Ella Snow and her twin brother are outsiders in the house of their father, Lord Eddard Stark. Ella has no one else in the world, except her brother Jon. Join Ella on her journey as she uncovers truths that could destroy her and those she loves.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Ella found herself in the courtyard of Castle Black a few days after the attack. She dressed in her very best black dress and cloak, to pay respects to the men who have their lives defending the Wall. Fifty souls were lost that night, including Pyp and Grenn. Repairs to the castle already began, and the brothers of the Watch were gathered to say farewell to their dead.
Jon went beyond the Wall the morning after the attack to negotiate with Mance Rayder. Jon told Ella all Mance wanted was for his people to travel South of the Wall, before the White Walkers come. Before Jon and Mance reached a truce, Stannis Baratheon rode through the Northern gate and attacked Mance's people. Mance himself was captured and taken prisoner by Stannis. Ella wondered why the Lord of Dragonstone found himself so far away from home, but Jon refused to answer. Ella swore she would get to the bottom of it by the end of the day.
"They came to us from White Harbor, from Fairmarket and Lannisport, all the way to King's Landing. From North and South. From East and West." Maester Aemon's words echoed above the Northern winds as he stood on the balcony overlooking the courtyard of Castle Black. "They died protecting men, women, and children who will never know their names. Tis for all of us to remember them. Our brothers, who shall never see their life again."
"And now their watch has ended," the brother of the Night's Watch said in unison.
"And now their watch has ended," Maester Aemon repeated slowly.
The old maester was led down the staircase by Sam. The Tarly boy passed Maester Aemon a torch, lighting one end of the pyre, before passing it to Sam to light the pyre and so on. Ella stood back as black smoke rose into the sky, butting the bodies of the men who fell during battle. Ella felt eyes on her, causing her to look from the flames. Across the courtyard, her eyes landed on a woman dressed in red. The woman kept her eyes on Ella as the flames rose higher and higher. Ella shivered under her state and turned away. The small girl slipped out of the courtyard undetected and dashed to the dungeons.
She entered the creaky room and found Tormund sitting in the corner. Ella slipped off her cloak and placed it on an empty chair by the door. She walked slowly to the wildling man, frowning as she saw chains binding his wrists and feet. Tormund looked over Ella, noticing the scar on her neck as her brown hair was tied behind her head in its signature braid. The girl sat on her knees and folded her hands together in her lap.
"You're wearing crow black," he grunted. "And a dress."
"It's expected for women South of the Wall to dress properly " she said. "Even bastards."
Tormund looked into Ella's eyes, noticing the blue becoming more prominent in the poorly lit room. "The old man patched me up. Why?" He wanted to know why the old fool would bother saving his life after he ended several lives of men protecting the Wall.
"Maester Aemon is sworn to treat everyone. Friend or foe." Ella replied.
"They keeping me alive to torture me?"
"No one is going to torture you," Ella spoke. "They just want to question you."
"How do your brother and his crow friends plan on killing me?" He asked. "You already shot me once, hoping to kill me. That didn't work. What'll it be this time? Hanging? Beheading? Dropping me from the top of the Wall?"
"I wasn't trying to kill you, Tormund. I was trying to stop you from harming yourself or anyone else," Ella sighed. "Besides, I don't know what they will do with prisoners."
"Who decides that?" Tormund huffed. "That man posing as king?"
"I suppose Ser Alliser, though he is still injured. And he really isn't in charge here, to be honest. So again, I am not sure. And Stannis is no king." Ella stated. "My brother Robb is King in the North. If anything, he would be the one to decide."
"The dead one?" Tormund said. "He can't make decisions from the grave."
"What are you-" Ella was interrupted by the sound of the door opening and closing. She turned to see Jon walk in.
"Any word from your new king?" Tormund asked as Jon came to a halt.
Ella stood to her feel, looking her brother in the eye. "What is he talking about?" She questioned her brother.
"Stannis," Jon sighed.
"Stannis is not the King here," Ella stated. "Robb is. Why is Stannis here and not Robb?"
"Ella, now is not the time for this," Jon huffed.
"Of course it is!" Ella said. "Robb should be here. The North is his home. He should be here defending the North from the wildlings with us, not Stannis. That Baratheon fool has no right to be here."
"He actually does, Ella," Jon whispered. She could tell her brother was keeping something from her.
"What are you not telling me?" Ella questioned her brother. "You're hiding something from me, Jon, and I want to know what it is. Is Robb hurt? Is it Sansa? Or Arya? If they're hurt we need to go to them! I can't waste time here if one of our siblings needs our help!"
"Robb's dead!" Jon shouted. "You can't help him because he no longer breathes!"
"What?" Ella said, taken aback. "What do you mean he's dead?"
"He's not breathing. His heart doesn't beat anymore. He's gone from this world, and he's been gone. And he isn't coming back!" Jon yelled in Ella's face.
Ella stumbled back, falling to the floor. "When?" She asked. "When did you find this out?"
Jon told Ella the whole story, of his betrayal to Walder Frey. How the Starks were invited into his home for the Red Wedding. How Robb's wife was stabbed in the belly, killing her and their unborn child. How Catelyn Stark's throat was cut down to the bone and tossed in the river. How their brother Robb was stabbed in the heart by Roose Bolton. And how they ripped Greywind's head from his body and sewed it to Robb's.
Tears trickled down Ella's face as Jon finished. Sansa was no longer in King's Landing, and Arya had not been seen in a couple of years. Every Stark was now dead, and Jon and Ella were the last ones.
Ella felt bile rise in the throat as she thought of her siblings, all rotting now and not breathing. Not walking the earth anymore. Ella stood from the ground and threw up the contents of her stomach bucket. She heaved several times, until there was nothing left. She wiped her mouth with her hands and walked back to Jon, looking him dead in the eye.
"How long have you known?" Ella asked her brother.
"Ella," Jon breathed.
"How long?" Ella repeated through gritted teeth.
Jon sighed, then exhaled. "Since I got back to Castle Black at the last full moon."
"The last full moon?" Ella raised her voice, her hands trembling as she yelled at her brother. "You've known for this long, and you weren't going to tell me?"
"I was going to tell you, El!" Jon yelled. "But you've been screwed up since Father died that I thought it would send you over the edge!"
"Messed up?" Ella repeated . "You think I'm messed up? You think my mind is twisted, and I'm just a fragile little girl who can't handle anything?"
"Ella, that's not what I meant," he sighed.
Ella stated her hand back and smacked Jon across the face. Hard. "I'm not fragile, you idiot. I've just seen a lot of messed up shit in my life! I've handled abuse from my father's wife. I had a boy for in my arms! I've killed people, Jon! I've done things I never dreamed of!"
Jon attempted to speak before Ella stomped on his foot. He cowered in pain as his sister swept past him. Ella dashed to her room, slamming the door behind her. She cleaned her face from the tears and stood straight. Ella was at her breaking point, and had no clue how to move forward. All the pain Ella once felt flooded her again, and she couldn't take it anymore. She needed to escape
