Winter Is Our Fury

Chapter Twenty Seven: The Blackfish

"The King in the North! The King in the North!"

Voices chanted and echoed through the trees. The winds howled and moaned carrying the voices. Aris walked through the tree's, the leaves crunching under her bare feet as she walked.

"The King in the North! The King in the North!"

The voices continued. A terrible feeling swelled inside of Aris, so terrible it made her want to throw up. She would be running, crying and tripping over. Other times she was walking peacefully. 

Aris came to a large river, one she recognised as The Green Fork of the River Trident... ahead was The Twins. Aris looked into the water to find her reflection wasn't her, but a wolf. Duchess.

"The King in the North! The King in the North!"

The voices chanted and suddenly Aris found herself before Walder Frey in the great hall. She stumbled back seeing the old man smiling wickedly from his chair at the long table. Her foot hit something and she turned to find Robb's body at her feet beside Talisa and her mother. Their eyes all lifeless and wide open.

She opened her mouth to scream but no sound came out. An arm extended around her and her throat was slit.

Aris jumped awake in a cold sweat and a small scream escaped her mouth. She was met with the low burning fire and the sleeping faces of her companions. She swallowed the bile in her throat and took in deep breaths.

She wiped the sweat from her forehead on her sleeve and buried her face in her hands. Wyllim stirred beside her, "Are you alright?" he whispered.

"No." she whispered back. "I had a horrible dream."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Aris shook her head tiredly and rubbed her eyes. They had rode for days, occasionally stopping for a break or to sleep. Randyl still refused to speak a single work over the course of the next few days. Jelissa and Aris continued to train whenever they got the chance, but Aris' gown was getting in the way.

"It might be helpful one day." suggested Jelissa. "Training in a dress might save your life."

No matter how fast Aris learnt Jelissa's tricks, she presented her with a new trick adding onto the bruises and cuts she already received. Even when they were riding, Aris would practice flipping daggers and twirling them in her hands and through her fingers, occasionally dropping them and having to climb off the horse to retrieve them, so she walked.

"The King in the North! The King in the North!" voices would continue to chant in her dreams. Even when she was running free through the trees with the wind in her hair, the voices would chant. "The King in the North! The King in the North!" 

But tonight was different. Instead of stumbling through the great hall in The Twins and finding her mother and Robb dead, she was stumbling through snow.

Blood drops guided her through the snow covered ground and trees. Her breath hot against the cold winter air. She continued to follow the blood trail until it led her to a pile of bodies in the snow. Amongst them was her father, her mother, Bran, Rickon, Arya, Sansa, Jon, and even Talisa.

All piled on top of each other with each of their wolves. All eyes wide and struck with fear. Atop of the pile was Robb, except his wolfs head was mounted on his shoulders. The wolf's eyes shone a deep red and snarled it's teeth like he was alive.

"The King in the North! The King in the North!" the voices chanted with the breeze of the wind. Aris looked down to soon realise her own body lay amongst the pile. Her own face stared up at her, fear plastered on her face. "The King in the North! The King in the North!"