Lannister Blood

12 - The Rains of Castamere

The voice is carried away in the loud chatter and the clanging of metal, so much so that I think I've hallucinated it altogether. My father's song begins to fade and it's then that I see, through the fishermen and merchants, the shape of his stance, the small curls of his hair, the fullness of his beard; but he isn't looking at me. He's talking to the same fisherman I saw in my vision, shaking his hand and giving him wrapped fish. The whiteness of his scar appears to gleam in the sunlight. The merchant Braavosi attire fits his form as if he's lived here his entire life. He's dressed in a mixture of charcoal grey and deep purple. They look comfortable and warm against the crisp wind that constantly moves throughout the clustered parts of the city.

The tanned color of his skin, the slight flush in his cheeks; it makes my heart swell with joy. It means he's alive. It wasn't just a dream. It wasn't all in my mind. I didn't come to Braavos on a false hope.

He's here. He's alive.

I realize the voice must have been my imagination because he hasn't seen me. Not yet. And why does the thought of him looking upon me after all this time bring me such hesitation? For the first time since I arrived at the House of Black and White, I'm scared. So much has happened. So much hatred and loss. What does he remember? Has he chosen to forget?

I'm about to step back into the shadows but it's too late. A strange look comes over Robb's face, making his eyebrows furrow. He looks up, eyeing those around him, and then his focus finds me. It's an expression of confusion, as if he's trying to put together the pieces of a strange riddle.

He doesn't know me. And yet, he feels as though he does.

Grey Wind shifts in front of me, a low howl escaping through slightly opened jaws. Robb locks eyes with him and something visibly changes. His face turns to stone, a haze lifting from his eyes. As slow as a drifting ship, Robb touches the scar around his neck. His eyes glisten with tears but his face remains hard. Then, before I can react, Grey Wind charges at him through the crowd, a heartbreaking howl causing many to turn towards the ruckus and jump out of the wolf's way.

Robb comes out of his stand and falls to his knees, embracing his forever lost friend. His face lights up in a way that breaks my heart. It's the face of someone who has lost everything, just to realize he has one thing left. One thing that shows him he's not as alone as he believed he was. The disbelief overcoming him is almost too much as Grey Wind licks the tears off his master's face. Then, as Grey Wind nuzzles into his stomach, Robb finds me in the crowd again. His smile fades into a grim line.

I realize I haven't moved, too dazed by the scene playing out in front of me. Someone bumps roughly into my arm, causing me to break my stare. By the time I gather my bearings, Robb is leading Grey Wind into the cracked, grey building, barely glancing over his shoulder in the process.

I will my feet to move. I can't lose him. Either of them. Not now. Not when I've come so far. After all the unspeakable things I've done.

After what I did to Jallen.

I move with haste ducking under a rope before reaching the closed door. As I ease the door open, I quickly take in the surroundings as I've been trained. The place appears to be abandoned, used for storing merchant goods while the marketplace is open and busy. There are empty crates as well as barrels with half-full unperishable goods. Then I see Grey Wind sitting in the far center and all I can think about is finding Robb.

That's how he gets the jump on me so easily.

He pushes me roughly against the stone wall behind me, brandishing a blade at my throat. My first instinct is to bring to my elbow to his chin and disarm him, but all I can do is look into his stunning blue eyes. The eyes I never thought I'd get to see again.