The girls arrived to the stands early, with a familiar man in silks showing them to their seats. The scent of meat and garlic wafted through the air, as spectators left their breakfasts behind and joined the girls in the stands.

Mina crinkled her nose as her father took the empty seat beside her. "Father… you haven't been drinking already, have you?"

Eddard looked at his oldest daughter, before nodding in the direction of the king. "I didn't have much of a choice it seemed." As if to prove the point, the king let out a loud roar of drunken laughter. Mina laughed as her father brought his hand to his temple, while Sansa's face flushed with embarrassment. Her father seemed the most relaxed that he'd been since they arrived in King's Landing, which felt a relief to Mina. She wondered if his ease had anything to do with the queen's notable absence on this day of the tournament. For her part, Mina was simply happy that her wretched brother-in-law to be, the prince, wasn't there.

Before long, the horns blew to signal the approach of the riders for the first joust of the day. The knots returned to Mina's stomach as Sandor rode onto the field. To the other spectators, Mina imagined, he looked no different than the day before, but Mina knew he would be in considerably more pain today than he had been the day before.

Jamie Lannister followed Sandor onto the pitch, followed by a roaring applause for the queen's handsome brother. The Kingslayer's shining golden armour was noticeably more impressive than Sandor's dull grey chainmail. Even Jamie's horse was gilded with golden mail, while Stranger looked comparatively bare.

While all eyes were on Jamie and his entrance, Mina stared towards Sandor with the steadiest smile she could manage. The man's snarling helm nodded in her direction, and for a moment it was as though they were alone in her chambers again. Mina recalled how comfortable she had felt waking up beside the man that very morning. She didn't fear him like the rest of the world seemed to.

The moment was broken by the loud voices behind her. The king's little brother, Lord Renly, and Petyr Baelish began to place bets on the outcome of the tilt. "I'll wager a hundred golden dragons on the Kingslayer to slay the Hound." Baelish proclaimed.

"I'll take that, The Hound looks hungry this morning!" Renly replied as the pair of men shook on the gamble. Mina thought it rather funny that Renly could so easily cheer for the man who had unhorsed him just the day before.

Lord Baelish cleared his throat and rested a hand on Mina's shoulder, "And whom are you cheering for to win it all today, Lady Mina?" Mina was rather shocked to have a question directed towards her, she was rather used to being a fixture in the background. Suddenly, she wondered if the lord had noticed how she had smiled at Sandor just moments before.

"Oh, um, I'm not terribly sure, Lord Baelish." Mina replied meekly, as she worried that her cheeks were beginning to turn red.

"I just thought The Hound and you were something of friends, My Lady. And, the yellow of your dress looks an awful lot like the yellow on the Sigil of House Clegane." Lord Baelish had a glint in his eye and a knowing smile fixed to his face. Mina decided she rather didn't like it—or him.

The worst part was that the man was right. She'd been caught. She had wanted some way to show her support for Sandor in the tourney, and wearing a yellow gown was the only way she could think of. She thought she had been rather shrewd, but evidently her intentions were easy for the world to see.

It was then that Mina noticed the stern look her father was giving her. His distaste for both Sandor and the man that she was speaking to now was palpable. Mina tried her best to laugh off the awkward line of questioning, "I beg your pardon, My Lord, but I'm not quite sure what you—"

"After all, it was he that found you lost in that forest on your way south. Wasn't it? Seems like a rather good friend to me…"

Mina wasn't sure how to respond. Mercifully, Lord Renly came to her aid, "Leave the girl alone, Littlefinger. The joust is about to start and I want to see your face properly when you realize you've lost."

Mina was grateful for the respite, but found herself wondering why it wasn't her father who had come to her aid. Perhaps he wanted to hear the answers to those questions as well.

"Just trying to get to know the young lady better, Lord Renly, but I suppose you're right." Mina attempted to focus her attentions back on the jousting ground rather than on the man behind her. Suddenly, a chill went through Mina's spine as Littlefinger leaned forward and whispered into her ear, "Don't worry, Lady Mina, your secrets are safe with me. I just thought it right to warn you that someone is always watching." Slowly, Mina turned her head to look back at the man, but found that his attentions were now thoroughly directed elsewhere.

And with that, the horns blared, signalling the start of the joust. At first Mina found it hard to focus on the competition—wondering just what it was that Lord Baelish had seen, and what price both she and Sandor would pay for his knowledge—but her worries quickly shifted to the perilous joust at hand and Sandor's safety.

Mina watched as Sandor leaned forward in his saddle. His positioning looked awkward compared to the day before, and she wondered if her poor attempt at surgery was to blame. Mina's heart raced as the riders approached, their lances pointed towards each other. The tip of Sandor's lance was deftly avoided by the Kingslayer, while Jamie's point hit square in the centre of Sandor's shield, shattering the lance into pieces and pushing Sandor off course. The crowd erupted in cheers for the queen's handsome brother, but Sandor fought hard to keep his precarious seating atop Stranger.

After the first tilt, Mina wanted to look away, but found she couldn't. She braced herself as the Kingslayer picked up a new lance, and the riders thundered towards each other once more. Mina found her fingernails were digging into her thighs through her yellow gown. Before she could realize what was happening, both lances collided with their opposing metal shields. Sandor fought the force of the impact to keep his seating once more, but Jamie Lannister did not.

Mina had to fight to keep the smile off her face as Jamie Lannister's squire helped the golden man up off the ground, and Sandor rode off coolly with Stranger. She knew Littlefinger would be looking to read her face, but she would not give him the opportunity this time. Instead, she looked to Sansa, and found the girl wore a face of disappointment.

Sansa leaned over to Mina, but before the sisters had a chance to talk, the massive Gregor Clegane road on to the pitch. The day before, the man frightened Mina, but now that she knew what she did about the man, she found his very presence made her feel ill. The crowds cheered for the giant, while Mina wished they knew the truth about what a monster he truly was.

Loras Tyrell of Highgarden entered the jousting grounds to the swoons of the common ladies and Sansa alike. The slender man's armour was decorated with delicate jewels from his boots to his helmet. "Oh, Mina, He's so beautiful…"

Mina forced a nod in agreement to her sister, as she let out a little laugh under her breath. "He's certainly very… pretty, San." Mina's attentions were drawn away from her sister when Gregor's large stallion began to thrash and make a strange noise on one end of the pitch as Loras neared his starting position.

The sound seemed to unnerve Sansa as well who reached across Mina to grab their father's arm, her face suddenly filled with fear "Father, please don't let Ser Gregor hurt Ser Loras. He's the most beautiful knight I've ever seen!"

Mina put her hand on Sansa's slender back as she tried to calm the despondent girl. "Loras is a wonderful rider San, I'm sure there is nothing to worry about." Mina found that she rather hoped the beautiful boy won as well. She'd feel better about Sandor squaring off against him in the final, rather than his monster of a brother—regardless of what Sandor's wishes were.

Loras saluted towards the royal box before shutting his visor and readying his lance, positively dwarfed by the large man at the other end. Mina held her nervous sister's hand in her own, while wondering if her concerns were as plain to see when Sandor took the pitch.

Horns blared and the riders started towards each other. The tilt was over in a matter of seconds. Gregor fought hard merely to keep his wild stallion in place, allowing Loras to aim his point perfectly. Gregor fell hard on the ground, taking his large horse with him. The pair thrashed about on the ground as the man tried to untangle himself from the large horse. The audience went wild with cheers and laughter at the spectacle, as Loras raised his visor and accepted his ovations.

When Gregor finally got to his feet, he jerked his helmet off before throwing it on the ground with such a force that it dented. He had long dark hair, like his younger brother, but Mina thought they looked nothing alike. If not for his extensive burns, Sandor would have been rather handsome, Mina thought. Gregor, in comparison, could never be handsome; his face was permanently wrought with all consuming anger.

Suddenly, the large man yelled for his squire, demanding his sword. The crowds hushed and then erupted in screams as the giant man attempted to used his greatsword to sever his stallion's head from its neck. Mina's stomach lurched as she watched the beast fall to his knees with cries of pain.

With rage on his face, Gregor marched down the field towards Loras—who was still on his horse—with his bloodied greatsword in hand. Sansa grabbed for Mina's as the young girl began to cry in fear, her bravery from the day before had evidently dissipated. Mina held her sister protectively to her chest as her father screamed for the guards to stop the menacing man.

Gregor swiped Loras's young squire aside and grabbed for the horse's reins, thrashing his sword at the Knight of Flowers as he did. Gregor managed to hit the boy square in the chest, knocking him swiftly to the ground. Loras' horse skittered off, as the boy lay defenseless on the ground. Mina tightened her grip on Sansa as Gregor lifted his sword to make the killing blow; Mina closed her eyes as well, neither of them needed to watch this boy's death.

Mina waited for the sickening sound of metal on flesh, but it never came. "Leave him be," a familiar voice rasped. Mina looked up in shock to see Sandor jerking his brother away from the downed boy. Mina had been frightened for Sandor all day, but now it became too much. She no longer cared about masking the emotions that showed so plainly on her face; it was all she could do to remain standing as the brothers began hacking their swords at one another.

No longer crying, Sansa turned her head to look at the spectacle, just in time to see Ser Loras dragged away to safety. With every blow, Mina could imagine the pain Sandor's side must be causing him. Still, the man never aimed for his elder brother's unprotected head—a move that would surely have ended the fight rather quickly. Mina wondered why a man who so desperately wanted to kill his own brother would do this.

"STOP THIS MADNESS IN THE NAME OF YOUR KING," boomed a voice from behind, but Mina couldn't take her eyes off the brothers. Suddenly, Sandor did as he was commanded and dropped to a knee while his brother aimed for a final blow that ultimately missed.

Gregor surveyed the scene. He looked down at his kneeling brother and at the shocked crowd that surrounded him. Finally, he looked up at his king with a deathly glare, before stalking off the pitch.

Murmurs filled the crowd, as Sandor remained kneeled before his king. Sansa looked up at Mina, her arms still wrapped tightly around her older sister's waist, "What happens now, Mina? Is the Hound the champion?"

"No," both girls looked to their father, who Mina had almost forgotten was there. "The final joust between the Hound and Ser Loras." It bothered Mina how even her father failed to use Sandor's real name. Everyone talked about him as if he was some sort of animal, even after he had just saved the life of his competitor.

At that, Ser Loras Tyrell walked back into the jousting grounds, looking noticeably better than he had before. He walked to Sandor, who rose from his kneel on the ground. Loras proclaimed not only to his large saviour, but to the masses in the hushed crowd as well, "I owe you a debt to you for my life." Loras reached for Sandor's steel clad arm and thrust it up into the air in celebration, "I concede the victory to you, Ser. The day is yours." The commons erupted in cheers and celebration.

Sandor looked utterly shocked at the result, and at the adoration he was now receiving. Mina clapped and cheered along with Sansa and the rest of the nobles in the royal box. Mina caught Sandor's eye, and for a moment they shared a smile. She didn't care if Littlefinger was watching her now, she was proud of her friend and she didn't care if it showed or not.

Mina watched as Sandor uneasily collected his champion's purse and led Stranger towards the paddocks. The celebrations of the crowd continued until long after he was out of view. Mina couldn't recall a time in her life when she'd felt as happy as she did at this very moment. She could worry all about Littlefinger, and the details of what exactly he did and didn't know later. For right now, she could be happy.