Of Longing and Hesitation

A/N: Well here is the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Also, I wanted to take a moment to highlight the fact that today is the 6 month anniversary since I started this story on Chyoa. To be honest, I was expecting to have posted more chapters by now but regardless, I hope you have enjoyed my content thus far. Here is to six more months of enjoyable writing!

As always, read, enjoy, and review!

Sansa Stark made herself comfortable as she laid down on the bed of her guest room that was offered by House Forrester. She had just washed herself in a relaxing bath and was now wearing some fresh clothes while she attempted to fall asleep, the covers and the candles keeping her warm enough throughout the chilly weather.

As she listened to the wind howl outside her window, her thoughts turned back to the discussion they had about increasing their patrols and keeping the warriors in the camp outside the gates of Ironrath vigilant while they determined whether or not to move the battlefield; now that they were certain that the Bolton forces were approaching with even larger numbers than when they defeated Stannis' army.

Biting her lower lip for a moment, she stretched a bit and rolled to the side, and once again, she felt the absence of her beloved brother in her bed.

She stared at the flames of the candlelight for a long moment before sighing deeply. She missed Jon terribly. She knew he had many important things to do now that he was king and of course she would be happy to see Arya again after so long but she wished he didn't have to be away for so long. Her heart ached for his presence beside her.

And she missed his touch...

Swallowing hard, she decided to try to mentally link her mind with Jon once again, concerned that she might just encounter worrisome silence again. Instead, she felt a mild and momentary jolt of pain on her head that passed as quickly as it came.

"Awww!" Sansa gasped. "What was that?!"

She didn't gain a direct answer from Jon's voice but somehow she could have sworn that she felt his presence, unlike the last time she tried to contact him. But it felt distorted, like talking underwater.

"He...must be busy," The redhead realized. "I am not sure with that, though."

Then she sighed once more and before she could stop herself due to the prospect sounding too weird, she started praying to her new **** God.

"Please Jon," She whispered into the night. "Give me a sign that you are safe and sound."

King Jon Stark stared at the city of Braavos from the high window of his guest room within the Iron Bank's headquarters. It took a lot of mental concentration through the mental bond he established with his Ice dragon but eventually he managed to calm him down long enough to communicate that he should go spend the night in one of the tall mountain peaks close to the city in case he didn't want to be there right now after they got attacked.

Then he got an...unexpected response. His dragon didn't respond in words to him but he could strongly sense her feelings of attachment towards him and an instinctive urge to stay close now that she was awake enough to remember the ambush. Realizing his mighty she-dragon was not going to budge without an indirect wish to change her mind, and not wishing to deny her now that she was worried for his safety; he told the guards and the present Faceless men what he could interpret from their empathic bond. After a long discussion where Jon assured them she would behave if no one else bothered her while he himself was close by for the remainder of his stay, an instruction he did ask of her, they eventually decided to let her spend the night from the rooftop of the Iron Bank headquarters, directly above the room where her rider would be sleeping.

At first, there was a deep sense of unease at the idea but Tycho Nestoris vouched for him while also telling his colleagues that this was an excellent opportunity to visually inspire confidence in the strength of the Iron Bank if the Ice Dragon stood watch above their building, even if only for one night.

And so, Jon ended up turning in for the night, and as he started to contemplate the sudden events of the day, he realized he wasn't even sure where to start. So many surprises in so little time. But of one thing he was certain: he felt like he needed some peace and quiet to sort out his feelings on some of the more shocking turns the day sent his way.

Especially the ones about the Prophecy of Liberation...

Sighing, Jon realized that there was probably one more conversation he should stop putting off before he could call it a night. So, before he could talk himself out of it, he made a wish to let him know if Arya was still awake and if she was alone. When he got confirmation as an answer, he rubbed his forehead and made a wish to be able to mentally communicate with her before he could change his mind.

"Arya...are you alright?"

There was a long moment of silence before he heard a tentative whisper inside his head.

"Jon? Is that you?" She asked slowly.

"Yes," He responded. "I have been negotiating with the Iron Bank of Braavos since I woke up. Not sure how much they told you but know that things are looking up here. Still, I wanted to check up on you. I am...sure you must have questions," He said with his thoughts in a hesitant tone.

"Maybe one or two," Arya told him in a bewildered tone. "After all, it isn't every day that your brother becomes a god of ****, of all things. And what exactly did you do to me? One second I was trying to make sense of that bitch's **** rattles and the next knowledge starts flooding my mind, making me realize with perfect clarity that you have somehow become divine. A strange area of divinity perhaps but still!"

Jon sighed. "That wasn't how I actually wanted to let you know the truth. I wanted to break that revelation into you, well, a little more gently. Not that I don't know you are not a strong and brave young woman, but all the same, getting such a confession should have been taken lightly. However, I must admit I lost my temper with that acolyte as she laid dying, still confident that our brutal murders were soon to come that I wanted to, well, shake that smugness out of her eyes."

With that, he took some time to explain some of the inner workings of new godly powers and how he received them from a higher deity that apparently was not from their world. When he was starting to explain the part about his limits, he could feel Arya's shock from halfway across the city.

"Wait, so, in order to make a wish that affects the world around us, you also need to include me in the sentence somehow?"

"Or Sansa," The King of the North and the Trident explained. "Or another living relative of ours. The point is, I cannot make wishes, not even those that include myself alone, without involving my family in some ways. That's one of the reasons the mightier deity decided to call the **** God as it granted me those powers, I suppose."

Arya paused. Then he could start feeling her apprehension from his room so vividly that he almost heard her swallow.

"And the other reason he called you that would be...?" His little sister asked, clearly picking up that he was leaving something unsaid.

The young god bit his lower lip, worried about her reaction but realizing he couldn't bring himself to lie to her now, especially not after being separated for so long, so he decided to get it over with and hope she wouldn't be disgusted.

"The other biggest reason I can think of involves why I specifically stressed that my powers must involve a living relative, at least right now," He beamed out with his thoughts. "To make a long story short, in order to fully unleash my powers and overcome the limits that allow me to resurrect people, I need to impregnate at least five women that share my blood. Only after they all give birth will I be able to start bringing people back from the dead."

For a long moment of absolute silence, Arya was completely at a loss for words. Jon sighed, waiting with concern as his little sister's mind spun in response to her shock. But then the silence got so long that the new king wasn't sure if he should break it himself.

The wind blew through his window and he tried to make the online of the House of Black and white from there, trying to keep his sister within his sight, so to speak. In the end, he felt her thoughts reorient themselves and before too long, she started beaming them at him.

"Jon...I..." She broke off and the young king could picture her taking a deep breath. "I can't deny that I would love to see father, mother, and Robb again, alive and well. In fact, in my travels, I actually once asked a red priest that managed to revive Beric Dondarrion 6 times if it would be possible for him to do that to our father even though he lost his head. When he said no, I lost the little bit of hope I clung to back then. But...even if you can restore those dreams for me, I can't say I think of you that way," Arya responded, sounding guilty. "And besides...having children as a requirement? That's just not me. I am sorry Jon but...I am not sure I can help you."

The young god sighed but didn't felt surprised. In fact, it went even better than he had been expecting.

"I had a feeling you would say that," He assured her in an empathetic tone. "Don't worry Arya, I wouldn't dare **** you to share my bed and bear my children if that is not what you want. I love you too much for that."

"Thank you for understanding," She said in a small voice.

They were quiet for a while, a very awkward silence passing between them. In the end, however, he sensed Arya sigh heavily through their temporary mental connection, and sound filled his head again.

"Jon...I think I need some time alone to think about your words and what they may come to mean for our future," His brave sister thought out, her tone seemingly overwhelmed for once.

He sighed, realizing there had been a lot of that to go around today. "Of course. But, are you sure you are safe there?"

"Safer than ever, actually," She said, a small trace of amusement in her tone. "I have never seen the Faceless Men so apologetic when talking to me. It seems this mistake in their interpretation of their visions is really preying on their conscience. I did get some explanations before they started their Ceremony of Identity to release me from my obligations to their order but you can tell me more about what I missed tomorrow, I hope."

"Sure. But before you go to sleep. I actually have some good news that may interest you," He said, still not sure how he himself felt about it but suspecting his sister would be happy. "It seems the prophecy involving me also mentioned Bellegere, do to her ancestry from both Summer Islander royalty and from one of the bastard lines of King Aegon the Unworthy. So, it would appear she is coming with us when we return home."

"Wait, really?!" Arya asked, suddenly really pleased. "That's...good to know," She said quickly as she tried to quell her mental enthusiasm.

Jon chuckled at that. "Good night Arya. I love you."

While staring at the outline of the House of Black and White, he could almost feel his sister's grin. "I love you too Jon. Things may be stranger now but I am so glad we are back together again."

And with that, Jon closed their mental connection.

As the heaviness of the silence hit him, he looked back at the empty bed and realized that he felt lonely. So, after the weight of all the revelations of the day, he decided to give himself permission to do what had occurred to him these past few hours.

Sansa was having a strange dream. Starting with the fact that she felt like she knew for sure that she was dreaming. And that rarely happened to her. But by the time she realized it, she felt like she was walking through the ironwood forests near Ironrath at a speed she had never been able to achieve. And then she came across a stream. Feeling out of breath, the redhead decided to get approach the water source and drink her feel, hoping that would refresh her despite the unusual situation.

But then she saw her reflection on the water...and only saw Lady's face.

Abruptly, she woke up when she saw a sudden burst of light hitting her eyelids. Feeling disoriented, she rubbed her eyes as she turned to face the new day.

And then she gasped. "Jon?!"

Her beloved brother smiled widely at her, his expression warm with affection. "Welcome back to our little pocket universe Sansa. I am sorry if it was sudden but...I really wanted to see you."

The redhead's face grew into a radiant grin and she got up to hug him, feeling truly delighted.

"I missed you so much!" She whispered into his ear.

Jon sighed and moved to kiss her forehead, the brush of his lips making her heart flutter.

"I know. Me too."

A/N: Guess who's back, back again XD

Anyway, yeah, it seems the reunion I have been mentioning happened before the battle of the bastards. One of the perks of being a god that can teleport, dimension travel, and make sure they go back to their respective bedrooms before they are noticed, I guess :P

Hope you liked the chapter! And the one that comes next, when's its ready, that is :D