章 2214: 9
Chapter 9: The Hand of the King
Summary:
Ned continues his investigation and Tyrion sees a different side of his family
Notes:
I'll probably come back and make some minor edits to this chapter, nothing to the plot. Mostly presentation stuff, so paragraph spacing etc
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
The Hand of The King
It was early morning in Kings Landing and Ned Stark had risen early. His mind was consumed with the goal of trying to solve the mystery that was in front of him. He was nearly certain that Jon Arryn had been poisoned, yet he could not figure out why, or most importantly who did it. He realized that if he could figure out the answer to one question, the answer to the other would not be far behind
As Hand of the King, Jon Arryn would have had plenty of enemies, lords who wanted his position or lords who had been disadvantaged by reforms he had put in place, but how many of those lords would resort to murder and most importantly how many would use poison as the weapon. Ned knew the list of names would be few. Poison was known as a woman's weapon of choice. However, Ned realized that no man would be brave or foolish enough to kill the Hand of the King with his own hand, so he quickly dismissed this thought.
As he sat in his bed, Ned's mind went over all the information that he had gathered with the help of Lord Varys. They had prepared a list of people who would have had a grievance with Jon Arryn, that list, itself was short, Jon Arryn was a well-liked man. From that list of names, they had tried to work out who would have been able to acquire Tears of Lys and put it into his food. That pretty much reduced the list to no names at all.
As Pycelle had repeatedly pointed out to him earlier, Tears of Lys was extremely rare which meant that whoever had obtained it, must have been extremely wealthy. On top of that, he had spoken to stewards in the Red Keep and they had said that Jon Arryn's household had remained the same for years. There were no new cooks, servants or maids that could have been hired and instructed to poison him. The whole thing did not make any sense to him.
With a frustrated growl, he tossed the sheets off him and padded across the cold floor and out onto the balcony. From his room at the top of the Tower of the Hand, he could see the entire city. He could see smoke slowly rising from the chimneys of houses in Flea Bottom. Perhaps he would go out and see them today, he found it comforting to get away from the lords in the Red Keep. He could see merchant ships slowly making their way down the mouth of the blackwater rush. Carrying goods and cargo from all around the world. Ships from Lannisport, Braavos, Myr even Pentos would come into the harbour looking to trade.
At the thought of Pentos, Ned's thoughts turned to Jon. Jon had sent him one letter since he had arrived in Essos. It had come along with an urn containing Ser Wendel Manderley's ashes. Jon's letter explained that he and Ser Wendel were attacked by a group of thieves in Pentos and that Ser Wendel had suffered a fatal wound during the fight. Jon insisted that he was fine, and that he had found work acting as a guard for a magister in Pentos. Jon said that his employer was decent and kind and that he was happy there. Ned found this to be a small comfort during these troubling times. Once, he solved the mystery behind Jon Arryn's death, Ned had half a mind to travel to Pentos and find Jon.
Unfortunately, he quickly realized that Robert would not be able to run the realm if he left, he would be confined here for a long time. Perhaps he should leave anyway, and take Arya with him. She had been very sad at Jon's abrupt departure, and Ned felt guilty. He had caused his daughter to feel this pain, if he hadn't have told Jon, he would still have been in Winterfell and Arya would still be able to send him letters.
Sansa seemed to be loving the southern life, she spent her afternoons walking through the gardens and talking to the other noble women of the court. She had started to adopt and wear the southern styles of dress and she even put these new styles into her needlework.
Arya, on the other hand had not made any attempts to integrate herself into the southern lifestyle. She spent all of her time with Syrio Forel doing whatever nonsense he instructed her to do as part of her training. Whether it was balancing on one leg, or chasing cats all around the castle, she would do it. No matter how painful it seemed.
He looked up at the sky and saw that the red comet had still left its mark on the sky. He remembered the day he first saw it, he had never seen anything like it. He had never seen a comet shine so bright, or have that terrible colour. It was red, the colour of fire and blood. Ned tilted his head to the left slightly and thought it looked like a red sword, fresh from the forge. Then, he straightened his head and the resemblance was gone.
It had burned in the sky for days and the common folk had even started to call it Joffrey's comet, for it appeared in the sky on the night of his name day. They said that it was a sign of his strength, that he would be a just and noble King. Ned had scoffed at that, when Joffrey ascended the throne, he would have to do his best to control him and his cruel impulses. He would need to send the boy's mother away if he was to do that, Queen Cersei spoiled her son and made excuses for his behaviour. Yes, she would have to be kept away, for him to have any chance at reigning Joffrey's nature.
He had also heard the servants calling the comet, 'the Dragon's Tail', the thought caused him to think of the last dragon.
Rhaegar Targaryen was an intriguing and complicated man. He seemed to have loved Ned's sister but his actions were reckless. He should have sent a raven to Winterfell informing them of her whereabouts and his intentions regarding her, instead he stuck to the shadows and let the realm fall into rebellion. As for his father, Ned had no doubts about the character of the Mad King. That man had brutally murdered his father and brother under the guise of a fair trial, he deserved to die.
Ned decided, it was good that the Targaryen reign had ended, the last two dragons had not been good men. Their actions had caused the deaths of thousands. But then, he thought of the three year old Rhaenys and baby Aegon, Daenerys and Viserys, they were innocent. Not all of the Targaryens, were bad. There was also Jon, he was good.
He took one last look at the comet before heading back inside. The comet meant nothing, it was just a comet.
He had more pressing concerns at the moment. His steward knocked on his door and brought him his breakfast. Good, he was starving. He broke his fast on sausages and warm bread with cheese, washed down with a cup of milk. After he had eaten, he moved to his desk and sat down to begin his work. He could not spend all of his time investigating Jon Arryn's death, he had actual work to do too. This morning he had to meet with several envoys from the free cities, no doubt trying to sell the crown something or the other. He heard a knock on the door, his steward had returned to let him know that his guests were waiting for him.
The meetings passed without much of note occurring. After the meetings, he was scheduled to have lunch with Lysa Arryn. Surprisingly, she had returned to the capital and had asked to have lunch with him. Ned was looking forward to this. She would have good knowledge of Jon Arryn and she would know if there had been anything unusual occurring during his final days. She had spent some time with the girls a few days ago which he had been happy for. Sansa had only met her when she was young, and Arya had never met her at all. Spending time with family was important, it was even part of House Tullys words. 'Family, duty, honour', he remembered.
He had agreed to have lunch with her in one of the gardens overlooking the Blackwater. When he found her, he was surprised to see her son sitting in her lap. The boy must have been older than Rickon, and yet he sat there sucking his thumb.
"Lady Arryn, it's been a long time," he said with a smile.
"Ned, how have you been? I am so happy to see you! I have not seen you in too long, please, call me Lysa," she said with a smile that faltered slightly.
"I have been well, I am sorry for your loss," he said sincerely.
"Thank you, my Lord, although I need to share something with you on that matter, but first, how is Cat? I have not seen her in years, you should tell her to come visit me,"
"Cat is fine, she is rather busy at the moment, I'm afraid. Robb is ruling Winterfell and the North in my stead, our son, Brandon had suffered a fall, a few months ago and little Rickon is still very young. She needs to be with them at the moment" he said solemnly. Bran had awoken, but he had lost the use of his legs permanently.
"How is your son? Have the maesters found a cure?" he asked. He had heard that the boy had been suffering from a disease that made him prone to fits and seizures.
"No, they have not, Maester Colemon bleeds him and gives him painkillers but it is of no use," she said as she stroked the boys brown hair. "That maester is useless, he couldn't save my husband either,"
"Maester Colemon tried to treat Jon Arryn? I thought, it was the Grand Maester,"
"The Grand Maester sent him away to treat Jon, himself,"
"Is he here? I would like to speak with him if that is the case,"
"Yes, he is here, but we will speak more about Colemon later, I can see that our food has arrived,"
A few servants had arrived with their meal and they sat down to eat. They ate roast chicken with greens and Lysa had Arbor Gold bought for them to drink. After they had finished eating, Ned sat silently and waited for her to speak, she had requested to have lunch. She must have had a reason to seek him out. He waited patiently as she spoke softly to the boy and stroked his hair, evidently trying to put him to sleep.
"As you know, after my husband died, I quickly left the city. I feared that it was not safe for me or my sweet Robin here," she said as she continued to stroke the boy's hair. "I fear that my husband was murdered, and that I would be next," and she took a quick drink of wine.
"Lysa, this a very serious allegation, who would have wanted your husband dead? I knew Jon, he was a good man,"
She slowly leaned across the table "It was the Lannisters," she whispered.
Ned raised his eyebrows in surprise, he had not expected this.
"The Lannisters? Why would they want to kill him?"
"I don't know, Petyr thinks it was a plot from the Queen and Lord Tywin. Before Jon died, Lord Tywin had offered to have my baby boy fostered all the way in Casterly Rock, but thankfully my husband declined. Petyr thinks that the Lannisters took the refusal as a sign of disrespect and killed him for it,"
"Petyr? Do you mean Lord Baelish?"
"Yes, of course, I call him Petyr though, he likes that," she said with a smile. Ned was intrigued, he had not heard this information before. Fostering young boys with other lords was a common enough occurrence. This was how he had met Robert, they had been fostered together under Jon Arryn in the Vale. His brother, Brandon, had been fostered in Barrowtown with Lord Dustin. The concept of fostering was not unusual.
As he thought about it more, he was not surprised that Jon had declined the request, his son was young and sickly. He was not ready to be sent so far away from home. He thought of Rhaenys and baby Aegon, he would not have sent Bran or Rickon to be fostered by Lord Tywin. Who knows what horrible things they would have learned from the cold hearted lion.
"Petyr is very smart, you see," she continued happily. Evidently forgetting that they were talking about her husband's death. "He's able to read people, see what they want even when they don't tell you," she continued.
Ned realized that he needed to get her to focus again on the issue.
"Lady Arryn, Lysa, tell me about Maester Colemon, you said that we would speak more about him,"
She took another sip of wine. "Yes, Maester Colemon was Jon's personal maester. He has been part of our household for years. He was treating Jon when he got sick and Petyr had heard that he was successful, Petyr is smart like that you see, I told you, he can read people and find out their secrets,"
"Lysa, Maester Colemon please," he said, beginning to grow impatient. She was constantly distracted whenever Baelish was mentioned.
"Yes, Maester Colemon was treating him, succeeding even before Grand Maester Pycelle sent him away. Do you know why Ned? Pycelle works for the Lannisters, Petyr told me. Pycelle was here in the capital when Lord Tywin was Hand of the King, that's when their relationship had started. It was Pycelle who told the Mad King to open the gates for Lord Tywin to sack the city," she said quickly. Ned was intrigued, this information seemed promising.
"Petyr found all of this information and then told me, you should work with him, he knows a lot, together you could bring the Lannisters to justice," she said confidently. Ned's mood soured. Back to Baelish again.
"Thank you for the information, but I would prefer to investigate this matter in a more discrete manner," He did not trust Baelish. Not one bit.
"Why? Petyr can be trusted, I have trusted him my entire life! Ever since we were children!" she said defensively. "He has always been there for me and I for him. I was there for him after your brother butchered him. I was there for him when my father wanted to send him away, I was always there for Petyr," Lysa spoke passionately.
"My Lady, I am not questioning Lord Baelish's worth or trustworthiness, I am just saying that I prefer to conduct this investigation in a different manner," he said ignoring the line about his brother.
"Fine, but you will not find anything without Petyr's help. Petyr found out all about Pycelle and the Lannisters, whilst you have found nothing!" she shrieked, and she got up and left the gardens, clutching her son to her chest as she left.
Ned was left even more confused than when he woke up. Lysa had presented him with a lot of new information, but he was not sure if he trusted her or the authenticity of the information. Her insistence to trust Baelish and the way she sung his praises was most concerning to him. He would save this information for later and investigate it if his other leads led nowhere.
He stood up and walked back to the Red Keep. It may be worth seeing Pycelle again, to see if what she had said about Colemon was true. Pycelle being a Lannister pawn also made a certain degree of sense, Ned had wondered how the bumbling old man had managed to keep his position for so long and being a Lannister crone would explain it.
Most interesting of all was Lord Baelish's involvement in this. If Lysa was right and he could be trusted, then investigating the Lannisters with his help would be the best way to go about, but trusting Baelish was a big step. Ned wasn't sure that the man had ever forgiven the Starks for what had happened between him and Brandon all those years ago, he had made that much clear in their first meeting.
Lord Varys had also told him of the rumours that Lysa and Baelish had been more than familiar with each other. Much closer than one would expect, even for old friends. He had questioned the servants themselves and they all said the same thing. Perhaps they had a secret relationship, perhaps Baelish was the one who put her up to this.
Ned continued to ponder this as he walked through the castle. He was nearly at the Tower of the Hand when he spotted a familiar face,
"Ser Brynden! It has been too long," he said with a smile and he shook his hand. Ser Brynden Tully was Cat's uncle, she had told him many stories about him from her childhood. His face was weathered and his auburn hair had turned grey since the last time he had seen him, but he was still clearly the same man.
"Lord Stark!" he boomed "I have not seen you in years, how is Cat? How are the children?"
"Cat is fine, she is in Winterfell with the boys, the girls are here with me though, would you like to meet them. If you're free this afternoon I can send them to you,"
"No no, don't worry your girls. I'll pop in and see them soon. I just got in, I've been riding for days. Have you seen Lysa?"
"Yes, I just had lunch with her, why is something the matter?"
"I need to see her. She has been acting very erratically ever since Jon Arryn's death. First, she fled the capital, then she came back. I've heard stories that she's been drinking heavily. Hoster told me to go and find her before she brings further dishonour onto our house with her irrational behaviour," he said darkly "Do you know where I could find her?"
"I believe she went to her apartments, they're located in the eastern part of the castle,"
"Thank you Ned," he said and he turned and walked away down the hallway. Suddenly Ned was struck with an idea.
"Ser Brynden, please wait, if you don't mind I have a few questions about Lysa," he said quickly. Brynden stopped and looked both ways down the hallway to check that their conversation would not be overheard before nodding, telling him to proceed.
"I was wondering if you could tell me anything about Lysa and Lord Baelish. I understand they grew up together?" He looked at Ned with a confused expression on his face before answering.
"Yes, they grew up together. Cat, Lysa and Baelish. Baelish's father and Hoster became friends during the war of the Nine-penny Kings, and so Petyr was fostered at Riverrun as a favour. They were all good friends growing up, they kept running to me with their troubles and their worries,"
"Did you notice anything between Lysa and Baelish?" He asked cautiously. He did not want the blackfish to suspect anything.
"Lysa, perhaps followed him closely but there was nothing untoward going on. You see, Baelish was thin and sickly as a boy, so perhaps that's why she followed him, to make sure he was well,"
'Thin and sickly, just like her son'. Interesting.
"Why do you ask Ned?"
"I have been hearing rumours around here that Lysa and Baelish had been involved in a secret relationship,"
"Lies," he said immediately as he shook his head. "Lies born out of something that happened years ago,"
"What happened?" Ned asked quickly. Brynden stared at him, his bright blue eyes pierced into him but Ned held his gaze. He grabbed Ned and pulled him closer so that he was whispering into his ear,
"After that horrible business with your brother and Baelish, I heard rumours that Lysa had given her maidenhead to Baelish while was caring for him," he said quickly. "Hoster later confirmed to me that the rumours were in fact true and that he had given Lysa moon tea as she had gotten with child from that encounter. Once Baelish had recovered from his injuries, he was sent away from Riverrun. Hoster kept it a secret for as long as possible, he did not want anybody to know of her soiled state, but he did inform Jon Arryn of Lysa's condition before their marriage and Jon Arryn accepted Lysa though Baelish's name was kept out of it." Brynden confided to him.
Ned nodded his thanks and allowed him to continue on with his business. He walked back to his chamber in the Tower of the Hand and walked out onto the balcony, he could still see the comet in the sky. He pondered over all that he had learned today, the information about the Lannisters was intriguing but most worryingly of all was Baelish's involvement. He resolved that he would have to investigate it further.
The Imp of Casterly Rock
Tyrion Lannister was in a cheerful mood.
Ever since his drunken display at the tourney, his father and his sister had steered well clear of him. He occasionally saw them for breakfast but since he was such a late riser, he would only see them as they were getting up to leave. If he had known that it would have been this simple to get them to leave him alone, he would have done it years ago.
He strolled through the Red Keep whistling happily to himself. He pushed through the doors to find his sister, Tommen and Myrcella sitting down finishing their breakfast.
When the children saw him, he saw their smiles widen and their eyes lit up with happiness.
"Good morning uncle Tyrion," they said happily.
"Good morning sweet children, what are you having for breakfast?"
"I'm having Bacon with eggs and Myrcella is having porridge," Tommen said quickly "Would you like some uncle Tyrion?"
"Yes please, although I'll fetch my own plate," he replied. He walked across the room to serve himself and he could almost feel his sisters gaze trying to burn holes into his back. He quickly turned around to see her staring at him as he expected. He gave her a small smirk and she quickly turned away. He filled his plate and then moved to sit opposite her.
"Good morning, sweet sister," he said as he sat down. "Where is the lovely crown prince this morning? Is he out with the common folk? Showing them how good and kind of a King he will be as they seemed to claim?" he snickered. He was rewarded with another deadly stare.
"Mother said that you were going to go North to see the wall, is that true uncle Tyrion?" Myrcella asked.
"Yes, they say it's quite a sight to behold. Then I intend to piss off the edge from the top of the wall," he said with a wink towards Tommen, causing the children to laugh.
Cersei stood abruptly. "My children do not need to hear your filth, Tommen, Myrcella, come,"
"Mother, I'm not finished with my bacon!" Tommen whined. Cersei gave him a quick glare and he too stood up to leave. As she reached the door she turned back to look at him. She gave him a weird almost smug smile before leaving. Tyrion didn't dwell on it, his sister's games were easy enough to play.
His thoughts instead turned to Tommen and Myrcella. They were both sweet children and completely unlike their brother. Joffrey was cruel, impatient and horribly spoiled. Tyrion did not envy Ned Stark, someday having to serve as Hand to that idiot would be like trying to tame a dragon.
Tyrion continued to eat his breakfast as he planned out his day. He would head to the library and continue his reading on comets. He had been very intrigued when he saw the comet in the sky, it had attracted a strange crowd of people. All sorts of queer preachers, prophets and priests had appeared in the capital. Tyrion had even gone out in the city, to hear the various preaching's and theories. They claimed that it was a sign from the gods, indicating that the rotten summer had come to an end. They called it Harbinger and told all the people to cleanse themselves. To stop their drinking and whoring. Tyrion simply scoffed at this, drinking and whoring had not done a thing to him.
The door opened and he was surprised to see Lord Varys enter. He wasn't sure if he considered the spider a friend, but Tyrion enjoyed testing his wits against him.
"Lord Varys, would you like to join me for breakfast?"
"No, thank you my Lord," he said as he sat opposite him. He put his arms in his lap and sat patiently. Tyrion eyed him as he took a bite of bacon.
"So what can I do for you? I am sure you are not here to watch me eat," he said evenly. He was wary of Varys, no doubt that he was looking to further his agenda in some way or the other, whatever the agenda was.
"I am not here for me, I am here for you, I am going to do you a favour, there's something that you need to know." He said in a grave voice.
"A favour? I do not recall asking you for any favours, and what exactly is the so called vital information?"
He smiled then. "Once you see what I want to show you, you will be grateful to me," he said as he stood up. Tyrion watched him carefully, sighed and stood up. Why not play the Spider's game for once, it would be interesting if nothing else. He took one more bite of his bacon and followed him.
Varys led him through the Red Keep, Tyrion initially thought that he was taking him to the barracks, but then he led him down a dark staircase and then stopped abruptly. He looked both ways before stepping behind a statue, Tyrion curiously followed him into the darkness. Once, he was behind the statue he quickly realized that this was one of the Red Keep's secret passageways. Varys brandished a lantern and then led him quickly through the passageway. Tyrion quickly became lost, they took so many turns that it was impossible to keep track of this place, he realized that if he ever decided to come back here he would end up lost. As they walked, he could faintly hear the noises of the castle. He heard people talking, a woman moaning and the sound of metal being worked.
Varys led him through the tunnels until he suddenly stopped. Pointed at a particular part of the wall and motioned for him to be silent. Tyrion stood patiently and waited. The passageway was a little damp and he started to feel cold. Suddenly, he heard voices on the other side of the wall, he pressed his ear closer to listen.
"So, What did you find?" it was his father's voice.
"My spies have worked hard. His usual drinking partners are a few Lannister guardsmen," this voice was undoubtedly Cersei.
"Which ones?"
"Martyn, Lewys Piper and one they call Peck,"
"Good, those Guardsmen have served me long before him. They will obey my commands. What else did you find?"
"He spends most of his evenings in the taverns or whorehouses, his preferred establishment is Chataya's, on the street of silk,"
"Disgusting, but at least he is a creature of habit. We can exploit that,"
"When do you mean to have it done?"
"As soon as possible. I will speak to the guards today,"
Suddenly Tyrion heard the door loudly open and he heard a person enter.
"I'll cut to the chase, what are you two planning?," it was his brother. It was Jaime.
"What?" his father replied, his voice taking on that cold hard tone.
"What are you planning to do to Tyrion?" Jamie said, anger filling his voice.
Tyrion waited with bated breath, he could almost feel the tension on the other side of the wall.
"You told him didn't you," his father said after a long pause.
"Father no I didn't, I swear it, Jaime tell him," Cersei hastily replied.
"She did not tell me, no one tells me anything!" Jaime shouted angrily.
"Be quiet and sit down, I will tell you what you want to know," his father ordered. Tyrion knew that tone of voice, you obeyed that tone of voice.
"Tyrion has brought embarrassment and dishonour to our house, for far too long. From the very day he was born, till right now and he will continue to so for as long as he lives,"
"This is about the Tourney, isn't it?"
"You know full well what this is about,"
"Father he,"
"No. Do not try and defend him. What he did was inexcusable. He ruined your moment and then he embarrassed us all. I will not have it,"
"What do you plan to do to him?" he asked. Voicing Tyrion's question.
"Tyrion likes to drink and whore. I have told him to stop countless times, yet he did not listen to me. Soon Tyrion will have an accident because of his love for drinking," Tywin replied in a calm voice.
"You can't. He is your son, you can't do this to him, not after Tysha, he's suffered enough,"
"You dare speak that whore's name in my presence?"
"Oh stop that. You and I both know she was no whore and what you did to her was despicable. You just couldn't stand the thought of having a crofter's daughter bear the title of Lady Lannister."
Tysha was real? Did she really love him? Tyrion felt dizzy and he put his hand against the cold wall to steady himself.
"Watch your tone," Tywin said. His voice was dangerously quiet again.
"No, I will not watch my tone," Jaime continued angrily. "I will not stand by whilst you plot to harm my brother again. I'm his big brother I am supposed to look out for him. I will look out for him, I will not allow this to happen,"
"You will do no such thing," Tywin thundered.
"How do you plan to stop me?" Jaime countered.
"I will have you sent to the Night's watch, where you will live out the rest of your days at the wall,"
Tyrion gasped, he was bluffing. Tywin loved Jaime, Jaime was his golden son. Jaime had to know that he was bluffing, surely he's smart enough to realize that.
"You can't send me to the Night's watch, I am a knight of the Kingsguard. My vows are until death," his voice was uncertain
"I will tell the King to release you of your vows. Lord Stark would agree to it, you have told me how much he hates you. Lord Stark wanted you to take the black all those years ago, looks like his wish might just come true."
"The King won't listen to you, the King listens to no man. He's the King," Jaime said quickly.
"Do you know how much money the crown owes me? Of course, you don't. How difficult do you think it would be to convince the small council that I would void that debt in return for this one small favour?"
Silence. Tyrion waited, Jaime had to call his bluff. He had to for his sake.
"I will never forgive you for this. Either of you," he said dejectedly. Tyrion slumped against the wall defeated. He felt Varys pull at his elbow leading him away. Tyrion walked automatically, not knowing where his feet were taking him. On a few occasions, he had even bumped into the wall.
His father was planning to kill him and his sister was part of the plot. This explained why she gave him that smile. He was her brother yet she would happily help to murder him. It wasn't too surprising, Cersei had always made her hatred for him clear for everyone to see. Even his brother Jaime, the only person in their family aside from Tommen and Myrcella who showed any love or care for Tyrion decided to let him die to save himself. Jaime's betrayal is what caused him the most pain.
Then, he thought about Tysha and he started to feel tears forming. His poor sweet Tysha, he remembered her dark hair and her blue eyes. He remembered when they found her, being surrounded by a group of men on the side of the road. Jaime chased the men away whilst he had cared for her. He fell in love with her that day, he couldn't help himself. She was half starved, unwashed but he could not help but love her.
He remembered their wedding, it was in a field with only pigs for witnesses. They even ate the pigs later. It was just the two of them, sat by the fire, she fed him strips of pork with her hands, and he greedily sucked her fingers clean after. He remembered laughing and smiling and falling into bed with her that night. He remembered all the nights that followed, those were the happiest two weeks of his life.
Then, his father found out and he had sent his guards to bring them back from their cottage to Casterly Rock. Jaime had told him that Tysha was a whore, that he had bought for Tyrion, to turn him into a man. To prove this point, Tywin had her raped by the entire barracks, each man paid her a silver piece when they were finished. To make it worse, he had commanded that he go last, and pay her a golden coin, because Lannisters were worth more.
Tyrion was angry. Exceptionally angry, he wanted to march to his father's room and confront him. It seems Varys had sensed this because he stopped in the passageway and turned to face him.
"I am sorry you had to hear that my friend, but you should consider your next move wisely. If you go now to try and kill your father, you would have no hope for escape, you would find yourself on the executioner's block the day after. You should be patient, wait for a better opportunity,"
"A better opportunity? When am I going to find a better opportunity, I loved her! And my father," Tyrion couldn't finish the sentence, he was too angry. Instead, he slammed his fist into the wall.
"Yes, a better opportunity. I have friends across the narrow sea. Powerful friends with a plan to make a better Westeros, you could be a part of it,"
"Fuck Westeros. I don't care about Westeros, I want him dead, all of them dead," he said angrily.
"Yes I know, but you cannot kill them all. You are one man against three," Tyrion conceded his point. He could probably kill one of them, but there would be no way to get all three. If he killed his father first, his sister would ensure he had a slow painful death, and if he killed the Queen then he would get the same fate.
"You need a plan, a better plan. My friends across the sea will help you get your vengeance," Varys said quickly, apparently able to read his thoughts. Tyrion looked up at him, he looked into the Spider's eyes. He had planned this, he realized and he was using him to serve his own agenda.
Tyrion nodded slowly. He did not trust that Varys would not screw him over, but he admitted that Varys and his "Friends" were his best chance for revenge.
"Good, we need to get you out of the capital. Tonight," he said quietly and that is what they did.
Later that evening, Tyrion had gone out drinking with his usual partners. Martyn, Lewys Piper and Peck. Tyrion watched them carefully as they drank. He had switched his ale for water when they weren't looking, he needed to be sober tonight. When he heard the bells ring he knew that it was time. He slowly stood up and excused himself, telling his friends that he needed to make water. He waddled outside and onto the streets. He walked slowly, allowing his pursuers plenty of time to catch up to him and follow him. He navigated the streets until he was on the battlements overlooking the Blackwater.
He stopped to lean over the side, pretending to enjoy the view. Then, using a tumbling trick he had learned when he was younger, he pushed himself over the side and into a hidden alcove that could not be seen from above. He quickly felt arms pull him back from the edge and he knew that Varys had not betrayed him. He waited with bated breath as he heard his pursuers talking to each other. They thought that he had fallen into the bay. Good. Now they would head to the bottom of the battlements where they would find the mangled remains of a dwarf's body. Thus, Tyrion Lannister would be officially dead in the eyes of his family and Westeros.
Varys pulled him deeper into the alcove and into another hidden passageway, he quickly led him through the tunnels which seemed to head further and further downwards. The tunnel spat them out in the back of a tavern, near the harbour. Varys pulled him aside and then pointed to the box he was supposed to climb into. Tyrion sighed with frustration, he was small, but this was still going to be a tight fit.
He climbed into the box and Varys bolted the lid. He was then picked up and carried onto the ship, that would take him to wherever Varys's planned.
Tyrion closed his eyes and prayed that Varys was not going to screw him over.
The Hand of the King
It was late in the afternoon and Ned Stark was back in his solar. The red comet was still in the sky, the smallfolk and servants were still debating about what it meant. Most had agreed that it was some sort of omen from the gods, but then argued about whether it was good or bad. Some argued that it was a sign of good fortune and that the long summer would continue and that they would have a good harvest. Others argued that the comet was a sign of the opposite. They said that this comet had come to slay the season and bring on the autumn. Ned had more pressing concerns at the moment than trying to decipher the meaning behind the comet's appearance.
He had spent the better part of the last few days trying to investigate the relationship between Lord Baelish and Lysa Arryn. He tried to be as discreet as possible, not even using Varys and his so called little birds. He had carefully found the servants who had served in Jon Arryn's household to answer his questions and then paid them well enough to keep silent on the matter.
He had learned that Jon and Lysa did not share the same bed chambers. Jon often slept alone in the Tower of the Hand, whilst Lysa slept elsewhere in the castle. The servants had said that she usually slept with her son, but there were nights when she would to leave to wander the castle for hours because she had night terrors and needed to clear her mind.
He also paid close attention to the boy, Robin Arryn. If Baelish and Lysa were involved in a secret relationship, then perhaps Robin was the product of their affair. He could faintly see a resemblance between the boy and Baelish. The Blackfish had mentioned that Baelish had been sickly as a child, so perhaps he had inherited this affliction from his father.
Ser Brynden also mentioned that Baelish had taken Lysa's maidenhead and that Hoster Tully had given her moon tea to abort the pregnancy and this was not hard to believe. The Lord of Riverrun was an ambitious man and to have his daughter marry a man of Baelish's birth and status at the time would not have sat well with Lord Hoster. Lysa was the daughter of a great lord, she was meant to marry the son of another great lord. Not a minor lord like Petyr Baelish.
Acting on a whim, he summoned Jory Cassel, the captain of his household guard.
"Jory, find the girls and have them wait for me in here, do not let them leave until I return," he told him. Jory was a good man, he'd see that his instructions were carried out. Whilst his daughters were being summoned, he quickly left his solar and headed towards the Grand Maester's chambers in the castle. This was a risky move, Pycelle could not and should not be trusted, but he had to know. He had to know for certain.
He knocked twice on the door and then pushed it open. The Grand Maester was quickly getting out of bed, it looked like he had company.
"My Lord, It is late, I was not expecting any visitors," he stammered.
"Grand Maester, sorry to call upon you at this late hour but I have a few questions that I need answered as soon as possible,"
"Of course Lord Stark, it is my duty to serve the realm, if the hand needs help, I am compelled to answer,"
Ned took a deep breath before continuing.
"What can you tell me about Lysa Arryn's fertility?"
"Lysa Arryn's fertility? Why do you want to know?"
Ned stood silent and waited.
"My apologies, Lord Hand. I am not sure how much help I will be. Lady Lysa had many troubles birthing children. She had many stillborn children, I think it was three boys and two girls. She suffered miscarriages as well, both here and in the Vale, to my knowledge. I believed that she was having trouble conceiving. I considered approaching Jon Arryn with the offer to examine her but then she gave birth to her boy and I let the matter drop."
Ned nodded slowly. The pieces were starting to come together.
"Anything else, Grand Maester?" and Pycelle shook his head. "Thank you for your help then,"
He left the maesters chambers and headed back to his own.
As he walked he remembered that Jon Arryn too had trouble conceiving children, his first wife had died in childbirth producing a stillborn daughter. His second wife had died of a winter chill with no children. Perhaps Jon was the problem all along. If what the Blackfish said was true, then Baelish had no trouble getting Lysa with child. As he walked, he became more and more convinced that Robin Arryn was actually Baelish's son, but that didn't help him.
He reached his chamber and he heard noises inside. The girls were inside, and they were bickering. He quickly walked into the room and found them sitting in front of his desk, arguing over some nonsense.
"Enough! Girls, you need to stop this childish arguing that I always seem to find you doing, you are sisters, you need to look out for each other," he said firmly and they both nodded "Now, what can you tell me about your time with your Aunt Lysa the other day?"
"Why father?" Sansa asked
"I was going to send a raven to your mother and I wanted to let her know how her sister was, you know since they haven't seen each other in years," he replied. He hated misleading his children, but he needed to be discrete.
"Our time with Aunt Lysa was wonderful," Sansa said immediately "She is lovely, and she is really funny,"
"What about you Arya, do you like her?"
"She was ok I guess, a little weird," and Ned had to stifle his laugh
"What did you all talk about?"
"We talked about my needlework, she said she loved it," Sansa said immediately, "Then she asked Arya about her needlework and her dancing,"
"Really," he said with surprise "What did you tell her?"
"I told her that my needlework is getting better and so is my dancing," she said proudly causing him to smile.
"What else did you all talk about?" he asked after a pause
"She talked about her childhood, she said she how lucky I was to be marrying the prince, she said that when she was younger she wanted to marry the man of her dreams," Sansa said happily
"She also talked about growing up with mother and Petyr," Arya added, pulling an ugly face when she said the name. "She couldn't stop talking about him, about their mud cakes, they used to dance and sing together,"
Ned nodded slowly. This wasn't news to him, the blackfish had virtually told him as much.
"Oh and they even kissed," Arya added
"Arya! We weren't supposed to tell anyone, Lord Baelish told us to keep it a secret," Sansa hissed.
"He's our father, we're family. We don't keep secrets from family," Arya said fiercely, Ned felt a pang of guilt flood through him.
"What else did Aunt Lysa say?" he asked quickly.
"When Baelish came she started babbling like an idiot. She said that she did everything he said, that she didn't want to keep it a secret anymore, she said she gave him the tears, she said he couldn't do this to her," Arya said
Ned froze. She gave him the tears. It all made sense now. Lysa poisoned Jon because Baelish told her too. Perhaps Jon realized that his son was not his, and was about to confront Baelish, so Baelish killed him to keep his secret. It explains why the servants appeared to be clean, his wife poisoned him, thus there was no need for new servants. No one would suspect the wife or Baelish. In fact, Jon Arryn had even brought Baelish to court, no one would suspect the pair of them. Baelish must have heard that he was investigating Jon's death. That's why he told Lysa to recommend him to Ned, he wanted to know everything that Ned had discovered, so that he could cover his tracks.
He didn't even notice that the girls were still speaking.
"Thank you girls, you have been very helpful, now wait outside and send Jory in," he said interrupting their conversation.
They quickly left and Jory entered.
"Jory, who are your two best and most trusted men?"
"Harwin and Alyn," he said immediately.
"Good, have them stand guard over the girls doors, gather the rest of your men and meet me in the courtyard," he said firmly. He was sure Baelish would not try to hurt his children, but he could never be too safe. He stood up and crossed over the room and strapped his sword to his waist. He took one last look out at the sky. Night had fallen and yet the comet still continued to leave its mark. He turned his head to one side, perhaps they were right, perhaps it was a red sword. A sword with blood on it perhaps. His fingers flexed on the pommel of his sword, he hoped that it wasn't an omen that blood will be spilled. If Baelish was smart he would surrender peacefully.
He left the Tower and headed to the courtyard. Jory had gathered 20 men, which was more than enough. He marched them through the castle until he reached Littlefinger's chambers. He knocked twice and then entered.
It was empty. Clothes were thrown all over the room, the shelves and drawers were half open. It appeared Baelish had left in haste.
Ned's blood ran cold as ice. How had he known that Ned was coming for him tonight? Ned had been so careful in his investigation.
He turned back to his men. He ordered half of them to head down to the docks immediately and to find out if anyone matching Baelish's description had boarded a ship. He took the remaining men and headed for Lysa's room. When he arrived, he found that it was in a similar state as Baelish's chambers. She had evidently been in a hurry to leave as well. Ned slammed his fist into the wall with frustration. Cutting his knuckles on the stone. He sighed loudly and cursed before he decided to head back to the Tower of the Hand.
Before he reached the Tower, Ned decided to check on the girls. When he entered the corridor outside the girls rooms, he saw Alyn dead on the floor with Harwin clutching a wound in his side. There were three dead men lying about the corridor and there was blood everywhere. Sansa and Arya were standing near Harwin, helping tend to his wound.
"What happened?" He demanded to know as soon as he ran over
"We were in our chambers when we heard loud shouting outside. It quickly turned into a fight. Alyn and Harwin fought them off," Arya said quickly and Harwin only nodded. He was clearly very hurt. He ordered a few men to take Harwin to a maester. He decided to take the girls with him back to the tower of the hand.
Ned was furious and he guessed that Baelish was behind the attempt. He probably intended to use the girls as hostages to bargain for his life.
Ned was simmering in anger as he waited for Jory and his men to return. He hoped that they would return with Baelish so that he could punish him with his own hands. But, later he admitted to himself that Littlefinger was likely long gone by now. However if they knew where he went then maybe they could pursue him.
Ned looked at the comet's trail, as he waited. It was the hour of the bat when Jory returned with his men. He greeted them on his balcony.
"Did you find anything?" he asked immediately.
"Yes, a man matching the description you gave us boarded a ship headed to Gulltown. Also, there was a woman and young child with him." Jory answered.
"Thank you," he said frustrated.
"He attempted to kidnap the girls Jory," he said angrily "Thankfully he was unsuccessful but Alyn died protecting them. I will need you to make sure his body is sent back North to his family. Harwin was injured so I need you to ensure he gets the proper treatment. I will also need you to double the men guarding the doors outside the girls chambers,"
Jory quickly nodded before heading out to complete these tasks.
He would have to send the girls back to the North, at least until this had been dealt with. Sansa would hate it, but it is necessary, Robert will see reason. His mind then went back to Gulltown.
Gulltown meant the Vale and the Vale meant the Eyrie.
That fortress was damn near impregnable, he remembered. He had been there in his youth, getting through the bloody gate was hard enough, then the slow arduous march to the top would decimate nearly any army. The castle itself was not that big, it could hold at best five hundred or so men. It's just that getting to those five hundred men, would probably cost five thousand.
He ran his hands through his hair and pulled at it. The Eyrie had never been conquered, he remembered. At Least, not by any conventional army. Visenya Targaryen had conquered it using her dragon, but as he looked up the comet, he bitterly remembered that the Dragons were gone.
He gave out a loud drawn out sigh. In times like this, a dragon would have been really helpful.
Notes:
No Jon/Dany this chapter. It's unfortunate but this is an AU and they aren't really doing anything that different to canon. They're just heading to Astapor and having lots of sex...I don't want to bore you all by repeating canon so I decided to leave them out and pick up with them slightly later where I can start doing some different stuff with them.
Chapter 10 doesnt currently have a name because I'm rubbish at naming my chapters. It should be out Wednesday and it's heavy on Jon/Dany. I think like over half the chapter. Updates should start picking up again to twice a week.
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