"Ser Duncan…t…t…the Tall, was a g…g…reat knight." Jaime read the words, but felt silly, he could not say them properly, Ned could, Ned could read long sentences and could read important things. But Jaime, Jaime couldn't. "H…e…h…e helped a m…a…id with her problems when Prince Aerion…T…T…a…r…g…aryen went to hurt her." Jaime looked up from the page and at his mother, Mother looked better now, the baby had taken a lot of energy from her, but now she was better, and she was helping him read again, like she said she would. She smiled at him and nodded for him to go on. "Ser D…u…n…c…a… the Tall hit the Prince, and w…a…s told he would either lose a hand or a limb. But the Ser's…. sq…q…uire, Egg, protected him and revealed his identity. He…e…agreed to a trial by seven." Jaime looked up from the page again and asked. "Mama, why did the Targaryens want Ser Duncan's hand removed? He did nothing wrong."
Mother looked as if she wasn't going to respond, sometimes she would say that there were things that he and Cersei should not know, like what the serving maid was doing with uncle Gerion, but sometimes Ned would tell them. Now however, she replied. "Prince Aerion was a Prince of the Blood. It is against the law of the Kingdom to strike a Prince of the Blood. Anyone who does so will lose the limb that did the deed."
That did not seem fair to Jaime. "But Mama, Ser Duncan was merely protecting the maid, she had done nothing wrong. It was not her fault that Prince Aerion hurt her."
Mama nodded. "Yes, but continue reading, sweetling. And you will see what happened next."
Obediently, Jaime did as he was asked. He scrunched his eyes up to get the words to focus and then spoke aloud. "Seven k…n…i…ghts fought on the side of Ser Duncan, and seven k…n…i…ghts fought on the side of Prince Aerion, including them both. They fought one another long and hard, Prince Aerion was knocked off his horse and s…u…r…r..endered. As he gave up, the trial was over." Jaime looked up at his mother, there was more to the story, but Jaime had read it before, and there was something else he wanted to ask.
Thankfully, Mama knew that as she always did and she took the book from him, marking the page where they had left off and said. "What is it you wished to ask me Jaime?"
Jaime fidgeted a little, he wasn't sure how to ask Mama what he wanted to know, but he knew that he had to ask, otherwise it would eat at him. He took a quick breath and then asked. "Did baby Tyrion hurt you Mama?"
Mama looked surprised, her eyes widened, but then they went back to normal and she sighed, and pulled him close. He snuggled into her and sighed contentedly, he'd missed doing this. Mama ran her hand through his hair, the way he liked and then she said. "No, Jaime, baby Tyrion did not hurt me. But giving birth to him was painful."
"What do you mean, Mama? If he did not hurt you, how could giving birth to him be painful?" Jaime asked confused.
Mama laughed softly. "Oh, because when a lady gives birth she has to exert a lot of effort and energy."
"Like when practising at swords?" Jaime asked enthusiastically.
Mama laughed again and ruffled his hair. "Yes, like practising at swords I suppose. That is all it was. Tyrion did not hurt me, but giving birth to him did. But I am better now."
Jaime nodded, then remembered something Cersei had said. "You promise? You're not going anywhere?"
Mama pulled him closer and whispered into his hair. "I promise I'm not going anywhere."
Jaime smiled then and asked. "Can I go and play with Ned now?"
"If he is not busy at his lessons, then yes." Mama replied.
"Thank you, Mama." Jaime replied, he kissed Mama's cheek and then ran off, through the corridors, passed the guards, and uncle Kevan who looked concerned with something, and down the stairs, through the Hall of a Thousand Lights, and then into his and Ned's room. Ned was reading something, Ned was always reading something, but he looked up when Jaime entered.
"Finished for the day then?" Ned asked, his voice sounding funny, Ned had started trying to sound older than he was, it had started after he had gotten a letter from Winterfell, from his older brother. Jaime could not imagine someone being older than Ned, Ned seemed so old himself. Even though he was only a few years older than Jaime.
Jaime nodded. "Yes, Mama says we can go and play, if you're not doing anything!" Jaime said quickly, he hoped that Ned would say yes, he didn't want to play with Cersei now, not when Ned was there to play with and to mock fight with.
Ned put his book down and smiled. "I suppose we might as well. Where are, we going today, young Ser?"
"To the Hall of Thousand Lights!" Jaime declared and then he set off, knowing that Ned would follow him. He ran up the stairs, and got to the door. The Hall was old, Mama and Papa always said so, as did Uncle Gerion, very, very old, from before the conquest. Jaime stood there, and listened as Ned's steady footfalls came up behind him. Jaime looked behind him and asked. "Will you open the door?" He couldn't reach the handle, not yet anyway.
Ned smiled. "Of course." Jaime watched as Ned put his hand on the door handle and turned it. The door opened, and Jaime gazed in awe at the sight before him. He looked at Ned and saw that Ned's jaw had dropped as well. "Come on, let's go in." Jaime ran into the hall, Ned followed.
"Tell me about the hall, Ned!" Jaime pleaded.
"You already know about the hall." Ned replied.
"But, you tell the story so well!" Jaime replied.
Ned rolled his eyes and said. "Very well then. I'll tell the story."
"Yay!" Jaime replied.
Ned started the story, which they had both heard before, but now standing in the Hall of a Thousand lights it was something else. Jaime listened with rapt attention as Ned spoke. "The Hall of A Thousand Lights, so called for the lights shaped like lions within it, was built during the reign of King Lancel Lannister, the first King Lancel, he built the hall to celebrate the birth of his eldest son and heir Jaime."
"Like me!" Jaime replied eagerly.
Ned smiled. "Like you." Ned stopped for a moment and then continued. "The Hall took three years to build, and the lights were added right at the very end. The lights are made from gold and silver, items found in plentiful quantities within the Rock and in the Westerlands. The Hall was made in such a way that even when the lights are not lit, they can appear as if they are. This was done to create the image of grandeur and propriety that befit a King of the Rock."
"What did Prince Jaime, make of the Hall?" Jaime asked eagerly. The thought that his namesake had been a Prince appealed to him, it sounded like something from a song.
"Prince Jaime grew up loving the Hall, he felt that it was very impressive, and he would often play games in the Hall, with his brothers and sisters." Ned replied.
"What games would they play, Ned?" Jaime asked curiously.
Ned stopped talking, and Jaime thought he might have asked the wrong question, but then Ned lunged toward him and grabbed him, and started tickling him. Jaime started giggling. "Games like this."
"Ned…Ned… Ned!" Jaime giggled, eventually Ned put him down on the ground and Jaime caught his breath back. He waited for a moment and then touched Ned's arm and said. "Tag, you're it!"
He ran as quickly as his legs would carry him through the passageway to the right of the hall, Ned on his heels. He ran down the passageway, through the tunnel, and out onto the other side. He kept going, down a flight of stairs, with Ned chasing after him, he jumped over a bench and then ran up another flight of stairs, and when he came to a statute, he hid behind it. Ned appeared then, panting slightly, Jaime tried to hide his breathing, but he couldn't. Ned called out. "Jaime, where are you?"
Jaime kept quiet, and listened as Ned walked passed where he was hiding, Ned's footsteps disappeared after a while, and Jaime grew worried, had Ned stopped playing the game? He had done something to offend Ned? Jaime snuck out from where he was hiding and moved to where he had last heard Ned, he kept walking and then called out. "Ned?" There was no response, so he kept moving, he eventually found himself standing in front of a silver lion statute. "Ned?" he called out again, his voice quavering slightly.
As if from nowhere, he felt a pair of arms around him and then he heard Ned say. "Got you!"
"Hey! No fair!" Jaime said as he squirmed slightly.
Ned chuckled and then put him down on the ground. "Come on, we're going to be late for dinner." Together they walked back the way they came, through the passageway, down the stairs, up another flight of stairs, through a hall decked with golden lions and then through the doorway that led them to the great hall.
Mama was there waiting for them. "And where have you two been?" She asked disapprovingly.
"We were playing, Mama!" Jaime replied delightedly. "We went to the Hall of a Thousand Lights."
Mama shared a look with uncle Gerion, that Jaime did not understand, but he did not bring that up, instead he sat down at the head of the table as heir to the Rock, and Lord of the Rock, in Papa's absence, Mama sat to his right and Ned to his left. Cersei was to Mama's right, and uncle Kevan was to Ned's right. There was little talking as they began dinner, roasted potatoes and chicken, it tasted delicious, and Jaime ate it all very quickly, he did not even realise he was so hungry until his entire plate was empty. Distantly, he heard Mama and uncle Kevan talking about something to do with food stores, and winter, and he heard uncle Gerion talking to uncle Tygett about swords. Jaime wanted a new sword, Papa had said that if he did well in his studies, he would get a new wooden sword. The thought of getting a new wooden sword was very exciting, especially if it meant more time spent sparring with Ned and Adam and Jory. Eventually dinner ended and Jaime walked out of the great hall, accompanied by Mama and Uncle Kevan and Ned, and Cersei.
As they walked back to his and Ned's rooms, he heard Cersei say. "Come to my room tonight, Jaime, we can sleep over!"
Jaime felt a momentary urge to say yes, but then he shook his head. "I can't. Ned says he's going to tell me about Winterfell tonight." The thought of hearing more about Ned's home was a very good prospect for Jaime. He snuck a glance at Cersei, and saw that her lower lip was raised in a pout. He felt a stirring of guilt, and then pushed it down.
"You always want to spend time with Ned, you never want to spend time with me anymore!" Cersei said. "Why?"
Before Jaime could reply, they arrived at his and Ned's room, he said goodnight to Uncle Kevan and to Cersei, and kissed Mama on the cheek before he got into his and Ned's room. He got changed and then lay down on bed, he closed his eyes momentarily, and then before he knew it, there were birds chirping and the sun was hitting his face. He shot up. "Ned!" He called out.
"Huh? What?" Ned asked sleepily from the other bed.
"I fell asleep!" Jaime replied, his voice quavering. He'd so wanted to hear that story.
"It's alright, go back to bed." Ned replied, and before Jaime could say anything else, Ned's snores filled the room.
Jaime falls back onto the sheets and tries to sleep, he closes his eyes, but sleep will not come to him, instead he tosses and turns, before eventually deciding that he shouldn't bother. He gets up, and moves to the wash room, where he strips and takes the pail of water, and pours it into the tub. He had seen Gertrude one of the maids do this a thousand times before, it couldn't be that hard. He puts a finger into the water, and finds that it is cold. That does not bother him though. The Dragonknight used to bathe in cold water every morning, Ned had read to him and so he decides he will be like the Dragonknight. He gets into the tub, and yelps, the water is very cold. But he fights off the cold and starts rubbing soap over his body. He then grabs some of the water and splashes it on his face and body. That done, he looks for a towel and finds that there is none. He looks around helplessly, wondering what to do, when the door opens and Ned is stood there with a towel, he throws the towel to him and Jaime catches it. "Thank you!" Jaime replied eagerly. He sees Ned merely grin before disappearing.
He stands up in the tub, and gets dries himself, when that is done, he moves from the bathroom with the towel wrapped around himself. He moves to his chest of drawers, where he pulls out a shirt, a red one of course, and a pair of breeches. He also pulls out some drawers to wear under his breeches. He puts them on with the towel guarding him. That done, he shakes Ned awake. Ned groggily gets up and goes to the bathroom, Jaime meanwhile uses a brush to clean his teeth, spitting into the tub at the foot of his bed. By the time he has done that, Ned is cleaned and dressed. "Ready to get some breakfast?" Ned asked.
"Yes!" Jaime replied eagerly. Ned grinned and together they walked out of the room and to the Great Hall, they walked in silence, mainly because Jaime was still disappointed that he had missed the chance to hear about Winterfell.
Breakfast was bacon and egg, it was a nice meal but throughout it all Jaime could not help but think he had missed a chance to hear about another place, another Kingdom entirely. He would not make a very good lord, if he could not stay awake for long enough to hear about another place. Ned nudged him then and whispered. "Do you want to hear about Winterfell?" Excited, Jaime nodded enthusiastically.
Ned smiled, and replied. "Well, what do you want to know?"
"Everything!" Jaime said, smiling.
Ned smiled. "Well, Winterfell is big, not as big as the Rock, but big enough. It has four or five small castles within it as well as the walls of the bigger castle. It has hot springs underneath it that keep the castle warm within the winter. And there are grey buildings within the castle that are as old as some of the places we saw in the Riverlands."
"Really?" Jaime asked amazed.
"Oh yes." Ned replied smiling.
"How do you keep everything working properly, if everything is so old?" Cersei asked then.
Ned grinned. "With a little magic and a little love, and a lot of hard work."
Cersei snorted, but Jaime clapped he was very happy about that. "And what about your family? What are they like?"
At this, Ned stopped smiling and became grim. "I…I'm sorry." Jaime said instantly, he didn't want to make Ned sad.
Ned shook his head. "It's okay." Ned took his hand squeezed softly. "My father is a fearsome man, like a warrior from some song. Brandon, my brother reminds me a lot of you, Jaime. And Lyanna is free and spirited. Benjen is just a babe."
Jaime was amazed by that. "I remind you of your brother, Brandon?" Ned rarely spoke of his brother, but when he did it was usually with that strange tone of voice, that Mama said meant someone admired you.
Ned ruffled his hair. "Yes. You've got the same fierceness to you."
Jaime puffed up with pride then. "Thank you, for telling me about Winterfell."
Ned smiled, and then Mama spoke to them. "Now, children, I am sure you are aware that your father is to be coming to Casterly Rock within the next few days. He is coming to the Rock because some important people from Dorne are coming. Mainly, Princess Loreza of Dorne, and her son Prince Oberyn and her daughter Princess Elia."
"From Dorne? Wow!" Jaime exclaimed.
Mama smiled at him and then said. "Now, I have known Princess Loreza for many years, we were friends when I was at King's Landing, and as such, I want you to be on your best behaviour when she and her children are here. Her children are a few years older than you all, but that does not mean that you cannot be friends." Mama smiled at the three of them, and Jaime beamed back.
"Does that mean I have another sparring partner, Mama?" Jaime asked.
Mama smiled. "I am sure something could be arranged."
Jaime cheered. "Thank you Mama."
Breakfast ended and Jaime spent the rest of the day eagerly waiting for the moment when Papa would arrive back home and when the Martells would come. He couldn't wait to show them what he had learned. He was so excited that he even beat Jory during their mock fight, and that hadn't happened before. It was so exciting, he didn't even mind when Cersei threw a huff and went off to do whatever it was a girl did.
