THE NIGHT IS LONG, AND THE PATH IS DARK.
LOOK TO THE SKY FOR ONE DAY SOON, THE DAWN WILL COME.
( DRAGON AGE: INQUISITION )

❪ THE DAWN WILL COME . . . ❫

❝ i feel the sun through the ashes in the sky. ❞

Was it fair to hate a dead woman?

To hate the colour of your eyes? To curse how your hair falls around the face that looked so much like her? Was it fair to curse a woman who has wept in her final hours, falling from the tower as her babe, just a week old, cried after her?

It had been the only question Kathryn had asked herself whenever someone mentioned her late mother, the Lady Ashara Dayne, beautiful and haunting, as they'd describe her. The same they'd describe her. She had never been someone to curse anything, as life had treated her better than most women beyond Dorne. Her bastard name, Sand, had been cast aside by the pleas of her grandfather. Lady Dayne had been her name since she had been a girl of four warm summer years. Still, the older she got, she realised that no matter how many pretty dresses, how many handmaidens were behind her, and how many glorious and proud titles she'd have, a bastard would only ever be a bastard. You cannot change who you are.

Her family (should she call them as such) in the North thought the same. Not once had she received a raven on her name's day, and not once had they invited her to see where her father, just as a companion to the Stranger as her mother was, had grown up and lived. Not once had she met someone who had lived with her father. All she had were myths and legends that he had been strong but stoical, as the North that had raised him, but her aunt Allyria did not believe such. She had known her sister, and her sister would have never fallen for a man who could not express his feelings. He had been the loyal right hand of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. Where one had been, the other had been not afar. Duncan Frost had been loyal and loving and had died the death of a faithful friend. At the side of the prince, he had followed and loved. But what kind of man followed his friend into battle for stealing away the betrothed of another man? Stealing and raping, and in the end, killing her? Noble Rhaegar Targaryen had left his wife for another. Did she want to know her father if the most remarkable feat he was known for was dying beside a man capable of such things?

In the end, it didn't matter. Kathryn Dayne would always be known as the Ghost of Starfall. The living phantom of her parents. A legacy she never agreed to bear, but it gave her an important lesson. Sand, Frost, Dayne... it did not matter what name she'd wear or what titles she was born with. All of them could be taken away one day by marriage, by the Stranger, by the king. It only mattered what name she'd make for herself, but as a woman in this world, where men would always only accept another man equal to them, she'd never be able to ride into battle. This is why she had always and would always admire House Martell over the royal House Baratheon. Once her grandfather, who had named her heir to Starfall, would pass, she'd become Lady of Starfall. Thinking no one in King's Landing understood, she kept quiet.

But the dice were thrown the moment she had thought those things. The gods had arranged the steps, and before she knew it, she was placed into a carriage to the North, along with the royal family. House House Frost will see their fate when they lay eyes on you.

Her grandfather had never told her the real reason for his wish to make her his rightful heir. Only love for you, he had explained, but he was a man, and man would always seek power. Being the daughter of the former heir of House Frost, her legitimisation had rippled through the North like the shaking of the ground. Even though Lord Maric Frost, younger brother to her father, had taken the seat as rightful heir, his rebellious and evident distaste for the ruling king was hanging above him like an executioner's sword.

The North remembers. Her grandfather had said. And House Frost would never forgive Robert Baratheon for killing their heir. The only way to control the house, known for its fertile land and most vital horses in the Seven Kingdoms, was to put their biggest shame in front of their faces. They mockingly called her 'The Northern Star', only to anger House Frost even more.

Kathryn wasn't sent to the North to finally reunite with her father's family, as so many would like to put it down, but she was another mistake used as a weapon to bring another house to their knees.

The North remembers... but what would they remember of her? A foreign girl with blood from the North and South? An enemy? A weapon? A bastard?

What would the world remember her for when all she had to give was her faith, heart, and a distaste for anything dark and cold?

She wasn't made for snow, ice, and winter, and this became clear the first moment her feet stepped on northern soil.

What she didn't know, what she didn't expect, was to find warmth and fire even in the coldest corners of the North, in the company of another bastard, who seemed, just like her, to be made for more than they were born with.

Jon Snow was her epiphany.

Jon Snow was her enemy.

Jon Snow was the mirror she had always dreaded to look into.

DANIELLE GALLIGAN         is . . .
KATHRYN DAYNE

THE GHOST OF STARFALL . . . THE NORTHERN STAR

KIT HARINGTON       is . . .
JON SNOW

THE WHITE WOLF . . . THE BASTARD OF WINTERFELL

including . . .
JESSICA BROWN-FINDLAY / LYANNA STARK
CHARLIE HUNNAM / RHAEGAR TARGARYEN
ADRIA ARJONA / ELIA MARTELL
CHRIS PINE / BRANDON STARK
DEVRIM LINGNAU / ASHARA DAYNE
HENRY CAVILL / DUNCAN FROST

❪ THE ADDENDUM ❫

❝ where's the one who'll guide us into the night? ❞

#01.
THE UNIVERSE & TIMELINE.

This story takes place during the A Song of Ice and Fire books: A GAME OF THRONES to A DREAM OF SPRING, featuring events and altered facts ( like the older age of the Stark children and Daenerys Targaryen ) of the HBO show.

A BALLAD OF BLOOD & FROST will follow the lore of the book series by G.R.R. Martin with only small aspects included from the show and a lot of canon divergence regarding the Houses Frost & Dayne. I also took the creative liberty to go along Martin's description of THE OTHERS/THE WHITE WALKERS that didn't appear in the show. Wights will be (just as in the show) the resurrected dead by the magic of THE OTHERS. White Walkers will follow the idea of 'Ice Elves' from one of Martin's interviews.

#02.
THE TRIGGER WARNINGS.

Please be aware that this story is rated MATURE! It will feature content and topics such as violence, strong adult language, major and minor character deaths, mention psychological & physiological torture, sexual themes, mental illnesses, inc*st and other topics typical for Game of Thrones that might be upsetting or triggering to you.
READ WITH CAUTION!

The actions displayed by the characters do not reflect how I, the author, would act, think or feel in real life. Please seperate the art from the artists.

#03.
THE DISCLAIMER.

This is a work of fanfiction using characters from Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice & Fire which is owned by George R.R. Martin & HBO. All original characters, canon divergence of canon characters❜ representation, places and original or changed plotlines are owned by me, and not free to use without my permission! plagiarism won't be tolerated!

Please do not use my graphics!

DO NOT USE this layout UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES as it is inspired by silksenses and adapted to my personal taste!

❪ THE PREFACE ❫
❝ what's begun is the war that will force this divide. ❞

❄️*crickets* oh my, oh my, look what we've got here. another story i might never finish, but certainly want to publish. this story is actually very old (or rather the idea of it) even before the last season of game of thrones came out, so season 8 will look a lot DIFFERENT, complete au.

❄️so, kathryn is the daughter of ashara dayne and duncan frost (anoc of mine and portrayed by henry cavill... just imagine him in the later seasons of Tudor) who was the best friend of rhaegar targaryen since childhood. duncan has also been a close friend of ned and brandon stark. even though House Frost was "neutral" in this whole rebellion (they really tried to pull switzerland here) having duncan on rhaegar's side was very... telling. house frost always had its problems with house stark and were known to be "rebellious", but they never really tried to revolt. but since duncan's little brother is the head of the house... things look different which is why kathryn's sole existence can be the rise or downfall of house frost.

❄️i do not want to say too much, but from what you guys can see in this one little gif in kathryn's section... hehehe, yeah, dragons, but this is all i am saying. if you want to avoid spoilers do not go on my tumblr page, it is free real estate with spoilers there :D

❄️jon and kathryn will have an enemies-to-lovers dynamic, but a very weak one, because the "hatred" they have for each other is just plain old "family feud". they will revamp the entire romeo & juliet story <3

STARTED: AUGUST 11th, 2024.
FINISHED: TBD.