Chapter Text

Eddard's POV

At the end of the "Robert's" Rebellion, Eddard Stark travelled day and night to rescue his sister, he lost his brother and his father, Rickard Stark. He lost his family and was not waiting for the invasion on King's Landing to find his sister. Be as it may there were things more important than glory and fortune. He left the main campaign and rode to find his sweet wild sister.

His brother Brandon run to the capital, King's Landing, after the news that Lyanna, their sister, was kidnapped by the crown prince. What his idiot of a brother had forgotten that the King was mad and as he demanded that the crown prince released their sister, Brandon and their father were murdered. His father burned to death and his brother choked to death with his belt as he tried to save their father.  

Ned, as he prefered to be called, road with six companions: Martyn Cassel, Theo Wull, Ethan Glover, Ser Mark Ryswell Lord Willan Dustin and Howland Reed. And as he neared the tower that was said to hold Lyanna he saw three of the king's guards Arthur Dayne, Oswell Whent and Gerald Hightower.

"What is the last line of defence of the royal family doing away from their king and prince?" he asked. 

"Lord Stark, my condolences for your lost. And to answer your question, we are with our princess and our future ruler." answered the commander of the king's guard Ser Oswell. That however made all but the guard confused as they knew that the king was at the capital, the prince died at the battle against the stag and the princess was with the queen at Dragonstone.

"Pardon my confusion ser, but I was told only my sister was here."

"But she is my Lord, it is just that with her is the future of the kingdom" responded ser Arthur 

"May I see her? Or do we need to pass by force?" Ned said as his hand went to the hilt of the sword he carried in his hip. 

"Oh, yes you can see her. But I ask that your companions remain on the outside of the room. They do not need to see Princess Lyanna in this state" 

Princess? Was the thought that went through all the north's party head. "And as you speak with your sister would someone mind telling me the end of the war?" ended ser Oswell. 

All the northern party traded looks but was Holland Reed that stepped to answer "Of course sir if we could do it outside the room that Lady Lyanna is it would be much appreciated"

As all ten moved up the stair they heard a scream that was definitely from a woman, and for Ned, it belonged to a woman that he knew very well. 

"LYANNA!" he shouted as he runs up the rest of the stairs and burst through the door leaving the rest of the party outside the door. 

"Ned, you came! I'm so sorry! I left a letter to that boy, friend of Brandon's betrothed, explaining all he said he would give it to Brandon! And Robert, he knew I did not want to marry him, I told him time and time again!" sobbed Lyanna, her slim of frame even finer her pale skin shining with sweat, her brown hair messy and wet, long face and grey eyes tired of what he could now see was because she just gave birth and it did not go well. "Ned, you have to promise me, Ned! Protect him! Raise him! Make him the Prince and Man I know he can be! 

As she said this he noticed the bundle that was squirming in her arms. The babe was just born his eyes were still blue and he had a small tuft of black hair in the top of his head.

"Lyanna, I cannot do this," he said softly crying. 

"Yes, you can Ned! Robert won this war, but … but he won using me as an excuse! They knew I was not kidnapped! He will kill him, he will kill his brother and Sister! Gods Elia, my beautiful. Ned, I married Rhaegar, but I also married Elia! We were all in love, and Dorne knows! We sent a letter and I have a copy if needed." at this time his sister started coughing blood. 

"We need to be quick my darling brother, Jaehaerys in the best case is a prince not only from the North but from Dorne. Worst case I lost my other children and my wife, as well as my husband, and Jae… Jae will be king, so please raise him to be a good king." as she tried to hold a cough again she took a deep breath "Blood is thicker than water, Ned, remember who is your family! I have a trunk somewhere in the room that has all the documents he will need and his father left him, dark sister, Blackfire he let to Aegon so I don't know where it is. "

Looking over the room to where the trunk was "But also, he left three dragon eggs, they are stone but Rhaegar had the hope that Jae would awake them again" as Lyanna closed her eyes and drew her last long breath she spoke her last words "I love you, little brother, I love all my children watch for them watch for all our family Targaryen included."

At the moment the sky could open and swallow him and he would not notice, he time stopped and all seems darker, he lost a sister, a brother and his father. There was only him and Benjen in the world, but a new generation was born and they would take what was theirs with both hands and he would help his nephew. 

As he stood up where he was kneeling next to the deceased body of his sister a servant girl came in and helped his get the babe from his sister's arms. 'Well look like I have two kids to raise, Jaehaerys I promise you I'll be the best father I can and I in the future We will get your birthright back.

After some time he got out of the room with the babe in his arms. 

"Is this?" asked Lord Willen Dustin 

"Yes, this is Jaehaerys Targaryen, but as today will be known as Jon Snow my bastard. Jon I will say is for Jon Arryn, but it will make it easier to hide if one's slipes and calls him Jae "

"Lord Stark if I may? As you well know, your brother Brandon was putting aside his betrothed and marry my sister Ashara." said the Sword of the Morning, Ser Arthur Dayne. 

"Aye, he told me his plans after the tourney of Harrenhal" he signed and let the other continue. 

"What my lord does not know, was that my sister was waiting for a child, but lost it as the news of the death of your brother reached her"  they bowed their heads thinking the loss of their mutual niece or nephew. "She was one of Elias Ladies in waiting and a great friend. She knew about the wedding of the prince to the winter rose and new it was mutual the agreement on all three parts. Ashara will probably agree to pass the babe as her's and Brandon's bastard child. We should go to Sunspear to plan with prince Doran Martell what are our next steps and after that travel North. Ashara and I could go with his grace and pose as the other side of the family, and I'll be protecting the prince. If Elia, prince and princess survived the end of the war you could ask your "friend" to allow them to be used as a hostage in the North."

" I agree, ser. My Lords of the North, return home and to your families, Holland please take this trunk to Winterfell and ask my lady wife to protect it. I'll be travelling to Sunspear and then King's Landing." the new Lord Paramount of the North fastened his grey cloak, mounted his dark brown horse and finished addressing the men "Ser Oswell, Ser Gerald would you like to travel north now?"

They exchanged a look. " No my lord, were the prince go will go too. We need to know what happened to the rest of the king’s guard and the royal family"

"As you wish, let's ride" and he started his way to the Martell ancestry palace. 

A few days later they arrived in the distance they saw rising from the Old Palace the slender Spear Tower, a massive tower of stone. It thrusts up from the surrounding community, stretching one hundred and fifty feet tall, with a spear of gilded steel atop that adds a further thirty feet. 

Entering the outer walls was the amazing view that was the Tower of the Sun that had a dome of gold and leaded glass. Beneath the dome sits the throne room, as Ser Dayne told them it was a large round room with thick windows and many-coloured glasses. The floors were made of pale marble. Within the throne room, there are two seats on a dais, near twins to one another, the only difference being that one is inlaid with the Martell spear on its back and the other features the blazing Rhoynish sun that flew from the masts of Nymeria's ships. The spear seat is used by the ruling Prince of Dorne and their host Doran Martell. 

Approaching the outer doors of the castle was a man in his early fifties, due to a bad case of gout which has recently left him unable to walk, was in his wheeled chair. He appeared to be much older than his true age and the lines of his face showed years of hard decisions and heartbreak... His body is soft and shapeless and his legs and feet were covered with a blanket, blocking the sight of his gout and the shame he felt of his condition. 

"Wellcome Lord Stark, Ser Oswell, Ser Gerold,... Ser Arthur your sister is with my brother in my solar, she game me the letter my sister asked." said the prince in a cautious voice "so much has happened, we need to talk in private. But first, after such travel would be preferable to rest?" 

"Well meet my Prince, as was said we have much to talk and rest can come..." the rest of the sentence was interrupted as a cry came from a makeshift cradler on the front of his body. 

"Is this?" asked the Prince as quiet as he could

"Let's not talk here my Prince," asked ser Gerold as he ordered the servants to take their horses to the stables.

 As the group of four walked in the palace they were lead a long gallery with a rough-cut stone floor connects the feast hall with the solar of the prince. 

 The solar was a big room, quite open and luminous with great big windows that looked to the courtyard and the gardens. Thought the room was at every wall a sitting spot with pillows and draping cloth and at the centre of the room was a big wooden table with eight places, over the table was various fruits and pitcher of wine. 

 Doran was pushed in his wheelchair to the end of the table where there was a spot without a chair and gestured to them to sit, "Please, serve yourself to the food and wine. It will take a few minutes to my brother and Ashara to arrive here" 

 "No need to wait for me dearest brother, we are here" entered Oberyn Martell, he was a tall, slender, graceful, and fit man, and has a lined and saturnine face with thin eyebrows, black "viper" eyes and a sharp nose with hair is lustrous and black with only a few silver streaks and recedes from his brow into a widow's peak and Ashara Dayne a fair maiden, with haunting violet eyes, long dark hair tumbled around her shoulders.

Ned who was almost sitting down on the chair nearest to the prince stood up and bowed his head "My Lady, I'm so sorry for your lost" 

Sitting in a chair by the big windows after taking a cup of wine and sipping "Our lost my lord, for what we lost not only a child, your nephew but your brother and my future husband"

As all did small talk and the rest found their places at the table Prince Doran called the attention of all. Jaehaerys still sleeping, now in Arthur's arms. 

"First, I have to inform all of the new developments. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the mad king was slain, and I'm sorry to say,  a member of the king’s guard.  

"WHO BETRAYED US! ?!?!" bellowed ser Gerold 

"Ser Jaime" answered Ashara as she brought the cup to her mouth.

All but one turned to her, Arthur was focused on the small prince in his arms "But how could he sister?" 

"I do not know, but let's speak to him first and try to understand. Ser Jaime loved the crown prince and princess, he loved Elia like a sister and the Queen as a mother. He must have had a reason."

"He still broke his oat!" 

Oberyn who was unusually quiet through all the conversation got up, went to stand next to Ashara and gazed out of the window "Yes he did, but Lord Stark, let us withhold judgement until all the pieces are brought together" 

"And the Queen? The princess, the prince, princess Elia? Prince Viserys?" Asked the commander of the king’s guard, Ser Oswell

"Queen Rhaella is in Dragonstone with Prince Viserys and pregnant again. Princess Elia de her children… They have murdered Elia's daughter, Princess Rhaenys, was killed by Amory Lock after breaking the door down; he dragged the screaming toddler from under her father's bed and stabbed her over fifty times. The mountain murdered Elia's son, Prince Aegon, in front of her by smashing his head against a wall. He then raped and killed her by crushing her head"

"Oh Gods, how can someone do something like this? How can Robert allow this?" the quiet wolf was as quiet as the wind as he mulled over the happenings of the realm. As he sipped on his wine slowly he brought the cup to his mouth, stopped put it down on the table and said in a sombre voice" so what is being said is that Jaehaerys is King?"

Doran got very grave his voice low and his head high as his eyes unfocused thinking of the past "Yes, and we need to plan accordingly. We can not act now when the kingdom is at scrambles.

Ned started to look at the table, fixed."So I will raise him in the North, as Brandon’s and Ashara's, if that's agreeable with you my lady?"

 She nodded "all he would want is to protect his blood his nephew and play the biggest prank on the realm. He would want revenge on this drinking stag"

He laid back on the chair, pushed his hand through his hair messing it up "Ser Arthur and Lady Ashara would come with me up north, they have a reason to go. But the rest of the king’s guard?"

Ser Oswald as the commander of the guard spoke up "We'll go to the north to my lord"

"But you are all recognizable" he denied the request.

Ser Oswald smirked "They know our names but not out appearance, w could change it and none would be interested to know who we are."n 
"So you'll change your names and pass as house guards?"

"That's the plan my lord" Ser Oswell smiled.

 Doran looked from his cup, the one he was inspecting in the last few minutes "And you'll raise the next king with all he has to know, no feeling guilty for you "chosen brother" no trying to hide his destiny, Jaehaerys is the King and you Lord Eddard Stark agrees"

"Yes, I agree " he vowed" and I'll give and all the knowledge we will need and even some he will not need. My nephew will be ready"

All in the room absorbed the information and started their planning in their heads. Doran was the first to break the silence "We could start a trade route with the north and increase the wealth of both our realms and at the same time have a reason to keep sending ravens without anyone being suspicious."

"That would be agreeable." Ned started " And about marriage? Jaehaerys will need support to claim the throne just our two houses to support him may bring War to the realm once more" 

"I could, possibly, start a line of communication with the Queen of Thorns under the pretence of mending the bounds that were broken between our people. They are loyal to the Targaryens and were through all the war. It would be profitable to analyse how would they respond to a living dragon and throw a bait see if she is agreeable to have her granddaughter as Queen of the seven kingdoms "said  Doran 

Ned nodded "Please just keep me in touch. And the Queen and Prince Viserys and the babe that is to be born? Should we bring them North?"

"We should let them be for the moment if we bring them North if will bring to much attention to the King, their hair the Lord of the North coming home with two women two babes and a child not to mention three men,... No, it would not do. We will let them go to Essos or the free cities  and when the time's right we hide them somewhere be it North, be it here in Dorne." said Doran 

"What time?" asked Lady Dayne

"I don't know my lady, I just don't think that the time is appropriate when the war just ended"

"So when Jae is eight and ten or a few years past that we will support our King in his quest for his birthright" Ser Oswell vowed, "and who else will support his claim?"

The rest of the Houses, besides ours. The Tully's will be, probably, with us as I'm married to the daughter of Lord Hoster. House Arryn is with the Baratheons Jon love's Robert too much, he will only change sides if things get too complicated and Robert is worse than the mad king " analysed Ned.
Doran agreed and added, " The Lannisters with Tywin as the Lord they will stay with the Stags, Cercei is to be Queen, but when Jaimie ascends depending on the reason to kill the king we can promise a pardon and maybe, if the new and old Gods are with us we can convince him to fight with His Grace, my nephew."

"The smaller houses of Dranstone will be loyal to the Targaryens," said Ser Oswell" and squids are only loyal to themselves. We have four of the seven houses, maybe five if we play our pieces right."

"So lets all toast to playing the game right," said Oberyn as he raised his glass and all in the room followed his gesture.