The Wolf and The Lion || Jaime Lannister

Eighty Three

Rayna

The Long Night has begun.
"Load the trebuchets", I order the soldiers who have remained inside the castle, many of whom are Mormont soldiers also being commanded by Lady Lyanna Mormont.
"It is not too late to go to the crypts", I remind her but she's a stubborn girl.
"I will be on the battlefield with my men", she says firmly "You fought in the Battle of the Bastards, why not now?"
"I'm carrying a child", I tell her much to her surprise but when she sees my stomach there's a moment of clarity "I'm a bit too pregnant to fight on a battlefield"
"And if you weren't would you be on the battlefield?"
"I'd be standing beside my husband on the front lines", I answer honestly "I wanted to fight beside him but I was advised that I'd be best suited elsewhere"
"The crypt?"
"No, I won't be going to the crypt unless we are overrun, I'll be commanding my men from the walls" I inform her "You can do the same"
"No", she insists "I will fight"
I give her a small smile as she walks off to continue ordering her men around. Out of the corner of my eye I see a red figure walking the walls, one who I banished on Davos's request.
I follow her along the wall until she turns to face me.
"Your Grace", Melisandre says greeting me with a polite nod but I do not forget easily.
"If my memory serves me well I banished you for burning Shireen Baratheon alive, for murdering an innocent child"
She only nods "Yes you did, but you need not worry, I'll be dead before the dawn"
An eerie promise. She is the woman who brought Jon back from the dead, there must be truth to her words.
"I thought that you would be standing down there beside your husband", she remarks "I am glad you aren't"
"Why's that?" I ask curiously.
"Because then you wouldn't survive the night, those children growing in you have already saved your life"
"Children?" I ask and she gives me a knowing look.
"Twins", she confirms "A boy for the North and a girl for the South"
The news of twins isn't that surprising, I've suspected it for quite a while due to how quickly I've begun to show but it's the other part that takes me by surprise. A prophecy.
"So we survive?" I ask hopefully and she looks as if she might laugh.
"That is if you survive the Long Night", she says as she begins to continue walking the wall "Be wise, just because you have fought in battle doesn't mean you are a soldier" she pauses before adding "You are a Queen"
And with that she is gone. A boy for the North and a girl for the south. A King in the North but will the girl be simply the Lady of Casterly Rock or far more than I dare contemplate in these dark hours.
I keep a hand on my stomach as I find my way to Sansa and Arya who stand on the walls looking at the scene below. The Bolton crosses are lit but we still cannot see the dead. Thousands of Wildlings and soldiers from the North, the Riverlands, the Vale, the Westerlands and even the Reach stand below. The Ironborn are with Bran and the majority of Daenerys's Dothraki are on the flanks as agreed upon but some still stand on the front lines.
"So this is it", Arya says.
"This is it", I say "Winterfell daughters together to defend our home"
"It's fitting isn't it", Sansa says taking my hand and then I take Arya's.
"It's been quite a life hasn't it?" I reminisce and they both nod "Painful and full of grief that's for sure but in the end the pack survived"
"It hasn't been all bad", Sansa says "It's had its moments"
"Everyone who ever hurt us is dead now", Arya says proudly but her list isn't complete yet.
"Except for one", I remind them "Either way she will die soon, either at our hands or we will march to Kings Landing in the army of the dead and kill her anyways"
We all smile at the thought of that. Knowing that no matter what happens tonight that Cersei will die brings me some joy.
"I thought you'd be with Jaime?" Sansa asks and I look below and see him talking with Brienne.
"I've said my goodbyes", I say quietly "At least I got to marry the man I love before I die"
"That's one moment I can do without", Sansa comments and I give her a small smile.
"There are far worse husbands than Tyrion", I say knowing far too well how awful husbands can be but I haven't been blind to Sansa and Tyrion's affection for each other "You two seemed to be getting rather close again"
The look on her face tells me it's true "Well we were somewhat close in Kingslanding"
I turn to Arya and can't hide my smirk as I comment "And you seemed to be spending a lot of time around the forge"
"So?" she asks but even in the darkness I can see the redness in her cheeks.
"Gendry", I tease and she elbows me lightly.
"Be glad your pregnant", she warns and I can't help but laugh.
"These two certainly have saved me", I say to myself and they both turn to look at me.
"Two!" they both exclaim and I can't hide my smile.
"Twins", I tell them "I suppose I can blame Jaime for that, they certainly run in his family not ours"
"Does he know?" Sansa asks and I shake my head.
"I've suspected for quite a while but it's only just been confirmed, I think poor Jaime will have a heart attack when I tell him considering his own experience as a twin"
We all share a laugh and Arya grips my hand tighter as she swallows hard "Assuming we survive this is there any way you know to prevent a pregnancy"
"Arya!" Sansa and I both exclaim as we turn to look at her and she can't come up with any words to explain herself.
"You and Gendry?" Sansa asks but Arya doesn't need to answer that for us to know.
"If we're alive tomorrow I'll make you something", I offer knowing I was the same age she is when I slept with Jaime "When I was your age I started sleeping with Jaime and well it wasn't a good time to become pregnant, how long has it been since-?"
"A few hours ago", she answers much to Sansa's disgust but I can't help but be amused.
"Well that's one way to spend your last hours" I laugh.
The men below finally finish getting into position and Melisandre catches my eye.
"The Red Woman", Arya comments and from the look in her eye I can see they've become acquainted.
We watch in awe as one by one the Dothraki swords ignite in a wave.
I gawk as a line of Dothraki charge forward and I could excuse it as them going to scout then I shout out in protest when most of the Dothraki on the flanks follow.
"What the fuck are the doing!" I exclaim as they pass the burning crosses "I ordered them not to charge!"
Arya watches on in awe but Sansa gives me a serious look, words are not needed for her to say that we shouldn't have trusted her when she agreed to the plan.
Down below I look for Jaime and see him looking up at me to gauge my response. He didn't know about this either.
I swallow my words until the Dothraki flames extinguish in the distance. They were meant to be on the flanks to contain the dead so the men couldn't become surrounded. Now that's gone to shit and nearly all the Dothraki are dead.
"That fucking fool", I mutter as I hear her dragons in the distance "This is what her pride has gotten her".
A few riders come back and I look on unsurprised by their disravelled state.
"And it's begun", Arya says as we smell them before we see them "You two should go to the crypts"
Sansa nods in agreement but I squeeze both of their hands tightly to keep them here for a moment longer "I will go to the crypts if they look like they will break through", I tell Arya and then I turn to Sansa "Open the door only for me"
Arya hands her a dragonglass knife "Take this"
"I don't know how to use it", she stutters.
"Stick them with the pointy end"
With that she hurries down to the crypts and the battle is about to begin.
"Ready", I order the men operating the trebuchets as I keep an eye on the horizon "When I give the order do not stop no matter what"
"Yes your Grace", one replies and I look over the wall to see Jaime drawing his sword. My eye goes to the lit Bolton crosses. When the dead rush past them I order the artillery to fire.
The rocks fly overhead and I pick up a bow from the wall and load it as Arya does the same, just as when we were young.
My heart stops as the dead collide with the front lines and my eyes desperately search for my husband.
"Rayna", Arya says snapping me out of it and I fire flaming arrows almost blindly into the army of the dead as I search for him. When I finally find him he is fighting harder than I've ever seen him fight and the probabilities and odds of his survival finally hit me. I do my duty and command the artillery and direct the archers while trying not to let him escape my sight.
A startled gasp escapes me as he's knocked down by a wight and I don't hesitate. An arrow lands in his attacker and he pushes the body off  himself and sees me holding a bow.
He returns to his feet and continues commanding the foot soldiers while I command the walls.
Soon they become overwhelmed and I among the other commanders begin screaming at them to retreat inside the walls of Winterfell.
The Mormont soldiers open the gates and they come flooding in bloodied and exhausted.
"She can't see us", Davos yells as he hopelessly waves the torches.
"Light the trenches", I order and all the archers fire but nothing catches until the unsullied make way for Melisandre.
Everyone on the wall stops firing to watch in suspense and then in awe as the trench is lit.
The dead stand uniform and unmoving as the flames burn.
"Keep firing", I order the artillery and the archers and I watch as the rocks continue to crush the dead. Now is not the time to cease fire. Amongst the chaos below I can hear Jaimes voice ordering the men about. He's still alive.
Arya and I share a look as one of the dead men walks into the fire then within moments dozens follow and before any of us can process what's happening they have breached the trenches.
"Man the walls", I hear Jaime screaming at the men and then I feel his hand grab my arm to turn me to face him.
"Rayna", he breathes heavily as he grabs my face with a bloodied hand "You need to go to the crypts"
"The walls still stand", I argue as I clutch his face.
"Not for long"
I look over the edge as I see them beginning to climb up I realise this might indeed be the end.
He wraps an arm around my waist and kisses me roughly and desperately. When he pulls away he grabs my hand and presses a longing kiss against my knuckles.
"I'm not leaving you", I insist as tears burn in my eyes "I love you, I'm not leaving you"
"You promised me", he breathes heavily as the screams of the dead grow louder "I love you now go"
I give him one last desperate kiss that I have to tear myself away from to run to the crypts.
When I reach the door I wipe away the tears that burn in my eyes. I am the Queen, I must appear strong. I can't show worry but my voice betrays me as it cracks when I yell for Sansa to open the door.
"Your Grace whats going on up there", one of the soldiers guarding the door asks.
"They've breached the wall", I answer honestly and I see the fear in their eyes "You are Northmen, you will be brave it is in your blood"
Sansa opens the door and I swallow hard as I walk in and try to quickly compose myself.
They are all silent as the grave.
"Is everyone alright?" I ask and no one makes a sound, they simply nod.
Ghost follows me as I walk towards the back of the crypt and motion for Sansa, Tyrion, Varys, Missandei and Gilly to follow.
"What's happening up there?" Varys asks.
"They've breached the trenches and they are about to breach the walls, Jaime sent me away when they were about to come over the wall", I answer breathlessly.
"Jaimes alive?" Tyrion asks and I nod. He was when I saw him at least.
"Sam?" Gilly asks and I open my mouth to answer but I can't give her one "I'm not sure"
She nods and returns to her son. Missandei hovers and I realise what she's waiting to hear "Greyworm was still alive when I left", I tell her and she returns to the crowd.
"Rayna who's blood is on your cheek?" Sansa asks and I realise it's still warm.
"It came from Jaimes hand", is all I can say, he didn't seem injured but it still could have been his. However there are greater issues at hand than the blood on my cheek.
With Daenerys's closest friend gone I turn to her two advisors.
"The Dothraki charged against my orders", I inform them and I watch their expressions carefully.
"Daenerys said-" Tyrion begins.
"She lied, she has too much pride to let another Queen give her orders", I mutter "We had a solid battle plan that she threw out the window for the sake of her damn pride"
Tyrion looks completely shocked by this but interestingly Varys doesn't look very fazed by this.
"Did you know?" I ask him making him look me in the eye.
"No", he answers "However I wish I could say I was surprised"
Fury burns in me and I wish I could say I felt sympathetic for her but I don't "Now the majority of the Dothraki are dead because of her decision"
A heavy silence follows until Sansa asks "Do you think they'll break into the castle"
"Yes", I confess quietly "They likely already have"
We sit together and it's not long until we hear screams from outside the door, hear the guards screaming for us to let them in. Praying won't save us now.
I should be with Jaime, I should be fighting beside him not sitting here in a crypt where I'm useless. I should have stayed on the wall with him and helped command men but I made that damn promise.
I keep a protective hand over my belly. A boy  for the North and a girl for the South. Melisandre said they would save me but is it really worth it if almost everyone I love is out there possibly dead. Ghost sits at my feet and for the first time tonight I almost feel safe then he begins to growl.
A haunting crack echoes through the crypts. My head snaps to one of the stone coffins.
"The Night King is raising the dead", I yell and the guards rush to the coffins while I grab a torch on the wall "Burn them all, burn every corpse"
I shove a torch into Varys's hand and pull my dagger free, the one Jaime gave me. Valyrian steel.
We had planned for this, the chains on the coffins slow them down but we didn't count on them being able to break through the stone.
"How many are there?", Tyrion asks.
"Several thousands of years worth", I answer.
They quickly exhaust the guards and we ready ourselves. I will not hide or cower. I will fight. Ghost growls as he stands between us and the dead, ready to fight.
Tyrion picks up a sword from a fallen guard and Sansa holds her dragonglass dagger while I ready my own dagger.
This is it.

Jaime

The dead are beginning to dwindle, relief finally seems to come until slowly they rise again.
The dead are rising.
"Rayna", I breathe. The crypt. She doesn't know they are rising. Without a second thought I begin to run to her, fighting my way through the rising dead men until Brienne pulls me back.
"You can't save her", she yells but I pull myself free and keep trying to force my way through. She needs me. Rayna needs me. I should be down there with her, protecting her, I'm no use anywhere else with my men scattered.
I reach the stairwell to the crypt only to find it filled with the dead and I can hear the screams coming all the way from below. She's trapped in there with the dead with no way to escape.
"Rayna", I roar as Brienne grabs me roughly and pulls me away.
"You can't save her", she repeats as she pulls me back from the swarm of the dead that charge towards me.
We find ourselves backed against a wall as we try to escape and our only option is to fight. As I fight all I can see in my mind is Rayna and Tyrion down in that crypt. I have no men left to command but I have people I love I should be protecting.
For hours it feels like we're pinned against that wall fighting for our lives until finally the attacks stop. The dead drop to the ground and I wait for them to rise again but they don't. It's over. It's truly over.
Beside me Brienne and Podrick are panting and beaten up but they are alright.
Men begin to cheer but I don't celebrate. My only thoughts are of my wife and my brother.
I run and clamber over bodies to get to the crypt but there are too many damn bodies in the way.
"Rayna!", I yell as I see people exiting the stairwell shaking and covered in blood "Rayna!"
Finally I see her stumble out clutching her stomach followed by Tyrion and Sansa, wide eyed and looking at the bodies in complete shock. She's alive. She's okay.
"Rayna!", I yell again as I run towards her.
"Jaime", she cries out as she sees me and when I reach her and pull her into my arms she collapses and clings to me to remain standing "Oh gods Jaime"
"Rayna", I breathe cradling her against me thanking every damn god I can think of that she's alive, that she's here.
"Jaime", she cries as she clutches my face and kisses me roughly. When she pulls away her eyes are wide with fear.
"Bran and Theon", she gasps as she let's go off me and half runs-half stumbles towards the godswood.

Rayna

Jaime chases after me as I run to the godswood. Theon, Bran. My brothers. If the Night Kings dead they might have lived. Hope swells in my but when the Weirwood tree comes into view only one person is standing.
Arya. Then behind her sits Bran in his wheelchair. Surrounding them are the bodies of the Ironborn.
A sob hitches in my throat and comes out as a silent scream as I stumble forward and see Theons body. Jaime catches me as I fall to the ground in hysterics.
Theon died protecting Winterfell, protecting a Stark. I knew in my gut he wouldn't love to see the dawn but gods.
"Rayna, sweetheart", Jaime whispers as he holds me and when my eyes open I look over his shoulder to see Jon embracing Sansa and Arya.
"The pack survives", Sansa smiles.
"Not all of us", I mumble quietly as my eyes become fixed on Theons body. Another brother lost. When I regain my wits I look at Arya who holds her Valyrian Steel dagger "What happened?"
"She killed the Night King", Bran answers as dawn rises.