CHAPTER 4 | TO MEET A COMMANDER

MAIA'S hand immediately went to her forehead, which throbbed heavily against her skull. The mannerism was strange, because she wasn't known to black out like this. She groaned as the throbbing seemed to get worse with each passing second. The only good thing was that she noticed she wasn't cold anymore.

The second she opened her eyes, she was greeted with the sight of two gruffly looking men looking down at her. Maia was ready to scream, but not before the shorter man pressed his finger to her lips.

He then proceeded to hit his slighter bigger friend. "See what you did? You scared the lady!" He scoffed. "Go get her more blankets, Sam."

Maia looked around at her surroundings, realizing she was in some type of log cabin. She was wrapped up in over a dozen blankets and furs, making it hard to sit up with the cocoon around her. She was still in the same clothes as before, though they were a bit dirty and torn at seams, almost like her brain at the moment. Her knees were significantly bruised and her fingers tinged with blood.

"Hello, Miss," the short man greeted with his hand stuck out. "I'm Ed Tollett."

She shook it, her features growing confused. "Maia Sanders."

"Sanders," Ed mused to himself. "Never heard of that house myself."

Maia glanced at Ed for a second before observing herself. First, what were these men wearing? She hadn't seen capes like that worn since she saw her college's LARPing group on campus. Secondly, where was she? If anything, she wasn't in Washington anymore. So how did she just black out and move?

Derek must be so worried.

The clang of metal outside distracted her, and Maia found herself bolting out of the squeaky bed the random men had given her. From the window that led outside, she looked out to see two men cloaked in black clashing their swords against each other. They both held shields made out a dented wood, just good enough to practice fighting.

Maia backed away, not believing her eyes. "This isn't real," she breathed out.

Not only was she somewhere far from Washington, but it also looked like she was in an entirely different century.

She looked at back at Ed. His name – where had she heard it before? Ed Tollett.

Ed Tollett is probably the best secondary character for the Night's Watch, she recounted Derek saying once.

Ed Tollett. Night's Watch. Character.

This was an exact setting in Game of Thrones.

It was like she'd fallen through time.

"Are you okay, m'lady? You look like you're going be sick." Ed treaded his words lightly, careful not to offend. "We don't usually have ladies behind the Wall, so excuse me if I don't know feminine facial expressions. You're lucky they even allowed you in."

Maia shook her head. Maybe she was going to be sick. "This can't be true. How did I get stuck here?"

"What's not true?" Ed asked, drawing near.

Before she could stop herself, Maia grasped Ed's collar firmly. Her eyes became crazed towards the short man as his friend, Sam, returned back with two more blankets. "I brought more!" He exclaimed while his orbs settled on the sight in front of him.

"Where exactly am I?" Maia questioned.

Ed's brow lifted. "Why, you're at the Wall. The North of Westeros to be exact."

The North. Westeros.

Her eyes went wide as she realized the complexity of the situation in front of her. She was fucked, straight-up fucked, and she didn't know how. When she came to the conclusion, all her thoughts ran to Derek, and as everything rammed inside her skull all at once, Maia found herself fainting in Ed's arms.

Luckily, the stock man caught her just in time. "The lady collapsed. Again."

"What do you think the Council is going to do with her?" Sam helped Ed lift her back over to the bed, shielding her body from the cold under more covers. "Do you think she's a spy?"

"Woman barely knows where she is. I'd say no." Ed shook his head. "Tell the Lord Commander he can oversee her."

•••

"I find it completely preposterous that you're Eddard's bastard son."

Jon was walking beside Stannis Baratheon, the Watch's new backing for King of the North, and though he was near, he was completely disregarding everything he was saying. Jon was focused on his footing and the mission he had in front of him, which he thought he would see through.

When the Night's Watch had heard the strange woman's shrieking against their entrance, they assumed the worst. Being the paranoid bunch they are, they refused to open to her, but once she stopped, they checked outside to see a frozen young woman's body lying in the five-foot snow. Jon remembered carrying her hurriedly to the first empty quarters he could think of, ushering Ed and Sam to help him while he went back to training new recruits. Yes, women were surely not allowed beyond the Wall, but Jon overlooked the laws as soon as he saw her body covered in ice. He was only afraid of the other Watch members' view of the problem, because they surely wouldn't understand his reasoning, regardless of his title.

"Eddard was always an honorable man," Stannis continued, bringing Jon away from his thoughts. "It wasn't in his character to have random sex with some tavern whore. My wife thinks differently, but who has ever listened to her." He let out a chuckle.

Jon falsely smiled in his direction as they approached the former empty chambers Castle Black held. "If you'll excuse me, your Grace, I have a meeting to attend to."

Stannis grabbed hold of Jon's arm before he could enter. "Is it the stranger?"

Jon nodded, confused at where this conversation was heading.

"Have you gathered her name yet?"

"Indeed," Jon replied. "Ed informed me she went by the name, Maia Sanders."

Stannis thought for a moment. "I've never heard of House Sanders." He stated defensively. "Be careful of your trust, Jon Snow. I know you're so accepting to let wildlings through the Wall, but I highly doubt anyone else will agreed on this. Think before you trust."

The Lord Commander took the King's words into consideration, but didn't care too much about them. He was going to do what he thought was right; everyone else's words were just whispers in the wind.

With a proper goodbye, Jon stepped forth into the room, his dark eyes immediately falling on the blonde sitting in the corner of the room. She had been tapping her fingers when he came in, obviously awake as her eyes searched the room. "Hello, Lady Sanders," he introduced, pulling a stool forward. "My name is Jon Snow and I am Lord Commander of Castle Black."

Jon Snow, Derek had said, probably the most attractive guy on the show, and that's coming from me. He was formerly Ned Stark's bastard son and then he left for Wall, where he trained for the Night's Watch. During the current season, he actually became Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, a.k.a. the highest position, like, ever.

Maia shook his hand, but remained silent nonetheless. She needed to think. She needed to be alone with her thoughts to process the situation that she was truly in.

She took note of his garb, a long black cape with, of course, fur attached. He also adorned a full black outfit made of some type of leather and a pair of darkened boots. Perfect for the type of weather they were in, she supposed. But what caught her eye the most was his face, and not in the physical attractiveness kind of way, though she did agree with Derek's words. His features looked like they always had the same sullen expression plastered on them and Maia guessed this Jon Snow had been through more turmoil in his life than she could count. His hair, long and black curly strands, covered most of his face while a scruffy beard connected on his jawline. By being with Derek for so long, Maia hadn't seen a man with a beard in years. She stared into his dark eyes then, noticing the dark bags underneath. In all honesty, she thought his tired eyes were kind of nice.

"You've clearly had a tiring day, miss." Jon continued, setting Longclaw beside him. "But you wouldn't imagine the shock everyone had when seeing you lying in the snow in front of the gates. We feared you to be the worst at first."

"Sorry for scaring you," she apologized, "but I'm still trying to figure everything out."

Jon leaned forward. "You must know, women aren't allowed beyond the borders of the Wall, due to the Watch's vow of chastity. Where were you heading? We can give you a horse for your journey."

"Listen, Jon," Maia replied, unwrapping herself from the furs engulfing her, "I don't know where I am. I have nowhere to go."

"So you went here to seek refuge?"

She shrugged. Should she reveal the only information she believed to be true: that she had somehow fallen through time and landed in her fiancé's favorite story? There was no way he would believe her.

"That isn't proper attire to wear in the North either, m'lady." He criticized. "I haven't seen anything like that before."

Maia met Jon's eyes, and for once, he saw the pleading in the deep brown of them. She stayed quiet.

"A lot of the Watch think you're a spy from a house against Stannis Baratheon." He whispered as he refused to look at her again, afraid he'd pity her. "I mean, what else are we supposed to think when a random woman lies outside our doors and needs housing? It made everyone suspicious."

"And what do you think, Lord Commander?"

Jon sighed. "I truly don't know."

"I'm not a spy." Maia answered truthfully. "I'm just lost."

The Lord Commander received everything he needed for now, so he took hold of Longclaw and attached it to his belt. "I understand that," he nodded, "but I must speak with the others first. If you seek refuge, I will try my hardest to help you, but don't double cross me, Lady Sanders."

Maia wanted to get one more word out, anything to help her understand her settings more, but before she could ask, Jon Snow was already out the door.