This chapter is mostly mixed, with the last part setting up the Hand's Tournament in the next chapter so don't be surprised if nothing much happens. I plan on changing the story summary at some point so that it will match the series of events taking place. But right now the current or eventual events are as the Summary states, until the story passes by those events, the summary will remain as is for the time being. Of course, I haven't fully decided if I will do this yet as writing in new Summaries will very likely spoil certain events that take place prior.
Also, I'm currently looking for a strong and wise firstborn daughter OC of House Arryn, so if you'd like to try for the role, as usual, just send me a PM.
Lastly, even though I've never wrote lemon before, I'm just gonna say this Chapter is Rated M anyway, for slight Lemon just in case, whatever.
Disclaimer: I don't own Game of Thrones, if I did then I'd be focusing on doing a Robert's Rebellion TV Series after the show is over. I only own my OC's. Jocelyn Stark belongs to Hear My Fury, Lewyn Sand belongs to MineyMo.
The Song of Life
Chapter 8:
'The Blacksmith'
Essos
The rest of the journey to Vaes Dothrak was mostly quiet, and a little awkward following a brief incident along the way.
While travelling along the western edge of the Dothraki sea, Daenerys had commanded for the Khalasar to halt, which didn't exactly sit well with her brother Viserys.
Her brother had approached and threatened her with a sword, before being disarmed by her bodyguard Rakharo, who offered to kill him.
After Daenerys refused the offer and spared his life, Viserys commanded Ser Jorah and Lewyn to kill Rakharo for harming him, but the Knight and the young Dornishman silently refused, and had simply stood by and done nothing.
They then escorted Daenerys back to the Khalasar and continued on their way.
Daenerys herself slowly began to realise though, after the incident, that Viserys was incapable of being King, and clearly incapable of leading an army, if two of his own 'subjects' would not follow his orders.
As they arrived at Vaes Dothrak, Viserys complained about how Khal Drogo was marching the wrong way with 'his' army, after insulting their destination, calling it a city of sticks and mud huts before proceeding onwards.
His behaviour didn't escape Lewyn's attention, who started to grow concerned about the eldest Targaryen sibling.
"If my brother was given an army of Dothraki, could you conquer the Seven Kingdoms?" Daenerys asked as they moved on.
Lewyn rode up right behind her and Ser Jorah, and replied, "It's difficult to say."
The younger Targaryen sibling looked back at him, and asked, "How so?"
Ser Jorah then spoke up. "The Dothraki have never crossed the Narrow Sea. They fear any water their horses can't drink."
"But if they did?" Daenerys replied.
The Knight took a moment to think on his answer. "King Robert is fool enough to meet them in open battle, but the men advising him are different."
Daenerys looked at him curiously, asking, "And you know these men?"
"I fought beside them once, long ago." Ser Jorah replied. "Now Ned Stark wants my head. He drove me from my land."
For a moment, Daenerys was hesitant to point out the reason for his exile, knowing it was a topic he clearly didn't like to talk about.
But eventually she did, simply telling him, "You sold slaves."
A simple, "Aye." was her response.
"Why?" The Khaleesi proceeded to ask.
Jorah looked at her just as Lewyn leaned in a little, curious to hear his answer.
"I had no money, and an expensive wife." He simply replied.
The answer almost seemed to disappoint Lewyn a little, who was expecting a much different reason.
Daenerys then asked, "And where is she now?"
"In another place, with another man." The Knight said.
Despite the Knight not showing any emotion over the topic about his wife, both of them still couldn't help but feel sorry for him.
Rather than continue the conversation, they decided to just leave the man be.
After settling down in the city, Lewyn had retired to his tent and shared a bathtub with Daenerys' handmaiden, Doreah, who was currently bathing him.
Before, it didn't escape Viserys' attention that Lewyn and Doreah had been glancing at each other a lot, and so, to keep his 'subject' happy, the elder Targaryen sibling gave Doreah to him, thinking, and hoping that the next time a Dothraki savage put their hands on him, Lewyn would HAVE to defend him this time.
Of course, in reality, this was really a ploy by Viserys, in an attempt to discover if whether or not Lewyn was as loyal as he said he was.
If he was, then giving Doreah to him would force him to defend Viserys the next time he was attacked, and confirm that he was indeed a loyal 'subject'.
But if that didn't happen, Viserys would know that the bastard from Dorne wasn't as loyal as he claimed to be.
Despite being aware that the elder Targaryen sibling was suspecting him, Lewyn chose not to concern himself about it too much, and instead focused his attention on the woman that was currently in the bathtub with him.
"My Prince?" Doreah quietly spoke to him, looking a little concerned.
Lewyn looked her in the eye and replied, "Apologies, I was just...thinking about something."
The handmaiden smiled again before closing the gap between them, leaning in and pressing her lips against his.
The young Dornishman was more than happy to return the gesture, kissing her two times before pulling away slightly, and asked her, "Tell me, how is the Khaleesi?"
"She's doing just fine, my Prince. She's adapting to her new role very well I must say." Doreah quietly replied.
Lewyn nodded a little. "Good, that's good. She has to."
Doreah tilted her head at him, pulling away and giving him a curious look. "If I may, my Prince, why exactly-"
"I'm not a Prince." Lewyn interrupted her.
The handmaiden chuckled a little, and replied, "If I remember correctly, you said your father is a Prince, did you not?"
Lewyn smirked at her response, and said, "Indeed I did." He leaned forward and exchanged a long kiss with her, before adding, "But my mother is not my fathers wife. In Westeros, any child born out of wedlock is known as a Bastard, which is why my surname is Sand, and not Martell."
The two exchanged a few kisses as Doreah straddled him, grinning as she whispered, "You poor thing. Does that not bother you?"
"Not in the slightest." Lewyn replied quietly as he slowly ran his hands down her body. "Bastards, as my father says, are born of passion in Dorne. We are loved greatly by our families, and I couldn't be more happy for it."
He stopped his hands at her hips, adding, "However, if there was, is, one thing I would ask for, it would be the name of our House. To be known as Lewyn Martell, is all I've ever wanted since I was old enough to think for myself, and I will do anything to make it happen."
Doreah just smiled and stared at him, before once again leaning in, pressing her lips to his. "A sixteen year old young man from Dorne. Sailing across the Narrow Sea to Essos, in hopes of proving himself to his family, and earning the right to inherit the family name. It almost sounds like a fairy tale."
Lewyn chuckled. "It does, doesn't it? Hopefully, it will be one with a happy ending."
"I do so enjoy happy endings." Doreah laughed a little as they kissed again.
Both wrapped their arms around each other and deepened their next kiss, and Lewyn was content with letting her take the lead as she grinded her lower lips against his crotch.
The handmaiden then quietly asked him, "And if you were to, inherit your family name, would it make you a Prince then?"
Lewyn thought for a moment on his answer, and replied, "I don't see why not."
"And after you receive the family name?" Doreah asked, adding, "I would imagine every handsome young Prince needs a wife to be his Princess."
Grinning at her response, Lewyn sat up a little and ran his hands down her back, quietly replying, "If you continue to praise and compliment me like that, then I may just consider choosing my future Princess sooner rather than later."
The handmaiden slipped a hand under the water and gently grabbed hold of something, earning a deep breath from the young Dornishman. "You have such an impressive cock for someone your age."
"So my father told me." Lewyn chuckled.
Doreah looked a little surprised at his response. "And how would he know?"
Again, Lewyn chuckled, and replied, "Let's just say, he wanted to make sure I was ready."
"Ready for...?" Doreah asked.
With his hands on her hips again, the young Dornishman lifted her a little, just enough to line up his cock before stabbing her with it. "Ready for my first."
The handmaiden grinned in response to his action, and looked at him with lustful eyes before whispering, "I'll try not to disappoint you."
Lewyn leaned back, pulling her with him, before pressing his lips to hers in a long kiss.
When the kiss was over, he pulled back a little, just enough to look her in the eye, their faces just an inch apart.
He then whispered back with a venomous smirk, "You better not."
King's Landing
It was stressful enough for Ned Stark knowing that the tournament was still happening.
Adding to the stress was a troubling report from the Commander of the City Watch, which was the last thing Ned needed.
Brawls, riots and horseraces in the streets were only a few of the many disruptions in the city that Janos Slynt had informed him of, making it clear that he and his men were struggling to keep the peace.
Of course, it didn't help knowing it was the 'Hand's Tournament' that was cause for these disruptions, which Ned had to correct once again by stating it was the King's Tournament.
Ned then stated that he would provide twenty of his own household guard to help keep the peace, as well as commanding Littlefinger to find gold to pay for an expansion of fifty men for the City Watch.
When his business was done, Ned spoke to Maester Pycelle about Jon Arryn, and found out about a book he was reading shortly before his death. Pycelle simply tried to brush off the topic, calling it a ponderous tome.
But despite this, knowing about Jon Arryn's interest in the book made Ned curious as well, and so he decided to borrow it.
The book, 'The Lineages and Histories of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms' was a ponderous tome, as Pycelle had stated.
Even so, Ned knew there must have been a reason for Jon Arryn's interest in the book, and took it back to his chambers.
Upon his return to his chambers, he had a brief conversation with Arya.
Seeing her taking her lessons seriously from the Braavosi he hired for her made Ned feel happy, although he wondered just far she was willing to go to perfect these lessons.
Even so, he didn't let it distract him from his investigation.
A while after, Littlefinger had informed him that Ser Hugh of The Vale, who had previously squired for Jon Arryn, had been knighted almost immediately after Jon's death, though what he was knighted for, was unknown.
Finding this suspicious, and with Littlefinger suggesting the idea, Ned sent Jory to question Ser Hugh.
Jory came back almost immediately after carrying out this task however, stating that Ser Hugh will only speak to the Hand himself, the former squire clearly having grown arrogant due to his new status as a knight.
Ned simply dismissed the former squires bad manners before following Littlefinger's advice to investigate a smithy that Jon Arryn had been visiting shortly before his death.
And, despite being against it, his eldest daughter Jocelyn had willingly accompanied him.
"We shouldn't be out here, my lord. There's no telling who has eyes where." Jory said as he, Ned and Jocelyn arrived at the Street of Steel.
Ned wasn't concerned however, simply replying, "Let them look."
Dismounting from their horses, Ned and Jocelyn started making their way to the smithy that Littlefinger had told him about earlier.
Even though he brushed off Jory's concerns about people looking at them, it did frustrate Ned when he noticed various men staring at his daughter, but if Jocelyn was able to calmly ignore them like she was, then he could too.
When they arrived at the smithy, Ned wasted little time asking the blacksmith and master armorer, Tobho Mott, about Jon Arryn and his visits.
"The former Hand did call on me, my lord, several times." The blacksmith explained. "I regret to say he did not honour me with his patronage."
This made Ned even more curious, prompting him to ask, "What did Lord Arryn want?"
"He always came to see the boy." Tobho replied.
"The boy?" Jocelyn repeated him, looking curious herself.
Ned looked over at the young man who was hammering away in the back, and said to the blacksmith, "I'd like to see him as well."
Tobho nodded. "As you wish, my lord." He looked over at the young man in the back and called him over. "Gendry!"
The young man, Gendry, put the hammer down and made his way towards the three.
"Here he is. Strong for his age. He works hard." Tobho added, looking rather proud of the young man.
Jocelyn offered a friendly smile as Gendry approached them. "It's nice to meet you."
Gendry half-smiled at her in return. "Likewise my lady."
"Show them the helmet you made, lad." Tobho said.
The young smith said nothing and went to retrieve the helmet, bringing it over and handing it to the Hand.
Ned examined the bull's head helmet, and looked rather impressed. "This is fine work."
"It's not for sale." Gendry replied almost immediately.
Tobho looked back at the young smith, surprised by his response, before replying, "Boy, this is the King's Hand! If his lordship wants the helmet..."
"I made it for me." Gendry refused again, clearly unwilling to part with the helmet.
Jocelyn couldn't help but be amused, failing to hold back a chuckle.
"Forgive him, my lord." Tobho said as Gendry sent Jocelyn a little smirk.
Ned wasn't bothered by his refusal however, and simply asked, "There's nothing to forgive. When Lord Arryn came to visit you, what would you talk about?"
Gendry shrugged. "He just asked me questions is all, my lord."
The Hand then proceeded to ask, "What kind of questions?"
When he received a nod from Tobho to answer, Gendry replied, "About my work, at first. If I was being treated well, if I liked it here. But then he started asking me about my mother."
"Your mother?" Ned replied.
Gendry nodded. "Who she was, what she looked like."
Ned then asked, "What did you tell him?"
"She died when I was little. She had yellow hair. She'd sing to me sometimes." The young smith explained.
As he replied, it didn't escape Jocelyn's notice that Gendry seemed a little reluctant to continue talking about the subject, as well as refusing to look at them as he spoke.
Silence followed for a moment as Gendry stared down at his feet, still refusing to look at them.
When a thought entered his mind, Ned told the young smith, "Look at me."
Gendry did as he was told and looked the man in the eye.
For a long moment, Ned just stared at him in silence.
Jocelyn also stared at him, curious as to what was going through her fathers mind.
But as she continued to stare at Gendry, she started to feel as if there was something really familiar about him.
Finally, her father spoke again as he handed the bull's head helmet back to Gendry. "Get back to work, lad."
Gendry took the helmet and returned to his work in silence.
Ned then spoke to Tobho, adding, "If the day ever comes when that boy would rather wield a sword than forge one, you send him to me."
Tobho said nothing, and simply nodded in response.
Watching her father leave, Jocelyn still looked a little confused, but decided to pay it no mind for now.
The eldest Stark daughter approached Gendry, and asked him, "My father sees something in you. I can tell."
Gendry shrugged. "I'm just a smith, my lady. Nothing special about me."
"Maybe there is, and you just don't know it yet." Jocelyn said, smiling at him.
The young smith said nothing, and simply continued to hammer away.
Jocelyn then asked, "If I may, could I perhaps make a special order?"
Gendry looked at her again, smirking a little. "What can I do for you?"
The eldest Stark daughter smiled in response. She had a few ideas in mind, but she ultimately ended up going with a specific one.
"I'd like you to make me a helmet as well."
Even though everything was still being prepared, Prince Derek Baratheon couldn't wait for the tournament and decided to get an early look before everyone else.
He had seen Ser Hugh of the Vale walking around the jousting field, and was still surprised that the former squire was able to obtain the armour he had so soon after being knighted.
Maybe he was borrowing the armour, or maybe he had some gold stashed away, then again the latter sounded a little too absurd.
Likely, the former squire was either borrowing the armour, or it was given to him, it had to be one of the two.
Besides Ser Hugh, Derek had seen a few other early arrivals.
Among them was Thoros of Myr, whom Derek had heard about many times before.
The man who led the charge through the breach at Pyke, wielding his flaming sword.
His father often liked to reminisce, so it was no surprise that the young Prince was able to identify Thoros really quickly.
At first, he was tempted to approach the man and ask him some questions, but ultimately decided against it and moved on to see who else he could find.
That was when he saw the sigil of House Clegane.
And standing under the banner, was Gregor Clegane.
The man more commonly known as The Mountain That Rides, or just The Mountain for short.
Derek didn't dare go anywhere near the giant man.
Even though he was loyal to House Lannister and the crown, that didn't make Derek any less afraid. The man was still dangerous, and it probably wouldn't take much to anger him, not that Derek had any intention of sticking around if some poor fool did make the fatal mistake of angering the giant man.
Ser Barristan Selmy, who had been silently accompanying him the entire time, noticed Derek's hesitation when he saw The Mountain, and said, "Perhaps we should return to the Red Keep, my Prince."
Derek walked on, replying, "Just a moment Ser Barristan."
The Lord Commander of the Kingsguard followed, staying very close to the Prince's side.
Despite seeing some very promising looking warriors, Derek was looking for one in particular.
Loras Tyrell, the Knight of Flowers.
But his search for the Knight was put to a stop when he found someone else.
Someone he didn't expect to see, but was happy nonetheless.
"Uncle Raymond!"
The middle son, Raymond Lannister, saw the young Prince running to him and greeted him, before asking. "Nephew, what are you doing out here?"
After giving him a hug, Derek replied, "I just thought I'd get an early look at the competition. What are you doing here?"
Raymond glanced over at Ser Barristan as he approached, before replying, "Let's just say I'm hoping to use the champion's purse to help pay for a certain someone's debt."
"Who? Who's in debt?" Derek asked, looking a little confused.
His Uncle refused to answer however. "It's probably better if you don't know that, nephew."
Rather than pry any further, Derek then asked, "I've seen some of the other Knights. Some of them look tough to beat."
"The Mountain is the only one who looks tough to beat." Raymond replied, glancing over at the Clegane banner. "He's the only man here who gives me reason to pause. With any luck, someone will beat him and save me the trouble of having to face him myself."
Ser Barristan then stepped forward, and said, "The only man here to give you reason to pause, Lord Raymond? Do you really think so little of me?"
Derek looked up at the Knight, and just remembered right there that he too was also participating.
Raymond then smirked a little at the Kingsguard, and added, "Ah, I see, you're taking part as well, aren't you?"
"Indeed I am. As is your brother, Ser Jaime." Ser Barristan said.
The Lannister almost frowned at the mention of his older brother, but managed to keep up a confident smirk. "Well then, I guess I better make sure I'm prepared for when I face you. I wouldn't want you to think I'm disrespecting you by giving you anything less than my best."
Ser Barristan chuckled a little at the challenge. "I'm looking forward to it."
"As am I. See you at the tournament, nephew." Raymond said before taking his leave.
Derek then looked up at the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, and asked him, "You're going to face my Uncle, Ser Barristan?"
The Knight smiled at him, replying, "Of course. Assuming he and I don't end up facing someone else, and get eliminated in the process, then yes, we will face each other."
Upon hearing that response, Derek started to look a little conflicted.
"Something wrong, my Prince?" Ser Barristan asked.
The Prince shook his head. "No, it's nothing. Let's go."
Ser Barristan watched the boy leave, and couldn't help but feel concerned.
Was it something he said?
He couldn't tell, but decided to leave it be for now and followed the Prince back to the Red Keep.
Authors Notes: And that's that chapter over and done with. Yes I know, I suck at writing lemon, or slight lemon, or whatever you want to call it. Maybe I'll just get someone to handle writing the lemon stuff for me instead, if anyone would like to volunteer. And of course, I will put a lemon or slight lemon warning at the beginning of any chapters that have any just so no one can say I didn't warn them.
That said, I'm going to try and have the next chapter focus only on the Hand's Tournament, so I can cover the entire event within the one chapter. As for why Raymond Lannister is participating in the tournament, well, besides someone's debt, that will be explained in the next chapter, though chances are some of you will probably already know why. If not, then, well, find out in the next chapter.
Anyway, as always, please Review, the feedback is appreciated.
