Author's Notes: The sort of sequel to "The Heart Beats for Two." I'm just a big fan of this crackship.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A Crown for a Queen
"Your father is going to win the tourney today," Catelyn told the sleeping baby n the crib. She leaned against the railing, reaching down to stroke the boy's cheek. It was early in the morning still, and she wore a tired smle on her face. When she looked up to her husband, her smile did not fade, but he thought he saw something that looked a lot like weariness in her blue eyes.
Jaime Lannister sidled up behind his wife, his arms snaking around her waist, and pressed his nose into her hair. It smelled of roses; and he closed his eyes, taking in her scent. "I wouldn't be so sure of that."
"Oh come now, you always win." Catelyn turned around in his arms so she could face him. She put one finger under his chin and wore a mock-serious expression on her face. "'A Lannister never loses,'" she added in an even more serious tone.
"I think you've been around my father for too long," Jaime replied, a small grin splitting onto his face. "He's become a terrible influence on you."
"Nonetheless, you should not worry so much," Catelyn said, sliding her hand to his cheek. Her touch was comforting and warm, as it always had been, even when their marriage had been cold and new. He had been the rock; and she had always been the water, slowly eroding the walls that he'd put around himself. "You've never lost a tourney; and I highly doubt you're going to start now."
"True as that may be, I've not competed in a tourney for three years, not since the tourney to celebrate our wedding." Jaime was not normally one for insecurites – and it wasn't that he was insecure now – he merely never got his hopes up. Of course he wanted to win the tourney and of course he knew that he was perfectly capable of winning it as well. Jaime was, if anything, cocky about that fact – but for some reason, today felt strange, it felt off, like something was wrong. Normally, there wasn't much riding on a tourney – and perhaps today's was the same – but his father had erected the event in honor of his first grandson's birth. Yes, today felt different; and when things felt different, he felt off-kilter. He hadn't felt like this in a long time.
Catelyn stood on her tiptoes and kissed him gently on the lips. "You are only twenty and one, Jaime; you're not an old man. I have complete confidence that you will win the tourney."
"And I will name you Queen of Love and Beauty," Jaime told her, that wise-cracking grin on his face again.
Catelyn's tired smile also returned as well, which both confused Jaime and made him feel guilty. "Of course you will."
The tournament had been tougher than he'd expected. Robert Baratheon looked like he might actually try to take his head off, and he hadn't even been in the tournament. It wouldn't have been proper, seeing as how no man but Jaime would have actually tried to unseat him. So many of the other competitors gave him a run for his money. Barriston Selmy had nearly knocked his head off, but Jaime had just barely managed to stay on his horse and unseat Selmy in the next run. A few of the other well-known knights and lords had all tried to knock him off his horse, but he had held true and strong.
But it had been Ned Stark that had nearly done him in. Somehow or another, it had come down to the two men: the lion and the wolf. The people had loved it. Jaime had glanced at his father sitting in the stands, watching him with the most severe look on his face. He'd turned to Cersei, who gave him a wink, promising him of what was to come later should he win – when he won. And then his eyes landed on Catelyn, who was sitting next to his twin. There was that sad look on her face again. Jaime's eyes flickered to Ned Stark, whom she was looking at. Of course seeing him would bring sad thoughts to her mind. She was supposed to have married his older brother, Brandon Stark. When Jaime looked back to his lady wife though, her eyes were only for him and she gave a slight nod of her head, her lips quirked into a tiny smile only he could detect.
I have complete confidence that you will win.
Jaime had shut the lid of his helm, picked up his lance, road hard and fast, and gave Ned Stark the fight of his life. The first time, they had stalemated; the second time, Ned had come terribly close to knocking Jaime right onto his ass; and the third and final time, Jaime unseated Ned so smoothly that it looked as if he'd just been playing a game the first two times. (He hadn't been though; he had been sweating bullets underneath his helmet.)
In a show of bravado, Jaime tore the helmet off his head and shook his head. He forced the horse to trot over to Stark, who was getting to his feet. "Mayhaps you should stick with melee, Lord Stark," he said, a small grin on his face. "You're much better with a sword than you are with a lance." But still not better than me, were the unspoken words that didn't need to be said.
"Do you take any honor in winning, Ser Jaime?" Stark asked as he took his helmet off and grabbed onto his horse's reigns.
"You know me, Stark," Jaime replied coolly. "I've not much honor in me."
Jaime tipped his head to the man and took the crown of roses from a man that had run up to him. Now was the real test – now was the hardest moment of the whole damned jousting tournament – now he had to proclaim his queen of love and beauty. In the past, he had always crowned his twin. It might have looked strange, but people always accounted it to the fact that they were twins and were extremely close. Besides, they looked so similar that people thought it might be one of Jaime's little jests, a joke that he was not only the winner of the tourney but also the best looking person in the crowd. Only Cersei and Jaime knew the truth of it. He named her Queen of Love and Beauty because she was his queen and because he loved her.
Even now, as he road the horse up to the crowd, Cersei looked proud and pleased. She was glowing in her crimson dress. Never had anyone been so beautiful. She sat next to King Robert Baratheon, not expectantly but as if she was already wearing the crown of roses. She had worn them so many times before. Even when he had not been in a tournment, the winner usually named her queen of love and beauty anyways. Everyone knew she was the most beautiful woman in Westeros. Ashara Stark was stunning and could hold a candle against her, but a Lannister always burned bright.
And then Jaime looked to Catelyn, and his heart dropped into the pit of his stomach.
Catelyn sat in her seat next to Cersei almost primly, her hands in her lap, her fingers woven together tightly. She was not looking at him, as if she couldn't bear to do so, and instead had turned her face back to Casterly Rock. Jaime had seen her sad before and had even seen her cry, but he could not describe the overwhelming sense of despondency and helplessness on his wife's face in this very moment. She knew what he was about to do. The last time he had been in a tourney and had won, he had named Cersei his Queen of Love and Beauty; and when he'd tried to explain it to Cat later, she had merely hid under her blankets and quietly told him to leave her alone. He saw that in her now – the utter defeat and acceptance. She could not stand to watch him defy her again.
Jaime watched, like he was stuck in slow motion, as Catelyn closed her eyes to keep the tears from escaping. The sunlight hit her face just right, almost making it look like her red hair was alight with fire. She had chosen to wore an emerald dress with golden designs, which he realized, upon glancing at Cersei, matched his eyes. He had always known that Catelyn was beautiful, from the moment he'd first met her at Riverrun and he had been attracted to her as well since the first tme they'd kissed and he had grown to care for her when she'd become pregnant with their son Robb, but he had not realized until this very he loved her as well. He had not thought it possible, though he had promised her that he would one day, but here he was, feeling visibly shaken by her ability to accept his misdeeds so wholeheartedly.
What else was there for him to do?
"I name you Queen of Love and Beauty on this day and until my last," Jaime announced, holding out the crown of roses, "Lady Catelyn Lannister."
Perhaps he imagined the audible gasp coming from the crowd, but he definitely did not imagine the way Catelyn jumped at his words or the way her eyes widened or how her lips trembled ever so tremunously. Jaime determinedly kept his gaze on his wife, knowing without a doubt that Cersei was wearing a look of both anger and betrayal. How could I do this to her? He had betrayed the woman he loved – and yet he hadn't at the same time. How could it be possible to love both Cersei and Catelyn at the same time? Like a whisper in the dark, his old words came back to him in his mind. He would always love Cersei, but he could love Catelyn too, just differently.
And he did. He loved Cersei passionately, but his love for Catelyn was gentle. She had managed to pull a side out of him that he hadn't thought possible. She'd shown him that he could be a man that he hadn't thought even existed.
Cautiously, as if she was afraid that Jaime would change his mind and give the roses to Cersei instead, Catelyn took the crown of roses out of his hands. When she turned her eyes to him, he saw that there were tears in her eyes. These were not sad tears though and the smile that came onto her face was not a sad one either. When she smiled and placed the crown on her head, Jaime thought she looked as beautiful as the sunset, glowing with all the colors, red, green, gold, and blue. She stood up from her chair to resounding claps and leaned over the railing to kiss him on the lips, which was more show of affection in public than they had ever done before. In just a heartbeat, her lips centimeters from his, she whispered in a barely audible voice, "Thank you."
Even when Jaime glanced to Cersei and saw her hurt and furious expression and the way she would not meet his eyes, Jaime did not regret what he had done. He had never seen Catelyn so happy because of him. The only time she had glowed this much had been after Robb had been born and he'd been placed in her arms for the first time. There was a fire burning in Jaime, and he realized that he was proud and pleased to have been the reason for her glowing smile. He would get hell from it later from Cersei, but she would leave for King's Landing in the morning, and Catelyn was his wife in the end. He had duties as a husband as well; and it was high time that he come to terms with the fact that he had grown to love for her.
When he and Catelyn made love that night, Jaime made sure that she kept that crown of roses on her head, no matter how much she protested and giggled. It was made for her.