Jaime woke up the minute he felt the light hit him. He shot up in bed, and blinked rapidly. Ned had left the feast early yesterday, Jaime had been allowed to stay far past his bed time, he remembered falling asleep in Papa's arms, Papa must have put him in bed. He looked across the room at Ned who was still fast asleep. Jaime wanted to ask his brother what had made him leave, but he knew that perhaps it was not, what was the word Mama used? Polite to ask. If Ned wanted to tell him, he would. Slowly, Jaime got up and moved to the room where the bath was. The servants had already filled the tub with hot water, and they were there waiting for him as he removed his sleeping clothes and placed himself in the tub. He grabbed the soap and washed himself, as he did so, he wondered whether Princess Elia would want to dance with him at the evening meal tonight. To have an actual Prince and Princess in Casterly Rock, was very exciting. That Princess Loreza was friends with Mama was something that Jaime still found incredible. He could not imagine being friends with an actual Princess!

Jaime placed the soap back to where it was supposed to be, and stood up. A towel was handed to him and he cleaned himself, before wrapping the towel around his body and stepping out of the tub. As he walked back into his and Ned's room, he saw that Ned was awake and sat up in bed. "Ned!" Jaime called out excitedly. His brother smiled. "We're going to be sparring with Prince Oberyn and Arthur today!" That was what Prince Oberyn had said yesterday, and Jaime was really looking forward to it. To fight a prince, now that would be something!

"I know. Get ready and then we can head to the great hall for breakfast." Ned said, as he got up and moved to the room with the tub.

Jaime nodded and moved toward his own cupboard-that was what Mama said it was called, it was a funny name- and he pulled out the clothes Mama had told him to wear today. A red doublet with golden cuffs, and brown breeches. He took off his towel and put on his under pants and then the breeches and the double. He then put on his socks, he liked his socks they had lions on them, but not golden lions-everything else in the Rock was golden, it got boring after a while- these lions were grey, like the direwolf of House Stark, Ned had smiled when he had seen them. Jaime liked seeing Ned smile, his brother never usually smiled, but when he did Jaime felt as if everything would be okay.

By the time he had finished putting on his clothes, Ned was out of the tub and was changing himself. As he did so, Jaime asked. "Do you think Prince Oberyn fights with a spear or a sword?"

That had been something that had been itching at him yesterday, Cersei had mentioned that Dornishmen fought with odd weapons, and Uncle Gerion had not said she was wrong and of course if uncle Gerion said Cersei was right, perhaps she was actually right? Ned himself merely laughed. "Maybe we will find out today. Come now let us head to breakfast." Jaime nodded and together they walked out of their room and out into the hall.

The hall showed no signs of yesterday's entertainment. Jaime was amazed. He had thought it would be dirty and filled with plates and cups, but there was no sign of any sort of even happening. The hall was gleaming and clean. They walked through the hall, through the doors of gilded gold, and through another set of doors with lions as guards. Eventually they came to the Great Hall, where they found Uncle Tygett and Uncle Martyn sat discussing something. Martyn nodded to Ned as they sat down, and Jaime saw that Ned's man-whose name Jaime could never remember- had sat down behind them. Jaime grabbed a roll of bread and began digging into breakfast. Bread and eggs, Mama must have told the cooks to make this for them, for usually it was porridge or some such. Jaime was only vaguely listening to Uncle Tygett and Uncle Martyn's conversation, something to do with the size of swords, when he felt the bench move. He turned and saw Prince Oberyn sat next to him. Prince Oberyn smiled at Jaime, and he felt a little flutter in his stomach. A Prince had actually smiled at him!

Prince Oberyn grabbed two loaves of bread and then spoke. "Are you ready for our sparring session, my lord?"

Jaime thought that Prince Oberyn was speaking to him, but instead, he saw that the Prince was speaking to Uncle Gerion who had appeared suddenly. Uncle Gerion had a cocky smile on his face. "Of course, my Prince. I would not wish to miss it for anything."

Jaime wanted to protest, Prince Oberyn had said that they would fight, not him and Uncle Gerion. But then he supposed it was only fair. He continued eating, listening as Uncle Gerion and Prince Oberyn exchanged jokes about something or the other. Uncle Tygett had gotten up and gone somewhere else. But Martyn Cassel remained sitting, eating and talking about something to do with the north with Ned. Jaime kept eating, he felt oddly hungry this morning. Once he had finished his fourth helping of bread and bacon, he pushed his plate away from himself and sighed contently. Prince Oberyn and Uncle Gerion got up then and walked toward the training yard, Jaime got up and followed them, Ned and Martyn Cassel accompanying them.

As they walked, Jaime turned to Ned and asked. "Who do you think will win?"

Ned was silent for a moment and then said. "I think Ser Gerion will win. But I have not seen Prince Oberyn fight, therefore I do not have complete information to work with."

"Uncle Gerion is the best fighter in the Westerlands. I think he will win." Jaime said confidently.

They made their way to the training yard, and Jaime watched with awe as the squires and knights who were sparring stopped what they were doing and moved to the side. The power that a Prince commanded was impressive. Prince Oberyn looked truly dashing in a orange doublet with his sword in hand. Uncle Gerion wore red and gold, as befit a Lannister and he looked confident. Jaime noticed he was wielding a different sword to the one he had used to fight Ser Roland Crakehall a few days ago. That was interesting. The two men bowed to one another and then the fight began.

Jaime watched with baited breath as Uncle Gerion and Prince Oberyn circled one another, neither man danced out to make the first strike, to Jaime it looked like a dance. He chanced a glance at Ned and saw that Ned was watching just as eagerly as he was. Jaime turned back to watch the fight and saw that in the time he'd not been looking, Prince Oberyn had lunged forward and Uncle Gerion had smacked his sword away. But Prince Oberyn was not one to take it lying down, he moved quickly and soon enough Uncle Gerion was on the back foot, having to block one blow after another. Prince Oberyn was quick, very quick, but Uncle Gerion was smart and fast as well.

Every time Prince Oberyn moved, Uncle Gerion moved as well, they were like two dancers on a string, moving in time with one another. It was fascinating to watch. Prince Oberyn was very quick, and obviously very good with his feet placement. Jaime knew from what he had been taught that you needed to keep moving to stand a chance against an older and more experienced opponent. They danced, and Jaime soon lost sight of them, they became blurs, moving as quickly as the sun and the stars and the rain. It was too much for him, one moment they were fighting, the next Uncle Gerion had his sword against Prince Oberyn's throat.

Prince Oberyn grinned as did Uncle Gerion, they lowered their weapons and shook hands. Jaime joined in on the cheering, though he wished he could have seen more of the fight itself. He was surprised when Uncle Gerion spoke. "Who wishes to fight next?" Arthur Dayne, dressed in purple and silver of his house stepped forward, and surprisingly so did Ned.

"Very well, pick your weapon and prepare to fight one another." Uncle Gerion said. Both picked out wooden swords and Jaime waited to see how this fight would progress.

Ned made the first move, he jabbed forward, Arthur blocked. Arthur pushed forward, and Ned held his ground. Jaime watched enthralled as Arthur seemed to keep Ned pinned to where he was, Ned seemed to be straining. "He needs to move more." Jaime jumped a little at the sound of Uncle Tygett's voice next to him. Jaime raised an eyebrow and Uncle Tygett continued. "Unless Ned moves out, he's going to be stuck and have nowhere to go."

As if he'd heard Uncle Tygett, Ned danced backwards, catching Arthur off guard. What followed was an impressive sight. There were ducks, weaves, dodges and blows exchanged. Arthur and Ned were evenly matched, something Jaime had always been confident of. Arthur might be quicker, but Ned was bigger and so they moved around one another, until eventually Ned had knocked Arthur's sword out of his hand. Jaime cheered and clapped along with everyone else. Something was said between Ned and Arthur but then they were laughing and clapping along with everyone else.

Ned and Arthur joined him then, as did Prince Oberyn. "Do you want to show Arthur and the Prince the Rock, Jaime?" Ned asked him.

"Yes!" Jaime said then. He turned and walked quickly back inside, knowing as he did so that Ned would follow and would bring with him the Prince and Arthur. As he got inside he nearly bumped into Cersei. "What are you doing?" He asked his twin.

"Looking for you." Cersei said, sounding irritated. "Do you want to show our guests around the Rock?"

"Yes!" Jaime replied excitedly. They waited for a little bit and then Ned and the others joined them and they walked off toward the entrance to the vaults. Waiting for them there were Princess Elia and Lady Ashara. Jaime felt himself blush a little when Princess Elia smiled at him. "Shall we go in?" He asked.

"Where are we going?" Prince Oberyn asked.

"Into the vaults!" Jaime said. "The place where history is made in the Rock. Where there are scary passages and all sorts of other things to be of interest!"

"Well lead the way, my lord." Prince Oberyn said.

Jaime looked briefly at Ned who nodded, Jaime grinned and then said. "Okay." He set off down the pathway at a run. The entrance to the vaults was dark, had always been dark according to what Uncle Gerion said. They got to a set of doors then and Jaime stopped. He smiled. "These doors were built during the time of King Loren Lannister. As a means of ensuring that…" he looked at Ned, who then spoke.

"Of ensuring that there was always a way in and out of the Rock that could be accessible to all." Ned supplied.

Jaime beamed and then continued. "We need to knock." He turned and knocked once, and then again on the door. The door slowly opened and they walked through the gap. Another door appeared, this one had silver dragons on it. "A gift." Jaime explained, he knocked again and this door opened as well. They walked through it and then they were in a brightly illuminated hall.

"This place is huge." Lady Ashara said.

Jaime grinned. "It is. It was built to accommodate a lot of things."

"What sort of things?" Prince Oberyn asked.

"Nobody knows." Ned said. "But it has always been here."

"Well, lead the way, we don't want to be left in the dark." Princess Elia said.

Jaime kept walking, the torches on the walls illuminating the way. They walked passed portraits of lions and men with two heads, and some with three. It was a strange place. Jaime had always meant to ask Mama about this, but he'd never done so. As they walked, Jaime found himself looking at a statue of a man with a lion at his side. He stopped, everyone stopped as well. Prince Oberyn spoke then. "Fascinating. I've heard about this, but never seen it before."

"Seen what, my Prince?" Ned asked.

"This statute. Of the man with a lion. It is said to be a very old piece of art, done before the fall of Valyria. When Valyria itself was but a few shepherds." Prince Oberyn said.

Jaime looked at the statute, and then he turned and looked at Prince Oberyn. "What is so special about it?" He asked, genuinely quite curious.

Prince Oberyn straightened, his voice took on a strange tone. "The statute we see here, was said to have been forged by the original first men. Back before they came to Westeros. It is said to represent one of their gods. Something that many had thought impossible."

"The First men worshipped the old gods for a long time, how could anyone know what their original gods were?" Ned asked, a strange tint to his voice.

Prince Oberyn did not seem undeterred. "There are records, in places such as Asshai or even in Volantis that speak of what the gods were that were worshipped before the First Men made their pact with the Children. This statute here is supposed to represent the King of these Gods. None know his name, but he was said to be revered."

Curious, Jaime moved closer to the statute and looked at it. The man looked tall, with long hair, a slight beard, and a smile on his face. The lion was big, and broad, with a snarl appointed on its face. "Why is it here then?" Jaime asked.

"I do not know." Prince Oberyn said and shrugged. "There is something like this in Sunspear as well. Except that the statute there is of a woman with a trident."

"Well, as fascinating as this is, I'm feeling a bit cold, perhaps we could head back to the castle proper?" Princess Elia asked.

Jaime did not want to move from here, but he knew that if he said no, it would be frowned upon. So, instead he nodded. "Of course, Princess." He turned away from the statute and walked passed the others, leading the way through the doors, and through the darkness of the entrance and back into the light. They walked down a deserted hallway, before finding Mama and Princess Loreza waiting for them.

"Ah, there you are. We've been looking for you." Mama said, her voice soft, though her eyes looked stern.

Jaime wanted to say where they had been, but he snuck a quick look over his shoulder and saw Ned shaking his head, and so he kept his mouth shut. Thankfully, Mama spoke again. "Loreza, I am sure you won't mind if I take Jaime and Cersei with me, do you? To talk with them about what we discussed?"

Princess Loreza shook her head. "Of course not, I'll take Elia and Oberyn as well to do the same."

Surprised Jaime found Mama taking his and Cersei's hands, and walking down the corridor. As they walked down the hallway, Jaime found himself asking. "What about Ned, Mama? What will he and the Daynes do?"

"They will be fine. Now come along, your father wishes to speak with you." Mama said, something in her voice making Jaime realise that perhaps he should remain quiet for now.

They walked in silence through the deserted hallway, and up the stairs that led to Father's solar, and when they got there, Papa was there, but so was Uncle Kevan. That surprised Jaime, he looked at Cersei quickly and she raised her eyes upward, showing she did not know what was happening either. "I brought them just as you asked." Mama said, the same strange tone to her voice.

Papa nodded. "Sit down." He said gesturing to two chairs before him. Jaime and Cersei sat in the two chairs, and Jaime fidgeted slightly under Papa's stern gaze. After a long moment, Papa spoke. "How are you finding the Martells?"

The question surprised Jaime. Cersei spoke first. "Princess Elia is very smart, and very pretty. And Prince Oberyn is like Uncle Gerion."

Papa smiled. "Jaime?" He asked.

Jaime was not sure what to say, he had the feeling that he was supposed to say something specific, but he was not quite sure just what that was supposed to be. "Prince Oberyn is funny, and he is a good fighter. Do you think he might let me become his squire?" Jaime said in a rush.

Papa laughed. "You do not want to be my squire then? I am offended."

"Oh, no…Papa, I want to be your squire as well. It's just that…" Jaime trailed off and blushed.

Papa laughed again, a deep booming sound. "It is fine Jaime. I am sure that should I speak with her, Princess Loreza would more than consent for you to become Prince Oberyn's squire. But that is not why I asked you here. A letter has come from King's Landing, we are to go to the capital, for a tourney held in the King's honour. The Martells are coming with us. And I must make sure you get along with them."

"We are going to King's Landing?" Cersei asked.

"Is Ned coming with us as well?" Jaime asked at the same time.

"Yes, and Yes. We leave in two days' time." Papa said. "I expect you to be on your best behaviour throughout our journey there."

"Yes Papa." They said in unison.

Papa smiled again and said. "You may go." Jaime and Cersei stood up then, bowed before Papa and then turned and left.

As they all but ran through the hallways, Jaime said. "We're going to King's Landing. We will get to see the King, the Queen, Prince Rhaegar and the Kingsguard."

"We will get to see the Red Keep, and the library!" Cersei said.

They stopped and stared at one another. "We're going to King's Landing!" It was unbelievable, they made their way over to Ned and Jaime's room, but Ned was not there.

"I wonder where he could be." Jaime said aloud.

"Who cares. Jaime, you know, we could spend some time together." Cersei said.

Jaime looked at her and said. "But I want to find Ned!" He pushed passed her and went outside, only to find Ned walking toward him. "Ned!" He called out. "Ned! We're going to King's Landing!"

Ned looked surprised, but then smiled. "That's good, at least now you'll be out of my hair."

Jaime laughed. "No, silly, you're coming with us. Papa and Mama said!"

Ned grinned. "Well, that's good. I wouldn't want you to have all the fun without me. Maybe now you can get your place in the Kingsguard!"

Jaime gasped. "You think so?"

Ned winked. "I know so."