Author's Note: I'm the actual worst at updating. I've actually just recently finished this, so it's all written. I'm just really bad at posting updates because I'm a lazy bum and have million stories to update.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Maybe the title of this crackship, but then again, not really.

In the Lion's Den
part xi

Catelyn felt so deceived – by herself and by Tywin, and she did not know who she was angrier with.

She should have expected something like this from Tywin, but she was upset with herself for somehow getting her hopes up. How could she have gotten her hopes up about having a night with her lord husband was beyond her, but perhaps she had missed the companionship. Her marriage with Ned had been lonely for the first two years: at first, because he had been away at war; and second, because they had not known each other and had been nervous with one another. Her marriage with Tywin was different. He was a busy man – after all, he had a kingdom to run – but even when they were together, he was distant with her as well. Ned had been distant, but only because he hadn't known what to do with his late brother's betrothed. But Tywin, for all his courtesies, had tricked her too many times.

And now here she was, eating dinner with her husband, his daughter, and his grandson.

Like a family.

In her defense, Cersei did not look pleased to be here either. The two women had been actively avoiding one another since Catelyn's arrival in King's Landing. Had her presence not been required, Catelyn was sure that Cersei would not have even attended her father's wedding. She wore a look on her face like she smelt something disgusting; and if she wasn't picking at her food, then she was gulping down the wine in her goblet. If that wasn't enough, she continued to shoot murderous glares in Catelyn's direction all throughout dinner. There was no attempt at conversation between the two women; and Catelyn did not miss it whatsoever.

Meanwhile, Tommen, their king, looked peachy as ever. He was a plump, little boy, but Catelyn could tell that he had just yet to grow. Robb had been a chubby baby as well, but he had grown into a tall handsome boy. He had been a man by the time he'd died, even at his young age. She was sure that Tommen would grow as well and while he might not be as handsome as his true father, he would be a good-looking lad. What she liked the most about the boy was his temperament: he was so sweet, still childish, yet endearingly so. She had loved dancing with him at her wedding and had been touched when Tommen had offered her his favorite sweet. How he was a Lannister was beyond Catelyn, but it was clear as day from his looks that he was one. Perhaps there was a kindness in Jaime that no one else knew of, because there certainly wasn't any in Cersei, at least not right now.

Catelyn glanced at her husband, who didn't seem to be bothered in the slightest. Finally, unable to take it anymore, she set her silverware down and delicately cleared her throat. "Your Grace, your name day is coming up, is it not?"

Tommen swallowed his food and beamed brightly. "Oh yes!"

"And how old will you be?"

"I will be nine," Tommen answered excitedly. Catelyn's heart swelled at the look of pure excitement on the boy's face. He was so sweet. Even at nine, all of her children had seemed older than their years, even though they all had their childish moments. Bran would have turned nine this year. She could still picture him climbing the walls of the castle, against her chagrin. Tommen didn't look to be in danger of scaling any walls, however. "There will be a grand feast, as well, isn't that right, mother? And a tourney, just as Joffrey had on all his name days."

At the mention of his late older brother, Cersei looked away from her son. Tommen seemed to understand what he had done and turned his attention back to his plate of food. He picked up his fork, pushing the food around on the plate; and the room went silent once again. Catelyn could almost literally see the glow on Tommen's face fade away into one of sadness. He had not meant to upset his mother, and yet he had anyways.

Catelyn pat his hand gently. "I am certain it will be wonderful, Your Grace."

"Oh, what do you care?" Cersei suddenly spat.

Catelyn's eyes flickered to the other woman, who was looking at her with vile contempt. "I'm unsure of what you mean–"

"You don't have to play stupid with me," Cersei cut in, grasping her knife and fork tightly. "We both know you are. You learned that the hard way when you tried to kidnap my traitorous brother years ago."

"It seems as if I was right to have taken him," Catelyn replied smoothly, "considering his murderous tendencies."

Cersei pushed herself away from the table and jumped to her feet. "I will not be spoken to like that! I am the Queen!"

Catelyn did not react. Instead, she took a sip of her wine and set the goblet back down. "And I am apparently your lady mother, so I will politely ask you to take your seat again."

"You," Cersei growled, slamming her hands down on the table, "you are not my mother. You are nothing, just a glorified prisoner of a war your dead son lost."

Silence settled in between them. Everyone seemed to be frozen. Cersei was glaring at her, leaning hard against the table, while Catelyn closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tommen watched them behind hooded eyes, having shrunken in his seat. Tywin stopped eating and set his knife down, raising his eyes to the two women.

"You may speak whatever you wish of me, my queen," Catelyn finally said. Her eyes shot up to the younger woman, and she coldly added, "But the next time you speak of my family will be the last time you ever speak to me, and I do not think that would do your failing courtly image a favor."

Cersei gaped at her for a moment before turning to her father and spitting out incredulously, "Are you going to let her speak to me like this?"

"You insulted her family when she was only being kind to your son," Tywin pointed out. "What else would you expect of her?"

Catelyn did not understand the strange feeling that resulted from Tywin standing up for her. She could hold her own, especially against someone like Cersei Lannister, but it felt…good to know that Tywin had her back, at least right now. It felt good to know that she wasn't alone in everything, even if it was something as insignificant as a family spat.

Cersei harrumphed. "I've lost my appetite," she stated, before turning on her heels and exiting the room.

Tommen sat uncertainly in his chair. Catelyn was sure the boy was used to following his mother around everywhere, but with Tywin Lannister here, power had taken a different position. People followed Tywin's orders instead of Cersei's now; and even the young king was torn between his family. He looked frightened, but said nothing, probably worried that he would aggravate his grandfather who did not tolerate weakness.

"Your Grace," Catelyn began, getting the young boy's attention, "are you full?" The boy nodded his head slowly. "Do you think the kittens have had their dinner yet?"

"I don't know," Tommen replied, screwing up his face in concentration. "Do you think I should check?"

Catelyn smiled softly. "It is part of a king's duty to ensure that all those under his reign are fed."

Tommen seemed to lighten up at the thought of being near his beloved kittens. He got out of his seat, but before he left the room, he bounded over to Catelyn and hugged her tightly. Catelyn froze, startled by the sudden action, but slowly hugged the little boy back. "Thank you," he said quietly. "I've never had a grandmother before." And then he left, escorted back to his bedroom by one of the Kettleback brothers.

Once the door was shut behind them, it left Catelyn and Tywin alone in the room. Despite not feeling like eating at the beginning, she had lost her appetite completely after the argument with Cersei. It had left a bitter taste in her mouth. And yet she felt light-headed from Tommen's goodbye. She had always hoped to be a grandmother, something that Robb had tried so hard with Jeyne. She was supposed to have been the grandmother of a king, but no one could have expected for her to be the grandmother of this king. It could have been worse though. Tommen was an endearing child; and she even felt proud of the boy at times. The fact that he'd warmed up to her so quickly had made Catelyn feel at ease. Even if the ladies of the court were chilly towards her and Cersei even colder, the boy king was delighted by the fact that he had a grandmother now, even if that grandmother was only two years older than his own mother.

"You provoke her," Tywin announced, leaning back in his chair.

"It is not difficult to do so," Catelyn replied dryly. "The fact that I am still breathing provokes her."

Tywin's mouth quirked into something that looked like a smirk, but she couldn't be for certain in the lighting. "Since her mother's passing, she has been the only Lady of the Rock. I think it burns her to have another lady in the family."

"Perhaps she does not remember that I did not ask to be a part of this family," Catelyn pointed out, rolling her eyes away from her husband.

This time, Tywin let out a chuckle. "Asking means very little to my daughter. You are an invasion in the family, in her opinion." He looked at her carefully, swirling the wine around in his goblet. "Tommen has taken to you very well, though. I suppose that's also part of the reason why Cersei is so resentful towards you."

"He's never had a grandmother," Catelyn mused aloud. Both Joanna Lannister and Robert Baratheon's parents had perished long before Tommen's birth. The only grandparent he had known was Tywin Lannister and the man was not exactly warm or grandfatherly. When she looked at Tywin again and saw that he was gazing at her, she ducked her head, trying to hide her reddening cheeks. "I often wondered what it would feel like to be a grandmother. To tell you the truth, I had hoped to not be one for many more years."

"You're very good with him," Tywin said, almost delicately.

I had a son his age, she wanted to say. She had not been ready to be a grandmother yet, not when she had still been a mother. Rickon had only been three when she'd left Winterfell to warn Ned about the Lannisters. He had been a fierce, young thing, but he had still been a babe in her eyes. She could never coddle him – no, he had been too independent for that – but when he had needed her the most, she had failed him. She'd allowed her grief over Bran to swallow her whole, and then she had left him in Winterfell. To die – you left him to die.

"You must miss your own children very much," Tywin said, his voice distant. When she looked at him sharply, she noted that he was no longer looking at her but into his glass of wine. Of course she missed them. She missed them every day with everything in her. And yes, being around Tommen hurt, especially when he was around Cersei, but… it felt good too. "Many men think that the female sex is weak – I thought it as well – but when I look at you… I know they are wrong."

"That is…kind of you to say, my lord," Catelyn murmured, sinking into her seat.

Tywin cocked an eyebrow at her. "I've been called many things, but 'kind' is certainly not one of them."

"Perhaps people do not know you very well then," Catelyn replied, something of a tired smile appearing on her face. "I find that you can be kinder than most lords that have destroyed entire Houses."

Tywin chuckled again and leaned back in his seat. "If people weren't so foolish and listened to what you said, you would be queen of the court with that wit. It's very biting."

"I don't want to be queen of the court," Catelyn told him, moving the food around on her plate with a fork. I want to go home. But what was home these days? King's Landing was her home now and both Winterfell and Riverrun had fallen to the lions as well. "The women are insipid and the men are just as petty."

"And now you know what I must deal with on a daily basis," Tywin sighed as he stood up from his chair. Catelyn went to stand up as well, but he waved his hand at her; and she sank back into her seat. "I must return to my work before I retire."

"Do you want me to wait for you, my lord?" Catelyn asked, looking up at him.

Tywin tucked a finger underneath her chin. "No, you do not have to do so tonight, my lady," he said before he kissed her on top of the head. He left the room, two servants entering in his stead so they could clean up the room. Catelyn sat in the chair, unmoving, for a very long time, before she too left the room so that she could sleep. However, sleep would not find her for a very long time; and she was still awake when Tywin came to bed.