Til Death Do Us Part...

Life with Robb 10

Strange sounds kept Ilva awake. She turned from one side to the other and back. She attempted to rearrange her pillows and she tried to find a little bit of light to keep her orientated.

"Are you gonna toss and turn all night?" Sansa's sharp voice pierced the silence and Ilva let out a deep sigh. "Or is that your attempt to make me offer you the bed instead?" Her voice sounded cold, a little distant and the frustration spilled through it.

"Apart from trying to fall asleep, I'm honestly not attempting anything." Ilva folded her hands behind her head and stared at the glow in the dark stars covering the ceiling. "I'm not really used to sleeping in another bed apart from the two beds I have."

"Yours and Robb's." Sansa spoke softly and Ilva sat up to stare at the silhouette of the red haired girl in the bed.

"Mine and mine, actually." Ilva shrugged. "My bed in my dorm and my old bed, at my parents' place." Maybe opening up a little would ease the clearly non existent relationship between her and Sansa. "I never slept in Robb's bed and he never slept in mine."

"You didn't?" Sansa sat up too and the surprise was hearable. "I did. We all did." She turned around and leaned against the wall. "When we have nightmares, he's the one we go to. He never kicked any of us out of his bed before. Not me, when I was younger and terrified of lightning. Not Arya when Jon was staying over at a friend and she didn't know where else to go because she had heard a sound in the living room and didn't dare to look. Even Bran slips into Robb's bed now and then. And Rickon...Of course."

Ilva's lips curled up into a smile when she thought about Rickon and Robb, fighting that big bad dragon in the hallway. "Rickon and Robb have a great relationship, have they?"

"We all have a great relationship with Robb." Sansa spoke firmly. "He used to read stories to me. Mostly fairytales, but when I got older also other stories." She let out a deep sigh. "Now he's filling Rickon's head with all this nonsense about knights and big bad dragons."

"Nonsense?" Ilva cocked her head and tried to stare at the girl on the bed, even though it was hard to see her in the dark.

"All those fairytales, all those stories. It's nonsense." Sansa turned her face away. "There are no knights who save damsels from big bad dragons. There are no charming princes."

"Sansa!" Ilva stood up and tried not to trip over anything while she made her way to the bed. "Why would you say something like that?" Ilva sat down on the edge of the bed at a safe distance from the girl she barely knew. "Why would you believe something like that?"

"Because it's true!" Sansa raised her voice. "That charming prince those books always talk about? He's horrible! He's mean, he's violent and he laughs every time he breaks my heart." Sansa leaned back against the wall and Ilva wasn't sure, but she thought she saw tears glimmering on the girl's cheeks. "And there is not one knight that comes to my rescue. No, those knights only make it worse."

Ilva let out a deep sigh and then she moved closer towards the girl. She leaned to the wall and sat there next to her, their hips touching. "I'm sorry that you're in the middle of the hard part of your story." She thought about her own high school years, about the constant whispering behind her back, about the fake spiders in her backpack because everyone knew how terrified she was of them, about the laughing and the teasing whenever she raised her arm because she knew the answer to a question.

"I know what he sees in you..." Sansa looked at Ilva and Ilva furrowed her eyebrows, even though she knew Sansa wouldn't be able to see it in the dark. "You're the princess I no longer am."

Ilva shook her head. "Do you know why I read and love it so much?" She didn't wait for an answer. "Do you know why I like all those stories about dragons and damsels and knights and princes and fierce girls who save themselves?"

There was a moment of silent. "No, I don't." Sansa's voice was sharp.

"Neil Gaiman said it a lot better than I do, to be honest, but let's give it a try." Ilva pulled her knees up and pressed them to her chest. "What you're facing right now, those are the dragons and the monsters. Those are the villains in your story. They're not the knights, they're not the princes." Ilva swallowed. "Because that part of all those fairytales and books is true too. Villains, monsters and dragons: they all exist." Ilva turned towards Sansa. "But you know what all those stories taught me? What all those fairytales showed me? What Robb is teaching Rickon every time they fight with the curtains?"

Sansa shook her head.

"That dragons can be beaten too. It takes strength and bravery and courage. It's not easy and it will never be. But we can beat them. And Sansa..." Ilva reached for Sansa's hand and much to her surprise the girl didn't pull her hand back. "If you want, I can give you quite a few books where the princess doesn't need a prince or knight to save her. Because we princesses, we can absolutely and totally save ourselves just as well as men can. And most of the times, we are the ones saving the princes and knights."

Sansa didn't answer. For a long while there was nothing but absolute silence.

"I'd love to read those stories." Sansa squeezed Ilva's hand and Ilva squeezed back.

"I'll write down a few recommendations tomorrow. I'm sure you're gonna love them and I know that whatever is going on in your life right now and whoever those stupid villains and dragons are, you can beat them and save yourself."

"Ilva?" Sansa swallowed and let Ilva's hand go. "I know how you can sneak into Robb's room without mother noticing it. Do you want me to tell you about it?"

Ilva thought about it for a moment and she thought about the story she had just told Sansa, how princesses didn't need princes or knights in shining armour. "I don't want to make your mother angry or upset her. I'll be fine here, on the mattress on the floor."

Sansa let out a soft laugh. "You'll be better in Robb's bed. Trust me. It's very comfortable." Sansa climbed out of the bed and on the tips of her toes she walked towards the door. "Those princesses who save themselves?" Sansa turned around and looked over her shoulder. "Do they still get a prince or knight at the end of the story?"

Ilva shove to the edge of the bed too and placed her feet on the cold floor. "Some of them, yes. Not all of them want one."

"I want one." Sansa opened the door slightly and whispered. "One like you have. And if it had been me sleeping on the floor in his sister's bedroom, I would have sneaked out hours ago already."

Ilva stared at Sansa. "How do I do it?"

"You close the door of my bedroom behind you and go to the toilet. When you come back, you open his door and sneak in." She shrugged. "No one hears if it's the right door you've opened and closed."

Ilva curled her lips up into a smile and she wrapped her arms around the pretty girl, almost a lady, in front of her. "Thanks." She stepped back and sneaked through the open door. "Sleep well and see you tomorrow!"

"Make sure you're back before the alarm goes off." Sansa closed the door and Ilva felt her heart beating in her chest.

She was gonna do it. She was gonna sneak into Robb's room and into his bed. And in her enthusiasm and nervousness, she almost forgot to go to the toilet first.