aloud to Eidalya if it would be possible for Bran to warg into one of Queen Daenerys's dragons. It might be a last resort.)

"The Night King nears the Wall," said Bran quietly as Eidalya and the Starks stood around a map of Westeros. "It won't be long before he arrives. We must forge an alliance with Daenerys Stormborn before she takes the throne."

"I doubt she will come and assist us with the Great War without assurances," said Eidalya. "She will not want to leave her seat at Dragonstone unguarded nor will she want the throne to remain in Stannis's hands for a moment too long. I must speak with them both in person before this time comes."

"Eidalya," said Robb, tilting his head and insisting she didn't go.

"Jon's learned more than enough to be your Hand," she replied. "Sansa is taking my place as second advisor– you'll be fine. With Arya and Bran back, with Rickon excelling in his lessons, with the Northern lords who are still fervently loyal to you, you have everything you need to prepare. Take the time to devise a plan to face the Night King. Find weapons, see about that dragonglass Jon told us about. Contact Samwell Tarly, persuade the Maesters at Oldtown to use their resources. Share resources with the Riverlands and the Vale to prepare their men to join ours. Have Myrcella and Maester Luwin help you instruct Tommen in writing a letter to Janei to inform her of this threat, and I can almost promise that she will join us, too. Call Theon back from the Iron Islands to keep Yara in-the-know. There is much to be done here that you no longer need me for. Stannis and Daenerys won't answer to any demands in letters."

"It's a risk, Princess," said Jon, agreeing with Robb. "Stannis may not harm you but if you go and see the Dragon Queen, you may not return."

She gave them both a significant look. "It's a risk I have to take. My Uncle Tyrion is with her. He won't let her hurt me and no one else knows him well enough to make progress in any negotiation. How do you think Daenerys will respond to another? Especially a man? She is a Queen, she has been through a great deal and has triumphed against many odds. She will likely not appreciate a man coming to tell her what she must do. I think this is a connection that must be made, woman to woman. On top of that, I am Robert Baratheon's daughter and the woman known to have put Stannis on that throne. She will not hear anyone else but she will hear me."