Author's Note: This is my first fic I've written in about thirteen years. I want to make some notes about the universe it is set in. The locations are the same as in ASOIAF, so no locations from our world, however they do have all of the same technology as we have, along with our media/music/literature in addition to their own. Since there are no real world locations, I've tried my best to exclude referencing anything that makes mention of our world. I hope that makes sense. Also, this story occurs in real time. Each chapter is dated. The title is from a song by The Smiths, it'll come into play later.

Also, I'm not GRRM, if that wasn't already obvious.

ONE: GENDRY WATERS - TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15

"Gods, it's cold," Gendry muttered under his breath.

He'd never been this far north before and he couldn't believe it was still another two hour shuttle ride north to Winterfell. After living his whole life in Kings Landing, save for a Spring Break trip to the Dornish beaches back in high school and a couple camping trips to the Riverlands, this was the first time he had been this far away from home. It was also the first time he has been this cold and seen this much snow... and it was only mid-November. Every few winters Kings Landing might get a dusting of snow that would shut down the whole city and send cars crashing off the Kings Road, but nothing like this. He had spent a little over four hours on a large jet from Kings Landing to White Harbor, but then he had a layover for another three hours before he got on the tiny commuter plane that would take him on a very bumpy ride to Torrhen's Square, which had the closest public airport to Winterfell. He'd tried to get tickets to the regional airport in Wintertown, but he soon found out it was only for cargo planes and the infrequent privately chartered jet.

As he exited down the staircase attached to the tiny plane he thought for a moment about picking his bags off the luggage carousel and getting on the first flight back home, but he quickly pushed those thoughts out of his mind.

"This is the best chance yer gonna get kid, ya better take it."

"Professor Mott," Gendry started, "I don't even know how I got this internship - I didn't apply. And definitely not to go up to that ski resort in the frozen bloody North."

"You've been pissin' yer life away in this awful city for too long. You graduated months ago, boy, and you've done shit nothin' since then. You were the best graphic designer in any of my classes the past four years and so I put yer name in the running. With my stellar letter of recommendation you were a shoe-in, so don't fuck it up."

That was how Gendry ended up with a graphic design internship and moving to Winterfell Ski Resort for the next four months. Despite the talent that his professor said he had and the aptitude he had showed in all of his classes – not to mention how much he actually enjoyed it – this seemed to Gendry as if it really was his only chance to make something of himself. After bouncing around different boys' homes ever since his mother died when he was ten he learned to work for what he needed and was grateful for everything he received. He was determined to give this opportunity a proper go and if it meant picking up his life and moving all the way across the country then that's what he would do.

The internship that Professor Mott had got him was an unpaid graphic designer position for Baratheon Snow, a ski and snowboard company with their offices at Winterfell, the largest ski resort in all of Westeros. Baratheon Snow was just one subsidiary of the much larger Baratheon Incorporated, which made its headquarters in Kings Landing. They are a large company that practically everyone had heard of in Kings Landing and around the whole of Westeros. Child companies and offices were located all across the seven provinces and even a couple across the Narrow Sea in Essos, each location specializing in equipment for a different type of sport or outdoor activity. He knew that the offices located in Sunspear in Dorne focused on surfboard and jet skis from his trip there, and he had heard people talk about other offices in the Vale for rock climbing, hang-gliding, and bungee jumping equipment, offices in Highgarden for four-wheelers and other off-road vehicles, and kayaks in Riverrun. The fact that he'd only been out of the capital city area a handful of times in his whole life but would now be working for one of the largest corporations in the world only served to make him feel quite small.

Baratheon Snow partnered with the ski resort, and while the information packet he had received left much unexplained, it did say that the internship would start this Thursday and also came with a pre-arranged spot in the employee housing and a yet undetermined job. Better than having to job search himself, Gendry figured.

He followed the signs and the twenty-some other people to the baggage claim, grabbed the suitcase he'd managed to stuff twenty-two years of life into, and made his way outside to wait for the shuttle that would take him to his new home. There were a couple other people also waiting at the overhang where the shuttle would stop, all with large plastic ski cases and huge suitcases. It didn't take long for the shuttle to arrive, a large four row van with the Winterfell wolf logo on the sliding door with their slogan "Winter is Coming" below. I seriously doubt winter ever leaves this place, he thought.

After throwing his suitcase in the back of the van and settling down in his seat, he grabbed a notepad from his backpack and started to make a list of everything he could think he would need to do in order to get set in his new life. He had enough money saved up from various odd jobs he worked and he had managed to get around $2000 for selling his car, but it would probably only be enough to last a month or two, especially in a resort town. He'd need to pay for his rent in the employee housing, food, definitely some warmer clothes...

Gendry put his notepad away and spent the remaining time by staring in awe at the scenery. He was so used to his small, somewhat dingy, studio apartment, tall buildings blocking the view of Blackwater Bay, smoggy air, and walks to his summer classes surrounded by sweaty stressed business people in the heat and humidity that plagued Kings Landing in mid-August. After leaving the airport the van had continued to climb and climb as fields led to foothills and foothills led to legitimate mountains. There were tiny towns nestled in valleys and he couldn't help but wonder who actually lived here. He remembered from geography classes when he was younger that the North had only a quarter of the population of the rest of the country but was larger in size than the other six provinces combined. There were a couple of road signs along the highway for interchanges and country roads leading to the other towns and villages he'd only heard of - Deepwood Motte, Hornwood, Moat Cailin. Just as the switchbacks and mountain passes were reminding him that selling his car was one the best decisions that he had made, the shuttle came out of a tunnel and he finally saw it.

Winterfell. Home.

Three mountain peaks rose up dwarfing all those surrounding. He could make out the runs and lift lines and as they got closer and drove down into the valley where the town and ski village were, he started to make out all the little moving dots making their way downhill and his eyes ventured further skyward.

Oh hell, they're up there too? He thought. There aren't even trees up there. Buggering idiots.

He continued to watch as the shuttle made its way through Wintertown and into the Winterfell resort village to drop off passengers, his eyes wide and staring at the large piles of snow that had been plowed up on the sides of the road, people with skis hiked up over their shoulders or holding onto snowboards at their sides, and the lights that were on each tree that lined the main road. They passed an open main square with several large fire pits with wooden benches for seating, an ice skating rink, and statue of a larger-than-life howling wolf. It was flanked by a ring of large trees that were as white as the snow around them, all of them with blood red leaves still clinging to the branches in spite of the cold. The shuttle stopped here, let out one of the other passengers, and continued on, going farther from the main square.

"Alright, son, enough gawking. This is your stop, right? This is where they put all the workers." The driver said when the shuttle stopped again, and Gendry noticed his sky blue winter jacket with the same wolf logo as was on the van. He was the only passenger left after the other stops now.

Gendry jumped out and grabbed his suitcase, noting that it had somehow gotten yet even colder than when he got off the plane in Torrhen's Square.

"Here goes nothing," he said to himself, hit the side of the van with his gloved hand, and watched it drive away.