The Wolf and the Lion

The Wolf believes the Lion is treacherous. The Lion does not concern himself with the opinions of a sheep. The Wolf runs in a pack, the Lion hunts in a pride. The Wolf has an old and wise soul, the Lion is forever young and always cunning. One seeks comfort in the snowy mountains and grey forests, the other is free only when he feels the sun on his skin and hears the sound of the sea battling over and over again against the hard rocks. Tough beings they are, the Wolf and the Lion. Both think each is better than the other, yet it is known they have more in common than they'd ever care to confess. The Wolf and the Lion love fiercely. The devotion that both show to the ones they love is their most admirable trait. Love is as dangerous as the Wolf believes the Lion is treacherous, though. It is said love can set you free. The Wolf and the Lion are sharp enough to know that is not true. But not even the Wolf or the Lion can win a fight against love.

With a single strike the Stag's fury extinguished the Dragon's fiery breath and the rebellion has ended. The fury has been put to sleep and rapture has woken. But the Wolf feels nor fury or rapture. The moment the Wolf realizes she shall never run with her pack again is the same moment the Wolf wishes she had joined the Old gods (and the Dragon). So the Wolf does what Wolves do best. She does her duty (for the honour of her pack) and keeps to herself (for her own mind).

And the Wolf remembers (love is dangerous).

The Lion observes. He finds the Wolf quite puzzling, but then again so does the whole court. Every person in Westeros wants to know the secrets of the relation between the Wolf and the last Dragon. The Lion would lie if he'd say he wasn't curious as well. But it is the Wolf's aloofness that makes him even more interested. The Wolf obeys, endures and never shows her true feelings (what Wolf does that?).

The love the Stag bears for the Wolf has no equal, they sing, but the Lion's present where singers are not. The Stag has not changed his ways. Could it really be that the Wolf doesn't see?

(Maybe the Wolf is not aloof.) Even Lions have to admit that Wolves see better and far more than them. (Maybe the Wolf hides behind a mask.)

The Wolf finds freedom in solitude. She spends her days reading, exploring and riding. The Dragon dynasty has a fascinating history and the Wolf sometimes goes to the cellars (only when she misses the Dragon more than on the usual days). On one such occasion the Wolf learns she may not be alone in sorrow. It is the night of what would have been the Dragon's name day if he had lived. The Stag holds a feast to celebrate his death as if the Wolf needs more reasons to resent him. The Wolf does her duty, though. She attends the feast and bravely ignores the whispers. When the castle falls asleep, the Wolf runs to the cellars.

''How do you stand it?''

The Wolf is usually the one who soundlessly comes upon others, but this time it is she who is scared. The look of fear is hidden even before it can fully appear, though. He is seated on the cold stone with a bottle in his hand. This is the first time the Wolf sees the Lion after the news of his twin's willful death had come some weeks ago. The Lion's skin is paler than the Wolf's and behind the red in his eyes lies a lost soul (it is like looking into a mirror).

''The pain, Wolf. How do you turn it off?''

The Lion demands again and it never crosses their minds that he could lose his tounge if somebody were to hear him talking to the Wolf like that. The Wolf never says a word (Brandon). While the moon rules and the whole world dreams of a Summer that will never end, in the cellars deep beneath a great castle, happens something that never did before. The Wolf never says a word (Brandon), but still stays with the Lion (Cersei). They spend the night in silence, the Wolf standing and the Lion sitting.

In the morning, the Lion learns and the Wolf remembers (love is dangerous).

The Stag is not fit to rule and his hand misses the feeling of holding a warhammer and beating the enemy. A cup full of Dornish Red is a fine replacament, though. He drinks more and more with each passing day and it starts to worry the Falcon. The Stag is a hard drunk. The court sees him singing and smiling, but the truth is much different. In the private of his walls, the Stag is a monster.

The Wolf must be protected, the Falcon decides (and even the drunk Stag knows not to evoke the wrath of the Lion).

For the first time in his life, the Lion takes something seriously. He does not seek a reason, but perhaps it does have something to do with the night he found comfort in the Wolf's presence (or was it all just a nightmare?). He is doing his duty. The Lion makes himself the Wolf's shadow. Little by little, the Lion learns the Wolf's routine, but she remains a mystery even more than before. He watches her reading, follows her on her walks, rides beside her. The Wolf guards herself, he notices. They never speak and the Wolf sometimes does not come out of her chambers in days. Still, the Lion is always alert.

''Well, isn't this a sight. The Lion protecting the Wolf!'' The Lion cannot help but roll his eyes at the stupidity of the drunk Stag (so it finally happens). ''Move, Lion!''

''I am sorry, Your Grace. The Queen does not want to be disturbed.''

''I will decide what the Queen wants or not!'' Though he can barely stand, the Lion has to admit the Stag has an impressive voice (if only his voice could defeat the Golden hand). ''Move, I say!''

The Lion remains silent. His hand starts pulling out his sword and the Stag's eyes slowly realize he has made a great mistake. But there's no turning back now. The Lion knows the Stag cannot run. It would make him a coward.

''We shan't need your sword, Ser.''

The Lion can barely hear her, but the Wolf's voice is firm. And so very cold.

''His Grace shall retire to his own chambers now.''

It is extremly amusing seeing a once mighty warrior being turned down by his own wife. The Stag appears to be fighting with his own mind, but in the end the Wolf's grey eyes make him surrender and he quietly retreats. The Lion does not like this (at all).

''When was the last time you slept, Lion?''

The Lion did not expect the question. The Wolf never spoke to him before. Her voice is now quite different. He senses relief and concern and even recognizes traits of the Northern accent.

''I- I don't know.'' (Since Cersei...)

''You look tired. You should go to your chamber.''

''I cannot do that, Your Grace.''

''You shall go back to your chamber and rest. This is an order, Ser.''

''It's not sa-''

''He'll ask for a whore, maybe two, even three. By the time he is done, he won't be able to do anything but sleep.''

(If the Stag comes back and does something...) the Lion returns to his chamber and sleeps throughout the night without waking. The next morning, while donning his armour, he realizes the Wolf saved his life (once again).

Little birds are singing rather disturbing songs. The Wolf has learned nothing and forgotten about the past. The Wolf has forgotten about her honour again. The Wolf is provoking the rage of the Seven and the Old gods. The Wolf wants winter to come. Little birds are singing all kind of songs into the Stag's ear. Some he must know because they sing the truth, some amuse him because he knows they are singing lies and some make him angry because he is not sure whether they are truth or lies. Songs about the Wolf, though, the Stag cannot stand to listen. And there are far too many songs about the Wolf as of lately.

(The Wolf is friends with the Lion.)

The Wolf does not care enough about the capital to hate it. She is used to the smell, the heat and people's curious eyes and vicious tongues. Still, the Wolf is losing a bit of herself each day that she wakes up to the foreign Southern noise. That is why she starts her morning by going to the Godswood. The Wolf does not pray, not anymore. She has lost her right to protection and mercy of the Gods a long time ago. The Godswood is the closest place that reminds her of the North. The Godswood brings her closer to her pack.

''Tell me of Brandon.''

On one particular morning, the Wolf asks the Lion to accompany her to the Godswood. She has been meaning to bring him there for some time, but a great lack of courage always worked against her. It was time she learned the truth she was denied when the rebellion ended. The Lion does not want to tell her. He keeps his mouth shut as if to indicate the truth shall make her mad. The Wolf asks him again. The Lion protests.

The Queen orders.

The truth makes everything harder (breathing, hurting, mourning, being in the Godswood). But it does not make her mad. If anything, the truth makes everything clearer and even stronger, too. The Wolf's love for her pack and her indifference for the Stag.

(I must let the past in the past now.)

''Are you alright, Wolf?''

''Do you believe in the Seven?''

''I believe in my sword's sharpness and my hand's skill to protect me.''

''Do you Lions always answer in metaphors?''

''Why do you ask?''

''I wonder... What God can let great men like Brandon and Rhaegar die? While Robe-''

It is the first and only time the Wolf mentions the Dragon.

The Stag wants an heir. The Wolf does her duty. But not when the Stag is drunk. When the Lion guards her, she is safe. No other Kingsguard dares to defy their King, though. Even drunk, the Stag now knows when to come and when to ask for whores (and he wants an heir).

''I love you.''

The Wolf is always there when he wakes up after they spend a night together. The Stag hopes she'd be gone, he hopes it so he doesn't have to look into her eyes. (She stays just to torture me.) They break fast mostly in silence, sometimes he tries to start a conversation, but her answers are always reduced to yes and no. Before he leaves, he never fails to tell her he loves her and she never fails not to reply.

''Kingslayer! Fine morning, eh?!''

(One day I will wipe that smile off his pretty face.)

''I'll ask the Lord Commander to put me in charge of protecting your chambers at night.''

The Lion is enraged. He doesn't even want to imagine what the Wolf must go through when the Stag comes to her chambers whenever he is not on duty. The Wolf is always stangely quiet after those nights and it takes her time to come back to her old, proud and ice-cold, self. The Lion must protect the Wolf. He must protect her. (Somehow...)

''You shall do no such thing.''

''Why not?''

''Do not tell me you haven't heard the songs little birds are singing?''

''Since when do you care about little birds?''

''I don't. But if the King has an heir, maybe he'll finally let me be and...''

(And you know I wouldn't let him near you.)

''You are willing to suffer for a maybe?''

''I do not expect you to understand.''

''Fine. Suffer then.''

(How shall I ever sleep again?)

''I'm with child.''

''I'll be guarding your chambers every night as of this moment.''

(Love is dangerous.)

''What are we?''

''Friends?''

''A Wolf? Friends with a Lion?''

''And what would you call us?''

''I don't think we're just friends, you know?''

''I know.''

Some moons later the Stag's wish is finally fulfilled. The Realm may rest in peace for it has an male heir. To the Wolf's relief the heir is more a Pup than a Fawn. He is dark of hair with eyes the colors of a Northern forest. His skin is pale and cold like the Wolf's and he cries only when he hears the Stag's rough voice. The seed is strong, the Falcon tells her. The Wolf wonders if the seed shall remain strong as the Pup shall grow. She does not pray for it, though.

(The seed is strong and it must remain strong.)

''I've missed talking to you, Lion.''

''You've been enjoying your time with the Pup.''

''Yes, but you could have come, you know? I wouldn't mind.''

''I know. But the Pup needed you more.''

''He likes you.''

''He looks like you.''

''The seed is strong.''

''He shall move mountains one day then.''

Little birds are still singing disturbing songs. After all these years, the songs about the Wolf are the ones they keep singing again and again. The Stag cannot pretend not to hear them anymore. He starts to believe them, too. The Wolf and the Lion have become too close. The Stag shall not be laughed at behind his back. (She cannot love the Lion. She cannot. She cannot.)

''Have you been fucking the Kingslayer behind my back?''

''I may have lost my honour years ago, Your Grace. But never assume I would betray my vows. I am not you.''

In years that shall come, the Stag knows he'll never be able to look into the Wolf's eyes again.

(And I love her eyes most.)

''Our son shall go live to the North.''

''No!''

''Yes.''

''You wouldn't dare.''

''Wouldn't I?''

''Do you hate me so much?''

''He shall go to the North so he can become a King.''

(The seed is strong and it must remain strong.)

The news of the Stag's sudden death spreads fast across the Realm. It is not a secret that his love for drinking, whoring and hunting has grown with years, so it is not exactly a surprise he dies still at quite young age. The bells are ringing for a night and a day in his honour. The court mourns the once mighty warrior and for a short time forgets the man he came to be. Common people of the Capital are more interested in how their King died. Some say his heart burst of pain because he found his beloved Queen abed with another man, others that the Kingslayer once again betrayed his oath. The court never reveals the truth.

The Wolf should not be feeling like this. But she does. And she hasn't felt so in years. Free. The Wolf is finally free. She has to be careful, though. She must do her last duty as perfectly as she did the first one. She cannot force herself to cry when she sees the Stag one last time, though. It ends up being a good thing because they all find inspiration in her strenght. The Wolf wonders if it is one of the last times she sees them, too. The Pup will decide. (The seed is strong, isn't it?)

''What is on your mind, Wolf?''

''What shall be of me when my son comes to claim the Throne?''

''You'll stay here, of course. With me.''

''And what if my son sends me away?''

''Then I'll come with you.''

''I... You know?''

''I know.''

The Wolf believes the Lion is not understood by the world. The Lion concerns himself only with the well-being of the Wolf. The Wolf runs in a pack, the Lion hunts in a pride. The Wolf has an old and wise soul, the Lion is forever young and always cunning. One seeks comfort in the snowy mountains and grey forests, the other is free only when it feels the sun on his skin and hears the sound of the sea battling over and over again against the hard rocks. Tough beings they are, the Wolf and the Lion. Different, yet so much alike. The Wolf and the Lion find themselves in each other. When one is sad, the other stays. When one seeks truth, the other tells it. They find both cold and warmt in each other. They say it is quite unlikely for the Wolf to be friends with the Lion. But they say nothing about love between them. And though both the Wolf and the Lion understand how dangerous love is, they are sharp enough to know they cannot work against it.

He loudly yawns before knocking on the doors. He is tired and a warm bed would be quite nice. Sadly, on the Wall the beds are never warm enough. Even after all these years, his routine never changes. He comes back after riding for over a month, makes sure the new recruits are fed and shown their chambers and then he goes to the Lord Commander for a report. The only thing he looks forward is the Lord Commander's fine Dornish wine. Drinking a cup of it warms him good enough.

''Yoren!'' The Lord Commander greets as stern as ever. ''Tell me.''

''Just the usual lot, m'Lord. Criminals, orphans, lads looking for a hot meal. Got 83 o'them this time.''

''Good, good.'' He places a cup in front of Yoren and the younger brother takes it a bit too hasty. ''What news from the Capital?''

''The Pup now rules. They say the new King's already playin' games.'' Yoren answers. ''First he did when he got the crown was he discharged the Kingslayer from the Kingsguard.''

''I'd call it being cautious, Yoren.''

''Aye, m'Lord, so would I.'' Yoren finishes his wine before going on. ''But, then the King married the Kingslayer to his own mother, the Queen.''