Hi! I now write fanfictions for A Song of Ice and Fire. When did this happen?
While this is not the first piece for this series I've ever written, it is (obviously) the first one I'm publishing. I hope you guys enjoy it. I'm still unsure about a few of the characters, so if anyone has any constructive criticism, I welcome it. This is a modern AU, keep in mind, so some things are changed. For example, Jon is Ned's nephew and Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen are not Jaime's kids. Overall, though, I tried to keep most things true to the books.
Oh, and by the way, Merry Christmas to anyone who celebrates it!
Disclaimer: I don't own A Song of Ice and Fire.
"Loras, remember; my family isn't like yours," Renly told Loras for the millionth time. "Robert isn't too bad, but we should try and avoid Cersei if at all possible. And Stannis-"
"You've told me all of this already," Loras interrupted, a slight smile on his face. "Don't worry, Renly. Your family can't scare me off."
"You'd be surprised," Renly muttered darkly as they walked up to the front door. "One last kiss for luck?"
"Of course," Loras replied, pressing a gentle kiss to Renly's lips. "Now stop worrying." Renly sighed, but nodded and knocked on the door.
"Uncle Renly!" A young blonde girl opened the door with a wide smile on her face. Renly beamed at her.
"Myrcella!" he replied, gathering the girl up into his arms. "Merry Christmas!" Turning to Loras, Renly gestured at the girl. "Loras, this is my niece Myrcella. Cella, this is my friend Loras."
"Your boyfriend?" Myrcella asked teasingly. Renly sighed.
"Yes, Cella. But you mustn't say anything to anyone else about it."
"I won't," Myrcella promised. "Come on in, Uncle Renly." She turned to Loras. "Can I call you Uncle Loras?" she asked. Loras chuckled.
"If you wish," he replied. "It's nice to meet you, Myrcella."
"Uncle Renly!" another voice called, and a young boy ran to the door. Renly's smile widened.
"Tommen!" he called back, hugging the little boy. "Merry Christmas!"
"Uncle Renly, come see what Uncle Tyrion got me!" Tommen told Renly, pointing inside. "Come on!"
"Alright!" Renly replied, turning to Loras with a helpless expression. Loras laughed. Tommen squirmed his way out of Renly's embrace, then grabbed Renly's hand and dragged him into the other room. Myrcella turned to Loras.
"Would you like to come in, Uncle Loras?" she asked primly. Loras smiled.
"I'd love to." Myrcella grabbed Loras's hand and led him inside.
"Myrcella!" At first, Loras thought the man walking over to them was a child, but he soon realized it had to be Cersei's brother Tyrion. "I was wondering where my favorite niece had gotten off to."
"I'm your only niece!" Myrcella protested, laughing. "Uncle Tyrion, this is Renly's friend Loras."
"You're a Tyrell, aren't you?" Tyrion asked, looking up at Loras. "I've met your grandmother. Fearsome woman she is."
"That she is," Loras replied. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Lannister."
"Please. Tyrion." Loras shook Tyrion's hand. "Have you ever met Renly's family, Mr. Tyrell?"
"Loras, please. And no," Loras replied. "I've only ever met his oldest brother in passing."
"Well, you're in for a treat," Tyrion said sarcastically. "Good luck." Tyrion turned his attention over to Myrcella. "Myrcella, darling, will you dance with me?" Myrcella giggled and waltzed off with her uncle, leaving Loras alone in the entryway.
"Excuse me, please," a voice behind him said. Loras quickly moved out of the way. "Thank you," the man behind him replied. His eyes narrowed slightly. "Loras Tyrell, is that you?"
"Mr. Stark?" It was indeed Eddard Stark, his whole family behind him. "I-I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Robert and I are good friends," Ned replied. "What are you doing here? I haven't seen you for years!"
"I came with Renly," Loras replied. "I never knew you knew the Baratheons."
"Ned, dear, who is this?" the red-haired woman next to Ned asked.
"Loras Tyrell, my dear," Ned replied. "Mace Tyrell's son. Loras, this is my wife, Catelyn."
"It's lovely to meet you, Mrs. Stark," Loras replied, inclining his head slightly. Catelyn smiled.
"It's lovely to meet you as well, Loras. How is your father? I haven't seen him for years."
"Quite well," Loras replied. "He's-"
"Dad, how much longer will we be waiting in the doorway?" the younger of two girls asked. Catelyn turned to her, her eyes narrowed.
"Arya, what have we told you about interrupting?" she scolded. Arya looked stubbornly unrepentant.
"But I want to do something fun!" she protested. Ned sighed.
"Go on, then," he told her, gesturing out towards the party. Arya instantly raced away. "All of you can go," Ned added. The rest of his children followed more slowly.
"You have quite a few children," Loras commented. Ned laughed.
"Yes, I do. The eldest is Robb," he said, pointing out the tallest boy with curly hair. "Next is Sansa. She's the one with the red hair. Looks just like her mother. Then Arya, then Bran, and the youngest is Rickon." Arya was wandering around the room. Bran and Rickon were lingering around their older brother. Sansa was talking with Myrcella, who had apparently finished her dance with Tyrion.
"What about him?" Loras asked, pointing at the other boy that had come in with the Starks. He looked around Robb's age, but he had a solemn expression that wasn't commonly seen on a boy that young.
"That's my nephew, Jon," Ned replied. "I've raised him since he was a baby."
"Oh." Loras was saved from having to say anything else by the reappearance of Renly.
"Ned!" he said, sounding delighted as he held out his hand for Ned to shake.
"Hello, Renly," Ned replied. "I've just been talking to Loras here. I haven't seen him since he was Arya's age. I didn't know you knew him."
"Oh, Loras is a good friend of mine," Renly replied. "I'm sorry to have to leave, but Robert's been wanting to see me and my plus-one." Loras blushed slightly at the title. "Maybe we can talk more later, Ned." Renly smiled at Catelyn. "And it was lovely to see you too, Catelyn. As lovely as ever." Catelyn smiled.
"And you're as charming as ever," she replied. "Go find your brother. You know he isn't very good at being patient."
Renly led Loras away. "I didn't know you knew the Starks."
"Ned knows my father," Loras replied. "I've never met his wife and children."
"Sansa used to have a crush on me," Renly told Loras conversationally. "She still might. I don't know. It made visits awkward."
"But she can't be more than thirteen!" Loras protested, stealing another glance and the red-haired girl.
"Twelve," Renly corrected. "I told you it was awkward."
"Renly!" a loud voice boomed. Renly winced slightly. An middle-aged man with a clear family resemblance to Renly came over to them. "About time you came over to visit me!"
"Hello, Robert," Renly said in a resigned voice. "How are you?"
"This party is hell," Robert groaned, taking a large sip out of a wineglass. "Oh! This must be your plus-one." Something about the way Robert said it made Loras want to shiver. "Who are you, boy?"
"Loras Tyrell," Loras replied. Robert narrowed his eyes at him.
"Mace's youngest boy?" he asked. Loras nodded. "Nice to meet you!" Robert clapped a huge hand on Loras's shoulder. Loras smiled weakly. Renly's eyes shot him a clear apology.
"We won't be able to stay long," Renly told Robert. "We're supposed to visit Loras's family at eight."
"Well, that gives you another hour!" Robert replied. Loras stifled a groan. It had only been at the party for a few minutes, but he was already ready for it to be done.
"Closer to half an hour, actually," Renly replied mildly. "We need to factor in driving time."
"How terrible," a cold voice said from behind Loras. He turned to see a beautiful tall woman with golden hair. She was clearly Myrcella and Tommen's mother, which had to make her Cersei.
"Cersei," Renly sighed, confirming Loras's suspicions. "How lovely to see you."
"Charmed," Cersei replied shortly. "Who's your…friend?"
"Loras Tyrell," Renly replied. Loras inclined his head slightly. Cersei gave him a searching look before turning away.
"Robert, Stannis has just arrived," she told her husband. "He and his wife are over there." Cersei gestured towards the door carelessly. Robert sighed and went over in the direction she pointed. Cersei gave Renly and Loras a disparaging look before she swept off in the direction of a man that looked a lot like her.
"That's Jaime Lannister," Renly whispered to Loras. "Cersei's twin brother." Before Cersei got to her brother's side, Jaime walked away, going towards a tall woman who looked as if she felt rather out-of-place. "And that's Brienne Tarth," Renly added. "She and Jaime claim to be just friends, but they're clearly more than that." Even from behind, Cersei's disapproval was clear. She changed direction and instead made her way over to a boy leaning against the wall. "And that's Joffrey, Cersei and Robert's oldest son. We should stay away from him if at all possible."
"Lovely family you've got," Loras remarked sarcastically. Renly sighed.
"I'm sorry," he apologized. "We don't have to stay long. Then we can go over to your parents' house."
"It's alright," Loras told Renly softly. He discreetly slipped his hand into Renly's and squeezed gently.
"Renly," a stiff voice said. Renly dropped Loras's hand instantly and turned.
"Stannis," he replied. Behind him was a man that Loras assumed was Renly's other brother. Next to him was a tall, proud looking woman. Half hidden in the folds of her mother's dress was a young girl that didn't look like she could be older than ten. "And Selyse and Shireen. How lovely to see you all."
"Is this the Tyrell boy Robert was telling me about?" Stannis asked. Renly nodded stiffly. Stannis studied Loras's face for a moment. "You're Mace's son, am I right?"
"Yes, sir," Loras replied. Stannis didn't seem to like the answer very much. Renly quickly jumped in.
"Stannis, have you seen the Starks yet? They arrived not long before you did."
"Lovely." The tone of Stannis's voice implied he actually found that fact anything but lovely. "Selyse, we should go greet them. Renly, can you watch Shireen for us?"
"Of course," Renly replied. Selyse shooed her daughter out of her skirts. Loras struggled to keep from showing any shock as Shireen's face was revealed. Half of it was lovely, but the other half was covered by scarring. Renly smiled slightly. "Come here, Shireen." Shyly, Shireen came over, taking Renly's hand. Stannis and Selyse left without a backwards glance.
"Shireen, this is my friend Loras," Renly told Shireen, gesturing at Loras. "Loras, this is my niece Shireen."
"It's lovely to meet you, Shireen," Loras said with a smile. Shireen didn't respond, just pressing her face into Renly's shirt.
She's shy, Renly mouthed. Loras nodded slightly. "Shireen, dear, won't you say hello to Loras?" Renly asked. Shireen mumbled something that could have been a hello.
"It's alright, Renly," Loras said. "I imagine such a beautiful young girl has better things to do than say hello to someone as plain as me."
"You're not plain," Shireen mumbled. "And I'm not beautiful."
"You're not?" Loras asked, sounding shocked. "You could have fooled me. Look at this lovely hair." Loras reached for Shireen's hair. She didn't flinch away, so he took that as sign that he could touch it. "Why, this is hair that would be just perfect for braiding."
"You know how to braid hair?" Renly asked, looking surprised.
"Of course I do," Loras replied. "I've got a younger sister, remember?" To Shireen, he asked, "Would you like me to braid your hair?"
"Okay," Shireen replied quietly. Loras held out a hand. Shireen took it shyly.
"Come with me," Loras told her, leading her over to an armchair in the corner. "Please be seated, my lady," he told Shireen, gesturing to the ottoman in front of the chair. Shireen smiled slightly as she sat down. Renly stood next to them as Loras sat down in the chair. "What sort of braid do you want?" Loras asked.
"Something fancy," Shireen whispered. "Like a princess would wear." Loras smiled, his fingers deftly beginning to create little braids through Shireen's hair.
When Loras was done, Shireen's hair was in an elaborate braided style that looked fit for a queen. "Look," he told her, taking a quick picture with his phone. Shireen smiled when she saw it.
"I look like a princess," she whispered.
"The prettiest princess of them all," Loras replied. Without warning, Shireen threw her arms around Loras's neck. Renly watched with a surprised look as Loras hugged her back. When she pulled away, Loras placed a gentle kiss on her scarred cheek.
"We should be going," Renly told Loras softly. Shireen looked a bit disappointed. Loras gave Renly a pleading look.
"We can stay a bit longer," he replied, not wanting to leave Shireen. Renly raised an eyebrow.
"It's quarter to eight," he replied. "We're supposed to be at your parent's house in fifteen minutes."
He had a point. Loras sighed. "You're right," he replied. "Let's go find your parents, Shireen."
"Wow!" a voice from behind Loras said. He turned to see Myrcella, staring at Shireen's hair with wide eyes. "That's so pretty!"
"Really?" Shireen asked shyly. Myrcella nodded.
"You look like one of my dolls," she replied. "Do you wanna play?"
"Oh. Okay," Shireen replied, looking a little surprised at the offer. Myrcella grabbed Shireen's hand and dragged her off. Loras laughed softly.
"We should invite her over to our place sometime," he suggested softly.
"We can invite both of them," Renly replied. "And Tommen, if he wants to come. He can bring his cats."
"Cats?" Loras asked. Renly nodded.
"He's got three kittens. They were what he wanted to show me. Tyrion got them for him for Christmas. I doubt Cersei's pleased."
Loras chuckled. "Does anything please Cersei?" he asked. Renly grinned.
"Not really." He took Loras's hand in his own. "We should go."
"Shouldn't we say goodbye to Robert?" Loras asked, looking for their host.
"He's as drunk as a sailor," Renly replied, shaking his head. "Let's just get out of here."
Holding hands, Renly and Loras made their way over to the door. They managed to get out without anyone stopping them and they made it out to their car quickly. The drive to Loras's parents' house took about twenty minutes, so they were a little late.
"Loras!" Margaery cried as she opened the door. "You're late!"
"Sorry, little sis," Loras replied, dropping a kiss on his sister's cheek. "Is everyone else already here?"
"Yup," Margaery replied. "Oh, hi, Renly."
"Hey, Margaery," Renly replied, smiling. Following Margaery, Loras led Renly into his house. As he was immediately greeted by his older brothers, Loras was glad that he had a family that was as close as his. Seeing the happy look on Renly's face as he was greeted warmly as well, Loras revised the thought and was glad that Renly could be part of his family as well.