Thank you – my loyal readers..
The last chapter, as some one wise pointed out, is only half a chapter. Unlike some fan-fiction aficionados ( cough – cough – snobby – cough cough) who read, re-read and edit, I write and I put it out. Sorry.. that behavior's not gonna change, as I was too frustrated by all the authors who write great stories, but let people hanging at the end.
If any of you already haven't guessed, I'm a bit wee bit drunk now.. so forgive my rambles. With out further ado.. to winterfell …
Freya was swamped with work next week. Sansa refused to come out of her chambers, yet, did accept every comfort provided to her silently. Freya had to wait on Sansa to fill her bath tub, fetch her breakfast, tie her dress and brush her hair and all other tasks done by maids as well. All the while, Sansa's eyes followed Freya on auto pilot. She did not miss a single movement made by Freya.
It unnerved her, yet, she completed her duties with out fail. After all, Lady Lysa is hanging around her like a bat in a dark cave. She nitpicked water's temperature, Freya's taste in gowns, even the cold in the north. All this chaffed on freya's psyche.
Add to that, Jon was unable to visit her in the nights. His schedule in Barracks increased with the upcoming expedition planned by Sam and Robb. It did not help Bran and Rickon barged in on at times, when they are around, he could not climb to Freya's window. Not to mention, with increased guests, their midnight rendezvous will not remain as secret much longer.
Thus, when she saw Jon next in the library, it took all of her will power not to jump in to his arms. They both silently slipped away to a corner before any body could see them. She flew in to his arms, at the same time, Jon tilted his head to catch her lips. Separation couldn't have tasted sweeter. They were lost in the bliss, while the fires in grates increased in their vigor.
The only person to have noticed is Rickon, who's words are taken more as a child's babble rather than any thing substantial. Jon and Freya stayed in the corner, with their arms around each other, an westeros map open in front of them. A fire danced in the fireplace near them.
"Where do you think we should live?" Freya asked excitedly as she looked at the map.
"The place you like." Jon answered promptly.
"Father probably prefers some where near the sea. He is one of the best sailors among Essos. I don't mind living in a small place. Just you, me and father" Freya said happily.
Jon did not particularly like the idea of living with Lord Reyne, but he couldn't say that to Freya. Even he has that much sense.
"I have never been on the sea." Jon said longingly.
"Oh, Jon! It's beautiful. Especially on the narrow sea, water sparkles like thousand diamonds, breeze is cool, yet sun is hot. There are beautiful islands full of fruit and strange fish, people from various places all mingling together. You will love sailing." Freya said wistfully.
Jon just smiled in response. It's one of those rare smiles that spoke of how happy and content he is. Freya's insides warmed at that smile. She smiled as she leaned her head on his shoulder, while they both stared contentedly at the map, imagining how their future home should look like.
Renly is in hot water. That much every one knew even as they walked towards throne room. It's a long path, each and every one in king's company are already making plans on the fly. Thuds of their steps echoed ominously in the long emptry corridor like a thousand schemes spun and broken.
Lancel is perhaps the only person who did not make any plans. He, as a Lannister who had a functioning brain, knew he is going to get the short stick which ever side may win. Best he could hope for at this moment is that every one forgets about him.
Jaime Lannister walked before his king apprehensively. His fight or flee instincts are blazing full throttle. Even as a young lad, Jaime possessed sharp instincts. His instincts never read Robert Baratheon as any thing more than a fool. Yet, to day, he can't read him at all. For the very first time in his life, Jaime had an inkling of how and why Robert became a king.
Robert walked purposefully towards the throne room. Even if he didn't say any thing, every one sensed a change in the atmosphere. Yes, There were instances where king flipped, but every one in his entourage at the moment felt a different kind of dread. There's just a different vibe in the air, which smelt of blood and deceit even before it blew.
At the last minute, Robert made a different turn, entered his parlor instead of throne room. Renly, Jaime and Jon Arryn all piled in to the room, along with all their guards.
Robert called out orders shortly. The first one to go was Jaime, to secure all the royal children, take them out on a trip to kings woods. Jaime had the distinct feeling he is being sent away like a little child, but he couldn't do any thing to resist. Cersei can more than take care of her self. Jon Arryn and Renly remained with king, both feeling a very different kind of foreboding.
"My Wife! My own bloody fucking wife!" Robert exclaimed as he stopped angry pacing.
Renly and Jon Arryn both winced at the force in king's voice. That never meant well for any one. Robert stopped and glared at Renly.
"Very well Renly, you will tell me what you did, why you did with out leaving a single detail. I will flay you and leave your corpse out there to dry if I find you lied to me, even by omission."
Renly shivered. He had never had to face Robert while all of his fury is directed at him. Hell, he never even faced Robert while he is in his fighting mood. He had always been Jolly drunken fool. Yet, looking at Robert right now, Renly could feel the power that made him king in the first place. A storm brewed in King's eyes, his fists shivered with barely contained rage. Looking at him, Renly suddenly realized that Robert could crush his skull in, even drunk, fat and out of practice.
"afore two weeks, I received a raven from Loras." Robert's eyes narrowed at that, but he did not interrupt.
"Apparently, it is a new game to guess characteristics of offspring by looking at the book of lineages. It is the new rave in Reach. Curious as I was, I borrowed the book. When I looked at the lineage of Baratheon .. " Renly looked at Robert nervously and gulped.
"Oh for gods sake, say it." Robert snapped.
"Every baratheon in the last two centuries is black of hair and blue of eye, regardless of whom they marry. There was even a Lannister who is green of eye and gold of hair. Her sons are black of hair and blue of eye just the same. So, I put adlum in to her drink just to see towards whom queen makes advances." Renly finished.
"What you are speaking is treason of highest order." Jon Arryn said somberly. It is clear from his tone that he is not surprised.
"Steffon!" Robert gasped out, coming out of his muted shock. His first born who did not survive his second name day. Cersei and he were never the same after Steffon's death. Rembering Cersei brought back his rage. He strode purposefully towards the door, only to be stopped by Jon.
"You mustn't, Robert!" Jon Arryn said. Robert glared at him with all the ire of a raging storm.
"We need to prepare. All the Lannister forces must be sent out of Redfort. Queen must be secured. We can not bring her to trial, or even put her aside with just a book as our evidence. Tywin Lannister will descend here with might of Casterly Rock." Jon said.
Robert calmed down enough to stop trying to break down the door. He walked back to the table.
"No." King said with utter conviction. His eyes burned malevolently. Jon Arryn suddenly wondered how strong Targaryen's madness is. Baratheons are, after all, the closest living relatives to targaryens despite what king thought of dragons.
"That bitch will not have the mercy of an execution. She will suffer for fooling me all these years. Renly, you spoke of a big wench in stormlands, did you not? Bring her to kings landing. Arrange for a group of loyal septa's to keep queen under house arrest. Swap all the Lannisters in redfort to our men. Take Stannis's help if you need it. See to it immediately." Robert growled at Renly.
Jon Arryn remained, waiting for Robert to speak. He always thought Robert saw almost every plot that's going on around him, yet, chose not to react just because he didn't care enough. This reminded him of the time Ned and Robert led the rebellion. Robert was magnificent – is magnificent, he corrected him self as he looked at the king.
"Bring all my bastards in to the castle, Jon. Do not miss a single one. Send out an invite for the imp to visit Redfort. Find a suitable position for him to occupy, so the old lion bastard can not call him back. When the children return from the trip, send each to a different castle to be held as wards."
Robert stopped here as he thought about them for a moment. He liked his children, yet, as he thought of them, all he could think about is Cersei's betrayal. He shook him self as if to get rid of thoughts of his queen.
Jon Arryn him self was internally shocked at the restraint Robert is displaying. Perhaps we all discounted him after he has let him self go, he mused, as he looked at Robert. The Baratheon has always been a great judge of character and possessed sharp wit.
His oafish manners and humor many a time hid his intellect. Robert can be inhumanely intuitive and charming at times. That is how he won his kingdom. In the wake of his victory, he has let go of him self, yet, Jon saw that sharpness in Robert's demeanor time to time when no one else did. Now, all that made Robert Baratheon a successful rebel is out on display.
He hoped this is a lasting change. For Lannisters will not take what Robert's giving them laying down. Robert will need all of his wits and more when Old lion comes collecting. For all their conjectures that queen is cheating on king, they do not know who it is with.
While they can keep queen under house arrest for a while, sooner or later the news will reach Tywin. They owe a significant debt to the old lion, who's not calling it for now, but will he do the same when he hears of his daughter's plight?
It is with those thoughts that Jon left to accomplish king's orders, while king him self remained behind, inspecting all manners of things about red-fort. Soon, entire red-fort is buzzing with the news that king is on warpath and no one's quite safe from him yet.
Lady Lysa looked at Catelyn, who smiled benignly at Freya once again. It irked her that Catelyn has married Lord Stark, who was not only an young man, but seemed to care and cater to his wife's needs as much as she does to him. When Lysa first heard of Eddard's bastard, she felt happy, for in this manner, gods choose to make their marriages equal.
While she is sold to man who's almost as old as her father, Catelyn married an young man in his prime, albeit not as handsome as her betrothed, yet, handsome enough to make enough maidens fall for him. She expected Catelyn to have an iffy marriage, with her lord husband forcing his marital rights over Catelyn's wishes, lamenting his lost love, Lady Ashara.
How ever, it is not what she found. Catelyn is as much in love with Ned stark is with her. They were equals in their marriage, with Catelyn able to reject her husband as she wished, which Lysa has never been able to. She took her pleasure from the fact her sister's marriage is not perfect, while her sister's husband fathered a bastard, her own was honorable enough not to do it.
Now that she is here, she could see Catelyn has no problem what so ever with the bastard, hell, she even allowed him to become a stark. The bastard's fiance is a beautiful girl, radiant in her beauty,grace and charm Lysa has never been able to possess as a young girl. Further more, Catelyn and entire winterfell liked this girl, at the same time, each and every one of them hated her sweet robin.
Perhaps that is the clinching point. Lysa tolerated dislike and mockery towards her self, even if it is only barely. No one in king's landing is stupid enough to let any such behavior be caught, no one in vale dared enough to do so near their lady. They learned their lesson fast enough when first man flew out of moon door.
Here in winterfell, Servants felt no such obligation. They loved Starks. Despite her roots, Lady Catelyn is as much a stark as the rest of them. While they were careful enough to keep the mockery out of their demeanor when they are right in front of Lady Lysa, they were not mindful enough to not let her hear it.
On few occasions when Lady Lysa caught the servants and tried to punish them, one or other stark always intervened. On one or two times, Lysa even heard an admonishment from Catelyn to correct her own behavior, a carefully worded dismissal from Lord Stark him self. It angered her that she is such a nonentity.
Thus, when Catelyn came to her with the news that Lord Reyne and Lord Stark are looking towards building the new couple a castle in the port city, she couldn't bear it. She is going to make Cat see light if it's the last thing she does, she is going to stop that little lion bitch from getting any thing out of her sister.
"You are quite generous with your husband's lands, Cat. After all, you always pretended to be most kind and wise, yet you don't see the falling of this plan." she sneered at her sister.
"What are you talking about Lysa? This could only be beneficial to winterfell. We will get one more port city and increased revenue." Catelyn answered. She saw no problem in letting Jon have stony shore. It's far enough that he will be away from them, he could get away before any of the kings forces reach them in case his identity is revealed.
"You have two more sons. Are you going to make beggars out of them? You have but two western ports, if you give one to your bastard, what is your other sons going to have? Are you going to send them to wall like Lord stark's brother?" she said snidely.
"The starks have always manned the wall." Catelyn said weakly. Yes, the starks have always manned the wall. That doesn't mean she wanted to send her sons there in their prime just because they are second sons.
"Keep the ports for your sons. Think of the threat the boy will become to your children if you let him have an army. Already, he prances around as if he is a lord with that bastard men of his. Any more, he will think winter-fell is his right." Lysa said placating.
Catelyn stopped and thought. If some one said the same words before she knew Jon is a targaryen, she would have told them bastard or not, the boy is of stark stock. She always disliked the boy, yet, she can see he is as honorable as they come. But knowing he is a dragon changed things.
Almost all Targaryens are ambitious. There isn't a targaryen mad or otherwise that is not brilliant. To keep him near her children is equivalent to having a sword hanging above their heads. She thought sending him to the coast, where he is near to sea to get away is a better option. But, like lysa said, what are her two remaining sons going to do?
Yes, there's time till they mature. But when they do, what do they have to recommend them selves save for their name? Sacrificing all of that, for a dragon who could bring the ire of King on them any time, it did not make sense – Catelyn decided. She is going to convince her husband to send the boy to mountains.
Hopefully, there, even with his targaryen ambition waking up, there will not be much to do. He will be swamped with controlling wildlings , gathering enough food and resources for his house hold. Yes, she will have him sent to mountains, Catelyn decided firmly.
I apologize for the short chapter. it's a segway chapter, which was to have been second part to previous one. I will promise next one will be long. I'l give it my best.