ᴍᴇᴇᴛ ᴍᴇ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴀʀᴋ, ᴋɪꜱꜱ ᴍᴇ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴏɴʟɪɢʜᴛ

xv. queen of all the lands

┌─── ∘°❉°∘ ───┐

Jon cursed. Every moment he wasted was another moment someone could find him. He needed to leave right now, be gone before dawn, when they would send out their riders to come after him. But that proved more and more difficult as he failed to saddle his horse with his burnt hand.

His place was not here. It was with his brother on the battlefield, had always been. It had just taken him too long to realise.

(Which had become too common of an occurrence in his life.)

Robb would not execute him, he was sure of that. His brother would understand his need to avenge their father. There was no need to worry about it. He would be fine.

The saddle finally looked tight enough for him not to fall out. He was about to mount up when-

"What do you think you are doing?"

Jon whipped around.

"Elle." He cursed his heart that had started beating faster at her sight. "Why are you awake?"

"Do not change the subject." She slowly closed in on him. "I am not the one saddling a horse in the middle of the night."

"Get out of my way!"

Couldn't she see? He needed to go. He couldn't save his father, so he needed to at least protect his brother.

"And let you kill yourself? You know I cannot do this."

"Why do you care," he asked incredulously, "what happens to me?"

Jon liked to think the moment she took to answer meant something.

"Because we are friends. I do not want to see you harmed."

"If you truly were my friend, you'd know to let me go."

The light of the full moon fell through the window on the side, shining directly into Elle's face and lighting up her hair. The blonde streaks appeared almost silver. He needed to make her leave, no matter what it might take.

Jon straightened his back. "Why are you even here?"

"I just told you, you are my-"

"I don't mean here, right now. I mean, why are you here at Castle Black? You don't belong here."

Elle cocked her head in confusion. She took a few moments to answer.

"Because I like it here. It is calm and I get to-"

"But you don't belong here. You're not a brother of the Night's Watch, you're a woman. And those are not even allowed here."

He despised himself for every word that came out of his mouth. But he couldn't stop.

"So I ask again: Why are you still here?"

"You would not understand-"

"Wouldn't I? I have been a bastard my whole life, disregarded and hated because of things out of my control. You are a noblewoman and have never been anything else, no matter what you dress yourself up as. You cannot claim to know things I don't."

Where was all of this coming from?

"I have never claimed any of the like!"

"Then what was that whole spiel about knowing what bastards are treated like? Telling me you know me because we are the same? You have done nothing but lie to me, drawing me in with them, tricking me into liking you."

Elle was slowly becoming agitated. Good.

"I only said that to protect myself! If the wrong person found out about who I am-"