𝐖𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐓𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 ➵ 𝓙𝓪𝓬𝓪𝓮𝓻𝔂𝓼 𝓥𝓮𝓵𝓪𝓻𝔂𝓸𝓷

𝟐𝟎 | 𝐖𝐚𝐫 𝐈𝐬 𝐔𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐔𝐬

Jace had been in the North for two days now, still not used to the cold frosty air. Winterfell was unlike anything the boy had ever seen, Jace fascinated by the structure and the Northeners who inhabited it. He had become acquainted with Cregan Stark, the gruff and blunt Lord of Winterfell, older than the Velaryon Prince by a few years. The boys had bonded the few days Jace had spent in the North, drinking and hunting and telling one another about their very different lives.

"So you are betrothed?" Cregan asked, the pair roaming the forest just outside of the grounds of Winterfell, the boys making their way through the large pine and fir trees both coated in fur. Jace could feel the frost crunch beneath his boots, holding a bow in his hand as he followed the Northern Lord, Cregan bent and gazing at tracks on the ground.

"To my cousin, Baela." Jace responded, but his expression fell with his words. For the past two days he had spent at Winterfell, Jace could not shake the thought of Saera, praying that she was safe. His heart was still broken by her harsh words he could hear echoing in his ears if he tried hard enough, but to his dismay his love for her had not faltered or shifted in any way. The thought of her lips against his sent fire through him, and the thought of her getting hurt or being put in danger froze him entirely with fear.

"You don't sound too happy about that one, lad." Cregan remarked with a sniff, glancing over his shoulder at the crestfallen Jace, who immediately tried to hide his sadness. Cregan raised an eyebrow, straightening and looking at Jace with a curious expression.

"There is another?" He questioned, having read the dark-haired boy like a book. Jace's brow furrowed, grey eyes avoiding Cregan who let out a chuckle. "Tell me about her, my prince." Cregan said, pale eyes gleaming with amusement as he leaned on a nearby tree. Jace clenched his jaw, thinking about her.

"She's stubborn, so stubborn that I cannot stand it sometimes. I swear she is so hard headed, an anvil could fall onto her thick skull and shatter on impact." Jace said with a scowl, shaking his head as he muttered. Cregan chuckled, watching as Jace started to pace back and forth, irritated.

"She's sharp-tongued. I swear, her words cut deeper than Dark Sister or Blackfyre ever could." Jace continued, thinking about the insults that would leave her lips, capable of cutting down even the largest of egos in seconds.

"And don't get me started on her arrogance. I swear to the gods, she considers herself a blessed and divine gift to the seven kingdoms and everyone she meets." Jace's words were full of rage, Cregan smiling at the boy knowingly.

"And you love her anyway." Cregan let out, Jace stopping and turning back to him, still frowning as he shook his head.

"No, that's the worst of it, Cregan. I love her because of all of those things, not in spite of them. Just the thought of her refusing to admit her wrongs, or her hurling a venomous remark, or her beating me in a duel..." Jace mumbled, heart aching in his chest. "All of those things are the reason I fell for her in the first place, even if I did not realise it at the time." He said, his eyes helpless. The older boy placed his hand on Jace's shoulder in a comforting fashion, grinning down at him.

"That is a real love, Jace. When she does something you should hate her for, but all it does is make you love her more than you ever thought you could." Cregan told him, Jace continuing to frown at his words. He missed her, by the gods he missed her.

"So who is this mysterious girl, capable of beating a prince in a duel?" Cregan questioned, Jace letting out a sigh.

"Saera Arryn." He informed him, Cregan's eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

"Little Saera Arryn?" Cregan was baffled, but a realisation hitting his face. Of course it would be one of the Arryn girls, trained and prepped for battle by their father. He knew her parents Lyrus and Aeyla well, having trained with Saera's older brothers Taelin and Baelin many times throughout his youth.