Of Lions, Wolves, and Dragons (Jon Snow)

52. Knights of the Vale

When they could no longer hear the sound of the men marching toward battle, Joellyn turned her attention back to the people she was with and saw three sets of eyes looking at her expectantly.  That moment was really the first time she realized the gravity of Jon telling the other women that she would be able to get them to safety.  Jon had left her in charge of making sure that his sister, Lyanna, and Melisandre stayed safe, and they were waiting for her to make a decision and do something.  The weight of that responsibility hit her as she mumbled to herself, "Well, shit."

Sansa seemed surprised by Joellyn's language, and asked, "What is it, Joellyn?"

Joellyn put her head in her hands for a moment and took a deep breath before looking back at them and saying, "I guess I just realized that Jon is trusting me with your safety.  I hadn't truly thought about it that way until now."

Sansa went to speak, but Melisandre spoke first, "Lady Joellyn, Jon Snow would not have left you in charge if you were not capable."  It surprised Joellyn that Melisandre was the first to say something.  She'd never really had a conversation with her.  In fact, Melisandre made her uncomfortable.  Melisandre and her blood magic were the reason that Renly was dead.  On the other hand, Melisandre had been the one to bring Jon back to life.  It scared Joellyn because she didn't really know what Melisandre was capable of, nor where she truly put her allegiance.

Joellyn chose to be polite, though, and thanked her before thinking about their options on what they could do.  Once Jon and the rest of the men arrived outside of Winterfell, Ramsay would know that they had left their women behind and undefended at the camp.  It was very likely that he would send a few of his men to try to capture them and use them as tools for negotiation to end the battle, so she wanted to be prepared for that.  She also didn't really know where to turn to if they lost.  They could go to the Wall, but there was really no one there that they were connected to if Jon was gone.  The only real option she could see was going to Dragonstone.  She didn't know Daenerys Targareyn, nor did she really know anything about the Dragon Queen, but Joellyn knew that Tyrion, Robb, many of Dorne's soliders, and many of the Tyrell soliders would be with her.  But Joellyn  hoped that Tyrion and Robb would be enough to convince Daenerys to trust them.

Joellyn took a deep breath again and looked back at Sansa, Lyanna, and Melisandre and said, "My first concern is our safety during the battle.  Ramsay will know that we're here without the men with us."

Sansa's face turned almost white when Joellyn said this, and Sansa stated, "And if he sent a few men after us, he knows it wouldn't hurt his chances of victory.  We're defenseless."

Joellyn shook her head and counterd, "We're not defenseless.  I can probably take care of a few men as long as we hide well and are not out in the open."

Lyanna smiled at Joellyn and raised an eyebrow as she said, "You can fight?  You're full of surprises, Lady Martell."

Joellyn shook her head again and said, "It's nothing spectacular.  If there are more than a few men, there won't be anything that I can do," then turned to Melisandre and asked, "Would you be able to do anything?"

Melisandre shrugged and said, "I can only do what the Lord of Light wills.  If it is in his will to protect us, I will be able to help you.  If not, nothing will be able to stop Bolton's men."

Joellyn didn't feel comforted by Melisandre's words, but passed over them for now and said, "Another issue is how we will know we need to escape, if it comes down to it.  I don't want us to split up."

The other's nodded in agreement and silence settled over them for a moment as Joellyn thought some more.  She thought back to their journey from the encampment to Winterfell yesterday to try to think if there were any places that would provide enough cover for them to stay hidden, but would allow them to see if their men were going to lose the battle.  She ended up asking Sansa, "Do you know of anywhere between here and Winterfell that we would be able to take shelter?  Any place that we could be hidden, but still know how the battle is going?"