Winterfell, Inner Keep.
"Ah—No!"
Sansa, who had been deep asleep, suddenly screamed as though she had dreamed of something terrifying and bolted upright from her bedchamber.
She panted heavily, cold sweat covering her forehead as she looked around in alarm.
"It was... a dream?"
Sansa murmured softly, subconsciously pressing a hand against her chest.
Just moments ago, she had dreamed of being stabbed by a monster with ice-blue eyes. The instant blood spilled from the wound, it froze into frost.
The bone-piercing cold had jolted her awake.
Her direwolf, Lady, who had been lying beneath the bed, seemed to sense her fear. With a low whine, the wolf climbed onto the bed.
Lady stretched out her tongue and licked the back of Sansa's hand. The warm, wet comfort gradually calmed her down.
"It's alright... it's alright... just a nightmare..."
Sansa whispered softly to Lady.
At that moment, the guard Jon had assigned to protect her outside the chamber heard the commotion. He hurried over and knocked anxiously on the door.
"Lady Sansa, are you alright?"
Sansa brushed aside the strands of hair sticking to her forehead. After calming herself slightly, she replied,
"Yes. I only had a nightmare."
The guard visibly relaxed.
"Would you like me to summon the handmaidens?"
Sansa thought for a moment. Seeing that it was already late, she answered,
"Please do."
After receiving the order, the guard instructed his companion to remain on watch before hurrying off to fetch the maids to help Sansa wash and dress.
Once the sound of his footsteps faded away, Sansa finally settled down from the nightmare.
She let out a long breath and was just about to rise from bed when she suddenly felt discomfort between her legs.
Sansa froze, as though realizing something. She quickly lifted the heavy fur blanket covering her body.
Instantly, a stain of blood came into view upon the bedsheets.
"Blood..."
"I... my moonblood came?"
Sansa sat there blankly on the bed, momentarily at a loss.
Catelyn had already taught her about moonblood long ago, so Sansa was not frightened. She merely felt it had arrived too suddenly.
But very quickly, she was overwhelmed by immense joy.
"My moonblood finally came..."
Sansa stared at the bloodstain upon the sheet and confirmed it again in delight.
"Then... I can finally marry Galon!"
The moment that thought appeared, excitement burst within her heart.
Unable to stop herself, Sansa's lips curved upward into a sweet smile as she imagined her happy married life with Galon.
So immersed was she in her fantasies that she failed to hear the knock of the handmaidens arriving outside.
Worried something had happened, Jeyne Poole quickly pushed open the door and entered together with Beth Cassel.
"Sansa..."
The moment she stepped inside and called out Sansa's name, Jeyne noticed her sitting on the bed in her nightgown, staring blankly ahead with a dreamy smile on her face.
Beth glanced at her appearance and immediately shut the door again, blocking the guards' line of sight.
"Sansa, what are you doing?"
The two girls glanced at the quiet direwolf lying on the bed before walking familiarly toward Sansa's bedside.
"Ah... blood?"
As soon as she approached, Jeyne let out a startled cry.
Looking at the bloodstain on the sheets, she instantly understood why Sansa had been spacing out.
"Sansa, your moonblood came?"
Beth, who had already experienced her own moonblood, sat beside the bed and gently shook Sansa's shoulder, finally snapping her back to reality.
Blushing furiously, Sansa pulled the fur blanket around herself beneath the teasing gazes of her two close friends and nodded.
"Hehe..."
"No wonder you screamed," Jeyne giggled. "So our Sansa can't wait to marry the hero of the North!"
Beth sat on the bedside, stroking the quiet Lady beside her as she smiled in agreement.
"More than that, I think she's probably already picked out names for her future children!"
"Eddard Glover? Or Robb Glover?"
Sansa was both embarrassed and annoyed by their teasing.
"Y-you're talking nonsense... I... I wasn't..."
Agitated, Sansa tried desperately to deny it.
"Yes, yes. Of course our future Lady Glover never thought such things. I must have imagined it all."
"When Lord Galon returns victorious, I'll make sure to tell him personally..."
"Don't say it!"
Panicking, Sansa lunged at Jeyne and covered her mouth.
"No, I'll say it! I'll definitely say it!"
Jeyne struggled free from Sansa's small hands and deliberately shouted loudly, causing Beth to cover her mouth and laugh softly.
The two girls wrestled atop the bed, tickling each other while their bright laughter echoed throughout the chamber.
Only after Sansa lost strength and pleaded pitifully did the chaos finally subside.
"Jeyne, my dear Jeyne, please don't tell Galon!"
Seeing Sansa's pitiful expression, Jeyne burst into laughter.
"Fine. But you must promise me one condition!"
Sansa nodded repeatedly. "As long as I can do it, forget one condition—even ten would be fine!"
Jeyne's eyes rolled mischievously. "Good Sansa, you said that yourself. Don't regret it later."
Hearing that, Sansa immediately looked suspiciously at her friend. "What are you plotting?"
"Hehe. Don't worry, I'm not plotting against your Galon."
"Y-you... why are you talking nonsense again..."
Just as the girls continued laughing and teasing each other, hurried footsteps suddenly echoed through the corridor outside the chamber.
The three immediately lowered their voices and heard the guards outside greeting someone.
"Maester Luwin, Captain Jon!"
"Has Lady Sansa awakened yet?"
It was Maester Luwin's voice.
"She has. Lady Jeyne and Lady Beth are inside the chamber."
A moment later came another knock at the door.
"Maester, just a moment!"
Beth Cassel called toward the outside before she and Jeyne quickly cleaned the blood from Sansa's body.
After changing into a fresh gown, Sansa instructed Jeyne to fold up the bloodstained bedsheet and place it upon a chair.
Only then did she invite Maester Luwin and the others inside.
Creak—
The hurried Maester Luwin pushed open the door.
Behind him stood Jon, whose expression looked less than pleasant.
Standing in the middle of the chamber, Sansa noticed the grim looks on both their faces, and her heart instantly tightened.
"Maester Luwin, has something happened again?"
Maester Luwin let out a sigh and drew a letter from his sleeve, handing it over. "It is a letter from Bran at the Wall..."
Seeing Sansa accept the letter, he prepared to explain the situation while she read.
But as his gaze casually swept across the room, he noticed the bloodstained bedsheet resting upon the chair.
Instantly, his expression turned tense.
"Sansa, are you ill?"
"Why is there blood on the bedsheets...?"
Jon's heart jumped. He glanced at the sheet as well before stepping forward with concern.
"Sansa, your health... what's wrong?"
Before she could even read the letter, Sansa shyly shook her head.
Maester Luwin froze.
With his long experience, he seemed to realize something and smiled warmly. "Could it be that your moonblood has come?"
Sansa's cheeks reddened slightly as she nodded.
"Moonblood?"
Jon blinked in surprise.
But after hearing the explanation, the worry in his heart immediately disappeared, replaced by teasing amusement.
"Looks like before long, I'll have to call you Lady Glover."
His words only made Sansa even more embarrassed.
Unable to endure it further, she hurriedly opened the letter, using it as an excuse to divert everyone's attention.
But the moment she read it, her expression instantly turned grave.
"Bran says that beyond the Wall, at least tens of thousands of wildlings have gathered... and there are even giants among them?"
"Giants?!"
Jeyne and Beth exchanged shocked glances, disbelief written across their faces.
Maester Luwin nodded heavily and sighed.
"Even before Lord Stark rode south with the king, we had already received reports of giants gathering alongside the wildlings."
"The reason Lord Stark went south in the first place was partly to organize supplies and troops to deal with this matter."
"But who could have expected..."
Maester Luwin shook his head slowly, clearly feeling how much everything had changed.
"The troubles in the south are still unresolved. Galon has yet to send word back. And now even the Wall is facing danger."
"Gods... could Bran's visions truly be real?"
Even a man as steady and composed as Maester Luwin looked exhausted after the endless stream of disasters.
"Sansa, what do you think we should do?"
For the first time, there was a trace of fatigue and uncertainty upon his face as he sought Sansa's opinion.
But after enduring this long chain of events, Sansa had already grown capable of handling problems without panicking.
"Maester Luwin, Robb and Galon are both away.
Although Jon has trained some soldiers, he still must defend Winterfell. I think we should summon nearby bannermen to reinforce Castle Black.
At the same time, we should send word to Robb and seek his counsel..."
With her brows lightly furrowed, Sansa calmly laid out her thoughts one by one in an orderly manner.
"Maester Luwin, what do you think of this plan?"
At the end, she looked toward him, seeking his opinion.
Watching the steadily maturing Sansa, Maester Luwin revealed a gratified smile. Even the exhaustion on his face seemed to lessen.
"We shall do as you suggest, Sansa."
Maester Luwin nodded, agreeing with her proposal.
After reminding Sansa to rest properly, he departed together with Jon to make the necessary arrangements.
And just as Winterfell's ravens took flight carrying requests for reinforcements to Castle Black, Dragonstone too was facing the disastrous aftermath of the Battle of the Blackwater.
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