The Wars to Come - J.S.

24 - WAR

— eastwatch —

"I have to go back for him." Aurora argues as she readies a horse. After they had all taken some time to check over everyone that went on the expedition, Jorah then told Aurora that it was time for them to go. 

She had only disagreed on the location, instead preparing her horse to go beyond the wall while Jorah had wanted her to get on the ship. 

"Aurora, you can't."

"It's too dangerous." 

"What if the army is still nearby?"

Her friends voices mix together as they all try to convince her not to ride out beyond the wall to find Jon.

She turns on her heel and throws her arms down in exasperation, "I don't care about any of that, all I care about is finding Jon." she snaps.

"What are you expecting to find?" Ser Davos asks as he steps closer to her. His voice quiet, so only she can hear.

"I don't know. All I know is if it were me out there, Jon would already be out looking for me. But here I am wasting time arguing." she answers her voice choking up as she speaks.

Daenerys and Jorah have matching sympathetic looks on their faces as they listen to Aurora. They know then that they can't stop her from doing what she is about to do.

And just as they are prepared to let her walk through the gates to the other side, a horn sounds from atop the wall. They all look up, waiting for a second or third blast, but it is only one.

"Jon." the Mormont girl whispers as she runs to the gates and once they are open, runs through them to the other side of the wall. 

She runs until she reaches him, slumped over on the back of a horse, looking like he is barely alive.

"Jon!"what was meant to be an excited yell comes out as a strangled cry, her joy overtakes her mixing with her overwhelming fear. Fear that he wouldn't come back, fear that he may have been dead. But he is alive. And his eyes flutter shut with one last image of her tear stained face. 

—

When his eyes open again the first thing he feels is the cold. Then the feather bed beneath him. Then the hand squeezing his own.

"Aurora." he whispers as his eyes settle on her face.

A sad smile appears on her lips as she meets his eyes.

"Why couldn't you just get on the dragon?" she asks.

A chuckle comes out of his mouth before it turns into a cough, she reaches for him to help but he grabs her hand again instead, and when he stops coughing he smiles at her.

"Don't make me laugh."

"Sorry." she replies sheepishly. And then she turns serious, "There were so many of them, Jon. How are we going to beat that?" 

He shakes his head, "I don't know."

—

On the way to King's Landing for the meeting with Cersei, Aurora gets her turn to scold Jon about staying in bed. 

"You need to rest, we need you for this meeting and you need all the strength you can get." she says as she gently pushes him down to the pillows.

He frowns and opens his mouth to argue back but one look from Aurora silences him. He thinks of how Jeor Mormont could silence anyone with a look, and how Aurora must have learned that intimidating stare from her father.