6

Children of the Weirwoods - Chapter 6 - Wups - A Song of Ice and Fire

Notes:

I bumped the rating up to mature from teen or whatever just to be on the safe side. This story will mostly border the two ratings.

So in this Mance Rayder and Dalla (Val's sister) have already met even though I'm pretty sure in canon they don't meet until after Mance's return from Winterfell during Robert's visit. Not a big change.

Also thank you to everyone reading this and leaving kudos, bookmarks or comments, I appreciate it. I don't tend to reply to a lot of the shorter comments and compliments as I feel that kind of boosts that stat but you all have my thanks.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

The Haunted Forest was a rather apt name for the forest. With night came the chance of them; the shadows that lurk in the snow. Those that slaughter parents and take children. Man's enemy or more accurately the Freefolk's enemy. The crows that wander this forest had yet to come eye to eye with death, mayhaps that was intentional. Val knew the forest well, she knew its dangers and how to survive it better than anyone. Either way the forest held more enemies than friends and there are no guarantees beyond the Wall.

Val's party had managed to negotiate with the few residents of Whitetree to join Mance's camp. The task had been easier than expected for a village which on occasion trades with crows. The cold and death were a greater motivation than a desire for southern resources. That was seven nights ago.

Currently her group of six were at the edge of a tundra on their travels back to Mance's camp. As the sister to Mance Rayder's wife and as a fierce spearwife she was given leadership of the party, those who questioned her received the blunt end of her spear. There were few who would do so however. Now grown she was known for both her relation to Dalla, her abilities with a spear and knife and her beauty. Men have attempted to steal her and all have lost fingers, ears, eyes, genitalia, or their lives. No longer did she require Mance or Dalla's protection or assistance.

Scouting the landscape she was able to see a slight flicker of light in the distance. The light was easy to see in the near dark. The skies were clear and the moon was full, giving off plenty of light to reflect off of the snow. The firelight was near the river, a solid league away. Well within the area of the crows' ranging trails. Val's party would be lucky it was a party of three black cloaks. If they were members of the Night's Watch then they would be easy pickings with twice the numbers. Three less crows meant there would be fewer men atop the wall when Mance's army attacks.

Convincing her group to investigate was easy as many saw the value in hunting black brothers before their future attack if not solely for revenge or petty hatred. It was risky to prioritise an attack over shelter and fire at night but if they were successful then they had all that already waiting for them. They would just have to take it.

The camp was a fair distance away and directly crossing the tundra would reveal them to any scouts so they stayed in the treeline despite adding to their travels.. Hoots of owls, wolf howls and the other ambient noises of the forest masked their approach until it all suddenly stopped.

A chill suddenly washed over the group and Val shivered as only a kneeler would normally in these woods. Looking for the light that was to be their target was impossible, it was gone. A white mist nearly covered the treeline where the camplight was previously visible. They were here. Death came for those poor souls.

"We're leaving. Crows or not, they are dead." No one questioned her command. They all likely wanted some sense of warmth as Val did. 

They ran to put as much distance as they could between them and the Other. If they were lucky they might survive the night. The Cold Ones were particular about who they attacked and when. Rarely were they themselves present and if they were it was a slaughter with no survivors unless intentional. 

When they made it back to the original location Val had spotted the light. She had expected the mist to be halfway or more across the tundra in their direction. But unlike her expectation the light was there and the mist was nowhere in sight.

"Impossible."

"Did they kill it?"

While her followers continued to imagine explanations, all Val could do was stare at the light. If the camp survived, how did they do it? Val needed to know, the Freefolk needed to know. There was a chance they killed the Other and if they did Val would find out. This could give her people another hope. It would be quicker than setting their own camp, safer too. "We are going back."

"You can't be serious. Whether they killed it or made a sacrifice to it they surely have us outmatched." The man who spoke was a coward. Fear of the Others was natural and instinctive but a fear of man is weakness. Man is not perfect. They are not invulnerable like the Others.

Val was probably as exhausted as her party from their run but that would not stop her. "We are going. Drink and eat if you can. If they fought the Others then they surely took losses. If they killed it we need to know how. You want warmth, there it is." She pointed to the camp in the distance.

The men and women groaned but took swigs of ale or water and shared some berries among one another. In the end they all got up and followed Val. Most were relieved as the extreme chill they encountered the previous time was not present though the animals were still few in the area.

By the time they neared the camp it was well into the night. Val moved in the shadows of the trees to view their targets. Her party followed her quietly. 

Four. There were only four potential enemies though there were around a dozen corpses surrounding their camp. Two men and two women, so Val's group had the numbers. They all were awake which was unfortunate at this time of night but mayhaps luck was on the campers' side as if it were not Val would already have her spear at their throats.

She informed her followers to not to kill the group until after they got the information. They moved and surrounded the camp, sitting in wait for Val to motion their attack. When Val gave the signal they rushed their targets only to be met with the sight of their targets' raised spears. Her men stopped themselves just short of impaling themselves but recovered.

Observing the standstill between the two groups, Val shifted half of her attention away from the readied weapons to the corpses. She flipped over a few to confirm they were only wights, too frozen and decomposed to be fresh. Oddly none she investigated were burned but had a single slash or two. The biggest anomaly was an area of untouched snow with an odd texture to it surrounded by footprints. Val moved to the opposing groups that have yet to move against one another. 

One of her followers shifted their weapon from the dark haired male to the blonde woman when Val raised her spear at the man. "How did you kill them?"

Dark eyes of an indiscernible color studied her. "I presume you are this group's leader?" He shared an accent with the Freefolk but the finery of his clothes spoke that he was a southerner. 

"I'm the woman who has you at spearpoint." Even she had to admit it was a bit of a stretch to call him at spearpoint when he had his own spear between them.

"Aye. But not exactly." He wagged his spear before her causing the black feathers hanging from right below the very long spearhead to sway. The smirk under his trimmed facial hair told her of just how comfortable he felt with the odds of this fight. "Mayhaps we'll tell you if you do something for us."

If her party was actually composed of very good warriors she might not have even considered it. She bit out a bitter "What?"

He continued to analyze her face. "You may or may not have noticed but we lack any sort of tent or furs for sleeping but I think you do. We only need two."

"Was there a White Walker here?"

Approval was oddly present on his face at her inquiry. "Aye, t'was after us for the past two nights. It'd wanted us dead, I believe."

Before the conversation could continue all hell broke loose as one of her people dropped to the snow with an arrow in their skull. Two men grabbed in black came from behind the trees and joined the fight.

Attempting to capitalize on the glance the man she was previously conversing with sent into the woods, she jabbed her spear forward towards his gut. Instead of skewing him she cut the side of his hip as he stepped to the side and dove. Not at her but next to her. She froze in confusion. His spear never even neared her. Looking down at him she saw the arrow in the back of his left shoulder.

As her eye followed the arrow's path she saw the archer a few trees deep in the woods with another arrow drawn at her. The arrow flew towards her in an instant and it was only thanks to recovering from her laps in concentration that she was able to avoid being hit, mostly. A sharp pain quickly made itself known along with the cold on her right forearm. The arrow only cut her arm and ripped her furs but it was far too close for her liking. The injury caused her to involuntarily release her grip on her spear and fling it a half dozen feet away.

When her eyes returned to the archer she saw a white spear soar into his chest. Relieved she picked up her former opponent's spear and moved to aid her party. But luck was not with her as only one remained and their spear was as much in the hands of a dark blonde haired southern male in white as it was in theirs. A black shadow arose behind them and in a swift slash her last ally was missing a head.

She took a step back and tripped on her original opponent's leg falling into the snow. The arrowed man she tripped on groaned and rolled around a bit. 

The four healthy survivors of the conflict approached her, the three remaining fancy clothed southerners and the only living crow. Neither party seemed friendly with the other as they watched the other from the corner of their eyes. The crow moved towards her while the other three rushed to the injured man next to Val.

Swiftly she returned to her feet and kicked a load of snow into the crow's face. She followed the distraction with a thrust of her spear but the crow managed to parry it with his sword. Blocking his next quick strike with the shaft, she removed a hand from the spear to punch him right in the nose. In retaliation she received a kick to the side of her knee before he made another swipe at her. Meeting his blade with the spear again she maneuvered the blunt end of the weapon right into his groin.

Taking advantage of the black brother's disorientation she sprinted in the direction the crows emerged from. Without her party she had no leverage to demand answers from the kneelers. She knew the crows must have tethered their horses nearby as they did not carry any gear for survival into the fight. 

By the time she found the horses the damn crow had almost caught up to her using his knowledge of the animals' location. The beasts were tethered, she mounted the first one she saw before slicing the tether with the spear. The action scared all three beasts and the two restrained to reared, precisely why she cut after mounting. Kicking the horse, it rushed as fast as it could manage in the snow. 

But maybe a minute after the initial burst of speed the horse refused to follow any of her commands. When she tugged its head to lead it one direction it kept to its own path. The fast canter was replaced with a slow trot. She attempted everything she knew about commanding a horse but it was all for naught. 

When the crow caught up to her with the other horses he had the audacity to laugh at her attempts to control her ride. With him mounted and her horse rebelling she was essentially his prisoner already. He just killed six of her followers and now he laughs at her. "And I thought your people were good with beasts..."

Val internally growled at the insult but did not respond. She would not give him any more amusement at her plights. Giving up on controlling the fucking horse she let go of the reins in favor of crossing her arms. 

The stupid horse brought her back to the fire and the three kneelers. Rearing back on its hind legs it knocked her off its back and into the snow. This was not her day.

Sitting up she took in the kneelers' appearances. Two blondes and two with dark haired, one for each gender. Both blondes had the same shade of hair as Val and they both wore white today. The dark haired male looked to be unconscious in the lap of the blonde woman with the arrow he took to save Val still in his shoulder. The blond woman was tending to the man's hip wound, which Val caused. The last southerner: the dark haired girl was unmoving as she sat with her head down.

"Are you going to behave now? If you wish to get the answers you seek then you will have to work with us." The blonde man looked pointedly at her. Light blue eyes met her own. His speech was not nearly as alike to the Freefolk's as the other man's, more akin to the crow's.

The crow joined in after tying the three horses to a nearby tree, replacing the rope she cut. He took in both the fresh and old bodies scattered around the area before settling by the fire. Watching over Val and the kneeler's conversation, he observed them for his own answers. One hand still held his blade warily. He did not trust any of them, and Val didn't either.

"And what does working with you entail?" Val still was not sure what to make of the four fancy clothed southerners. One of them took an arrow for her and if her assumption is correct then one of them killed the Night's Watch archer.

The blonde male smirked at her, "You shall go with us to Castle Black and then Winterfell."

Val laughed at the absurdity of the idea, it would be a death sentence or worse. They aided in the killing of her men. "I don't think so. I would be better off dead."

"You will be under our protection. If you wish to save as many of your people as possible I would recommend taking my offer." The man gestured to the frozen corpses.

"What protection can you offer me? My people are killed south of the Wall." And yet south of the Wall was the only place safe for Val and the Freefolk.

He sighed. "Perhaps their limited contact with your people being solely raiding and kidnapping women does not leave a good impression. It would not be one of us offering you political protection but him." The blonde pointed to the crow.

The black brother was more shocked at the revelation than Val. "Me? Why would I protect her?"

"You are Benjen Stark, are you not?" The white dressed male asked.

Blue-grey eyes widened. "That depends on if it brings me more trouble or not."

Chuckling, the blonde man gave the crow a half-smile. "Doing this could prevent a war mayhaps even more. You may find some enemies make better allies at times."

"A war with the wildlings is one easily won by the North." The crow spoke it as fact. Even Mance recognized this but if the Watch is the only defense then it is a Freefolk victory.

"In that case you better be prepared to kill them twice," the kneeler man countered.

Confusion took over the black clad man's long face. Poor Crow was still ignorant to the evils lurking in these lands he probably claims to know so well. "Explain."

Val answered for her fellow blonde, "Take a close look at those corpses, tell us what you see crow." This was a rare opportunity to command a crow around like they are made to be. 

Doing as she said, Stark stood and investigated the dozen frozen bodies of the wights. "This does not make sense. They are far too frozen to have been killed tonight. Three are also slightly decomposed which in this cold would be unlikely."

"The crow has eyes. Now, look at their eyes." Val recognized the small hope that if the Night's Watch was to know of the real threat then mayhaps the Freefolk would be granted passage without losing numbers before the big war.

Moving from corpse to corpse the black brother picked at their eyes like a true crow. After looking at half of the eyes the Stark came to a conclusion. "Blue, all of their eyes are blue. You believe them wights, thralls of the White Walkers?"

The other man answered the crow. "I know them to be. My siblings and I put them to rest."

"You don't think they were just some nearly frozen to death wildlings? I had thought them to be part of your party that her people killed before surrounding you." Benjen Stark's skepticism turned to guilt as he realized his attack resulted in the deaths of his two men for nothing. 

The blonde man gave Stark a few moments of silence to grieve before responding. "Considering most living men would not fight alongside a White Walker, I think it is safe to call them wights."

Val perked up at the confirmation they saw the corpses leader. "So you really fought and killed one?"

"Aye, I never saw one before today. Jael had but never had to fight one. We only knew how to kill it from stories." The blonde man pointed to the injured man: Jael. Up close to the blonde man she could see the clean straight wound over his right pale blue eye. Val was sure it would heal without scaring it looked more like a scratch.

"And how do you kill them if they are indeed real?" The crow has yet to see the dead move like they still breathed or felt the absolute chill of their presence so Val doesn't blame the man for his skepticism. Before today neither had she. 

Sighing, the blonde man was evidently frustrated. "That information is need to know and makes no difference to either of you. Stick with us and you will be safe. Right now I need to ensure my brother survives. Shireen, find your damn cat. Dalla and I will deal with the arrow." He addressed the dark-haired young woman and she followed the recommendation wandering awaying from the fire. 

The name of Val's sister being called surprised her. She can only assume that Dalla was the remaining woman who looked to be slightly older than Val. Like the blonde male, her hair was the same shade of blonde as Val but instead of blue eyes like Val or the man she had an exotic violet. "He is lucky to be alive, fortunately the arrow was slowed by his cloak leather and his gambeson. The arrow does not seem to have completely pieced his shoulder blade but I still think it may have done a lot of damage to it. His heart seems undamaged though the arrow might still hit it during removal depending on the depth."

"I'm glad I killed the fucker that did this." The still unnamed blonde man muttered.

The crow glared at him, finally acknowledging that the blonde killed one of his men. "That was one of my sworn brothers. Show some respect for the dead."

"And he nearly killed my brother by blood. You three ruined our peaceful negotiations with the princess. Besides we avoided killing everyone else, he was the exception. Your and her people are mostly responsible for each other's deaths." The blonde moved to assist Dalla with the removal of the arrow from his unconscious brother. Val recalls the mention that they are all siblings. 

There was silence as the two performed the surgery. Both Val and the crow watched with two differing types of guilt. Val for requiring saving and the crow for causing the situation. 

 It was a slow process but the siblings managed to remove the arrow with the arrowhead still attached to the shaft. After it was removed they quickly took off Jael's top to clean the wound before drying and bandaging the injury.

"Varon, cut up the bodies we don't have time nor resources to burn them thoroughly. It'll be morning soon." Dalla commanded her awake brother and the blonde did as he was told. She was not wrong; they must only have a few more hours of night at most.

No one spoke while Varon completed his gruesome task and no one was willing to sleep in the presence of these strangers.

The crow studied all of them but mostly Val. "What is so important about her? Why should I take her to Winterfell?"

Dalla replied, "She is the King Beyond the Wall's good-sister. An ideal candidate to negotiate on his behath."

"Hmm. I can't guarantee any success in terms of negotiations or entrance to Winterfell but I can likely get a meeting with the Ol' Bear. Without evidence of the undead a truce is unlikely," Stark admitted.

Returning with an even more bloodstained spear, Varon replied. "Anything helps. If Jael wasn't injured and we had a cage or crate, we could possibly have used one of these bodies. Regardless, the Watch should be made aware of the threat and that fire kills the thralls."

The ranger gave Varon an approving look. "We should get your brother to shelter as soon as possible. Are you sure you wish to go to the Wall? It is no place for women. I have my own duties and will not be able to protect them especially if that one would rather fight than accept protection." He was referring to Val. 

She smirked at the black brother. "I can protect myself. Besides I am not above hitting a man at his weakest."

Shuddering the crow made a displeased face. "Aye, I think I learned that. But can you hold back a dozen men at once? Even with the three of us it would be a challenge."

"Five of us. I think we are worth at least thirty if we force them through a bottleneck such as a door." Dalla pointed her own spear at the crow. "We shall stay until dawn. The horses should be fed and rested by then. We are also going to need that spear back Princess."

Val ran a hand down the spear, she liked it. It was beautiful and far lighter than she expected when she first held it. The whole thing was black from the metal, the leather grip to even the bone along the shaft. The spearhead was a foot and a half long for cutting and skewering. It was a good weapon. "A good spear should be used, should it not? Its owner is in no condition to use it."

Both blondes smiled at the words but Varon replied to her. "If we believed you incapable of escape mayhaps we'd consider, but we know you can. So hand it over, you have your own spear or a choice of the dead's."

 Admitting that she was essentially a prisoner was a bit hard. Despite being captured, she would not exactly consider herself to be stolen by any of these people. At times like these it is up for interpretation. If one of the men tries to steal her then they will meet a similar fate to the others. The crow was a crow and the blonde's appearance while handsome made her think of her sister and she was not into that. She has yet to have seen Jael's combat ability.

Val did not know what to think of these people. These people seemed to be allied with neither Freefolk, Crows, or the Others. All she did know about them is that they appeared to want her in particular alive. The first man took an arrow for her and the second presumably killed the archer, the only direct kill that one of them made.

If Val went with the group's plan there was a chance she could get her people south of the Wall without bloodshed. There was also a chance she doesn't survive Castle Black or the kneeler lords decline a truce. If it comes down to it she can at least kill them if it all goes downhill. Though that might unite the southerners against the Freefolk. She might be able to learn how to kill White Walkers as well. High risk, high reward.

Reluctantly she passed the spear to Dalla. They were letting her remain armed which showed some faith in her. Her own spear was not even close to as nice as the other and she already felt spoiled. 

"Your arm is injured. Come. Let me check it out. We can't let it get infected." Dalla commanded Val. The tone was so motherly it reminded her of Val's Dalla, the sister that practically raised her. The two Dalla looked similar enough to be related. 

When Val gave her arm to the woman she looked over it before removing Val's glove and pushing up her sleeve. The sparse hairs on Val's arm rose as her skin prickled from the cold. The cut looked far worse than it felt but then again it was likely that bad and was simply numbed by the cold. 

Tisking as she observed the wound Dalla poured a reddish liquid from her waterskin over the cut before quickly drying it with a cloth. She pulled out a finer needle than Val had ever seen and started precisely stitching the opening. When done with Val's skin Dalla fixed up her ripped sleeve as well. Dalla patted Val's upper arm and threatened: "There, don't break my stitching or I'll have to mother you again."

"Give me the needle next time and I'll do it myself." Val actually quite enjoyed the woman's presence as she reminded her so much of Val's sister. Shifting her attention from Dalla to the woman's brother still laid out on the healer's lap. "Why did he take the arrow for me?" 

Running a hand through Jael's long dark hair Dalla's eyes were on his wound. "You will understand one day but not today."

The lack of answers was annoying but Val could not demand them when the man saved her life. She would get them though.

Shireen, who had returned shortly after her sister started tending to Val's arm, broke out in giggles. The dark haired young woman had a big ball of black fur striped with white hanging from her arm. It was a shadowcat cub… "Vampire!"

Huffing, Dalla groaned. "Ignore those two. The bloodsucker seems to love Shireen's blood as much as she does. She purposely cuts her finger to let the cub suckle it. She is a weird one."

"There are odder people among the Freefolk. Is she a skinchanger?" Val thought that compared to cannibals and animal fuckers that this was pretty tame, cute even.

"We all are." Dalla pulled at her collar a bit. It took a few moments but a small white head appeared beneath her chin. The black beady eyes of the ermine looked at Val curiously. Rubbing the rodent's head Dalla introduced it: "This little girl is Tassels."

It was a bit of an awkward moment for Val as she currently wore a brown cloak bordered with white ermine fur. "And the boys?"

A finger pointing up directed Val's attention to the two birds on the branch above them. A raven and a small round white and black bird. Utterly adorable is what Val thought of the snow bunting. The pair looked at her oddly.

"The raven is Jael's and the bunting is Bunty and Varon's. Don't mention the white one's size to Varon, he is a bit insecure about it." Dalla smiled at Val. 

The call of the raven attracted the eyes of all but it continued to stare at Val. "Message?" The raven spoke!

"Jael?" The question was asked by all three siblings simultaneously.

The raven nodded and shuffled before calling out: "Val!" How the hell did it know her name? Even the man should not know her name. Though the group did know of Val's connection to Mance through her sister. "Message" it repeated.

Approaching Varon made further clarifications, "You want to carry a message?"

Once again the raven or Jael responded with a nod. "Mance. Val-talk-south. Where?" It was an incredible idea: carrying a message by speaking through a raven.

"You want to know Mance's location to tell him of the princess' travels?" Varon translated. 

Another nod from the raven as it looked to Val for the location.

Val looked at Benjen Stark who watched everything curiously. She could not in her right mind reveal the location before the ranger. "I will only tell the raven." Her sister would worry if Val disappeared.

Flying down from the branch the bird flapped its wing in front of her before she finally brought her arm up. After receiving Val's whispers of the general location the raven flew into the darkness of the woods in a spiral around the fire to mask the direction it would head in. Clever.

"So skinchangers are real too then?" Poor Stark.

Slivers of light came through the trees all too soon. Val like the others did not sleep, excluding Jael, though that was hardly a consensual choice for him. The horses luckily did get some rest.

With only three horses the six of them were split into twos, The crow was blessed with the unconscious dark haired man dressed in as much black as he was, they were similar enough to look like relatives. The two blonde siblings were paired. Val was quite literally stuck with the youngest sibling and the shadowcat cub.

Shireen sat behind Val on the saddle with her arms around Val like she had never ridden a horse before. More accurately the young woman was cuddling up against Val's back, cheek rubbing and all. Val lost track of the number of times the girl muttered either 'mom' or 'momma' after the count exceeded twenty.

It would take the group at least one more night before they arrived at Castle Black and Val already regrets her decision. She was taking a risk and she can only hope it works out.

Most of the ride was silent, mostly Varon and Dalla conversing in quiet but she did catch the crow interrogating them. "Where are you all from? You all have a Northman's tongue."

"Jael and I are twins, we were born close to Winterfell while our father was in the South. Dalla and Shireen were born in King's Landing. Both our parents are of the North so despite being mostly raised in the South we speak as such," Varon answered.

The ranger got intrigued. "Really? How old are you? I suppose you must have left Winterfell young then?"

Varon nodded and replied: "Twentyfour for Jael and I, nineteen for Dalla and fifteen for Shireen. Aye, Momma took us south less than a year after we were born, so we have never had the chance to meet you." 

"Was your family in King's Landing during the Lannister siege?" The crow's tone turned somber. 

The tone of the conversations completely changed and Varon too adopted the sad mood. "Some were. We were not. Father and Momma were not. But we had close relatives nearly killed. Our great grandfather was killed. He did not like our family so we never met him." The man's tone lacked sadness when speaking of his great grandfather. In fact he almost sounded pleased at the death.

Lowing his head Stark spoke again, "I'm sorry. My brother was one of the rebellion's leaders." 

"Which means he wasn't Tywin. Damn Lannisters," Varon mumbled under his breath but still enough for Benjen to hear.

The crow chuckled and lifted an arm from his reins. "Damn the Lannisters."

Val did not know who the Lannister were but fuck them.

Notes:

A bit of a plot convenience with Benjen, but we need a big Stark reunion. Anyway they are heading to the Wall and will be visiting the maester for healing.

Benjen and Val know nothing. For now.

Again this fic is mostly about characters interacting with each other rather than plot or the political side of the series. So things may be slightly easier on that front, but not too easy, I hope.

Next chapter should be a multi-pov chapter with Arya and Robb at the very least. It will cover how the time travelers are already taking over Winterfell and more.

Upcoming Chapter POV Order (May Change):

Multiple POVs I

Margaery II

Multiple POVs II

Elia I

(1 or 2 more chapters)

Cat II

Ned II (Robert's Arrival)