The Lion and the Rose: The North (user search)

Stannis Baratheon watched the loitering Watchmen from the King's Tower and ground his teeth. He shouldn't be here. Saving the Watch from the wildlings was well and good, but that was before Tywin had died. Stannis didn't like Tywin (Stannis didn't like many people) but he had respected him. Tywin had been the firm hand holding back chaos, keeping the kingdom from falling apart and now he was gone. Stannis needed to do something.

But for now that had to wait. He would not abandon his duty to the Watch; so he grit his teeth and waited for them to play through their little political show. The rumor was that Janos Slynt was a leading candidate to the next Lord Commander; the very idea was ridiculous. The Watch was full of practical people who weren't stupid enough to find out what "Ours is the Fury" means in practice. And besides, Slynt had less charisma than he did and could be outsmarted by any man with half a brain. No, the Watch would select some old hand from Eastwatch or the Shadow Tower to be their new Lord Commander and he would smile, congratulate them and then tell them what to do. He would inform the Commander that the fighting men of the wildlings were going to be let through the Wall to join Stannis's army. He would also be told to let in as many refugees as he could stomach, to be settled in the Gift. Settling the pacified wildlings would deprive his enemies of manpower, increase tax revenue and be a useful buffer against future attack; useless bias would not stand in the way of a common sense way of stopping the northern menace as long as he was King. As for the "King-Beyond-the-Wall", stubborn to the last, he would be made use of: Melisandre had assured Stannis that R'hllor had a use for the petty king and Stannis wasn't going to disagree. While he waited for the Watch to finish assembling for their vote, Stannis considered the North.

His position was by no means terrible; Roose Bolton controlled the North, but he was a hated usurper who would be violently put in his place the moment his grip slipped. Stannis had been Eddard Stark's choice to succeed Robert and he intended to put a Stark back in Winterfell; the Northmen would surely follow him. He stole a glace at his shadow, the Red Priestess who was always at his side. Already knowing what was on his mind, she smiled and said "Jon Snow is on his way as we speak." That was good. Legitimizing Snow might be the key to toppling Bolton. Already ravens had been sent to any and every Northern lord with a reason to dislike the Boltons and the Freys (all of them) and soon they would also get the news that a Stark had been restored to Winterfell and that the King who had done his duty for the Watch would do his duty for them.

Stannis stood and waited, impatient for the future he had seen in the flames. Westeros was crying out for a firm and just ruler to restore order. Westeros was crying out for Stannis. It just didn't know it yet.

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