A/N: This idea has been ITCHING in my brain since I finally got around to watching the fifth season of Game of Thrones. Hope you like it!

And on that note, I'm afraid I have some sad news for you guys. I've just purged a fair bit of my older works once again. I simply don't have the time to write as much as I'd like to anymore, and sad as I am to say it, a few fics had to go. Some of these stories were written back in 2008-2009 so I'm not entirely sure if you'll remember them or not, but I just wanted to inform you all.

Here's the list for any who are interested:

"Hell Hath no Fury Like a Woman Scorned. Cursed Kitsune. Unison. The One Queen. Five Days to Watch You Die. Ryukage: Dragon Shadow. Mist. Kitsune May Cry. Starstruck. Dating an Immortal. Benevolence. I Will Be An Exorcist. Ashes of War. An Act of Mercy. Will You Be My Queen. Will of Fire. Evolution. Honor For All. The Eternal Fairy. Sunspot. Hide and Seek. Hell Verse Unbidden. Am I Not Human. Light and Shadow. Look at Me. The Perfect Girl. The End of All Hope. Believe. Say it. Reconcile. Bashful. Artificial. Becoming Insane. Dragon of the Light."

...and probably more to come depending on my time constraints. Fear not, the popular ones shall remain!

Now that we've gotten that sad bit of business out of the way, lets clarify a few things for this story ahead. I'm going with the character ages in the SHOW of GOT, rather than the books. As to the events themselves, many of you have asked...

...and I have answered!

"I don't pray. Never have."

~?

Son of the Stag

Stannis Baratheon was about to open a door to his past.

Seven Hells, he didn't want to open this door.

This was a door he'd ordered shut for nearly half a decade now, his men only opening it twice a day to feed its occupant. No more, no less. A constant guard five men in full plate stood watch beyond at all times to see that there were no such unscheduled openings. Any who dared to so much as approach the door without his express permission would be flogged, or worse.

As he passed these men he came to the next line of defense.

The gate.

It was a very impressive gate all things considered; furnished with four inches of rolled steel and, the lever of which could only be opened from the opposite side. Even then, the portculis would only be raised when the Lord of Dragonstone wished it. When at last he came to the door itself, he drew out a ring of keys; for the door itself held an unholy amount of locks and bars and chains and all other manner of impediments meant to keep the one within from leaving.

One by one, he began to unlock them.

Because on the other side lay one of his few mistakes.

And perhaps the key to winning this war.

Behind this bolted door lay a bastard. But not just any bastard-his bastard. A boy fathered in a night of passion years ago during Robert's rebellion against the Mad King-a sordid night Stannis scarcely remembered and had vowed never to speak of again. He'd told Selyse straight away once he'd returned to Dragonstone. The deed was done, confessed his crime, and thought that was the end of that.

It had not been the end.

When the wench from that sordid night had come back to him one warm summer morning, he'd scarcely recognized her. Gone was that steely-eyed lass with hair the color of blood, full of fire and life. In her place was a woman worn, weary and broken by the world. No, he nearly hadn't recognized her at the time. Whomever she was once, she was no longer that girl. In her place was a wasting wisp of a waif, not long for this world. The thought of asking on her illness had come to mind-

Then she'd shoved the babe into his arms.

Few people were capable of surprising Stannis these days, but he counted that moment among them.

He'd nearly turned her away on the spot-until he looked at the squalling babe in his arm. Truly looked at him. And there, in those swaddled rags, he saw it. A boy with his eyes. His face. Gods above, a boy! The son he'd never had, the son Sylese could not give him. Aye, the lad was his by blood and say what you will about Stannis Baratheon, he was an honest man. Unlike the Lannisters and their so-called words, he paid his debts. She had spoken few words to him, this woman from his past, but she accepted his offer to stay the night.

Sadly, his mother vanished soon thereafter; whether she'd met some foul fate end or simply vanished in the night, he knew not. Only that she simply wasn't there the next morn. And he'd found himself left with a babe that he'd no idea what to do with. One he knew next to nothing of him, beyond his name.

Naruto.

It had something to do with a sound a goat'd made when he was born. Didn't matter. If Selyse'd had her way, they would have laid the boy on the coast and let him be carried away by the waves. She claimed he was a monster, a demon. An abomination. But Stannis had held his ground and so, the lad remained under his watchful eye. The boy was a scamp; he grew quickly in the shadow of Dragonstone and learned the art of war as a true Baratheon should, a son in all but name.

When Sylese finally did bear Stannis a child after many stillborns it was a girl. Shireen, they named her. Naruto took to his new sibling well enough even after the greyscale incident and for a time, it seemed all was well and good. Alas, Stannis slowly realized there was something wrong with his son all the same. Naruto began talking in his sleep. Hearing voices. Seeing things-people?-that weren't there. Then he started picking fights in the yard. Ours is the Fury. Naruto lived by those words, though they weren't his own. Perhaps his mind did as well; he was always spoiling for one fight or another.

Fury.

Now Naruto was locked away as punishment for his what many believed to be insanity, for following those very words. His crime? Madness. Beating a man to death in a spar. He was meant to imprisoned for far longer. Yet somehow, he seemed able to escape whenever it suited him. Some said it was sorcery. Others claimed he was half beast. Stannis believed it was far, far simpler than that-strong arms and legs and a steady hand coupled with the whims of a young man determined to be acknowledged one way or another.

The boy was going to give him endless grief over this.

Exhaling heavily, he turned the key in the last lock, grasped the handle, and opened the door.

A well-furnished room awaited him beyond; illuminated by the waning light of a flame. A bookshelf and a pair of mounted daggers awaited him on the far wall, framing a small hearth on which logs burned, providing its owner some small solace from the nights chill. Stannis half-expected the bed to be occupied but nay-the furs were flung back in disarray, suggesting that someone it had indeed been slept in recently. Were he to glance askance he might've heard the waves crashing against the shore far, far below.

This wasn't a prison.

It was a home.

As he turned his head, he saw that the room held only one occupant, and he was standing precariously close to the window.

"All hail His Grace, Stannis of House Baratheon, First of His Name, King of the Andals and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm!" a rough voice drawled mockingly, hands clapping loudly as he stepped the rest of the way inside. "He visits me at last! What has it been, five years, this time? So hard to keep track when you've shut me away like this."

"..."

As he waited patiently for the rant to end, the prisoner-his son-spun to face him. Stannis found himself gazing upon a stern-looking young lad with whiskered cheeks, clad in a dark black and orange tunic, bearing bright blue eyes and hair the color of living fire, much like his mother's. Blue eyes cut angry sapphire daggers at him. His jaw was set in a smile that looked entirely too false for Stannis's liking, bordering on outright menacing by comparison. He'd never been good with his children. Soldiers yes, battles, certainly, but he had no idea what to say to the young man standing across from him.

"You look well, son." he settled for a curt nod at his bastard.

Naruto scoffed, crossing both arms before his chest. "That's it? That's all you have to say to me?"

"What would you have me say?" Stannis challenged, anger getting the better of him. "You put yourself here when you killed that man. Not me."

Azure orbs flicked away from him.

"Says the man holding my keys-

"Enough! You are my boy and I'll not have this from you!"

"Like hell I'm your son!" Naruto snapped back at him through gritted teeth, eyes sparking like red coals. "I'm your bastard! Your mad dog!" Stannis didn't yield when the lad spun on his heel and stormed toward him; he only reluctantly palmed the hilt of his sword when the younger man advanced. "The one you locked away because of an accident!" a finger stabbed into his chest, accusing. "Because you couldn't-wouldn't-even try to be a father, no, you'd rather lock me away than try to understand what I was going through!"

Stannis felt the conversation-and the purpose of his presence here-slipping away from him. Irritated, he tried to rally himself, marshal his resolve and

"That's not-

"Bullshit!" If looks could kill he would've been a smoldering pile of ashes beneath the gaze of his bastard in that moment. "I'm not a son to you, and I know it!" the boy grit out, "I'm your shame!" his voice broke on the last word, crackling with emotion. His eyes were wet when he spun away, glimmering with unshed tears. A thorn of guilt pricked at Stannis and held him back from leaving. His stubborn pride wanted nothing more than to lash out at Naruto's words, to tell him that he was wrong.

"Na-

"Get out." his bastard hissed.

"Now, listen-

"GET THE FUCK OUT!"

A beat of awkward silence passed between them, broken by the distant crackle of the hearth.

Finally, someone broke it.

"You are my son." Stannis said at last, choosing his words with great care. "Nothing can change that. Not you, not your mother, not Selyse, no one. Not even you. Have I ever denied this? Did I ever mistreat you before or after your imprisonment? Bastard or no, I treated you like my own." When his son refused to say anything, he knew he'd won the day. "Well, what say you?"

"Bah." Naruto scoffed and turned away, his anger abating. "You're a terrible father."

Stannis shook himself mightily, quelling the urge to snap at him.

In those words was more than a nugget of truth.

"Aye," he nearly choked on the word, "I am."

"So? How many men has your red woman told you to burn this time?" the boy asked flatly, resting his back against a wall refusing to flinch when his progenitor glowered back at him. "How many souls have you offered to your precious "Lord of Light" to win?" Despite himself, Stannis felt the ghost of a smile tug at the corner of his mouth. They had that in common, at least. The boy's tongue might be sharp as a sword, but he could be refreshingly blunt when it came to speaking his mind.

"Five." The Lord of Dragonstone conceded at last.

"Five more mistakes, then." came the answer.

"Fewer." Stannis corrected.

Naruto blinked.

"Beg pardon?"

"Five fewer mistakes."

"Are you sure that's the right way to say it?" his son queried. "Shireen might disagree."

"You've been visiting her again." it was not a question. One look at his progeny's smug countenance told him the boy had done exactly that. Seven hells, how did he keep getting in and out with no one noticing? There was nothing less than a sheer drop outside that window; the walls were slick with the constant spray of sea and salt. No man or woman, no matter how strong or fleet of foot they might be, could ever hope to scale them. The walls and door were thick, so he wasn't getting out that way. So how? It baffled him.

"Can't prove it." the blond blinked innocently. "'S'ides, she's my sister-

"-half sister-"

-so I should be allowed, anyhow." the young man finished with a scowl. "What, you're afraid I'll hurt her or something?"

Realizing he wouldn't well win this war of words, Stannis withdrew a small scroll from his belt.

"Is it a letter from the capital?" Naruto pulled himself out onto the window until he was sitting on it. "What does it say?" Stannis blanched, a sudden pang of worry coming over him as he watched his fiery-haired son all but lean out over the edge.

"Get down from there." he demanded.

"Why?"

"Because we make for Kings Landing in a fortnight."

"And this should concern me...how?" Naruto tilted his head, contemplating. "Your blood or not, I'm still just a bastard."

Stannis bristled quietly.

There it was again.

The disdain.

Naruto liked to laugh at everyone and everything around him. He never took anything seriously. Always smiling, always dodging the questions, shirking his responsibilities. Give him half a chance and he'd scrap with the best of them. Sometimes Stannis had difficulty believing the boy was his, bastard or no. Aye, but the lad had his eyes and his temper both; he fought like the devil when pushed to it.

This one was like wildfire; fierce and savage, impossible to tame. One couldn't control him, you could only aim him in one direction, loose the leash, and hope for the best.

Sometimes you needed a bit of that when it came to battle.

Better the devil you knew than the one you didn't.

"I have need of you." he confessed.

Naruto frowned.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" a hand rose, cupping his ear. "Didn't hear you."

Stannis shot the boy a stern look.

"If you're going to act like that then you can stay at Dragonstone." After a moment's of silence, he reluctantly amended, "I need you to complete a task for me." at the boy's sullen look, he pressed on, driving home his brief advantage to the fullest. "Do this for me, and I will name you my son and heir and free you from this place."

Naruto slowed in his swaying.

"What...what did you say?"

"Exactly what I said."

If there was one thing that his son cherished Stannis knew, it was recognition. He yearned to be acknowledged. Legitimized. Publicly. The surest way to gain his aid was to offer him just that. And if he did take the Iron Throne, he would need to name an heir. One Selyse couldn't provide. But if he acknowledged Naruto, Naruto, whose skill with knives was unmatched; Naruto who was old enough to marry, Naruto, who would beyond a shadow of doubt remain loyal, yes, that would work out well, very well indeed...

"So," Naruto began slowly, raising a finger, "Let me go this straight. You want to sack Kings Landing. You want me to do what, exactly? Come with you...?

"Can you still climb?"

"Of course I can still climb." Naruto spit into a corner. "How do you think I keep getting out of this bloody tower?"

Stannis glanced at the window, considering.

"If I were to tell you to bring me Joffrey's head, would you do it?" he asked at length.

"If I were so inclined." Naruto answered, swinging himself back inside.

"And...Cersei's?"

"Happily."

"Seven hells."

"I'll need twenty good men." His son warned, holding up a finger. "Some won't be coming back."

"You'll have my best."

"They better be fucking ballsy."

Stannis frowned at the crass tone wielded by his son.

"You should pray more and swear less."

Blue eyes glittered with mirth.

"But I don't pray, father...

Then they burned red.

...I never have."

A/N: And there you have it!

...The events of GOT ought to be quite different with him involved...will Naruto make it out of this one alive? But the questions don't end here! Now remember, we will eventually see the Elemental Nations in this ficlet! Naruto has no power in this fic beyond his strength, and stealth skills. He's still himself, just...hardened. And, in the end there will only be one king upon the Iron Throne, and all bloody hell is about to break loose!

So...in the immortal words of Atlas...

...Would You Kindly Review the story of this humble man? And enjoy the preview! There's Lannister blood to be shed aplenty next chapter! Look forward to it!

(Preview)

"DRUMS!"

"Aaaaaaand that's my cue to wrap this up."

Naruto hummed quietly as he heard the distant cry from his perch on the battlements. His knives had already tasted Lannister blood more than once tonight, and the siege hadn't even truly begun. Alone, working from the darkness as a silent vanguard, he'd already inflicted more damage on Tywin Lannister's precious legacy than any of his father's ships would. It was imperative that they secured Kings Landing before reinforcements arrived, which made his task all the more vital.

Twenty good men indeed.

Twenty good men were dangerous..

Led by him, twenty good men were downright lethal.

Doubtlessly his blades and theirs would drink their fill before the night was through.

He paused, considering his next targets.

The Hound.

Nope. All kinds of nope. He knew better than to mess with a man like that by himself.

The Imp.

Seemed a shame to kill him just yet. He was a competent strategist, but beyond that, a good man. Good men were in short supply these days, even if some of them were Lannisters.

Joffrey.

Well, that decided things.

Positioning both feet on the ledge, he gathered himself up, took a running start...

Then he fell upon Joffrey like a shadow.

R&R! =D