Jeyne, 277 AC, Storm's End

The mock feast preparations had gone well, and as the next month rolled on by, I became even more used to the routine that I was settling into. Lady Cassana had gone out of her way to make my education as personally satisfying as possible. I had probably learned more in the last five weeks here at Storm's End than I had for all the years I spent in Stonehelm trying to make myself scarce from scrutiny.

When showing her my final report for the mock feast, she took careful notice of my notes on the side of the ledger, and her brow crinkled a bit before asking, "Jeyne, you seem to have budgeted for the standard needs of every Storm Lord and his family, along with the minor landed knights, and included that mark up by a third that we spoke of. However, I must ask, why the constant adjustments to the meat and alcohol tallies?"

I knew what she spoke of, and replied, "I was merely doing the revisions for personalities and how the event may proceed ask you asked, my Lady. For example, it is known that Lord Buckler, my uncle, and his younger brother Ser Alyn, will engage in a drinking contest at every feast. This has often disturbed my father quite a bit whenever we have visited them at Bronzegate. The two will drink up to 10 times what even your son Robert is capable of. On the other hand, I am aware of the fact that if Ser Barristan the Bold of House Selmy was in attendance, and he might have been, every man in the hall would likely moderate their intake of ale and duckling in an effort to follow his example."

Lady Cassana looked impressed, before going on to state, "Well, Jeyne, it seems that you have followed my instructions to the letter. I will leave you with a scroll, put together by Lord Steffon's Master of Whispers, which I had assembled for this very purpose. "Lady Cassana stood up off of her seat, and moved towards the entryway of the lesson room, before turning once more to smile at me.

"By the way, you are correct about Lord Buckler and Ser Alys. However, on the front of Ser Barristan, it is his constant appeals to honorable and dutiful conduct that drives men to drink more, not less, as his example is indeed hard to live up to." At that, she exited the room.

Sometimes I wondered exactly how much work went into being the Lady Paramount of a great house. It seemed that Lady Cassana did much more behind the scenes than she appeared to while sitting quietly at the side of Lord Steffon.

There was much to say for my newfound friendship with Stannis, as well. The two of us were quite alike in that we understood dedication to duty, and the value of being left alone in our solace. When the two of us were alone, we realized there was no need for false merriment or anything of the sort. Stannis had continued on occasion to teach me the ways of swordsmanship, and I had continued to improve, despite knowing that he never really pushed me hard in training. Perhaps he felt it was his duty to assist me, and I felt it was mine to make him feel like a Knight worthy of the Sword of the Morning in return.

As for Robert, well, that was another matter entirely. We were nothing alike, yet he always brought the fun side out of me and never once was lacking for good cheer and attitude. He loved to take me out of the castle grounds and explore the rolling fields and wind bitten forests surrounding Storm's End, and as of late, we had gone hunting on more than one occasion.

"You terrify all the boar in the Stormlands with your savage heavy footed approach!" he would say, if we were not successful on the hunt. Of course, as talented as Robert was with a spear, it was probably his loud laughter and constant attempts at drawing me into wrestling matches that scared off the boar.

"Robert, I believe the problems may be more on your end. After all, what boar could not smell the Arbor Gold on your breath from a league out?" I would jest in return. The two of us never were too serious, and it felt like our days outside the castle grounds would never end.

After our unfortunately empty hunt, which was mostly because of Robert's insistence on making me laugh at all of his lewd songs, which certainly would cause Septa Mylla to go into an apoplectic fit if she was in hearing range, we rode our horses down from the rocky cliffs that ran astride Storm's End and onto the green hills that led into some of the villages surrounding Storm's End. Robert's guardsmen, as always, had long since tried keeping up with the pair of us.

"Jeyne, come this way, I'd like to introduce you to a friend of mine", Robert said, as our horses strode towards a hitching post near what looked to be a small tavern. The two of us dismounted and I followed his lead inside, apprehensive of what was behind the door. It turns out that I should have not worried, as ale and song and good cheer were what awaited us inside.

A group of smallfolk men seemed to brighten up as they took in the pair of us, and another strong looking man at the end of their table, with the look of a blacksmith said, "Lord Robert, who is this friend of yours?"

"Ah, Donal, this is Jeyne, of House Swann, and she is staying at Storm's End for a while. I figured she should get to know you, as she seemingly has taken an interest in swordsmanship with my brother Stannis as of late, thinking that I wouldn't notice", he said with a grin, before patting Donal and I on the back.

Robert continued, "This is Donal Noye, Jeyne. He is in my mind, the best blacksmith in the Seven Kingdoms, though he'd be too modest to admit it. Forged that Warhammer that I am so fond of, after all."

Donal took a look at me for a second, before playfully saying, "Now, milady, I have to ask, what is a lass who looks like you doing playing with swords in the first place, not to mention coming into a place like this!" At that, his companions seemed to chuckle, but I knew it was in good fun, and had smiled anyways.

I replied, "To be honest, I do not know. Robert took me here after once again spoiling an attempt at hunting with his loud singing voice, and told me that I should meet a friend of his." The others at the tavern laughed at the mention of Robert's songs, no doubt being acquainted with them on a personal level.

Donal smiled and said, "Well, I'll tell you what. Robert wants me to make a sword for you, and has already agreed to pay for it-"

At that, I interjected, and said, "I have money of my own, and he did not need to do any such thing."

At that, Robert slapped his hand down on the table, and said, "Jeyne, as you know, I'm leaving for the Vale in a few weeks, and I won't be here for your nameday. Consider this an early nameday present." I had no idea that he knew of my nameday, or had cared to find out. I felt rather flushed as I nodded my head in agreement to the idea.

At that, the three of us talked about specifications for the sword and what would work best for me. I wanted something light, yet with reach, and okay, I'll admit, because I wasn't paying for it, I asked for a dual swan pommel to match my house's sigil. Robert at that laughed about my expensive lady-like tastes, and the tavern again had a laugh at my expense, but again, I knew it was all in good fun.

As we geared up to leave, Donal said, "Alright, I'll have the sword done for you in a few weeks. I could rush it, as I have made hundreds of blades like that before, but the pommel will take some time, and since you are highborn, I suppose I ought to use the best steel I've got."

"Thank you, Donal, again for this", Robert said, and I could tell that this was somewhat important to him. Truth be told, I had never received a nameday gift before besides those from my Father, Maester Lydden, as well as Mother, when she lived. I had thought about this for a second, and realized that my brother and I, who were never on the best of terms anyways, had never given each other nameday gifts. As I knew Gulian's was coming up in a few weeks, around when Robert was due to leave, I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.

Robert had gone outside to bring the horses some feed from the tavern, and I asked the blacksmith, "A few weeks ago, my brother Gulian I believe came here with Robert while the rest of my family was still here. Do you know if Gulian had a sword that might need replacement?"

At the mention of Gulian, the men in the tavern again brightened up, and one of them said, "Oh, so you are that young Lordling's sister, eh? Him and Robert threw a party here that the village will never forget-"

One of the other men interjected, "Now, he was using his sword alright, but not one made of steel!" as the others fell down laughing, and one of them slapped the tavern wench who brought out the drinks on her rear as she blushed and looked away.

I wasn't surprised at all to hear this, knowing Gulian's predilections and Robert's love for fun. But I really did not want to know the intricate details of exactly what, and erm, who, Gulian was doing in his spare time, so I bid Donal Noye goodbye, and went out to greet Robert.

As I got on my horse, and we started back on the path up to the castle, he asked, "So what exactly did you say to get everyone in there all worked up again, Jeyne? Did you tell them of Stannis's idea to banish whores to the Silent Sisters, or perhaps of my idea instead to dress the whores with your attempts at needlework?", he said, smiling at the look on my face. His deep blue eyes seem to light up with laughter whenever I felt a little bit uncomfortable. I'd have to work on that.

"No, although that would have done it as well. It is indeed a cheerful bunch in there. I had rather asked about perhaps buying my brother a new sword, and they had sworn to a man that he had a sword he was quite fond of already", I added, looking a bit put out that Gulian did not follow Father's instructions, but also quite unsurprised.

Robert at that boomed out a laugh, and said with a grin, "Yeah, your brother certainly knows how to have a good time. Although, the way you talk about him, it seems like he might have missed out on a lot, with you around and all. What girls could he possibly find that could beat him in a horse race?" I started blushing furiously at that, and attempted to hide it by letting out a loud cough.

"Ha, careful now, Jeyne", Robert said, steadying my horse with his right hand. I stared shamelessly at the hard muscles on his arms that crept up to his shoulder. Get some control of yourself, my conscience roared.

I was able to clear my head, and regain my thoughts, before we started moving again. Something however was gnawing deep in the pit of my mind, and I felt that I should ask. My feelings were all over the place and making me react in ways I didn't quite understand.

"So, Robert, when you party the way that you do, whether here or at the Vale, do you ever, um, you know,-"

I was extremely embarrassed to be asking, and yeah, I kind of knew the answer, but it was probably something that I would be a bad friend not to address with him.

For the first time, I think ever, Robert actually looked uncomfortable, and shared my deepening look of red. "Um", he started, "I, um, have been known from time to time to do what other men my age, um, are known to do." He left it at that, and it seemed clear that he really had no interest in this conversation.

But I pushed on anyways, "Well, doesn't that, sort of, complicate Lord Steffon's search for a match for you?" Robert again seemed quite interested in the ground he was staring at, and chewed over his words.

"To be honest, Jeyne, I've never seen myself as the marrying type. I know that I will one day be Lord of Storm's End, and all of that, but I've always just wanted to go to Essos and join the Golden Company, or form my own group of sellswords, and fight in the Disputed Lands." I actually did not know of this, nor do I think he had ever told anyone before, but he continued on.

"Please don't tell anyone of this. You are one of my dearest friends now, and I've never told anyone, not even Ned, of that before. But sometimes I wish I wasn't born the son of a Lord Paramount, even though I love my Father. I'm great at swinging a hammer, and probably could be a good mercenary, but I can't stand counting coppers, as the numbers jump around on the page when I look at them. I've tried reading books, but other than the stories of war and battle, I can't finish a book. And I frankly don't like most Ladies that I've met, and have no interest in playing house with one."

This was a lot to soak in. I felt that I had to help him in some way, but I was not sure how. "Well, Robert, I'm actually quite good at counting coppers, as you call it, and I'd be willing to help you out with that. But please, do not do anything rash that would lead me or Stannis to never see you again without speaking to me first."

"I won't", he said, as he put his arm around me and hugged me as we crossed the gate into the castle.

"Can you promise?" I asked. I pulled out a mini black and white scarf from the lining of my golden (now greenish gray) riding garment with the dual swans of House Swann on it, and motioned towards his arm. I tied the miniscarf around his arm, and looked into his eyes with some trepidation.

Robert looked back, and nodding slowly, said "I promise."

The two of us hitched our horses back into the stables, and I felt as if something between us had changed after he confessed all of that to me as he escorted me into the main hall. Lady Cassana looked at me a little bit suspiciously as I sat in my place for supper, with my eyes not leaving Robert as he took his place across the table from me. It was a quiet event, and Stannis seemed fine with that as well.

That night, as I sat in my room and looked at the stars shining brightly out the window, I could not sleep, or gather my thoughts, for that matter, in a way that would bring me peace.

It was obvious to me that I was physically attracted to Robert, in ways that were making me feel different than I ever had in the past. It was also obvious that Robert longed to be free of the burdens of duty that were integral to my worldview, and the worldview that governed how those of our station behaved. Robert loved life, loved women, loved excitement and adventure, and was passionately loyal to his friends. I still had no delusions that Father and Lord Steffon would make a match for the pair of us, and now I began to question what exactly I should do about this whole situation.

It was clear that Robert and I were friends. Perhaps it should stay that way. I would likely marry a minor Reach Lord or into house in the south of the Stormlands, like the Estermonts, or more likely, a random landed Knight. And I could be happy with that, fulfilling my duty to family and putting Lady Cassana's lessons to good use.