Queen of Ashes [ASOIAF]

―robb.

          "𝓢ansa is just a girl," Amina chided. She slipped the letter out of Robb's hand before he could ball it into a fist or throw it on the fire. She was quiet as she read; the only sound was Robb's own footsteps as he paced in his father's study. "Clearly the Queen had a hand in this. Your sister must be frightened, imagine the state King's Landing is in. None of us was prepared for a war, least of all Sansa."

          Robb continued pacing. How Amina was keeping her head was beyond him. Perhaps it was just exhaustion, she'd been in the yard nearly all morning. More than a few Northern lords were skeptical of her joining them on the march, and she was only too eager to prove her skillset. "At least we have some news," she continued, flatting the letter out on the desk. "The King is dead, and Ned is accused of treason. It's more than we knew yesterday. I've had quite enough of the outlandish rumors from the south."

          "Is this any less incredible?" Robb countered. The very idea of his father committing treason was unthinkable, and it had been just a few short months since King Robert had been within these very walls. "And what of Arya? Sansa makes no mention of her, not even a word."

          Amina banged her fist on the table, loud enough that it startled Robb to a halt. "I am just as concerned about Arya as you, but we are a thousand leagues away. Fighting has already begun in the Riverlands. We are at war. Taking our frustrations out on a terrified child solves nothing."

          Robb collapsed into his father's chair, and ran his fingers through his hair. "What do you propose we do?"

          "What else can we do but persist?" Amina circled the desk and knelt before him. "You cannot be emotional. Not now. The worst decisions are made out of anger and fear. We will give the Riverlands our aid, and then we will decide what comes next."

          Amina turned her hands over, and waited for Robb to take them. "These men do not know you. They do not know if you can win this war, or if they can trust your leadership. But you are a Stark and if anyone can win this war it is you." She stood up, and tugged his hands insistently. "Now come, I cannot go into great hall without you. If I have to listen to one more second son tell me what great plans he has to rebuild Castle Corrigan, I may actually throw myself into the moat."

          Robb smiled softly, and gave Amina's hands a squeeze before rising to his feet. "Yesterday, Bran told me he was worried all the lords dim-witted. Why else would they parade their sons and daughters in front of you and I when it's obvious they stand no chance?"

          "The boy may have a point. Which is rather unfortunate, all things considered."

          Robb tucked a strand of hair, which had escaped from Amina's braid, behind her ear. "At least the ones who aren't trying to marry you are helping you train."

          "Oh, no, some of those men are also trying to marry me, they just prefer a bit more fire in their women. But at least they serve a purpose, I've become rather more confident with a sword these past weeks." Amina rolled her eyes, but he knew she was proud of it. For every fight she lost, she learned something new, and she was improving. Robb thought that the busy castle had served to raise Amina's spirits as well, she smiled more than she had since Bran's fall, and she'd settled into their new routine. If Robb were feeling especially bold, he might even say she was settling into life with him as well. "If one more lord insinuates that I would be better suited to life behind these walls with my cross-stitch, he will return to his castle with a cross-stitch needle in his eye."

          "It may be your best work yet," he teased. "I've seen your cross-stich, it's awful." Amina brought her foot down hard on his boot. "After your showing at supper last week, I doubt anyone could say you'd be better off with cross-stitch."