Margaery had seen most of the direwolves since she had come to Winterfell a few days earlier but she could tell this one was new. She smiled, crouching down and motioning for the wolf to come closer to her. “Aren’t you just a handsome boy- come here.”

Shaggydog was once again chained to the castle wall. His eyes gleamed at all of the newcomers, but could never quite understand why they had come. Some smelled of the salt-washed spray of the ocean, and others smelled a metalic mixture of blood and sweat; yet the lady crouched before him was entirely different. She smelled so sickly sweet that it burned the direwolf’s nostrils at first. Wearily, he bore his yellowing teeth at her. He wondered if his chain would reach her; it scarcely allowed him near enough to those bold, or perhaps stupid, enough to taunt him.

Rickon STARK had left his home, left his playground and his pack. There was nobody with him anymore, nobody but Shaggydog. The wolf had grown large over just a few months and Rickon himself was still just a child. Anyone who might catch sight of them would think the wold would rip the boy in two if he got the chance. Though the bond the two of them shared was hard to describe. The wolfs would ALWASY be more then just pets for the Stark children, but it was truly hart to describe what the wolf truly did stand for and do for them. Surly, the youngest of the Starks had been born in the long summer; yet when Winter came around it truly just magnified how much of a the NORTH was truly in him. He might favor his mother in look as they all said, but his nature was much more like his father. For such a young one, men might think he would be afraid of the dark, or the things that might hide in the dark night; however Rickon did not feel FEAR anymore when it came to the dark. It was so much better, the cold air in the winter’s night. The STARS he could sometimes see if the woods did not hide it from him. He watched the black wolf, how he would seek out the sounds in the night. Rickon had heard the sound as well “I know boy” it did not frighten him, because he knew the WOLF would never let anything happen to him. Osha had told them not not seek out people, unless he would be totally sure about his case. Yet, Rickon did not know where the sound might come from; or even who made them so it was better to keep moving away from it. 

There was a bubbling in the wolf’s chest. An aching. Though the moon was lost, Rickon was not; he was here, he was safe. That is all that mattered to Shaggydog, even in spite of his growling belly. Shaggy had not yet gone off to hunt, he did not wish to part from the boy - especially during a moonless night. Shaggydog wondered where the moon was; he longed for it, for it comforted him to know they were not alone in these woods. Yet Shaggy had not heard his brothers and sisters howl up into the night, and he wondered if he and Rickon had strayed into a land without the moon and without his littermates. The thought frightened him, and so he stopped abruptly in his tracks.

Shaggydog’s deep howl filled the hollow silence of the night, crying out for his brothers and sisters. He cared not for the rustling in the bushes now, for he would fight off whatever may be lurking. Shaggy howled deeply from his chest once more, searching for a response which would not come. Frustrated, the direwolf dipped his snout onto the ground to sniff about their feet; he smelled only the same dirt, rocks, and grass they had passed through for the past days. Shaggydog then glanced back to Rickon, trotting back to him before nuzzling his face into the boy. Rickon’s gentle aroma filled the direwolf’s nostrils, and a calmness once again washed over him. He had always been Shaggy’s favourite smell.

STARTER for @shxgggy​ 

The moon had almost left them, so little light was showing them the ways of the woods. However the young Stark had long ago learned how to walk in the dark. Osha had told him it was better to do so. Speaking of the free-folk woman; she was gone and right now all Rickon had in the world was Shaggy. The black wolf was his only friend, and protector. From the moment Rickon had let Shaggy into his life he knew the wolf wold protect him until his last breath. First time he saw the little pup, he had been scared; him being very young himself as well. Rickon Stark was not a boy grown yet, but his life had made him need to grow up a lot faster and know how to take care of himself alone. “Come boy” he whispered in the dark as the two of them had noticed some noise coming from the woods; not too far away from them. “We should keep moving..” 

Soft paws elegantly danced by the boy’s side as he began to walk once more. A soft whimper crept out of the beast’s chest as its snout tilted closer to Rickon’s hand. A warm, wet tongue met the boy’s fingertips before nuzzling his head further into his palm. Shaggydog heard the small ruffling of the bushes once more, wondering if Rickon had heard them or perhaps even seen what had caused it. However, the night cascaded over them; each shadow seemed to move whilst each tree and branch grew more humanoid as they passed through the woods. Shaggy would not take a risk, however, his ears were pricked forward, flicking left and right to catch any sound and threat. The direwolf was more on edge without the moon, but being here with Rickon settled Shaggy’s nerves.

Grey Wind growled at his brother. He would not acquiesce; and neither, did seem Shaggydog eager to relent. His paws pressed against the mixture of earth, careful. His bright eyes did not shy from his littermate.

This was no act of compromise, but a warning. Blood could easily spill between the two, and, Robb surmised as he took a peer toward the open mouth of his direwolf, gleaming with saliva, much more than that. Robb had not moved, unsure. So he was careful. His breaths were slow, though his heart was not, and sweat gleamed from the thickness of his Tully hair onto his pinkened skin.

Robb watched the black direwolf trail his eyes away from him. He had not turned to know what it or who caught his attention. There was no need. None at all; no sooner than he allowed himself to wonder Shaggydog pounced away from him and to something else. He had no time to react, his insides turning as frost as the snow falling over the hard stones of the castle, as Grey Wind followed with equal fervor towards Shaggydog.

Robb made a sharp turn in the direction of the black direwolf, snow and dirt flying in his quick wake. His eyes turned wide. Shaggydog bounded on closer to the men and women in the great yard. Shaggydog was bold. He would sooner tear them with his meaty paws, tug at them with his thick and sharp mouth, if it allowed him to reach his brother.

“Oi!” Robb called out loudly, hoping they would run before an unfortunate meeting with the wolf. His own steps were rough as they thumped against hard soil. “Shaggydog’s out! Watch it!” In the midst of it all, he heard Grey Wind’s snarls.

Great midnight paws bounded closer, closer to the target. Shaggy cared not for whom stood in his way: he cared not for Farlen who was his target, he cared not for the pups he was soon to tear through, he cared not for the woman as she cried out to her sons playing in the yard. Soil and snow flung out behind the direwolf whose mouth salivated from the thrill of the hunt. Eyes were fixated on the man who had made Rickon cry; this would show them, show would show them all. You do not upset Rickon.

Shaggydog tore through two young boys, one of which only knocked to the side whilst his younger brother was faced with seveal inches-long claws trampling straight through him like knives in butter. The child wailed as blood oozed from his wounds, the warm blood filling the nostrils of Shaggy. A low growl buzzed through his chest, ignoring the snarls and warnings from his littermate. Shaggydog would fight Grey Wind should it come to that, but only once his job was completed.

The kennelmaster’s hound dogs were next. They barked and howled, baring snow-white teeth to the direwolf who in turn licked its lips, anticipating the first lap of flesh and blood. The first hound was met with a quick death - Shaggy sunk his teeth into the dog’s neck, ripping a chunk of the flesh as claws dug into its ribs. The two smaller hounds bounded away, whimpering and quivering behind the kennelmaster who was yet to face the wrath of Shaggydog.

A certain pleasure filled the direwolf. The mixture of blood and flesh and cries and fear bolstered the beast; it was thriving, even as Grey Wind was looming nearby to knock him from his trance. Yet Shaggydog would not be drawn from his needs, from his utter desire to hunt whom hurted his master. It would serve well as an example, should he succeed, but he would go down so easily without a fight.

“Hey, come on, don’t do that— ” He couldn’t bring himself to speak harshly to the cub — the little thing was too damn funny. With another hoarse chuckle, before thinking the action through, Harys put his hand under the animal’s belly & lifted it slightly, then put the pup back on the ground, a step from the boot it was so interested in. Since he had already touched it, there was little point in holding back now, so he carefully scratched the area behind wolfling’s ear with his fingers, slightly petting him. Meanwhile, with his eyes, he tried to spot any signs, that’d point to other wolfs’ presence. “So you’re completely alone here?” He inquired, looking back at the pup.

A shrilling cry passed through the pup’s mouth as the two-legged picked Shaggy up. It had been for less than a minute, though the young direwolf cried out and struggled until paws were once again met with the cold, wet ground. His eyes followed the man’s hand, wonder and fear creeping though the small pup. Uncertainty swelled from its tiny paws, slowly creeping up to its belly until finally the pup snapped its head around. The man’s fingers were met with the pup’s gummy jaws, biting and sucking on them. Tiny razor-sharp teeth poked out at odd angles in the pup’s mouth, near piercing the man’s hands but never quite being powerful enough. The two-legged creature had soft fingers, softer and sweeter than the boots he wore, so Shaggy continued to nip and suck at them.

                        Weeks of wandering had led Nymeria far from any road she had come to familiarise. The she wolf was alone, separated from her pack, many of which were now likely gone. For wolves, she had been told, did not last long in the lion’s den. In the general direction of a place she had come to establish as home, Nymeria continued to walk; though a howling had distracted her, the faint sound of a wolf she recognised —— her brother.

( @shxgggy​ )

His howling did not cease. Even in spite of his dry throat and grumbling belly, Shaggydog howled out to the moon-- to his brothers and sisters, to Winterfell, to Rickon. He had been separated from them all one by one, and a loneliness was beginning to creep and settle in the direwolf. Shaggy was lost, to say the least, and he missed Rickon. It physically pained the direwolf to have gone so long without his master, and he could only hope the youngest Stark was alright. Amidst his howling, however, a scent filled his nostrils. His head snapped in the direction the aroma had come from, and quickly he rose to his paws and padded closer. Curiously but not without caution, the direwolf slowly crept closer.

He was heading back from the Wall, having escorted a criminal there by Ludd’s request, & stopped to let the horse rest & refill his flask in a rill. When whining of some animal reached his ears, Harys stood still, listening to where it was coming from. Checking his sword, just in case, he headed towards the sound, soon discovering a tiny pup, whining it’s heart out.

“… Who have we here?” The man couldn’t help but smile a little, crouching in front of the cub. It wasn’t that wise, approaching a wolfling - it’s parents could be nearby, but a creature that young & alone attracted attention. “Where do you think your family is?” He hummed mostly to himself, not really expecting an answer, as he observed his finding, tilting head to the side, curiosity & sympathy for the other’s miserable state in his eyes.  

Shaggydog lifted his head as he heard a strange noise from a fur-less two-legged creature. The pup trembled, then grazed a paw across the two-legged’s boot. After feeling the leather, hard and cold, the young direwolf tilted its head and leapt closer to the creature and his boot. Shaggy could feel the man’s body warmth and so curled up closer with a rather content hum, his tail swishing happily behind him. It was nice to be in the company of another, albeit a slightly balder and taller and only-stood-on-two-legs creature. Nuzzling into the boot, Shaggy nipped at the leather in between licks and yaps.

come here shaggy – i have SOMETHING for you.

bites robb’s hand