"Oh, my dear girl," Ned murmurs quietly, heart full and bursting with love, reaching to tenderly tuck some of the strands of her short, chestnut hair behind her ear. "From your lips to the Old Gods' ears; let us continue to hope, eh?" His hands fall to her shoulders where they offer a parting squeeze before removing themselves, though the absence of her in his arms, against his palms is too great a sorrow to bear - and so he reaches out for her hands instead, carefully curling his fingers around her palms. "Tell me, do you still have Needle with you?" He'd not come through with Ice, but he hadn't expected to - it hadn't been his, in the end.