This story is originally written as a Birthday present for my best friend, so happy birthday again Dearie!

It starts quite a time before the books/ Season 1 does, but refers to events described. Also a lot of things are adapted or there are Marvel plot-elements (TV shows and movies inclusing X-Men) woven into it. Also the Marvel names are partly adapted to suit Westerosi fashion.

Disclaimer: I neither own GoT nor the MCU nor the X-Men

Harrenhal, 279 AC

Jaime

Harrenhal was loud and bustling, knights and squires, merchants and harlots all going about their business. It was intoxicating, really, in Jaime's opinion and he was getting more and more excited for the tournament that would only really begin the next day. Not that he would show it. He couldn't afford that, not as a Lannister, knighted at the age of 16, the youngest man ever to become a member of the kingsguard. He had a reputation to uphold and a sister to please.

Suddenly, his path was blocked by two people walking in his direction. He frowned, people were supposed to move out of his way! He was the young lion, he deserved that! Whereas those two were… well, the man looked like a knight, but his armour was definitely far from Lannister standard. He might have been about Jaime's age, a dark version of him. Tall, lean, wavy black hair, dark eyes and an annoying smirk on his lips that the kingsguard would have loved to wipe off this bastard's face. He was what the stupid handmaid hens would probably call handsome, for Jaime, he was an open provocation.

The woman, or rather girl, next to him, she couldn't have been more than 14 years old, was nothing like the man. She was short and petite and incredibly beautiful. Admitting that was a weird thing for the knight, as he normally never looked at anyone but Cersei that way. Her hair was fire-red and unbraided, hanging loosely in waves over her shoulders. The moment she looked at him with the green eyes of hers, just a few shades darker than his own, he felt as if the air had been punched out of him, as if she was looking straight into his soul and knew all of his secrets.

Who was she? Maybe the man's lady? Or his whore?

When the man didn't move to the side, she nugged him with her elbow, clearly signalling him not to search trouble with a kingsguard. Smart little thing. They both moved to the side, letting him pass. She curtsied deeply and elegantly and Jaime wasn't quite sure whether she was utterly polite or utterly mocking him.

A few hours later, he saw a quarrel starting not far from him and went over, curious to see what it was about. Some short man was apparently being bullied by three young lads who had snatched his weapon out of his hands and were now shoving and kicking him, all while calling him ugly names. For a moment, he wondered if maybe he should help the man, but before he came to a conclusion, a whirlwind of red brushed past him and jumped in the middle of the quarrel, twisting, kicking and hitting and somehow still making it look like a dance. Jaime was stunned when he realized it was Red (that was what he had started to call the girl from earlier in his mind). Somehow she had gotten a dagger and was now holding it to the throat of one of the boys who was kneeling in front of her. Unfortunatedly, she didn't move quick enough to dodge the blow one of the stupid idiots still wanted to bring to her head, not believing that she would really harm the other boy. Red fell to the ground and now Jaime was really going to move and beat them green and blue - when another woman jumped in. If he was not mistaken, it was Lyanna Stark who was now fighting off the others with a tourney sword. What a sight to be seen, those ladies.

He saw Red getting up, her dress dusty but not too dirty, and curtsying in front of Lady Lyanna who just laughed. Then, the girl ran to the short man, starting to fuss over him, making sure he was okay. When she seemd to be satisfied, she spoke again to the lady before her eyes turned towards Jaime. His breath skipped again as she moved towards him graciously, maybe even a bit predatorously. Interesting, he thought, what does she want from me? He bowed slightly in front of her and when he looked at her again, she was holding the dagger she had used to threatened the boys - wait, was that his dagger?! - out to him.

"I beg your forgiveness Ser Jaime, I meant no harm, but I took the liberty to borrow your dagger," she admitted, her voice firm.

"When did you...?" then he remembered: Just when she had rushed past him, she must have taken it from his belt.

He could have taken off her head for that (well, maybe not her head, he still didn't know who she was after all) and she stood there confidently in front of him, apparently not affraid?! It was outrageous! Still, he couldn't fight the amusement bubbling up inside his chest nor the small genuine smile on his face.

"Thank you for bringing back my property," he remarked dryly.

Red curtsied again and the scrambled of behind the wolf-maiden and the other short man.

The feast in the evening was huge, people dancing and singing and drinking until far into the night. Especially the group from the little island called Asgard, an island somewhere up in the North, Jaime had never actually bothered to look up where exactly, was basically drowning in ale and apparently not feeling any kind of effect. Thor, the oldest son and heir, was a boisterous man and the leader, accompanied by his truthful pack of friends that included a woman, Lady Sif. They said she was one of the fiercest warriors of the North, well, she was definitely one of the prettiest.

Jaime sat with the Kingsguard as their newest brother, but he let his eyes fllitter over the crowd. That was when he saw her, the girl, now sitting among the Starks, next to Lady Lyanna. Her her hair was braided and she wore an elegant dress, apparently she was a lady-in-waiting to the Stark daughter. As if she had felt his eyes on her, she subtly started twirling a strand of hair around her finger in a definitely fliratious gesture. Then, suddenly, her eyes met his and she winked and smirked, making known that she had noticed his staring.

Jaime's primary embarassement at being caught was soon replaced by fury, how could a North bitch dare to mock a lion? He had never been as cunning as his sister or as his little brother was already, he was someone for blunt confrontion. But even Jaime knew he couldn't just walk up at Red and scare shit out of her. Still he found himself unable to tear his eyes away from her, especially not when the dances began. She moved as gracefully as she had fought and seemed to be a very desired partner, not that he could blame anyone, objectively spoken of course. Brandon Stark just led her back to her seat, whispering something that made her dissolve into a fit of laughter. She looked radiant in the candlelight with her head thrown back, looking so carefree for a moment. Even though Jaime was fairly certain she actually wasn't. And matter of factly, his heart would always be taken, there was no room for somebody else.

Suddenly he noticed another blonde haired man asking Red for a dance and had to frown. The man in question was Ser Steven, a Lannister bastard. That was hard to deny, after all he had the broad built of his father, Jaime's uncle Ser Kevan, and the golden locks that all the family seemed to share. Only his eyes were different, instead of the vivid shades of green most Lannister eyes were coloured in his were blue, a notorious reminder that he was not trueborn. Born in the same year as Cersei and Jaime himself, the man was a formidable fighter and had therefore been knighted, despite being a bastard. He had his own lands now and had even been allowed to choose a name other than the "Hill " that marked all bastard from the Westerlands. His house would now be known as Starshield, the sigil a white star in rings of gold and red.

Sometimes, Jaime thought by himself that he was the picture perfect knight, all honour and goodness, but he had nothing of the ruthlessness Tywin always tried to teach him and Cersei and Tyrion. Still or maybe because of it, women fell in front of his feet as easily as for Jaime and he had seen from afar the way the other blonde commanded troops in battle (even though he had not been supposed to, it had been an emergency as there had been chaos and nobody could hold that against him) - People were willing to follow him, to die for him, because they believed in him, because they actually trusted him. The older Lannister generation knew it and therefore kept Ser Steven on a tight leash, trying to use it for their advantage.

Speaking of it, where was his wife? While the music started again, he spotted her, Maryah Starshield. Leaned against the wall in absolute confidence, she pointedly ignored the leering looks a lot of men gave her, instead watching her husband and Red with a slight smile on her face. Jaime wondered who of the two she enjoyed watching more. As another noble-born bastard from the Westerlands, former Maryah Hill, sister of Ambros Brax, was a beauty in her own right. Jaime objectively agreed to the public opinion, though she had never really captured his interest. Not exactly tall but taller than Red, her dark tresses were braided elaboratedly, she was the the picture of poise and elegance. What Ser Steven lacked in lion-style ruthlessness, his wife surely made up for: She was smart, always seemed to be alert and Cersei hated her guts. She said she was a nameless, plotting whore who would throw anything to the wolves if she could reap a benefit out of it. Tyrion on the other hand liked her, even though Maryah wasn't someone for sweet-talking and smalltalk and generally seemed annoyed as soon as she caught sight of Jaime she was always kind and fair to his little brother and shared his love for strategy games. She usually beat him at it, which only proved how dangerous she would be if she had any chance of moving up in social hirachy. Which she hadn't. Because her mother was just a commoner. Marrying Ser Steven was already more than a girl in her position could have ever hoped for, but they weren't a stupid match per se: Tying two houses even closer was always a good idea, his father had stressed. And they seemed to genuinely like each other. What was even more intriguing, she seemed to like the fighting. Jaime had seen Maryah watch her husband and by extension also himself fight, with an intensity that was borderline weird. And word went around Ser Steven regularly took her hunting and even trained her herself.

Another blonde woman, Lannister blonde Jaime thought dryly, joined Maryah, attracting more attention. Barbara, called Bobbi Hill, Ser Kevans second bastard and Ser Steven's younger sister, was one of the most lusted-after maidens at Casterly Rock. If Cersei hadn't been, him and Bobbi might have become good friends, Jaime thought. She was confident, witty, smart-mouthed, had lots of spirit and was known for her tantrums and epic fights with her brother. Apparently those fights often became pretty physical, though Jaime was very sure they were not sleeping with each other. Apparently she seemed to hold her sister-in-law in high regard, which definitely didn't appeal to Cersei.

Of course Jaime could have walked over and inquired after Red, but even if Maryah and Bobbi would not talk (and he was certain they would not, they weren't gossips), there would be rumours the next day. Rumours he didn't need. So he decided to join his brothers of the Kingsguard instead.

Even the next day he couldn't get his thoughts away from that peculiar encounter, only the fights (that he won) took his mind off it for a moment. Finally, he found out who the mysterious man Red had been with when he had first seen her was - a Northern one, James Barnes, sworn to House Stark. He wasn't a knight as the houses in the North seldomly announced knights in the name of The Seven, instead still hanging on to The Old Gods. So people called him the "Winter Soldier" and he was really good, even though he was missing one arm, as they told Jaime. Well, that explaiend his weird style.

All in all, the tournament proved to be very interesting. Jaime also noticed that two of the three boys that had assaulted the smaller man the day before did quite well, he wondered whether the man would challenge them at one point or not. Probably not, judging by the way he had fought yesterday. Lady Lyanna or Red would probably be more successful, the kingsguard thought to himself. He knew that the king wanted him to make his way back to King's Landing the next morning, making it impossible for him to stay during the whole tournament. A pity, really, but a price he was willing to pay.

He didn't see the Northern girl again, she seemed to have disappeared into thin air, well, fair enough, the Stark's were guarding their bitches just as the Lannisters guarded their lionesses. Then, he heard voices behind a tent.

"... shame they brought on him and he won't challenge them!" a female voice complained.

"He is not confident enough, not trained enough!" an even younger voice talked back, "even I would be better suited!"

"Would you?" That voice was familiar.

"Yes, of course! I have been training!"

"But you are so light, a pole has only to touch you and you are out of the saddle! You don't have enough force to push him out."

"Stop insulting me!" It's not only about weight but about technique!"

"She is right," a man responded, sounding suspiciously like Ser Steven. "Those men have wronged him but firstly, as my sister has said, you aren't sturdy enough for that sport. Yet. Secondly, if someone finds out, you will be in so much trouble!"

"But what shall we do?" the very first voice asked.

Curiously, Jaime walked around the corner, just to find Ser Steven, Maryah, Bobbi, Lady Lyanna Stark, James Barnes and Red clustered together, all looking at him suspiciously. He smiled, this might be fun after all.

"Lady Lyanna, Ser Steven, Lady Maryah, Bobbi" Jaime greeted the ones he knew, "I was wondering who your strange company was."

He was fairly certain he could hear Maryah sigh at the poorly veiled arrogance in his tone.

" Lord Barnes, at your service," the other soldier bowed, again this fucking smirk on his face as if sharing a secret joke with the others. Well, maybe they were.

"And this is Natalia."

The dark-haired man smiled at Natalia as she dropped another curtsy that could rival any lady in King's Landing.

"Your wife?" Jaime couldn't help from asking.

"No, Natalia Snow, his half-sister, Lady Lyanna Stark's lady-in-waiting," Red, or Natalia, answered even though he hadn't even asked her.

"You don't look like a girl from the North," Jaime blurted out.

She pointedly arched an eyebrow.

"Is that a compliment?"

He wanted to nod when he realized that she was luring him in a trap with that - either he insulted her or her people, with Lady Lyanna standing next to him.

"I simply meant they are not known for bright red hair," he tried to get out of it.

A small smile played around her lips as if she appreciated the fact that he had noticed her cunning.

"No, you are right. I was born under a werewood tree and so the Gods gave me light skin like the tree and red hair like the leafs."

Again, it was impossible to say whether that was the truth, but in any case, it was a nice story.

"So, I have heard you are talking about avenging," Jaime remarked, "Lady Lyanna, why not ask your brothers?"

She sighed. "Not that it is your business, Ser Jaime, but Ned doesn't compete in tournaments and Brandon as the heir can only do so for the Starks. Same goes for Bu- Lord James as heir of the Barnes family."

"I would but I can't, at least not officially, defend someone from the North," Ser Steven confirmed, "especially not with him knowing."

He motioned towards Jaime who huffed indignantly. Why was the other man implying he couldn't keep his mouth shut? That was definitely not true!

"Don't you worry, I won't tell," he confirmed, "though I think even disguised everyone would recognize or at least guess your sturdy built and your style Ser Steven."

Apparently surprised about the fact that he was actually contributing, the blonde man looked at him.

"And what do you propose?"

Well, that was a good question. Under the inquiring glance of Natalia, he might be even been convinced to do it himself, when he realized the king had already ordered him back to the capital.

"Maryah could do it," Bobbi suddenly remarked, causing absolut confusion.

"Have you already done it, trained with real tourney equipment?" Lady Lyanna asked curiously.

The dark-haired woman nodded. "I have and I would have a fair chance of winning," she stated matter of factly.

"How..?" James Barnes wanted to know, but Maryah just smirked.

"Having a supportive husband and a little castle where even Tywin Lannister doesn't bother what we are doing in our spare time has ist perks. Don't pretend you haven't trained your sister and Lady Lyanna doesn't know how to wield a sword."

She shared knowing smiles with Bobbi and the others who all nodded in agreement.

"Bobbi could do it, too," Maryah went on, "tall as she is, she might even pass as a man. But if anyone found out she would be doomed. Unmarried, Ser Kevan is responsible. Whereas for me..."

She shrugged her shoulders. It was true, she was under Ser Steven's command, nobody could raise a hand against her, Lady Starshield. She had been lucky, Jaime thought, she had more and more the feeling that she was treated as an equal. Not that he minded, after all in his relationship with Cersei, it was probably also her calling the shots.

"You will need an armour that fits. And a horse and entries in the register list," the kingsguard argued, "and supposedly it works, why would you do it anyway?"

"Because it is right. If that means anything to you, Kingsguard," she spat out. "And," she added, as if in an afterthought, "I really want to kick ass."

The others started laughing at that, Ser Steven even kissing her temple, a rare public display of affection between the two. Even though they were so different, the group seemed to have found each other and not for the first time in his life, Jaime felt kind of lonely.

"Alright, I will help you," he proclaimed, earning unbelieving looks, "but you have to trust me too!"

An unspoken conversation seemed to go on, the northerners looking at their Lady who seemed to have a stare-off with Maryah until she nooded.

"We accept the offer," the Western lady declared, "now we need to organize."

"It would be best to piece the armour together, then nobody will be able to trace it back," Natalia argued, if everyone gets some bits and pieces from their closest storage we will have it in no time. "Lannister, can you find a horse?"

She fixed her fern-green eyes on him again and he felt himself nodd.

"But don't expect a champion horse my lady, I have to borrow what I can find."

"I will sort out the list," Natalia declared, "but who will get Lady Maryah in her armour? Lady Lyanna has to be in the stalls as has Bobbi, Ser Steven could go though."

"Not the first time a couple suddenly disappears," Jaime remarked, cringing a bit under the knowing looks the others gave him.

"True," the lady confirmed, "you will be on your way back to King's Landing anyway, so you are not an option. James is slower with one arm that leaves Natalia. Are you okay with that?"

"Yes Mylady, I am," the girl confirmed, "I know how to maintain and put on an armour."

"We should sort out who is getting what."

"Of course. And Maryah needs another name and a sigil."

After they had come to an agreement about who was "borrowing" what, it took them considerably longer to decide on a name. Then, looking at Natalia with her light skin and red hair, Jaime suddenly had an idea.

"What about the 'Knight of the Laughing Tree?' We could paint a werewood tree on the shield, everyone will think her a northerner then because nobody else cares for the Old Gods."

"This is very good, actually," Ser Steven confirmed, "but who will make a shield that quickly?"

"That's only a question of gold."

"Your gold, Lannister?" Lady Lyanna taunted.

"Hey those two are half-lions too and you are not giving them shit!" Jaime complained, "but yes, I can sort it out."

"They are bastards, just like Lady Starshield and I. That changes perspective. But thank you for offering to take care of the shield, we accept," Natalia remarked and the kingsguard gulped at her dry tone.

"Then get it on, we meet at nightfall here again to report progress," Ser Steven decided.

Everybody nodded before they scattered, disappearing into different directions, leaving Jaime wondering what the seven hells he had gotten himself into.

To be continued...