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Chapter Text

Even after all this time the cold of the North still surprised him. Cold up here was not like the cold of the South where one could add another layer and feel warm again. The cold here felt like a living breathing thing. It got underneath your skin and coursed through your veins, wrapping itself around your heart.

It was not unlike Arya Stark in that way.

But unlike what he had seen of the North so far, Arya could be warm. It was harder to see it now than it had been when they were younger but it was there. It was in the small smile she gave him whenever they passed each other in the crowded courtyard, it was in the way she would give most of her food to the children scattered around their mouths constantly hungry. It was in the heat her body gave off as she lay bare beside him, curled up against his body with only his cloak and the heat of their bodies to keep them warm.

Laying beside her like that was the warmest Gendry had been in a long time. Her back pressed against his stomach as he ran his fingers lightly over the ridged scars on her abdomen. He wanted to know where they came from but he knew her well enough to know that when she wanted to tell him he wouldn’t have to ask.

Despite the fact that someone could walk into the forge at any moment and find them neither seemed in any hurry to move. If it was up to Gendry he would never rise from this place, content to stay here with her for the rest of their lives. Here, beside her, he could almost forget what was coming for them.

“Let’s run away.” Gendry whispered, his lips brushing the soft skin at the curve of her neck.

Arya let out a soft laugh at his words and she pulled back out of his arms far enough so that she could turn her head to look at him. Gendry pulled her back tighter to him, unwilling to let go of her anytime soon. With her warm in his arms he could push all thoughts of the horn and the very real fact that they both might not live to see the dawn from his mind.

“Where would we go?” Arya asked, tilting her head at him curiously as she played along with his flight of fantasy. They both knew all too well that neither of them would be running from this fight. The dead would be at the walls of Winterfell in a matter of hours and they would both be there to greet them.

“Anywhere.” Gendry whispered, brushing a loose tendril of her hair off of her face. He saw a flicker of surprise in her eyes at the tenderness of the gesture but she leaned into his hand after a moments pause.

“The world is a big place.” Gendry continued, his words lacking fervor as they both knew he did not mean any of them. “We could go far from here, outrun all of this.”

“We are good on the road together.” Arya admitted with a small smile.

“We’re good at lots of things together.” Gendry replied, marveling at the light flush that rose to her cheeks at his words.

“Like fighting.” Arya whispered, her face suddenly closing off and Gendry could swear he felt her body grow colder beside him. It seemed that their brief respite from their harsh reality was coming to an end. Gendry’s grip on her tightened reflexively. He wasn’t ready for this to be over.

“Don’t die tomorrow.” Arya suddenly whispered; her voice so light Gendry wondered for a moment if he had imagined it. It was only her breath tickling his skin that made him know she really had said it.

Gendry shook his head, running his thumb lightly over her cheek. “I wouldn’t dream of leaving you again.” He could see the smile threatening to turn the corners of her lips and he couldn’t resist throwing in the next word, “M’lady.”

Chapter Text

The first time he brought up marriage he had been drunk and Arya had known better than to take it seriously. He had just come home from Jon’s stag night and reeked of whiskey and cigarettes and barely managed to make it to the couch he was so sloshed. Arya hoped Jon wasn’t in a similar state or Ygritte might leave him at the alter tomorrow.

Gendry had pulled her down on top of him on the couch and Arya let him, an amused smile on her lips as he looked up at her blurry eyed. “Weddings are so fun. We should get married so we can have a wedding.” his words slurred together into one long garbled phrase but Arya was something of an expert at deciphering drunk speak after growing up with Theon. Arya knew exactly what he said.

She decided right then and there she would never tell her boyfriend of two months he had suggested they get married. Gendry was still convinced her family hated him and that she was going to wake up one day and not want to be with him. She knew if she told him about this he would take it as further proof that he wasn’t good enough for her. She didn’t see any point of adding fuel to the fire.

Besides, he was asleep before she could get her shocked brain to come up with a response.

The second time he brought up marriage they both pretended it didn’t happen. They were both naked, laying in bed with a sheet thrown over their bodies as Arya lay half on his chest, both of them panting.

“Gods that was amazing.” Gendry sighed, leaning back against the pillows. “Is there anything you’re not good at?”

“Cooking.” Arya admitted, lazily drawing circles on his arm.

“Well good thing there’s so many restaurants here so we don’t have to worry about that.” Gendry said planting a kiss on the top of her head.

“Sansa used to say every woman needs to be a good cook or no one would want her as a wife.” Arya remembered, rolling her eyes at how uptight her sister used to be.

“I don’t expect you to cook when you’re my wife.” Gendry said absentmindedly, still playing with her hair. Either he didn’t notice when Arya tensed at his words or he chose not to comment on it just like she did with his words.

The third time he mentioned marriage he actually got down on one knee. It was mainly to look for the toy Nymeria had lost under the couch but still he was kneeling when he spoke.

“What do you think about getting married?” he tried to sound casual as he asked but Arya could still hear the nervous hitch in his voice.

“To you specifically or just in general?” Arya couldn’t help but asking. Sometimes he made it so easy to tease him.

“Arya.” Gendry said, his voice serious as he looked up at her.

Arya hesitated, unsure of what to say. They had been dating over two years and living together for five months. She would be lying if she said she hadn’t thought about it but when she thought about marriage, she still thought about the ideal Sansa used to shove down her throat or things that her mother used to say. She loved Gendry but she wasn’t ready for something like that.

“I haven’t really thought about it.” Arya admitted, even though they both knew it was a lie.

After that the topic of marriage didn’t come up for so long that Arya began to think that Gendry had forgotten about it. They were happy together and been dating for nearly four years when she came home one day to find rose petals all over the apartment floor and candles shining from nearly every surface.

The moment she saw all of it she knew what was happening and she felt a sinking in her gut. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to marry Gendry, she knew that now. She just didn’t want him to marry her expecting that she was going to change.

She followed the petals with a sense of trepidation that grew the closer she got to the bedroom door. She opened it slowly to find Gendry pacing the floor, turning something over in his hands. She could see the shape of the ring box from the doorway and her heart sunk even further.

“Please don’t do this.” Arya found herself whispering causing Gendry to look over at her in surprise. He must not have heard her come in.

“Do what?” he asked, his brow furrowed as he took a step closer to her.

“Propose.” Arya let out in a rush, the word leaving a strange taste in her mouth. “Not like this.” she gestured to the flower petals, the candles. “This isn’t me.” the fact that she had to tell him that made her wonder if he really even knew her at all. Before Arya could ponder that thought for too long Gendry let out a startled laugh.

“I’m not proposing.”

Arya started like she had been shocked. “Then what is all this?” she asked in confusion, finally pushing the door open wider so that she could walk in.

Gendry blushed as she looked around. “I can tell now that I went a bit overboard.” he trailed off as Arya continued to look at him in wonder. “It's our ten-year anniversary. We met ten years ago today.”

Arya let out a surprised laugh before covering her face with her hands. She hadn’t even realized that and she couldn’t help but feel guilty that he had gone to such trouble when she hadn’t even realized the significance of the day.

“I found this the day we met and I kept it, knowing that I’d want to give it to you one day.” Gendry finished, lightly pulling her hand off her face to pass the box in his hands to her. Arya opened it slowly, revealing a small silver wolf keychain nestled inside the box.

“You’ve held onto this for ten years?” Arya asked in surprise, looking up at Gendry with wonder in her eyes.

Gendry shifted under her gaze before shrugging nervously. “I had a feeling you were going to be important to me. You told me that day you liked wolves so when I saw that...” he trailed off into silence but it didn’t matter because Arya had pushed up onto her toes and tugged him down until she could reach his lips.

The last time Gendry brought up marriage there was no romantic lighting, no photographer, no rose petals. There wasn’t even a ring.

They were walking Nymeria late one morning and passed the local courthouse. Gendry had slowly come to a stop before tugging on Arya’s hand, making her look back over her shoulder at him curiously.

He gestured towards the courthouse before his eyes met hers, the blue piercing straight through to her heart. “Marry me now.” he said, as casually as if he was asking her where she wanted to have lunch but Arya knew he was serious.

It was the first time that he had ever really truly asked her and there was no flair to the statement, no profession of how much he loved her and longed for her. It was simple and to the point, it was perfect.

“Okay.”

Chapter Text

She had imagined seeing him again so many times that she had lost count. It was how she would spend the long days at sea, staring at nothing but a vast blue expanse. That blue always conjured up memories of his eyes and then she was right back to thinking of him again, if she had even managed to stop at all. It seemed like whatever she did nothing would shake the thought of Gendry from her mind.

After three years at sea Arya had expected that she would have grown tired of thinking about Gendry but as seasons passed nothing changed. Even when her voyage finally came to an end and she returned to Winterfell loaded down with maps she kept thinking of him. It had been four years by then since she had last seen him, his figure growing smaller on the docks as she sailed away without even a goodbye. Arya hoped he wasn’t thinking of her, she doubted they would be very good thoughts.

If it had been up to Arya she would have been content to keep thinking about him but never facing Gendry again. She knew it was the coward’s move but she had spent years being brave. She was owed this one small act of cowardice.

Sansa it seemed had other thoughts on the matter. She didn’t know the whole story of what had happened between Arya and Gendry but she had heard snippets and she was too perceptive for her own good. She had pieced together enough to know there was something going on between them at one point.

When she told Arya she needed her to go to Storm’s End on a diplomatic mission Arya flatly refused. She had only been home for a few months, Sansa couldn’t just order her about and ship her off like that. She might be the Queen in the North but Arya wasn’t going to bow to her every move without a fight.

After a few weeks the curiosity got the better of her and Arya agreed to go. She wondered what she would find when she got there; she suspected Gendry was long married by now but she hadn’t been able to bring herself to ask anyone about him. She didn’t need to give Sansa anymore reason to cast those knowing looks at her when she thought Arya wasn’t looking. Arya wondered how many children Gendry would have running around his feet. She wondered if they would look like him or their mother. Selfishly she hoped for the later. It would be easier for her to face.

She spent the journey to Storm’s End lost in her own head, nerves knotting her stomach up tight. By the time she was led into the castle she just wanted to get the meeting over with. She was sick of feeling coiled up because of Gendry Waters, Baratheon, whatever he wanted to call himself these days. Arya just needed to see him again and get it out of her system. Soon she would have her answers and he could yell at her all he wished. At least it would be over and her thoughts could stop being preoccupied by him.

In all of her imagined reunions Gendry always yelled at her or refused to see her, he always called her terrible things even though he had never done any of those things to her in real life. It was easier for Arya that way, to imagine that he hated her. Easier than remembering the broken look on his face when she turned him down.

She had imagined yelling, she had imagined tears. Arya thought she had imagined it all. But she had never imagined Gendry smiling.

And that was what he was doing as he walked across his study towards her, smiling like they had parted on the best of terms. The sight of it made Arya tense in confusion, in all the scenarios that had played out in her mind this one had never once occurred to her. She’d learned long ago not to hope for the impossible.

“Your sister told me you were coming.” Gendry said, stopping on the other side of his desk to lean against it as he looked at her.

Arya nodded as she pulled her bag in front of her like a shield. She knew Sansa had sent a raven, she was the one who told her to do so. She hadn’t wanted to go to Storm's End as it was, but she really didn’t want to show up unannounced. At least this way Gendry had some warning. “I brought copies of the maps I made.”

“You find what you were looking for out there?” Gendry asked curiously, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared at her with eyes that she had never been able to shake the memory of.

Arya paused, a map in her hand as she looked up at him wearily, “What do you think I was looking for?”

Gendry shrugged, his eyes never leaving hers. “Whatever you couldn’t find here.”

Arya paused at his words, closing her eyes briefly as she waited for his anger to surface. When no hurtful words were hurled at her Arya peeked up at Gendry who was watching her with a clouded look on his face. She supposed she owed him an answer at the very least.

“I didn’t want to be a lady. I still don’t.” Arya reminded him softly, repeating words she had told him all those years ago.

“And yet you live in Winterfell now, no longer just a lady but a princess.” Gendry said giving her a bitter smile. It was almost a relief to finally see some of that anger she had been expecting for so long.

“I don’t want any of that.” Arya snapped, the map rumpling in her hand as she clenched her fist in annoyance.

“It doesn’t matter if you want it, you have it.” Gendry snapped in return before shaking his head as he looked at her dejectedly. “Just like you have me.”

Arya forced herself to keep meeting his eyes as she took a deep breath and forced the word out. How three little letters felt so heavy she had no idea. “Had.”

Gendry paused for a second at her correction to the past tense before he gave a nearly imperceptible shake of his head. “No Arya. Have.” He shrugged and let his arms fall to his sides as he watched her face while he spoke, looking for any reaction to his words. “You have me today as much as you had me the day you left. You’ll always have me.”

Arya rocked back on her heels at his words, forcing her face to stay a blank mask. This reunion was not going any of the ways she had pictured. Her throat was suddenly dry and it was hard to get the words out but she managed with a croak. “But your wife...”

Gendry cut her off with a humorless laugh. “What wife?” Even though neither of them had moved Arya felt as though the space between them was growing smaller. “You think I would marry another woman when you still have my heart?”

Arya stared at him, her brain spinning. She had been expecting to come here and get yelled at, maybe berated or have his happiness paraded in front of her. She had not been expecting to come back and be told he still loved her, all these years later.

“I don’t know what to say.” Arya finally admitted, feeling more adrift than she ever had at sea.

“You don’t have to say anything today.” Gendry shrugged as he pushed off the desk to approach her and gently tug the map from her hands. “You can say it when you’re ready.”

Even after ten days at Storm’s End, Arya still didn’t know what she wanted to say to him. That was how long her original visit was planned and she decided that she would be able to better know how she felt about what Gendry had told her if she was away from him for a little bit. Sometimes she saw the best from a distance.

Gendry found her in the stables right before she mounted her horse.

“No goodbye this time either?” he asked softly, causing her to look back over her shoulder at him.

“I thought you would just ask me to stay.” Arya admitted, pretending to check the saddle she had already tightened just so that she didn’t have to keep looking at him.

Gendry scoffed before shaking his head. “I know you better than that Arya.” She looked back over at him slowly at his words and his eyes burned into hers as he passed her a bag of rations for her journey home. “I’m not asking you to stay, just to come back.”

So she did.

It took her two more years and eight more trips but finally Arya realized that marrying Gendry wasn’t giving up a part of herself. She would still be who she had always been, more a wolf than a lady, and Gendry would never try to tame her. She would be a lady in title but Gendry made her realize that she could use that to help people and not as a position to be trapped by.

It may have taken her a bit longer than it should have but finally Arya didn’t just come back.

She stayed.

Chapter Text

“Stop being such a coward.” Arya said sternly, her hands on her hips as she stared him down.

Gendry gaped at her, tugging self-consciously on the hem of his tunic. “I’m not being a coward.” he insisted, pointedly ignoring the way she rolled her eyes at him.

“It's just water.” Arya reminded him needlessly, gesturing to the wide expanse of blue behind them as if Gendry could ever forget that it was there.

“I know what it is. I just don’t see why I have to go in it.” Gendry grumbled crossing his arms over his chest as they repeated their argument for what had to be the third time that day alone.

Arya rose her eyebrows at him her face darkening dangerously. “Because you live next to the ocean and you don’t know how to swim.” she bit out through clenched teeth. Gendry didn’t mind her snapping at him, she was scarier when she was completely emotionless. As long as she was showing annoyance, he might still be able to get out of this.

“Why do I need to know how to swim? Are people going to test me on it?” Gendry asked in exasperation. Being the lord of Storm’s End had felt like an endless stream of learning, some things more useful than not. This felt like one of the less useful things. At least that’s what he told himself to make him feel better about the nervous roiling he got in his stomach every time he looked at the blue water.

“No, but they might be surprised to watch you drown after I push you in one day.” Arya growled, her voice getting darker with each word.

Gendry rose his eyebrows at her in surprise. He wasn’t entirely sure if she was kidding or not.

That split second of hesitation was all Arya needed and she closed the bit of distance between them to start tugging at his shirt. “Just get naked.” she huffed, managing to pull his tunic halfway up his chest.

Gendry yelped and caught her hands in his own. “I’m not learning to swim naked.” He might not know much about being a lord but if he did drown, he didn’t want to be remembered as the lord who died without his pants on.

Arya rolled her eyes at him and did not stop trying to take his shirt off. “Then keep your pants on. You’re getting in that water clothed or not.”

“What do I get if I do?” Gendry asked, more to stall her than actually expecting an answer. He had been putting off learning to swim now for months, he had known this day would come eventually.

Arya scoffed at him like he had expected. “You get to not drown the next time I shove you in the water for being stupid.”

Gendry let her shove at his stomach for a few more seconds, trying to push him closer to the water line. Arya was strong but he was a lot bigger than her so she wasn’t succeeding at moving him very much. Her swollen stomach wasn’t helping matters any.

“If I get in the water now, do you promise not to tell our child how long it takes you to teach me?” Gendry asked, finally managing to catch her wrists in his hands.

Arya pulled back to look up at him, a furrow between her brows as she considered this. “No.” she finally admitted with a shrug. “But I do promise not to tell them about this.”

Catching Gendry by surprise she finally managed to push him backwards into the water where he landed with a splash in water shallow enough he could sit up in it. The cold water made his clothing stick to his skin and as Arya laughed at him he began to wonder if he should have just gotten naked after all.

Chapter Text

By the time he finds her the sun had already started to break over the horizon. Gendry’s arms felt heavier than any hammer he had ever swung and he was having to concentrate far too much on putting one foot in front of the other but when he finally found her surrounded by people in the godswood all of that pain seemed to fade away.

He watched as the Lady Stark pulled Arya into a fierce embrace and as Gendry shuffled closer he was surprised to see specks of blood on the Lady’s pale face. From what Arya told him she had been down in the crypts, he didn’t understand how she could have gotten blood on her down there.

Gendry decided to focus on that because now that he could see Arya alive and well again he didn't know how to approach her. She was a lady after all and despite what they had done that night he was no proper match for her. He didn’t want to taint her reputation by approaching her now. He knew how people could talk.

Jon caught sight of him hanging back at the edge of their group and beckoned him forward, catching him in a fierce hug. Gendry returned it with equal exuberance, flinching under the strangely heavy stare Bran Stark gave him as he moved away.

Before Gendry could work out whether it would be alright for him to approach Arya now that it was clear Jon was on hugging terms with him Arya ducked out of her sister’s arms to walk over to him and all but fell against his chest. Gendry swayed a little as she sagged against him, his exhaustion making even a tiny thing such as her seem heavy. His arms ached but he still got them to raise and wrap around her, choosing to duck his head into her hair rather than face the curious looks of her siblings.

“I’m glad you didn’t die.” Arya whispered against his chest and Gendry clutched her tighter at the sound of her voice, damn the whispers people would say about them.

Gendry chuckled and despite the fact that he didn’t want to he slowly released his hold on her so he could look at her better. He was about to ask her if she had been the one to kill the Night King when he caught sight of how abnormally pale her face was and the blood on her forehead.

“Are you alright?” he asked, cupping her face in his hands to peer closer at the wound.

Arya rolled her eyes as she clutched at his arms, using his weight to keep herself upright. “Fine.”

Gendry's eyes narrowed as he surveyed her for more injuries. He couldn’t see much because of her clothing but he didn’t see any tears in the fabric which was a good sign. Her head wound did look pretty serious though. “Don't lie to me.” he all but growled causing Arya to narrow her eyes at him in anger.

“I’m not lying.” she protested although it didn’t do any good when she was swaying on her feet.

“You’re hurt. I’m taking you inside.” Gendry declared, ignoring both her protests and the shocked looks on her sibling’s faces as he bent and swept Arya up into his arms.

“I can walk Waters!” Arya snapped but she wound her arms around his neck at the same time so Gendry didn’t heed her words very much. The exhaustion seemed to have left his body entirely and he headed into the castle with renewed vigor, intent on making sure she was okay.

They got more than a few curious looks as Gendry carried her through the halls of the castle, having to detour Arya’s directions a few times because the way had been blocked during the battle. In the end they finally made it to a door. Arya leaned a little out of his arms to open it and Gendry stepped inside, surprised not to find the infirmary like he had thought she had led him to but an empty bedchamber.

“You need to see the maester.” Gendry sighed as he placed her down lightly on the bed. It was only his worry for her that kept him from collapsing into it at the sight of it.

“Its a scratch.” Arya protested, pushing his hands away when he tried to pick her up again. “Besides, other people need to see him more.”

“At least let me take a look.” a soft voice from the doorway made Gendry start and he looked over his shoulder to see Lady Stark surveying them both with curious eyes. Gendry suddenly realized how close he was standing to Arya and a bed and he quickly stepped backwards with a blush.

Arya sighed but nodded consent and Gendry watched nervously as her sister cleaned and bandaged the wound on Arya’s forehead. As she washed away the blood Gendry was relieved to see that the wound was not as bad as he had originally thought.

“Do you have any other injuries?” Lady Stark asked as she finished checking Arya’s head for more scratches.

“Just bruises.” Arya said as she got to her feet, seeming much steadier this time.

“What about you?” the lady asked, looking over her shoulder at Gendry with those curious eyes. He shook his head no although he didn’t honestly know if he was injured. He was still too hyped up from the battle to tell. Every part of his body hurt but he didn’t think anything needed attention.

“No, my lady.” he shuffled awkwardly, not sure if he was expected to leave the room or not. It was hard to know what sort of etiquette they were supposed to follow after they had just fought to save the whole world.

“We need to go check on our people, but you can spare five minutes.” Lady Stark said to Arya who looked at her with a brow wrinkled in confusion until her sister walked out the door, shutting it softly behind her.

Gendry gaped at the closed door and its implication for a moment before turning to Arya, starting a little to see she had moved so she was standing right in front of him.He hadn’t even heard her. He leaned down to kiss her softly, careful not to move her head too much as she wrapped her arms around him.

“I’m glad you didn’t die.” Arya whispered against his lips, repeating the words she’d said earlier.

“Me too.” Gendry replied before kissing her again. He never wanted to stop kissing her. He hoped that they could figure it out so that he never had too.

Chapter Text

She felt like she could still hear the battle horn echoing in her ears as she laced her breeches up hurriedly. Her fingers kept stumbling over the laces and it took her longer than it probably should have to realize that her fingers were shaking. Arya glared down at the digits in anger, she had fought and won many battles before and she had never trembled like a child. She didn’t understand why she was shaking now.

The rustling of clothing tore her gaze away from her hands and she looked up at Gendry as he pulled his tunic over his head and a flare of understanding coursed through her. She wasn’t shaking out of fear for herself or her life. She was shaking because this was one of the few times she had fought a battle where she had someone to lose.

It wasn’t just Gendry she might not see again when the battle was finished, she might lose what was left of her family too. She knew that Sansa would be safe down in the crypts but Jon would be out there fighting with her and they were dangling Bran as bait. The odds were good that at least one of her pack would be gone by the time morning arrived, if not all of them.

Arya willed her fingers to stop shaking and resumed getting dressed, forcing the thoughts of her loved ones out of her mind. She had been reunited with them for so little time, she could not walk into battle with the thought that she would never see them again. If she did that she would never be able to fight.

With all these worries in her head she was beginning to understand why the Faceless Men wanted her to be No One. If she was No One she wouldn’t have these thoughts, and she wouldn't have to be forcing her fingers to be still. But she wasn’t No One, she was Arya Stark and she was afraid of what losses the morning would bring.

Somehow, she managed to convince her fingers to be still long enough so that she could finish dressing and she clutched the weapon Gendry had made her in one hand, running her thumb over its smooth surface.

“Hey.” Gendry’s soft voice pulled her from her thoughts and Arya looked up at him, keeping her face a passive mask. There was no need for him to know how scared she was. Not for herself, for everyone else.

“Look for me after.” Gendry said, stepping closer to her shyly as if he was unsure if he could touch her now even though he had been inside her mere hours ago.

Arya made a noncommittal noise in the back of her throat, biting back the words she wanted to say. That they didn’t know if they would both be around to see the aftermath of the battle. That they didn't even know if there would be an after.

“I’m serious Arya.” Gendry whispered, reaching out suddenly to clasp her free hand in his own. His hand was easily twice her size and it felt cold as ice as it closed around hers. Was she imagining it or was that a tremor she felt in his palm? “Find me after. I’ll be there.”

Arya looked up at Gendry’s eyes that pierced hers intensely. She didn’t trust herself to form words so she simply nodded, squeezing his hand tighter in her own. Gendry stepped forward to press a feather light kiss against her forehead and Arya’s eyes drifted shut at the touch of his lips on her skin. He had just returned to her; she couldn’t bear the thought that this would be the last time she ever saw him.

Gendry moved to step away from her but Arya used her grip on his hand to tug him back, pushing up on her tiptoes to press a soft kiss to his lips. She kissed him with far more tenderness than she had earlier, not trying to tug his clothes off this time. She wasn’t kissing him with hunger this time, but with a promise. A promise that they would see each other again. This kiss would not be their last.

When they pulled away Gendry leaned down to press his forehead against hers. “Arya, I-”

She knew suddenly he was going to tell her the same thing that he had wanted to tell her earlier that she had cut him off with a kiss. Arya had a feeling she knew what he was going to say and she knew too that she didn’t want to hear it yet. Not like this.

“Tell me after.” she whispered, pulling away far enough so that she could look into his eyes. She wanted to memorize every detail of his face but she forced herself to turn away from him. She couldn’t bring herself to let go of his hand and he must have felt the same way because their fingers clutched at each other until she had walked too far and their hands fell away from each other slowly.

Arya wanted to look back over her shoulder at him, to take in the sight of him for as long as she could but she knew they didn’t have time for that. The dead would arrive any moment and they had to be ready to fight.

More than that though Arya knew that if she looked back at Gendry she would never be able to walk away from him that night and she had too. They could not stay in the safety of the forge and hide away from the world forever. They had a war to help win after all.

She would find him after and they would have all the time in the world after that.

Chapter Text

“Anyone ever tell you you’re shit at good-byes?”

Arya tensed at the voice behind her, her spine straightening like an arrow at the exasperated tone. Slowly she looked over her shoulder to see Gendry watching her with his arms crossed tight over his chest and his eyes filled to the brim with annoyance.

She cleared her throat before answering, forcing her eyes to stay on his and not admire the way his new leather tunic clung to his body. “Its been brought up once or twice.” she admitted, grateful for the way her voice did not waver even though it wanted too.

Gendry snorted before dropping his arms down to his sides. “I heard you’re leaving.”

Arya had expected as much. She didn’t think he would have been seeking her out for any other reason. Ever since she had turned down his marriage proposal she had seen little of him, even after he arrived in King’s Landing.

“I am.” she admitted, watching as his jaw tensed in response. Part of Arya wanted to ask him to come with her but she knew that there would be no point. He had a lordship now, he wouldn’t want to run off into the sunset with her.

“Where?” Gendry asked, taking a small step closer towards her. Arya longed to reach out and touch him again but she forced her hands to stay by her sides. That door was closed to her now and she had no one to blame for it but herself. She hadn’t just closed the door she’d locked it and thrown out the key. By the time she arrived back in Westeros, if she came back at all, Gendry was sure to be wed to a proper lady. He would have no use for her anymore. She’d made sure of that.

“West.” Arya answered, deciding it was best to stick to one word replies.

“Why?” Gendry asked curiously, his eyes never leaving her face despite the bustle of people on the docks around them.

Arya shrugged, she didn’t really know why she was leaving. She had felt the sudden urge to get away from Westeros, to get away from all the memories and ghosts she had there. As much as she wanted to go back to Winterfell with Sansa she feared that she would be too restless, or be forced to become a lady like she didn’t want too. “Because I can.”

Gendry nodded at that and it actually looked like he understood. She supposed if anyone would understand her restless heart it would be him, even if he had forgotten of it for a few drunken moments.

“Do you have room for one more?”

Arya blinked in surprise, tilting her head as she looked at him. “What?” she asked, certain that she hadn’t heard him correctly.

Gendry shifted awkwardly under her gaze. “Could I go with you?” he finally blurted out, the tips of his ears turning red as she gaped at him.

“But...Storm’s End.” Arya couldn’t even form a full coherent thought. She had expected him to chide her for leaving or to say farewell, not ask to join her. That was the last thing she would have expected.

Gendry shrugged, looking back over his shoulder as if he was looking for onlookers. “I don’t know how to be a lord Arya. Davos can have it.”

Arya blinked at him before shaking her head, this was not how she had thought this conversation would go. “You can’t just give away a lordship like that.”

“Why not? Isn’t that what you’re doing?” Gendry rose his brows at he looked at her, his hands toying with the hem of his leather jerkin.

His words hit her hard and Arya gaped at him as she tried to think of a reply. Technically she wasn’t giving away her ladyship status since she wasn’t passing it on to someone else. Although, she certainly did not want it as had been clear for several years. Gendry wasn’t wrong, she was walking away from her title just as he was. But she had known that she would do this for a very long time, she didn’t want Gendry to do any spur of the moment decision that he would come to regret.

“This isn’t something you can take back.” she reminded him softly causing Gendry to roll his eyes at her.

“Gee thanks, I hadn’t realized that.” he sighed as he looked at her, taking another small step towards her. “I meant what I said before, none of its worth anything if you’re not with me.” Arya flinched at his words, as if she needed another reminder of the proposal like it didn’t play endlessly in her head. “I didn’t mean being a lord or living in a castle. I meant my life.”

He was close enough to her now that she could reach out and touch him but she kept her hands curled into tight fists at her sides. “I know what life is like without you and I don’t want it.” Gendry shook his head as he looked down at her and the rest of the noise of the docks fell away as he continued speaking, his voice shaking nervously. “Life is better with you by my side. So be with me Arya. Not as a lady, not as anything you don’t want to be. Just be Arya, that’s all I’ve ever wanted anyway.”

Her hands could no longer stay clenched and Arya reached out to grip his arms and pull him towards her roughly. Gendry fell against her with an ‘oof’ of surprise and after a brief pause he slowly wrapped his arms around her waist as if he was afraid she was going to change her mind and shove him away.

“Does this mean I can go with you?” Gendry whispered, his breath tickling her ear.

Arya laughed against his chest before burrowing her face closer against him. “Of course, stupid.”