Silver Stag

Battle Aftermath

[North]

A white raven flew over the Northern wilderness towards Winterfell.

[Winterfell - Dining Hall]

Jon was standing behind the high table, staring across the hall. Melisandre stood by his side.

"When we had feasts, our family would sit up here... and I'd sit down there." He pointed to the other end of the hall.

"Could have been worse, Jon Snow. You had a family. You had feasts."

Jon chuckled. "Aye, you're right. I was luckier than most."

Davos entered the hall and tossed the charred stag statuette at Melisandre who caught it.

"What is that?" Jon asked.

"Tell him. Tell him who it belonged to." Davos said, his anger rising.

"The Princess Shireen."

"Tell him what you did to her. Tell him!"

"We burned her at the stake."

"Why?" Davos asked.

"The army was trapped. The horses were dying. It was the only way."

"You burned a little girl alive!"

"I only do what my Lord commands!"

"If he commands you to burn children, your Lord is evil!"

"We are standing here because of him. Jon Snow is alive because the Lord willed it."

"I loved that girl like she was my own. She was good. She was kind. And you killed her."

"So did her father. So did her mother. Her own blood knew it was the only way." Melisandre told him.

"The only way for what? They all died anyway! You told everyone Stannis was the one. You had him believing it, all of them fooled. And you lied."

"I didn't lie. I was wrong."

"Aye, you were wrong. How many died because you were wrong?"

Davos and Melisandre stared at each other in silence.

"I ask your leave to execute this woman for murder. She admits to the crime." Davos requested.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Jon asked her.

"I've been ready to die for many years. If the Lord was done with me, so be it, but he's not. You've seen the Night King, Jon Snow. You know the great war is still to come. You know the army of the dead will be upon us soon. And you know I can help you win that war."

Jon approached her. "Ride south today. If you return to the North, I'll have you hanged as a murderer.

Melisandre put the stag statuette down on the high table and began to walk away.

Davos stepped in her way. "If you ever come back this way, I will execute you myself."

Melisandre moved past Davos and exited.

[Winterfell - Outer Wall]

Jon stood atop the outer wall watching Melisandre ride south on her horse, when Sansa appeared.

"I'm having the lord's chamber prepared for you." He told her.

"Mother and Father's room? You should take it."

"I'm not a Stark."

"You are to me."

"You're the Lady of Winterfell. You deserve it. We're standing here because of you. The battle was lost until the Knights of the Vale rode in. They came because of you. You told me Lord Baelish sold you to the Boltons."

"He did."

"And you trust him?"

"Only a fool would trust Littlefinger. I should have told you about him, about the Knights of the Vale. I'm sorry."

He approached her. "We need to trust each other. We can't fight a war amongst ourselves. We have so many enemies now." He touched her face and kissed her on the forehead, then turned to walk away.

"Jon." He turned back to face her. "A raven came from the Citadel. A white raven. Winter is here."

He smiled and looked up at the sky. "Well, Father alwys promised, didn't he?

Jon exited and Sansa looked out at the wilderness.

[Winterfell - Weirwood Tree]

Sansa sat underneath the weirwood tree.

Petyr approached her. "Forgive me, my lady... if you're at prayer."

"I'm done with all that. I came here evety day when I was a girl. I prayed to be somewhere else. Back then I only ever thought about what I wanted, nevr about what I had." Sansa stood and walked towards him. "I was a stupid girl."

"You were a child."

"What do you want?"

"I thought you knew what I wanted."

"I was wrong."

"No, you weren't. Every time I'm faced with a decision, I close my eyes and see the same picture. Whenever I consider an action, I ask myself will this action help to make this picture a reality? Pull it out of my mind and into the world? And I only act if the answer is yes. A picture of me on the Iron Throne... and you by my side."

Petyr leaned in to kiss Sansa, but she put her hand on his chest to stop him.

"It's a pretty picture." She walked past him.

"News of this battle will spread quickly through the Seven Kingdoms. I've declared for House Stark for all to hear."

"You've declared for other houses before, Lord Baelish. It's nevr stopped you from serving yourself."

"The past is gone for good. You can sit here mourning its departure or you can prepare for the futire. You, my love, are the future of House Stark. Who should the North rally behind? A trueborn daughter of Ned and Catelyn Stark born here at Winterfell or a motherless bastard born in the south?"

Sansa walked away.

[Winterfell - Main Hall]

Jon was sitting at high table, Sansa sitting beside him. Representatives from Northern houses, the Vale, and the wildlings were gathered in the dining hall. Tormund and Davos sat among the wildlings while Petyr stood off to the side, watching.

"You can't expect Knights of the Vale to side with wildling invaders." A Vale Knight said.

"We didn't invade. We were invited." Tormund argued.

"Not by me."

Jon stood. "The free folk, the northerners, and the Knights of the Vale fought bravely, fought together, and we won. My father used to say we find our true friends on the battlefield."

One of the houses' representatives stands. "The Boltons are defeated. The war is over. Winter has come. If the maesters are right, it'll be the coldest one in a thousand years. We should ride home and wait out the coming storms."

"The war is not over. And I promise you, friend, the true enemy won't wait out the storm. He brings the storm."

The men begin to murmur.

Lyanna Mormont stood. "Your son was butchered at the Red Wedding, Lord Manderly. But you aided the men who killed him. You swore allegiance to House Stark, Lord Glover, but in their hour of greatest need, you refused the call. And you, Lord Cerwyn, your father was skinned alive by Ramsay Bolton. Still you refuse the call. But House Mormont remembers. The North remembers. We know no king but the King in the North whose name is Stark. I don't care if he's a bastard. Ned Stark's blood runs through his veins. He's my king from this day untl his last day."

The men resumed murmuring.

Lord Manderly stood. "Lady Mormont speaks harshly and truly. My son died for Robb Stark, the Young Wolf. I didn't think we'd find another king in my lifetime. I didn't commit my men to your cause until the end 'cause I didn't want more Manderlys dying for nothing. I thought if I bided my time, I could avenge the deaths of my son and countless others at the hands of those traitorous Boltons. But I was wrong. Jon Snow avenged the Red Wedding. He is the White Wolf. The King In The North." Manderly drew his blade, then rested it point-down on the ground and kneeled.

Lord Glover stood. "I did not fight beside you on the field and I will regret that unti; my dying day. A man can only admit when he was wrong and ask forgiveness."

"There's nothing to forgive, my lord."

"There will be more fights to come. House Glover will stand behind House Stark as we have for a thousands years. And I will stand behind Jon Snow... the White Wolf." He drew his blade, then rested it point-down on the ground and kneeled. "The King In The North!"

Everyone in the hall followed suit, standing and drawing their blades.

Jon stood as Sansa and Petyr looked at each other.

"My Lords, my Ladies. I am grateful for your confidence. But, I did not come here to be King. I came because it was what honour demanded. It demanded I help my sister take back what was stolen from us by the family that murdered our brother."

"My Lady... Jon," A Stark guard entered, interrupting their meeting.

As they were led through the courtyard, they noticed a group huddled together.

When they approached, they discovered a young woman stood beside a dark haired boy in a wheelchair.

"Hello Sansa. Jon."

It was Bran.

Sansa couldn't control herself. She threw herself into the arms of her brother whom she had not seen in yeas.

Jon stood still in shock.

He could believe this was the same boy of ten name dais he had spent teaching to shoot an arrow with his brother.

The last living trueborn son of Ned and Catelyn Stark was back in Winterfell.