Jon Snow & Sansa Stark - Game of Thrones Fanfiction

Little Red Riding Hood

Her lungs were struggling to breath in enough air to keep her going. Every few steps she almost tripped over her own feet. All her muscles were aching and she felt sharp stitches in her side, but she kept on running. The faster she ran, the further she would get before Ramsay would discover that she was gone. And the further away she was when he would discover that his wife was missing, the bigger the chance that she was gonna survive this.

She had no idea where she was going exactly. This was not the execution of some masterplan that had been thought out carefully and had taken months to prepare. She was simply grabbing a once in a lifetime chance.

"I have an important meeting to attend, my lady. I will be gone for a few hours, but I assume you will have no trouble entertaining yourself for a little while, will you?" He had really thought he had broken her spirit, her will to flee, her hatred for him. He had really thought he could leave her alone, without guards watching her every step, without his dogs sitting in front of her door with orders to harm her when needed.

And she had gathered a small basket, some food and water and some clothes and had started running. Because no matter how this story would end, there was no way it could get any worse than her life with Ramsay had been.

A shiver rolled down her spine when she heard the barking of dogs coming from the woods behind her. She had no idea how much time had passed since she had left, but she didn't doubt whose dogs were chasing her. Quickly she used her scarf to tie her basket on her back and then she climbed in the nearest tree.

She had barely reached a branch out of reach when she saw the dogs rushing towards her hiding place. Saliva dripped from their beaks and their sharp teeth glimmered in the evening sun. They pressed their paws against the trunk and barked louder and louder.

Sansa closed her eyes and she tried to hide herself in between the leaves. But the dogs weren't stupid. They knew she was here. They recognised her smell. They probably also sensed her fear and the food tied to her back. It was only a matter of time before Ramsay Bolton would be here too. She didn't dare to think about what he would do.

Would he simply drag her back to his castle? Would he act like nothing had happened? Would he play the caring and loving husband in front of everyone else, while coming up with new ways to assault her once there was no-one there anymore to see that he was actually a sadistic monster? Or would he order his dogs to eat her alive, to rip the flesh from her bones and to leave her remains to rot away?

"Dear Gods, both the old and the new, if you exist and even care the least bit about me, please..." Sansa whispered. "Please, find a way to save me from whatever faith Ramsay Bolton has in mind for me."

A loud and deafening howl of a wolf echoed through the forest and quickly Sansa opened her eyes again. A few trees away from the one she was hiding in appeared a large shadow. The white wolf was at least three times as big as the dogs and his fiery red eyes stared at the little puppies while he kept on howling.

One by one the dogs went silent and motionless. Some of them whined barely hearable while they laid flat on the muddy ground, others ran away before the white wolf could come any nearer. The ones who had decided to run were the lucky ones. The sharp white teeth of the wolf snapped the thin necks of the remaining dogs as if they were nothing but little twigs.

Within less than a few seconds there was nothing but absolute silence and yet Sansa didn't dare to move. What if the wolf had only saved her because he wanted her for himself? What if he had simply chased away the dogs because he himself was hungry? What if the danger was far from gone now? What if it had only gotten worse? Much worse?

Once more Sansa closed her eyes and once more she prayed. "Dear Gods, both the old and the new. Please, help me get out of this..."

"My lady?" Sansa's eyes flashed open again and right under the tree in which she was hiding now stood a handsome young man with dark black curls tied into a bun on the back of his head. He was wearing nothing but a pair of ripped pants and his naked skin was covered in sweat and gleaming. His dark eyes were looking up at her and slowly he stretched out his hand. "Do you want a hand to come down?"

Sansa stopped breathing. She had her eyes wide open and yet she couldn't make sense of what had happened. "Where's the white wolf?" She whispered. Her throat was dry and her entire body started trembling. "Did you kill it? Did it run away?" She swallowed. "I swear, there was a white wolf here. He chased the dogs away and..."

A small smile appeared on the stranger's face. He had a deep frown on his forehead and yet there was something about him that made her feel safe and at ease. "The big bad wolf is gone for now." He stretched out his hand even further, but she was still out of reach. "I promise he won't hurt you. I won't let him."

"Who are you?" Sansa still didn't move. Instead she wrapped her arms around her trembling body to make sure she wouldn't lose her balance and fall down. "How do I know I can trust you?"

The stranger dropped his arm and the smile on his face faltered. "I can't blame you for not trusting me, lady Sansa." He paused and it took her a few moments to realise he had used her name. "I've been trying to find a way to get you out of his claws ever since I saw you at the ball, three months ago."

Sansa blinked a few times. She could barely remember the ball, let alone the people who had attended. But she had never gotten the impression before that anyone knew that she longed to be saved and rescued. "How did you know I..."

"Your smile might have fooled most people, but not me." The stranger let out a deep sigh. "You looked pretty, but it was as if I was looking at a puppet." He clenched his jaws. "And I knew right away who was pulling the strings." He locked his glance with hers. "I'm glad you got away from him."

"Almost." Sansa shook her head. "I almost got away from him. If that wolf hadn't appeared..." She shivered once more. "It seems that in the end he was the one to find a way to save me."

"You saved yourself, princess." The stranger smiled at her again. "Because you had courage and faith. You ran away, very well knowing what the risks were. You shouldn't give me all the credits. You should give most of them to yourself."

"Me?" Sansa licked her dry lips and then slowly her mind started to make sense of what had happened. And even though she should be terrified. And even though she should only distrust him more, she couldn't help but smiling back at him. "I still want to thank you." She climbed down again until she was within reach of his strong arms to help her to the ground.

"Jon, Jon Snow." He bowed and bent his head. "And the pleasure is all mine, princess." He looked up again and now she saw the hint of red in his eyes, hidden behind their natural darkness. "Where will you go now?"

Sansa shook her head. "Where we will go now?" She reached for his hand and pulled him closer towards her. "I might have found the courage and faith to run away, but I could use someone like you looking out for me anyway. You never know if and when the dogs might come back."

"That would be my honour, princess." Jon bowed once more. "Where will we go?"

"Anywhere. Everywhere. Somewhere safe."