Chapter 11: Chapter 11
Harry Potter + A song of Ice and Fire Crossover
Chapter 11
Lily did her best to avoid Robert over the course of the next few days because she wasn't certain what had transpired between them. She was proud for having conducted herself well but she had had to employ ever bit of her uncle's training and had awakened the next day very sore as a result. But in the back of her mind it had been worth it.
She had never fought against someone with as much raw skill and power as Robert. Her uncle was sharp and precise but Baratheon somehow managed to have more strength than anyone she had ever seen and yet still control it enough to be devastating.
Lily knew there wouldn't be many times she would fight someone like that and she thanked her lucky stars for it because it had taken ever ounce of her strength and speed to hold him off.
He had been a challenge that's for sure but she was no closer to understanding him than she had been before.
All she did know was that he was not someone to underestimate and she hoped that he now knew the same thing about her.
But she wasn't holding her breath.
So she kept her thoughts to herself for the most part except for when she told her uncle about the incident.
His easy smile told her all that she needed to know.
"From what I have learned from Lord Arryn thus far, Robert Baratheon is impulsive, boisterous, reckless and ambitious. He knows what he wants and he goes after it. However Jon has also imparted to me that someone of that calibre needs to be tempered with other personalities. Robert Baratheon is a volatile young man and the last thing he needs is people around him who are going to add to that volatility. From what I have understood, Jon has had his hands full with him these last few years."
Just thinking about that made Lily grimace.
I certainly hope he will learn some self control before he becomes a lord and soon, she thought. Otherwise the Stormlords and his lady wife are going to be in for a rough time in the next few decades.
The red head briefly considered what it would be like if she were married to someone like Robert Baratheon and grimaced.
While he was distractingly attractive, one couldn't build a life off of just that alone. Marriage was a great adventure, full of mystery and wonder and even though she hadn't been married for very long, there was a heady feeling to spending your life with someone that you loved that was a very attractive prospect.
I honestly hope Robert gets his act together and soon. I don't know if Lord Arryn can afford to lose any more grey hair.
At the moment however, the red head was sitting in the High Hall between her Uncle and Elbert Arryn reading a letter that had just arrived from the capital.
She had been delighted to see Petyr's familiar scrawling letters and had wasted no time in breaking the seal and reading eagerly.
Dear Lily
You will find the capital much different than the Riverlands I fear. The stink of this place is all but over powering when one is in the city streets and I don't know how the royal family stands it. Perhaps its just a symptom from having lived all their lives in King's Landing. Its good to know I'm not the only one who is affected by the smell though. I've seen many nobles and noblewomen wrinkling their noses at the stench when they go out in the gardens.
I'll bet the smell is much nicer in the Vale though. You're surrounded by mountains and fresh breezes. Gods but I wish I was with you.
I plan on sealing this very carefully and sending it off myself so no one has access to it but the Targaryens certainly are a strange lot. Their looks are other worldly and the queen is certainly the most enchanting creature I have other seen but there is almost a glazed look in the eyes of the crown prince and the king as if they spend much of their time dreaming as opposed to being awake.
When the prince isn't being fawned over by every one of the ladies at court, he spends much of his time in the library poring over the oldest books I've ever seen and muttering to himself. And the king spends much of his time brooding. I think if I were to try and describe him to you, no words would do him justice so I suppose you will simply have to wait and see him for yourself to decide what you think.
There was a lot of chatter yesterday as the Martell Princess had just arrived and she is a vision in gold. Other than the queen, I don't think I have ever seen a woman so beautiful. She is a few years older than the prince and I have heard some speculation about her health but if you were here I suppose you would just scoff.
Her brother is also with her and I only had to take one look at him to know that he is a dangerous man. The Red Viper they call him, and such a name and reputation is not without its fair share of stories. He is quite bold I'm told. However it seems as if everything that comes out of Dorne is fiery and passionate.
And speaking of fiery natures, I would love to hear your opinion on the Lannister girl when you get here. She's blonde, green eyed and as much of a vicious harpy as I have ever seen. She thinks she keeps her expressions guarded when looking at Princess Elia well guarded but anyone with eyes can see that she is as green as her eyes with jealousy.
After all, she likely would have been the queen had the king not been decidedly jealous of Tywin Lannister and decided to scorn him in this way. I think the Old Lion himself will be displeased enough that he may just decide to leave the capital altogether before long.
But I digress, I wish to give you an update on Axel. He is doing well and I am keeping an eye on him like I promised. Lysa has been helping me which is certainly nice of her. She's been spending a lot more time with me lately but I think that's because she misses you and seeing as how we're best friends, I suppose she feels more comfortable with me.
Lily raised an eyebrow unsure if she should raise an eyebrow or smirk at her friend's naivete. Petyr was brilliantly smart but there were times when she truly wondered whether or not he was aware of the emotions going on around.
She hoped Lysa was being subtle, but not too vague.
At the same time, I wished to tell you that my father has arrived. I thought he might be traveling with you in Lord Arryn's retinue but apparently not. I have been taking your advice and spending some more time with him and while I cannot say any sort of emotional progress has been made, it is sort of nice to see him after all these years.
Your father and Cat have been spending a lot of time with the Starks who have also recently arrived. Brandon Stark is with them as well and I already don't like the look of him. He's tall, broad and many of the women here have been fawning over him as well.
But I know if you were here, you would be having none of that and you would be rolling your eyes at Cat nonstop.
Well the candle is burning low and I am almost out of ink so I believe I will end this letter here. When do you Ser Brynden and the Arryn party think you will be leaving for the capital. Things have been tremendously boring and I hope they pick up when you arrive.
Sincerely, Petyr
Lily sighed softly to herself and refolded the letter. Petyr's message was full of good information that she could use but also unknown facts that he himself didn't seem to be aware of. Although she wasn't there, the red head was certain that her best friend didn't know that Lysa was carrying a torch for him.
She wondered how something like this was going to be addressed when they were all in the capital together.
Also Petyr's information on the new princess was certainly interesting. Lily didn't know much about the Martells but the brother of the Princess certainly sounded formidable. Maybe he was going to be her protector while she was in the capital. The way that Petyr had described the king, it certainly didn't seem to be a bad idea.
"Good news?" Elbert asked from where he was sitting munching on a piece of black bacon.
Lily smiled at him. "No, just news. I have been conversing with a friend of mine since we parted ways at Riverrun and he went to the capital with my family."
"Petyr Baelish, your father's ward?" Elbert asked and she nodded. The wards of over lords spending time fostering at different castles was not a new concept in the south or the north for that matter.
"We grew up together," Lily explained. "We learned how to ride together, we studied together, learned our letters and politics and history. He'll be a lifelong friend of mine."
Elbert got a strange look on his face then almost as if he were lost in thought. "Well then he is very lucky."
Lily blinked at him, feeling a slight warming in her cheeks and wondering how she should react to such an off the cuff statement from the heir of the Vale.
Fortunately she didn't have to when both Lord Arryn and Ser Brynden Tully chose to enter the high hall in that moment.
"Good morning Uncle," Elbert called out earning a brief smile from the aging blonde man. His greeting was echoed by Ned and Robert who were sitting not far away.
Ser Brynden smiled at his niece before taking the seat opposite her. There was a sheath of letters in his hand and Lily gestured to it with her spoon. "Are those letters from father?"
"Some," the Blackfish replied. "I see you got one as well."
"This one's from Petyr."
"Ah, and how are he and the young ones handling the capital thus far?"
Wordlessly, Lily handed over the letter and watched his expression as he read it while she munched on her porridge.
Finally when he finished, he sighed and handed the parchment back over. "Petyr is an observant lad. I am glad that he is keeping an extra eye on Axel. Cat still has her head in the clouds as always."
"What else?"
"Well we shall be joining the fray soon enough," Ser Brynden said as he handed the letter back to her. "I have finished my business with Lord Arryn and so in the next few days we shall depart. I know we have only been here for a week or so but are you up for more travel?"
Lily nodded. "I'm looking forward to seeing Cat, Lysa, Axel, Ed and Petyr again."
"The royal wedding will occur within a few weeks as well," Brynden replied. "If we are to make it in time, we will need to leave very soon."
"Good!" Robert barked from around a mouthful of porridge. "It's about time we had some excitement."
"You've already had enough as it is," Lord Arryn muttered from behind his piece of toast causing Ned to cough into his goblet.
"Speaking of excitement," The Blackfish said leaning across the table towards his niece and lowering his voice. "There will no doubt be a lot of political excitement when we reach the capital. You will do your best to keep a low profile won't you? The rumors of the kings mental instability are abounding and many strange and terrible stories have arisen from the palace servants. Do your best to keep your head low."
"You aren't worried at all are you?" Lily asked with some alarm.
"Nay," her Uncle said in a low voice looking at her with intent blue eyes. "But I don't want to have any reason to."
Ω
Several Weeks Later….
"Lily!" Axel screamed as he raced toward her down the cobblestoned path his little arms raised in the air. His nursemaid was hustling after him and looked supremely out of breath. She must have been putting in overtime on watching him while her father handled other bits of business.
Tucking her dress about herself, Lily leapt down from her mount as she, her Uncle and the rest of the Arryn party came to a stop in the courtyard just inside the gates of the Red Keep.
Grinning so hard she thought her face might hurt, the red head bent down to receive her youngest brother who leaped into her arms without a care.
"Hello monster!" she laughed, a pet name she had called him since he was born as he had more energy than any baby she had ever seen. "I missed you!"
"I missed you too!" the auburn haired child cried. "But I played with Pet and Lya a lot!"
"Did you?" Lily asked, pleased that her sister and best friend had taken their roles in looking after the youngest Tully so seriously. "And did you have fun?"
"I did!" he said. "Papa only let me play in the gardens though. He said he didn't want me running all over the place."
Good, Lily thought to herself. Sometimes Father's astuteness does him credit. Plus its better to keep a child away from the King's sight at all times. Merlin knows what could happen.
"I played with Vis a lot too," Axel said cheerfully and Lily blinked at the unfamiliar name. "Vis?"
"He means Prince Viserys," said a familiar voice and Lily looked up with a grin identical to her first on her face. "Petyr!"
Hoster Tully's ward was strolling down the pathway towards them. He stopped to say a word to Axel's nurse who was watching the whole scene carefully and a moment later, she turned and returned to the keep.
"Good to see you Tully," he said stopping in front of her with a small smile. "Life has been a little too boring without you."
"I missed you too," Lily said with a laugh as she got to her feet still holding Axel. "And what were you saying about Prince Viserys?"
Petyr chucked. "Several days after we got here I was in one of the gardens with Axel and Lysa and we happened to come across the queen herself with one of the Kingsguard. We bowed as always and she seemed delighted with the sight of Axel as he and the prince are the same age. Prince Viserys invited Axel to play with him as he had a myriad of toys around him and of course Axel happily agreed. They have been running around ever since."
Lily looked at her friend carefully. "Has the king been present for any of this?"
Petyr shook his head. "No."
Lily nodded feeling relieved. "Good.
"I see you've sprouted up like a weed Lord Baelish!" Brynden Tully boomed as he strode towards them from his horse where he was conferring quietly with Lord Arryn. "The time in the capital has done you well!"
He clapped a hand on the slender youth's shoulder and Petyr awarded the Blackfish with a small smile. "I don't know about that Ser Brynden. I'm still not much taller than Ed."
"You won't be that way for long!" called out another familiar voice and Lily looked up to see Ed and Lysa heading towards them with identical smiles on their faces.
The gardens were so far quiet and thankfully there was no one around with witness the greetings taking place between the Tully party. Lily herself was grateful as she wanted some privacy to reunite with her siblings.
It had been no more than eight weeks since she had seen them but she had felt their absence. It was sometimes nice having a large family.
Lysa greeted Lily with a hug but didn't meet her eyes prompting the other red head to frown in wonderment. Had something happened between her and Petyr?
Ed gave Lily a rather boisterous hug bringing a laugh out of his older sister before she looked around. "Where are Father and Cat?"
Ed rolled his eyes. "Off doing business with Lord Stark and Lord Brandon no doubt. They have been in counsel for the last few days."
"Why?" Lily asked. "Isn't Cat's marriage already secure?"
"It is," Petyr replied. "But it seems as if Lord Tully wishes for Brandon Stark to come and spend some time in Riverrun before he married Cat. As to the why, I hardly know."
Lily blinked as she processed this information. That was certainly interesting. She didn't know much about Brandon Stark but this time at the capital would hopefully be a good time to rectify that.
"Are those the Arryns?" Lysa asked in a whisper suddenly looking past the group of Tully siblings.
All turned to see Lord Arryn conferring several feet away with his nephew and two wards. There was a serious expression on his face as if he were imparting some instruction. While both Ned and Elbert were nodding, Robert looked decidedly impatient."
"Is that Robert Baratheon?" Ed asked. "Gods he's a giant! How old is he?"
"The same age as Cat," Lily replied. "I'm told all Baratheon men are enormous though."
"He looks very fierce," Lysa observed. "Is the blonde one Elbert Arryn?"
"He is," the other red head confirmed.
"He's quite handsome isn't he?" Lysa asked once more to no one in particular and both Ed and Petyr rolled their eyes, prompting a chuckle from Lily. "Yes I suppose so."
Because she was looking at Elbert, she didn't see the shadow pass over Petyr's face but Brynden Tully did.
Thankfully he was wise enough not to comment on it but he did file it away in his memory to remember for later.
At that moment, Elbert Arryn chose to look up and lock eyes with Lily. He sent her a smile which she returned before he looked back at his uncle, said something and then left the group before heading over to them.
"Ser Brynden, my uncle has been called before the king, but he wishes to continue to discuss your plans for Gulltown," he said.
"Very good," the Blackfish replied. "I look forward to hearing what he has to say."
He clasped hands with the heir to the Vale, before the blonde smiled at Lily. "Will you be at the feast tonight Lady Lilian?"
The red head smiled back at him. "Of course."
He gave a courtly bow before surprising her and bending to kiss her hand. "I look forward to it then. Farewell."
He then strode back to his uncle who appeared to have finished saying his peace to Robert and Ned as they were leaving also.
Lily turned back to her siblings who were both looking at her with incredulous looks on their faces. "What?"
"What in the name of the Seven was that all about?" Ed demanded.
"What do you mean?"
"He obviously likes you," Lysa pointed out.
"Don't be silly," Lily scoffed. "I spent the last few weeks with he and his uncle and Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon. There is nothing more than platonic feelings."
"He doesn't seem to think so," Ed muttered causing Petyr to frown somewhat darkly. "But in the meantime, you should see the size of the training yard here Lily! I've seen knights and nobles practicing every day."
"Jaime Lannister certainly seems to spend a lot of time there," Petyr murmured. "Doesn't he have anything better to do than wave a sword around all the time?"
Lily shrugged. "Maybe he doesn't know how to do anything else."
Petyr flashed her a small smile at the subtle dig but she didn't return it.
"I hate to break up this reunion," Ser Brynden broke in. "But Edmure would you mind telling me where your father is? I have some business to speak to him about."
"Then you need to look no further," called out a familiar voice.
Both Lily and the Blackfish looked up to see Hoster Tully striding towards them with Cat just behind. She looked extraordinarily pleased with herself and Lily guessed that the meeting with the Starks had gone well.
Hoster wasn't smiling but he did appear relaxed like the proverbial cat that caught the canary.
"Lilian," he said when he saw her and gave her a small smile. "You're looking well. Did you enjoy your time in the Vale?"
"I did father thank you," Lily said with a nod even though she didn't smile when she saw him. She knew he wouldn't notice.
"And your opinion of Lord Elbert?"
"He is as generous as he is kind," Lily replied vaguely.
"Excellent," Hoster said as he clasped hands with his younger brother. "Perhaps I should take it upon myself to speak to his uncle while he is here."
Lily swallowed hard deciding to herself that she would have to thwart any such efforts as they came up. Elbert was nice enough but marriage for a fourteen year old was far too young. Maybe if they got to know each other well enough in the next few years she could see it.
Brynden bid his nieces and nephews farewell and strode slowly off down the garden path behind his brother, hands behind his back the two of their heads together.
"So, tell us how was the Vale!" Lysa demanded. "All those mountains and rocky cliffs, it must have been beautiful."
"And very defensible," Petyr said. "If the Targaryens didn't have dragons no one would have been able to conquer the Vale."
"There is that," Lily said. "And yes there is something that is oddly beautiful about the Vale. They don't have any forests or rivers like we do, at least in the way you might think but all those rocky crags do make a lovely picture. The Eyrie itself is absolutely gorgeous. The keep itself is all way and is a cluster of tall white towers surrounding a beautiful godswood. There's only one way in and one way out and from any balcony you stand you can see all around you and above you is nothing but sky."
"Goodness, that sounds lovely Cat said finally. She had been remarkably quiet since she had rejoined her siblings."
"I'll bet it's a lot fresher than it is here," Petyr muttered causing Cat to glare at him. "Petyr you shouldn't say things like that. You don't know who might be listening."
"I sincerely don't think I am going to be arrested for saying that the city stinks," the youth scoffed. "I am fairly certain everyone else in this city agrees."
"Even still do lower your voice," Cat said looking around nervously.
"Has anyone seen Princess Elia?" Lily interrupted in order to curb what might have been a pending argument.
"Oh yes, she arrived and was presented to the king and prince the day after we arrived," Lysa said.
"She certainly is beautiful," Ed said with something of a dreamy expression on his face. "She is a little older than the prince though."
All of a sudden Axel punctuated the conversation between the siblings with a loud yawn and Lily laughed as she looked down at her sleepy little brother. "I think this one is long overdue for a nap."
"Well come on then, we'll show you to your chambers," Lysa said taking her sister's arm. "We're all in the same hallway and you're between Cat and I. You might want to rest up before the feast tonight if you've been riding all day."
"I certainly like the sound of that," Lily said as she followed her siblings into the keep.
Ω
Several hours later, Lily was feeling refreshed and peaceful and had decided to leave her older sisters to their primping while she took a walk around the gardens of the keep.
From what she had seen of the palace so far the gardens were her favorite part. There were little streams dashing over rocks to water exotic looking purple and yellow flowers. The scent of the fruits ripening on the branches of the tall trees was enough to block out any sort of stench from the city streets.
As long as I can spend all my time in the gardens while I'm here this trip shouldn't be that bad, the red head thought to herself.
The keep even had a godswood which surprised her as the godswood in Riverrun was one of her favorite places to visit.
Upon seeing it, Lily smiled to herself and decided she would pay a visit to those white trees with their blood red leaves.
As it turned out however, she was the only one who had chosen to do this.
She had no sooner entered the quiet of the wood however when a soft sound caught her attention, causing her head to whip up at the sound. She could hear murmured words carried on the wind and for a moment, it almost seemed as if someone was praying.
Lily peered around a particularly large weirwood tree as she neared the heart of the godswood and to her surprise, she noted that a woman was sitting on a bench in front of the heart tree.
It appeared that she was praying but when Lily registered who it really was she was heard pressed to stifle a gasp of surprise.
Elia Martell of Dorne, the betrothed of the prince was sitting beneath the heart tree her hands clasped in front of her and her eyes were tightly closed as if she were concentrating all of her mental faculties on what she was saying.
She certainly was beautiful though. It was sort of a Fragile beauty however like a piece of glass wrought into an elegant statue or like a butterfly's wing that would be destroyed the minute it was touched. Her hair was long black and lustrous and her form was slender and elegant. Her skin was the color of caramel after having spent a lifetime under the Dornish sun and the colors of her dress were yellow and orange.
A Dornish princess praying to the old gods of the north? Lily thought to herself wryly. Surely the end of days is upon us.
Propriety told her that she should quietly exit the godswood and leave the princess to her prayers as whatever she was praying about seemed to be personal and important.
However, her curiosity insisted she stay and listen to what was being said.
Lily may have been more of self aware than her sisters but she wouldn't call herself a noble lady completely. So she squashed propriety and crept forward to hear what was being said.
"Please do not think I am not grateful for this opportunity," the princess said. "However I do wish it had not come to me. What do I want of the Targaryens? I will be in a place of danger for the rest of my life. My heart longs for Dorne and Sunspear and I fear my heart will always long for that place and the people who live there."
Lily blinked in surprise.
She knew arranged marriages were commonplace in this world they lived in and that finding love in a marriage was a blessing that few found.
But it seemed that every woman in court wished to be the new queen and many were prepared to sell their souls for the opportunity. And yet Princess Elia it seemed didn't want it.
Steeling closer she watched the princess's shoulders shake silently as if she were weeping and her own eyes widened in surprise.
Suddenly feeling overcome with compassion, Lily stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on the other woman's shoulder. "Are you alright?"
As she expected the Martell princess got to her feet hurriedly and turned around, stiff as she did so.
Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the red headed girl and her brow furrowed for a moment as if trying to remember which Tully this was.
"Lady Catelyn?" she said finally and the youngest Tully daughter smiled gently at her. "It's Lilian actually. I just arrived today. Are you alright?"
Elia scrubbed at her eyes. "You've caught me at an unfortunate time my lady. I didn't think anyone would be here in the godswood at this hour. I thought everyone would be getting ready for the feast."
Lily smiled gently. "Neither did I. I suppose I'm not the only one who's longing for home."
Elia's cheeks turned slightly pink as she realized that she had been over heard. Lily raised a hand to silence any protests she knew might be coming. "It's not my place to judge your grace. I am a long way from home as well. There are times when I miss the riverlands very much. May I ask though why it was the old gods you were praying to and not the Seven?"
Her eyes finally dry, Elia gave the Tully girl a damp smile. "I suppose I was hoping that the more I prayed to one of them at least would answer me. I'm not as familiar with the northern gods but I didn't see the harm in trying."
Lily nodded. "I've never been particularly devout either. But it is ironic that I seem to find more peace in a godswood than in a sept."
There was a long silence between them and Lily searched quickly for a moment, wondering about what she should say.
"If you don't mind my asking," she began a bit timidly. "What were you upset about?"
Elia took a deep breath. "I don't want to seem ungrateful."
"Trust me, talking about something that upsets you is not being ungrateful," Lily prompted gently. "If anything it might make you feel better."
Elia was quiet for so long that Lily wondered for a moment if the Martell princes had heard her and was about to say something else when the other woman spoke.
"Many women vie for the chance to be a queen. I'm sure the court is full of ladies who would long to be in my position. Perhaps I am only of the odd few who wishes to be anywhere but at court."
To say that Lily was surprised would be an understatement. She had misunderstood Elia's prayers earlier to be simple homesickness but it appeared to go far deeper than that.
Elia noted correctly that her silence was borne of shock and gave her a wry smile. "I suppose that wasn't what you were expecting to hear?"
"No," Lily said carefully. "However many women here want to be queen, it has nothing to do with the crown prince. They only want power. And you seem to be one of those rare few that doesn't."
"Doran and I were committed to duty," Elia explained sadly. "If Oberyn was a better ruler, I suspect Doran would have wanted him to take up the role of prince of Dorne. Power is never something we've aspired towards. Being a queen was never something that I wanted. I fear I've left my heart in Dorne and it will always remain there."
"And so what is it that you want?" Lily asked gently.
"Peace," the Dornish princess said after a moment. "Peace and quiet. To be away from the power hungry struggles of these nobles who are obsessed with legacy."
"They can't take it with them when they're gone," Lily said bitterly, thinking oddly of her own father who seemed to love his name and the ideas of power far more than his flesh and blood children.
It really was quite sad.
Elia regarded her silently for a moment as if taking her in for the first time and truly seeing her. Her face looked mildly impressed.
"Tell me Lilian," she said quietly after a while. "How old are you?'
"I am four and ten."
Elia blinked. "You speak like one who is twice your age. Tell me, how did you become so wise?"
Lily wasn't about to tell her that her wisdom came from over a second life that had been full of hardship and sadness at its end. If Elia thought her wise after the conversation they had just had she would think her insane now.
"My mother always did tell me before she died that I knew too much for my own good," Lily said feeling a little amused. "In some ways my sisters and are polar opposites. Catelyn has been raised to be the perfect lady, far more than I'll ever be. I suppose one of us had to have more common sense. And Lysa's a bit like a whimsical dreamer, she finds life more interesting inside of her head. That's usually the way it works with sisters. One is always very different from the other in personality."
Elia smiled. "I wish I had a sister. My brother Oberyn and I are like that as well though we're not twins. He's always been the one to do things without thinking which leaves Doran and I to clean up his mess. He fights too much and whores about too much but he is family and we don't get to choose who we have in our family. I know he would do anything for me though. I don't think he plans to go back to Dorne even after the wedding. He's always watched out for me."
Lily remembered seeing Oberyn Martell a little earlier after she had seen her room. He was dark like his sister and quite handsome. He reminded her of some of the Spaniards she had seen on a trip to Spain when she was still Lily Evans. They seemed to exude sexuality as they walked and were far too good-looking for their own good.
She had heard stories of the fighting prowess of the Red Viper and could certainly admit to herself that he was one of the better looking men she had met in her last life.
She had also heard of his exploits with numerous women, something which made her wary. No one seemed to be immune to charms.
Rumor had it that he had at least four bastards back in Dorne. They were treated far better in Sunspear that in the rest of Westeros but Lily couldn't help imagining that such acts might get him into trouble one day.
The reminder of bastards brought to memory that child that Robert Baratheon had sired in the Vale and she grimaced, hoping that when the babe was born it would be well cared for.
She was glad this his gaze had not landed upon her earlier and all the more glad that she had been out in the gardens for most of her time here.
"The sun's beginning to go down," Lily said finally as she noted how the rays were turning the tree tops to gold. "Perhaps we should be getting back. The feast will be starting soon."
She was about to get up when Elia caught hold of her hand. "Thank you Lady Lilian."
The Tully girl smiled. "It's just Lily please."
"Very well, then I insist on you calling me Elia," the other woman said. "Believe it or not you are the first honest person I have met since I arrived here."
"There aren't very many," Lily agreed. "If I am called honest perhaps it is my more wild sensibilities. My father said that honor is everything because its in our house words. However there are times when I disagree."
"What do you mean?"
Lily looked down at her hands sadly, remembering Harry and James Potter from her first life, the family that had been taken from her all too soon.
"Family is more important than honor," she said. "What is honor when all your loved ones are dead? Honor is not going to embrace you before you fall asleep at night. Honor is not going to love you when you fear no one else will. Honor is cold and grim and it doesn't care about the sacrifices it asks you to make.
There comes a time when honor must be put aside."
Elia gave her a sad smile. "You are far too young to speak of such things. You sound as if you must have lived another life to know what you say."
Lily grimaced and was glad that Elia had turned away to face the heart tree again wistfully.
"Do you think they listen to us?" she asked.
Lily regarded the tree with its red eyes that were full of sap and ever watchful, remembering the cold finality of death in that harsh room after she had been forced to say goodbye to Harry and James. "If they do….it isn't to help us."
She reached out a hand and helped Elia to her feet. "We need to depend only on people that we trust in this world, and more often than not those people are few."
"Perhaps," Elia said quietly. "But I think I've just been lucky enough to meet one of those rare few."
Lily smiled shyly. "Thank you your grace."
"Please don't call me that, I'm not even married yet and draped beneath the Targaryen cloak."
Lily chuckled softly and smiled at her. "Not yet, but by the end of this week you will."
Elia looked at her for a long moment. "What you said earlier about their being few people we can trust, Queen Rhaella told me the same thing. She said to choose no less than three ladies to be my companions here at court. Too few than that is to show favoritism and if you were to pick more than five you cannot keep track of them. She said it is an intricate game that all women play to earn the favor of the next queen." Elia looked. "By the Seven, things were not this complicated in Dorne."
"Nor were they in the riverlands," Lily said chuckling.
Elia turned serious again. "You've proven this evening that you are one of those rare people I can trust. I would like you to be one of my companions."
Lily was pleasantly surprised. She knew her father expected her and all of her siblings to fit in at court and represent the Tully name but this was better than she had hoped for. She had assumed after the royal wedding they would remain for a few weeks before all five of her siblings and her father went back to the Riverlands.
She realized then that Elia Martell was still waiting for an answer from her.
"Yes," Lily said quietly suddenly feeling as if the entire world had shifted. "Yes I would be honored to be one of your companions your grace."
Elia smiled but Lily felt a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach for she knew somewhere that she wouldn't be having any peace and quiet for a long time to come.
Ω
So I know that I said Brynden would learn about Lily's magic in this chapter but there never seemed to be a good time so I thought I would leave it for now. But at least now we know that Lily is going to be staying in the capital for the foreseeable future. You all know that Elia Martell is one of my favorite characters of all time and House Martell is my favorite of the seven so they are going to play a unique role in this story too. Brynden Tully is going to learn of her magic before he leaves King's Landing however. Also, Oberyn will make an appearance in the next chapter as Lily is going to have a unique relationship with him too. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, don't forget to review!
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