Ravellaarryns​:

location: white harbor, the north

it had not been that long since she had seen her family last, only a few months. but to her it felt like forever. over the past ten years of the war she barely had ever left the vale, for safety sake. and during that time she had her family by her side. and most of that time was spent with her sister as their brothers left to fight in their own ways. 

first arriving in the north she felt lost without having them by her side. rodrik was there for her, along with the other stark siblings but it took some time to adjust. and even still there were times she doubted herself and her place in the north.

 rosa had asked that the moment word came that the party from the vale had arrived that she be notified. her heart fluttered every time someone walked down the halls, expecting news to arrive. the moment the fresh-faced maid stuck her head into the room to give her the news, rosa had tossed her book aside and hurried out the door.

 "your majesty, please be careful!" her maid called after her. all of the staff were more cautious around her the past few weeks now that her stomach had begun to swell. the bump just barely visible under the dark navy dress she wore and the large cloak to keep her warm.

 racing down the white stone halls of new castle, she turned the corner into the main entrance. there she could spot the familiar raven-colored hair of her sister. "ravella!" she called out over the crowd, a smile on the young queen's face. she felt giddy, like a child once more as she bounded her way across the hall towards her. she gave little care to who else was there or watching as she threw her arms around her sister. "you made it here safe. i am so happy to see you."

@ravellaarryns

mereyagrafton​:

Who: @rosaaaryn​  Where: Barrowtown 

“Your grace, how are you? I had wanted to have a chance to speak to you earlier but I presumed you might be overwhelmed with all that has taken place as of recent.” Mereya approached the redheaded queen of the North. She felt it important to show her kindness to more of the noble ladies surrounding her in Barrowtown, especially with her sister seemingly being a traitor. She wanted to show she was anything but. 

.

there were few places that rosa had gone to beyond the stark’s housing since the storm hit. given she seemed to be growing bigger and bigger each day and safety was of torrhen’s utmost concern at the moment. but a quick trip to barrowhall was all she needed to make, and her guards were sure to stay close by her side throughout the entire journey.

rosa was preparing to leave soon when she heard a voice call over towards her. mereya grafton. not much about her had come her way since the arrival of her brother and her. she knew all about her family though. she may be queen of the north now but she was still very protective of the eyrie and her family. it seemed however for now mereya was on the side of the arryns….for now. “lady grafton. i am doing well, thank you for asking. unfortunately, it seems that life is busy for most of us. however, with the safe return of everyone, we can all hope that things are getting better. i was going to go for a short walk in the halls, stretch my legs a bit. the maesters say it’s good for the baby and also helps from going a bit stir crazy with the storm.” she said with a slight laugh. “how have you been?”

gcuienveres​:

♕

was it something she was willing to simply let slip through her fingers as though it were merely sand upon the shores of the sunset sea; if she closed her eyes she could just about hear the distant sounds of the oceans might and wrath hitting the rocks, and it was enough to momentarily cool her off from whatever strange feelings seemed to be swirling deep within her gut. feelings of being outcasted, feelings of being slighted and the great swelling pride that seemed to burn and burn in response to such actions; for a moment she wished she could be beneath the waves once again, thoughts being drowned out by the thunderous sound of everything else around her. 

she wanted her mind to stop, she wanted her heart to stop burning as though she held a vengeance for all around her, she wanted her tongue to stop feeling as though it were a blade able and ready to hurt those around her; she knew not what dark thoughts were swirling in her mind that were causing her to lash out at those around her, and yet she felt as though she could not voice it. only pace, and hide in the grass as she locked emerald orbs upon her next prey; and rip to shreds the confidence those she believed had been some part of her very public undoing. “get to know me?” guinevere asked, any sense of the taunting, bitchy smile that had sat upon her lips completely draining - gods, what was there left to get to know when she didn’t even know who she was at this point in this life? even her name, her name was enough of a question mark that she found herself hesitating before she signed off letters. 

“trying…what you could.” her voice suddenly snapped, as though a spark of fire had suddenly rooted itself deep within her; all she could hear were excuses for the incompetence the starks had shown in their control of that night, and how she had nearly lost her life for it. instead, she had ended up being publicly shamed, stripped of her titles, and treated as though she were nothing but a common whore. “if you expect me to sit and wrap you up in blankets, tell you that you done your best, you’re very much misguided. it was not enough, and the consequences for that remain. how do you expect me to respect you, when your own men did not that night?”

“we are not family.” she spoke, resting her hands upon the her golden skirts, reflecting slightly in the crackling hearth of the fire, her tone inherently dismissive as though she were speaking to a little girl that continued to believe in fantasies and mythical tales, a harsh quip of realism. “just because i’ve somehow ended up making this choice, know i do not consider you kin, and never will.” her tone implied a scathing sense of regret, of doubt, on the choices that had led to her to this point in her life. "you were not the only one who nearly lost your life as a result of doing nothing that night.“ she almost hissed, a sense of icy anger sitting within her as she felt the urge to complete throw aside all rosalyn had put the effort into setting up on the table sat between them. “are you planning on taking any responsibility for that, or am i wasting more of my time?”

.

this was the woman her brother had chosen to marry? who he had put so much in danger for? for someone so cruel and uncaring. how could he have ever chosen someone like this? unless he might be unaware of what was lurking behind that beautiful blonde curls of hers. behind the kind smile she must have given him. her heart ached to think about what was to come if the queen of the vale was to be so heartless. gods her sister was right. here she had just thought ravella was exaggerating the terrible things that were to come with this marriage but maybe she was right.

“you somehow made this choice? my brother loves you, more than anyone else i have ever seen. he has given his whole heart to you and you are telling me you somehow made this choice? like it or not we are family as you choose to marry an arryn. you do not get to so cruelly throw that back in my face.” her heart was racing now. this was worse than any other time she had to face a heartless lady of the court. having to face their bullying and harsh words. gwen had stabbed her and was twisting the knife with her words. it took all her effort to keep herself composed. to fight back tears that wanted to pool down her face. how could anyone say such vicious things to someone else?

“enough.” rosa’s voice held with a strength unusual for the new queen. “i believe it is time for you to go back to the vale housing.” the northern queen stood up from her chair, her head held high as she looked at her brother’s new wife. “thank you for joining me here today, your grace. i will be sure to let my brother know we were able to meet. i am sure he will be curious to know. good day.” 

keep composed rosa. keep composed. she repeated it over and over again in her head. she would not let her dignity walk out that door along with her good sister. she waited until guinevere lannsiter was out of her chambers before she turned to face the window. “please leave me.” she told the handmaidens who were around. once she was sure they were gone she let the tears fall from her eyes. her hands clasped tightly over her mouth, so no sound could escape. there was only the light crackling of fire, and the muffled sobs of rosalyn stark. she did not wish for anyone to know how much the words had affected her. how they would eat away at the confidence she had only just begun to build for herself. but the queen of the north had to remain strong in these times.

 but she did not cry just for herself, but cried for the vale. for her brother. for her family. she could feel her heart breaking for them.

-end-

location: winterfell, during the break

@starkwhitewolf​

a strange quiet had filled her bedroom. the midwives had all gone for the night, giving the new mother some time to rest. her dear sister had left to get some much needed sleep after being by rosa’s side from the start of all of this. she couldn’t thank her enough for everything she had done for her that night. she had been afraid she nearly broke her sister’s hand from how tightly she had squeezed it at times. but all of it was worth it for the little sleeping bundle in her arms.

for the first time, she was alone with her son. the small babe swaddled and sleeping soundly in her arms. he was perfect. more than perfect if that was even possible to be.  gods knew she could sit here for hours just staring at him sleeping, wondering how all of this was real. wondering if she had gotten so lucky to have brought such a wonderful boy into this world. 

she recognized the sounds of her husband’s footsteps approaching down the halls, and the soft creaking of the door. looking up at him, she couldn’t help but smile. she knew he was going to be a great father as much as he was a great husband, and a great king. “gods, i am so lucky.” she said softly thinking about all she had been blessed with. “he is asleep.” she said, rocking their son gently.

A E G O N    T A R G A R Y E N

“the fire had been put out, ten years had passed in a flash, and aegon was only ‘home’ for a few days, before he was to sail back to braavos. ”

penned by L

@facelesstargaryen

BETROTHAL ANNOUNCEMENT:

the king of the vale has graciously permitted the king of winter to take his dear sister princess rosalyn arryn’s hand in marriage. 

@rosaaaryn + @rodrikofwinter

location, rosa’s chambers, barrowtown

butterflies fluttered in her stomach as she waited for her guest to arrive. she really hoped this was going to be a good idea and that she wasn’t going to just make things worse or mess it up. ‘no’ she kept reassuring herself, ‘this would be good.’

when one of her handmaidens let her know there was knock on the door, rosa took in a deep breath before she opened it. she smiled seeing the new blonde hair queen of the vale.

“your grace, thank you for coming all the way over here. i hope it wasn’t too difficult with the storm happening. just in case i set us up near the fireplace, i don’t know about you but this storm is freezing me to my bones.” rosalyn took her seat near the fire, although a bit slower nowadays. she motioned for gwen to come and join her, nerves still rushing through her.

“i wanted to invite you here as a welcome to the arryn family. i can only imagine that the welcome into the family was not what you pictured it to be and i am sorry for that. but i wanted to personally have this moment to welcome you in. i know we are not in the vale and i now live far away but i tried my best to bring a little of the eyrie here.” 

standing up she grabbed a tray of food and brought it back to the table. she had adorned it with small pieces of home. blue fabric, a small bird carved of stone and other various items. “one of my handmaidens came with me from the eyrie and is an amazing cook. she helped to make some things from home.” rosa said pointing out the various small cakes and other treats she had enjoyed in her time in the vale. “it’s a small piece of home,  i suppose. oh! i almost forgot my favorite thing. a special tea from the vale as well. would you like some?” she asked picking up the small kettle. the queen wondered if maybe she had gone a little overboard but everyone deserved to feel welcome in their new home. 

@gcuienveres​

it was clear the wedding party was going to go deep into the night. it seemed like everyone was ready for a night of drinking and partying before what was going to lie ahead of them. and while rosalyn had enjoyed her time of merriment with everyone else, she was also happy to sneak away for a bit. holding onto the arm of her now husband the two of them walked the halls of the castle. butterflies filling her stomach once more as they walked alone together. no more need of a chaperon to keep a watchful eye on the couple. they were married which afforded them a little more privacy, which was both relieving but also caused the butterflies to flutter in her stomach. "did you have a nice time?" the now queen asked as they walked together. "i know it was more of a southern wedding but i hope you still enjoyed yourself."

@rodrikofwinter​

starkwhitewolf​:

closed starter for @rosaaaryn​

rough hands gripped the ledge of a balcony and the wolf king looked out at the landscape below. strangers flocked by the hundreds to his homeland, and as much as he would hide it, it truly made him uneasy. he knew not everyone who might claim to come to their aid had the best intentions, and he certainly could think of a southern ruler or two who merely came to see the north fall, but that would not be that day. winter was coming, and if it didn’t stop before winterfell, it would overtake them too, eventually. whether they could convince others for their aid, however, was still up for debate, and torrhen was still unsure as to why he thought it a good idea to even put that kind of faith in those he was not well acquainted with.

to top off the tension that loomed around them constantly, a mad man attacked another regions princess and lady, and threatened his own wife. what he meant by his words, torrhen was unsure. truly, though, he believed they were merely that: words. but how rosa felt, he believed would be different. she was kind, empathetic, and likely would feel haunted by it. he would do his best to minimize this, especially now that she was carrying his child. he turned back to enter their chambers, and closed the balcony door behind him. as much as he savored the cold, northern air, the dropping temperatures were becoming less tolerable, even for him, some time by the fire would be best. he took a seat in one of the chairs placed in front of it, poured himself a cup of ale, and waited for his wife to return.

.

worry had been plaguing her all afternoon. as much as she tried to distract her brain it just jumped right back to what that man said. but surely he was just trying to scare her. what could he possibly know about her and her child? he was not the man he called “the shadow” he was not some god. he was just a violent criminal. she had to believe that for her sake. but what if he was right? what if her poor child was to be born under a blood moon. 

her hand traced her stomach as she lost herself in thought once more. fresh air would do her well. that was what her handmaidens told her as they encouraged her to get out of her room and hopefully shake whatever worries she had. all she wanted now was to see her husband. 

reaching the large wooden door of their chambers, she dismissed her handmaidens for the night. but she made sure to thank each of them for the company and support they have given to her that day. truly it had meant more than she could say in that moment. her breathing shook as she stepped inside of the chambers, shedding off her fur cloak once inside. would he be upset with her perhaps? maybe she had done something wrong and that was why that sailor had threatened her. had she not done her best to fit in with the people of the north? 

maybe her fears could melted away like the snow near the fire’s edge as she saw him sitting waiting for her. but still her worry for what the man said stood strong within her. “torrhen.” she said softly, trying to remain strong. she was a queen now. but even a queen could feel fear.

location: the stark lodgings, barrowtown

the wind outside rattled the windows around them, the storm still not ceasing to stop. she had never seen anything like this before in her life. she wondered if those from the north had heard of a storm lasting this long before. maybe that is why sleep was so illusive to her that night. she had tossed and turned for hours before giving up. pulling a dressing gown over herself she wandered down the hall to a small common area that connected all the various stark’s rooms. one of the guards on the nightshift kept a watchful eye over her queen as she took a seat by the fireplace, in front of a dragonchess board. 

she had spent nearly an hour slowly playing a game against herself when she heard the sound of another door opening. craning her neck to see, she was surprised it was another stark away “adam?” she called over to him in a hushed voice, not wanting to wake the others. “could you not sleep either?” she laughed. “i feel like i was tossing for at least a few hours. the midwives have told me it’s a common thing this far along. i just cannot seem to find a way to get comfortable.” her eyes wandered down the hall where her husband slept. there was no need to wake him when it was something small like this. might as well be one of them who got a full night’s rest. “would you like to join me for a game?” rosa asked him motioning down to the dragonchess board. “would be nice to play against someone else.”

@adam--stark​