A/N: I posted this on Ao3 and then figured I might as well have it here too. I get the feeling most of us need something to dig into after the ending of the last episode. Gendrya is love.

What do we say

Arya shakes. Exhaustion, terror, adrenaline – it doesn't really matter which is the cause of the powerful tremors wracking her body. She shakes so much that she can't quite take stock of her own thoughts for a minute, overpowered by her own body's violent reaction to the events of the night. The head wound really doesn't help much.

When her thoughts finally still for a moment, she looks down at the hundreds of gleaming icy shards surrounding her crouched form.

What do we say to the God of Death?

"Not today."

The voice is not hers. Arya's eyes shoot up and meet Bran's empty gaze. No, not so empty after all. Bran isn't… smiling exactly, but there's a lightness in his usually vacant eyes that she'd not seen before.

"Did you know?" she asks and her voice is barely even a rasp. She reaches up to her throat and her skin there feels raw, painful. Every syllable coming out of her mouth stings like frostbite.

Did you know it would be me? Is that why you gave me the dagger?

Bran doesn't reply (she's not really too surprised by that any more), but he finally does smile, slowly, and Arya's limbs seem to melt under her. She collapses to the ground unceremoniously and picks up some of the snow to put it over the lump on her head.

I need to find them, she thinks, willing her body to not abandon her now that the adrenaline of battle is gone. Jon, Sansa… Gendry.

But before she can get up she hears frantic shuffling from the entrance to the Godswood.

"BRAN!"

And then Jon is there and he's covered in blood and his eyes are wild but he's alive and in that moment she feels more like Arya Stark of Winterfell than she ever has before. Her eyes fill up with tears and her mangled throat lets out a relieved gasp.

He notices her immediately and then there's tears in his eyes too.

"Arya." He whispers and then she's being crushed in his arms. Her wounds scream in protest but she knows that she has never felt this much relief in her life. "You're alive, Arya, you're—"

"The Night King is dead."

Jon's grip on her loosens and he looks up at Bran. Arya keeps her head down, suddenly feeling extremely tired.

"What happened? Theon?"

"He's dead too." Arya mutters and Jon's gaze follows hers to Theon's cold, unmoving frame. Jon lowers his head. "He died protecting Bran."

"Then—?"

But before she can think of a way to describe what she'd done or what happened afterwards, another scuffle sounds behind Jon. They both turn to look back and Arya's heart jumps before she can school it to submission. Her defences are too fragile after what they had been put through tonight.

The Clegane bastard strides in like he owns the place and behind him… behind him is Gendry. Their eyes meet for a moment and the look he gives her lets her know that no less than a thousand Night Kings would have to stand between them to keep him away from her.

Without consciously willing it, she finds her eyes inspecting every inch of him that she can see. He's limping and there's a deep gash in his left side but it seems to have been patched up well-enough. He's covered in dirt and so much blood that he's barely recognisable anymore. Barely, except for the bright blue warmth of his eyes, so unlike the deep dark voids that were set into the Night King's face.

"The bitch is still alive." Sandor huffs. "Guess these fuckers weren't so tough after all."

She realises that both men had come to the Godswood immediately after the battle just to check on her and if there was ever a moment where she wished she could smile, this is it.

"Arya." Gendry whispers and it sends a small shiver of intense relief up her spine. She's glad that Jon doesn't notice it. The blacksmith looks ready to rush to her side but her brother's protective arms on her shoulders hold him back.

"What happened?" Jon repeats, turning his gaze first to her and then to Bran.

"She killed him."

The air seems to freeze for a moment as every single eye in the clearing turns to look at her. Arya avoids Jon's gaze and takes a step away.

"I know death." She says after a moment and looks up catching Gendry's incredulous look. "Today I saw his face up close. Then I stuck him with the pointy end."

The joke rings hollow in the silence of the Godswood. She can hear men yelling in the distance, probably trying to find survivors. Her insides suddenly feel cold.

"Arya—" Jon begins and then, before her concussed head can quite catch up to what's happening, she is being enveloped in the warmest, most bone-crushing hug she'd ever been in.

Gendry holds her like a dying man holds on to his last moments of life. She can hear his heartbeat through the layers of clothes and smell his familiar musk over the blood and dirt of battle, a smell that immediately throws her mind back to the night they'd shared just hours earlier. Arya closes her eyes and for the first time since her blade pierced the Night King's stomach, she feels warm.

"M'lady." He whispers into her hair and this time Arya doesn't bother to hold back her tears.

Then someone behind her clears their throat and Gendry immediately loosens his grip, lifting his head up from where it rested on her hair.

"Of all the men in the world, you had to go and pick this one." Clegane's voice rasps and then he laughs.

"Gendry." Jon says and even Arya has a hard time deciphering the emotion in his tone.

The man in question immediately lets go of her and steps back. She finally gets a good view of his face and there's terror and embarrassment written all over it as he locks eyes with her older brother.

"Lord Snow—"

"Oh shut up." She says before he can finish. Then she steps forward, grabs his shirtfront and pulls him down until his lips meet hers.

She can sense his shock for a moment but she only grasps harder and pulls him closer, desperate for the feeling of warmth that comes with his mouth on hers. Bedding him reminded her that in a life marked by death she could still enjoy brief glimpses of life and she'll be damned if she lets anyone take that away from her.

When she finally lets him go, she can feel that he's still tense but his gaze doesn't leave her eyes for a moment as he grins and cups her cheek with softness that she doesn't quite know what to do with. His hand settles on her neck where the Night King's grip still burns and he frowns a little.

"I killed the Night King." She says. "And now I've kissed a bull. If anyone has anything to say about that, they can do so after I've made sure my home is safe."

She smirks at Gendry's awestruck expression and sends Jon a pointed look. Her brother looks like he's about to say something but then he shakes his head and nods, a small smile playing on his lips. Arya nods back, pats the Hound on his arm and walks away, her mind finally clear.

Once she's left, Gendry clears his throat. "My Lord…"

"It's alright, Gendry." Jon says, smiling slightly. "I don't think there's a man or woman in the world that can make her do something she doesn't want to do." Then he pauses. "We will talk about this."

"Aye, Lord Snow."

Sandor shakes his head. "Saviour of the bloody Seven Kingdoms. Always knew she was trouble, that one."