After all the time wandering around in the snowing wilderness, all the desperation and loneliness and guilt, Robb hadnât thought he could feel any more weary. Yet here he was, the past days having taken a toll on him he hadnât known he could feel anymore.
Witnessing Jon die had felt more real and more terrible than dying himself ever had. That stab to the heart worse than any Roose Bolton could have ever delivered to him. A few terrible, endless hours he had spent sitting by Jonâs side, petrified by shock and grief while the others had guarded the room. Ghost had sat next to him, big, heavy head resting in his lap in shared grief, anchoring him to the here and now.
Of everything and everyone he had lostâŚ
For all the things they had shared in the past, now they were truly more similar than ever before. Both having been beyond the brink of death. And Robb wouldnât leave his side again for the world - so if that meant leaving the Wall again, the one place Robb had thought might be left for him, that was what heâd do.
When the horn sounded to signal new arrivals, Jon was the first out the door. A part of him would probably always be that Commander, no matter what he said about having fulfilled his oath. Robb followed more slowly, not expecting -
He hadnât been expecting anything. Least of all her. And he could only stare, standing up on that wooden walkway as Jon and Sansa reunited with an embrace that spoke of a relief that could not be put into words. A surge of emotion rose in Robbâs chest that reminded him of when he and Jon had embraced out in the snow for the first time in years. Even more so when her eyes locked on his and he could watch the emotion play out on her face, the disbelief, shock, fearful hope.
(He knew he wasnât the brother anymore she had left behind at Winterfell, and that he didnât look like it either. Hair too long, beard on his cheeks and jaw, pale and tired - but so was she.)
And it seemed they both were frozen in it until Jon turned to look up at him, and Robbâs legs finally carried him down the steps.
This canât be real. There is no way to explain it, and as Sansa tries to reconcile what she sees with what she knows, her knees start to shake beneath her. In an attempt to stop it in its tracks, she straightens her spine and pinches the inside of her palm with her nails. This isnât a dream, this isnât a trick. They have made it to Castle Black, but somehow the sight of what cannot be Robb has her questioning what she knows â what is real.
None of it makes sense, and questions begin to flood her mind. Where has he been? Has he been here long? What happened?
Sansa feels the start of a hysterical bubble start to build in her stomach, and her teeth grind at the effort to keep it from the surface.
He is a ghost, the cold is playing tricks on her and once she and Jon get inside she can forget all about the stranger, ghost, or whatever it is that bears such a resemblance to her older brother.
Her mouth opens, and sheâs going to suggest it- suggest that they go inside, that they get away from the cold and away from all prying eyes, but Jon is turning. He is turning to face the very ghost she had just managed to tear her eyes away from, and Sansa realizes that Jon sees him too.
And he isnât surprised by the sight- stunned by the very thought of it.
âWhat?â Her voice comes back to Sansa in a whisper as the man, Robb, begins to make his way towards them and her vision quickly blurs. It isnât possible, and yet...she isnât seeing things, and it is the only explanation. The hope is impossible to ignore now and Sansa quickly blinks back tears to clear her vision, her chin wobbling from the effort of choking back sobs.
It takes another moment for her mind to catch up with her heart, and after tilting her head to the side and blowing out a small breath of air, her feet finally move to help close the distance between them. He is here, heâs not a ghost, and Jon sees him too. A hand reaches out in hesitance, to brush against a solid frame.
Whether or not Sansa had been expecting her hand to fall through the image or not, the affirmation is enough to break the dam a little further. âRobb?â
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