A/N: Sorry for the long wait, AGAIN. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who reviewed and to all of my new followers. You guys are literally so awesome. I'm hoping to get back into a more consistent writing pace that way I can actually reply to everyone personally like I used to. Thanks again for sticking with me!


The wrenching sobs that escaped from Dimeria's mouth racked Jaime's heart. He held onto her shaking body tightly as she buried her face into the crook of his neck and they slid down into a lying position on her bed. Jaime could tell that Dimeria was an ugly crier, but he supposed that was due to the fact she didn't typically allow herself this heavy of an emotional release. Still, the Kingsguard warrior was slightly apprehensive to look at the wet spot that would be on his tunic when Dimeria stopped crying.

After quite a while, the quaking sobs ceased and Dimeria was reduced to shaky breaths and slight whimpers. Never had the brave warrior felt so small in Jaime's arms. Acting on the anxiety he had been feeling for the past few minutes, Jaime got up to ensure there weren't any guards outside Dimeria's door. He had ordered them away when he first entered the room, but since his father wanted Dimeria under some sort of observation; Jaime feared they were still out there.

"Jaime, please don't go." Dimeria hoarsely whispered when he got up.

He shushed her softly. "I'm not going anywhere." It only took him a moment to look both ways down the hall and feel reassured that no one was eavesdropping on them. He then climbed back into the bed and wrapped his arms around Dimeria once again.

"Lannister, I'm sorry-" Dimeria began, though Jaime quickly cut her off.

"Sleep, Dimeria." Jaime told her sternly. "You need to rest." Sensing the surprise and hurt he had caused with his words, Jaime placed a soft kiss upon her brow to soften the blow. "I'll be right here...just sleep."

Without another word, Dimeria rolled over on her side and Jaime followed suit to hold her from behind. It seemed to only take seconds for Dimeria's breathing to deepen into a peaceful sleep, though the same could not be said for Jaime. His eyes remained open as he breathed in Dimeria's scent over and over while a part of him wished he could cry just as Dimeria had, but no tears came to his eyes. He wanted to rid his heart of the same weight Dimeria surely felt, but he knew it would never be as easy as just crying every night he went to sleep. The only way Jaime could truly rid himself of his troubles was to face them head on; he only wished that Dimeria would realize the same thing.

Jaime stifled a sigh so he wouldn't wake Dimeria. He was still trying to wrap his mind around what had just transpired. Instead of handling her problems head on, Dimeria had tried to forget about them through sex. Jaime inwardly groaned; King's Landing was apparently having a horrible effect upon Dimeria. It hurt when Dimeria had confessed what she was truly thinking when she had kissed Jaime; he wanted to have sex with Dimeria, but not the way it almost happened. Deep down, what Jaime had always wanted was what the septas always told young girls stories about: he wanted to make love to Dimeria.

But Dimeria wasn't ready for that...she was far from ready. Jaime could wait; he didn't necessarily have a choice, but it wasn't the sex, or lack thereof that was bothering him now. It was time for Dimeria to grow up. Jaime needed her to get her head screwed on straight or else she would never come out of this alive. Things were going horribly, Jaime was well aware of that, but when disaster struck, he expected Dimeria to know that she needed to react calmly.

Jaime unconsciously tightened his arms around Dimeria. She was a warrior and she needed to start using her warrior instincts; not turn into a damsel in distress. Not knowing how long he had laid there pondering his situation with Dimeria, Jaime's eyes finally began weighing down with exhaustion. Before long, his mind shut out all negative thoughts and he succumbed to a deep, deep sleep.

Dimeria awoke from a slightly fitful slumber, slipped quietly from Jaime's arms, and immediately began pacing about her room. She bit her lip and twirled a strand of hair around her finger. Gods she was embarrassed! She could hardly look over in Jaime's direction without feeling her cheeks heat up feverishly. Her mind scolded her harshly.

You idiot!

I know.

Sex isn't going to get rid of your problems…

I'm aware.

Then why'd you do it?!

I don't know!

You better get your act together, little warrior…

I'm trying.

Not hard enough…

Dimeria sighed and went to her window. Ignoring the fact that her inner argument made her feel insane, Dimeria forced herself to accept that her subconscious was right: she needed to get her life back in order. Well...in as much order as she possibly could in a place like King's Landing.

The horrid stench from the city drifted through her window and caused Dimeria to scrunch her nose in disgust, much like the way she cringed at her behavior the night before. She spun away from the window and resumed her pacing. She was restless, though Dimeria felt that the word was an understatement of how she truly felt; she wanted to punch something. A humorless laugh escaped her mouth; if only she had just hit something last night instead of throwing herself at Jaime.

Dimeria risked a glance at Jaime's sleeping form and felt a gush of warm emotions radiate throughout her chest, though it was quickly consumed by searing anger. Giving in to her physical urge, Dimeria stomped over to the wall and punched it with all her might.

She quickly regretted it.

Gasping in pain and clutching her hand tightly, Dimeria began mentally berating herself once more.

That wasn't very smart, was it…?

Shut up.

You better hope they're not broken…

They aren't.

Oh, now look what you've done. You woke up Jaime!

Dimeria looked over and saw Jaime sitting up in bed and rubbing the sleep out of his emerald eyes.

"Are you alright? What was that noise?" Jaime asked through a yawn.

"It was nothing, I'm fine." Dimeria snapped.

Jaime lifted a brow at her. "Really? You don't sound like you're okay."

"Then why did you ask?!" Dimeria said with clenched teeth; it was a lot easier, not to mention much less painful, to take her anger out on Jaime rather than her hand.

Green eyes narrowed dangerously at Dimeria. "I'm going to ask you one more time: what's your problem?"

"What do you think, Lannister?!"

"I assume you're referring to the trial yesterday." Jaime said, getting out of bed.

"I must say, you are an observant one, Lannister." Dimeria grumbled as she began pacing once again, while still gingerly holding her throbbing hand.

Jaime struggled to reign in his frustration. Taking a deep breath, he went to obstruct her path of pacing. "Dimeria," Jaime grabbed her shoulders. "I understand you're stressed, but you are testing my patience."

Dimeria squirmed away from him. "Could you stop treating me like a child?"

"Could you stop acting like one?" He countered.

His words struck a chord within Dimeria. She looked down shamefully. "I'm sorry." She mumbled.

Finally noticing how Dimeria was cradling her hand, Jaime grabbed her wrist and inspected it gently after seeing her wince in pain. "What did you do?"

"Punched a wall…"

Jaime scoffed. "Are you serious?"

"I was angry." Dimeria said with a shrug.

Shaking his head, Jaime smirked and kissed her quickly swelling knuckles. "There, all better." He said arrogantly.

Dimeria snatched her hand away. "I don't think it works that way, Lannister."

"Are they broken?" Jaime asked, resuming his seriousness.

She shook her head. "No...Just sore."

"Well that's your own fault."

"I'm aware." She said derisively. Gods, he was beginning to sound like that annoying little voice in her head that she always argued with.

"How are you feeling?" Jaime asked.

"Better, now that I've punched something." Dimeria said with a smirk.

Jaime frowned. He hated the idea of Dimeria hurting herself to get rid of her anger almost as much as he hated what she had tried to do the previous night.

"We should talk about last night, little warrior." Jaime said.

Dimeria's face immediately dropped. "No, we shouldn't."

"And why not?"

"Because it was a mistake...an embarrassing one at that." Dimeria said with a sigh as she ran her hand through her hair. Lifting her blue eyes to Jaime's green, Dimeria was instantly comforted when she saw he wasn't mocking her, nor was he angry.

"Look, I was stressed and being stupid. I should've known better than to handle the situation like that." Dimeria admitted, though she could literally feel her throat constricting at her admission of being wrong. "I'm sorry."

Jaime could have screamed for joy. Thank the gods Dimeria had come to her senses; now he didn't have to bring her to them himself.

"Hm, two apologies in one morning. That's a new record." Jaime smirked, deciding he should rid the atmosphere of the awkward tension and put Dimeria out her misery.

Dimeria allowed herself to smile. "Don't get used to it, Lannister."

Knowing that the happy mood would have to end, Jaime sighed and grabbed Dimeria's uninjured hand. "I should go. Things are going to be hectic today."

Dimeria nodded. "What are they going to do with me?"

"I'm sure my father will have you escorted to a Small Council to officially fill you in on what they've decided. Don't worry," Jaime said, stepping forward a place a kiss on Dimeria's forehead. "we're going to get through this together. Alright?"

Another nod was all Dimeria had to offer and without another word, Jaime left her alone in her room.

"The Lord Hand has requested that Lady Dimeria be observed at all times." Jaime told the other Kingsguard members.

"Why doesn't he just lock her up with the imp?" Meryn Trant asked spitefully.

Jaime's lips pursed tightly. "Because she has not actually committed a crime."

A displeased scoff sounded from Meryn Trant. "Why do we have to watch her? You seem to spend enough time with her on your own."

"One man can only do so much. I may be a Lannister, but I do have some limits." Jaime tried to blow off the hideous man's remark. No other words were spoken from the other guards. "You're all dismissed." Jaime announced.

The gold cloaks filed out all at once, except for Meryn Trant. "You won't be able to protect the bitch forever, Ser Jaime." He growled out.

Jaime hardly flinched. "Lady Dimeria does not need my protection. You would do well to remember that, Ser Meryn."

Beady eyes glinting with malicious intent glared at Jaime for a few more agonizing seconds before Trant left Jaime alone. Never before had Jaime so badly wanted to eviscerate that man than he did now, but he wisely pushed the notion from his mind. Straightening his broad shoulders, Jaime decided to do his rounds about the castle; he desperately needed something to occupy his mind for the time being. Within a few short minutes of his patrol, a young handmaiden came scurrying up to him.

"His Grace has ordered a Small Council meeting." She squeaked out quickly.

Jaime furrowed his brows. "His Grace? You mean Lord Tywin?"

The small girl shook her head. "No, My Lord. King Tommen." She then turned around and padded away in the direction she came from. At a quicker pace than he had been walking before, Jaime began making his way to the Small Council chamber, all the while wondering why on earth Tommen would be requesting a meeting.

Dark clouds blocked the sun, though Dimeria doubted it would rain. For all the time she had been in King's Landing, there had never been any sort of precipitation; the Red Keep was constantly in a state of drought. Dimeria had patiently waited in her room for most of the day, for she had expected to be brought before the Small Council, but no summons had come.

The room began stifling her as she desperately wished something would happen, anything that would give her something to focus on other than the fact that her life was balancing on a tightrope for the moment. The stench from the city wafted into her face from the window, helping Dimeria decide that she needed what little fresh air that King's Landing had to offer. She made it out of her door and into the hallway, only to be blocked by two Kingsguard members who had been silently guarding her room.

"I'm just taking a walk, or is that suddenly a criminal act now, too?" She asked venomously.

Statues stared back at her in silence, so she simply stalked ahead of them with seething anger knowing that they would follow closely behind her. Dimeria made it to the rose gardens while suffering through many fearful and hateful stares; she suddenly had a good feeling of how Jaime felt for most of his life. The flourishing hedges secluded her from the chaos of the outside world; had the guards not been directly behind her, Dimeria would have been in complete peace.

Red and orange roses blossomed beautifully about her and their scent was strong enough to almost mask odor of the city. Dark clouds above Dimeria cast cool shadows upon the ground intermittently; the breeze blew her hair back and brought goosebumps to her skin. Dimeria slowed her pace and forced herself to calm her racing heartbeat.

Everything is going to be okay… Dimeria tried to tell herself-at least she wasn't in prison.

Her bleak thoughts immediately turned to Tyrion; he was in the dungeons...rotting in his own feces and having to deal with his upcoming death all by himself. Dimeria turned a corner, her eyes cast down to the ground in depression when she ran into one of the king's gardeners.

"Oh, excuse me, I'm sorry…" She muttered weakly.

"Not to worry, my lady." The man smiled at her. He was elderly, his skin worn and leathery and telling of the long years he had spent in this life. His eyes seemed to sparkle as he looked at Dimeria and she felt a sense of calm wash over her. His shoulders were hunched over and his hands were calloused from years and years of gardening.

"It's a beautiful day for some time in the gardens." He said kindly, gesturing to the hedges around them. The kindness with which he spoke informed Dimeria that he apparently had no clue of what she had been accused of.

"Yes, it is." She agreed, forcing a smile to her face. She suddenly noticed the basket of roses at his side. "Cutting the flowers?"

The man nodded with another smile. "They're too lovely not to use as decorations." He turned back to the hedges and produced a small knife from his pocket. "Here," he said as he sheared two roses, one red and one orange, and handed them to Dimeria. "a pretty flower for a pretty lady."

A genuine smile stretched across Dimeria's face. The kindness this man radiated absolutely enthralled her. There was no awkward, sexual undertone to his compliment; just sweet intent and a cheerful grin.

Dimeria said a soft thank you to the gardener and went on her way, all the while holding the roses to her nose and sniffing them happily. The guards behind her were now in the back of her mind as she gazed at the sun setting in the west. A glorious orange sphere of flame unleashed bright hues of red and fuschia, but Dimeria did not need to squint her eyes to look; it was almost as if the sun had removed its blinding rays and revealed its dazzling beauty upon the world. The sky soon began to darken though, and no twinkling stars could be seen as night began to shroud the magnificent mirage of warm colors from the sun. When the last flame of fire had diminished from the sky, Dimeria heaved a heavy sigh and turned to resume her walking back into the castle.

It didn't take long for dread to cloud her mind as she walked past flickering flames and shadows. The footsteps of the guards echoed behind her, bringing irritation to Dimeria's mind as she thought of how incompetent they truly were. Anxious to get to her room and away from the lurking gargoyles behind her, Dimeria quickened her pace. Her sigh of relief was cut short when she saw Jaime pacing anxiously in front of her door.

Why hadn't he just gone into her room?

"Lady Dimeria…" He called out when he saw her.

Dimeria flinched at her title. "Yes…?"

"You've been requested to be at a Small Council meeting." Jaime said, his posture rigid as a tree trunk.

Dimeria nodded her consent and eyed Jaime warily; why was he acting so strange?

"I'll take it from here, gentleman." Jaime informed the two guards behind Dimeria. He didn't wait for an answer and immediately began walking down the hall, making Dimeria struggle to catch up with him.

"What's going on, Lannister?" Dimeria asked once they were out of earshot of the other guards.

"You'll find out soon enough." He muttered. He kept on walking in silence, Dimeria struggling to keep up with his lengthy strides.

Nearly jogging to stay at the same pace, Dimeria peered at Jaime's face; his skin was pale, making his green eyes shine brilliantly, though Dimeria could not tell exactly what they were shining with. Jaime's strange behavior rubbed off on Dimeria and her heart suddenly began beating frantically. Part of her wanted to run screaming away from the castle, but another part wanted to march right into the Small Council chamber and fight every person in the room until her safety and the safety of those she cared for was guaranteed. When she and Jaime reached the door to the room, she did neither of those things. Dimeria walked in with her head held high and showed no fear; except for the way she bit her lip, but no one ever seemed to notice that little habit besides Jaime.

"Lady Dimeria, have a seat." Tywin Lannister said. Despite his customary intimidating and cool demeanor, Dimeria could see that even he was uncomfortable about something by the way he was sitting.

"What's going on?" Dimeria asked. No one seemed to be making eye contact with her at all. She began fidgeting her hands in her lap. "Is this about what that whore accused me of?" She asked spitefully when no one answered her first question.

Dimeria seemed to break the ice in the room, for everyone seemed to flinch at her blunt words.

"No, it isn't." Tywin answered her.

"Then what's going on?" Dimeria's irritation was beginning to make her sound impudent.

Tywin finally spoke after a beat. "As you know, we don't have any actual proof of you being a Targaryen." Dimeria forced a lump down her throat. "We plan to have you watched by the Kingsguard members at all times, for safety purposes, of course."

It was all information that Dimeria had heard the night before from Jaime, but she remained calm and interested for the sake of Tywin.

"We planned to have your trial a fortnight after Tyrion's trial by combat, but we seem to have run into some unforeseen circumstances."

Dimeria's ears perked at the new information. "What do you mean?"

Tywin stretched his neck in what looked like stress. "King Tommen has requested your hand in marriage."


Until next time...