Oathkeeper

Chapter 21: The Chosen Seven

The snow of Winterfell started to melt away fast.. Which meant spring was right around the corner, rapidly approaching to bring new life to the castle. Spring is a time for color and renewal, she was excited for it to come and release them from the deadly cold grip of this past Winter and all its daunting memories. The meeting's great hall was flooded with men with swords and blueprints in hand. They worked together in creating a throne for their Queen, here in Winterfell. History was being made, and Sansa felt a great joy being a part of it, especially as the first Queen in the North. Sansa thought of her brother in the south, and how the Iron Throne was practically melted into a steaming pile of skin scorching silver. She wondered if his throne would like anything like hers, or if he intended to reforge the one that still somewhat stood. Sansa thought about how all the swords on the iron throne came from Aegon's Conquest, a monumental moment in Westeros. Being that the entire fate of humanity was saved here at Castle Winterfell, she wanted to take a page from their book and have swords forged into her own throne.

The Hand of the Queen made sure to let the woman know that she was against the idea. Lyanna strongly advised Sansa to create something of her own, something that resembled the North. So instead she had them replicate the hand carved wolf head chair that sat at the head table of the dining chambers, only much more extravagant. Castle Winterfell's great hall filled with musty metallic air as the men worked tirelessly to bring the recently reshaped Valyrian steel swords into parts of a chair. As she waited for them to finish crafting a throne that would last for years after she was gone, the sound of bells disrupted her thought. '

She followed the noise outside of the castle, taking in the sight of all the people flooding the field beyond the wall guarding the castle. Her legs moved freely as she began to approach the area where the tournament would soon be held. Her people worked valiantly for the past few weeks, they plowed through the grass in the field just outside the castle walls, bringing dirt to the surface in one large patch . The square was enclosed with a wooden fence carved from a pine tree they'd just chopped down. Many of the people of Winterfell, and the neighboring castles came to watch the men of the North fight for a place in Sansa Stark's Queensguard. She hoped that there would be a woman amongst them, someone like Brienne. If the North was going to change it had to start with the Queen. She needed to lead by example if she ever expected them to follow her.

Brienne and Lyanna were the only two to accompany her at the table placed just at the edge of the dirt patch. They were the only two people she established into her small council, apart from Yara Greyjoy. Sansa granted the lady time to return to the Iron Islands so she could restore whatever warped concept of order they had over there. Being that both the North and the South were in a restorative point of their time, she didn't need to worry about calling upon her Master of Ships to prepare for war. Besides Sansa believed that three of their heads coming together as one would be more than enough to make a well calculated decision. Brienne's presence alone helped tremendously. The Lord Commander was an excellent swordsman and Sansa knew to put Brienne in charge of overseeing the events of the tournament. She would announce the men, regulate the fight, and heed her judgment on who would advance to the next round.

"I'm a bit nervous, my love" Brienne looked at Sansa who sat between her and the Hand.

Less than two hundred people stood around the enclosure shouting loudly as they waited for someone to begin the tournament. Her eyes searched the Queens in desperation. Sansa was really the only one who knew how to talk Brienne out of her public-speaking jitters. Sansa gave her a very calming look, in place of a kiss or a gentle touch. Although their marriage had been announced to all people of theNorth. It was still somewhat startling news, and Sansa didn't wish to make this event about her pending marital arrangement. She moved her hand underneath the black cloth that covered the wooden table. She patted the air a few times before finally landing on Brienne's knee now rubbing it in small circular motions