Chapter III
After all the Lords and Ladies left Casterly Rock, and all the knights and sellswords, Alyxandra could get back to her training and riding out to the forest with her black horse, Obsidian. Her father helped her train now and again, teaching her skills on horseback, such as archery and raising a sword.
So every morning, at the break of dawn she would be up and wouldn't return till the sun had set, each time bringing home kill. But just before heading back, she would take herself to a large field where long grass grew in the summer, spotted every now and again with flowers. The grass field came to a point of a hill and she would sit there for hours on end looking out over the valley.
"What having you been off doing, Alyx?" questioned Jonquil one day while adding threads to a damaged gown.
"Reading books and practising to be a Lady," answered back Alyxandra with a sarcastic curtsy.
"You know I don't like what you're doing, and it's dangerous."
"Well who is going to protect the castle if it comes under attacked?" she growled at her mother.
Then her mother shouted at her:
"Your father will when the time comes, along with his bannermen. You never will."
She ran from her mother, onto her horse and to the secret field. A fire raged within her gut, burning every emotion except for anger. The heat travelled down her arms, making her Obsidian run faster and faster.
House Dober will always have women warriors to defend their people, she thought as she arrived at the look out.
Hours passed while she stared out thinking, and the flames died down in her body. The sun was setting and she had no intention of heading back to Casterly Rock. Her dreaming was interrupted by the sound of hoofs coming up hill. She drew her dagger from her leg and crawled through the grass to see who it was, hoping it wasn't a dangerous being. But heading up the steep hill side was Matthias. She rose from the ground with the dagger still in her hand.
"What do you want Matthias?" she quizzed, keeping the dagger at her side, pointing it in his direction.
"My Lady please, I did not mean to alarm you. Your father sent out a search party to look for you as Lady Jonquil was worried," he said pulling his horse back.
"Well I'm not going back," she said stubbornly, "You can personally tell that to my mother."
"Alyx, please put down the knife. I'm not here to harm you. Just come back with me."
Alyx still had the hold of the knife and didn't say anything, her anger was heightening, searing beneath the surface of her skin. Matthias climbed down from his horse and gently approached her, hand out gesturing for the knife while keeping his distance.
"You need to understand, I'm not here to hurt you Alyx."
Alyx stared at him, her eyes burning holes.
"I know you are angry at your mother, I fully side with you but both your parents are worried."
She had lost the energy to argue, turned her back on Matthias and sat down. Alyx heard his boots brush through the brown grass and join her on the ground, facing across the valley. They sat in silence for a while, but eventually she raised her voice.
"I can't keep living like this, cooped up in stone walls. Watching men do what I can do equally. It's the traditional way, and my father has never said a word to my mother about it, so why does she insist on me being a true lady."
"I just guess that your mother and father are scared for the fact that if there is no male heir, they need to give their daughter a reputation as being the most beautiful and well suited wife to a lord so that the line carries on," he replied and she knew he was right.
She turned and looked at him for a brief moment, taken in all his ruggedness and youth. He had light caramel skin, dark hair to match dark eyes that could see everything in detail.
"Why haven't you ever spoken to me till now? You did speak to me at the tourney, but in a way that I was your superior," she said voicing her wonders.
"You are my superior; I am a lesser lord's son. I talk to you like this now due to the fact you are a human being and need the support of someone who will listen."
She looked in his eyes and didn't say anything, she didn't have to. But the moment of silence was stopped short by the shouts of her name and torches coming up the hill. He rose to his feet and grabbed Alyxandra's hand.
"You need to go back," he said to her.
She reluctantly agreed and led her stallion down the hill.
"My poor child," exclaimed Jonquil as Alyxandra and Matthias came into her father's solar, "You're not hurt are you?"
Jonquil raced over, grabbing her face and checking her over for any sign of injury.
"No I'm not," said Alyxandra flatly, attempting to pull away from her mother's grip.
"Thank you Matthias for bringing her back. You can go now, Lady Jonquil and I need to speak to our daughter," ordered her father.
She turned to look and him but he didn't look in her direction, either he didn't see or ignored it for her sake. She still wished that he glanced at her.
Like a true Dober, her father stayed serious. He never changed his tone and looked her straight in the eye with sadness.
"Your mother and I have been talking about what has been going on with you the past few weeks…"
"And we have decided to send you away to the Arbour so my sister can teach you to be a lady," her mother said cutting in, "This is for your own good, Elena will treat you like her own daughter."
The news hit her like she had just been punched in the chest with a jousting lance as what Prince Daemon did to Lord Brax.
"You can't do this! I can't leave! Father please?!"
"Listen with reason Alyx. This is for your safety and to preserve the House of Dober," he said still making eye contact, "You have to do this for your duty to the House."
"You will go at dawn tomorrow morning, a ship at Lannisport will take you to the Arbour and you will live with the Redwynes. Your things are packed and ready for you."
All Alyxandra could do was take in the news, she had never felt so many emotions in one day. But taking it all in was too much. Her mother came over and hugged her.
"We will see each other soon, I promise. Go to bed so you will be ready for tomorrow," her mother said softly with a tear in her eye that took too long to fall on her cheek.
"Alyx, remember By Strength and Courage," said her father, making her spirit rise in her chest, still he looked sad.
Before she went to bed that night, she went to see Matthias in the stable while he was taking the bridles and saddles off his and her horses. He looked up as she walked in.
"Matthias, I have to leave for the Arbour in the morning. My mother and father have made the decision for me to live with my aunt for a while," she walked over to her courser, "Look after him, won't you? Hopefully when I come back he will remember me," she said patting her stallion.
"I promise you, I'll look after Obsidian," he said glancing at her "Will you promise me something?"
"Anything," smiled Alyxandra.
"Never change," and with that he reached over and kissed her passionately.
He didn't let go for quite some time, her head felt light and she had a strange feeling in her stomach. But it didn't feel like she was sick, it was a nice feeling. He slowly drew his lips away and looked into her eyes with his dark ones.
"If you do, I won't know who you are when you come back."
A single tear of sadness fell and he smeared it on her cheek with his rough thumb. His dark eyes looked into her green ones, pressed his forehead on hers and closed his eyes. Alyxandra had to pull away before she collapsed from feeling dizzy.
By early dawn, she had boarded the Hound's Fang. Even though she was only in the wharf, she felt very distant from her home already. The only people she said goodbye to were Myrelle, her mother and father. While in her father's presence he gave her a ring, which had been passed down through the Dober line. It was shaped into the head of a Doberman with eyes of two dark brown topazes.
"Remember who you are and where you come from," he said to her "It will help you all the same in the end."
Her mother's goodbye was a kiss on the cheek and a few tears, even though Alyxandra had anger towards her mother, she felt like she was already missing her. But Myrelle goodbye was hard, she was like a second mother, a friend and a confidant, she cried the most. As Alyxandra looked through the people who had come to say goodbye to the young lady of their noble house, she could not see Matthias anywhere. All she wanted to do was see him one last time.
Then as the ship was travelling along the bay and out through the headland, she saw Matthias upon his grey rounsey. So not to lose sight of him, she ran along the rails never taking her eyes of him till she reached the stern. That was the last sight of Westerlands she saw.
