Game of Thrones Iron Stark

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Bran lay in bed for a long time after he woke up. He still couldn't feel his legs. He used to run and climb. Now he couldn't even stand.

Every night he cried quietly into his pillow. Summer would throw his head back and howl with him, long and mournful, like he was trying to tell Bran it wasn't the end of the world.

Robb and Theon came in carrying wooden parts and rolled-up drawings.

"Maester Luwin designed this," Robb said. "Once we put it together you'll be able to move around again."

"There are hidden triggers," Theon added. "You can shoot little blades if someone tries to hurt you."

They worked in silence until the chair was finished. Robb lifted Bran into it. For the first time in weeks, Bran smiled.

"What about Hodor?" he asked. "You didn't kill him, right?"

Theon's face twisted. "He should be dead. He almost killed Robb and left you like this. Why the hell are you defending him?"

"Theon," Robb warned. He looked at Bran. "Hodor's locked up. If he stops losing his mind I'll let him out. Until then Osha will stay with you."

The wildling woman stepped inside, took the handles of the chair, and pushed Bran out into the yard.

In the Tower of the Hand, Sansa was trying to teach Nymeria how to be a queen.

"Sit properly," she said, tapping the floor with a thin stick. "Lady knows how. You're supposed to be regal."

Lady sat straight and elegant. Nymeria sprawled on her belly like she couldn't be bothered.

The direwolf suddenly let out a loud, bored howl and bolted for the door.

"Nymeria!" Sansa started after her and ran straight into Jeyne Poole coming the other way.

They both went down in a tangle of skirts.

"Sansa! The queen is having a dinner for all the highborn ladies tonight. You have to go!"

"Jeyne, Nymeria just ran off—can you catch her? I need to change."

Sansa didn't wait for an answer. She hurried to her room, heart beating fast. Without her mother here she hadn't dared approach any of the great ladies on her own. But an invitation from the queen herself was different.

She slipped into the hall late and stayed near the wall, half-hidden behind a pillar. Candlelight glittered on silk and jewels. Music played. Women laughed and talked about dresses and marriages and who was sleeping with whom. Cersei moved through the center of it all, smiling like she actually cared.

Sansa kept her head down.

A hand touched her shoulder from behind.

She jumped.

A girl with long chestnut hair and big, lively eyes stood there. She looked Sansa up and down and wrinkled her nose.

"You're the red-haired Stark girl, right? Your mother is Lady Catlyn Tully?"

Sansa straightened. "My mother is Lady Catelyn Stark. Please say it properly."

The girl laughed. "Don't be mad. We say names differently in the Reach. I'm Margaery Tyrell. Loras is my brother."

"What do you want?"

Margaery grabbed her hand. "Come with me. There's something better than this boring dinner."

She pulled Sansa through a side door and down a short passage into a small, warm room. Two other girls were already waiting.

"This is Shireen Baratheon," Margaery said. "Lord Stannis's daughter. And this is Arianne Martell, Prince Doran's daughter."

Sansa gave a small curtsy. "I'm Sansa Stark. Lord Eddard's daughter."

Shireen's eyes lit up. Her face was smooth now — Tony had healed the greyscale weeks ago.

"You're Tony's sister!" she said happily. "He talks about you all the time on Dragonstone. He says you have beautiful auburn hair and you're going to be taller than him one day. I was so jealous."

Sansa felt her cheeks warm.

Arianne smiled, slow and amused. "So you're from the Snake family. How… fitting."

"We're Starks," Sansa said firmly. "Not snakes. Do they really talk like that in Dorne?"

The other three burst out laughing.

Margaery wiped her eyes. "Gods, you're serious. I love it. Don't change."

She leaned in, voice dropping. "Myrcella's almost done dealing with her mother. When she gets here we're going out. Real adventure. No chaperones. Just us."

Sansa's heart gave a little kick. She had never done anything like this before.

She looked at the three girls waiting for her answer and felt something she hadn't felt since her mother left.

She wasn't alone anymore.

"When do we leave?" she asked.