章 2227: 22
Summary:
This character has POV...that character has a POV
Everyone gets a POV
Notes:
The Dragon's Hand
Tyrion and Jaime walked silently together through the castle. Jaime was a few steps ahead of him as he led the way to their father's chambers. Tyrion was nervous, he had no idea how his father would react to him. Would he be surprised? Disappointed? Relieved? Tyrion settled on disappointed. His father had thought that he had gotten rid of him and that was clearly not the case.
Then, he remembered Tysha and what his father had done to her. His nervousness turned into anger.
As they walked through the corridor, Tyrion saw Lannister guards posted along the hallways. None of them had their helmets on so Tyrion was able to see their faces. Several of the younger guards nodded towards Jaime, they all knew who he was, Jaime was Lord Tywin's golden son. They didn't pay Tyrion much notice which suited him perfectly.
However, some of the older guards seemed to recognize him. They nodded and smiled to Jaime before looking at him and realizing who he was. Their eyes and their mouths opened in shock and Tyrion heard them whispering to each other after they had walked past. Did any of these men take part in that shameful act? Tyrion shuddered at the thought.
They continued to walk through the stone hallways until Jaime stopped outside of a large wooden door. Two Lannister guardsmen stood on either side, Tyrion didn't recognize these men.
"You two," Jaime said to them authoritatively. "Move along," he said to them and the guards quickly moved to take up positions further down the hallway.
"Here we are," Jaime said to him. "Would you like me to go in first?"
"No," Tyrion said as he shook his head. "Let's do it together,"
Jaime pushed open the door and led them into the room. Tyrion immediately saw his father standing on the far side of the room with his back to them as he stared out the window.
"What is it Jaime," he said quietly. Tyrion knew this voice, he was likely deep in thought.
"How did you know it was me?" Jaime asked
"I have guards outside of my door and you are the only person that can send them away and enter without knocking. If the King wanted to see me, his squire would have knocked before entering," he said as he turned around. He stared at Jaime before his eyes drifted downwards until they met Tyrion's.
Tyrion saw a brief flicker of something on his father's face, it looked like he was disappointed. They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. Tyrion knew his father, he knew that he was planning something. He was always planning something, it was just his nature.
"Leave us," he said as he moved towards the desk in the room. He pulled out a chair and sat on it. "That was not a request," he said with a pointed glare towards Jaime. Tyrion looked towards him and nodded, he was not afraid of his father. Jaime looked at him nervously before silently walking out of the room.
Once the door closed they stared at each other for a few moments before Tywin wordlessly pointed towards a chair. Tyrion looked towards the hearth and he realised that it was not lit and he quickly began to feel cold, it was a stark contrast to the room that he was in with Jaime. Tyrion sat on the chair and stared at his father, he had not aged in the slightest. His green eyes were still as sharp and dangerous as ever.
Tyrion waited patiently, he wanted his father to speak first, he was curious as to what he would say.
"I knew you survived," he said as he shook his head and Tyrion heard the disappointment dripping from every word. "It was too good to be true," Tyrion felt his anger return, his father had plotted to kill him, failed and all he felt was disappointment. There was not a hint of remorse.
"Whatever do you mean father?" Tyrion asked, deciding to play dumb.
"Don't play stupid with me. You are much smarter than that," he snapped. "I take it Jamie told you the plan and he helped to smuggle you out of the city?"
"No, he did not," Tyrion said. This confused Tyrion briefly, if his father had suspected that Jaime was behind his supposed escape then why had he not punished him? Then Tyrion remembered who his father was. As long as Tyrion remained out of sight, his father's wish would have been fulfilled. Also, it was not in his father's interests to punish Jaime as it could have driven Jaime away from him.
Tyrion was also surprised that Tywin had not yet gone to Robert to have Jaime released from his vows anyway. Wiping out the crown's debt to his house in order to get his son back as his heir was something Tyrion would have expected him to do.
"Then who helped you?" he asked.
"Varys," Tyrion simply said. He saw no reason to lie and if more people knew of the Spider's schemes it would be for the better. His father nodded slowly.
"Of course, it was the Spider. This was far too well done for it to be Jaime's scheme. How did he do it?"
"He led me into a secret passageway behind your rooms and I overheard your entire plot,"
"So you overheard everything?" he asked and Tyrion nodded. Surprisingly, his father did not look angry. "So Varys is plotting with the Targaryens," he said and Tyrion paused before answering.
Whatever his answer was, Varys would become Tywin's enemy.
"No, he's not plotting with the Targaryens," he settled on. He decided to tell his father about the conspiracy. He would likely tell Robert and at the very least, they would divert some of their attention to finding Varys's false prince.
"Varys is working for himself. He is planning to sit a false prince on the throne," Tyrion said, Tywin looked at him curiously and Tyrion decided to tell him the full story. When he was finished, Tywin just looked at him curiously before he shook his head
"Impossible," was all he said.
"What's impossible?"
"He did not survive, I saw the body. I presented it to King Robert myself,"
"Varys outsmarted you once when he helped me escape. Perhaps, he outsmarted you again with this boy," Tyrion lied. He knew that the boy was a fake but he wanted to needle his father. It seemed his words had the desired effect because his green eyes narrowed.
"So there is a boy claiming to be Aegon Targaryen, so what. That seems to be the popular trend these days," he said and Tyrion knew who he was talking about.
"This King is real. He is who he says he is,"
"So Rhaegar Targaryen actually had a son with Lyanna Stark?"
"Yes he did, I did not believe it at first but his story makes sense. He will tell all the Lords and ladies his story at the council," Tyrion said lightly as he looked around the room. "We will find out their plans for the realm, who is allied with who and many other fascinating things,"
"I take it that you are their Hand?" he said with a glance at the pin on his chest and Tyrion nodded. "So you are here helping them to try and take back Westeros. You're going to attack your own family," he said with a shake of his head. "You have no shame,"
"After you all plotted to kill me!" Tyrion shouted. He was outraged, was he really trying to portray him as the bad guy?
"I was not going to go through with it. You are my son and you are a Lannister," he said firmly but Tyrion was not buying it. He shook his head quickly
"You are lying to me,"
"I am not," he said firmly and for a moment, he almost believed him. "We are Lannisters and we are family and the family always comes first,"
Tyrion looked at him curiously. He was trying to work out what game his father was playing. Tyrion looked into his father's eyes, his green eyes were staring into him and Tyrion returned his gaze.
"You want me to help you," Tyrion said slowly and his father gave a quick almost imperceptible nod of his head. Tyrion couldn't help but smile, he did not need his father, and neither would he help him. He had not shown a hint of remorse, he only saw him as a pawn to be used.
"I don't believe it. The great Tywin Lannister, the most powerful man in Westeros, wants help from his dwarf of a son," he said with a cruel laugh. "I will never help you," Tyrion spat as he stood up and kicked the chair back.
Tywin stared at him angrily. "Then why are you here?"
Tyrion stared at him for a few moments. Why was he here? Was he hoping that his father would apologize for his actions like Jaime? He knew that it was a foolish thing to hope for. No, he knew exactly why he was here
"Tysha," he said simply. He stared at his father who had a blank expression on his face and Tyrion felt his blood boil.
"Who is Tysha?" he asked with a shake of his head.
He did not even remember her, the woman that he loved. The woman that he had his guards brutally rape and he did not even remember who she was.
"I will never forgive you for what you did to Tysha," Tyrion said as he began to move to the door. He put his hand on the handle before he turned around to face him. "I spoke to Jaime earlier and he knows that I am trusted advisor to the King and Queen. He wanted me to try and save you, to send you to the wall and I would have tried to do that for you. But you don't deserve mercy," Tyrion said bitterly as stared at him.
"I came here to let you know that you will die for what you did to Tysha," he said and he watched as his father's green eyes narrowed. Tyrion took one long last look at the man he had to call a father and then he left the room.
The Dragon Reborn
Jon stomped angrily through the castle towards their rooms in the eastern tower. His blood was pounding in his ears and he knew he was making a lot of noise. He knew that Rhaegar and Daenerys would be following him. As he walked towards their rooms, he saw several of their Unsullied guarding the hallways, this confirmed to him that he was at least heading in the right direction.
As he walked, he replayed the conversation with Lord Stark, it had gone badly, much worse than he had hoped for. After speaking to Robb, he had hoped that he and Lord Stark would also be able to have a happy and good reunion. Instead, he had started the meeting by attacking him and blaming him for starting this war. Jon could not believe he had the nerve to say that to his face. He grunted in anger and continued to stomp through the castle.
Eventually he saw Red Flea standing guard in front of a large wooden door.
"Are these our rooms?" he growled at him and the man had a confused expression on his face as he looked at him. Jon decided to push past him and enter the room anyway. He was the King and he had dragons, every damn room in this castle should belong to him.
The door opened into a large room that seemed to be the separate hall that Lady Whent had mentioned. Jon saw numerous doors along the sides of the hall that must have led off to other rooms. At the far end of the hall, there was a long table that was lined with food and wine. There were several tapestries hanging from the walls and Jon saw large wooden shelves lined with books. The floor was covered in several thick rugs and clearly Lady Whent made sure that their rooms were appropriately furnished. Jon took a few steps into the room and then he turned around.
Rhaegar and Daenerys were looking at him, his father looked unhappy whilst Daenerys had a cautious expression on her face. Behind them stood a knight that Jon had never seen before. Jon opened his mouth to speak, but Rhaegar got there first
"What the hell happened?" he asked as he looked at him "I thought we wanted to have a conversation with him and convince him to join us? Instead when I get there I find you all arguing so loudly I'm surprised the entire castle did not overhear you!"
"What happened is that he accused me of starting this war when it was his friend, Robert fucking Baratheon who started this war! But he can't see that because he is too busy protecting him!" Jon yelled. "The first thing he said to me was that he wished we were meeting under better circumstances, like the whole thing was my fault. He was never prepared to offer me help today. He is still committed to the Usurper!"
Jon started to pace around the room in anger. He walked to the table and picked up a silver goblet, he felt its weight before throwing it across the room and into a stone wall. The sound of it cracking and breaking into a pieces did not satisfy him like he thought it would.
"Jon," he heard Daenerys say quietly but he ignored her.
"Then he brought his wife, who is still the same vile, unkind, unrepentant spiteful woman she always has been," Jon continued. "She dared to call me a bastard despite knowing the truth," he said as he turned around to face them. Rhaegar and Daenerys were both looking at him warily and that strange man had a neutral expression on his face. Jon realised that the man was likely judging him but he didn't care about that, he could judge him all he wanted.
"A bastard. She called me a fucking bastard. I am the trueborn Targaryen King and she cannot even treat me with the respect that I am due," Jon spat as he began to walk around the room again. "Lord Stark had the nerve to ask me if I showed any remorse for what happened in Essos and yet his wife did not show any remorse for how she treated me. I was a child without a mother and she treated me as if I was nothing,"
"Jon," Rhaegar said to him. "You still should have kept your composure, you are the King," and Dany slowly nodded in agreement. He looked at her in disbelief before he quickly walked over to her until he was stood right in front of her.
"How would you feel if it were Daeron in my situation? How would you feel if some strange woman had our child and instead of loving him and caring for him, she treated him like he was nothing? Imagine a woman treating him like he was a mistake. What would you do in my situation? How would you react?" he looked at her after he finished speaking. He saw the fire behind her lilac eyes and he knew that she agreed with him and she shared his anger.
"How are you so calm?" Jon said as he turned towards his father. "Lord Stark said horrible things to you as well. He blames you for mother's death and refuses to acknowledge his own mistakes. He believes that you have poisoned my mind, he is a fool. A northern fool," he finished with a shake of his head.
"Jon, I am trying to be calm because we are still at a negotiation and we need to leave a good impression. This is your first public appearance in Westeros and you just made a massive scene in the courtyard!" Jon rolled his eyes and turned around to look out of the window.
"Yes I am angry at what Lord Stark said to me. It seems that he is still the same stubborn man that he was all those years ago, but we must push past this and refocus. You've gotten your anger of your chest. So, now try to calm down so we can accomplish something productive," Rhaegar said. Jon stared out of the window and took deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. From this window, he could see their camp being constructed.
"Forgive me your graces, this may not be my place," the strange man said and Jon turned around to look at him. He was looking at him nervously and Jon nodded, letting him speak.
"Lord Stark is a good man. I was a part of King Robert's small council and he did good things when he was Hand of the King,"
"You served on King Robert's small council?" Daenerys asked "Who are you?"
"I am Ser Barristan Selmy, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard," he said as he fell to his knees in front of them. "Or I was part of his Kingsguard. I would like to serve House Targaryen, the true rulers of Westeros,"
Jon looked at him before speaking
"Ser Barristan Selmy, you are well known throughout Westeros. I admired you when I was a child but I am no longer a child. I am King now and I have to look at things from all perspectives. If I look at your actions from Lord Stark's side, you are an honorable knight who pledged your sword to a man who showed you mercy after defeating you in battle. But if I look at you from my side, then you are a knight who forsook his oaths to my house, the moment the tide turned against us and then loyally served a man who condoned the murders of my half siblings and their innocent mother."
Jon looked at the kneeling old knight and then he looked at Daenerys and then Rhaegar who nodded slowly, if his father trusted him then it was good enough.
"But I believe in second chances and if my father trusts you then it is good enough for me."
"You may rise Ser Barristan," Dany said and the knight rose to his feet. "We will have to get you some new armor,"
"Tell me about the relationship between Lord Stark and the Usurper," Jon commanded and Ser Barristan nodded. "Tell me everything. Do not leave anything out,"
"I will have to start from the beginning. I have served throughout King Robert's entire reign. I watched him as he changed over the years, he transformed from a young charismatic warrior to a fat drunk whoring King. King Robert was not faithful to his wife and he frequently spent his time whoring, drinking or hunting. He was not what a King was supposed to be. It was only due to the tireless work of Lord Jon Arryn that the realm didn't collapse from neglect. King Robert frequently threw feasts and tourneys which only served to bankrupt the realm,"
"Forgive me Ser Barristan, but what does this have to do with Lord Stark and the King?" Daenerys asked and Jon agreed with her. He was rambling and Jon was not in the mood for this.
"When Lord Arryn died, the King ignored the Queen's requests to summon her father or name Ser Jaime as Hand, instead he named Lord Stark. When Lord Stark came to the capital, I noticed a change in the King. He started to laugh more and it seemed Lord Stark was the only person able to get through to him and change his ways. This continued during the war in the Vale," he said "They shared a common goal in getting justice for Jon Arryn,"
"And you think this event brought them closer together?" Daenerys asked and Ser Barristan nodded.
"How would you describe their relationship?" Jon asked as he stepped closer to him.
"It was a close relationship, like brothers," he said and Jon nodded and turned around. This only served to confirm what he already knew, he was committed to the Usurper.
"Ser Barristan. When the first reports of our presence came in from the east were you with Lord Stark?" Daenerys asked and the room was silent for a few moments.
"Yes I was your grace. I remember it clearly, we were about to start our march into the Vale, we were not too far from here when we received the raven. It arrived in the presence of the King, Lord Stark, Lord Tywin, Prince Joffrey amongst others. When Lord Stark read the letter he looked angry,"
"Angry?" Dany asked
"Yes your grace he looked angry,"
"Why was he angry? Did you ask him?" Daenerys asked as Jon turned around. He saw Ser Barristan shake his head. Why would Lord Stark be angry? Then Jon understood.
"He was angry because he knew that we had dragons and would return to take his brother's throne," Jon sneered and no one in the room answered him. Jon ran his hands through his hair and sighed.
"Fine. It seems we don't have the support of Lord Stark, which means we won't have the support of Hoster Tully and the Riverlands. Which means we need the Reach," Jon said. He would rather have waited for Tyrion but it seemed that he was busy elsewhere.
"Your grace, when I was serving on King Robert's small council in the weeks before the council, he instructed Lord Renly to treat with the Tyrells and to marry their daughter, the Lady Margaery," Ser Barristan said and Jon let out a loud sigh of frustration and held his face in his hands. Things were not going according to plan at all.
"The Tyrells are more trouble than they're worth. First they want to me to marry their daughter, then it was Robb and now it's Renly? What games are they playing? Where is our god damn Hand?" Jon asked into the silence, they really needed Tyrion right now. This was the type of situation where he would excel and his absence really annoyed Jon.
"That doesn't make any sense," Rhaegar said after a few moments. "The Tyrells want royal blood to secure their hold on the Reach. They are an ambitious house and they want to be on the winning side. They won't accept that offer,"
"I will deal with the Tyrells" Dany said firmly. "I will speak to Lady Olenna alone,"
"Why can't I come with you?" Jon snapped as he scowled angrily at her.
"I know you Jon. You are not in the right mind now. I think you should stay here for a while and unwind. Push the thoughts of Lord Stark out of your mind and refocus ahead of the council. We will have a chance to speak to all the lords as a whole and convince them to join us," she said as she gave him a pointed look. Jon nodded slowly, he was not happy being left behind, but he did not want to argue with Dany of all people today.
"Ser Barristan," Rhaegar said. "Tell us about the Riverlands? We know that the Usurper went to war in the Vale and he exposed Lysa Arryn's infidelities. How did the Riverlords take it?"
"Not very well as you would imagine. Hoster Tully did not send men to join our cause and all the Riverlords stayed out of the conflict. They only did the minimum that was required," he replied.
"So we have a chance of convincing some of the Riverlords to our side?" Dany asked,
"I doubt it," Jon said bitterly. "Lady Catelyn hates me and she will never join our side, not after today," he left the rest unspoken. If the Tullys did not support him then Lord Stark would be faced with a choice, him or his wife. Judging by the fact that he had let her treat him terribly for every day of his life, Jon already knew which side he'd pick.
If and when Lord Stark sided with his wife, then that would mean that they would be at war with the North. He would have to fight against Robb, his brother. No, he wouldn't he shook his head. He would think of another way, he would not fight against them.
"You're right, we wouldn't be able to get the Tullys but we'd be able to get some of the Riverlords," Rhaegar said to him. "House Whent is already loyal to us. House Darry, Mooton, Goodbrook and Ryger all remained loyal to the crown during the rebellion,"
"That's not a lot, those are smaller houses right?" Dany asked and Rhaegar nodded.
"A divided Riverlands could be a problem. We would have to devote a lot of resources to support those houses," Jon pointed out. "House Mooton is at Maidenpool which is relatively close to Dragonstone. House Darry is not too far from here but I have no idea where those other two houses are, we could end up spreading our forces very thin,"
"That is true but you should still speak to their lords and convince them to join us. Any food they can spare will be a bonus," Rhaegar said and Jon nodded. The pieces were starting to come together in his mind. The Stormlands and the Westerlands will never support them. The North and the Riverlands would likely ally together and this gave Jon an idea to weaken this alliance.
"If I tell the Lords that Lord Stark had been hiding me all these years then it would ruin the relationship between him and the King which would cause Lord Stark to be wary of supporting the man who would view him as a traitor. Then the Usurper will lose the support of the North. The Riverlands are connected to the North by blood and they have no love or bond with the Usurper which would mean that Robert would lose two of the kingdoms before the war itself. Lord Stark would have no choice but to remain neutral, he can't fight against us and the Usurper,"
"I'm afraid that won't work," Rhaegar said with a shake of his head. "War will come to the Riverlands, it always does. Lord Stark would have to come to Lord Tully's aid seeing as they are related through marriage,"
Jon sighed in frustration but he knew that his father was right. When he declared war on House Tully, the North would follow, there was just no winning in this situation. The room was silent for a few moments before the door opened and Tyrion entered.
"Where on earth have you been?" Jon asked as soon as he saw him. Then, he saw who else entered the room. He was wearing the same armor as Ser Barristan and his golden hair was unmistakable, it was Ser Jaime Lannister.
Jon immediately stepped forward and stood next to Daenerys, he eyed Ser Jaime warily. Ser Jaime however was not focused on him, he was looking at his father.
The Silver Prince
Rhaegar stared into Jaime's green eyes. Jaime had changed over the years, he was not the wide eyed young man that he remembered from when he had left the capital for the Trident. He had grown older over the years, his face had aged and looked worn down, but he was still unquestionably Jaime Lannister
"Prince Rhaegar," he croaked. His voice had changed, it was deeper than he remembered.
"Ser Jaime Lannister," he replied in a formal tone. Rhaegar already knew why he killed his father, he knew that he was justified in that act.
"Prince Rhaegar, I am sorry for what I have done. I am sorry for not protecting Princess Elia or Rhaenys and Aegon. I had no choice," Jaime began but he was interrupted by Ser Barristan.
"You should have been protecting them, not killing your King," he said viciously. Rhaegar quickly glanced at Ser Barristan and saw that he was red in the face with anger. Rhaegar was confused by this until he realised that Jaime had probably not told Ser Barristan why he had did what he did.
"That is exactly why I had no choice," Jaime said as his eyes fell to the floor. "My father and his forces were sacking the city and the King was about to give the order. I had no choice, if I did not stop him it would have all been for nothing,"
Then Rhaegar understood. Jaime could not protect them both, if he tried to protect his family, then his father would have blown up the entire city. His family had to be sacrificed in order to save an entire city. Rhaegar sighed, he did not know what he would have done in that situation
"Prince Rhaegar, your father, he was,"
"Mad?" Rhaegar said as Jamie looked up at him "Cruel? Evil?" I know what he was Ser Jaime," he said
"Your grace. Your father had a terrible plan. The city would have been destroyed."
"I know Jaime," Rhaegar said in a tired voice. "Your brother told me, he told us all,"
"What plan was this?" Ser Barristan asked and Rhaegar turned to him. "My father planted caches of wildfire under the city. His plan was to turn the entire city into one huge funeral pyre. If Ser Jaime did not kill him, that is exactly what he would have done,"
Rhaegar watched as Ser Barristan flinched at the words. "Wildfire?" he whispered and Rhaegar nodded. "Why did you not tell anyone? There could still be wildfire under the city. We could have a disaster on our hands,"
"Who would have believed me? Lord Stark judged me guilty from the moment he saw me, he was not interested in the truth. My father did not care, he was busy organizing the marriage between Cersei and Robert. Who would I have told?" he asked Barristan who did not have an answer.
"You have despised me for years and you of all people did not ask me the truth. You were my Lord Commander and you did not even think to ask me why. You're just as guilty as Lord Stark,"
"Enough of this," Rhaegar said as Ser Barristan opened his mouth to retaliate. "Ser Jaime, you were right to stop my father but that was not your duty. I should have stopped him myself,"
"You said you were going to call a council," Jamie said and Rhaegar nodded. He was surprised that he remembered.
"Why are you here Ser Jaime?" he asked
"I would like to join you," he said quietly and Rhaegar looked at him in surprise.
"You are Tywin Lannister's son. His golden lion," he pointed out. "You want to fight against your own family?"
He saw Jaime hesitate for a few moments and Tyrion quickly stepped in.
"He does not want to fight against his family," Tyrion said quickly before Jaime interrupted him.
"I don't think I will be able to take up arms against my own family," he said as he looked at him. "But my family have done some horrible things. I have done horrible things and I want to atone for them, I want to do good, I want to be a true knight," he said sincerely.
"I want to be truthful to you both. I have done things in my past that I am not proud of, things that I should confess before you decide if you want to take me into your service," Jaime began and Rhaegar saw Tyrion try to stop him.
"Let him speak," Daenerys commanded
"The royal children are not Robert's. They are mine, all three of them," he said and Rhaegar froze.
"You fathered children with the Queen? Your sister?" Ser Barristan asked and Rhaegar noticed Tyrion did not look surprised.
"Yes, I did. We used to have intimate relations but I broke it off with her," Jaime said
"Tyrion did you know this?" Jon asked and Tyrion nodded "Why didn't you tell us?"
"I had no proof and even if I could prove this what would you have done?"
"We would have told Robert! We would have told the entire realm and let them know that the King is a cuckold! This information would destroy the Lannister and Baratheon alliance and make our job much easier," Jon said immediately.
"What about the children? What about Joffrey, Myrcella and Tommen? What about Jaime and Cersei? If Robert believed you then he would have had them all killed,"
"So is this why you hid it? To protect your family?" Jon asked in an accusatory tone.
"To protect Tommen and Myrcella who are innocent children. They did not deserve to die for the actions of their parents or the circumstances of their birth. You two of all people should understand that," Tyrion replied and Rhaegar saw both Jon and Dany purse their lips.
"You should have told us and trusted that we would not have revealed it. This relationship does not work if we don't trust each other," Daenerys said firmly and Jon nodded.
"I apologize your graces," Tyrion said with a small bow
"That is not the only shameful act that I have committed," Jaime continued but Daenerys interrupted him.
"That is enough Ser Jaime, we can continue this topic at a later time. We are very busy today as you can imagine," she said and Jaime nodded.
Rhaegar looked at him slowly before he turned to look back at Jon and Daenerys. They were both looking at each other before Jon stepped forward.
"Ser Jaime," he said in a clear voice. "As I informed Ser Barristan earlier, I believe in second chances. It seems that you are genuine in your wish to atone for your sins so we will try and find a place for you,"
"We will speak to you later Ser Jaime, after the council come and find us again," Daenerys said dismissing him. Ser Jaime nodded and bowed to them both before leaving the room. Once he left Jon and Daenerys turned to Tyrion.
"Do you trust him?" she immediately asked,
"Yes," Tyrion said firmly. "I know my brother and he is telling the truth, this is not a trick,"
"What happened between you?" Jon asked. "You told me what happened between you and your family and how Jaime failed to protect you. Why do you trust him now?"
"He apologized to me for everything and it was the first thing he did when he saw me," Tyrion said as he looked at both of them. "He also apologized for Tysha and he was going to tell me the truth about her without me asking. He would not have done that if he was not serious about making a change,"
Rhaegar nodded slowly. Tyrion had told him about what happened to his first wife, Tysha and Jaime's role in the deception.
"Your graces," Rhaegar said "I think you should trust Tyrion. If he believes that his brother is sincere, and he knows him better than we do, then we should trust his judgment," he looked at Tyrion who gave him a small grateful smile.
"Ser Jaime is still one of the best swordsmen in the realm," Ser Barristan pointed out through gritted teeth and Rhaegar nodded in agreement.
"He was named to the Kingsguard at a very young age for that reason," he added.
"Fine," Jon said with a sigh. "We will take in Ser Jaime. However, we will be careful about where we use him. I don't want him to fight against Lannister forces. I don't want him to see his father's army and start questioning his loyalty on the battlefield,"
"What are your plans for Lord Tywin after you win the war, your grace?" Ser Barristan asked.
"Death" Daenerys said firmly and Jon nodded. Rhaegar usually found himself counselling mercy to them but in this case he agreed. What Tywin Lannister did to his wife and children was inexcusable. They were innocent of any crimes and he had his dogs attack them all the same. He turned his head towards Tyrion and saw that he too was nodding in agreement.
"Tyrion, I thought you would have had an objection to this," Rhaegar said and he shook his head.
"I spoke to my father before I came here. He has shown no remorse for what he did to me," Tyrion said bitterly and Rhaegar nodded slowly.
"Tyrion we spoke to Lord Stark earlier," Jon said and he saw Tyrion look at him hopefully. "It did not go well," and Jon briefly recapped the conversation to him, somehow the tale grew worse at the second time of telling.
"That is not good," Tyrion said after he heard the story. "It means we need the Reach now,"
"I will handle the Reach," Daenerys said firmly. "We need to discuss something else with you,"
"We need to discuss the Riverlands," Jon said "Some of the Riverlords are already loyal to us and perhaps we will be able to convince more of them to join our side today however we will need new overlords," Jon said and Rhaegar agreed with him. The Tullys had tried to betray him before as part of the conspiracy to sit Robert Baratheon on the throne. They had also fought to overthrow his family in the rebellion when they had no right to feel aggrieved by his house. They should have remained loyal to the crown. There was also the selfish actions of Catelyn Tully towards his son, actions she clearly did not feel any remorse over. Yes, the Tully's would have to be punished.
"I understand the need to punish House Tully," Tyrion said "Stripping them of their position as Lord Paramounts of the Riverlands would be a wise step as would reducing the amount of lands they own and giving those lands to neighboring, loyal lords. Who will you raise to the position of Overlord in their stead?"
"We don't know. We don't know much about the Riverlords," Dany admitted "That's why we need your help. We need a Lord that is powerful enough to hold the Riverlands for us and we don't know who to choose,"
"House Whent could be an option your grace," Ser Barristan said.
"They are unable to maintain Harrenhal," Rhaegar pointed out. "As we are hosting and paying for the council, they have enough money to hire enough people to clean the entire castle but they cannot do it without our help. I am not sure you should raise them to the position of Lord Paramount of the Riverlands,"
"I imagine the other houses are in a similar position," Tyrion muttered "You could just annex the Riverlands,"
"What?" Ser Barristan asked
"Join the Riverlands to the Crownlands. That way you will be their overlords," Tyrion explained and Rhaegar found himself shaking his head.
"That wouldn't work. It would put an enormous amount of work on their plate. One of the advantages of having overlords is that it they can manage their own region and filter issues so only the more serious matters get brought up before the King," Rhaegar said. "If you remove that then you will have to deal with nearly every issue in the Riverlands as well as the other bigger issues in the realm and beyond,"
"That's true but it is an alternative to selecting a new overlord. Perhaps, the best course of action would be to wait until the war is over until you select a new lord paramount," Tyrion advised and Rhaegar nodded in agreement.
"We have a bit of time before the council starts," Daenerys said. "Brother, can you stay here with Jon and Ser Barristan. Tyrion and I will speak to the Tyrells,"
Rhaegar looked at Jon who nodded slowly. She gave him a quick kiss before she and Tyrion left the room to go and find the Tyrells. Once she was gone, he saw Jon run his hands through his hair.
"How do you feel son?" he asked
"I hate the fact that it's come to this. I don't want to fight against Robb, or Bran, or anyone from Winterfell," he said quietly and Rhaegar sat next to him and gently rubbed his back trying to comfort him.
"We'll find a way Jon. I think that our best plan will be to win in the south as soon as we can. If we defeat Robert quickly, then there will be nothing left to fight for,"
"Well, let's hope we defeat Robert quickly,"
The Kraken's Daughter
Asha Greyjoy was walking through the hallways of Harrenhall with her father. They intended on seeing King Robert and Lord Stark to try and negotiate terms to get her brother back. However, her father had no idea that she had already personally agreed terms with the Targaryens.
A part of Asha was curious to see her brother again, she had not seen him in over 10 years and she realised that he would scarcely remember her. However, another part of her was jealous of Theon. She had worked side by side with their father for years but her father had jumped at the opportunity to get his son back to name him as his heir.
Asha knew that her father was a brave but foolish man, his embarrassing defeat in the rebellion had proved this. She knew that he likely had some pathetic scheme or trick in his mind that would likely only serve to bring further embarrassment onto their people. Asha loved her father despite his weaknesses and she did not like the idea of going against her family, but she needed to do this to help the Iron Islands in the long term. If her father tried to bring back the Old Way then the Ironborn would never recover.
She carefully watched her father as they walked towards the King's rooms. He was muttering things to himself and she saw him smile after a few words. Yes, he was definitely plotting something.
Soon, they arrived outside of a door that was guarded by two knights of the Kingsguard.
"Lord Balon Greyjoy to see King Robert Baratheon," her father said to the men. They looked at each other slowly before one entered the room briefly. He returned and then he sent them in. The King's rooms were moderately sized, much bigger than her's at Pyke however Asha couldn't help but notice that the room looked, plain . The room was simply furnished and Asha could not help that the King would not be happy with this accommodation.
She spotted the King sitting in a chair by the fire. She had heard stories about King Robert, she heard that he was a strong and fierce warrior. As she looked at him, she realised that those stories were probably true but she knew that he would be no match for the dragons that she had seen. Her father truly was a fool for even trying to negotiate with him. Perhaps, she should have told him of her agreement with the Targaryens, they would win this war and he would get Theon back regardless.
"Balon Greyjoy," the King boomed. "My Hand will be here shortly. Then, we can discuss whatever it is you want to discuss," Asha noticed the cup of wine not too far from him. They waited in silence for a few moments before Lord Stark thundered into the room. The first thing Asha noticed was how angry he looked, his face was red and he was his hair had come loose.
"Ned, what happened to you?" the King asked in a quiet voice.
"I will explain it to you later," he growled. Then he turned towards Asha and her father. "Lord Greyjoy," he rumbled in greeting.
"Theon?" her father as she turned towards the young man that had walked into the room with him. Theon wore a thick black fur lined cloak, underneath she saw that he was wearing an expensive looking doublet with a white leather belt. She saw several pieces of gold jewellery on his body including one around his neck, he truly looked like a greenlander.
She glanced at her father who seemed to have reached a similar conclusion, however he quickly fixed his face and turned it into a smile. Asha was certain now, he was plotting something.
"Father," Theon said confidently as he puffed his chest out and swaggered over to their father. Asha nearly laughed at the display, what on earth had Lord Stark been teaching him?
"It's been 9 years," Balon said quietly.
"10 in fact. I left a boy but I am a man now," Theon replied loudly and Asha rolled her eyes. Theon was cocky, she knew that straight away.
"Do you remember me little brother?" she called out and Theon immediately turned towards her and she saw him gape slightly as his eyes widened.
"The pimples left and the breasts came," she said with a smirk. "But I kept the vulture's beak," Theon opened his mouth to respond but the King interrupted them.
"Yes, yes you have your reunion now let's get down to business," the King ordered and all eyes turned towards him.
"Balon. You can have your heir back if you support us in this war,"
"Thank you your grace. You do me a great kindness," her father said in his best impression of a sincere voice. "How may I serve during this war?"
"We will need your fleet,"
"The Iron Fleet is one of the most feared fleets in the world. It is captained by my brother, Victarion Greyjoy," her father said eagerly.
"How many ships do you have?" the King asked
"There are 100 Longships in the Iron fleet your grace,"
"Good. I want you to sail them all towards Dragonstone. Then we can trap the Dragonspawn on the island,"
"They have Dragons and wooden ships burn," Asha pointed out and the King gave her a dirty look.
"Silence yourself woman," her father whispered.
"You think I don't know they have Dragons!" the King roared and Asha saw his face start to go red.
"My apologies your grace, my daughter often forgets herself. I should not have brought her here, I only wanted her to see her brother that is all," her father stammered and she rolled her eyes before apologizing to the King.
"Don't bother. We are finished here," the King said as he stood up. "Do we have a deal? Do I have your support?"
She watched her father look at the King before he nodded. "Yes my King, you can count on my support," he said with a deep bow
"Ned stay. We need to finish that conversation we started earlier," the King said to his Hand. Asha watched as he scowled before he slowly nodded. Asha, Balon and Theon quickly left the room and headed away towards the great hall where the council would be taking place. They walked in silence until they reached an alcove in a wall and then Balon turned and pushed Theon roughly against the wall.
"What is this?" he asked as his hands touched the golden necklace he wore around his neck.
"It's a golden chain father,"
"Was it brought with iron or with gold?" his father demanded as his fingers slowly wrapped around the chain. In the old way, woman would sometimes decorate themselves with ornaments brought with coin but a warrior wore only the jewelry he took off the corpses of the enemies he had slain, it was called paying the Iron Price.
Her father saw Theon's hesitation and then he ripped the necklace off his neck with so much force Asha was sure Theon's head was going to come off.
"Even my daughter for all her flaws understands the Iron way. I will not have my son and heir dress himself like a whore," he spat and Asha scowled at his words. He had just gotten Theon back but he was already treating him as his heir.
"Look at the rest of you. You a dressed like a greenlander, the Starks have made you soft,"
"That is a lie," Theon proclaimed. "The Starks were my captors, my blood is still salt and iron,"
Her father watched him before he smirked.
"We shall see about that. We need to find you some proper clothes. You need to look like a Greyjoy ," he said as he looked up at down at Theon in disgust.
"Father, what are you planning?" Asha asked and her father quickly whipped around to face her. "I may not be your heir but I do know when you're planning something. You are a terrible actor and you were clearly trying to hide something in that meeting. So why don't you tell us what it is?"
Her father flashed her an evil smile before he stepped closer to her to whisper in her ear.
"My son was the only thing they had that was stopping me. Now with my heir back where he belongs, the old way will return,"
Asha nodded slowly, her father was going to betray the King. He was a fool, a stupid fool. The Old way had died with Harren and his sons, right in this very castle but he was too blind to see that.
She would have to let the Queen know and she may even have to stop her father herself.
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