Hear me Roar - English version

CHAPTER 29 - "King of the North..."

               The sounds of combat still resonate in my head when I open my eyes. Lying in the same place, I suddenly straighten up. Was this all a dream?

               Lying next to me, peaceful, Arrow looks at me, her head slightly bent to the side. She wears a bandage on her paw. Mechanically, I look down to inspect my own body. I have some bruises but no open wounds. So, it wasn't a dream.

"Good morning, Majesty" says Thoros, seating by the fireside.

"Morning..." I answer without glancing.

"Difficult night?"

"You set me up."

"Tell that to Beric instead."

               The knight, sitting a little further, is stitching himself up. He has a big cut in his thigh.

"Sorry" I start before I jump in. "No! I'm not sorry at all! You attacked me in the middle of the night! You hurt my dog! I deserve an apology."

"You passed our test" says Thoros.

               That's what I was afraid of... These two idiots have no idea what they're doing.

"I could have killed you."

"You almost did! Luckily Harwin arrived on time."

               Harwin was one of my father's guards. Like all the others, he was sent to Riverlands by the Hand of the King and, with a sudden burst of courage, never returned. I don't know him well; I don't know if he had a wife up North. But, if that is the case, it must have been a long time since she accepted his death.

               I now understand why my head is throwing me at this point. I was knocked out. I imagine they lost control and Harwin had to intervene before I fatally injured one of his companions.

               That's where they were all. They were watching me hide in the bushes.

"We wanted to see what it looked like" says Beric.

"Then? Satisfied?"

"Very little, actually. You weren't yourself anymore. You didn't control anything."

"You too" I object. "I never control anything, it's as if I was watching the scene in third person."

"Yet it was you."

               I know that too. Today, as every time my powers wake up, it's for a very specific reason: because someone I love is in danger. On the contrary, when I am in a bad position, I have to fend for myself.

               My fight with Meryn Trant comes to mind. That day, I knew exactly what I was doing. I didn't let my powers dominate me.

"You don't know how to help me..."

"We will find."

"I don't have time, Thoros. I must go to Robb and then back to the capital. People are counting on me."

"You will be even more useful to them once..."

"No, you've done enough."

               I get up and pack up my thin provisions. When they caught me, I was not far from Robb's camp. I lost only one day of walking, I'm still on time.

"You hurt Arrow and almost got yourself killed" I say looking at Beric. "Obviously, you can't help me. So, if you don't mind, let's stop this mess."

"But the Master of Light..."