The Stars Above Us

Chapter 28

"Sansa, let him come in please." You said as Sansa opened the door.

"You're welcome." She said with a scowl and stepping back.

"The f**k you doing back here?" Theon said, sporting a black eye.

"Baby Stark, where is your mother? (Y/n) go get your things." Ramsay said turning to you and Sansa. 

"But where am i..." You began but Ramsay cut you off.

"No time right now. Just do what I said please." Ramsay said, giving you a look you couldn't place. It didn't fit him. But you turned and hurried up to your room to gather your things.

You pulled the suitcase down to the door and heard shouting coming from down the hall.

"Are you such a f*****g i***t that you can't see I'm trying to help?!" Ramsay raged grabbing Robb by the front of his jacket.

"Since when have you ever given a f**k about anyone but you?!" Robb roared back.

Catelyn drew her wand and forced the two apart with a shield charm. "Enough!" She said, puffing up.

You pushed yourself through the door slowly. Catelyn looked at you.

"Is this true? What Ramsay has said. About the Lannister's? " She asked, asking you to say no with her eyes.

You frowned. "Yes. It's true. And I've not been able to reach my grandmother since."

Ramsay motioned at you with a great sweeping gesture. "See? Now, let me take her. That cunt is going to send people here to get her. They would never expect her to be at the Dreadfort. And they wouldn't be stupid enough to try and send someone to my domain to try and collect so much as a cup of sugar. I will keep her safe."

Catelyn sighed. "Yes. Whatever it takes to keep her safe. But how can I know you will keep your word that you won't hurt her?"

Ramsay gave an irritable sigh. "I don't know. You're the witch. Play some hocus-pocus or something."

"Alright, alright. (Y/n), if you need anything, call. I will come to call on you as soon as I have obtained the information I need."

You nodded. "Allow me to show you out." Robb said sweeping past Ramsay. You were sure you heard a growl. Though you weren't sure if it came from Robb or Ramsay.

Robb shut the trunk and turned to you. "You call me if he hurts you. Take this." He slipped something heavy into your purse. You saw a thick silver stake. You swallowed. 

"Thank you. You all stay safe." You said walking to the car door. Robb opened it for you, gave you a nod, and made to shut the door.

"Stark." Ramsay said before Robb had shut the door all the way. Robb stooped down to look across you to Ramsay.

"Sup?"

"I meant what I said about the squid."

Robb gave a chuckle and closed the door. Ramsay growled in irritation and slammed down on the clutch, throwing the car into gear.

"Stupid f*****g bastards." Ramsay muttered.

"Ramsay?" You said timidly.

"Yes?"

"What's going on? Why am I always the last to know anything?"

Ramsay gave you a look. "The Lannister's. They've started a war, buts it's beyond them. You can't control fire once you set the blaze. They've opened the gates of the hells. They made their move, now it's our turn."

"But I still don't understand." 

"You wouldn't. But there's nothing we can do until we have a better idea of what we're dealing with. You said wendybear, huh?"

You just nodded. Your brain felt jammed.

"Why can't you say the name?" 

"Do you know how to kill one?" 

"No."

"Then don't speak its name out loud until you know how to kill it."

You said nothing as Ramsay showed you to the spare room you were staying in. He left without a word. You quietly unpacked your things. Once you had finished you pulled your phone out and dialed you eldest brothers number.

There was no answer. You sighed and tried to keep from panicking. You pulled out the crystal ball from your bag, unwrapped the velvet from around it and sat it on the floor. You sunk to the floor and stared into it. Nothing but black swirls showed in it. No certain shape or picture. Just black.

"It's not what you think." 

You looked up to see Ramsay standing in the doorway. He was so quiet, it unnerved you. "What?"

"The beast. Not until winter. The south is way too hot. Just thought I'd tell you. But that's not to say they aren't back. Along with many other creatures and beasts just as bad, and worse. Keep the necklace on. For your safety." Ramsay said, pulling a cloth from his pocket, to which your necklace fell out on to the floor.

"Why are you helping me?" You found yourself asking.

Ramsay licked his lips and made a clucking noise. "I like you."

You narrowed your eyes. "Why?"

Ramsay shrugged. "Look, I have some matters to take care of. You are free to roam the house, but stay indoors. And, I feel the need to tell you never to look the hounds in the eye. No matter how much you may want to. Oh, and don't go to the cellar either. If you need anything, someone will be happy to assist you. I will check in on you later, Voodoo Child." He left.

"I don't do voodoo!" You called after him, heat rising in your cheeks.

What was he trying to get at with the whole voodoo thing? You frowned, and picked up your necklace off the floor, clutching it tight. You placed the necklace on the bedside table and fell into the mattress. 

Why did you need protecting? What made you any different than any other witch? Why was Ramsay so keen to help you? What had your grandmother meant? Why couldn't you get a hold of your family? What killed Wendigos? What kind of creature could be worse than that? You felt hot tears prickle up in the corners of your eyes. All you wanted was to go home and forget about all of this. You burried your face into you pillow and didn't bother to hold back the body raking sobs until you fell asleep.

xxx

You woke to the sound of china clinking against wood. You opened your eyes blearily to see Ramsay setting a tea tray on the table.

"What time is it?" You asked groping for your phone.

"Seven, sweetling." Ramsay said, pulling the curtains back to reveal a purple sky, tinged with the faintest pink. You could see dark storm clouds gathering in the distance.

You sat up, rubbed the sleep from your eyes, and threw back the blankets and found your phone shoved under you pillow. No missed calls. No new texts. Panic surged through you. Ramsay jerked his head to look at you through narrowed eyes as you silently panicked. He said nothing and offered you a cup of tea. You took it without a word, and sipped it slowly. You both sat in silence sipping tea, until at last only the dregs remained. You swirled them around and watched the clumps stick to the sides of the porcelain cup. You sighed and set the cup down, looking at Ramsay.

"Why do you call me voodoo child?" you asked through the silence.

"I rather like the song." Ramsay said into his cup, as he finished the tea.

"Are you always such an ass?"

Ramsay smacked his lips as he set the cup down. He pulled the empty chair across the room, placed it in front of you, and sat in it. Your perch was higher from the bed and he looked up at you through those deep eyes. "You've really no idea?"

You crinkled your brows in confusion. "What?"

Ramsay stood up suddenly, roughly seized your head in his hands, and kissed you. After a moment he pulled away from you, resting his forehead on yours. "What's it like to be so godsdamned pure?"

"What the f**k are you talking about?"

"While your grandmother may have hoped to marry you off to one of the Stark twins, there was so much more to it than that. She brought you here and left you, to hide you away. To keep you safe."

"I-I don't understand." You whispered, closing your eyes and feeling how cold Ramsay's touch had become again.

"Why was Cersei Lannister kicked out of your little witchy sisterhood?"

"Because she bent magic as far as it would go. She became so immersed in the dark."

"And you... oh, you are the complete opposite. You are unmarked. Unblemished. Untainted."

You snorted in disbelief, "I made out with a vampire today. I don't know if that makes me holy."

Ramsay smirked. "She wants you. She needs you. Untainted blood. Virgin blood. Unmarked by the dark. All the things required to make evil. To make the world bend to her."

You pushed Ramsay away, never meeting his eyes. You buried your face in you hand, feeling embarrassed. "How'd you know that I..."

"Haven't ever been f****d? Well, it's a bit obvious. But, that's not the point. The Starks may be noble and just, but that will be their ruin before this is over. They cannot protect you, try as they might." Ramsay stood up straight and glanced out the window. "But, put that all aside. Dinner. Down the stairs, third door on the left. I will be with you shortly."

You nodded and watched him leave. You picked up your phone, and walked out onto the landing. You followed Ramsay's directions and found yourself in the dining room. You sat at the table and began to pile mashed potatoes on your plate. In your lap you felt your phone vibrate. You nearly flipped your plate in hurry to pick up the phone. It was your grandmother.

"Nana!" You nearly shouted with relief as you answered.

"(Y/n), is everything alright? Where are you?"

 "I'm fine. I'm safe, don't worry. Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes. I'm fine. I don't feel comfortable speaking over an open line. But the answers you need will come to you soon. We will be back together before you know it. I'm sorry for the limited information, but the less you knew, the better. It would be safest if you got rid of this phone. Do not worry about us. You keep your head down. We love you."

"I love you all too." You said. You heard a click on the other end. You set the phone down and stared blankly at your plate. You saw Ramsay enter the room, a hooded figure behind him.

Catelyn Stark walked over to you briskly. "Stay safe. If you need anything call Robb or Jon. I am heading to King's Landing. Bran has somehow been cursed and I cannot wake him." She whispered urgently to you. She then stood up straight and turned to look at Ramsay, "Thank you." she said before departing.

Ramsay stood there chewing his lip, a faraway look in his eyes. He then shook his head and turned to you. "I do hope I don't disappoint you, but I have some matters to take care of. The den is straight across the hall, the TV is all yours. The thermostat is in the closet under the stairwell." You simply nodded. Bran cursed. He was a sweet boy. Maybe you could find something in your notebook to help wake him?

After eating your fill you made your way to the living area. You absentmindedly flipped through the TV channels before turning it off, deciding to go to the library. As you made your way to the other end of the house you could hear screaming. You stood there straining your ears.

"I'd ignore it if I were you, dear." An elderly woman said walking past you, carrying a linen bag that looked soaked in blood. You waited until she was out of sight before continuing down the hall where you came to a stop at a thick black door. You gently pushed it open and found a narrow stone staircase leading down. You slowly crept down the stairs and peered around the side to find a large cavernous room. The sight that greeted you made you recoil, and the smell that filled your nostrils made you gag. You clamped your hand over your mouth, so you wouldn't cry out.

A screaming, begging man was chained to a large wooden X in the middle of the room. The man was bleeding from everywhere, half of his skin stripped from him. Ramsay paced back and forth in front of the man. He wiped his knife furiously on his shirt.

"No, no, no. That's not the answer I want!" He yelled at the man, burying his knife into the mans leg, who screamed out. Ramsay ripped his shirt off and stuffed it in the mans mouth before extracting the knife. "I've given you plenty of opportunity to tell me the truth, but here we are, still doing this.

You sucked in air between your fingers as you watched Ramsay torture the man, peeling his flesh off slowly like cutting wrapping paper. The bits of skin fell to the floor with dull, wet flops that made the bile in your stomach creep up. You couldn't move your legs, or tear your eyes away from the scene unfolding. But you tried to focus on Ramsay's pale skin. You felt ashamed at admiring this monster's body. But you couldn't help it. He was lean, yet every muscle defined. You cursed yourself and then decided to focus on his tattoos. You could make out the Bolton sigil and words, and what you unmistakably thought was Bram Stoker's Dracula. You were squinting to make out the others when Ramsay made a violent sweeping motion at the mans side with his knife, blood spraying from the man like a water hose just being unkinked. The blood clinging onto Ramsay's bare skin. You watched him rip the shirt gag from the man's mouth. The man made incoherent noises and half begs.

"Where is it?" Ramsay said. The man continued whimpering and pleading. "I said, where is it?!" He roared in frustration, plunging a hand in the man's fleshless abdomen. The man screamed with such agony it still rang in your ears an hour later as you stepped out of the shower.

Your eyes were puffy from crying so hard and your stomach still felt nauseous, even though you knew there was nothing left to expel. You felt shaky and fevered as you dressed and climbed into bed. You stared up at the ceiling as a soft knock came at the door. Ramsay entered and sat at the end of the bed, looking out the window as lightning forked the sky.

"Curiosity killed the cat, you know. I did warn you not to go down there." Ramsay said quietly after a few more moments, turning his gaze to you.

"I know." you whispered, not looking at him.

"Though it wasn't until you were gone that I realized you were there. You really need to learn to control your emotions, sweetling." Ramsay said, his eyes traveling down your face and neck, resting on the exposed part of your chest, your top didn't cover.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" You asked, finally looking at him.

Ramsay scowled, "No. Not all of it. Due time, my dear." he made to stand up but you grabbed his hand.

"Don't go please." You said, not even sure why. Were you really so alone and afraid inside that even this monster was a comfort?

Ramsay sat back down and gave you a searching look as you sat up.  

"Why me? Really?"

"Everything I told you earlier was true. The b***h needs you. You're also, what's it you all say in your little magical community... uhm, pure-blood? Your family is ancient. That only strengthens the blood she needs to turn the world upside down."

"So, she is going to kill me?" 

"After she takes what she needs from you. It won't be pretty. It will be painful and agonizing. After she's sure she no longer needs you, well, then she will kill you." Ramsay said, turning back to looking at the window. A heavy rain had started to fall.

"Can you keep her from taking me?" You asked, not sure you wanted the answer.

Ramsay smirked and shot you a glance before standing. "I could. I could help you ruin her plans. But you can't expect it to be pretty, or right."

You sat up on your knees, examining the vampire before you. "Like what?"

"Anything that goes against you. Murder someone. Preform a dark spell. Summon a demon. f**k someone. Sell your soul. Forsake your gods. Kill yourself. The list is endless, sweetling." Ramsay said, looking for your reaction with a tilted head.

You frowned. "But I don't want to do any of those things."

"I doubt that. The temptation to indulge in evil is too much to ignore. Taint your blood and she can't hurt you. She wouldn't be able to know until the time came and nothing came from her efforts. It would buy the world some time. Give us time to destroy her." Ramsay shrugged, stepping towards you. 

You felt your stomach tie itself into knots as he stopped in front of you. Without thinking you pulled him into you and clashed your lips against his. You felt his smirk under your lips before he kissed you back. You wrapped your arms around his neck as he leaned against you, a hand on your back as he slowly pushed his body against yours to lay you down. Your heart beat furiously in your chest and you gave a sigh as you welcomed his weight on you. Closing your eyes while a vampire was so close to your neck was probably a very foolish thing to do, but he had had plenty of opportunity before now to hurt you. You ran your fingers through his hair and gasped as his hand traveled down your body. You pushed him away, unsure of what to do or say. 

Ramsay pushed himself up on his hands and let his eyes wander your face. You refused to meet his gaze, knowing he could feel your nervousness. You waited for some sarcastic quip, but he said nothing. Instead he sat up, pulled his shirt from over his head, letting it fall to the floor. He took your hand and pulled you to sitting. His cool fingers slipping under your shirt. You whimpered slightly and he slowly worked your shirt up over your head. You brought your hand up to fumble with the clasp on your bra, letting it fall away.

Ramsay's cerulean eyes danced over your skin, as he brought his hand up to trace over your skin. The stark difference in his skin color and yours was as evident as night and day. His porcelain skin almost shone when next to your deep tanned chest. He rested his hand against the top of your left breast, feeling your heart pound in your chest. It unnerved you slightly. As if detecting a falter in the beat, Ramsay brought his eyes to meet yours.

"You're still afraid of me." He whispered,  leaning into you.

"I watched you torture a man today. Of course I'm afraid of you. You're a vampire. A monster." You whispered back, your voice braking.

"I bleed too, you know." Ramsay said, climbing off of you.

You weren't sure what to say. "What?" You finally blurted.

Ramsay pulled a knife from his pocket. You recoiled slightly, crossing your arms over your bare chest. Ramsay placed the tip of the blade against his chest and applied pressure until you saw droplets of blood welling. It was dark and thicker than normal blood.

"I have a heart too." Ramsay said, wiping the blood from chest as you watched the skin repair itself.

"I'm sorry, Ramsay. For what I said." You said, climbing off the bed.

Ramsay laughed. "No. Do you think your opinion over my heart matters to me? I promise, I have been called worse than heartless."

You reached out to touch his cheek. "Why are you so cold, when earlier, when we were dancing, you were not?"

"Blood." Ramsay commented, simply. "So, now you know when I've fed and when I havent."

"Then shouldn't you be a normal temperature? I mean it's only been a couple hours? Or does it not last long?" You asked, as Ramsay grabbed your wrist and pulled you into him, your bare skin pressed flush to his, goose flesh rising all over your body.

"Would be if I had fed then. But I didn't." Ramsay said rubbing your skin firmly.

"Why not?" You questioned, placing the side of your face against his cold chest.

"I didn't need to. Didn't want to. Sometimes I just enjoy making people bleed." Ramsay said running his hand through your hair. You listened to the rumble of his chest as he spoke.

You pulled away from him. "I... I can't do this." 

"I know." Was all he said as he cupped your face and kissed you deeply.

You closed your eyes and kissed him back, letting your mind wander. You suddenly grinned against Ramsay's lips.

He pulled away from you and frowned. "What?"

"I was just thinking about this morning. The cereal." You said giggling.

"It's not funny." Ramsay said, giving you a cold look.

"I thought it was mustard seeds that stopped vampires."

"Mustard seeds. Holes in fishing nets. Cap'an f*****g Crunch. It makes no matter."

You smiled up at him, smugly. Finally, you had touched a nerve with him. It was sweet.

"Goodnight, sweetling." Ramsay said turning to leave.

"Goodnight!" You called as the door clicked behind him.

You stooped down and gathered up you bra and shirt, putting them back on before crawling into bed. You sighed, contentedly and pushed your head back into the pillow as you closed your eyes and fell asleep.

The sun was bright when you finally came around. You picked up your phone to see it was two in the afternoon. You looked around to make sure you were alone before getting up. You peaked in the hall to see if it was empty, and darted to the bathroom across the hall.

You looked at yourself before leaving the bathroom after you usual morning routine and wandered the house until you made your way to the large kitchen. There was a small table in the corner with a single cup, package of tea, kettle, and newspaper.

As you waited on the kettle to warm up, feeling as though it was taking an extremely long time but too lazy to find your way back to your room for your wand, you leaned against the counter reading the newspaper.

Nightmares in the Captial. The headline read.

The kettle whistled and made you jump. As you waited on your tea to steep you skimmed through the article. Words jumped out at you. Gruesome mutilations. Black fog. Howling. City in an uproar. The Seven cursing man kind.

You set the paper and drank your tea. You found your way back to your room where you rummaged around in your bag for quill and notebook. You grabbed your phone and set off to find Ramsay. But you weren't sure where you would find him during the day, or even where his room was. After checking rooms for ten minutes you walked into the den to find Ramsay sprawled out on the couch, playing on his phone, a horror movie on the TV. He lay on the couch wearing a pair of shorts and ankle socks. A dark scruff across his jaw. He was very immersed in whatever he was doing on his phone and merely glanced at you when you stopped in front of him. You waited on him to say something, but he remained quiet.

"I didn't know vampires could grow facial hair." You said, taking him in.

Ramsay grunted.

"Can I borrow your phone?" You finally asked.

Ramsay sighed, and handed you his phone. Clash of Clans. 

"Really?" You questioned, giving him a skeptical look.

He shrugged, "passes the time."

You sat on the other end of the couch, bringing your knees to your chest and placing your notebook on the arm if the couch. You opened your phone to find Sansa's number and dialed it on Ramsay's phone. It rang three times before you heard Sansa's voice.

"Hey, it's (y/n). Your mother came by lastnight. I'm so sorry about Bran. Can you tell me what his state is like and what antidotes and counters have been used?"

You ignored Ramsay's stare as you scribbled away with your quill.

"Thank you dear. I will keep in touch." You hung up and tossed Ramsay's phone back to him. "Do you have any, um, potion ingredients?"

Ramsay raised a brow. "Do I look like a damn apothecary?"

You scowled. "No, you look like a lazy, asshole."

"I've had a long time to be active." Ramsay said before peeling himself from the couch. "Come on."

You followed him down the hall to a small, dimly lit room. 

"Have at it." He turned and left as you looked around at all the glittering bottles lining the many rows of shelves around the room.

After three hours of mixing, cursing, and burning yourself with no satisfying outcome you emptied the cauldron again and left the room.

You passed Ramsay as you stormed down the hall, angry, to the bathroom. Ramsay followed you and leaned against the door frame as you washed the soot from your face and hands.

"Didn't I tell you that experimenting is a dangerous hobby?" He took a long drag from his cigarette. You looked up in the mirror and were startled for a moment that he was not there.

Ramsay chuckled. "It's a hoax you know. I can see myself."

You turned to look at him. "Why can't I?" 

"I don't know, dear. Google that shit." 

"Do you know anything?" You asked with a bitterness in your voice.

"I know more than you."

You rolled your eyes, lathering the soap on your face. Ramsay left you to it. It took ten minutes to completely remove the black from your face.

And that was how it went for many days. Ramsay often left you alone for hours, but always seemed to pop up whenever you wanted a word. Only on two occasions had he dined with you. How little you really knew about his kind made you feel ignorant. Many things you had learned and assumed had been wrong. But you still held prejudice towards him about him being a savage monster. It was all you had. The longer you spent with him the more you realized he was just a man. One twilit evening you watched him from your window as he knelt down in the yard, rubbing all over the eight large, black hounds he had. He had informed you they were shucks, or grim, as your kind often referred to them as.

"Look one in the eyes and you'll be dead within the year. Which is how mortals and your kind have come to regard them as a bad omen. Never could you find a more loyal beast."

xxx

"What about a Chimera?" You asked out loud, sitting at your desk, pouring over notes.

"More plausible than your last theory. But still just as unlikely." Ramsay answered.

You made a frustrated noise. "Can't you knock?" 

"It's my house." Ramsay said walking to you and placing a mask on your desk. It was elegant and in the shape of a fox head.

You picked it up and turned to him, "what's this?" You looked him over, to find him dressed sharp, his shoes shining in the lamp light.

"I thought we had established you'd never danced before. Don't forget your necklace." Ramsay glanced down at the watch on his wrist. "You have two hours before we leave."

After fixing your hair and makeup you struggled with the zipper on the back of your little black dress. You sighed. "Ramsay!" You yelled from the bathroom.

"You rang?" Ramsay said a few moments later, stepping into the bathroom. You turned your back to him.

He walked up to you, placing one hand on your hip and kissing across your bare back. "You could have used magic, you know."

Wow. f*****g stupid. you thought to yourself, feeling slightly embarrassed now, but savoring the feeling of his lips across your skin. He zipped up your dress and you turned around to face him.

"Thank you." You said, leaning into him and giving him a quick kiss, before sitting on the edge of the tub to put your heels on.

"Necklace, sweetling." Ramsay said after you stood.

"Why?" You asked, picking up the silver chain.

"You may need it." Ramsay said, picking up the mask he had given you earlier.

xxx

The driver opened your door and helped you out of the car.

"Remember, do not take the mask off. This suit is new, I don't want to ruin it tonight." Ramsay said, through his plague doctor mask and showing you inside.

He set two shot glasses down but Ramsay pushed the second one away and gave you a piercing look before pointing to a bottle of clear liquid behind the bartender. The bartender filled the first glass with what you were sure was blood and filled the second with the clear liquid. Ramsay handed you the second glass.

You just stared at it. "I really don't drink." 

"Drink." Ramsay said, thrusting the glass upon you. You took it and brought it up to your lips. "Drink it." Ramsay demanded, before throwing his shot back. You swallowed before doing the same.