Chapter 11: Legacy

Thoughts of the future always stirred up anxiety in me, so my therapist told me to live day to day. She told me to not worry about the future, and instead focus on present moments. She said that eventually things would line up, and then I could think about the future and not freak out so much. So I did what she told me.

Day to day. No worries. Keep calm. No worries. It will all be fine. Day by day. Dahlia would get there eventually. Eventually it will all make sense.

"What is it like where you're from?" Robb turned to me on what had to be our tenth walk through the godswood since the King's arrival. Things had become simple with us. My heart didn't freak out when I looked at him anymore. I still smiled like a schoolgirl, though.

"Very different."

"You must tell me more than that."

He had been trying to pry information about my homeland out of me for days. It was exhausting trying to figure out what to say. At least no one here knew anything about Ulthos. "It's hard to explain." My mind found a solution; I would stay as close to the truth as possible. It would be easier to remember that way. "We don't have a king. Instead every four years we vote for a new leader. So the people pick who rules them, even locally. But they are all basically the same, now that I think about it." Robb looked a bit shocked that I had finally given him some sort of answered. His eyebrows crinkled up, and I couldn't help but want to keep baffling him. "We're all about freedom of thought and expression. Liberty." He nodded a few times. This wasn't so bad. I would have to be vague, though. Maybe I should leave out the things I don't like? I don't know. "Art is important there. Oh, and women can vote. We can own property. We can kind of do whatever we want now. It took a while, and there is still sexism, but it's not as bad as here." I was on such a role that I didn't notice the new expression on his face. Was he offended? "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

He took my hand. "Do I treat you poorly?"

"No, no." I tried to make my smile as reassuring as possible. "If everyone here was like you, I think it would fix all of that." This seemed to be enough, because his face turned inquisitive once more. I continued, "Technology is different. We have lots of things that make life easier." I paused, trying to figure out exactly what I could say.

Too much time must have passed, because Robb eagerly spoke, "Like what?"

"Well, we have cars. I kind of miss that." I thought about the first time I drove. The feeling of rocketing forward, the ability to go nearly anywhere quickly was something I missed. I felt free when I drove, but now there was none of that. When I came out of my nostalgic fog I saw Robb's face. Complete confusion. Of course he didn't know what cars were. "Horseless carriages."

"Horseless carriages." He nodded a few times, indicating he understood, but his face told me that he stilld didn't. At least not completely. "Why did you leave?"

"It's complicated."

"We have time."

I sighed, worried. But when I looked up at him I knew I could trust him. "I didn't really have a choice. If I stayed, I would have died, I think."

"Why?"

"My best friend betrayed me. She was going to kill me, because she fell for some crazy guy." It felt ridiculous saying out loud. It didn't seem real. None of this seemed real. I clenched my fist, so that the nails would dig into my palm. Pain. The air is chilled on my skin. I am alive. This is real. I turned to him with a chipper smile now. "I'm glad I came here though. Now I can save the Starks."

"Save us?" I felt bad for his eyebrows. I confused him so much today that they might just stick in that expression.

"Yep."

He didn't press me any further on the subject, and instead turned his attention to the small read line peaking out of my sleeve. "Your scar."

"My scar." I hoped my brevity would signal to him that I didn't want to talk about it. I didn't know why, though. Robb and I had become close since his strange proposal. It was just too embarrassing to talk about.

"What happened?" Hesitation sunk into my face as his turned to something more nurturing. "I won't tell anyone. Husbands don't tell their wives' secrets." He looked so trustworthy as he softly smiled at me and rubbed my hand with his.

I found courage then. Robb was going to be in my life, I could trust him to to judge me. "It was a while ago. I was sad, and it felt like I would never be happy again. I was alone, and everything was too much. So I..."

We stopped walking. A bit of horror hit his face as he spoke, "You did that?"

I nodded and stepped forward, trying to keep our walk going to ease the tension. "I feel better now. I mean, I'm glad it didn't work out."

He pulled me back, holding both of my hands now "You won't feel that way again. I promise you that."

I smiled back at him. I hoped he was right. Things here were different. I didn't feel alone. I had people. I had Rickon and Arya. I had Jon, and Eddard, and now I had Robb, too. "What kind of Lord of Winterfell do you want to be?" We started our walk once more.

"Well," he paused, thinking about it for a moment before he continued to speak, "I want to be just and fair, like my father. And strong, like the Starks before me." His chest puffed out when he spoke, and I felt that odd queasiness in my stomach again. He was a really great guy, and he would be a great leader. I would make sure he got the chance, no matter what. "What kind of Lady of Winterfell do you wish to be?"

His question caught me off guard. "Oh, I don't know about that."

"We'll watch over the North together." It was strange how sure his voice sounded. It was stranger still that he was talking to me. "You need to start thinking about that."

What kind of ruler do I want to be? I had never thought about it outside of the odd childish dream of world domination. And Westeros was so different. It was feudal. So much needed to be done, there was no way to know where to start. "Well, what kind would you want me to be?"

"You'll be beautiful. I know that for certain." He paused, and I couldn't help but wonder why he thought I was beautiful. I was pretty normal when compared to western beauty standards. There was nothing outright exceptional about my other than my dark blue eyes. I was halfway through picking apart his compliment when he started again. "It would be nice if you could help me to bring some of the ideals from your home here, like liberty and art. It would be a good legacy for us." A chortle shot out of me. Legacy? Did he just say we would have a legacy? "What's so funny?"

"It's just strange to think about 'our legacy.'" He didn't seem to understand my discomfort. "But you've known you'd be the Lord of Winterfell your whole life, so it's probably not strange to you."

"You'll get used to it soon, I'm sure."

It was an odd feeling looking into his smiling face. I believed him.

After our walk I thought a lot about the whole idea of a legacy. I thought about being a Lady of Winterfell, and what that meant. When I took Rickon out to play I thought about how we were going to be family. When I looked at him and Shaggy dog running around, I wanted to make this little chunk of the world better for him. I could do it. I could change things. I just needed a little bit of help to make it all possible.

"You're not thinking about taking the black are you?" I turned to Jon, who had been joining Rickon and me on our little excursions away from the eyes of the royals.

"I am." His chest puffed out, much like how Robb's did when he spoke about being the Lord of Winterfell. It was strange how people could grow up in the same home and be so different. Rickon was so free, Robb was so much like his father, and Jon was Jon, which is to say that he is utterly angst-ridden.

"I wish you wouldn't." I smiled over at him as I tried to put the first step in Operation: Winterfell Legacy into place. "It would be nice to have a friend up here."

"You have plenty of friends." There was a bite to his words that I didn't quite understand.

"Sansa and Arya will be married off before you know it. Rickon and Bran, too." I let out a sigh as I envisioned a Winterfell without Rickon. It seemed weird. That wouldn't be fore a long time, though. "They'll be spread across the seven kingdoms, and then who will I have? Lady Catelyn?" I let out a small chuckle, and his odd mood faded. I looked him square in the face and patted his shoulder. "Please, think about staying."

He looked away, towards the north. "There is nothing for me here."

This would be more difficult than I imagined. It was almost as though I was asking him to cut off his arm or something. The Wall was severe, and it could wait. I needed his help. "There can be, though. Lord Eddard will take the position as the King's Hand. I will go south for a year or two, to keep him out of trouble, and while I'm gone I will need someone here that I can trust to tell me what is happening."

"Why?"

"Lady of Winterfell: that's evidently going to be me one day." I felt my shoulders slouch for a moment under the weight of what I had just said. I hadn't slouched in years. I quickly returned to my former posture and continued, "I was hoping you could stay here, and help me with that."

"You'll have Robb for that. You don't need me."

I shook my head. "He'll be busy." I could see his resolve slip. He knew Robb would be busy helping run Winterfell when Eddard went south. I stood sternly in front of him now, looking directly into his eyes, unflinching. "I need someone to go out and see what the common people need. I need someone to know the North like the back of their hand. Otherwise I will never be a very good Lady of Winterfell, would I?"

"You're serious?" His face contorted into an uncomfortable smile.

"Just until I get back from King's Landing, and I might not even have to go in the first place." The plans were set for me to accompany the new Hand to the south with his daughters, but it was all contingency. If Bran didn't fall, and I knew Eddard wouldn't go snooping into the death of the former Hand, I could stay here and start towards my future. Jon was just a backup plan, but I knew that this was Westeros. Backup plans are essential to survival. I knew exactly what to say to drive this home for Jon. "The Wall will still be there in two years, and I'm not the only person who will need your help. Robb will need you, too."

"Can I have some time to think about it?"

I nodded. "Of course. It's your decision either way. I just was hoping for your help." We both looked over to the trio rolling around on the mossy floor of the patch of forest we had escaped to. Ghost was now a bit larger than Shaggy dog, and both were growing past Rickon. The little boy who I'd become so fond of was playing with the wolves as though he was one of them. A true wild child, he kept laughing as they played.

"If you go south, Rickon will miss you," Jon said. I felt a bit of a sting behind my eyes. I liked the time I got to spend with little Rickon. He was fun. It was like I almost got to be a child again whenever I took care of him. If I had to go south, I would miss him too.

I pulled myself out of my worries. "All the more reason you should stay." I focused again on my young friend, and though of all the fun we were going to have. I wanted to stay in Winterfell. I wanted Bran to be safe, and to stay here and start a life. When I spoke again it was under my breath, a prayer I hoped some god would hear, "Hopefully everything works out, and I don't have to go."

I saw a future here, but not mere future, beautiful future. It wasn't hard to see. Every step I took in Winterfell was a step I would take again, happier. Our legacy. A chance to make true change. A chance to live. These things only existed here, nestled in the summer snow, and I would get to have them soon. The Starks would be saved, and so would I.

Author's Note: Sorry for the extended wait. I was just finishing up my Bachelor's Degree! Woot Woot! Give it up! Party! Etc. And now I'm daunted by graduate school applications, but today I found the time to finish up a new chapter. I hope any of you souls that are still sticking with this story enjoyed it. I would love feedback, even anonymous feedback, so please review so I know what's up with my little readership, and how you guys are liking or disliking the story.

Thank you! Thank you for reading! You're the best!

Also, since the show has practically caught up with the book, I've kind of changed it to the Game of Thrones tag. It is super confusing, and I don't know if that's the right thing to do, and I'm still not sure. PM me if you have any advice or preference on that subject. ASOIAF/Game of Thrones fandom on this site is confusing in this regard.