It took me a couple of days to get back to Bear Island. I was happy with the results, I had lost around seventy-five soldiers during this battle, but I had also basically destroyed the one threat the north currently had, not counting resident evil rip-offs beyond the wall.
The Lannister's, The Frey's And The Tyrells, were the most prominent threats remaining on the board of this wicked game for power.
While during this battle, my animals had proven to be more useful than I originally thought they were still animals, and their accuracy on assassinations was less than acceptable.
But nonetheless, they proved to be of greater use than I had initially anticipated.
The north was safe, for now, so I had time to prepare.
With the project of the farms being developed, it was time for me to focus on other areas.
I had to prepare for the long night; all I knew about the threat beyond the wall was that they were weak against fire, dragonglass, and Valyrian Steel.
The fire was easy to acquire and produce.
Dragonglass wasn't much of a problem, all I had to do was make a trading deal with Stannis, I was pretty sure he wouldn't reject an agreement like this because for others dragonglass is trash at best.
Valyrian steel was a hard near impossible material to find; it was, in other words, the vibranium of this world.
So I would hoard all the dragonglass I could, arming my men with the right weapons to destroy them.
"My Lord, I wanted to talk to you," Sansa entered my solar, she seemed distressed about something.
"Sure, my lady, what can I do for you today?" I said, putting what was doing on standby for the moment.
"Do you like me?" Sansa said fast as if trying to get over it.
She was asking if I liked her? This was an odd situation for me; I was making sure to treat her with the utmost respect and care, why would she doubt my intentions?
"I don't understand what brought this on?" I sighed.
"Every time we go out, and I try to initiate contact you flinch back, if I'm that ugly father will understand if you decide to break this betrothal," Sansa said with an angry expression.
She thought I didn't kiss her that much, because she was ugly, the reality was that she was too young, and I didn't want to force her into anything, I knew she liked me physically, but not beyond that.
"Oh dear," I laughed, as I poked her forehead, "Sansa you are beautiful, I just don't kiss you that much because… you are pretty young Sansa, it feels wrong,"
"How are we to fall in love if you don't at least try?!" Sansa complained.
I didn't understand why she was mad at me for not being more forward. She didn't love me, we barely knew each other, but regardless of that, it was time to tell half-lies.
"I like you, and if I don't control that, I might end up with you in bed before our wedding night, I rather wait, it's already hard enough for me to control myself…" What I said was partly true, I did found her very alluring, she looked like a woman already, but she was a child, and there were lines I wasn't going to cross.
"So you like me?" Sansa asked, with a flushed expression on her face.
"I do, the question is… do you like me?" For some reason I wanted to hear her say she did, I knew she had an idea of the perfect prince, and that I didn't fit that bill, but I for some reason wanted to hear her say it.
"I do, now," Sansa smiled, as I gave her a look asking to elaborate on that, "When I first saw you, I knew you were handsome, but you were just…"
"Some small lord?" I chuckled, I didn't take offence to it, because it was right, I was a small lord, with a lot of money.
"Yes, but so far you have shown me nothing but kindness, you even saved my life," Sansa smiled, "Perhaps this is what mother told me, that I would eventually start looking at you with fondness."
"I am doing what any decent human being would do," I smiled, "So you want me to be more romantic?"
Sansa giggled, "It would be lovely,"
"And here I thought going on dates was being romantic, haha," I laughed.
"What I really want is to get to know you," Sansa said after our laughter died down, "If we are to be together for the rest of our life we need to be friends at least."
She did make a point if she was to be the mother of my children; I had to be at least on a first-name basis with her.
"Very well," I nodded, accepting her proposition.
"Great!" Sansa smiled.
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After my chat with Sansa, I went back to my solar to study more possibilities of making money in the north.
One of my ideas was starting my own glasswork factory, mirrors here are as awful as they come, I even considered this at first, so perhaps it's time to push it forward.
"Alright, glasswork," I muttered as I put the idea on my future list to do, wondering what else to do, and then it hit me like a truck.
Silk!
I was able to control animals, if I acquired silkworms I could generate silk forever, the worms would make the silk for me, and I would be the sole distributor in Westeros, I knew for a fact everyone bought their silk from Essos, this idea was probably more profitable than my alcohol business.
"Alright, silk is a must-do right now," I chuckled as I wrote the idea down.
*caaaaaaa*
A faint sound, something was approaching my solar, but what was it.
*caaaaaaaaaaaaa*
It sounds familiar…. It's one of my birds.
*caw caw cawwwwww raven power rangers! I'm the black raven ranger!* One of my ravens entered my solar with an over the top dramatic entry.
*WE ALL ARE!* Deadpanned the rest of his flock.
"So why are you here?" I chuckled as I petted the dramatic raven.
*I bring news! Oh, great cornbringer The Ironborn are planning to attack!* the raven exclaimed.
So the Greyjoy's are tired of failing their raids…it seems it's time for me to acquire another island, and maybe a seat with the big boys, aka the big lords.
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Author note: New chapter yeih.
The ironborn are moving against our dear mc
Sansa is feeling more and more attached to Ronard.
And Ronard might take the seat the Greyjoys occupy, who knows what will happen.