Here we go guys! I was planning to post this a bit later in the week, but it's my birthday and I wanted to give you a present, even if that's not how birthdays normally work :D

Anyways, I hope you like it! The story is picking up speed and I am writing all the time, so I should update soon. I'm splitting time between this one and about 6 other stories AT THE SAME TIME and I need to work with my beta (the amazing darkwolf76 3) so I update whenever I can.

All in all, thank you for your continuous support! It means so freaking much to me! Thank you for every follow, favorite and more than anything else, review. If you're up to it, check out my other stories. A lot of Robb and Jon :) Your kind words always keep me going so thank you! And now, let's see what's going on with Talisa and THAT plot twist! Let me know what you think! Enjoy! :)

I rub my forehead as I try to get through another letter. No one ever tells how much paperwork ruling involves. It feels endless. I glance over my shoulder when I hear the chamber door open. My mother knocks quietly as she steps into the room and then closes the door behind her.

"Is everything alright with Ned?"

Whenever I see Mother approaching me, that is the first thought that crosses my mind. She takes care of him herself, most of the time. I try to spend time with him as much as I can but being a King, I cannot afford to spend my entire day locked up in a room with him. Not that I would complain about it.

He is growing up so fast. It seems to me that each day, he is a little bit bigger than he was the day before. Soon enough, he will be crawling, and not long after that, walking and talking. I will do everything in my power to be there when he does. I owe it to him and to his mother.

"He is asleep," she reassures me with a small smile, as she always does. I imagine all parents act in such a way because they understand the worry. I imagine she worried just as much about me. "I was wondering if I could speak to you. Do you have a moment?"

"Mother, of course I do," I chuckle, pushing away all the letters I had to read; they can wait. "Take a seat. What is bothering you?" I ask as she sits down opposite me.

"I have spent days trying to find the right words to say," she smiles hesitantly, as if she is laughing at a joke only she knows. "I don't know if there is a good way to say this to you, but you must hear it. The time has come and I have stayed silent long enough."

"Mother, you're starting to scare me." My gut twists in nervousness.

"It has been months, Robb," she tells me. It takes me a moment to realize what exactly she is talking about and the very second I realize it, I know why she was speaking so carefully; she knows I do not wish to hear of it. "Ned is growing more each day. And you… you are lonely, Robb."

"There is a difference between being alone and feeling lonely, Mother."

"Do not tell me that," she shakes her head. "Do not try to justify your actions by claiming that you are alright. You may be a king, but you are also my son, and I know you better in some ways than you know yourself. And I know that you are not alright."

"I am not trying to justify anything," I grumble, trying to control the anger that is growing in me. I have to remind myself that she is my mother and that despite what I might feel at the moment, she only has my best interest at heart. She must believe that she is doing the right thing, even if that isn't true. "I know what you want me to do. And that is quite alright, I thank you for your council. But as a King and more than that, as a man grown, I will do what I think best."

"Robb, you are young," she tries to reason with me, like that time before, some three months ago. We fought for hours then and did not speak to each other for an entire week after. I do not want to do that with her again, but she is not going to sway me. "You are a young man, handsome, considerate, and smart. Kind and honorable. You are a King. Young women would claw their eyes out for a chance to be your bride! You could choose any maiden you wanted."

"Mother, we have discussed this," I remind her. "I will not marry."

"You need to marry."

"I already have an heir."

"Yes, a babe that doesn't have a mother," she tells me. I know she speaks truth, but I can barely handle hearing it. It's too painful, but as King, I can't even show that pain. I see guilt on her face, but still, she refuses to let it go. "I know you loved Talisa with all your heart. She was your wife, your Queen. She loved you as well, and together, you created the most beautiful child. But Talisa is gone, Robb. She is gone… but you are still alive. You still have an entire life to live, one that could be filled with love, joy, and memories, despite how dark it might seem to you now. I understand what you are feeling. When we lost your father, I didn't know how I would go on. But I did," she looks away from me, tears filling her eyes. "Because I had you. I had you and your sister. Now, I have my grandchild as well. No matter how dark it gets, there are always more reason we must life for, Robb. Truly live for."

"And to me, that reason is my son," I tell her in a firm voice. There is nothing left to discuss. "I am alright mother, and I whatever I might feel about my wife's death, I will never let it affect my son, my family or my kingdom."

"But it already is affecting your son," she leans over the table and grabs ahold my hand. "He needs a mother, Robb. I am his grandmother. I can only do so much. Not to mention, your lords expect you to remarry in order to have more heirs. They'll insist on it for the stability of the kingdom.

"I can't bring Talisa back to life, can I?" I snap. "I don't care what the lords say. I will not get remarried just to make sure I have more children. My son is good enough."

"Robb, you are a King. If she has a chance to be a Queen, a woman would gladly accept your firstborn."

"Absolutely not," I tell her at once. "I am not going to force a woman into a marriage where she knows her husband doesn't want her and she has to raise a child that isn't hers. Nor will I put my son through that. Even if that means that he will not ever feel a mother's love."

"It might not be as difficult as you imagine it to be. It-"

"Really?" I interrupt her, losing the little control I had over the words I was choosing. "You think another woman would accept Ned as her son? Like you did with Jon?"

A mixture of anger and hurt flashes on her face before she manages to hide it.

"That is a different situation entirely," she replies in a strict tone. "Your Father had been married to me when he sired the boy. He broke his vow to me and he bedded another woman. Your son is trueborn. You wouldn't have broken any vows."

"It isn't as different as it might seem to you," I shake my head, angry at her justification. "Jon was a baby. You could not accept him, you could never even look at him. I do not know of a better mother than you and you could not do it. Only now, 20 years later, have you managed to rise above it. Even if I was to fall madly in love again, and could find a good, kind woman, willing to accept it all and give me more children, she would still be reminded that there was another woman I loved before her, every time she would look at Ned. She would always doubt me, always wonder, always treat Ned differently than her own children, even if she could treat him kindly. He would always know he was different. You loved Father with all your heart and still, you could never treat Jon as your own. His father had a wife, and he still never knew a mother's love. Even worse, he had to watch you give it freely to all of us, while you denied it to him. My son will already feel the pain of never knowing his own mother. I won't let him feel that pain too."

I am not surprised when she stands up and marches out of the room, without saying anything else to me and slamming the door behind her.

She may not want to hear it, but if she insists on telling me harsh truths, I must tell her the truth as well. She had made a decision a long time ago and despite having numerous opportunities to change it, she did not. Now, she has to live with it. And that means I can use it as a perfect reason for refusing her advice.

I will not do that to my son. I know letting him grow up without a mother might seem cruel, but he has a living grandmother and aunt to help me raise him. It might not be the same as having a mother, but it is far better than having a stepmother who despises him. I do not want to see that and I doubt that any woman would be capable to love him as a mother, even if she got a crown as reward.

And I am selfish. I do not want to move on. I do not want to marry again. I still love Talisa more than I have ever loved anyone in this entire world. I can only love our son as much as I love her. I know I could never love another the way I have loved her. I loved her with all my heart, never doubting it for a moment. I broke promises and pacts, risked my entire kingdom for that love, and never doubted or regretted it for a moment. I will never feel that again, nor do I want to try.

I already have an heir, no one can use that against me. I have no obligation to marry again. My son will inherit me and when I die, I will be buried next to his mother. My place is with Talisa, not some other woman. The gods might have taken her from me, but we will be together again one day. One day, perhaps not too far from today. But first, I need to raise our son to be the man she hoped he would be.

I thought Meereen was bad.

Dragonstone is far worse.

The biggest difference, right after the complete climate change we had to endure, is that it is empty. It was completely empty when we arrived on its shore. I feel grateful that we did not have to face an enemy right as we landed, but still...

Even with all the soldiers Dany had brought with her, the echoing halls seem empty. The castle has a dark and eerie feeling to it, as if it is still haunted by the dead Baratheon pretender that has dwelt here before. I did not like Meereen, especially not when compared to Pentos, but Dragonstone is something entirely different. Meereen had light. The Pyramid was full of it. It might have appeared menacing from the outside, but inside, it was just like another mansion, one with a magnificent view.

Dragonstone is dark and unwelcoming to everyone but to dragons.

Dany did not look uncomfortable, not once. With all the dragon carvings on the walls of the castle, I can understand why she seems to like the castle. It was empty and unoccupied, with a thick layer of dust covering every surface and strange banners hanging from its walls, yet Dany had come into the world here. Her ancestors had built this place and countless generations of her family had dwelt here, so she belongs.

She had the keep cleaned and hung Targaryen banners in place of the pretenders, so it feels a little less off-putting, but is still as unwelcoming as it was before.

At least the dragons seem to be enjoying all the space they have been given. I imagine that the two that were locked up in the Pyramid are enjoying it even more than Drogon, who has never been shackled. Back in Meereen, their presence would scare the folk, sometimes even cause trouble. Here, on Dragonstone, they had no one to bother. Those of us here got used to them a very long time ago.

"How long do you think it will take Cersei to receive news of our arrival?" Dany asks.

"I imagine that she is already well aware of that, your Grace," Tyrion tells her, not looking elated at the thought of his sister. "If not, she will find out in a matter of hours. By tomorrow morning, at the latest."

"Will she be sending an army our way or will she wait for us to make a move on the main land?" she asks.

"I cannot say for certain, your Grace," he admits. This could be an issue, given that he is the only one here that actually knows how a Lannister thinks like. However, he is not a mind reader. If Cersei is aware of his allegiance to Dany, and I do not doubt that she is, she might change her entire plan. If she believes that Tyrion is guessing her next move, she will do what Tyrion least expects her to. And Tyrion Lannister seems to be well aware of that. "The Cersei Lannister I know would wait. She would wait to hear from you, to hear what you want. If she is faced with silence, she will attack first. However, attacking first might also bring wrath of the people to her door. The one who strikes first and starts another war might very well end up a victor but they will be hated by the common folk."

"So, you are trying to say that you have absolutely no idea what she might do?"

If I wasn't concerned about the whole situation, I might have laughed so hard, that I cried. The look of skepticism on Dany's face can only be matched with the look of utter defeat on Tyrion's; he had tried so hard to make her see the positive sides of the entire situation, on masking it all up for her and she had called his bluff within seconds. However, I am not laughing because we needed Tyrion to do one of the things he does best, know people.

"Not yet," he sighs, admitting his defeat. "At this point, it is a guessing game. I am certain that she will not attack at once. Even if she wishes to try and fool us, she is still very calculating. She will not start a war with you, not until she knows the exact number of men, horses and ships you have in your arsenal."

"Then we need to make sure that it takes her a while to discover," Dany tells him with a small smile; oh, it is one of those smiles. One of those that tells you she is up to no good. She would have that smile whenever she was about to present a mischievous plan, a plan that would have been the end of us, had we been caught while putting it into action. It is a good thing we were never caught. "We will send no word. We will not announce anything. We will not ask her to swear fealty and bend the knee. We will wait and we will enjoy as the uncertainty eats her up."

"Dany, do not play with your food if you plan to eat it," I sigh, feeling the need to advise her against this. While I completely understand her perspective, I need to think like a responsible and mature adult that I am; this is war, not a childish game. "Cersei Lannister does not strike me as a particularly patient woman. She seems like someone who does not enjoy being provoked and who responds to it in the same, if not worse, manner. Playing games with her will not make this any easier for us," I tell her. "Your Grace." I add as I realize that this is considered to be an official council, even if only the three of us are present.

"How is it provoking if I do absolutely nothing?" she asks.

"Well, normally, it would not be considered provoking," I concede, "However, you are well aware that Cersei Lannister will see it for what it truly is and I am afraid she would not take it lightly."

"We will fight sooner or later, Milani," she tells me. Once again, she has a point. "It cannot be avoided. Westeros cannot have two Queens. We will go to war, whether that happens tomorrow or in a year. And when we do, I believe it would be better if we fight on our land, on our territory."

"You wish to bring the fight to Dragonstone?" Tyrion asks in confusion. I imagine that the look on my face is completely mirroring his own, that of bewilderment.

"Not necessarily," she comments. Why is she speaking in riddles?! She should speak plainly with us, her hand and her closest friend! If there is anyone in this world that she should have complete trust in… yet, we are sitting right in front of her, growing more and more confused with each word that comes out of her mouth. "I want Cersei to think that I want to bring the fight to Dragonstone."

"Now I'm even more confused," I admit, not bothering to hide my bewilderment. "You want her to think that but what are you planning to do instead? What exactly do you expect her to do then?" I wonder.

"Absolutely nothing," Dany smiles at me. Once again, that mischievous smile of hers makes an appearance. The difference is, back when we were young girls, the only trouble we could end up in was a scolding by the master whose house we were staying at. Now, the trouble could end up being losing an entire war, and the deaths of thousands, despite all the forces that are on our side. It's one thing to play childish games when you are a proper child and another to play them as a Queen, responsible for the lives of countless people. "If she thinks I wish to lure her out, that is the last thing she will do. She will not attack, not if she thinks that is a trap. And her not attacking could give us time. Valuable time."

Now that I see it, now that she said it openly, I understand. And I realize just how brilliant the idea is.

She could beat Cersei at her own game. If Cersei wishes to make us confused as to what she is going to do next… well, Dany has already started playing that game. She started playing that game a long time ago, before she even knew of it. The game started the first time Cersei Lannister heard of a possible danger across the Narrow Sea. Now, as she makes her first move, Dany already knows how to play. Possibly even better than Cersei Lannister does.

She is brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.

"Valuable time for what?" Tyrion asks and just like that, the elated feeling, caused by the brilliance of her plan, leaves me. Someone had to ask the difficult questions. "What do you need time for? The army we have is not going to get any bigger."

"Why couldn't it?" Dany asks. While I am rooting for her in this little mind game she and Tyrion are playing, I do not understand what she means; I am seeing it through Tyrion's eyes. Confusing Cersei is a brilliant move but why do we need time when we already have the upper hand? "Cersei isn't the only one that who wears a crown in Westeros," she tells us. "The North and the Riverlands have declared themselves a separate Kingdom, ruled by Robb Stark. There might not be anything I could do to get Cersei to surrender but the North and its King are a different story. I have plenty to offer him."

"Dany, what are you trying to say?" I ask.

Why am I asking when I already know the answer? It was one of the options, right from the start. It had never left her mind and while it is the logical decision, I am afraid she is far to certain that there is no way her little plan could backfire. And I am afraid that it could.

"I'm going to offer myself to Robb Stark," she announces, confirming my suspicions. "If he marries me, we shall once again unite Westeros and he will remain a King. And together, both his forces and mine, could swipe Cersei and her army off the face of the earth."

"That goes without saying but… Dany, what if he refuses?" I speak my doubts.

"Why would he refuse?" she asks.

Truly, why would he? She is well loved and respected among her people. She has freed cities and punished slavers. She has three dragons. She brought Dothraki screamers across the sea, willing and ready to fight for her, die if they must. She gave the Unsullied their freedom and they chose to fight for her. Her name alone inspires admiration.

Not to mention that she has to be the most beautiful woman in and outside of Westeros.

He would get her for a wife, get her for a Queen and would still keep a crown on his head. Robb Stark would be fool, not intelligent enough to rule if he refused such an offer.

Dany is right, he will not refuse her. Now that I realize that, I am only left to worry about what that will mean for Dany and if she is truly aware of what she might be getting herself into.

It is a good thing I do not have problems of my own. If I had, my head would probably explode.

Why is her hair so beautiful? It's unfair. I know exactly what she does to it and I do exactly the same; I rinse it two times, just as she does. I use the same mixture of herbs that she uses. And it doesn't work.

Ugh, I am becoming a jealous mess and all because of hair?! Have I truly become that petty?

"Dany, I know we have had this conversation before, numerous times actually but I just… I can't help it. I worry that you have no idea what you might be getting yourself into."

"You are right," she agrees, tilting her head backwards so that I don't have to lean over to comb her hair. "We have been through this numerous times." She adds. I can almost hear the sound of my hopes crashing down.

"Oh, I forgot how funny and charming you can be," I sound bitter and that only makes her laugh a bit more. "You can play it off, act as if it is nothing more than a joke but I will keep bringing it up, I can promise you that," I warn her. Out of everyone, she should be the one who knows just how stubborn I can become if I truly put my mind to something. "I don't think you are aware of what this marriage would mean. A union with a man you do not know. A complete stranger, to share your bed and your crown. You haven't even laid eyes on him yet!"

"From what I've heard, he is a handsome man," she comments and at that, I drop my task and walk around her to face her, to try and see if she is just messing with me or being serious. And by the looks of her, I'm afraid she is being serious.

"Dany, please listen," I sigh. She can act all foolish as much as she wants. I do not care who finds her believable because I don't. "It's not about the looks and you know it. He could be the handsomest man in the world but if his head is empty, or even worse, filled with something cruel, you will be caught in a very bad situation. Looks are what matters the least; what if he is some brutish savage that tried to harm you, or mindless dolt that cost you your throne?"

"Do you truly believe he would have been made a King if he was all of those things?"

"In all honesty, I wouldn't be surprised," I admit, feeling annoyed at her look of confusion. "These people love to have rulers, and follow them blindly. In this world, you get something just because your father had it before you. Their last King was a child. The one before him was a sadistic child and the one before him was a drunken usurper. And they all followed them without thinking twice about it. Robb Stark might very well be the best King there ever was but he is a King simply because his Father was Warden of North. If a half-wit cow was Lord Stark's firstborn, he would be King. No one is chosen because of their capability but because of their bloodline."

"Half-wit cow?"

"Oh, you know what I mean!" I snap in annoyance. Of all the words, she chooses to hold onto those?! "Dany, what I am trying to say is that you do not know him and should use caution before you offer yourself up in marriage to him. I am just a simple woman. My marriage can be arranged, I can marry whomever because I have nothing to lose. My possible marriage pact will not be the thing that might make an entire Kingdom fall! You are a Queen. If you have a horrible marriage, you will lose all that you hold dear, all that you have spent years trying to acquire. You need to think. You can't marry a stranger. You need to marry the one that is the best for you, not because of his army but because of his character."

"Milani, you tend to forget that I already have survived one arranged marriage to a stranger."

"Yes, and it was Viserys who pushed you into it, but thankfully it worked out. Are you truly willing to take that risk again though, when you have so much more to lose? Is this something that you want for yourself, after everything you have been through? You have spent years fighting for your crown, years trying to get to where you should have been from the start. Are you willing to risk all of it just because someone has a few soldiers to offer?"

It looks as if my words have finally reached her. It is not a perfect idea. If it did work, it would make our path easier. If they were well suited and found a way to connect, it would be… amazing. But if they do not fit, if they clash, it could be the end of everything. The end of Daenerys Targaryen, her dynasty, and everything she had tried to build.

"Just to make myself clear, I am not saying that you shouldn't marry him," I elaborate, watching as she frowns in confusion. "It could work. And if it works, it will be perfect. But it might not work. What I am suggesting is for you to wait. Don't offer yourself straight away. If you are going to invite him here, do not offer marriage the moment he steps foot through the gates. Wait a little. See who you are dealing with. Watch the way he thinks, the way he rules. The man you marry will be your companion for the rest of your life. He will be in charge of Westeros, just as much as you. It's not a decision that should be rushed into. It can't be taken lightly. Find out whom he is first. See if he has a good head on his shoulders, possibly a kind heart. If he ends of being all that your future partner should be, by all means, marry him. I will be the happiest person at your wedding feast, drinking and dancing until my feet bleed. If he is for ruler and good match for you, marry him. If he is not… find another. You deserve the best. And if you yourself do not care if you get the best, than think of what your Kingdom deserves. Because they deserve the best as well."

People have the tendency to offer the best advice to others, all the while making horrible decisions for themselves. I tend to do that. I always do that and now, I recognize that Dany does it as well. She can calm me down, no matter the problem. She can council me and choose her words carefully, so that I see where exactly I went wrong. But when I am alone, when I am expected to make decisions on my own, I turn into a fool that doesn't have my own best interest at heart.

It's the same with her. She can help anyone. She can have a meaningful conversation with anyone, whether it is a King, Lord or a servant. The advice I have gotten from her has to be the best advice I have ever gotten. But when it comes to her own decisions, for herself, and not her kingdom, she can be an utter disaster.

And that's why I'm here. I need to point it out and shake some sense into her. I'm here to look out for Dany the woman, as much as Daenerys the Queen.

"You are right," she sighs, finally admitting defeat. I feel intense relief that she won't be making a rushed decision. "He will be invited here and once we see who we are dealing with, I will decide whether or not he would be a good match. The only problem is that we truly need him to be a good match. At the moment, he is our best possibility. Our best possible alliance. No one else has such an army. It's only him or Cersei Lannister and I doubt Cersei has a particular desire to marry me."

"We are talking about a woman that shares three children with her brother, right?" I mumble, trying to bring a light into our conversation. It works; both of us try to laugh. "I understand that he is your best option. But all we can do know is hope that for one, he is willing to accept and also, that he is worthy of sharing your throne. And if he is not… perhaps you can acquire some of his support if you throw me his way and convince him to bend the knee. He won't be a King and he will not be your husband but at least he could keep his rule of the North and have your support."

"You have just reminded me that arranged marriages are the worst thing about this culture and now you are willing to sacrifice yourself to one if he's too horrible for me?"

"I have always been ready," I shrug my shoulders. "As I also said before, my marriage would not potentially end the kingdom if it did not go well. I am the only one that would have to suffer through it and if it will help you secure your place as the rightful ruler of this land, I am more than willing. No matter what, no matter how uncomfortable, awkward or horrible my marriage might end up being, it cannot possibly be worse than the life I would have led had I not met you."

I could marry a brute. I could marry a drunk. I could marry a fool, with not a lot of sense in his head. If I do, it will be one brute, one drunk, one fool. Even combined, it would just be one person. One person I would have to tolerate and live with for the rest of my life. It would not be idyllic, not in any way. But at least I would not have hundreds of men abusing me, using me and humiliating me for a small amount of coin. Knowing the life I could have had, I would be more than willing to endure any kind of marriage for the friend that saved me.