Winter Huntress

Prologue

Let me tell you a story of winter.....I began a once upon a time...

It has been almost 9 months since the war. Ned had brought home his sister's bones and her babe, whom he claimed as his illegitimate child. Since then, Ned and Caityln Tully, who is now Stark and is also his wife, have barely exchanged words. Their conversations were minimal, and the adjustment period had been incredibly rough.

In the world of Westeros, Ned Stark named his niece Lyanna's daughter Alyanna as a tribute to her mother's legacy and also to honor her Targaryen ancestry. Alyanna bore the beauty of both houses, with hair resembling dragon glass, eyes reminiscent of the Stark's grey-blue, and fair skin that reflected her Valyrian lineage. Many believed Alyanna to be the reincarnation of her mother, Lyanna.

In addition to Alyanna, Ned had a son named Robb with his wife, Catelyn. Robb inherited the Tully coloring, but his hair was darker, and he had his mother's distinctive river-blue eyes. Though he bore the Tully traits, Robb also possessed the features of the Starks, such as their nose, eye shape, and mouth.

Alyanna and Robb shared an unbreakable bond, refusing to be parted from each other. It required significant persuasion from Ned to convince Catelyn to allow the two to sleep in the same nursery.

Ned and Lady Catelyn had finally reached a point where they were able to share a bed after months of only exchanging minimal words. On this particularly cold night in the North, the nursery was kept warm as the two "siblings" huddled closely, seeking comfort and warmth from each other.

As the night wore on and the guards made their rounds, an unusual sight could be seen high in the branches of the Weirwood - an owl made entirely of ice. This icy owl observed from its perch before taking flight and heading towards Winterfell's nursery.

Upon reaching the closed window, the ice owl seemed to trigger a strange transformation. Ice crept across the wooden frame, causing it to become brittle and eventually crumble at the slightest touch. The owl then glided into the nursery and perched itself on the crib, where Robb and Alyanna lay fast asleep.

Robb was sleeping, but Alyanna awoke. Alyanna stared at the crystal bird with curiosity....

Meanwhile, Benjen Stark was preparing to leave Winterfell. He only stayed for nine months to help Ned with Alyanna and watch her. Now, Benjen was ready to leave for the Watch. While he was packing, he felt something....at first it felt cold as the snow, but....dark. not evil but angery and hurt.

Benjen instincts told him to check on his niece and nephew. He grabbed his sword and ran towards the nursery. Benjen ran like the the Stranger on his tail causing guards to sound the alert and wake Lord and Lady Stark!

Meanwhile, the icy owl had baby Alyanna wrapped tightly in a blanket. The owl lifted her in its beak when Benjen arrived. He try to get in, but the door knob was frozen over. He yelled orders to bust the door open when guards arrived. Ned arrived with Caityln as they tried to bust the door down.

Caityln going on a wild mother inscent, grabbed an axe from the wall and began to hit the door! They managed to get it open when they saw the owl! The owl with Alyanna in its beaks escaped! "NO!" Ned cried out, and tried to grab the last remaining piece of his sister, was too late!

Within days, all Northern Houses helped in the effort to find the missing girl. When news reaches Kingslanding,  King Robert sends his best knight and he, himself, joins in the search.

But it was all in for nots, for they found no trace of the babe or the ice owl. Some say that the Cold God was the one who sent it or a witch, but in the far north, beyond the Wall, beyond the mountain peaks, was a fortress made with good and ice.

In a chamber in the fortress, a woman with snow-white hair, pale skin, with icy blue eyes stood holding baby Alyanna. "Shh, it's alright, mother is here."She said, rocking Alyanna as was being smooth."No one will ever take you away from again, not the Dragons or ||||||||" She said speaking of a name in an ancient language, that only the Children of the Forest and the First Man could understand.

Soon a man in a huntsman outfit, with black hair and scars on his face enters the chamber."My lady Freya, we managed to grab more of the Free Folk children."He said, making Lady Freya smile, "Good, come my darling, more of your "siblings" await us."She said as she held her baby close to her, walking out to a balcony. There's before thousands upon thousands of people, e train, most of the children but others are people w have o been here for a generation."Soon, all those who took and hurt us shall know the true meaning of cold."She says, holding baby Alyanna close