(a/n: the angst is starting, fair warning. Mentions of death.)

The next few days, Aurora stayed with Sansa and Arya. The three of them had been confined to the Keep for the most part. Aurora pushed research to the side. She couldn't seem to focus on finding a way home when the Stark girls were going through so much. Sansa was far more emotional than her younger sister, but then again, she was a young teenager. She stayed by Aurora's side as much as possible, but Aurora didn't mind. She knew the girl needed someone besides Cersei to comfort her. In her short time in King's Landing, Aurora had already seen how conniving and manipulative the Queen Regent was. Joffrey was worse and they were about to find out just how much worse.

One morning, a pounding on Aurora's door had her bolting straight up in bed. Her mass of curls fell in face as she sat up. She was in the middle of the painstaking process of get the hair pushed back when the door was flung open. "What the hell?! How about some privacy?" Aurora was only wearing the extra shirt she'd had in her bag and her panties. She thanked God for the fact that she had an extra outfit in her bag. She still had to wash her underwear every day, but it was better than the alternative.

"Get up, woman. King wants ya and the other little birds," the Hound's gruff voice sent shivers down Aurora's spine. She looked up at him, still trying to get her hair to cooperate. He was staring at her in amusement. "I'm awake but I'm not getting out of this bed until you leave." She crossed her arms over her chest in defiance. For some reason, the very mention of Joffrey brought out that side of her. The Hound chuckled darkly, but left the room all the same. After all, that was the honorable thing to do.

Aurora groaned when the door closed behind him. She pulled herself out of bed and got dressed. She decided to forgo the uncomfortable boots and opted instead for her converse sneakers with her dress. She went to tie up her hair and her last hair band snapped. "Fuck," she muttered. She prayed there was a hair band in the bottom of her bag. No such luck. She had no choice but to leave it. Hopefully brushing it would help a little.

The Hound was about to pound on the door again when Aurora finally opened it. He eyed her wild hair and she glared at him. "Don't say a word," she growled. Some might have found it menacing, but the Hound had to stifle a laugh at her attempt to be fierce. "Where are we going?" The Hound couldn't tell her. He wanted to, but something stopped him. So instead he said, "Somewhere ya don't wanna be."

Aurora was still to groggy to ask what he meant, so she followed him quietly outside. She was lead up to a kind of platform where Sansa, Joffrey and Cersei were already standing. "Where's Arya?" Aurora asked Sansa who simply shook her head. Aurora's brows furrowed. There was a crowd of people surrounding the platform and no sign of Arya. Only then did Aurora realize that there was a knight wielding an axe.

Then, she heard the commotion. People were yelling, but Aurora couldn't make anything out. Then, she saw a few guards practically dragging Ned up onto the platform. His hands were chained and he looked defeated. Aurora could hear the blood pumping in her ears as Ned proceeded to confess to treason in the hopes that Joffrey would spare his life. When Ned finished speaking, Aurora turned her attention to Joffrey. She couldn't help but wonder if there was some part of him that was decent. Would this child actually kill his father's friend and ally?

The next thing Aurora knew, Ser Ilyn Payne swung his axe and Ned's head fell to the ground with a THUD before rolling toward Sansa. Sansa let out a heart-wrenching scream and Aurora felt like she was going to puke. Obviously, she'd never seen a man beheaded before, except in movies. Aurora wrapped her arms around the child, trying to console her when, all the while, she could feel her own rage bubbling to the surface. Joffrey looked over and met her gaze with a sadistic smirk and Aurora lost it. "You sick son of a bitch! How could you do that?!" Joffrey shrugged and replied, "He was a traitor." Aurora let go of Sansa and slowly walked over to the boy-king.

As if it had a mind of its own, Aurora's hand flew up and smacked Joffrey across the face. "He was a good man! An honorable one!" She slapped him again and again until someone pulled her back. Her fiery gaze turned on Ser Ilyn. "I want her head on a spike as well, Ser Ilyn!" Ser Ilyn gave Aurora a sickening smile, making her stomach turn. She dropped her gaze, but the only thing she could see was the headless body of Ned, her surrogate father, and that made it worse.

"Yer Grace, I think one beheadin' is enough for one day. Why not save the girl for another?" Aurora fixed her glare on the Hound. Did everyone want her dead now? What had she done to any of them except Joffrey? And in her opinion, the slaps were well deserved. Aurora could see the gears in Joffrey's mind turning as he thought about keeping her alive for a while longer. He gave a nod and suddenly Aurora felt herself being pulled away yet again.

"That was foolish, little dove," the Hound told her as he pulled her away from the crowd. She knew exactly where he was taking her. "I know. I just...he had no right to do that. Ned was a good man, a father." The Hound watched her from the corner of his eye. He could see the tears welling up and he stiffened. He wasn't good with crying women. Well, he wasn't good with women in general, but crying ones were the worst. "How do ya expect to keep yer promise to him if yer dead? Lucky enough for ya, I was there to stop Joffrey from doin' just that."

Aurora hadn't thought about that. He'd saved her life, at least for that day. "Thank you," she said and the Hound heard the sincerity in her voice. He grunted once in response, making the young woman laugh a little. "Ya know I have to take ya to the cells, don't ya?" Aurora nodded and continued to follow the man. Once inside her cell, Aurora turned to face him. "Hound? Can you look after Sansa? And maybe find Arya? They need someone now." The Hound didn't say anything. He'd never known anyone who, when their life was on the line, would think about someone else before their own safety. "Ya won't be in here long," he said, surprising himself with just how much it sounded like a promise. "I wish I could believe that. I have a feeling Joffrey is nowhere near done with me."

With that, the Hound pulled the door closed and locked it. He hadn't made it far when he heard Aurora burst into tears and his felt her pain. He wasn't sure why, but something about the woman intrigued him. Maybe it was her ridiculous story that could in fact be true or maybe it was the fact that she didn't take anyone's shit, not even his or Joffrey's. He didn't know. What he did know was that he was going to get her out of King's Landing and away from Joffrey somehow.

(a/n 2: Okay, guys, I know it's a slow burn, but I promise it will be worth it! Also, I got a job and I may not be able to update as often. I will try though!)