I woke up to the sound of Theon calling my name. At first, I was worried - what if something was wrong? But then, I was excited. We had finally arrived at the Iron Islands. I no longer had to spend my days daydreaming about what could have been with Robb and I. Now, I could focus on not pissing my father off.

Neither Theon nor I said a word as we stared out upon our home. This was where we grew up - well, where I grew up. Theon had spent quite a bit of time here, too; he knew this place like the back of his hand. He turned to me and smiled, breaking the silence with his words.

"Here we are, sweet sister," he said, looking out upon the land. "The Iron Islands."

I suddenly felt anxious. "Maybe I should stay on the ship," I suggested. "Father will not be happy to see me, not after I fled."

"He will be even more unhappy if you are not with me," Theon said, and for once, I knew he was right. I sighed and leaned against the railing, staring out at the island.

Before I knew it, we were docking. Theon and I got off the ship in a timely manner. We were both anxious, but more excited for the adrenaline that our adventure would bring us. This was all for Robb, I told myself. This was all for our king. This had nothing to do with my personal feelings.

Suddenly, I saw Yara. She was staring at Theon and I, glaring angrily at us. Shit, I didn't realize how screwed I was.

"You bring dishonor to the Greyjoy name," she spat, walking up to us. She hardly gave Theon even a glance before turning to me fully. "When you left for Winterfell, the world was at peace. Now, we are at war. That is no coincidence, Allison."

My eyes widened in shock. "Are you blaming me for what the Lannisters did?" I asked incredulously. "For what the Starks did? I have no control over the actions of others, Yara."

For the first time, Theon actually recognized her. "Yara?" he gasped, then laughed. "How long has it been?"

Yara finally turned away from me to face my brother. "Not long enough," she replied, a disgusted look on her face. "The Starks have made you weak, brother." Nevertheless, she stepped forward to wrap her arms around him. "I have missed you dearly."

I scoffed. "She speaks lies, Theon." Yara hadn't missed him at all; in fact, she'd been glad he was gone. She had rejoiced in the extra attention our father gave her. I was the only thing standing in her way - that's why she hated me.

Theon, ignoring me, hugged her back for a moment before pulling away. "Take us to Father," he commanded. "We have much to discuss."

Yara nodded, and together, the three of us walked to the entrance of the castle. It wasn't a long walk; it only took an hour. Nevertheless, my body ached from my still-healing injury, and it took all my willpower not to ask for a break in the middle of our trip. But I couldn't look weak in front of Yara.

Once we reached the entrance, Yara didn't even bother knocking. She walked right past the guards, who let us all through without hesitation. I was a little surprised - clearly, they all trusted Yara almost as much as they trusted Father.

"I brought visitors," Yara called as she walked into the main room. "Or should I say... traitors."

Our father turned around to see Theon and I standing in the room. I smiled at him, but he paid me no mind. He walked over towards us intimidatingly, then observed us without a word.

"You," he said, looking at me. "You're hurt." His face hardened into a glare. "I hope you have learned your lesson about betraying your family."

"What... I didn't betray you!" I argued, narrowing my eyes. "All I did was leave to see Theon again."

"And you," Balon continued, looking at Theon and ignoring my comment. "What are you wearing? You are dressed like a girl." He turned to Yara. "Even my favorite daughter doesn't dress like that."

A pang hit my heart. His favorite daughter. I could have guessed that, but the words had much more power when said out loud.

"Yara, we have no time for this," he said with a sigh. "Take thirty ships. Claim Deepwood Motte."

My eyes widened in surprise at his request. Before I could process what it meant, Yara was nodding. "Consider it done, Father," she said. Without another word, she left the room.

"Deepwood Motte is in the north," I said as soon as Yara was gone. "Why are you claiming the north?"

Balon narrowed his eyes at us. "Have you two forgotten your history?" he asked. "Robb Stark means to take the Iron Throne. His father killed your brothers, my sons. He is the son of a traitor to the Seven Kingdoms." He started to slowly pace around the room. "Now that Lord Stark is gone, and the boy is marching off to war, I plan on claiming the North for myself."

I stared incredulously at my father. "But... but..." I scoffed, then looked at Theon. He gave me a small shrug. One thing was clear - we couldn't ask my father for the ships now.

We would have to take them ourselves.

"How can we help?" I asked after a moment of silence.

Our father sighed and crossed his arms. "Take a ship to the Stony Shore," he finally said. "One ship only, do you hear me? You two have been known to disobey orders in the past." His eyes narrowed as they met mine. "Especially you."

"We won't let you down," Theon replied. It was the first time he'd spoke in a long time.

Balon nodded. "You better not. What is dead may never die."

"What is dead may never die," Theon and I repeated in unison. Moments later, we left the castle.

As we walked outside, I didn't say a word. I was processing everything. Was I really going to betray my family for a second time by stealing ships for Robb and his men? How would I even pull it off? Theon would help me, but it wouldn't be enough. There was no way.

Eventually, we got to the shore, and Theon spoke. "You really fucked that one up, didn't you?"

I slapped Theon's arm, hard. "Me? Both of us did!" I practically shouted. "If anything, this is your fault! We should have never come here."

"Without those ships, Robb will lose this war," Theon hissed lowly. "I thought..."

"It matters not what you thought," I interrupted with a sigh. "But we have to do this quickly, before Father notices. How are we going to pull this off?"

Theon suddenly looked confused. "I didn't realize taking over Stony Shore was such a difficult task," he said sarcastically. "Why would we keep it from Father? He asked us to do this."

I stared at Theon for a moment before my mouth dropped open in shock. "You... you mean to take the North for him?"

"That is what we just agreed to," Theon replied, tilting his head. "Family comes first, Allison."

I was at a loss for words. "I... what you speak of is treason, Theon. We swore fealty to Robb."

Theon shrugged. "We're ironborn." He refused to meet my eyes, but I could tell he was serious. "Our father's children. We have let him down so many times. We cannot do it again, not if we want the mercy of the Drowned god in the future."

I smacked Theon, this time across the face. "Listen to yourself!" I cried out. "You speak of the Drowned god's mercy? Breaking an oath to a king... that is treason! The punishment for treason is death, and we will be lucky to get a mercy that clean!"

"What's worse than death?" Theon asked, wrinkling his nose and rubbing the spot where I smacked him. "And would you stop hitting me?"

I stared at my brother with wide eyes. "You may be fine with betraying Robb," I said. "But I am not. I would die to see him on the throne."

"He doesn't want the throne, you whore!" Theon shouted. "He wants justice for his father! His father, who killed our brothers!"

"It matters not what he wants! I pledged my life to fight for him!" I yelled. "I will keep that oath until the day I die. That is my duty!"

Theon turned away from me and started to walk off. "Family is more important than duty," he muttered. He hadn't made eye contact with me since we'd arrived here. It was strange.

I shook my head. He was an idiot. He was going to betray Robb. I couldn't believe it. It didn't even sound real in my head. He had to be joking. Oh, how I wished he was joking.

"Theon, listen to me," I said softly, approaching him from behind. I decided to be more gentle this time. "Our father and Yara gave you away to the Starks. They are not your true family. Robb... he is your brother." I took a deep breath before continuing. "Would you betray your own brother?"

"It is either my brother or my sister," he replied, clearly referring to Yara. "It is either my father or you." He sighed and stopped walking, turning around to face me. "I am so tired, Allison. I am so tired of being pulled in so many different directions. These decisions... there are no right answers. No matter what I do, I am a traitor."

I was silent. Theon continued. "I cannot pretend to be a Stark anymore. I was never one of them." He lowered his head, and I could see the hurt in his eyes. "I am Theon Greyjoy, son of Balon Greyjoy, King of the Iron Islands. That is what can never be taken from me, and that is what I will hold onto for the rest of my life."

For once, I had nothing to say. He had a point. He wasn't a Stark, and neither was I. If we abandoned the Greyjoys, we would lose what little identity we had left.

But he was also right in that neither choice was the right one. I couldn't imagine betraying Robb, not after all we'd been through. It wasn't even about that, necessarily, but I felt loyal to him. My heart softened whenever I heard his name. Dammit, I still loved him.

Theon and I eventually kept walking and reached the ship. I got on without a word. Theon shouted to the men in a commanding voice, but they didn't pay him any mind. They essentially ignored him.

Theon rolled his eyes and turned to me. "This'll be fun," he muttered under his breath.

"Don't fret, brother," I said, gently touching his arm. "We will do what is asked of us, and we will do it well."

Theon was silent for at least a minute straight. It was unlike him to be that quiet in a situation like this. When his head finally snapped back up to meet my eyes, his blue ones were wide.

"What if we didn't?" he asked in a soft voice. "In order to command these men... in order for them to listen to me, I must prove myself worthy. I must prove myself an ironborn." He started to pace back and forth as he spoke.

"The Stony Shore is hardly significant when it comes to the entirety of the North," Theon continued, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Our father doesn't believe I can complete even a small mission such as this one." He suddenly smiled at me. "What if we proved him wrong?"

I didn't know where this was going, nor did I like the sound of it. "What are you talking about?" I asked hesitantly.

"What is the most vital part of the North?" Theon asked.

Suddenly, I put it all together. "No," I gasped. "Theon, you can't."

Theon grinned at me. "Why not, Allison? Isn't that what Father wants?"

"That's not what I want!" I argued.

Theon sighed and looked at me condescendingly. "It matters not what you want, my sister. This war is not about you. This is about battle strategy and tactics."

"You think seizing Winterfell with one ship is a smart battle tactic?" I snapped. "How are you going to take it? If you manage to seize Winterfell, how will you hold it?" Suddenly, my heart stopped. "What of Robb's brothers? What of Bradford and Natalie? If you directly oppose Robb, they will directly oppose you."

Theon thought on my words for a moment, but he shook his head. "Once I have taken the city, Yara will send more men to help me hold it," he said. Then, he looked into my eyes. "I promise that I will not harm your friends, not unless they try to harm me."

My eyes watered slightly, but I bit my tongue to hold back the tears. "Theon, this isn't you."

He lowered his eyes for a split second, and I could tell he was a little doubtful about this plan of his. But his stubbornness won out, and he straightened his back. "It is decided."

"Theon," I whispered. "We were directly told not to disobey our father's orders."

"Trust me, he will be happy when Winterfell is in his clutches," he replied with a small smile.

"Men!" my brother shouted loudly. "We are not going to the Stony Shore." He grinned. "We are going to seize Winterfell and take back the North!"

The men cheered. I should have cheered with them. But I felt disgusting. Like a traitor.

In that moment, I made a decision: if Theon wanted to betray Robb and take Winterfell, he could do so. But if he decided to take that betrayal to the next level and cross my line...

Well, let's just say family isn't the most important thing to me.