The war was over. The Targaryn woman and her dragons had won. Jaime Lannister had been unable to reach the Capital in time to save Cersei or Tommen but he did reach it in time to be captured by the new kingsguard and escorted to a cell. He didn't know how many days and nights he had been in that cell. Time had melted together, losing all meaning. Then one day, or maybe it was night, he had no way of knowing, someone was standing outside his cell with a torch, A visitor. His eyes had not yet adjusted to the light before the visitor spoke.
"Jaime?" The familiar voice said.
"Tyrion!" He dragged himself to his feet and went to the bars. "I had thought you might be dead…"
"I had thought the same of you. No one told me you were here in a cell until a few hours ago. Of course I was furious with the Queen. She shouldn't be keeping secrets from her hand."
"You're hand of the queen?" He asked, shocked. "How can you be on her side?"
"How can I not? It never pays to pick the losing side...Jaime, a lot of things have changed since you were brought down here. Aegon Targaryn has been found and is living in the Capitol. The queen is willing to make him her heir and share the rule with him. He will rule the north and she the south. But he shows signs… there are hints of madness in him and there has been little I can say to convince the queen not to trust him."
Jaime didn't like the sound of that but what could he do? He was only a prisoner now? Why was Tyrion even telling him this? "Why are you here Tyrion?"
"I formally requested the queen to free you or have you banished to Essos if she preferred. She wouldn't have any of it and said I should be glad that you escaped execution. So I did the only other thing available to me, I went to Aegon." Tyrion told him warily.
"And?" Jaime knew he wouldn't like the answer.
"Aegon was married to Arya Stark, the real Arya Stark a fortnight ago. She was found in Braavos some months ago and not given any choice in the match. Aegon takes great delight in tormenting her whenever he can. He will allow you out of the dungeon and would have you go north with him and serve as shield to his wife. The idea of forcing a Lannister to guard a Stark amuses him to no end." Tyrion told him.
"Seven hells..," Jaime whispered. "If that's the only way out, I'll do it."
Tyrion nodded. "I expected you would. It will not be an easy task...I must go. Someone will be down to release you in a few hours after the papers are signed. I will see you again before you journey north."
With that, Tyrion was gone. A guard with the keys came a few hours later to release him as promised. Jaime was escorted to the red keep and down several long corridors before reaching the rooms that once belonged to Elia Martell and her children. Several kingsguards stood outside one of the doors. The guard escorting him knocked on the door, a white haired young man answered. He had to be Aegon.
"Ser Jaime Lannister." Aegon said with a broad grin. "I'm so glad to hear that you have accepted my offer." If the situation hadn't been so strange, Aegon's words might have been mistaken as genuine.
"It wasn't as if I had many offers to chose from." Jaime said.
"True enough." He laughed. "Now, go to the room two doors down, bathe and change and eat. Then you shall return here and begin your duties with my bride."
Jaime did as commanded. On the one hand he was thankful for a hot bath, clean clothes, and food. On the other hand, he was wary of what Aegon might have planned for him. He returned to the young king dressed in Lannister colors and armor as had been provided.
"Come, lady Stark is in here." Aegon led Jaime to the room adjoining his own. The room was dark but he could see a female figure sitting in a chair at the corner. "I have to keep candles out of her reach. She tried to throw them at me twice."
A servant brought in a torch and put it in a holder on the wall, far from the young woman. With the room illuminated Jaime could see several things. First of all, this was indeed the real Arya Stark. She looked much like Ned had and much the same as he remembered her. Secondly her face was bruised and she was tied to the chair. She wore a purple gown that was torn where it should have laced up the front, evidence of rape perhaps. Thirdly, her eyes were filled with a mixture of fear and defiance.
"I'd rather not keep her tied up but she won't stop trying to run away. Don't untie her. Just watch her until I come back. I have matters to attend to for several hours." Aegon said.
"Yes your grace." Jaime said, not taking his eyes off of the Stark girl.
"I thought you were in prison." Arya spoke after Aegon was gone.
"I thought you were dead."
She shrugged. "Not yet."
They said nothing else after that. There was nothing to say. They were from enemy houses and were now forced to serve a king that neither of them trusted. It was not as if they could reminisce about the battles their families had fought against one another. So the remained in silence. Jaime stood near the doorway and Arya sat silently in her chair. The servants brought dinner just before Aegon returned. The king ate half his meal while Arya pretended not to care but it was clear to Jaime that she was hungry.
"Untie her now." Aegon told him halfway through eating. "Untie her and follow her to the privy then bring her back to me."
Jaime struggled with the knots having only one hand to work with. Once she was freed he took her arm and led her out of the room.
"Don't touch me!" She pulled her arm free as soon as the door was closed.
"Fine. I won't touch you and you won't try to run away. It will only get the both of us in trouble if you do. Okay?" He said.
"Fine." She went into the privy and closed the door behind her. A few minutes later she came back out again and followed him back to Aegon's rooms.
Arya sat down at the table across from Aegon. A plate had been set for her there. She ate slowly, trying not to let him see how hungry she was.
"I was thinking Lady Stark, that perhaps we could dispense with the ropes after this." Aegon was saying. "I expect you won't try to run away again, not after last night."
Jaime noted the moment of defiance in her eyes, Then it passed and she managed to answer the king almost pleasantly. "No your grace. I won't try to run."
"Very good. I am glad to hear it. So you won't mind if I come to your bed again tonight?" Aegon said.
Arya visibly paled, her grip on her meat knife tightened but she said not a word.
"I'll not tie you up again. But if you resist, I'll break both your legs. Ser Jaime will help me do it. Won't you ser?" Aegon turned to Jaime.
Jaime felt sick. This was what Tyrion had been trying to warn him about and he had walked right into it. "I thought I was meant to guard your wife not torment her." Jaime shrugged and tried to keep his tone even, as if he didn't care about what happened to the young woman anyway.
Luckily for him, Aegon laughed. "Quite true. If you haven't the stomach for breaking legs, Ser Merton will be glad to accomodate. I doubt you have the strength for it anyway with only your left hand."
"As you say, your grace." Jaime said, masking his irritation as he had learned to do so often under Robert Baratheon.
When the meal was finished, the servants cleared away the food and dishes. Aegon got up and said with a dramatic flair, "Come my love and walk with me in the gardens."
Arya stood and went with him, allowing him to take her arm without protest. Jaime followed the couple along with several of Aegon's own guards. They were at enough of a distance that they could not hear what Aegon and Arya were saying but whatever it was, she was disgusted by it. Then Aegon stopped to kiss her and her body went stiff, arms at her sides, but she didn't pull away. The king laughed at the look of horror on her face and they continued walking. Eventually they made their way back to the keep and to the king's rooms.
"I think it's time to retire for the night." Aegon was saying, apparently to Jaime, "I haven't the energy to bed the lady tonight, she is quite exhausting. So she will retire to her chambers alone and you Ser, will sleep on a cot just inside the doorway. See to it that she doesn't leave her room. It shouldn't be too difficult as she'll need to climb over you to do it."
Jaime followed Arya into her windowless room as bidden and bolted the door shut behind them. Before he could fully turn around, Arya had pinned him up against the closed door with a dagger at his throat. "Let me make something clear, Lannister." She said. "Aegon would think it very funny if I murdered you in your sleep. I won't give him the satisfaction of being his executioner. But if you touch me, or even come into my side of the room, I'll chop your other hand off."
"Arya, put the knife down. I have no intention of harming you." Jaime said calmly. Something in her eyes softened and he knew she had believed him. She lowered the knife and took a step backward.
"Will you at least turn around so I can change for bed?" She said, defiantly.
Without a word Jaime turned around and waited. Arya shouldn't have been trapped in a room with her guard. Aegon should have given his queen her own private chambers with maids to help her change and Jaime was sure that Aegon knew that.
"Done." She said.
He turned back around to find Arya was already in her bed under the covers. There was a cot near the door. He took the corner of it and pulled the small bed across the doorway. Then he set to work on his armor. It had been difficult enough to put it on with one hand, taking it off was even harder. Arya watched from the bed.
"Do you want some help with that?" She finally said.
"Not really." Jaime answered.
"Do you need some help with that?" She asked this time.
Jaime didn't answer her. Yes, he needed help but he wasn't going to ask for it. The next thing he knew, Arya was at his side, helping him to remove the armor. "What are you doing?" He said.
"Helping you take this off. I can't sleep if you're going to mess with it all night." She said, irritated.
"I doubt you were going to sleep much anyway. Maybe you just wanted an excuse to be closer to your sworn shield."
"Don't flatter yourself. Just hold still so I can get these ties."
Up this close, and with her wearing a thin sleeping shift, Jaime could see that she had more bruises than just the ones on her face. She was a pretty young woman. Not the same sort of beauty her mother and sister had been but pretty nonetheless. The last piece of armor was off and she made no move to go back to the bed. She just stood there, staring up at him with those brown eyes.
"If he asks you again to break my legs, will you do it?" She finally said.
"No." Jaime said, knowing he couldn't willingly do something like that.
"If he knows you don't want to, he'll find a way to make you do it."
"I know." Jaime said. "We'll just have to make sure he doesn't find out."
She nodded agreeably.
"Things would go easier for you if you don't resist him." He said sadly.
"I know." She shrugged. "I'm trying not to. I was never any good at being a lady and Aegon…"
She didn't have to finish the words. He understood. Aegon was mad and delighted in tormenting her. If she fought him he enjoyed it and if she submitted he became angry. It was an impossible position to be in.
When morning came, Arya helped Jaime to put his armor back on. He allowed it without a word and turned away so she could dress without being asked to do so. They joined Aegon for breakfast, Arya at the table and Jaime taking his place along the wall with the other guards. They would eat after the royalty finished. Before the meal was over Aegon made an announcement.
"We leave for Winterfell at the end of the week."
Arya's eyes widened at the news.
"Aren't you happy to be going home, my love?" Aegon said.
"Of course your grace." She said, picking at her food.
"I'd have thought you'd be happier than that." He said, irritation in his tone.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you your grace." Arya said dully.
"I'm not disappointed at all. I find I'm just tired. I grow tired of your games lady Stark. Perhaps you need a lesson in courtesy." Aegon suggested.
"I'm not afraid of your lessons." She said defiantly.
"I know you aren't. Nothing frightens the brave indomitable Arya of House Stark. Though I'm sure that given enough lessons we can find something that will make you learn." The King said.
Arya said nothing to that.
"Ser Jaime." Aegon said after a few minutes of silence had passed. "I don't expect my bride was happy to have you guarding her last night. Did she attempt to harm you?"
"No your grace." Jaime said, it was an easy lie.
"Did she try to escape?"
"No, she did not, your grace."
"Good, Very good. Perhaps she is learning after all. At any rate, I have matters of court to attend to today. I expect to be here when I come back for dinner, and don't kill each other, at least not today." The king was leaving the table and Arya called out after him.
"Your grace?"
He turned to face her. "What is it my love?"
"Might I be allowed to visit the practice yard today?" She asked as charmingly as she could.
"You'll be wanting your sword back?" Aegon asked warily.
"Only so I can spar with Ser Jaime." She said sweetly.
At that, Aegon broke into a fit a laughter. "I should like to see that. It's too bad I'll be at court. Yes, have your sword back and spar with Ser Jaime. Only don't kill him just yet. We still need him alive to guard you from the northmen when we reach Winterfell."
"I need to change." Arya said hurriedly, the moment Aegon and his guards were out the door. "I can't spar in a dress."
Jaime watched her as she practically ran from the solar into her adjoining bedchamber. He didn't follow. She came back minutes later wearing a gray cotton dress. It was split at the seams on both sides and she wore black breeches underneath. The dress laced up the front with a neckline too low to be practical. He realized that perhaps she intended it that way, as a distraction for her opponent during a fight. She wore tall brown boots and a belt as well, probably to hang her sword from.
"My sword is in Aegon's chambers." She told him, crossing into the other bed chamber adjoining the other end of the solar. She came out of the chamber, carrying a braavosi blade and wearing a smile on her face.
"Do you intend to murder me with that?" He asked.
"Murder? No. I only intend to hurt you a little." She said.
Jaime went with her to the practice yard. There were a few knights already engaged in practice already and several onlookers gather on the seats facing the yard. He sighed. He disliked practicing with an audience since he had lost his sword hand.
It turned out that Arya was good with a blade. She was quick on her feet and able to avoid blows as easily as give them. Had he kept his right hand, they would have been evenly matched. But as it was, he didn't have a sword hand and he had been locked away in a dungeon for months without exercise or practice. She was beating him, badly. The crowd of spectators grew as the minutes ticked by and Jaime's frustration grew more and more. He had told her he wouldn't harm her, that he would refuse the king's orders to hurt her and here she was humiliating him in front of a crowd. He shouldn't have expected any better from a Stark.
He held his own for nearly two hours before he ended up on the ground, her sword at his throat. He put his hand up in surrender. "You've beat the cripple. Are you satisfied, lady Stark?" Some of the crowd members laughed and Arya's eyes widened, seemingly with the realization of what she had done.
"Get up!" She said angrily and loud enough for the spectators to hear. "It's ridiculous of you to let me win just because I'm a woman! Fight me for real this time."
He stood and took up his sword, their eyes meeting in a silent understanding. She would let him win and regain a little honor and he would continue to be her ally against Aegon. Her movements were only slowed just slightly for this match but it was enough for him to have the advantage without the crowd realizing the change. He beat her soundly and she pretended to be angry about it all the way back to Aegon's rooms. She tossed her blade on to the table and spun to face him, arms crossed.
"Why didn't you tell me you didn't want to fight?" Arya demanded.
He shrugged. "It's not my place to question the queen."
"A few minutes ago I was lady Stark. Now I'm the queen?"
"You're both I suppose. And you seemed so happy to have your sword back I didn't want to ruin it."
She just stared at him incredulously. "I was happy. I don't know how to live without a sword…" Her look changed to pity. "I am sorry for not considering…" She trailed off, not knowing the right words to say.
He shook his head. She didn't need to say anything. "You remedied the situation. It is done. We needn't speak of it again."
So they didn't speak of it again. They spent the better part of the day playing cyvasse. A game for which they were evenly matched. Some rounds Jaime won and others Arya won. Aegon returned that evening in a foul mood. Apparently he and his Aunt had disagreed about the guilt and sentencing of some Lord of the Riverlands who was accused of planning a rebellion. Aegon wanted him punished, beheaded. Danaerys wanted more evidence of his crimes before doing anything further. Aegon ate dinner in sullen silence. Arya kept her eyes down and tried not to disturb him while they ate.
"Come wife. We have heirs to make." Aegon said as he got up from the table. Arya followed him stiffly, her face was pale, jaw set with defiance, but her eyes held fear, Jaime noted.
Jaime stayed at his post along the wall, unsure if he was dismissed with the rest of the guards who were changing shifts or if he was expected to stay.
"Where are you Lannister?" He heard Aegon call out from the bedchamber. Evidently he was expected to stay.
"I'm here your grace."
"What are you doing out there? Get in here and guard your queen as you did last night!"
He couldn't quite believe Aegon wanted him in the room while he was bedding his wife but Jaime went to the doorway all the same. Arya stood next to the bed, her dress pooled around her feet on the floor and Aegon was pulling her small clothes off, leaving her totally naked. Jaime averted his eyes the wall on their left.
"Well, move your bed to the doorway as you were told!" Aegon said. "Gods Lannister, if you keep needing instructions to do your duties you'll soon outlive your usefulness."
Jaime closed the door and pulled his cot into place. He lay down flat on his back, not bothering to remove his armor. He stayed there unmoving, staring at the ceiling, trying not to hear the sounds from the bed and still hearing them all the same. He knew cries of pain when he heard them and he knew that Aegon was somehow aroused by her pain. At one point she grew silent and the king's movements stopped.
"Fuck you bitch! You've ruined it." The king said, followed by a slapping noise. Arya only whimpered in response. He hit her again, though this time it wasn't opened handed by the sound of it. Arya cried out this time and the king gave a grunt of pleasure and resumed fucking her.
The minutes went on for what seemed an eternity and finally it ended with the kings loud moaning. Then Aegon was standing next to Jaime's cot, unclothed and demanding. "Move Lannister. I'm done with her and would rather sleep in my own bed."
He got up, slid his cot out of the way and let the king pass by. Then Jaime pulled his bed back into place, and sat down on it, beginning the process of removing his armor. Arya was curled up in the bed with the blankets covering her from head to toe. She peeked out, her eyes brimmed with tears. She picked up her shift from the floor, pulled it on while still under the covers, then she came to him and began helping with his armor.
"Why did you kill Aerys?" She asked as she worked, a few stray tears were falling onto his skin.
"He meant to burn all the capital and everyone in it, and he asked me to bring him my father's head." Jaime told her.
"Is Aegon as mad as Aerys?"
"He seems to be." Jaime said, sadly.
"You're his prisoner as much as I am." She said. It wasn't a question.
"I know."
The last piece of armor clattered to the floor and she placed a trembling hand on his shoulder. They could hear Aegon's snores from the next room. "We should kill him." She whispered.
"Escape would be more prudent." Jaime suggested.
"He'd only find someone new torment. And he'd never stop looking for us…"
"Arya...we can't kill him. It could start another war. Think of how many people would die."
"Then kill me instead." She said. "I'm a Stark, it should be easy for you."
"No. I'm sworn to protect you now. I won't kill you. Besides, I don't think you really want to die." He said.
At that, all her walls broke down and before she knew what was happening she was weeping and sobbing and Jaime was pulling her into his arms and onto his lap. He held her there until she had cried herself to sleep. Then he carried her back to bed and fell into a fitful sleep himself on his cot.