Cassana did not understand why both of her grandfathers were laughing. They had not said anything funny, she and Henry. She glanced at her twin brother, to see if he was feeling as confused as she was, but Henry was too busy reading the letter from Mother and Father.
"You didn't wait for me!" Cassana whispered furiously. She wanted them to read the letter together. They had always done everything together. At least they had, until recently, when Grandfather Stannis said it was time for Henry to start learning sword-fighting and lancing from the master-at-arms. Father had been teaching both Cassana and Henry fencing and archery for a while now, but Grandfather said it was time for Henry to train with the men, and not with his sister.
"Sorry," Henry whispered, with that foolish grin on his face. Cassana could not stay angry with her brother for any length of time. She smiled as he held out the letter to her. They read the letter from their mother and father, together, silently.
Mother had argued with Grandfather Stannis about Henry. Cassana and Henry had overheard them, hiding behind the door like they usually did when Grandfather Stannis came to speak with Mother.
"Henry is too young to train with grown men," Mother had insisted. "Devan can teach them for now. Cassana and Henry have always done everything together."
"It's about time for that to end, don't you think?" Grandfather had snapped. "You're not preparing them for the different roles they will have later in life, Shireen."
"They are only eight," Mother replied, looking defensive. "Plenty of time for that later."
From his expression, Cassana could tell that Grandfather Stannis disagreed with Mother, but he said nothing at first. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Jaime and Cersei Lannister were very close as children as well," he said abruptly.
Mother paled. "What are you implying? That's absurd!"
Henry and Cassana did not hear Grandfather's reply; Father had spotted them and gave them a warning glance. Later, Henry had wondered aloud what Grandfather meant when he mentioned the Lannister twins. Cassana did not know the answer either.
"Should we ask Mother?" Henry had suggested.
"No!" For reasons she could not explain even to herself, Cassana knew that was definitely something they should not do. "I think … I think that will make Mother upset."
Henry frowned. "I guess you're right. Mother was angry with Grandfather for bringing it up. What about Father? Should we ask him instead?"
They decided to ask Father about it, but he had scolded them for spying on other people's conversation. It was very unlike Father to be so short with them.
But Mother and Father had sat Henry and Cassana down a few days later for "a talk." Cassana always knew when "a talk" was coming because Mother and Father would have this strange look on their faces.
Henry's hand shaking her shoulder startled Cassana. "You're not reading the letter," he said accusingly. "Where were you?"
"Nowhere," Cassana reassured him. Henry sometimes got mad at her for what he called 'going somewhere else in her mind', and leaving him behind.
"And how was the wedding? Are your mother and father having a good time?" Grandfather Davos was asking. Henry and Cassana were both startled; they had almost forgotten that their grandfathers were still in the room with them.
"Prince Trystane is a very charming and gallant groom, Mother wrote," Cassana replied.
"Really?" Grandfather Stannis replied, sounding doubtful. "I've always thought the Martells very plain-looking. One of their more appealing traits - their lack of charm, gallantry and good looks."
"Princess Arianne is very beautiful," Henry said wistfully. The Princess of Dorne had come to King's Landing to 'negotiate' with Grandfather Stannis half a year ago. Cassana wondered what it was they were negotiating.
"Is beauty very important for you?" Grandfather Stannis was asking Henry, staring at him with that look that always terrified Henry and Cassana.
"No … I mean … it is not the most important thing, Grandfather," Henry stuttered.
"What was Mother and Father's wedding like?" Cassana asked abruptly, before Grandfather Stannis could ask Henry another question. Henry gave her a quick glance, full of gratitude.
Grandfather Davos smiled. "Well, it was lovely. It was such a beautiful wedding, we all had tears in our eyes," he paused, his face lighting up as if he was back on that day. "Tears of joy of course," he hastened to reassure them.
Cassana could not imagine Grandfather Stannis with tears of joy in his eyes. And sure enough, he was taking exception to Grandfather Davos' account of the wedding. "Speak for yourself, Lord Davos. I was dry-eyed throughout."
"Of course you were, Your Grace," Grandfather Davos replied, but in a playful tone he usually reserved for his grandchildren.
"And in any case, Shireen and Devan's wedding was close to being a disaster, there were so many things going wrong. Did you forget about the cloak?" Grandfather Stannis was not letting up.
"What happened to the cloak?" Henry asked.
"Is it the maiden cloak?" Cassana continued her brother's question.
"Or the bridal cloak?" Henry said.
"Both," Grandfather Stannis replied. "The cloaks were tangled up together. The onions embroidered on the bridal cloak had somehow gotten entangled with the embroidered crown on one of the stags on your mother's maiden cloak. It took a long time for your father and myself to separate the cloaks, so he could drape the bridal cloak over your mother. Some of the guests were laughing. It was most undignified."
"It was a good-natured laugh, Your Grace," Grandfather Davos said.
"I doubt that very much," Grandfather Stannis scoffed. He had a faraway look in his eyes. "Devan was very patient and good-natured throughout, I will say that. Shireen was probably more impatient than I was."
"Maybe Mother could not wait to be married," Henry piped up, and then seemed to regret it. With Grandfather Stannis in the room, Henry and Cassana had to be more careful about the things they said. It was different with Grandfather Davos.
To Cassana's relief, both of their grandfathers laughed, however. Grandfather Stannis' laugh sounded more like a scowl to Cassana, but at least his expression did not look annoyed or irritated.
"What about your wedding, Grandfather Davos?" Henry asked.
"Well now, I know your Grandmother Marya has told you that story plenty of time," their kinder grandfather replied, smiling kindly.
"But we want to hear it from you," Henry said.
Grandfather Davos glanced at Grandfather Stannis. "I'm sure Your Grace has better things to do than listening to a foolish old man reminiscing about his wedding."
"Not at this moment, no," came the reply. Grandfather Stannis looked almost … amused. Henry and Cassana glanced at each other, feeling uneasy. This was definitely 'an unusual thing.' And there was always unpredictable danger in 'unusual things', the children were well-aware of that from experience.
But Grandfather Davos did not seem concerned. "It was a very small wedding, just our families and a few friends," he started. "Marya had gathered the flowers herself, in the woods. Daisies and wild roses. I can still smell them," he continued, his nose sniffing as if he was really smelling the flowers at this very moment.
"What about the feast?" Cassana asked. Blood orange fowl was the main course at Trystane Martell's wedding, her mother had written. She wondered what that tasted like. Henry would not like it, Cassana thought. Her brother disliked anything sour.
"There was not really a feast," Grandfather Davos said. "Only a small dinner at an inn." For some reason, he was looking uncomfortable.
"Feasts are a waste of time and money," Grandfather Stannis growled. Henry and Cassana had heard him say this many, many times before.
"But …" Cassana started, but then immediately changed her mind.
It was too late. "But what?" Grandfather Stannis was staring at her.
She shook her head quickly. Nothing. Nothing at all.
"Speak up, child. Are you afraid of me?"
Yes! Cassana thought, and without even looking at Henry, she knew that Henry was thinking the same thing.
"But we can't leave the guests hungry, can we, Grandfather?" Henry asked in a small voice. It was Henry asking the question she had wanted to ask. It was Henry coming to her rescue this time. Cassana sneaked a grateful glance at him. He looked absolutely terrified.
The two of them moved closer to each other, waiting for the inevitable explosion from Grandfather Stannis. It did not come. He only sighed regretfully. "I suppose we can't. But there's no reason we have to feed them more than bread and water."
Henry and Cassana knew better than to ask Grandfather Stannis about his wedding. Grandmother Selyse had reminded them more than once never to ask him about it. "Something bad happened on our wedding night, and it would make him angry to be reminded of that. You don't want to make your grandfather angry, do you?"
"No, Grandmother," they had assured her. She had been vague about what the 'bad' thing was. They could not bear to ask her for more details; Grandmother Selyse had looked so sad.