I woke up to Aylward shaking me. "Gods, Amina, wake up!" He shouted. I sat up. My stomach churned and I ran for my chamber pot. I dropped to my knees and threw up my lunch.

"Are you alright?" Aylward asked me. "Were you with your sister? Did something happen again?" He looked quite afraid. The last time he'd had to try so hard to shake me awake, I had just barely escaped the House of the Undying.

"I was...trying something new," I told him. "It worked. However, I'm not keen on trying it again any time soon."

"You're wearing your clothes from yesterday," he realized. "How long have you been asleep?"

"Yesterday?" I asked. "I went to sleep right after you left. It's still light outside, I couldn't have been gone that long."

"You missed dinner with Doran, he had a tray sent up but it's sitting in the hallway."

"Alright, yes, I definitely will not be trying that again." I ran my fingers through my hair. "Did you come here to tell me something? Or were you just checking on me."

"Jaime Lannister is here," Aylward told me.

"What? Why?"

"Something about rescuing Myrcella," he said. "Prince Doran asked if you could speak to him, I thought you might want to anyway." He looked at me sitting on the floor next to my chamber pot. "Then again, maybe you should just rest."

"I've been asleep for an entire day, I've had enough rest." I stood up, and the room started spinning. Aylward grabbed me. "Maybe if you could just...bring me some water and something light to eat. I'll change clothes."

He nodded and let me go slowly. Then he went out into the hallway. I steadied myself as I went through my new closet for something to wear. I struggled to untie the laces on the dress I was wearing. The door opened again and one of Myrcella's handmaidens stepped in. "Ser Caswell asked me to assist you. Are you alright, my lady?"

"Just a little under the weather." She helped me change into a different dress, and then she brushed my hair and arranged it so it was out of my face. "That will be all," I said, dismissing her.

She opened the door just as Aylward returned. The two almost collided and the girl giggled, he smiled at her. "Why are you always so nice?" I groaned.

"I beg your pardon?" He asked.

I didn't repeat myself. I took the water and chugged it. Then selected an orange from the tray and set about unpeeling it. "I'm in a very terrible mood."

"I can see that. Are you going to tell me what happened?"

I ate a piece of orange, taking a moment to chew and deiced how much to tell Aylward. "A woman in Meereen helped me to speak to Jon. I had to go, I needed to talk to him in person, there was too much to put into a letter. But now he's Lord Commander and he told me he couldn't be with me, and-"

"Amina, please slow down. How did you get there?"

"Blood magic," I admitted. "I suppose that's why I'm so sick." He nodded as if he understood perfectly. "Can you please be angry, or scared, or something besides calm? A person cannot be calm all the time, it's unnatural!"

He sat on the side of the bed next to me. "Why would I be angry with you?"

"Because I put myself in danger, time after time," I said. "And I drag you with me. But you never get angry with me, you just do what I say."

"You're my Queen," he said. "I believe in you, I trust you. I am also very worried about you, but I could never be mad at you."

"You should be scared of the magic," I said. "I can travel across the Narrow Sea and have tea with my twin sister whenever I nap. I've held a baby dragon. Today I used blood magic to get into a fight with the love of my life."

"There is nothing there to be scared of, you're amazing. You fight better than some men I know. You can captivate a room with your words. And you always find the best in every person."

"Oh, Aylward," I cried. I hugged him. He let me cry on his shoulder for a few minutes. Then he helped me to my feet. "I couldn't ask for a better Commander for my Queensguard."

"If you're going to start calling me Commander, it would be nice to have a few other swords to command," he teased.

"How about Jaime?" I asked.

A look of panic flashed across his face. But very calmly he said, "You do remember Jaime Lannister only has one hand, yes?"

I laughed. "I'm only kidding! But now I know you do have more emotions than that calm exterior would suggest. Show me to Jaime's room?"

"Of course, your grace."

OoOoO

Areo was standing guard outside Jaime's room. It was certainly a step up from a prison cell, but the room still had bars instead of a door. He smiled when he saw me. "Amina." I walked up to him and gave him a hug. For a moment he did nothing, and then he hugged me back. "Your hair has gotten quite light," he noted.

"I'm done dyeing my hair," I told him.

He reached up and touched my hair. "I'm sure it will look good on you."

"Why didn't you send word you were coming?" I asked.

"Threats have been made against Myrcella's life," he said.

"Threats?"

"Cersei received a box with a viper statue. The snake was holding Myrcella's necklace in its mouth."

"Ellaria and the Sand Snakes," I realized. "Since Oberyn's death, Ellaria has been hell bent on going to war. She and Oberyn's eldest daughters have been planning something. None of us knew what."

"They have the girls locked up, they attacked when Bronn and I first saw Myrcella."

"So, had you retrieved Myrcella without any problems, you wouldn't have even said hello?"

"It wasn't exactly an official diplomatic mission."

"I'm offended." He smirked. "Myrcella is happy here, truly."

"She said as much when she stopped by," he told me. "Do you really believe she is safe here?"

"With the Sand Snakes out of the picture, yes. She and Trystane are in love. It's rare that an arranged marriage works out so agreeably, it would be wrong to take that away from her."

"Hmm. Have you spent much time with her? What's she like?"

"Everyone adores her, she's smart and kind. She knows who I am, but hasn't told a soul, not even her handmaidens. She certainly didn't get her kindness from her mother." He smiled softly.

"I would like to get to know her."

"Stay here." He looked just as surprised as I was at the words.

"What?"

"Don't take her back to King's Landing. She's no safer there than she is here, and at least here she's happy. And you can get to know your daughter."

"Cersei would never-"

"Send her a raven, say you're staying to protect her," I suggested. "Or let her think you died."

"She'd send someone else for Myrcella eventually."

"Then we'd just have to stop them." I shrugged. "Doran is planning a rebellion, he wants to put me on the throne. This is what you hoped for when you arranged for me to come here, is it not?" He nodded. I had other words planned, something Aylward would have called captivating. But those words died on my lips. "Why?" I asked softly.

"I don't know," he whispered. I hadn't realized how close we had gotten until he kissed me. Much to my own surprise, I didn't push him away. "What about the bastard?"

"Shh." He placed kisses slowly down my neck.

"That large man with the axe is gone," he told me.

"Areo knows I could take you in a fight," I teased.

"You're the one who said I could be a knight even if I held my sword with my foot."

I smiled. "I didn't say how good of a knight you'd be." I untied the sash around his Dornish robe. He started untying the laces on my dress, but he was slow with only one hand. "Trust me, if I wanted to kill you, you wouldn't be able to stop me."

"Oddly that only makes me want to untie this faster."

OoOoO

My head rested on Jaime's chest, and he drew circles on my back with his finger. "I was having an awful day," I mused. "However, I'm feeling significantly better now."

"What happened?" He asked.

"I offered to legitimize Jon and relieve him from his Night's Watch vows. He said no."

"In a letter?"

"Something like that. He told me to be happy without him, I'm not sure that's possible, but I'm trying to prove myself wrong."

"Ah. That explains this."

"I suppose it does." I sighed. I rolled over so I was on my back, looking up at the ceiling. "It certainly helped get my mind off things. I haven't been with anyone since Robb..." I trailed off.

"I haven't been with anyone but Cersei."

"I don't believe that for a moment." I sat up on my elbows.

"It's true."

"Hmm. Whoever thought a Targaryen and a Lannister would be friends?" I mused.

"Certainly no one in our generation."

"I'm glad we are."

He smiled. "Me too."

"You're going back to Kings Landing." It was a statement, not a question.

"I have to."

"That's unfortunate. I wish I could go back, Dorne is so far from the rest of the world." I sighed. "One day."

"Brienne went looking for your sisters," Jaime told me.

"Did she? I hope she succeeds." A moment later I was crying. Jaime looked at me sort of panicked, as if he had never seen a woman cry before. "They're the only things I have left."

"There are rumors from the Boltons that Rickon and Bran are still alive." I looked at him, unable to believe it. "Apparently they ran off before Winterfell was burned."

"But Theon would have told me," I insisted. But I remembered how I actually hadn't let Theon do much talking.

"The Greyjoys were never much for courage or honor."

I shook my head. "If they're out there, then I have to find them."

"Hopefully the Boltons will be long gone by then," he said. "It wouldn't be good for the boys to end up in their hands."

I groaned. "This world is so large and scary. Do you ever think about Sothoryos?" I asked suddenly. "Or the Summer Isles?"

"Margaery and Joffrey had a Summer Islander dance at their wedding."

I rolled my eyes. "But imagine a land where it's always summer. I bet no one there has ever once uttered the phrase "winter is coming." I wish I could go there."

"There isn't anything stopping you."

"Oh sure, just the fate of the Seven Kingdoms and the lives of my siblings," I muttered. "Nothing of any consequence."

"Sothoryos is full of diseases anyway."

"There's that scary part I mentioned." I lay my head on his chest again. "I'll talk to Doran for you. He'll listen to what I have to say. But for a moment let's just lay here and imagine we're in a land of endless summer."

OoOoO

Myrcella met me in the hallway on the way to the solar room. "I like your dress."

She did a twirl, the Dornish dress didn't billow like her usual gowns, but it was quite pretty. "It's new. Would you like one? I can have the seamstress create a complimentary wardrobe for us."

She sounded excited, it was almost hard for me to let her down. "I'm quite comfortable in what I've already acquired, but thank you."

"I do like your dresses," she admitted. Upon arriving in Dorne, I'd created a wardrobe of southern pieces in northern colors. It was a perfect blend of my heritage. For the first time in my life, I had the final say in what I wore. No one was pressuring me to fit in.

We walked into the solar room where Doran, Trystane, and Ellaria were already waiting. Areo and Aylward both stood to the sides of the room. Myrcella sat next to Trystane, but snuggled next to him so there was plenty of room for me on the settee.

Ellaria regarded me coolly. Doran motioned for one of the servants to pour the wine. I took a large sip from my cup before everyone else was served, and Doran looked at me with amusement.

The door opened once more, Jaime walked in. "Forgive us," Doran said. "We've started without you."

"Princess Myrcella," Jaime said a bit surprised.

"Uncle."

"Lovely dress," he said.

"You don't like it?" She asked, tilting her head.

"Aren't you cold?"

"Not at all, the Dornish climate agrees with me."

"Prince Trystane," Jaime said tersely. He sat down across from me. I gave him a small smile, which he returned. I caught Ellaria's look of disgust and raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing in Dorne?" She asked Jaime.

"Looking out for safety of my niece."

"And instead of sending a raven, or speaking to me directly," Doran began. "You chose to enter my country secretly, and abduct our guest against her will."

"We received a threatening message," Jaime told him. "The princess's necklace in the jaws of a viper."

"That necklace was stolen from my room," Myrcella said.

Doran looked at Ellaria, who gave nothing away. A servant placed food on the table between the two settees. "Perfect," Jaime said. "A fine meal before the beheading."

"I will not take your head," Doran said. Ellaria shot him a look. "The people want war, but I have seen it. I have seen the bodies piled up on the battlefields, and the orphans starving in the streets. I do not want to lead my country into that hell."

"No, you want to break bread with the Lannisters," Ellaria said, disgusted.

"That is precisely what we are doing," Doran said. "Amina speaks highly of this man, she says his intentions are true. I am inclined to believe her." He picked up his wine and held it up. "Let us toast to King Tommen, First of His Name, King of the Andals and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms."

We each picked up our cups and took a drink. All but Ellaria. She tipped her cup slowly, pouring her wine onto the rug. "How can you drink to a king you do not support?" Ellaria spat at me.

I sat my cup back down slowly. "It's called diplomacy. Perhaps you should give it a try."

"King Tommen insists on his sister's return to the capital?" Doran asked, as if no one had noticed Ellaria's outburst.

"I'm afraid he does," Jaime said.

"I cannot disobey a direct order from my king," Doran said. Myrcella looked at him, upset. "The Princess will return with you to King's Landing. As will Prince Trystane." Myrcella relaxed, Trystane looked at her and smiled. "For the goodwill between Dorne and the Crown to continue, their engagement must stand."

"I accept," Jaime said.

"One more thing," Doran said. "My brother was named to the Small Council before his death, Trystane will take his place."

"You have my word," Jaime said.

Ellaria stood up suddenly. "No wonder you cannot stand, you have no spine."

Doran reached out and grabbed her wrist as she passed. "You are mother to four of my nieces, for their sakes I hope you have a very long life. But, if you speak to me that way again, you will not." She yanked her wrist away from him and left the room.