13 Chapter 13

"You want me to tell everyone that Jon is the product of Brandon and Ashara's free union?" Eddard assumed.

"If you've a better proposal, I am listening, Lord Eddard," Arthur retorted bluntly.

"No, I think that one may actually work," Eddard thought aloud, "Yes, it could… the timing works out, the concept is fairly plausible, no one could challenge its legitimacy… yes, it would work."

"Then it's settled," Prince Doran announced, "Aegon will grow up in Sunspear, Rhaenys in Greywater Watch, Jon in Winterfell. Does anyone have any objections?"

Only Eddard did. He had just one. He muttered "Robert planned to make Lyanna his queen, as she is still his betrothed. Since that is not to happen, my only other option is to tell him that Lyanna is dead. I worry about how he will handle that news."

"Truthfully, so do I," Lyanna proclaimed, "I do not love Robert, but I certainly do not hate him, either. I already shamed him once when I disregarded our betrothal. I don't wish to be the cause of any further suffering on his part."

"You needn't worry about that, my lady," Gregor stated, "When we get back to King's Landing, Lord Eddard and I are supposed to have a private audience with Robert Baratheon. There I will talk to him."

"'Talk to him?'" Eddard muttered in disbelief, "Ser Gregor, Robert's a man of action, not a man of words."

"Oh, don't be too certain, Lord Eddard," Ser Gregor Clegane contended, "It's as your sister said; one should never underestimate the influence words can have on people."

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A large company had assembled at the Tower of Joy. However, no one in it lingered for long.

It was decided that one of the Kingsguard would each travel with Rhaenys, Aegon, and Jon.

Aside from their inborn obligation to protect Rhaegar's heirs, Ser Oswell, Ser Arthur, and Ser Gerold were adamant in their refusal to bend the knee to Robert.

So the three of them would have to go into hiding, as well.

Lord Eddard Stark declared that when he returned to King's Landing, he would tell Robert that there had been a skirmish at the Tower of Joy, and all three of the Kingsguard had been slain.

Then there would be no inquiries as to their whereabouts.

Ser Arthur Dayne, Ser Oswell Whent, and Ser Gerold Hightower were all brothers to the current lords of Starfall, Harrenhal, and Oldtown respectively.

Their families were from Dorne, the Riverlands, and the Reach.

Ser Arthur was the only one who had the option to stay in his homeland.

Furthermore, even if he was not famous for his swordsmanship, Dornishmen were fairly easy to recognize in the other regions of Westeros.

So Arthur would be the one to remain in Sunspear with Aegon.

Ser Oswell and Ser Gerold would both be going to the North.

Lady Minisa Tully – the mother of Lord Eddard's new wife Catelyn – had been a Whent by birth.

Thus, if one was to look close enough between Ser Oswell and Lady Catelyn, they would eventually notice a number of similarities.

As a result, it was deemed safer if Ser Oswell accompanied Rhaenys to Greywater Watch. That left Ser Gerold to go to Winterfell with Jon.

Naturally, the White Bull and the Sword of the Morning would have to assume a new identity where they were going.

They would have to change their names and their facades, but they would worry on that later.

They had bigger issues to worry on than their appearances.

Eddardd knew it would have been ludicrous to claim that the three knights had fallen without taking some of his party with them.

With that in mind, a few of Ned's companions would have to disappear alongside the Kingsguard. For a while, at any rate.

Obviously, Eddard Stark and Howland Reed would have to be among the survivors, otherwise the plans to protect Jon and Rhaenys would fail.

Additionally, neither man had any desire whatsoever to feign his death, and the North and the Neck relied heavily on both of them.

So the casualties would have to be selected from the other five Northmen.

Martyn Cassel did not wish to leave his son Jory fatherless, and Willam Dustin was the last of his house. They were omitted as potential casualties thusly.

Mark Ryswell, Ethan Glover, and Theo Wull had no children of their own, and they all came from relatively large families.

For those reasons – along with a few person ones – the three of them agreed to play the victim.

Lord Howland would give them asylum at Greywater Watch, too.

Gregor was impressed by just how much those men were willing to sacrifice.

They were leaving behind everything in their own lives all for the sakes of three small children they hardly knew.

Then he remembered; the chief characteristic of the North – the one that distinguished it from the rest of Westeros – was that almost every house was indisputably loyal to its liege lord, so long as he was a Stark.

They must have been doing this more for Eddard than for Jon and his half-siblings. In any case, their actions were honorable.

Two days later, Lyanna was well enough to travel.

That was when the company at the Tower of Joy broke off into the three smaller groups and made ready to depart.

Elia tearfully said good-bye to Rhaenys.

The little girl wept, but she promised her mother that she would be good and that she would stay strong.

She did find some comfort in her kitten Balerion, and she was overjoyed when she was told that Lyanna would be going with her.

Lyanna assured Elia that she would raise Rhaenys as though she was her own child.

That seemed to reassure the older woman, who embraced the wolf girl the way she would a sister.

Gregor knew that Lyanna meant well by her pledge.

Even so, it could have been interpreted in a good or bad light, seeing as how Lyanna was not even bringing her own child with her.

Instead, she had charged someone else with the care of her son, much like Elia had.

Lyanna may have seemed indifferent to the concept of parting with Jon when the idea was first put forth.

But now, when she was on the verge of going through with it, her maternal instincts fully rose to the surface.

When Wylla asked for Jon, his mother held her newborn very close to her, as though she would never let him go.

Gregor found her protectiveness somewhat reminiscent of Lysa Arryn. 'Only not as possessive, far less unstable, and not immune to reason.'

So strong was Lyanna's reluctance to relinquish custody of her son that it threatened to ruin all their plans then and there.

Fortunately, Eddard Stark stepped in and reminded his sister that this would not be the last time she would ever see her son.

Someday, when it was deemed safe, the two of them would reunite. Until then, Eddard swore he would do right by his nephew.

Lyanna had not forgotten how the realm had already bled because of her carelessness.

She had no desire to be the cause of any more trouble in the world so soon after. Plus, she knew she could trust her brother.

He had always been the responsible one. He was also one of the few truly good men in Westeros. So she forced herself to give Jon over to Wylla.

However, just before they parted, Lyanna went to Eddard and whispered into his ear "Promise me, Ned. Promise me…"

Gregor was the only one close enough to hear her. 'I can almost taste the irony.'

Just as in the franchise, those had been the last words Lyanna shared with her brother at the Tower of Joy.

The difference was that in this universe, they would not be the last words she ever had with him.

After Ned gave his sister his vow to protect Jon, the three groups split up.

Prince Doran Martell, Prince Oberyn Martell, Princess Elia Martell, Prince Aegon Targaryen, Areo Hotah, Maester Caleotte, and the entirety of Doran's procession went east by southeast.

They rode straight back to Sunspear through the vast deserts of Dorne.

Princess Lyanna Stark, Ser Oswell Whent, Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, Lord Howland Reed, Theo Wull, Ethan Glover, Ser Mark Ryswell, and Ser Arthur Dayne went south by southwest.

They made for Starfall. When they arrived, Ser Arthur sought out his sister.

Ashara Dayne had been Elia Martell's lady-in-waiting and her closest friend. As the rumors suggested, she had indeed been involved with Brandon Stark during the tourney at Harrenhal.

He may have meant their affair to be nothing more than a fling at first, but Brandon secretly remained in contact with Ashara afterwards.

He had died before she could inform him that she was carrying his bastard. Then the bastard herself died during birth.

In the weeks that followed, Ashara had been extremely depressed over the loss of both her one-time lover and their unborn daughter.

There were even some concerns that her life might end by her own hand. That day when her brother returned home, he restored her will to live.

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