Chapter 17 - Part I

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Author's Note: Hello! This fic is back and the chapter is pretty long (almost 10,000 words) so I've broken it into two parts.

Friendly reminder that in this alternate universe, Jon is the product of an affair Ned had while married to Catelyn. Additionally, the Stark family doesn't include Robb. If you remember, Robb is Jon's friend who lives in NYC – as noted in Chapter 6 when Jon attended his bachelor party. Why, you ask? Basically, I started writing this story on the fly without a real outline and I never expected it to go this far, so please bear with me!

Stark kid ages for the purpose of this story: Sansa (18), Arya (15), Bran (14), Rickon (8)

Dany's stomach fluttered with nervous anticipation as she and Jon pulled up to the Stark residence

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Dany's stomach fluttered with nervous anticipation as she and Jon pulled up to the Stark residence. They had flown into St. Louis International Airport only hours earlier before renting a car and making the long drive out to the small, rural town of Kimmswick, Missouri. The house was bigger than she'd expected, a sprawling three-story country home with a red brick exterior, white trim, and black shutters. It sat on acres of gorgeous farmland and featured a beautiful grove of oak trees as well as a small pond.

"Wow," Dany gasped, looking around as she stepped out of the blue sedan. "This place is incredible!"

"It does have its perks," Jon said dryly. He pulled their luggage out of the trunk and they made their way up to the house, walking along a cobblestone walkway dotted with flowers of every hue. "Nervous?" he asked, looking over at her.

"A bit," Dany admitted. She was well aware of Jon's rocky relationship with his family. He'd been treated cruelly as a child and made to feel as if he was an outsider who didn't belong. Coming back to this place after so many years was a huge step and she was more than proud of him for taking it. She just couldn't shake the small, nagging feeling that everything was about to blow up in their faces.

"Here we go," Jon said, once they'd reached the front door. Blowing out a nervous puff of breath, he rang the bell. They were greeted at once by the sound of howling dogs and, a few seconds later, the door swung open to reveal a tall, middle-aged man who was the spitting image of Jon aside from the streaks of grey at his temples.

"Jon! It's so good to see you!" Ned exclaimed, wrapping his arms around him.

"It's good to see you, too, Dad!"

"And you must be Dany, my soon to be daughter-in-law." Ned gave her a warm hug. "Welcome to the family, darling!"

"Thank you. It's so nice to finally meet you," Dany replied with a smile.

"Now, we do have dogs," Ned said, in a warning tone. "Three of them, to be exact, Siberian Huskies. You're not afraid of dogs, are you?"

Dany laughed. "No way! I grew up with dogs, I love them!"

"Wonderful! Well, don't just stand there, come on in!" Ned said, leading them inside. "Cat! Kids! They're here!" he bellowed as a chorus of stamping feet sounded throughout the house.

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