Lana walked over to Clegane, weaving through those occupied by the merry mood as they danced and played.

"You once scolded me for throwing those very looks," she said, sitting next to Clegane.

"I do whatever the fuck I want."

She laughed, shaking her head. "Well, at least you learned humility," she said with a heavy dose of sarcasm, leaning on her knees.

He snickered. "Fuck the gods and their humility. Tried to humble me with Brienne of fucking Tarth. Not even she can kill me, although she's the closest yet."

"That must have been a giant woman," Lana said.

"Aye, she was a big fucker. Not bad with her sword. She was lucky she had fresh steel and was healthy." He drained his ale. "How long are you here for?"

"I don't want to stay for more than a few weeks. If that time comes, then I should probably try to find the Brotherhood on my own," she said.

Lana eyed the fire as many played around it. Someone even had a mandolin and was singing a song. The folly gave Lana and Clegane a moment to have a conversation with relative privacy.

"You never mentioned why you wanted them," Clegane said, turning his head to face her. In their eye contact and proximity, the frazzled nerves from nearly two years ago returned.

"Got a delivery to make. Apparently, there are things north of the wall that are coming for us all."

"There's always some doom somewhere," he grumbled, his gaze moving back to the world before them.

"I can't tell if this one is real or not, but the fire priestesses surely thinks so," Lana said. She looked up and watched the embers climb into the starry sky, gently floating down on the dancing crowd.

"What do you think?"

"I've looked into the flames long ago. Saw some things...I wouldn't be surprised if this was real, but I won't be able to accept it until I see it."

"What you delivering?"

"This sword," she said, opening up her arm and nodding down to it.

"Why the fuck did you come on your own?" he asked, their eyes connecting again, his brows furrowed.

"I was told to."

He snickered. "Do everything you're told? You're more like a lady than you yammer on about."

She smiled. "If the gods had humbled you properly, maybe I would have had you to escort me here."

"Your side is in deep shit if they can't spare one soldier to go with you."

She didn't respond right away. His familiar humor made her stop to appreciate that he was, indeed, alive.

She looked back to the campfire, the corner of her mouth still pulled into a smile.

"It was probably for the better that I traveled alone, honestly. The priestess was insistent on it, claiming my safety was no issue with the Lord watching. Although, I really could have used that luck when there was a bounty on my head. Wait...I just realized that I still don't know if there is a bounty there or not," she said, frowning.

He chuckled. "Still can't believe I had you and the Stark girl all at once, and still got no gold."

Lana sucked her cheeks in on both sides before deviously smiling. She couldn't help it. She loved their chemistry from before and was dying to have it back. "You didn't even get a good fuck out of it either. You were so close, too," she said, feigning sympathy.

The rarest of smiles etched on his face to reveal a toothy grin, biting his lip as he shook his head. "You just have to fucking go there, don't you?" he asked, not even looking at her.

"Just pointing out the facts," she said.

He moved mostly only his eyes to her, which were both manic and humorous. A wonderful buzz of hormones swelled in Lana. "You really gonna fucking start this again?"

"You going to finish it this time?" she asked, damn near proud of herself for such a witty remark. She was so proud, in fact, that she wanted to end the conversation on that note. She smiled and rose.

But of course, he wasn't going to let her walk away. As soon as she stood, he grabbed the inside of her thigh through her dress, his hand large enough that he had a solid hold on her leg. It had been a while since she felt that kind of vibrating warmth in her stomach. She looked down at him, her mouth slightly agape, breathing heavy from a surge of want.

"If you still got it, pretty sure any future lord husband will want to spoil that maidenhead of yours. You start this again, and you'll be returning to your sister without it. Especially if I travel with you, as we'll be all alone," he cautioned. His eyes were like that of a hunter, warning her that she'd be walking into a trap.

She gently leaned in, not wanting to draw a scene. She thought of a remark, and wasn't sure if it were entirely true or not, but spoke it anyway. "It's my life, and I won't bow that low to any husband."

He snickered. "You're right, not for your lord husband. But you'll be bowing low for me alright."

Oh. That changed everything in her. His hand gripped her thigh tighter. The song ended and the crowd cheered, pulling them both back to reality. He let go. She found irony in their conversation. They were at a sermon discussing the deflowering of a virgin before marriage.

Lana would never have made a good follower of the seven.

Despite him letting go of her, she continued to stare at him. His gaze didn't let up either, the intensity from before fully reignited between them.

"So, you two know each other?" Jenny asked as she approached. Lana didn't recognize her at first, as her curly hair was tied back.

Lana took a second to recompose herself, straightening her dress and breathing slowly. "We've met."

"Small world, apparently. Anyway, I am retiring for the night. Before then, I needed to ask you, Lana, if you would go with us into town tomorrow? It won't be until later in the evening. We are just riding to a few towns over to grab some basic supplies. Our village is growing nearly every day," she said with a smile that both seemed genuine and false at the same time.

Lana blinked, her body still alive with hormones, and she had to really focus to consider that. Leaving. Going away. Just for a few days. What if the Brotherhood came while she was gone? "What about someone else?"

"We don't have many spare hands, without pulling from needed labor."

"Who all is going?" Clegane asked.

"Mary, Isaac, Geoffrey, Rubald, and Donna."

"That's not a bad group. Why they going if we just went for supplies?"

"We're always growing, as I said. Using things faster than we can replace them."

"Where to?"

"Fairmarket."

"A day's ride. She can go."

Lana threw a questioning look at Clegane. Since when did he speak for her, or give her permission for things?

"What? Just making sure you don't go traveling around the Riverlands with a bunch of nances. I got things to do here and don't have any armor. Wasn't keen on going myself."

"Why would you need to go?" Jenny asked.

He furrowed his brows. "My affairs concerning her are a private matter."

Lana gazed at Clegane. This is what she wanted in the first place – a knight to guard her. At first, she had been taken aback. Now, she appreciated it. He was looking out for her, and she trusted Clegane's opinion over anyone else's here. "Sure, I'll help," Lana said, looking over to Jenny.

"Good," Jenny said, although no warmth remained in her eyes. "I'll show you where you can sleep tonight."

Lana nodded and looked back to Clegane, then back to Jenny, who led them away.

Lana felt too awake to sleep now. All she could think about was what would have happened between her and Sandor? There wasn't anywhere to mindlessly fuck out here, except for deep in the woods. And Lana didn't fancy the idea of her first time with Clegane being in the deep, dark woods.

"How did you two meet? Jenny asked, pulling Lana from her thoughts. They were walking along the darkened village towards a covered area in the distance where a few braziers were lit.

"On the road," she said. "Are you close to him?" Lana asked, more curious than jealous.

"I helped nurse him back to health. He acts mean, but I see right through it," she said with pride, turning to face Lana in the dark.

Lana had to stop to allow a child to run by who was hunting lightning bugs, the insects floating around like spirits coming from the grounds.

Jenny pressed on, "What is your family name? You don't look like the women from around here."

"I don't have a family name. I am a Storm."

Jenny stopped. "You're Lana Storm?"

Lana raised a brow as she stared at Jenny, the moonlight barely touching her face. "Yes? Do you know me?" Shit, is she a faceless here for the bounty? If I eve still have it?

"He spoke of you," she said uncomfortably and moved forward, to which Lana let out a sigh of relief. "Although he didn't like to be pressed about it. I thought you might be a northerner, with them naming their daughters Lyanna often. How odd that you would make an appearance..."

"I hope it causes no trouble," Lana said, offering up as much warmth as she could, not wanting to cause strife.

"When will you be leaving?" Jenny asked, her tone flat.

"In a few weeks, maybe sooner."

"Well, I have grown fond of Sandor and have been trying to gain his favor. So, do what you want with that," Jenny said awkwardly.

Even then, Lana felt no threat by this woman. If anything, she found it interesting. There were so many people crossing paths in this world that otherwise would never have intersected before. It was as if pieces on the war table were being arranged.

"What is your history?" Lana asked.

"Lost my village to the war. Uncle was a Maester, and I learned a lot from him."

"I am sorry you lost something."

"Hopefully we are done with that," Jenny curtly said and led Lana to a covering where many lied on heaps of hay. She joined them and saw that the men had their own, and another one was built for families.

"All we can do is rebuild," Jenny said, pointing to an area of hay for Lana. "We get up at sunrise and use the woods for defecating. There is a shovel on that post over there that we use to dig holes. Take a river rock from that pile as well. We put them on the buried shit, so we know to avoid it."

Lana nodded and sat down in her hay pile. After a time, the braziers were put out, the only thing left was the smoldering core that glowed red. Lana lied down in the prickly hay and wished she had some fabric to put over it.

As she lied there, staring at the canopy above, she spent her time wondering what in seven hells was going through Clegane's head, what he had been through, and what he planned to do with his life.

She wondered if he would come with Lana to Dragonstone, if she asked it.

A debate in her head kept her awake as she wondered how far she should go with teasing the man. If Clegane made a move for Lana, she honestly didn't think she had the willpower to stop him.

The other issue was that Lana wasn't certain about her obligation to maintain her virtue.

In Essos, they hadn't discussed her virtue much, other than stating it was something that would be useful for lords and unions.

Lana honestly didn't want to save her virtue for a man she didn't love, even less for one she wasn't attracted to.

It seemed so effortless to commit to when she thought that Clegane was far gone from her life.

Now, she was in Westeros, and Clegane was alive.

She fell asleep that night with memories of their journey on the road.

When she next opened her eyes, the early sun was already in the sky, dew on the ground, and birds chirping in the trees. It prompted her to take in a deep, peaceful breath.

But the time they got the day started, Clegane was already back to building the steeple, and Lana was mostly helping the women mend clothes. She didn't know much about making them, but she could sew patchwork.

Lana and her group weren't leaving until the sun set past midday, hoping to hit Fair Market that night, shop the following day, and travel the day after that. Lana was almost having fun playing at being a peasant.

They even got a midday break to hear a sermon from Ray.

At the sermon, Lana sat on a log while Clegane was still chopping wood. She squinted and placed a hand over her eyes as the sky was cloudless, the sun unrelenting.

At some point, she noticed Clegane was in the back, drinking from a canteen. Her focus on Ray's words dulled as she kept glancing towards Sandor.

Her full attention was stolen when a group of about eight men strolled by on horses. They were all dressed well with a bounty of weapons. None of their clothes matched, and the one in front had a mustard cloak on.

Ray walked over to them. "Seven save you friends!"

"Are you building a village?" the one with the mustard cloak asked.

"That we are."

Lana looked over the men. The three in front looked more composed than the other five that were dirty with smug expressions. She didn't trust the lot of them. Her first thought was that they were bandits.

"You're building it for the wrong god."

"And who is your god?"

"The only lord -- the Lord of Light," the mustard cloak said.

Lana's entire posture changed from hostility to absolute curiosity. She licked her lips, looking over them once more.

How in the fuck is there a follower of R'hllor – they must be from the Brotherhood!

"Well, the sermon is over everyone. Let us get back to it," Ray said, shooing everyone away. Lana waded through the crowd, desperate to speak with them. She placed a firm hand on her blade's hilt, hoping that the Lord would successfully see her through this.

"Do you know Thoros?" Lana asked, nearly pushing one of the villagers out of the way as the men looked ready to leave.

The one in the mustard cloak was shocked. "Why does that matter?"

"The Lord of Light wants me to have a word with him."

The man looked her over, his eyes changing from shock to a pleasant surprise. "You are welcome to come with us," he said.

Lana didn't expect him to concede so soon. Well, what did she do? She had expected more disbelief from the man, or that he demand more proof from her. She looked around at the dirt, lightly shaking her head as she thought this over. Did she just leave? Just like that? They were of the lord, after all, and seemed to know Thoros. What about Clegane...

A firm hand gripped her shoulder, pulling her back as Sandor stood in front of her. "She's not going with you. Now fuck off."

The man in mustard narrowed his eyes on Clegane before looking back to Lana.

"She seemed interested enough," he said.

"Don't give a shit if she seemed like it. She's not anymore," Clegane said.

The mustard cloak man examined the scene once more, his smugness returning as he gazed as Lana. "Well, fair lady, I hope we will meet again," he said, kicking his horse. And like that, they were off.

Lana was about to shout something after them, but Clegane turned around and glared hard at her. She gave him a questioning look, her eyes darting to the Brotherhood and to Sandor's angry face, gripping the pommel of the sword tighter.

"I need to find Thoros," she said, looking at Clegane. "That's my mission here. They're from the Brotherhood. I can't let them ride away!"

"You really gonna ride off with those fuckers?"

"I don't have an option," she pressed.

"As long as I'm standing here, I am not watching you ride off with men like them. The Brotherhood is already untrustworthy, and I bet you those cunts aren't pious. They just like working in favor of whatever fucking god grants them the most power."

Lana was both grateful for his care, and also annoyed, as this was not that simple. "While I appreciate that, you're not my guard, and I do have an obligation to follow them."

She tried to yank out of his grasp, but he gripped her shoulder tighter. "Aye, I'm not. You're the one that gave me the choice to do what I wanted with my life, telling me to come for you or not. We parted ways because it was for the better, and we both knew it. But it's hard to ignore you when you're standing right in fucking front of me."

She was silent and didn't know if she should stay angry or not, his firm grasp and glare telling her he was serious. "Either way, I need Thoros. They know where he is. What else am I supposed to do? Chase them down and ask for a map?" she asked genuinely.

"Why do you need him so bad?"

"It's a holy command. On the chance this is all real, I could really fuck up a lot of things if I don't do this," she said.

"Wait at least until these people got their temple built. Then I'll help you find him. I don't care if your Lord says he'll protect you. Seen a lot of people die while praying to be spared."

She stared at his unyielding, brown eyes. "What about your life here?" she asked with a soft tone.

"I stayed here to get some peace and quiet, as I said. Can't exactly have peace now that you're here."

"Oh, well, I didn't realize I was interrupting."

He scoffed. "I won't be able to sleep at night knowing you're wandering around the Riverlands chasing after fuckers like them. You're as reckless as Arya, darting into an Inn full of Lannisters. Don't know what the fuck gets into small women like you, but clearly it's not common sense."

She folded her lips inward, trying not to smile. She sighed and looked away. She supposed that she could delay her holy duty if it meant Clegane coming with her. If R'hllor were not pleased, then he could send a sign. Yes, she liked that option very much. "Fine. We can wait."

His grip on her softened, and then he let go, nodding. "Good."

Clegane didn't linger, walking back to continue helping with the village. She laughed to herself. The idea of Clegane, out in the Riverlands, playing at being a villager was quite amusing.

"You two have a complicated relationship," Ray said from behind.

She jumped. "I forgot you were there."

"I'll be honest with you. That man has changed. Maybe not entirely, but there was something to dying alone that I think helped him. Well, I mean, the mad fucker didn't die, but he had spent days by himself in pain, hunger and thirst, death always inching closer. That fucks with someone. I think for killers like he and I, we realize it's either time to move on or die killing."

Lana thought to the few assassins she knew that lived to old age. She resonated with that statement more than Ray knew.

It was why she was out here. It was why she was trying to become a lady, even if something in her gut told her it was the wrong choice.

Jenny came for Lana shortly after to tell her that they were ready to head out. Jenny remained behind but saw them off, as apparently one of them was her brother.

Lana didn't get to see Clegane before leaving.

It didn't take more than three days to make their journey, buy their goods, and be on their way back. As the group of six traveled, they laughed and told stories of their lives, how they didn't care for the Lannisters, and how they didn't care much for war either.

Lana slowly got to know them and realized that whenever Dany took the throne, Lana should look into recognizing this village as a formal location. These people deserved it. Not only did they work hard for it, but they did a fine job as well.

Especially with Ray leading them.

Three days from their departure and nearly returned, they rounded a hill, the cloudy, dreary day giving them good visibility without the sun beating down on them.

Although, in the distance, they saw about two dozen men approaching.

Lana gripped the reigns of her horse, ready to take off and leave these people behind. Lana felt wrong for that initial reaction. Her instincts were never for heroics, but rather for self-preservation. She calmed herself once the scene before her unfolded. It was the man in the mustard cloak, except he and two others were bound, on horses, and led by a man with an eyepatch.

"What is going on?" one of the men with Lana asked.

"Escorting these men," the one with the eyepatch said, his voice like a smooth, large wooden intrsument. A chilly breeze pulled at Lana's hair, the clouds moving fast above.

"What did they do? We saw them just a few days ago," another of their group asked, and Lana watched on with caution.

"And they are our prisoners now."

"Why?"

"They ransacked and murdered a great deal of villagers nearby."

The five escorting Lana let out shrieks and started demanding more information. Lana's heart sank.

There was only one nearby village in this area.

"Survivors?" Lana asked, finally speaking up.

"There are some women and children alive. Some of our men are with them now, and we are taking these men to exact justice."

Everyone but Lana rode past the men to see who had lived and who died.

"A man with a burned face?" Lana asked, watching her group ride on without her.

"How much of a burn?"

"Like the Hound, if you know him," she said, breathing heavier, glaring at the man in the mustard cloak. It still hadn't fully sunk in yet that the charming village she was riding to had been destroyed. It seemed nearly impossible to fathom. Why would they do that?

"Aye, I do know him," the one with the eye patch said. "He definitely wasn't among them."