Torrhen Stark - The Black Wolf

Torrhen stood back from the small council table, leaning on the wall behind where Ned Stark sat, listening to the men argue. King Robert had taken Torrhen's place on the table, parting from his carnal pleasures to attend to the matters of the realm.

The Targaryen Princess Daenerys was with child. Word had reached Varys from Jorah Mormont, and now the King and the small council were arguing on what to do. And they were all set on murdering her before she gave birth to the baby. All except his father, obviously, and Ser Barristan.

Torrhen kept his emotions on the matter in check. It would not do to lose the Kings favor when Ned was already a very well job of doing it. His father would never approve of the assassination. Torrhen had heard about the last time a similar situation had occurred years ago, with the children of Rhaegar and Elia.

Ned didn't take it lightly then. Now with a chance to prevent it, he would never agree to it.

 "I will not be part of murder, Robert," Ned said. "Do as you will, but do not ask me to fix my seal to it."

Robert's eyes narrowed and a flush crept up his neck past the velvet collar. He pointed an angry finger at Ned. "You are the King's Hand, Lord Stark. You will do as I command you, or I'll find me a Hand who will."

"I wish him every success." Ned unfastened the heavy clasp that clutched at the folds of his cloak, the ornate silver hand that was his badge of office. He laid it on the table in front of the king. "I thought you a better man than this, Robert. I thought we had made a nobler king."

Robert's face was purple. "Out," he croaked, choking on his rage. "Out, damn you, I'm done with you. What are you waiting for? Go, run back to Winterfell. And make certain I never look on your face again, or I swear, I'll have your head on a spike!"

Ned strode out, and Torrhen followed beside him. Winter rose up and lead the way to the Hand's tower. Winter could never keep his emotions in check as well as Torrhen did, so Torrhen had left him outside the chamber.

When they reached the Hand's solar, Torrhen closed the door and began when they had taken their seats. "We have the King's permission to leave, father." Torrhen lowered his voice. "Have Vayon Poole book us a way out of this city in a week. While the eyes on us notice that, I will book us another way out of this city, far more discreetly. We must leave soon before word spreads of Tyrion, it has already reached King's Landing. It is only a matter of time before it reaches the Lannisters."

"How did you know?" Ned asked, surprised, the anger with the King fleeing from him.

"I had sent one of my friends along to escort mother, from a distance, to Winterfell. And with him, I sent Red, one of my hawks."

"Hawk. Why didn't you tell me of this when word reached you?"

"I was gonna tell you in time. I had to take measures so that we are safe."

"What measures?"

"I hired extra men within the city in case the Lannisters give us trouble. I don't trust anyone here, not even the King's own small council members. They look to profit from every single thing they do, to what end I do not know. But I do know when I am being dragged around by strings like a puppet, and we have been dragged around like that since before we reached King's Landing. I don't want to stay here any longer than necessary. Give me word and we can be out of King's landing by evening."

Ned was deep in thought. "Yes. Do it. We will leave first with a few guardsmen; the rest will follow when they are ready."

Torrhen nodded. Then a thought crossed him, and he had to know what his father would do. "What about the girl? Are you going to let Robert kill her?"

"I can't do anything now." Ned sighed, when he looked at the distaste his son bore on his face. "Robert is not that kind of man… at least he wasn't. Now I do not know who he is anymore. If I had more time when he has cooled down, then maybe I could have changed his mind."

Torrhen doubted that. The King was a huge disappointment to him, nothing the stories his father had told him when he was young.

"What if I had a way to warn the Targaryen Princess or stop it altogether," Torrhen said.

Ned's face showed the conflict between honor to his oath to the King and doing what was right. "That would amount to treason. The King has ordered her death."

For a moment Torrhen was afraid of the answer Ned would give.

Ned nodded. "Do it. Maybe after some time has passed, Robert will come to regret it and cancel the assassination. How will you protect her?"

Torrhen relaxed. "I have my ways, father. I will send a trusted friend to her. I had to find my own path in the world, after I renounced all my claims to Winterfell and the north. And I have made many friends and connections along my travels."

"I never understood," Ned said, his face soft with a father's face, "why you don't want to be a lord with your own keep in the North, Torrhen."

Torrhen smiled. "I like my freedom more, father. Becoming a lord means obligations, homage, compromises, and a whole lot of kneeling. And I made an oath that I would never kneel. So you understand. I will make the preparations; get the girls ready to leave."

Torrhen left the solar. As he was going down the steps Petyr Baelish passed him by, wanting to have a word with Ned. He would have stayed behind to hear what he had to say about, if not for the urgency of finding a ship to get them to safety out of King's Landing.