SPARE HEIR

[shadowdflame]

        in between traveling and the celebrations cassian had found no time to practice his skills with a sword. he hadn’t been allowed to carry his blade with him much within winterfell, a show of good faith between allies; besides, there was little reason for a lord to carry a blade all the time. but after serving as a knight for so many years not carrying a blade made him feel like he as missing a limb. it felt good to have his sword back in his hand. he moved effortlessly around the training yard; it might have been some time since he’d properly fought but his skills hadn’t deserted him.

          the sound of approaching footsteps made cassian pause. he glanced over his shoulder and nodded in greeting to the person.          ❝  looking to practice or simply to get away from the gossip? ❞

[shadowdflame]

nyra karstark   |   ofkarhold

THE  TOWER  SCORCHED , the  maester  gone . not  gone , murdered . it  was  meant  to  be  a  time  of  celebration , and  yet  it  was  far  from  such . how  could  one  enjoy  such  festivities  with  an  incessant  echo  of  a  raven’s  squawk  occupying  their  eardrums ? death  never  settled  well  with  the  northern  lady , greatly  so  after  the  loss  of  her  own  beloved .

the  lady  stood  upon  a  balcony  within  winterfell , a  velvet  robe  drapes  her  shoulders , adorned  with  furs  and  exquisite  embroidery . the  frigid  wind  paints  her  cheeks  a  pink  hue , as  she  observes  the  land , watching  as  fresh  snow  falls  atop  the  remnants  of  the  maester’s  turret .  suddenly , there’s  the  feeling  of  a  presence  behind  her , and  she  turns  to  greet  the  source . ❝ beautiful , isn’t  it ?❞ she  then  voices , gesturing  to  the  gentle snowfall . ❝ quite  a  shame  such  tragedy  accompanies  it. ❞ 

        he’d been avoiding her. it was wrong, he knew that, but still he couldn’t bring himself to spend much time with his betrothed. he hadn’t even intended to stumble upon her now. for a moment he considered retreating, but then she spoke and turned toward him, and he knew it was too late. he might be trying to avoid her but he didn’t want to be cruel, which he would be if he turned away from her now.

          cassian stepped closer to the balcony’s railing and stared out at the scenery around them.          ❝  it is in it’s own way, my lady. ❞          the words sounded stilted even to his ears. the only problem was he didn’t know how else to talk to her. he knew he was a disappointment to her and he could not fault her for that. he exhaled, his breath visible in the cold air as it left his lips and drifted upward.          ❝  are you... well? ❞          it had not been long since the illness had claimed the lives of his family. cassian hadn’t grieved for in his eyes he had lost nothing he hadn’t already, but he knew that likely wasn’t the case for nyra. and now a new tragedy had found winterfell.

[resourcesinblue]

DEATHLESS.

the following prompts were taken from the novel deathless by catherynne m. valente, an american novelist & poet. the novel was loosely based on the tale of koschei the deathless, incorporating other elements of russian mythology, & setting it against the backdrop of the russian revolution. feel free to change the pronouns / prompts as you see fit, but be warned – below the cut, it’s quite long !

❛ the service of your body is not yours to give as you please. ❜

❛ you probably won’t survive. ❜

❛ go. run. don’t look behind you. ❜

❛ i have come for the girl in the window. ❜

❛ i will never be without information. ❜

❛ i will see him with his skin off before i fall in love. ❜

❛ if the world is divided into seeing & not seeing, i will always choose to see. ❜

❛ secrets are jealous things, permitting no fraternization. ❜

❛ no, it’s not like that, when magic comes. ❜

❛ magic does that. it wastes you away. once it grips you by the ear, the world gets quieter & quieter until you can hardly hear it at all. ❜

❛ the sight of it bruised my heart so that i cannot think about anything else. ❜

❛ i’ll be so quiet, i’ll never talk again. ❜

❛ keep me & obey me, for i am your husband, & i can destroy you. ❜

❛ i shall be clever, & i shall not let him go. ❜

❛ it is a new world, & we do not wish to be left behind. ❜

Keep reading

[shadowdflame]

morgana tully   |   morgana-tully

The night of the coronation was meant to be a joy for the North. But that hadn’t been the case. It had ended with a man dead and tensions between the North and South were as bad as ever. Morgana hated all of it. Not just because her friend and new King was hurt by the events, but that a good party was ruined. Everyone was on edge, herself included. It was as if all trust was thrown out the window. She made her way towards the great hall, freezing when she heard someone at the other end of the hallway. “Who’s there?” She was about to grab the blade she now kept on her thigh. “Show yourself.”

        the joy that had existed last night had completely vanished. now the tension made the air thick; cassian believed it wouldn’t take much to set it ablaze and that would only spell disaster. he missed the feel of his sword at his side - a habit he hadn’t relinquished despite his new position. he was trying to find someway to be useful for he despised standing around and waiting when he turned down a hallway and realized he wasn’t alone.          ❝  my apologies, my lady. i didn’t mean to startle you. ❞          he raised his hands to show that he meant her no harm.

[bellblakes]

[shadowdflame]

houses you could see his fiancee being from?

most likely a powerful, though not necessarily a major, house from a region outside of the westerland !! i would say a house within the northern kingdom would work best like house karstark, royce, forrester, umber, or blackwood for example! but she could be from either the southern kingdom or dorne. 

[shadowdflame]

markas lefford   |   leffords

       he had felt entirely useless in the panic. what good was he against a fire ? the king himself had thrown himself at the mercy of the flames. markas had merely watched, doing his best to calm those around him. was it cowardice , or more a recognition of his present limitations ? he dared not ruminate too long on the answer. a familiar face registered in the midst of the crowd. CASSIAN MARBRAND. he was an excellent man to have in a crisis. markas approached , lowering his voice. there was much to uncover. 

           ❝ lord marbrand , might i have a word ? ❞

@shadowdflame

        the moment the fire had started cassian had jumped into action. he hadn’t raced into the flames as his king had, but he had helped the servants extinguish the blaze and made sure no one else got hurt. orders to remain in the great hall with the other guests or not, cassian wouldn’t hide away while others risked their safety. it wasn’t in his blood. now that the fire had been put out, he returned to the crowds of noble; panic and tension were thick in the air but cassian ignored it all. he moved through the crowd like a ghost; it was only when he saw markas approaching that he stopped and a warm smile spread across his lips.

          ❝  of course, my lord. is everything alright? ❞

[shadowdflame]

lyanna manderly   |   lyanna-manderly

It was Lyanna’s first return to Winterfall in a while. When she stepped foot on the so-familiar grounds, nostalgia had spread over heart. Wintefell represented her childhood, it represented much easier times. She had to leave all that behind only at the age of seventeen, expecting to take over the duties as the Lady of White Harbor. As the eldest one of her siblings, Lya had always known she would have no other fate than to get married, but it had still felt way too soon. Her marriage felt like a trap, having to pretend to hold love for a man whom she secretly despised.

“Yes, it was only appropriate. My brother deserves nothing less.” Lyanna was holding a second goblet of wine and had instructed the servants to keep filling it up throughout the whole night. “Oh, I am, my lord. And are you? I’ve been thinking of asking them to play “The Bear and the Maiden Fair” once again.” 

        cassian bowed when he realized that it was the eldest stark princess he was speaking to. the mere fact that he was a lord now didn’t mean he should show any less respect to the royal family. while cassian had never had much of a care of mind for politics he did respect the starks. they presented themselves as nothing but noble and well-intentioned leaders.

          ❝  indeed. i have no doubt that he will be a good king. ❞          far better than the targaryen king if the whispers cassian had heard were true.          ❝  i am. everything about the celebration had been enjoyable. ❞          it wasn’t a lie; cassian normally enjoyed feasts and would often partake in the celebrations more than he had tonight, but this evening, like so many recent things, were overshadowed by the constant cloud that hovered over him.          ❝  that’s a fine song. if they do play it would you honor me with a dance, princess? ❞

[shadowdflame]

do you think the westerlands should remain with the north?

        ❝  i don’t see why not. the starks have proven themselves to be honorable and just kings. far more stable than the targaryens. ❞

[shadowdflame]

what is your biggest regret?

        ❝  i wish i had attempted to gain a spot on king dane’s kingsguard when i had the chance. if i had, i would have been able to serve as a knight for the rest of my days. but i was young when a spot was available. i believed i needed more experience and would have a chance again later in life. i didn’t realize i was wrong... ❞

[shadowdflame]

Are you looking forward to marriage?

        ❝  no.  ❞        he’d never envisioned marriage in his future. perhaps if he’d been able to choose his own wife he would have been more happy about marrying, but he could find little joy in marrying the woman who had been his brother’s betrothed.          ❝  i imagine my betrothed’s feelings are similar. ❞          cassian couldn’t see any reason for them not to be. he was not his brother to the disappointment of many.

[shadowdflame]

[shadowdflame]

runa harlaw   |   ofseafoam

“Truly, it is,” Runa replied, smiling warmly at the stranger – she had finally spotted Ayara, though she would hold off on their reunion just yet. Her goblet was half-full,  

 “I am. Winterfell is a wonder, I find. The glass gardens alone– to find all those flowers blooming so far north.. Have you found your way to them, yet?” She had half a mind to try the same on Harlaw, somewhere, but she doubted such a structure would survive the storms – and besides, there were no hot springs to fuel it.

“Are you enjoying yourself?”

        ❝  i have. it’s a good place to get out of the cold without being confined to one’s chambers. ❞          but after being back in the westerlands for so long, cassian couldn’t help but find the glass gardens small. he’d forgotten how plentiful gardens in the more southern regions of the northern kingdom were. still, he wouldn’t complain. the climate of the north didn’t suit many flowers.

        he paused for longer than he should have before answering her second question.          ❝  i am. the tourneys were quite enjoyable, though i wish i could have competed rather than only observed. ❞          it had served as a bitter reminder that the chapter of his life he had loved so was truly gone.

[shadowdflame]

katherynne tyrell   |   reachbloomed

              she looks around her with rapt enthusiasm.usually finding large gatherings either overcrowded or overwhelming , there is something about this event that has her fascinated. perhaps it is the culture shock - experiencing a northern feast for the first time. it’s nothing like she’s ever seen. celebrations at highgarden are typically more elegant, and a baratheon festivities are often too loud to comfortably partake. there is JOY here, and it brings a bright smile to katherynne’s lips. she fixes her attention to the south side of the hall, watching the lively northern dances and sipping contentedly on her wine. over the din, she posits a question

          ❝ are northern functions usually so lively , or have our hosts sought to ensure that we’ve been thoroughly entertained ? ❞

        the north was quite similar to how he remembered it. cold and grey and yet joyful - not that cassian had found much joy in the place during his months in its land. being back didn’t feel like a homecoming for the north had never been his home, but it did feel like a return to someplace familiar. he glanced over at the lady when she spoke. for a moment her question remained unanswered. briefly, his mind thought of the celebrations that house lefford had held during her tenure as a knight. they hadn’t be quite like this, more dignified and composed, but the joy that filled the room was the same. he wondered if ashemark’s feasts had possessed the same mood; he discarded that thought quickly.

          ❝  lively, yes, but not normally so grand. ❞          at least that had been his experience as a child.          ❝  the north is putting their best foot forward tonight. ❞

[shadowdflame]

        he held a cup of wine in his hand, though it remained mainly untouched. normally he enjoyed a good drink but ever since arriving in winterfell he’d avoided indulging too excessively in either wine or ale. he didn’t want to make a bad impression during his first outing as a lord. people cared far less if knights got a little rowdy when they celebrated; it was different for nobility. 

          dark eyes watched the crowds around him. cassian had retreated away from the largest crowds in order to have a few moments away from the loudest sections of the celebration. glancing to his side, cassian saw he wasn’t the only one seeking a little distance from the crowd. he offered his companion a warm smile.          ❝  this is quite the celebration. fitting for a new king. ❞          the northern feasts had never been this grand during his youth. then again, there hadn’t been such a large event during that time and therefore no reason for needless celebrations.          ❝  are you enjoying yourself? ❞

[shadowdflame]

★

★   -   sad headcanon

when he was first sent north, cassian wrote letters to his parents nearly everyday. all of them were full of him pleading for his parents to let him come home and promising that he would be better behaved if they did let him return to ashemark. he sent the letters for months. everyday he waited for the ravens to arrive and bring his parents’ response. however, all of cassian’s letters went unanswered. his parents never wrote cassian at all. it took nearly a year, but cassian eventually stopped writing letters; the reality that his parents had abandoned him sunk in completely then.

[shadowdflame]

leyla tully   |   leylatully

Leyla chuckled as she shrugged. “I guess we’re both focused on other things.” When he asked if she was alright, she gave him a quick nod. “Is this your first time here, in the North?” She asked, unable to place him to a particular region. “I am Lady Leyla Tully of Riverrun.”

        he was relieved that she was alright. bad luck would truly be following him if he’d injured a noble lady during his first feast as a ruling lord.          ❝  no, my lady. i was fostered in the north for much of my youth. ❞          it was easier these days to hide the bitterness he still felt over his family sending him away. the north hadn’t been terrible, despite not being home.          ❝  an honor to meet you, lady leyla. i’m lord cassian marbrand of ashemark. ❞