All trademarked items in this fanfiction is owned by their respective copyright holders (A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin, Aoki Hagane no Arpeggio by Ark Performance, etc). The ones owned by me are past and future OCs, plot, and author's thoughts. This fanfiction is made solely for entertainment purposes and not intended for any material gain.

A Capriccio of Winds and Earths

Karasu 7

A gentle knock sounded on the door, before a maid peeked into the room Catelyn Stark resided. The lady was sitting up against the bed's headboard, her belly heavy with child.

"Yes, Beth?" the lady of the house said, looking up from her embroidery work.

"Lord Robb and Lady Kirino comes to visit, my lady," Beth said as she opens the door fully, revealing Robb and the foreign lady.

"Mother," Robb greeted. "I and Lady Sh-… Shyomaro comes to visit."

"Lady Stark," Shiomaru said, bowing deeply.

"Robb, Lady Kirino," Catelyn replied. "I hope my absence in entertaining you is not a cause of offense to you, Lady Kirino. The baby in my belly tires me so greatly in this pregnancy."

"It is quite alright, Lady Stark," Shiomaru said. "Your children has been the most excellent guides for Winterfell and its surrounding areas."

"Is that so? All I hear from them are tales of wonder and awe, Lady Kirino," Catelyn replied, casting a smile that is just a little baleful towards Robb. "I understand that you went ranging yesterday, Robb?"

"We were with Jory and Fat Tom! There was Ser Lannister, Ser Manderly, and that one half-northern Lannister guard…" Robb said, his tone full of excitement. "Lady Sozoo is a master fisherman, Mother! Not even Fat Tom can match her! And that sashemee was very delicious!"

"Ah… but Megga seems to have told me that you have been eating raw fish, hmm?" Catelyn asked Robb, who suddenly seemed chastised.

"Technically, it wasn't raw," Shiomaru cut in before Robb can answer. "The fish is treated with a… marinate shall we say, a mixture of strong vinegar and spices. While it hasn't been heated, no worm can possibly survive the marinate."

"You seem sure," Catelyn said, her tone low.

"I prepared the trout myself, Lady Stark," Shiomaru replied, her tone a touch defiant. "Before Lord Robb, the very same fish preparation was eaten by Fat Tom, Torrhen, and Ser Lannister. If any of them fall ill before I leave, you may hang me by the neck… by your own or Lord Stark's hand."

"I-… I'm sure such a terrible oath would not be necessary, Lady Kirino," Catelyn backed off, in awe of what the young woman is willing to risk.

"I take my trade as a shefu… er, preparer of foods, seriously, Lady Stark," Shiomaru replied, her gaze a touch wistful. "Only happiness and delight shall come from these hands, and never pain and suffering."

"I… see," Catelyn said.

"That said, your younger daughter has… an uncanny knack for showing up in places, my lady," Shiomaru said after the heavy atmosphere let up. "She has been a most… interesting presence."

"Arya? What mischief has she been up to now, Robb?" Catelyn said, her gaze immediately upon Robb.

"That's the thing, mother…" Robb answered her mother's question, his words a touch unsure. "Lady… Shyomaro seemed to be able to calm her. She isn't kicking and screaming unless she's pulled from the scene. She's just… there. Watching. And sometimes getting treats."

"That… is odd indeed," Catelyn said. "Whatever that you have done Lady Kirino, you must tell me. Wolf-blooded her father named her, and that worries me."

"Perhaps it's simply the novelty of having a new person doing new things in the household, Lady Stark," Shiomaru said, her shoulders making a subtle shrug. "Little Arya has been… distracting, but not overly so."

"Oh, oh, and Lady Shyomaro has a treat for you, Mother!" Robb said before he claps twice. Promptly, a maid entered the scene, a bowl at hand.

"… is this spiced snow, Lady Kirino?" Catelyn asked as she looked at the contents of the bowl, a square of what looked like compacted snow. She was aware of the uniquely Northern delicacy, but never saw the appeal.

"Of a sort. I can assure you that this has neither touched any snow, nor is fresh snow," Shiomaru said. "The maids of the kitchen had been saying that your porridge has oft been untouched, so I thought perhaps a cool food is more agreeable to your palate."

"Arya and Sansa both liked it, Mother!" Robb said enthusiastically.

"Very well…" Catelyn said, taking a spoonful into her mouth. An instant surprise bloomed in her face as she swallowed the delicacy. "My word! This… is this cream? And… lemons?"

"Yes, it is a mixture of lemon reduction, spices, cream, and amakazurasen… uh, there is no Westerosi word equivalent of that," Shiomaru explained. "It is a type of sweetener made from tapping certain vines, a traditional Old Nihon sweetener. There were a few suitable grapevines in the glass gardens."

"We had Maester Luwin record the recipes and manuals!" Robb added.

"Very shrewd, Young Lord Stark," Catelyn said as she reached to pat her son. Then she turned to the foreign lady, a thankful expression on her face. "Thank you very much for this, Lady Kirino. This is a kindness that few can hope to match…"

"Yours is a House that never stopped giving, Lady Kirino," Eddard Stark made his presence known as he entered the room. "To think that we are the hosts instead of you. Sansa has been over the moon from your cousin's tales and companionship… so much so that the septa has begun to complain."

"The realm is shrouded in disquiet and anxiety, my Lord of Stark," Shiomaru said, a smile in her face as she ignored Catelyn's spiking annoyance. "If one can lighten the gloomy days even by a little, then it is our duty to do so."

"Try some of these, my lord husband," Catelyn said, offering him a spoonful. "Before I finish it."

"My word… is this what they use for spiced snows in the far south, I wonder…" Eddard said after he swallowed the spoonful. "The spiced snow of my childhood never tasted like this. Neither is the batch you made the last time."

"Perhaps they only had them in winters, my lord," Shiomaru ventured a guess. "To my knowledge nowhere else in Westeros has summer snows like in The North."

"I see. Perhaps you would like to help me, Lady Kirino?" Eddard asked as he rubbed his beard. "My lords will depart in the day after tomorrow and I would very much like to share this taste with them. Are you up for this challenge?"

"Such is a great task, my Lord of Stark," Shiomaru replied. "But the pride of a shefu is in their dishes, and our house never were shy of challenges."

…

"And thus, to lighten our hearts before you head back to your holdings and muster your armies, let us partake on a dessert from our childhood."

As Eddard finished the feast-ending speech, the dish were distributed and consumed. A stunned silence reigned for a second, before an approving murmur rise from the crowd.

"Ned! What in the fucking world did you throw into this spiced snow? It tastes like milk! And stuff!" Greatjon Umber shouted in the unmistakable thundering voice of his. "It doesn't taste remotely like snow with a hint of dirt! Like the usual my maid used to make!"

"Why not ask the gift-bearer herself? The one she made for my lady wife isn't quite like this either," Eddard replied. "What taste is this, Lady Kirino?"

"The body is cream, spices, maplesap, and diced berries, sprinkled with toasted and crushed pine nuts my lords," Shiomaru stood up and said. "Also, I used an indirect technique to freeze the mixture, so my so-called spiced snow is in fact a frozen mixture in itself and not actual snow."

"That is such a roundabout way to prepare spiced snow…" a tall lady commented.

"Oh shut your mouth and enjoy the food for once, Dustin," a stouter lady clad in bear pelts countered.

"Taking an established Northern delicacy and taking it to a whole other level…" Wendel commented from the lower tables as highlords ply the skilled lady with questions. "To be able to come up with such innovation, she must have been gifted by the gods."

"Oh, the lady can make Tywin Lannister smile with her food Ser Wendel," Daven replied after he swallowed the sweet treat. "If the magnitude of the lady's skill reaches this height, I would not be surprised."

"Is that true Ser Lannister?" Wendel said as his father animatedly gesticulated towards the lady. "Tywin Lannister has not smiled since The Sack of King's Landing, last I heard!"

"Well I admit that I can't be sure of it, the dining room's lighting was not the best," Daven said, chuckling. "But there is a certain... lightness about my liege-lord after that event. Lord Lannister even guaranteed a spot in The Rock's kitchens should Lady Shiomaru have a need of livelihood."

"I'm sure my father is making that very same offer right now!" Wendel said before laughing away.

…

The feast was well into the wane as Eddard excused himself. Greatjon could still be heard from the hall, but some of the older lords had retired before the lord of the castle. He made his way to his room, only to stumble on Jon leaning to a nook on the wall by the hallway to Winterfell's master bedroom.

"Jon? What are you doing here? It's late, boy," Ned asked to the half-asleep youth. Jon gasped to full consciousness for a second, before finding his wits.

"Lor-… Father, I waited outside because I want to ask for something," Jon said, his tone a little apprehensive. "Might I… ask leave to accompany Ser Lannister's company?"

"Oh, Jon… whatever happened to make you want to do that?" Eddard asked, his tone dismayed. "Is it my lady wife again?"

"No, not… not really," Jon answered the question. "I… I… want to see the world. See if it has a place for me."

"You are safe here, my child… out there you are but a lonely pup and I have taught you time and again…" Eddard replied, gently patting Jon's head.

"…The pack survives where the lone wolf perishes," Jon finished his father's words. "But… I… I don't think I have a pack here. Robb and Arya love me, some treated me fairly, but others… so, so many others…"

"Oh, son…" Eddard pulled his bastard son into a hug. Jon broke into sobs. Father and son shared the personal moment, before Eddard broke the silence.

"Jon, perhaps I have been too restrictive of you," Eddard said, after a sigh. "You are of the right age to be a page or a squire, mayhaps take up a trade as an apprentice, or even start study to be a maester if you so desire… Whatever you want for yourself, it is open to you and I will support you as much as I can."

"Then…" Jon said, hope in his voice.

"Let us sleep on the matter tonight," Eddard said as they parted. "The day after the delegates leave, I shall hear of your choice and then I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you, my-… I mean, Father," Jon said, his teary eyes meeting his father's kind gaze.

"Now go sleep, it's far past your bedtime," Eddard closed the conversation.

Looking at the back of his natural son disappearing into a corner, Eddard Stark let out a sigh. Loud at first, it petered out after a handful of seconds, only forming words at the very last breath.

"Oh, Ash…"

A/N: Please excuse me for the fairly large delay. I intended to make a separate chapter for the fishing trip, but... BattleTech happened. Plus I think the Northern arc has stretched for far too long compared to the other two, though I feel it still has so many stories to tell. Still, the North arc will tie up with the other two shortly, as we enter the wedding arc... soon-ish. I hope I can manage two updates this month.