Apologies for the longer than usual wait, but once again a few unexpected things came up and prevented me from getting any writing done for quite a while. When I eventually got back to this chapter I struggled to get into the writing mood for a while which made it difficult for me to want to finish it. Also I've been trying to focus on making progress with some of my other stories as well since I've left them unfinished for a quite a while.

I'm going to end up being far more busy now unfortunately thanks to work pulling me away from my free time, but I'll still try and get as much done whenever I can.

That said, with Season 8 literally just weeks away, perhaps I can try and push myself to finish at least Season 1 in this story before the show returns, but that's probably not gonna happen. I will try and make the attempt however. No promises, but I'll try my best.

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, Alyssa Arryn belongs to Keeper Flame, Alexis Dayne belongs to Jason Kreuger Myers.


The Song of Life

Chapter 12:
'The Falcons of the Eyrie'

King's Landing

The news that his wife had abducted Tyrion Lannister had troubled Ned Stark to no end.

And when King Robert called him to a Small Council meeting demanding the deaths of Daenerys Targaryen and her unborn child, the Hand of the King had finally reached his breaking point.

No matter how much the King insisted, and despite the other council members agreeing that the Targaryen's should be killed, Ned continued to refuse.

The Hand then told his friend, "I followed you into war, twice, without doubts, without second thoughts. But I will not follow you now. The Robert I grew up with, didn't tremble at the shadow of an unborn child."

The King, however, was determined to see the deed done, and simply said, "She dies."

"I will have no part in it." Ned refused, standing by his decision.

Robert then left him with a choice. "You're the King's Hand, Lord Stark. You'll do as I command or I'll find me a Hand who will."

It was a conflicting choice for a brief moment, but Ned didn't hesitate in making his decision.

He removed his badge and placed it on the table in front of the King.

"And good luck to him. I thought you were a better man." Ned said with a hint of disappointment in his tone.

Robert rose from his seat almost immediately, looking very furious at his friend. "Out. Out, damn you! I'm done with you!"

As Ned turned and walked away, Robert continued to shout at him. "Go! Run back to Winterfell! I'll have your head on a spike! I'll put it there myself, you fool!"

When he exited into the throne room, Ned found himself passing by Prince Derek, who was apparently eavesdropping on the conversation, or argument to be more precise given the continued shouting of the Prince's father.

Exchanging looks, Ned could see the Prince was visibly upset. Whether it was due to hearing his father demanding the deaths of the Targaryens, the argument between the two friends or just Ned resigning from his position as Hand under such circumstances, he couldn't tell.

He couldn't stop and think about it though and moved on.

When he returned to the Hand's chambers to pack his things, Littlefinger had stopped by and informed him about another lead.

"If you're still here come nightfall, I'll take you to see the last person Jon Arryn spoke with before falling ill. If that sort of thing still interests you." The Master of Coin told the now former Hand of the King.

"I don't have the time." Ned replied almost immediately.

Littlefinger didn't seem to mind however, "It won't take more than an hour, but as you please." He said before leaving the room.

Ned took a moment to think on it, and ended up changing his mind. He grabbed his sword and turned to Jory, and said, "Round up all the men we have and station them outside the girls' chambers." The former Hand then asked, "Who are your best two swords?"

"Heward and Wyl." Jory answered.

"Find them, and meet me at the stables." Ned replied before following the Master of Coin, while Jory set out to gather all of their men.

Ned doubted that any harm would come to his daughters, especially by Robert, but he couldn't afford to take any chances.

Especially when it came to the Lannister's.


The Eyrie

All Tyrion wanted was to piss off the edge of The Wall.

Then, on his way back, it was just a simple night at Winterfell after giving the Stark boy the plans for the special saddle that would let him ride.

When he continued his journey back to King's Landing with Yoren, he eventually stopped by the Crossroads Inn, where he found Catelyn Stark.

And ended up getting captured by her and several knights.

Following that, they were ambushed by warriors of the hill tribes on their way to The Vale, which, thankfully, they all emerged unharmed save for a few knights who died fighting them off.

And now here he stood, in the audience chamber of The Eyrie as Catelyn's sister, Lysa Arryn, berated her for bringing him there.

Of course, Tyrion was a little too distracted by the sight of Lysa breastfeeding her son Robin, something that Catelyn was just as surprised at given his age.

The two of them weren't the only ones who where feeling somewhat disturbed by this however.

Standing next to the weirwood throne that Lysa and Robin were seated on was Lysa and Jon Arryn's firstborn and only daughter, Alyssa Arryn.

At first glance, she looked like Sansa, a tall and slim figure, young and pretty, the only difference being her hair colour. She wore a light blue dress similar to the one her mother was wearing, except hers looked more colourful, tidy and kempt, clearly indicating she hadn't lost her habit for being very organised.

But the more Catelyn looked at her, the more she started to see the resemblance between the Arryn daughter and her mother, like her blue eyes, which was a very common trait among those of House Tully.

The Arryn daughter definitely looked like she inherited her mothers looks, but she was far more beautiful than her mother was in her youth.

She had long and tidy shoulder length brown hair, the colour of her hair being the only thing she inherited from her father, rather than the auburn hair of her mother.

Catelyn hadn't seen her niece in quite some time, and she recalled the last time she saw her, she was more open, talkative and smiled more.

But seeing her here now, standing next to her mother and brother, she looked distant, quiet and there was no sign of the smile Catelyn was used to seeing from her niece.

Looking away, Catelyn turned her attention back towards her sister, who was too focused on her son to pay attention to them. "Lysa…" She said, finally getting her sister's attention once more. "You wrote me about the Lannister's, warning me t-"

"To stay away from them!" Lysa interrupted her. "Not to bring one here!"

Finally, Robin himself spoke up, and asked his mother, "Mommy? Is that the bad man?"

Lysa nodded, simply replying, "It is."

Robin smiled a little, looking amused, "He's little."

"He's Tyrion the Imp of House Lannister." Lysa replied, glaring daggers at the dwarf. "He killed your father. He murdered the Hand of the King!"

Hearing those words prompted the quiet Alyssa to glare at Tyrion also.

Tyrion however just stared back at them, unfazed by the accusation. "Oh? Did I kill him too? I've been a very busy man."

"You will watch your tongue!" Lysa replied, clearly not happy with the Imp's sarcastic tone. "These men are Knights of the Vale. Every one of them loved Jon Arryn. Every one of them would die for me."

The dwarf wasn't willing to back down however, and replied, "If any harm comes to me, my brothers Jaime and Raymond will see that they do."

Robin then got to his feet and shouted at the Imp. "You can't hurt us! No one can hurt us here! Tell him, mommy! Tell him!"

Lysa gently shushed her son before slowly pulling him back into her arms. "Shh, my sweet boy. He's just trying to frighten us. Lannister's are all liars. No one will hurt my baby."

The Arryn boy then replied, "Mommy, I want to see the bad man fly."

"Perhaps you will, my little love." Lysa gently replied, clearly entertaining the idea of sending Tyrion out through the Moon Door.

Knowing this, and given the dwarf saved her when they were ambushed, Catelyn felt obligated to prevent his execution, at least for now. "This man is my prisoner. I will not have him harmed."

Lysa didn't look pleased with her sister's response, but decided to let Tyrion live for the time being. "Ser Vardis, my sister's guest is weary. Take him down below so he can rest. Introduce him to Mord."

The mention of the turnkey almost made Alyssa feel sorry for the Imp as he was taken away.


While her mother was busy continuing to dote on Robin, Alyssa decided to drag her aunt aside so they could speak in private.

Given the recently strained relationship she had with her mother following her father's death, whereas her relationship with her aunt was always cordial, it was no surprise to Catelyn that Alyssa pulled her aside to talk rather than her own mother.

"Alyssa, it's so good to see you again." Catelyn smiled as she hugged her niece.

The Arryn daughter returned the hug, though she refrained from smiling much. "And you, Aunt Catelyn."

"Your seventeenth name day is coming up soon isn't it?" Catelyn asked.

Alyssa nodded slightly, before sighing. "I just wish father was here for it."

Her aunt hugged her again, replying, "I'm so sorry for your loss. If there's anything I can do, you just let me know."

She almost entertained the thought of asking for a favour, but decided against it and simply replied, "That's generous aunt Catelyn, but don't worry, I'll be fine."

Catelyn looked to where her sister was and quietly asked, "About your brother..."

"I know." Alyssa replied almost instantly with a roll of her eyes. "Trust me, I've tried countless times to get him away from mother. Sometimes I could, sometimes I couldn't. The times I could, mother would always demand that I make sure to breastfeed him myself whenever he was hungry."

Her aunt looked visibly disturbed, and Alyssa couldn't blame her. "That's absurd! Did you have to?"

Alyssa was the one who looked visibly disturbed now, before replying, "...No. I always made sure he was given healthy food, and we always played together so he could get the exercise, so it's not as if he isn't fit. And sometimes, I think I've made progress when I tell him he doesn't need mother all the time and he believes me."

With a sigh, she looked in her mother's direction, adding, "But, of course, despite all of that, mother continues to be overprotective of him. It feels like I'm constantly fighting with her on how to raise him."

"I'm sure you're doing your best." Catelyn replied with a gentle smile.

Alyssa managed a tiny smile at her aunts words, before proceeding to ask, "Anyway, about the Imp..."

Catelyn's smile was gone at the mention of Tyrion, but she stayed quiet and let her niece ask her question.

"He seems to be convinced he had no part in my father's death, that he wasn't responsible. Do you believe him?" Alyssa asked.

Her aunt thought about her answer for a moment, before replying, "The Lannister's have a reputation for being liars and keeping secrets. Even if he wasn't directly responsible, I'm sure he played a part in your father's death, just as he did with the attempt on Bran's life."

Alyssa recoiled, looking surprised now. "Bran?"

Catelyn nodded. "Bran was pushed from one of the towers in Winterfell during the King's visit. A while after, a catspaw made an attempt on his life while he was still comatose. Maester Luwin said he would live, but... but he will never walk again."

The Arryn daughter looked visibly angered, and, while attempting to remain calm, asked, "And you're saying the Lannister's were responsible for it?"

"I investigated myself. Given what I found and the information I received, everything pointed to the Lannister's, it could only have been them." Catelyn explained.

The explanation made Alyssa want to scream, but she managed to keep her composure and instead clenched her fists as she supressed her anger. "I see..." She turned and started to walk away.

Catelyn, confused, asked her, "Where are you going?"

"To see the Imp." Alyssa replied. "I want to hear it from himself."


Tyrion had heard about the sky cells of the Eyrie.

He'd read about how Ser Arnold Arryn rose twice against his cousin, Lady Jeyne Arryn, only to be imprisoned in the sky cells after the second rebellion failed.

And apparently, all of the time spent in the sky cell had driven Ser Arnold mad.

It was an extremely impressive intimidation tactic, and Tyrion couldn't deny it was, somewhat working on him.

He had faith that he would be able to get out of his situation eventually though.

As a Lannister of Casterly Rock, his captors knew they couldn't afford to kill him, lest they wanted to risk conflict with House Lannister.

The Imp made a promise to himself that if he managed to make it out of this and back to King's Landing, he would not stop drinking until winter had come. Then again, he'd probably keep drinking anyway, even after winter goes by.

He mentally slapped himself.

Just thinking about wine made him thirsty for it, and it annoyed him. He wanted wine, and he wanted it now.

It was only after thinking about wine that he realised, the intimidation of the sky cell wasn't going to drive him mad.

Far from it. The lack of wine was already driving him mad, he was actually starting to wonder if he'd already gone mad just thinking about it.

The dwarf was so deep in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed the door to his cell open.

When he finally did start paying attention, he looked over and saw Alyssa enter his cell, holding a large mug.

"Lady Alyssa." The dwarf said.

The Arryn daughter just stared at him with a stony expression. "Lord Tyrion."

"Last time I saw you was at King's Landing." Tyrion replied, looking her up and down. "You look alluring as always."

Alyssa narrowed her gaze at his compliment, seemingly unhappy that he doesn't seem to be taking his situation far more seriously. "About my father..."

Tyrion locked eyes with her almost immediately as soon as she brought the topic up. "Believe me when I say, I am very, very sorry for your loss. Jon Arryn was a good man. I heard nothing but good things about him."

The sincerity of his tone caught Alyssa off guard for a moment.

Still, she felt the need to ask, she had to know. Taking a deep breath, she looked him in the eye, and asked him, "Did you do it?"

Had the conversation with Lysa not still been fresh in his mind, Tyrion would have almost forgotten what the Arryn daughter was talking about.

"Did you kill my father? Were you involved in his death?" Alyssa asked again.

Tyrion mustered up a brave face and answered as sincerely as he could. "No. I had nothing to do with your fathers death. I swear it."

His tone was convincing, and it made Alyssa start to doubt if he was responsible or not. "How do I know you're telling the truth?" She asked.

"The more important question is, what would I have to gain from killing your father?" Tyrion responded.

Alyssa already had an answer however. "To ensure your father, Tywin Lannister, took his place as the new Hand of the King."

"Hm, an interesting theory." Tyrion replied with an amused stare.

She wasn't finished yet, and added, "When King Robert rode for Winterfell to appoint my uncle in law, Ned Stark, as the new Hand of the King, you orchestrated Bran's fall, crippling him. In order to finish the job, you hired someone to try and kill him while he was still comatose. You did all this in hopes that my uncle would refuse the King's offer and remain at Winterfell, leaving the position of Hand of the King open to your father."

Tyrion nodded, his mouth twisting into an amused smile. "A very convincing story."

Alyssa tilted her head a little, waiting for him to deny it, to refute her statement, to just come up with an excuse in an attempt to prove her wrong.

He said nothing however.

And when it was clear that he had no intention of saying anything, Alyssa then asked him, "Aren't you going to deny it? Not even an excuse?"

Still smiling, Tyrion replied, "I don't think I have to my lady."

When it was clear to him that Alyssa was confused by his response, he added, "After all, you know how much my father hates me. Why in seven hells would I even think of trying to make him Hand of the King?"

Alyssa thought about his response for a moment.

The more she did, the more it made sense.

It was no secret that Tywin hated Tyrion, and if there was a conspiracy to make him the new Hand of the King, Tyrion would be the very last person who would have wanted a hand in it.

He was telling the truth. He had to be.

Sighing in defeat, Alyssa approached Tyrion, kneeling down to his height before handing him the mug she was holding.

"What's this?" Tyrion asked.

Alyssa offered the tiniest smile she could manage, replying, "I know how much you like to drink. I assumed you might go mad if you didn't have something to keep you sane."

"You assumed right my lady." Tyrion replied almost instantly, taking the mug from her before looking inside. "...It's...not poisoned, is it?"

His comment earned an offended frown from the Arryn daughter.

Tyrion nodded, quickly apologising, "Of course, of course, you're right, I'm sorry. That was rude of me."

"Apology accepted." She said before standing back to her full height. "If you'll excuse me, I must leave now."

As the Arryn daughter made her way to the cell door, Tyrion asked, "What's going to happen to me?"

Alyssa looked back over at the dwarf, uncertain as she replied, "I don't know yet. But, I will try and convince my mother and aunt Catelyn to be lenient with you."

Tyrion mustered up a teasing smirk and asked, "What about letting me go?"

"Don't push your luck, Lord Tyrion." Alyssa replied, smirking a little herself before taking her leave.

Once she was gone and the cell door was locked, Tyrion sat himself down and looked at the mug of wine in his hands.

After admiring it for a moment, he took a sip, then chuckled.

"I missed this."


King's Landing

So much happened so quick that it was just too much for Derek to take in.

The words of his father when Ned walked away continued to haunt his mind, and it worried him to no end that the friendship between Ned and his father was no more.

He was thinking too much, and he needed something to distract himself from the worrying thoughts.

Watching the Sword of the Morning practice with some of her own household guard was one way to distract himself, as he never got tired of watching the woman's flawless swordplay.

During the session, Alexis did offer the Prince to join in, but he politely refused, content to just watch, he knew that disarming the Sword of the Morning was a dream that would never come true for any man, let alone him.

He did make sure to count the number of times the Lady of Starfall disarmed her men, though that didn't last long, as he lost count after forty.

Once more, he found himself thinking back to the heated exchange between Ned Stark and his father.

Derek frowned a little and slapped his head lightly, hoping that by some miracle, the action would have knocked the troubling thoughts from his memory.

"People will think you've gone mad if you do that."

The voice of the Sword of the Morning caught Derek's attention, seeing her standing just a few feet away, looking at him with concern while her household guard were leaving, clearly glad that their torture session was now over.

"Something's bothering you." Alexis said.

Derek sighed, "That obvious huh?"

The Lady of Starfall chuckled a little, seating herself down next to him before replying, "You could say that. I've seen my brother act that way many times, and when he does, something is always bothering him. All boys your age are like that in fact."

"Not all boys." Derek replied.

Alexis smirked now. "You'd be surprised, trust me." She went silent for a moment, before asking him, "So, care to tell me what's troubling you?"

Just as Derek turned to respond, another voice interrupted him.

"Prince Derek!"

The young Stag looked over and saw Jocelyn approaching. "Lady Jocelyn?"

Alexis rose to her feet, curious when she noticed the eldest Stark daughter's troubled look.

"Have you seen my father anywhere? I can't find him." Jocelyn asked, trying to mask her worry.

Derek flinched slightly in response to her question, and he did his best to hide the worried look on his face.

But despite his subtlety in trying to hide his worry, Jocelyn easily noticed, and asked, "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

With both of their eyes on him, Derek realised he had to explain what happened eventually.

That didn't make him any less nervous.

Since Ned was no longer the Hand of the King, that meant he would be leaving King's Landing to go back to Winterfell.

Which also meant that Jocelyn, Sansa and Arya would be leaving too.

And he didn't want them to leave.

Despite having his family and relatives to talk to, Derek never really had anyone close to his age to talk to or play with, or spar with in Arya's case. Sure there was Tommen and Myrcella, but most of the time they were with their mother.

The presence of the Starks had made life much more enjoyable for him in King's Landing, and now that they could potentially be leaving, it made his heart ache.

He didn't want them to leave.

But he couldn't stop them either. It would be wrong if he tried to.

It was probably for the best if he explained sooner rather than later, lest he wanted to risk the Stark daughters' ire for not telling them sooner.

Taking a deep breath, Derek said, "I was in the throne room when a small council meeting was-"

"Lady Jocelyn!"

A few men from Ned's household guard interrupted the Prince before he could explain, sprinting towards the three and looking very much in a hurry.

Jocelyn turned to her fathers guards, caught off guard by their unexpected interruption and looking confused as to why they were in such a rush.

"What's wrong?" The eldest Stark daughter asked.

One of the Stark guards tried to respond, but failed, too busy trying to catch his breath.

Another spoke for him instead, and replied, "It's your father!"

Jocelyn froze, her calm expression on the verge of shattering, whereas Derek and Alexis looked very concerned, and didn't even attempt to hide it.

It took all of Jocelyn's willpower to keep it up even after the Stark guard delivered the news.

"Your father...he was attacked by the Lannister's!"


Author's Notes: Finally got that done. This chapter ended up being a little bit longer than I originally intended, but whatever, progress is progress, I'm not gonna complain. Now things should finally start to get interesting. I do apologise if things seem like they're dragging on, but I'm simply trying to make sure that every character gets their share of the spotlight.

Now that I'm approaching this stage of the story, things are going to start getting difficult for some characters, decisions will have to be made that will determine theirs or someone else's fate.

Anyway, as usual, please Review, the feedback is appreciated.