✓ Trueblood || Jon Snow

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖘𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖓𝖙𝖊𝖊𝖓 ~ 𝖇𝖊𝖙𝖘 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖇𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖘

YELENA HAD BEEN ON THE ROAD FOR NEARLY TWO WEEKS NOW, hunting what she could and camping where it was safe. She'd tried taking the King's Road at first, but after a couple close calls with Lannister soldiers, she decided it was best to stay just off it, taking the smaller and lesser-known roads around its edges. Occasionally she would go into towns and villages, keeping a low profile, but she never stayed for long. She knew if she stayed more than a couple hours, it wouldn't take her long to be recognised. Especially not with one of the few Valyrian Steel swords in the world at her side.

Tonight, she sat by the dying embers of her fire, reading about direwolves while Dawn rested, the discarded bones of the rabbit she'd hunted cast only a short distance away. When the fire died out completely, she rested her back against a tree, pulling her cloak tighter around her. Without realising she hummed a soft tuneless melody, her mind wandering to her days at Winterfell; dancing and laughing at the parties with Jon and Robb, reading with Arya, the long conversations with Sansa about the south, Teaching Bran to shoot, tucking Rickon into bed... and she could remember the warm embrace of Lord and Lady Stark too. It was what she thought of as she slowly drifted off to sleep.

The princess woke to the pale morning sun just as it was beginning to warm the tops of the trees. She yawned as she tried to stretch out her sore back, wishing she had her direwolf to cuddle up with. Sweeping her hair out of her face, she pulled it back into a braid and moved to where she'd left Dawn last night. The horse stood only a few yards away now, grazing. Yelena sighed. She knew Dawn needed more than grass, but she'd need money. Biting her lip gently, she bridled the horse and tied the rope off to a tree, checking that her dagger was hidden in her boot. "I'll be back soon." she murmured before turning and striding off to the town close by.

When she first began making her way through the streets, she had no idea how she might gain money, but the answer became glaringly obvious the third time she passed the same man; a man betting quite a bit of gold on life. Her uncle had spoken to her before about the benefits of betting when you were rich. Well, her life was quite a thing to bet on, but soon, there would be more than food for her horse that she couldn't afford.

So it was that she turned towards the man, every instinct telling her this was a terrible idea. "How do we play?"

He grinned at her. "Two goblets of wine. One vial of The Strangler." Yelena shuddered. That was the same poison that had killed her brother. "The poison goes in both goblets. Whoever dies first is the loser. Whoever wins..." his smile grew wider. "Will be given a vial of the cure by my friend here." a hulking man seemed to melt out of the shadows beside him, startling Yelena. She let out a small, annoyed breath, contemplating her choices. She could walk away right now and find another way... but there was quite a bit of money on the table. She'd never find a reward like this anywhere else. Or stakes so high, the logical part of her tried to reason. She ignored that part.

Inside a tavern, she sat opposite the man, his burly friend lurking quietly behind him. Two wine glasses sat before them. He laughed as she eyed hers. "You sure you want to do this, girl?"

Her eyes hardened when they met his, and she nodded. "No tricks." she warned.

A girl at a nearby table laughed. "Oh there's no trick, darling. I've seen him do this a hundred times."

That's a hundred times that he's won then. Yelena realised, but she shook the thought off. She could do this. She took a deep breath as they both raised their glasses. "Your health." her opponent smirked. And then they both tipped back their glasses, emptying them in one shot.

The princess blinked as their eyes met again. Her throat tingled slightly, and her chest felt tight. The feeling made her panic. What had she been thinking? She was going to die here, horribly and painfully and far from any sort of home. Her brother's dying face flashed through her mind but she shoved the memory away. I will not die. She thought forcefully. She wasn't sure how long they sat there. Maybe it was one minute, maybe it was fifteen, maybe it was an hour, but with each passing second, her wolf pendant grew warmer against her skin. She clenched her jaw as warm turned to hot, but soft hacking brought her out of it. The man across from her... his eyes had grown bloodshot, his breathing heavier. He coughed again, harder this time, and then harder still until finally he was on the floor, choking and writhing, just like her brother. And then he was still. Yelena let out a sharp breath, shock filling her as her eyes turned on the large man who had accompanied her opponent.