#starkmatriarch

[russetwolf]

"There are times I near forget you are a man now, when it seems so short a time since you were running about my skirts. And then there are moments when I feel as if I am looking at Ned, and I am reminded how grown you are."

Robb had never thought that any of this could happen. In his mind - a child's mind - he had expected that everything would stay as it was. That his father would be Lord of Winterfell for years and years to come, that Robb would get to grow and learn from him, learn everything he could. He would marry and have children of his own that his father and mother would hold on their knees.

In his mind, there had been years and years of the mostly peaceful life he had known before, eventually, they would die the way they were supposed to, old and happy and at peace, and he would be ready to be Lord of Winterfell and lead the North.

He had never expected this. Had never wanted this.

And as much as he needed to play at being grown up, at being a king, sometimes when it was only the two of them, Robb needed to put down the mask.

"Mother..."

Please, can we not just go back home?

But he couldn't, they couldn't, and all he could do was to hug his mother close to him and hope for just a smidgen of the comfort she had unfailingly given him as a child.

[handofhonor]

{ @starkmatriarch

Ned ventured into the room, finger tips running over the wall. At times, he felt as if he was still in their old place, the one that wasn’t burned to the ground. In other moments, he felt as if he was somewhere else where he didn’t belong. It had been a good number of months, a long time enough that things should be settled into routine, and yet, here they were. They still struggled and every day Ned wondered if Catelyn ever read his journal from that time.

The weight of the golden ring was heavy upon his finger as he softly knocked on the doorframe with his knuckle. “Are you busy, love?”

[gachcuid]

@starkmatriarch

Once upon a time, Robb might have found the looks on the bannermen’s faces amusing. The first time around, when he was a boy, perhaps. But all that he felt in that moment was relief. Relief that at least some of this was over. There was still a lot ahead of them, but at least one burden had been passed on. Jon wouldn’t thank him for it, he knew, but he deserved the crown. As much as Robb did, even more than Robb had when he had still been a boy. Jon had been the one to start mustering the forces together while Robb still lay in the Twins. He and his mother had only joined the effort after being freed, and he had almost wanted to turn back to the Riverlands the first time someone had addressed him as your grace upon his return to the North. But he had a duty to uphold, and a home to win back, and that deed was done. 

But now? He was too weary. Too sick of it all. Where had duty gotten him? No, he didn’t want to be King anymore, and with no heir of his own, he had passed the title to Jon. Someone he could trust, someone who could do it well. The bannermen, while shocked, had agreed - with surprisingly little resistance. But the resistance was still to come, he knew. He only had some five minutes on his own when he heard his mother approach. Before she could speak, he held a hand up. “Mother,” he requested, “I’ve thought on this at great length. You won’t change my mind on this matter.” 

[killthebxy-archive]

// @starkmatriarch + @takenwings  + @matriarcarivera

          i have to start by telling you a secret, Lana. remember that one time, soon after we started writing together (which already feels more like we’ve been doing it for all my entire life tbh), when you told me you liked my Jon better than the Jon in the show? because i do remember and i’ll never forget, because these are words that stuck with me and that still never fail to make me smile --- given that i’d been admiring YOUR writing and YOUR portrayal from the very start, and to get such a compliment from such a talented good bean was like flying me to heaven. which hasn’t changed in the slightest, may i add. everybody knows that Cat’s and Jon’s relationship is nothing short of complicated and complex, if not downright toxic at times, and this is also why i sometimes, admittedly, have a bit of trouble empathizing with her as a character --- it’s basically like HOW DARE YOU SAY THIS TO MY GOOD SWEET PURE SON IF YOU DON’T WANT HIM I’LL TAKE HIM. but you know what? i never ever once felt this about your Catelyn --- which makes me, very unoriginally, say that i also prefer your Cat to show!Cat and even book!Cat. because you understand her so well and so beautifully, you build on her intentions and motivations, you never shy away from exploring her grey areas, but you still love and protect her fiercely and this is always a delight to see. not to mention, i absolutely adore everything we write and plot together? with Cat and also with Mona, and i’m admiring your Imelda from afar just as much! all of the threads are so different and so interesting and so fun to explore, and i’m always so pumped whenever i get to replying. and you, yourself, you are a sheer gem overflowing with talent and loveliness and amazingness and wonderfulness, and i am so, so happy that we could meet and get along so well and create such beautiful things together ❤

[theshootingarrow]

{ @starkmatriarch

“You are not who I was expecting.” Oliver wasn’t sure who he had been expecting but it wasn’t the auburn haired woman staring at him with an angry, dead look in her eye. He’d been sent here by Anatoly, waiting to hear what the next steps was. Oliver had been getting antsy, ready to do something. The torture was fresh in his mind from the other day, so when he’d seen the woman who also had a gun in her hand, Oliver stopped, he pulled his gun out from the back of his pants. “I believe you’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere. You’re not supposed to be here.”

[youngheartss-blog1]

@starkmatriarch

“Mother? What if I don’t want to be a Lady? Why can’t I be a warrior too?” Serena looked up at her mother with a questioning gaze. It’s not that Serena didn’t like being a lady and learning all sorts of things important to that. But the young girl also would like to learn the things her brothers get to learn. Shooting an arrow sounds fun too.

[adclight]

 @starkmatriarch contd. from here

The girl walked slowly into the room, eyes directed to the floor so to avoid the direct look lady Stark was giving her. Her insecurities were boiling within, immediately telling her there was something wrong. She had surely made a mistake she was unaware of. Did she look unkept’? Has she tried too hard to look presentable?

    ❛ Have I-- done something wrong, my lady ? ❜

[stcrmswithskin]

{ starter from Maege for @starkmatriarch }

               “Mi’lady” Maege called from outside Catelyn’s door. “We’re ready to head North come dawn. Is there anything you need packed by the mornin’?” The woman was only dressed in leathers, relaxing after the long trip in the rain to the Twins. Her Mormont armor were still being dried and cleaned for tomorrow’s ride. They would need their armor tomorrow, not knowing what they would be walking into when they met the crannogman. Personally, Maege didn’t want to be shot with an arrow from the abyss of the marshes.

               “Dress warm. There won’t be the king’s amenities on the trip.”