THE LITTLE PUP (EDITING AND REWRITING)

Chapter 10 | Horse Racing

"You are coming with me" Lilia grabbed her older brother catching him in surprise. However, since he was way stronger than her, she couldn't carry him away from the treacherous ward their father had brought home from the war with the Greyjoys. She never liked Theon and she never trusted him. All she ever did was be cordial with him and nothing else, she felt... no, she knew that he wasn't trustworthy. Nevertheless, no one else but her mother could see that. She knew Lady Catelyn had just the same problem with the young adult man. She didn't trust him and she knew from the day she had lied eyes on him, that he couldn't be too close to them. The Greyjoys were treacherous, she was positive of that.

"Feisty as always. If you keep having that attitude, then you're not going to make it good in the Capitol" the boy commented and looked at her from head to toe. "Especially dressed like that"

"Say that again and that will be the last thing you ever say anything at all" she threatened, making him smirk. She didn't have time to argue back, she was way too busy trying to run from her appointed bodyguard. She turned to Robb. "I need you to come with me and ride far away from here"

"You can't run, the King commanded you to go to King's Landing, you can't just escape, and I can't follow you because I'm about to become Lord of Winterfell while father is absent" he explained and she rolled her eyes at him. Her brothers were way too slow to get some of the things she wanted.

"I'm not talking about escaping! I want to ride my horse one last time before it is too late and that Jaime Lannister knight comes after me and follows my every single move. I'll have plenty of years to have him watching me out for every single second of the day. Now, come so I can actually use the riding clothes Sansa made me" she pushed her brother who actually went with her. She needed someone to talk to and since Arya was too young to do so and Sansa was enchanted by the idea of living in the Capitol, Robb was the only brother who could she come up to, given the fact that Jon was living in a day as well. "Get my horse ready!"

"My Lady, I'm sorry to disappoint you but Ser Jaime Lannister..." as the stable boy was about to discuss that matter with her she interrupted him. She wasn't in the mood for pretending to be someone she was not.

"You are standing in the presence of the heir to Winterfell, Lord Regent of Winterfell tomorrow. I suggest you take my words seriously when I tell you that if you oppose doing as I said, you'll pay the price. Perhaps you should ride South and work at Casterly Rock and fast" Robb himself stood shocked at his sister's threats. He knew they were white threats, empty ones, but he never thought she was able to speak so harshly. The stable boy got both horses ready and she got on hers. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes and she started to ride out of the gates. So she rode over the hills along with her eldest brother. Wind hitting her face, making her hair fly freely. She knew that was going to be the last time she would ride her horse.

"I've never seen you so... fierce" her brother commented once he was able to catch up with her. "What happened yesterday when you left the feast? Jamie Lannister disappeared as well"

"He came up to check on me, I dismissed him, and I went to my chambers. I couldn't stand being in there any longer" Lilia explained shortly. "They don't have the right to take me away from my home. I feel like I'm being sold off..."

"You are free, you just have to be there with father, nothing more. You don't owe anything to anybody, unlike Sansa" he pointed out as he tried to calm her down. She looked at him with a serious expression, which worried him. He didn't understand the girl's point, he would never understand.

"For how long? Why do you think they want to send me there? To get me married to someone for the Realm's sake, or so they will say. I'm too old for Tommen but they must establish an alliance with other houses and who do you think they will use for that? Certainly not Myrcella because she is way too young... they are selling me like a broodmare right before my eyes. They want to change me and control me and... I want to still be me. I'm not ready to leave my home..." she tried to make him see her point. In those moments, Robb was thankful for being a man and not some young, beautiful girl. He knew his sister was destined to be someone's wife. Nothing more than that. And then he also knew that once she left, he would never see her again. "I will never be able to ride my horse or speak freely. I'm to be just like the Queen and..."

"You are nothing like the Queen, Lilia. You are different. You care and are delicate, all she does all day is show arrogance and lust for power, just like the rest of them. So, whether you like it or not, you will always be much better than her!" he interceded her thinking. He hated to see her comparing herself to people who shouldn't even be role models to start with. In his eyes, in the eyes of the north, Lilia Stark would always be superior to any woman in the Seven Kingdoms. "I would love to keep riding with you, but I have to go back, father needs to speak to me. And before you think about it, you are coming with me, I can't leave you alone"

"Fine..." she agreed. She knew there was no point in trying to convince him to let her stay. Robb would never let her be by herself. Lilia didn't fear it, yet there a tiny bit of an overwhelming feeling in riding on her own when she was far from home. "One last race though"

"As you wish, My Lady" and without warning, they rode like never before, taking the longest way to get there. It was time to let go but to also have fun while doing so, try to make it hurt a little less. As usual, she barged into their household's main yard with a great advance from Robb. She had a huge smile on her face, a victorious one.

"I won. Again" she smirked and her brother rolled his eyes at her. "Take it with grace, with pride and honour, will you?"

"Where have you been, the two of you?!" out of a sudden, all the smiles were seized to an end. Tension was unbearable at the presence of her mother. She knew she was in trouble, not only for the clothes she was wearing but also because she was bragging about winning a horse race. Any Lannister could hear her and think the worst of her. She didn't care anymore, to be quite frank, but somehow her mother's facial expression scared her. She then ran away once they called for her, without saying a word.

"I take this as my leave, I have places to be at" and just like that, she was left alone, still on her horse. She didn't care about sneaking back into the castle, she was just extremely confused with everybody's mood that day. It was like some catastrophe was about to take place. It felt like it.

"What the hell is wrong with her?" Lilia questioned way too loudly, catching the eye of someone she had been trying to avoid, Ser Jaime Lannister himself.

"My Lady, I fear to inform you that your brother, Bran, fell from the old tower while climbing it"