Okay, word of warning. I have MANY plans for Tyrion Lannister. Oh, this is going to be fun. And oh, I love writing Cersei getting mad. It's fun! It's so easy to bug her.
Disclaimer: I don't own GOT or song of ice and fire.
JON POV
When first Stannis had come to the Wall, he thought it would not be that bad. That he would fight for them, help drive off the wildlings and go. When he wanted castles, he let him, they were not in use anyway. Now, he would rather the King on the Wall, would just leave.
His Hand, Davos Seaworth was a good man, honorable and honest, which was hard to find in men. His Hand was not that horrible. Stannis, and his thrice gods be damned Red Woman….
He knelt before the heart tree, looking at the wise face carved into the bark that wept tears of blood.
Do you weep for the realm? He asked or do you weep for the Red God that has come to your north?
Ghost sat beside him, silent as always and with red eyes the same as the heart tree. He rubbed the direwolf between the ears and said "What are we going to do Ghost?"
Ghost didn't offer any advice, and neither did the heart tree.
His knees were stiff from kneeling in snow so long. He stood and brushed the white from his legs. He was cold and he wanted a mug of ale and one night of rest without nightmares.
He barely stepped out of the godswood when Lady Melisandre was there beside him, all in red and with that pulsing red jewel at her throat.
"Lord Commander." She said, and he grunted in greeting. He wanted nothing to do with Stannis's Red Woman, and he knew quite a few of the men were nervous around her. They said she saw things in her flames, things that spoke of the future. Personally, he thought the future was something no one should try to see.
"His Grace wishes to speak with you urgently." She said. Jon frowned. He had been in the godswood since noon, and it was long past that now.
"Why did you not come and fetch me then, if it was so urgent?" he asked.
Melisandre looked back at the godswood and said "It is a place of evil gods. R'hollor is the one true god. They are trees that you worship, and think that they are gods."
He didn't like people insulting his gods. The gods he prayed to, the gods his father, his brother, his family, Starks beyond count had prayed to for guidance and help.
"You may bow to one god and I to another, but I would ask you not call them evil gods. They are the gods of the north, and they hold power here." He said.
They protected my brother. He added on to himself they saved Robb, and I can never thank them enough.
Melisandre didn't say anything, not about the old gods or hers and they finished the trip to Stannis's chambers in silence.
Stannis had taken up chambers in the King's Tower, and that was where he waited for Jon now, with his Hand and his queen's brothers and uncles and cousins, all with the unfortunate Florent ears. They all looked at him as if he were the enemy, being paraded in front of them.
"They voted this green boy their Lord Commander?" one Florent asked, and Jon tried to not visibly bristle. Ghost stepped in after him and several men jumped back and stumbled.
"What the hell is that thing?" the man asked, the one who called him a green boy.
Jon placed his hand on Ghost's back, who was already tall enough that he had to lift his arm to reach his back.
"This is Ghost. He's a direwolf. They don't have those in the Reach, do they?" he asked. The man scowled and Jon turned to the King and Davos. Both had seen Ghost before, so both were unfazed and he said "You asked to see me Your Grace."
He had learnt early on it was easier to just call Stannis his king. It saved him from getting irritating to early on.
Stannis stood, and he looked thinner than when he had last seen him. He was thin, drawn, pale and shivering even under the heavy cloak he wore. He was from the south, Jon reasoned, he would not be used to the cold weather.
"You have not given an answer on which north lords would ally with me." He said. All eyes seemed to go immediately to him, even Ghost's.
He didn't want to say who. That would be betraying his brother, taking the lords that were his and giving them to Stannis. But he couldn't deny the king forever.
"Because it is not my place to speak of such things." And idea struck him, like a bolt of lightning during a storm of chaos. It would work for Stannis, enough that he would believe he was doing it for his benefit. And he would see him, if only one more time.
"Why not just send a letter to my brother, asking for his allegiance?" he asked. He should have just announced he was actually a Targaryen, the effect would have been the same. Everyone turned to him and gave him looks of surprise and stunned faces.
The man who called him green boy asked "What, let the traitor to the rightful king return for no punishment? Have you taken leave of your senses, or it your green boy instinct showing?"
He was no green boy.
"He would bring the allegiance of the Riverlands and the north, and he has far more experience in battle than half these lords here." He said. Stannis appeared to be brooding the idea and said "He did not bend the knee to me at first. There will be punishment, justice must be served."
"Remove him from Lord of Winterfell." One man suggested. Another called "Send him to this god damned Wall after. Leave his pretty little maiden sister as Lady."
Stannis stood and said "You are not as useless as I originally thought Lord Snow?"
Jon bristled but didn't make the stinging retort he could feel on his tongue. He bit the tip and said "Thank you Your Grace. Will that be all?"
Stannis waved his hand in a vague dismissal. He was now deep in discussion with the gathered lords and he took the initiative and left.
Standing in the cold wind, he glanced at the grey sky and wondered.
Did I do the right thing?
MARGAERY POV
Her father managed to hold back the anger he was feeling until they reached their rooms. Margaery was sitting at the vanity, Elis brushing her hair. Her stormy blue eyes looked up at the door as her father barged in, his face red with supressed rage.
She stands as Elis finished untying the ribbon from her hair.
"Elis, could you leave us for a minute. Why don't you go find my grandmother." She said. Elis set down the brush and curtsied, her black braid falling over her shoulder, and left.
Mace waited until the door had closed behind her before demanding "What were you thinking? You married Joffrey Baratheon to get in the Lannister's good graces. You ruined that, and you have damaged our family's reputation."
Margaery stood and said "The queen is a spent force, her power is dwindling. With Tywin Lannister destroying the last few forces in the Riverlands"
"We should be allying with his only daughter, not his disliked, younger son." Mace spoke over her. His anger seemed to die a touch and he said "Dear sweet daughter. Why did you do that?"
Margaery sighed and said "He did no crime, he did not kill Joffrey. Someone else did, someone much more dangerous."
Mace sighed and said "You will be the ruin of me daughter." He embraced her tightly and said "I cannot stay mad at you, not when you look so much like your mother."
"And you can't stay mad at mother." She whispered into his shoulder, where he had pressed her face "Father, you are not at fault for this. The Queen will see that, and if we are wrong she will pardon us. Lannisters are dangerously loyal to their blood. And for good or ill, we are their blood."
Mace sighed and said "Very well daughter."
Then the door opened and her grandmother was helped in by Elis, who looked like she would rather be anywhere else then with my grandmother.
"And see, when we were children…."
"Grandmother, you shall talk poor Elis's ear off." She said, freeing her new maidservant and taking her grandmother by the arm.
Grandmother turned on Mace and said "I will talk to my granddaughter alone Mace. Why don't you go find that Lannister queen of yours, see if you can't convince her that House Tyrell, minus a few, are behind the Crown? Do something useful."
Mace grumbled, but Grandmother's sharp eyes made him leave all the same. As soon as the door closed behind him and Elis had sat her down to start braiding her hair, Grandmother asked "Can you trust this little wench."
The girl flushed and turned to give a stinging retort, but Margery spoke before she could "Elis is a friend Grandmother, please, you scare away all my friend here let me have one."
Her grandmother shook her head and said "Well, if this little girly tells that Lannister queen what I said here, you can call your fried to save you from the noose."
Margaery waited till her grandmother sat and said "What did you promise Garlan to stand testimony for the Imp?"
She smiled and said "I didn't promise him anything grandmother, you know how much my brothers love me."
Her grandmother said "You are far sneakier then many would give you credit for. Smart bringing in Garlan, he sat next to the Imp at the wedding. If that Lannister wench got her little claws in him and made him testify against, then we wouldn't need a trial. We would need that daft tongue less man."
The image of Ser Ilyn Payne stepping from the shadows with his skull sword made her shiver. It had haunted her, that moment and Joffrey's choking, dark face. She shoved the images aside and said "Thank you Grandmother, so rarely a praise comes from you that I forgot how sweet it is to hear."
Her grandmother shook her head and said "Sweet words do not work on an old soul Marge, you should know that."
The Queen of Thorns got up and leaned over her shoulder, pushing Elis aside, who wisely said nothing.
"Be careful. That Lannister queen won't be able to stand you know that you have declared your support for the Imp. I would be wary around her. And tell Garlan as well, for I am old and can't go down to the practice fields."
Margaery nodded, and whispered back "I wouldn't trust her any more than she trusts me."
Her Grandmother patted her hair and said "Smart girl. We may be pretty roses, but we also have thorns."
ARYA POV
The Neck was not the same as Winterfell, but it was still better than anywhere she had stayed since she left Winterfell.
Mole, that little boy who lived in the Neck, tugged on her elbow and said "Come on, we aren't supposed to be here."
Arya turned on him and said "If you're too scared, go on then."
Mole flushed in the dim light and said "I'm not leaving. I'm just saying."
She ignored him now and crept along the dark hallways, tugging the dark cloak around her shoulders. She had to see. She had to know.
The cell was only a few iron bars, not even a real cell like in King's Landing or Winterfell. The Lannister captain sat tugging on the chains. He hadn't been cleaned probably since he marched out from Lannisport. Arya wrinkled her nose and demanded "Are you Kevan Lannister?"
The Lannister looked up and asked "What's it to you? Who are you, some little bog devil wench?"
Arya scowled and said "I'm no wench you stupid. Are you Kevan Lannister?"
The man stood and smiled at her.
"Say I was Kevan Lannister. What would you do with me child?"
Arya scowled at the Lannister. The way he was talking, he was used to giving orders, so he was probably from Lannisport.
"If I was in charge, and you were Kevan Lannister, I would keep you prisoner. Tywin Lannister won't trade for you, he would burn the Neck and kill all the crannogmen to get to you."
The Lannister man smiled and said "You're smarter than you look boy. And if I'm not Kevan Lannister, what would you do with me then?"
She scowled. This man was avoiding the question.
"If you weren't Kevan Lannister, I would kill you and send you back to you precious army in pieces." She growled.
"Are you Kevan Lannister?"
The man crossed his arms and said nothing. She was prepared to open the door and she would have threatened him with Needle if she still had it, but she didn't so she supposed a dagger would do.
His smile at her scowl and she second guessed herself. Before, she would have gone in there and attacked him without thought. Now, she wondered what would happen if she did. She was a small girl, he was a rather tall man and he would pin her easily, no matter if she had a dagger. Mole would run because he was small and young, only eight. Then the Lannister would be free with her dagger.
She smiled and him and said "Your baiting me. Gonna try and get me to open your little cage. Nice try Lannister."
It was his turn to scowl. He thought her a stupid little girl, easily fooled and manipulated. That had been her once, but not now. Never again would she be used.
She led Mole back upstairs, away from the Lannister man who would try to use her to escape. Mole glanced at her, his dark brown eyes wide and he said "He knew exactly what to say to get you mad. You knew what he was doing, you were like, a wizard."
Mole was only eight, he didn't know how bad Lannisters were. He only knew that a bad man was caught and she had known he would use them. He didn't understand anything else. He kind of reminded her of Rickon, back in Winterfell. She missed her brothers, she missed Winterfell. She missed her father.
She marched back up, and found lord Howland waiting for them, arms crossed and mud smeared across his nose.
His eyes were unreadable, and they faintly reminded her of her father's eyes, when he knew that she was practicing archery with Jon.
"What are you doing down there?" he asked, his eyes on Arya.
Mole answered. "We were talking to Lannister. He didn't tell us if he was Kevan Lannister or not."
Howland looked at Mole and said "Your mother is looking for you. Why don't you go find her?"
Mole ran off and Arya was secretly glad. He reminded her of when Rickon told their mother when she and Jon had pranked Sansa or Robb by dumping buckets of snow on them. Sansa always freaked, but Robb laughed and chased after them, pelting them with snowballs.
Howland gave her a curious look, and asked "Did you honestly think that you would get any information out of the prisoner?"
Arya hadn't but she needed to do something, something useful other than running around Greywater playing at child's games with Mole.
"I wanted to help." She said stubbornly. Howland nodded and said "If you got hurt, or if the prisoner escaped, your brother would blame himself."
"It's no fault of his what I do!" she said, and Howland nodded.
"I know this, but he would blame himself anyway, would he not?" he asked. A few days and Howland Reed already knew her and Robb, and probably Sansa better than she did him. But everyone said Robb acted like father, and Howland had been their father's friend. He would know how Robb would react if Lannister had succeeded in goading her into opening his cell door
She bowed her head and said "It was not my place to go. I am sorry my lord."
He placed his hand on her shoulder and said "You did not tell him who you were, I hope. And you did not release him accidently. No harm done, but stay away from the Lannister man."
She nodded and asked "Is Robb still awake?"
He smiled, and she felt faintly reminded of her father. "He is. He has been asking after you."
She nodded and said "Thank you, Lord Reed."
He nodded and she ran off the Robb's room. It would be better not to mention any of this to Robb. He had enough to worry about without adding her into the mix. She would keep this to herself, if only for now.
Oh Arya, why wouldn't you work properly for this chapter? You just, wouldn't fit with my original plans.
Well, if you haven't guessed, this is chapter two. Surprise. Wow, making quick work of this so far. Got to figure out some plot details, hope you enjoy. Thank you to the Librarian (guest), the only reviewer for the last chapter.