driftfleet | open | text + action

Who: Sansa Stark + YOU
Broadcast: Text, fleetwide.
Action: Blue Fish
When: This morning.

Jon Snow and Bran Stark have left the Fleet. Condolences to those who may have befriended them while they were here; Gods-willing, we shall see them again.

[ sansa's message is short -- abrupt, and almost stripped of its emotion. she avoids broadcasting anything but simple text because she does not trust herself to maintain her mask, so to speak. as it is, she's cried too much. losing bran and jon feels like opening old wounds packed with grief. it makes her feel like a little girl again: weak, and mewling.

but she does add: ] I dread leaving, as they have left. Do others in the Fleet want to stay?

[ later, she can be found sitting on the floor of her personnel office. she has taken the furs from her bunk and has spread them across the ground, and she's allowed jon's direwolf pups free rein of the cozy and comfortable area. sansa's eyes are red-rimmed, and they betray every lie she tells when she insists she's as well as can be expected. but at least her spirits lift, a little, when she's playing tug-of-war with the pups.

they bring her a bittersweet joy. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Even you?

[ this is surprising. a woman who styles herself as a queen back home would rather stay here, far from her claimed kingdom? ]

Yes, even me. It's complicated, really. I only started to feel that way once half of my crew aboard the SS Caprine disappeared almost all at once.

[It wasn't fear of ruling that stopped her, but fear that she'd never find her way back to Mereen. Having left things in a bit of a strange place - surrounded by Jhaqo and his men, she didn't know where that left things. Not only that but she would forget Tyrion and all the alliances she'd made here, surely. It was a lot to think about.]

[ how odd it is! to agree with her about something. anything. ]

I'd sooner never see Westeros again. It will be difficult to have Winterfell only in my memories, my lady, but I'd rather remember it as it was than face what it has become.

It wouldn't be safe for you there, would it? I was told that the Boltons rule the North now.

Edited (can't remember if it was Theon or someone else who told her??? /too lazy to check womp womp) 2016-12-09 18:14 (UTC)

They do.

[ until some rightful daughter might reclaim it. that is baelish's plan, is it not? ]

But it doesn't much matter. No part of Westeros is safe to me, my lady. My name is muddied in more than just the North.

Surely there could still be allies to protect you. I did not know your father but it is my understanding that he was an honorable and good man. That alone should have garnered the respect and care befitting his daughter, wouldn't you say?

[Meanwhile she had none of that. To those in Westeros she could very well be another Aegon the Conquerer or another Mad King. She didn't want to be compared to those who came before. However, it was also true Sansa deserved whatever protection her father's name granted her.]

If allies remain, I fear I am in no position to find them. The crown hunts me, my lady, and my brother Robb's cause has been broken. Better to not be Sansa Stark at all.

Or perhaps that is the perfect time to be Sansa Stark. Your claim to the North is stronger than the Boltons. All that's needed is the numbers. You can take back your home someday. It only takes time.

[Something she's had to learn for herself. Unfortunately, not everyone had three fire breathing dragons at their disposal to make it happen. But they had one thing in common: they were both orphans with nothing else left to lose.]

[ time, and waiting for tyrion lannister's last smudge of luck to run out. but she does not dare to voice that particular obstacle to her. either she's already figured it out, or she wouldn't welcome the implication. upset though sansa is, she isn't eager to upset anyone else. ]

Then I pray that -- in time -- there will still be a home left to claim.

I do as well. It seems you and I both are still waiting to go home. I've found that the only link to Westeros I have remains with Lord Tyrion, your and perhaps even yourself. I know so little of Westerosi history besides the stories Lord Tyrion tells. I did not grow up with a Maester and my brother only ever spoke of our House. I know this might be a strange request but... I did enjoy speaking with your younger brother. Perhaps sometime we could sit together and you could tell me stories of the North? The Kings of Winter and the Children and all that. I'd love to hear it if you're willing to tell it.

I'm afraid I never loved my home as much as Bran did. Or, rather, I never learned to love it until after I'd left. My stories may never be as good as his have been,

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