Fic: Weasel
Title: Weasel
Rating: G
Characters: The "crying girl"/Weasel, Arya, Septon Meribald
Word Count: 1,185
Summary: Little girls die every day in the riverlands these days, but weasels survive.
Notes: Written for Darkest Night Exchange.
Papa hugged her tight, and kissed her forehead, and said he'd see her again soon.
Mama was crying, so Daisy began to cry as well.
Papa didn't cry, but he looked like he wanted to cry, too. He held Daisy in one arm, and put his other arm around Mama, and said nothing.
"Come on, lads," shouted a man on horseback. "Let's go show those westermen what rivermen are made of!"
Papa and the other men from the village formed a line behind Ser Jon and his sons. A big boy was beating a drum, and all the men began to sing as they marched off.
Mama stopped crying, and then she wiped away Daisy's tears, too.
~
Mama had said they'd be safe within the holdfast.
But Daisy heard horses neighing and stamping their hooves outside. She heard men shouting angrily, and then she smelled smoke.
She heard the panicked screams of other children, women, and old men before she saw the fire.
She still didn't understand what was happening, though, until someone opened the holdfast door and everyone rushed out, gasping for air.
The men on horseback surrounded them, laughing as they swung their swords. The village headman's head went flying from his shoulders, and so did some other people's heads.
Daisy clung to Mama's leg. Mama kept the monsters from getting her at night; Mama could keep her safe from anything.
One of the horsemen approached them with his sword raised, and Mama raised her hand to ward him off, as if her hand could shield her from steel, and he cut off her arm instead of her head.
Mama shrieked in pain and fell to the ground.
Daisy sat beside her, crying loudly, because she was scared and Mama was hurt, and Papa was gone, and there was no Ser Jon, who was supposed to protect smallfolk on his land.
Mama grabbed Daisy and shoved her flat on the ground, and rolled on top of her. "Don't make a sound, baby, don't let them know you're alive or they'll kill you or worse.”
So Daisy cried quietly.
~
Daisy had heard stories of men in black who took bad boys away never to be seen again. Crows, they were called. The old man Yoren was a crow, and the boys with him were boys he was carrying off to the cold lands in the north where it snowed even during summer.
Daisy didn't want to go with them. She didn't want to leave Mama, though Mama had ceased speaking or even moving a while ago.
But one of the boys, Arry, was really a girl, and she was kind. She fed Daisy, and washed her face, and even tried to comb her hair with her fingers.
Daisy wasn't quite so scared anymore, even though the old crow was carrying her to the winter lands.
But then there was another group of men on horseback with swords and torches.
Daisy cried and cried, but she never made a sound.
Arry dragged her, and then the big boy, Gendry, carried her until they were away from the men.
Daisy heard them and the other boys talking. It was Ser Amory Lorch and his men, westermen and soldiers sworn to Lord Tywin Lannister, who'd killed the old crow and tried to kill them.
The names meant nothing to Daisy. She just wanted her Mama back and to see her Papa again.
She curled up with Arry that night, who held her tight like Mama used to, and kept her warm. But Arry didn't sing to her like Mama used to.
Daisy wanted to cry, but she found that she had no more tears left.
~
Daisy liked to make mud pies. Mama and Papa said she wasn’t supposed to eat them. But Mama and Papa weren’t here, and Daisy was very hungry, so she ate one of the mud pies she’d made.
She tried to give one to Arry, but Arry refused to eat it. Arry did eat bugs and worms, though, and she shared them with Daisy.
The boys wouldn’t eat mud pies or worms, although they kept complaining about how hungry they were. They didn’t like Daisy, but Arry wouldn’t let them be mean to her.
“Don’t worry about them, Weasel,” Arry said. “They’re just grouchy because they’re hungry and scared.”
They’d started calling her Weasel because Daisy still hadn’t been able to tell them her name. Daisy hadn’t been able to say anything at all. She wanted to speak to Arry sometimes, but she just couldn’t.
She wanted to tell Arry not to go, but she could only tug at Arry’s clothes, and Arry brushed her away.
“We’ll save Gendry and come back,” Arry promised.
Arry was just a girl, even if she had a sword. Arry couldn’t fight the bad men on horses.
The other boy, Lommy, thought so too. “They’re going to get caught, they’re going to get killed,” he fretted.
She heard the approaching footsteps as loud as thunder. It was too loud to be Arry and the boys.
Weasel ran.
~
Weasel hid in thickets and in burrows. She ate worms, and mud pies, and even leaves. And she ran whenever she heard the sound of men.
She didn’t know how long she’d been alone when she awoke to a dog sniffing her one day.
She heard a man’s voice call, “What have you found there, Dog? Is it a nice nest of eggs for our supper?”
She wanted to run from the man, but she was too afraid of the dog. She’d seen Ser Jon’s dogs hunting down prey. She knew the dog could run faster than her and he had sharper teeth than her.
The man came to see what his dog had cornered, and Weasel saw that he was a septon.
“Well!” he exclaimed, when he saw her. He reached into his traveling bag and brought out a hunk of bread. “When last did you eat, child?”
Weasel snatched the bread from his hands without answering him. She ate as quickly as she could, barely chewing before swallowing mouthful after mouthful.
“Careful,” the septon cautioned. “You’ll make yourself sick eating like that.”
Weasel couldn’t answer him when he asked her name and asked about her parents. But she nodded when he said he’d take her to a motherhouse where the septas would care for her.
She went to sleep content, warmed by the fire, and with a full belly.
She awoke to the sound of horses’ hooves pounding and angry men roaring. But Weasel saw only Septon Meribald and his dog, both fast asleep.
She tried to fall back asleep, but she could still hear those sounds. She felt certain that men on horseback would appear at any moment, with their swords raised high.
Weasel crept away from the campfire until she found a hollow tree that she could squeeze into, and there she slept until she heard the septon shouting.
“Little girl!” the septon shouted, and his dog barked as if to add his voice to his master’s.
Morning had come and it was safe for now.
Rating: G
Characters: The "crying girl"/Weasel, Arya, Septon Meribald
Word Count: 1,185
Summary: Little girls die every day in the riverlands these days, but weasels survive.
Notes: Written for Darkest Night Exchange.
Papa hugged her tight, and kissed her forehead, and said he'd see her again soon.
Mama was crying, so Daisy began to cry as well.
Papa didn't cry, but he looked like he wanted to cry, too. He held Daisy in one arm, and put his other arm around Mama, and said nothing.
"Come on, lads," shouted a man on horseback. "Let's go show those westermen what rivermen are made of!"
Papa and the other men from the village formed a line behind Ser Jon and his sons. A big boy was beating a drum, and all the men began to sing as they marched off.
Mama stopped crying, and then she wiped away Daisy's tears, too.
~
Mama had said they'd be safe within the holdfast.
But Daisy heard horses neighing and stamping their hooves outside. She heard men shouting angrily, and then she smelled smoke.
She heard the panicked screams of other children, women, and old men before she saw the fire.
She still didn't understand what was happening, though, until someone opened the holdfast door and everyone rushed out, gasping for air.
The men on horseback surrounded them, laughing as they swung their swords. The village headman's head went flying from his shoulders, and so did some other people's heads.
Daisy clung to Mama's leg. Mama kept the monsters from getting her at night; Mama could keep her safe from anything.
One of the horsemen approached them with his sword raised, and Mama raised her hand to ward him off, as if her hand could shield her from steel, and he cut off her arm instead of her head.
Mama shrieked in pain and fell to the ground.
Daisy sat beside her, crying loudly, because she was scared and Mama was hurt, and Papa was gone, and there was no Ser Jon, who was supposed to protect smallfolk on his land.
Mama grabbed Daisy and shoved her flat on the ground, and rolled on top of her. "Don't make a sound, baby, don't let them know you're alive or they'll kill you or worse.”
So Daisy cried quietly.
~
Daisy had heard stories of men in black who took bad boys away never to be seen again. Crows, they were called. The old man Yoren was a crow, and the boys with him were boys he was carrying off to the cold lands in the north where it snowed even during summer.
Daisy didn't want to go with them. She didn't want to leave Mama, though Mama had ceased speaking or even moving a while ago.
But one of the boys, Arry, was really a girl, and she was kind. She fed Daisy, and washed her face, and even tried to comb her hair with her fingers.
Daisy wasn't quite so scared anymore, even though the old crow was carrying her to the winter lands.
But then there was another group of men on horseback with swords and torches.
Daisy cried and cried, but she never made a sound.
Arry dragged her, and then the big boy, Gendry, carried her until they were away from the men.
Daisy heard them and the other boys talking. It was Ser Amory Lorch and his men, westermen and soldiers sworn to Lord Tywin Lannister, who'd killed the old crow and tried to kill them.
The names meant nothing to Daisy. She just wanted her Mama back and to see her Papa again.
She curled up with Arry that night, who held her tight like Mama used to, and kept her warm. But Arry didn't sing to her like Mama used to.
Daisy wanted to cry, but she found that she had no more tears left.
~
Daisy liked to make mud pies. Mama and Papa said she wasn’t supposed to eat them. But Mama and Papa weren’t here, and Daisy was very hungry, so she ate one of the mud pies she’d made.
She tried to give one to Arry, but Arry refused to eat it. Arry did eat bugs and worms, though, and she shared them with Daisy.
The boys wouldn’t eat mud pies or worms, although they kept complaining about how hungry they were. They didn’t like Daisy, but Arry wouldn’t let them be mean to her.
“Don’t worry about them, Weasel,” Arry said. “They’re just grouchy because they’re hungry and scared.”
They’d started calling her Weasel because Daisy still hadn’t been able to tell them her name. Daisy hadn’t been able to say anything at all. She wanted to speak to Arry sometimes, but she just couldn’t.
She wanted to tell Arry not to go, but she could only tug at Arry’s clothes, and Arry brushed her away.
“We’ll save Gendry and come back,” Arry promised.
Arry was just a girl, even if she had a sword. Arry couldn’t fight the bad men on horses.
The other boy, Lommy, thought so too. “They’re going to get caught, they’re going to get killed,” he fretted.
She heard the approaching footsteps as loud as thunder. It was too loud to be Arry and the boys.
Weasel ran.
~
Weasel hid in thickets and in burrows. She ate worms, and mud pies, and even leaves. And she ran whenever she heard the sound of men.
She didn’t know how long she’d been alone when she awoke to a dog sniffing her one day.
She heard a man’s voice call, “What have you found there, Dog? Is it a nice nest of eggs for our supper?”
She wanted to run from the man, but she was too afraid of the dog. She’d seen Ser Jon’s dogs hunting down prey. She knew the dog could run faster than her and he had sharper teeth than her.
The man came to see what his dog had cornered, and Weasel saw that he was a septon.
“Well!” he exclaimed, when he saw her. He reached into his traveling bag and brought out a hunk of bread. “When last did you eat, child?”
Weasel snatched the bread from his hands without answering him. She ate as quickly as she could, barely chewing before swallowing mouthful after mouthful.
“Careful,” the septon cautioned. “You’ll make yourself sick eating like that.”
Weasel couldn’t answer him when he asked her name and asked about her parents. But she nodded when he said he’d take her to a motherhouse where the septas would care for her.
She went to sleep content, warmed by the fire, and with a full belly.
She awoke to the sound of horses’ hooves pounding and angry men roaring. But Weasel saw only Septon Meribald and his dog, both fast asleep.
She tried to fall back asleep, but she could still hear those sounds. She felt certain that men on horseback would appear at any moment, with their swords raised high.
Weasel crept away from the campfire until she found a hollow tree that she could squeeze into, and there she slept until she heard the septon shouting.
“Little girl!” the septon shouted, and his dog barked as if to add his voice to his master’s.
Morning had come and it was safe for now.