Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
[Try to defuse the situation] I am pretty sure Orys is going to defuse the situation, so let's at least try to attempt to stay on Dresfel's good side and do as he asks.
[Try to defuse the situation]
Argella might not like this, but I want Drent to honor Ser Emphryus' wish of protecting the princess.
I've got a slight hunch that Orys' (or somebody else) will try to dissolve the problem.
Can't hope that someone else will come in and rescue you, besides you can always try negotiating with them as well, just you want to be prepared for anything. It would take a lot to de-escalate such a tinderbox without a intimidating presence.
Draw your sword] Man... FUCK MULLENDORE!!! This shit will not stand. This doesn't happen often when I read a story but when he hit Argella I was legitimately pissed off. Besides that Drent negotiating for Argella will make her look weak and that is simply not an option. We do that and no one in Raylansfair will take her seriously.
Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
Oh I understand! What I meant to say is that Ser Emphryus would want Drent to not put her at risk. This is just what I believe he meant but it could be looked at differently. I apologize if there's any sort of confusion.
Draw your sword] Man... FUCK MULLENDORE!!! This shit will not stand. This doesn't happen often when I read a story but when he hit Argella I… more was legitimately pissed off. Besides that Drent negotiating for Argella will make her look weak and that is simply not an option. We do that and no one in Raylansfair will take her seriously.
Every thing is alright I just wanted to point out that both things can be seen as proctection or endangerment. For me this seems like one of those lose lose questions that in both instances will end in an relativly bad outcome. And how I see it it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to a highly dangerous situation like this.
Oh I understand! What I meant to say is that Ser Emphryus would want Drent to not put her at risk. This is just what I believe he meant but it could be looked at differently. I apologize if there's any sort of confusion.
Great long part! Definitely worth the wait, don't worry Another great part for Argella as always.
[Try to defuse the situation]
Fuck Mullendore, I hate him. However I feel like starting a fight would be foolish, especially in this situation. They are clearly outnumbered and it seems like a lose-lose scenario for them. I don't know if trying to defuse the situation will do any help, but let's at least attempt to avoid fighting and see Drent become the better man.
Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
When on your profile feed, where it says "Load more" right click. Go to inspect (or inspect element) and in the box that is already highlighted, double click on the date. Change the date to whatever you want, and hit enter. Then, click on "Load more" and it should take you to the notifications to whatever date you entered. You can keep clicking load more and it will basically show all of the notifications from before the date you typed in the box It's really cool if you want to go to old notifications you received years ago!
I am indeed impressed. I know double posts, but have never seen a sextuple post.
On the downside, I'm having a stuck notification now. Oh god, this is going to bother me forever
Whoa, this is a seriously cool trick. Due to FoT, I'm having at the very least 15000 notifications, for every post and edited post here and for every reply in one of the stories I follow, as well as for every PM, so if I want to find an older message or something like that, it was downright impossible without having the link saved. Now... well, now I can finally read some of my older notifications as well again, so thank you very much for that
I'm afraid it didn't work for my problem with the stuck notification though. The problem was one of the more recent notifications, which I got somewhere in the last 24 hours and for some reason it wasn't properly marked as read, so checking older notifications wouldn't have really helped there. However, just after trying your advice, I had an idea of my own and just clicked on "View this Comment" for the last 20 notifications or so. One of them was the problem and the moment I clicked on View this Comment, it was finally marked as read, meaning I got a clean feed again now. Ah, I wasn't aware how annoying this constant unread notification was, though thankfully it's gone now XD
Hey, I think I know how to get rid of that.
When on your profile feed, where it says "Load more" right click. Go to inspect (or inspect e… morelement) and in the box that is already highlighted, double click on the date. Change the date to whatever you want, and hit enter. Then, click on "Load more" and it should take you to the notifications to whatever date you entered. You can keep clicking load more and it will basically show all of the notifications from before the date you typed in the box It's really cool if you want to go to old notifications you received years ago!
I also can't stop laughing at that sextuple post.
No problem indeed it is really cool and I like to use it when I'm bored or just want to see how it was like when I first started being active.
And ah, pesky forum. I just realized that I have never bothered to click "View this Comment" as I usually just click on the thread name. Sometimes it doesn't take you to the comment, causing me to have to scroll down to find the comment. So I'll definitely start going that more I would assume that having a stuck unread notification would be extremely annoying, so thank God you got rid of it
Whoa, this is a seriously cool trick. Due to FoT, I'm having at the very least 15000 notifications, for every post and edited post here and … morefor every reply in one of the stories I follow, as well as for every PM, so if I want to find an older message or something like that, it was downright impossible without having the link saved. Now... well, now I can finally read some of my older notifications as well again, so thank you very much for that
I'm afraid it didn't work for my problem with the stuck notification though. The problem was one of the more recent notifications, which I got somewhere in the last 24 hours and for some reason it wasn't properly marked as read, so checking older notifications wouldn't have really helped there. However, just after trying your advice, I had an idea of my own and just clicked on "View this Comment" for the last 20 notifications or so. One of them was the problem and the moment I clicked on View this C… [view original content]
Her gaze fell upon Tariel. “Get over here”, she barked and the other woman followed the order. “My hair. Untie it” As Tariel got to work on … morethe braid, Drent raised an eyebrow. “Why do you care so much what this man thinks of your looks?”, he asked.
Argella clenchd her fists, struggling for words, so Tariel put on a sly grin. “Well, he is rather handsome”, she said. Now, Argella's eyes widened. “No!”, she growled. “I mean, yes, but that is not what this is about” Her glare fell onto Torrence. “Wipe that smirk off your face, Torrence!”
In response, Torrence actually started to chuckle. “I'm not smirking, my princess”, he said, still mildly giggling, while she rolled her eyes. “To answer your question, Drent”, she said. “This is one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I never thought I actually had to... meet this man” She gasped, as Tariel freed her hair from the strict braid, allowing it to flow down to her shoulders. “Now that … [view original content]
Well... that is a very interesting one. I'm going to tell you a secret here: Originally, I have planned to show the resolution to this confrontation already, but this whole scene is at least going to hold the potential for another full part, something I only realized while writing and the main reason for me separating these events into two parts. And my original plans for this scene have not included Drent trying to calm things down, so this is the choice that fits better with this original plan. At the same time, it is not the choice I expected you to make. I thought a majority would choose the diplomatic option, but well, this works with my plans, so I certainly don't disapprove.
The next part is hopefully going to be out today. I was unsure if I should close the voting today or tomorrow, but I'm making good progress right now and it might just work, especially given how active this voting has been. So I just gotta hurry The next part is going to mark the beginning of John's storyline, but it is likely that I will manage to include a second part as well and at this point, I have planned it to be either Maya or maybe Samantha or Ellena. Ah, there are many choices. Jaron needs his second part as well, but I think this can wait for the next week, same goes for Arthur. With some of the storylines having only one or two parts in this chapter, it is a bit harder to determine when the right time has come for some of the shorter storylines to fit with the flow of the larger ones, but this time, the next part is going to hold an interesting twist which I really don't want to keep for myself any longer. Hope you enjoy
Wow, did not expect to get her portait so quick! Thank you very much. She looks happy on this picture. The only things I would change on this is her eyes, which are more orange-yellow and paler skintone, the rest is perfect :-)
Alright, I'll once again jump in quickly before the next part As I promised to @Mathea, here is the portrait of our lovely healer... Mathea:
edit: Eye-color fixed
Ah, I tried to go for the orange eyes, but I suppose it should've been a bit lighter orange/closer to yellow - I suppose they are more like hazel now Actually, that's something that could be fixed pretty easily, so I might do it. Anyway, I'm glad you're otherwise happy with it
Wow, did not expect to get her portait so quick! Thank you very much. She looks happy on this picture. The only things I would change on this is her eyes, which are more orange-yellow and paler skintone, the rest is perfect :-)
Whoa, I must agree with Mathea, this has been a seriously quick delivery, though you still managd to draw her with an amazing amount of detail! I've been looking forward for this, but haven't expected her anytime soon, so this was really a nice surprise. As always, I am in awe. Thank you very much And well, she looks very much as imagined, save for maybe the slightly darker eye colour she has here. But I don't mind, this is an amazing drawing, you did outstanding work. I guess this is Mathea in one of the few moments she is more relaxed in, so nothing that has happened in a while. But who knows, maybe we'll get some more happy moments for her in Book 2 As for now, I am super happy about this portrait and it rightfully belongs to my ever-growing list of my favourite pieces of your work.
Alright, I'll once again jump in quickly before the next part As I promised to @Mathea, here is the portrait of our lovely healer... Mathea:
edit: Eye-color fixed
Whoa, I must agree with Mathea, this has been a seriously quick delivery, though you still managd to draw her with an amazing amount of deta… moreil! I've been looking forward for this, but haven't expected her anytime soon, so this was really a nice surprise. As always, I am in awe. Thank you very much And well, she looks very much as imagined, save for maybe the slightly darker eye colour she has here. But I don't mind, this is an amazing drawing, you did outstanding work. I guess this is Mathea in one of the few moments she is more relaxed in, so nothing that has happened in a while. But who knows, maybe we'll get some more happy moments for her in Book 2 As for now, I am super happy about this portrait and it rightfully belongs to my ever-growing list of my favourite pieces of your work.
Ah, I tried to go for the orange eyes, but I suppose it should've been a bit lighter orange/closer to yellow - I suppose they are more like … morehazel now Actually, that's something that could be fixed pretty easily, so I might do it. Anyway, I'm glad you're otherwise happy with it
In direct comparison... yeah, I do like it better. I mean, I like both versions, but with this additional detail, it only improved even further. Truly an amazing drawing and one of my favourites
She wasn't falling anymore. Neither was she in the water. Not drowning. Not falling. Save? Alive at the very least. It was dark, silent, but slowly, painfully so, her senses returned, as she woke up from the depths of unconsciousness.
The first thing she noticed was a noise, soft, steady and muffled beyond understanding. There was darkness around her, but not entirely so. She saw light, flickering, as if she was moving, though her vision was too blurred to make out any details. And she felt a thumping pain in her head, radiating through her entire body, which was already aching on its own.
Raenna's breaths came slowly, irregularly and put her through even more pain. She was lying on her back and though someone had wrapped a blanket around her, it was uncomfortable, though her back and legs were aching far too much to even think about moving them.
Slowly, the humming noise cleared a bit, as he hearing returned before her vision. It was a person, likely the shadow to her right. Through a blur, she saw long, dark hair and a soft, female voice. There were no words, but she recognized the melody. It was a lullaby and she had heard it before, hummed by the only one she ever truly called a friend.
With her vision still blurred, Raenna opened her mouth to speak. Instead of words, only a croaking hoarsy sound came out of it. “Ker...”, she gasped, before her dry throat caused any further word to drown in a heavy cough. With a gasp, the person turned around and by now, her vision had cleared enough to recognize Kersea.
No... the girl that was looking at her was too young to be Kersea. Youthful innocence shined through her big, grey eyes and there was surprise as well. “Raenna!”, Briar Catelins said, rushing to her side. Slowly, Raenna took her surroundings in. She was lying on a makeshift bed, nothing more than a thin blanket on hard wood. The ground was rocking slightly and she noticed that she was inside of a moving cart, covered with a linen tarpaulin. Through a gap, she saw sunlight, aching in her eyes and a light forest they were travelling through.
After recovering from her initial surprise, a wide smile formed on Briar's face. “You're awake!”, she said, as she jumped at her. Though of a small frame and light build, the sudden weight of Briar on her chest caused Raenna to gasp, though barely a sound came out of her dry throat.
Thoughts spun through her head. How did she come here? What was Briar doing here? Where was Kersea? She remembered the tower. Alysanne had been there... with murder in her eyes. Kersea had tried to save her... but Clayton... And she remembered the fall, how everything turned black, how there was only cold, dark water and silence.
A pained groan came out of her throat as Briar hugged her tightly and she finally noticed the sharp pain on the right side of her face. With a gasp, Briar let go of her. “Sorry!”, she said. “Sorry, I didn't want to...” Frowning with pain, Raenna opened her mouth to speak again. “Wa...”, she managed to utter and Briar understood.
Quickly, the girl moved out of her field of view, only to return with a leathery waterskin. Carefully, she moved it to Raenna's lips, causing her to drink eagerly. The first two gulps caused her to cough, spilling water all over the blanket that still covered her body, though as Briar moved the skin back to her lips, she continued to drink, as the terrifying thirst got quenched.
In relief, Raenna put her head back, managing to give Briar a slight smile, which got reciprocated eagerly. “I am so glad you're alive!”, the girl said. “I was worried. We both were! Can you speak?” Raenna gave her a weak nod, though this caused her to grimace again, as sharp pain flared up in her head again, coming from her right ear to be more precise. “What... happened?”, she uttered and her voice still sounded hoarsy, almost completely unlike her normal one.
Briar glanced outside of the cart. “I'll get Brandon”, she said. “He can explain” Looking around, she move a hand through the gap. “Brandon!”, she yelled. “Brandon, she is awake!” It only took a moment until Raenna heard a horse galloping closer and then, Brandon Snow stepped into the cart.
As he laid eyes onto Raenna, a soft smile formed on his face. “Are you staying awake this time?”, he asked and Raenna managed to raise an eyebrow. He chuckled, as he knelt down next to her and Briar. “This is not the first time you've been awake since we found you. So far, you were barely able to understand a word and you drifted off again after a few minutes”, he explained. “I suppose you can't remember any of that?”
Raenna shook her head and regretted it instantly. This time, she moved a hand onto the aching side of her head, only to find a thick bandage there. “Don't touch it”, Brandon adviced her. “Someone really roughed you up, even beyond that whole fall thing. Sliced your ear open. Part of the earlobe's missing, but I managed to save the rest”
“Mirror...”, Raenna managed to utter, as concern grew inside of her. What had happened to her? Her looks have never been something she put much value on. Arguably, they were even a problem in her line of work. But the thought of having suffered a disfiguring wound was present and quite severe.
Brandon reached to a small chest in the corner of the wagon. “You still look more dead than alive”, he warned her. “In fact, that's what I have feared when I pulled you out of the water, but well, give it a few weeks and you're going to be the fairest of them all again” As he was asked to, he handed her a mirror.
Raenna glanced at her reflection, breathing more quickly now. Lilac eyes stared at her out of a ghastly pale face and hair that looked more white than silver in the current dimmed light was in a disarray. Her right ear was heavily bandaged, freshly so and her left cheek was adorned by a nasty bruise, but other than that, she felt slight relief. It could have been worse. It could have been much, much worse.
“You pulled me out of the water?”, she asked and Brandon gave her a nod. Gently, he put a hand onto Briar's shoulder. “Sweetbriar”, he said softly. “Could you leave us for a moment? Me and Raenna have something to discuss. Speak to the carter for a while, will you?”
Briar looked unhappy with this. “But I want to stay with Raenna”, she protested and he shook his head. “We have to talk about adult things now”, he told her. “But you can speak to Raenna afterwards, I promise” This caused the girl to smile sweetly. “Oh... okay”, she said, as she looked at Raenna. It was hard to imagine Kersea ever having been that way, so light-hearted, so innocent, yet in her face, there was such a baffling similarity to her sister. “But don't you fall asleep again!”, she warned her playfully, before she moved through the cart, leaving through a gap in the front.
Just a moment later, Raenna heard her happy chatter, as she started a conversation with the carter. A relieved smile formed on Brandon's face, though it died down quickly, replaced by a calm and stern look in his grey eyes. Despite her pain and confusion, Raenna managed to give him a warm smile. “Thank you”, she said. “For looking after her”
“She is a good girl”, Brandon replied. “Which is why I want to spare her the horrible truth. I told her only what is necessary, but even then I am afraid she realized more than she was supposed to” He looked at Raenna, before he crouched closer. “There is strength in her innocence, which makes it worth protecting”
Raenna frowned, as she faced the top of the cart. “What happened to Kersea?”, she asked and Brandon sighed. “I don't know”, he claimed and she glared at him. “I'm not Briar”, she said sternly. “Whatever it is, I can handle it” Now, Brandon closed his eyes. “I can't be sure about it”, he admitted. “But she is most likely dead”
Clayton's sword through her friend's side... it was the last image Raenna could remember before the fall. It confirmed Brandon's suspicion and her fear. A bitter sigh came out of her throat, though her generally dried out condition made it hard to cry. The hint of tears welled up in her eyes. “I wanted to save her”, she said. “I should have never left her side”
“Listen, I can't be sure about it”, Brandon said again. “Davith is still in Raylansfair. I have asked of him to look out for her, but truth be told, her chances are slim. The entire tower is just... gone. Wildfire. I've heard the stories, but have never seen it in action before. This is a power mankind was not meant to have”
Raenna took a deep breath. She didn't remember the wildfire, but there was a faint memory, a deafening sound just before she had lost consciousness. Who could have survived this? At the same time, if she survived her fall, Kersea could have gotten away. She had to believe in it, the truth was hurting too much. First Terroma, then Kersea... the only people who had ever meant anything to her, gone.
“What have you told Briar?”, she wanted to know and Brandon looked at the gap the young girl had vanished through. “I told her Kersea will catch up with us in a while. Maybe it'll keep her satisfied until she is able to understand the truth”, he revealed. “Lying to a child... not something I am proud of, but in this moment, I couldn't tell her. Maybe you can, when you're better again”
Raenna gave him a nod, feeling a hint of her former strength returning. “You have saved me then?”, she asked and he smiled briefly. “Just like you did with mine”, he said. “Without you, I would have died below the Hightower. It was a matter of honour for me to return the favour. So when we saw the explosion, I knew I had to hurry. When we got to the ruins of the tower, I saw you washed ashore. You were still breathing but... I was not sure if I'd manage to save you”
“How long have I been out?”, she asked then and he looked around. “About two weeks”, he revealed. “You've been conscious before, always for a couple of minutes, but never truly able to hold a conversation or anything like that. It's good that you're back with the living now”
Raenna groaned, as she stretched her aching body. “I don't feel very alive”, she answered. “But thank you... for saving me. For taking care of me in the past days. I... owe you more than you ever owed me” Brandon smirked, which was followed by a nod. “And luckily, I know exactly the way for you to repay me”, he answered ominously.
To this, she raised an eyebrow, as she finally realized one thing, so glaringly obvious that she hasn't even thought about asking it before. She was no longer in Raylansfair, but on a moving cart. “Where are we?”, she demanded to know, now with a sharp tone.
“The Riverlands”, Brandon answered. “We have crossed the Blackwater a few days ago and are currently halfway between Stony Sept and Acorn Hall” To this, Raenna raised an eyebrow. “The Riverlands...”, she mumbled. “Why have you taken us there?”
Brandon waited a moment before he answered. “Because we're going home”, he revealed and glanced at the direction Briar had gone to. In the distance, the girl was still heard, laughing gently, as a soft, male voice humoured her. “My home and hers” To this, Raenna raised an eyebrow. “Why are you taking me to the North?”, she asked.
“A lot has changed in Raylansfair”, Brandon admitted. “I would have liked to keep you there until you have recovered, maybe even learning about Kersea's whereabouts in the meantime. But the city has gotten too dangerous for any of us to stay there” He leant forwards, a dark look on his face. “Maron Mullendore has arrived there. For what goal, I don't know, but he has brought two hundred men with him, quite a number of which know my face. I couldn't allow him to capture me or Briar again, so I made the decision to leave”
Mullendore... Raenna felt concern and heavy discomfort at the thought of what would have happened if Brandon would have remained. As much as she would have preferred to remain in Raylansfair, there was no doubt that Brandon had to make a tough call, one she would have likely decided similarly. Yet not all of her questions were answered. “Why the North?”, she asked.
Brandon shrugged. “It's Briar's home and mine. More importantly, it is my brother's home as well”, he answered. “He is what I wanted to talk about regardless, though I had hoped to have this conversation in a more comfortable location. But perhaps I have waited too long to talk about this already”
“Your brother...”, Raenna mumbled and suddenly, it hit her. She knew that he had spoken about his brother before, but he had been evasive, unwilling to answer. Now, she wouldn't allow him to remain silent about this. With a glare, she narrowed her eyes. “Who are you?”, she growled.
Brandon sighed and calmly looked at her out of his grey eyes until her frown was gone, replace merely by curiosity. “I have been honest with you, but at the same time, there have been some things I saw myself forced to hide. I'm sure you'll understand”, he answered. “But not anymore. I trust you and for what's to follow, you have to know the truth”
Raenna gave him a nod. “I'm listening”, she promised and he straightened his back. “My name is indeed Brandon Snow”, he explained. “A popular name. I guess there are a thousand Brandon's or more in the North and at least dozens of Brandon Snow's” Once again, he sighed uncomfortably. “That alone is nothing special about me. What truly matters is my father's name”, he revealed. “My father was Gregor Stark. My brother is Torrhen Stark, the King of Winter”
A moment of silence followed as Raenna was just able to stare at him. “You...”, she gasped. “You are the Bastard of Winterfell!” Finally it made sense, everything he had said before, this calm, almost regal composure, even his cold, wolfish looks. She raised an eyebrow in a curious way. “Do I have to call you Ser now?”, she asked and he chuckled. “Only if you want to be kicked out of this cart”, he revealed.
His smile faded as quickly as it came. “But can you blame me for not revealing it right away?”, he asked. “I have grown careful, especially after Mullendore” Raenna tilted her head slightly, ignoring the sharp pain in her ear. “What have you done in Oldtown? What does the Bastard of Winterfell do as a sellsword, so far in the south?”
“I have never been a sellsword”, Brandon answered. “Neither have the Snow Wolves been. They have been soldiers, noble sons, aspiring knights, my closest companions and the bravest and most loyal Northerners you can imagine. We have been my brother's eyes and ears outside the North. The first line of defence and the last. A sword in the night for our enemies, the fangs of winter”
“Assassins”, Raenna deduced and he shook his head. “Spies”, he corrected her. “But willing and capable to take care of any threat for our home. That's what we have been for in Oldtown. We have learned about a man that targeted our people. A Southerner, who sent his killers up north for some sort of test. A man called Butterfly”
Raenna sighed as it finally made sense. Everything about him... it was like an enigma unwrapped before her eyes. “Once we have arrived in Oldtown, I learned about the commander of the city guard. A noble knight, they said. Ser Maron Mullendore... I got along well with him. I mistook his directness for honesty, thought his crude, yet jovial nature to be genuine. He seemed almost like a Northerner to me and I... made the mistake of trusting him”, Brandon spoke and suddenly looked more sullen than she had ever seen him, with anger in his eyes. “I never told him whom I truly was, even when he captured us and demanded to know who sent us against Butterfly. I shall never know if this act saved my life or doomed my companions” With a bitter sigh, he avoided to look her in the eyes. “Some of them have been my oldest, closest friends. Gerold Ryswell, Daron Dustin... Ando Pyre”
Her eyes widened, if slightly. “He... didn't make it?”, she asked and Brandon shook his head. “We got separated during the raid. He and Ellena... I tried to find them later on, but... there has only been his corpse. I don't know what happened to the girl”
This revelation hit Raenna almost more than learning about Kersea's likely demise. Without Ellena, Terroma had died for nothing. Tired, beaten, Raenna leant back on her makeshift bed, trying to focus on the physical pain in her body to ignore the mental torment she put herself through with thoughts like this.
“Perhaps she is still alive”, Brandon brought up. “She is a clever girl. I doubt she would have died like this. And I never found her body” Raenna gulped. “Perhaps...”, she answered. “Have you tried to find her?” He gave her a nod. “Though I lacked the time for a larger search”, he stated. “Getting you two out of the city, away from Mullendore, has been my priority”
Raenna nodded softly, the pain in her head and back growing to nauseating levels. “And now?”, she asked. “What good am I for you up in the North?” To this, Brandon smiled. “The Snow Wolves might be no more, but that doesn't mean that they are no longer needed”, he said. “I have seen your skills. You are smart, you are strong and fierce. This sounds exactly like the sort of person we could need, me and my brother”
She raised an eyebrow. Working for House Stark? This was the last thing she would have seen for herself. She wanted a new life... and in a way, she'd get it. Perhaps she could actually do something good for once, using the skills Terroma taught her to protect others... and a kingdom that wasn't hers, surrounded by people she didn't know. Then again, how many of her friends were still alive in the first place?
“Do I get time to decide?”, she asked and Brandon gave her a nod. “Until we reach Winterfell”, he said. “It's a thousand miles and with that cart here, it's going to take us several weeks” He smiled in an understanding way. “I know this is all a bit much to take in right now and I am sorry for having hidden the truth from you so far. Surely you can understand why it was necessary”
Raenna sighed. “I understand you”, she assured him. “But I don't know if this is truly what I want. I wanted to change my life. Being my own master... I don't know if I am ready to serve a king. What would I have to do anyways?”
“To put it simple, you'd protect the North”, Brandon answered. “If one of my brother's lords needs help, the sort where he doesn't need an army, but one person with special talents, my Snow Wolves have always been the one to answer the call. You could use your talents for good. Wouldn't this be a new life? A good life?”
Raenna's head sunk back onto the makeshift pillow she had been given. “I... will think about it”, she promised. “Maybe it is something for me. But what will be with Briar?” Now, Brandon smiled. “Briar will have a good life no matter what you decide for. It'll be up to her of course, but I want to offer her to stay in Winterfell. My brother has a daughter in her age who could use a friend. She'd grow up as a courtier and would never have to suffer the woes of the smallfolk again”
With a nod, Raenna confirmed that she was satisfied with this. It sounded good... almost too good, but at the same time, it might just be the chance she has been waiting for. Brandon rose from his crouched position, putting a hand outside and on top of the cart, to maintain his balance while it was moving. “But that is something we can all decide upon later. I already took enough of your time. Let it sink in. Everything that happened and the things I just told you. Think about them” He glanced out of the cart, to the sky. “It's a long, hard way home and winter is coming”, he spoke. “Rest now Raenna Minsworth. Soon, you're going to meet the King in the North”
Raenna
She wasn't falling anymore. Neither was she in the water. Not drowning. Not falling. Save? Alive at the very least. It was dark, s… moreilent, but slowly, painfully so, her senses returned, as she woke up from the depths of unconsciousness.
The first thing she noticed was a noise, soft, steady and muffled beyond understanding. There was darkness around her, but not entirely so. She saw light, flickering, as if she was moving, though her vision was too blurred to make out any details. And she felt a thumping pain in her head, radiating through her entire body, which was already aching on its own.
Raenna's breaths came slowly, irregularly and put her through even more pain. She was lying on her back and though someone had wrapped a blanket around her, it was uncomfortable, though her back and legs were aching far too much to even think about moving them.
Slowly, the humming noise cleared a bit, as he hearing returned before her vis… [view original content]
Sneaky Liquid. I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional, but I was shocked and excited to see that Raenna had a new part released considering that she was no where mentioned when you closed the voting. Thank God she is alive, and that Clayton didn't get away for nothing.
I really enjoyed reading this part more than I should have, I think. The potential start of a completely new storyline and view for Raenna and it sounds very interesting. Brandon is a character that I am now starting to like despite his complications. Great part
Raenna
She wasn't falling anymore. Neither was she in the water. Not drowning. Not falling. Save? Alive at the very least. It was dark, s… moreilent, but slowly, painfully so, her senses returned, as she woke up from the depths of unconsciousness.
The first thing she noticed was a noise, soft, steady and muffled beyond understanding. There was darkness around her, but not entirely so. She saw light, flickering, as if she was moving, though her vision was too blurred to make out any details. And she felt a thumping pain in her head, radiating through her entire body, which was already aching on its own.
Raenna's breaths came slowly, irregularly and put her through even more pain. She was lying on her back and though someone had wrapped a blanket around her, it was uncomfortable, though her back and legs were aching far too much to even think about moving them.
Slowly, the humming noise cleared a bit, as he hearing returned before her vis… [view original content]
I knew that Raenna wasn't dead, and I am all too glad to finally see her heading up North. Great part. The reveal was quite well done. Oh boy, I can't wait to see all the Northiness of it all.
Raenna
She wasn't falling anymore. Neither was she in the water. Not drowning. Not falling. Save? Alive at the very least. It was dark, s… moreilent, but slowly, painfully so, her senses returned, as she woke up from the depths of unconsciousness.
The first thing she noticed was a noise, soft, steady and muffled beyond understanding. There was darkness around her, but not entirely so. She saw light, flickering, as if she was moving, though her vision was too blurred to make out any details. And she felt a thumping pain in her head, radiating through her entire body, which was already aching on its own.
Raenna's breaths came slowly, irregularly and put her through even more pain. She was lying on her back and though someone had wrapped a blanket around her, it was uncomfortable, though her back and legs were aching far too much to even think about moving them.
Slowly, the humming noise cleared a bit, as he hearing returned before her vis… [view original content]
Hehe, surely you can understand why I had to keep this a secret That said, originally it was planned to include a second PoV, which would have been John, but ultimately, there simply was no room left. So, he will be back next time, that much I can promise!
Sneaky Liquid. I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional, but I was shocked and excited to see that Raenna had a new part released considering that she was no where mentioned when you closed the voting. Thank God she is alive, and that Clayton didn't get away for nothing.
I can assure you, it was entirely intentional. If I would have announced her to have the next PoV, it would have likely taken away quite a lot of this surprise. I really wanted to make this a big surprise, even if some have seen her survival coming, so it is nice to see that I succeeded with you!
I really enjoyed reading this part more than I should have, I think. The potential start of a completely new storyline and view for Raenna and it sounds very interesting. Brandon is a character that I am now starting to like despite his complications. Great part
And I am very glad to hear you enjoyed this part! I certainly had a blast writing it and actually must admit that I wrote its entirety in the roughly six hours between closing the voting and posting this part, on top of writing really lengthy comments in WildlingKing's story (le sneaky advertising), so by the sheer speed I wrote this down with, you can probably tell just how much fun I had with writing Raenna again, after having her absent for a majority of Chapter 8 Perhaps I should have waited with her for a bit later, but honestly, I couldn't. She is one of the PoV's I enjoy the most and well, this new storyline for her is indeed going to be something great taking her to meet some very interesting characters in really great locations. It will remain her only part in Chapter 9, but she will be back with quite a nice storyline in Book 2, where she is going to meet the King in the North and some other interesting Winterfell characters.
Sneaky Liquid. I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional, but I was shocked and excited to see that Raenna had a new part released… more considering that she was no where mentioned when you closed the voting. Thank God she is alive, and that Clayton didn't get away for nothing.
I really enjoyed reading this part more than I should have, I think. The potential start of a completely new storyline and view for Raenna and it sounds very interesting. Brandon is a character that I am now starting to like despite his complications. Great part
Well, I guess it hasn't been too much of a surprise for you. If I remember correctly, you even called the Brandon stuff long in advance, so this likely held less surprised for you than for others. But well, I can confirm that the North will be among the most northy places in the story and Raenna will play a key role in it. And yes, this does include a certain house we're both looking forward for
I knew that Raenna wasn't dead, and I am all too glad to finally see her heading up North. Great part. The reveal was quite well done. Oh boy, I can't wait to see all the Northiness of it all.
Raenna
She wasn't falling anymore. Neither was she in the water. Not drowning. Not falling. Save? Alive at the very least. It was dark, s… moreilent, but slowly, painfully so, her senses returned, as she woke up from the depths of unconsciousness.
The first thing she noticed was a noise, soft, steady and muffled beyond understanding. There was darkness around her, but not entirely so. She saw light, flickering, as if she was moving, though her vision was too blurred to make out any details. And she felt a thumping pain in her head, radiating through her entire body, which was already aching on its own.
Raenna's breaths came slowly, irregularly and put her through even more pain. She was lying on her back and though someone had wrapped a blanket around her, it was uncomfortable, though her back and legs were aching far too much to even think about moving them.
Slowly, the humming noise cleared a bit, as he hearing returned before her vis… [view original content]
Comments
[Draw your sword]
[Try to defuse the situation]
Argella might not like this, but I want Drent to honor Ser Emphryus' wish of protecting the princess.
I've got a slight hunch that Orys' (or somebody else) will try to dissolve the problem.
[Draw your sword]
[Try to defuse the situation]
50 vs 20 is definitely not very solid odds and doing this could at the very least be good to stall time.
[Try to defuse the situation] I am pretty sure Orys is going to defuse the situation, so let's at least try to attempt to stay on Dresfel's good side and do as he asks.
Both actions can be seen to protect her and the other way around.
[DRAW YOUR SWORD]
Can't hope that someone else will come in and rescue you, besides you can always try negotiating with them as well, just you want to be prepared for anything. It would take a lot to de-escalate such a tinderbox without a intimidating presence.
Draw your sword] Man... FUCK MULLENDORE!!! This shit will not stand. This doesn't happen often when I read a story but when he hit Argella I was legitimately pissed off. Besides that Drent negotiating for Argella will make her look weak and that is simply not an option. We do that and no one in Raylansfair will take her seriously.
Oh I understand! What I meant to say is that Ser Emphryus would want Drent to not put her at risk. This is just what I believe he meant but it could be looked at differently. I apologize if there's any sort of confusion.
Wow, you go Agent. Bringing out the big guns. I never expected you to be pro violence here.
Every thing is alright I just wanted to point out that both things can be seen as proctection or endangerment. For me this seems like one of those lose lose questions that in both instances will end in an relativly bad outcome. And how I see it it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to a highly dangerous situation like this.
Great long part! Definitely worth the wait, don't worry
Another great part for Argella as always.
[Try to defuse the situation]
Fuck Mullendore, I hate him. However I feel like starting a fight would be foolish, especially in this situation. They are clearly outnumbered and it seems like a lose-lose scenario for them. I don't know if trying to defuse the situation will do any help, but let's at least attempt to avoid fighting and see Drent become the better man.
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[Try to defuse the situation]
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I don't even
This is already impressive, I have to say
I am indeed impressed. I know double posts, but have never seen a sextuple post.
On the downside, I'm having a stuck notification now. Oh god, this is going to bother me forever
Hey, I think I know how to get rid of that.
When on your profile feed, where it says "Load more" right click. Go to inspect (or inspect element) and in the box that is already highlighted, double click on the date. Change the date to whatever you want, and hit enter. Then, click on "Load more" and it should take you to the notifications to whatever date you entered. You can keep clicking load more and it will basically show all of the notifications from before the date you typed in the box
It's really cool if you want to go to old notifications you received years ago!
I also can't stop laughing at that sextuple post.
Whoa, this is a seriously cool trick. Due to FoT, I'm having at the very least 15000 notifications, for every post and edited post here and for every reply in one of the stories I follow, as well as for every PM, so if I want to find an older message or something like that, it was downright impossible without having the link saved. Now... well, now I can finally read some of my older notifications as well again, so thank you very much for that
I'm afraid it didn't work for my problem with the stuck notification though. The problem was one of the more recent notifications, which I got somewhere in the last 24 hours and for some reason it wasn't properly marked as read, so checking older notifications wouldn't have really helped there. However, just after trying your advice, I had an idea of my own and just clicked on "View this Comment" for the last 20 notifications or so. One of them was the problem and the moment I clicked on View this Comment, it was finally marked as read, meaning I got a clean feed again now. Ah, I wasn't aware how annoying this constant unread notification was, though thankfully it's gone now XD
No problem
indeed it is really cool and I like to use it when I'm bored or just want to see how it was like when I first started being active.
And ah, pesky forum. I just realized that I have never bothered to click "View this Comment" as I usually just click on the thread name. Sometimes it doesn't take you to the comment, causing me to have to scroll down to find the comment. So I'll definitely start going that more
I would assume that having a stuck unread notification would be extremely annoying, so thank God you got rid of it 
[Draw your sword]
If everyone else is doing it, might as well right? They'll be fine. Totally fine. It's kind of mean to hit someone after all.
The Voting is closed!
Drent is going to draw his sword
Well... that is a very interesting one. I'm going to tell you a secret here: Originally, I have planned to show the resolution to this confrontation already, but this whole scene is at least going to hold the potential for another full part, something I only realized while writing and the main reason for me separating these events into two parts. And my original plans for this scene have not included Drent trying to calm things down, so this is the choice that fits better with this original plan. At the same time, it is not the choice I expected you to make. I thought a majority would choose the diplomatic option, but well, this works with my plans, so I certainly don't disapprove.
The next part is hopefully going to be out today. I was unsure if I should close the voting today or tomorrow, but I'm making good progress right now and it might just work, especially given how active this voting has been. So I just gotta hurry
The next part is going to mark the beginning of John's storyline, but it is likely that I will manage to include a second part as well and at this point, I have planned it to be either Maya or maybe Samantha or Ellena. Ah, there are many choices. Jaron needs his second part as well, but I think this can wait for the next week, same goes for Arthur. With some of the storylines having only one or two parts in this chapter, it is a bit harder to determine when the right time has come for some of the shorter storylines to fit with the flow of the larger ones, but this time, the next part is going to hold an interesting twist which I really don't want to keep for myself any longer. Hope you enjoy 
Alright, I'll once again jump in quickly before the next part
As I promised to @Mathea, here is the portrait of our lovely healer... Mathea:
edit: Eye-color fixed
Wow, did not expect to get her portait so quick! Thank you very much. She looks happy on this picture. The only things I would change on this is her eyes, which are more orange-yellow and paler skintone, the rest is perfect :-)
Ah, I tried to go for the orange eyes, but I suppose it should've been a bit lighter orange/closer to yellow - I suppose they are more like hazel now
Actually, that's something that could be fixed pretty easily, so I might do it. Anyway, I'm glad you're otherwise happy with it 
Whoa, I must agree with Mathea, this has been a seriously quick delivery, though you still managd to draw her with an amazing amount of detail! I've been looking forward for this, but haven't expected her anytime soon, so this was really a nice surprise. As always, I am in awe. Thank you very much
And well, she looks very much as imagined, save for maybe the slightly darker eye colour she has here. But I don't mind, this is an amazing drawing, you did outstanding work. I guess this is Mathea in one of the few moments she is more relaxed in, so nothing that has happened in a while. But who knows, maybe we'll get some more happy moments for her in Book 2 
As for now, I am super happy about this portrait and it rightfully belongs to my ever-growing list of my favourite pieces of your work.
Well, I changed the eyes now
Anyway, I'm glad to hear you like it!
Thank you again! Much better now :-)
In direct comparison... yeah, I do like it better. I mean, I like both versions, but with this additional detail, it only improved even further. Truly an amazing drawing and one of my favourites
Raenna
She wasn't falling anymore. Neither was she in the water. Not drowning. Not falling. Save? Alive at the very least. It was dark, silent, but slowly, painfully so, her senses returned, as she woke up from the depths of unconsciousness.
The first thing she noticed was a noise, soft, steady and muffled beyond understanding. There was darkness around her, but not entirely so. She saw light, flickering, as if she was moving, though her vision was too blurred to make out any details. And she felt a thumping pain in her head, radiating through her entire body, which was already aching on its own.
Raenna's breaths came slowly, irregularly and put her through even more pain. She was lying on her back and though someone had wrapped a blanket around her, it was uncomfortable, though her back and legs were aching far too much to even think about moving them.
Slowly, the humming noise cleared a bit, as he hearing returned before her vision. It was a person, likely the shadow to her right. Through a blur, she saw long, dark hair and a soft, female voice. There were no words, but she recognized the melody. It was a lullaby and she had heard it before, hummed by the only one she ever truly called a friend.
With her vision still blurred, Raenna opened her mouth to speak. Instead of words, only a croaking hoarsy sound came out of it. “Ker...”, she gasped, before her dry throat caused any further word to drown in a heavy cough. With a gasp, the person turned around and by now, her vision had cleared enough to recognize Kersea.
No... the girl that was looking at her was too young to be Kersea. Youthful innocence shined through her big, grey eyes and there was surprise as well. “Raenna!”, Briar Catelins said, rushing to her side. Slowly, Raenna took her surroundings in. She was lying on a makeshift bed, nothing more than a thin blanket on hard wood. The ground was rocking slightly and she noticed that she was inside of a moving cart, covered with a linen tarpaulin. Through a gap, she saw sunlight, aching in her eyes and a light forest they were travelling through.
After recovering from her initial surprise, a wide smile formed on Briar's face. “You're awake!”, she said, as she jumped at her. Though of a small frame and light build, the sudden weight of Briar on her chest caused Raenna to gasp, though barely a sound came out of her dry throat.
Thoughts spun through her head. How did she come here? What was Briar doing here? Where was Kersea? She remembered the tower. Alysanne had been there... with murder in her eyes. Kersea had tried to save her... but Clayton... And she remembered the fall, how everything turned black, how there was only cold, dark water and silence.
A pained groan came out of her throat as Briar hugged her tightly and she finally noticed the sharp pain on the right side of her face. With a gasp, Briar let go of her. “Sorry!”, she said. “Sorry, I didn't want to...” Frowning with pain, Raenna opened her mouth to speak again. “Wa...”, she managed to utter and Briar understood.
Quickly, the girl moved out of her field of view, only to return with a leathery waterskin. Carefully, she moved it to Raenna's lips, causing her to drink eagerly. The first two gulps caused her to cough, spilling water all over the blanket that still covered her body, though as Briar moved the skin back to her lips, she continued to drink, as the terrifying thirst got quenched.
In relief, Raenna put her head back, managing to give Briar a slight smile, which got reciprocated eagerly. “I am so glad you're alive!”, the girl said. “I was worried. We both were! Can you speak?” Raenna gave her a weak nod, though this caused her to grimace again, as sharp pain flared up in her head again, coming from her right ear to be more precise. “What... happened?”, she uttered and her voice still sounded hoarsy, almost completely unlike her normal one.
Briar glanced outside of the cart. “I'll get Brandon”, she said. “He can explain” Looking around, she move a hand through the gap. “Brandon!”, she yelled. “Brandon, she is awake!” It only took a moment until Raenna heard a horse galloping closer and then, Brandon Snow stepped into the cart.
As he laid eyes onto Raenna, a soft smile formed on his face. “Are you staying awake this time?”, he asked and Raenna managed to raise an eyebrow. He chuckled, as he knelt down next to her and Briar. “This is not the first time you've been awake since we found you. So far, you were barely able to understand a word and you drifted off again after a few minutes”, he explained. “I suppose you can't remember any of that?”
Raenna shook her head and regretted it instantly. This time, she moved a hand onto the aching side of her head, only to find a thick bandage there. “Don't touch it”, Brandon adviced her. “Someone really roughed you up, even beyond that whole fall thing. Sliced your ear open. Part of the earlobe's missing, but I managed to save the rest”
“Mirror...”, Raenna managed to utter, as concern grew inside of her. What had happened to her? Her looks have never been something she put much value on. Arguably, they were even a problem in her line of work. But the thought of having suffered a disfiguring wound was present and quite severe.
Brandon reached to a small chest in the corner of the wagon. “You still look more dead than alive”, he warned her. “In fact, that's what I have feared when I pulled you out of the water, but well, give it a few weeks and you're going to be the fairest of them all again” As he was asked to, he handed her a mirror.
Raenna glanced at her reflection, breathing more quickly now. Lilac eyes stared at her out of a ghastly pale face and hair that looked more white than silver in the current dimmed light was in a disarray. Her right ear was heavily bandaged, freshly so and her left cheek was adorned by a nasty bruise, but other than that, she felt slight relief. It could have been worse. It could have been much, much worse.
“You pulled me out of the water?”, she asked and Brandon gave her a nod. Gently, he put a hand onto Briar's shoulder. “Sweetbriar”, he said softly. “Could you leave us for a moment? Me and Raenna have something to discuss. Speak to the carter for a while, will you?”
Briar looked unhappy with this. “But I want to stay with Raenna”, she protested and he shook his head. “We have to talk about adult things now”, he told her. “But you can speak to Raenna afterwards, I promise” This caused the girl to smile sweetly. “Oh... okay”, she said, as she looked at Raenna. It was hard to imagine Kersea ever having been that way, so light-hearted, so innocent, yet in her face, there was such a baffling similarity to her sister. “But don't you fall asleep again!”, she warned her playfully, before she moved through the cart, leaving through a gap in the front.
Just a moment later, Raenna heard her happy chatter, as she started a conversation with the carter. A relieved smile formed on Brandon's face, though it died down quickly, replaced by a calm and stern look in his grey eyes. Despite her pain and confusion, Raenna managed to give him a warm smile. “Thank you”, she said. “For looking after her”
“She is a good girl”, Brandon replied. “Which is why I want to spare her the horrible truth. I told her only what is necessary, but even then I am afraid she realized more than she was supposed to” He looked at Raenna, before he crouched closer. “There is strength in her innocence, which makes it worth protecting”
Raenna frowned, as she faced the top of the cart. “What happened to Kersea?”, she asked and Brandon sighed. “I don't know”, he claimed and she glared at him. “I'm not Briar”, she said sternly. “Whatever it is, I can handle it” Now, Brandon closed his eyes. “I can't be sure about it”, he admitted. “But she is most likely dead”
Clayton's sword through her friend's side... it was the last image Raenna could remember before the fall. It confirmed Brandon's suspicion and her fear. A bitter sigh came out of her throat, though her generally dried out condition made it hard to cry. The hint of tears welled up in her eyes. “I wanted to save her”, she said. “I should have never left her side”
“Listen, I can't be sure about it”, Brandon said again. “Davith is still in Raylansfair. I have asked of him to look out for her, but truth be told, her chances are slim. The entire tower is just... gone. Wildfire. I've heard the stories, but have never seen it in action before. This is a power mankind was not meant to have”
Raenna took a deep breath. She didn't remember the wildfire, but there was a faint memory, a deafening sound just before she had lost consciousness. Who could have survived this? At the same time, if she survived her fall, Kersea could have gotten away. She had to believe in it, the truth was hurting too much. First Terroma, then Kersea... the only people who had ever meant anything to her, gone.
“What have you told Briar?”, she wanted to know and Brandon looked at the gap the young girl had vanished through. “I told her Kersea will catch up with us in a while. Maybe it'll keep her satisfied until she is able to understand the truth”, he revealed. “Lying to a child... not something I am proud of, but in this moment, I couldn't tell her. Maybe you can, when you're better again”
Raenna gave him a nod, feeling a hint of her former strength returning. “You have saved me then?”, she asked and he smiled briefly. “Just like you did with mine”, he said. “Without you, I would have died below the Hightower. It was a matter of honour for me to return the favour. So when we saw the explosion, I knew I had to hurry. When we got to the ruins of the tower, I saw you washed ashore. You were still breathing but... I was not sure if I'd manage to save you”
“How long have I been out?”, she asked then and he looked around. “About two weeks”, he revealed. “You've been conscious before, always for a couple of minutes, but never truly able to hold a conversation or anything like that. It's good that you're back with the living now”
Raenna groaned, as she stretched her aching body. “I don't feel very alive”, she answered. “But thank you... for saving me. For taking care of me in the past days. I... owe you more than you ever owed me” Brandon smirked, which was followed by a nod. “And luckily, I know exactly the way for you to repay me”, he answered ominously.
To this, she raised an eyebrow, as she finally realized one thing, so glaringly obvious that she hasn't even thought about asking it before. She was no longer in Raylansfair, but on a moving cart. “Where are we?”, she demanded to know, now with a sharp tone.
“The Riverlands”, Brandon answered. “We have crossed the Blackwater a few days ago and are currently halfway between Stony Sept and Acorn Hall” To this, Raenna raised an eyebrow. “The Riverlands...”, she mumbled. “Why have you taken us there?”
Brandon waited a moment before he answered. “Because we're going home”, he revealed and glanced at the direction Briar had gone to. In the distance, the girl was still heard, laughing gently, as a soft, male voice humoured her. “My home and hers” To this, Raenna raised an eyebrow. “Why are you taking me to the North?”, she asked.
“A lot has changed in Raylansfair”, Brandon admitted. “I would have liked to keep you there until you have recovered, maybe even learning about Kersea's whereabouts in the meantime. But the city has gotten too dangerous for any of us to stay there” He leant forwards, a dark look on his face. “Maron Mullendore has arrived there. For what goal, I don't know, but he has brought two hundred men with him, quite a number of which know my face. I couldn't allow him to capture me or Briar again, so I made the decision to leave”
Mullendore... Raenna felt concern and heavy discomfort at the thought of what would have happened if Brandon would have remained. As much as she would have preferred to remain in Raylansfair, there was no doubt that Brandon had to make a tough call, one she would have likely decided similarly. Yet not all of her questions were answered. “Why the North?”, she asked.
Brandon shrugged. “It's Briar's home and mine. More importantly, it is my brother's home as well”, he answered. “He is what I wanted to talk about regardless, though I had hoped to have this conversation in a more comfortable location. But perhaps I have waited too long to talk about this already”
“Your brother...”, Raenna mumbled and suddenly, it hit her. She knew that he had spoken about his brother before, but he had been evasive, unwilling to answer. Now, she wouldn't allow him to remain silent about this. With a glare, she narrowed her eyes. “Who are you?”, she growled.
Brandon sighed and calmly looked at her out of his grey eyes until her frown was gone, replace merely by curiosity. “I have been honest with you, but at the same time, there have been some things I saw myself forced to hide. I'm sure you'll understand”, he answered. “But not anymore. I trust you and for what's to follow, you have to know the truth”
Raenna gave him a nod. “I'm listening”, she promised and he straightened his back. “My name is indeed Brandon Snow”, he explained. “A popular name. I guess there are a thousand Brandon's or more in the North and at least dozens of Brandon Snow's” Once again, he sighed uncomfortably. “That alone is nothing special about me. What truly matters is my father's name”, he revealed. “My father was Gregor Stark. My brother is Torrhen Stark, the King of Winter”
A moment of silence followed as Raenna was just able to stare at him. “You...”, she gasped. “You are the Bastard of Winterfell!” Finally it made sense, everything he had said before, this calm, almost regal composure, even his cold, wolfish looks. She raised an eyebrow in a curious way. “Do I have to call you Ser now?”, she asked and he chuckled. “Only if you want to be kicked out of this cart”, he revealed.
His smile faded as quickly as it came. “But can you blame me for not revealing it right away?”, he asked. “I have grown careful, especially after Mullendore” Raenna tilted her head slightly, ignoring the sharp pain in her ear. “What have you done in Oldtown? What does the Bastard of Winterfell do as a sellsword, so far in the south?”
“I have never been a sellsword”, Brandon answered. “Neither have the Snow Wolves been. They have been soldiers, noble sons, aspiring knights, my closest companions and the bravest and most loyal Northerners you can imagine. We have been my brother's eyes and ears outside the North. The first line of defence and the last. A sword in the night for our enemies, the fangs of winter”
“Assassins”, Raenna deduced and he shook his head. “Spies”, he corrected her. “But willing and capable to take care of any threat for our home. That's what we have been for in Oldtown. We have learned about a man that targeted our people. A Southerner, who sent his killers up north for some sort of test. A man called Butterfly”
Raenna sighed as it finally made sense. Everything about him... it was like an enigma unwrapped before her eyes. “Once we have arrived in Oldtown, I learned about the commander of the city guard. A noble knight, they said. Ser Maron Mullendore... I got along well with him. I mistook his directness for honesty, thought his crude, yet jovial nature to be genuine. He seemed almost like a Northerner to me and I... made the mistake of trusting him”, Brandon spoke and suddenly looked more sullen than she had ever seen him, with anger in his eyes. “I never told him whom I truly was, even when he captured us and demanded to know who sent us against Butterfly. I shall never know if this act saved my life or doomed my companions” With a bitter sigh, he avoided to look her in the eyes. “Some of them have been my oldest, closest friends. Gerold Ryswell, Daron Dustin... Ando Pyre”
Her eyes widened, if slightly. “He... didn't make it?”, she asked and Brandon shook his head. “We got separated during the raid. He and Ellena... I tried to find them later on, but... there has only been his corpse. I don't know what happened to the girl”
This revelation hit Raenna almost more than learning about Kersea's likely demise. Without Ellena, Terroma had died for nothing. Tired, beaten, Raenna leant back on her makeshift bed, trying to focus on the physical pain in her body to ignore the mental torment she put herself through with thoughts like this.
“Perhaps she is still alive”, Brandon brought up. “She is a clever girl. I doubt she would have died like this. And I never found her body” Raenna gulped. “Perhaps...”, she answered. “Have you tried to find her?” He gave her a nod. “Though I lacked the time for a larger search”, he stated. “Getting you two out of the city, away from Mullendore, has been my priority”
Raenna nodded softly, the pain in her head and back growing to nauseating levels. “And now?”, she asked. “What good am I for you up in the North?” To this, Brandon smiled. “The Snow Wolves might be no more, but that doesn't mean that they are no longer needed”, he said. “I have seen your skills. You are smart, you are strong and fierce. This sounds exactly like the sort of person we could need, me and my brother”
She raised an eyebrow. Working for House Stark? This was the last thing she would have seen for herself. She wanted a new life... and in a way, she'd get it. Perhaps she could actually do something good for once, using the skills Terroma taught her to protect others... and a kingdom that wasn't hers, surrounded by people she didn't know. Then again, how many of her friends were still alive in the first place?
“Do I get time to decide?”, she asked and Brandon gave her a nod. “Until we reach Winterfell”, he said. “It's a thousand miles and with that cart here, it's going to take us several weeks” He smiled in an understanding way. “I know this is all a bit much to take in right now and I am sorry for having hidden the truth from you so far. Surely you can understand why it was necessary”
Raenna sighed. “I understand you”, she assured him. “But I don't know if this is truly what I want. I wanted to change my life. Being my own master... I don't know if I am ready to serve a king. What would I have to do anyways?”
“To put it simple, you'd protect the North”, Brandon answered. “If one of my brother's lords needs help, the sort where he doesn't need an army, but one person with special talents, my Snow Wolves have always been the one to answer the call. You could use your talents for good. Wouldn't this be a new life? A good life?”
Raenna's head sunk back onto the makeshift pillow she had been given. “I... will think about it”, she promised. “Maybe it is something for me. But what will be with Briar?” Now, Brandon smiled. “Briar will have a good life no matter what you decide for. It'll be up to her of course, but I want to offer her to stay in Winterfell. My brother has a daughter in her age who could use a friend. She'd grow up as a courtier and would never have to suffer the woes of the smallfolk again”
With a nod, Raenna confirmed that she was satisfied with this. It sounded good... almost too good, but at the same time, it might just be the chance she has been waiting for. Brandon rose from his crouched position, putting a hand outside and on top of the cart, to maintain his balance while it was moving. “But that is something we can all decide upon later. I already took enough of your time. Let it sink in. Everything that happened and the things I just told you. Think about them” He glanced out of the cart, to the sky. “It's a long, hard way home and winter is coming”, he spoke. “Rest now Raenna Minsworth. Soon, you're going to meet the King in the North”
No Choices for this part
Goddammit Liquid, you lied to me.
I was so looking forward to John's part only to find out it's Raenna's instead.
Sneaky Liquid. I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional, but I was shocked and excited to see that Raenna had a new part released considering that she was no where mentioned when you closed the voting. Thank God she is alive, and that Clayton didn't get away for nothing.
I really enjoyed reading this part more than I should have, I think. The potential start of a completely new storyline and view for Raenna and it sounds very interesting. Brandon is a character that I am now starting to like despite his complications. Great part
I knew that Raenna wasn't dead, and I am all too glad to finally see her heading up North. Great part. The reveal was quite well done. Oh boy, I can't wait to see all the Northiness of it all.
Hehe, surely you can understand why I had to keep this a secret
That said, originally it was planned to include a second PoV, which would have been John, but ultimately, there simply was no room left. So, he will be back next time, that much I can promise!
I can assure you, it was entirely intentional. If I would have announced her to have the next PoV, it would have likely taken away quite a lot of this surprise. I really wanted to make this a big surprise, even if some have seen her survival coming, so it is nice to see that I succeeded with you!
And I am very glad to hear you enjoyed this part! I certainly had a blast writing it and actually must admit that I wrote its entirety in the roughly six hours between closing the voting and posting this part, on top of writing really lengthy comments in WildlingKing's story (le sneaky advertising), so by the sheer speed I wrote this down with, you can probably tell just how much fun I had with writing Raenna again, after having her absent for a majority of Chapter 8
Perhaps I should have waited with her for a bit later, but honestly, I couldn't. She is one of the PoV's I enjoy the most and well, this new storyline for her is indeed going to be something great taking her to meet some very interesting characters in really great locations. It will remain her only part in Chapter 9, but she will be back with quite a nice storyline in Book 2, where she is going to meet the King in the North and some other interesting Winterfell characters.
Well, I guess it hasn't been too much of a surprise for you. If I remember correctly, you even called the Brandon stuff long in advance, so this likely held less surprised for you than for others. But well, I can confirm that the North will be among the most northy places in the story and Raenna will play a key role in it. And yes, this does include a certain house we're both looking forward for
This was a very nice part!I'm really curious what will happen now to Raenna!
RT: